Category: Alt rock

The Beths’ first U.S. tour is now underway.

The Beths Announce Fall U.S. Dates
& Kick Off World Tour.Watch The New Video For “Little Death”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuzlZWvTU2I

[“Little Death” video still]

“The debut from Auckland indie rockers is just really impressive—hook-filled songs filled with energy and attitude, written with depth and played masterfully.” – Pitchfork

“A wonderful little record that never lets up, piling on unassumingly buzzy fun until you start realizing you might be in the presence of a true power-pop monument.” – Rolling Stone

“The New Zealand band has two gears: The first is a more classically pop-oriented retro sound, like a ’60s girl group doing the shimmy-shimmy-cocoa-pop but with guitars and a shoegaze influence. The second is a caffeinated ’90s alterna-rock head rush, with Superchunk-level riffs and Velocity Girl vocals courtesy of singer-guitarist Elizabeth Stokes.” – The A.V. Club

“Few bands make angst sound as joyous as the Beths do on their debut LP. As its title suggests, the album is full of songs of both regret and self-doubt, but the group deliver them with some of the strongest power-pop this side of Weezer’s Blue Album.” – Bandcamp Daily

The Beths kick off their world tour this week in support of their acclaimed debut album, Future Me Hates Me (out now on Carpark). Beginning in Australia and New Zealand, The Beths will continue onto the U.S. at the end of September and play many cities for the first time ever. They will then head to Europe through mid-November to round out the year.To mark the beginning of their world tour, The Beths share the new video for “Little Death” via NPR Music. “We made this video while we were on tour,” says Elizabeth Stokes. “[The director] Norwood hit us up saying ‘I made videos for Superchunk in the 90s, let me make a Super 8 video for you guys when you’re in LA.’ So we spent a day larking about and scratching on film and then he edited it up. It’s difficult to tell, but if you look closely you can see there is some green screen footage and special effects added afterwards.”

Watch “Little Death” Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuzlZWvTU2I

Watch “You Wouldn’t Like Me” Video:
https://youtu.be/CV3Bjx-vPTg

Watch “Great No One” Lyric Video:
https://youtu.be/qQYhM48H5zs

Watch “Happy Unhappy” Video:
https://youtu.be/ct8AwQwlbNA

Watch “Future Me Hates Me” Video:
https://youtu.be/iVImwSb4EYU
 
The Beths Tour Dates:
Wed. Sep. 12 – Auckland, NZ @ Neck of the Woods
Thu. Sep. 13 – Auckland, NZ @ Neck of the Woods
Fri. Sep. 14 – Wellington, NZ @ Meow
Thu. Sep. 20 – Dunedin, NZ @ Captain Cook Hotel
Fri. Sep. 21 – Christchurch, NZ @ Blue Smoke
Sat. Sep. 22 – Queenstown, NZ @ Sherwood
Fri. Sep. 28 – Los Angeles @ The Roxy
Sat. Sep. 29 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Mon. Oct. 1 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir
Tue. Oct. 2 – Seattle, WA @ Timbre
Fri. Oct. 5 – Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
Sat. Oct. 6 – Lansing, MI @ Mac’s Bar
Sun. Oct. 7 – Columbus, OH @ Rumba Cafe
Mon. Oct. 8 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Tavern
Tue. Oct. 9 – Buffalo, NY @ 9th Ward at Babeville
Wed. Oct. 10 – Boston, MA @ Atwood’s Tavern
Fri. Oct. 12 – Brooklyn, NY @ Alphaville (SOLD OUT)
Sat. Oct. 13 – Philadelphia, PA @ Everybody Hits
Sun. Oct. 14 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd
Tue. Oct. 16 – Nashville, TN @ Fond Object Records
Wed. Oct. 17 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn
Fri. Oct. 19 – San Antonio, TX @ 502 Bar *
Sat. Oct. 20 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s BBQ *
Sun. Oct. 21 – Fort Worth, TX @ MASS (Main At South Side) *
Thu. Oct. 25 – Prague, CZ @ Klub 007
Fri. Oct. 26 – Krakow, PO @ Klub RE
Sat. Oct. 27 – Berlin, DE @ Arkaoda
Sun. Oct. 28 – Cologne, DE @ Hangende Garten von Ehrenfeld
Tue. Oct. 30 – Paard, NL @ The Hague
Wed. Oct. 31 – Paris, FR @ Le 1999
Thu. Nov. 1 – Angers, FR @ Jokers Pub
Fri. Nov. 2 – Bordeaux, FR @ El Chicho
Sat. Nov. 3 – Rennes, FR @ 1988 Club
Mon. Nov. 5 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Tue. Nov. 6 – Manchester, UK @ Mancunia Studio (SOLD OUT)
Wed. Nov. 7 – Glasgow, UK @ Broadcast
Thu. Nov. 8 – Leicester, UK @ Duffy’s Bar
Fri. Nov. 9 – Bournemouth, UK @ The Anvil
Sat. Nov. 10 – Brighton, UK @ East Street Tap
Sun. Nov. 11 – London, UK @ Sebright Arms (SOLD OUT)
Mon. Nov. 12 – Brussels, BE @ Chaff
* w/ Flint Eastwood

