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Rave's Faves

RAVE’S FAVE! The Walkmen – Heartbreaker

The Walkmen have delivered Heaven, an album that will probably land on my year-end list. The title track is the current single, but “Heartbreaker” is my personal fave. Check it out below, and be sure to catch them on tour. A little small world note is that my eventual adventures with B3Sci began at a Walkmen SXSW gig in ’05. Mike of B3Sci and I were in line next to each other and started chatting. The rest is history. – By Bruce Rave

The Walkmen – Heartbreaker

The Walkmen (Facebook)

*Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 8-10 pm Pacific, 11-1 am Eastern, 4-6 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
06-15-12

RAVE’S FAVE! The Hives – Come On!

By Bruce Rave

The Hives blew their Coachella crowd away this year, and their Lex Hives album will drop on Tuesday. I don’t think it will go down as their best, but it starts out with 69 seconds of hotness. Come on and check out “Come On!”

The Hives – Come On!

The Hives (Facebook)

*Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 8-10 pm Pacific, 11-1 am Eastern Fridays, 4-6 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
06-03-12

RAVE’S FAVE: Little Barrie – Surf Hell

By Bruce Rave

This is a UK 3-piece fronted by the killer guitar player Barrie, who just likes to use his first name. They combine 60′s influenced garage and blues and have a Rolling Stones feel. There’s a line on the band’s site that Barrie’s guitar sounds like “Dwayne Eddy with a distortion pedal”. Their sound is far more than that, but that vibe definitely applies to “Surf Hell”. They played in LA this past Thursday and nailed it despite having just arrived from London that afternoon. They will play dates in Seattle, Portland, Oakland, and San Diego this coming week before heading back to the UK.

Little Barrie – Surf Hell

Little Barrie (Facebook)

*Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 8-10 pm Pacific, 11-1 am Eastern Fridays, 4-6 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
05-26-12

RAVE’S FAVE! The Royalty — Bartender

By Bruce Rave

The Royalty are a new El Paso band that combine rock freshness with a retro feel. I met them at a SXSW party. They were really nice people, and I’ve been keeping fingers crossed that I’d like at least some of their songs. It turns out their Lovers album is pretty damn good. “Bartender” has a big sound and compelling melody behind Nicole Boudreau’s strong vocals.

The Royalty — Bartender

The Royalty texas (Bandcamp)

Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 8-10 pm Pacific, 11-1 am Eastern Fridays, 4-6 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
05-20-12

RAVE’S FAVE! Silversun Pickups — Dots and Dashes (Enough Already)

By Bruce Rave

Silversun Pickups return with their long-awited album number three It’s a fairly relaxed affair with a few tracks that will rock you, including “Dots and Dashes”. Nikki Monninger’s base line hooked me right out of the box, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this track become a single after “Bloody Mary” has had its hit run.

Silversun Pickups california (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 8-10 pm Pacific, 11-1 am Eastern Fridays, 4-6 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
05-12-12

RAVE’S FAVES! The Envy Corps – Ms. Hospital Corners

Contributed by Bruce Rave

the-envy-corps

If you are longing for some fresh Muse, this band by way of Iowa just might help you through the drought. The Envy Corp. definitely have that vibe with some Radiohead mixed in. They are a complex band with depth that requires some attention, and the groove will really begin to stick with you about halfway through the song. A couple of listens have worked for me. Think Muse with a groove on “Ms. Hospital Corners”.

The Envy Corps – Ms. Hospital Corners

The Envy Corps iowa (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

Rating 8.4

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reviewed by
05-05-12

RAVE’S FAVE: Hot Chip – Night and Day

By Bruce Rave

hotchip

Hot Chip whetted our appetites with the 7-minute “Flutes”, and now comes the official single “Night and Day”. It’s want you usually want in your Hot Chip: uptempo, melodic, and infinitely danceable. The album comes in June, and this band is poised to gain more and more fans. Assuming the album is strong to go along with their ace live shows, we should be dancing to these guys for the rest of the year.

Hot Chip england (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
04-19-12

RAVE’S FAVE! Schmidt – Boom Boom

By Bruce Rave

schmidt

Schmidt is a 21 year old from Berlin who has been active in the London music scene. She was discovered by producer Guy Chambers who has worked with Kyle Minogue and Tina Turner. This track is really fun, as is her upcoming album. Imagine “Caberet” meets Feist.

Schmidt – Boom Boom

Schmidt germany (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
04-14-12

Bruce Rave Interviews HOWLER on Moheak Radio!

By Bruce Rave

howlerecho1

B3SCI’s Mike and I recent enjoyed a hang with Jordan Gatesmith of Howler before the band’s hot set at The Echo in LA last Friday. Howler is one of the most talked-about in the world right now and America Give Up is one of my fave 2012 albums so far. The interview special will air on Go Deep With Bruce Rave today, around 2p Pacific, 5p Eastern, and 10p GMT. Jordan is a very down to earth dude who has wisdom way beyond his 20 years. Check out the interview on Moheak Radio, our 24/7 indie music station! Click “Listen Live” and if you come early, that isn’t a bad thing either!

UPDATE: Stream the interview below:

Howler minnesota (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
03-30-12

RAVE’S FAVES: Gold Fields – Moves

By Bruce Rave

goldfields3

One of my top SXSW live discoveries was Gold Fields from near Melbourne, Australia. They are tight, energetic and danceable, with 2 sick percussionists. “Moves” is perfectly titled. It has a retro bottom-end topped with a modern vibe. I played this song on my show last Friday, and it got a super reaction.

Gold Fields australia (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
03-28-12

RAVE’S FAVES: Battle Tapes – Sweatshop Boys

By Bruce Rave

battle-tapes

OK I’ll admit it, I rarely “fave” unsigned bands. After Battle Tapes played a great Moheak show at The Satellite LA last Saturday night, we thought we’d give “Sweatshop Boys” a spin for the guest panel on Thursday’s Moheak Music Meeting program. The song title alone is almost worth the spin, but this song was the highest rated track on the show, beating out numerous heavies. Capitol’s Executive Vice President of A&R Alex Luke even gave it a top rating. The bass line will hit you right away. Think of Nine Inch Nails meeting The Faint, only a not as dark.

Battle Tapes – Sweatshop Boys

Battle Tapes california (Facebook)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
03-03-12

RAVE’S FAVE: The Cribs – Chi-Town

By Bruce Rave

the-cribs-chi-town-608x608

One of my fave bands of the past decade. The Cribs return and are again the original threesome (minus Johnny Marr). I like what they did with JM, but I think their best stuff came earlier. That extra rawness returns and they sing about my native city of Chicago. An ideal taste from their album, which arrives in May. An official single will be emerging soon.

The Cribs – Chi-Town

The Cribs england (Official)

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

reviewed by
02-17-12