The Breaking Blog kicked off 2008 with a post about L.A. quartet Bodies of Water, and we're happy to do the same in 2009! Click above to watch the band's creepy but beautiful new video for "Under the Pines," which features a shotgun, a dog, a child burned by lye and the band's thick layers of knotty rock. Last year we said the band's sound recalled "The Arcade Fire as composed by Ennio Morricone. The band funnels roots rock, soaring gospel, the Mamas & the Papas-style harmonies and Spaghetti Western themes into an uplifting, California-baked package." We'll stand by that description in '09.
Irish rockers Bell X1 will return March 3rd with *Blue Lights on the Runway*, the follow-up to this year's *Flock*. Singer-guitarist Paul Noonan said the group started recording the new disc last November in a "big, draughty, stately home called Ballycumber House, under the beady gaze of musty portraits of the Lords and Ladies of the estate from the 15th century. We wanted to make something different, something tight and coherent from start to finish. Where we've landed is a little bit electronic, a little bit Bacharach, a little bit New Orleans Funeral March." Judge for yourself here, with a free download of a band-new *Runway* track: "How Your Heart Is Wired" [right click and select "save as"]
Who: The Veronicas, an Australian pop duo named after the Archies Comic featuring twin sisters Jessica and Lisa Origliasso, who are hoping to bring their huge success Down Under into the States with a little help from the Jonas Brothers. Sounds Like: On their second album Hook Me Up, the Veronicas make the leap from teenybopper rock to electro-pop similar to the Sounds and CSS. "That whole indie electro scene was coming up and in a mainstream way we wanted to bring that out in our music," Lisa says of the band's new aesthetic, which immediately resulted in a Number One single, Hook's opening track "Untouched," in their home continent. Onstage though, Jessica says, "Our shows are a lot more rock, we like to keep that alive." Vital Stats: • Over the span of only two albums, the sisters have already worked with an all-star lineup of talent including Swede pop god Max Martin, new American Idol judge Kara Dioguardi, Grammy-winning songwriter Billy Sternberg and producer Toby Gad. During their first tour of the U.S. in 2006, the Veronicas' opening act was some little known band called the Jonas Brothers. The Veronicas returned the favor, opening for the JoBros during their Burning Up Jaunt in 2008.