Me and my cousins and you and your cousins.

What do you get when you mix an empty alley, an improvised rail track, some instruments, chalk and confetti guns?

A new video, finally, from pseudo-afro-prep rockers, Vampire Weekend.



While they've been teasing another track, Horchata, for a few months, Cousins is the official peppy lead single for their sophomore outing, Contra, out in January.

I'm looking forward to it.

I swear it’s true. Without you my heart is blue.

I long ago gave up wondering what Rivers Cuomo and his jolly band of pranksters would come up with next.

Well, Weezer's at it again, and (If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To is another little gem of a curveball from them.

I'm gonna lose control 'cause you're a reptile, baby.

I can't say I'm not enjoying the rebirth of 80's-tinged electrop pop these days. You can hear it everywhere, and it suits my fancy.

So, of course you'll be getting new bands rediscovering the sounds of the early video era, and while some of it is just tired retreads, there is plenty of fresh exuberance coming out from some of the newer players now jumping on the bandwagon.

Case in point: Performance, a semi-new outfit out of Manchester, England.

Their new video for Reptile is brilliant, and the rest of their tracks on myspace are also pretty darned good!



Thanks to Electroqueer for the heads up on this. Looks like Performance is a name to look out for in 2010!

Want to be a Superhero?

Longtime readers may recall my fervor for a little movie called Stardust a few years back. You still all need to see it.

But for those of you still stubborn enough to avoid the serious charm of a modern fairy tale romance, you're in luck. Stardust director Matthew Vaughn has set his sights on another genre, and it looks, well, um, Kick-Ass.



I know I always wanted to be a superhero. Didn't you?

I want your love.

Clearly wanting to strike while the iron is hot, Lady Gaga isn't missing a beat.

This isn't my favorite tune she's put out, but you got to give the fashionista-with-a-beat some serious credit: She knows how to get your attention, even if she's had a Bad Romance:



Want to bet it grows on me?

The requisite milk-the-fans reissue comes out November 23. With eight new tracks, The Fame Monster won't hurt quite as much as usual.

Shut your mouth boy, when will you learn?

It's been a bit of a dry spell for Swedish electro-rockers Teddybears ever since their superb 2006 album Soft Machine. Anyone that can still make Iggy Pop refreshingly au-courant earns bonus points in my book.

With rumors floating around of a new album set to drop very soon, they managed to sneak out a new tune this summer, supporting an ad for a Swedish real estate company.

Here's hoping we get some less under-the-radar tunes for the rest of the world soon.

In the meantime, you might want to Get Mama a House, because the song's a treat!

Momma just cross-dressed.

Earlier this summer I tried to raise my enthusiasm for the current Aqua reunion, wondering "if it's a failed gimmick from a band cashing in one last time, or whether it's a self-ironic nod from the ultimate plastic band."

Thankfully I can put those concerns behind me with the latest single they're using to launch their new Greatest Hits collection here stateside.

My Mamma Said is a perfect reunion single, mixing the classic Aqua standards (nice harmonies from Lene Nystrøm Rasted plus Rene Dif's playful spoken stylings) with a slightly more grown up song. The video alone seems so much sleeker than their usual technicolor palette.

Worry not however, this is still Aqua.



Rumor has it, this reunion may have some more-permanent legs next year.

Suddenly, I think this cat may have a few lives yet to go!

You got to give your mouth a rest.

If there's one thing to expect from Roisin Murphy, it's usually the unexpected. One to usually follow the beat of her own drum machine, her career has never been anything but interesting from her days fronting Moloko to her more recent solo forays.

So why not a turn towards the innuendo with her new single Orally Fixated. It's a harder, more playful track than the lusher beats from 2007's criminally-ignored (at least here in the U.S.) Overpowered.

Orally Fixated


All in all, a refreshing new curve from Murphy that fits easily into both her new and older incarnations. It's no surprise really, the lady tends to the unexpected.

Now that she's heading off on maternity leave with this new single, we should all be thankful for this little tease of whats still to come.

Existential Travel Hub

Next time you complain about having your quart-sized bag examined as you shuffle along through the metal detector, painfully aware of the thoroughy visible hole in your left sock, remind yourself that you could be flying through here:


Prague's Franz Kafka International Named World's Most Alienating Airport

You Look Good in That

Who knew clothes hangers could make you smile?

Apparently the good people over at Apartment Therapy and the Ace Hotel in New York City do.


Proof, yet again, that good design can hang in the most-unlikely of places.

Hit the accelerator!

Star Wars rebooted for the short-attention-span fanboy. I love it!



This is clearly a popcorn-worthy train-wreck in the making. I can't wait to see what they come up with.

Part of a Complete Breakfast

Apparently corn flakes aren't quite proprietary enough, so word has it that Kellogg's wants to personalize their wares.

Do we really want our food to look as processed as it actually is?


Yuck.

A disturbing sign of the times.

This is like a flashback.

And now, some added love for my greatest latest Scotsman, Calvin Harris.

Sorry Ewan McGregor, we'll come back to you soon, I'm sure.

Flashback is yet another solid track from Ready for the Weekend, but if you've been reading this blog lately you've likely gathered I'm rather fond of this album.



Clearly, that's how one parties like a rock star. Power to him. Buy the album.

Modern Agave

Much to my family's dismay, I'm not much of a tequila drinker.

THAT SAID, if I were to down an occasional shot or two, wouldn't it be nice to get it from bottles as fun as these?


Check out the whole lot of these special edition 1800 Tequila Essential Artists bottles over at NOTCOT, where I found them.

They're pretty to look at. Just don't expect me to drink the stuff.

Our love goes on as our hair grows long.

A few years back, Hellogoodbye got my attention with their brilliant electro-dance hit Here in Your Arms from their debut album, Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs! The rest of the album didn't do much for me, so I kinda assumed that might be it for me with these peppy Californians.

Well it turns out their sound is maturing a bit, and there may be more to this story yet. They have a new single out, I assume teasing an upcoming album. In the meantime you can score the When We First Met EP and Video for free on their website.

When We First Met is pretty darn good!



It almost makes me want to check out their show Nov. 3 at The Ogden. Too much going on though, and I think I left co-headliner Hanson back at MMMbop.