MP3: Blacks& “The Race Is On”
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Blacks& started as a late night living room recording project, fueled by whiskey and head-nods in the summer of 2011. Donald Eley (The Sea of Cortez) and Tiger (NazcarNation, The Sea of Cortez) passed instruments back and forth while vagabond (and spiritual guide) Jutty Shark gave the tracks a Midas sheen with sun inspired vocals. Blending island pop with refined, angular grooves, Blacks& are carving out their own nook in the LA music scene. The group rounded out its rhythm section by bringing on Jutty’s childhood friend Jules Bellin (POLLS) to play drums. Blacks& will be releasing their debut EP “A Ghost That Follows Me” filled with stairwell vocals, subtle synths, and laid-back funk beats in spring of 2012.

Blacks& single “The Race Is On”: ”The song, ‘The Race Is On,’ is against time and towards an unachievable end. Sarcastic whimsy (for the CSNY groupies that had to learn the hard way). A vacation means not having to say you’re sorry”
Read more at Spinner

“Their name is not a typo — you pronounce Blacks& “black sand” — but the music from the new four-headed collaboration seems better suited for white sand, as in tropical beaches…dispenses warm, minimalist pop with a touch of tropical funk and a dusting of romanticism”
Read more at Buzz Bands 

“While somewhat reminiscent of Vampire Weekend, Blacks& is a tad more suave and romantic; they have a pronounced golden hue throughout their music that lingers like warm, tropical moisture in the air”
Read more at Decoder 

“The band has delicately crafted a delightful island pop sound with angular tendencies….Check out the summer minded track “The Race Is On”, taken from the brightest spot of their summer memories. Relaxed but put in focus, this is as feel good of a summer song as one can ask in April”
Read more at We All Want Someone To Shout For 

“At the beginning when I first heard this song, I thought I was getting into the California Games (the NES game) soundtrack. But what evolved was this dinnertime-island-surf-pop vibe fueled by “whiskey and head nods”…these L.A.-natives tastey gems that shape a sunny Sunday evening”
Read more at Head Underwater 

“A slightly tropical Vampire Weekend sound, but with better vocals and zero of the whining. Then you start to realize they have combined the best of Vampy Weekend with a dreamy du-wop fervor that makes you feel all giddy inside…The band has managed to harness a refreshing new sound that is just magical”
Read more at Gluttony Is The New Black

“The sounds are the sounds of summer - sun drenched, soft bobbing-as-the-waves rhythm, the kind of simplicity that makes something stronger.It’s exciting to see projects like this popping up in my own city”
Read more at Smoke Don’t Smoke

“They lay their technical guitar skills, on top of tropical funk bass lines and some soft synth lines, just to remind you that they’re doing their own thing. Compound that with drummer Jules Bellin, and the perfectly warm and yearning vocals gifted by Jutty Shark, and you have yourself a recipe for the perfect summer soundtrack”
Read more at Los Angeles, I’m Yours

“The Real Estate–meets–The Clientele beauty of the reverb-soaked “What They Think” “makes me want to burn every book I’ve ever read, it makes me want to seal my ears and never hear no songs again,” that’s how good it is” 
Read more at Critical Masses

“Those opening sixty seconds and the way they track the gradual build of “Race”‘s tropical beachside sway–a downright lovely layering of romancing synthy washes and flickering guitar burbles with teasing dollops of bass and vocal hook–is such pure sonic gold, the song could end right there and it would easily stand as one of the best recordings of the year”
Read more at Mixtape Maestro 

“Stumbled across this minimal pop / tropical / dancey EP via Smoke Don’t Smoke and it’s the perfect thing to put in my ears on this rare sunny Oregon day…I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about them in the coming months”
Read more at Neighborhood Brains 

“serious tropical vibes, crafted for long summer days at the beach…turn it sound and close your eyes and try to think of yourself anywhere else”
Read more at Bedwetting Cosmonaut

“Just wait until you hear the first lyric..that’s all. Once you get there, it’s hard not to commit to this track. Starting off like a Brighton Beach Boys, the tune makes the progression into progressive indie, almost seamlessly”
Read more at Look Behind You 

“Apparently Southern California’s magical never-ending summers, coconuts, and beautiful women (it’s clear that I watch too many stereotypical 80s movies) allow it to hold on to its signature laid-back beach-y sound. Blacks& fit in nicely”
Read more at The Ground Magazine 

