(by Dawn Reed) The NYC based geniuses Anamanaguchi who crafted the killer score for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World are about to unleash their self-produced album Endless Fantasy.  Three years in the works, the album contains 22 pop punk dance tracks crafted through the use of hacked Nintendos, Game Boys, and the classic 16-bit sound along with a full band.  They've got a truly impressive Kickstarter campaign going on right now to back the album with a killer tour crafted to look just like they sound; amazeballs.   In less than 11 hours, they raised over $50,000!  I'm looking at the list of goodies right now and debating on how much to donate because everything is just too cool.  

I mean look at this video.  Edited by the team over at Tim & Eric and sticking with Anamanaguchi's video game roots, this has got to be one of brightest/cutest/ridiculous videos I've seen in sometime.  Meow. Can't wait for the tour! 

The masked Italian strikes again.  Bloody Beetroots (as Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo goes by) is bringing his dose of hard electro to North America on a spring tour starting in DC on 5/17 ending 6/21 in Vegas.  He did just lay some roots in Los Angeles and is now claiming it his second home to Venice, and is unleashing remixes to his FB page on a near weekly basis.  He's also busy with his Church of Noise (check video below of the same name.) And not to be a stickler for details, but 1977 was not when punk was born, but Rifo was, and his 1977 tattoo is homage to that period of time.  (This was highlighted in the promos, and with all the kerfuffel over the Met exhibit "Punk: From Chaos to Couture" I thought it was kind of funny.) 

But what's really cool is DC's 9:30 Club giving a pair of tickets to one awesome Scene Trekker for the Bloody Beetroots show on 5/17!  All you have to do is email us by 3 PM 5/15 and let us know what your favorite BB track. Please include your first and last name for guest list requirements. The winner will be emailed.

You can still get tickets here!  

WIN BEFORE YOU CAN BUY!  Tickets for the sweat fest insanity known as the Mad Decent Block Party at Maryland's Merriweather Post Pavillion on Aug 2 go on sale this Friday 5/3, but thanks to our friends over at the 9:30 Club, we are giving away a pair of lawn tix to one lucky Scene Trekker TODAY!  

Wait, what is the Mad Decent Block Party you ask?  It's the biggest block party of the summer happening at 13 different locations all over the US with different line-ups at them all. For the DC crowd, we will be graced with the bombastic stylings of Major Lazer, Zeds Dead, a DJ set by SBTRKT, Skream, RiFF Raff, Lunice, Tittsworth, and Griz!

Try to win today before they go on sale tomorrow!  All you have to do is email us by 5 PM TODAY 5/2 and let us know what track from any artist ever is your anthem for the summer!  Include your first and last name for guest list requirements.  The winner will be emailed back.

(by Dawn Reed) "Say hello to the future." Five years after their first release, Aussie electro duo Empire of the Sun are about to put out their second LP Ice on the Dune in July and have just released this video for the first single "Alive."  Starting this May, they will be on the world-wide Fest circuit (and at the moment that's all it looks like as far as touring for this album. <Bummer!!! because I can't stand festivals.>)

In typical EOTS fashion, this video is full of gorgeous visuals of elaborate costumes and a range of landscapes combined with sci-fi atmospheric effects. Prepare yourself for the feel good chant of the summer in this chorus "Loving every minute cause you make me feel so alive."

Sydney Austrailia's synth duo The Presets are out on tour right now in support of their latest album Pacifica. Not to mention long awaited! Their last album Apocalypso went #1 via ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) back in 2008 and garnered them the first electronic act to win Album of the Year.  Their 2005 debut Beams put them on the worldwide tour circuit, and I was lucky enough to catch them back then.  These guys definitely get crowds going- not a dry forehead in the house.  And joining them on this part of the tour is Classixx!!  (Edit- Dragonette is not part of this date in the tour as mentioned earlier this week on the blog.)

DC's awesome 9:30 Club wants to make sure you Scene Trekkers don't miss out on this tour as they come to DC on Sat. May 4, so they are giving away 2 free passes!  All you have to do is email us by 3 PM on 4/23 and tell us your favorite Presets or Classixx song.  Please include your first and last name for guest list requirements. The winner will be emailed back. Don't want to risk missing out? There is still time to get tix right here.

