Last month I posted the video for “Slaver” from the band Pompeya. Now, the US full-length debut is available! Tropical is an ode to 70s disco and 80s new wave in a sound that is pop music in its finest form. The Moscow-based group has seen “Power”, “90”, and “Slaver” as the record’s first singles, each accompanied by all new music videos. The LP will be paired with a remix EP, which features contributions from Psychemagik, Fred Falke, Jimmy Edgar, and more. The official Remix EP will be included as a free download for those that purchase the 12” special edition double vinyl, and will be released officially in December 2013.
Check out another new track from Chromeo’s highly anticipated release, White Women. Dave 1 and P-Thugg follow up the infectious “Over Your Shoulder” with a 6 minute funk odyssey called “Sexy Socialite” (which they’ll be performing TONIGHT with special guest on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon). MIGHT just be my new favorite!
Ha Ha Tonkarecently released their highly anticipated fourth full-length album, Lessons, via Bloodshot Records.
The album was recorded at Bright Eyes’ ARC Studios in Omaha, Nebraska and in NYC with producers Dan Molad (Lucius) and The Ryantist. With a sound described as “southern rock meets The Cure” by My Old Kentucky Blog,the band today unveils their captivating live video for album title track, “Lessons.” Check out the entrancing “Lessons” (Live Video)below.
Ha Ha Tonka has become renowned for its authentic, effortless brand of indie-Americana, seamlessly fusing the traditional with modern, contemporary elements. Their track, “Usual Suspects,” was featured in the latest episode of CBS hit series, Criminal Minds.
“the spirit of the UK’s second summer of love, circa 1988, evoked the old-fashioned way: a DJ spinning records in Melbourne’s burgeoning underground dance music scene.” – NPR
“ …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
“ …as soulful and wholesome as they are futuristic and danceable.” – SPIN
Cut Copy have grown from a bedroom project to an international festival staple that never fails to leave thousands enraptured. Each release and tour has invited fans internationally one step closer into their world full of ecstatic peaks broken up by quiet moments of melancholy and beauty. Their vision is clearer than ever before on their fourth studio album, Free Your Mind, released November 5th via Loma Vista/Modular.
The album is now streaming in full at NPR “First Listen”(and available for pre-order via iTunes.)
Free Your Mind was strongly influenced by the two “Summers of Love,” which were birthed from burdening times – Vietnam and 10 years of Thatcher’s reign. Through unprecedented explosions of youth culture, communal elation and celebration, these eras provided a spirit that the band embraced – the need to tear down the walls of perception while creating a fantasy of what the next youth revolution might sound like. The result is a sound of a band that has been sending masses into abandon for years.
Hailed for their energized live show, the band has kicked off an international tour, making stops in LA, Chicago, Austin, Tulsa and more. Fans that aren’t able to catch the band live, can catch them performing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on November 19th.
Check out the new video for Cut Copy’s title track, “Free Your Mind”. Alexander Skarsgård fans rejoice!!!
Cut Copy’s fourth studio album, titled Free Your Mind, will be released November 5th. The album is now available for pre-order via iTunes. Pre-order comes with an instant-grat download of the “Free Your Mind” single. And check out the remix from Spiritualized below.
10/27: Asheville, NC @ Mountain Oasis Festival
10/29: Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
10/31: Reno, NV @ Knitting Factory
11/1: Portland, OR @ Roseland Ballroom
11/2: Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
11/3: Los Angeles, CA @ HARD Day of the Dead Festival
11/6: Tempe, AZ @ Marquee
11/7: El Paso, TX @ Trickly Falls
11/8: Austin, TX @ Fun Fun Fun Fest
11/9: Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
11/10: Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom
11/11: St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
11/13: Madison, WI @ Majestic
11/14: Chicago, IL @ Riviera
11/15: Toronto, ON @ Danforth
11/16: Boston, MA @ House of Blues
If you missed my post last month for SWF’s “Black & Golden”, be sure to check it out. Of the video, Impose Magazine says “The beach-side conquering-god-like-antics are what sell the song as you and ride to the tide of the song’s title verse. Kick it the sand and watch what might be your favorite song and video to rock beneath the sweltering beams of sun.”
Now, Brooklyn’s lo-fi rock & roll mystic SWF has shared a free download of “Let It Be Told,” the title track from his debut album, which see a vinyl/digital release October 8th through Mecca Lecca. From the fuzzed-out bass at the beginning, to the unforgettable hooks (and impassioned lyrics) throughout, “Let It Be Told” is truly representative of the feel-good nature of the album as a whole.
SWF’s messages of love and longing roll from his debut album, Let It Be Told, like mantras blasted from the radio of a brightly re-painted VW van, cruising a metaphysical highway of endless summer with the windows down. Revealed in both the spirit of light and darkness, Let It Be Told is a work of truth, love, and a heart that beats for rock & roll. It has a lot of soul.
Following Chromeo’s advance album trailer, a joyride through the desert, beautifully shot by Surface 2 Air, starring one bride, two grooms (Chromeo’s Dave 1 and P-Thugg) and a 1987 Camaro, Montreal’s reigning funkmasters unleash the full version of the clip’s music: “Over Your Shoulder”, the first new Chromeo song in three years! This superbly produced slice of Cana-disco serves as an ode to feminine self confidence and empowerment, with Dave 1 crooning: “it’s those little imperfections that make beauty in my eyes/ I want to be in the intersection of your thighs/ and you worry about your size it’s nonsense/ it’s not a contest and besides, if it was a contest you’d win it…“. It’s quirky, it’s genuine, it’s outlandish and straight faced all at once…suffice to say, Chromeo is back!
