Said The Whale • 99 to the Moon • 2021

Over a decade into their career, Vancouver's Said The Whale have won a JUNO Award, topped the alternative radio chart, and amassed a devoted fanbase – all the while maintaining their resolutely independent spirit. Recent single "Honey Lungs" cracked the Top 10 on the Canada Rock Chart and was also the #1 Most Added release week-of-release on the NACC North American singles chart.

Nov 2 @ The Crocodile – Seattle, WA * TICKETS

Nov 3 @ Mississippi Studios – Portland, OR * TICKETS

Nov 5 @ Bottom Of The Hill – San Francisco, CA * TICKETS

Nov 6 @ Teragram Ballroom –  Los Angeles, CA * TICKETS

Nov 7 @ Constellation Room – Santa Ana, CA * TICKETS

Nov 8 @ Casbah – San Diego, CA * TICKETS

Nov 9 @ Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ * TICKETS

*supporting Tokyo Police Club

 

March 8 @ Petit Campus – Montreal, QC TICKETS  

March 9 @ Saw Club – Ottawa, ON TICKETS 

March 10 @ The Mansion – Kingston, ON TICKETS 

March 11 @ Axis Club – Toronto, ON TICKETS 

March 17 @ Louis' – Saskatoon, SK TICKETS 

March 18 @ Starlite Room – Edmonton, AB TICKETS 

March 19 @ Commonwealth Bar – Calgary, AB TICKETS 

March 24 @ Fox Cabaret – Vancouver, BC TICKETS

March 25 @ Biltmore Cabaret – Vancouver, BC TICKETS

March 26 @ Vogue Theatre – Vancouver, BC TICKETS

Warmyear • "Eliza" • 2021

Warmyear is the solo project of Sonya Balchandani (bass/keyboards/vocals in The Big Sleep). "I Wear The Memory" is the upshot of jumping on a little spark after a year of getting through it. From all the thinking, watching, reading, listening, and mothering came songs about spies, tricksters, rootlessness, searching, truth, and motherhood. (Some of the inspirations: so much Ursula K. Le Guin, In & Of Itself, The Bureau, The Vanished Birds, When Stars Are Scattered, and a sweet but terrifying lullaby.)

Golden Boots • "She Just Wanted to Watch the Sky" • 2021

Z Tapes • Summer 2021

A soundtrack for Summer 2021 

Cover art by Seb Westcott (iamseb.co.uk) 

Mastering and track order by Etai (twitter.com/etaimusic) 

All digital profits will go towards NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. 

 

Porridge Radio • You Are a Runner and I Am My Father's Son • 2021

Sub Pop is pleased to announce the release of Porridge Radio’s cover of The Shins’ “New Slang,”! The song is the B-side from the group’s forthcoming contribution to the subscription-only Sub Pop Singles Club Vol. 6. The A-side, Porridge Radio’s cover of Wolf Parade’s “You Are A Runner And I Am My Father's Son” will be available on August 9th. 

LOMA • Going Out • 2021

Loma’s Dan Duszynski says of the song, “Songs are like cats—sometimes they just pick you. Emily and I first heard "Going Out" while we were playing at a record store in Austin a few years ago. I went to the counter to ask who it was, and the album (Dinner’s Three EPs) is still in rotation at our home/studio. We couldn't resist making our own version because it always cheers us up. Who doesn't need that right now?"

DARKSIDE • "Liberty Bell" • 2021

https://darkside.bandcamp.com

Anika • Change • 2021

anika-change

Lorde • Stoned at the Nail Salon • 2021

https://www.lorde.co.nz

The KVB • World On Fire • 2021

“'World On Fire' was written in late 2019 and at its core it’s about duality and how a phrase like "set the world on fire" which sounds so destructive, is also about doing something remarkable. We wanted it to be a phrase that is deliberately open to interpretation in this song.”

 

“Over time we have all become desensitised to bad news and horrific events through television and social media. In much the same way as people slow down to look at a car crash, it feels like we’ve all become more and more obsessed with watching the world on fire.”

The KVB UK Live Dates

22nd July - Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield

23rd July - Latitude Festival

24th July - A Love Parasite (Studio 9294), London

21st August - Jimmy's, Liverpool 

29th September - Peckham Audio, London

Wyndow • Pulling On a String • 2021

The songs on Wyndow exist in the space between waking and sleeping, hazy tales that unfurl and engulf the listener in a slightly uncanny sense of familiarity. New single ‘Pulling On A String’ is based on the feeling of walking familiar routes and wishing they took you elsewhere, the duality of holding on to the familiar yet pulling yourself nearer to the beyond and the unknown.

