The Easy Gramophone - January

1. Fire On Fire - Hangman
Backporch fingerpick and then full-on big-voiced HOLLERS. "AH-WOO," they sing, like the final song of a man whose head rests on the chopping block. As the mandolin flutters, the condemned sounds contented. "Even the hangman has friends!"
Download at: http://younggodrecords.com/product.asp?P_ID=53

2. The Owls - Peppermint Patty
A soft, sweet ode to Peppermint Patty - she perhaps of Peanuts comics, or perhaps not. A lovely piece with its heart in the chorus, where The Owls' voices meet and diverge, catching all the late afternoon light.
Download at: http://www.magicmarkerrecords.com/mmr043.html

3. Destroyer - Foam Hands
The return of Dan Bejar - Canadian, New Pornographer, favourite of this author. Foam Hands shows him ever-witchy, ever-mischievous, singing wild and sage lyrics over the rising boom of an indie rock band; climbing icebergs to a skewed, true climax.
Download at: http://www.mergerecords.com/audio/destroyer/FoamHands.mp3

4. Lacrosse - Sunshiner
A gang of Swedes doing the thing that Swedes do these days: jaunty pop from Gothenburg, all pearly smiles and carefree guitars, a sing-along with the swell of nostalgia in its chest. When the drums kick in and the volume rises you can imagine everyone throwing their winter hats into the air, stomping their boots in the snow, letting their scarves trail behind them in the wind.
Download at: http://www.tapeterecords.de/download/

5. Daniel Rossen - Too Little Too Late
Grizzly Bear's Daniel Rossen covers Jo Jo and turns the stuff of cheeseball karaoke into something a little more ambivalent, a little more mysterious. He sings with himself over bass-drum and detuned piano, chasing a melody that's been harnessed to different horses than Jo Jo's, going to different places, hoping for a different beating heart.
Download at: http://grizzly-bear.net/blog/?p=225