Start your weekend off right with a selection of music from artists featured this week on BestNewBands.com

“Eyes” – Still Corners

Last weekend Kelly Knapp caught Still Corners’ set at NYC’s Mercury Lounge.

Kelly wrote, “[Still Corner’s] songs were full of effortless-sounding buildup, with frantic guitar notes sprinkled throughout and [lead singer Tessa] Murray’s cool and breezy vocals floating on top. She sang seemingly without any effort at all, with her eyes closed or downcast, and made minimal movements of swaying as if in a trance. She also took over on keys for the last song that was slowly built up until the room was drowning in distortion. Much of the buildup was due to the lead guitarist, who was mostly hunched over his guitar and pedal board rapidly strumming and creating effects. The result was a seamless re-creation of their recorded material, but with the added enhancement of feeling the reverberations and energy in the room. This was a late show for the dreamers and the shoegazers, and Still Corners set the mood flawlessly.”

Read the rest of Kelly’s review here.

“You Are The Medicine” – Cornflower

Monica Christoffels reviewed the vocal-instrumentalist’s AzTheEarthChanges, an EP dedicated to (and, through charitable donations, provides relief for) the victims of the Japan earthquake/tsunami/nuclear reactor disasters.

Monica wrote, “I first learned of Cornflower when he performed last January with Alcyon Massive and Skip Wicked of Indubious at the WOW Hall in Eugene, Oregon. Cornflower, born John Francis, uses a loop pedal to form a multi-part song all by himself. He has a very unique and impressive way of blending beatboxing and vocal clips using only his mouth and feet into real music; when listening to his songs, I always try to guess when his real voice stops and the recorded loop begins.

“AzTheEarthChanges is a simple, three-track EP. ‘Prayer 4 Japan’ is a solemn, empathetic song that starts off with a bubbling brook sound and builds into an almost haunting hymn. ‘Open Wide,’ a track 14 min. long, implores the listener to ‘open up to your heart / open up to another world.’ Cornflower’s voice is surprisingly smooth, almost reminding me of George Michael‘s tenor tone. Lastly, ‘You Are The Medicine’ is a more upbeat number that asserts that, indeed, we can come together as an international community and ‘heal the world,’ as Cornflower states in a message below. Note in this track how, in the middle of a Cornflower symphony, he manipulates his voice to sound just like lasers and an electric guitar at the end – I told you it was impressive!”

Read the rest of Monica’s review here.

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“At The Wheel Fighting Elvis” – Matthew And The Arrogant Sea

Laurel Kathleen and Lauren Novik have been recounting their recent musical adventures from last month’s SXSW. Here, Laurel caught up with MATAS in a video interview:

Check out the rest of Laurel’s post here.

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“Future Eyes” – EAR PWR

Daniel Kohn reviewed the North Carolina duo’s self-titled second album.

Daniel wrote, “The album opens up with [Devon] Booze-led synths on ‘Mountain Home.’ The synths are the lynchpin of the record and this track helps set the tone of what’s to come. Sarah Reynolds’ vocals are the perfect compliment to what sounds like an 8-bit Nintendo background, which isn’t a bad thing. Booze’s homemade instruments are very innovative and provide the backdrop for this terrific indie dance-pop number. It is one of best opening tracks I’ve heard in sometime. … The anthemic ode to their home on ‘North Carolina’ is the most upbeat track on the record. Reynolds’ vocals are at their rangy best, while the music is at its best. This is the standout track on an album full of highlights.

“It’s safe to say that EAR PWR avoids the dreaded sophomore slump on this album. They have taken the next steps in their creativity and musicianship by crafting interesting tunes, which show the duo aren’t afraid to take risks with their songwriting. With their eclectic sound, it should come as no surprise to anyone that the outfit has been asked to open for Animal Collective at the ATP Festival in England this coming spring. This 10-track effort proves that EAR PWR can only get better with time and this record is one that fans of experimental, alternative music will enjoy.”

Read the rest of Daniel’s review here.

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“Heart In Your Heartbreak” – The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

Kristina Villarini reviewed the Brooklyn band’s sophomore album, Belong, which came out on Tuesday.

Kristina wrote, “Whether it’s an illusion or not, the music sounds bigger. I guess that’s what happens when you tap a mega-producer like Flood (PJ Harvey, Nine Inch Nails, The Smashing Pumpkins). But things haven’t changed all that much, Peggy and Kip still alternate vocal duties and are still barely audible under the waves of sound they create. The lyrics are also more direct. Less memories, and more moments. It’s all enveloped by this dynamic heaviness; the music has grown around these lyrics. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart aren’t trying to prove anything to anyone and maybe they never were, but this record proudly announces, ‘We’re here.’

“All of the songs are beautiful, significant and meaningful in a way that is both deep without being heavy, and heavy without being deep. It’s ten tracks of dreamy, musical wonder that some may not be able to digest in one listen. It’s hard to want to see The Pains of Being Pure at Heart do more than this. They really are doing this, so well.”

Read the rest of Kristina’s review here.

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“Green Screen” – black books

Laurel Kathleen also caught up with Austin’s black books during her time at SXSW.

Laurel wrote, “Besides their Bandcamp and Facebook pages, I could find little else on this budding Austin band, which made me want to see the band’s live performance all the more. Though they may be green, I was delighted to find their audience at Dirty Dog Bar last Wednesday robust and more than a little antsy to see the young quintet perform. I was further impressed by the fact that lead singer Ross Gillfilan was also the drummer, and he not only covered both roles but did so with a light touch that’s rare for others of his ilk. The band played a very cohesive set, and I thought they represented their recorded music extremely well. When I met up with the members of black books on Friday for the following interview, it was obvious that they felt great about their first-ever set at South by Southwest: every member of the band was glowing with pride and a quietly shared sense of a job well done.”

Check out the rest of Laurel’s post here.

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“Local Joke (Neon Indians cover)” – Cloud Nothings

Collin Elwyn reviewed the band’s recent set (followed by BRAIDS and Toro y Moi) at the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland.

Collin wrote, “Cloaked in a simple, unchanging blue light, the garage rockers ripped through one song after another as if the show was a race. One of the only bands out there that actually sounds clearer live, their set gave new life to many of their signature songs, ‘Hey Cool Kid’ serving as a mid-set highlight. [Less than 20] minutes into their set, vocalist and guitarist David Baldi announced that they were to play their last two songs, and he wasn’t joking. The pair of tunes he promised were as lightning fast as the rest of their set, gleefully chugging away until they were suddenly no longer on stage. At just 22 minutes in length, the band played the shortest set that I’ve ever bared witness to, all of their rambunctious energy crammed into well under a half hour.”

Read the rest of Collin’s review here.

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“Walking On The Moon” – Cas Haley

Laurel Kathleen gave us the inside scoop on this “reggae powerhouse,” as she described him in her SXSW series.

Laurel wrote, “St. David’s Bethell Hall was a less than ideal venue for any performers at South by Southwest, let alone a reggae powerhouse like Cas Haley’s. You might remember his name from a review I posted several months ago when he played at The Roxy (for the exclusive BestNewBands.com review, please click here), and if anything the band has only gotten tighter since then. And luckily, they had the skills to make a full drumkit, four keyboards, a bass, and acoustic guitar sound as warm and controlled as possible in the intimate church.

“Cas Haley‘s sophomore album Connection is now available on iTunes. The album placed fourth on BestNewBands.com’s Top Ten Albums of 2010 (click here for the full article). His next tour will be in support with Easy Star All Stars, and he will be making stops along the east coast as early as next weekend.”

Check out the rest of Laurel’s post, including live footage of Cas Haley’s performance, here.