World Tour have come down from the snowy peaks with something golden. Ever since I first listened to some World Tour demos almost three years ago I knew I’d never stop pining for more. Over a year since their last single ‘Forever Tonight’, the Swedish three-piece is back with a lush pop gem, ‘Surreal’—and it is just that; the dark winter sky, brimming with stars, falling down. I can feel it.

Sweden-born, Berlin-based duo Iberia rises up with their latest single ‘An Ending (Ascent).’ Maja Millner drapes her empyrean vocals and Alexander Palmestål crafts the effortlessly expanding instrumentals— they’ve got it all figured out. Despite their name, the two swedes’ latest tune resides just off the peninsula— in between the sea and the sky— a slow motion jam fit for one of those lengthy nights in Formentera— when everything melts in the moonlight and we move so slowly that you think the world might just have stopped.

From an old favorite comes a new love.

Paradise-pop duo Southern Shores have returned with a new release to follow up last year’s Atlantic EP, a steadfast summer soundtrack in these parts. Halifax’s Jamie Townsend and Ben Dalton produce highly transportive perfection; their songs capture a moment that you wish would linger for hours— just when the sun meets the horizon and the cerulean sky begins to melt into an enveloping mauve. Southern Shores’ forthcoming EP New World, picks up just where their Atlantic EP left off. So sultry, so hot, each of the release’s seven tracks burn like that undying bonfire at the center of those moonlit, seaside dance parties. Aw yeah, you know the ones I’m talking about. New World arrives on Cascine October 2nd, just in time to relive your summer nights. Listen to ‘New Love,’ a single off the EP, below.

Madràs is a place far away— a place that no longer exists on maps but the city’s name alone evokes strong memories (‘childhood innocence, railway stations, being in an auto rickshaw, wisdom from simple people’) for Jeevan and Mathew Antony. The two brothers were born Madràs, now known as Chennai, in southern India and much of their music under the name Madràs is a product of their nostalgia for the place. Last week they released their beautiful debut album thingscanchange, which you pick up at their bandcamp. I’ve spent the past few days entranced by the thirteen-track release. I was so impressed by the effort that got in touch with Jeevan to see if he’d answer a few questions about Madràs, the album and future of the project— he said yes. Check out his words below.

• Several of the tracks on the album deal with issues of time, its passage and a longing for a there and then (‘older,’ ‘thingscanchange,’ ‘will wait’)— could you describe not the time that you were writing about, but the time when you first started recording songs as Madràs? How did it all come about?

I had another band with my brother, and a friend, called Fou. We were busy recording Fou’s debut record, but I had these ideas that didnt feel Fou-ish. I had just graduated from university, and was still coming to terms with other personal changes in my life; it was a weird/difficult time for me- I guess I have trouble with letting go. I recorded “Older”, and showed it to my brother around May of last year. We’re usually hard to please when it comes to our own material, but he really connected with the song, and encouraged me to explore it further. With that, everything just came out very easy.

• So I know that things started as a solo project. With such personal music grounded in nostalgia, did another person’s input change things? How did your brother’s inclusion affect the recording process?

To be honest, writing music without my brother inevitably feels unnatural, and/or incomplete. We come from a very close-knit family; we all know each other inside out. I think having my brother help me write/finish songs made the whole process easier; he knew where I was coming from and what we were trying to express. 

• What kind of moments or scenes do you think are most fitting for your music. Also, what sorts of images were you envisioning as you worked on the album?

Love, loss, water, rain, winter, fog, sincerity, humility, intimacy, passion, vulnerability, betrayal. 

When working on the album I would often imagine walking through railway stations in India/travelling around India by train, or picture the backwaters of my father’s hometown. 

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After several months, DC-based television producer Fritz, the man behind the bedroom pop project Long Walks On The Beach, has resurfaced from his day job with yet another jangle pop gem. A while ago he looked set to drop an EP, but the release was put on hold as he worked to maintain the steadfast authenticity and simplicity of the project. Fritz writes, “I care about what I put out, and these songs are home-made, like laptop recorded/headphone mixed/unmastered homemade, and I just wasn’t happy with how the other cuts for the EP were sounding. I straight up shelved them, just put them away for another time when I knew a little bit more about wave propagation or sidechain compression or whatever was gonna allow me to achieve the sounds in my head… I decided to just keep moving, make demos like normal, take my time with recording, and put things out when they’re really ready, which because of my television work has been a long long time.” ‘We’re Growing Up’ is Fritz’s latest installment under the Long Walks moniker. This tune, like the others before it, arrives alone. It is here to be enjoyed in the moment. It’s about growing up. It’s about watching the years pass, individually and collectively. As always, I’m excited to see where Fritz takes this little pop project next.

Long Walks On The Beach - We’re Growing Up

Read Fritz’s full write-up here. Download all of his tunes at ze LWOTB bandcamp.

Mexico City’s Oscar Rodríguez has delivered a new tune under his tropical pop moniker Matilda Manzana. A dreamy wander, ‘Pez Espada’ (swordfish) is the first single off Oscar’s upcoming album Conjuntos Cartográficos. The release, pegged to drop sometime before the end of year, will hold ten tracks, each paired with a different map (hence the albums title). Matilda Manzana is not a name, it is a place— imaginary, distant, familiar.

