Category Archives: Awesome

May 4, 2012 · 11:15 am

Listen: Wintersleep – “Nothing Is Anything (Without You)”

Nova Scotia’s Wintersleep produces music that has the ability to grab listeners with its pop charm and keep them captivated with its subtle complexities. Having won a Juno Award, performed on The Late Show With David Letterman, and spent the last few years touring extensively in support of two successful releases, the band is now gearing up to unleash Hello Hum, a multi-dimensional record full of catchy pop hooks, thoughtful lyrics, and heartfelt sentiment. Co-produced and mixed by Dave Fridmann (MGMT, The Flaming Lips) and Tony Doogan (Belle & Sebastian, Mogwai), Hello Hum is due out June 12th via Roll Call Records/ILG. The album’s first single, “Nothing is Anything (Without You)” premiered with Paste Magazine, who calls it “…an infectious three minute song that shows that the band is back in full force.” Indeed, the track features a lively guitar melody and a driving combination of drum beats and handclaps.

It is available to stream today and will be available for purchase May 15th on all digital retailers. The new record opens with “Hum,” which offers a swirling, slow-building intro to the series of energetic tracks that follow. The upbeat “In Came The Flood” showcases the depth of the band’s sound, featuring melodic vocals atop a densely layered foundation of guitars, vocal harmonies, and driving percussion “Smoke” closes out the album on a softer note, allowing melodic vocals to shine over a subdued instrumental background and steady rolling drum beat. Wintersleep fans will have a chance to catch the band live as they head out on a limited US tour this spring. Having already shared stages with acts like Pearl Jam, Broken Social Scene, Wolf Parade, The Hold Steady and Paul McCartney, be sure to catch Wintersleep in your city!

Listen: Wintersleep – “Nothing Is Anything (Without You)”

Wintersleep Tour Dates

  • 5/29: Los Angeles, CA @ Echo
  • 5/30: San Francisco, CA @ Bottom Of The Hill
  • 5/31: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir
  • 6/1: Seattle, WA @ Columbia City Theater
  • 6/2: Victoria, BC @ Phillips Brewery
  • 6/4: Vancouver, BC @ The Biltmore Caberet
  • 6/5: Calgary, AB @ Hifi Club
  • 6/6: Edmonton, AB @ The Pawn Shop
  • 6/7: Saskatoon, SK @ Amigos
  • 6/8: Winnipeg, MB @ Pyramid Cabaret
  • 6/9: Minneapolis, MN @ 400 Bar
  • 6/11: Chicago, IL @ Schubas Tavern
  • 6/12: Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
  • 6/14: Cincinnati, OH @ MOTR Pub
  • 6/18: Allston, MA @ Great Scott
  • 6/19: Brooklyn. NY @ Knitting Factory
  • 6/20: Philadelphia, PA @ North Star Bar
  • 8/3: Montreal, QC @ Osheaga
  • 8/25: Squamish, BC @ Live In Squamish
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May 3, 2012 · 11:17 am

Listen: Yves Larock & The Cruzaders Ft. Juiceppe – “Strange World”

With two EPs behind him this year already, Yves Larock has been on fire since the start of 2012 – but latest track “Strange World” sees the Swiss producer crank things up to a WHOLE new level.
Collaborating with The Cruzaders and featuring the Hacienda-esque vocals of Juiceppe, “Strange World” is truly one of the most stunning tracks ever to come out of Larock’s Millia Records stable with its lush electronic 80s-inspired synthesized backdrop and softly pulsating filtered percussion.
Remixes come from Tiesto-favourite and Mixmash, Musical Freedom Records alumni Avesta, who turns in a truly zeitgeist remix that smacks of arena anthem, and also Stereo Fish, who intuitively shade the lower end of the track in darker tones, only to add a ray of musical sunshine through their emphasized piano line.
“Strange World” is a beautiful and original piece of work from Larock & The Cruzaders that is destined to hit all the right notes whether on the dance floor or across international radio waves.

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May 3, 2012 · 11:01 am

Download: Prinzhorn Dance School – “I Want You”

Prinzhorn Dance School return with “I Want You,” the new single from their sophomore DFA release Clay Class. The song is both  personal and universal, a minimal love song with maximal impact,  recalling both The XX & the Breeders. The single EP includes 2 brand new tracks recorded specifically for this single – “Promise” & “Love In The Ground, along with a special cover song swap with The Brian James Gang. Brian James covers the Prinzhorn song “Usurper,” while Prinzhorn chooses Brian James Gang song “Green Worms,” which finds Sooz singing/talking/rapping over an undeniable Prinzhorn-esque minimal thump.

