Jim Noir, "Jim Noir" (Barsuk)
Hyped on: Tiny Mix Tapes; Stereogum; My Poproks
Official site
MySpace
Who: The character Jim Noir is played by a psychedelic-pop fanboy from Manchester, England named Alan Roberts, a cartoon of a fellah with a thing for wearing funny hats, shooting videos starring octogenarian nudists and crafting relentlessly charming tunes packed with falsetto, harmonies and rinky-dink synths and guitars. The bedroom-ish recordings cover territory prized by the Beach Boys, Beck and Super Furry Animals.
What: With his eponymous second album, Noir graduates to retro-pop’s fourth grade—not a bad thing considering Furry’s master frontman Gruff Rhys currently sits as president of the fifth grade class. “All Right” amusingly shifts between playtime with a vocoder and happy electro-pop, while “What U Gonna Do” is heavily influenced by ‘60s beach bingo, organ swells included. Similarly, “Same Place Holiday” so joyfully recalls the Beach Boys—sunshine chorus, guitar/tambourine bounce, a freaking cameo by a seagull—we can ignore the cringe-worthy Bloodhound Gang rapping at the close, which warps into one of those druggy vocal overdubs made famous by, well, druggy Brian Wilson.
Made for: Fans of Beck’s latest psych-homage “Modern Guilt” and people not willing to shell out $80 to see the rickety vibrations of Brian Wilson live.
X-Factor: Jim Noir songs have been turned into bankable marketing jingles for companies as diverse as Adidas, Sony, Target and Chase Manhattan Bank. Also, three of his songs have appeared on “Grey’s Anatomy.” – MR
The Gay Blades, "Ghosts" (Triple Crown)
Hyped on: Consequence of Sound; Electrorash; Sheena Beaston
MySpace
Who: Between their eyebrow-raising name, constant Queen comparisons and the band’s own declaration that they are “made of magic,” you might get the wrong idea about the Gay Blades. But this Jersey City duo is not some fey pop group (not that there’s anything wrong with that)—singer/guitarist Clark Westfield and drummer Puppy Mills simply like giving their rock anthems a liberal dose of good-willed humor. Oh, did we mention the drummer’s name is Puppy?
What: Although the band insists on describing its music as “trashy pop” (and magic), TGB’s debut full-length “Ghosts” is a mishmash of sounds. “O Shot” has the peppy, punky vibe of an Arctic Monkeys song, while “Why Can’t I Grow a Beard” and “NHDN” veer surprisingly into pretty, harmonious, dare-we-say-emo territory. And the group can dance: both “Hey She Say” and the remix of “O Shot” (also included here) are dance-floor workouts with rock flair.
Made for: Emo fans that like to groove and hipsters with a good sense of humor (a point not lost on the band, who claim they make “music by hipsters for hipsters”).
X-Factor: Like the Gay Blades? Like free stuff? The band is on a giveaway tear, having recently offered up free tickets and bandanas in exchange for fan haikus, a free iPod Nano/speaker system, free downloads (including a new song tribute to Paul Newman) and, creepily, free “scary rides” in their tour van to unsuspecting children. See their video on MySpace for that awkward proposition. – KM
Illa J, "Yancey Boys" (Delicious Vinyl)
Hyped on: SofaKing Diligent; Da' Big Playback!; Organology
Official site
MySpace
Who: Hip-hop lost one of its most gifted beat-makers in 2006 when Detroit native James Yancey, a.k.a. J Dilla, died at the age of 32 from complications related to lupus. Before his death, the astonishingly prolific Dilla produced seminal underground tracks for Slum Village and the Pharcyde as well as hits for Janet Jackson, Common and Erykah Badu, to name a few. Last year, the co-owner of the Pharcyde’s label, Delicious Vinyl, passed a grip of unreleased J Dilla beats along to the late producer’s younger brother John, a.k.a. Illa J. The result of Illa and Jay Dee’s posthumous collaboration is this jazzy, chilled-out set of throwback tracks.
What: The sounds on “Yancey Boys” were produced by J Dilla in the mid-to-late-‘90s, and not surprisingly, the album has a pleasantly old-school vibe, recalling the twilight years of hip-hop’s golden age when labels like Stones Throw and Rawkus were turning out gloriously stoned grooves by the crate-load. Illa J’s versatile vocals, a mix of scat-sung harmonies and laid-back flow, are a nice complement to Dilla’s elastic bass-lines and jazzy keyboard loops, and it’s fun to hear longtime Jay Dee collaborators like Guilty Simpson and Frank Nitty adding their voices to a few tracks, as well. But the real star of this show is the late, great Dilla—even though most of these tracks sound like rough drafts, establishing all their elements in the first few bars, they are rarely less than mesmerizing.
Made for: J Dilla completists and ‘90s old-schoolers. People for whom the words “Detroit hip-hop” don’t necessarily evoke Eminem. Amateur beat-makers looking for a master class.
X-Factor: “Yancey Boys” takes its name from a recording studio Illa J set up in his adopted hometown of Los Angeles, using equipment inherited from his late older brother. – AH
Friendly Fires, "Friendly Fires" (XL)
Hyped on: Hipster Runoff; Kevchino's Indie Music Blog
Official site
MySpace
Who: This fresh U.K. outfit is led by singer Ed Macfarlane, whose enthralling stage presence is akin to Jarvis Cocker on E and fronting the best post-punk dance band of the last few years. Combining big, anthemic choruses with nervy, angular guitars, dreamy shoegaze atmospheres and hot-footed dance beats, they’ve quickly garnered an ocean of buzz now that they’ve hit American shores.
What: The band exploded onto the scene with their debut single “Paris,” earning Friendly Fires a slew of accolades and an army of freshly minted fans with its rolling drums, an epic chorus that’s equal parts M83 and U2, and Macfarlane’s romantic refrain, “One day we're gonna live in Paris/I promise/I'm on it.” The full-length album expounds on that sound, incorporating the herky-jerk rhythms of early Devo, the punk-funkisms of Franz Ferdinand and the Rapture (“In The Hospital,” “Lovesick”) and the classic post-punk guitar scratches of Gang of Four (“Photobooth”).
Made for: Indie-dance fans still salty about the last two Bloc Party albums (and impatient for the long-awaited second record from Franz Ferdinand). Concertgoers sick of watching bands just stand there looking earnest. The music supervisor of your favorite teen drama TV show.
X-Factor: Claiming techno legend Carl Craig as a big influence, Macfarlane cut his musical teeth producing dance tracks for U.K. electronic indie label Skam, which has also put out records by Boards of Canada and the mysterious Gescom. – STS
