GERMANY – Blogpartei
Christian Loeffler – Eleven (feat. Mohna)
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There are many subtle things in Christian Loeffler’s debut A Forest which make his music very contemporary – there is swishing, there is rustling, there is clacking, there is tinging. In the pleasantly moody track Eleven, Mohna, singer of former MAP band Me Succeeds, adds another level to Loeffler’s calm but vivid opus.

Um alle 35 Songs in einer Zip-Datei runterzuladen, bitte rüber zu Gett. Alternativ könnt ihr die einzelnen Songs auch per Rechtsklick auf den Titel runterladen.

ARGENTINA – Zonaindie
Prietto Viaja Al Cosmos Con Mariano – Ey, Esa No Es Forma De Decir Adiós
Download audio file (PriettoViajaAlCosmosConMariano-Ey)
Download audio file (EsaNoEsFormaDeDecirAdios(Argentina).mp3)
PVACCM is a psychedelic rock duo (Mariano, drums and vocals; Prietto, guitar and vocals) from Buenos Aires. Their first recordings were kind of lo-fi experiments but in the last couple of years they’ve developed a unique sound with melodies and lyrics that grow on you in a melancholic way. This track is their rendition of Leonard Cohen’s classic tune Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye and features on their last album, a 28-song double record that you can purchase from Bandcamp.

AUSTRIA – Walzerkönig
Mile Me Deaf – Wild At Heart
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Mile Me Deaf is one of the other bands Killed By 9V Batteries’ Wolfgang Möstl plays in. And although side-projects – such an unfair name for a 500+ songs oeuvre – are usually a space for weird shit your band mates didn’t agree to, their first album Eat Skull, and especially the first single Wild At Heart, is surprisingly free of noise and distortion. Instead, it creates the last-day-of-summer-holidays feeling you know from Girls and Beach House.

BRAZIL – Meio Desligado
Leonardo Marques – Linha Do Trem
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Nostalgic melodies are the hallmark of Dia e Noite No Mesmo Céu, the debut album of Leonardo Marques. His songs recall a bucolic scenery, romantic and lonely, as we can hear on Linha Do Trem. Leonardo recorded all instruments on his solo work (except drums) in a homely, intimate setting. His music is likely to appeal to fans of Elliott Smith, Clube Da Esquina and Jon Brion.

CANADA – Quick Before It Melts
The Rest – Always On My Mind
Download audio file (The%20Rest%20Always%20On%20My%20Mind%20(Canada).mp3)
The story of The Rest’s new album, SEESAW, will be one of legend. First, their dear friend and producer Dan Achen passed away suddenly just as they started recording. Then, a month away from finishing the record, a hard-drive glitch deleted everything they’d done so far. It took a black box recovery team six months to retrieve it. Now, more than a year later, it’s here. And it’s stunning. The beautifully hazy Always On My Mind just hints at SEESAW’s orchestral brilliance.

CHILE – Super 45
Daniel Klauser – Simply Swag
Download audio file (Daniel_Klauser_-_Simply_Swag_-_Chile.mp3)
If we had to put all our money on one name from the Chilean dance scene, it would definitively be Daniel Klauser. The young producer skillfully brings together elements from 90s house, ghetto-style hip hop and tribal music, and has so far gathered a considerable amount of positive reviews from local and international media. This track open his Simply Swag EP, which you can download for free from Diamante Records.

CHINA – Wooozy
Snapline – Sustaining
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Beijing-based trio Snapline just released their second album Phenomena through Maybe Mars Records. Their music puts a contemporary Beijing spin on the sounds and ideas produced by the noise and minimalist musicians of the 70s and 80s, especially focusing on the New York scene of that period. They also explore the dark, industrial music coming out of England during that period, especially from bands such as Joy Division and The Cure.

COLOMBIA – El Parlante Amarillo
Like Some Cat From Japan – Johnny Ramone
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Like Some Cat From Japan (LSCFJ) take their name from a line in one of David Bowie’s masterpieces, Ziggy Stardust. This electro group from Bogotá have a dance-punk sound that is perfect for the sweaty throng of a nightclub and dancing from dark until dawn.

DENMARK – All Scandinavian
SLOWOLF – See U In My Dreams
Download audio file (Slowolf_-_See_U_In_My_Dreams_-_Denmark.mp3)
This summer Andreas Asingh, one third of lauded electro-pop outfit SMALL, will release his debut as SLOWOLF. Not much is known about the project but he says that black metal, hip hop and dream pop will unite, perhaps for the first time, on the album which will also feature a chorus written by a seven-year-old boy and Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan. Here’s the excellent first single See U In My Dreams, a Music Alliance Pact exclusive download.

ENGLAND – The Guardian Music Blog
Sarah Young – Ajambo Si
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Sarah Young, noted the Guardian’s New Band of the Day writer, is the queen of moombahton, the genre that fuses Dutch house and reggaeton, soca and dancehall. If anyone is going to cross over and “do a Katy B”, as such a manoeuvre is becoming known, it’s this 22-year-old graduate of the Academy of Contemporary Music turned DJ, producer and all-round moom-bassador. Ajambo Si, the opening track on her new EP, features Lioness and Slick Don and is based on a kuduro rhythm, but to the NBotD writer it sounded “like dubstep meets dancehall or Caribbean grime, like Dizzee if he went to St Lucia on holiday and never came back”.

FINLAND – Glue
All Will Be Quiet – The First Day Pt. 2
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Post-rock band All Will Be Quiet releases its debut album On The First Day this month. It is a concept record about the collapse and rebirth of society with an optimistic view on the how the future will be for mankind. Equally ambitious is The First Day Pt. 2, a grandiose and cinematic instrumental song that opens the second part of the album.

FRANCE – Yet You’re Fired
Birkii – Holy War
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Birkii brought us the joyful pop song Shade Of Doubt last year on the great Kitsuné Parisien compilation, and then appeared in many mixes and playlists, including Edwin van Cleef’s April mixtape. Now she’s back with Holy War, a catchy synth-pop song from Kitsuné Parisien II that will also be on her debut EP out on June 4, with remixes from Equateur, Pol Rax, Pegase (last month’s MAP artist) and Zemaria.

ICELAND – Rjóminn
The Lovely Lion – Into The Forest
Download audio file (The-Lovely-Lion-Into-The-Forest1.mp3)
Representing the new wave of Icelandic folk-pop revival, The Lovely Lion are ones to watch for the future. Though this young and extremely talented band have only recorded a handful of songs and are still unsigned, their unique approach to songwriting and polished sound is sure to grab the attention of music lovers everywhere.

INDONESIA – Deathrockstar
AAS – Bonaparte
Download audio file (01-AAS-Bonaparte-Indonesia.mp3)
Raw, lo-fi, angry dark punk from Medan with added passion about world history which lead us to a song about Napoleon Bonaparte.

IRELAND – Nialler9
Not Squares – Fall Far
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Northern Irish electro punks Not Squares have ditched the ultra high-energy in favour of a more restrained dancefloor synth-pop sound for their new single. While Fall Far’s new direction can be compared to the kind of stuff coming out on the Kitsuné label, it must be said that this is a very good look and a surprising one for the band. The best Irish song released in April bar none.

ITALY – Polaroid
The Mojomatics – You Are The Reason For My Trouble
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You Are The Reason For My Trouble is the fourth album by The Mojomatics, one the best and coolest garage rock bands around Italy and Europe. The duo from Venice brings into their sound echoes of Rolling Stones, Kinks and Dylan, but what I deeply love about their songs and concerts is their tireless energy.

JAPAN – Make Believe Melodies
Wallflower – Cure Your Heart
Download audio file (Wallflower%20-%20Cure%20Your%20Heart%20(Japan).mp3)
Indie-pop music never left Japan, as bands trying to sound twee have been popping up since the C86 tape dropped. Yet this year has seen a boom in jangly rock groups, with Osaka outfit Wallflower being one of the catchiest. They take cues from The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart and even opened for that American band when they came to Japan earlier this year. This song shows they learned well from The Pains, as they nail dreamy indie-pop yearning in just over three minutes.

MALTA – Stagedive Malta
Stolen Creep – Throw Your Heart To The Sea
Download audio file (Stolen-Creep-Throw-your-Heart-to-the-Sea.mp3)
Stolen Creep is the brainchild of childhood friends Marie Borg Alden (guitars, vocals) and Rebecca Theuma (drums). The band has had many different members, recently settling into the current line-up of Marie, Rebecca and Katryna Storace (guitars, vocals). Following a busy year of writing, rewriting and rehearsals, they chose their favourite songs and retreated to record their first EP, Throw Your Heart To The Sea.

MEXICO – Red Bull Panamérika
Andy Mountains – Hoy Me Gusta Mi Peinado
Download audio file (01-Hoy-Me-Gusta-Mi-Peinado.mp3)
The title of this song, translated into English, is “Today, I Like My Hair”. With the naive viewpoint of early college students, this Mexico City quintet portrait everyday existential nuances with an optimism only an iPod advertisement would reach. But don’t classify Andy Mountains as cheap, feelgood jingle-makers. Their sound thrives in high-brow references that go from Animal Collective to the minimalism of La Monte Young. Give this tune a try and have a good hair day!

PERU – SoTB
Audioley – Same Old
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Audioley is a new project by Francois Peglau and Jules Drade, two Peruvian musicians based in London. Audioley started as an experiment, with the duo meeting one night every week to make a song a day. First single Same Old is feelgood electronic pop and comes with a curious and funny video.

PORTUGAL – Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
T(h)ree – Starlight
Download audio file (Three_-_Starlight_-_Portugal.mp3)
T(h)ree was featured in MAP in February 2011. T(h)ree is not a band but a project which brings together musicians/bands from Portugal and, for this second volume, Philippines and Singapore. In the featured track, we have Stealing Orchestra (Portugal), Maze (Portugal) and The Analog Girl (Singapore) playing together.

PUERTO RICO – Puerto Rico Indie
Harry Rag – Tiny Painting
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Harry Rag is the solo project of Kristian Prieto (Coleco, Alegría Rampante), who wanted to figure out just how many sounds and moods he could generate with his acoustic guitar. Prieto has released seven ‘web albums’ under the Harry Rag name, all recorded in his bedroom straight to a four-track, each one expanding on his guitar experiments and polishing up his sound. Tiny Painting is a great recent example of his prowess as a young musician and is taken from his latest album, The Ghastly Adventures Of Ghost Goat.

ROMANIA – Babylon Noise
Jazzadezz – Fairy
Download audio file (Jazzadezz%20-%20Fairy%20(Romania).mp3)
Jazzadezz is a dream pop/new wave band formed by Alin Zabrauteanu (synths, guitar, production) and Dezdemona Mihaescu (vocals). For their 2010 debut album Inimani Mal, Calin Torsan (Domnisoara Pogany and NU & Apa Neagra) joined the band playing clarinet, recorder and caval. In 2012, another two members were added, Alex Stanciu on guitar (also in Domnisoara Pogany) and drummer Eduard Gabia, a renowned choreographer and contemporary artist. The second album, Panta Rhei, was released last month and experiments in new areas such as ambient, post-rock and trip-hop.

RUSSIA – Big Echo
2muchachos – Striwi Kri4at
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Striwi Kri4at is a beautiful instrumental piece from romantic dream pop band 2muchachos, who released their Vesnywki!! EP last month, a perfect soundtrack for spring.

SCOTLAND – The Pop Cop
Julia And The Doogans – Down The Line
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Julia Doogan has everything you’d want from a pop singer – a genuinely distinguishable voice, a breakable heart, just the right amount of melancholy, and lyrics that are honest but not mushy. MAP exclusive free download Down The Line is taken from Julia And The Doogans’ achingly graceful new five-track Diamonds EP (buy on Bandcamp), and shows off the talents of Julia and her lush band to near perfection.

