Cosmos Factory EP/Again and Again/Lenses Alien

Cosmos Factory EP - Brain Idea (Mexican Summer, 2011)

Chicago's hilariously named, hip new band, Brain Idea, came across my radar, unsurprisingly, thanks to my boy Travis. Their 2011 EP, Cosmos Factory, sounds like a snottier, spacey version of The Bats' 80s and early 90s material, which is welcome to my ears. While the EP doesn't quite throw that knockout punch, it certainly shows a ton of promise. The clean and chimey guitars, distorted drums, bratty, almost late-70s punk rock vocals and slightly ambient backdrop of the songs clash in very enjoyable ways, and make Cosmos Factory quite unique, even if it is easy to cite the band's obvious influences. In spite of its nine minutes in length, EP closer "See YRself" is easily this band's jam of jams.

Again and Again - Brilliant Colors (Slumberland, 2011)

On first listen, it was seeming like I was going to like Brilliant Colors' latest, Again and Again, substantially more than Vivian Girls' 2011 LP, Share the Joy. The two records don't sound all THAT different, seeing as they were recorded, released and caked in reverb by two different jangly pop punk bands made up of three girls each. While Again and Again features a higher level of consistency in quality, and I just like the overall feel of that record a little more, Share the Joy still features the better songs (even if there are some I don't like all that much). The Vivs aren't the focus here anyway, but still, all I can really say about this record is that if, like me, you really like Vivian Girls, then you'll probably enjoy Brilliant Colors too, like I do.

Lenses Alien - Cymbals Eat Guitars (Barsuk, 2011)

It's pretty popular to be playing 90s throw-back rock these days, but it's refreshing to hear Cymbals Eat Guitars' take on the style on Lenses Alien, the follow-up to their hyped 2009 debut. Like Why There Are Mountains, there's a little Smashing Pumpkins, a little Dinosaur Jr., and maybe even a smidge of My Bloody Valentine on Lenses Alien. That being said, the record also has a blatantly modern if not futuristic element to it. In spite of the obvious 90s references throughout, it still sounds like a product of 2011, and I'm not sure if that's due to the pristine production or the structural complexity of the songs (which, of course, is right up my alley). This clashing of musical decades, along with the subtle keyboards, gnarly guitars, poppy melodies and intricate songwriting make Lenses Alien quite a special album.