Heartbreaking Bravery

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Tag: New Zealand

March 30, 2014

First Quarter Finish (Mixtape)

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Well, Heartbreaking Bravery’s another 50 posts in, which means that it’s time for another mixtape- and the timing couldn’t be any better. As April springs forth, a new quarter begins and leaves the first part of the year behind, opening it up for examination. First Quarter Finish is a testament to the the startling strength of 2014’s first three months and is largely composed of music that’s been featured on this site. Perfect Pussy‘s “Driver” kicks things off in a typically frenzied fashion, reflecting the purpose of this collection as acutely as possible. Make no mistake, this is a batch of songs that traffic in very high intensity even in their quietest moments.

From tour-only tapes to standout cuts off early Album of the Year contenders like Burn Your Fire for No Witness, Here and Nowhere Else, and Rooms of the House to eerily hypnotic moments, deranged apathetic insanity, and a very long list of promising glimpses at upcoming records, it’s truly been a hell of a start and deserves celebration. Listen to the sounds of that celebration below (if the player is not appearing onscreen, it can also be accessed here).

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TRACKLIST

1. Perfect Pussy – Driver
2. La Sera – Losing to the Dark
3. Cheap Girls – Knock Me Down
4. Archie Powell & the Exports – Everything’s Fucked
5. Crow Bait – 83
6. Big Air – Cemetery With A View
7. PAWS – Tongues
8. Brain F≠ – Sicks
9. Antarctigo Vespucci – I’m Giving Up On U2
10. Playlounge – Waves and Waves and Waves
11. Vertical Scratchers – Memory Shards
12. Angel Olsen – Forgiven/Forgotten
13. Silence Dogood – Chairman of the Bored
14. Priests – Right Wing
15. Green Dreams – Eye Contact
16. Fucked Up – Paper the House
17. Creepoid – Baptism
18. La Dispute – Woman (in Mirror)
19. Sleep Party People – In Another World
20. Odonis Odonis – Order in the Court
21. PILE – Special Snowflakes
22. Young Widows – King Sol
23. Protomartyr – Scum, Rise!
24. Technicolor Teeth – Tomb
25. Cloud Nothings – I’m Not Part of Me

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November 29, 2013

Popstrangers – Rats in the Palm Trees (Music Video)

Popstrangers’ Antipodes was the first record since Technicolor Teeth’s Teenage Pagans to perfectly blend shoegaze with aggressive post-punk. Antipodes was also one of the first truly great records of 2013, strongly recalling labelmates Cloud Nothings’ Attack On Memory in tone, scope, and production. With a breakthrough record on their plate, it would’ve been understandable for the band to settle down and continue to play up the record for all its intrinsic worth. Instead, the band’s opting for the hyper-production route and has now revealed both an A and B side for a non-album single.

“Fortuna” was a serviceable B-side that showcased the band’s dream-punk underpinnings.  The A-side, “Rats in the Palm Trees” is a different beast entirely. On “Rats” the band settles back into their deepest strength; melody. “Rats in the Palm Trees” boasts a catchy chorus, several memorable moments of guitar work, some controlled frenetic drumming, and a driving bass line. It’s one of their best and suggests a long future. To accompany the song’s aesthetic the band released a music video earlier this week. In the clip, the band mostly incorporates low-grade footage of themselves playing their instruments and exploring London, where they recently relocated to.

Moving looks to be a smart move for the band as their tendencies and London’s play very well into each other. There’s a certain sense of minor foreboding, small-scale industrialism, and an endless amount of opportunity. It’s easy to see them finding comfort in their new home, the video already seems to suggest they’re in the midst of a contented transition. Watch it all below.

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