Formed on a dare in 2001, Cincinnati’s Wussy is at the forefront of New Midwestern Psychedelia. Following the release of their cult classic debut in 2005, “to certain fans ofLucinda Williams, Crazy Horse, Mekons and R.E.M., Wussy became the best band in America almost instantaneously with...Funeral Dress” (SPIN). Heralded by critics for both their songwriting and varied sonic palette, the five-piece is pleased to announce their sixth full-length Forever Sounds, due out March 4 via Shake It Records & Damnably(UK/Europe). Dubbed by SPIN as “their most challenging and densely textured to date”, the new album finds Wussy crafting raw and melodic material, exploring such themes as hauntings, false prophets, aliens, and The Big Lebowski all blanketed inside layers of noise. In anticipation for the release, Wussy has revealed the first track “Dropping Houses” onSPIN. The single will be available for download via Bandcamp and in a limited run of 7” vinyl’s starting January 29.
 
Lyrically, Forever Sounds deals with themes of the unknown, the archaic, and the occult. Album opener, “Dropping Houses” looks back at a toxic relationship and mentions theWizard of Oz through a singable wall of noise. Other pop culture references abound, such as “Donny’s Death Scene” which eulogizes Donny Kerabatsos in the Coen Brothers movie The Big Lebowski. “She’s Killed Hundreds” offers a catchy, fuzzed out track about hearing the fantastic tales of someone or something that you’ve lost.
 
Made up of Chuck Cleaver (Ass Ponys), Lisa Walker, Mark Messerly, Joe Klug, and John Erhardt, Wussy has truly come into their own on the new album. Following the band’s first US TV appearance on CBS in 2014 and increased critical acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork and SPIN, they headed to the studio to record Forever Sounds with renewed vigor. John Hoffman and Jerri Queen (both of Vacation), along with John Curley (Afghan Whigs) at Curley’s Ultrasuede Studios, the new team and location enabled the band to take more chances and create the sound they had always been reaching for. While their pop sensibilities remain intact, the mix and instrumentation are more reminiscent of the band’s noise-heavy live shows. The album’s ten tracks are full of hope, determination, heartbreak, deception, aliens, the supernatural, the everyday, friendship, love and second chances.


Tour Dates
2/18 – Seattle, WA at The Funhouse (El Corazon)
2/19 – Seattle, WA at Sonic Boom Records
2/20 – Portland, OR at Dante’s
2/27 – Cincinnati, OH at The Woodward Theater
3/4 – New York, NY at Webster Hall
3/5 – Baltimore, MD at Club 603
3/11 – Chicago, IL at Red Line Tap
3/12 – Chicago, IL at Red Line Tap
3/29 – Washington, DC at TBC
3/30 – Brooklyn/Queens, NY at Trans-Pecos
3/31 – Philadelphia, PA at MilkBoy
4/2 – Boston, MA at Midway Cafe
4/28 – Manchester, UK at The Castle
4/30 – Cardiff, UK at The Full Moon
5/1 – London, UK at Walpurgis Nacht Festival
5/3 – Leicester, UK at The Musician
5/5 – Brighton, UK at The Hope and Ruin
6/8 – St. Louis at TBC
6/14 – Los Angeles, CA at Silverlake Lounge
6/15 – San Francisco, CA at Elbo Room
6/18 – Seattle WA at El Corazon
6/20 – Boise, ID at TBC
6/24 – Chicago, IL at Empty Bottle
6/25 – Minneapolis, MN at Icehouse

Santigold’s third album, 99¢ , will now be released worldwide on February 26^th  via Atlantic Records.  She will make your 99¢ dreams come true in 2016! Santigold will kick off the year sharing more material and videos from the album with a tour to follow. Stay tuned toSantigold.com, which will be updated continually with exclusive content. In the meantime, watch the cameo filled video directed by Santigold and Trouble Andrew for “Who Be Lovin Me (feat. ILOVEMAKONNEN)” here 
 
Happy Holidays!

Following the victory and tragedy of 2013’s How To Say Goodbye, Photo Ops returns with their sophomore offering, Vacation, out 2/5 via Bad Friend Records and available to pre-order now. Masterminded by Nashville’s Terry Price, the dream pop project brings life to the deepest questions and concerns with infectious melodies and lush, often-unexpected textures. At once remarkably accessible and deeply poignant, Price effortlessly weaves hooks and harmonies that force the listener to both sing and think along.
 
The past half-decade or so has forced Price face-to-face with some of the darkest issues imaginable. His father was diagnosed with schizo-affective disorder, cursed by the symptoms of manic depression and schizophrenia throughout his life. He died in 2011 of a heart attack at age 55. Meanwhile, Price himself woke one morning with one side of his face completely paralyzed and was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy. He eventually recovered movement and his prognosis is positive. Still, the overall trauma combined to inform and inspire his debut work, asking universal questions we all desire the answers to, woven with driving, mesmerizing melodies.
 
As he returns on Vacation, Price creates soundscapes he hopes to be just that- a departure from daily life and chaos, shimmering with details immediate rather than obscure. Pondering how much thought to dedicate to the past, present and future, he paints mountain and ocean views in a dream pop via alt-country palette. “I’d Be Dead” features classical acoustic guitar and a mesmerizing melody, while “Memories That Glow” holds a bouncing piano hook begging to break free from the past. Meanwhile, “You And Me Driving Cross Country” captures perfectly a moment in time, with Price using his voice as in instrument, layering and harmonizing it with sighing strings.
 
“I’d Be Dead” was unveiled by Consequence of Sound and is available HERE to post and share!
 
A Nashville native for the past 15 years, Price was formerly a member of Oblio, who toured extensively for years. As he continues to come into his own with Photo Ops, he has shifted from the creation of a live experience to the composition of a pristine and honest record, with songs that both get stuck in your head and bring you to face some of life’s toughest questions. Vacation is a human album that communicates pain but feels like understanding.

Track List:
1.Once Around The Town Square
2.Old Lullabies
3.I’d Be Dead
4.You Could Be Great
5.Memories That Glow
6.Maybe We’ll Change
7.You And Me Driving Cross Country
8.Kathleen
9.To Move On
10.It Isn’t Mine

From standout tracks like the surging rhythmic workout of  “May 23rd," to the back-and-forth college rock/guitar crescendo overdrive of “Shiva," the group's triangulated presence is in full force, offering a glimpse into the forward-thinking minds of one of Birmingham's best and brightest bands. Combined with decidedly uptempo numbers like the rollicking "Giant" and their inverted take on Faust's krautrock classic "Jennifer"-- Hypatia has set the bar exceedingly high for progressive music coming out of the Deep South.

Hypatia will be available on vinyl, cd, and digital formats-- complete with brilliantly conceived album art by New Zealand-born/New York-based Tamaryn, and Shaun Durkan, from San Francisco’s Weekend -- in early 2016 with supporting tours.

Irreverent alt-country quintet El Campo have returned to bring more banjo-kicked, folk inspired fun with the release of their latest EP, Skinny Kids/Sloe-Eyed. Driven by their down-home flair and enlightened songwriting chops, the 7” double A-side will offer a hint of what’s on the horizon for the Texas crew. The Skinny Kids/Sloe-Eyed double-A Side will be available to graze the eardrums of fans old and new on January 15th.
 
El Campo have taken 90’s emo to the dirt and raised it back up in Wranglers. One part folk, one part banjo and a little bit of debauchery, lead singer and songwriter and chief songwriter Jerid Reed Morris paints lyrical visions and melodies that catch in your mind like a stick in the mud. “Skinny Kids” opens with lonesome longing that gets punched up by claw-picking banjo, while “Spanish Revival” highlights the guys’ signature smooth-as-molasses pedal steel. Meanwhile, “Sloe-Eyed” channels that 90’s emo spirit and shakes a little desert sand all over it.
 
“Skinny Kids” was unveiled with PopMatters and is available HERE to post and share!
 
El Campo is singer-songwriter guitarist Jerid Reed Morris, pedal-steel player and singer Nick Richman, Bulls fan and banjo-picker extraordinaire Zach Almaguer, drummer and taco aficionado Rodolfo Villareal III and bassist Charlie Cruz. The quintet split their time between the Austin and San Antonio, and spend their time touring, recording, and remembering all day the precious Alamo. Be on the lookout for national tour dates coming very soon!
 
Track listing:
1. Skinny Kids
2. Sloe-Eyed
3. Spanish Revival
4. Slow Sloe-Eyed (Bonus Track)

Sometimes the creative stars align in the most peculiar of ways.  In these situations the elements come together at exactly the right moment with such speed and ease, one would assume that it was the work of some sort of higher power.
 
Such is the case when it comes to Like A Puppet Show, a vinyl-only release slated for fall’s Record Store Day on November 27, Black Friday. Like a Puppet Show marks the first of a series of collaborations between actor/director John Malkovich, top commercial director/photographer Sandro, and producer/composer Eric Alexandrakis.
 
For this project, John Malkovich recited Eric Alexandrakis’ version of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave over an original piece of music, while being paired with exclusive photos of Malkovich taken by Sandro. Once Malkovich’s part was completed the group began reaching out to a variety of artists to lend their creative flair to the release.
 
The results were instant and diverse: from the Electro-Kraftwerkian sounds of OMD, to the psychedelics of Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon, into the orchestral Celtic breeze of The Cranberries’ Dolores O’Riordan, skipping into the rock and roll humor of Dweezil Zappa, driving into the experimental electronics of Sameer Gadhia (Young The Giant), Efterklang, The Dandy Warhols and The Cars’ Ric Ocasek, through the epic gangsta rap of Blondie’s Chris Stein, the haunting beauty of Placebo, the classical piano of Harry Waters (son of Roger Waters), and resting with experimental ambience from Eric Alexandrakis.
 
The vinyl only release will be out on Record Store Day on November 27 and today the trio has shared the first track from the album “Cryoblue Cheese O” mixed by Ric Ocasek onPitchfork. Of the project Ocasek said, “The poem ALLEGORY OF A CAVE narrated by JOHN MALKOVICH sounded eerie to me, so I set it into that kind of musical landscape. The poem felt current, even though it was written around 380BC by PLATO. Only the ridiculers and weapons have changed as we move through time.”
 
The first release from this trio, Like a Puppet Show, is slated for Record Store Day/BlackFriday 2015, followed by two more releases to retailers, and direct to consumers via the web for the Christmas holidays. The first of many projects to be released by the trio, all of them are currently vinyl only, limited editions, featuring photographs of Malkovich by Sandro, and released on their Cryogenia π label.

Like a Puppet Show Tracklist
Cryocarbon 14C MIXED BY OMD
Cryolife 7:14 A.M. MIXED BY YOKO ONO & SEAN LENNON
Cryoblue Cheese Ο MIXED BY RIC OCASEK
CryoZolon X MIXED BY DWEEZIL ZAPPA
Cryoparoxsym A MIXED BY YOUNG THE GIANT
Platogenia X And The Caves MIXED BY THE DANDY WARHOLS
Cryostat Ø MIXED BY EFTERKLANG
Cryoplacebo 47/XXY MIXED BY PLACEBO
Photogenia C (Ruler Of Light) MIXED BY CHRIS STEIN
Optimogenia Z [Edit Mix] MIXED BY HARRY WATERS
Cryopian D MIXED BY DOLORES O'RIORDAN
 

Brooklyn’s very own perpetual-motion machine, They Might Be Giants are releasing their second album of 2015. The eagerly awaited follow up to their Grammy-winning Here Come the 123s and the Grammy-nominated Here Comes Science, the legendary originals return to the world of kids stuff with a fantastic set of new songs. Why? will be released November 27^th via Idlewild Recordings. Check out the song “Definition Of Good” just previewed on Dial-A-Song. Repost and share the joy!
 
Coming out of the gate with the odd brilliance of “Oh You Did” through the pop charm of “Out of A Tree,” “Elephants” and “Omnicorn,” to the rocking optimism of “Then The Kids Took Over,” Why? has everything to delight both kids and parents alike. The album also celebrates marriage equality with the song “And Mom and Kid,” a track the band contributed to an HBO special on family diversity called "A Family is A Family is A Family.” Love wins! TMBG’s projects for kids always deliver memorable songs with irresistible melodies and original production values — all in a family-friendly package with none of that pandering aftertaste.  Available for pre-order now, fans can instantly receive four songs and choose from a series of packages that include a special TMBG ONE yo-yo and official Why? t-shirts in both yellow and green!

SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE started back in August 2004 as an ANTI-BAND! The idea was - instigated by Brad Truax - to put together a cracked mercenary “dirty dozen” type of outfit, who were never gonna write songs, never gonna practice, never gonna record music, never make any product for public consumption or ever hit the road!
 
Although Soldiers Of Fortune’s musical philosophy has stayed intact, they have strayed the path a bit with live shows and releases. On November 6 their newest full-length, Early Risers, will be released via Mexican Summer. Today the band has shared the album’s lead single “Nails” on Pitchfork. The track is now available to listen and share on YouTube.
 
In the beginning, SOF’s only goal was to play a rare show every now and then that they could assault, terrorize, and shred, relying only on instinct, intuition and the chemistry of the band of brothers (bros if you will) in the moment of battle (show) - it was either sink or swim, or death before glory.
 
