3-4-FREE - 31/03/2011 - TRIPS AND FALLS, CRYSTAL FIGHTERS and CRAFT SPELLS

Hello there, peeps and peepettes. Since there hasn't been a 3-4-FREE for a few weeks I thought I'd treat you to one featuring 32 songs this week! Oh yes, that's the way uh-huh, uh-huh, I like it. Anyway, let's start with...

TRIPS AND FALLS - THIS IS ALL GOING TO END BADLY

So kicking off this mammoth edition of 3-4-FREE is The Song By Toad record sampler, the highlight of which, for me at least, is Montreal's Trips and Falls. Their bluegrass-infused indie is utterly wonderful and tinged with melancholy. Male and female vocals sing sweetly over simple guitar picking and military-esque drums in This Is All Going To End Badly. The 4-piece brought out their debut album on Song By Toad just over a year ago and continue to work with the Edinburgh-based label, hence their inclusion on the record sampler. All 13 tracks (plus a couple of toad-based skits) are available for free from Song By Toad's bandcamp page and show the pure quality of the artists on this amazing little label.

CRYSTAL FIGHTERS - AT HOME (TRUFIX MIX)

And from Montreal to Navarra, Spain and electronic folk 5-piece Crystal Fighters, who have been given the remix treatment from London dubstep type Trufix. The remix sees the original slowed down then have the aggression element pushed hard. The vocal still has a sweetness to it but it exists within a harshly swirling, stamping dubstep backing. This makes it less accessible than the original version but is still utterly brilliant, albeit in a somewhat different way. The band are planning Europe-wide gigs in the summer, including a performance at the Latitude Festival in Suffolk.

CRAFT SPELLS - YOU SHOULD CLOSE THE DOOR
http://stereogum.com/655072/18-dark-bands-to-watch-in-2011/franchises/listomania/





And finally, we have Seattle based Craft Spells, who have popped up on Stereogum's list of '18 Dark Bands to Watch Out For' (a list which also contains aTelecine and Brighton's Esben & The Witch). As the site acknowledges, Craft Spells stand out a little from the rest of the bands on the list, as they have a far more summery, blissful feel to their music, perfectly exhibited in You Should Close The Door. However, the darkness is there - the Ian Curtis comparison is obvious, but no less relevant for it and the synths are tinged with New Romantic misery. Craft Spells start their North American tour on Sunday, in their hometown, but here's hoping they'll be in the UK before too long, because they are utterly ace!

And that's your lot for this week, do have a spiffy weekend!