Posts

Grace Inspace - The Brother Brothers - Value Void

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Grace Inspace - Uncertain, CA. Background - English-American musician Grace Inspace has announced new single Uncertain, CA, which follows recent releases Watersource and Tame Teens, and is out now through AWAL. Continuing her unique “Protest Pop” sound, Uncertain, CA is as fictional as it is true to life and addresses the uncertainty of living in America. Produced by David Peters and featuring Jane’s Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins, Grace takes things down a notch on Uncertain, CA, letting her vocals do the talking with a relaxed melody mixed with gentle steel drums. Grace says; “Uncertain, CA - it’s a make-believe town, a microcosm of the state. I’m wandering through the town, the classic western stranger, the outsider, witness to this place’s constituencies and landscapes and seeing it is a land of topographical and cultural extremes - politically divided, deserted, overcrowded, majestically beautiful, scary, Paleolithic, ultra-modern. In California we are comfortable with the

Ace of Wands - Jan Mittendorp

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Ace of Wands - 10,000 Feet. Background - Drawing on a background of rock and roll, classical violin training and folk music, we expand our songwriting to incorporate facets of cinematic soundscapes, pop melodies and interlocking guitars and vocals. Our debut single, “Grown From Good,” included a download code card embedded with wildflower seeds and accompanied by a glass jar of full of soil. The wildflower download cards encouraged our audience to engage with their environment and communities while consuming music. “10,000 Feet,” our new single and video, is being released today as a digital download, and is accompanied by an 8″ balsa wood glider. We are particularly interested in the idea of play as a philosophy by which to engage our music and our community. Facilitating an audience’s ability to move beyond the passive act of listening to the music is a central component of everything that we create together. Filmed and directed by Samuel Scott, “10,000 Feet” is the second insta

Armies - Mothers

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Armies - Young Criminals. Background - There's no voice quite like Dave Gutter's, a weathered coffee-and-cigarettes growl that can turn vulnerable to vicious and crackles like a vintage Fender amp when he screams.  That voice is the result of the thousands of shows over the last 20 years fronting Rustic Overtones, the funky, psychedelic Maine rock institution that, to a certain crowd, are as synonymous with the state as Moxie soda and going "upta camp." Gutter pays the bills as a songwriter; he's had tracks on recent albums by Aaron Neville, Tedeschi Trucks Band and in the Netflix show Narcos. His latest project, Armies, started as one of those gigs when he was hired to write a series of duets that were to be used in commercials and films.  The project fell apart, so Gutter took his poppiest songs ever into darker directions. He teamed up with friend Anna Lombard, whose understated, ethereal vocals defined records by folk group Gypsy Tailwind. WEBSITE .

Brooks Thomas - Sarah Nixey

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Brooks Thomas - Good Sleep. Background -  Brooks Thomas are an experimental electro-pop group based in the Bronx. Fusing elements of R&B with classic soul and electro-pop, Brooks Thomas is sharing their lead single “Good Sleep”, the first taste of their new album Poison. The brainchild of Danny McDonald, Brooks Thomas concocts unconventional electronic R&B that's inspired by classic soul and artists like Dirty Projectors and Miguel - disparate influences that share a common thread: intensity of feeling. Exploring new ways to reach those emotional heights, Danny began programming beats, pushing Brooks Thomas's bassist Rocky Russo towards experimenting with pedals to change the textures, and having their dual singers Colleen Cadogan and Arianne Lombardi create three-part harmonies that deviate from the standard 1-3-5. What they recorded at home became a script for their live performances, where fresh colors and depths would be discovered as they translated the digita

Polyplastic - Night Flight

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Polyplastic - My Prescription. Background - LA-based, post-punk band Polyplastic share their music video for "My Prescription" off their just released EP, Not No. Polyplastic is the project of Los Angeles natives Charlie Ellis and Emily Ibarra. Inspired by his time as a welder in North Philadelphia, Ellis’s songwriting is influenced by industrial and post-punk genres, marrying lyrical melodies with angular guitar lines and a driving rhythm section. With a few bare-bones demos, the band started playing shows in LA and touring the US, supporting acts such as Wolf Alice, Ryley Walker, Draemings, and Tennis System. Polyplastic have released a few one off singles over the past few months, leading up to the release of their EP, Not No, due out June 29th. The band will be touring nationally, in support of the EP. TWITTER . Earlier this month we shared 'Next Slide' by Polyplastic and commented that - "The band develop intriguing post punk orientated music where th

We Were Promised Jetpacks - Haiku Salut - Basement Revolver

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We Were Promised Jetpacks - Hanging In. Background - Scottish rock mainstays We Were Promised Jetpacks have shared emotionally wrought new single ‘Hanging In’ and announced a brand new album, their first in four years, to be released on 14th September via Big Scary Monsters. The band will also embark upon an enormous tour in the UK, EU and US throughout September, October and November. The More I Sleep The Less I Dream marks a new chapter in We Were Promised Jetpacks’ career. It’s about going back to the heart of who they are, a high school band that never stopped. It’s about four people who have grown up together, making a conscious choice to keep writing music and seeing where that takes them. “The album is so much about us going back to our basics and relying on our instincts.” Mike says. “There’s a range of songs that span everything we do as a band, and we’re the connection between them. It feels like this album is us.” The musicians connected with producer Jonathan Low (The

