Han Hee Jung will release a new EP, 잔혹한 여행, on October 6. In addition to six new titles, it also includes a band version of Drama that she sang together with Mot's eAeon on her first album. Pastel Music offers a brief sample of the title track.

A bunch of links found via my feed reader over the last few days:

The Korean has put one of the bands that turned me towards the more alternative sides of Korean music on his list of influential artists: 50 Most Influential K-Pop Artists: 46. Deli Spice

In addition to sharing a link to a very interesting studio live music video project called Live Planet, Violet Sweets
offers some news:
- Broccoli, You Too 2nd Album
- Music Travel Lalala discontinues
- Oh Ji Eun and 10cm for Anime


refresh_daemon has had a listen to female singer/songwriter Siwa's eponymous debut EP from 2007: Inbox: 시와 - 시와

Hardly any news on the indie chart this week:

Bugs Indie TOP10 - September 29, 2010
1. GoGo Star - Not Disco But Disco [@ Koolpool Itaewon]
2. Sugar Donut - Friday Party
3. Super Kidd - 술 한잔해 [MV]
4. The Finnn - 공개무시금지
5. The Finnn - 여우에게
6. 10cm - 아메리카노 [recandplay.net]
7. TransFixion - Never Say Goodbye
8. Pathos - Take Your Love
9. 10cm - 오늘밤은 어둠이 무서워요 [recandplay.net]
10. Telepathy - Big Wave [Teaser]

The new additions to the TOP100 list are the following:
11. Vanilla Unity - Hey! Monster [MV]
72. Vanilla Unity - Be The One

See the full top 100 list here.

After a change in lineup (new bassist, one new guitarist, and new drummer - the latter Choi Hyun Jin of Vassline and Seo Taiji Band) emo band Vanilla Unity returned with a two track digital single called Hey! Monster on September 29.

The lovely female singer/songwriter Mystery Curtain will release her first full length album, 아직 하지 못한 말, on September 30. She debuted with the self-titled digital single 수상한 커튼 in early 2009 and also had some success on Bugs indie music chart with her track 잠 from the Real Acoustic compilation. Those songs are all included on the tracklist alongside five new titles. Listen on MySpace, watch last year's music video for 바다와 사막을 지나, or listen to the lovely album main track 4월 via YouTube.

The 2010 edition of Grand Mint Festival is coming up in less than a month and today, September 28, the GMF2010 Special CD was released as a digital single. The main track is called Don't You Know and it's a the No Reply song were GMF's festival lady, actress Han Hyo Joo, has gotten a chance to sing. The music video was released yesterday.

Also on the single is a DJ Lozik remix of Daybreak's 팝콘 for which there is also a music video, starring Han Hyo Joo and showing the GMF lineup. As expected, Joa Band's 북극곰아 too was included.

Thanks to Eshe I came across this charming interview with always awesome Apollo 18 in Daejeon Access: Apollo 18-interview. Among plenty of interesting tidbits, it mentions some about upcoming international tours.

Another interview that surfaced in English recently was that made with Monni by Star Today a few months ago. Wassereis offers a translation of the article: Monni Interview


Violet Sweets provides a comprehensive introduction to new male pop project duo One More Chance: [Infocorner] One More Chance. The duo released its first self-titled digital single earlier this year on May 18 and had it followed by a self-titled EP, including both songs from the single, on September 14.

refresh_daemon has had listen to O So Young's 2001 debut album: Inbox: 오소영 - 기억상실

He's also shared some thoughts on the first full length album from Nastyona: Inbox: Nastyona - 아홉가지 기분. I was not impressed with the album at first, missing everything that was fantastic about debut EP Bye Bye My Sweet Honey, but have since come to find it very agreeable. Definitely a band to check out if you're interested in some alternative rock out of the ordinary with female vocals.


Chris Park puts the self-titled debut album from Yellow Monsters among the best albums of 2010: Yellow Monsters (옐로우 몬스터즈) – Self-Titled Review. I finally gave the album a listen myself today and it is indeed a solid rock album. My one complaint would be that the all over present pop punk element makes me feel old while listening, but nonetheless I'd like to say it's pretty awesome.