[Future Me Hates Me artwork]

Keep your mind open.
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Clutch – Book of Bad Decisions

The winner of Most Intriguing Album Cover of the year might go to Clutch‘s new release – Book of Bad Decisions.  The cover doesn’t feature a book at all, just a painting of a bald eagle on a branch either looking at something off to its right or looking back at us with perhaps apathy or vigilance.  Then there’s the title.  What bad decisions make up this book?  Does it refer to a certain as-yet unnamed book?  Let’s not forget the bald eagle is a symbol of the United States, and that symbol has turned its back on us.  Has it done so because of our bad decisions in recent times?  Is Clutch, who are lovers of history, warning us through a simple image that we are at risk of losing what makes this country great?

The album opens with a tale from the history of the band – “Gimme the Keys.”  It’s the story of one of their earliest gigs when they played a small summer festival / large party in the middle of Corn Field Nowhere, USA, and were accused of stealing a microphone from another band and / or the party’s coordinators.  It opens with fuzzy feedback and then turns into a blistering fire that only Clutch seems to know how to unleash.  One of the best parts is hearing Neil Fallon re-enacting his words to the band’s accusers.  Tim Sult‘s guitar moves back and forth between metal and psychedelia with ease.

“Spirit of ’76” is another history lesson from the band, possibly referring to 1776, the political landscape of 1976 (in which Fallon mentions a “farmer with peanuts in his hand” – Jimmy Carter?), or even the 1975 album of the same name by Spirit.  Knowing Clutch’s catalogue like I do, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s all three.  Jean-Paul Gaster‘s beats on this will have you doing bass drum kicks under your desk before you realize it.  The title track opens with almost drone-metal bass from Dan Maines and talks of dark clouds and leads to killer shredding by Sult.

“How to Shake Hands” has Gaster going bonkers while Fallon takes on elections and political campaigning.  Fallon claims he’s going to release all information about UFO’s and “put Jimi Hendrix on the twenty-dollar bill and Bill Hicks on the five note” once he’s President.  He could probably win on those three promises alone.  “In Walks Barbarella” brings in a horn section as Fallon sings about his childhood love of science fiction, “weaponized funk,” and hot women.  In other words, Clutch has written a tune about yours truly.

Jerry Lee Lewis-like piano runs through “Vision Quest.”  The nearly backward opening drums on “Weird Times” are appropriate, and Gaster’s cowbell was probably begging for mercy by the time he was done laying down the drum tracks.  I like the music box-like underlying sounds of “Emily Dickinson.”  It has a great swagger to it as well that probably flattens crowds when played live.  “Sonic Counselor” has a dirty fuzz to it that makes you feel a bit mean, and it probably should be on your newest workout playlist.