SINGAPORE – I’m Waking Up To…
Sze Kiat – Once In A While
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No man is an island, yet one gets the sense that the musical ideas that transpire in Sze Kiat’s mind were born from the stillness of time. There’s an unhurried approach to his songwriting and an intimacy that evokes a strain that could only come from a sort of crying out from some terrifying or forsaken place. Featuring traditional Chinese stringed instruments such as the erhu and the zhongruan, the sparse instrumentation serves as the background to Sze Kiat’s simple yet emotive lyrics.

SOUTH AFRICA – Musical Mover & Shaker!
Nate Maingard – The Open Space
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Nate Maingard is an indie-folk singer-songwriter from Cape Town whose music often brings the likes of Damien Rice, Coldplay and Jack Johnson to mind. His voice has been compared to Thom Yorke and Ben Gibbard, and his easy style and sense of melody shine through on The Open Space with a passionate undertone throughout.

SOUTH KOREA – Korean Indie
E9 – My Little Flutter
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E9, short for Edward Nine, wish to combine the pureness of Edward Scissorhands with the rampage of Nine Inch Nails. Their sound is influenced by groups like Placebo and Muse, while their lyrics tell fairy tales. The band has been around for several years and are preparing to release their first EP. My Little Flutter is a perfect sample of E9′s mixture of grunge, punk and Britpop with electronic sounds.

SPAIN – Musikorner
Boreals – Luciérnagas
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Boreals are probably younger than any of you beloved MAP readers but that doesn’t mean they don’t know what they’re doing. And what they do is deliver a fine mixture of cosmic post-rock (clearly influenced by Explosions In The Sky) embellished with clouds of synths that makes their sound epic and heart-touching, just as post-rock should. Luciérnagas, one of their most atmospheric tracks, is taken from their second EP, Grecia, released through Barcelona-based label Irregular, home of former MAP acts Lasers and The Suicide Of Western Culture.

SWEDEN – Swedesplease
Skatan – Control
Download audio file (Control.mp3)
The new record from Skatan is out on May 23 and is called Seven Trees. The first single, Control, features a little more eclectic instrumentation than in the past and Simone Andersson Wingfors’ voice is less processed and more immediate, resulting in a song that hits all the right chords.

SWITZERLAND – 78s
Baba Shrimps – Angel
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This five-piece from Zurich play impulsive pop music with a blend of country and rock. Baba Shrimps will release a new record at the end of 2012, but to shorten the waiting time they have dropped a live version of a new, unreleased song called Angel.

TURKEY – WEARTBEAT
Solardip – Leap Of Faith
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With their French electro/indie-influenced sound, Solardip is one of the few live acts of their genre in the country. In a short time, these three Istanbul youngsters have attracted a big audience. Debut album Future Now came out in March through Remoov Records after the release of the spectacular single and sexy video of Dance Like Wolves.

UNITED STATES – I Guess I’m Floating
Nicole Miglis – Stay Small
Download audio file (05%20Stay%20Small%201.mp3)
There’s no hiding my affection for Gainesville’s Hundred Waters, one of 2012′s best new bands. Just as bewilderingly complete, elegant and worth exploring is the solo work of their frontwoman, Nicole Miglis. Stay Small is from her debut self-titled EP, which you can download for free here.

VENEZUELA – Música y Más
Ulises Hadjis – Donde Va
Download audio file (Ulises%20Hadjis%20-%20Donde%20Va%20(Venezuela).mp3)
Ulises Hadjis is a young artist from Maracaibo. Despite his fledgling career, he already has two albums and a Latin Grammy as a music producer to his name. His second record, Cosas Perdidas, was released last month. In his own words, it is “an honest collection of songs” and shows more maturity in his lyrics and compositions than its predecessor, Presente.

GERMANY – Blogpartei
Hundreds – Fighter
Download audio file (Hundreds-FighterGermany.mp3)
The music of Hundreds is breathing, a bit like an asthmatic whose gasps always make a little swish. The Milner siblings tend to garnish their songs carefully, patterns of shivery sounds which texture warm rhythm beats, airy and clasping at the same time. Fighter is taken from their free Under The Icicles EP, which you can download via the lovely label Sinnbus.

Um alle 35 Songs in einer Zip-Datei runterzuladen, bitte rüber zu Gett. Alternativ könnt ihr die einzelnen Songs auch per Rechtsklick auf den Titel runterladen.

ARGENTINA – Zonaindie
Diosque – Melancolía Del Futuro
Download audio file (Diosque-MelancoliaDelFuturo(Argentina).mp3)
Diosque is a singer-songwriter born in Tucumán. Melancolía Del Futuro is our favorite song from his brand new album, Bote, in which Diosque enjoys playing with samplers and acoustic instruments like guitars and percussion. It was released by QQ Records on vinyl and can also be downloaded for free by visiting his website.

AUSTRIA – Walzerkönig
A Thousand Fuegos – No Up No Down
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“Don’t you know that everything we build up once will fall apart someday?” Time and religious metaphors are recurring themes on The Treachery Of Things, from which No Up No Down is taken. The album circles around the notion that we can never grasp the true identity of the things around us; they remain passive while we assign attributes to them. A Thousand Fuegos started out as a lo-fi project and these days focuses on beats, loops and spacey synths that create a mystical atmosphere.

BRAZIL – Meio Desligado
Siba – Canoa Furada
Download audio file (Siba%20-%20Canoa%20Furada%20(Brazil).mp3)
Canoa Furada is one of the liveliest songs from Siba’s new album Avante, on which the unusual formation of his band stands out with a fanfare vibe and a cool feeling that combines contemporary music and regional rhythms. Avante is available to download for free at Siba’s website.

CANADA – Quick Before It Melts
Kalle Mattson – Water Falls
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Kalle Mattson recently racked up over a million views of their Thick As Thieves video, which is impressive for any indie band. The attention generated by the video shouldn’t be dismissed as hype. Kalle Mattson are impressive songwriters and musicians, and have fans across Canada eagerly awaiting their new EP (from which Water Falls comes from) at the start of May.

CHILE – Super 45
Poki Tatane – Esclavos Rumbo Al Virreinato
Download audio file (Poki_Tatane_-_Esclavos_Rumbo_Al_Virreinato_-_Chile.mp3)
Behind the peculiar name of Poki Tatane hides one of the most interesting projects in the Chilean electronic scene. Esclavos Rumbo Al Virreinato is from his first EP, Breve Explicación De Las Partes (available for free at Discos Pegaos), which takes elements from a more organic dubstep, adding a particularly melodic sense to the compositions.

CHINA – Wooozy
Xiban – Drunk Ghost
Download audio file (Xiban-Drunk-Ghost-China.mp3)
Xiban is a contemporary world music band who describe themselves as being “fresh, wild, wandering, funny, and direct”, with the added tag of “folk music phoenix nirvana” thrown in for good measure. The musicians are from China, France and the United States. Combine Shanxi opera with Beijing and Jiangzhou drumming, add some Yellow River chanting, Tibetan long tune, Australian Aboriginal music, Indian organs and elements of modern electronic music and you have an idea of how eclectic their brand of music is.

COLOMBIA – El Parlante Amarillo
Crew Peligrosos – Medayork
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From Medellín, we present you Crew Peligrosos – 16 people tearing up the scene with their urban sounds and mise-en-scène. Medayork contains the best flavors of old school hip hop with the song title paying tribute to two cities key to the development of hip hop culture in Colombia – Medellín and New York.

DENMARK – All Scandinavian
Lydmor – Lamppost Light
Download audio file (Lydmor_-_Lamppost_Light_-_Denmark.mp3)
This acoustic version of Lamppost Light was (and is) originally a video shot in a theater in Denmark’s second city, Aarhus. But since I really, really like Lydmor aka Jenny Rossander’s take on her otherwise electrofied pop self, I had my people tell her people to give all you people the song as a MAP exclusive. Oh, and if you want to watch the video here it is.

ENGLAND – The Guardian Music Blog
Seye – White Noise (Olugbenga Edit)
Download audio file (WhiteNoiseOlugbenga.mp3)
Seye Adelekan’s urgent floor-stomper gets held gently by the shoulders and told to take a minute thanks to a pitched-up, slowed-down remix by the Nigerian-born scenester’s older brother, Metronomy bassist Olubenga Adelekan. Seye, who’s been a gun for hire for Lana Del Rey, The Noisettes and Ellie Goulding in the past, is just coming into his own through an upcoming debut album of globe-trotting pop that had the Guardian’s Paul Lester hail the Bromley-based star as “like a younger, cooler Paul Simon around the time of his African adventure or Peter Gabriel circa So”. If Seye’s original suggests the woozy slip of a party on the turn, Gbenga’s remix is the regretful aftermath.

FINLAND – Glue
Weepikes – What About
Download audio file (weepikes_what_about_finland.mp3)
Weepikes was an alternative rock band in Helsinki that called it a day in 1997 after three intense years. A little wiser, a little older, the band reformed some months ago and recorded new songs with the help of American producer and musician Kramer. Now Weepikes are ready to deliver more of their characteristic blend of punk and progressive rock, or, as a journalist called it back in the day, PRONK.

FRANCE – Yet You’re Fired
Pegase – Without Reasons
Download audio file (Pegase%20-%20Without%20Reasons%20%28France%29.mp3)
Pegase, known for being the singer of the successful band Minitel Rose, started his solo project with the single Without Reasons. Its immediate appeal lies in the fragile emotion it emanates, the simple rhythm backed by airy and cold synths, and a superb, dreamy choir. Signed to the same label as Rhum For Pauline, Pegase will, without a doubt, be just as successful. Watch the wonderful video for Without Reasons here.

GREECE – Mouxlaloulouda
Thanos Anestopoulos – Xanarthan Ta Sunnefa
Download audio file (Thanos_Anestopoulos_-_Xanarthan_ta_sunnefa_-_Greece.mp3)
After the blossoms of a long journey with Diafana Krina, Thanos Anestopoulos blazes his own musical trail with a beautiful, bleak and intimate solo album. Os To Telos (“To The End”) is brimmed full of personal memories and wrapped in warmth and emotional sincerity. It works best as a concise listen, as each song segues naturally into the next. Xanarthan Ta Sunnefa (“The Clouds Have Returned”) is a finely detailed hymn with a deceptively light touch, led by his soulful, baritone voice and brittle acoustic guitar.

ICELAND – Rjóminn
Prinspóló – Fostudagsmessa
Download audio file (Prinspolo_Fostudagsmessa_Master.mp3)
This is the first new song Prinspóló has released since his debut album Jukk in June 2011. Fostudagsmessa most likely does not make sense to you, since it is in Icelandic, so let Prinspóló himself explain: “The song is about the place you don’t want to be at. For example, a dark and dirty nightclub where everybody is pretending to have fun and everything is great.”

INDONESIA – Deathrockstar
Mushafear – Meats In
Download audio file (07-mushafear-Meats_In-Indonesia.mp3)
Even though most people in Indonesia only knew Kurt Cobain from television, magazines, CDs and the internet, there are a handful of devoted fans who still yell their angst to the establishment, family and social system. One of the best bands from the community are Mushafear, who are fronted by Mirantie Boreel, an angry young lady while on stage but a humble girl off it.

IRELAND – Nialler9
Wonder Villains – 33
Download audio file (Wonder_Villains_-_33.mp3)
The sense of exuberance and energy coming from the speakers when a Wonder Villains track is playing is almost too much. This pop punk band from Derry make music that could only come from young minds and (relative) inexperience, but that primal energy makes it so infectious. Revel in their youth. It’s a lot of fun.

ITALY – Polaroid
Drink To Me – Future Days
Download audio file (Drink_To_Me_-_Future_Days.mp3)
“Life is an experiment and that’s why it is interesting,” says the first line of Future Days, and it’s something that could fit with the music of Drink To Me as well, especially with their new album, S. Amazing percussions, a lot of spacey synths, echoes of Animal Collective and MGMT – you can never tell what’s going to happen next. “We’re wide awake and we’re working on the future days”, and judging by this song, Drink To Me appear to have a lot fun doing it. And us too!