After meeting with Keith Abrahamsson and learning what his label Mexican Summer was all about SOF conceded and signed a deal. With limited pressings, an eclectic roster, HEAVY VINYL, the obscure re-issues, Mexican Summer sounded like the ANTI-LABEL, a perfect fit. Months later, in August, they were in an unfinished Gary’s Electric studio on the hottest three days of 2010, and somehow walked out of the studio with a 12” called Ball Strenth.
 
Now here we are, another five years, very few shows, or LPs sold, later: in 2013 we got bamboozled by Keith into a SECOND recording sesh (WTF!?!), but this time we were offered "undisclosed" amounts of studio time alongside the usual "carte blanche". This of course meant string sections were hired, arrangers and composers enlisted, backup singers hit on, music biz lawyers attending mixing sessions, blowouts between the band and food delivery men, coffee pouring into the bass amp etc. After three weeks of this we aborted EVERYTHING, took a six-month hiatus to get over our collective S.E.N.D., Sophomore Effort Narcissism Disease, fell back in the studio and recorded a dozen embryonic 'song ideas', rather than jams, over an afternoon. We then called up friends who know how to sing and finished up the damn thing in like three days.
 
The result is an LP we like to call EARLY RISERS, and beyond the core troupe consisting of Brad Truax (Home, Spiritualized, Interpol), Kid Millions (Man Forever, Oneida), Barry London (fuck yeah Oneida), Matt Sweeney (Chavez being his LEAST well-known operation should tell you something), Jesper Eklow (Meandering Tedium, sorry, Endless Boogie), Mike Bones already, and the elusive Papa Crazee (heavy early riser in team Oneida) we abused the superior vocal stylings of our Healer, Shaman and Answer CLARK "YEREMIAS" BRONSON, STEPHEN MALKMUS, CASS MCCOMBS, DAN MELCHIOR, ETHAN MILLER and MATT MCAULEY. This is the sound of utter confusion and unfocused tender hatred in song form. We have no idea if we even like it, but we definitely have no shame so here you are, crack Early Risers wide open and make up your own mind. We have no interest in knowing your opinion however, so keep it to yourself. Thank You.
 
Track List
01. Nails (ft. Kid Millions)
02. Cinnamon Man (ft. Kid Millions)
03. Campus Swagger (ft. Stephen Malkmus)
04. Old Roman Wall (ft. Cass McCombs)
05. Dog Tooth Down (ft. Ethan Miller)
06. Pure Shame (ft. Dan Melchior)
07. Santa Monica (ft. Mike Bones)
08. Fatigues (ft. Crazee)
09. Kall Mi Kaos (ft. Matt McAuley)
10. Which (ft. Clark "Yeremias" Bronson)
 

A classically trained multi-instrumentalist weaned on jazz, blues, and soul, Vermont native Ryan Cavanagh – known to fans as Slow Hands – has built quite a following since signing to Brooklyn-based boutique label Wolf + Lamb.
 
Releasing a handful of singles, remixes, and a well-received EP (2014’s Everything We Are), Cavanagh established a reputation as an up-an-coming deep house producer, remixer, and DJ known for his soulful grooves and deft touch on the dance floor.
 
All of which makes his debut album, I’ll Find Me—and its sharp right into a genre-morphing frontier of atmospheric guitars and whispery vocals—both an unexpected sonic shift and a return to his songwriting roots.
 
Out November 6^th, I’ll Find Me—its name a nod to the re-exploration of his classical background—is driven by storytelling. Recorded in an old renovated maple-sugar house in the expanse of a verdant Vermont forest, the album retains elements of the lush soulful grooves for which Slow Hands is known, but the focus has expanded.
 
“As a DJ, you’re mixing another person’s songs together; as a musician, you’re exposing every possible failure in yourself,” explains Cavanagh of the artistic fatigue that inspired this change of course.
 
The groove/dream state of “Phonograph Love” – premiering today via Wall Street Journal– explores this dilemma.  At face value, it’s a snarky reflection on “DJ groupies, who are everywhere, throwing themselves at any dude with a flash drive,” he says. But at heart, it’s an admission of the isolation he feels from superstar-DJ culture.
 
Slow Hands is not through DJing—that will always be a part of him. But matching beats is now extracurricular to his day job: a musician who crafts albums, instead of just making tracks.
 

Soldiers Of Fortune began as an anti-band and since their creation have grown into one of the most recognized indie superbands around, combining members of powerhouses likeOneida, Chavez, and Interpol. On November 6 their debut full-length album Early Riserswill be released via Mexican Summer and is available for pre-order now (links below). Today the band has shared the album’s newest single “Old Roman Wall” featuring Cass McCombson Stereogum. The track is available to listen and share on YouTube and as an instant download with a pre-order of the album on iTunes or Amazon.
 
In the beginning, SOF’s only goal was to play a rare show every now and then that they could assault, terrorize, and shred, relying only on instinct, intuition and the chemistry of the band of brothers (bros if you will) in the moment of battle (show) - it was either sink or swim, or death before glory. However, after meeting with Keith Abrahamsson and learning what his label Mexican Summer was all about SOF conceded and signed a deal. Months later, in August, they were in an unfinished Gary’s Electric studio on the hottest three days of 2010, and somehow walked out of the studio with a 12” called Ball Strength.
 
Now here we are, another five years, very few shows, or LPs sold, later: in 2013 we got bamboozled by Keith into a SECOND recording sesh (WTF!?!), but this time we were offered "undisclosed" amounts of studio time alongside the usual "carte blanche". After three weeks we aborted EVERYTHING, took a six-month hiatus to get over our collective S.E.N.D. (Sophomore Effort Narcissism Disease), fell back in the studio, and recorded a dozen embryonic 'song ideas', rather than jams, over an afternoon. We then called up friends who know how to sing and finished up the damn thing in like three days.
 
The result is an LP we like to call EARLY RISERS, and beyond the core troupe consisting of Brad Truax (so many bands, but dude, Interpol?), Kid Millions (Man Forever, Oneida), Barry London (fuck yeah Oneida), Matt Sweeney (Chavez being his LEAST well-known operation should tell you something), Jesper Eklow (Meandering Tedium, sorry, Endless Boogie), Mike Bones already, and the elusive Papa Crazee (heavy early riser in team Oneida) we abused the superior vocal stylings of our Healer, Shaman and Answer CLARK "YEREMIAS" BRONSON, STEPHEN MALKMUS, CASS MCCOMBS, DAN MELCHIOR,ETHAN MILLER and MATT MCAULEY. This is the sound of utter confusion and unfocused tender hatred in song form. We have no idea if we even like it, but we definitely have no shame so here you are, crack Early Risers wide open and make up your own mind. We have no interest in knowing your opinion however, so keep it to yourself. Thank You.

For more than two decades, Lettuce have brought a new vitality to classic funk, matching their smooth and soulful grooves with a hip-hop-inspired urgency and mastery of beat. Now, on their fourth studio album Crush, drummer Adam Deitch, guitarists Adam Smirnoff and Eric Krasno, bassist Erick “Jesus” Coomes, keyboardist Neal Evans, saxophonist Ryan Zoidis, and trumpet players Eric Bloom and Rashawn Ross deepen that sound by channeling the sonic freedom and infectious energy of their incendiary live show. The band has now shared their first single from the record, “Phyllis” which premiered on Consequence of Sound and is available to hear and share via SoundCloud.
 
Produced by Lettuce and recorded/mixed by Joel Hamilton at Brooklyn’s Studio G, Crush first came to life on the road, with the band developing new material and testing it out live as they toured. As they pushed into new sonic territory throughout the making of Crush, Lettuce drew on a natural musicality that each member has sharpened through an impressive string of outside projects: Smirnoff has toured with Lady Gaga, Deitch also drums and produces for artists like Pretty Lights and Talib Kweli, Krasno has played on Grammy Award-winning albums from the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Ross is a full-time member of the Dave Matthews Band, and the most recent of Coomes’s bass credits include Dr. Dre’s Compton.
 
The follow-up to 2012’s Fly, Crush finds Lettuce brilliantly infusing their psychedelic and hip-hop sensibilities into bass-heavy funk. Featuring guest vocalists Alecia Chakour andNigel Hall, the record is an exploration of boundaries within the genre. With its spidery guitar work and hypnotic beats, “Phyllis” is a delicately sprawling epic that embodies what Deitch refers to as “a chill-hop vibe that’s kind of the flip-side of all that powerful uptempo funk that people might expect from us.” On “Get Greasy,” Lettuce give a nod to the groove-fueled EDM subgenre known as future funk, building off its highly danceable rhythm with a blissfully loose and horn-laced arrangement.
 
According to Lettuce, that sense of unity and togetherness has much to do with a camaraderie that’s only intensified over the lifespan of the band. Formed in 1992, when several band members attended a summer program at Boston’s Berklee College of Music as teenagers, Lettuce was founded on a shared love of legendary funk artists like Earth, Wind & Fire and Tower of Power. After returning to Berklee as undergrads in 1994, Lettuce started playing in local clubs and steadily built up a following that soon extended to cities across the country and then throughout the world. Releasing their studio debut Outta Herein 2002 and its follow-up album Rage! in 2009, the band dedicated the coming years to balancing their frequent touring with involvement in a host of other musical endeavors (including Evans and Krasno’s role as founding members of acclaimed soul/jazz trio Soulive).
 
In recent years, Lettuce have watched their fanbase expand as they’ve hit bigger and bigger stages and earned their name as a can’t-miss festival act. And in making Crush, the band had no trouble harnessing the spirit of their explosive live show. So while Crush offers everything from all-out party jams to headphone-ready journeys into space funk, each track was born from an unabashed joy and love of live performance. “That energy we get when it’s prime time and we’re about to go onstage and we’re just excited beyond belief—that all came out on this new album,” says Deitch. “There’s a feeling that the band is rising, and it’s a really beautiful thing.”
 
Tour Dates 
10/14 at Newport Music Hall in Columbus, OH
10/15 at Turner Hall Ballroom in Milwaukee, WI
10/16 at The Pageant in St. Louis, MO
10/17 at Hillberry 2: Harvest Moon Festival in Eureka Springs, AR
10/18 at The Blue Note in Columbia, MO
10/20 at Slowdown in Omaha, NE
10/21 at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, KS
10/23 at Art Outside in Rockdale, TX
10/24 at Hangtown Halloween Ball in Placerville, CA
10/27 at Intersection in Grand Rapids, MI
10/28 at The Vogue Theatre in Indianapolis, IN
10/29 at Headliners Music Hall in Louisville, KY
10/30 at WorkPlay Theatre in Birmingham, AL
10/31 at Voodoo Music and Arts Experience in New Orleans, LA
11/1 at Suwannee Hulaween in Live Oak, FL
11/3 at The Chop Shop in Charlotte, NC
11/4 at Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh, NC
11/5 at The Orange Peel in Asheville, NC
11/6 at Buckhead in Atlanta, GA
11/7 at War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville, TN
11/8 at Track 29 in Chattanooga, TN
11/10 ay Rex Theater in Pittsburgh, PA
11/11 at Tralf Music Hall in Buffalo, NY
11/12 at State Theatre in State College, PA
11/13 at PlayStation Theater in New York, NY
11/14 at PlayStation Theater in New York, NY
12/3-12/6 at Dominican Holidaze in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
12/31 at Riviera Theatre in Chicago, IL
1/6-1/10 at Jam Cruise 14
2/12-2/14 at Gem and Jam Festival in Tucson, AZ

Mercury Classics/Universal Music Classics is set to release the cast album of The Light Princess, on October 9. The Light Princess is Tori Amos’ first musical, which debuted to great critical acclaim at the National Theatre in 2013. The album features the original London cast, recorded entirely under studio conditions and, as a special bonus, will include two songs from the musical performed by Tori herself for the very first time. This 2 CD set comes in a beautiful digipack with a booklet including the complete lyrics and photos from the London production.
 
Offering fans a glimpse into the world of The Light Princess, “Althea” is now available tostream.
 
The anticipated cast recording shines a light on Tori Amos’ distinctive and powerful songwriting, with music and lyrics by Tori Amos, book and lyrics by Samuel Adamsonand based on a 19th century fairy tale by George Macdonald. Amos weaves her delicately crafted music throughout the narrative, with Adamson poignantly telling the story of a young woman facing her fears. The Light Princess is the next chapter in Amos’ trailblazing career.  
 
“The Light Princess” is Althea; the character loses her mother at the age of six. In an opposing kingdom, a young prince, Digby, also sees his mother die. Digby becomes so solemn that he never smiles. In contrast, Althea becomes so light with grief that she floats into the air where she never cries. She is shunned by her kingdom and locked away in her father’s castle.
 
One day, Digby declares war and Althea is forced out of confinement. She defies her father and escapes, only to encounter the solemn prince. Beside a lake, the warring heirs begin a passionate and illicit affair. But for Althea to find real love, she must first confront the world’s darkness and face her deepest fears.
 
The role of Althea is sung by Rosalie Craig, praised by The New York Times who stated,“In its leading lady, Rosalie Craig, a star is born.” Craig received an Evening Standard Award and a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for her moving performance. She can be heard on the cast album alongside the rest of the original cast including Nick Hendrix, Amy Booth-Steel, Kane Oliver Parry, Hal Fowler and Clive Rowe, among others. The album is produced by Amos and features Martin Lowe conducting with orchestrations by long time Amos contributor John Philip Shenale, as well as vocal arrangements and additional orchestrations by Amos and Lowe.
 
