Utilizing guitar, loops, samples and vocals, Deakin builds a delicate balance between discord and ambience. Crackling with emotion, songs engulf him in chiming, clockwork sounds. From within this nebula, Deakin’s voice emerges, clear eyed and focused, while earthy, foot-stomp rhythms unfold slowly and powerfully, reaching towards an expression beyond language.

Josh Dibb did recently announce that he will be re-joining Animal Collective, after taking a break during their Merriweather Post Pavillion recording and touring. Thankfully, though, it looks like he’ll still be doing some solo work too. Although he hasn’t released a proper debut yet, the live videos and bootleg recordings going around prove that his spacey, drawn-out style is compelling and as intriguing as the solo work of AnCo cohorts Avey Tare and Panda Bear.

So let’s get weird, everyone! Tomorrow night, Deakin will be taking the stage at the New Museum (Do they have a stage? Or has the art world progressed beyond stages?) along with Prince Rama. Get Weird a monthly party series at the museum  aimed at bringing “experimental and freaky jams” to the public. Those are our favorite kinds of jams!

Doors are at 7:00. Admission is $12 for museum members or $15 for regular Joes like us.

Apparently indie bands love footwear in 2010. Whether you’re Animal Collective designing a cute kids’ sneaker for charity, or Best Coast appearing on a song released by Converse. Well, now Converse is stepping up their effort to remain in with the hip music crowd by opening a recording studio in Williamsburg.

Rubber Tracks will serve as a catalyst for originality by giving new and emerging bands the opportunity to record their songs in a high-quality studio setting. Musicians of all genres will be able to apply in advance for a time to use the studio – for free. As in no cost.

The studio will be called Rubber Tracks (I bet they thought of naming it the Converse Shoe-dio, but that got vetoed), and will open early next year. Below is a video of Big Boi, Neon Indian and a bunch of other people from the music world talking about recording studios and why they are so rad. I want to be skeptical and say this is all just a huge commercial for Converse, but this actually sounds like a really cool thing for a lot of bands that can’t afford studio space (or shoes). More information here.

Attention all sneakerheads! Animal Collective’s Avey Tare has designed a shoe! And you know what? It’s pretty dope.

This design comes as part of Animal Collective’s collaboration with Keep apparel company. And of course this is not just a labor of love of fashion and freshness, it is also for a cause. All proceeds are going to the Socorro Island conservation fund,  a non-profit helping to preserve a region off Baja in California, the Revillagigedo Archipelago. It was a place where the guys would go scuba diving together and marvel at some cool ass fishes. BUT THAT’S NOT ALL! The shoes also come packaged with a cassette of unreleased Animal Collective tunes. Bonus!

Pre-order these sneaks over at KEEP. They won’t come til March, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait til then to brag about having these.

Opening with beach waves and strumming simplicity Young Man’s debut release, aptly named Boy, brings us straight into a summery trance of hypnotic proportions. Slowly unfolding into the more hopeful “Hands”, we imagine Panda Bear and Fleet Foxes having a brain child and naming him Colin Caulfield– which should ring a bell to us Youtube obsessed music lovers.

Caulfield, who has made it a habit to post hauntingly beautiful covers of notable bands such as Deerhunter, Animal Collective, and now Beach House’s “Heart of Chambers”, even garnered attention from those he has recently emulated. Bradford Cox, Deerhunter’s leading man, recently noted Caulfield’s rendition of “Rainwater Cassette Exchange” as “fantastically superior to the original.”

“It actually sent shivers up my spine, especially during the second verse,” Cox noted.

Boy closes with “Up So Fast”, that we can only assume is the title track with the repetitive declaration of “I’m a boy, I’m a little boy” — which is not just a call to losing touch with childhood but foreshadows a seriously blooming career for a Young Man. The 7 song album is streaming over yonder, and it’s sure to make your day. You can check out Young Man’s NYC debut at Governor’s Island on August 7th, opening for Local Natives, while you longingly await the October 12th release of Boy on Frenchkiss Records.

Stop what you’re doing right now and check out this fantastic stop-motion short film by Keap Hope done in collaboration with the 2010 Crest Hardware Art Festival. It features a ladder strolling around the ‘Burg, the merch at Crest Hardware sneaking around, and Joseph Franquinha, co-curator of the show.

Music is “Your Love” by Frankie Knuckles / Jaimie Principle, with a few doses of Animal Collective’s “My Girls” on the bookends.

Steps Home from Keap Hope on Vimeo.