JAPAN – Make Believe Melodies
MFP – Theme For The Movement
Download audio file (2%20Theme%20For%20The%20Movement.mp3)
MFP, the recording name of Osaka’s Masaki Konagai, named his latest album Mindful Beats Vol. 2, but the music within is more than rapper bait. MFP cites the late beat-maker J Dilla as a major inspiration, and album highlight Theme For The Movement carries the same this-does-not-need-rapping-over-it quality so prevalent in the best works of Dilla. It surges with more electricity, though, making it one of the most energetic tracks from an album brimming with them.

MALTA – Stagedive Malta
MegaFun – You’re So Cool!
Download audio file (MegaFun-Youre-So-Cool-Malta.mp3)
MegaFun is 16-year-old Daniel Abdilla. When not fronting his band Clandestines, he is churning out bedroom recordings under the MegaFun moniker. He forms part of a Maltese DIY scene which has blossomed over the past couple of years.

MEXICO – Red Bull Panamérika
Centavrvs – El Caudillo Del Sur
Download audio file (El-Caudillo-del-Sur.mp3)
The Mexican Revolution started in 1910 and during the centenary festivities, a group of deviant jazz, funk and electro musicians from Guadalajara formed Centavrvs. Their cunning mixture of old “corridos” (speeches and folk songs) from the Revolution and contemporary aesthetics create a Mexi-tronica sound that departs adventurously from the roads explored by the Nortec Collective over the past decade. Viva la Revolución!

NETHERLANDS – Unfold Amsterdam
Aafke Romeijn – Stella XVII
Download audio file (aafkeromeijn-stellaXVII.mp3)
Aafke Romeijn is no shrinking violet singer-songwriter. Having fronted the all-female folk-rock band Mister Blue Sky for six years, she recently released a pleasing debut solo album titled Stella Must Die! As a solo artist, she calls to mind Amanda Palmer, not simply because this record is based heavily on piano and accordion, but because the songs are as theatrical and lyrically conceptual as Palmer’s are renowned for. As Aafke says: “It’s a record about pretty girls, secretly making out during school lunch breaks, throwing kitchen knives and, of course, about Stella.”

PERU – SoTB
Xilófonmático – La Aventura De Los Insectos
Download audio file (Xilofonm%C3%A1tico%20-%20La%20Aventura%20De%20Los%20Insectos%20%28Peru%29.mp3)
An album doesn’t require large studios to impress and excite. Take, for example, the home project of Xilófonmático (a compound of xylophone and automatic). His first work, La Aventura De Los Insectos (Ipod EP), mixes instrumental and sung songs with playful and surreal touches. The EP is a rollercoaster of emotions, with the same ups and downs.

PORTUGAL – Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
Walter Benjamin – Airports And Broken Hearts
Download audio file (Walter_Benjamin_-_Airports_And_Broken_Hearts_-_Portugal.mp3)
Walter Benjamin is the artistic name of Luis Nunes. He is a singer and songwriter from a new generation of Portuguese musicians, some of whom he has played with and/or produced (for instance, MAP alumni Noiserv, Minta, Julie & The Carjackers). His new album, The Imaginary Life Of Rosemary And Me, is out this month and we proudly present the first free download from it.

PUERTO RICO – Puerto Rico Indie
Similar – Cíclope
Download audio file (Similar%20-%20Ciclope%20-%20%28Puerto%20Rico%29.mp3)
Similar began as a studio project between Daniel Vicente and Ariel Hernandez back in 2009. Their debut EP showcased a mean pop sensibility with striking noise textures and was well received. The duo recruited musicians to perform as a live ensemble, but with the departure of Vicente to concentrate on his solo project, Pasajero, Ariel moved to consolidate a more psychedelic and aggressive sounding band. Cíclope is the first track recorded by its most recent line-up, which includes guitarist Gaby Vidal of local metal group Ongo. It will be part of the band’s first full-length, expected later this year.

ROMANIA – Babylon Noise
Mojo Barrel – Catch The Devil
Download audio file (Mojo%20Barrel%20-%20Catch%20The%20Devil%20(Romania).mp3)
Mojo Barrel are a young band from Cluj who successfully merge rock with funk and blues. In their own words, they have the mojo – the magic, the charm, the inspiration, the creative trigger, the talent – and the barrel – the place where it all begins, blends, becomes and finally breaks through.

RUSSIA – Big Echo
Videatape – Coastal Lights
Download audio file (Videatape%20%E2%80%93%20Coastal%20Lights%20%28Russia%29.mp3)
Parad Planet, the debut album of St Petersburg rock trio Videatape, combines amazingly melodic songs both in English and Russian with soft lyrics, a great vibe and beautiful sadness.

SCOTLAND – The Pop Cop
JERC – ADHD
Download audio file (JERC-ADHD.mp3)
JERC is the alter-ego of self-confessed music obsessive James Campbell. The 22-year-old from Aberdeen started producing hip-hop tracks for local artists when he was a teenager before moving on to DJing in clubs, remixing and setting up his own label, Why Not Records. Most significantly, he is creating his own solo work and the pounding, delirious, sleazy-synthed electro house of ADHD is as intoxicating a debut track as you could ever hope to discover.

SINGAPORE – I’m Waking Up To…
Winterhalter – Squirrel Land
Download audio file (winterhalter-squirrel-land-singapore.mp3)
Don’t take the music of Winterhalter too seriously. It’s great if you can name all the references in any given song, but doing so seems counterintuitive to what’s intended by Shaun Soh, the brains behind the project. Performing sporadic shows within Singapore’s shores, Winterhalter is a sort of myth, but recordings of the music are available if you ask nicely, just like we have. So go on, have a listen. A real treat would be the four-track EP, I Am Worthy of God’s Love, released as an entire song on Soundcloud.

SOUTH AFRICA – Musical Mover & Shaker!
Saintfearless – Conventional Love Song
Download audio file (Saintfearless_-_Conventional_Love_Song_-_South_Africa.mp3)
With their dynamic, rich sound and equally watchable stage performance, Saintfearless is making waves around the country as well as within the music industry. With a frontman to rival any other and talented musicians to back him up, Saintfearless offer fresh, catchy indie-rock songs.

SOUTH KOREA – Korean Indie
Byul.org – Pacific
Download audio file (Byulorg_-_Pacific_-_South_Korea.mp3)
For as long as they’ve been around, Byul.org have been one of the most interesting entities in Korea’s music scene. Last month the collective had their first proper album Secret Stories Heard From A Girl In An Opium Den released in the US and Europe through Burnt Toast Vinyl, putting a decade’s worth of intriguing work on display. Though Byul.org are not usually afraid to experiment, Pacific (see video) is a retro pop number on the electronic side with an invitation to both dance and dream.

SPAIN – Musikorner
Evripidis And His Tragedies – Teeth
Download audio file (Evripidis%20and%20His%20Tragedies%20-%20Teeth%20(Spain).mp3)
Evripidis And His Tragedies are a familiar face in Barcelona’s indie music scene. Led by Evripidis Sabatis from Athens, Greece, they deliver carefully handcrafted pop, inspired by 60s innocence. Evripidis opens up his heart in every song, as we can tell by the sincere, melancholic and emotional lyrics that most of us will feel like our own. Teeth may be the darkest but most necessary song they have recorded, and there’s also a video for it.

SWITZERLAND – 78s
Domi Chansorn – Leaving In A Gentle Way
Download audio file (Domi-Chansorn-Leaving-In-A-Gentle-Way-Switzerland.mp3)
A tragic incident brought Domi Chansorn to his first drum kit. His dad, also a drummer, died in a car accident. Now, 15 years later, he has won the m4music Demotape Clinic – Switzerland’s most important contest for young musicians – with his first album Bright Times Can Be Dark As Well (free download), which he recorded completely on his own. His singer-songwriter-approach is genuine, playful and brisk.

TURKEY – WEARTBEAT
Farfara – Water Air
Download audio file (farfara_water_air_turkey.mp3)
Farfara is a dream-pop trio from Istanbul and Berlin. The members say the band invented itself with a psychedelic brew of kraut drums, shoegazing guitars, airy synths, ethereal vocals, lots of Love and a clear commitment to pop. They convey a simple though profound expression. Their second album is released this month – keep an eye on their Bandcamp page and drown yourself in the dreamy waters of Farfara.

UNITED STATES – I Guess I’m Floating
Alabama Shakes – On Your Way
Download audio file (On%20Your%20Way.mp3)
We often try to give you some unearthed gems every month and who knows, maybe you’re unfamiliar with Alabama Shakes? If so, we’re gonna change that ASAP by introducing you to the soulful Southern rockers and their gem On Your Way. This band blew up from obscurity last autumn, signed to ATO Records and will open for Jack White on his solo tour. It’s good to know all the new fame won’t change their sound, though.

VENEZUELA – Música y Más
Alfred Gómez Jr – On The Ground
Download audio file (Alfred_Gomez_Jr_-_On_The_Ground_-_Venezuela.mp3)
Alfred Gómez Jr has changed everything with his new album Simple (name your price on Bandcamp). In his previous album, La Reina Peinándose, we could hear urban and Latin rhythms merged fairly harmoniously. This time he has incorporated elements of jazz and pop-rock that will take his music to a whole new audience.

Bitte auch unbedingt die Plakate in seinem Shop anschauen, da sind noch einige sehr schöne Exemplare dabei, die aber leider nicht als Bilder hier einbindbar sind.

In loser Reihe werden hier Konzertplakate von einem ausgewählten Gestalter vorgestellt. Denn jene sind eigentlich omnipräsent, werden aber nur selten gewürdigt, sodass vielfach die Qualität nachlässt. Dem muss man entgegensteuern!

“Most rock journalism is people who can’t write, interviewing people who can’t talk, for people who can’t read”

Dieses Zitat von Frank Zappa ist natürlich hanebüchen. Rock, Musik im Allgemeinen war schon immer mehr als nur Musik, war immer Ausdruck von Zeitgeist, Gesellschaft, Entwicklung. Und das wurde schon immer auch so erkannt, von den Künstlern, den Schreibern und den Lesern bzw. Hörern. Hier hat sich also nichts verändert.

Was sich verändert hat ist die Inputseite für den Musikblogger. Input heißt: Das Musikangebot – nicht die Anzahl der Bands, ich denke, die war früher auch schon hoch, aber die Verfügbarkeit und der Zugang zu den Bands hat sich stark verändert. Input heißt Werbetexte, also Pressemitteilungen. Input heißt von Autoren-Journalisten-Bloggern geschriebene Texte über das Musikangebot. Die Inputseite ist explodiert.

Was sich für mich persönlich verändert hat

Massiv verändert hat sich, wer darüber schreibt. Außer den Fanzines der Punkära gab es vor zwanzig oder auch zehn Jahren wohl kaum derart viel Text über Musik wie heute. Als ich zu bloggen anfing, gab es immerhin schon den Begriff des Blogs, wie man an meinem unverständlich gebliebenen Wortspiel blogpartei – gegründet nach einem Bloc Party Konzert – erkennen kann. Es gab auch in Deutschland bereits Musikblogs, das Stehaufmännchen Nico zum Beispiel, die Popnutten, die Stagediven und einige, die zum Teil auch bereits verschieden sind. Es war aber leicht seine Lücke zu finden, es gab etablierte Musikmagazine, die ihre Anpassungsphase noch vor sich hatten und eingefahrene Schienen befuhren und es gab Musikblogs, die einen neuen Blick, eine neue Schreibe, neue Themen brachten. Für mich hieß das: Fokus auf Konzerte in München, denn damals gab es keine Website, die einen übersichtlichen, kommentierten Terminkalender über Konzerte einer gewissen Musikrichtung verschafften. Es hieß rohe, unbehandelte, analoge Konzertfotos, denn die Ästhetik der damaligen Digitalkameras und Fotografen war unerträglich langweilig. Es hieß Bands aus Bayern, die ein wenig mehr Aufmerksamkeit verdient hatten, als ihnen in den etablierten Printmagazinen zuteil wurde. Und es hieß leider auch, “den Bands der Anderen” hinterherzulaufen, der Maschinerie zu dienen.