London Korean Links favorite Youn Sun Nah will have her new album Same Girl released in the UK tomorrow, September 27. Philip Gowman remains enthusiastic: CD review: Nah Youn Sun – Same Girl


Back in January the first part of the Kim Hyun Sik 20th Anniversary tribute album was released. That one featured both Ibadi and W&Whale, and with the release of the full 2CD+DVD set on May 11 and other interesting name could be found on the tracklist as Loveholics has covered 언제나 그대 내곁에. Soompi has a review: Album Review - Kim Hyun Sik 20th Anniversary Tribute Album

Singer/songwriter Hi, Mr. Memory will release his second full length album, 내가 여기 있어요, on September 28. It has been produced by SODA (aka Oldfish) and mixed&mastered by Big Boom (who has previously worked with Apollo 18 and Yozoh to name just a few). The main track is 다시 비가 내리네, but among the 10 titles on the tracklist there's also Fat Boy from the 2008 Korean literature music compilation and a 2010 version of first album track 숙취.

A day later, September 29, it's time for something completely different as melodic punk quartet A.G CD debuts with EP Go. It appears a music video is in the making, but to hear what they sound like till it's finished there's the
A.G promo video.

Bossa nova duo Bossa Dabang released its first EP, 찾아가기, on September 16. The four track release features fellow bossa nova musician Hwan Jong Ryul on a track called 다짐. Check out the 음악이 들려오네 music video

The same day trio Jinsungyoon Band put out an album called Music Tree. It follows Jin Sung Yoon's New Folk solo effort from 2008 and includes a re-recording of 그럴까봐. The official YouTube channel has plenty to sample.

Punk band Swindlers is getting ready to release its first single, The Cheat, on September 28. The release show was held tonight and already Dada Music has uploaded a video of Swindlers performing For The Christ. To hear more visit Hyang Music that offers samples from all tracks on the EP.

Bugs Indie TOP10 - September 22, 2010
1. Sugar Donut - Friday Party
2. Super Kidd - 술 한잔해 [MV]
3. Telepathy - Big Wave [Teaser]
4. TransFixion - Never Say Goodbye
5. GoGo Star - Not Disco But Disco [@ Koolpool Itaewon]
6. 10cm - 아메리카노 [recandplay.net]
7. Ann - 기쁜 열대 [MV]
8. Bulnabang Star Sausage Club - 인간대포쑈 [@ SangSang Madang]
9. 10cm - 오늘밤은 어둠이 무서워요 [recandplay.net]
10. The Finnn - 공개무시금지

The new additions to the TOP100 list are the following:
23. Pathos - Take Your Love
42. 새벽 - 완전한 마음 (Heartful ver.)
76. Sugar Donut - Say Yes
83. Sugar Donut - 날 위한 노래
93. Image - 텅 빈 우주 [@ Club Auteur]
99. Lucid Fall - 그대 슬픔이 보일 때면

See the full top 100 list here.

Pathos is a band from Kookmin University with the first digital single, Take Your Love, released September 20. I haven't been able to figure out just how many members there are, but the album info appears to say that 14 members contributed with vocals for the title track, which should be some kind of indie rock tune.

Female guitar player 새벽 released her first digital single, 스무살, 여름, on September 18. Although labeled modern rock, the album info also mentions something about electronic pop in connection with 완전한 마음, that is featured on the single both in original and a "heartful" version.

Singer/songwriter Image released her first digital single, 은유화, on September 17. Image's YouTube channel shows that she comes equipped with nice melodies and an appealing pop/rock sound. Lyrics for all songs on the single can be found on the official blog, but if you can't understand Korean perhaps you'll be more interested in Empty Universe, the English version of 텅 빈 우주.

Thanks to Init_Music's refresh_daemon getting on Twitter I could learn that the Galaxy Express and Tobacco Juice "rockumentary" Turn It Up To Eleven (반드시 크게 들을 것) opened in New York last week. Twitch has a review: TURN IT UP TO 11: Review

Melancholic tunes with a piano are usually a hit with me, and so I quite liked singer/songwriter Go-yo's self-titled EP released last year. For a few months I was thinking I ought to give it some attention beyond the simple release update, but as happens far too often I never got around to it. So when Go-yo suggested I'd pay some attention to his new album I figured I definitely should and decided to ask him a few questions while I was at it:

Who is Go-yo?
Go-yo is a singer-songwriter who have started solo from year 2008. Before that I was in couple of bands. In early 2000s, I was the guitarist and songwriter of band Greenish Yellow, a shoe-gazing/grunge band. At that time, we were so into the gorgeous noise of My Bloody Valentine. After I left the band, Ji-Hye Ham (the present vocalist of band Vidulgi OoyoO) replaced my place. Six years later, I played guitar and keyboard in the band Wavelet, a British pop/rock band. However, there was disharmony among members about the view of music. Then I left the band to start solo singer-songwriter. Go-yo, in Korean 고요, means calmness or silence and have released self-titled single album in Mar. 2009. and main album in Aug. 2010. Go-yo sings for human life (especially, dark aspect) and give an effort to gain the sympathy.

Where do you find inspiration for song writing?
As you can find easily, most of my songs are about loneliness, solitude and confusions which anyone can feel through their own life.

Usually I find inspirations from my life and the environment. I think song writing should be inspired from the deep heart of writer, if not there would be no sympathy between writer and listeners. This is my sort of philosophy to write songs.

Here's my personal story, I left my family from the late teens and have been living alone ca. 10 yrs. I guess last 10yrs of my life, itself was the inspiration for my song writing.

Your sound appears to have changed a bit since the EP last year. How would you describe it?
In terms of subject, main album is on the same way to talk about cynical self-consolation, however, in terms of tools, more diverse tools were used to express the subject.

Piano was main instrument for the last EP, and I tried to make it lo-fi style with the piano mainly, let's say "piano lo-fi" (this wouldn't be a correct term but i just made it to represent my last EP).

Since last EP had been released, I adopted few aspects of electronica, trip-hop, etc. I do not want to confine my sound, I just want to utilize several tools, digest them and express on my own way.

What would you like to say about 혼자 왔습니다?
Since I self-release my first single album on 2009, there was a good chance to work with indie label Digitalrecord, so that we worked to make full-length album together.

My first main album 혼자 왔습니다, meaning "I Came Alone" is about the life. And I think anyone who lives alone would feel similar things that I've been sung on the album. The album contains 10 songs as follows;

01. 아침햇살의 따스한 기억 조차 없는 이 좁은 방안의 오후; The afternoon in a small room without the memory of warm morning light
02. 작은새를 날게해; Let the little bird fly
03. 그리다; Missing
04. 오늘은 유난히 춥다; Today is exceptionally cold
05. 관계의 진실; The truth of relationship
06. 쵸콜릿 나비; Chocolate butterfly
07. Untitled
08. The blue devil
09. 회전목마, 나른한 질주; Merry-go-round
10. 기억하나요; Do you remember

The atmosphere of early part the album is calm and drowsy and the it gets excited from song #5 쵸콜릿나비; Chocolate butterfly to song #8 The blue devil. Then, it gets relaxed again.

The main theme of the album, in one word, is cynical self-consolation.
I hope this album satisfies the listener's heart, gives comfort to the listeners and helps to communicate with their own ego.

Please check out my YouTube channel to watch music video of the title song and clips. I'll upload them more over and over again.

---

I have yet to hear more than what's on Myspace from the new album myself, but with 작은새를 날게해 it's evident that the melancholy I appreciated last year is still there. To make it even more interesting, particularly in The Blue Devil the additional electronica/trip-hop elements help construct a sound that at times reminisces pieces of Radiohead's OK Computer with a hint of Mot. I'll be expecting more good music from Go-yo in the future.

On September 15, Happy Robot's pop duo No Reply released second full length album Dream. On the same day a music video for main track 내가 되었으면 was launched, and those that wish to sing along can find the lyrics on the Happy Robot blog.

Some time ago Violet Sweets shared a bunch of information on the album in question: More Infos on No Reply's 2nd Album. Violet Sweets also offers some information on the digital single No Reply are expected to release together with actress Han Hyo Joo next week: Han Hyo Joo makes her debut as singer together with No Reply

When not writing No Reply related news for Violet Sweets, wassereis added English subtitles to an old interview: No Reply SSTV sub

Assorted links from the last few days:

Thanks to Hannah Bae I got to read this really good article on music festivals in Korea, written by Niels Footman for Yonhap News: (Yonhap Feature) Five years after the first, Korea succumbs to rock festival fever.