Amos and Adamson take this fairytale about grief, rebellion and love and create a one-of-a-kind musical that has been embraced by audiences and critics alike.
 

On the heels of two platinum Greek releases, headlining major festivals and gracing the covers of music and fashion magazines in her homeland, Monika is thrilled to announce her 3rd studio album, Secret In The Dark, available October 2 worldwide via Other Music Recording Co. Recorded at the Daptone-renowned Dunham Sounds Studios (Sharon Jones, Charles Bradley, Dan Auerbach) and produced by Dap-Kings & Menahan Street Band founding member Homer Steinweiss, the album breathes generational genre-spanning influences.
 
A distinctly New York album with a breezy Mediterranean heart, Secret In The Dark is a cunningly crafted record of ‘80s art pop infused with organic leftfield disco tones. Title track “Secret In The Dark” calls upon the genre’s forefathers with its own contemporary edge and irresistible bass line. Featuring Andrew Wyatt (Miike Snow, Mark Ronson), “Shake Your Hands” is a soulful dancefloor-ready single of layered horns, funky guitar, vocals and percussion that build to an epic breakdown. Syncopated, operatic vocals slice into shimmering synths and driving bass, creating a dark, ethereal soundscape on “Stripping.” 
 
“Stripping” premieres with FADER and is available to post & share HERE!
 
Amassing a dream-team of musicians, Homer Steinweiss, Thomas Brenneck, Nick Movshon, Victor Axelrod, Leon Michels, and others from the Brooklyn scene join Monika on Secret In The Dark. Fans will have a special early chance to experience the funk-pop extravaganza live at Brooklyn’s Union Pool on July 9. Be sure to catch Monika live and stay tuned for more news coming soon!

For Savannah, GA’s Kylesa, made up of Phillip Cope, Laura Pleasants and Carl McGinley, their seventh album, Exhausting Fire via Season of Mist, provides a crowning example of the positive output that comes at the hands of their incendiary and powerful, yet nuanced and colorful framework. Due out October 2, Kylesa has just shared the lead single from Exhausting Fire, “Lost and Confused.” The track is now available to hear and share onSoundcloud. In support of the release they will also be embarking on a tour across the US, tour dates are below.
 
Following on the heels of the artistic broad jumps the band has exhibited since forming in 2001, Exhausting Fire hurls even more rulebook pages out the tour van window as Kylesa further explore and incorporate psychedelic rock, new wave, space-age twangy Americana, 80s goth and death rock into their pitch-thick DIY punk/metal roots. But as much as change is a constant in their world, there exists connective tissue to the past despite Exhausting Fire being the most diverse, dynamic and fully-realized work of their discography.
 
In writing Exhausting Fire, the trio found themselves culling inspirations before getting together in various permutations at various times to wade through the amassed collections of riffs and ideas stockpiled before, during and after the punishing Ultraviolet tour schedule. Another curve Exhausting Fire throws at the listener is the manner in which the co-vocalists emerge sounding infinitely more comfortable and confident working as an integrative unit. The pair expertly dodge and weave around one another as an homage to the stratified spirit of their psychedelic influences while respecting the context of the song.
 
Captured at the familiar confines of the Jam Room in Columbia, SC, Exhausting Fire sees the trio immersing themselves deeper into themselves and their own process by refusing to hire an outside producer to assume Cope’s position. In fact, he reports having additional engineering duties dropped into his production seat, and spending more hours than ever working behind the board. In that sense, it’s not difficult to take the band at their word when Cope describes Exhausting Fire as “an album we really put our hearts on our sleeves for. We’ve always done that, but emotionally, it’s probably the most honest and raw album we’ve ever done.”
 
“No band sounds like us and we don’t sound like any other band,” concludes Pleasants. “After all these years of experimenting with different styles and sounds, we’ve really developed our own thing and I can faithfully say that we sound like us. With this album, we’ve successfully made a record that incorporates all the elements we’ve always played with into a record that works on its own.”
 
Tour Dates
8/29 in Durham, NC at Motorco
8/31 in Charlottesville, Va at The Southern
9/1 in New York, NY at Gramercy Theater
9/2 in Montreal, QC at Cafe Campus
9/3 in Toronto, ON at Mod Club Theater
9/4 in Chicago, IL at Reggie's
9/5 in St. Louis, MO at Ready Room
9/6 in Louisville, KY at Zanzabar
9/7 in Augusta, GA at Sky City
10/6 in St. Petersburg, FL at State Theatre
10/7 in Miami, FL at Grand Central
10/8 in Orlando, FL at The Social
10/9 in Savannah, GA at Jinx
10/10 in Asheville, NC at New Mountain
10/13 in Columbus, OH at The Basement
10/14 in Grand Rapids, MI at Pyramid Scheme
10/16 in Cleveland, OH at Grog Shop
10/17 in Pittsburgh, PA at Altar Bar
10/19 in Boston, MA at Brighton Music Hall
10/20 in Philadelphia, PA at Black Box at Underground Arts
10/23 in Richmond, VA at The Broadberry
10/24 in Washington, DC at Rock & Roll Hotel
10/25 in Atlanta, GA at The Drunken Unicorn
11/6 in Pomona, CA at The Glass House
11/7 in Los Angeles, CA at The Fonda Theatre
11/8 in San Francisco, CA at The Fillmore
11/10 in San Diego, CA at The Irenic
11/11 in Phoenix, AZ at Club Red
11/13 in Austin, TX at Red 7
11/14 in Houston, TX at Warehouse Live
11/15 in Dallas, TX at The Prophet Bar
11/17 in Colorado Springs, CO at The Black Sheep
11/18 in Denver, CO at Summit Music Hall
11/19 in Salt Lake City, UT at The Complex
11/20 in Boise, ID at Neurolux
11/21 in Portland, OR at Hawthorne Theatre
11/22 in Seattle, WA at The Crocodile

Minneapolis-based Carroll, one of the most colorful, carefully honed acts in indie rock, are many things: young, vibrant, contemplative. But perhaps most interestingly, they’re a case study in how four distinct creative voices can coalesce into one balanced, relentlessly engaging sound.
 
The mechanics were simple enough: Near the end of 2011, Brian Hurlow’s demos (think melancholic, synth-based pop) caught the ear of his college classmate, Charlie Rudoy. The latter was a drummer who could bring to the songs a live, artful element. The pair quickly moved in together on St. Paul’s Carroll Avenue, tucked neatly in between Summit Hill and the Mississippi River. After some experimenting and tip-toeing through early gigs, Hurlow and Rudoy brought on board two more musicians to flesh out the live show. Max Kulicke and Charles McClung, talented artists in their own right, slid seamlessly into the line-up on guitar and bass, respectively. From there, Carroll—two Rs, two Ls, and now two Charlies—was set in motion.
 
An EP, Needs, was followed in quick succession by a host of accolades.
 
Though their buzz was reaching a fever pitch, Carroll escaped to a cabin in the remote Northern wilderness. There, they recorded a handful of demos that ended up—by chance, by fate—on the desk of the renowned producer Jon Low (The War on Drugs, The National, more). Low summoned the band to Philadelphia, where they cut and mixed their self-titled debut LP in 18 marathon days. The sound could be best described as closing your eyes and submerging yourself into a bathtub of your ideal warmth--only to open your eyes and discover you're bathing in a hazardous green liquid. Even knowing this, you can't deny that you feel warm and coddled.
 
Despite the pace at which it was made, Carroll (due out September 18 on Entertainment One Music) is thoughtful, pointed, dense, fun, hypnotic. As for that coalescence, the band refuses to get in its own way. Carroll’s exercise in writing perfectly fucked up pop gems yielded an LP that sounds like a pop approach to writing heady, woozy, psychedelic rock. With singles (“Bad Water,” “Alligator”) already dominating radio markets, Carrollshould soon test its thesis from a much wider platform. Having opened for such disparate acts as Le1f and Dr. Dog, the four components to a singular vision are sure to find a home on dials and stages near you very soon.
 

Blue Gold – the debut album from Pony Boy out August 28^th – inhabits a dream state between art rock and alt-country, swaying between hope and lament, her velvety voice punctuated with sharp edges.
 
“The record is looking at California in the rear-view mirror,” explains the artist, real name Marchelle Bradanini, who currently splits time between Nashville and England. “Sometimes you gain perspective on a place when you leave it.”
 
This sense of flight and modern nomadism is manifested throughout Blue Gold and lends a sprawling feel to her tracks including lead single  “Marquee Man,” a sultry satire about an actor with an ego that is so inflated; he’s a legend in his own mind and the ambling, guitar-kissed “Metal Dreams” the first track revealed from the album which premieres today via Black Book.
 
The breadth of her musical references on Blue Gold is dizzying: Nina Simone, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, PJ Harvey, Cass McCombs, Hank Williams, Daniel Johnston, the funk singer Betty Davis…. Still, great humanistic soul belies her feminist punk ethos. “I love the intimacy of singer-songwriter records, dimensions to your voice, people who don’t exist in a scene,” she says.
 
Out August 28^th on the boutique imprint, Cosmic Thug Records – which Bradanini co-founded alongside Nashville producers, Adam Landry and Justin Collins – Blue Gold follows the release of Pony Boy’s breakout 2014 EP The Devil In Me.
 
Watch/Share the video for “Metal Dreams” – directed by actor-filmmaker Travis Nicholson and co-starring comedian Chris Crofton – HERE

Ellen Kempner, the 21-year-old guitarist and songwriter behind Boston based project,Palehound, is even more prodigious than her age suggests. On the heels of the critically acclaimed Bent Nail EP and a national tour with Speedy Ortiz, Palehound will release the highly anticipated debut full-length album Dry Food on August 14 via Exploding in Sound Records. Recorded with Gabe Wax (Wye Oak, Speedy Ortiz), the album is full of sonic and emotional twist in turns as it was written at a time in Kempner’s life that was defined by instability and uncertainty. Dry Food is highlighted by Kempner’s whispery alto voice and sophisticated musicianship, which gives the album a raw, confessional feel, even on louder, rattling tracks.
 
“Molly” bursts open the record with a static earworm of a bass line, fuzzed-out guitar textures, and a melodic hook standing as a snapshot of the deliciously unpredictable compositions to follow. “Healthier Folk” slows down the tempo but not the energy, as the moody, lackadaisical vocals are supported with a bright and grungy sound. The glistening and complex guitar work on the dreamy “Cinnamon” showcase Kempner’s musicianship while making it evident that her musical roots grow deep. Where as, “Cushioned Caging” finds her crystaline vocals set on top of crashing drums and walls of reverb, truly allowing her voice to shine.
 
Palehound mastermind Ellen Kempner played everything on Dry Food aside from the drum parts, and is joined live by drummer Jesse Weiss (Grass is Green) and bassist Nick Koechel. While the album chronicles a particularly rough time in Kempner's life, it does so with verve and grit, not to mention sterling musicianship and wry lyrics. Dry Food is a flag-plant by a young woman with a lot on her mind and talent to burn.

The Mynabirds are proud to announce their third full-length album, Lovers Know, set for release on August 7 via Saddle Creek.  Led by Laura Burhenn and produced by Bradley Hanan Carter of Black English, the album was recorded internationally over a yearlong period and forges into previously unexplored territory.  Exploring influences of 80s, 90s, and futuristic soundscapes, the record recalls Kate Bush, Sinead O’Connor, Jesus and Mary Chain, and My Bloody Valentine.  The result is arguably one of Burhenn’s most personal and confessional works to date, yet also her most accessible.
 
The lead single from the forthcoming album “Semantics” premiered on NPR All Songs Considered who proclaim “Laura Burhenn’s pop wisdom shines through on this shimmering single.” Be sure to listen and share the track, streaming now on YouTube.
 
A perfect intro to an album steeped in “break-up” themes, “Semantics” explores the complicated optics that color any long-term love. “Have you heard about the Buddhist monks who meditated on polluted water molecules?” asks Burhenn. “The molecules changed from sad, brown amorphous things into beautiful geometric shapes that looked genuinely happy. That's pretty much what this song is about. Long love is tough and it takes a lot of effort. It gets bent out of shape, and brown and a little amorphous over time. So in ‘Semantics’ I'm asking, "Does it matter what we call things, what we call 'Us'? And yeah, it does. It can change everything. If we call love something beautiful, if we put the energy into it being that, we can transform into that.”
 
Lovers Know is loaded with a fresh palette of new sounds — radiating synths, gauzy electric guitars, and electronic drums – but Burhenn’s brooding, unmistakable voice still leads the way.  Often depicted on the album are the universal themes of love, loss, and seeking connection.  “Love – or the lack of it – is the thing we all have in common.  It can destroy us.  It can break us open and let the light in.  And it’s also the thing that can make us sing,” says Burhenn.

Worriers will release their highly anticipated debut full-length effort Imaginary Life,August 7 via Don Giovanni Records. Produced by Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! and recorded & mixed by Marc Jacob Hudson (Saves The Day, Against Me!), the new record reinforces the powerful punk prowess that fans have come to expect from Lauren Denitzio. Imaginary Life is a collection of fast and infectious guitars, anthemic lyrics, and unyielding vocals.
 