Was ist daraus geworden? Für Konzerte in München gab es ein, zwei Jahre später ein halbes Dutzend professionelle und laienhafte Seiten, die einen umfassenden Überblick bzw. Terminkalender anboten, ich konnte mich also auf die Perlen konzentrieren, keine schlechte Entwicklung. Konzertfotografen gab es bald mehr als es Autoren gibt, auch Leute, die wirklich ihr Handwerk (auch digital) verstehen und fantastische Fotos machen wie beispielsweise Andre. Ich befand mich alsbald in dem Zwiespalt, dass ich Fotos eigentlich nur bei mir zusagenden Bands machen wollte, aber keine Lust auf den Akkreditierungsmarathon hatte, mir also die guten Positionen verwehrt blieben. So reduzierte sich auch dieser Part meines Blogs. Bands aus Bayern wurde eher zu Bands aus Deutschland: Der Music Alliance Pact war die wohl beste Sache, die mir widerfahren ist. Er ist zwar als Leser nicht unbedingt sehr übersichtlich, aber es lohnt sich immer wieder, davon bin ich immer noch fest überzeugt.

Die Kakophonie der Pressemitteilungen

Und “die Bands der Anderen”? Zum Glück habe ich diese Mühle hinter mir gelassen. Es ist unglaublich, wie viele Pressemitteilungen jeden Tag bei mir reinflattern. Und es ist eine Schande, wie viele Blogs sie hinausposaunen, sich zum Erfüllungsgehilfen eines Geschäfts machen. Versteht mich nicht falsch, es gibt Labels, die sind auch dies wert, weil sie einfach wahnsinnig gute Arbeit machen, Herzblut und privates Geld in die Bands und deren Platten stecken und damit nicht reich werden. Aber der andere Teil der Mails ist ein müdes Gähnen, Auszüge aus einigen Mails, die heute eingegangen sind: “Pre-Order Jack White’s Debut Album”, “Jägermeister Schubrakete- Zu Deichkind auf die Bühne”, “CARTER TUTTI VOID: neues Video”, “neues Video: BETH JEANS HOUGHTON & THE HOOVES” oder “Reminder: Tourankündigung Listen To Polo”. Ich lösche sie alle ungelesen, allein der Caps-Lock rechtfertigt das. Und “friendly reminder” sind das Allerletzte.

Wir sehen, auf der Inputseite stehen hunderte sinnloser E-Mails, aus denen man als Blogger die persönlich adressierten, privaten Anfragen rausfischen soll. Ich muss mich entschuldigen, das schaffe ich nicht mehr, daher lese ich fast keine Mails auf dem offiziellen Account mehr, das war vor einem Jahr noch nicht so. So schafft es der Wahnwitz der Promomitteilungen die wirklich guten und interessanten Mails zu untergraben. Vergesst Pressemitteilungen.

Die Vielfalt der Meinungen und Inhalte

Doch die Explosion war auch auf der Autorenseite stark, die Entwicklungen sind natürlich reflexiv und selbstverstärkend. Die Anzahl von Blogs in den letzten drei, vier Jahren ist dermaßen gestiegen, dass es nicht mehr einfach war als ein Blogger, dessen Grundlagen und Interessen sich veränderten, seine Nische zu finden, die man gerne und ausdauernd beackern möchte. Auch die Ziele der Blogs fingen an, sich beträchtlich zu unterscheiden. Um es mit den Worten von No Song Unsung zu sagen:

“I don’t think all music blogs necessarily have to consist of “good writing”, whatever that means. There are different blogs that serve different purposes. There’s the blog that shares music videos or the photo blog that only contains pictures. There are blogs that cover music news, blogs that share random thoughts…and so on.”

Und die negativen Folgen davon sind allerortens sichtbar, der Prozentsatz bspw. an guten tumblr-Musikblogs ist einstellig. Dazu der Idolator:

“As the audience for music blogs has expanded, the wordcounts of posts have shrunk, and the commenters have gotten meaner and greedier. Instead of the kind of thoughtful and occasionally heated discussion that was once the norm, we are now treated as heretics if we fail to bestow upon our readers the free music they feel they deserve. Forget good writing—music blogs have chased the lowest common denominator so aggressively that anything longer than a blurb merits a “tl;dr.”

Der Decibel Tolls zur selben Sache:

“Blogs tend to jump on the same buzzword bands, chew them up, and spit them out. The result – thousands of blogs on the Internet writing about the exact same shit. The idea of a “marketplace of ideas” flies out the window…”

So weit, so richtig. Es gilt also, einfach über das zu schreiben, was einem beliebt. Damit könnte dieser Artikel eigentlich zu Ende sein. Doch nicht, wenn ich die Konsequenzen für blogpartei bedenken möchte, denn ich schrieb ja auch die letzten Jahre nur über das, was mir gefiel. Aber nicht oft genug, finde ich.

Ein letzter Versuch

Nachdem ich diesen Artikel gefühlt alle Jahre erneut schreibe, muss der Fehler ja auf meiner Seite liegen. Da ich nun anfangen werde zu arbeiten und sich mein Tagesablauf stark ändert, wird nun einen letzten Anlauf geben, in diesem Blog das zu schreiben, was ich wirklich möchte. Ich möchte unterhalten, informieren, eventuell mal einen Diskurs anstoßen, kontextuieren, interpretieren statt beschreiben und verlautbaren. Und ich möchte in meiner Plattenkiste kramen, die kaum aktuelle Bands enthält, sondern oftmals Werke, die älter als ich mit Baujahr 1983 sind.

Und zugleich den Spagat schaffen zwischen zwei Aspekten, die illustriert anhand eines Zitats diesen Artikel beschließen sollen. Wir sehen uns drüben.

“I have probably spent more time reading about [insert random band here] than I have actually listening to them.” Burstor Bloom

GERMANY – Blogpartei
Juli Kapelle – Treiber
Download audio file (Julikapelle-TreiberGermany.mp3)
Juli Kapelle is a collective from lovely Aschaffenburg, built around mastermind Achim “AS” Sauer. They are guitar-driven, reminiscent of a laid-back and bit krauty Dire Straits. All in all, music for a sophisticated afternoon.

Um alle 38 Songs in einer Zip-Datei runterzuladen, bitte rüber zu Mediafire. Alternativ könnt ihr die einzelnen Songs auch per Rechtsklick auf den Titel runterladen.

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ARGENTINA – Zonaindie
Yataians – What A Man’s Got To Do
Download audio file (Yataians-WhatAMansGotToDo(Argentina).mp3)
Yataians is a Buenos Aires-based band with a rocksteady sound heavily influenced by Jamaican artists from the 60s and 70s, such as The Ethiopians, The Gaylads, The Heptones and The Paragons. It’s also a product of global age, with members from France, Colombia, New Caledonia and, of course, Argentina. This song is from their first album, Ô Tulop, which came out a couple of months ago, courtesy of the independent label Estamos Felices.

AUSTRALIA – Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Shady Lane – Dumb Hope
Download audio file (04-Dumb-Hope.mp3)
Dumb Hope is the gorgeous lead single of Shady Lane’s forthcoming album, Built Guilt. Once the solo guise under which Sydneysider Jordy Lane put out a diverse range of odds and ends, Shady Lane has grown into a four-piece (officially?) with more hooks, vocals and a nostalgic pop sensibility not unlike fellow New South Welshmen Belles Will Ring.

AUSTRIA – Walzerkönig
Giantree – Communicate
Download audio file (Giantree-Communicate%28Austria%29.mp3)
With past major label experience, the founding members of what is now Giantree found a new home on an indie label, but without denying that what they are doing is pop in capital letters. Their debut album We All Yell comes with synthesizers and catchy hooks. Communicate, a song about fragile beginnings, was a radio hit in Austria.

BRAZIL – Meio Desligado
DJ Cremoso – Say It Ain’t So
Download audio file (DJ%20Cremoso%20-%20Say%20It%20Aint%20So%20(Brazil).mp3)
In the film Be Kind Rewind, Jack Black and Mos Def produce their own lo-fi version of movies, which they call “sweded” versions. What DJ Cremoso makes is like that, “bregalizing” songs – turning international hits into tecnobrega rhythms (a popular style from northern Brazil). There’s almost always the same beat and silly synths are its trademark, as we can hear in this tecnobrega of Weezer’s 90s hit Say It Ain’t So. DJ Cremoso’s identity is unknown – all he has is a profile on 4shared with his remixes.

CANADA – Quick Before It Melts
Bronx Cheerleader – Camelot
Download audio file (Bronx%20Cheerleader%20Camelot%20(Canada).mp3)
Bronx Cheerleader have been a regional treasure in and around their hometown of St. Catharines, Ontario, for years now but their new album, Real Punks Don’t Sing About Girls, deserves to be heard by a wider audience. Camelot is a deliciously dirty lo-fi anthem-in-waiting, and one of the stand-out moments on this record, of which there are many.

CHILE – Super 45
Matías Cena & Los Fictions – Raíz
Download audio file (Matias_Cena_Los_Fictions_-_Raiz_-_Chile.mp3)
Matías Cena used to be a solo artist from the folk scene in Santiago, and he made himself relatively known via an acoustic guitar and MySpace. Gradually, Ryan Adams and Conor Oberst’s influence diverted him to the ensemble format, which has developed into this six-piece that shines in a land not used to country-like rock. Raíz is a taster of Matías Cena & Los Fictions’ second album Arauco Cajún.

CHINA – Wooozy
Modern Children – Mongolia
Download audio file (Modern%20Children%20-%20Mongolia%20(China).mp3)
Modern Children is a six-piece band based in Hong Kong that formed in 2006. “Colorful” is the best word to describe them. They play music in different styles, from indie-pop to post-rock. Their songs are filled with all kinds of sounds by using a wide range of instruments, from guitars and bass to rainbow bells and erhu. The band released their self-titled debut album in January.

COLOMBIA – El Parlante Amarillo
1280 Almas – Antipatriota
Download audio file (1280%20Almas%20-%20Antipatriota%20(Colombia).mp3)
1280 Almas is the biggest cult band from Bogotá. More than 18 years of history, six albums and a life of independence on the underground make them local legends. Now, they present a new song called Antipatriota (“Unpatriotic”), a declaration of national nonconformity.

DENMARK – All Scandinavian
Ring Them Bells – When I Hear That Whistle Blow
Download audio file (Ring_Them_Bells_-_When_I_Hear_That_Whistle_Blow_-_Denmark.mp3)
A MAP exclusive, When I Hear That Whistle Blow by Ring Them Bells is only the second great taste of the quartet’s loud combination of 90s noise-rock and 60s psych-pop in circulation. The other, titled Technicolor, is also available for free at the band’s website, and both will most likely be part of Ring Them Bells’ debut album slated for release later this spring.

ENGLAND – The Guardian Music Blog
Submerse – Love You Down
Download audio file (SubmerseLoveYouDown.mp3)
Rob Orme alias Submerse is a 23-year-old DJ and producer from Runcorn, now living in Tokyo, who happens to be making some of the most heartbreakingly beautiful (dance) music anywhere on the planet. Influenced equally by 2000-era UK garage and Japanese pop (J-pop), it combines the skittering rhythms of 2-step with sad female vocals and wan melody to make J-garage. If you thought Rustie was a maximalist, try this ADHD pop. It’s like bubblegum Burial, Orme filling every second of space with infinitesimal bursts, droplets, clicks, spasms and lovelorn cries, dubstep given a sugary coating.

ESTONIA – Popop
Lack Of Eoins – Sudden Death Mode
Download audio file (lack_of_Eoins_-_Sudden_Death_Mode_-_Estonia.mp3)
Lack Of Eoins came together in late 2005 and recorded their first demos the following year. In 2008, they won a garage band contest in Estonia and recorded their debut album, which was mastered at Abbey Road Studios. They’re back now with the single Sudden Death Mode, which was released along with three remixes as a free download on the first day of 2012.

