Pepper Rabbit Release Free EP

In order to get people really psyched about their upcoming full length Red Velvet Snow Ball, Pepper Rabbit has released a free EP into the wild.

The EP, Rose Mary Stretch, features the album’s lead single (sharing the same name as the EP) as well as a Miniature Tigers cover with the song “Gold Skull”.

You can grab the EP right here, or see the real thing as Pepper Rabbit continues their extensive U.S. tour. Dates include:

08/31 – New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge \

09/07 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church ^

09/08 – Washington, DC @ DC9 ^ !

09/09 – Raleigh, NC @ Hopscotch Music Festival

09/10 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn ^ !

09/11 – Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree ^ !

09/12 – Nashville, TN @ The End ^ !

09/13 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle ^ !

09/15 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry ^ !

09/16 – Winnipeg, MB @ The Royal Albert Arms Hotel ^ !

09/19 – Edmonton, AB @ Pawn Shop ^ !

09/20 – Calgary, AB @ Republik ^

09/22 – Victoria, BC @ Rifflandia Festival

09/24 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern ^ !

09/25 – Portland, OR @ Holocene ^ !

09/27 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill ^ !

09/28 – Costa Mesa, CA @ Detroit Bar ^ !

09/29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Echo ^ !

09/30 – Tempe, AZ @ Sail Inn ^ !

10/01 – Santa Fe, NM @ Corazon ^ !

10/02 – El Paso, TX @ Lowbrow Palace ^ !

10/04 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk ^ !

10/05 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada ^ !

10/06 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird ^

10/07 – Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop ^ !

10/08 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Tavern ^ !

10/09 – Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick Lounge ^ !

10/10 – London, ON @ Call The Office ^ !

10/14 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern ^

10/15 – Ottawa, ON @ Babylon ^

10/16 – Quebec, QC @ Le Cercle ^ !

10/18 – Halifax, NS @ Paragon Theatre ^

10/19 – Portland, ME @ SPACE ^ !

10/20 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott ^ !

* = w/ Givers

# = w/ 1, 2, 3

$ = w/ Ballyho!

% = w/ Charlie Blacksmoke, Cheyenne Marrs & Sudden Organs, & Royal T

\ = w/ We Barbarians, & ANR

^ = w/ Braids

! = w/ O Danagemen

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Pepper Rabbit Tours With Ra Ra Riot

Pepper Rabbit have announced that the psych-pop outfit will be supporting Ra Ra Riot on their upcoming West Coast tour.

The LA-duo released their first album, Beauregard in October on Kanine Records and have been on the road ever since. Along with a few Ra Ra Riot dates, post-SXSW Pepper Rabbit will be hitting the road with Miniature Tigers. The band also has some news regarding SXSW that they will be sharing in the near future.

The duo have also released a music video from their first album. It features floating instruments and moving paintings, and is excellent. You can see it right here:

Check out Pepper Rabbit’s tour dates:

\

1/27 –  Neumos – Seattle, WA*
3/4 – Chicago, IL – Subterranean &
3/5 – Der Rathskeller @ Wisconsin Union – Madison, WI
3/9 – The Middle East – Boston, MA %
3/10 – Bowery Ballroom – New York City, NY %
3/11 – First Uniterian Church – Philadelphia, PA %
3/12 – Knitting Factory – Brooklyn, NY %
3/13 – Rock & Roll Hotel – Washington, DC %
3/14 – Local 506 – Chapel Hill, NC %
3/23 – Low Brow – El Paso, TX $
3/24 – The Rhythm Room – Phoenix, AZ $
3/25 – The Casbah – San Diego, CA $
3/27 – Rickshaw Stop – San Francisco, CA $
3/29 – Holocene – Portland, OR $
3/30 – Crocodile Cafe – Seattle, WA $
4/1 – Filling Station – Bozeman, MT $
4/2 – Kilby Court – Salt Lake City, UT $
4/3 – Hi Dive – Denver, CO $
* w/ Ra Ra Riot
& w/ Nicole Atkins & The Sea and Cotton Jones
% w/ Rural Alberta Advantage
$ w/ Miniature Tigers

Modern Mystery’s Top 30 Albums of the Year

The time is finally here where we announce our favorite albums of the year. Yes, it took a whole lot of thinking and a whole lot of relistening, but in the end we figured it out.  Trust us, it was no easy task this year. Take a peek at what kept our interest in 2010.

1. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – “Let It Sway”

This will forever be known as the album where SSLYBY fully matured. Working with Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla,  the band produced a stunning record full of pop hooks and catchy lyrics. The result, Let It Sway (Polyvinyl), one of the greatest pieces of work our ears have heard by any indie band in a long time. We loved it so much we made a tribute  video celebrating the record which you can watch below. Congrats SSLYBY!

2. Vampire Weekend – “Contra”

A nearly flawless album, the VW boys started off 2010 with a burst of energy that continued througout the year. Neck in neck with the Yeltsins, Contra (XL) also shared the tale of a too-good-to-be-true indie band growing up in the public eye.

3. The Morning Benders – “Big Echo”

Another record that was running with the big boys on this list, The Morning Benders released Big Echo (Kanine) early in the year and exploded like no one could ever have imagined. It’s ab out time. They deserve it.  This is one of the catchiest albums we heard this year and it never gets old.

