On first listen, the languorous melody and deft chord manuevers of Scott Bartenhagen’s “Beacon” suggest Andrew Bird — but as Greg Katz so wisely puts it, Mr. Bird hasn’t written a song this good since 2005. (“Simple X,” perhaps, excepted.) “Beacons” is utterly rapturous, a steaming plate of savory acoustic guitars spiced liberally with piano touches and bittersweet words: “Would you wait for me always?” he sings, sighing, “I know you would,” before the music spills into a Nick Drake reverie that suggests otherwise. This song’s just a taste — pencil in room on your best-of lists for the main course.
“The End of the World Is Bigger Than Love” is one of a handful of new songs Jens Lekman played during his brief, beautiful west coast tour last year and like “New Directions” before it, it’s received a gorgeous string-laden studio treatment. Without an attached album or even single announcement, Jens is simply letting this one run wild into the world, a world whose collapse would be bigger than love. Guy needs to see 2012 (or not). Trade your e-mail to hear it:
Lekman explains it all, charisma rolling off his back in endless Swedish sheets, on his website.
It’s a great couple of days in indie-electro land: tonight, Faded Paper Figures bring their post-Postal Service pop to Spaceland, and tomorrow, the Echoplex gets its best bill since the mind-blowing Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti/Magic Kids/Puro Instinct triple: Nite Jewel, Memoryhouse, Baths and a Kisses DJ set. Also in great stuff this week: U.K. folk wunderkind Laura Marling plays the El Rey and Pepper Rabbit plays a triumphant Spaceland show. More dates on our ongoing Los Angeles calendar.
Faded Paper Figures – “Invent It All Again”:mp3 Memoryhouse – “Sleep Patterns”:mp3
Your Youth is the latest band to join the #90srevival trending topic, touching on the alt-rock influences that seemed so indie-uncool just a year or so back: Weezer, Jimmy Eat World and the nerdier parts of the year 1994, mostly, played through the beloved lo-fi lens of Pavement and Built to Spill. Unlike our pal Wavves, though, the Brooklyn trio seem to be genuine dorks — and accordingly endearing. Not that they need it, but Your Youth’s debut EP, Aloha, comes with built-in cred: it’s due on Gigantic, home of the good Walkmen albums and Harlem Shakes (R.I.P.). Garage, rock:
The critics roundly abandoned Rufus Wainwright after Poses, missing the high-water mark of Want One but somewhat rightly maligning his successive releases. All Days Are Nights, the golden-voiced singer-songwriter’s attempt at bombast eschewment, seems to have won them over again (all except Pitchfork, rarely an enthusiastic supporter of artistsassociatedwith Jon Brion) — and why shouldn’t it? For Rufus fans, it’s hard to imagine a more satisfying hour than hearing him alone at the piano, his distinctive warble soaring over Gershwin-esque meanderings in some smokey Casablanca bar. It’s true, the songs, melodic as they are, lack the pop bounce of his past work, and don’t quite hit the highs of Want One ballads “Dinner at Eight” and “Natasha.” For sheer aesthetic pleasure, though, All Days Are Nights captures Wainwright at his most humbly generous.
The first official video for The School’s retro-pop stunner Loveless Unbeliever. So candy-striped and Down With Love-ready I’m surprised Ewan McGregor doesn’t pop in for a guest vocal. (P.S. Down With Love:a movie that still rules.)
It’s a great couple of days in indie-electro land: tonight, Faded Paper Figures bring their post-Postal Service pop to Spaceland, and tomorrow, the Echoplex gets its best bill since the mind-blowing 
The critics roundly abandoned Rufus Wainwright after Poses, missing the high-water mark of Want One but somewhat rightly maligning his successive releases. All Days Are Nights, the golden-voiced singer-songwriter’s attempt at bombast eschewment, seems to have 
)
