little pictures: small voices remix.

dl: LITTLE PICTURES - This House Can Fit Us All (Small Voices remix) (alt)

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I can't really explain what's so appealing about this remix. I mean, it's not as if there's anything particularly unappealing about it. Musically, it's a little repetitive, resulting in a hypnotic haze that I just can't shake.

So without further ado, I present Small Voices with the Blogger's Choice Award in the Little Pictures remix contest. What does this mean? Bragging rights. And you get to borrow my imaginary best friend Muffy for a day.

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head like a kite: daydream vacation.

dl: HEAD LIKE A KITE f/ ASYA of SMOOSH - Daydream Vacation (alt)
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There was a hot minute in my life when Smoosh was my favorite band in existence. For the duration of that minute (which I dropped, given that it was hot), the band consisted of two pre-teen girls named Chloe and Asya. There was just something so magical about these two little girls making such glorious pop tunes. I mean, while they were recording their first full-length album, other girls their age would have been watching Lizzie McGuire. Or like, playing with power tools? Fuck gender norms y'all.*

Without my Smoosh obsession, I would have never encountered Head Like A Kite. And if I hadn't been doing research for a piece I wrote for CinemaBlend, I would never have realized that they released another album. Not only that, but this album includes yet another collaboration with Asya from Smoosh. They first joined forces for "Noisy at the Circus", a tune on HLAK's 2006 debut album Random Portraits of the Home Movie, and the follow up is the slightly darker "Daydream Vacation". I honestly can't decide which I prefer, and I hate to admit it... But I think I only really love Head Like A Kite when Asya's singing. Can't they just put her in the band? ::sigh::

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BONER TRACK: HEAD LIKE A KITE f/ ASYA of SMOOSH - Noisy At The Circus (alt)
BONER TRACK II: SMOOSH - Rad (alt)

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* I'm not saying this because girls should be able to play with power tools. I'm saying this because I watched Lizzie McGuire all the fucking time. I have this secret dream that Lalaine (Miranda Sanchez) is going to have an Emancipation of Mimi-style comeback. Remember when she tried to have a music career? Remember when her character committed suicide on a season seven episode of Buffy? Remember when she did CRYSTAL METH? My mind is blown, and I love that this post was an excuse for me to write a whole lot about motherfuckin' Lalaine Vergara-Paras. She's my favorite actress in the history of everything.

fol chen: no wedding cake.

dl: FOL CHEN - No Wedding Cake (alt)
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Now I was jumping for motherfucking joy when I heard Fol Chen's "No Wedding Cake" last month, so you can understand how I felt when I received an mp3 in my inbox today. I motherfucking jumped for joy again. Ten times.

And that was just the beginning. While the video for "The Believers" was totally deep and interesting, it can't hold a damn candlestick in comparison to the "No Wedding Cake" video. All the whack-ass bloggers creaming their panties over that whack-as-fuckin'-ass Fever Ray video need to check themselves. This is the best indie video of 2009 so far.

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fol chen: believers.

dl: FOL CHEN - The Believers (Clifford Lidell remix) (alt)
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From the moment I first heard Fol Chen's "Cable TV", I thought I had died and gone to indie-pop heaven. So you can imagine my confusion when I received a link for the video of "The Believers". The song was much darker than what I would have expected. Especially from a band who made a song about dancing in underwear that references Janet Jackson's "When I Think Of You". The vid was extremely engaging on an aesthetic level, and the song wasn't bad... it just surprised me.

I enjoy the mystery of Fol Chen. I'm in love with a band, and I don't even know what any of them look like (I mean, if they're ugly, I totally can't like them, right?). Based on these dramatically different songs, I have no idea what their signature sound is or if they even have one. Will the album flow at all? Will I pass go and collect two-hundred dollars? I'm on the edge of my fucking seat here.

Also, why is "No Wedding Cake" so damn good even though it's so damn repetitive? I am going to lose some hairs waiting for this album to drop.

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BONER TRACK: FOL CHEN - The Believers (alt)
BONER TRACK II: FOL CHEN - Cable TV (alt)
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little pictures: remix contest extension.

The Little Pictures "This House Can Fit Us All" remix contest deadline has been extended to December 7, 2008 due to a zshare problem and a last-minute endorsement from BIGSTEREO. What do you have to lose? Nothing. What do you have to gain? A vague mystery prize! Download the original song and remix kit here.

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little pictures: remix contest.

dl: LITTLE PICTURES - This House Can Fit Us All (Z)

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It's been a minute or 4 million blogyears since ITMS!! has held a remix contest, so it's time to do it up big with New Zealand's electro-bedroom-pop darlings Little Pictures and their tune "This House Can Fit Us All". The rules are pretty much the same as before. Anyone is eligible, anything goes. What are you waiting for? Download the remix kit below and make some magik happen. Obviously you don't have to use everything included in the remix kit. Hell, submissions can even be covers or reinterpretations.

