“With a summer soundtrack like this, we don’t want it to end either.” – The Line of Best Fit
“Light, airy, and a little bit surreal, it’s like a synthpop radio single that’s been put through a taffy pull.” – Noisey
“…captures the lazy, romanticized days of summer with pensive synthesizer loops and heartbeat drums.” – Consequence of Sound
Ennui is the brainchild of renowned Pittsburgh-based musician and producer Jim Doutrich, and has been around in various incarnations since 2004.
The songs that comprise the new album, Telepathic Beat, stand out in style and substance, as roller-beats immersed in a bath of shimmering neo-shoegaze, creating a widescreen backdrop to act as home for brain-embedding melodies and subtly haunting lyrics.
With its sun-drenched feel, the album plays as the soundtrack to a summer spent balancing a narcotic life in clubs, with the possibilities that await when you skip work and head to the beach. It’s destined to be the album to reach for when you don’t want to admit that summer is over.
Telepathic Beat is Ennui’s debut for Mush Records and is nothing short of a rebirth for the band, with mastermind Jim Doutrich honing his infectious brand of synth-pop. The playfully yearning vocals, syncopated synth patterns, and distorted Euro-dance grooves bring to mind both ’80s new wave pop, and the youthful nostalgia of recent releases by glo-fi re-originators.
Los Angeles based alt-rock trio Sir Sly released the video for their lead single “You Haunt Me” today. Lead vocalist and songwriter, Landon Jacobs said of the video, “We wanted to capture the spirit of the song through energetic vignettes of different characters that all share a common unsettling darkness that they carry and exude.”
Sir Sly release their full length debut album You Haunt Me on Tuesday, September 16th via Cherrytree / Interscope Records.
The British electronic pop trio Zoot Woman’s fourth album Star Climbing is out now on Embassy One Recordings and made an impressive debut on the iTunes chart reaching #21 on the Top 200 Albums list and #2 on the Electronic Albums list.
“We recorded Star Climbing over a three year period between our studios, working on songs and lyrics until we felt like we had found the albums direction. It is our most distinctive album to date, combining all our different tastes and styles into one.” – Stuart Price, Zoot Woman
“We felt the need to challenge our own style, to open new doors creatively. It is without a doubt my favourite Zoot Woman album.The title ‘Star Climbing’ is about the idea of reaching for something beyond what you know.” – Johnny Blake, Zoot Woman
Zoot Woman is the British electronic synth pop combo comprising of famed producer Stuart Price (Madonna, The Killers, Pet Shop Boys, Kylie Minogue, Chromeo, etc) and brothers Johnny (guitar, vocals) and Adam Blake(keyboards) who met at school in Reading, England. Their debut album Living In A Magazine (2001) was hailed as one of the most important forerunners of modern electronic pop music, with Hall & Oates/Pet Shop Boys infused singles such as “It’s Automatic” and “Information First” and their stylish conceptual aesthetic. Zoot Woman went on to release two more albums Zoot Woman (2003) and Things Are What They Used To Be (2009) touring relentlessly while remixing artists includingScissor Sisters and Madonna under the name of Paper Faces.
Their fourth long awaited new album Star Climbing is a significantly different offering, fresh and optimistic electronic pop with trademark suave vocals from Johnny Blake, written and recorded in four different studios across the UK and in Price’s LA studio.
“Zoot Woman are back with a bang.” – The Guardian
“A welcome late-summer treat.” – Thump Vice
“Star Climbing’s lead single is ‘Don’t Tear Yourself Apart,’ a pulsing slow-build that matches breathy, gorgeously glossy lead vocals with music that manages to sound desperately pretty without sacrificing urgency or power.” – Stereogum
“The trio—made up of brothers Johnny and Adam Blake, and Stuart Price—tipped its hat to the 80s without sounding redundant.” – Vice Noisey
“Fifteen years after emerging and five years after its last disc, this English pop project, featuring in-demand producer Stuart Price, dusts classic Depeche Mode and New Order sonics with a handful of ultramodern glitter.” – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
STAR CLIMBING TRACKLISTING
1. Don’t Tear Yourself Apart
2. Silhouette
3. Coming Up For Air
4. Nothing In The World
5. Rock & Roll Symphony
6. Chemistry
7. The Stars Are Bright
8. Real Real Love
9. Lifeline
10. Elusive
11. Waterfall Into The Fire
Canada’s acclaimed pop multi-instrumentalist and Juno Award winner Lights has released a new music video for “Up We Go,” the first single off her third studio album, Little Machines, out on September 23rd via Warner Brothers Records.
