This Saturday at Lambert’s, Utah post-pop six-piece Fictionist will be in town as part of their album tour. They will be joined by B. Sterling and Picardy. Lasting Echo is the group’s second full-length album. I’m currently enjoying “Blue-Eyed Universe”; it’s upbeat, has some awesome guitar work, and is just downright catchy. It puts me in a giving mood, so here, download the track for free: Fictionist – Blue-Eyed Universe

The show at Lambert’s will put you back $5, that is unless you’d like a pair of tickets. FREE tickets. All you have to do is make your intentions known: post a comment, fire off a tweet in my direction, post on the wall on Facebook. The first one to contact me about the tickets using their social media outlet of choice gets on the guestlist.

Video goodness below.

Fictionist // Lasting Echo from Fictionist on Vimeo.

I am a fan of honesty. So when I saw the band name “Spaceships Are Cool”, I said “yes, that is a true statement, spaceships are cool”. Although the awesome band name would have been enough to get me to do an interview, it just so happens that Spaceships Are Cool have some great music. It’s Nintendeo meets 70′s UK pop. While there are blips and bleeps to be had, the real heart of the music comes from the soft, harmonic vocals and acoustic guitar. It’s an introspective vocal pop group in a NASA wrapper, and I love it.

Not only is the music fun and interesting, it also sounds like they have a blast at their live shows. From the interview below: Their shows feature “bright orange spacesuits, cartoon animation, astronaut marionettes and free flying saucer candy.” Sign me up!

Download the track below, read the interview and click the Spaceships Are Cool banner below to hear some more music.

Free download: Season Follows Season

Members/Instruments:
Rob Maddison – song writing, production, vocals, guitar, moog, vocoders, laptop.
Helen Maddison – violin, viola, theremin, omnichord, melodica
Rob Yunioshi – stylophone, monosynth, melodica, musical saw, guitar
Ben James – pianos, slide guitars
Tim Maddison – drums, electro-percussion
Johnny Cousins – Bass guitar, synthbass
Hal – bleeps, amp, beeps

Year Formed: 2006

1. Past: What is your musical background? What has led you to this point?

Ever since the first garage band I joined as a drummer, I always wanted to be in a band called Spaceships are Cool. The answer was always a firm “NO!” from other band members, so I began making weird beats & acoustic guitar loops as soon as I worked out how to work a reel to reel. These, and a healthy addiction to the music sci-fi movies were the very beginnings of SPACESHIPS ARE COOL.

After a while I also started producing bands I was into and began working with DJs and acoustic artists in the UK, Iceland & Sweden.

Traveling around Europe with my laptop and meeting people really added a lot of the imagery that is featured in our songs today.

2. Present: Where are you at now in your career? What are you currently working on?

We have really become self-sufficient over the last couple of years; recording, producing and putting out our own records, which has enabled us to completely control what we do. This year has seen us breaking the top 100 CMJ college radio charts, tracks featured on MTV shows, on a Greenlandic feature film and even on American airlines in flight entertainment!

Back home in the UK, we have written music for the BBC and are now a six (and a half) piece band, featuring bright orange spacesuits, cartoon animation, astronaut marionettes and free flying saucer candy at all of our live shows.

Apart from the main Spaceships are cool Live shows & releases, I am currently working on remixes of Legendary French synth pioneer ‘Bernard Fevre’ for a UK indie label, writing & recording vocals for Lisbon based DJ ‘MR BIRD’ and UK artist ‘Fear of Theydon’.

Spaceships tunes have recently been used on French DIY LP ‘winter records vol 4’ which features re-workings of the theme tune to the Close encounters movie.

3. Future: What’s coming up for you? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In the pipeline; a long awaited collaboration project with Icelandic electro band BLOODGROUP, continuing work with Tokyo DJ TATATAMOTO and a Spaceships are cool children’s sci-fi LP!

We will hopefully be taking the live show to the US in feb/march for SXSW & Noise pop festivals, as well as shows later in the year for CMJ & NXNE.

Closer to home, we are playing a whole lotta shows here in the UK throughout the springtime before heading out to Iceland & Sweden during the summer.
In a Galaxy Far Far away…….

By the time we have spread our sci-fi sunshine pop and retro folktronica all over the globe and introduced a whole new generation to the wonders of astronaut costumes, stylophones and analog synths, I expect us to have made at least one film, written two best selling children’s books and created our own game for nintendo wii.

4. Where can people find more of your music?

Come along to www.spaceshipsarecool.com for breaking news, tour dates and more importantly…FREE DOWNLOADS EVERY MONTH!!!!!

