Is “I Can Never Die”, by Swedish pop kids the Sweet Serenades, the next indie hit? Well, according to an email they sent to us, it is. More from the email: “[We] hope you are interested in our Swedish testosterone indie-pop or whatever one chooses to call it.” Guess what, dudes? We are! We’re not sure about the “testosterone” (more…)

Rocket from the Crypt, “On a Rope” (Interscope, 1995)

A relic from the era when Interscope wanted alternative music hits so goddamn bad, they’d sign anyone with a black vest and a good scream. Rocket From the Crypt were already awesome when Scream Dracula, Scream came out. But in its brutal, roadhouse R&B and post-punk sensibilities, they gave us a record that bled pop (more…)

Les Savy Fav, After the Balls Drop (French Kiss, 2008)

Listen: “The Equestrian”

A live album just seems so 1970s. Or 1960s: in the melee that opens After the Balls Drop, some dude yells out “Love Me Two Times” as a request. But the stigma didn’t stop Les Savy Fav, the longstanding NYC indie rock crew led by jokester and one-man dynamo Tim Harrington. (If you’ve seen them live, you’ve certainly inhaled his body hair.) And after the joshing, they get right into it with the frazzled post-punk of “The (more…)

This week we’re giving away tickets to see Islands at the Crofoot Ballroom on June 1st and passes for two special screenings at the Emagine Theater in Novi: You Don’t Mess with the Zohan on June 5th and The Promotion on June 9th.

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>>> Fat Bobby, Kid Millions, and Baby Jane — a.k.a. Brooklyn’s psyche-fuzz maestros Onedia — are touring this August, which is pretty cool. Even cooler: On June 13 and 14, the band is performing their excellent The (more…)

Live Pics: Los Campesinos!, Jeffrey Lewis and the Jitters, and the Nice Device @ the Magic Stick, Detroit, MI - 5/24/08 (more…)

The Submarines, Honeysuckle Weeks (Nettwerk, 2008)

Listen: “The Thorny Thicket”

As members of bands (Starhustler) and masters of their own domain (she released solo material under her own name; he used the moniker Jack Drag), Blake Hazard and John Dragonetti have been around this indie game for awhile. When they surfaced as the Submarines in 2005, it was with Declare a New State!, a pleasant bit of indie pop that was nevertheless about breakups. Fast -forward to 2008, remove the bitterness (more…)

Mega Picture Post: Shake It Down — The Remix, Movement After Party @ the Magic Stick, Detroit, MI - 5/25 (more…)

The Chap, “Fun and Interesting” (Ghostly International, 2008)

This video isn’t so much of the latter part of the song title, particularly for those of us for whom working out isn’t the easiest tooth to pull. But as perhaps the most unlikely Ghostly signing in the history of the label, the Chap prove that their skewed, wildly-kiltered pop percolates with something that can only be called (more…)