Sep 28, 2019

Joel Jerome • There's Nothing Here To Bother You Anymore • 2019



His solo work traffics in the dusty, sepia tones of music that could only be made in LA's desert haze, and the bands (Cherry Glazerr, Froth, La Sera, etc) he's had a hand in producing have carried this torch to critical acclaim.

Buzzbands have premiered his new video for "There's Nothing Here to Bother You Anymore", and helped us announced his joining Dangerbird's Microdose Series. The video is directed by Steve Hanft, who directed the lo-fi Elliott Smith documentary Strange Parallel and shot Beck's "Loser" video, and follows a day in the life with Jerome and his bull dog as they wander through LA's sun-baked parking lots..


Völuspa • Live One Life • 2019


“Völuspa speaks to your subconscious realm. The dreams, the nightmares, the old lovers, the future self, the past self and to the holiness inside of you. It haunts you and comforts you at the same time.” 


‘Live One Life’ is a waking dream: throbbing synths, cascading piano and crystalline, ethereal vocals pull us deep into a stargazing pop song that ruminates on life, death, love and rebirth. As driving beats and luscious synth arrangements propel the song forward, Völsupa poses an eternal question on the song’s refrain - ‘Do we ever really die?’ 



“Tinged with delicate dream-pop, Völuspa's calm pacing translates into a lullaby with the airy instrumentals that softly echo into the horizon.”
The Line of Best Fit

“cerebral, but undeniably catchy pop tunes that sound like fever dreams starring a coven of witches led by Stevie Nicks.”
Paper

Wilco • "Everyone Hides" • 2019



Wilco have shared a new single from their forthcoming album Ode to Joy, which is out October 4 via dBpm Records. The video for “Everyone Hides” takes the song’s title literally as the band’s members flee to iconic locations around Chicago. They head to Wrigley Field, the Music Box Theatre, Laurie’s Planet of Sound, and Marina City (aka the towers from the cover of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot). Watch the clip below.

Sep 27, 2019

CHAMPS • Shadow On The Sea • 2019


Champs are brothers Michael and David Champion, born and bred in the Isle Of Wight. Formed in 2011, their debut album ‘Down Like Gold’ came with great critical acclaim, drawing praise from the likes of The Guardian, The Independent and Q Magazine. 

Red River Dialect • Abundance Welcoming Ghosts • 2019


Recorded in rural Southwest Wales shortly before songwriter and singer David Morris moved to a remote Buddhist monastery in Nova Scotia, Red River Dialect’s fifth album captures the British folk-rock band finding fresh joy in their music, relaxing more deeply into a natural, playful confidence: tangling with the thickets, wading in the river, digging the peat, and disappearing into the mountains. Featuring Joan Shelley and Tara Jane O’Neil. 

Charlotte Lawrence • Navy Blue • 2019



“Navy Blue” follows Lawrence’s major label debut single “Why Do You Love Me,” which arrived alongside a stunning Alasdair McLellan-directed music video. The track was praised as “a haunting take on pop rock” by Billboard upon release, while DuJour declared “(Lawrence) is a force to be reckoned with” and Flaunt echoed “(Lawrence) is the latest teenage pop icon to emerge and dominate the music charts.”

Sep 25, 2019

Venture Palace • Salt • 2019


Every crew has an anthem for football season: The party banger that gets stuck in your collective heads while tailgating or at the bar, thrown on between commercial breaks. Sometimes it’s an obvious TouchTunes jam like Van Halen’s “Jump”, other times it’s a sneaky diamond-in-the-rough that captures the whole crew to get the funk down.

Introducing that sneaky earworm for football season, courtesy of Nashville’s Venture Palace.

World, meet “SALT”

Sep 22, 2019

Mia Berg • Intro • 2019


“‘Each new single takes her closer to the prize, and Mia Berg hits home with her emphatic new sad-pop banger ‘You Decided”’

“The Oslo riser is provocatively talented”

(CLASH)

Klangstof • Attack Attack • 2019


Amsterdam-based alternative act Klangstof was founded by Dutch/Norwegian musician Koen van de Wardt. The band first established itself with their debut LP, Closed Eyes To Exit, a majestic confluence of synth-pop, post-rock, and electronic music.