Download: Prinzhorn Dance School – “I Want You”

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May 3, 2012 · 10:21 am

Video: Ben Browning – I Can’t Stay

Cut Copy are hard at work on the follow-up to Zonoscope and to hold you over until then, bassist Ben Browning has just released his 1st solo EP, Lover Motion, on the band’s own Cutters Records. To celebrate its release, Browning is taking time out to head to America with Gus Franklin behind the drum kit and a special secret guest rounding out the trio, to play a handful of select dates. The EP is available on iTunes everywhere. It is also out on vinyl and CD at all fine shops and online outlets.

Listen to Lover Motion here

Most of the basic tracks were home spun, and afterwards the talents of Gus Franklin and Haima Marriott (Architecture in Helsinki) were enlisted to add production and shimmer to the finished product. The pair re-effected and mixed the recordings, with Franklin and Lachlan Dickie (one half of film directing duo Krozm) also providing live-drums to some of the original tracks. Meanwhile, Cut Copy’s own Dan Whitford reached into his collection of vintage synths to provide keyboard programming, producing some of the classic keyboard tones that lie herein.

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April 25, 2012 · 10:00 am

New Greg Laswell Video + Free Download

Greg Laswell’s “Come Back Down,” the first single from his new release Landline is this week’s Single of the Week on iTunes! The song features Sara Bareilles on backing vocals.

Free download: Greg Laswell ft. Sara Bareilles – “Come Back Down”

Laswell’s new album, Landline, is available today on Vanguard Records! Landline is his first album since 2010’s Take A Bow, and his fourth full-length. Laswell, a talented producer and musician in his own right, self-produced the record. Landline’s 11 new tracks were recorded by Laswell in a church-turned-house in a small lobstering town in down-east Maine. His nomadic tendencies caused him to relocate from Los Angeles to New York City, eventually ending up at the church-turned-house that is owned by his wife’s parents. The album’s title was inspired by the fact that the home-recording-studio had no cell-phone reception, forcing Laswell to use landlines for all of his calls. The album features collaborations with a number of well-known female singers, including Ingrid Michaelson, Sia, Elizabeth Ziman (of Elizabeth and the Catapult) and Sara Bareilles (on the album’s lead single ‘Come Back Down’). Inspired by hip-hop records that he was listening to while writing and recording the album, Laswell decided he wanted to work with and feature female vocals alongside his own. Each singer brings a new element and personality to the songs, whether it’s Bareilles’ energy that caused Laswell to re-record his vocals, or the fact that he co-wrote the album’s title track with Ingrid Michaelson when the power went out one night.

Check out this video Laswell also recently made for album track “Back To You,” which he filmed himself.

Laswell will also begin touring in May and June to support Landline.  The tour begins on May 15 on the East Coast before heading out across North America to the West Coast and circling back around to the East Coast, ending with three shows in New York City, Washington DC, and Philadelphia. Along the way he will play shows in Los Angeles and Chicago, and many more markets. Not only will Laswell play these headlining shows, but he will follow them up with a number of dates supporting Ingrid Michaelson as well.

 

 

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April 23, 2012 · 11:56 am

New Electric Guest Album, Mondo, Out Tomorrow

Asa Taccone and Matthew Compton–collectively known as Electric Guest have confirmed an April 24 release date (that’s tomorrow!) for their Danger Mouse-produced Downtown Records/Fontana North debut album, Mondo.

Stream: Electric Guest – “This Head I Hold”

The thoroughly unsettling video for album cut “American Daydream,” directed by Jorma Taccone (The Lonely Island, Saturday Night Live), premiered across MTV’s various platforms on January 23.

The duo is set to begin the second leg of their national tour on April 25.

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April 20, 2012 · 4:01 pm

Theophilus London Remixes and New Video

Check out the new video from Theophilus London, “All Around The World.”

Rolling Stone has the exclusive full album premiere of Theophilus London‘s new remix album Timez Are Werid These Nights. Over the last couple weeks, Theophilus has been leaking tracks from the album on its own dedicated tumblr page. He’s enlisted the help of some of the best DJ’s in the game to help breath new life into his debut album Timez Are Weird These Days.

