Posted on October 13, 2011 by papergarden

Marking our 2nd year of official CMJ showcasing, we have 2 official shows this year – one for Paper Garden Records and one for The Lovely Hearts Club – with band lineups so exciting you may have to change your pants after seeing.

On the first hour of the first day of CMJ (Tuesday, 10/18) we’ll be opening CMJ with a bang! Featuring Paper Garden Records’ roster of Dad Rocks!, Pree, and The City and Horses (all new signings with new releases this month you can purchase HERE!) as well as Paper Garden Publicity’s Tall Ships and Big Tree as well as friend-band of Dad Rocks!, Oh! Pears, we will kick things off at The Living Room at 12 noon, ending at 6:30.

Secondly, The Lovely Hearts Club will be bringing some of its newest and finest bands to The Living Room on Saturday (10/22) to show you why we’re constantly so pumped about the new bands we bring to The Lovely Hearts Club. Featured on this showcase from 2:30-6:30 will be Belgrave, Gun Lake, Swear and Shake, Snowmine, and Team Genius.

Drink specials, giveaways, and more for both shows to be announced soon via our PGR Facebook and PGR twitter as well as our Lovely Hearts Club Facebook and Lovely Hearts Club twitter!

Check out full updated event details and RSVP on Facebook here:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=165461586875116

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=245891905461323



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Posted on October 12, 2011 by papergarden


Holy Names is the moniker of Seattle based maestro Andy Vaughan and his coterie. The former, of veteran PGR troupe Mighty Tiger, stakes his crisp vocals into the group’s rich, multi-instrumental parlor pop like a tattered black flag. Holy Names’ Perpetual Beginner is an astral deviation from today’s standards, pulling taught the tightrope between space-rock and freak-folk. An apropos description given that Grammy winnin’ and Tom Waits producin’ Oz Fritz mixed the record. “Somebody Else pts. 1& 2″ build sinister bridges of found samples among cerebral, winding tracks like “Why Does the Devil Make All the Good Music?” and “Fleshtones”.

The record’s real stand-out, “The American Crowbar Case“, commences with a bobbing acoustic march, measured and determined, but as Vaughan croons things begin to zig zag. His rich voice gradually folds into layers of fluttering guitar, while traipsing bass and delightfully pounded piano riffs keep the cacophony alive. Vaughan’s way with sound is certainly unique, and “Crowbar Case” will pull you even closer to it’s peculiarities.

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Posted on October 6, 2011 by papergarden



We were fortunate enough to become acquainted with A Beta Movement through a chance demo submission. Lucky us! Residing in Porto, Portugal, A Beta Movement recently evolved into a trio with the addition of vocalist Marcela Freitas. Her voice mirrors the salty, shore-town vibes from which it resonates. In a similar vein as Marissa Nadler but with a sweeter finish, to which guitarist Pedro Cordeiro and his rustier cadence provide a gentle complement. A Beta Movement creates atmospheric pop with a steady pulse, as though these sounds floated over to us across the Atlantic upon a lackadaisical breeze.

A Beta Movement began with the shared goal of fusing sound and the visual experience, an annotation on human perception. Citing Max Wertheimer’s famous 1912 Experimental Studies on the Seeing of Motion as a formative influence of their sound, and band name, A Beta Movement seeks to create a sense of space through perceived physically sensual encounters. “Colour Mixing System” is a flourishing, tumbling track that blossoms and withers like a leaky metamorphosis. Hypnotic with just a touch of melancholy, the track is also splashed with handclaps and vibrant instrumentals, reminding us that A Beta Movement will stay true to the visual element that was their primary inspiration.

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Posted on September 16, 2011 by papergarden


One of the first things that folks tend to say about Brooklyn trio EULA is typically something involving ‘grrrl rock’. Which is great! BUT if you’re asking us, it’s not even relevant to say that this is one of the better girl bands around, because EULA is one of the better local/up-and-coming psych punk bands we’ve heard as of late. Period. Which is not to say that she who fronts this Brooklyn trio isn’t incredible. Not only is Alyse a super talented guitar player, but her searing vocals blaze through each track on their Maurice Narcisse LP.

Released this past May, “Maurice Narcisse” is a playful treatise on pretension, part lamenting part castigating the metaphorical ‘character’ for his egotism. Alyses’ punching lyrics find their match in aggressive drums and plunging melodies, so despite the aforementioned woes, Maurice Narcisse is an undeniably fun listen. Give a listen to the record’s titular track, a smoldering, discombobulated pop song that EULA has made their specialty. It’s indubitably technical and well-crafted, every detail fired off with conviction and purpose. Check out the video below for “Maurice Narcisse” and be sure to come see EULA at our Multiverse Playground event on Saturday, September 17th!

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Posted on September 14, 2011 by papergarden



The Paper Garden folks have been bumping into these guys under some pretty unusual circumstances as of late. Namely, a super-secret weekend in the middle of the woods as well as a Rocksoff show on a boat. We’re so psyched to introduce them to you!

Laminate Pet Animal is one of those albums that proves feasible that album-that-gets-better-with-each-listen adage. Just when we all decide that “Penny” is definitely our favorite…but wait, what about “Let Me In”?! And when it’s over the only inter-office consensus we’ve managed is that we should listen to the record again. And good lord, if “Beast in Air, Beast in Water” isn’t the most beautiful pop song you’ll have heard in quite some time…it’s really just impossible to choose. Luckily you don’t have to. In fact, you can listen to the album in it’s entirety via the Snowmine bandcamp page.