Little Machines was produced and engineered by Drew Pearson, with key songs/singles mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent (Madonna, U2, Beyonce), and was recorded in both Los Angeles, CA and Vancouver, BC. The anthemic single, “Up We Go,” is available now to purchase digitally or as an instant grat when you pre-order the full album, and can be heard on YouTube and on iamlights.com. It follows intro track “Portal,” which Refinery29 called “the wanderlust song of the summer.”
Lights will perform a very special show at Hard Rock Cafe New York in Times Square on September 30th, as the 2014 Artist Ambassador for Pinktober®, Hard Rock’s annual campaign for breast cancer awareness. The 18+ show begins at 7 p.m. and is free with RSVP. She will then start her national tour in Portland, ME on October 24th.
Lights Fall 2014 US Tour Dates:
10/24 Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall
10/25 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
10/29 New York, NY – Irving Plaza
10/31 Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony
11/01 Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live!
11/02 Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of the Living Arts
11/04 Detroit, MI – St. Andrews Hall
11/05 Chicago, IL – House of Blues
11/07 Denver, CO – The Summit Music Hall
11/08 Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
11/11 Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theatre
11/13 San Francisco, CA – Grand Ballroom at Regency Center
When MONO began in 1999, they set out with a simple mission: From bliss to bludgeon, no matter how long or winding the path may be. Their debut album, Under The Pipal Tree, outlined that mission in twisted, psychedelic fury. Subsequent albums would see the band honing their craft, mastering their mission, and ultimately abandoning that path in favor of more grandiose pursuits. Flanked by increasingly larger orchestras, MONO performed live at some of the most prestigious venues in New York City, London, Tokyo, and Australia. MONO had become an orchestral rock band, a spectacle of extreme melancholy and melodrama. By 2012’s For My Parents, the band had finally reached the logical conclusion of that era; it was time to remember where they started, and to rethink where they were heading. Less strings? No strings? Louder? Quieter? Lighter? Darker? Yes.
Remember their song “Life in Mono” that was in the movie Great Expectations with Ethan Hawke? I LOVEDDDDD that song!!!!
Here’s the video:
The Last Dawn and Rays of Darkness are a pair of new albums by MONO. Recorded simultaneously yet conceptually and creatively disparate, the two act as both opposing and complementary sides to a story. No strangers to narratives, the twin albums explore familiar themes for the band: Hope and hopelessness, love and loss, immense joy and unspeakable pain. Those elemental parts of life and the complicated relationships they create have never been more resonant through MONO’s music than they are here.
The Last Dawn is the first of these two companion albums, and is the “lighter” of the two, thematically and melodically. It contains undoubtedly some of MONO’s strongest songs ever, drawing on an array of influences from minimalist film score to vintage shoegaze. It is MONO at their absolute purest, executing an uncanny, unspoken dialogue with each other without the dozens of stringed instruments that have been so prominent throughout their catalog in recent years. The songs are also noticeably more efficient – there hasn’t been a MONO full-length record that fit on a single slab of vinyl since 2003’s One Step More And You Die – and the album benefits immeasurably from this streamlined approach. MONO have always been masters of telling compelling stories without words. But now they’ve proven they can do it without frills, too.
Rays of Darkness is the first MONO album in 15 years to feature no orchestral instruments whatsoever. That fact alone is remarkable given the band’s reputation for sweeping, dramatic instrumentals that recall Oscar-worthy film scores. Instead, Rays of Darkness more closely resembles a jet engine taking off inside a small, crowded auditorium. It is MONO’s blackest album ever, a collection of scorched riffs, doom rhythms, and an unexpected contribution from post-hardcore pioneer Tetsu Fukagawa of Envy. The album ends with the smoldering wreckage of distorted guitars and ominous drones playing out a eulogy to the days when MONO shot blinding rays of light through seemingly endless darkness.
