Jam of the Day | My Bloody Valentine - Only Tomorrow

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Twenty-two years after the release their genre-defining magnum opus Loveless, My Bloody Valentine has released a new record. I'll give you a moment to let that sink in. 

After two decades of rumors, scrapped albums, and hiatuses, the Dublin-based shoegaze pioneers unleashed their third album, m b v, upon the world at exactly 11:58 pm on February 2, 2013. Within moments of the album's release, the band's website catastrophically crashed due to the massive flood of traffic. It was a historic moment, and one that many never thought would come, but one question still remained: was the album worth the wait? 

Seeing as I haven't yet been alive for a full twenty-two years, I don't think I'm at liberty to decide if that's too long to wait for a record. However, I can confidently say that m b v is an amazing album.  

All of what made the band's early releases great is still intact, but updated with modern production techniques and a few fresh stylistic twists. Gauzy, fuzz-addled layers of guitars crash over top a prominent rhythm section, with whispy, androgynous vocal melodies lilting high in the mix. "Only Tomorrow" is one of the highlights of the new record, and a perfect example of why My Bloody Valentine is a spectacular band, despite making us wait a quarter of a century for new material. 

Jam of the Day | Young Prisms - Runner

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Photo | Courtney Gray

Young Prisms' sophomore LP, In Between, has been out for almost a year now, but it took a priming of our ears, and current musical environment, to finally nudge us to take note of a band that we've let slip between our keyboard-callused fingers for far too long now.

Perhaps it's the reemergence of My Bloody Valentine, or maybe it was seeing The Jesus and Mary Chain over the summer that allowed us to reopen our hearts to the possibility that fuzzed-out, pedal driven pop could capture our attention enough to rise above the cacophony of sludge that litters our email inbox.

Well, Young Prisms, congrats. You now have our ears. And thank you for making us listen. And while "Runner" can't be added posthumously to our "Best Of" list for 2012...we certainly will not forget our omittance when we revisit it in the years to come.

Jam of the Day | Ringo Deathstarr - Imagine Hearts

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Austin, Texas trio Ringo Deathstarr has been creating waves on the live front for quite some time now. The name alone sticks in your head like Crazy Glue, and their combination of head-splitting volume and short, energy-filled, enthralling performances, has become the currency of indie-rock bragging rights for those who have caught them at their best. Thus far, this combination has secured them countless spots over the last few years at SXSW, as well as supporting slots for the likes of the now defunct Voxtrot, ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, and The Dandy Warhols.

"Imagine Hearts," the opening track on their latest album, Colour Trip, recalls the glory days of noise-pop, giving current shoegaze-loving kids a glimpse at what inspired most of the bands they love today. There is definitely some of what made My Bloody Valentine and The Jesus and Mary Chain wonderful in the background, but the added energy muddles that familiar sound into something new and truly exciting.

Listen and download below, and grab yourself a copy of Colour Trip here, folks. We should be hearing much more about them in the very near future.