Music from Brooklyn

• mp3: Animal Collective - Leaf House. From Sung Tongs, 2004
  
• mp3: Dirty Projectors - Gimme Gimme Gimme. From Rise Above, 2007
  
• mp3: Yeasayer - Ambling Alp. From Odd Blood, 2010
  
• mp3: MGMT - Congratulations. From Congratulations, 2010

What do all the above songs have in common?
They were all made in Brooklyn! Although it is New York's most populous borough, it still amazes me how much good alternative music has been made within the confined space of these 70 square miles in recent years. I remember there was a lot of buzz about Brooklyn's alternative music scene around 07/08, and in the past two years several of the bands from that period have reached out to bigger and bigger masses, achieving world stardom - like the above four bands.

Animal Collective have since moved away from Brooklyn, though, appearently being tired of the whole place and its people - which they made a point of in their song 'For Reverend Green' (my favorite Animal Collective song, off 2007's Strawberry Jam), where they depicted Brooklyners as 'wasted' and 'depressed'. MGMT have stayed in Brooklyn, but recently announced that "If the fabled Brooklyn music scene does exist, we're definitely not part of it".


The Hundred In The Hands

But there are still numerous interesting new bands emerging from Brooklyn's vibrant music scene today. My most recent discovery is The Hundred In The Hands. This indie pop boy-girl duo lists accessible pop music such as the Kinks, Beatles and Michael Jackson as their main inspiration, something that was evident on the first few songs they recorded. On their debut EP This Desert, however - which is out on May 18 - they showcase a more "ethereal, gauzy side" of their tastes (to quote the band).

To me, the darker soundscape, vocal style and drum machines are slightly reminiscent of the best moments of Ladytron. Ghosts (my favorite track off the EP), with its downtempo, dark but soothing sound, should also be perfect for anyone who loved the XX's debut album and is looking for something new in the same mood. The rest of the EP wanders between different styles, but always combining guitar and coldish electronic sounds in a way that brings artists like New Order, The Cure and (the already mentioned) Ladytron to mind. Check them out for yourself, and I hope you'll enjoy them as much as I do!

mp3: The Hundred In The Hands - Ghosts