While Imaginary Life doesn’t stray too far from past Worriers’ releases, it resonates stronger than ever in both sound and message. In the resolute political ballad ”They / Them / Theirs” we are questioned regarding notions of the gender binary and the frustrations that come with it. Arguably the most alluring track of the collection, “Plans” bursts open into an uplifting call to arms. Driven by percussive guitar and biting formidable lyrics “Yes All Cops” emphasizes the fact that white silence = white violence, especially in the wake of recent murders by the police.
 
“They / Them / Theirs” premiered with SPIN
and we encourage you to post & share.
 
Their approach to expressing politics in music is the feminist line “the personal is political”, using experiences to reflect on more universal political issues. On Imaginary Life, Worriers is Lauren Denitzio accompanied by Rachel Rubino (Bridge and Tunnel) and John McLean (Dead Dog, Todd Killingz) on lead guitars, Audrey Zee Whitesides (Mal Blum) on bass, Mike Yannich (The Ergs) on drums, and Lou Hanman (Caves) on backing vocals. Be sure to catch the band live on their national tour, which kicks off May 28^th at Silent Barn in NYC.

National Tour Dates w/ Caves
 
5/28: Brooklyn, NY @ Silent Barn
5/29: Pittsburgh, PA @ City Grows 
5/30: Cincinnati, OH @ Tacocracy
5/31: Bloomington IN @ Kroger Castle
6/1: Chicago, IL @ Live Wire 
6/2: Grand Rapids, MI @ The New Church
6/3: Milwaukee, WI @ Cocoon Room
6/4: Minneapolis, MN @ Hexagon
6/5: Minot, ND @ Pangea House
6/6: Bozeman, MT @ Zebra Cocktail Lounge
6/7: Missoula, MT @ Ole Beck VFW
6/9: Seattle, WA @ Narwhal
6/10: Portland, OR @ Twilight Cafe
6/11: San Francisco, CA @ Hemlock Tavern
6/12: Pomona, CA @ VLHS
6/13: San Diego, CA @ Tower Bar
6/14: Los Angeles, CA @ The Smell
6/15: Phoenix, AZ @ Trunk Space
6/16: Las Cruces, NM @ Haphazard Hall
6/18: Austin, TX @ Mohawk (inside)
6/19: Houston, TX @ WONKY POWER 
6/20: New Orleans, LA @ Sisters in Christ Records (Gasa Gasa)
6/21: Pensacola, FL @ Sluggo's
6/22: Gainesville, FL @ The Atlantic
6/23: Athens, GA @ Caledonia Lounge
6/24: Durham, NC @ Pinhook
6/25: Richmond, VA @ Gallery5
6/26: Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom (iDobi Festival w/o Caves)
6/27: Baltimore, MD @ TBA
6/28: Philadelphia, PA @ Boot & Saddle
6/29: New Brunswick, NJ @ The West
 

Brooklyn based garage rock trio Sharkmuffin creates super-heavy, jagged, and exceedingly catchy punk rock, which recently was named by Billboard as being one of the “20 All-Female Bands You Need to Know”. Experienced guitarist Tarra Theissen (vocals/guitar) and Natalie Kirch (vocals/bass) jammed in punk paradise Asbury Park in 2012 and have continued to play together since. After two powerful EP’s and a self-titled 7”, Sharkmuffin reveal their new track “First Date” via Flavorwire in anticipation of the upcoming release of debut LP Chartreuse.
 
The noise-punk-meets-psychedelic power pop group has evolved their sound on the new album working with drummer Patty Schemel (Upset, Death Valley Girls, Hole). The result is a full length filled with ten tracks of commanding hits. “First Date” is no exception. With raw, unapologetic lyrics, modest punk bass lines, ferocious drums, and crushing guitar, Sharkmuffin delivers an artfully crafted pop single.
 
“Chartreuse is mine and Natalie’s favorite color, but it’s also a liqueur whose recipe is only known by two monks, and each monk only knows half the recipe and has to keep it a secret,” Thiessen tells Flavorwire. “All the tracks are really bright, in your face, and obvious like the color, but all lyrically deal with relationship dynamics involving things that for better or worse were hidden from each other.”

“First Date” offers an accurate glimpse of Chartreuse while firmly standing as a powerhouse in its own right. Check it out, and stay tuned for the release of Chartreuse coming August 7^th on vinyl from State Capital, and digitally by Little Dickman Records.
 
Sharkmuffin will be heading on tour this summer, and their live show is not to be missed. If you’re in New York, catch them before they hit the road.

6/11 @ The Gutter (Northside Festival), Brooklyn, NY
6/25 @ Good Room, Brooklyn, NY

Psychic Reader is the debut LP from Minneapolis natives Bad Bad Hats, set for releaseJuly 17 via Afternoon Records (Yellow Ostrich, Haley Bonar). The album is comprised of experimental beats, growling guitars, and catchy pop melodies with vocals that are both dreamy and strikingly deep.
 
Album opener “Midway” is an undeniably infectious track that is broken up by a danceable, energetic pop chorus that tells a story of a relationship’s impending end. The trio effortlessly pivot to a grittier garage feel on “Shame,” which features an irresistible bass line, wailing guitar, and emotive vocals. The album’s namesake, “Psychic Reader,” is an epic cinematic track perfect for a warm summer drive with the windows rolled down. The beach-y “Fight Song” builds to an explosion of echoing howls, driving bass, and anthemic, empowering lyrics.
 
“Shame” premiered with FADER and we encourage you to post & share.
 
Bad Bad Hats are Kerry Alexander (vocals, guitar, wisdom), Chris Hoge (drums, courage), and Noah Boswell (bass, power). Bolstered by experimental touches from producer Brett Bullion (Poliça, Bon Iver), the indie rock trio take a refreshingly rebellious approach with lyrics that challenge gender conventions. With Psychic Reader, the band has created an artistically honest and widely accessible work.

John Tacon and Brandon Asraf have truly been building a movement. Spreading a message of empathy, positivity, and self motivation… The two artists have been playing gritty, bright yet sinister, witty alternative pop for inspired audiences throughout the country. John Tacon started by playing in a few short lived bands. He suggested his friend, Brandon Asraf, pick up an instrument. He chose the bass guitar and it not only offered distraction, it changed the course of his life. While Tacon’s upbringing was reasonably normal, Asraf, on the other hand grew up "like wolves" amid five siblings in a New Jersey household headed by a conman father. Dad's schemes ultimately tore the family apart. "Mom didn't take everything that happened the best," he says. But you can learn more about that in VICE’s article: “My Buddy’s Dad Was a Blood Diamond Smuggler”. Google it.
 
Asraf and Tacon jammed together for many years instrumentally before deciding to try writing songs. Asraf was initially concerned about his voice, but like with everything else, his confidence grew alongside his mastery. After giving their project its name in 2008, they followed in 2010 with Brick + Mortar’s first EP, 7 Years in the Mystic Room. It captured some buzz and, after lots of touring, the Bangs EP followed in 2013. For the past 2 years,Brick + Mortar have been criss-crossing the continent, playing their energetic anthems of empowerment. The band has given the two best friends an outlet to share their beliefs with the masses. Brandon says, “Music gave me a sense of value. I realized I could tell a story and express myself. It's positive. I'm meeting these people in the outside world that are making me feel like I can be the part of something positive on Earth, instead of being destined to this scumbag existence.”
 
 
Coming from the wrong side of the tracks, Asraf knew what Janis Joplin meant about the freedom of having nothing left to lose. "I was just a poor kid growing up. I didn't have an identity. I wasn't really good at anything," says Asraf. "I didn't have a fear of failing or of dying or of any of that, because I figure that was just what was going to happen anyway. Because of my life at the time, I just didn't give a fuck." The two have started assembling a following of believers. People who can relate to where they are coming from. If the songs weren’t catchy enough, the authenticity of the artists behind the music is relatable on so many levels.

Brick + Mortar is an escape for both the listeners and creators alike. The honesty of songs on “Dropped” can be heard July 17th. This release is the first time Brick + Mortar are truly free to do things their way. They are taking control of their future, and doing all the things the label would never let them do. They can’t wait for you to hear the new songs, and experience the live shows they will bring to you. Every song on the record will have a music video. They already have released the sleek sci-fi video for “Move To The Ocean” which was directed by Asraf’s brother Corey, and stars his youngest brother, EJ. This communal hand’s on approach is powered by the fans, because it’s all for them. “We are the band that only exists because of you. The "Dropped EP" is for anyone who ever believed in Brick + Mortar. Thanks for believing in us."
 

Tour Dates

7/16/15 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Cafe
7/17/15 - Cincinnati, OH @ Fountain Square w/ The Ting Tings
7/18/15 - Lakewood, OH @ Mahall’s 20 Lanes
7/19/15 - Columbus, OH @ Woodlands Tavern
7/21/15 - Detroit, MI @The Shelter
7/22/15 - Chicago, IL @ The Beat Kitchen
7/23/15 - Lawrence, KS @ Granada
7/24/15 - Denver, CO @ Underground Music Showcase 
7/25/15 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Loading Dock
7/27/15 - Seattle, WA @ El Corozon
7/28/15 - Portland, OR @ Analog Cafe 
7/29/15 - San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
7/30/15 - Redlands, CA @ Hangar 24 Brewery
7/31/15 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Satellite
8/01/15 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge
8/02/15 - Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
8/04/15 - Austin, TX @ The Mohawk
8/05/15 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
8/07/15 - Tampa, FL @ New Wrold Brewery
8/08/15 - Atlanta, GA @ Wrecking Ball 2015 
8/09/15 - Orlando, FL @ Backbooth
8/11/15 - Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
8/12/15 - Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter
8/13/15 - Washington, DC @ DC9
8/14/15 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Barbary
8/15/15 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall Studio
8/16/15 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Upstairs

Residing on the Southern California coast, young songwriter William Alexander infuses sound and culture and turns them into compact pop gems. For years he has been developing an extensive song catalogue as sun-streaked and sugary as his SoCal peers but with a relaxed modernity that is distinctly his own. Now with the help of east-coast indie upstart Yellow K Records, Alexander will finally share his recordings. His debut album, Strangest Things, will be released this November.
 
To kick things off, Yellow K has issued an introductory collection of covers and singles titled the Come Find Me EP. The first release is a cover of The Troggs’ “With a Girl Like You” premiering via Culture Collide. He tells Culture Collide, "It was another cold, lonely night. I had just finished watching the Katy Perry movie 'Part Of Me' and was inspired to pen a love song. I tried to come up with something original but just kept playing the chords to The Troggs 'With A Girl Like You' and said to myself, why mess with perfection. So I laid down the track that night and here it is. Call me Katy."

All Signs Point To Yes​ is the first solo release from Tokyo Police Club bandleader Dave Monks. Made up of six songs written after the completion of the band’s most recent album,Forcefield, the EP will be released on Tuesday, June 16 via Dine Alone Records and it will be available for pre-order on Tuesday, May 26. The first single is “Gasoline” which premiered today on Stereogum who described it as “a glimmering little folk-pop gem from one of indie rock’s great young minds.” The song is available to listen to and share on Soundcloud as well as to purchase on iTunes.
 
All Signs Point To Yes was written and completed ​over the latter half of 2013, while Monks was falling in love with a new person and a new place. Inspired by that romantic relationship and a move from Toronto to Brooklyn, Monks sought to hone in on the honesty in his songwriting, stripping away other sounds in order to focus the spotlight on his voice and acoustic guitar. The result is an EP of fully formed, earnest, and insightful songs that serve as both a natural evolution and familiar embrace of Monks’ music.
 
Removing the other instruments also revealed a creative freedom for Monks, inspiring a simplicity and directness to which all songwriters aspire. “As I was writing these songs I just thought, ‘What if this i​s​ the song, what if it just starts with me and I don’t have to add anything else and I can embrace all the things that come most naturally to me?’ There’s definitely less stuff to hide behind. I think I was learning some of that when we were making Forcefield,​to be simple and direct, but it’s not always the best when you have three other guys ready to go. You can really strip it back and do that when there’s just one.” It’s worth noting that this project has been fully cheered on by Monks’ Tokyo bandmates, who helped guide him and, as he says, “keep it real.”
 
Settled in his new place in Bushwick, Monks embraced the collaborative spirit and structure of New York City, adding a new bass player and drummer to the project while sharing songs constantly with his girlfriend and other musician friends. “It’s definitely honest,” he says of his voice on the EP, which he recorded himself in his apartment before handing over to be mixed by Rob Schnapf. “It could be too honest for some people but I’m in a really good spot and wrote a bunch of sweet songs. I appreciate the connection that comes from sharing something that somebody might not have seen, that’s not visible to the naked eye. People do relate to it, and I find that super rewarding; that drives me in a lot of ways. I’m trying to understand what people really want to get out of music.”
 
Despite all its sincerity and intimacy, A​ll Signs Points To Yes s​till manages to avoid being too wistful or overly serious while still giving us a very real look into the life of its singer. It i​s a small record with a big heart, a snapshot of a man in a new time and new place who is learning to expand his reach, all while stripping away the superfluous and concentrating on connecting through trust, humor, and sincerity.
 