(by Dawn Reed) Get ready to trip out on some Spanish folktronica with this unexpected use of goddess Kali-like effects and kaleidoscoped eyes video for Crystal Fighters first single "Separator" from their next release Cave Rave due out May 27. Breathe. Currently based out of London England, Crystal Fighters wrote this track whilst in the Basque hills of Spain and France. The tie to nature and the universe is abundant not only in the lyrics, but the video- so click play and become a part of the sounds all around you.   

Crystal Fighters will begin a world tour in May, just in time for the fest circuit, and will stay on the road til practically the end of 2013! Check here for dates. 

Welsh rockers Joy Formidable released their second LP Wolf's Law in January and are currently touring in support of it.  They even just added a second leg to their US tour!  If you plan on making it out to their L.A. or San Fran gig, you have a chance to help film their next music video (check out their FB page for details.)  Meanwhile, check out the video for "Little Blimp" below from the latest release showcasing my favorite part of a live Joy Formidable performance- Ritzy and her guitar.  What better way to give you a visual of how amped she is on stage then from a camera permanently fixed on her guit's neck.  Amazing.

Even more amazing, DC's 9:30 Club wants to make sure you get to see the amazement live before your very own eyeballs on Sunday APRIL 21.  So they're giving a pair of tickets to one lucky Scene Trekker! To enter, all you have to do is email us by 3 PM 3/26 and tell us what your favorite Joy Formidable song is. Please include your first and last name for guestlist requirements. The winner will be emailed back.  

Don't want to risk missing out? You still have time to buy tix before they sell out here (they've already sold out at other venues around the world.)  For a complete list of dates, click here. 

(by Dawn Reed) Originating from the Virginia college town of Blacksburg is Wild Nothing, an indie-pop project created by Jack Tatum. After garnering indie music blog attention by covering a Kate Bush track, Tatum went on to put out a hit LP Gemini in 2010 and a couple EP's before his latest 2012 album Nocturne that features the track in this video of the week.  This slow-mo stroll of a man with a sword through his heart getting ignored in the streets of L.A. could be a metaphor for the lyric "only Heather can make me feel this way."  Or, the director Ryan Reichenfeld is super stoked for season 3 of Game of Thrones to start! Go Khaleesi.

The untza season is coming back strong with Miami's Ultra Festival starting up this weekend. However, since it's always summer somewhere all year round, the untza season actually hasn't stopped since the early 80's.  Yeah, I associate heat with house. I mean who likes to dance with a parka on?  Hmmm, well now I want to look into Alaskan electro. Ok straying from the topic...

Joining in on this fest as well as dates throughout the rest of the world are the German house duo Booka Shade. Around since the mid-90's Walter Merziger and Arno Kammermeier are considered veterans of the Frankfurt electronic music scene.  They have 4 albums, a plethora of singles and live releases, are offering their latest EP Haleshop for free on their site, and just announced they will be opening up for Depeche Mode in Tel Aviv for their tour kick-off show. 

Part of Booka Shade's worldwide tour is a stop at DC's 9:30 Club on Thursday 3/21. And they want to make sure that you can make it to this laser light show. Tickets are available here, and we have one pair to give away thanks to 9:30 Club!  All you have to do is email us by 3 PM on 3/19 and let us know what your favorite Booka Shade track is. Please include your first and last name for guest list requirements.  For a full list of dates, check after the jump.

Booka Shade US Dates:

3/17- Ultra Music Festival, Miami
3/19 Irving Plaza, NYC
3/20- The Trocadero Theatre, Philadelphia
3/21- 9:30 Club, DC
3/22- Ultra Music Festival, Miami
4/13- Coachella, Indio USA
4/20- Coachella, Indio USA

(by Dawn Reed) NYC based indie pop group Haerts has members that hail from Germany, England and the US, and even though their debut album has yet to be released, they've nailed down at least 3 gigs at SxSW this week based a lot off this single release "Wings."  I mean, I'd book them based on this track alone too.  The video is compiled of clips from a late 70's instructional video for kids on how to avoid death in dangerous/mostly electrical situations.  I definitely remember watching this film when I was kid.  Oh military brat life. 

SxSW shows:
Thu 3/14: Neon Gold Party @  Red Eyed Fly outdoor stage (715 Red River St.) @ 4:15pm
Fri 3/15:  Columbia/Filter Party @ Cedar St. Courtyard (208 W 4th St.) @ 1pm
Sat 3/16: Hype Machine/Portals Show @ Hype Hotel (301 Brazos St - 3rd & San Jacinto) @ TBA
more shows to be announced