Sep 21, 2019

Hunting • Gold Day • 2019


The Sparklehorse cover 'Gold Day' showcases their wistful melancholy tone through swooning vocals, muted guitars and a driving rhythm section. 'Gold Day' is off of the band's upcoming album Whatever You Need, which is set for release November 1st. 

ONCE A TREE • WHAT YOU SAY • 2019



"Most of us know what it feels like to be led on, betrayed, or lied to,” says Once A Tree. “We all deserve honesty, love, and loyalty. This song is about having the courage to get rid of the toxic people or relationships in our lives."

OYSTER KIDS • 'Give In' • 2019

Sep 19, 2019

Walter Gavitt Ferguson • The Legendary Tape Recordings Vol​.​2 • 2019


„100-year-old Walter Gavitt Ferguson from Costa Rica is a living legend, a Calypsonian of mythical proportions. Rooted like an old tree on the caribbean shore, he has never left his home town to look for fame, instead fame came looking for him. Throughout eight decades his musical gifts have attracted people from near and far, contesting Calypsonians, travellers, musicologists, musicians, pilgrims and the president of the Republic. They once even moved a recording studio to his house, as he refused to go to the city. 

Mipso • People Change • 2019


People Change once again showcases Mipso’s undeniable ability to write beautifully poignant indie-Americana with otherworldly instrumental flourishes throughout. The video is equally stunning, with the art and animation created by Jake McBride. Talking about the single, frontman Jacob Sharp elaborates, “a lot of what I write is centred around articulating loss. My mother died when I was young and I've had a normal amount of romantic relationships end… People Change is a different angle on loss, that of a friendship fading away. In some ways it's a lot more difficult to process, because the loss feels more within your control - the situation less futile - but the impact of the absence is pretty much the same.”



Sep 18, 2019

tindersticks • 'The Amputees' • 2019

Tindersticks - The Amputees

bdrmm • Shame • 2019


bdrmm combine a flair for weaving together dreamy sonic textures and introverted small-town sketches, channelling hazy adolescent disconnection into a washy synthesis of Beach House, jangly slackers DIIV and otherworldly shoegazers Slowdive. They’ve found a kindred spirit in cult shoegaze label Sonic Cathedral (Spectres, Lorelle Meets The Obsolete, Echo Ladies), to whom the Hull based quintet have signed.


The Cordial Sins • "Cruel" • 2019

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Atwood - "Returning with an unquenchable fire, leaning into a heavier rock sound defined by overdriven, grungy guitars, unforgiving lyrics, and a magnetic, riot grrrl punk attitude. It’s got the kind of resolute spirit we can’t help but embrace." 

With Guitars - "Delectable meld of alternative, shoegaze and pop”

Born Online - "Bouncy guitar driven pop with rippling synths, emotive undercurrents, bombastic drums, and whirring guitars"

Ghettoblaster - "Grittily fizzing meld of raspy indie rock, melty shoegaze and combatively raw emotion”

The Autumn Roses - "Lush with a serene sense of possibility... leafy and emerald-toned ”

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Milky Chance • The Game • 2019


Milky Chance have won our hearts yet again with The Game, a bittersweet slice of folk pop for anyone who feels like life moves too fast.

Dying Adolescence • please be kind • 2019


"please be kind" is the final of all that is adolescence. It's the final summary of everything that Michael Barker has been obsessed, influenced and affected by during his adolescent years. This may not be the end but it's a time of change.

Sep 15, 2019

Pallas Athene • The Wall • 2019



I wrote my new song, “The Wall,” from my perspective as an observer in the virtual world. I notice myself and others just not as present in-person, overwhelmed by the critical state of the world and the constant information overload from our newsfeeds, ads and notifications. This track represents the restriction, loneliness, and disempowerment that I feel in being a part of the virtual world and also represents my fear of isolation and obsolescence in leaving it behind.
The song is from my upcoming self titled EP. I wrote, produced, performed and mixed all of these songs by myself, with the exception of “Communion” which was a virtual collaboration with Dollarstore Keyboard. In the past I had to rely on others to help me actualize my vision, but that didn’t always feel good, and I needed to know if I was capable of doing something of value, on my own. I feel like I have a deeper connection to these songs as I’ve been involved in their creation, every step of the way.