All Signs Point To Yes Tracklisting
Vegas
Gasoline
The Rules
Miss You
Heartbeat
Summer

Known for their enigmatic indie-pop meets growling guitar grunge, Philadelphia’s Hop Along return with their sophomore full-length album Painted Shut, slated for release May 5th on Saddle Creek. Following the release of the band’s debut Get Disowned LP,Frances Quinlan has emerged as one of music’s most unique songwriters. Recorded and mixed by John Agnello (Kurt Vile, Dinosaur Jr, Sonic Youth) in Philadelphia and Brooklyn, Frances is joined by Mark Quinlan (drums), Tyler Long (bass) and Joe Reinhart (guitar) on Painted Shut. The album + 300 limited edition 180g white and pink haze vinyl are now available for pre-order at the Saddle Creek Online Store.
 
Painted Shut is a record of lush compositions, fuzzed-out guitar riffs and captivating vignettes that tell vivid stories of desperation and weary awakening. It pays homage to post-punk luminaries, while simultaneously driving home a sound that is contemporary, emotive and challenging to define. Frances’ raw, spellbinding vocals cut through distorted guitars and playful percussion on lead single “Waitress”. “Texas Funeral” is a propulsive pop anti-anthem, which builds as the track ascends to its roaring peak. Swelling guitars drive “Powerful Man” and an instantly catchy melody keep listeners hooked.
 
“Waitress” premiered with VICE’s Noisey today - please post and share! 
 
Often depicted on Painted Shut are the two lives of legendary (though generally unknown) musicians Buddy Bolden and Jackson C. Frank, who were plagued with mental illness until their penniless deaths. It touches upon accounts of poverty, abuse, greed; and banal, sub-par behavior. The songs present themselves unencumbered despite the difficult subject matter, at times both jubilant and irreverent. Revered for their electrifying live show, Hop Along will kick off a national tour with The War on Drugs this month – be sure to catch them in a city near you!

3/28: Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa (w/ The War on Drugs)
3/29: Richmond, VA @ The National (w/ The War on Drugs)
3/31: Knoxville, TN @ Bijou Theatre (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/1: Chattanooga, TN @ Track 29 (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/2: Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/3: Birmingham, AL @ Iron City (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/4:  Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/5: Tulsa, OK @ Cain's Ballroom (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/7: Albequerque, NM @ The Historic El Rey Theatre (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/8: El Paso, TX @ Tricky Falls (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/9: Phoenix, AZ @ The Pressroom (w/ The War on Drugs)
4/11: Wichita, KS @ Lucky's Everyday
4/12: Champaign, IL @ Mike n Molly's
4/13: Columbus, OH @ Double Happiness
5/5: Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade
5/6: Hamden, CT @ The Space
5/7: Portland, ME @ SPACE Gallery
5/8: Allston, MA @ Great Scott
5/9: Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
5/10: Brooklyn, NY @ Baby's All Right
5/13: Washington, DC @ Black Cat Backstage
5/15: Asheville, NC @ The Mothlight
5/16: Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn
5/18: Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
5/19: Austin, TX @ The Mohawk- Inside
5/22: Tucson, AZ @ The Flycatcher
5/23: Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
5/26: San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
5/28: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
5/29: Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
5/30: Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt
6/1: Boise, ID @ Neurolux
6/2: Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
6/3: Denver, CO @ Lost Lake
6/4: Omaha, NE @ Slowdown
6/5: Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
6/6: Pittsburgh, PA @ Cattivo
6/7: Toronto, ON @ The CAVE at Lee's Palace
 
Track Listing
1. The Knock
2. Buddy in the Parade
3. Horseshoe Crabs
4. Waitress
5. Happy To See Me
6. Texas Funeral
7. Powerful Man
8. I Saw My Twin
9. Well-dressed
10. Sister Cities

 
Brooklyn-based electronic duo Holy Ghost! announce Work For Hire,  a collection of the band’s favorite remixes from it’s extensive catalogue out May 5^h (self released).
 
Known for their high profile remix work as well as original recordings, Work For Hire traces the Holy Ghost! legacy from the early DFA days through to today, showcasing the band’s (aka Alex Frankel & Nick Millhiser) sonic evolution, penchant for cross-genre collaboration, and studio-prowess. It also makes for a darn good playlist from start to finish. 
  
“Letting our remixes go has always been kind of hard,” explains Alex.  “We labor over them for weeks, often reproducing every element of the song from drums to vocals, and really try to give them as much life and love as we would an original song. 
 
To see them all here, done over so many years but now in one comprehensive collection, side by side, is amazing. It's also kind of like looking at our own musical timeline. You can hear us developing as producers, having fun, experimenting, and - above all else - working.  This album is a scrapbook of our work and time together.”
 
Featuring quintessential remixes from the band’s catalogue in sequential order from 2007 – present, Work For Hire includes standout Holy Ghost! remixes for MGMT, Cut Copy, Moby, Phoenix, LCD Soundsystem, & RAC among many more. Three brand new remixes complete the package – a new remix for Hannie El Khatib’s “Two Brothers” is revealed today (listen/share) plus new remixes for Katy Perry’s “Unconditionally”  and Jose Gonzales’ “Let It Carry You” close out the stellar collection of mixes. (Full tracklist below)
 
To support the release the band will also head out on a series of North American DJ dates, which will see them spinning ALL VINYL.
 
Holy Ghost! is Brooklyn-based electronic music duo Alex Frankel and Nick Millhiser. In addition to its extensive remix work, the duo has released two original albums; the self-titled debut album (2011) and its sophomore follow-up Dynamics (2013).

BLKHRTS, a nationally recognized, critically hailed rap crew from Denver just released a preview track from their highly anticipated commercial debut, Dead Drops, set for release on May 5^th.  The hype new track, “COATHANGERS”, a hip-hop homage to The Coathangers’ “Hurricane”, is just a taste of the energy and complexity that can be expected from the band’s heart-shaped vinyl double single and digital EP being released via Deathbomb Arc.
 
Drawn to the ferociousness of rock old and new (their song “Bark at Me” samples Iggy Pop’s “I Wanna Be Your Dog”), BLKRHTS were drawn to “Hurricane” precisely because it sounds as real is it is raw. “The sheer ferocity and abandon of that song is remarkable,” says Yonnas, the producer in the group. “A lot of people scream that they don't give a fuck while wreaking of effort. The Coathangers really do sound like they don't give a fuck, more so then really anyone I've ever heard on record. That whole song sounds like it's perpetually about to fly off the rails at any moment.”

BLKHRTS, which also includes rappers King F.O.E. and Karma, are a force of nature. Their live shows have been likened to a hurricane slamming into a shoreline at a thousand miles an hour, or an avalanche triggered by barbaric yawp. “There’s a grand and emotive romanticism and fatalism to our sound, but we layer it over hard beats,” explains Yonnas. “It’s that dichotomy of being the most hard and soft thing in the room.”
 
Catch them live:
5/2 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Smell
5/30 - Athens, GA @ ATHICA

On May 4th, 2015 My Morning Jacket are set to return with their seventh full-length album,The Waterfall via ATO Records/Capitol Records. This release will mark the band’s first on Capitol Records. Recorded in Stinson Beach CA, The Waterfall is the follow-up to the GRAMMY®-nominated Circuital, which was ranked among 2011’s best albums by publications such as Rolling Stone, Paste, MOJO, and Uncut.
 
Today, the Louisville quintet reveal the new album’s cover art, full track list, and the lead single, “Big Decisions”, as well as launch a pre-order for the new album via its official website, iTunes and Amazon. Fans who preorder The Waterfall will receive an instant download of "Big Decisions,” which is available for streaming today via VEVO, Spotify, and all other digital services.
 
My Morning Jacket also announce an extensive United States tour in support of the new album, which will see them headline Governors Ball and Bonnaroo before embarking on a nationwide headlining tour in mid-May, followed by dates in Europe. Fan club pre-sale will be going live on March 9 and the tickets will be available for general sale on March 13. (See full list of tour dates below). 

My Morning Jacket arrived at Northern California’s Stinson Beach in late 2013 thinking only about making an album. The band was not prepared to be seduced. But within a couple of days, Jim James, Tom Blankenship, Patrick Hallahan, Carl Broemel and Bo Kosterwere in love with Panoramic House, a studio perched on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The natural beauty of the surrounding landscape, located only about a half hour north of the Golden Gate Bridge, combined with the almost mystical serenity flooded them with a charged sense of possibilities.

“For me, every record has the spirit of where we made it,” explains singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter Jim James. “Stinson Beach was so psychedelic and focused. It was almost like we lived on our own little moon out there. It feels like you’re up in the sky.”
On the new release there are moments that reach back to early albums such as 2001’s At Dawn and 2003’s It Still Moves, the record that gave the band a much broader audience. But the experimentation that marked 2004’s Z, 2008’s Evil Urges and James’ 2013 solo album, Regions of Light and Sound of God is clearly in effect.

The Waterfall sounds like history and decades colliding, like a record made by fervent music fans in search of that tingle up the spine. Inveterate music geeks will hear echoes of vintage rock and pop as MMJ continues to honor its influences without aping any of them;The Waterfall sounds like nothing else but also warmly familiar.

 “That’s kind of the sound of this record, and my life, the sound of the page turning and not being sure what’s coming next,” said James.

 “The freedom we went into this record with took a lot of the pressure off, as far as what to do and how to do it,” Hallahan added. “The mantra was anything goes, no stone unturned, it’ll be done when it’s done.”

The band recorded The Waterfall by teaming up again with producer/engineer Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, Modest Mouse, Neko Case), who also worked with My Morning Jacket on Circuital. In addition to the Stinson Beach sessions, they recorded at Martine’s Portland, OR studio Flora and at Ratterman’s La La Land studio in Louisville.

But in the end, it all circled back to Stinson Beach.

“Out of all the places we’ve recorded, I think that place might have informed the record on a spiritual level more than any other,” adds Koster. “If you listen to ‘Like A River,’ it just sounds like Stinson Beach.”

The Waterfall is the latest in a career-spanning string of success beginning with the band’s 1999 debut album The Tennessee Fire and including 2008's Evil Urges and 2011's Circuitalwhich each received GRAMMY ® nominations - the latter debuting at #5 on the Billboard 200 chart.
 

Today, two-time GRAMMY winners They Might Be Giants release Flood Live In Australia -- a FREE full-album download for all! The live set was recorded on the band's latest tour down under. Along with an in-depth interview with Yahoo! Music about the album's colorful origins, the free download is available HERE. We encourage you to post the easy-to-embed widget and share!
 
They Might Be Giants are going massive in 2015. Three brand new albums are slated for release, with the first, Glean, hitting stores on 4/21. Their monthly Williamsburg stand has sold out for months in advance and national touring begins in April. International touring is booked for the fall. And best of all is the return of their legendary Dial-A-Song service, magnificently updated for the digital age.
 
For all of 2015, the Brooklyn originals return to their high-concept/no-budget idea with a new song every week at a toll-free number at (844) 387-6962 as well as via the web at www.DialASong.com. Fans can hear the songs streaming on the site and YouTube. Folks can get tracks individually at iTunes (and all those other fine music places) or join the band’s Dial-A-Song Direct service on Drip.fm and get the whole year's stack of tracks for just 30 bucks.
 
In celebration of the 2015 Dial-A-Song project and to raise awareness of the epic song “Erase,” They Might Be Giants are sponsoring Dial-A-Song’s first video contest. Judged by Black Francis of The Pixies, TMBG challenge all video, film and visually-minded people to create a video companion for the track by April 7. For more information about submissions, click here.

As always, They Might Be Giants celebrate their Brooklyn roots and keep the home-fires burning with their monthly stand at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Following last night's blazing show, they will play one more sold-out night in March before jumping on the bus for a national tour.

Spring 2015 National Tour Dates
 
3/29 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg ***SOLD OUT***
4/16 Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Small's Theatre
4/17 Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
4/18 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
4/19 Madison, WI @ Barrymore Theatre
4/21 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
4/22 Albany, NY @ Upstate Concert Hall
4/23 Boston, MA @ House of Blues
4/24 Washington DC @ 9:30 Club
4/25 Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
4/26 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (Dial-A-Song Show)
5/1 Los Angeles, CA @ The Regent
5/2 Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
5/3 San Diego, CA @ Belly Up
5/5 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
5/6 Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory
5/7 Seattle, WA @ Neptune
5/8 Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
5/9 San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
5/10 San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
5/13 Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
5/14 Austin, TX @ Stubb's
5/15 Oklahoma City, OK @ Diamond Ballroom
5/16 St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
5/17 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
5/31 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (The Else Show)
 

One of the most successful and influential artists of her generation, Tori Amos is as much a force to be reckoned with today as when she released her first solo album Little Earthquakes over 2 decades ago. Eschewing the trends of the time, the prodigious chanteuse touched millions deeply with her arresting melodies, riveting stage presence and personal & honest lyrics. Today, Amos announces 2-CD deluxe editions of her debut and sophomore solo albums, Little Earthquakes and Under The Pink, each newly re-mastered and paired with an entire disc of rare B-sides and bonus tracks. The b-side from the “Winter” single, “Take To The Sky”, was revealed today and is available to post & share HERE.
 
