I haven’t been able to find out much about Texas based indie rockers Wild Party. Pretty much all I know is that the songs I could find are all pretty damn catchy. Here’s “When I Get Older.” Hopefully more info to come.

The new “Not Normal” commercial campaign for Mini is pretty cool and arguably the best commercial I’ve seen in a really long time. It also features an epic backing track, “No Way” by The Naked and Famous. The track fits perfectly and is pretty great in and of itself.

Vintage Trouble. HOLY SHIT.

It’s like James Brown and Chuck Berry had a steamy, drug-fueled sexual romp and birthed a baby inside the cab of a Marshall full-stack. I know that might sound a bit much but…just listen and tell me you disagree. I dare you.

Based in Los Angeles, the band is the brainchild of Ty Taylor (vocals) and Nalle Colt (guitar). Heavily influenced by mid-century soul music and recording techniques, the band used a lean three-day recording session with full takes and no-frills to turn out 12 songs a mere two months after they formed. As their last.fm bio puts its, “The resulting sound brings you back to the days of vinyl records, sweaty juke joints, and the feel and essence of the original soul movement.”

I couldn’t agree more.

British soul singer Adele and acoustic singer-songwriter Jason Mraz apparently had a baby. That baby apparently grew up and decided to form a band with three black hipster blues musicians. At least that is how I explain Pennsylvania’s ZZ Ward, who I thankfully looked up after seeing her unfamiliar name on the Radio 104.5 New Music Show playlist this past Sunday. Check this one out.

As Ward herself puts it, “I fell in love with the sincerity of Etta, the soul of Muddy and the power of Big Mama. ”

One of the two songs I couldn’t find on Spotify for the most recent playlist, here’s Australian indie rockers Bluejuice with “Act Yr Age” off their 2011 album Company. I still can’t decide if this video is hilarious or disturbing but the song is definitely catchy.

I had the urge to throw on some American Slang while reviewing cardiac physiology. What can I say? Gaslight Anthem and the pumping of blood just seem to go hand in hand.

I was randomly perusing the KEXP channel on Youtube looking for some new music when I struck gold with Seattle based indie rock group Telekinesis. The heart of the band is drummer and lead singer Michael Benjamin Lerner who wrote all of the songs on their eponymous debut album before picking up a full band for his recent follow up 12 Desperate Straight Lines. Incidentally that album was produced by Chris Walla of Death Cab for Cutie with whom Telekinesis shares some sonic similarities.

I haven’t had a chance to listen to either full album yet but if their respective 4.5 and 5 star ratings on Amazon and this KEXP performance are any indication, they’re bound to be pretty solid. I for one will be picking them up in the very near future. You can listen to a few songs on NPR’s World Cafe or watch more from the KEXP session below.

Country Lane
Dirty Thing
Please Ask for Help