Week #15: When Saints Go Machine / Sensual Harassment / Youth Lagoon

'Add Ends' is the new single from Copenhagen four-piece When Saints Go Machine. I got sent its surreal video last week and was left rapt, enthralled and blown away.... Not only were the visuals so atypical that they made La Sera and Hot Chip's recent vids look normal, but the tune was really, really good. It was harmonious and soulful; Kings of Convenience-aping vocals were layered over a deftly-arranged section of pulsating strings and electronics. How could anyone think something like this up? I now advise you to listen, watch and gape. A full-length LP entitled Konkylie is due in June.

Hailing from Brooklyn, Sensual Harassment most probably have The Rapture and Cut Copy to thank for their funk-via-punk-via-synth-pop sensibility, but the group certainly present their own unique twist on the sound. Some tunes are New Order-lite psych-pop ('Boss'), others ramshackle, visceral, FX-laden slices of garage-rock ('NYC Beast'). One even descends into a shuddering, maniacal post-rock-esque instrumental ('The Journey Has Merely Begun'). All songs are heavily modulated, filtered and reverb-stricken. Latest album 'Alpha Draconis' was produced by Jesse Cannon (The Cure, Animal Collective) and you can download it for free below.

I've not got much to say about this one. I've been scribing away from a library in rural mid-Wales and I only have 8 minutes before my petty allocation of time runs out. I found out about this guy a couple of weeks ago and I've been hooked ever since. He comes from Boise, Idaho and creates downtempo lo-fi jams a little reminiscent of Yu(c)k. Tackling affecting matters such as heartarche and angst, an LP entitled The Year Of Hibernation is released this summer on Juno Beach Records. Listen to 'Cannons' and 'July' below. You can download the latter for free.