Also at verveslag.

Who are Floorbirds? I don't know and neither do you. But their five track album The Sea of Language Around Us hit the net (for download and streaming off their website) yesterday and I'm hooked. Just when you thought Franz Ferdinand was the hottest new thing in indie rock (silly you), here comes a more acoustic Air, a less morbid My Bloody Valentine, a less frightening Lou Reed.

What impresses me most about this album (really more a demo than anything else) is what a range is displayed in so few tracks. The Sea opens with "The Planes," a Sigur Ros-ian anthem (except in English, and with a beat). What follows is the demi-poppy "Time Looks Back" — "Touch Me" for a new generation? — and capped off by an early Cat Stevens feeling fifth track. But enough of my drawing vapid comparisons. You should be listening already.