January 8, 2013 – Though California X's cartwheeling, low-end-friendly noise has drawn quick comparisons to Dinosaur Jr. (also, it should be repeated, of Amherst, Mass.), lead vocalist Lemmy Gurtowsky shares little in common with J Mascis. Not a whiner or a wailer, the Happy Valley trio's frontman is, like his band's self-titled debut full-length, direct in a way that recalls Bob Mould and Steve Brooks of Torche instead. But just as Brooks' Miami metal outfit has succeeded in maintaining extraordinarily high sugar levels despite their work's frenetic nature, California X are gifted popsmiths, never allowing the sludge to obscure their many hooks. Hear their debut, due next Tuesday courtesy of Don Giovanni below. 

January 8, 2013 – For the clip to new single "Meow," Brooklyn chiptune maniacs Anamanaguchi took to a local arcade for an expectedly bright, sometimes frightening, Daniel Gray Longino- and Eric Notarnicola-directed throwdown that breathes new life into Windows XP as well as a half-dozen vintage video game references. "Meow," also streaming below, is but one highlight on a forthcoming full-length, due soon by way of their own dream.hax label. (.Gif by Mr. Gif) 

January 7, 2013 – "I sometimes refer to it as the [Washington] D.C. of the north," METZ singer-guitarist Alex Edkins told us a few months ago, when talking about his Toronto post-punk trio's beginnings in Canada's DIY-friendly capital, Ottawa. "It's a government city, so most people work for the government, but there's not so much happening. So what do you do? You start a band." One such outfit is Steve Adamyk Band, purveyors of no-nonsense, snot-glazed pop-punk like "Katakombs," one minute and 16 seconds of hellfire to be heard on the Ottawa foursome's forthcoming sophomore full-length, Third, due later this year on Dirtnap.

January 7, 2013 – Both a soprano opera singer and classically trained multi-instrumentalist, you may already know Rachel Zeffira's voice from the work she's done with Horrors frontman Faris Badwan in their duo, Cat's Eyes. But the two have also founded their own record label, RAF, responsible of late for the U.K. release of Zeffira's full-length solo debut, The Deserters, a sliver of roiling orchestral pop that features "Here on In," the first single to be made available in North America. It's out tomorrow via Paper Bag and The Deserters is due March 12.

January 7, 2013 – Night Beds is Winston Yellen, a Colorado native who, not long after moving to (and subsequently leaving) Nashville, found himself living out of his hatchback and drifting from "state to state." Country Sleep, his full-length debut under the name he says is a tongue-in-cheek reference to evenings spent writing and writhing in bed — be it in the back of said car or the pre-civil war home outside of Nashville he rented upon returning that once belonged to June Carter and Johnny Cash  — is a moonlit assemblage of spacious, Mark Kozelek-informed alt-country due February 5 via Dead Oceans. Hear the harmony-enriched gallop of record highlight "Ramona" and pre-order Country Sleep here. Yellen and his band will be appearing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on February 8.  Sorry, this download is not available in Europe//

January 4, 2013 – "You might not agree, but making Contra was really crazy," Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig says to his bandmate, Rostam Batmanglij, of the New York outfit's chart-upending 2010 full-length. "My memory of making that record was us working in this essentially window-less studio in downtown Brooklyn. I remember it being cold and rainy all the time, and I remember being stressed out. We felt really strongly that it needed to come out relatively quickly. I think a lot of bands feel that way after their first record and we were in a lucky position where we actually felt like we had more to say, musically, so there was this added emphasis on having people hear that. It was a really short, really intense time." Batmanglij laughs in agreement.

January 2, 2013 – Who: Born in Texas, but raised in Nashville, Caitlin Rose, 25, grew up amid songwriting; her mother, Liz Rose, has helped pen more than a dozen songs for Taylor Swift, including the Grammy-nominated "You Belong With Me." But Caitlin found inspiration in disparate sources. "You know that sick obsession with bands you have when you're a kid? In high school, [for me] it was Mountain Goats and Weezer," she says. "I drew all of their lyrics all over my binders, and when [Mountain Goats'] John [Darnielle] covered "I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink" by George Jones, I found out that was a country song and went out and got his Greatest Hits record and didn't listen to anything but 650 AM for two years.

December 26, 2012 – As has been the custom for over two decades, Pearl Jam bestowed a 7" single upon their cultish fan club flock (the Ten Club) for Christmas this year. Its A-side, as Consequence of Sound points out, is a live recording of "In the Moonlight" that features skyscraping vocal contributions from Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme. Originally recorded during the Tchad Blake-helmed sessions for 2000's Binaural, the song has only been available up until now as part of Peej's 2003 rarities collection, Lost Dogs. Equally impressive, the single's B-side is a lively live cut of another outtake ("All Night," from 1995's No Code, another Lost Dogs standout) that includes extended Jamily members Glen Hansard, Liam Finn, and Joseph Arthur. Hear them both below:"In The Moonlight" featuring QOTSA's Josh Homme"All Night" featuring Glen Hansard, Liam Finn, and Joseph Arthur

December 26, 2012 – Frustrated at the time with the recording of what would be their seventh studio full-length, In Rainbows, Radiohead opted to spend much of the summer of 2006 on the road. In June of that year, the English arena-rock outliers played a seismic, 28-song set that — in addition to immediately becoming a favorite among fans and bandmembers alike — has long been rumored as the subject of an official live DVD/Blu-ray release. That disc has not yet come to pass, but, as Glide reports, an unofficial website named RadioheadBonnaroo.com has posted a free download of that full set with soundboard audio from that night."It's hard to believe this was over 5 years ago," writes Paul Phipps, who also mastered the recording. "But a friend of mine was running sound that night. He snagged the 2-track master from the board and handed the raw WAV over to me. I felt like I scored the mix of a lifetime.

December 26, 2012 – Though Wavves main man (and recent cover co-star) Nathan Williams told SPIN earlier this year that his goal for brotherly beat-making collaboration Sweet Valley was "to make a soundtrack to getting drunk this summer," he and his rhythmically gifted younger sibling Kynan have extended the project's life well into winter. In September, the duo dropped their Eternal Champ tape, a collection of "trap drums, dubby dreams, chilly textures, shit-talk samples and synth work" that SPIN's Chris Martins likened to a Cornelius record. And on Christmas Day, the Brothers Williams (with the assist from Fool's Gold) posted their latest, Jenova, to the Sweet Valley Bandcamp page for free download, asking their Twitter following shortly thereafter if they could spot the errant Sugar Ray sample hidden amongst the tape's pile of bong-friendly beats and guest appearances from both Killer Mike and Da Vinci.