4. Of Montreal – “False Priest”

Of Montreal are always evolving. That is what we love most about the band. False Priest (Polyvinyl) takes them to a whole new level, dabbling in R&B and dueting with Solange Knowles. We may have been skeptical at first but it quickly won over our hearts and the dance floor.

5.  Surfer Blood – “Astrocoast” 

Everyone’s favorite “IT” band of the year produced a promising debut album called Astrocoast (Kanine). We followed the boys around CMJ 2009 and knew they were about to blew up huge. We were right, and now Surfer Blood has taken over the world.

 6. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – “Before Today”

A chilling record filled with reverb and haunting vocals proved to be just the thing for Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti. Before Today (4AD) stunned the indie music world and makes us wonder what the next Ariel Pink chapter has to hold.

7.  Jukebox the Ghost – “Everything Under the Sun”

A thriving piano backed by a guitar and drums made an unexpected assault in the indie world this year. Everything Under the Sun (Yep Roc) dropped jaws quickly this year and had Jukebox the Ghost playing with big name bands and appearing on the Late Show with David Letterman.

8.   The Love Language – “Libraries”

Much different from their first record, The Love Language stunned us with a near perfect record, Libraries (Merge) this year. There was a lot of buzz about this album and as the tracks leaked, we could feel the greatness building up. We were right.

9. We Are Scientists – “Barbara”

Without a record label in the U.S., We Are Scientists broke through this year with Barbara. They haven’t changed too much since the last time we heard from them, which is a good thing. They still have their driving 80’s vibe, W.A.S. charm and brilliant tunes.

10. Magic Kids – “Memphis”

This was an unexpected treat this year that had us putting Magic Kids on repeat. Memphis (Goner/True Panther) often has a lo-fi and retro vibe, and that is what really makes it special.

 

The rest of the list….

11. Miniature Tigers – “Fortress”

12. Matt Pond PA – “The Dark Leaves”

13. Wavves – “King of the Beach”

14. Sufjan Stevens -“Age of the Adz”

15. Arcade Fire – “The Suburbs”

16. Free Energy – “Stuck on Nothing”

17. Javelin – “No Mas”

18. Best Coast – “Crazy for You”

19. The Drums – “The Drums”

20.  Tokyo Police Club – “Champ”

21. The New Pornographers – “Together”

22. Spoon – “Transference”

23. Hot Hot Heat – “Future Breeds”

24. Kids of 88 – “Sugar Pills”

25. MGMT – “Congratulations”

26. Harlem – “Hippies”

27. Broken Social Scene – “Forgiveness Rock Record”

28. Born Ruffians – “Say It”

29. Caribou – “Swim”

30. Interpol – “Interpol”

Modern Mystery’s Top 25 Songs of 2010


1. Of Montreal – “Sex Karma” featuring Solange Knowles
2. Vampire Weekend – “Cousins”
3. Love Language – “Heart to Tell”
4. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – “Everlyn”
5. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti -“Fright Night (Nevermore)”
6. Morning Benders – “Promises”
7. Jukebox the Ghost – “Half Crazy”
8.  The Drums – “Let’s Go Surfing”
9. Surfer Blood – “Swim”
10. We Are Scientists – “Rules Don’t Stop”
11. Wavves – “King of the Beach”
12. Free Energy – “Bang Pop”
13. Magic Kids – “Hey Boy”
14. Robbers on High Street – “Electric Eye”
15. Beach Fossils – “Youth”
16. Javelin – “Oh! Centra”
17. Matt Pond PA – “Starting”
18. Miniature Tigers – “Gold Skull”
19. Ra Ra Riot – “Boy”
20. Best Coast – “Boyfriend”
21. Sufjan Stevens – “From the Mouth of Gabriel”
22. Hot Hot Heat – “21@12”
23. Tame Impala – “Alter Ego”
24. Caribou – “Odessa”
25. Jenny and Johnny – “Big Wave”

Modern Mystery’s Top 10 Videos of the Year



1. Morning Benders “Promises”

2. Wavves “Post Acid”

3. Of Montreal “Coquet Coquette”

4. Cloud Nothings “Hey Cool Kids”

5. Surfer Blood “Floating Vibes”

6. Vampire Weekend “Giving Up the Gun”

7. Miniature Tigers “Bullfighter Jacket”

8. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin “Let It Sway”

9. Arcade Fire “The Suburbs”

10. Ra Ra Riot “Boy”

Miniature Tigers Get Intimate at The Guest Apartment

 

In a mix between VH1’s Storytellers and La Blogotheque, The Guest Apartment keeps things on a simpler side, much like its name.  Miniature Tigers are one of the latest group to get the feature’s treatment, playing a miniature set comprised of a single guitar, plenty of harmonies, and the majority of the band taking up percussive roles.  Tambourines tap, shakers shake, and the band talks about the creative process for songs they perform from their latest album, Fortress (Modern Art).  You wouldn’t know it from these live renditions, but expect Fortress to exhibit some darker vibes.  The band mentions gearing up to record by watching “The Shining” in a converted woodland 19th century church.  Sound familiar?  That’s because bands from Beach House to the B-52’s have shared the same recording space, not that you should expect the same output from this band.

Check out the living room jam over at baeble’s website and find Fortress out now on Modern Art.