Portland beat based trio Hustle and Drone will release their debut full-length album, HOLYLAND, on September 2nd via Red Bull Sound Select (now available for preorder on iTunes). Having previously revealed their album single “The Glow,” an anthemic summer jam, the band has now unveiled another cut in the form of “Evaporated.” With minimalistic synth lines building to soaring falsetto harmonies, the track sets a darker- albeit equally infectious- tone.
Hustle and Drone was established in February 2012, when keyboardist Ryan Neighbors left Portugal. the Man to pursue his own songwriting. He teamed up with longtime friend Kirk Ohnstad, and the two immediately began recording & writing. Hustle and Drone released its debut, self-titled EP in July of that year. The band decided to record with producer Sonny DiPerri, which marked the beginning of HOLYLAND – spending time at beach houses & their basement in Portland in order to perfectly craft the record. In the summer of 2013, Kirk made his departure from the group- bringing in bassist Andy Black & Ryan Moore.
“Charli XCX and her pop-perfect hooks have been just a little busy for the past two years, propelling artists like Icona Pop and Iggy Azalea up the charts. Now, after the success of “I Love It” and “Fancy,” it’s Charli’s turn to do some hit-making of her own.” —USA TODAY
“If her new song is any indication, ‘Sucker’ could be the British star’s breakout album that ushers her proper arrival.” —THE FADER
If Charli XCX’s 2014 had ended yesterday it would have been an unequivocally successful year for the singer/songwriter, but there’s still three and a half months to go, and today, Charli put another notch in the win column with the release of “Break the Rules” — one of the most straightforward songs she’s ever recorded, and one of the best. There’s some Joan Jett in here, and some Skrillex, and it’s fucking awesome. —STEREOGUM
Coming off an exciting weekend at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards, where the 22 year old singer + songwriter performed her smash single, “Boom Clap” during the pre-show and scored five nominations for her two summer hits (including “Fancy” which she co-wrote with Iggy Azalea); Charli XCX drops a new video for her latest single, “Break the Rules” arriving on her sophomore album, Sucker out October 21st via Neon Gold/Atlantic Records. The video accompaniment for the sweet rebel anthem features cameos from Rose McGowan as well as gal-pal Kitten front-woman Chloe Chaidez, catch the prom scene here:
“I was inspired by movies like” Jawbreaker” and “Carrie” for the “Break the Rules” video. I never went to prom when I was at school so this was kind of me living out my weird fantasy of what prom would be like in my head. I asked Rose McGowan to be in the video and I never ever thought she would say yes, but she did… so she came to prom too… And she trashed it ;)”
– Charli XCX
Over the last 18 months Charli’s rise to international pop stardom has been nothing short of meteoric. From releasing her dark-pop record True Romancein 2013 to a wealth of critical acclaim, Charli has toured the globe with the likes of Coldplay and Ellie Goulding, written and featured on one of 2013’s biggest hits “I Love It” with Swedish duo Icona Pop, co-written and featured on the global, four million-selling hit “Fancy”with Iggy Azalea, scored a UK and US Top 10 hit with “Boom Clap” + more.
“Boom Clap,” “Fancy” and “I Love It” combined have sold over 14 Million copies worldwide.
