Worth It's Weight

Golden Arrows - Dynasty Electric

This album was my very first taste of Dynasty Electric and I was pleasantly surprised by the content of their third release. One word comes to mind when listening to the album as whole: eclectic. It seems as though the tracks are bouncing from one genre of music to the other, from Pop to Electronic, from Soul to a modern type of Disco; overall is a rather unique musical experience that truly grows on you as you realize the talent and heart poured into each song. "Electro Retro" seems like it's from a completely different time yet feels so familiar, the title track, "Golden Arrows", is in my humble opinion the best song on the album if just for the range of sounds. "Box Of Light" would be the electric in the band name along with "And The Sky" and "Reality Check"  is simply entrancing. There is in truth very little I could say that would do this album justice, I'll let the music speak for itself but I will encourage you to let the songs play in their entirety to really appreciate the quality of each. Until next time, enjoy.

1.- And The Sky

2.- Bird Song

3.- Box Of Light

4.- Electro Retro

5.- Friends

6.- Golden Arrows

7.- Infectious

8.- Mountain Song

9.- Radiation

10.- Reality Check

11.- Spell Check

Xero & The Boombox Theorists

Monsters Of Iceland

Of Monsters And Men EP - 
Of Monsters And Men

If we had a Song Of The Month category this would be on the top of my list. Of Monsters And Men, an up-and-coming Icelandic group, have been signed since December and I am now eagerly awaiting their debut album, certainly if it sounds anything like this fun and upbeat track. It just seems to hit all the right buttons, "Little Talks" just grabs you right from the beginning with that amazing instrumental and awesome vocals by the two singers who sound just as good live as they do on the track itself as the video will prove. I will be keeping my ear to the ground for whatever these guys release next because I feel it will be worth it.

1.- Little Talks -Of Monsters And Men

Discovered this band through this very video

Xero & The Boombox Theorists

Tomorrow's Youth

Tomorrow And Tomorrow And Tomorrow... - 
Youth Sounds

Continuing the trend of great second albums, Youth Sounds' eagerly anticipated sophomore album delivers on all the promises of "The Bit Parts EP". Their ever-present laid-back and overall smooth approach to making music bridges the gap between the two ensembles and creates a certain coherence between the tracks; and it doesn't hurt that they can make a pretty catchy tune that makes you want to sing along even on your first listen. The best first impression has got to be "It's Hell" followed by "We're No One", which takes nothing away from the rest of the album, I just cracked a smile as soon as "It's Hell" started playing. The ear-worm prize would have to go to "Whatever Works" but this is just a perk of the song, what makes this album special is the heart and soul that clearly shines through each of the five tracks; each song is so well put together and executed and everything from the pacing to the vocals seems chosen with care and never feels like a rush job which only cements my admiration for this still-up-and-coming band. In short, this is an amazing follow-up to the "The Bit Parts" and is worth a listen for anybody looking for a unique sound.

1.- It's Hell

2.- Whatever Works

3.- Foolish Love

4.-You'll Be The Death Of Me

5.- We're No One

Xero & The Boombox Theorists

Polar Opposite

Remind Me Where The Light Is - Great Northern

Indie Rock band Great Northern released their second studio album last year and in my opinion it tops their previous work by far. While "Trading Twilight For Daylight" was a fantastic album, they have managed to improve on their always dreamy sound on their latest release. The general tone of every track is the underlying story of love lost and love remembered; the dual vocals of Solon and Rachel also add to the relationship themes. That being said, this is not the sappy kind of love wrapped in a melancholic melody, most of the lyrics are deeply enigmatic and take some deciphering to get the message. All in all, this is a truly satisfying listening experience full of ambient mystifying sounds and soothing vocals mixed with a dash of energy.

Xero & The Boombox Theory