Joel P West and the Tree Ring have been a long time coming. The band’s genesis started with one Joel P. West building and crafting a lone ship- beautiful songs he played with the accompaniment of his guitar, and at times, guest instrumentation. He eventually added a full band in the best way: The Tree Ring was formed and it was like the missing piece that Joel needed all along. The group gave Joel’s songs legs. Strings will do that. They’re an absolute pleasure to watch. If you’re in the San Diego area you must come out to their record release for their album “Generous Shadows” at the San Diego Women’s Club on Feb. 12th. The LP will be released officially on Feb. 15th.

The breathy falsetto of James Vincent McMorrow naturally leads you to such comparisons as Bon Iver, or more recently a soulful, folk version of James Blake. The gentleness in the man’s voice is striking, of it he says, “This record was born out of my desire to create something singular, take the simplest of chords, wrap them in washes of melody, so lines come in, they drop out, everything ebbs and flows as the songs move towards their inevitable end”.

Check out his tour dates below, in support of the RAA:

• Mar 22 – Ames, IA at The Maintenance Shop at ISU
• Mar 23 – Milwaukee, WI at Mad Planet
• Mar 24 – Madison, WI at High Noon Saloon
• Mar 25 – Minneapolis, MN at First Avenue
• Mar 26 – Chicago, IL at Lincoln Hall

James Vincent McMorrow- Hear The Noise That Moves So Soft And Low

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Lefse just sent over this new video for Pandit’s track “Pack Your Bags” off his full-length, Eternity Spin released on Feb. 22nd. The song is wonderful, but it’s the video that takes authority on a visceral level. It cuts deep and resonates with anyone who has ever felt those feelings before. The divide between the two is commanding, shots- alone, and you feel their mutual loneliness to the sounds of a echoed voice repeating, ‘pack your bags’. It’s the kind of young love that is so vivid, so real that living outside of it becomes a frightening thing. Heartache that makes you want to end it all. The film was shot beautifully by Tyler T Williams. Can’t wait to hear the full length soon.

Cory of Mrs. Magician sent over a new track called “The Spells” which is being released as a limited 7″ via Loud & Clear Records in early March. This single is the warm-up release for Mrs. Magician’s upcoming full length Pity Party Animal due in late Spring. This is a good one.

Mrs Magician- The Spells

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

I’ll be on 91X tomorrow (independent radio station out of San Diego) playing some stuff from these guys and some other good stuff out of San Diego. Oh yeah, and I think there will be an interview. Listen to it around 8:30 tomorrow night, you can finally put a voice to these words I type.

Peter Wolf Crier ♦ Untitled 101 from Brandon Tauszik on Vimeo.

Peter Wolf Crier came by the Habitat House around 1am on a Sunday to an attic full of people, fighting sleep and in search of liquor stores because, as they’d already ruined what would be their Monday mornings, so fuck it- why not. Most of these people were my friends. Alcohol conquered the better part of most of them, while Peter shook it off long enough to keep us still and sang with a velocity that filled the empty space of the hollowed out attic, giving what was left of him after their show at The Loft just prior. Thanks to Brandon, Kenny and Chadwick for putting this together. And thanks to Zack at the Habitat House for opening up his home to us and making this happen. Boy, am I in love.

The Shivers » Cameron Hull from The Voice Project on Vimeo.

I try not to post too many videos  at a time on here, but I really need you all to watch this one. Another great session from The Voice Project of The Shivers covering Cameron Hull. I’ve been a huge fan of The Shivers ever since my friend Kenny showed them to me, and we’ll both agree that they are the most underrated band out there. It’s a strange thing to claim a band as underrated, like a back handed compliment. Let’s clarify that I think this band is unrivaled, they exist in their own realm, they are supernatural. The way I feel when I listen to their music is comparable to nothing short of a holy thing, something that only happens when music is properly digested as it should be. It’s a certain truth that is only revealed through specific chords, and words. The church’s acoustics become sacred ground for reasons beyond church pews and holy water. It is a few brief minutes of relief, and observance. Listen on.

The Shivers- L.I.E

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Alright, so it’s been a few months since Sezio’s Four Day Weekend but there is no shortage of footage that is being released, and every opportunity for me to relive it. Really cool that it was featured on Tunnelvision today- check out the Dodos performance and be envious that you don’t live in San Diego.

Hurt Valley is a project by Brian Collins that has elements of psych pop that is a little lethargic, a little hypnotizing- perfect music that you want to listen to that just fades out in a way that isn’t distracting, it just is. Digesting all the synth and drone requires no energy, no extra contemplation, I can easily take in his simple lyrics, “I wanna find a way to get back to you”. Apropriate considering his bandcamp tags were “gothic, folk, fairytale, California”.

His music floats effortlessly, while there’s still an anonymity to who he is and how he produces these sounds. You can just take them for what they are, and not worry whether everyone else has chimed in with their musical authority about it. That’s the freedom of being relatively unknown, although I’m pretty certain it’ll be only a matter of time before his dominates the blogosphere.

Hurt Valley- I’m An Avalanche

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Welcome to the first of many (friendly) rivalries in a column called East vs. West, with honorable competitor, fellow blogger Chris at Indie Music Filter. I met Chris last summer in Toronto and we recently came up with the idea to showcase a cool artist from our current coasts that we’ve been digging, and offer them up to you all to decide which one you like best. Let’s be honest, West coast is the best coast, although I’ll admit, Tearjerker is pretty killer. So now it’s up to you, if you’re feeling TV Girl, repost/retweet/like this post, but if you’re partial to Tearjerker, head on over to Indie Music Filter and show your love.

WEST: TV Girl

photo: Brandon Tauszik

TV Girl is a San Diego-based band that includes duo, Trung Ngo and Brad Peterson. I caught wind of them just before I was moving back to San Diego from Toronto and it encapsulated everything California represents- the hazy, mellow vibe of being completely satisfied with the weather, so you’ve got time to worry about more important things like dance parties and biking uphill (in January) which, by the way, is such a pain. They just recently played their debut show at the Casbah, presented by Sezio; along with other rad acts like Jamuel Saxon, Lesands and Dirty Gold. You can grab their EP free over at their bandcamp.

EAST: Tearjerker

Tearjerker is Micah (guitar/vocals), Trevor (drums), Taylor (Bass).  Trevor and Micah have been making music since they were kids, while their Nov. 2010 album Strangers is their first proper release as a three piece.  They also run the friends label Sore Thumb Records.  Currently, they’re working on a new album that should be out this summer as well as a few smaller releases for the label before then.

Tearjerker- Polar Bear

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Tearjerker – Polar Bear from Tearjerker on Vimeo.