Sonny and the Sunsets-- "Hit After Hit"
Sonny's second full-length release is a throwback to 1960's style garage pop and the travesties of being young. Its lo-fi shenanigans are playfully crossed with an undercurrent of cheeky bravado and ridiculously catchy guitar. Tom Breihan over at Pitchfork says it best: "[Sonny and the Sunsets] know how to convey confused-teenager feelings in smart, adult ways." This is well on the way to being on my end-of-the-year top 10.
Explosions in the Sky-- "Take Care Take Care Take Care"
The indie kings of instrumental post-rock are back with a six-song EP of fairly ordinary musical lines that build upon each other into a complex beast of incredibly subtle proportions (considering). It's organic and rich and seems to go on far longer than the track-list indicates. The artwork is nifty, but crosses the line into obnoxiousness when you realize the 4-fold gate sleeve on the CD and the Vinyl doesn't fit on any shelf known to humankind.