Matilda Manzana - Pez Espada

Stockholm’s Einar Andersson & Hampus Klint have emerged together as Ditt Inre under the veil of their sultry six-track EP, En Värld I Brand. The release will see the light of day May 29 on the ever-indulging bearer of good news, Cascine. The duo crafts a dreamy dance pop which at first gleams with sun-soaked ambivalence, but, at its depths, thoroughly realizes a steeping sensitivity.

The boats rocks as wind simmers the sails. The stars bob endlessly above. A haze rises like cool mist after a nighttime rain— the dark pavement warm still; the soft brume brims with the transient reverie of day.

-Jorden

A year and a half ago, alone in his bedroom in Allston, Massachusetts, Jimmy Hewitt began Orca Orca, then called Young Minds. In the fall of 2010 he pushed aside the plaid shirts lining his closet and recorded jangly guitars riffs. He drove around Boston, finding moments of solitude to record vocals. He put everything together and uploaded a five-song set of bedroom pop gems entitled Imago Demos.

His demos made the rounds, gracing a handful of blogs. Jimmy wanted more than a mere cameo. Fleeting blog fame was not tangible— he wanted to play shows around Boston. The project was in transition. Before one of his first shows, Jimmy told me how surprised he was to see his demos on the internet. He didn’t know how Tyler from Flashlight Tag even came across his music on Bandcamp. A month after uploading the demos, Jimmy was contacted by French netlabel Beko DSL asking if he wanted to contribute a track to an upcoming compilation that would feature some of my current favorites, like The Bilinda Butchers, Sad Souls and Endiamonds (download it here). Still, it all felt distant. People in far off places listened and loved his tunes. Yet, at his first few shows, the crowd was largely friends and family. The propagation of his music via the internet gave him hope for the project, but, at least in his hometown, he would have to wait for recognition. So, he stood on the stage, draped in reds and purples; he jammed away. Sure, maybe he’d break a string in the middle of a song, but he’d keep playing, keeping up with his trusty drum machine. Over the next few months, or perhaps the next year, Jimmy developed Orca Orca. He focused on his live show. He added a drummer, a bassist, a guitarist— it was coming together.

Now, Jimmy, alongside a couple of his closest high-school buddies, has played all over Boston. Two years ago, he may not have had the self-assurance to sing in front of his roommates, let alone a club full of judging, iPhone-wielding faces. Orca Orca is now a more complete project. After his short set a month ago, someone in the crowd shouted, begging for another song. Jimmy laughed and leaned towards the mic— “We don’t have any more songs.” Well now Orca Orca has a few more songs to its name. He’s spent the last few months crafting a new set of tunes. Today, Jimmy released his latest EP, a limited-edition cassette entitled Make Live. His new songs don’t stray far from his early demos. Recorded in his apartment in Allston, they are about the same youthful simplicities— cruising around with friends and staying up until the sun pierces the hazy horizon. You can snag Make Live over at Orca Orca’s bandcamp for free, or drop a couple of bills on a sweet tape.

Catch Orca Orca play some tunes off his new EP April 6th at O’Brien’s in Allston. Also, he’s opening for the like-minded Abadabad— so be there. Check out a couple of new ones below…

Orca Orca - when the sun comes up (original demo)

Orca Orca - Say So

Orca Orca - Make Live

Orca Orca (aka Jim Hewitt) recently released a redux version of ‘Underground,’ a demo that he recorded two years ago under the moniker Young Minds. The tune will accompany five new Orca Orca recordings on a limited edition cassette entitled Make Live, which will drop February 21st. Over the past year Jim has played a bunch of shows around Boston and he’s transformed Orca Orca from a simple bedroom pop musing into a more thought-out live band. Playing live has helped to develop the project’s sound and that will definitely be quite apparent on the new record. Check out the first single off next month’s release below…

Orca Orca - Underground

Stockholm’s Daniel Sjörs, Joel Nyström, and Holm Mia Bøe have been working together for the past few months, releasing a host of stellar ambient electronic tracks as the trio Postiljonen (postman). Their music combines experimental, world, ambient and dance music to create what they describe as ‘heartbreaking electronica.’ Check out Postiljonen and friends mucking about and showing off their footy skillz in the swedish countryside in the video for ‘På väg tillsammans’ above. Take a gander at all their songs over at Postiljonen’s soundcloud or tumblr. 

Postiljonen - På väg tillsammans

Postiljonen - Hasard

Postiljonen - Kebnekaise

[The Apiary]

on the road together ∞

The eagle transcends altitudes of 10,000 feet. 
His golden plumage breaks through the clouds 
and he escapes the bounds of this green earth. 
While some might say he flies too high, like Icarus, 
we believe that one day, we will all transcend,
and have our youth renewed like the eagle’s.

Yesterday The Apiary released a two-track EP from swedish artist Jesper Merrild aka Young Eagle. Earlier this year I came across Jesper’s covers of The Tough Alliance and jj as well as a wee pop gem from back in the day. Young Eagle’s debut release No One Is Holy Without Suffering goes just where I’d been hoping it would; it has the jj-esque balearic feel paired with a darker, sultry, rain-drenched Gotëburg mystique. Ära.

Young Eagle - No One Is Holy Without Suffering

Young Eagle - Jag Kommer Ihåg

Download EP