5. Anything you’d like to plug?

Our debut LP HEART ECHOES and a 5 track EP, are out now on digital release through iTunes, Amazon & eMusic.

Also available on iTunes is the SPACESHIPS vs MR BIRD Tokyo EP

The Heart Echoes will also be released on a shiny VINYL 12” LP in the new year!

Indie Funk. Now there is a genre I can get into. Indie pop, tasteful funk guitar licks, and a sprinkle of Red Hot Chili Peppers combine to create Germany’s propylaion. Although their influences show through, propylaion keeps each song fresh and different. From wah guitar to “melancholic pop”, the Hamburg foursome display a lot of range and keep things interesting.

The guys just released their debut album 2k8, and are looking to release a new record soon as well as playing shows in and around Germany. If you, like me, can’t get out to Europe anytime soon, then find some of their music (hint: read the interview for links. duh) and thank me later!

Download “Gold” for free -  propylaion – gold (mp3)

Free EPs: http://www.jamendo.com/de/artist/propylaion

Members/Instruments:
nils wommelsdorf – voice, gimmicks, noises
michael holland – guitar, backing vocals, various instruments
patrice serfort – drums, percussions
georg sheljasov – bass, backing vocals, various instruments

Year Formed: 1994 (new lineup since 2007)

1. Past: What is your musical background? What has led you to this point?

Georg: I was born to musician parents; my mother is a classical pianist and my father a double bass player in orchestras. Thus, I started studying the piano at the age of 6. Reaching adolescence, classical piano music was losing fascination, so I started to learn to play the guitar and bass guitar, and also jazz piano improvisation. My first serious live music experiences came through the bass guitar though. I had my first gigs playing the bass after I moved to Hamburg after finishing school in southern Germany. Between then and Propylaion I also performed as a keyboard/piano player and as a singer. So playing the bass guitar in a band feels a little “back to the roots” to me.

Patrice: I started making music /playing Instruments at age 5 with some Piano lessons.
Then I played the violin for about 8 years and from age 7-13 I had been a member and a soloist of a very popular Boys Choir, named “Toelzer Knabenchor”. As you can see, I have a more classical background and nothing really led me into Rock music, until I started playing the Drums at age 13, what was definitely a kind of rebellion against all that classical stuff I had been doing for years. What came up next was pretty common. I played in several School-Bands and projects (metal, crossover and this stuff). Now I like to play Rock and Pop, say “mainstream” or “consumer-friendly” music….

Nils: We were singing children`s songs since i was a newborn, i was then boy scout at the age of six and learned to play the guitar and singing there. But what really influenced me was „tubular bells“ by mike oldfield and the first real records i owned (the cure, depeche mode etc.) – that influenced my way of writing, singing, playing and recording my own music.

Michael: I’ve got a more classical musical background. I have started with classical musical training (violin) at the age of four. My father used to be a violin player in orchestras.

After playing the violin for several years, I quit that and began to play electric guitar and bass when I was about 14 years old. I wanted to play rock music.

2. Present: Where are you at now in your career? What are you currently working on?

Michael: With propylaion, we released our debut album “2k8” in 2008. We are playing nice little gigs at nice little venues…

For the next year, we are planning a new record and more gigs at even nicer venues.

Georg: Currently I am member of various musical projects with a style range from Gospel to Independent Rock. I also teach music in different schools. So you might say I work on spending as much time with music as possible.

3. Future: What’s coming up for you? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Georg: I think I’ll focus in working a bit more intense on bands with interesting original material and try to play with them live a lot. I also want to learn new instruments. The accordion is high on the list for me. In five years…? Hard to say, I never really look that far.

Michael: Releasing records, playing mindblowing liveshows and getting more popular. I think we will do that in our own tempo. There’s nothing good about to be in a hurry when it comes to your very own music.

Patrice: Hmm, I hope I’ll still making music then, but I turn 30 in 2010 and current priorities may slide into another direction, they actually do . You never quite know and above all you have to make a living, what’s pretty difficult with music.

4. Where can people find more of your music?

Nils: you can download our music via itunes, napster, amazon and several little stores on the internet. There are also a lot of free tracks, you can find them on

www.propylaion.com
www.myspace.com/propylaion

A new year, a new group of emerging artists to share with you, starting with NYC’s MiniBoone. MiniBoone brings a big sound, punctuated by fuzzy basslines, oddly-harmonized vocals, and fantastic dynamics. Listen to “Summer Jar” and “Devil in your Eyes” to see what I mean. Tracks rise and fall in volume and complexity, keeping the listener engaged. It’s fun to listen to, there’s no higher praise than that!