“it looks like A Ghost That Follows Me is a little too heavy on the “cute” vibes, but the songs prove to be smart, infectious, and touched with just the right amount of kitsch—reminding us that we don’t always need to be so gersh darn serious”
Read more at Mapzzz 

MP3: Ko Ko “Float”
MP3: Ko Ko “So Strange”
SoundCloud / Facebook / Website

The name KO KO has many meanings, but Ryan and Taylor Lawhon felt a real connection with it as the boat they decided to buy and live on permanently was named KO KO. Bundled with reverb, chant-alongs, and a striking songwriting ability, KO KO’s debut three-track release, Float, captures a raw and emotional essence of indie rock developed in a new way. KO KO is the Southern California dream-pop collective consisting of brothers Ryan and Taylor Lawhon with various contributors ranging from Los Angeles to San Diego. In the land of perpetual sunshine, the music is created by friends with simple lives, writing songs who have never seen a real winter. KO KO’s “Intermission” shows a more reserved side to the collective, boosting a single fragile voice with a dramatic build that leads us deeper into a world of complex textures and percussions. The ideal or inspiration behind KO KO was to only write and create music they felt an emotional connection with, and their debut release, Float, has a profound cohesiveness that might persuade you to feel the same way too.

“Belong to a space that once housed Foster the People and recent chart-toppers fun. But, unlike those major-label signees, the duo of brothers Ryan and Taylor Lawhon are a decidedly indie group reaching for pop radio without sacrificing a homemade sound. Their potential for crossover shines throughout the jangly “Float,” which breezes along with toe-tapping beats, whistling, and lilting harmonies…Float’s humble lyrics show that the duo craft their lush chant-alongs with a universal relatability, and never try to conceal them for the novelty”
Read more at MTV Hive

“Drenched in reverb and breathes sunshine. It holds three easy-to-love indie pop songs, but it’s actually their simplicity what makes them so beautiful. Whistles, dreamy backing vocals and the summer’y vibe is what brings these songs to the next level. Imagine Cults recording on a beach with rising stars The Neighbourhood and Miike Snow’s Andrew Wyatt on (backing) vocals”
Read more at Disco Naivete

“Hail from Los Angeles and the band’s name came from the name of a boat they wanted at one point in their lives. Their sound is very light to the ears and soaked in summery reverb that floats over you like a cool breeze on a warm day”
Read more at My Old Kentucky Blog 

“They may suggest that they make music that has never experienced winter, but they’re capable of taking things to a colder temperature, even though their music only ever has the weight of a summertime breeze. This is a lesson in maintaining depth without any real avoirdupois. Their songs come from a place of substance but drift around you like butterflies”
Read more at The Recommender

“Exhibit on their debut EP “Float” is admirable restraint; their first three songs do indeed have a buoyant quality that, unlike many purveyors of dream-pop, doesn’t come from drowning everything in reverb or screeching toward the highest register. It’s a change of pace (and owing to its summery feel, a change of weather)”
Read more at Buzz Bands

“Their sunbeaming vocals and spine-tingling harmonies drift across a carefree backbeat that’s basically a publisher’s dream come true, like the vibrant love child of Feist’s “1, 2, 3, 4” and Edward Sharpe’s “Home”. Your summer anthem’s arrived a couple months early, but something tells us no one’s going to mind”
Read more at Neon Gold

“There’s the Miike Snow-esque title track, which is an unashamed pop number in every sense of the word, yet the other two tracks that make up Float show a more reserved side to KO KO. Intermission comes across like a highly polished Youth Lagoon, with the lead singer weeping”
Read more at Crack In The Road

“The duo recently released their debut, three-track EP entitled Float, on which they demonstrate an ability to craft hazy, yet lighthearted pieces of pop euphoria that will pair perfectly with any relaxing summertime activity”
Read more at Pigeons and Planes 

“KO KO are three for three on the EP, giving us 10 minutes of pure glory and a fantastic introduction to a band that is bringing some exciting things to the table. The official press release says that the band makes songs that have never seen a real winter…If that’s the kind of motivation the band needs to create songs as good as these I hope they never get another cold day”
Read more at Listen Before You Buy

“this deep-seated notion in indiedom that any hint of crossover appeal is selling out (i.e., “We Are Young”), but those people are squares. California duo KO KO’s “Float” rises above trends with a smile on its face, landing gently on the ears like MIKA and Kimbra crashing some kid’s birthday party to just, I don’t know, whistle”
Read more at Pop’stache 