North American Headline Tour Dates
September 26th – Orlando, FL @ The Social (TICKETS)
September 27th – Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room (TICKETS)
September 29th – Jacksonville Beach, FL @ Freebird Live (TICKETS)
September 30th – Charlotte, NC @ Amos Southend(TICKETS)
October 2nd – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club (TICKETS)
October 3rd – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of the Living Arts (TICKETS)
October 4th – Boston, MA @ Royale Boston (TICKETS)
October 7th – New York, NY @ Webster Hall (TICKETS)
October 9th – Montreal, QC @ Virgin Mobile Corona Theatre (TICKETS)
“We wanted to make a collection of songs that are a soundtrack to the times you lose yourself in the moment…whether it’s in the club, in the sunshine with friends or staring up into the night sky.” – Menace & Lord Each has individually enjoyed a colorful, successful career within the electronic music industry, but now Kris Menace and Simon Lord have teamed up for an all-new music project simply dubbed Menace & Lord. In step with their new direction, the pair will release an album on September 15th, and the debut single from the album is the title track “Sun, Moon & Stars, Pt. 1”. The music video was directed by Rolling Stone Awarded Meeto Worre Kronborg Grevsen from Denmark who says: “When I was first presented to Menace & Lord, I was completely astonished by the feeling of the tracks. For me, they had a sense of magic like the feeling of being in love for the first time. A feeling of the universe coming together around you and a feeling of coexisting with another person and daydreaming. We wanted to create a love story, and we quickly decided to let the video universe evolve over more than one video to get deeper sense of the story and atmosphere. It’s always a task to make a story fit within a music video, because making a music video is to the create a visual emotion to the music, and often a story is told by words and within a narrative structure that has to make sense somehow. But I think we found a way to create a sense of a story without making it depend on words and the narrative structure. You should feel the videos rather than understanding it perfectly. And I love the chemistry between the actors.” This is just the first video of three that will be released for the debut album Sun, Moon and Stars. The next two music videos are just as visually breathtaking as this one, and will be released in the coming months. Again, from Meeto, “‘Sun, Moon & Stars, Pt. 1’ is the initial video of the trilogy and it should set the atmosphere for all three. It’s centred around the first meeting and the magic of feeling another person for the first time. It’s a happy beginning but we put some drops of melancholy in there as well. The sense of nothing last for ever.” Menace & Lord are defining an all-new path in the electronic music scene so keep an ear out for the revolution.
“Tackling contemporary issues —and universal themes of the heart and home, the multifarious southern hip-hop crew creates a smart, infectious, 13-track LP exuding positivity and self-awareness.” – SPIN
“For folks who think the ’90s was Golden Age of hip hop, Birmingham, Alabama group The Green Seed recalls the days of De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, Black Star and more.” -Brooklyn Vegan
“Comparing the socially conscious four-man crew’s rhythmic and lyrical dexterity to Ghostface Killah and Kool Keith isn’t stretching too much.” – Nashville Scene
Over the summer, inexplicable commercials have been popping up all over local Birmingham television stations. The commercials are only a quarter of a minute long, but thanks to the odd imagery involved they have created quite a memorable impact on all who have seen them.
Birmingham residents have been perplexed as to what the commercials were designed to advertise since they were all quite obscure, leaving much to the viewer’s imagination.
The confusion was taken to an all-new level when one of the spots was aired on national television during Late Night with Seth Meyers and Saturday Night Live commercial breaks.
Today, the source of the perplexing commercials has been revealed, and it is not what people expected. Online, many television watchers speculated as to the source with some arguing it was for a comedic sketch show and others saying it was a publicity stunt for some soon to be released product. While all the guesses were good, they were all wrong.
Birmingham, Alabama hip-hop group The Green Seed is the proud source of the surreal commercials. Each member of the four-piece group (Jean Jefferson, Ted Thompson, Psychic Mike, and Winston James) recorded their own commercial in a viral marketing campaign for their debut full-length album, Drapetomania. The record was released July 15th via Communicating Vessels and is available for purchase now.
In case you missed seeing the commercials on television then you can catch them on the YouTube playlist above. Of course, be sure to dial the number at the bottom of the screen.
The Green Seed is an exciting new act hailing from one of the current most musically fertile cities in the US. Their debut album has gained nationwide critical acclaim and is most definitely one of the best hip-hop albums to have been released this year. Drapetomania is currently at #2 on the CMJ Hip-Hop charts.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that Drapetomania wasn’t the product of the Dirty South rather than the blunted grit of J Dilla’s Detroit or the otherworldly productions of Lex Records. But Drapetomania is no homage – it’s a unique blend of heart, laughter, and guts. While the album often contemplates bondage – artistic, romantic, etc. – but, ultimately, it’s a soundtrack to Freedom… And whatever comes next.