We’ve got a treat for you, a free download of “Devil in your Eyes”, straight off the new unreleased EP. Look for Big Changes on iTunes and other e-stores on Jan 26th.

Download “Devil in your Eyes” for free here! Listen to it and rate it in the TwoGroove music player below.

Members/Instruments:
Craig Barnes – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Taylor Gabriels – Drums
James Keary – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Sam Rich – Bass
Doug Schrashun – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards

Year Formed: 2008

1. Past: What is your musical background? What has led you to this point?

All five of us have been playing in rock bands for ten years or so now, but we come from various backgrounds. Doug was a choirboy growing up, Craig made Weird Al style tapes as “Crazy Craig Barnes” on which he sang all of the vocal and instrumental parts into a My First Sony, and Taylor has a background in orchestral percussion. Sam used to play in a psychobilly band, but I doubt you can hear that in our music.

So, where this band’s legacy starts is probably with Hey Hey Bon Bon, a band Craig and Doug played in before starting MiniBoone. When Hey Hey Bon Bon broke up, we just wanted to start a new band, so we did. There was not a whole lot of premeditation going on, in terms of what we wanted to sound like when we formed the band. Craig and Doug recorded a bunch of songs, and gathered together some people to play them, and now we have MiniBoone.

2. Present: Where are you at now in your career? What are you currently working on?

We’re just putting out our first EP, Big Changes, in January 2010. It’s our first real record, other than a self-released thing Craig and Doug did before Taylor, Sam and James joined the band, so we’re frighteningly excited. Still, some of the songs on here have been in existence since the band started, and we’ve playing most of them for a while now, so we’re also starting to think about the next batch of songs. On the shows side of things, we’re trying to get our act together for a tour in the spring that will hopefully end up in Austin for South By Southwest. Of course, we’re still playing around New York quite a bit and getting ideas together for a music video. Not one of those lame music videos, a good one.

3. Future: What’s coming up for you? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In the short term, it would be nice to keep up our momentum, put out another EP this year and do a larger tour than we’ve been able to do so far. Maybe get out to the West coast or Europe. We’ve applied for a couple of all-expenses-paid trips to Asia and the UK. Who knows, maybe one of those will work out.

It’s nice to think that the band will still be going strong in five years. It could be that in five years James and Taylor will be lawyers, Craig will own a bakery, Sam will be a graphic designer and Doug will be in jail in Eastern Europe. Or maybe we’ll have reached some level of stability where the band has allowed us to quit our day jobs and happily coast along without having to punch a clock. We’re pretty sure that any band working day jobs that tells you that they wouldn’t rather not be working those day jobs is lying at least a little bit. Except Oneida. They seem serious.

4. Where can people find more of your music?

We have www.miniboone.com, the myspace (www.myspace.com/minibooneband), the facebook (www.facebook.com/miniboone). You’ll be able to buy the Big Changes EP starting January 26, 2010 through Band Camp, iTunes, Amazon, eMusic, wherever you usually do that sort of thing. CDs will be available on our website. Also, if anybody asks us nicely, we may send them our first self-released LP for free.

5. Anything you’d like to plug?

I think we already plugged ourselves enough. We would like to use this opportunity to plug the bands Caddywhompus, Quiet Loudly, and Monster Island (Beau Alessi). (TwoGroove note – this is the exact reason for this question! I love when bands I like turn me on to bands they like.)

I have sort of a love-hate relationship with rap and hip-hop. I cannot stand over-produced mainstream hip-hop. It’s arrogant, juvenile, and musically bland to me. On the other hand, skilled lyricists, DJs, and producers have a special place in my heart. Jurassic 5, RJD2, Cut Chemist, Eminem, and even Twista are occupants of said place. Now they are going to have to make room for Connecticut’s Brash. Brash, aka Chris Rapple, is an unassuming yet extremely talented lyricist and producer. He has an intense yet accessible lyrical style; the beats are interesting and full of hooks without being overbearing.

Read our interview with Brash and feel free to download the two songs below.  Be on the lookout for his first album, Mind Flex, next year.