Via Korea Gig Gudie I learned of a recently started podcast where there's a good chance to hear some fine Korean music: Korean Homesick Blues.


Today London Korean Links shared some impressions from jazz pop group Winterplay's recent appearances in London: Winterplay launches UK album with civilised gigs

So we already have Bugs Chart to keep track of which songs people are listening to, but what about which CDs they buy? Well that's something we can find out from Hyang Chart!

As it happens what is likely the foremost store for Korean indie music sells enough Korean indie music CDs to keep the sales chart very interesting. I'll be posting the top 10 here whenever I notice a chart update (they're a bit irregular, from what I've observed during the summer), and also include any new additions of particular interest. With getting back to more regular postings here at Indieful ROK in September and all, I figured keeping track of this chart would be a nice addition + I like how it can help me keep up with any release I may have overlooked before.

During the weekend the chart for the first week of September was posted so here you go, complete with long overdue release updates:

Hyang Chart - 1st week of September, 2010
1. 10cm - The First EP [눈이 오네 recandplay.net session]
2. Byul.org - 태평양 (Pacific) [태평양 (Pacific) MV]
3. Bulnabang Star Sausage Club - 석연치않은결말 [EP trailer]
4. Zitten - Wonderland [EP trailer : TV Show MV]
5. Dear Cloud - Take The Air [Last Scene @ release show]
6. Jaejoo Boys - 유년에게 [손잡고 허밍 MV]
7. Avenged Sevenfold - Nightmare
8. Earip - 공기로 만든 노래 (Words From The Breath) [벌써 잊었나 live]
9. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
10. Sunkyeol - EP [@ release show]

The new k-indie oriented additions to the TOP100 list were the following:
16. The Finnn - Beatles Over Zeppelin
71. Nomad - Be Mad, No Mad
73. JamBiNai - 잠비나이 [나부락 live]
82. Go-yo - 혼자 왔습니다 [작은 새를 날게 해 MV]
88. Rubystar - 맑음 때때로 흐리고 비 [맑음 때때로 흐리고 비 MV]

See the full top 100 list here.

On June 17, Pastel Music's lovely Zitten returned with an EP called Wonderland. In addition to some well produced new songs, the EP also includes new recordings of songs from the duo's self-released 2005 EP Rock Doves.

After developing a fuller sound piano playing male singer/songwriter Go-yo released his first full length album, 혼자 왔습니다, on September 2. It followed last year's pretty self-titled & self-released EP where 회전목마, 나른한 오후 was featured previously. I'd recommend hearing him out on MySpace.

Female fronted modern rock band Rubystar released a mini album called 맑음 때때로 흐리고 비 on August 31. Supposedly their second, it follows the release of digital single 다시올까봐 in 2008 and the album info makes it seem like they also had some relative success with a demo in Japan.

Today, September 17, disco rock band GoGo Star released a remastered version of the now sold out first full length album Last Show. Although missing both You and 빠리미용실 간 제임스, the digital album instead features 악마성, originally from Go Go Party!, as a bonus track.

Two years since the last full length album and with a solo album from guitarist The Ash in between, "hybrid punk" band Sugar Donut is back with more Weezer influenced music on the new EP called Say Yes. It would seem recordings started a couple of months ago and it was released September 16.

Earlier this week, an official Sugar Donut Twitter account was launched.

New week, new indie chart! This time with a comeback from the 90s.

Bugs Indie TOP10 - September 15, 2010
1. Super Kidd - 술 한잔해 [MV]
2. Ann - 기쁜 열대 [MV]
3. Bulnabang Star Sausage Club - 인간대포쑈 [@ SangSang Madang]
4. TransFixion - Never Say Goodbye
5. Telepathy - Big Wave [Teaser]
6. Showgy - 별과 너의 파노라마 [MV]
7. 10cm - 아메리카노 [recandplay.net]
8. The Finnn - 공개무시금지
9. Nomad - 너만 있으면 돼
10. The Finnn - 여우에게

The new additions to the TOP100 list are the following:
13. Super Kidd - 그리 쉽게 이별을 말하지 말아요
15. Jung Da Woon Band - 코딱지 [MV]
18. Super Kidd - Latte Latte (라떼 라떼)
94. The Reading Club - 세상에서 가장 큰 피그미[MV]

See the full top 100 list here.