The Naked Sun • Secret We Both Know • 2019


“...a shuffling roots-rock boogie tightly punctuated by hummable saxophone lines, snappy rhythms, and energetic delivery.”  John Vettese, WXPN’s The Key
"The Naked Sun’s infectious honest rock is on full display on debut album ‘War with Shadows’, a record of raw self-awareness, hope, heart, and possibility.” - Atwood Magazine


“With a sound as catchy and clean as the Naked Sun's, it wouldn't be surprising to see these up-and-comers in the roots-rock industry one day climb their way to the top.” -PopMatters

Leanne Tennant • Bring It All Back • 2019


"Compelling, surreal, cinematic scenes set in familiar suburban landscapes… (...) Bring It All Back is a display of astute, mature pop music, delivered with grace and emotion."
CLASH Magazine

“With all of its elements working together towards a single theme, Tennant’s release is looking to be stunningly cohesive, not to mention a killer, head-bobbing work of contemporary indie-blues”
Atwood Magazine

"Right from the haunting acapella intro, Leanne Tennant's commandingly haunting vocals latch on. ‘Gentle Annie’ — the first track lifted from her forthcoming second album, Red Wine, Late Nights — teasingly edges towards complete collapse or euphoric explosion (dependent on your own perspective), as Tennant slowly succumbs to the soulful darkness of her late-night world."
Rolling Stone

"Leanne impressed us all here in the BBC - Merseyside studio with her last track ‘Bearing the Crown’, and she's done it again with this wonderful new single ‘Cherry Cola’". 
Dave Monks, BBC Music Introducing in Merseyside

"That simple guitar picking at the start draws you straight in.  The atmosphere Tennant has created through the song - with the stomping rhythm and the layers of voices - brings out such an ominous mood" - 
Richard Kingsmill, Triple J Radio, Australia

LUCABLUEFIRE • Signs • 2019

White Ocean '15


In this new single guitars are back at the centre of attention. 
It shows once again Luca's introspective and melodic side. 
Inspired by bands such as This Will Destroy You, Hammock, Mogwai and instrumental/post rock in general, "SIGNS" is released through Long Gone Days Records

Sep 14, 2019

Alexandra Savior • Saving Grace • 2019


"Portland's mystery girl (VICE)" may no longer be a kept secret, but Alexandra Savior can never be fully figured out. With her latest single "Saving Grace," she also releases a cinematic noir film directed by Joseph Bird (Blonde Redhead) — complete with a motorcycle ride through the desert and Savior's signature stare piercing the lens outside a drive-thru chapel — to accompany the already sweeping track. Savior painted the single artwork herself, and it showcases that see-right-through-you Mona Lisa smile that we see in the video.





The Academic • Aftertaste • 2019


"Soaring chorus, crisp verse, and sheer triumphant energy." - CLASH
"Catchy anthemic tracks shimmer with the relatability and charm of teenage youth." - Wonderland
"Up-tempo, heartfelt, and catchy as hell." Independent 
"Shows an anthemic wisdom well beyond their years." - UPROXX
"Punchy, swaying alternative rock-flavored." - Popmatters
"Echoing vocals, thrumming-bass verses, and infectious rock." Popdust



Neal Francis • Changes • 2019


“The reincarnation of Allen Toussaint.” Craig Charles, BBC RADIO 6

“Think New Orleans meets the Midwest with a little bit of California sun shining in the background.” - TWIN CITIES MEDIA

“There’s a good chance you’ll have heard of Francis by the time the year is over…classic Funk, Soul and R&B.” - CINCINNATI CITYBEAT

“… gleefully mired In '70s style funk.” - Jon Norton, WGLT | NPR

“Soulful style…uplifting vibe…” - DUSTY GROOVE

“If Happy Days ever got a reboot, Neal Francis’ single ’These Are The Days’ would be the new theme song.” - Erin Bromhead, MONSTER CHILDREN

“Instant Americana-funk classic…R&B, blues and touches of gospel and good old fashioned funk merge into pure beauty and soul here, making the appetite and excitement for whatever Francis does next all the more intense.” - RECORD CRATES UNITED

FELIN • LaLaLa • 2019


Talking about her new single, FELIN tells us “LaLaLa is about being mistreated and hurt by someone and while you’re destroyed, they just go on with their life as if nothing has happened. That can make anyone go a little psycho, right? And even if you would never act on it, the villain in you secretly wishes for karma to bite back when they least expect it. The lyrics on the upcoming album are all pretty twisted, but in a playful way. Movies are a big inspiration of mine, so I wanted to create my own movie in the form of an album with a story about a dark and wild romance that ends in chaos”.

