Memoryhouse, the Canadian dream pop duo from Ontario, is back with a new single off their forthcoming album, The Slideshow Effect. The new song, “The Kids Were Wrong”, sees their minimalist, synth-backed sound and nostalgic lyrics on full display yet again. With phrases like “hiding in daydreams” and “we’ll see daylight through the blinds”, listening transports you into a hazy world where past, present, and future mix to create something entirely new, yet familiar.

MP3: Memoryhouse – The Kids Were Wrong

One of my favorite Brooklyn bands, Small Black, have always dealt in pseudo-sluggish, druggy, atmospheric dance-pop. The type of electro-pop tunes that are best busted out amidst the beautiful slop of a sweaty, drunken dance party that has just begun its hilarious descent into late night, drug-induced high jinks. But the band’s newest release, Moon Killer Mixtape, is a slight departure from the youthful exuberance of their breakthrough EP and their more intricate but equally compelling and energetic follow-up, New Chain.

That is to say that Moon Killer seems, to me at least, to be more reflective, more contemplative, a little lazier, a little dreamier (let’s call it slumber-pop), but again, equally enjoyable and impressive in aim and execution. If their first two sonic collections were meant for the late-late night dance floor, then Moon Killer is ideally enjoyed in an early morning post-party haze.

Highlights include Das Racist’s Heems’ guest free verse on tracks “Two Rivers” and “Sunday Son” where he sounds like a disinterested, post-modern-pop-culture-obsessed Biggie Smalls. Also of particular pleasure is the blissful title track, as well as the two remixes, especially Phonetag’s “New Chain” recasting, in which their funky Phil-Collins-esque backdrop beats are turned up and given room to shine.

You can download the album in its entirety here, or stream some highlights below.

MP3: Small Black – “Moon Killer”
MP3: Small Black – “Two Rivers (feat. Heems)”
MP3: Small Black – “New Chain (Phonetag Remix)”

DJ Angus Wong is the resident DJ at the W Hotel Hong Kong and is currently on the W Hotels Worldwide X Burn Studios DJ Lab 2012 Global Tour which has him traveling to such excellent locales as Barcelona, London, St. Petersburg and Paris to show-off his skills. In between dance floors he’s found time to create monthly mixes highlighting some of his favorite artists and remixes from the month before. We’re super excited to be premiering each mix every month here on ATG in a new segment we’re calling First Fridays. This months mix is a chilled out disco collection called Shimmer and features artists such as Metronomy, Yuksek, Midnight Magic and a host of others. We’re making a limited number of downloads (100) available, so grab it fast! Full track-listing after the jump.

DOWNLOAD: DJ Angus Wong – Shimmer (Chart Mix October 2011)

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ATG-favorites Washed Out are set to release “Amor Fati” as a single on November 7th (via Sub Pop), and with that comes the b-side, titled “Call It Off.” The new track features some of the same muted, sun-drenched instrumental melodies that we’ve come to expected from Ernest Greene, though the song is just a tad more fast-paced than most of the tracks from his masterful full-length Within and Without. Grab the b-side below.

MP3: Washed Out – “Call It Off”

Memory Tapes is one of the less talked about chill-wave surfers, but arguably the prototype. In all likelihood, Dayve Hawk would rather not be mentioned in the same sentence with chill-wave … well, too late. However, his music does deserve to stand alone, and his latest effort, Player Piano, out this past summer on Carpark Records, is further proof. More like Toro y Moi than Neon Indian, Memory Tapes works with a sparser, dreamier landscape of sounds. And “Offers” is another phenomenal example of this: his laid-back psychedelic pop sensibilities twirling around and around until you (the listener) find yourself staring at a big bubbly cloud of cotton candy funk, just waiting to be lapped up. Trust me, I don’t make this stuff up.

STREAM: Memory Tapes – “Offers”

I’m blatantly regurgitating this number from one of my favorite blog destinations for obscure electro-gems (check out Blissblog if you haven’t already), but oh well, y’all just need to know about this one.

Neil Young is probably my favorite artist of all time. But I also by chance enjoy atmospheric house tracks. So I was of course pumped, not offended, when Poolside electro-fied “Harvest Moon.”

Who wouldn’t be pumped? The result is incredible.

But Poolside were not the first to take Neil into the DJ booth. Check our Saint Etienne’s dancy version of “Only Love Can Break Your Heart.”

Enjoy.

MP3: Poolside – “Harvest Moon” (Neil Young Cover)”
MP3: Saint Etienne – “Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Neil Young Cover)”

By this point, it’s safe to say that I’m going to love practically anything with Star Slinger’s name attached to it.  And this time, he’s teamed up with another ATG favorite in Body Language, some Brooklynites whom we’ve praised in the past.  The remix is Star Slinger through and through, from the rolling snares to the heavy bass lines and wobbly synths.  He pitches the vocals to each extreme, which allows the beat to flow freely through the center.  Star Slinger has given this chilled-out, synthy track a little more umph, and I like it.

MP3: Body Language – “You Can” (Star Slinger Remix)
MP3: Body Language – “You Can”

Kieran Hebden has been making tripped-out instrumental melodies under the alias Four Tet since the late nineties, and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down since. His breakthrough track “Everything is Alright” (off of 2001′s Pause) has been used on NPR and in various film soundtracks, and he’s since released a slew of other recognizable songs that have kept the British producer at the forefront of his genre.

Hebden is back with a new track, “Locked,” that has all the makings of a trademark Four Tet track: subdued, atmospheric melodies that are are at the same time gripping and innocuous. The song, featured at the end of his Fabriclive 59 mix, should also see a single release, according to P4K, but have a listen before then.

STREAM: Four Tet – “Locked”