Artist/Band Name: Brash (Chris Rapple)

Year Formed: Professionally began in 2005
Brash by TwoGroove

1. Past: What is your musical background? What has led you to this point?

I had been in a bunch of different bands my whole life playing various instruments, but mainly I played the drums. No projects ever worked out. There’d always be someone in whatever band I was in who had a problem, and it would unravel. Around ’03, I was living in a house in Mystic Connecticut, and I just kind of started falling into hip-hop. I had always listened to rap music, but when I first met this group of kids, I realized that maybe I could rap myself. I was terrible, but I just stuck with it. I really thought that I was actually going to be a DJ when I first started in rap music. I had gotten a set of decks from a friend, and spent like, 7 million hours trying to figure out how to scratch. I can kind of pull it off, but I’m not DJ Syruz or Revelation. So, the late night battles and freestyles, and the turntables, and the coming-into-my-own, was through those years. My friend Travis named me Brash in 05, and even went as far as to put my name like that on a flyer. It stuck. The same year I was signed to an independent that had no idea what they were doing. Once this became apparent, I left. Looking back on that label situation, I was signed too early. I felt pushed into things that I didn’t want to do, and it left me, overall, with a bad taste in my mouth for all labels.

2. Present: Where are you at now in your career? What are you currently working on?

I’m finally starting to sound the way I want. I’ve made impressions on a few people in the underground, but I haven’t really tried to get signed, or do anything outside of just make art. I don’t really trust too many people and I’m trying to keep to myself until my album is done. I’m working the whole schematics of it myself business wise, and relying on the very talented ears of Colombeyond to get things the way they need to be. The dude is phenomenal and I’m glad I got to work with him earlier in his career. I’ve got a free mixtape by the name of Mind Warp that will be available for free download on Jan 12th, 2010, and an album called Mind Flex the following summer. I don’t specifically know when my album is going to be released at this time.

3. Future: What’s coming up for you? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I’m going to be a full-time artist and do the independent record thing. I’d like to help some other rappers get their careers off the ground, but mostly I need to get mine running first. I’m not far off, the music is where it needs to be.

4. Where can people find more of your music?

www.myspace.com/brashhiphop

Yeah, I know, the myspace needs an overhaul.
Music will be released on iTunes and all that too, this summer. Mixtape will be for free.

5. Anything you’d like to plug?

My buddy Blak Philly is bananas. We have such great chemistry on mics together, I really want to put out a record with him. He’s my brother right? NO DOUBT! Yea, that’s my ace. Shout outs to everyone helping me put this out… I’m really feeling the Problemaddicts right now. Those are hard working dudes who need their shine, and they’re dope! I’m actually going to be booking them for a show to help me celebrate this mixtape release. Shout outs to Young Cee, one of the dopest up-and-coming producers in the game! I’m also gonna have a party soon… not exactly sure when at this time, but it’s gonna be a little after the mixtape is up for free download. That’s the promotional apparatus…yea. Thanks for the interview!

Tomorrow at Mohawk, check out the Cory Branan/Dana Falconberry Co-Birthday Show.

Yeah, it’s late notice, but this is a show worth seeing. Cory Branan is a talented guitarist and vocalist with a decidedly tongue-in-cheek Americana vibe. Listen to his music and you’ll instantly recognize the immense songwriting skill he possesses. Need proof? Download “Survivor Blues” below.

The show gets going at 9:30pm; it’s an all ages show and it’ll set you back $7.

Free mp3 of Survivor Blues (after hours) by Cory Branan. (right-click and select “Save As…” to download)

Heaping praise for Cory:

“Intense dynamics, deep humor, brave production and heavy songwriting: A new voice emerges to run with the greats.” – Playboy on “12 Songs”

“…this isn’t your typical strummer.”- American Songwriter

If you have been following TwoGroove for any amount of time, you know I’m a geek for electronic music. This is especially true for breakbeat. And just my luck, I get bignic in my SonicBids inbox! The music is a mix of dark synths, big beats, and fuzzy basslines. Basically, it’s everything I like. At times, bignic evokes thoughts of Moby while at others it’s pure Chemical Brothers. Despite the comparisons, the sound retains its uniqueness.

bignic shows his musical maturity and experience by not catering to one specific style, instead offering a variety of sounds.Tracks like “Down” will have you rocking out while more ambient offerings like “War” will drop the beat in favor of delicate rhythms. For my money, though, it’s all about “Modern Pentathalon” and “My Trip”. They are big, danceable tracks that are making this post take longer than it should to write due to my propensity to get lost in them.

Our interview with bignic is below. Additionally, he’s giving away some free mp3s including a track from the new album. Check the post for the download links.

Members/Instruments
Nic Gorissen – synthesizers/programming

Year Formed: 1999

1. Past: What is your musical background? What has led you to this point?

I’ve always been a computer nerd and since my father was a musician, we had MIDI gear and synthesizers and computers kicking around all the time. I had been playing with keyboards and MIDI based composition software for years by the time I discovered the tracker scene in the late 90’s and got hooked.