In the original assembly of Little Earthquakes, difficult choices had to be made to ensure the album’s balance and flow. Fortunately, songs that didn’t make the record itself were able to see the light of day as a copious stream of single
b-sides released in the US and UK for both Little Earthquakes and Under The Pink. Often these tracks were intertwined with album cuts, for example “Pretty Good Year” becomes an extension of “Ode To The Banana King (Part One)” which itself was b-side to “Silent All These Years”. They also showcased Amos’ innate ability to reinvent popular songs, perhaps the most notable being Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” a masterpiece study in understatement.
 
Now, these rarities and live versions will be available worldwide on April 14 from Rhino.The remastered versions of both original albums will also be released on 180-gram vinyl on the same date, marking the FIRST time both albums will be available on vinyl in the US.
 
Originally released in 1992 and 1994 respectively, the songs of Little Earthquakes andUnder The Pink continue to live and thrive to this day. As Amos tells it, “Little Earthquakeswas an acknowledgement of things that I hadn’t looked at in 15 years, in some cases… After you acknowledge something, you tell everybody, and other people say, ‘I know what that’s like, too.’ There’s this energy charge you get, and liberation from doing that.” She continues to find that the audience response to “Silent All These Years” remains deep and immediate nearly a quarter century later, counting it as her most requested song and one that walks with her every day. It will continue to do so as long as she is playing music.
 
Tori Amos has sold over 12 million albums, has played over a thousand shows and has had multiple Grammy nominations. A pioneer across multiple platforms, she was the first major label artist to offer a single for download, has had her songs turned into graphic novels a successful musical, and has produced pioneering videos throughout her career. She is renowned for her passionate and broad fan-base, her critically and commercially successful tours, and her ever evolving live show. Ms. Amos is also a noted humanitarian and co-founder of RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network), which is the United States’ largest anti-sexual assault organization.

Meet The von Trapps, the next generation. Siblings Sofia (26), Melanie (24), Amanda (23) and August (20), the great-grandchildren of the Captain and Maria von Trapp, are reinventing the legacy of their birthright for the modern age. Dancing in Gold, the first of three EPs of entirely original material that The von Trapps plan to send out into the world over the next two years, is due out April 14 via Heinz Records.
 
The first single from their EP is the title track “Dancing in Gold” which premiered on Rolling Stone. Inspired by the work of artists such as Fleet Foxes, Beach House, Sufjan Stevens, Françoise Hardy, and the Beach Boys, the harmonic folk-pop that sings out of “Dancing in Gold” is 21st-century von Trapp, inventive, earnest and exquisite. Be sure to listen and share the track on Soundcloud.
 
For their first foray into the studio in their new incarnation, the siblings sought out a kindred spirit, approaching Israel Nebeker, the lead singer and songwriter of Blind Pilot, to produce the album. Nebeker gets right to the heart and soul of the matter: “Their sound is an open collage, unafraid of combining disparate style and sentiment. Most importantly to me, it communicates honestly and is sung from the heart.”
 
The von Trapps' musical journey began as a fluke and a brainstorm in 2001. During summer visits to their Montana home, their grandfather Werner von Trapp taught them the Austrian folk songs he loved as a child. When he became too ill to travel, they crafted a homemade recording to cheer him up, never expecting it would inspire a career in music. The von Trapps have been on stage together ever since. Their performances make room for melodicas and ukuleles, lyrics that can unspool in ten languages, twinges of Appalachia and Portlandia, some shout-outs to the Mamas & Papas, all filtered through the DNA of the most beloved musical ever, The Sound of Music. They have toured extensively, from Beijing’s Forbidden City to the Sydney Opera House, performed with major symphonies across the country, appeared on Oprah, and recorded with artists such as Wayne Newtonand Rufus Wainwright.
 
For the past few years, The von Trapps have been frequent guest performers with Pink Martini, the globetrotting pop sensation. The two groups collaborated on Pink Martini’s eighth studio album, Dream a Little Dream, released in March 2014, which has sold over 20,000 copies in the US alone, and was featured on NPR's Weekend Edition.
 
Emboldened by that collaboration, flourishing in the rich creative world of their adopted hometown of Portland, Oregon and burgeoning with new ideas, The von Trapps cast off on their own to trail blaze a new musical path.
 
As the von Trapps tell Rolling Stone – “This new chapter in our career feels very electric; I think our current sound is super fresh, personal, and fun. Fourteen years of touring the world together has given each of us a well of inspiration, and we are at a point where all of that energy is overflowing. How each of us blend our styles together is both a challenge and a thrilling discovery for us, yet this first creation, Dancing in Gold, found a wonderfully surprising and compelling place. We're eager to see how our music manifests itself moving forward.”
 
Tour Dates
March 28 in Denver, CO at Daniels Hall
March 29 in Lincoln, NE at Vega
March 31 in Evanston, IL at SPACE
April 1 in St. Paul, MN at Amsterdam Bar and Hall
April 4 in Spokane, WA at The Big Dipper
April 6 in Vancouver, Canada at The Rio Theater
April 19 in Portland, OR at Revolution Hall (Album Release Show)
 

NYC-based songwriter extraordinaire Mitski has just announced that she will re-release her breakout record Bury Me At Make Out Creek, April 7th via Don Giovanni Records. This release will mark her joining of the Don Giovanni family and includes special unreleased tracks. In celebration, fans will have new chances to experience Mitski’s raw, soul-shaking live show as she tours with Hundred Waters this month and joinsScreaming Females and Speedy Ortiz on the road later this spring. With vivid lyrical imagery, buzzed out guitars and evocative vocals, Mitski has created a unique sound built upon her academic musical background, and as she makes the shift from concert hall to DIY venue her new relationship with the storied label will certainly continue to propel the transition.
 
The already critically-acclaimed Bury Me At Make Out Creek opens with “Texas Reznikoff,” a track that starts with soft and sparse acoustic chord progression, which subsequently erupts into a barrage of rib-rattling distortion. “First Love / Last Spring”showcases Mitski’s tremulous vocals and melodic-chops supported by a lone baseline before swelling into the sounds of an arpeggiated synthesizer and swelling organ. Meanwhile, standout track “Townie” brings to light the singer-songwriter’s dark sense of humor combined with a head-bopping blowout guitar riff. Today, Mitski unveils the animated video companion to “Townie”, which truly illuminates the song’s meaning.  
 
While attending SUNY Purchase and studying music composition, Mitski released two records inspired by orchestral energy and expansive in their own right. The brilliant writer came into her own with 2014’s Bury Me At Make Out Creek, immersed in fuzzy guitars, pounding drums, and poetically poignant lyrics, and created a sound all her own. Be sure to catch her live on tour and at SXSW this spring!
 

Multi-talented musician, songwriter & producer, Nanna Øland Fabricius, better known as Oh Land, has unveiled her new video "Flags” which Jezebel premiered. The video was created and produced by Oh Land herself—a combination of artistry and her desire to truly illustrate the meaning of the song.  On the crafting of the video, Oh Land elaborates:  “These days where everyone has a phone and a camera, you can actually do it yourself. It doesn’t need to be a super expensive, super difficult thing to do. You just need to have some ideas and be willing to work a lot yourself.”

 
“Flags” is the latest from Oh Land’s fourth studio album, Earth Sick released via Tusk or Tooth/Kobalt Label Services. The “Flags” video is a continuation of the grassroots and innovative approach Oh Land has taken with Earth Sick, fueling all aspects of the creative process. Earth Sick is out now digitally and on CD and vinyl, and lead single “Head Up High” has been getting serious remix love from the likes of MS MR, Penguin Prison, CSS, Lauren Flax and Mercury (the remix bundle will be released digitally on March 3). 
 

 

1.30 // Washington, DC // The Hamilton TICKETS

1.31 // Philadelphia, PA // World Cafe TICKETS

2.11 // Chicago, IL // Lincoln Hall TICKETS

2.12 // Minneapolis, MN // The Cedar TICKETS

2.18 // Austin, TX // Empire Control Room TICKETS

2.19 // Dallas, TX // Granada Theater TICKETS

2.26 // Toronto, Canada // Geary Lane TICKETS

2.27 // Montreal, Canada // Club Soda TICKETS

2.28 // Portland, ME // SPACE Gallery TICKETS

3.1 // Providence, RI // Columbus Theater TICKETS

3.3 // Boston, MA // Brighton Music Hall TICKETS

3.21 // New York, NY // Merkin Concert Hall TICKETS

** A collaborative performance with John King and Ethel, commissioned by the Ecstatic Music Festival

4.3 // San Francisco, CA // Public Works (Tickets on sale soon HERE)

4.4 // Los Angeles, CA // The Masonic Lodge TICKETS 

4.6 // Seattle, WA // Triple Door TICKETS

4.7 // Vancouver, Canada // The Biltmore Cabaret TICKETS 

4.8 // Portland, OR // Dour Fir TICKETS

5.21 // New York, NY // Rough Trade TICKETS

The infamously fierce, feminist pioneers of American grunge punk have announced a documentary film, directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker, Sarah Price (American Movie, The Yes Men, Summercamp) Titled L7: Pretend We're Dead, the film takes viewers on an all access journey into the 1990’s grunge movement that took the world by storm and the band that helped define it as the genre of a generation. Today they launch a Kickstarter, offering fans a remarkable array of rewards- including a potential séance with the band- as thanks for helping to fund the project. Go to the Kickstarter project HERE to check out the full list and grab them while they are still available.
 
Culled from over 100 hours of vintage home movies taken by the band, never before seen performance footage, and candid interviews, L7: Pretend We're Dead chronicles the early days of the band's formation in 1985 to their height as the 'queens of grunge' and follows a roller coaster ride of triumphs and failures. It offers particularly revelatory insight into the band's eventual dissolution in 2001.
 
The formula: one part Donita’s love of pop and punk and one part Suzi’s hard rock and blues, charged with lyrics that had political bite and humor proved irresistible to the disenfranchised, the marginalized, and the punk. The excitement around the L7: Pretend We're Dead announcement has catalyzed a recently announced and widely anticipated reunion of the band in its original line-up. L7 will kick off a European tour, bringing their high-octane energy and anthemic chops to the stage to ignite audiences once again.

On the cusp of celebrating 10 years as a band, Screaming Females announces Rose Mountain, the New Jersey DIY-punk trio’s sixth LP due February 24 on Don Giovanni Records. The band self-produced their previous releases (with Steve Albini engineering their 2012 LP Ugly and the 2014 concert album Live at the Hideout) but overturned the long-standing, self-imposed rule this time by bringing in Matt Bayles (Mastodon, the Sword) as a producer. Setting out with a vision so clear that it almost became a studio mantra, the resulting songs are concise, crisp and melodic, in essence creating at once their most complex and accessible record to date.

Upon listening to the blazing guitar and ecstatic percussion on Rose Mountain, the word “restraint” may not initially come to mind. And while melody has always been a central part of the band’s music, the musicians have often layered them into massive thickets of interlocking sound on previous albums. However, on Rose Mountain the band was ready to try something more streamlined with Paternoster’s vocal melodies and lyrical themes being pushed into the forefront, while never skimping on the raw intensity they have become known for.

Taut album opener “Empty Head” leads with a powerful guitar line that will leave fans enraptured on contact. Lovesick ballad “Hopeless” builds to a lush emotive climax while album closer “Criminal Image” takes on a more powerful stance with ecstatic guitar-driven peaks broken up by moments of melancholy. The infectious bass line and powerful arpeggiated guitar line set the stage for sweetly growling vocals on “Ripe”. "Ripe" was revealed with Pitchfork today and is available to post and share HERE.

Formed in 2005, Screaming Females is singer/guitarist Marisa Paternoster, bassist Michael Abbate and drummer Jarrett Dougherty. The band has performed alongside Dinosaur Jr., The Julie Ruin, Titus Andronicus + more and just wrapped up a national tour with PUJOL. Stay tuned for more info and opportunities to experience the band’s ferocity live on stage.

This summer Rob Zombie will be embarking on a new nationwide tour.
 
Pre-sale tickets for all of the dates listed below are only available at RZ-31 until February 13when they will be widely available.
 
As a rock icon and filmmaker with a unique vision, Zombie has continuously challenged audiences as he stretches the boundaries of both music and film. Zombie has sold more than fifteen million albums worldwide, and is the only artist to experience unprecedented success in both music and film as the writer/director of six feature films.
 
Last year Rob Zombie broke boundaries and hosted a hugely successful crowdfunding campaign for his upcoming feature length film 31. We are pleased to announce that the campaign is being re-launched this month due to popular demand. “After wrapping up our first campaign we were bombarded with late requests to be part of the 31 action. So here we go again! Time to join the bloody clown mayhem! Filming starts in March so get ready for tons of exciting updates on what promises to be the most fucked up film of the year” said Rob.
 
31 is in part, a crowdfunded endeavor that will allow Zombie’s legions of fans to be involved from the ground up with his latest project. “I wish something like this had existed when I was a kid,” Zombie explained. “I would have killed to be part of so many movies. Even being involved in the smallest way would have been awesome.”
 
Fans will have access to exclusive VIP experiences involving the film and Zombie’s music career. In addition to the wide range of VIP experiences fans can also get their hands on exclusive merch and original props from Zombie’s films. Be on the look out for the new campaign, which will be hosted once again at RZ-31.
 