Click image to pre-order album from iTunes

Timez Are Weird These Nights Official Track Listing:

  1. Last Name London (Brodinski Remix)
  2. Love Is Real (Fred Falke Remix)
  3. Wine And Chocolates (Linus Loves Remix)
  4. All Around The World (Silascopathic Remix)
  5. Why Even Try (Bloody Beetroots Remix)
  6. Stop It (Crookers Remix)
  7. Girls Money (Disco Pusher Remix)  
  8. One Last Time (Sahy Uhns Remix) 
  9. Lighthouse (Jeffrey Jerusalem Remix)
  10. I Stand Alone (Skream Remix)

Stream/download: Theophilus London – “Love Is Real” (Fred Falke Remix)

Stream/download: Theophilus London – “Last Name London” (Brodinksi Remix)

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April 17, 2012 · 10:51 am

Preservation Hall Announces Jazz Fest and Summer Line-Up

Preservation Hall Jazz Band is excited to announce their upcoming summer tour dates. Kicking off their tour on May 5th at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (where they will be performing twice) and touring until August.

The Hall Band’s first performance at Jazz Fest will be starting at 4:25pm, Saturday, May 5th at the Economy Hall Tent. On May 6th, the Preservation Hall band and friends will close out Jazz Fest on the Gentilly Stage with a mega performance featuring a number of special guests including Steve Earle, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Ani Difranco, Allen Toussaint, Trombone Shorty, Bonnie Raitt, Wendell Eugene, and Lionel Ferbos.

As part of the Superfly During Jazzfest Concert Series, Preservation Hall Crescent City Revue featuring Preservation Hall and Friends will also perform on Saturday, May 5th at the brand new Joy Theatre, located in downtown New Orleans on Canal Street. Reminiscent of the revues of the 1920s, PHJB will be joined by a number of guests including The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Walter “Wolfman” Washington, Ivan Neville, Stanton Moore, Ernie Vincent, Leo Nocentelli, Benny Jones, Uncle Lionel, Little Freddie King, David Torkanowsky, and many more to be announced. Opening for this all-star revue will be the New Orleans Rock Cabaret The New Orleans Bingo! Show.

Also being announced is this year’s 8th Annual Midnight Preserves Lineup which will feature intimate limited-seating performances at Preservation Hall featuring both national and local artists. This year’s lineup includes Steve Earle, Theresa Andersson, Henry Butler, Tao Seeger, and much more! The Midnight Preserves series will also feature the Hall’s most admired bands paying tribute to legendary Hall musicians. Proceeds from the series will benefit The Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program. Tickets are limited and available now at TICKETFLY.

Preservation Hall Jazz Band will also be releasing a limited edition 10” vinyl of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band Live at Carnegie Hall in advance of the full-length concert to be released later this year. The vinyl will only be available exclusively during Jazz Fest and includes “Sweet And Low Down,” “That’s Enough,” “Saints Go Marchin In,” “Bourbon Street Parade,” and “Tootie Ma.” Only 504 copies will be available for sale.

PHJB Tour Dates

5/5: Economy Hall Tent @ New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

5/5: New Orleans, LA @ Joy Theater

5/6: New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

5/11: Black Mountain, NC @ Lake Eden Arts Festival Lakeside

5/12: Bethlehem, PA @ Arts Quest River Jazz Festival

5/18: Montreal, QC @ Montreal Chamber Music Festival

5/19: Brooklyn, NY @ The Great Googa Mooga in Prospect Park

5/20: Ridgefield, CT @ Ridgefield Playhouse

5/25: Chillicothe, IL @ Summer Camp Music Festival

5/26: Minneapolis, MN @ Orchestra Hall

5/27: Cumberland, MD @ 5th Annual Del Fest

6/2: Brookfield, WI @ Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts

6/7: Coral Gables, FL @ Coral Gables Congregational Church

6/10: Salt Lake City, UT @ Red Butte Garden (with The Del McCoury Band)

