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Listening to Washington-based dream-pop trio Seapony is reminiscent of a flight into the abyss; the indie band’s simple, guitar-driven melodies and swooning vocals — in the vein of other indie acts like Beach House and Best Coast — leave one feeling light and airy, with the sense that gravity is but a myth. Oddly enough, however, for principal songwriter Danny Rowland, staying grounded —literally — is what allowed the band leader to eventually send listeners skyward.
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After missing a flight home from Cincinnati — Rowland is from Oklahoma, but was living in Olympia, Wash. at the time — the songwriter ended up staying in Ohio where he met girlfriend, and future bandmate Jen Weidl. The couple soon moved to Seattle and linked up with Rowland’s friend Ian Brewer. Seapony was soon birthed. An intriguing element to the trio, signed to indie label Hardly Art, is their rhythm section — or lack therof. Rather than employ a drummer, the group opted instead for the service of a vintage Alesis HR-16 drum machine — an interesting choice considering Rowland himself is a drummer. (And people wonder why drummers are becoming obsolete. Even their own are turning on them).
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While you’re busy checking out all the new music that dropped today, it never hurts to take a peek back at what happened this week in year’s past. Say, for instance, did you know that 34 years ago, The Doors’ “Light My Fire” was released in the US ? Or that this week in 1979, Fall Out Boy and Black Cards’ bassist Pete Wentz (pictured above) was born?” So take a trip back in time and revisit all (good and bad) that’s happened in music during this week.

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Check out our list of today’s new music added to Myspace, and other hot new releases hitting the streets. And be sure to check out our New Music Tuesday playlist featuring the best of today’s new jams.
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Featured Album Releases:
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Death Cab For Cutie- Codes and Keys– Married, sober and seemingly a helluva lot more happy-go-lucky than on 2008’s Narrow Stairs, Ben Gibbard and co. return with their seventh studio LP. Be sure to also check out their recent appearance on VH1’s ‘Storytellers’ right here.

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My Morning Jacket- Circuital– For their newest effort, Jim James and his merry cohorts holed up in a hometown church gym and crafted a free-spirited, loose album– an intriguing change of pace from the frantic abstraction of 2008’s Evil Urges. Read more about their new album here.

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Flogging Molly- Speed Of Darkness- Recorded at Echo Mountain, an old church building turned recording studio in Asheville, NC, the Celtic-punk band’s newest veered in a direction that even its members didn’t see coming. “It wasn’t the album we set out to write,” songwriter Dave King. “It became the album we had to write.”
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The Vaccines- What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?- When you sell out your debut gig, it’s obvious there’s a buzz about your band. Such was the case for these four U.K. guitar rockers who channel the Ramones and Jesus and Mary Chain on their debut LP. Read more about it here.

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  EMILY ZEMLER  

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Sean Kingston has been hospitalized following a jet ski accident in Miami yesterday. The rapper was taken to the trauma ward of Jackson Memorial Hospital yesterday after he and a female passenger crashed into the Palm Island Bridge around 6:00 p.m., according to Billboard.
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Kingston and his passenger were aided by a nearby boater and Miami Fire Rescue crews brought them to the hospital. The singer’s publicist, Joseph Carozza, released a statement earlier today updating fans on Kingston’s condition. He wrote, “Sean Kingston is now stabilized and has moved from the trauma unit to ICU. Sean’s family thanks everyone for their prayers and support during this time.”
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Photo courtesy of Lori Paulson
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Text By: Mikela Floyd
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We awoke early Saturday morning to the cheers and jeers of our fellow campers, many already more than three sheets to the wind. After a quick shower (thank god for premium camping — a must for future attendees), we made our way to The Gorge for Day Two.
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The afternoon kicked off with Seattle’s latest hometown heroes, The Head and the Heart. The show, one of the first of the day, boasted a huge and enthusiastic crowd, eager to support their own new indie darlings. The six-piece powered through their self-titled debut, bringing friends onstage for dance-alongs, even inspiring the crowd to spontaneously link arms for a group sway on the top of The Gorge’s massive lawn. Not too shabby, we think, for crew of young Seattlites performing at a fest they’ve long idolized.
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After an awesome start, it was time to check out recent another buzz act, neo-soul NPR favorite Aloe Blacc. The soulman swaggered out onstage, decked out in a fedora, proceeding to serenade the crowd with tunes that paid special attention to the ladies. Naturally, his set included his hit — and current HBO theme song — “I Need A Dollar,” which had the crowd singing along to the Bill Withers-esque number.
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Following Blacc was another NPR wunderkind, Sharon Van Etten. As we made our way to the Honda Big stage, we were stunned by the sparse crowd. So, as Sharon tuned her instruments, a front- row spot was surprisingly available. As the Brooklyn songwriter performed enchanting tracks from her latest LP, the crowd filled in rapidly, swaying and hanging on her every dreamy word. Van Etten closed her set with an enchanting new track which will hopefully be included on an upcoming release.
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Van Etten had barely left the stage as indie rock lovebirds Jenny Lewis and Jonathan Rice took the stage to perform songs from their collaborative release, out earlier this year. The duo, known simply as Jenny and Johnny, looking hipster fabulous, as it were, ironically lacked an onstage connection. Yes, they bounced and bopped as they jammed out, but their presence simply lacked the enthusiasm we’re used to with Lewis’ performances with Rilo Kiley or in her other solo endeavors. You can’t win ‘em all, we suppose.
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