Not only does this month mark the beginning of the second leg of online crowdfunding, but it will also mark the release of Rob Zombie’s first live album in over eight years. SPOOKSHOW INTERNATIONAL LIVE is filled with nineteen tracks from the highlights of Rob’s critically acclaimed US tour of 2014. Digital preorder for the album is live everywhere now and the full album will be released on February 24.
 
Besides working on his highly anticipated new film, Rob was also able to find time to hit the studio and his new full-length album is coming soon. About the new album Rob said, “The new studio album is done! The last mixes were put to bed and the studio is back in storage. Can't give you much info yet... but I can easily say this is my favorite album yet... no joke. Yeah I know every fucking asshole says that. But it is seriously our heaviest most fuck up musical monster to date. One song entitled "Well, Everybody's Fucking In a UFO" is sure to be an instant Zombie classic! Not since Hellbilly Deluxe have I spent this long putting an album together. It was worth it."
 
Pre-sale tickets for Rob Zombie’s upcoming tour dates will go on sale February 9 only atRZ-31 where fans can also pick up exclusive Meet & Greet offers or an array of new 31merch. Be sure to stay tuned for more information on his upcoming live album and his newest full-length studio release.
 
Tour Dates
June 2 in New Orleans, LA at Civic Theatre
June 4 in Simpsonville, SC at Charter Amphitheatre
June 5 in Portsmouth, BA at nTelos Wireless Pavilion
June 6 in Sayreville, NJ at Starland Ballroom
June 8 in Warren, OH at Packard Music Hall
June 9 in Cincinnati, OH at Riverbend Music Hall
June 10 in Milwaukee, WI at Eagles Ballroom
June 12 in Sylvania, OH at Centennial Terrace
June 14 in Indianapolis, IN at Farm Bureau Insurance Lawn
June 16 in Pittsburgh, PA at Stage AE
June 18 in Uncasville, CT at Mohegan Sun Arena
June 19 in Big Flats, NY at Tags Summerstage
June 28 in Grand Junction, CO at Loudwire Music Festival

KNTRLR, the New York based experimental indie rock/electronic duo, is set to release their debut LP, The Great Filter, on February 24th via Goodnight Records.  In celebration of the upcoming release, SPIN is now streaming the album in full leading up to the release.
 
Check it out HERE
 
Since 2008, KNTRLR continues to evolve--their music becoming further charged by the confrontation of mortality and darkness. The Great Filter stays true to these motivations. From love and death to loss and family, the sum of the band's life experiences have created a darker collection of songs that are sure to resonate deeply with listeners. The strong confidence in the sound they've built is obvious; KNTRLR’s respective life experiences have their music well.
 
Now a five-piece act live, the duo will be touring to promote their upcoming album The Great Filter.
 
Tour Dates:
2/18 - Los Angeles, CA - Lexington Theatre
2/19 - Long Beach, CA - The Prospector
2/21 - San Francisco. CA – Submission
2/28  New York, NY – Gutter (Album Release Party)

First album single “Chrissie Hynde” wistfully recounts the legendary Pretenders frontwoman’s voice coming through the speakers, over a combination of acoustic and electric guitar, piano and a solitary drumbeat, captivating as always with Walker’s effortlessly unique vocals. The track is available to post and share HERE, and on iTunes as an instant-grat MP3 w/ Afraid Of Ghosts pre-order now!

Throughout his career, Butch Walker has always inspired with his infectious yet never over-bearing sense of melody. He joins his friend Ryan Adams on the road this fall for a nationwide tour. Together he & Adams will be one thing: undeniable.

Cut Copy has truly become an international band in the past decade, having released four albums & performed over 1,000 global headline tour dates & prestigious international festivals in the process. They’ve additionally DJ’ed continuously during that period, remixed a selection of amazing artists, and run their own dance imprint, Cutters Records. The global Melbourne ambassadors have now just announced Cut Copy presents: Oceans Apart, a 19-track continuous DJ-mixed snapshot of new & exclusive music from their hometown’s thriving underground dance music scene & club culture mixed by the band themselves- set for release digitally November 11th! In addition, two vinyl EPs of compilation highlights will be released on November 18th. For an early taste of the compilation, fans can give NO ZU’s Pitchfork-premiered “Raw Vis Vision” a spin. It’s available to post & share HERE!

Both a local scene document, which is increasingly rare in this global age, and a bumping 80-minute non-stop dance party, Cut Copy presents: Oceans Apart is the product of the band’s observations of its hometown, where it became undeniably apparent that this fertile community was mushrooming. As frontman Dan Whitford elaborates, “we’ve always found deep inspiration in the music of our home city. It’s where Cut Copy started, as just one band in a potent community of unique and likeminded artists. But it also continues to inspire and surprise us, with great new music constantly bubbling to the surface.”

“The motivation behind the compilation came from a late night conversation in a Melbourne club with a friend of mine. As we excitedly shouted over the noise of the dance floor, one of us said ‘the dance scene in Melbourne has gotten so interesting over the past few years- someone should really document this!’, adding “We looked at each other knowingly, and from that moment, the idea for Oceans Apart was born.“

Cut Copy presents: Oceans Apart threads together a cross-section of the different party crews, label rosters & ambitious lone rangers that have been catalysts in making Melbourne vibrant & happening week in, week out- all in the format of a continuous dance mix, which is what the music was made for.

There’s been much speculation as to how this unprecedented wave came about. Is the fluoride in the city’s water supply having positive side effects? Is it the mediocre Melbourne weather that’s either keeping people on the dancefloor or in house arrest, tirelessly tinkering in the studio? Is it the abundance of late night venues or the long standing presence of two influential community radio stations? Or does it all come down to the appreciative audience that are just as critical as the creators? All we do know is that this epidemic can’t be stopped and needs to be celebrated.

Stay tuned for more news from Cut Copy coming soon!

Catch Cut Copy LIVE On Tour:

10/28: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater
10/29: Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
10/31: San Diego, CA @ The North Park Theatre (SOLD OUT)
11/1: Los Angeles, CA @ Red Bull Sound Select (SOLD OUT)
12/31: San Francisco, CA @ Mezzanine

Black Beauty, the masterpiece by Arthur Lee’s legendary psychedelic rock band Love, is making its first-ever official release on CD, out November 11th via High Moon Records.  The album had never been released in any format until High Moon Records put it out on vinyl in 2012. In November, Black Beauty will be available as a TrueSound Audiophile CD, packaged in a Hardbound Eco-Book.  With its unparalleled sound and state-of-the-art packaging, Black Beauty is being hailed as an instant classic by critics worldwide.  Read and share the exciting announcement courtesy of Rolling Stone.

Electro-pop singer-songwriter & producer extraordinaire Nanna Øland Fabricius, better known as Oh Land, today announces her fourth studio album, Earth Sick- set for release November 10th via her own independent imprint, Tusk or Tooth, in collaboration with Kobalt Label Services! Immersed in her signature soundscape of lush vocals, rich string arrangements & infectious melodies, the album is a hybrid of masterfully woven symphonic & electronic sounds, and marks a full-circle return to the artist’s bedroom production style.

Earth Sick first single “Head Up High,” featuring bouncing synth rhythms & infectious, hook-laden vocals, was written for a friend going through a tough time in her life as encouragement to, quite literally, keep her head up high. Nearly forgotten about by Nanna, the same friend reminded her a year later whilst deep in the throes of recording Earth Sick. The song was finished almost instantly & added to the album. For an early taste of the record, fans can give “Head Up High” a spin where it’s available to post & share HERE!

Frustrated by the struggle to keep her head above the waves and hold onto a sense of idealism despite the complexities of life, Oh Land grasped the struggle as the inspiration for her lyrical exploration on Earth Sick. Anchored by melancholic anthem “Machine,” which opens the album with delicate yet industrial textures, tracks “Little Things” and “Earth Sick” continue the existential lyrical journey combined with the singer’s love for orchestral arrangements.

Oh Land began her career rather unconventionally following a ten-year budding career in ballet, which was ended abruptly by an injury. Searching for a new way to incorporate music into her life, she began recording in her bedroom and discovered an early knack for production. In 2008, she released her debut album Fauna to much critical acclaim, and has spent the better part of the past four years supporting her following releases, Oh Land & Wish Bone, and supporting artists including Katy Perry & Sia on the road.

Stay tuned for more news from Oh Land coming soon, and be sure to catch her when she plays New York City’s Bowery Ballroom on October 21st during CMJ- marking her first NYC show in a year!

Everybody Glows: B-sides & Rarities, out November 4, features a collection of outtakes, demos, covers, live versions and never before heard recordings culled from scratched demo CDs, long forgotten hard drives, and the fuzzier corners of her memory. The collection reveals the evolution of her songwriting while offering a glimpse of a young guitarist doing daring things on her instrument before she grasped the significance of any of it. The album comes with a track-by-track explanation of each song, along with liner notes written by her biggest supporter and fan: her father.

TOUR DATES

In other news, Kaki is preparing an entirely new show, The Neck is a Bridge to the Body, for 2015, featuring high-concept projection mapping in collaboration with Glowing Pictures.  A recording of The Neck is a Bridge to the Body will also be released in 2015 in conjunction with extensive international touring. Don't miss these upcoming shows:

Dec 12  San Francisco, CA @ Kanbar Hall @ JCC
Dec 13  Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst

Jan 9    New York, NY @ The Highline (w/Neneh Cherry)

LIVE SHOW w/ETHEL in SEATTLE 

In addition to her own solo work, Kaki sometimes performs in collaboration with NYC-based string quartet ETHEL, and will appear in special performance with them on Thursday, Oct 30 in Seattle. The program will feature works by yours truly, John Zorn, J.S. Bach, and Aleksandra Vrebalov, among others.  It's been wonderful to work with such a dynamic group so don't miss one of the last performances of this particular line up.  You can also watch a video of me performing with Ethel in a beautiful church -- watch HERE.

OCT 30  Seattle, WA @ Edmonds Center for the Arts (Tickets HERE)

NEW DIGITAL MUSIC STORE

Last but not least, Kaki’s new website launches today @ kakiking.com, and will feature a new digital music store. In addition to featuring Everybody Glows: B-sides & Rarities, the store will include several of her older albums: Everybody Loves You, ...Until We Felt Red, Dreaming of Revenge, Junior and Glow.

SAN DIEGO – July 25, 2014 – Today at Comic-Con International: San Diego, Ubisoft® debuted a new animated short about the French Revolution and inspired by the upcoming video game Assassin’s Creed Unity created by the unlikely duo of famed musician and master of horror Rob Zombie and artist Tony Moore, co-creator of The Walking Dead.
 
Assassin’s Creed Unity Presents: Rob Zombie’s French Revolution, re-imagined by Zombie and illustrated by Moore, provides a re-telling of the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, one of the bloodiest periods in human history and the backdrop for the Assassin’s Creed Unity video game. Assassin’s Creed Unity, will be released worldwide on October 28 on Xbox One video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Sony PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system and Windows® PC.
 
 “The best source of horror is our own history,” said Rob Zombie. “Blending the Reign of Terror and video game about Assassins helped inspire my own look on the French Revolution.”
 
“I leapt at the chance to do an Assassin’s Creed project,” said Tony Moore. “The French Revolution was a visceral, graphic and violent time and it was great working with Rob to bring this to life.”
 
Set in a once-magnificent Paris, Assassin’s Creed Unity plunges into the terror of the 1789 French Revolution and features the most dense and immersive Assassin’s Creed city ever created. Through the streets of Paris, the starving inhabitants are set to take up arms for freedom and equality. In this time of chaos and brutality, a young man named Arno, wounded by the loss of those he loved, sets on a deadly path of redemption. Arno’s pursuit throws him into the middle of a ruthless struggle for the fate of a nation, and transforms him into a true Master Assassin.
 
Assassin’s Creed Unity reinvents the franchise, starting with the core gameplay pillars that have defined the series from the beginning: navigation, stealth and combat. Players will carve their way through a stunning, full-scale open-world Paris, thanks to the power of the new Anvil engine, rebuilt from the ground up for new generation consoles. In addition to the sprawling single-player campaign, players can join with up to three friends and take part in story-driven online co-op missions.
 
About Ubisoft
Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s video game series, Rayman, Far Cry and Watch Dogs. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2013–14 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,007 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.
© 2014 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Assassin’s Creed, Ubisoft, and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
“PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
 

“Meet Me In A House Of Love” Video,Nat’l Tour w/ Classixx + Storm Summer Festivals

Grammy-nominated Cut Copy have announced the release of a deluxe version of their latest album Free Your Mind, to coincide with a busy schedule of summer festivals and US tour dates with Classixx. It will be available at all digital retailers on July 22^nd via by Loma Vista (N. America) and Modular (ROW).

The record, taking influence from the ability of Summers of Love tear down the walls of perception while creating a fantasy of what the next youth revolution might sound like, will be re-released with five additional tracks: “In These Arms of Love” and “Like Any Other Day” (previously only available as a US-only Record Store Day vinyl release), and three previously unheard songs – “Believers”, “Lights Shine On” and “I Wish the Sun Would Grow Today”. They were all recorded by the band in Australia and mixed by producer Dave Fridmann during the Free Your Mind sessions.