FINLAND – Glue
Cats On Fire – A Few Empty Waves
Download audio file (cats_on_fire_a_few_empty_waves_finland.mp3)
Many argue that Cats On Fire are the best indie-pop band in Finland at the moment. This bold statement may easily be true thanks to well-crafted pop songs with a melancholic and dreamy twist, solid lyrics and distinctive vocals. This month, Cats On Fire release their third album All Blackshirts To Me. It is their best yet. So good, in fact, that the band can afford a terrific outtake like A Few Empty Waves.

FRANCE – Yet You’re Fired
Rhum For Pauline – I Can Reach The Top
Download audio file (Rhum%20For%20Pauline%20-%20I%20Can%20Reach%20The%20Top%20%28France%29.mp3)
Rhum For Pauline are an indie-pop band formed in Nantes in 2009 who released their first mini-album, Miami, in 2010, and their first EP, Can Reach The Top, in January. Their upbeat songs are incredibly enjoyable, the kind you like immediately after the first listen, the kind you’ll put on repeat for days. Be sure to check out the very cool video for I Can Reach The Top, directed by The Incredible Kids.

GREECE – Mouxlaloulouda
Playground Noise – This World
Download audio file (Playground_Noise_-_This_World_-_Greece.mp3)
Playground Noise’s new single, Swinging Lowdown, is a delicate combination of finely arranged brooding melancholy and redemption. The two indie-pop songs infuse soaring guitars with a tense, literate sense of foreboding, adding strings and brass to strike the perfect balance between moody, underground noise and melody. They are built on restraint, tinged by poignancy and wrapped up in poetic human emotion that sticks with you long after the final note. Their sophomore album is set to be released later this year.

ICELAND – Rjóminn
1860 – For You, Forever
Download audio file (08-For-You-Forever.mp3)
For You, Forever is the third single from 1860′s self-released debut album Sagan. Drawing inspiration from bands such as Fanfarlo and The Avett Brothers, the song has a modern folkish vibe to it, with small-town sentiments featuring heavily in the lyrics. The song was recently included in the short documentary Íslander by Grasshopper Films.

INDONESIA – Deathrockstar
Bromocorah – Bromocorah
Download audio file (Bromocorah-Bromocorah-indonesia.mp3)
Bromocorah means “repeat offender”. They’re a thrash metal recidivist and I don’t think they’ll be changing their way of life any time soon.

IRELAND – Nialler9
Young Wonder – Tumbling Backwards
Download audio file (Young_Wonder_-_Tumbling_Backwards.mp3)
Ian Ring and Rachel Koeman recently teamed up as a producer/vocal duo under the name Young Wonder. Their sound is hard to define as any one genre but is recognisable by its big beats, euphoric synth rushes, pitched vocal samples and emotive lead vocals from Koeman. Yet another excellent new Irish band to watch. A debut EP drops on April 14.

ITALY – Polaroid
Man On Wire – A Thousand Legs
Download audio file (Man_On_Wire_-_A_Thousand_Legs.mp3)
The name of the band is a reference to Philippe Petit, the French acrobat who walked on a rope between the Twin Towers, but their sound is definitely Americana. Man On Wire play that kind of warm and emotional folk-rock that you can find in certain songs by Arcade Fire, Wilco or The National. Their debut album is a rope from the music to your heart. And they are walking on it.

JAPAN – Make Believe Melodies
Occult You – Psychic Feelings
Download audio file (Occult%20You%20-Psychic%20Feelings%20%28Japan%29.mp3)
Tokyo artist Occult You loves to explore new sounds, each new release from this moniker and his other alias Taquwami (Google it, totally worth it) sounding like a new artistic swerve. Psychic Feelings is one of the newest tracks from the young producer, an irresistibly funky jam recalling the synth-heavy songs created by Ford & Lopatin and the Beverly Hills Cop theme tune. This is not needless nostalgia, though, rather a great song from a promising contemporary artist.

MALTA – Stagedive Malta
The Shh – So Over
Download audio file (The-Shh-So-Over-Malta.mp3)
The Shh’s music emerges, in secret, from a place in between the city of Paris and the island of Malta. Their debut EP, The Burning Love, evokes surf-rock sounds with warm Summer Of Love-esque vocal melodies.

MEXICO – Red Bull Panamérika
Descartes a Kant – Convince Me
Download audio file (Descartes-a-Kant-Convince-Me.mp3)
Descartes a Kant is about to release their sophomore album Il Visore Lunatique, a lovingly crafted treat of madness from this exquisite riot grrrl band. While their music speaks for itself, Descartes a Kant has brought to the surface a collection of fears and obsessions through very tight and twisted imagery filled with schizoid violent punk episodes, cabaret, electronic glimpses and a disturbing cheerleading attitude embraced in a well-accomplished match between roughness, eroticism and femininity.

NETHERLANDS – Unfold Amsterdam
Kim Janssen – Tors
Download audio file (kimjanssen-tors.mp3)
Singer-songwriter Kim Janssen has had plenty of international experiences to date. He has recorded and performed around the world with The Black Atlantic (a previous MAP tip), he has followed his parents around Asia as a youngster, and even experienced English boarding school life. It’s the latter that most influences his lush and gentle new album Ancient Crime. He describes it as “a concept album that takes place in an old idyllic school, in a remote village in north-west England during the winter”. Like traditional folk, it’s a mixture of history, myth, memories, old and new verses. Along the way he’s aided by Marla Hansen’s Oriel Quartet and a 100-piece choir, resulting in ambitious, delightful arrangements.

NORWAY – Birds Sometimes Dance
The Avalanche – Throw Away The Rest
Download audio file (The_Avalanche_-_Throw_away_the_rest_-_Norway.mp3)
The Avalanche play noisy pop with both feet firmly planted in a classic shoegaze tradition. Catchy melodies hidden beneath endless layers of distorted guitar, driving drums and fuzz bass paired with the wonderful sound of dying synths throws the listener back and forth between waves of delicious pop and dirty noise. Their debut album will be released this autumn.

PERU – SoTB
I Am Genko – Bobblehead Sphynx
Download audio file (I%20Am%20Genko%20-%20Bobblehead%20Sphynx%20%28Peru%29.mp3)
I Am Genko is a live electronica act from Lima consisting of one person and some machines. They all get along pretty well. Bobblehead Sphynx, from Awkward Teenage Years EP, is a really fun, exciting song – a succession of catchy beats that take us back to our youth or childhood.

PORTUGAL – Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
A Jigsaw – The Strangest Friend
Download audio file (A_Jigsaw_-_The_Strangest_Friend_-_Portugal.mp3)
A Jigsaw, named after a dEUS song, are from Coimbra and have already won an honorable mention in the 2009 International Songwriting Contest. The Strangest Friend is the first single from their third album, Drunken Sailors & Happy Pirates. They have received enthusiastic reviews in Les Inrockuptibles (France) and Heaven Magazine (Holland) and will gather many more fans after this month’s MAP.

ROMANIA – Babylon Noise
Lights Out! – Origin
Download audio file (Lights%20Out%21%20-%20Origin%20%28Romania%29.mp3)
Lights Out! are a bunch of high school kids from Cluj (the heart of Transylvania). In the past two years, since existing as a band, they have kept growing, managing to make a name for themselves among Romania’s alternative/indie bands. The start of this year found them in the studio, recording their first material – Patience EP – which is about to come out. With the smooth combination of psychedelia, dreamy guitars and indie sounds, topped with Teo’s amazing voice, Lights Out! could be one of the best musical products Romania has to offer.

RUSSIA – Big Echo
Human Tetris – Silver Tears
Download audio file (Human%20Tetris%20-%20Silver%20Tears%20%28Russia%29.mp3)
Moscow-based post-bunk band Human Tetris have just finished their debut LP, Happy Way In The Maze Of Rebirth, and a European tour that covered Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland and France. As cold and raw as the Russian winter, Silver Tears cuts right to the bone.

SCOTLAND – The Pop Cop
Mike Nisbet – Not Long
Download audio file (Mike-Nisbet-Not-Long.mp3)
Originally from Oban, Mike Nisbet possesses an enchanting backstory that could give Justin Vernon a run for his money. Living a genuine nomadic existence, acoustic guitar in hand, this wandering troubadour has a Dylan-esque timeless quality to his songwriting, a voice that soothes and shatters hearts, and a gorgeous debut album, Vagrant, that could/should earn this remarkable 23-year-old talent devotees in any continent, any generation, any decade.

SINGAPORE – I’m Waking Up To…
Shelves – Star Alright
Download audio file (shelves-star-alright-singapore.mp3)
The much-anticipated debut album by Shelves was released this month on both vinyl and digital, resurrecting not just the choicest cuts of Britpop and college rock, but the very essence of the 90s Singapore scene. Yet the record sounds anything but dated, with its clever balance of crisp melodies and generous distortion pointing the way forward for indie rock today. That vision is epitomised in Star Alright, a song that rides above the crackle and feedback to poke fun at the studded-leather ironies of pop stardom.

SOUTH AFRICA – Musical Mover & Shaker!
Sterling EQ – Bach’s Kittens At Play
Download audio file (Bachs_Kittens_At_Play_-_Sterling_EQ_-_South_Africa.mp3)
Sterling Electric Quartet, affectionately known as Sterling EQ, burst on to the scene with their genre-defying musical style and sensational live performance. What started out in 2007 exploded into a musical phenomenon that has continued to take the South African entertainment industry by storm. Bach’s Kittens At Play shows off their eclectic stylings and versatile influences. It takes you on a lovely journey. With a twist. Simply delightful.

SOUTH KOREA – Korean Indie
No Control – Time
Download audio file (No_Control_-_Time_-_South_Korea.mp3)
Noise-rock band No Control started out making loud punk explosions, but have since learned the importance of harmony. Influenced by Sonic Youth and with some post-rock and shoegaze thrown into the mix, their first studio-recorded release will be out this month, but already we can savor the captivating sound of Time.

SPAIN – Musikorner
Kokoshca – La Fuerza
Download audio file (Kokoshca%20-%20La%20Fuerza%20(Spain).mp3)
If there’s a band that can show off the creation of a hymn for those Spaniards who usually party like there’s no tomorrow, that band is Kokoshca. They are a three-piece from Pamplona and they have already released five records (some demos, a live album and EPs). Heirs of the biggest Spanish pop bands of the 60s but with an irreverent, garage spirit, Kokoshca have recently re-released their well-known single, La Fuerza, via Elefant Records, an indie-pop institution in Spain.

SWEDEN – Swedesplease
Fucking Werewolf Asso – Keep My Adresse To Yourself, Cause We Need Secrets
Download audio file (KEEP%20MY%20ADRESSE%20TO%20YOURSELF.mp3)
Honestly, I think I’m mainly posting this for the shock value. Both the band’s name and their odd amalgam of genres are, to say the least, unusual. Have you ever wondered what 8bit electronica and punk might sound like as a mash-up? Well, wonder no more. Here’s a new song from Fucking Werewolf Asso.

SWITZERLAND – 78s
Castling Queen’s Side – Rise And Fail
Download audio file (Castling-Queens-Side-Rise-and-Fail-Switzerland.mp3)
The starting point for six-piece Castling Queen’s Side was an Arcade Fire gig in Zurich in 2005. There they got to know each other and decided to form an indie band. Now, seven years later, they have their debut record Cinema ready with 11 splendid songs full of depth, melancholy and catchy crankiness.

TURKEY – WEARTBEAT
The Away Days – Dressing Room
Download audio file (the_away_days_dressing_room_turkey.mp3)
The Away Days carries influences from Northern music sounds and actually presents an unfamiliar style for us in this terrain, which is indie-rock. What distinguishes them from other bands in Turkey may be their desire and aim to make themselves known in Europe. While The Away Days is preparing to release their first EP in a couple of months, we can also see the band perform in various festivals during the summer. Dressing Room has an exceptional unity of quality structure, lyrics and music that can’t be ignored.

UNITED STATES – I Guess I’m Floating
Hundred Waters – Me & Anodyne
Download audio file (Me%20&%20Anodyne.mp3)
There’s not really much you can say about Hundred Waters that will do justice to their brand of experimental dream-pop. You’ve really just got to hear it for yourself. Me & Anodyne is from Hundred Waters’ self-titled debut, an early album-of-the-year contender.

