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New Music Tuesday: MNDR, Papercranes, Streams & A Sir Mix-Alot Mashup of Epic Proportions

It’s a gorgeous day here in Chicago and I’ve been lucky enough to be spending time with my God-pug, Minnie Pearl, who is currently sitting on the couch watching an episode of Rizzoli & Isles like a good pug should. I hope the weather is beautiful wherever you may be at the moment and I’m here to give you some tunes to bring it to the next level.

Oh MNDR! This album could not have come at a more proper time in my life. I’m not sure if the musical universe has done a great job of following my moods or what, but I am finally ready to turn my emo frown upside down, put my dance pants on and rock the hell out of some lighter dance-punk. Each of the album’s songs has a unique quality and even runs the gamut of sentimental all the way to pure fun. The electronic elements pack a great punch and producer/vocalist, Amanda Warner, has a fantastic vocal quality somewhere between the softness of Marina and the Diamonds and the punkish spirit of Siouxsie Sioux. What’s not to love? Stream the album in its entirety over at Spin.

I’m having a bit of a hard time with the sophomore album from Papercranes. There are more than a few songs on the album that immediately made me say, “Not my jam.” Tracks such as “Rose Stem” and “Birds Eye Knew” seem to lack heart and I find myself feeling empty while listening. But then there are songs such as “Setting”, which you can hear below, and they feel more complete not only in that they have been fleshed out more instrumentally, but also because singer Rain Phoenix (yes, of the talented Phoenix family clan) digs deeper into her soul while she belts out her lyrics. Unfortunately, the album starts with the more anemic tunes and takes too long to get to the meat of the album, thus making it very difficult to wait around and give it a chance.

Music Extras: Download a new track from Talk Normal’s forthcoming album, Sunshine, “Bad Date” (via Pitchfork).

Stream the Polica remix EP, Dark Star, over at Spinner.

Theresa Andersson is giving away her track, “Fiyas Gone.”

AlunaGeorge lends her voice to electronic producer, Rustie’s newest version of “After Light.”

Musician and fashion blogger Jasmine Ash has a wonderfully creative music video out for her cute and catchy jam, “Starlight.” If you can’t get down with dancing frogs or flamingos, then you should probably go to the doctor and have them check to make sure you still have a heart.

Dragonette has a new single out called “Live In This City” that they’ve made available to stream here:

This Major Lazer remix of No Doubt’s single, “Settle Down” is hot like fiyah! I actually didn’t like the original very much – but hot dayum(!!) – this is good stuff.

Check out a new track from Franken-instrumentalists Buke & Gase “Misshaping Introduction” off of their upcoming four-song EP, Function Falls, out in September.

Before I go back to transcribing interviews and cuddling the pug, I’ll leave you with a fantastic video (hat tip to my pal Neddy) someone made by cutting up single sound-bytes from numerous films and editing them together to make a full recreation of Sir Mix-Alot‘s hit, “Baby Got Back.” Enjoy and as always, feel free to follow me on Twitter, Facebook or Tumblr!

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