Wye Oak – “I Hope You Die”
Wye Oak released their EP My Neighbor/My Creator last week via Merge. The husband-and-wife duo is yet anther band to come out of Baltimore’s luscious indie scene that rose to national prominence with bands like Beach House, Animal Collective and Dan Deacon. If you’re like me, then this EP [...]

Broken Social Scene – “World Sick”
Broken Social Scene will return after five long years of solo efforts with the release of Forgiveness Rock Record on May 4th, 2010. To celebrate the occasion, they’re giving away the first single “World Sick” on their myspace.
Even better, they’re hitting The Fillmore in San Francisco on May 1st, 2010 [...]

Taken By Trees – “Anna” [f. Panda Bear]
Taken by Trees released a special version of “Anna” featuring Panda Bear in order to promote her upcoming U.S. tour. If you haven’t heard her 2009 LP, East of Eden, grab it now and thank me later. She’ll be hitting San Francisco’s Cafe du Nord on March [...]

Sleepy Sun – “New Age”
Sleepy Sun’s 2009 debut, Embrace, is finally picking up the traction it deserves. The San Francisco natives play hazey, psych-rock tunes that fans of Deerhunter should check out.
If you like the sound, then be sure to check out their performance for the Bay Bridged series “New, Improved, Live” over here.

Gorillaz [...]

The Morning Benders – “Promises”
“Promises” is the lead single off of the Morning Benders’ forthcoming release, Big Echo. The Berkeley crew co-produced the album with Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor, so I have a feeling its going to be nothing short of amazing. Thanks to True Panther and Rough Trade for putting out the [...]

Spoon – “Written in Reverse”
“Written in Reverse” is the new single from Spoon’s upcoming Transference LP due out January 19th via Merge. And considering our site’s name, you might guess we’re more than just a little bit excited about their seventh full-length effort. In other words, it gives us a nice excuse to post the [...]

His Clancyness – “Misinterpret My Words”
Until a couple of days ago I had never heard of His Clancyness. But I bet I’m not alone, am I? Shocking because “Misinterpret My Words” is easily one of the best tunes I’ve heard in a while.
With hints of The Shins and Band of Horses, His Clancyness specializes in [...]

“In the Know” is a recurring series on Stranger Dance that features the latest and greatest MP3s circling the web. If you think you’ve got a tip we should know about email Peter.

Charlotte Gainsbourg – “IRM”
Gainsbourg’s forthcoming LP, IRM, features the handy-work of Beck who writes, produces and mixes multiple tracks. There’s even a duet [...]

The “In the Know” series features the latest and greatest MP3s circling the web. If you think you’ve got a tip we should know about email us at vaguepanther(at)strangerdance.com.

Field Music – “Measure”
After surviving rumors of a split-up, Field Music has confirmed plans to release a 20-track album in the earlier part of 2010. Our [...]

Whenever the moon is just right, the Vague Panther picks his favorite MP3s from the web to bring you the “In the Know” series. If you’ve got a tip that might pique his interest email him at vaguepanther(at)strangerdance.com.

Y La Bamba – “Fasting in San Francisco”
Portland’s Y La Bamba pairs an experimental folk sound with [...]