“KO KO’s music is built for summer. The southern California dream-pop duo, consisting of brothers Ryan and Taylor Lawhon, have “never known winter;” their debut EP, Float, is every bit as pleasant and consistent as the 75 degree weather that the Lawhon boys are accustomed to”
Read more at EARMILK 

“Far from the preordained interval its designation may insinuate, it’s the utterly spectacular centrepiece; the essential listen. Its slippery guitar lines as simple as they are irresistible; its vocal harmonies dripping in a lukewarm reverb it’s evocative of Sharon Van Etten’s Magic Chords in structure”
Read more at Dots and Dashes

“Float,” the only true pop song on the EP, is saturated in snaps and whistles. Lyrics about “going all the way” and choosing between diverging paths in life and love reveal a dark underbelly that is juxtaposed by the cheerful melody”
Read more at L.A. Music Blog 

“Based out of Los Angeles, KO KO are brothers Ryan and Taylor Lawhorn. Their music wreaks of indie pop, eliciting memories of two up-and-comers, Youth Lagoon and Oregon Bike Trails”
Read more at Indie Shuffle 

”Float” sounds like a sugar-coated Alex Ebert or a stripped-down Miike Snow at their most introspective. Whatever the classification may be, it’s clear that “Float” is quickly becoming the anthem of my unusually warm Spring”
Read more at All Things Go 

“My goodness, Float is the essence of refreshment…The imagery of their sound is a cool and breezy daydream that encapsulates summer vibes all the way through. A breath of fresh air with an ocean in your backyard”
Read more at Fresh New Tracks 

“California natives make music that combines intimate lyrics with gently catchy melodies. Take ‘Float’, for example. Vulnerability and summer pop collide in this tale of carrying on against adversity, creating one of the lo-fi indie gems of the year”
Read more at The Music Ninja 

“Based on the carefree and summery melody of their first single “Float” it’s a fitting moniker. Handclap happy and whistle-led the upbeat cut will soundtrack the transition from Spring to Summer perfectly. Whatever else you planned on listening to today will have to wait, this one is going on repeat”
Read more at Turntable Kitchen

“Vocal comparisons to Miike Snow are abundant but the title track is full of more thoughtful musings than the sunshine around it suggests…It’s the story of a self-induced paralysis that comes from expectations not meeting reality, wrapped up in a bow of Southern Californian youth”
Read more at Quit Mumbling 

“Such a lovely breeze going with their single, Float”, that you can throw that stress ball out the window. Put this tune on, and all your worries and stresses will disappear, as the gliding synths just might life you in the air several feet. By the time the the hand claps turn up, you will be swaying back and forth, singing along with the borths in an uncontrollable state”
Read more at Hand Clap Movement 

“A song that sends me endorphins when all I want to do is walk in Downtown Los Angeles with my Dre Beats and a scowl. That’s saying a lot about how a song affects mood…Give it all to me in a package, and continue to make me feel angelic. Oh wait, they already did”
Read more at Bit Candy 

“Intermission and Strange deliver more, showcasing the range of talent that they possess and the diversity of their influences (Kurt Vile, Damien Jurado, Twin Shadow, Alberto Giacometti, Gerhard Richter).  Long live Ko Ko”
Read more at Witness This 

MP3: Power Animal “Exorcism”
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Exorcism will be co-released February 21 by Crash Symbols and the band’s own label/charitable non-profit organization Human Kindness Overflowing. All of the profits from digital sales will be donated to Philabundance, a Philadelphia-based charity organization that provides food to the needy in the area.

Keith Hampson dropped out of high school at the age of sixteen. With nothing else to do during school hours he began recording under the alias of Power Animal. Almost three years and two unreleased albums later a live band formed and grew in numbers, playing more or less adaptations of the recordings. In September of 2008 Power Animal played with Sleep Whale in their home town of Philadelphia and months later recorded an album at their house in Denton TX. With Joel and Bruce of Sleep Whale playing beautiful cello and violin parts over the “live band” version of Power Animal which consist of two drummers and four other members playing many different idiophones as well as every suitable instrument they could get their hands on other than guitar.

