JayeL Audio

A chilly Memorial Day sunset, Caseville, MI
I did my best to avoid my Macbook and the internet over the weekend and turns out a lot of great music came out. CHVRCHES return with a vengeful synth pop jam in “Gun”, Edward Sharpe and the gang increase the anticipation for their next album (drops 7/23) with the swaying folk rock of “Better Days” and TV Girl makes a disgusting subject sound appealing on “She Smokes In Bed”. Stream these gems below…

CHVRCHES – Gun

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes – Better Days

TV Girl – She Smokes In Bed

The angelic harmonies of The Beautiful Word have returned with new single “Particles”. The midtempo cut picks up the pace from “May Not Be Love” and balances . The positive message is easily relatable in pushing past fears of failure because we are all just particles in the world. Stream below, watch the video and get out there an conquer something.

If you’re in Brighton, enter here to win tickets to the band’s launch party on June 3rd. As for the rest of us, we’ll patiently wait for dates in the States.

BONUS: Emily

Massachusetts State House in Boston in late April
While my mixtapes focus on great singles, the latest edition really shows that 2013 could be an amazing year for albums. New works from Vampire Weekend, Daft Punk, Fitz and the Tantrums, Rogue Wave and She & Him all give great previews of what to expect and make me realize how tough my annual “best of” lists will be. While I’m sure there will be plenty of veterans on my annual wrap-ups, new selections like Wild Belle’s sunny “Shine”, Gypsy and the Cat’s tropical pop fun of “Sorry” and Mikal Cronin’s dab of Americana on “Weight” give hope for plenty of unfamiliar faces too. As for my personal favorites, I’m partial to the wave of Motown-inspired cuts from She & Him, Har Mar Superstar and Lady, but have also been obsessed with folk trio The Lone Bellow after a better than expected performance in Boston last month. “Teach Me To Know” is just a sampling of how great they are and shows their potential to be 2013′s better version of the Lumineers.

JayeL Audio 5-1-13: DOWNLOAD (.zip) or STREAM (8tracks)
1. Vampire Weekend-Diane Young
2. Rogue Wave-College
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr-Hiding
4. Daft Punk-Get Lucky
5. Gypsy and the Cat-Sorry
6. Lewis Watson-Into The Wild
7. Fitz and the Tantrums-Out Of My League
8. Ra Ra Riot-All I Fear
9. Wild Belle-Shine
10. Misty Miller-Anything For You
11. Magic Man-Texas
12. The Beautiful Word-May Not Be Love
13. She & Him-I Could’ve Been Your Girl
14. Har Mar Superstar-Lady, You Shot Me
15. Lady-Get Ready
16. The Lone Bellow-Teach Me To Know
17. Vance Joy-Riptide
18. Mikal Cronin-Weight
19. Dan Croll-Compliment Your Soul
20. PartyClub-Footsteps
21. Viceroy & French Rebellion-Friday Nights
22. Theophilus London-Rio
23.Manchester Orch/Grouplove-Make it To Me
24. Neko Case-That’s Who I Am
25. Polica-Tiff ft Justin Vernon
26. Sam Smith-The Lonely Hour (Acoustic)

The innocent strumming of the acoustic guitar might fool listeners that they are walking into a sweet love song, but The Beautiful Word have other plans. Folk pop best friends Emily Bryant and Megan Clifton’s enchanting vocals further harmonize on “May Not Be Love” before unveiling their plan to keep their love interest for good. After a few listens, that might not be so tough for these ladies. Stream below and watch the artful stop motion music video:

BONUS: Mirror Ball

I have a special place in my heart for City and Colour aka Dallas Green. Green’s story-telling and folk rock sound has always been charming, but since “The Girl” was part of my wedding ceremony, he moved up the list of acts I’ll always look out for. While it may be tough to trump “The Girl” for selfish reasons, I’m eagerly anticipating Green’s latest album Northern Wind (taken from a song name from his last album Little Hell). Due this Summer, the initial single “Of Space and Time” sounds right up my alley. The track is an excellent slow burner that swells with booming percussion and a reflective narrative. Stream below and look for Northern Wind on Dine Alone Records soon.
via ATG

BONUS: City and Colour – Northern Wind

I’d have to concur with Bob Boilen of NPR’s All Songs Considered (amazing podcast btw), I’ve never been a big John Denver fan. However, I can appreciate his songwriting skills and I’m certainly a fan of My Morning Jacket performing takes of John Denver joints. Jim James sounds downright majestic on Denver’s “Leaving On A Jet Plane”. Stream below and look for the new John Denver tribute album, The Music is You: A Tribute To John Denver, out on April 2nd via ATO Records.

BONUS: Jim James – A New Life

…and the list of great new albums to look forward keeps getting better.

LA quartet Dawes is set to release Stories Don’t End, their 3rd album on April 9th. Nothing is Wrong was filled with CSR-influenced country rock and was a highlight of 2011. “From A Window Seat” includes all of the elements that have made Dawes a reliable rock act over recent years. The driving guitar and keys soundtrack the track’s intriguing story where the road-weary narrator finds out the subject of all is actually himself.

BONUS: Dawes – My Way Back Home

Stories Don’t End track-listing (pre-order):
01. Just Beneath The Surface
02. From A Window Seat
03. Just My Luck
04. Someone Will
05. Most People
06. Something In Common
07. Hey Lover
08. Bear Witness
09. Stories Don’t End
10. From The Right Angle
11. Side Effects
12. Just Beneath The Surface (Reprise)

More new goodness from folk rockers Ivan & Alyosha. “Running For Cover” is the first single from the Seattle act’s new album All The Times We Had and the track harmoniously escalates in grand fashion. Stream below and catch Ivan and Alyosha on tour.

While we all pine for another the follow-up to Jose Gonzalez‘s In Our Nature (seriously, what is better than “Down the Line“?), at least Mr. Gonzalez hasn’t left us totally hanging. His quality side-project Junip has two EP and a full album since 2010 and just announced another LP, Junip. The first single was teased in December and finally released in full form. Check out the intoxicating anthem “Line of Fire” below and purchase (Amazon, iTunes, or e-mail unlock).
via Sounds Good To Me

BONUS: Jose Gonzalez – Heartbeats (The Knife cover)

Why do I love end of the year/best of lists? So I can see how much great music I listened to in 12 months and still miss more great music. Case in point, North London’s Daughter (via Jonk Music).

Daughter has been selling out venues left and right overseas and is sure to make a splash in the States. The trio’s recent single “Smother” woos with chilling vocals and bubbling choral backing perfect for the chill of January. The most amazing part of this single, is that the b-side is almost as great as the a-side. “Run” completes the dual threat single with acoustic balladry and the subtle boom of percussion while the narrator outlines chasing love. Stream both below:

Daughter – Smother

Daughter – Run

Pick up both Daughter songs via Amazon: