HotSpotMusic.

Eugene McGuinness - Lion Eugene himself describes his new single...

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 09:04:02 +0100

Eugene McGuinness - Lion

Eugene himself describes his new single as “the biggest ‘fuck off’ my soul could muster”. Sure, it sounds kinda angry but the surf rock inspiration just makes it sound fun. Maybe anger can be fun.

Taken from his new album, due out soon, you can download it for free here.

Porcelain Raft - Put Me To Sleep Really digging the new...

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 19:25:00 +0100

Porcelain Raft - Put Me To Sleep

Really digging the new Porcelain Raft record. It’s hazy, ethereal sound could’ve made it class of summer 2010 but it seems to work just perfectly in a 2012 just beginning to figure itself out…. Here’s one of the best cuts from that record. They’re touring too.

New Wild Nothing EP is dropping very soon. Monday in fact. Get...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 01:36:00 +0100

New Wild Nothing EP is dropping very soon. Monday in fact. Get a sneak preview in this track, Nothing.

via yvynyl

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:16:45 +0100

via yvynyl

I Travelled A Long Way is the latest HotSpotMixtape. I’ve...

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 02:16:14 +0100

I Travelled A Long Way is the latest HotSpotMixtape. I’ve been cooking it up for the past few weeks and it’s really more of a journey than a mix. Not all that you hear is new, but it is all part of the ride. Let me know what you think!

“In A Dream (It Seemed Real)” by Islands from the...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:47:46 +0100

“In A Dream (It Seemed Real)” by Islands from the new album ‘A Sleep & A Forgetting,’ out February 14th! Pre-order at http://www.anti.com/store

Sharon Van Etten - Tramp

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:34:18 +0100

Sharon Van Etten - Tramp:

Tramp is a ridiculously good album from Brooklyn’s Sharon Van Etten, that was released just this week. In a sense the album title should be swapped with her previous record, Epic, since this is not an austere collection of tunes but a rather soaring and complex masterpiece that maintains the emotional majesty that is her hallmark but adds new depth to the music itself. Produced by Aaron Dessner of the National (who, along with some of his bandmates and other luminaries such as Zach Condon, makes guest appearances too) this is a real step forward for Van Etten and is one of 2012’s leading albums to beat.

New Shins! Nothing else to say…. Go listen.

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:27:15 +0100

New Shins! Nothing else to say…. Go listen.

OK Go keep on getting more and more inventive with their videos....

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:30:13 +0100

OK Go keep on getting more and more inventive with their videos. You can barely hear the song itself in this so I shall not even comment on that. But the video is as elaborate as a Chevrolet-sponsored, OK Go, 400 guitar epic would have you expect.

Do you realize… that every robot you know one day will be...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:36:58 +0100

Do you realize… that every robot you know one day will be in a Flaming Lips ‘sound construction’. Why so Siri-ous?

(This is only going to be up for a week apparently)….

I heard this at the top of the latest All Songs Considered...

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 15:12:00 +0100

I heard this at the top of the latest All Songs Considered podcast and knew I had to instantly track it down and reblog it. It is one of the most fun and unique tracks I’ve heard in a long time - a completely bonkers and yet utterly charming hip-hop song inspired by showtunes from a bygone era, telling the story of a man, perhaps the Mitch behind the -matic, trying relentlessly and unsuccessfully to court a girl. It’s hilarious, funky and fresh. Go buy it on his Bandcamp.

New Andrew Bird track is a little less fragile, at least on the...

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:19:00 +0100

New Andrew Bird track is a little less fragile, at least on the inside out, than before, with a driving, rousing chorus. Of course it leads to a little bit of whistling in the coda but what else are you expecting. Limited edition vinyls available over on http://www.andrewbird.net/

Genesis by Grimes New track from Grimes, preceding her third...

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:15:05 +0100

Genesis by Grimes

New track from Grimes, preceding her third album Visions, is as ethereal, sensual and chic as ever. Maybe moreso.

shared from exfm

The new single from The Mary Onettes is...