Taking inspiration from the atmospheres and repetition of ecstatic minimalism and the joyful experimentation of Penguin Cafe Orchestra, songs were built from small fragments and loops, recorded spontaneously and sent to each other across the wires.  Recorded and produced in Liverpool with Iwan Morgan (Euros Childs, Gruff Rhys, Cate le Bon)  and in Clydebank with multi-instrumentalist Marco Rea (Euros Childs, Alex Rex) new textures with copious analogue synthesis and treated acoustic instruments were mined, even fretless bass was not off-limits. Recalling the tender pulse of Cluster on ‘Take My Picture’ and the late night hues of La Dusseldorf on album closer ‘Tidal Range’, Wyndow strikes a new path for both artists. On ‘Pulling on A String’ the close foregrounding of both voices call to mind The Roches, another key touchstone for the sound of the record.

Low • Disappearing • 2021

School of X • Away • 2021

https://schoolofx.org

"School of X is a serious contender for becoming the next big thing."
– Flaunt

“An artist designed to stop us right in your tracks.”
– Dork

"“Feel of It” is a summer-ready anthem packed with a deep, dance-worthy groove and silky, catchy vocals."
– Indie88

"'Away,' the newest single by School of X, is a sonic journey. From prominent bass lines in the early verses of the song to alluring saxophone solos, mixed with his unique confident vocals, “Away” provides listeners with a nostalgic pop anthem."
– Wild Honey Pie

"a truly infectious piece of get up and move pop music similar to some of the earlier days of a band like Generationals or Fyfe Dangerfield"
– Austin Town Hall

"He really is crucial to what's going on in the underground in Copenhagen”
– Janice Long, BBC

“Littauer's arty inspirations and aspirations don't drown out his pop sensibilities.”
- NPR Music

"He’s spreading his wings with a different, more underground stripe of pop melodicism"
- Backseat Mafia

"The catchy track is another taste of some of the great artists coming out of Denmark."
- Northern Transmissions

"“Away” is one of those songs that stays in your mind. You keep returning to it to lose yourself inside its dreamy atmosphere"
- The Revue

Danish multi-instrumentalist Rasmus Littauer is hitting his stride under the moniker School of X—honing in on his honest expression while simultaneously expanding in every direction. After breakout alt-pop EPs Faded. Dream. (2017), Destiny (2019) and the debut album Armlock (2020), School of X dips his toes into the realms of hip-hop, experimental, singer-songwriter and more, emerging with an ambitious, timeless indie-pop sound on his new album Dancing Through The Void.

The Dill • Lover Baby • 2021

I collaborated with Don Kerr, Bahamas' drummer, and Monster Truck lead guitarist, Jeremy Wilderman, on this song.

 

After making music that was full of guitar tracks and multi-layering, it's great to try to be minimal and evolve as a songwriter to keep it to the basics. 

 

"Lover Baby" is also the first time I've sung en français, paying homage to Serge Gainsbourg for this groovy track.

 

Thanks for checking it out!

The Dill

Foxing • Draw Down The Moon • 2021

Draw Down The Moon came together after working for more than a year at the band's studio in St. Louis, with guitarist Eric Hudson at the helm as producer. From there, the band took them to Georgia, where they holed up for a couple of weeks with members of Manchester Orchestra. Combining the efforts of two bands who are each known for composing such ambitious works might have been a recipe for disaster, but the collaborative process widened the scope of an already bold project.

https://foxing-merch.myshopify.com

Black Light Animals • Halo • 2021

Black Light Animals are a psychedelic soul group hailing from the midwest. Taking equal influence from '70s Italian horror soundtracks, Wu Tang samples, and Ziggy Stardust-era David Bowie, their sprawling debut album explores themes of humanity, social media obsession, political division, and the concept of "amusing ourselves to death." Sonically rich and full of spaghetti western guitars, psychedelic keyboards, hip hop rhythms, and lush vocals, Playboys of the Western World comes off as some forgotten '70s film soundtrack, while exploring themes very much relevant to today.  

Sufjan Stevens & Angelo De Augustine • "Reach Out" • 2021

Olivia Kaplan • "Ghosts" • 2021

Olivia Kaplan’s debut LP, Tonight Turns to Nothing, examines her relationships with others and herself, and it demonstrates the complexities of each one with care and detail. Her contemplative folk-pop also captures the tension of the present day at large, which can overwhelm without warning and forces everyone to be at their best or crumble. The awe-inspiring vocal takeoff at the end of “Ghosts” is worth a listen of the album alone, harnessing a tidal wave of emotion that cuts deep.