I used Jeskola’s Buzz tracker for quite a few years (and 2 studio albums) because it was the most powerful and flexible tracker available (and it was free!) Most of my music during this period was very heavily based on samples from other artists/pieces.

In 2004 I started moving towards Ableton Live because it afforded me a lot more flexibility when working with the really huge sounds/samples that I found myself recording more often. Once I got comfortable with Live, my use of samples really dropped as I began to record my own keyboards, vocals, bass, guitar, etc.

In the past three years I’ve won a few awards:

o Five songs placed in Top 500 – 16th Billboard World Song Contest
o Third Place ‘Electronic’ in the 2008 International Songwriting Competition for “The End of Something Big”
o ‘Best Electronic’ at the 2008 John Lennon Songwriting Contest for “Phone”
o ‘Best Electronic’ award at the 2007 Ontario Independent Music Awards for “Inexplicable”
o Finalist in the 2008 Great Lakes Songwriting Contest for “Inexplicable”
o Semi-Finalist in the 2008 UK Songwriting Contest

2. Present: Where are you at now in your career? What are you currently working on?

I’ve just finished my 4th studio album (“The War on Peace”) so I’m working on getting that out to listeners – submitting to lots of college radio stations, and just trying to get the word out.

My last three discs have sold just by word of mouth and a few Internet Radio shows that have picked me up. This time around, I’m trying to push myself a little bit more into the mainstream (marketing wise, not music wise) because I’m confident that my music is finally ‘accessible’ to the average listener.

I think I’ve reached a stage in my musical development where I can finally bring an idea into the studio and get it down (and sounding good) very quickly, without having to fight with the technology or my own ineptitude at playing a keyboard riff correctly. Now that ideas can come out quickly without a hassle, I’m finding that I’m writing more ‘songs’ rather than soulless ‘tracks’ which are just noises and loops. It feels more organic and natural now, and I think that it comes across in the music.

3. Future: What’s coming up for you? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I’m hoping that the recent slew of awards will translate into some licensing opportunities or distribution deals, but I’m just taking it a day at a time.

I’d like to be doing more live shows and more high profile remixes.

I think I’d like to collaborate more with other artists and perhaps produce an album for someone else. I think there’s a lot of really great indie stuff out there that just isn’t produced or engineered very well and that limits its exposure and acceptance.

4. Where can people find more of your music?

My website’s MP3 directory usually contains a few free MP3’s of remixes or stuff that I’m currently working on. My first album is also available there, as a free MP3 download. Free track from the new album for download – “Inexplicable”

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/thebignic (several streaming MP3’s from “The War on Peace”)

ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/bignic (several streaming and downloadable MP3’s from “The War on Peace”)

5. Anything you’d like to plug?

“The War on Peace” CD’s for sale on my site.

($10.00 plus shipping)

“The War on Peace” MP3’s for sale on BandCamp:

($1.00 for high quality MP3/FLAC/etc… or $5.00 for the whole album)

From my email to your ears, here are two free tracks of Strung Out’s new album Agents of the Underground. The album came out on Sept 29th and is available everywhere.

Check out the album art. It’s like the manliest album cover ever. It makes me want walk away from a huge explosion in slow-motion.

Anyhoo, here are the freebies:

Black Crosses

Vanity

Grab some great songs from psychedelic space rockers, Monument to No One’s new album below. They’ll be having their CD release party at Trailer Space Records on Sept 26th at 7pm. The show is free and so are the mp3′s.

For better or worse (usually for worse), I am signed up for pretty much every music mailing list out there. I don’t remember signing up for them all but apparently my email address gets around. The slut. Most of the time, the mailings are light on the info and overly promotional. Every once in a while, however, a diamond appears in the rough.

In one such overly promotional email, amongst multiple colors and sizes of text, was a free mp3 from Strung Out. I remember seeing them open for Pennywise in Ventura, Ca. It was an awesome punk show and one of my friends ended up smoking out with Strung Out in their bus after getting kicked out of the venue. While they never really hit true commercial success, Strung Out heavily influenced forgettable bands such as Blink-182, Rise Against, Thrice, and Avenged Sevenfold. These guys are pretty much legendary in LA and are OG punksters. Not to be confused with Punky.

So check it out, here’s Black Crosses off their new album Agents of the Underground. In stores September 29th. They will be at Red 7 in early October as part of their album tour.