Things We Built: Looks Like You

Melbourne-based adventurous pop bandThings We Built are not an optimistic lot. If anything they could be labelled as realists who are still dreaming, but a better or different future is not in the cards. Their Looks Like You EP deals with trying to get away (One Horse Town) and lamenting missed opportunities and still being jealous many years after the fact (The Boy Who Kissed You First).

Only in Daddy's Gone Disco a character pops up who can regain his freedom for a short while, when he goes all out on the dance floor. Hell, he might not even come back to the grind. While it be sort of depressing to realise that being stuck is what it is (We Cannot Change), they have an outlet for their frustrations through their music. Combined with a sense of humour they created a safe space for themselves and for anyone who might be feeling the same way.

Steven Wilson: "The Same River Twice" (The Village Hall Sessions) video

Steven Wilson has shared a video for The Same River Twice, played live (sort of) in the studio with Randy McStine. It is an introspective ballad, urging the listener to calm down and take off his shoes.

» stevenwilsonhq.com
» requiemforavillage.com

The Open Flames: Change Your Mind

London based indie rock quartet The Open Flames are trying with the extremely evasive Clementine on their Change Your Mind single. It is a good-natured garage rocker about not being able to connect by way of distorted guitars and a cheesy but highly keyboard that sounds like it has been gathering dust in a charity shop for decades.

Clifford Jordan: "Let It Ring: Live at the Jazz Showcase" Black Friday Release

Jazz saxophone player Clifford Jordan performed two back-to-back shows with his quartet at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase in Chicago in 1976. Let It Ring: Live at the Jazz Showcase captures the band - Al Haig (piano), Wilbur Ware (bass), Kenny Clarke (drums) - in full flight and will be released as a 2LP for Black Friday (November 27). 1500 copies worldwide. A less expensive 2CD will be available as well.

De Eerste Liefde: Crashes, Bangs, and Flashing Lights

Dutch indie trio De Eerste Liefde, led by songwriter Chris Kok, mixes psychedelic and baroque pop on their Crashes, Bangs, and Flashing Lights EP. Add Radiohead, early Pink Floyd and Badfinger to the equation and presto: a recipe for deceptive melodicism with plenty blink-and-you'll-miss-it sidesteps that give the tracks an edge that isn't that obvious at first.

The dynamics are spot on and taking plenty of time to set up the mikes properly to capture the full extent of each instrument has paid off in spades. Imagine having a front row seat as the band is busy building their multi-layered orchestral songs. Too bad they won't be able to replicate this on stage as a threesome. They would need a far bigger line-up to achieve such a feat.