"The process for making Free Your Mind was very open ended with all of us in the band letting musical ideas emerge rather than going in with a strong vision or style,” says the band’s Dan Whitford. “So it was inevitable that some ideas - even some of our personal favourites - weren’t going to fit perfectly into the final track list once the album had begun to take shape. The deluxe version of Free Your Mind was an opportunity to let people listen to some of the weirder moments and our favourite b-sides from the album recording sessions."  

In celebration of the deluxe release, the band are delighted to share the video for album standout “Meet Me In A House of Love,” directed by fellow Australians Trouble Hands. Watch it HERE.

The band are blitzing Summer festivals in the next few months, having just finished ripping up Primavera and Bonnaroo on their way to appearances at Electric Forest, Lollapalooza, Canada’s Osheaga, Outside Lands, Portugal’s Parades de Coura, France’s Rock en Seine, Spain’s Sonorama, Swiss Openair and Mexico’s Hellow Fest. Full tour dates are as follows:

* = w/ Classixx

6/17: Tampa, FL @ The Ritz Ybor *

6/18: Miami, FL @ Grand Central - SOLD OUT *

6/20: New Orleans, LA @ Joy *

6/21: Austin, TX @ Stubbs *

6/22: Dallas, TX @ Granada Theatre - SOLD OUT *

6/25: Minneapolis, MN @ First Ave *

6/27: Indianapolis, IN @ Vogue *

6/29: Rothbury, MI @ Electric Forest Festival

6/30: Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall *

8/1: Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre (Lollapalooza Afterparty) - SOLD OUT

8/2: Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza - SOLD OUT

8/3: Montreal, QC @ Osheaga Festival

8/5: Denver, CO @ Red Rocks

8/6: Aspen, CO @ Belly Up

8/8: Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl

8/10: San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands Festival

8/14: Hasselt, Belgium @ Pukkelpop Festival

8/16: Burgos, Spain @ Sonorama Festival

8/22: Porto, Portugal @ Parades de Coura Festival

8/24: Paris, France @ Rock en Seine Festival

8/28: Zurich, Switzerland @ Openair Festival

9//20: Monterrey, Mexico @ Hellow Festival

Free Your Mind deluxe tracklisting (new tracks in italics)

1. (intro)


2. Free Your Mind


3. We Are Explorers


4. Let Me Show You Love
5. (into the desert)


6. Footsteps


7. In Memory Capsule


8. (above the city)


9. Dark Corners & Mountain Tops


10. Meet Me in a House of Love


11. Take Me Higher


12. (the waves)


13. Walking in the Sky


14. Mantra

15. Believers

16. Like Any Other Day

17. Lights Shine On

18. I Wish The Sun Would Grow Today

19. In These Arms of Love

“ …lighting hearts, and dancefloors, on fire with a rapturous intertwining of psychotropic vocals and jubilant acid-house energy." – The Boston Globe

“We dare you not to give in to ecstatic dance … when these Grammy-nominated Aussie synth-poppers take the stage” – New York Magazine

“ …guns for the Balearicism of late-'80s New Order, providing a mellower moment of plateaued ecstasy before finding a second wind in gospel-tinged piano house.” – NPR

"It's a record that takes risks and begs repeat listens—and boogies." – Interview Magazine

“Melbourne's Cut Copy have set the standard for combining indie-rock melodicism and dance-music energy, earning a thriving international fan base, and full-on rock-star status” – Esquire

“…the psychedelia of the late ’60s, the raw electronics of early British acid house, and the swirling, sampler-and-guitar creations of the shoegazer stylists My Bloody Valentine.” – The New York Times

“Cut Copy’s music is reliably immersive …” – TIME Magazine

“ …infusing songs with a freewheeling psychedelic-inspired electronicism.” – Billboard

“high-energy psychedelia” – Complex

S/T Out July 15^th
(Communicating Vessels)
 
US Summer Tour with Man or Astro-man?
 

 (click here for video)

“WRAY are woozier and more majestic, with gently-gliding vocal melodies and a steadily-chugging rhythm that owes more to krautrock than it does punk or garage.” – Wondering Sound
 
“Guitar saturated, hazy noise pop (at one point I was reminded of the Yo La Tengo track“Sugarcube”) I think they’ll quickly gain a spot among Birmingham’s respected indie bands.”– You Hear This
 
Wondering Sound just introduced the “majestic” Wray to the masses. Teaming up with award-winning director Steve Ashlee, Wray created a visually stunning video for their stand-out track “Apacheria.” The music video is a perfect visual representation of a complicated, interesting, and dance worthy track.
 
Wray is David Brown, Blake Wimberly, and David Swatzell. Though they are new, their involvement in the music community starts over a decade ago with such bands as Last Flight In, Comrade, Nightmare Waterfall, and a handful of other projects you might not have had the chance to see if “punk rock” just isn’t your scene. But this project is something you don’t want to miss.
 
 
Their self-titled label release will drop July 15 on Communicating Vessels. It was recorded in their hometown of Birmingham, Alabama at Ol Elgante Studio. With mastermind engineerDaniel Farris (Man Or Astro-man?, St. Vincent, Polyphonic Spree, Verbena) at the helm, they managed to capture the atmospheric beauty that comes with every live show they play.
 
Wray isn’t afraid to revel in repetition, churning (like butter) confident, seamless grooves firmly in the tradition of NEU!, Faust, or Can. Their shimmering, headphone-ready tones owe much to Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine, and even The Cure, but without the crippling self-absorption of chillwave, dreampop, or whatever all the sad bastards are listening to this week. It's music for an audience, for a rock show. It's got a beat and you can dance to it. The band is Wray and the album is Wray and you can play it at a party and people will like it.
 
This summer, Wray will be touring the United States with surf rock legends Man or Astro-Man? 
 
Wray Tourdates
6/13: Montevallo, AL @ Eclipse (without MOAM)
6/27: Pensacola, FL @ The Vinyl (without MOAM)
7/11: Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree Café
(without MOAM, CD Release Show)
 
7/15: Nashville, TN @ Exit In
7/16: St. Louis, MO @ Firebird
7/17: Kansas City, MO @Riot Room
7/18: Omaha, NE @ Waiting Room
7/19: Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
7/20: Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
7/21: Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
7/22: Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy
7/23: San Francisco, CA @ Independent
7/24: Eugene, OR @ Cozmic Pizza
7/26: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
9/2: Asheville, NC @ Grey Eagle
9/3: Cincinnati, OH @ Taft Theatre
9/4: Indianapolis, IN @ Radio Radio
9/5: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
9/6: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
9/7: Grand Rapids, MI @ The Pyramid Scheme
9/8: Cleveland Heights, OH @ Grog Shop
9/9: Buffalo, NY @ Tralf
9/10: Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bowl
9/12: Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
9/13: Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
9/14: Washington, DC @ Black Cat

“ …Tori Amos returns to the world of piano-driven pop with her best album in 20 years.” – NPR

"Though Ms. Amos’s classically tinged piano is at the center of most arrangements, there are also hints of the Beatles, Celtic music and, in the title song, the Police"

– The New York Times 

“Tori Amos made a pretty perfect return” – SPIN

Tori Amos has revealed “Trouble’s Lament,” the first single from her forthcoming new studio album, Unrepentant Geraldines.   Set for release in the U.S. on May 13^th on Mercury Classics/Universal Music Classics, Unrepentant Geraldines is pop/rock in both content and feel, and one step further in the evolution of one of the most successful and influential artists of her generation.

“Trouble’s Lament” is an eerie Southern blues song in which Amos’s matchless voice conjures up images of how the “flames from Satan’s tongue are charged and licking at her heels…”

“Having been born in North Carolina, the South walks with me wherever I am in the world,” says Amos. “I can’t get it out of my DNA. I don’t know if it’s a genetic thing, because my mother’s side, so far back, is from the Eastern Cherokee nation. So it’s really in the blood. It’s almost like you listen to the land speaking to you. And wherever I am I can hear the South calling me.   I really like the idea that trouble was a young woman….I see her on my travels a lot. And maybe I knew her many years ago when I was in my twenties.”

Unrepentant Geraldines is a return to the inspiring and personal music that Amos is known for the world over.  She explains, “After 2009 I walked into three records that are sort of a period of writing that was a different stylistic choice. I needed to walk away from contemporary songwriting. I needed to do something different as a writer.” But those three diverse album projects  (Midwinter Graces, Night of Hunters, Gold Dust)  followed by her first full-bore theatrical project (The Light Princess)  alchemized something anew within. Out of the flux of ambition and distraction and imagination came Amos’ fourteenth studio album, Unrepentant Geraldines.  It’s an album on which Amos once more zeroes in on the writing of brightly melodic, deftly evocative chamber-pop.

For more information on Tori Amos, give us a shout!

Girlie Action:

Sarah Avrin, sarah@girlie.com, 212-989-2222 x136

Damien Choy Smith, damien@girlie.com, 212-989-2222 x118

Universal Music Classics:

Olga Makrias, olga.makrias@umusic.com, 212.333.1485

Tour Dates

7/16: Vancouver, BC @ Orpheum          

7/17: Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre        

7/18: Portland, OR @ Oregon Zoo Amphitheatre     

7/21: Oakland, CA @ Paramount Theatre       

7/23: Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre

7/24: San Diego, CA @ Humphrey’s       

7/25: Mesa, AZ @ Mesa Arts Center      

7/27: Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre        

7/29: Dallas, TX @ Winspear Opera House     

7/30: Austin, TX  @ Long Center

8/1: St. Louis, MO @ Peabody Opera House   

8/2: Kansas City, MO @ Midland Theatre

8/3:  St. Paul, MN @ The O’Shaughnessy        

8/5: Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre

8/6: Detroit, MI @ Fox Theatre     

8/7: Cleveland, OH @ Cain Park   

8/8: Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall   

8/10: Philadelphia, PA @ Verizon Hall    

8/12: New York, NY @ Beacon Theatre  

8/13: New York, NY @ Beacon Theatre  

8/15: Boston, MA @ Opera House

8/16: Washington, DC @ DAR Constitution Hall

8/18: Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium        

8/19: Atlanta, GA @ Cobb-Energy PAC  

8/20: Durham, NC @ Durham PAC

8/22: Clearwater, FL @ Ruth Eckerd Hall        

8/23: Orlando, FL @ Bob Carr PAC

8/24: Miami, FL @ Fillmore at The Jackie Gleason Theatre 

S/T Out July 15^th
(Communicating Vessels)
 
US Summer Tour with Man or Astro-man?
 

 (click here for video)

“WRAY are woozier and more majestic, with gently-gliding vocal melodies and a steadily-chugging rhythm that owes more to krautrock than it does punk or garage.” – Wondering Sound
 
“Guitar saturated, hazy noise pop (at one point I was reminded of the Yo La Tengo track“Sugarcube”) I think they’ll quickly gain a spot among Birmingham’s respected indie bands.”– You Hear This
 
Wondering Sound just introduced the “majestic” Wray to the masses. Teaming up with award-winning director Steve Ashlee, Wray created a visually stunning video for their stand-out track “Apacheria.” The music video is a perfect visual representation of a complicated, interesting, and dance worthy track.
 
Wray is David Brown, Blake Wimberly, and David Swatzell. Though they are new, their involvement in the music community starts over a decade ago with such bands as Last Flight In, Comrade, Nightmare Waterfall, and a handful of other projects you might not have had the chance to see if “punk rock” just isn’t your scene. But this project is something you don’t want to miss.
 
 
Their self-titled label release will drop July 15 on Communicating Vessels. It was recorded in their hometown of Birmingham, Alabama at Ol Elgante Studio. With mastermind engineerDaniel Farris (Man Or Astro-man?, St. Vincent, Polyphonic Spree, Verbena) at the helm, they managed to capture the atmospheric beauty that comes with every live show they play.
 
Wray isn’t afraid to revel in repetition, churning (like butter) confident, seamless grooves firmly in the tradition of NEU!, Faust, or Can. Their shimmering, headphone-ready tones owe much to Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine, and even The Cure, but without the crippling self-absorption of chillwave, dreampop, or whatever all the sad bastards are listening to this week. It's music for an audience, for a rock show. It's got a beat and you can dance to it. The band is Wray and the album is Wray and you can play it at a party and people will like it.
 
This summer, Wray will be touring the United States with surf rock legends Man or Astro-Man? 
 
Wray Tourdates
6/13: Montevallo, AL @ Eclipse (without MOAM)
6/27: Pensacola, FL @ The Vinyl (without MOAM)
7/11: Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree Café
(without MOAM, CD Release Show)
 
7/15: Nashville, TN @ Exit In
7/16: St. Louis, MO @ Firebird
7/17: Kansas City, MO @Riot Room
7/18: Omaha, NE @ Waiting Room
7/19: Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
7/20: Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
7/21: Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
7/22: Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy
7/23: San Francisco, CA @ Independent
7/24: Eugene, OR @ Cozmic Pizza
7/26: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
9/2: Asheville, NC @ Grey Eagle
9/3: Cincinnati, OH @ Taft Theatre
9/4: Indianapolis, IN @ Radio Radio
9/5: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
9/6: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
9/7: Grand Rapids, MI @ The Pyramid Scheme
9/8: Cleveland Heights, OH @ Grog Shop
9/9: Buffalo, NY @ Tralf
9/10: Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bowl
9/12: Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
9/13: Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
9/14: Washington, DC @ Black Cat