“Power Animal’s original “Exorcism” gradually builds into this whole everybody-drumming thing, with Keith Hampson’s talk-sung affirmations to forgive those who’ve hurt me and love those deserving attracting what sounds like a small army of dumpster-tappers and tin can-jammers”
Read more at FADER

“The result is an unusually triumphant album of sample-based, analog pocket symphonies, where Hampson’s palpable optimism is only tempered by underlying sense of longing for a future when his body can keep up with his restless imagination. And its that restlessness that proves to be the album’s engine”
Read more at Prefix Magazine 

“carries out a delightfully experimental kind of leftfield pop with “Exorcism”, bright and upbeat yet with a considerable amount of reflective and subtly melancholic undertones, some folky hints and above all beautiful harmonizations”
Read more at No Fear of Pop

“the complexity of the track might seem a bit daunting, but it stays coherent throughout its compact running time, clocking a full minute shorter than the original. Lushlife has successfully extrapolated on what Power Animal did so well already and further expanded the track’s more sampledelic qualities”
Read more at International Tapes

“feel good jam that seeks the purity of bathing in holy water, but we wouldn’t make the rash call of dismissing the message as pushing orthodox. “Exorcism” seeks a deeper bliss than the gross reappropriation it’s been assigned in recent trends”
Read more at Impose Magazine

“Power Animal, aka Keith Hampson, is a bit of an exotic bird… anyone that’s done a split cassette with David Liebe Hart (of Tim and Eric Awesome Show fame) can probably be fairly said to be”
Read more at Decoder 

“This LP is experimental pop at its finest.  Samples are destroyed then stitched and expanded into glory with Keith Hampson graciously crooning in between them”
Read more at Pasta Primavera 

“The latter definitely applies to Power Animal, the ‘North East Philly’ band led by Keith Hampson. They list ‘pajama party hat wearing rock and roll’ as their ‘genre’ on Facebook, but in reality it’s even more elaborate than that”
Read more at The 405 

“His latest EP is titled Exorcism and it was recorded in Hampson’s bedroom while he was recovering from illness. It’s a swelling, shuffling pastiche of intriguing tones and rhythms all carefully sewn-together into tightly composed pop jams”
Read more at Turntable Kitchen 

“One, it’s a great collection of the whimsical, imaginative songwriting we’ve come to expect from Keith Hampson and his collaborators. Two, it also collects solid remixes by the likes of Lushlife and Golden Ages”
Read more at The Key

“The tune proves to be a perfect example of what Power Animal is capable of, pairing a marching progression of drums and percussion with heavenly glitched chords and instantly memorable melodies for a song that somehow sounds like the moment when all your thoughts fall perfectly into place”
Read more at Mapzzz

“a triumphant song with a definite Power Animal heart beating through it. I’m very excited to catch them live again here in Philadelphia for some of their new works”
Read more at Lady.Bang.Beat 

“goes further than its nostalgic aesthetic, further than its blatant charm into territories of actual enlightenment.  From beginning to end, the song never falls off pace, never misses a beat and keeps you, most importantly of all, grooving”
Read more at Dingus 

“Take, again, opener “Better Water,” an inverted choral performance that reveals over repeated listens amazing melodies in its backmasked tracking. The vocals are sublime, and the cut-and-paste approach on the whole hits sweet spots that a traditional band setup couldn’t possibly mimic as succinctly”
Read more at Critical Masses

“Evident from Power Animal’s major-key synth hooks and disco percussions is a love of the kind of nostalgic sentimentality bands like M83 and Passion Pit maximize with unrelenting waves of keyboard and second-wave British invasion bands like The Kooks channel into plain-spoken love narratives”
Read more at The Deli Magazine

MP3: Violetness “The Coal”
MP3: Violetness - “The Coal” (Sun Glitters Remix)
Bandcamp / Facebook / Twitter

Beautifully intriguing, Chicago’s very own indie songstress Violetness is half Peruvian, and a California native, debuting her first EP titled “Last Night In My Dreams, I Was Talking To You” on LebensStrasse Records. The thing that sets Violetness apart from other female songwriters is her impacting and staggering voice. Her vocals pop, shimmer, bamboozle, and tap every raw emotional instinct. Her sound is a nonpareil blend of indigenous drum tones, splattering arrays of jostling techno blaze, and a distinct flow, which will keep every listener intrigued. Skating away from today’s uniform intonation, Violetness strikes a chord much like a Roman Polansky film. Artful, mysterious, challenging, and in the end outright captivating. Whether it is a dance out end or a hush-lustful beginning her songs enter one’s mind and soul with the intent to shake. Having seen her transform from a pianist tapping into minimal jazz tones to tribal bangers, then finally into a hodge-podge of the best of both this single-track sums up the new style(s) and path she’s traveling. - John Matthew Simon