The rules are a bit different this time around, as the winner will be chosen by the ITMS!! team and ultimately the original musicians. Because apparently, this time around, I think democracy is overrated. A few choice runner-ups will be written up on here, and the grand prize winner will receive...

• a signed copy of Owl + Owl.
• a temporary place on Little Pictures' myspace player.
• a customized ITMS!! badoodle.
• A SPECIAL MYSTERY PRIZE!!
  

Submissions can be sent to itisthemoneyshot.info@gmail.com. Deadline is now December 7, 2008. The winner and all runner-ups will be announced in a series of posts starting in December.

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dl: LITTLE PICTURES REMIX KIT (SHAREBEE)

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eureka gold: belly full of wine.

dl: EUREKA GOLD - Belly Full Of Wine (YSI)
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I began to have a total music crush on Eureka Gold in January 2007. This was back in the days when bands could only have four songs on their space pages, and I decided that they were "one of my favorite new bands" based solely on those four songs ("Just North", "Over Mountain", "Lovely Lovely", and "Peter Oh"). It's quite possible that this decision was made because I have always had this odd desire to run away to Nashville, TN. I've never been this fond of any other Nashville band, so it's likely that this isn't the case.

For the longest time, there was no digital method of getting a copy of their self-titled debut(?) album. In hopes of obtaining a physical copy, a few attempts were made to message the band asking for one. They failed miserably. Good things come to those who wait? The album is now available on Amie Street, currently priced at $2.30. If you're unfamiliar with Amie Street, songs are initially offered as free and rise in price up to 98 cents based on their popularity. It's a rather lovely system, and my only complaint is that I have trouble finding new tunes (recommendations would be appreciated). Okay. So that's not my only complaint. Ashley Alexandra Dupre somehow holds the number one and two spots on the All Time R&B charts. That's just the opposite of cute.

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little pictures: owl + owl.

dl: LITTLE PICTURES - Owl + Owl (YSI)
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It took me less than thirty seconds to realize that I was in love with Little Pictures. No joke. Shortly after opening their page on the space, I already started typing an e-mail to request to hear their album Owl + Owl. Electro bedroom pop from New Zealand with male/female vocals? "Sign me up!" I said. Though it took less than a day for me to receive the whole album, it sure felt like forever. I was craving these tunes like crackheads crave...um, crack. I was craving these tunes so much that I couldn't even come up with a proper simile to identify my cravings! Now that I have the album perhaps I can try once more, eh?

These tunes are as cute and awesome as...

• babies falling down and laughing about it.
• cleaning out your closet and finding a "do you like me?" note from fifth grade (on which someone circled "yes").
• a panda sneezing.
• baby lions.
• children in colored bear-costumes dancing (or not dancing) on a stage.
• an old couple holding hands.
• a duckling, turle, and guinea pig helping a puppy open his doggy door so it can take a wee-wee. (BEST SHOW EVAH)
  

Phew! That's all I got right now. Perhaps you can come up with something better? I know I can't beat the quote on their space---"Little Pictures make me happier then a sweater with 50 penguins on it." Damn that's cute!

An hour or so ago, I started choreographing a dance to the "Owl + Owl" chorus. I should probably mention that I was doing this in the sixteenth floor bathroom of my office building. Someone is going to walk in one day when I do this kind of shit, but my embarrassment will be alleviated by the glory of owning a copy of Owl + Owl. You should own a copy too! You know, just in case you need to alleviate the embarrassment of someone catching you choreographing dances in a public bathroom. Ha...ha? I'm not the only person that happens to, right? Anyone? Anyone?

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BONER TRACK: LITTLE PICTURES - Tiny Gaps (YSI)
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hello, blue roses: shadow falls.

HELLO, BLUE ROSES just may be the lamest selection for my return to the world of aural-blogging.

A quick glance at Hype Machine leads me to believe that I wasn't the only one who got an indie-boner when "Shadow Falls" popped into the ol' digi-box. To sum the nine posts...Hello, Blue Roses is a duo of IRL boos Sydney Vermont (Bonaparte) and Dan Bejar (The New Pornographers, Destroyer, Swan Lake). Their album is out through Locust Music on January 22, 2007. Something about harsh pastoral '80s reality, blah blah. It's pretty.

Honestly, that's all you really need to know about this song. It's fucking pretty. Winter is approaching and if it's getting chilly in your parts, I strongly recommend wrapping yourself in a blanket and listening to this song on repeat. Cuddling is suggested. Moping about having no one to cuddle with is encouraged (when necessary).

I wish I could say more about this song given that I've been replaying it for a few weeks, but nothing more really needs to be said. Pretty pretty pretty.

d/l: HELLO, BLUE ROSES - Shadow Falls (YSI)
(sweet indie-pop for winter blanket-time)
- site it - space it - hype it -

WEBBYVANDERQUACKIN': If you're upset by the lack of bootyshakin' jam in this post, perhaps you should check out Leif's remix of Todosantos at BIGSTEREO.