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:28:13 +0100

The new single from The Mary Onettes is a characteristically poppy affair but the Cure-ism has been dialed-up a notch. This is taken from the EP “Love Forever” out on February 28 on Labrador. Sounds like it could be a sappy affair but I kinda like it…

Order the 12” vinyl from their store (but be quick since there’s only 1000 copies)

Escort - Escort

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:51:25 +0100

Escort - Escort:

I discovered Escort through a club remix of the first track on this album, Caméleon Chameleon, which first appeared on an NPR podcast and then in my SoundCloud feed. Now I’m listening to the full album, thanks to the power of the internet. These guys are funky as hell, rediscovering the old disco roots of Brooklyn via the medium of gloriously upbeat tracks mixed with a sly sense of modernism. Officially tipping Escort as a live band for 2012…

HotSpotMusic must live on.

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:31:05 +0100

Dear readers…. you may have noticed something of a winter hibernation here on HotSpotMusic. 2012 has brought about many changes and how we run HotSpotMusic will be one of them. It has always been my intention to write about music in the way that I consume it - full albums - and to find music to share with others in a simple, unpretentious way. And so it must continue.

Since I neither have the time nor energy to maintain the both the quality and quantity of output that this blog and you deserve I am forced to choose…. Therefore, from this week HotSpotMusic will continue in one of two ways:

1. If you love the current format (simple album reviews, on time and on the money) then come write for us! Demands are simple: love music, love writing and have time for both.

2. HotSpotMusic will change - I will continue to post but will increase the scope - not just album reviews but videos, playlists, single tracks, remixes and more. From all over the place too, SoundCloud, exfm, 8tracks, Spotify, Rdio and more. Reviews will be shorter but more plentiful. It won’t be the HotSpotMusic we’ve come to know, but it will still exist and maybe there will be more new music as a result.

Got an opinion on how to keep things afloat? Let me know! Otherwise, get ready for some unfiltered, unadulterated, unbelievable tunes coming your way soon.

extensionfm: It’s a whole new week which means we have a whole new batch of Tastemakers for your...

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 23:43:43 +0100

extensionfm:

It’s a whole new week which means we have a whole new batch of Tastemakers for your listening pleasure. Press play on this tasty ear candy!

The Recommender

Potholes In My Blog

Crack In The Road

1146 Miles

Hotspot Music

Popstache

Honoured to be included on the exfm tastemakers list.

Darren Hayman - January Songs

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 19:00:05 +0100

Darren Hayman - January Songs:

What better way to kick off the new year than a whole month’s worth of songs by this humble blogger’s favourite English troubadour, Mr Darren of Hayman. This time last year, he was just setting out on a valiant quest: to write, create and record a new track each and every day during January, which you can still review over on the blog. Accompanied by the talents of friends and artists alike, January Songs is a 31 gun salute to endeavour and to new years resolutions. He’ll even be performing them all in a series of gigs this month so if you’re lucky enough to be in England, be sure to see it.

Sin Fang - Summer Echoes

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 01:34:05 +0100

Sin Fang - Summer Echoes:

Now seems to be the appropriate time to be sharing this record, given its title. The echo of the summer is heard louder than the echo of Sin Fang’s last album, Clangour, a delightfully scatty collection of ideas. This one is more focused, more of an album and more folky.

Part of the 2011 winter clearout - albums not reviewed when they came out but still worth sharing before the end of year lists hit.

Original release date: 21 March 2011

The Antlers - Burst Apart

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 01:33:08 +0100

The Antlers - Burst Apart:

Another one where serious questions have to be asked about this writer’s taste and dedication as to why it wasn’t posted 6 months ago. Burst Apart is a sonically stretching follow-up to the cathartic Hospice (another of 2009’s sleeper hits) that elevates the themes to something less likely to make you bawl but soar instead. The epic opener I Don’t Want Love sets the album off at the right pace as a heartfelt and yet self-undermining protest and the rest of the album continues just as brightly. Great stuff.

Part of the 2011 winter clearout - albums not reviewed when they came out but still worth sharing before the end of year lists hit.

Original release date: 10 May 2011