“Not much is known about Chicago’s Vanessa Upson, who performs as Violetness, pictured here in this red mask. Here’s what we do know: she’s got Peruvian blood and was a classically trained pianist before she moved towards a more avant-garde tribal pop sound. These scant details all color “The Coal,” the lead song from her forthcoming EP, Last Night in My Dreams, I Was Talking to You”
Read more at MTV Hive 

“Violetness is where Upson expresses her etherealized cries on a soothing, melodic layer of experimental pop…Today, we have the premiere of Sun Glitters’ ambient take on “The Coal”. Less vocals are mixed here but take a gentle swim with the texturized dream waves”
Read more at EARMILK 

“A choppy, chanting take on an ethereal track from a rising Chicago musician…Stripping away the vocal magic of the original until it becomes merely the most tantalising hint of a voice, Sun Glitters’ version of the tune resembles the sun-bleached remains of a song, with elements of a melody crackling under an electronically polished, statically charged surface”
Read more at DUMMY 

“draws on traditions of tribal music to come up with a sound that sometimes evokes the work of other mysticism-infused female artists such as Prince Rama or also Bat For Lashes. It’s a finely arranged, sophisticated pop tune that shows more than enough promise to leave us longing for more”
Read more at No Fear Of Pop 

“The music this Chicago-based artist makes is coated in the spirit of coal dust. That chalky black that cakes your face, your hands, your lips, your throat.  It’s haunted stuff, pure black.  But like any good sorceress, Vanessa Upson conjurs up the life in it to do her bidding - to float like spirits into your ears and cast spells”
Read more at YVYNYL

“The song is illustrated with many tribal elements but always stays in the safe waters of the most accessible pop, apparently not everyone has the same turn as the two girls of Prince Rama. Not that we have anything against them”
Read more at VICE 

“She reminds me of The Creatures (powerful/soulful female vocals combined with tribal rhythms though much more minimal) and in turn reminds me of My Gold Mask (who also remind me of The Creatures)”
Read more at Pasta Primavera 

“The Coal”, is a beautiful blend of electronics, tribal percussion, and intricate textures rising and falling in all the right spots. Think of the inventiveness and eclecticism of Bjork’s “Biophilia” and Juana Molina.
Read more at Their Bated Breath 

“Violetness has a way with making two worlds sound so different and yet so similar, all at once. In “The Coal” Violetness creates a lo-fi folk tune with chopped percussive samples and heavy tribal rhythms. But as soon as you get comfortable with this world, she drags you through the nearest worm hole to an earth with so much of the same feel but one that sounds instantly darker and more modern. And once you’ve gotten a taste of this strobe light club world you’re right back in the foggy, tribal folk of before. Let Violetness do the leading”
Read more at 365 Songs For You 

MP3: Sporting Life “Immigrant”
Bandcamp / Facebook / Twitter

Sporting Life is a San Francisco rock band with an appreciation for short tunes, fine haberdashery, and the teenaged, privileged bad guy from every 80’s movie. They dislike cheap Bordeaux, slow shoe shiners, and articles that contain “the” when it’s placed in front of their name. Less than a year old, the band consists of Keith Brasel (vocals/guitar/keys), Andrew Gomez (vocals/guitar/keys), Ryan McGee (guitar), Mike Soss (bass), and Terry Yerves (drums). Having already been featured on Aaron Axelsen’s Soundcheck on KITS (Live 105) and supported British Sea Power & A Certain Education at The Independent earlier this year, Sporting Life recently released a new collection of tracks filled with sustained vocalizations, vibrations of wooden stringed instruments and the striking of steel cords with a felt-covered hammer simply and thoughtfully titled as “Singles”.