Since 2010’s critically acclaimed Business Casualalbum, it seems that the world has caught up to the brand of 80s inspired electrofunk that Chromeo has diligently been crafting for almost ten years. Their upcoming White WomenLP is certainly the group’s most ambitious, as it crystallizes their unique arch, high brow-low brow aesthetic. Filled with seven-minute synth jams, orchestral arrangements, more live instrumentation than ever before and of course, hilarious lyrics, White Women also sports Dave and Pee’s catchiest pop tunes to date. Stay tuned for the first official single, “Sexy Socialite”, dropping very soon.
The Chain Gang of 1974, the moniker of genre-jumping singer & multi-instrumentalist Kamtin Mohager, is making headlines with his enthralling new single “Sleepwalking” which is featured on the new television commercial for Grand Theft Auto V. The commercial has been in constant rotation since its debut earlier this month during a new episode of “Breaking Bad,” and the song is the most popular on Grand Theft Auto V’s soundtrack, on sale now at iTunes. “Sleepwalking” is the first single from The Chain Gang of 1974’s highly anticipated sophomore LP Daydream Forever, which is due out February 4 on Warner Bros Records.
The Chain Gang of 1974 just finished a run of West Coast dates with The Vaccines, and is gearing up for a week-long trek with Sir Sly, kicking off October 8 in San Francisco. See below for details.
Daydream Forever was produced by Isom Innis (Foster The People), with additional production and mixing from Tony Hoffer (M83, Phoenix). Earlier this summer, Neon Gold unveiled a first look at the new album, by premiering the song “Miko.” Watch the official lyric video for it below:
The new album is the anticipated follow-up to The Chain Gang of 1974’s widely acclaimed 2011 debut Wayward Fire, which Esquire declared “one of the summer’s most surprisingly fantastic new records,” and earned similar praise from the likes of SPIN, MTV, FADER, NYLON, RCRD LBL and more. The band has shared the stage with the likes of Foster the People, Big Audio Dynamite, Tapes N Tapes, and The Naked and Famous, as well as a lauded performance at 2011’s Lollapalooza, which Yahoo proclaimed “a fabulous onstage display.”
THE CHAIN GANG OF 1974 TOUR DATES:
September 27 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
September 28 – San Diego, CA @ The Griffin
October 8 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent (w/ Sir Sly)
October 10 – Vancouver, BC @ Electric Owl (w/ Sir Sly)
October 11 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos (w/ Sir Sly)
October 12 – Portland, OR @ Holocene (w/ Sir Sly)
October 14 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court (w/ Sir Sly)
October 15 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater (w/ Sir Sly)
Just two weeks out from the release of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.’s sophomore LP, The Speed of Things, the guys have dropped a brand new song, “Don’t Tell Me.” DEJJ’s Josh Epstein and Daniel Zott explain: “Before we even knew we were going to make a second album we began playing this song live almost two years ago and have been dodging questions after shows about when it was going to be made available ever since.” The track premiered with Conan O’Brien’s Team Coco yesterday.
Paste recently championed DEJJ’s lead single, “If You Didn’t See Me, Then You Weren’t On The Dancefloor)” as one of the “Best Songs of Summer” alongside the likes of Daft Punk, Justin Timberlake, Vampire Weekend, and more. Teen Vogue just called out the album as one of “The Most Exciting Albums Coming Out This Fall” raving “Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. makes straightforward, infectious indie-pop that you’ll listen to again and again.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. have linked up with labelmates Atlas Genius for the “Ones To Watch Tour” this fall, which just launched this week. It includes two nights in NYC on October 10th and 11th at Irving Plaza, The Wiltern in LA November 6th and The Fillmore in SF November 7th. A full list of dates is below.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. Upcoming Tour Dates:
09/25 Pabst Theater- Milwaukee, WI*
09/26 Varsity Theater- Minneapolis, MN*
09/27 Gabe’s – Iowa City, IA
09/28 High Noon Saloon – Madison, WI
09/29 Mojo’s – Columbia, MO
10/01 House of Blues- Chicago, IL*
10/02 House of Blues- Cleveland, OH*
10/04 Danforth Music Hall- Toronto, ON*
10/05 Cabaret Mile – End – Montreal, Canada
10/06 Port City – Portland, ME
10/08 House of Blues- Boston, MA*
10/10 Irving Plaza- New York, NY*
10/11 Irving Plaza- New York, NY*
10/12 Theatre of the Living Arts- Philadelphia, PA*
10/13 The Fillmore/Silver Spring- Silver Spring, MD*
Earlier this month, I posted a new track and video (“Seven Nights Seven Days”) from The Fratellis. Now, the band shares another new song “This Old Ghost Town,” which premiered with Rolling Stone.
The full length We Need Medicine album is preceded by a special digital EP which is out now, ft. the studio version of “Seven Nights Seven Days” & two live albumtracks “She’s Not Gone But She’s Leaving” and “Whisky Saga” recorded at Glasgow Barrowlands.
The Fratellis US Tour Dates
11/1: New York, NY @ Webster Hall
11/2: Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall
11/3: Boston, MA @ Paradise
11/4: Philadelphia, PA @ World Café Live
11/6: Chicago, IL @ Metro
11/7: San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
11/8: Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
11/9: Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
11/12: Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre
Musically Amusing 