Shannon and the Clams – “Into a Dream”

Shannon’s sweet snarl leads us through a tunnel-of-love melody and ’50s pop arrangement. The gloriously lo-fi production and Shannon and her Clams’ disorienting harmonies make the whole thing a fun, woozy ride. Dreams in the Rat House is due out May 21 on Hardly Art. Listen or download for free from Amoeba. Check ’em out at Amoeba San Francisco Thursday May 23 at 6 p.m.!

Honeymoon – “Sure Stuck”

Honeymoon is an Australian-born, L.A.-based production duo whose upcoming album is said to be an update of ’60s/’70s psychedelic pop. It sure sounds that way from “Sure Stuck,” the second song they’ve released from the upcoming album. Think a more electronic Tame Impala. Honeymoon’s one to keep an eye on.

Starting a new feature to highlight some recent tracks available to download on the Amoeba site. Take a listen and if you like them, add them to your Amoeba shopping cart (you won’t be charged until you check out). All downloads are in the $.98 MP3 format; visit the album page to pick up higher-res M4A or WAV files.

Mikal Cronin – “Weight”

Starting with a stately piano and acoustic jangle, “Weight” opens Mikal Cronin’s excellent MCII on a classy note. Those Rubber Soul-style harmonies and crunching guitars at the chorus don’t hurt, either. This one’s a free download. (From the album MCII)

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Ancient Animals – “Teen Wolf”

Savages – Silence Yourself

CD $12.98

LP $18.98

Savages’ primal, post-punk-inspired sound demands your full attention. From the get-go, Silence Yourself is no warm-hearted embrace of a record — its first song is called “Shut Up,” and then there’s that title. But theirs isn’t an empty confrontation; the British band delivers in spades with songs that dive into your bloodstream and live in you before you know it. “I Am Here” declares itself as a bearing for what’s to come, as if frontwoman Jehnny Beth is grabbing your hand and coaxing you toward your own future. “I am here, no more fear, no more dark shadows, let it come,” she sings chillingly in a mid-range trill somewhere between Siouxsie, Jeff Buckley and Rush’s Geddy Lee. Her band works into a froth that leads to an inevitable conclusion of Ayse Hassan’s pulverizing bass and Fay Milton’s bashing drums while Beth and guitarist Gemma Thompson trade ghostly exchanges above. Silence Yourself isn’t entirely full-throttle though; as any good post-punk devotee knows, the trick is pairing those moments with eerie, atmospheric tunes, and that’s exactly what Savages do, allowing for songs like “Waiting for a Sign,” which summons a combination of apocalyptic sound from Thompson’s guitar and Beth’s banshee wail, while Hassan and Milton keep things anchored in a glacial groove. “Dead Nature” follows, full of empty, echoing dread; these two songs allow the record to reach a midpoint of hollowed-out intensity before ratcheting back up the energy, on songs like “She Will,” which starts as the friendliest and danciest song on the record, until they make that chorus into an uncompromising sexual tirade. “Hit Me” and “Husbands” round out the album by allowing the band to play with full abandon. In the latter, Beth takes the confines of marriage and makes them into a virtual prison, crying “husbands” in frightening, alien repetition. The album’s piano-led, cabaret-esque closer, “Marshall Dear,” speaks great promise of Savages, as Beth goes lower in register and more operatic and the band tempers its great noise-making capabilities. It’s a riveting debut record from start to finish. We knew it was gonna be good judging by the advance press and last year’s I Am Here live EP, but Silence Yourself still smashes expectations and leaves you sitting in smoke, begging for more.

Classixx Announce Remix EP; Preorder Hanni El Khatib's 'Head in the Dirt'

Leading up to the May 14 release of their long-awaited debut LP, Hanging Gardens, L.A. duo Classixx have announced an EP with remixes of their recent single, the infectious disco jammer “Holding On,” will be released April 2. It features this slightly slowed down yet no less shimmering remix by Jerome LOL, among others. You can download the original “Holding On” here.

Speaking of remixes, Classixx also recently remixed fellow Angeleno and garage rocker Hanni El Khatib’s track “Penny”; check out the remix, the original and preorder Hanni El Khatib’s Head in the Dirt (CD or LP), due April 30, also on Innovative Leisure.

Bleached Premiere “Dead in Your Head,” Album Out Next Week

Young Prisms – “Runner” video

S.F.’s Young Prisms have released a video for the song “Runner,” from 2012’s In Between. For the uninitiated, Young Prisms combine hushed, reverbed out vocals with pop melody, lush synthesizers and crisp, Sonic Youth-esque guitar lines They share some elements in common with S.F.’s Tamaryn, with whom they recently toured, like the pop counterpart to Tamaryn’s oceanic soundwaves. If you haven’t yet checked them out, here’s a great place to start. They’re at the Echo in L.A. March 15 and the Chapel in S.F. March 16.

The Cyclist – “Visions” video

Though he hails from Northern Ireland, producer The Cyclist has joined the fold of L.A.-based Stones Throw and Leaving Records, who recently signed a distribution deal for Stones Throw to distribute Leaving Records titles. The mind-expanding “Visions” appeared on Dual Form, a cassette release celebrating the deal and Leaving Records’ catalog. It will also appear on The Cyclist’s upcoming debut LP, Bones in Motion, releasing March 26 via Stones Throw/Leaving. The song is accompanied by a dizzying array of colors and images that makes up its great video, directed by Miko Revereza.