“Chilly, metallic guitar riffs are paired with even, laidback layers of Shins-esque vocals and exacting bass and drums; the subcutaneously existing shifts in “Immigrant” are hypnotizing and beg for the brief song to be put on repeat”
Read more at Get Off The Coast

“With all the boring bands parading under the indie-rock title it’s refreshing to here a band that actually sounds like it takes elements from the best of The Shins, The Strokes and The Wrens”
Read more at The Up-Turn

“collection of singles recorded between March 2010 and September 2011, in other words they have really chosen the cream of the cream. It is one of these disks without fault, with the premium one of my favorite songs of the year, “Immigrant,” which, you never know why, makes me think of “Horse With No Name” of America”
Read more at Le Choix

“There is something positive about this song. Kinda like hanging out in the sunshine during a spring day in San Francisco or something. In any case, I love the feeling and overall positive vibe of it”
Read more at Sound Panda

Sporting Life recently performed in the BLIP.fm studio on December 2nd. “The band also recently played at one of my favorite venues, The Bottom of the Hill, in August. Definitely a band to keep an eye out for”
Read more at BLIP.fm 

“…driving home a truthful rock agenda that does not quit. Ranging in intensity, Sporting Life has mastered their sound, and it’s a beautiful thing to behold.  Easily one of the best free downloads of 2011, Singles sets an immediately invasive standard that will be hard to top in the coming year”
Read more at Dingus 

“Drawing comparisons The Shins, the quintet has gone so far as to support the likes of British Sea Power at The Independent. While that within itself is an accomplishment (the playing The Independent part), it’s even more impressive to note that the group is only around a year old”
Read more at Indie Shuffle

“Combines the aesthetic of 1990s American indie rock with the confident attitude of mid-2000s Brit rock…has elements of the raw energy of British punk, while the vocals on “Immigrant” recall James Mercer of the Shins.  With fuzzy guitars, driving percussion, and melodic hooks, this is a can’t-miss collection of songs”
Read more at Given And Taken In Ink

MP3: Fantasmas “Blind Children(Shake)”
MP3: Fantasmas “La Maga”
Bandcamp / Facebook / Twitter


Fantasmas is the contagious post-punk and noise rock steadily rumbling out of Brooklyn, New York. Flavored with a fine flare of white noise, grinding riffs and heavy bass, Fantasmas is a collage of influences that span from Peruvian-born Kam Tambini’s childhood in Lima and Bogota to the teenage years spent dwelling in Washington DC’s punk scene of Fugazi and Black Eyes to the recent no-wave New York days of Sonic Youth. 

Consisting of Kam Tambini (guitar/vox), Austin Formica (guitar), Avi Bajpai (drums) and Adam Glaser (bass/vox), Fantasmas “Blind Children (Shake)” is ferociously filled with brilliant waves of distortion and peppered with infectiously sweet melodies to a experimental-rock degree. Fantasmas “Blind Children/La Maga” single is now available digitally and 7” vinyls will be released during the Fall 2011 via Red Pyramids, a collective/label of DC transplant artists started by Kam Tambini.

Fantasmas “Blind Children (Shake)” was featured as a Free MP3 Download on Spinner: “‘Blind Children’ is our first recording. We holed up for a weekend at a home studio in Ridgewood, N.J. and came out with it and B-side ’La Maga’ There was a neon Jesus statue above the main mixing board. Guess it helped.” 
Read more at Spinner

“Dark and foreboding, a deep, warm gauze of fuzz encircles the track like fog with guitar tones that remind you why like this rock n’ roll stuff to begin with. The B-side “La Maga” showcases Kam’s Peruvian roots, while keeping the bass lines rooted in D.C. punk with all the NYC art guitar to drive you wild”
Read more at IMPOSE 

“Fantasmas clime lurks in dark pools of sludge-psyche that only its underlying hypnotic blues stomp can slog its way out of. Blind Children (Shake) is a dangerous beauty, with a killer bass groove and distorted vocals that manage to eek their way through the hazy layers of brittle fuzz, emotionally unscathed”
Read more at My Old Kentucky Blog 

“There is some early No Wave-y Sonic Youth tang to their work, mixed with some blues chops, so I thought, “Cool, some rando Peruvian indie band.” But looking at their Facebook, they’re from Brooklyn, so eff that….The new S/T Fantasmas 7” sounds tight, so check it out”
Read more at QRO Magazine 

“It’s only really a taster, an entree if you will, but Fantasmas have shown here that they have something percolating in the darkest recesses of their music that, with a little time, will burst forth in all its vehement beauty.”
Read more at Sonic Masala 

“the noise rocking ‘Blind Children (Shake)/La Maga’ 7inch late last year. The swinging wall of sound on this track is strong enough to rattle a few fillings”
Read more at Sounds Better With Reverb 

MP3: Vyxor “SSSSoftware”
MP3: Vyxor “Nocturne Feveron”
Bandcamp / Facebook / Soundcloud