Sep 12, 2019

Daniel Johnston • 1961 - 2019


A lot has been said about the “childlike” aspects of Johnston’s music and personality, and it’s true his voice has a certain untouched-by-age cast to it — that, and his career feels like what would happen if the funny kid in your freshman high school class who made goofy little tape deck songs and could draw a pretty damn good Jack Kirby Captain America just … never stopped being that, and then he found a scene that dug him for it. SG


True love will find you in the end
You'll find out just who was your friend
Don't be sad, I know you will
But don't give up until
True love will find you in the end
This is a promise with a catch
Only if you're looking can it find you
'Cause true love is searching too
But how can it recognize you
If you don't step out into the light, the light
Don't be sad I know you will
Don't give up until
True love will find you in the end


An all-star band of musicians join cult favorite Daniel Johnston for a live session in our studio. Ben Lee is the bandleader and is joined by Mike Watt, Maria Taylor, Joey Waronker, Guy Blakeslee and members of the Silver Lake Chorus to play a handful of Johnston's songs.

Friendship • Clairvoyant • 2019



"Friendship are a Philly-based band centered around Dan Wriggins’ narrative pull. His stories tend to be long-winded but confined to small moments, and the rest of the band — currently made up of Peter Gill, Mike Cormier, Evangeline Krajewski, and Jon Samuels — play into this in an unobtrusive but all-encompassing way." 
Stereogum

shy kids • Backward in Love • 2019


shy kids (no caps, no the) is a creative collective from Toronto that make film and music. most famous for their short film NOAH, which won TIFF in 2013 and issued in the trend known as desktop filmmaking. since then the band has worked on projects for Alvvays, Shania Twain, VICE, Netflix, Quibi, and many others in development; incase being directors didn’t pan out their fallback plan is to be rockstars.

Sep 10, 2019

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy • "At The Back of the Pit" • 2019

Bonnie “Prince” Billy in “At the Back of the Pit,” directed by Jacob Forman


I Made a Place is Bonny’s first LP of original songs officially released on Drag City since his 2011 record Wolfroy Goes to Town. Since, he’s self-released a 2013 self-titled album, reworkings of older material, a collaborative record with Bitchin Bajas, a double-album tribute to Merle Haggard, and most recently, a collaborative LP with the National’s Bryce Dessner and Eighth Blackbird. Last year, using his name Will Oldham, he released an album called Songs of Love and Horror. pitch

Sep 9, 2019

Reuben and the Dark • You and I • 2019



"Compelling and evocative" - Exclaim!
"Bright Eyes meets Mumford & Sons" - American Songwriter
"Earnest, anthemic" - WXPN




the GOLDEN DREGS • Clarksdale, MS • 2019


mercvrial • the stars, like dust • 2019


otherworld - 00:00
carnival - 05:34
pink frost - 09:08
girlwish (ii) - 13:40
hsieh su-wei - 18:37

I’d like you to meet Mercvrial, an eclectic group with shoegaze and dream-pop tendencies that imprint on the sounds of Ride, Slowdive, The Chills and other artists of the like that they embraced during their formative years. On their upcoming EP The Stars, Like Dust, we hear thick guitar beds provide backdrop to atmospheric vocals. It explores the size and significance of human beings on a big rock hurling through space and the ensuing feelings of existential bewilderment. 

The Avalanches & David Berman • A Cowboy Overflow of the Heart • 2012

SPOKEN WORD WITH ELECTRONICS • Issue #1 (A Tribute to David Berman, Sept 2019)


A Toast to David Berman
This is the first three-track set for a new series of mine called “Spoken Word with Electronics” - David had agreed to participate in a track, with a suggestion to record in the Winter when he'd returned from tour. Time ran out (love to him) but here’s a piece about these three tracks and the process: boingboing.net/2019/09/02/my-unf…d-project-wi.html
Audio for "The Moon" was completed this month, post-death, as a way of grieving his work and celebrating him. This audio comes from a 2016 performance perfectly titled "The Secret Conversation" — One of only four public readings David ever performed. The entire recently surfaced recording is an incredible gift: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFPganP_p6Y — There's a fragile sense to the performance here, particularly in the last two sets of spoken lines, that likely would not have been delivered in a recording booth.
Love to David Berman, Thanks for the bright moments.
More pieces from Spoken Word with Electronics in a few months, but I wanted to post this today.
Peace, Ethan. ep.tc/

Sep 6, 2019

Adam Green • Freeze My Love • 2019

Frankie Cosmos • Close It Quietly • 2019


Close It Quietly takes the trademark Frankie Cosmos micro-universe and upends it, spilling outwards into a swirl of referentiality that’s a marked departure from earlier releases, imagining and reimagining motifs and sounds throughout the album. 