Dyan - Guerilla Toss - Lewisburg

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Dyan - Absence. Background - "Absence is about leaving, but not before inquiring about doubt." the band explain. "It could be about being in love with a person whose loyalty is to someone or something else, realizing it, and then you move on. Or holding on to what you want to hold on to, even if it's painful."  Minimal, inventive, and introspective, Dyan’s music offers more than you’d typically expect from the now-common guitar/synths/drums trio - which makes sense, as the trio is about as uncommon as you’ll find. Dyan was started by Alexis Marsh (singer/guitarist/bassist) and Sam Jones (guitarist/synths), a film scoring duo who fell in love and got married...and then, perhaps unexpectedly, got divorced. The growing and healing from those divides fueled the songs on what became the group’s debut album, Looking For Knives, which the two continued to create despite the fraught emotional territory. But the real twist was the addition of the third member: Dan D

Treetop Flyers - Super Paradise - Andy Pratt - Delta Will

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Treetop Flyers - Sweet Greens & Blues. Background - "Sweet Greens and Blues" is the new single by Treetop Flyers, which is taken from their forthcoming eponymous third album, due out on 24 August via Loose. The video, directed by long-time collaborator Sam Ford, was shared by Folk Radio, who said;“The video has that vintage look and feel and it perfectly encapsulates that glorious 60s tinged West Coast Americana with a British twist. With warm, rich harmonies, and a summery groove, the song oozes soulfulness." Originally formed by Reid Morrison, Laurie Sherman and Sam Beer, in recent years Treetop Flyers have settled in to a refreshed band line-up. “Sweet Greens & Blues” was initially recorded for their previous album Palamino, but it never really quite came together until new drummer Rupert Shreeve came on board and they were able to capture the feel of the song that they had been searching for. On the new record they are also joined by saxophonist Geoff Th

Calva Louise - Lucky 757

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Calva Louise - Outrageous Background - Raucous garage rockers Calva Louise share the visuals for their deafening anthem Outrageous, further reiterating their unbridled potential ahead of a series of eagerly anticipated dates on the festival circuit throughout the summer months. Having feverishly honed their craft within London’s thriving punk scene, the trio (one part Venezuelan, one part Māori and another part English) have since toured with Spring King and Anteros, receiving widespread praise for their tenacious live shows in addition to considerable BBC Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music airplay. Crammed full with skyscraping riffs, sumptuous harmonies and frontwoman Jess Allanic’s biting vocals, the band have earned plaudits throughout the online community for their latest effort and will be supporting Albert Hammond Jr in London this September. “The video for Outrageous shows (sort of) what it’s like to be in a band for us”, the three-piece stated. “As a band with no money but with a lo

Jeen O'Brien - Alabama Rose - Logan Archer

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Jeen O'Brien - Any Moment (radio mix). Background from Jeen - “Any Moment” is the only song off my forthcoming record, Gift Shop, that I didn’t self-produce in my attic. Ian Blurton, who also plays guitar on the track and mixed the entire LP, co-produced/recorded ‘Any Moment’ at his studio, Pro Gold in Toronto (with musical great Tom Szczesniak on organ + radio mix courtesy of Jeff Dalziel). The other eight songs from Gift Shop are pretty diy... I played most of the guitars and as mentioned, produced it myself in my attic. My husband played drums, and my brother, who was living with us at the time, was conveniently recruited as our bass player. One of our oldest friends, Griffin, laid down some additional guitars throughout the album. I was a lot harder on myself with this record than I had been with previous albums. In retrospect, it was quite therapeutic. I never intended to produce my own stuff –that was born of necessity – and I’m still learning as I go along. I really tri

Fine Points - Frøkedal - Rue Snider

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Fine Points - Ready & Able Background - San Francisco's Fine Points release ​their​ sophomore full-length​, '​Take Shape.​' Since releasing their debut album, Hover, in 2015, Fine Points have continued to lay the brickwork of their narco-pop stylings.  After landing tours with hazy contemporaries such as White Fence, The Warlocks, and The Fresh & Onlys, the band returned to California to work on demos for their sophomore offering. Somewhere along the way producer Jason Carmer reached out to the band and they recorded the tracks heard on Take Shape at Carmer's Berkeley studio. FACEBOOK . Performance Dates: July 17 - Olympia, WA  @ Le Voyeur Cafe July 18 - Seattle, WA  @ Sunset Tavern July 19 - Portland, OR  @ White Owl Social Club July 20 - Berkeley, CA  @ The Starry Plough July 21 - Visalia, CA  @ Cellar Door July 22 - Los Angeles, CA  @ HiHat 'Ready & Able' opens in a mild, unassuming manner, where melodic vocals and music gradually develops