ghosts & liars: we'll carry on.

GHOSTS & LIARS are an indie-pop quintet from Tacoma, WA. The band is a new project by several members of Some By Sea.

I got a friend request from them on VIRB, and immediately accepted it because (I'm friendly and) my narcissism propels me to desire having a lot of internet friends. Before friending them though, I decided I'd take a listen to a tune or two. There were two demos and two live songs on their page. I clicked the first one (a demo). Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised. VERY-SUPER pleasantly surprised. So VERY-SUPER pleasantly surprised that I'm writing a post about these peeps.

"We'll Carry On" is an excellent demo-- a delightful, upbeat folk-pop song that could be heard on The O.C. if it still existed. Some might consider that an insult, but what I mean to say is that this is a damn catchy piece of indie-pop. Basically, you'll be thumping your foot, humming along, and swaying your head to this one. Or maybe I'll just be doing that. Whatever. I think you will like this. It's a summer jam that you could blast out your car window or simply lie around the porch to. "Sunsets on the Sidenotes" is just as good (possibly better).

For those concerned with cred and name-dropping, Ghosts & Liars have played a show with Anathallo and will be playing in Tacoma with Rocky Votolato on July 20th. Members of the band like Neutral Milk Hotel, Bishop Allen, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Decibully, Lucky Soul, Queens of the Stone Age, and Rilo Kiley. Cred is stupid. This music is good. Got it?

d/l: GHOSTS & LIARS- We'll Carry On (demo) (YSI)
d/l: GHOSTS & LIARS- Sunsets on the Sidenotes (demo) (YSI)
(indie folk pop from Tacoma)
- site it - virb it - space it - purev it - lj it - flickr it -

the seaworthies: we could make a movie out of this.

THE SEAWORTHIES think I'm friendly, and I think they make good music even though they're married to one another.

I just downloaded a copy of their out-of-print album We Could Make A Movie Out of This from their virb page, and it's hott with a capital hott. I never know what categorizes "good" indie-pop, because it tends to be in a different category from "good" rock, and then everyone seems to have different definitions of what "good" means. However, this album is good indie-pop, even for people who hate the word "indie". I hate the word "indie", and I probably hate you. But I probably don't. Maybe. One thing is for sure-- I like the Seaworthies.

No, but seriously. This is good stuff. According to a review by Fensepost Records, We Could Make A Movie Out of This was actually released by Moon Turn the Tides (The Seaworthies + 3 other peeps). The same review compares their original sound to that of the Elephant 6 collective (Apples in Stereo, Beulah, Neutral Milk Hotel, etc.) Since then, the couple has added more electronic elements to the mix. Luckily, they haven't lost the magic yet. In fact, it seems like the magic has just begun.

d/l: THE SEAWORTHIES- Haelah (YSI)
d/l: THE SEAWORTHIES- Mary Lou (YSI)
d/l: THE SEAWORTHIES- It's a Lovely Time of Year (YSI)
(quality power-couple indie-pop)
- buy it - site it - virb it - space it -

CREDNOTE: The Seaworthies opened for Bishop Allen, The Robot Ate Me, Saturday Looks Good to Me, Built to Spill, and several other wonderful people. Also, I am missing a concert on campus by The Robot Ate Me, Grizzly Bear, Laura Goldhamer, and Boy Crisis. Can you feel my sadness? I can.

BLOGWATCH: R. Kelly Edition-- Palms Out Sounds has a great remix of "I'm a Flirt", and Idolator kicks it ol' skool with an unappreciated jam "Red Carpet (Pause, Flash)". This is the remix to my conclusion.

curtis vodka: remixes.

CURTIS VODKA has a virb page. So do I, and for some strange reason...I'm obsessed with it.

More importantly, Curtis Vodka has music on his virb page, including a remix of the highly underrated track "How We Do It Over Here" from Busta Rhymes f/ Missy Elliott. The minimal instrumental brings us back to the days when Busta relied on his creativity and wordplay more than the huge beats he's rapping on these days (see "Touch It" compared to "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See"). Admittedly, this song doesn't have much lyrical genius to emphasize with the minimal beat, but it's enough genius to fill the dance floor at your next party.

While I swear to God that this isn't an advertisement for virb, you need to get on that shit and friend Mr. Vodka. While you're there you can download some other remixes including Clipse, The Pack, Lil Jon, Young Dro, and Cassidy.

d/l: BUSTA f/ MISSY- How We Do It Over Here (Curtis Vodka remix) (YSI)
d/l: CLIPSE f/ PHARRELL- Mr. Me Too (Curtis Vodka remix) (YSI)
d/l: THE PACK- Vans (Curtis Vodka remix) (YSI)
(hip-hop remixes)
- buy it 1 - buy it 2 - virb it - space it - hype it -

BLOGWATCH: Today is apparently a good day for pop music? Idolator has two new tracks featuring R. Kelly, including the wonderful "This Is Why I'm Cold/This Is Why I'm Kellz" with Twista. Said the Gramophone praises the new Rihanna single "Umbrella", saying that it's post-Amerie, post-Kelly Clarkson, post-rock, and even post-M.I.A. Chazology shows some love for Lil Mama, aka the "Lip Gloss" chick.