This latest record as Frankie Cosmos offers only mild alterations to a winning formula. Close It Quietly is full of short songs – 21 of them packed into 40 minutes – built around trembling vocals and unfussy instrumentals with an unmistakably 1990s bent. The heavier-than-usual arrangement of So Blue is reminiscent of Pavement; the pretty guitar plucks of Never Would score a tale of an old lover not missed.

Squid • Match Bet • 2019


“A more aggressive spin on the funky post-punk of Television and Talking Heads” Stereogum 
"Squid are making one of the most exciting rackets in music right now" Q 
"Just when you think the British five-piece have settled into a groove and aligned themselves to a sound, they flip the script and hit you with something new" The Fader
"There is something so giddy and charming about this hyped London-via-Brighton indie-punk quintet"
“A rich blend of psychedelia, Europop and punk noise” The Line of Best Fit 
“Intense, weird songs that scan like David Byrne conducting LCD Soundsystem” Drowned In Sound
“The Coronation Street theme tune played on flutes by angry children” NME
“Itchily contagious as it is futuristic” Clash
“One of our favourite new artists” So Young Magazine
 “A unifying sense of ingenuity and vessel bursting energy” DIY

Sep 5, 2019

David J with Asia Argento & Anton Newcombe • Migena And The Frozen Roses • 2019



David J (Bauhaus/Love & Rockets), who has spent the last 8 months touring the world with Peter Murphy on the Ruby Rising 40 Years Of Bauhaus Tour, releases a second digital only single from his forthcoming new solo album, this time featuring actress Asia Argento and Anton Newcombe (Brian Jonestown Massacre). 

Le Flegmatic • Ruines nouvelles • 2019



Chaque phrase, chaque rime me faisaient décoller du siège comme des arcs électriques, et transcendaient les paysages que je traversais.

Tout se retrouvait chargé d'une électricité bleue. 

J'ai surtout rencontré le guitariste Romain Nègre. Ça n'a pas été facile pour lui, le pauvre. Je l'ai harcelé tous les jours avec le genre de blues étrange que j'avais en tête, et les albums de Dylan... 

J'ai aussi rencontré Luis Mazzoni, génial ingénieur du son, chaman à lampes. Je lui ai parlé de cette « nuit éclatante » que je voulais peindre. 

Je voulais allumer la lumière, puis tout éteindre et tout rallumer de nouveau avec de puissants projecteurs.

Sep 4, 2019

Monster Rally • Adventures on the Floating Island • 2019


Monster Rally's new album scores a journey through a lush, exotic, dangerous, and alluring paradise - the Floating Island. The lounge-influenced collection of songs guides the listener through an instrumental narrative inspired by themes of amnesia, discovery, exploration, and mysticism.

Bluey • No Plans • 2019



"... tightly structured pop melodies with swirling synths and an indie rock approach to create a sound that is refreshingly his own."

Sep 3, 2019

The Stairs • The Unnatural Bridge • 2016


A 2002 song for song cover of The Silver Jews' The Natural Bridge album by members of The Stairs. Recorded at 1200 Commonwealth Avenue, Allston, MA in two days. An experiment and a tribute, we had fun making this but don't think it stands up. Only listen if curious and a huge fan of the original. You have been warned. 

Boy Scouts • "Get Well Soon" • 2019


Boy Scouts’ ‘Get Well Soon’ serves as the first glimpse to the forthcoming LP Free Company out on August 30th. Recorded and produced by Stephen Steinbrink, the track packs a sharp punch through its causative lyrics. ‘Get Well Soon’ is an airy-folk pop song comprised of springy bass lines, lush guitars, and Vick’s entrancing vocals. It’s a song of a tranquil nature, radiating with elegance and providing refined sonic fluxes. ‘Get Well Soon’ is pure bedroom-folk, luring you into finding yourself lost with yesterday’s thoughts, occupied by today’s choices, and captivated by tomorrow’s chances. 405