Snowmine creates mesmerizing, tightly woven melodies on which Grayson Sanders’ ever-fetching vocals can freely saunter. But below this effervescent surface there are many layers to a Snowmine song, and a closer listen reveals some decidedly heavy lyrics. Many of the tracks thematically touch upon of lost love, betrayal, and loneliness. Which is not to say that Snowmine is a dark listen, but that with Laminate Pet Animal they’ve successfully showcased their ability to write an enthrallingly multi-dimensional pop song.

Be sure to catch Snowmine’s set this Saturday (9/17) at our Multiverse Playground Event!

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Posted on September 9, 2011 by papergarden



Envision if you can, one of those eerie man made lakes, you know the kind made out of some small valley town? Usually for the sake of water supply or electricity, all the locals would have to relocate up the mountain when the valley filled up, their homes becoming a reservoir of murky remains. Every now and again when the lake gets low, people swear you can see the tops of these old buildings peeking just above the surface, struggling for the chance of resuscitation. Gun Lake‘s “June”, off their debut album Balfour,  is the soundtrack to those moments; witnessing from the green shoreline, with just a pang of wistfulness, the reflection of their life recycled and restored for better or worse. Ann Arbor’s Mark Fain is an immense talent. His voice coos and hollers throughout said valley, echoing our own impulses to forgive and somehow forget.

We first heard about Gun Lake as they opened for our pals Little Tybee in Detroit this summer. We kept in touch via Turntable.fm and whatnot, and we’re so psyched to finally be teaming up! Be sure to watch the video below, as Gun Lake performs their crooning “Backwards” tucked away in a lofty, quilted attic. Fall is on it’s way!

Backwards – Gun Lake – The Quilted Attic Sessions from Bigger Brush Media on Vimeo.

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Posted on August 31, 2011 by papergarden


Seriously, the Danes just can’t stop making awesome music. We’ve ranted about this before, but as long as we keep coming across these killer bands we’re probably not going to stop. And why should we? Anyway, we first got to know Kandy Kolored Tangerine through our recent obsession with a certain Denmark-based artist, Dad Rocks!. Their track “You Are, Boy” is a whirling, sighing, multi-layered pop song that showcases the supergroup’s recent sonic transformation.

A seasonally apropos springtime release, the track was just a little something to satiate us while we await their forthcoming sophomore album to drop this autumn! This troupe of self-proclaimed “skygazers” have been touring extensively and receiving some well-deserved buzz on the Danish/European scene. We’re psyched to intro them stateside!

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Posted on August 15, 2011 by papergarden

The last time we wrote about Team Genius, we lauded this local pop supergroup for their ability to pull us out of our mid-winter slump. Turns out this is a band for all seasons, as it’s hot as you-know-what outside and Team Genius is nothing short of a breath of fresh air. If this track “Love and Love Songs” off their forthcoming EP is any indication of how great Team Genius’ new stuff is, then we’re all in for a treat. It’s Team Genius at their finest, saccharine yet commanding, as if they’ve ripped the pages out of the pop handbook and make confetti out of its remains.

If you live in New York and you like to have fun, you should probably check out the Team Genius record release show on Friday August 19th at Mercury Lounge with our good pals Quiet Loudly. We’ll be there and you should be too! If not be sure to grab their latest EP, Pop Songs, out August 23rd via all major digital outlets and the Team Genius website.

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Posted on August 3, 2011 by papergarden

Lovely Hearts Club Presents: The Coasts – Handshakers by Paper Garden Records

The Coasts are Eric Mount and Ike Peters. The two met as freshman in college, became best friends, played music together just once, and laid down a rock n’ roll album shortly thereafter. Enter Lovely Hearts Club. The advent of turntable.fm has allowed us to not only meet a ton of really great folks out there on the interweb but also hear some really special demos. Ike, a copywriter in Little Rock and one half of The Coasts, played a track for us in the Paper Garden Records room and we were hooked. How do we promote ourselves? Do we suck? These were just a few questions The Coasts had for us. No, you don’t suck. You rule. Let us promote you! So here we are.

The Coasts are just effortlessly fun, as if The Black Keys and Elvis Costello conceived an uncombed lovechild. The first track off their self-titled release, which you can listen to here, “Poltergeist” is a infectious, rolling pop song about moving into a haunted house. The thing is, you’re never quite sure if they’re celebrating or lamenting the fact that they live with ghosts because it’s just that upbeat. The track that really caught our attention was “Handshakers”, a quirky anthem that’s equal parts gritty rockabilly and punching pop. A portion of the record sales for The Coasts will go towards the Hope For Haiti’s Children Foundation. 

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Posted on July 29, 2011 by papergarden


Lovely Hearts Club Presents: Jack & the Bear “Back To Despair” by Paper Garden Records 

In this day and age we can discover artists in all sorts of ways. We received a demo from this band in the mail, and the very next day they were in our Turntable.fm room. When they played their track,  we were blown away. Crazy, right?  So now let’s take a journey to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where there is some grand folk rock being made. Jack & The Bear are next up in a growing line of  future breakout stars of this scene. Following in the footsteps of acts such as Mumford and Sons, and The Avett Brothers, Jack & The Bear attribute a similarly raw sound that is both haunting and regal. “Back To Despair”, filled with pulsating drums and heavily emotional vocals, doubles as a bit of a theme song for moving on with your life.

Consisting of two sets of brothers and a family friend, there is a sense of comfort in Jack & the Bear’s recording process that gives the sound some much-appreciated togetherness. The use of 4 part harmonies as well as an exotic mixture of instruments (mandolin, trombone, trumpets and accordion, to name just a few) make this group stand on their own. If this track is any indication, this great nation has another rollicking folk band to savor.

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