Goofy rockers Super Kidd have returned with their third full length album, 멋지다! 슈퍼키드. It's been available for purchase online since September 10 and the CD came out September 14. Counting 17 tracks, the release includes a "new mix version" of Music Show from last year's 2.5 with the same name.

Indie rock band Ann was active in the late 90s, after which the members continued in other noteworthy bands such as Rainy Sun and Weeper. 12 years after the release of debut album Skinny Ann's Skinny Funky, the band has reunited and brings some more funkish music on EP 기쁜열대. The CD version was released today, September 16, but a digital release has been available since September 9. If you want to hear what Ann sounded like in the past the band generously offers mp3s of all songs from the since long out of print first album.

Jung Da Woon Band has put out a number of digital singles since the very beginning of 2007, but it was not till September 9 this year that the first CD, titled 차라리 막달려, was released. Half of the songs on the album, including main track 코딱지, are titles previously featured one one or two of the singles.

Modern rock band The Reading Club released its first digital single, 세상에서 가장 큰 피그미, on September 9. The leader of the humanist quartet appears to have gotten educated at London College of Music. The title track is also available in an English version under the name The Tallest Man In a Pygmy Village.

It is September 15, and music bloggers from all over the world are ready to present another fine selection of songs from the areas they cover. No England this time, but there are plenty of great tunes to pick from below anyway.

Of course the song I'd recommend over any other this month is that from Korea's The Quip. Picking a song of theirs turned very difficult as I found them all awesome albeit for different reasons, but eventually I settled for Custard Pie. Do give their other songs a listen as well - they're certainly good enough to deserve it. And of course I have to plug Indieful ROK's The Quip mini interview, since it made me like them even more.

To download all 35 songs in one file click here

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Mompox - Feel Alright
This is one of our favorite tracks from Mompox's debut album, Mompox & The Big Umbrella. The recording process took almost two years and if you listen to the album it's easy to understand why - it contains 16 songs with more than 30 musicians playing all kinds of instruments. The sound is a mixture of American pop from the 50s, with a bit of psychedelic rock and experimental sounds. It's a very eclectic record, so start with Feel Alright and then visit their MySpace for more songs if you like them.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Fishing - OOOO
For a pair of low-key beat-makers from Sydney, Fishing have seen an impressive ascent from small Tumblrs through to Pitchfork's Playlist with barely an official release behind them. Without wanting to reduce them to a fad, Fishing capitalise on the chillwave trend and infuse their summery vibe with an heavy dose of limping glitch-hop. Heard it before? You may have heard something similar, but Fishing really do have the skills that leave the other bros with their blunts and laptops in the dust.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Neon Night Riders - South Travelling
Echoes from bands such as M83, Arab Strap and The Jesus And Mary Chain can be felt in South Travelling by duo Neon Night Riders. The song infuses the synthpop, Britpop and shoegaze influences that are the hallmark of their work. Their first full-length, The Neon Album, is available to download at the band's Last.fm page.

CANADA: I(Heart)Music
The Love Machine - Be A Path
Once upon a time (that is, their first two EPs), The Love Machine were a fairly generic emo-pop band, albeit one that knew how to bring it live. With the release of their first full-length, Sweater Weather, however, TLM have transformed. They're still a great live band but, for the first time, they're equally great on record. This song captures that growth as well as anything. It's dark, heavy and, best of all, impossible to forget.

CHILE: Super 45
Denver - Lo Que Quieras
With straightforward pop their main goal, the songs of Denver - comprising Mariana Montenegro and Milton Mahan - evoke the sound of bands such as Abba, Electric Light Orchestra and those from the golden years of Motown Records. Their new single, Lo Que Quieras ("What You Want"), is one of the finest songs of the year. It is full of youthful promises and an epic mixture of string arrangements and sweet choirs.

CHINA: Wooozy
The Fallacy - As I Leave
Up-and-coming post-punk rockers The Fallacy have a unique blend of grungy badassness, noise and harmony that puts them right at the crest of China's post-punk wave, in which PK-14 and Re-tros have already gained a serious fanbase, both local and worldwide. Formed just two years ago in Xinjiang, Henan Province, their songs have a distinctly quelled energy brewing under a thin quilt of funk, punk, nefarious riffs and crooning vocals that are sure to secure many fans from all sorts of musical preferences.