Lakes • Retrograde • 2021

“Whilst the track twinkles with delicate guitar plucks and emotive vocal refrains, the video shows off the band's photo albums, from family portraits to holiday memories, in beautifully moving fashion.”

Rocksound

“Glistening, atmospheric lo-fi pop.” 

Brooklyn Vegan

ourbandlakes.com 

The White Stripes • We're Going To Be Friends • 2009

Fall is here, hear the yell

Back to school, ring the bell

Brand new shoes, walking blues

Climb the fence, books and pens

I can tell that we are going to be friends

I can tell that we are going to be friends

Walk with me, Suzy Lee

Through the park and by the tree

We will rest upon the ground

And look at all the bugs we found

Safely walk to school without a sound

Safely walk to school without a sound

Here we are, no one else

We walk to school all by ourselves

There's dirt on our uniforms

From chasing all the ants and worms

We clean up and now it's time to learn

We clean up and now it's time to learn

Numbers, letters, learn to spell

Nouns, and books, and show and tell

Playtime, we will throw the ball

Back to class, through the hall

Teacher marks our height against the wall

Teacher marks our height against the wall

 

And we don't notice any time pass

We don't notice anything

We sit side by side in every class

Teacher thinks that I sound funny

But she likes the way you sing

Tonight I'll dream, while I’m in bed

When silly thoughts go through my head

About the bugs and alphabet

And when I wake tomorrow, I'll bet

That you and I will walk together again

I can tell that we are going to be friends

Yes, I can tell that we are going to be friends

Blue Ocean • 2021

A swirling haze of sound glazes over dreamy pop songs, leaving a shimmering electric roar with a slight grin. The Oakland, CA duo Blue Ocean play with shoegaze & noise pop to make a sound that is somewhere between My Bloody Valentine's "You Made Me Realise" era and C86 jangle - but with repetitive motorik drumming. 

Phoebe Bridgers • Tibet House Performance 2021 (Kyoto & Moon Song) • 2021

Courtney Barnett • Rae Street • 2021

https://courtneybarnett.com.au

Things Take Time, Take Time” is an assured leap forward for Barnett; a breakthrough really. This is Barnett at her most relaxed, creative and joyful. An exquisite look at the intimate, private world created by Barnett and drummer/producer Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint, Cate le Bon, Kurt Vile). It’s consequently her most beautiful and intimate record to date.

Fuzzy Sun • Fake It • 2021

Buoyant in their ambitions, explicit in their hope, the band's songwriting surges out of the traps, bouncing past any boundaries in their way.” - CLASH

“a perfect offering of summery indie rock that shows a band that is confident in their creative route” - GIGWISE

Jax Anderson, K.Flay • I Don't Care Anymore • 2021

Jax Anderson says: "Bigger Picture & Say I Do were written about moments of happiness. To me happiness is a wave you gotta ride when it's here & a memory to pull from when that wave dips. Bigger Picture is about the happy moment of meeting someone new & your world opening up like it never has before. I loved having Verite on Bigger Picture. Her voice blends perfectly & I knew she'd kill it. It was written on tour in Australia & i felt like it needed to be more of a back & forth rather than a singular singer. Say I Do was written to be a song to play at queer weddings."

Low Horizon • two days ep • 2021

"two days" throws you into a heap of chaos that sounds like a jacked up velvet underground song before taking you on an adventure through the full spectrum of the low horizon sound. it's about falling back into old habits and the desire to be someone else, somewhere else. it's the feeling of regret mixed with inaction and knowing all your "maybe next times" are never going to happen. 

"okay ,same" is about giving up on yourself and your friends. or, as the chorus puts it, "hiding in the bathroom till my phone dies." it's an anthem of self doubt and loathing disguised as "me-time". it kinda sounds like one of those off brand aughts garage rock bands with grandaddy synths on the chorus and bridge. to quote kundera, "there is no perfection, only life."  

"chorus" questions the purpose of creative output as a tool for emotional wellness. is it really worth digging up and processing memories and feelings i'd probably otherwise avoid in order to make a song that maybe a few hundred people will check out? for now the answer is still yes but maybe next time it won't be. this conflict is further characterized by the descent into distortion during a jam in the second half of the song.

Barbarisms • TWO MOST BORING THINGS • 2016

B-side from Barbarisms' self-titled first LP

Available on Pinhole Sounds 10'' vinyl compilation via Sideways Saloon Records.  http://www.sidewayssaloon.com/