VENEZUELA – Música y Más
Buenaparte – Con Lucy In The Sky
Download audio file (Buenaparte_-_Con_Lucy_in_the_sky_-_Venezuela.mp3)
Buenaparte formed in mid-2010 and released their debut album, La Caída De Lucy, in 2011. Third single Con Lucy In The Sky is a love song with lyrics inviting us to get lost with the person we desire.

GERMANY – Blogpartei
Wooden Peak – Pills Start Work
Download audio file (WoodenPeak-8PillsStartWorkGermany.mp3)
The two guys behind Wooden Peak are getting famous for their gigs where they occupy a whole stage while just sitting on their stools, carefully watching each other. Although their set-up with guitar and drums seems quite like a garage band, their singing and acoustic play triggers very different emotions – calm and dizziness, homeliness and wanderlust. Pills Start Work is a great MAP exclusive which slightly resembles early Whitest Boy Alive. The album Lumen has just been released on the lovely label Analogsoul.

Um alle 35 Songs in einer Zip-Datei runterzuladen, bitte rüber zu Mediafire. Alternativ könnt ihr die einzelnen Songs auch per Rechtsklick auf den Titel runterladen.

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ARGENTINA – Zonaindie
Cosmo – Cazador
Download audio file (Cosmo-Cazador(Argentina).mp3)
Cosmo is an indie-pop band which features members or former members of other groups that are well-known to the Buenos Aires independent music scene (Pablo de Caro from Mataplantas, Ayar Sava from Interama, Pablo Font from Les Mentettes and Andrés Ravioli from Mompox and Brian Storming, among others). A couple of months ago they released their self-titled first album, with songs that combine vintage synthesized sounds and beats with acoustic instruments and fine arrangements. You can download the whole album for free.

AUSTRIA – Walzerkönig
Squalloscope – Domino
Download audio file (Squalloscope-Domino(Austria).mp3)
Anna Kohlweis has released three albums as Paper Bird, however these days she prefers her new alias Squalloscope. Goodbyes in bus terminals, long train rides, sitting on planes and bottles of wine have influenced her upcoming album Soft Invasions. Domino is a singer-songwriter take on R’n'B combined with postmodern lyrics: “I’m a copy of a copy of a copy of a woman, you’re the copy of a copy of a copy of a guy.”

BRAZIL – Meio Desligado
Graveola e o Lixo Polifônico – Insensatez: A Mulher Que Fez
Download audio file (Graveola%20e%20o%20Lixo%20Polifonico%20-%20Insensatez%20-%20a%20mulher%20que%20fez%20%28Brazil%29.mp3)
Graveola e o Lixo Polifônico is a creative band that experiments with MPB (mainstream Brazilian pop music) and makes organic mashups, appropriating themes of bands from various genres to create new works. Their new record is available for download from their website.

CANADA – I(Heart)Music
Amity Beach – Jake’s Version Of Paradise
Download audio file (AmityBeach-JakesVersionOfParadise.mp3)
Seeing as Amity Beach a) only have a three-song EP to their name and b) look like they’re probably still in high school, I might be jumping the gun on praising them. Still, listening to this track (along with the other two), it’s hard not to be excited. They’ve got a great ear for catchy pop and I’d be surprised – not to mention a little disappointed – if this doesn’t lead to some great things.

CHILE – Super 45
Survey Team – Valdivia De Viña
Download audio file (Survey_Team_-_Valdivia_de_Vina_-_Chile.mp3)
A couple of years ago, Survey Team was just a frail bedroom duo with singer Carla Bolgeri adding colorful and sweet melodies to folk-guitar patterns created by her bandmate, Francisco Marín. They’ve certainly changed. Today, they are a powerful quintet with sounds that shock and hit with electric sensuality. Valdivia De Viña is a summer première, soon to be included in their debut album Suriname, which validates Survey Team as a pop delicacy from the current Chilean pop wave and a highly versatile band by successfully flirting with reggae.

CHINA – Wooozy
Mr. Graceless – Mr. Li
Download audio file (Mr%20Graceless%20-%20Mr%20Li%20(China).mp3)
Mr. Graceless is a Beijing-based indie-rock trio. They try to keep a low profile, moving forward step by step. They are tepid and unassuming, and have a clear-cut stand on what to love and what to hate. The love, pain, fantasy and fervor of youth are the best tags for their music. They prefer beautiful melodies and independent attitude. Mr. Graceless is touring around China with their debut release The Tree Ever Green.

COLOMBIA – El Parlante Amarillo
Julián Mayorga – ¿Cómo Llorar Al Revés o Regresar Al Asfalto o…?
Download audio file (Julian%20Mayorga%20-%20Como%20llorar%20al%20reves%20o%20regresar%20al%20asfalto%20o…%20%28Colombia%29.mp3)
¿Cómo Llorar Al Revés o Regresar Al Asfalto o Espantar Mi Propio Cuerpo Inerte o Desaparecer y Volver a Aparecer? – this is the complete title of this piece by singer-songwriter Julián Mayorga, born in Ibagué. It’s an interesting, poetic union between pop and folk that hides, in what he calls La Pequeña Orquesta Sintética (synths and computers), the deep and very personal landscapes that his soft voice creates.

DENMARK – All Scandinavian
Spleen United – Bright Cities Keep Me Awake
Download audio file (Spleen_United_-_Bright_Cities_Keep_Me_Awake_-_Denmark.mp3)
“We are still wild animals,” Spleen United proclaim on Bright Cities Keep Me Awake, from their long-awaited and impressive third full-length, School Of Euphoria. It’s a sentiment carrying truth and one somewhat defining for principal songwriter and frontman Bjarke Niemann’s lyrical appendage to the dark, synthesized rock reminiscing 90s electro, house and (euro)dance. It makes School Of Euphoria a rather despondent, while immensely awesome, listen.

ENGLAND – The Guardian Music Blog
Wild Combination – Great Expectations
Download audio file (GreatExpectationsmasterdemo.mp3)
Wild Combination’s sound itches and twists in an effort to etch itself across indie’s sonic history. It shouldn’t worry so much. The Essex trio responsible know how to channel the best of recent backbeat melancholia (Foals, The Postal Service) and that’s more than enough. This demo version of Great Expectations – mixed specially for MAP – clips along, the addition of a swarth of dreamy synths tying it just to the right side of funky.

FINLAND – Glue
Black Twig – Lake Song
Download audio file (black_twig_lake_song_finland.mp3)
Noise, pop, fuzz, sound experiments. Black Twig is one of the hottest bands in the Finnish indie scene at the moment with their just-released debut album, Paper Trees. In their own words, Black Twig’s sound has echoes of modern fuzzed-out pop experiments as well as of 60s garage-rock gems, sometimes developing a sensibility for hypnotic, repetitive drones.

FRANCE – Yet You’re Fired
Cracbooms – @soleil
Download audio file (Cracbooms%20-%20%40soleil%20%28France%29.mp3)
Cracbooms are more than a band. They are a group of friends who sing about how sweet and simple life is when surrounded by your loved ones, when there are pretty girls around and the sun shines above your head. Their lyrics are filled with humor and casualness, and are written with an unsettling easiness. As for their sound, it’s a mix between the guitars of Two Door Cinema Club and pop à la Young Michelin. I think they’ve found the perfect combination.

GREECE – Mouxlaloulouda
Bokomolech – Talk About Fires
Download audio file (Bokomolech_-_Talk_About_Fires_-_Greece.mp3)
Nine years is a long time to wait, but new album Mass Vulture finds Bokomolech embracing and sifting through the finer moments of their past over the course of 10 outstanding songs. The record is once again exceptionally crafted and gorgeously composed, richly textured and potently rhythmic, instilled with instrumental mastery and consistent music ideas, powerfully expressive vocals, remarkable melodic turns, lovely harmonic noises, sleek and slippery riffs. They have created a sparse and thrilling work of strikingly expansive ambition with the arresting delicacy of the quieter, dreamier tunes capable of ripping up your emotions.

ICELAND – Rjóminn
Vigri – Animals
Download audio file (01-Animals-radioedit-1.mp3)
Animals is from Vigri’s debut album Pink Boats. The band decided to travel around many of the small churches in Iceland’s countryside to record the song, but the end result is from what they recorded in the Flatey island church.

INDONESIA – Deathrockstar
Spring/Summer – Tonight
Download audio file (Spring%20Summer%20-%20Tonight.mp3)
Spring/Summer come from Bandung and are the freshest breed of (what we Indonesians call) Britpop revivalism. With a twist of The Smiths, Joy Division and Blueboy and a bit of attitude, they make tasty, raw music. They probably won’t be the next big thing, but their music provides enjoyable reminiscing of teenage years spent looking for second-hand Smiths CDs at the local thrift store.

IRELAND – Nialler9
Redahan – Ru In Daejeon
Download audio file (Redahan_-_Ru_in_Daejeon.mp3)
If I could, I would pick the entire Loud Mouth collective as Ireland’s MAP representatives this month. They are a coterie of producers, rappers, musicians and DJs who have released three volumes of freely downloadable new music taking in electronica, rap and post-dubstep. Redahan is one producer at the heart of the collective and his evocative and expansive Ru In Daejeon is indicative of the collective’s scope and vision.

ITALY – Polaroid
Heike Has The Giggles – Breakfast
Download audio file (Heike_Has_The_Giggles_-_Breakfast.mp3)
On their sophomore album, Crowd Surfing, the young Heike Has The Giggles pin down even more precisely the range of their influences – from the lighter Nineties pop-punk full of fun to the stronger Noughties punk funk à la Gossip. And damn, they are very good at mixing these. Breakfast is the new album’s first single.

JAPAN – Make Believe Melodies
Cloudy Busey – Up To You (If You Love Me)
Download audio file (Cloudy%20Busey%20-%20Up%20To%20You%20%28If%20You%20Love%20Me%29%20%28Japan%29.mp3)
Cloudy Busey takes many cues from house music on Up To You (If You Love Me), yet this long-burning song never feels exuberant. Rather, the Osaka-based Busey inverts the sounds of a club into something apt for a shadowy alleyway. The beat pounds on relentlessly, but the spacey synths and singing evoke the loneliness of long, solitary walks home early in the morning set against neon lights. If nights out tend to bring you down, here is the jam for you.

MALTA – Stagedive Malta
Danjeli – Midnight Carpet Ride
Download audio file (Danjeli-Midnight-Carpet-Ride-Malta.mp3)
Besides being a maverick club DJ and an accomplished musician in his own right, Danjeli is also a member of the renegade Maltese folk band Brikkuni. This year he released another solo album, KontroNatura, available for free download from Complex Sound Sagacity.

MEXICO – Red Bull Panamérika
Uvilov – De Tantos Universos Paralelos
Download audio file (De-tantos-Universos-Paralelos.mp3)
“Playing dreampop since 2005,” is the slogan of this pioneering band. De Tantos Universos Paralelos is the gigantic overture to their new album El Desprendimiento, which promises to be an overload of feedback and chaos restrained under a structure. Uvilov might be intending to picture a party where the mankind of tomorrow is invited only if its conscience allows it to.

NETHERLANDS – Unfold Amsterdam
Wooden Constructions – Full Brother
Download audio file (woodenconstructions-fullbrother.mp3)
There’s been a buzz brewing for Amsterdam’s Wooden Constructions for a year or two already, their edgy live performances stealing the limelight from a host of international indie wannabes along the way. Well, it’s all set to reach boiling point when they finally unleash their debut album People Now People in spring. A barrage of taut dance grooves, minimalistic riffage and unsettling narratives, they provide a contemporary glimpse of post-punk at its maniacal best. Check out first single Full Brother for a taster of their danceable gloom, making the bold promise that the intensity of their live shows will carry over onto tape.

