Again I’m a day late with everything this week – blame it on the Easter period I guess – but I think it is worth the wait with a couple of interesting selecctions this week that have definitely caught my ear. As usual click the link to the blog title for the original post where you can read about and download the track(s).

God Is An Astronaut – Grace Descending – AM Music Blog

God Is An Astronaut are Irish post-rockers with another name that captures the imagination. They have definitely been listening carefully to their Explosions in the Sky collections. Their music is life affirming stuff, combining the typical themes of the genre with its mellow ambience and gradually building, soul stirring pleasure. Its music that makes you feel that you want to be somewhere, a big wide open space with the infinite sky above you, caught in a swirling wind that lifts you, even just momentarily, off the ground.

Listening to them their grandiose name and song titles do seem to be justified, particularly in Grace Descending, which is just pure aural euphoria from start to finish. The album, Far from the Refuge, is out now on Super AD I believe.

Website | Myspace

Dappled Cities Fly – Fire Fire Fire – The Yellow Stereo

Having returned from a successful stint at the South by South West Festival Aussie indie kids, Dappled Cities Fly will be releasing their second album, Granddance, sometime in June and it sounds like it will be a corker. They come from Sydney, and seem to have taken the sunshine of those beginnings and combined it with intelligent musicianship to create intelligent, uplifting indie rock that isn’t afraid to throw some great melodies into the mix.

as the smoke forms a line up to the sun

it carves a fold in everyone,

and the notable promise that i can recall

is that i could have been there with you

Fire Fire Fire is typical of their style, with chiming guitars, great hooks in the chorus and soaring harmonies rising up to create great feel good music. The addition of falsetto vocals works in that it creates a Mew-like ambience which brings additional weight to what might otherwise have been a lighter song.

Website | Myspace

Feist – 1 2 3 4 – Shameless Complacency

Finally this week a video of everyone’s current favourite female indie vocalist, Feist who will be releasing her next album, The Reminder, on 23rd April. 1234 combines all the right aspects of a feel good song – tinkly piano, horns, hand claps, that banjo outro, and the video takes it one step further with all its glittery, errrr, goodness. Enjoy!

you know who you are.

sweetheart, bitter heart,

now i can’t tell you apart.

Check out the Shins video in that posting too.

Website | Myspace

Also, look out for my next shocking post in which I discuss some music I’ve actually bought!

Technorati tags: music, feist, shins, god-is-an-astronaut, dappled-cities-fly