COLOMBIA: Colombia Urbana
Profetas - Baila
Profetas is duo Antombo and Pablo, and new single Baila is a good representation of their fusion sound, which takes in some elements of indie-pop.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
Plok - Kleenex Exposition
Following three EPs, Danish math-rock (or, as they call it, mathbeat synthpunk) quartet Plok finally have a full-length debut out titled Sing Us Yr Guillotine Gospel. Through 12 mind-bending trips to places at least one step beyond, they stick it to the Man and the numbed masses. Exclusively for the Music Alliance Pact here's the awesome Kleenex Exposition.

ESTONIA: Popop
Iiris - Astronaut
Iiris is a young singer-songwriter with ambitious dreams. At the moment she is crafting her debut album with mad scientist, producer and co-writer Sethh. Aspiring to create something special, they have ventured into a secret dimension where pop, rock, innovation, synthesizers, classical piano, electronic soundscapes, catchy melodies, random madness, senseless beauty, zombies, cats and unicorns all become one.

FINLAND: Glue
Hi-Horse - 7th Street Ninjas
The sound of Hi-Horse is mostly based on the modern blues guitar of Jani Kamppi, but the band opens up its sound to the most surprising, and danceable, arrangements and textures. Their soon-to-be-released album, Concrete Clouds, is full of imaginative guitar-based pop tunes.

FRANCE: ZikNation
Smooth - Music
When listening to Smooth's music you get the strange impression of finding an old friend, a road companion, because their music draws on our own imagination where it moulds itself, each day, each rainy season, with pleasure or ecstasy. The trio borrows and mixes sounds and rhythms from their forefathers, displayed and put back together with inventiveness, jubilation and sensuality.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
Tuo - Walk With Me
It's quite uncommon to see two 16-year-old girls making folk music as relaxed as Tuo do. Tasmin and Oda create soundscapes with soft voices and two acoustic guitars which make you feel like walking barefoot on mossy ground. Walk With Me is a MAP exclusive from their debut album Walk On Silence, recently released on aspiring FlowerStreet Records.

GREECE: Mouxlaloulouda
Chris Nemmo - Half Human (feat. Etten)
After experimenting with different electronic dance genres and releasing material in several record labels worldwide, Chris Nemmo has just brought out his sophomore album, The Nautilus Project. It consists of several different aspects of the scene, employing dirty funky basslines, vintage melodies and atmospheric vocals in an effort to simulate a warm analog perception of the disco groove and aesthetics. This is Etten's second collaboration with Chris and she again provides a unique touch. Much of Half Human's seductive allure is owed to her lyrics and passionate vocal performance, which is as technically stunning as it is expressive.

ICELAND: I Love Icelandic Music
Bárujárn - Skuggasörf
The band Bárujárn, Icelandic for "corrugated iron", started in the fall of 2008. They play gloomy surf garage rock flavoured with metal or disco. The band members are Oddur on bass, Sindri on guitar, Leifur on drums, and Hekla on theremin. Bárujárn has recorded an EP that features the song Skuggasörf and will record a full album soon.

INDIA: Indiecision
Rosemary - Golden Trees
Rosemary is a three-piece post-grunge band from Mumbai. This young act has been making waves in the Indian indie scene over the past couple of years on the back of some major competition victories and regular gigging. Golden Trees is the product of post-Nirvana youthful exuberance. Distortion heavy and moshpit ready, this four-and-a-half minute track is an ode to Seattle '90s. Listen loud.

INDONESIA: Deathrockstar
Komunal - Pasukan Perang Dari Rawa
Pasukan Perang Dari Rawa means "combat troops from the swamp". With heavy distortion, pre-historic barbaric drums stomping, deadly bass, deep vocals and a good attitude they're currently my favorite stoner band.

IRELAND: Nialler9
Groom - A Music Lesson
Groom's finest hour (well 50 minutes) arrived this month in the form of their third album Marriage. It's a slightly sardonic examination of relationships and life set to an earnest indie-pop backing. It's lovely stuff and only five euros from their Bandcamp site where you can also stream it. Go pop!

