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Music

The 10 Albums You Need to Hear in February

By Tom Hawking on

Right, so January is over and done with, and it’s time to get back into the usual music industry swing of things (at least until everyone goes to get wankered at SXSW, anyway.) There are plenty of decent records to be heard in February 2013, so without further ado, here is our regular monthly roundup of the albums we reckon are going to be worth hearing over the next four weeks, from brainy electronica to decidedly brainless sea shanties, with a whole bunch of other stuff in between. If there’s anything we missed, do feel free to take to the comments section and let us know! … Read More

Music

A Wonderful Music Video Featuring 200 Parody Album Covers

By Judy Berman on

Parenthetical Girls are a fantastic, bizarre, and grossly under-recognized, avant-pop band from Everett, Washington. We’ve been fans of theirs for a while, so we’re excited to see that their incredibly clever new music video is attracting some attention. The clip for the catchy, glitchy, semi-absurdist “I Need Nothing” is simply a point-of-view shot of a guy browsing in a record store — but the records he’s flipping through are mock-ups of real album covers, decorated with the lyrics to Parenthetical Girls’ song. Watch the video after the jump, then click through for a gallery to get a closer look at some of our favorites of the 200 handmade covers, and see which ones you can identify. We see Led Zeppelin’s debut and London Calling and New Order’s Power, Corruption & Lies and… … Read More

Music

The Year’s 10 Best Underrated EPs

By Zoë Leverant on

Although many of us treat it like the LP’s short, weird cousin that everyone forgets to invite to parties, the EP is a rewarding but surprisingly difficult form to master. Often an opportunity for an artist to experiment with a new sound or expand on past ones, its tracks must be memorable but not overbearing. The perfect EP should satisfy on its own but still leave the listener anticipating a musician’s next release. With an overwhelming number of fantastic albums released in 2010, only a few EPs attracted widespread interest, leaving many worthy ones in the dust. Here are ten we think deserve a closer listen, perfect bite-sized records for your hungry ears, listed in no particular order. … Read More

Daily Dose

Daily Dose Pick: Parenthetical Girls

By Chris Kompanek on

Melancholic crooners and multi-instrumentalists Parenthetical Girls craft lush songs of strife tempered with indie glee and a jazz chanteuse sensibility.

From an inventive cover of “The Windmills of Your Mind” to the horn-strewn cabaret funhouse of “A Song for Ellie Greenwich,” androgynous frontman Zac Pennington wholeheartedly embraces experimentation. The Girls’ latest album, Privilege, subverts the LP structure by dropping as five limited-edition vinyl EPs, signed in blood by the band. The first is out now (complete with Pennington’s vital fluid) exclusively through the group’s site. Digital copies are available for the squeamish. … Read More