NORTH OF AMERICA

Hailing from Nova Scotia, North Of America made music closer in sound to bands from the DC scene like Q And Not U & Fugazi. Their stunning third album "Brothers, Sisters" was an amazing mixture of indie rock and smart pop. I first heard a few songs online when I first moved to LA about 4 years ago. I was so hooked I ventured around Hollywood looking for a record store that had it. I finally found a copy at Amoeba and went on to listen to it more times then I could count. The photo above was taken by Yolamda.


NORTH OF AMERICA - "Brothers, Sisters"
http://www.mediafire.com/?6zmt53wv19j


NORTH OF AMERICA - "This Is Dance Floor Numerology"
http://www.mediafire.com/?4mc39mczmjg

LA LOVE = MIKA MIKO + NO AGE

So I thought I would switch gears a bit and do a post with 2 bands who are actually new and active. Both Mika Miko and New Age are from the town I call home now: Los Angeles. If you get the chance to see either live you will be blown away. Both bands have made me excited about seeing live music again. Think art punk rock inspired by the North-West scene of the mid nineties and you will be somewhere close to both bands sounds. Be sure to check out their Myspace pages : Mika Miko + No Age. Also if you like them please buy their music and go see them live!


MIKA MIKIO - "666"
http://www.mediafire.com/?3hvr5coex9n


NO AGE - "Weirdo Rippers"
http://www.mediafire.com/?0hj0my1bxmy

THE PARTY OF HELICOPTERS

Since I posted a demo compilation from The Party Of Helicopters a few posts back, I wanted to post the rest of the bands albums. I was lucky enough to see The Party Of Helicopters live at a music fest in West Virginia a few years back. Although I got to see a bunch of great bands that weekend (Fugazi, Q and Not U, Engine Down, etc) The Party Of Helicopters was by far the standout. While looking for info on the band I found a really good quote describing their music : "If Ozzy had drunk thousands of pots of coffee all those years instead of thousands of handles of vodka, he might have created rock like this." I couldn't have said it better.


THE PARTY OF HELICOPTERS - "Abracadaver"
http://www.mediafire.com/?c13wxpa3y2y


THE PARTY OF HELICOPTERS - "Mt. Forever"
http://www.mediafire.com/?arqmtbto1m3


THE PARTY OF HELICOPTERS - "Space and How Sweet It Is"
http://www.mediafire.com/?14yeblny3yt


THE PARTY OF HELICOPTERS - "Please Believe It"
http://www.mediafire.com/?3d3jj3vbmrr

SONG OF ZARATHUSTRA

Most bands that I post on this blog I will scream and moan how they were so underappreciated... and I'm going to do it again for Song Of Zarathustra. They deserve it more than most. Hailing from Oakland, Song Of Zarathustra fit perfectly in with the California tradition of bands like Angel Hair, Heroin, and even the Locust. They are as abrasive as those bands at times but Song Of Zarathustra's songs are actually catchy and infectious; something their predecessors sometimes avoided at all costs. The photo above was taken by Yolamda. As always, please comment if you like this post.


SONG OF ZARATHUSTRA - "A View From High Tides" (2002)
http://www.mediafire.com/?e4ovnyacfgx


SONG OF ZARATHUSTRA - "The Birth of Tragedy" (2000)
http://www.mediafire.com/?fjj5hlmeh2y

FOUR HUNDRED YEARS

I don't think I need to say much about Four Hundred Years. I'm sure most of you are acquainted with them. I was lucky enough to catch their last show they ever played. A group of friends from the art school I was attending at the time took the 3 hour drive to downtown Philly to say farewell. It was a show I will never forget. It felt like the end of an era. Members went on to form Bats & Mice who were amazing in their own right. The photo above was taken by my good friend Bryan Sheffield.


FOUR HUNDRED YEARS - "Transmit Failure" (1998)
http://www.mediafire.com/?3fmtgm39x0e


FOUR HUNDRED YEARS - "Suture And Other Songs" (1999)
http://www.mediafire.com/?1xgzwwxb22y


FOUR HUNDRED YEARS - "The New Imperialism" (1999)
http://www.mediafire.com/?0znxjxmwn9n

THIS MACHINE KILLS

This Machine Kills was a band that featured the infamous Steve Aoki on vocals. Before you write them off download "Death In The Audobon Ballroom." Although it might not be as strong musically as some of their peers (Jr. Ewing, Bread and Circuits, Yaphet Kotto), they had a passion that is hard to match.
Please comment so I know if people are actually reading this blog. Thanks!


THIS MACHINE KILLS - "Death In The Audobon Ballroom"
http://www.mediafire.com/?8mnjz3x9pim


THIS MACHINE KILLS - "Split Ep with Jr Ewng"
http://www.mediafire.com/?fggt0wedyzm


THIS MACHINE KILLS - "A Collaboration of Songs" (Tour CD with Yaphet Kotto and Envy)
http://www.mediafire.com/?6jc7zvcamrb

MAJORITY RULE

Majority Rule were a dark hardcore band from Washington, DC. They were fiercely DIY and politically outspoken. Their sound fits in perfectly with bands such as Envy, Crestfallen, and Circle Takes The Square (all which I will be posting soon). I first saw them perform at Hellfest in 2003 and was hooked. Their use of dual-vocal attacks and goosebump-inducing dynamics will leave you hooked too.