ISRAEL: Metal Israel
GodWrath - Heart vs. Mind
Vocalists using scream techniques are a dime a dozen but Godwrath boasts a female screamer with more cojones than most of the guys out there, topping their aggressive metal groove with a hardcore edge.

ITALY: Polaroid
A Classic Education - Gone To Sea
A Classic Education recently described their sound as "night music for lazy afternoons", but I think there's more to it than that. Dreamy and strong at the same time, vibrant and uplifting, Gone To Sea is a lush pop gem, a perfect example of their amazing songwriting skills. It's taken from their new Hey There Stranger EP, out this month on US label Lefse Records (Neon Indian, Dominant Legs).

JAPAN: JPOP Lover
World's End Girlfriend - Les Enfants du Paradis
World's End Girlfriend is the orchestral post-rock and experimental electronica project of Katsuhiko Maeda. He has just launched his own label, Virgin Babylon Records, and released an irregular pop album, Seven Idiots, on September 14.

MEXICO: Red Bull PanameriKa
Chikita Violenta - Roni
This is the story of a Mexican band flirting with a Canadian sound. On their second album The Stars And Suns Sessions (2007), the four-piece settled for some months in a studio on the countryside outside Toronto to make a record guided by Dave Newfeld (Broken Social Scene). For their third album TRE3S (2010), Chikita Violenta went back to Ontario to explore deeper into that particular sound reigning on the Arts & Crafts label: a maple leaf wall of sound vined with many layers of guitars, bittersweet-abstract choirs and a happy-go-lucky vibe.

NETHERLANDS: Unfold Amsterdam
Apneu - Daydream
Apneu are lo-fi in their garage-pop approach, but high fidelity isn't essential when you can round off songs so succinctly. At times they employ the basic chord structures and slacker pace of Pavement focusing on the purity of the melody. At others, they lose themselves in the groove, knocking out energetic garage-rock jams. A hugely entertaining live band in the Amsterdam scene, they're now learning to commit their raw pop harmonies and sense of fun to tape.

NEW ZEALAND: Counting The Beat
Sharpie Crows - Fifteen Golden Balls Pt.2
Thumping drums provide the foundation for this fantastic song that starts with the drums, vocals and keyboard before going instrumental, adding post-punk guitar chords and then, remarkably, at around the two-thirds mark, brass (or at least brass samples). The song is so well constructed I keep coming back to it to just listen to how they put it together. Sharpie Crows, from Wellington but currently living in Australia, have two EPs available on their Bandcamp.

NORWAY: Eardrums
Drivan - Hårt i Ögat
This month's Norwegian MAP artist may as well be called a Nordic band because half of them are Swedes and the other two are from Finland and Norway. The Norwegian member is Kim Hiorthøy, well known as an electronic musician, graphic designer, illustrator, filmmaker and writer. Unlike his other recordings, Drivan's debut Disko is mostly acoustic and has a very organic sound. It's very much a pop record, but a weird and wonderful one, full of field recordings, strange lo-fi sounds and partial conversations. The vocals are sung in Swedish by Lisa Östberg, Louise Peterhoff and Kristiina Viiala, who also have taken part in composing the songs together with Hiorthøy. Disko is released on Smalltown Supersound.

PERU: SoTB
Pastizal - Apoxon You
Pastizal are an innovative band that almost came out of nowhere. Based in Lima, their music comfortably delves into psychedelia, shoegaze and experimental beats, but essentially rock is at its core. Apoxon You was first included in a free compilation released by Peruvian label Dorog Records.

PORTUGAL: Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
Triplet - Like It's Going Out Of Fashion
The band Triplet have been around for eight years and have played all over Europe, but they only released their debut album, A Fight For Your Heart, in 2007. Their new EP, Noise, Noise, Noise, is being distributed freely here. Even though they are called Triplet they have four members – vocalist Jasmin Jones was our guest in February's MAP with her solo record.

ROMANIA: Babylon Noise
Alternativ Quartet - Insemnari La Intamplare
This month, for the first time, we have a band singing in Romanian. Alternativ Quartet are rather new on the Romanian scene: four young men from a small town - now living, studying and making music in Cluj. They are about to release their debut album, Linistea Astupa Goluri, which is a combination of experimental, post-rock, prog and other styles perfectly mixed. They sing about dreams and monsters, revelations and silence.