6/16: Croton-on-Hudson, NY @ the Clearwater Festival

6/17: Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl

6/22: Vancouver, BC @ Centre for the Performing Arts

6/23: Victoria, BC @ TD Victoria International Jazz Fest

6/29: Las Vegas, NV @ The Smith Center for the Performing Arts

6/30: Las Vegas, NV @ The Smith Center for the Performing Arts

7/1: San Francisco, CA @ Sigmund Stern Grove

7/4: San Rafael, CA @ Marin County Fair

7/6: Irvine, CA @ Irvine Barclay Theatre

7/12: Grand Rapids, MI @ Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

7/13: Wichita, KS @ The Orpheum

7/14: Louisville, KY @ Forecastle Music and Arts Festival

7/25: Interlochen, MI @ Interlochen Center for the Arts Kresge Auditorium

7/26: Boston, MA @ Boston Globe Summer Arts Weekend in Copley Square

7/27: Boston, MA @ Boston Globe Summer Arts Weekend in Copley Square

7/28: Newport, RI @ Newport Folk Festival 2012

8/2: Wellfleet, MA @ Wellfleet Preservation Hall

8/8: Fryeburg, ME @ Fryeburg Academy Leura Hill Eastman Performing Arts Center

8/9: Waterford, CT @ B.O.M.B. FEST Harkness Memorial State Park

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April 16, 2012 · 5:24 pm

Video: Straight From The Harp – GoGoGoGoGo

Check out this awesomeness from Danish band, Straight From The Harp. The song was mixed by Lars Iversen of The Asteroids Galaxy Tour. The video is inspired by movies by Wong Kar-wai, Hitchcock and Danish Lars von Trier and they recorded the video themselves on an iPhone. Their upcoming album, I’m On Fire Just For You, will be out May 29th.
“GoGoGoGoGo” available now on iTunes here.

 

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April 10, 2012 · 3:19 pm

Newest Love: Stepdad

Have you ever looked through those funhouse mirrors that show copies of your reflection continuing infinitely? Imagine seeing that, but in a strobe-lit room with mirrors all around you. Then imagine you’re tripping on LSD.” – Consequence of Sound

“Stepdad’s debut EP is an excellent one and enough to hype their upcoming full-length Wildlife Pop. If you love electro-pop music, you will want to add this band to your rotation.” – Earbuddy.net

“About the only way I can think of to describe them is that it’s like laying in the warm sunshine on a lazy summer afternoon. You just have to relax and smile.” – Revival Magazine

“If Passion Pit and The Postal Service got drunk one night and had a kid out of wedlock, the result would be Stepdad.” – Blogcritics

Stepdad have unleashed unto the world a brand new track from their upcoming debut LP Wildlife Pop, due out June 12th on Black Bell Records.

The Grand Rapids foursome are also excited to announce that they will be joining the Warped Tour this summer. The tour includes over 40 dates and the likes of Rise Against, Taking Back Sunday and many more. Get more info here.

Stepdad was forged in an unrelenting bath of summer heat on Chicago’s south side in 2009 by songwriters/producers/college dropouts/solid bros Ryan McCarthy and ultramark on the foundation of their joint worship of Roland Orzabal and Brian Wilson. After a few quick months, the still nameless duo was sitting on a small mountain of songs. The name Stepdad was arrived upon by a random phrase generator and adopted without regard for the impending banality of rehashing that story during interviews.

Swiftly deciding that a low cost of living heavily outweighed the benefits of Chicago, Stepdad relocated to Grand Rapids (because it’s not Detroit) in their home state of Michigan and self-released their debut EP Ordinaire.  Alex Fives and Jeremy Malvin were then added to the lineup on bass and drums respectively.  This incarnation carried them through tours with Fitz and the Tantrums, Passion Pit, and Rubblebucket.

The success of infectious and heavily layered pop behemoths like “My Leather, My Fur, My Nails” and “Jungles” helped Stepdad gain the attention of producer Chris Zane (Passion Pit, Asobi Seksu, The Walkmen, Les Savy Fav) and in the summer of 2011, Stepdad readily shacked up with friends and bedbugs in New York City to record their debut LP Wildlife Pop, out June 12th on Black Bell Records.

Wildlife Pop presents a creative leap forward for Stepdad, expanding their already massive pop sound. “Will I Ever Dance Again” and “Must Land Running” successfully transplant their aptitude for unforgettable choruses into a larger sound bed while the galactic rainforest sensations of “Treasure Hugs”, “Exploring”, and “Starfriends on Earth” create the cathartic urge to sprint barefoot through a gauntlet of scorpions on a municipal trail paved with searing drywall screws (fortunately for listeners everywhere, this compelling inclination would be devilishly hard to act upon).

Listen: Stepdad – “Must Land Running”

Tracklist for Wildlife Pop
  1. Must Land Running
  2. Jungles
  3. Show Me Your Blood
  4. Mystery in the Faking
  5. Will I Ever Dance Again
  6. To Ribbons
  7. My Leather, My Fur, My Nails
  8. Pick & Choose
  9. Starfriends on Earth
  10. Treasure Hugs
  11. Exploring
  12. Warrior (Jungles Part 2)

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