The Sifting Pan

Helping you find those Indie Gems!

Tag Archives: 2011


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Song of the Day! Heypenny – Purple Street


Heypenny are not messing aroun-na-na-na-na-nd from Nashville, Tennessee

I’m sorry, but i’m going to have to ask you to abstain from listening to this track if you can’t handle music that is packed with some energy. Right off the bat Purple Street jumps into full cycle with a pretty intriguing vocal delivery. I’m all about this track because i’m all about fun and energetic indie pop. And not your twinkle twinkle xylophone indie pop, but the ‘Hey everyone sing along and tap your feet to this catchy and carefree beat.’ I commemorate Heypenny for truly being such a unique band in their style and approach to the genre. The band has been around since 2009 and have released two albums and an EP so far. Purple Street is a single off their latest album A Jillion Kicks which came out earlier in February of this year. They probably couldn’t have picked a better title for an album packed full of so much pep and energy. I will defiantly be keeping my eyes peeled for future efforts from Heypenny.


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Song of the Day! The Dodos – Black Night

The Dodos noodle like no other from San Francisco, CA

Edit: Looks like French Kiss Records has taken down The Dodos from soundcloud. You’ll have to make due with a link to their music video instead. : (

Music Video: The Dodos – Black Night

Swift upbeat folk music lead by the beat of a steady drum would be the simplest way to sum up The Dodos latest track Black Night. Sometimes the beauty of a song lies in its simplicity and ability to hold your attention. I don’t know what it is about these Dodos but this is the kind of lively folk music I can enjoy without being subjected to the usual folky borefest I tend to find within the genre. I think it could have something to to do with the nonstop intense acoustic noodling these guys dishout so well on multiple tracks. The Dodos latest album No Color, which just saw its release last month, maintains a fairly fast paced tempo throughout and eases up for only one or two tracks. The new album, as a whole, is pretty spot on in terms of what The Dodos are aiming for, but i’m not really walking away swept off my feet or anything. Maybe I just need some time for the band to grow on me, or maybe I’m just predisposed to not like this genre of music. I’ve heard nothing but great music come from these guys so far, and I normally can’t stand folk music so I’m going to have to go with the latter on this one.


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Song of the Day! Lettercamp – Denial Twist (White Stripes Cover)

Alright, so you find a pretty awesome cover of a song you really like by a band you love and your telling me it’s not getting posted to your music blog right away? Yeah right. Lettercamp bring us their electro pop take on The White Stripes 2005 single Denial Twist. I’d like to think that the results are pretty damn good and I have to give major props to Lettercamp for pulling off such a successful White Stripes cover. They succeed in turning a great alternative rock track into a pop music dance hit, which is no easy feat. Even if Lettercamp’s twist on Denial Twist isn’t your cup of tea you can at least respect the attempt put forward by this indie four-piece and recognize them for having the guts to take on such a monster track in the first place.


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Song of the Day! The Submarines – Shoelaces

The Submarines drop Love Notes/Letter Bombs from LA, California

The Submarines make no attempt to hide their percussion pop from the world seeing as how they’ve been featured in numerous advertisements over the past couple years, the most notable of these being the use of You, Me, and the Bourgeoisie in an Iphone 3G commercial. But The Submarines can’t be blamed for writing music so catchy that Apple knows you’ll buy stuff just from listening to it, so no penalty should be held against them. Although the Submarines have been rather silent since they found moderate commercial success with their music, or at least that was the case until just earlier this month when The Submarines released their third studio album Love Note/Letter Bombs. Shoelaces is in fact the first track off of the newest album and in my opinion captures The Submarines’ signature sound best. Alternating beats and distorted guitar struts that all lay beneath a duo of lyrics make Shoelaces immediately recognizable as the work of The Submarines. After listening to Love Note/Letter Bombs a few times over I realized there is a bounty of indie pop to be heard and I would not be doing the band justice if I didn’t share at least one more track from the wonderful new album. Patience is your best friend with the track Fire, just let it build up then take off into indie bliss.


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Song of the Day! Christoffer Roth – A New Kind Of Love

Solo Swedish artist Christoffer Roth is a name I bet you’ve never heard before. With under 300 last.fm listeners and no real artist description anywhere in English, I’d consider Mr. Roth to be pretty independent and under the radar. I have been listening to A New Kind Of Love all April and the song has grown on me with each listen. While the content of the song itself maybe a little on the sad side, i’m more focused on the upbeat indie rock Mr. Roth has managed to create for us. I can’t help but be reminded of Finnish band Cats on Fire who, despite possibly being even more upbeat, is quite similar in musical style and vocal delivery. Maybe that striking similarity is why I enjoy Christoffer Roth so much or maybe I just hold a special place in my heart for good Scandinavian Indie bands. It probably won’t be long before my curiosity gets the best of me and I look into getting my hands on Mr. Roth’s debut album Best In a Mess, released just last month.