The record (Nocturne Feveron) is half an hour of bizarre, complex, and thrilling electronic music that draws from quite a few of his myriad musical tastes: house, disco, glitch-hop, art song, chiptune, noise-rock, opera, punk, new wave, and countless others. Nothing is off-limits, which makes it all the more impressive that he strings it together so cleanly. Tyler was a vocal major, so his delivery tends toward a fey strain of pristine blue-eyed soul that places him loosely in the same tradition as, say, OMD or the Pet Shop Boys. Where he deviates from the herd is in his distinctly avant-garde approach to production. His experience with the work of post-tonal composers like Schoenberg and Wagner filters into his music in surprising and delightful ways, like the wobbly opening to the title track or the chromatic computer spazz-out of “v¥70r.” The closest musical comparison I can make is to the glitchier works of Max Tundra, but even that seems like a stretch; Vyxor truly is a unique project.  
- Patrick Shipp

“This track is like a puzzle of beats and smoove vocals.  Is this chillwave?  Indie R&B?  An winking hommage to Lionel Richie?  Once you figure it out, once that nugget of an idea buries itself into your brainspace, you develop a taste for it, and you need more”
Read more at YVYNYL

“Tyler blends everything from house and new wave to noise rock and dubstep. His newest compostion, Nocturne Feveron, is a wild mix that can potentially cause your body to physically spazz-out”
Read more at Earmilk

“A wild wild electronic ride.  The glitches and stutters fly all over the genresphere seemingly, but push you back to see the sultry grooves being created”
Read more at Pasta Primavera

“Vyxor brings a slick, electro sheen to the folk-poppy “Living Cruel & Rude”, bathing the tune in gentle blips and warm waves of synths, while managing to bring out more of the pure pop aesthetic of the song”
Read more at Pop Matters 

“Ambient noises drip out of ‘Slow Flight’ from the outset, with quick footsteps and rattling percussion providing the backdrop to Vyxor’s minimalist vocals. There’s a lot going on here and it takes a number of listens to get a grasp on the multitude of sounds present in the detailed production”
Read more at The 405 

“recalls the music that SBTRKT makes with Vyxor providing the Sampha role…I would like a bit more space for the vocals to breathe but ‘Slow Flight’ is one of those songs that just makes you feel good”
Read more at Nailler 9 

“In the few spaces left by the clatter of 2 step beats, synth sparkles and reverberating bass, Vyxor singer Tyler Burton’s velvety voice seeps in as he builds layers of self-harmonies. A sweet melodious tangle”
Read more at Bitzlr 

“Somewhere there lays a forest built by avant garde algorithms and the efforts of lost souls. Berkley’s Vyxor finds a strength in strings and a fear in death through unusual melodies of synthpop and glitched funk that is conjoured up into a thrilling electronic ride. The snakely stutter of ‘SSSSoftwave’ transcends the same old bells and whistles, prohibiting a simple classification”
Read more at Too Many Carpets

“Nocturne Feveron will come out; and it is, quite honestly, the best album of the year. If not immediately wooed – just give it a couple weeks, it will inspire your every second.  What starts as a contemplative display of rhythmic mood tempering then becomes the ultimate dance blast off containing some of the purely happiest sounds heard since disco”
Read more at Zalmak

“Featuring the vocals of vyxor, this new song from Beat Culture features an assortment of dream-dub synths, two-step melodies, vigorous percussion, and powerful vocal harmonies that are simply perfect to listen to on a Sunday evening”
Read more at Golden Scissors 

“This ‘glitch-hop’ record has a minimal/Motown vibe. Vocals are smooth and perfectly sewn into the array of electronic/glassy instrumentation”
Read more at Hand Clap Movement 

“This is the future, the future of r&b”
Read more at Speaker Snacks 

Basketball Camp “Culverss”
Basketball Camp “Rivieri Stomp”
Bandcamp / Facebook / Soundcloud

“Basketball Camp creates dark electronic music accented by pounding rhythms and fluttering synths. Samples, cut and placed in the right spots, accent the track like misting, impish stops and starts. Like glitched out patterns of speech - faltering and failing to fully portray what you wish to say. Inarticulate, tongue-tied, vanquisher - reduced to unpronounced, unspoken jargon.”
Read more at Unholy Rhythms 

Basketball Camps “M83 vs Beastie Boys (Midnight-gerlactic)” featured on Clap Clap Colour latest mixtape titled “III - One Small Step”
Read more and listen at Clap Clap Colour