Hear Sebadoh's First Release in 14 Years: Secret EP

With Lou Barlow gearing up for a new Dinosaur Jr. album called I Bet on Sky to be released September 18 via Jagjaguwar, I wasn't expecting any news from the Sebadoh camp. I hadn't really stopped listening to that excellent Bakesale reissue yet, then.. *Bam!* ...the first new material from the group in 14 years! I'm always wary when a band tries to recapture their magic after such a long hiatus, especially one hadn't put out anything since the 90's. Often they come back sounding like a shell of their former selves. Rest assured, Sebadoh is back in full lo-fi slacker-rock mode.

Geoff Barrow Has Been Busy: BEAK>, Quakers, Drokk

There's no doubt Geoff Barrow (of Portishead fame) has been an extremely busy man in 2012. March saw the launch of his Quakers hip hop project and more recently, he has released the second effort from his krautrock band BEAK>. He had also mentioned that a new Portishead album might not be too far behind. Each project is an intriguing and ambitious endeavor that you can sample after the jump.

Animal Collective Announce Single "Today's Supernatural"

I hate that when certain bands release a new single, every blog on the planet regurgitates it, often without even saying anything. Well, this time I’m jumping onboard, but it is in hope that a discussion may brew and because Animal Collective is one of my absolute favorite bands. On their new weekly radio program, the band presented the first true taste of Centipede Hz in all its oddball glory. “Today’s Supernatural” is much less poppy than the material on Merriweather Post Pavilion and brings back some of the quirky elements of their past. This is one track that is going to require many spins before you can fully absorb what is going on. I recommend switching to that 720p setting because there is a lot happening in this one.

Stream: DIIV - Oshin

DIIV is a Brooklyn band formed by Beach Fossils guitarist Zachary Cole Smith. It's not too hard to guess what kind of music to expect on their debut Oshin. It has all the marks of his previous band such as hypnotic guitars drenched in reverb and vocals that act more like an ambient texture than they do a focal point. Through most of the album, the buoyant guitars are the main attraction as they bubble and pop over fluid bass lines. The gently oscillating rhythms that accompany them sound like they were made to sway one's hips to while poolside on a cool summer night.

Stream: Marissa Nadler - The Sister

Confession time: It's been dark and dreary all day and my mood has certainly been reflecting this. It's now raining and I'm too broke to go out or order in so I have taken to writing about the best albums that I've heard over the past week. The latest from Marissa Nadler is a perfect listen for my current disposition. Her sixth album is the sister to last year’s self-titled release, which was one of my favorites of 2011. It is also the second from her Box of Cedar Records. Where the self-titled release found her expanding her palette, The Sister has her stripping it back down. The songs have skeletal structures but rich narratives.

Stream: Hallelujah the Hills - No One Knows What Happens Next

In October of last year, I took a trip down to where people were camping out for Occupy Boston and caught a performance by Hallelujah the Hills. One of the songs they presented to the crowd was "Hungry Ghost Extraordinaire". The pensive ballad was a taste of what was to become their third album, No One Knows What Happens Next. Luckily, I snagged a video of their performance to tide me over. Having listened to that song so many times before the albums release, I allowed the anticipation to build sky high. The record has finally arrived and I've since had the chance to see whether they could meet such expectations. Once the sing-along chorus kicked in on the thumping bass-driven opener "Get Me in a Room", I knew that those expectations were about to be met and surpassed.

Stream: For Sleeping or Jumping - Dead Languages

Here we have something that deviates from the normal offerings at Stereo Typing. It's been awhile since I've covered any hardcore or metal; but when something good crops up, I don't want fans of those genres to miss out on it. For Sleeping or Jumping is a mathcore outfit from Boston that worked with Ben Weinman of The Dillinger Escape Plan and Ryan Siegal, who produced the Coloring Book EP for Glassjaw, to produce their latest release, Dead Languages. Weinman's influence can certainly be heard in the winding and perplexing guitar acrobatics and Siegal's in the tight post-hardcore song structure. The unpredictability over these five tracks keeps you attentive and intrigued from the moment you press play.

RIBS Release Russian Blood, Play WFNX Boston Accents Funeral Party

RIBS gained notoriety when their debut EP, British Brains, became Reddit's top voted music post of all time its month of release. As the post mentioned, RIBS mastermind Keith Freund festered through a five year gestation period for that effort. Considering this, we can forgive him for taking another two years for the followup, Russian Blood. For what can be considered a "bedroom project", Russian Blood sounds like something ready for adoring fans at an arena. Freund and company take a DIY approach to every aspect of the band including the label, PR, production, and management. The result is very personal release given to a fanbase that they have built themselves from the ground up.

Stream: King Tuff - King Tuff

"There’s nothin’ better than alone and stoned / Listenin’ to music on your headphones," sings Kyle Thomas on King Tuff standout "Alone & Stoned". One could take this as a hint as to how the album was meant to be heard. Under his King Tuff persona, Thomas has perfected the craft of creating poppy garage rock anthems. This self-titled record is his first for Sub Pop and the long awaited followup to 2008’s Was Dead. He has kept fairly prolific between the two albums, playing with freak-folk outfit Feathers and J. Mascis' stoner metal band Witch. He also toured with Hunx and His Punx and put out a record with his power pop band, Happy Birthday. The latter displayed his knack for writing quirky and memorable hooks and on King Tuff, he retains the cleaner production and tighter songwriting of that record. It seems Thomas may have crafted the perfect retro-leaning rock album.

Stream: Slothrust - Feels Your Pain

The title of Slothrust's debut full-length reminds one of the classic Dinosaur Jr. song "Feel the Pain". Much like Dinosaur Jr., Slothrust puts an emphasis on big guitar licks with bluesy undertones and grungy rhythms. The Brooklyn trio consists of guitarist/vocalist Leah Wellbaum, bassist Kyle Bann, and drummer Will Gorin. Leah sounds like she may have spent some time listening to tragically overlooked 90's rockers Kicking Giant. Said band were known for melding whirling guitars with provocative lyrics and that is exactly what she does with the one-two punch of "The Couch Incident" and "In a Sexual Way". However, after that song, the pace is slowed down with the early morning blues boogie of "7:30 am". It is a great example of how Slothrust doesn't stay in one place for too long.