Image

Track Reviews

Amason – Went To War

Amason

Amason, a Swedish indie supergroup of sorts (the Stockholm-based band features members of Miike Snow, Idiot Wind & Little Majorette), make their B3 debut w/ the compact rhythm-driven indie pop of “Went To War”. The track ticks the boxes (quite well actually) of being great melodically and conceptually as well as lyrically but is particularly memorable for it’s excellent set of horn-led hook-sealing counter melodies (you will recognize them instantly when you first hear them) that are of a quality characteristic of the best songwriters (like Miike Snow’s Pontus Winnberg).

Amason california (Facebook)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
07-01-13

Duke Dumont feat. MNEK – Hold On

duke dumont

Duke Dumont’s maturation into a full on star of indie dance music continues with new single “Hold On”. Featuring Rudimental collaborator MNEK (& “Need U” co-writer), “Hold On” walks a neat juxtaposition between the immediacy of the track’s club ready beats and bounce and the more sobering spiritual for the 2010’s vocal and instrumental stylings. “Hold On” is a most definite win for Duke Dumont.

Duke Dumont (Soundcloud)

Rating: 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
07-01-13

Major Major Major – Scream Queen

major major major

Major Major Major a new rock and roll duo out of Austin score major B3 points with the 60’s pop-informed crunch of awesome debut single “Scream Queen”. Get into Major Major Major before all yr friends (inevitably) do RIGHT NOW.

Major Major Major texas (Bandcamp)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
07-01-13

Holograms – Meditations

meditations

Ooh yeah, we likey. The well-worn genre of “dark brooding post-punk” comes and goes (as all genres in the larger rotation of the literati do) among the turnstile consciousness of the indie literati. July 2013, scene: The United States, neither the time or place are particularly friendly (at least broadly) to post-punk and the genre’s charms. It’s awesome to find a band that in addition to playing great music in the face of its current trends; but the the fact that Swedish band (where post-punk is still alive and well apparently) Holograms do it so well and so convincingly is something truly worthy of admiration (& a spot on B3). “Meditations” is single #2 from Holograms sophomore Forever LP.

Holograms sweden (Facebook)

Rating 8.4

brown8

reviewed by
07-01-13

Bondax – Giving It All

bondax

Lancashire UK’s soul pop home team Bondax. We’re going proceed now with this track by forgoing the requisite Disclosure comparison and introduce you straight to the track, which (and it should really not be a surprise) is very good indeed. We’re talking hit-you-in-the-heart-area R&B vocals, the slickest of slick bass lines & “feel good for summer” vibes; the typical (& typically well-fashioned) Bondax formula. A+’s all around.

Bondax (Facebook)

Rating 8.4

brown8

reviewed by
07-01-13

Los Girls – One For Sloan

LosGirls

Necessary chill coming your way from LA based producers LOS GIRLS. Their debut release “One For Sloan” fuses dreamy synths and subterranean beat culture into an experimental serving of surreptitious electro pop. Keep an eye out for their debut EP July 16 on Plug Research and sample the cinematic vibes of “One For Sloan” below.

Los Girls california (Plug Research)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-29-13

Duck Sauce – It’s You

ducksauce

NYC bros-in-DJ’ing Armand Van Helden and A-Trak a/k/a Duck Sauce a/k/a Goose Marmalade a/k/a Eagle Tapenade a/k/a The Ol’ Dirty Chinese Restaurant make a successful return to the $$$$ window w/ the playful kitsch of “It’s You”. Skip along to this one below.

Duck Sauce (Facebook)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-29-13

Abigail Wyles – Mantra

abigail wyles

Soulful London girls over dark hypnotic beats; haha, for lack of a better way of describing it that lane of music may be the one we’re digging the most at the moment. And while Abigail Wyles joins a relatively crowded genre, there is nothing here on “Mantra” that sounds tired or imitative; a very strong singular vocal performance and tune well complements Wyles’ collaborator Holly Simpson’s spare but well-suited & unique ambient-touched production. There’s also an undercurrent of jazz (that you really don’t hear in this style of music or really done well elsewhere) both in Wyles’ vocal and in the instrumental (particularly in the verses) that is especially interesting.

Abigail Wyles (Facebook)

Rating: 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-28-13

Twin Peaks – Irene

twin peaks

“Irene” is the lead single from Autumn Tone (Aquarium Drunkard) teenagers Twin Peaks. Excerpted from the Chicago band’s upcoming Sunken debut, “Irene” walks the well-done-to-get-there line between a song poppy enough that the melodies are sing-a-long-able while still being laced with enough rock history (most definitely The Velvet Underground) and interesting instrumentation and arrangement (we like how the lead vocals are a little bit mixed back) to flatter the tastemaker sensibility. Sunken is due July 9th.

Twin Peaks (soundcloud)

Rating 8.1

reviewed by
06-28-13

Trevor Dickson – Summer Legs

trevor dickson

We dig New Yorker Trevor Dickson’s new track for “Summer Legs”. Recalling in a strange way early Bowie (if he were way more fun to be around and got out in the sun a little more) not only vocally but thematically, there’s also a generous bit of other early 60’s and late 70’s influences and sounds to be had here. “Summer Legs” is the title track from Trevor Dickson’s new EP which is available now via Swoon Records.

Trevor Dickson (Bandcamp)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-28-13

The Preatures – Revelation

ThePreaturesIsThisHowYouFeel_AliMitton_EditorialShot_zps7b314586

We loved Aussie band The Preatures excellent soulful-in-half-time single Is This How You Feel?. The Sydney-based act follow up with the darker, a bit tougher to crack (dare we say Fleetwood Mac-y), but certainly no less soulful groove of “Revelation”. So that’s two fabulous singles down for Preatures, we can only hope an album (or at the very least an EP) is not too far in the offing.

The Preatures australia (Facebook)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-28-13

Premiere: American Authors – Believer (Captain Cuts Remix)

© Andrew Zaeh | ZAEH, LLC

B3SCI are very pleased to world premiere the latest creation from L.A.-based production trio Captain Cuts; their remix for “Believer” from BK band American Authors. Team CC boost up the beats, inflate the original’s already strong hooks to oceansize and blast the track’s chorus into a interstellar hyperspace (at least that’s what we hear when listening to it). Peep game and get with B3’s premiere of Captain Cuts new “Believer” remix below.

American Authors (Facebook) (Purchase)

Captain Cuts (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
06-28-13