“A Good Fire” starts with bluesy drums as Fallon sings about the joys of bonfires in autumn and the whole band is soon burning up behind him.  “Ghoul Wrangler,” apart from having a cool title, takes off like a dragstrip racer off the line and doesn’t look back.  As much as it rocks, “H.B. Is in Control” rocks even harder (which almost seems impossible).  Gaster sounds like he’s having the time of his life behind his kit and Maines’ groove is so solid that you could build a skyscraper atop it.

“Hot Bottom Feeder,” believe it or not is Neil Fallon’s recipe for crab cakes.  Seriously.  The only thing better than the fact that Clutch put a recipe song on their new album is how damn good the song is.  It’s one of their best blues-laced rockers in a long while, full of Sult’s hot guitar licks and the band’s humor.  “Paper & Strife” sizzles past you at the speed of an out-of-control train engine, and the closer, “Lorelei,” practically has Fallon yelling to the heavens about the murmuring rock of legend in Germany that has possibly lured many ships to a watery grave.

Book of Bad Decisions is another good rocker from Clutch, who never swing and miss.  Historical themes are nothing new to Clutch records, but they’ve woven them into this album with more subtlety and cleverness than usual.  They’ve warned us to always keep history in mind, because, well, you know what happens when you forget it.

Keep your mind open.

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Protomartyr – Consolation

Produced in part with Kelly Deal of the Breeders and Pixies, Protomartyr‘s four-song EP, Consolation, packs more punch than many double albums in the punk, post-punk, neo-rock, or alt-rock genres.

The opening squall of “Wait” is like the sound of the gates opening at the Kentucky Derby, and the band are four horses running in peak form.  Vocalist Joe Casey growls, yells, and snarls while drummer Alex Leonard seems to put down four different beats at once.

“Same Face in a Different Mirror” would be a great title for a giallo film from the 1970’s, and Greg Ahee‘s opening guitar riff is indeed creepy enough for a stylish Italian slasher film.  It’s like Protomartyr put Joy Division, Editors, and Bauhaus in a juicer and extracted the micronutrients from all three for one track.

The last two tracks feature Ms. Deal on backing vocals.  The first is “Wheel of Fortune,” and it’s easily one of the best tracks of the year.  It comes out swinging, not giving you much time to breathe in the first minute before it breaks down into something that sounds like the soundtrack from a ghost film.  Casey’s vocals slowly rise from the ground (lifted by Scott Davidson‘s fine bass work), unleashing some of his inner Nick Cave before the band kicks down the door.  Davidson’s bass walk opens “You Always Win” and Casey sings about a troubled relationship he can’t bring himself to leave while Ahee’s guitar shoegaze riffs are subtle and stunning at the same time and Leonard unleashes a quick drum solo, which are sorely missing from rock nowadays.

Consolation is sharp as a knife and one of the better EP releases of 2018, so don’t skip it.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Le Bucherettes – A Raw Youth (2015)

Mexico’s Le Bucherettes manage to combine psychedelia, garage rock, snotty punk, and disco fever all into one band.  Their third album, A Raw Youth, covers everything from pre-2016 election anxiety to serial killers.

“Shave the Pride” gets it off to a loud, wild start with lead singer Terri Gender Bender belting out lyrics about anger and arrogance (“The size of your rage drowns my urge for lovin’.”).  “Mallely” has the disco synths of Jamie Aaron Aux and the powerful drumming of Chris Common throwing you into dance fits.  “Reason to Die Young” has Gender Bender claiming there’s “no sign of life in this hell hole,” but her assured vocals feel reassuring.  Her Iggy Pop influence can’t be denied in her vocals and stage presence, and it’s in full view on “La Uva” (“The Grape”) in which Pop sings guest vocals with her.  It’s a wild, Pixies-like track with its ebb and flow of volume and controlled, distorted chaos.  “Sold Less Than Gold” is a lyrically brutal song about child slavery that’s almost disguised as a pop song with its bright synths.

