Exclusive mp3: Protokoll

Honeypump message-boarders threw a hissy when Protokoll disabled the download function on their MySpace page last week, in advance of the Allston post-punk band's signing a singles deal with an undisclosed UK label. OTD, though, is all about second chances. The Protokoll dudes checked in from SXSW to share the best track from their 2005 EP (take that, MySpace!): morbid frontdude moaning like the second coming of the second coming of Bela Lugosi, while an undertow of lighter-than-Air synths leavens the mood from garish to damn near sweet. If these guys aren't famous by 2007, someone over there in England isn't really trying. Check them the New England Product/ThePhoenix.com showcase on Friday at Bill's Bar with 8mm Fuzz and a band that needs no introduction to regular readers of this blog, Blanks.

DOWNLOAD: Protokoll, "Holy Divine" (mp3, via Phoenix Band Guide -- sorry about the filename)