NEW ZEALAND – Einstein Music Journal
Grass Cannons – Wendy’s
Download audio file (Grass-Cannons-Wendys.mp3)
If hissing noise and warm melodies are your buzz then Auckland four-piece Grass Cannons should be on your radar. They’ve just released their debut EP Vet Dream, containing five darting guitar songs that each take a different path but ultimately lead to the same satisfactory conclusion. While a noisy mess rides heavy throughout their music and kidnaps a bit of their style, within each song there are several minutes of genius song structure that highlights their ability to write amazing pop-influenced punk music. Deerhunter, The Clean and Grooms come to mind when describing their sound, but Grass Cannons seem good enough to leave those influences out of the equation.

NORWAY – Birds Sometimes Dance
Storm The Bastille – Circle Robotics
Download audio file (Storm_The_Bastille_-_Circle_Robotics_-_Norway.mp3)
You never know quite what to expect when listening to a song by Storm The Bastille. Their schizophrenic and mildly cacophonic music is unpredictable, strange and full of surprising twists. The only constant is the great energy the band possess. It’s fast, energetic, melodic and a bit dark with a sense of impending doom that creeps up close.

PERU – SoTB
Los Zapping – Cine Mudo
Download audio file (Los%20ZappinG%20-%20Cine%20Mudo%20%28Peru%29.mp3)
Los Zapping began toying with music when they were still in school, but their garage-rock soon won a place in Lima nights and an authentic touch of freshness was about to be born. Their first EP, released in 2007, was considered the best of that year. Teoría De La Televisión y La Radio was released in 2011, an album that reaffirms the strength and talent of this band.

PORTUGAL – Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
Sun Glitters – They Don’t Want To Let You Know (Sumsun Remix)
Download audio file (Sun_Glitters_-_They_Dont_Want_To_Let_You_Know_Sumsun_Remix_-_Portugal.mp3)
Victor Ferreira aka Sun Glitters, born to Portuguese parents in Luxembourg, has been praised by The Guardian, FADER and Pitchfork. For this reason, his newest release, High EP, which came out on January 30, was highly anticipated. On it, Victor continues his voyage through a dreamy electronic world. This track is a remix of one of the songs on the EP.

ROMANIA – Babylon Noise
Methadone Skies – Vs. Evil
Download audio file (Methadone%20Skies%20-%20Vs.%20Evil%20%28Romania%29.mp3)
Methadone Skies are a bunch of young guys from Timisoara playing the music they themselves like to listen to – psychedelic, progressive, stoner, post-rock, ambient or just noise – most of the time jamming in the studio with excellent results. Keep your ears opened for them as they’re about to release their new album, Enter The Void.

RUSSIA – Big Echo
Brodsky – Death Note
Download audio file (Brodsky%20-%20Death%20Note%20%28Russia%29.mp3)
Brodsky plays beautifully-orchestrated romantic folk with flowery melodies, youthful vocals and sad eyes that might remind you of Beirut or Jens Lekman. Nowadays, it’s truly a blessing to find such an artist in Russia.

SCOTLAND – The Pop Cop
Craig_FS – Grass Stain (feat. Rachel Tesfaye)
Download audio file (Craig-FS-Grass-Stain.mp3)
Grass Stain is a musical head-turner – an 8.5-minute electro/house fusion with an outstanding soulful female guest vocal that takes you on a trip of a lifetime labelled bliss-euphoria-bliss. Craig_FS has been been making and uploading songs to Soundcloud for the past year, and the potential is certainly there for him to follow in the mainstream footsteps of compatriot Calvin Harris.

SINGAPORE – I’m Waking Up To…
Obedient Wives Club – Fragments
Download audio file (obedient-wives-club-fragments-singapore.mp3)
The first release by 60s indie-pop distributors Happy Teardrop Music is the debut self-titled EP by Obedient Wives Club, and what a hit it’s been with all physical copies selling out within a month. The band, cheekily named after a controversial Muslim organisation of the same name, plays a delightful blend of girly noise-pop – or what they helpfully term “Spectorgaze”. Fragments indulges its Jesus And Mary Chain obsession with generous doses of saccharine melodies and interstellar fuzz.

SOUTH KOREA – Korean Indie
MDS – Insomnia
Download audio file (MDS_-_Insomnia_-_South_Korea.mp3)
DJ duo MDS released their first album in July last year, full of remixes of songs from some of the best artists in Seoul’s indie scene. In January, they released a digital single with a couple of songs of their own, showing that they’re also capable of crafting great pieces of music themselves. Insomnia is a smooth electronica track that lends itself very well as a soundtrack to a walk just about anywhere.

SPAIN – Musikorner
Novedades Carminha – Pesetas
Download audio file (Novedades%20Carminha%20-%20Pesetas%20(Spain).mp3)
Novedades Carminha are a garage-rock three-piece from Santiago de Compostela, and they’re starting to be the talk of the town. Their songs are energy-packed and irreverent, making fun of everyday topics but vindicating them at the same time. Their lyrics hold true punk spirit. Pesetas, taken from their first album Jódete y Baila, released in early 2011, is a true jewel of dirty Spanish rock.

SWEDEN – Swedesplease
Kids – My Sincerest Apologies
Download audio file (My%20Sincerest%20Apologies.mp3)
Electronic pop duo Kids are shockingly good. Sure there a few cheesy moments in the single My Sincerest Apologies but it gives the song a bit of fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously.

SWITZERLAND – 78s
John Caroline – Robine
Download audio file (John-Caroline-Robine-Switzerland1.mp3)
John Caroline is a young six-piece from Baden who make playful, jittery and dreamy indie rock. Their debut EP is released as a free download on February 18.

TURKEY – WEARTBEAT
The Ringo Jets – Collar
Download audio file (turkey_the_ringo_jets_collar.mp3)
The Ringo Jets, consisting of two guitarists and a drummer, is a rock ‘n’ roll band inspired by 60s garage music and blues rock. They made a big splash in Istanbul indie circles with their Limited Lunchpack EP, which you can download for free from Bandcamp. After signing with Aisha Records, they’re planning to release their debut album by the end of the year.

UNITED STATES – I Guess I’m Floating
That Ghost – Morning Now
Download audio file (02%20-%20Morning%20Now.mp3)
Californian lo-fi bedroom artist That Ghost has been making music since before he could drive a car. His sound has grown and changed as much as he has from tween state to young adulthood. OK, he was never a tween but a pure artist whose latest EP Rosalind is a gem. Check out the slow-burning Morning Now, like, right now.

VENEZUELA – Música y Más
Mcklopedia – Guardián
Download audio file (MCKlopedia%20-%20Guardian%20%28Venezuela%29.mp3)
Mcklopedia is a young man who, back in 2001, identified with a genre and took it as his philosophy and way of life. He explicitly shows the reality of the world’s great cities, the everyday stories that come to a close in households every night. Superlirical, his debut album, seeks to represent a new concept in urban music, combining soul, reggae, funk and hip hop.

Australiens Sures machen ein kurzes, aber gutes Stück 70er wieder lebendig. ↵ Bixiga70 aus Brasilien liefert Soul, ziemlich klassisch. ↵ Die Kanadier von Honheehonhee klingen in der Tat unglaublich nach Arcade Fire, macht aber wirklich nichts. ↵ Nelson Can aus Dänemark ist ein weibliches Trio, das ein Gespür für Ohrwürmer hat, geht selten mit einer Punk-Attitüde (Gesang, Songlänge) zusammen, hier aber schon. ↵ Ein absolutes Muss ist Money aus England, großes Kino. No further comment needed. ↵ Zebra Island aus Estland machen sehr unterhaltsamen Synthiepop, wie bereits in den Kommentaren richtig bemerkt wurde. ↵ Die französischen Concrete Knives machen sommerlichen Pop. Ja, es hat -12°C, mir ist das bewusst. ↵ Leicht unterkühlte Melange aus The xx, Air und Com Truise gibt es von Esperanza aus Italien. ↵ Der Name verrät es bereits, Billie Van aus Norwegen machen … ? Genau. Aber gut! ↵ Irgendwie in den Bann trotz seiner Einfachheit zieht mich der Song des Portugiesen We Trust. ↵ Und den entspannten Abschluss machen Fantasy Island aus den USA. Filmmusik at 20rpm? ↵

Im Januar neu dabei ist endlich auch ein österreichisches Blog, Walzerkönig, willkommen!

GERMANY – Blogpartei
Apparat – Ash/Black Veil
Download audio file (Apparat-AshBlackVeilGermany.mp3)
This month we’ve got one of the most discussed German artists of last year. Apparat’s 2011 album The Devil’s Walk took the concept of Sascha Ring, the man behind the moniker, further. The soundscapes created feels like a cairn, carefully layered and poised, yet built to last; but Ring has decided to use his falsetto, which has caused controversy with reviewers. Decide for yourself if this concept works well on Ash/Black Veil. I think it does!

Um alle 36 Songs in einer Zip-Datei runterzuladen, bitte rüber zu Mediafire. Alternativ könnt ihr die einzelnen Songs auch per Rechtsklick auf den Titel runterladen.

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ARGENTINA – Zonaindie
Nubes En Mi Casa – Aceleremos
Download audio file (NubesEnMiCasa-Aceleremos(Argentina).mp3)
Nubes En Mi Casa is an indie-pop band led by singer Josefina Mac Loughlin. Aceleremos is a preview from their upcoming second studio album, Me Suelto y Vuelvo. The song sounds like an instant hit and we’re sure it will become one of our favorite tracks of 2012, so we can’t wait to hear the rest of it.

AUSTRALIA – Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Sures – The Sun
Download audio file (The-Sun.mp3)
The Sun is a short burst of sunshine from Sydney duo Sures. It sounds like a Beach Boys outtake, which might sound boring given the number of bands out there paying homage to Wilson and Co. Fortunately, The Sun is just two minutes of harmonising over a dull melody – it’s a catchy tune that will have those of us in the southern hemisphere pressing repeat throughout summer.

AUSTRIA – Walzerkönig
Diver – Illusions
Download audio file (Diver-Illusions(Austria).mp3)
Quiet is the new loud. Diver, a folky trio from various places in Austria and Germany and now based in Vienna, play beautifully melancholic songs with three acoustic guitars and lyrics that go “everyday reality is an illusion of possibilities”. Illusions is the opener of their first full-length album Kites, which will be out later this month. In the meantime you can listen to their self-titled debut EP on Bandcamp.

BRAZIL – Meio Desligado
Bixiga 70 – Balboa Da Silva
Download audio file (Bixiga%2070%20-%20Balboa%20da%20Silva%20%28Brazil%29.mp3)
Bixiga 70 is what happens when you combine African beats, jazz and Brazilian swing in a city as hectic as São Paulo, where they’re from. Their first CD was released last year and is available to download at the band’s website.

CANADA – I(Heart)Music
Honheehonhee – We Only Go
Download audio file (Honheehonhee-WeOnlyGo.mp3)
There’s more than a hint of early Arcade Fire to We Only Go but, as someone who misses early Arcade Fire, I don’t see why that’s a strike against Honheehonhee. Besides, this song (not to mention the rest of their debut, Shouts) is exuberant, unhinged fun, and the world can always use more music like that.

CHILE – Super 45
Los Embajadores – Peso
Download audio file (Los_Embajadores_-_Peso_-_Chile.mp3)
From all the tips made in the Chilean music scene for this year, Los Embajadores is one of the most interesting. Romantic goth-pop songs reminiscent of Cocteau Twins as well as the darkest hours of Miguel Bosé. Faisanes is the name of their soon-to-come new album, and Peso (“Weight”) is its first single.

CHINA – Wooozy
Elenore – Psycho Man
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Beijing-based Elenore formed in late 2009 and have developed a sound influenced by bands such as Oasis, Kasabian and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. The single Psycho Man fuses 60s swing drum loops, fuzzy guitar riffs and a Middle Eastern instrumental chorus which became a hit on China’s popular site Douban. In February, Elenore will release their first EP both on CD and the band’s own digital distribution site.