“Stab My Back” is a giant middle finger to a man who once tried to keep Bender down.  It’s like a Yeah Yeah Yeahs song combined with a kick in the nuts.  “They Fuck You Over” has Bender drawing a line in the sand against the 1% (“‘Winners’ never touch skins.  They know how to eat like bulldogs.  They fuck you over…I try to manage this game by doing the worst that I can.”).

“Witchles C Spot” is a bold, almost Metric-like tune about toxic love, fetish sex, and obsession.  It’s sexy, scary, and sinister all at once.  “The Hitch Hiker” is about a serial killer, and might be an ode to the 1986 film The Hitcher.  “Lonely & Drunk” is a powerful build up of synths, drums, and weird bass as Bender’s vocals slither out of your speakers as she sings about bad decisions made during bad times.  The bizarre title of “Oil the Shoe if the Critter Knew Any Better” is perfect for the weird lyrics about ghosts, eating your vegetables, and how screwed up a relationship can be if one doesn’t face fears.  The closer, “My Half,” is a warped song about love and possibly Bender’s Electra complex with guest guitar and synth-bass work by John Frusciante.

It’s a wild, weird record.  Le Bucherettes were on my list of bands to investigate for a while, and I’m glad I finally got around to it.  You should, too.

Keep your mind open.

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Black Belt Eagle Scout’s North American tour starts today.

BLACK BELT EAGLE SCOUT SHARES NEW SINGLE, “JUST LIE DOWN,”
AND ANNOUNCES NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

LISTEN HERE

photo credit – Jason Quigley
“The electric guitar that starts ‘Soft Stud’ bristles with a coarse riff. The tone is brittle and blunt, rattling from the amplifier as it wordlessly confesses deep frustration. But Katherine Paul’s voice, which glides over the guitar, is an elegant curve, all practiced and gathered.” — Pitchfork

“You’ll hear echoes of early Hole here, but you’ll also hear a powerful new voice grappling with her heritage and her sense of place. ‘Soft Stud’ is a great track, and the crazy part is that it’s not even my favorite track on the album” — Vulture‘s Best New Songs of the Week

“‘Soft Stud’ expresses the complexity of queer desire, layering intimate
lyrics and clean melodies over fuzzy guitar.” — NPR‘s All Songs Considered

“[‘Soft Stud’] . . .  feels surprisingly compact, tight nerves and circuitous guitars
and muddy drums building and breaking.” — Stereogum

“Sludgy guitars clash compellingly with Paul’s rich, yearning vocals, which eventually
dissolve into a chaotic and cathartic instrumental outro.” — Consequence of Sound

“…a sprawling, yet intimate six-minute odyssey on which
Paul pairs tender lyrics with transcendent, seeking instrumentation.” — Paste