SCOTLAND: The Pop Cop
Endor - Chapel Doors
Modern technology has made it easier than ever before to make and distribute music. This is most definitely a bad thing. The deserving are being drowned out by a tidal wave of bands and bedroom musicians, and the din of mediocrity is deafening. One of this year's finest albums came out in July and I never even saw it coming. At times it sounds like the missing link between Pavement and REM. It is engrossing, unpretentious and displays a real understanding of how to write a song that people will actually want to hear more than once. The band is Endor, the album is called Endor, and you can buy it here.

SINGAPORE: I'm Waking Up To...
Lunarin - Zero Point Red
Lunarin sound bigger than what you would expect for a three-piece band. They've played music for almost 15 years together, although they've only ventured down the path of a grungier, more progressive metal sound in the last five or so years. The culmination of all this is the brazenly self-recorded and produced Duae, which sees them embracing the path they've carved for themselves, with their influences of Tool, A Perfect Circle and Tori Amos firmly etched on their sleeves, like tattoos burned into skin. Lunarin take a familiar sound from the late 90s and with blistering conviction, spit a Molotov of poetic metaphors and bone-crushing riffs, all laced with Linda's "love 'em or leave 'em" vocals to slow crush your skull with.

SOUTH AFRICA: Musical Mover & Shaker!
Dance, You're On Fire - Little War
Dance, You're On Fire make music "for the love of music as a form of art". Their sound is a smooth slice of indie progressive rock mixed in with a slight alternative edge. Their single, Little War, off their new album, shows their ability to write rock songs with catchy hooks and also showcases a new, more polished sound that they have cultivated since the release of their EP. Dance, You're On Fire have all that is needed to succeed - with a catchy name and an even catchier sound, they are certainly a band to keep an eye on.

SOUTH KOREA: Indieful ROK
The Quip - Custard Pie
The five members of The Quip may all be a little heavy on the drinking, but that hasn't kept them from making some really good music. Their self-released debut EP Almost The Same offers plenty of variety with a psychedelic-grunge-experimental sound base. It came out this summer and was mixed and mastered by Apollo 18 bassist Jelly Boy. With the sound of a djembe setting a haunting mood, Custard Pie is an addictive, largely slow-paced tune with a finale that sees all of the band's rock energy unleashed.

SWEDEN: Swedesplease
Ed Greene - Love (She Tells Me There's A God Above)
I'm a big fan of the band Ed Greene. In fact, if you were to twist my arm I might say they're the best unsigned band in Sweden. At one time Ed Greene used to be a solo outfit but of late the band has been filled in and fleshed out. They readily admit a history of missteps and false starts but now they're back with an album of 11 new songs. Love (She Tells Me There's A God Above) may be one of the catchiest but there are presumably more where this came from.

SWITZERLAND: 78s
Choo Choo - It's A Good Thing
Choo Choo is steam-powered indie-pop from Bern, the capital of Switzerland. The band has just released new track It's A Good Thing from their forthcoming as-yet untitled record which will be released in January. They recorded it in the Svenska Grammofon Studion together with producer Kalle Gustafsson (José González, Junip, Shout Out Louds, The Soundtrack of Our Lives, El Perro Del Mar, Mando Diao, Jens Lekman and many more). Definitely a big promise for 2011.

UNITED STATES: I Guess I'm Floating
Marnie Stern - Transparency Is The New Mystery
Marnie Stern hails from New York City and is a thirty-something female rocker with guitar chops and stellar songwriting skills. After the success of her 2008 release This Is It, I wondered how Stern would build upon it, but her upcoming self-titled LP looks to be just as solid. New single Transparency Is The New Mystery is an awesome jam, from heart-pounding drums and shrilling vocals to the shreddable guitar - Stern's doing edgy rock and roll right.

VENEZUELA: Barquisimento
Kuartzo - No Estas Aqui
Kuartzo is a band from Barquisimeto that started in 1998 playing mostly covers. In 2000, they ventured into writing their own material and recorded Cabalgando Mariposas, their first CD. They put their previous music experiences in the mix, developing the band's original sound of refreshing rock ballads. They are now working on their third album, Victima de la Moda ("Fashion Victim"), from which this song, No Estas Aqui, is taken.