MAJORITY RULE - "Interviews With David Frost" (2001)
http://www.mediafire.com/?dd9gb9w2xyr


MAJORITY RULE - "Emergency Numbers" (2003)
http://www.mediafire.com/?bdq1z0wmj2x


MAJORITY RULE - "Split With Pg99" (2002)
http://www.mediafire.com/?2zme1xzesl2

THE RED SCARE

The Red Scare was a band that existed for a few years during the early part of this century. They hailed from Knoxville but their sound shared more in common with bands coming out of San Diego like Heroin and other Gravity Records alumni. Another close contemporary was Four Hundred Years (who I will be posting soon). Their always stunning artwork was designed by Brian Roettinger who also ran the label Hand Held Heart.


THE RED SCARE - "Capillary Lockdown" (2000)
http://www.mediafire.com/?dlv9vdxwmyi


THE RED SCARE - "Strangers Die Everyday" (2001)
http://www.mediafire.com/?2luzgyeyxjt

HELLBENDER

Since I mentioned Hellbender in the Milemarker post yesterday I wanted to post their 3 full length albums for anyone interested. Hellbender featured Al Burian who would later go on to perform in Milemarker and Challenger. Hellbender was a completely different beast then the projects Al would later go on to do. Hellbender was more straight ahead rock with hints of pop punk and indie rock. Both "Con Limon" and "Footprint of the American Chicken" are highly recommended. If anyone has any of Hellbender 7"s and compilation tracks in mp3 please get in touch!


HELLBENDER - "Con Limon"
http://www.mediafire.com/?azz31ebjb1z


HELLBENDER - "Footprint of the American Chicken"
http://www.mediafire.com/?cdtljdy0dyl


HELLBENDER - "s/t"
http://www.mediafire.com/?33cjfwe21kk

MILEMARKER

Milemarker was formed in the late 90's featuring former members of influential bands like Hellbender and Sleepytime Trio. They incorporated modern technology into every aspect of their music and presentation. "Future Isms" was one of the early underground records to incorporate multimedia content on the CD release. Their live shows often used video projectors and other visual elements. Their sound was eclectic with the band shifting and experimenting with their sound with each record. Below are some of their earlier and hard to find records. There are a bunch of more recent records available for purchase through Eyeball and Jade Tree records.


MILEMARKER - "Changing Caring Humans" (1999)
http://www.mediafire.com/?3qjkmx329k9


MILEMARKER - "Frigid Forms Sell" (2000)
http://www.mediafire.com/?2dtw1v3xw0j


MILEMARKER - "Future Isms" (1998)
http://www.mediafire.com/?bnvabb2jyo5


MILEMARKER - "Non Plus Ultra" (1999)
http://www.mediafire.com/?eajit0bzj2d

NATIONAL SKYLINE

National Skyline is another band I've turned countless friends on to. Their music is a combination of dark synth pop and Radiohead elements. Their cover art with lonely and isolated photographs of modern transportation structures fits the experience perfectly. Whenever I listen to their records I think of flying the red eye late at night alone. I can't recommend these records enough.


NATIONAL SKYLINE - "This=Everything"
http://www.mediafire.com/?bwjhc9qt1hz


NATIONAL SKYLINE - "s/t ep"
http://www.mediafire.com/?1cnqvyx53zw


NATIONAL SKYLINE - " Exit Now"
http://www.mediafire.com/?2c1xmenfnch

BOYS LIFE

Boys Life was a Kansas City band in the heart of the mid-ninties "emo" (yeah, we all hate that word) scene. Musically they fall somewhere between Christie Front Drive, Mineral, Fugazi, and The Promise Ring. The lead singer Brandon went on to form the amazing alt-country act Canyon who I posted about in an earlier blog. He is currently working on solo material.


BOYS LIFE - "s/t" (1995)
http://www.mediafire.com/?4imynbjrydj


BOYS LIFE - "Departures And Landfalls" (1996)
http://www.mediafire.com/?6gq9mg7ceyr

THE SICK LIPSTICK

The Sick Lipstick were a band that formed in 2001 out of the ashes of Black Cat #13. During their short life they released records on labels such as Tiger Style, Sound Virus, & 5RC. Their sound fits perfect with other bands on those labels. Think Huggy Bear or Bikini Kill with more of a synth edge.
"The Sick Lipstick are no longer teenage robots. We are twenty-something robots, who still like noisy rock’n’roll guitars, sick synthesizers and dance beats." - The Sick Lipstick


THE SICK LIPSTICK - "Sting Sting Sting"
http://www.mediafire.com/?0njbe2nxljb


THE SICK LIPSTICK - "s/t ep"
http://www.mediafire.com/?f1jfxhyvmef

ANTARCTICA

I first saw Antarctica play in the late nineties at a Halloween show in Philadelphia. The band members were dressed as the crew from Star-Trek. It was not a far stretch since the first thing to come into mind to describe their music is spacey. Their first album "23:03" is a dark and desolate adventure. I can't recommend this record enough. Their second and last record "81:03" saw the band incorporating more 80s synth pop elements to their sound.


ANTARCTICA - "23:03"
http://www.mediafire.com/?focu1lux1ye


ANTARCTICA - "81:03"
http://www.sendspace.com/file/7k3xzy

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