Black Belt Eagle Scout (aka Portland-based Katherine Paul) is an indigenous queer musician whose debut album, Mother of My Children, is about “grief and love for people, but also about being a native person in what is the United States today.” Mother of My Children is out September 14th via Saddle Creek. Paul will tour North America surrounding its release (all dates are below). After sharing lead single, “Soft Stud,” Black Belt Eagle Scout now presents “Just Lie Down.”
“I started working on the guitar line for this song at the end of a five year stay at a big duplex I was renting in Portland. This had been the longest period of time I had ever lived anywhere that wasn’t my parents’ home. I was being kicked out of the place because the landlord wanted to renovate and hike up the rent.  This was the case for a lot of Portlanders at that time (and still is) as the city was on a steep course of gentrification. 
My life shifted and I ended up moving in with people I had never met to a smaller, but comfy situation in a different part of town. There was a Corgi named Dayton involved. The room in this house is where I worked on the majority of the songs for Mother of My Children, staying up late and turning up my guitar amp volume when I could. I was in a new place and the feeling of ‘home’ was never really present when I lived there. It was a really disconnected time in my life thus warranting the initial bits and pieces of ‘Just Lie Down.’ 
So many things didn’t feel foundational and at times I felt like I was losing it. I remember thinking, ‘You aren’t yourself right now. What is wrong with you? Why are you acting like this? What even is this?’ and that’s where most of the questioning lyrics in the song came from. I like to find some sort of resolution in my songs be it a feeling I get from playing it, a certain part of the song that has lyrics that reflect it, something. My resolution in this song is when I sing the lyrics, ‘Just lie down, head on the ground, sky looks blue, just like you.’ To me, it was a simple poem you could say to yourself that means even though you are sad, even though there seems like there is no hope, look up and see what is above you. The sky is still blue and beautiful. Hopefully you will see that beauty and move forward.”
Paul grew up in a small Indian reservation, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, surrounded by family focused on native drumming, singing, and arts. From an early age, Paul was singing and dancing at powwows with one of her strongest memories at her family’s own powwow, called the All My Relations Powwow. Paul reminisces, “When I was younger, my only form of music was through the songs my ancestors taught the generations of my family. Singing in our language is a spiritual process and it carries on through me in how I create music today.” With the support of her family and a handful of bootleg Hole and Nirvana VHS tapes, Paul taught herself how to play guitar and drums as a teenager. In 2007, she moved to Portland, Oregon to attend college and get involved with the Rock’n’Roll Camp for Girls eventually diving deep into the city’s music scene playing guitar and drums in bands while evolving her artistry into what would later become Black Belt Eagle Scout.
Listen to Black Belt Eagle Scout’s “Just Lie Down” –
https://BBES.lnk.to/MOMC

Listen To “Soft Stud” –
https://youtu.be/LXsfiYigeg4

Black Belt Eagle Scout Tour Dates:
Fri. Aug. 31 – Columbus, OH @ Wexner Arts Center #
Sat. Sep. 1 – Detroit, MI @ Deluxx Fluxx *
Sun. Sep. 2 – Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen ^
Tue. Sep. 4 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Spirit Lodge #
Wed. Sep. 5 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall #
Thu. Sep. 6 – New York City, NY @ Bowery Ballroom #
Fri. Sep. 7 – Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA #
Sat. Sep. 8 – Richmond, VA @ The Camel #
Sun. Sep. 9 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat (Backstage) #
Tue. Sep. 11 – Durham, NC @ The Pinhook #
Wed. Sep. 12 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn #
Thu. Sep. 13 – Tampa, FL @ Crowbar #
Fri. Sep. 14 – Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury #
Sat. Sep. 15 – New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa #
Mon. Sep. 17 – Austin, TX @ Barracuda #
Tue. Sep. 18 – Ft. Worth, TX @ Main at South Side #
Wed. Sep. 19 – Norman, OK @ Opolis #
Thu. Sep. 20 – Lawrence, KS @ Bottleneck #
Fri. Sep. 21 – St. Louis, MO @ Off-Broadway #
Sat. Sep. 22 – Davenport, IA @ Village Theater #
Mon. Sep. 24 – Lexington, KY @ The Burl #
Wed. Sep. 26 – Omaha, NE @ Reverb $
Fri. Sep. 28 – Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive $
Sat. Sep. 29 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Diabolical Records $
Sun. Sep. 30 – Boise, ID @ Funky Taco $
Wed. Oct. 3 – Spokane, WA @ The Bartlett $

* = with Varsity
^ = with Shortly
# = with Saintseneca
$ = with Guerrilla Toss

Pre-order Mother of My Children —

Mother of My Children cover art
Keep your mind open.
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The Beths – Future Me Hates Me

Coming in with possibly the wittiest album title of the year (Future Me Hates Me), New Zealand’s the Beths show up with some much-needed pop-punk and joie de vivre right now.

The fun fuzz that opens “Get No One” is somehow topped by the delightful rhythm guitar that follows it.  You’re tapping your feet right away and wanting to blast the album’s opener out of your car as soon as possible.  The title track is as fun as you’d hoped it would be as lead singer Elizabeth Stokes tells us about how she’s setting herself up for “future heartbreak, future headaches,” but she’s still going through with a relationship.  “Uptown Girl” isn’t a cover of the Billy Joel song (although I’m sure they’d have fun with that), but it is a raucous salute to partying all night and the aftermath that often brings.

