Shout Out Louds
Our Ill Wills
Merge
September 2007

Some bands have an uncanny ability to make it look easy. They’re like that rare breed of popular kids in high school. You know, the ones that always had their shit together, did a bunch of different extracurriculars, managed to enchant everyone and still never broke a sweat. The Shout Out Louds are one of those bands. Perhaps it’s...

Dungen
Tio Bitar
Kemado Records
May 2007

My brother told me while living in Denmark that all of his friends were writing music in English even if they didn’t completely understand what they were saying. They knew that eventually they would have to market it globally, and it was impossible, suicidal, for a band to even bother performing in their own language. Not only did Gustav Ejstes of

YACHT
I Believe in You. Your Magic is Real.
Marriage Records
May 2007

YACHT is the creative construction of Portland, Oregon's Jona Bechtolt. YACHT's latest effort, I Believe in You. Your Magic is Real, is a whimsical, bubbly conglomeration of noises and beats, with lyrics covering a variety of everyday subjects such as consumerism, loose change and repetitive mantras, among other...

Cake
B-Sides and Rarities
Upbeat Records
August 2007

First, the vitals. The 12 tracks on Cake's B-Sides and Rarities consist of four originals, six covers (one done twice) and one song ("Thrills") of an undetermined origin. You can "go the distance" in a perfectly acceptable 40-plus minutes. All told, B-Sides is a fine album, yet much like Cake's career, there is nothing...