If the commercials have you intrigued then the music will have you hooked. Listen to the stream of Drapetomania on Spin now, right here.
While their recorded songs are amazing, there’s nothing quite like seeing these guys live. They’ll be playing a handful of dates in the coming weeks, so check out the tour dates below.
Tour Dates
9/5 in Florence, AL @ 116 Mobile 9/12 in Little Rock, AR @ White Water Tavern 9/19 in Hattiesburg, MS @ Thirsty Hippo 10/21-25 in NYC @ CMJ Music Marathon
Cherrytree Records and Interscope Records are pleased to announce that they have signed seven-piece sibling band The Hunts to their roster and have released the group’s major-label debut EP, Life Was Simple. In addition, a video for The Hunts’ current single, “Make This Leap,” premieres today.
The pastoral video for “Make This Leap” was shot in The Hunts’ hometown of Chesapeake, Virginia, with a few moments filmed on the family’s actual property. It was directed by Michelle Peerali, who has collaborated with such artists as The Kills, The Cult, The Black Keys, Pyyramids, and Moby. The idyllic location settings beautifully capture the band’s harmony-laced take on alt-folk that’s both breathtaking and sweetly ethereal.
The Hunts have been playing music together almost their entire lives. Ranging from ages 16 to 24, twin sisters Jenni and Jessi and their five brothers Josh, Jonathan, Jordan, Justin, and Jamison all learned to sing and play violin as young kids and spent much of their childhood performing throughout their community. After teaching themselves to play instruments like mandolin, piano, ukulele, banjo, and drums, The Hunts began experimenting with songwriting and soon brought to life a batch of songs that reveal their sophisticated sense of melody and dreamy innocence.
Lead single “Make This Leap” is a lilting piece of indie- folk built on layered harmonies, intricately textured acoustic instrumentation, and lyrics that gracefully shift from melancholy to triumphant. With Josh and Jenni taking turns as lead vocalist, The Hunts sustain that dynamic throughout Life Was Simple, often turning their shared memories into songs that capture heartache and wonder with a wide-eyed but wistful elegance.
“Growing up the way we did, we had to learn to make do with what we had, so the stories from that time are incredibly special to us,” says Jessi, who explains that all seven members of The Hunts write each song together. “A lot of the time we write about what we remember from being young — the things we went through that have drawn us together and stuck in our hearts and really made us who we are.”
The Hunts will hit the road for a U.S. tour in September. All upcoming dates are below.
08/23 Wilson, NC Barton College
08/29 Norfolk, VA Virginia Wesleyan College–Batten Lawn
09/09 Vienna, VA Jammin’ Java
09/10 Pittsburgh, PA Hard Rock Cafe
09/12 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground Showcase Lounge
09/13 Boston, MA Cafe 939 at Berklee
09/15 New York, NY Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2
09/16 Malvern, PA General Wayne E.S.
09/17 Philadelphia, PA World Cafe Live
09/17 Malvern, PA Charlestown E.S.
09/18 Carrboro, NC Cat’s Cradle – Back Room
09/19 Highland Springs, VA Henrico Theatre
09/20 Rock Island, IL Centennial Hall–Augustana College
09/21 Chicago, IL Schubas Tavern
09/23 Columbus, OH Rumba Cafe
09/24 Nashville, TN High Watt
09/26 Houston, TX McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
09/27 Dallas, TX Index Festival
09/29 Athens, GA Georgia Theatre–Rooftop
09/30 Atlanta, GA Vinyl
10/03 Georgetown, TX The Cove/Southwestern
10/04 Austin, TX Austin City Limits
10/08 Pineville, LA Louisana College-outdoor open field
10/10 Montgomery, AL Faulkner University
10/11 Roswell, GA Roswell Cultural Arts Center
10/17 Madison, WI Capitol Theater
10/18 Chippewa Falls, WI Heyde Center for the Arts
10/19 Spirit Lake, IA Sami Bedell Center for the Performing Arts
10/22 Fulton, MO William Woods University
10/24 Brussels, WI Southern Door Community Auditorium
Musically Amusing 