With a name like Super Furry Animals, you expect a band that sounds a bit mad (mad in the British sense) and more than a bit wonderful. Fortunately, the Super Furries are precisely both. They recently released their eight full-length studio album and it is nothing short of a pop gem. Not that this should come as a surprise…well, sort of. Frankly, you never know what you’ll get with SFA. Their records are always terrific and laced with genius melodies and hooks, but sometimes you also get more than you bargain for. You might get wall of noise, you might get funk, you might get keyboards squelching, and then you might get a tuneful ditty that would make even Jeff Lynne cop a grin. But this newest, Hey Venus!, is pop perfection. It’s a brief one at just under 40 minutes, but there’s definitely never a dull moment and it’s an enjoyable listen from start to finish.

If you dig it, also check out singer Gruff Rhys‘ solo album from earlier this year entitled Candylion.

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It’s going to be a tough one when it comes time to picking my favorite albums of this year. A whole bunch of my favorite bands have put out a slew of great records in 2007. One favorite that I hadn’t expected to hear from again was Film School. Rumors had gone around that they’d broken up last year. They’ve gone through some line-up changes but the core of what makes them great is still intact: good songs. Formed in 1998 in San Francisco, Film School play a brand of shoegazey post-rock that is neither tribute nor dated. What also makes Film School unique is that unlike so many other bands who fall into this category, they’re not afraid to rock. Their newest release, Hideout, gets turned up quite frequently in my car. Enjoy a track below.

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Hot on the heels of news that noisepop legends My Bloody Valentine are reuniting for Coachella next year, I have more good news for fans of the genre. Swervedriver is reforming for the first time in almost 10 years and touring for Spring 2008. If we can get Ride, Lush, and Slowdive to join a bill with MBV and Swervedriver, I could die a deaf, happy man.

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If you enjoy these tunes, tune into my radio show on kxlu 88.9fm 10a-2p every monday. we’re also streaming live at www.kxlu.com.