DENMARK – All Scandinavian
Nelson Can – Apple Pie
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Danish girl-trio Nelson Can release their eponymous debut EP this month as part of a triple EP release with The Freudian Slip and Echo Me. Punk aesthetics spoon with pop flair and hipster cool on their first single Apple Pie, which reaffirms that apples are indeed a good thing. Like the girls on Facebook and check out the video for Apple Pie on YouTube.

ENGLAND – The Guardian Music Blog
Money – Who’s Going To Love You Now
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A four-piece based in Manchester, Money are part of that city’s tradition of earnest young men, “the weight on their shoulder”, as Ian Curtis once sang. They quote Austrian poet Rilke, while their Facebook features a “eulogy for the death of everything”. A recent Guardian New Band of the Day article contended that they “have a similar air of mystery and cerebral intensity to Wu Lyf, with a vocalist who can do enigmatically gruff as well as fervid and angelic”, positing them as the Mancunian Manic Street Preachers, with a shared sense of the sacred and intense.

ESTONIA – Popop
Zebra Island – Falling Through
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Mysterious Zebra Island rocketed into blogs and social networks at the very end of 2011 and everyone in Estonia seems to love them, although no-one knows much about the band. Zebra Island is led by Rasmus Lill from Kosmofon (featured in the March 2011 edition of MAP) and beautiful vocals are provided by Helina Risti. Falling Through, their first and only song so far, is a lovely, pulsating electro-pop masterpiece that keeps you wanting for much more Zebra Island.

FINLAND – Glue
Greymouth – The Boy
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Singer and songwriter Elisa Husu founded Greymouth in the summer of 2011 to recreate her folky songs with a full band. The Boy is the first taster of this project and highlights Elisa’s beautiful voice on top of epic acoustic sounds with a marked Fleet Foxes influence.

FRANCE – Yet You’re Fired
Concrete Knives – Brand New Start
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A perfect title for the first song of the year, Brand New Start is a highly enjoyable pop song, so good it’s featured in a commercial, and so fresh with its choir and upbeat sound, I would name it song of the year. Very good proof that the French indie scene is better than ever.

GREECE – Mouxlaloulouda
Hristos Lainas – H Thlipsi To Brady
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Hristos Lainas’ first solo album, I Agapi Tha Lampsi (“Love Will Shine”) is stuffed to the brim with alluring pop melodies, drenched in skittering 12-bit samplers, filtered vocals, warm and luscious analog synths and infused with a pleasant aura of drowsiness. Lainas assembles an array of sounds and textures, adds sporadic splashes of static atmosphere and in the process creates a magnificent listening environment of rose-tinted optimism and disenchantment. H Thlipsi To Brady (“Sadness In The Night”) submerges a sense of intense feeling within its 80s fantasy electronic ether and instantly takes hold of your ears.

ICELAND – Rjóminn
Toggi – Let Them Bleed
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This catchy little song, taken from the Iceland king of pop’s second album Wonderful Secrets, should be the anthem for any self-respecting Occupy movement. Feeling a need to protest? Then let Toggi’s tune occupy your mind and fire you up.

INDONESIA – Deathrockstar
Belkastrelka – Pujian Ekspatriat
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Belkastrelka are an eccentric electronic duo who sample sounds from various sources – windows, the library, television, nature and everything else. Combined with the tiny but wild vocals of Asa Rahmana, they create feral dance music.

IRELAND – Nialler9
Collie Collins & Monto – How Does?!?
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A collaboration indicative of Ireland’s growing insurgency against genre borders, Keep Her Lit is an EP which was released last year from Dublin rapper Collie Collins. Teaming up with producer Monto for four tracks of electronic-infused rap, the result is something wholly Irish yet globally progressive. It’s a free download too.

ITALY – Polaroid
Esperanza – Aliante Giallo
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Three skilled musicians and DJs put together a project devoted to an idea of music with no barriers. The sound ranges from chillwave to house, from trip-hop to psychedelia, and becomes a wide landscape. Featuring a collaboration with Banjo Or Freakout and released on the prestigious German label Gomma, this album works magic when the bpms slow down and the electronics becomes warmer and warmer.

JAPAN – Make Believe Melodies
Praha Depart – Portrait Man
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Praha Depart demand attention, the Tokyo band mixing constantly morphing guitar with drum smashes to create mesmerizing tracks that reveal new sonic details with each new listen. All of those elements appear on Portrait Man, but the highlight of the song is lead singer Mai and her jittery voice. Over the course of Portrait Man, her vocals bring to mind Lydia Lunch before zigging towards a style reminiscent of Sue Tompkins of Life Without Buildings.

MALTA – Stagedive Malta
Dolls For Idols – Run
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Dolls For Idols are an electronic band underpinned by indie and pop sensibilities. Their music embraces 80s-inspired synthesised sounds and the 90s rave generation, all served up with an attitude that is very much rooted in the here and now.

MEXICO – Red Bull Panamérika
Los Mundos – Ni Un Segundo Más Sin Música
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Los Mundos is a long-distance collaboration that perfectly speaks about musical memory and desertic solitude. The title of this lush pop-shoegaze song means “Not a second more without music”. Indeed, it’s the urgent need of a music lover: to spend all their time in a record store (how nostalgic), living their days wearing headphones with an obsession for everything that spins – very accurate for a band whose name in Spanish translates as “The Worlds”.

NETHERLANDS – Unfold Amsterdam
Hospital Bombers – Traditional Maori Fight Song #9
Download audio file (hospitalbombers-traditionalmaorifightsong9.mp3)
This self-proclaimed stadium-folk outfit have been in hiding for too long, sitting on a wealth of new material that they’ve struggled to shape into that ‘difficult second album’. Thankfully, this month they’ll finally release the sequel to 2008′s Footnotes – the grandly titled At Budokan. Their lovingly lo-fi folk-pop is always rougher and rawer in the live setting, but this new collection again shows them up to be masters of careful songcraft, albeit unashamedly quirky songcraft that’s emblazoned with handclaps and violins.

NORWAY – Birds Sometimes Dance
Billie Van – On My Knees
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Billie Van’s music makes me reminisce back to the 50s and the 60s, when country music was good and Nancy Sinatra was the one; when rock ‘n’ roll meant four chords and terrific songs; when guitar solos were mandatory and slapback echo came from the amps. Her music is all of this – great pop songs, tearful country ballads and hip-shaking rock ‘n’ roll, but it’s also new and done in a refreshing way.

PERU – SoTB
Chico Unicornio – Triángulo
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Once again, it is the independent scene that gives us another interesting musical proposal. Chico Unicornio is a one-man project that combines acoustic folk sounds with a nice Andean instrument called a charango. The music that this young man makes is new to our local sound, giving it a freshness and novelty.

PORTUGAL – Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
We Trust – Time (Better Not Stop)
Download audio file (We_Trust_-_Time_Better_not_stop_-_Portugal.mp3)
We Trust is André Tentugal’s one-man band. In 2011, Time (Better Not Stop) was one of the most-played tracks by a new independent artist on Portuguese radio. We are proud to have it here, exclusively, for download for MAP readers. You can also find it on We Trust’s debut album, These New Countries, which was released in November.

ROMANIA – Babylon Noise
Coughy – Precambrian
Download audio file (Coughy_-_Precambrian%20%28Romania%29.mp3)
Coughy are an experimental duo residing in Bucharest, featuring former and current band members of The Amsterdams. Therefore it is regarded as a creative playground where everything is accepted as a form of expression without the self-censorship required when playing in a regular and quite popular indie-rock band.

RUSSIA – Big Echo
M A Y Г L E Y – Farfour
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M A Y Г L E Y are getting ready to strike Russia’s cruel winter with an ancient God’s spell, drowned in a wall of sound. Religion, symbolism, adrenaline, isolated genres and the naked language of post-Stalin 60s influence this psychedelic shoegaze project, who have made a great record.

SCOTLAND – The Pop Cop
Make Sparks – Your Heart’s On Fire
Download audio file (Make-Sparks-Your-Hearts-On-Fire.mp3)
Scotland’s rock scene is firmly in the spotlight thanks to the wildly successful exploits of Biffy Clyro and young pretenders Twin Atlantic. For those looking for the next band to follow in their footsteps, two contenders stand out: Make Sparks and LightGuides (featured in the July 2010 edition of MAP). Catchy choruses are fitted as standard on Make Sparks, who are making all the right noises with their relentless touring and recording ethic, slick promo videos and a vivacious pop sensibility.

SINGAPORE – I’m Waking Up To…
Riot !n Magenta – CTRL
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Do androids dream of electric sheep? One thinks of such things when the contrast between the organic and inorganic meld together into a primordial blur of passion. Riot !n Magenta gently slip into the stream of your thoughts with Hayashida Ken’s dark, pulsing rhythms and Eugenia Yip’s wispful and forlorn vocal delivery. There’s tension in every stem as the words haze through: “I try to take it slow, you go faster…You need control…”. Definitely hoping to hear more from this special duo.

SOUTH AFRICA – Musical Mover & Shaker!
Jeremy Loops – The Gypsy Opera
Download audio file (The_Gypsy_Opera_-_Jeremy_Loops_-_South_Africa.mp3)
Jeremy Loops is not a traditional band. He creates music on the spot with his gamut of loop pedals and impromptu collaborations. With The Gypsy Opera, he brings together his delicate mix of folk, hip-hop, bluegrass funk and blues all by using his guitar, ukelele, harmonica and beatboxing skills. It is something rather magical to behold.

SOUTH KOREA – Korean Indie
Galaxy Express – As Time Passes, Always Been Good
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Galaxy Express is one of the best rock bands in Korea and have been for quite some time. During their Wild 30 project in 2010, a 30-day quest during which they recorded a piece of music for their Wild Days album every day, they showed that they put on the best of performances, even just going to karaoke. In late 2011, Galaxy Express released split EP Naughty Boy with Korean punk pioneers Crying Nut, which contained a re-recording of the somewhat atypical but gorgeous and engaging As Time Passes, Always Been Good from those wild days. Look out for more from Galaxy Express in 2012 as they’re heading for a US tour in March and playing SXSW for the second time.

SPAIN – Musikorner
Dolores – Volcán
Download audio file (Dolores%20-%20Volcan%20(Spain).mp3)
Dolores are four, they’re from Madrid and they are certainly one of the best hopes for noise-rock made in Spain. Post-punk and shoegaze are two of the genres Dolores mix for achieving their sound (which is also spiced up with a touch of good ol’ pop and loads of energy). A good bit of that power can be heard on Volcán (“Volcano”), whose stunning rhythm will invite you to dance the hell out of yourself. And you won’t be able to refuse.

SWITZERLAND – 78s
Blanket – Hailey Fought The Law
Download audio file (Blanket-Hailey-Fought-The-Law-Switzerland.mp3)
Want to watch a video starring the runner-up of the figure roller-skating world championships dressed as a rabbit? Here you go. Given that Blanket’s accompanying song is a fragile and psychedelic piece of awesomeness, we obviously have a win-win situation.

TURKEY – WEARTBEAT
Haossaa – Holgar Godoni
Download audio file (haossaa_holgar_godini_turkey.mp3)
Last year, Ozan Aktuna, Enis Özbek and Tolga Güldalli, three-pieced avant garde noise band Haossaa, became legends in the indie scene of Istanbul, mostly for their extraordinary live performances. And when their debut LP came out last September, their reputation finally got crowned.

UNITED STATES – I Guess I’m Floating
Fantasy Island – Avenue
Download audio file (Avenue.mp3)
One of 2012′s more promising American groups is Fantasy Island, a Los Angeles duo responsible for a pair of intriguing, soulful jams since their formation in late 2011. They’ve got a new single out on UK label Stroll On Records and a debut album on the horizon. With a song like Avenue (and the equally fantastic Breaking A Heart) it’s hard to keep wild expectations in check… guess we’ll just have to wait and see what the rest of the year cooks up.

VENEZUELA – Música y Más
Okills – Nube
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Okills is a band that started in mid-2010 and fuses alternative indie-rock with other genres, resulting in some fun music. In September 2011, they released their Iniciando Transmisión EP for free via the web in a pack that includes six songs, illustrations and photos of the band.