“You Wouldn’t Like Me” has Stokes warning a potential lover about the hazards of dating her.  “You wouldn’t like me if you saw what was inside me,” she sings, but the peppy nature of the song leads us to believe that was she thinks are faults are in reality charms.  “Not Running” has an urgent energy to it (despite the title) with Jonathan Pearce‘s guitars constantly moving forward and not looking back.

“Little Death” is a rocker about orgasms.  “Happy Unhappy” has Stokes both lamenting and loving the start of a new relationship and how its going to break her out of her comfortable rut.  “River Run: Lvl 1” might refer to a video game I’ve never played, but the theme of a lovers’ game seems to run through the whole tune.  The groovy grooves, rock anthem drums (by Ivan Luketina-Johnston) and vocal harmonies of “Whatever” make it one of the catchiest tracks of 2018 (and I love the subtly heavy bass by Benjamin Sinclair on it).  The album ends with “Less Than Thou,” another love song in which Stokes gets in her own way when it comes to love, but powers through it with shining guitars and happy beats.

Future Hates Me is one of the peppiest and most clever albums of the year.  It’s a perfect summer rock record, or a perfect record for breaking your winter blues if you’re in New Zealand this time of year.

Keep your mind open.

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Caroline Rose adds more U.S. tour dates for November.

CAROLINE ROSE EXPANDS NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
WITH HEADLINE DATES IN NOVEMBER

LONER OUT NOW VIA NEW WEST

Photo Credit: Matt Hogan

Caroline Rose has expanded her fall tour to include a set of headline dates in November. Since the release of her new album, LONER, via New West this past February, Rose has spent most of the year on the road playing sold out headline shows and opening for acts, including Mitski, Guster, and Maggie Rogers. Now, she’s gearing up for a set of dates supporting Rainbow Kitten Surprise before setting out on a headline tour with performances in New York, Boston, Toronto, Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington DC, and more. By the end of 2018, Rose will have played over 100 shows in the U.S. alone.

At the same time, critical praise for LONER has continued to flourish. The album landed on over a dozen mid-year highlight lists, including NPR Music’s “40 Favorite Albums of 2018 (So Far)” and Vinyl Me, Please’s “Best Albums of 2018 So Far.” After crediting Rose with putting on one of the best shows at SXSW, Rolling Stone recently published a profile on her, saying:

“Her music has a spaced-out intelligence, an impish energy, plenty of venom and jokes. Her perspective on the world snaps, because it’s light on its feet and has sensitive skin. Even if the structural circumstances suck… Rose can have a precise sort of play with it, criticizing the whole enterprise with a slicing one-liner.”

Rose’s knack for energetic performances and stage banter will be on full display this fall. All dates are below and new dates are in bold.

Stream Caroline Rose’s LONER

Watch/Listen/Share:
“Bikini” Video
“Soul No. 5” video
“Money” video
“Getting To Me”

Caroline Rose Tour Dates:
Sat. Sep. 15- Sun. Sep. 16 – Burlington, VT @ Grand Point North Festival
Wed. Sep. 19 – Rochester, NY @ Abilene Bar and Lounge
Thu. Sep. 20 – Lancaster, PA @ Tello 360
Fri. Sep. 21 – Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle
Sat. Sep. 22 – Sun. Sep. 23 – Franklin, TN @ Pilgrimage Festival
Mon. Sep. 24 – Charlottesville, VA @ The Jefferson *
Tue. Sep. 25 – Norfolk, VA @ Norva Theater *
Thu. Sep. 27 – Richmond, VA @ The National *
Fri. Sep. 28 – Port Chester, NY @ The Capitol Theatre *
Sat. Sep. 29 – Baltimore, MD @ Rams Head *
Mon. Oct. 1 – Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom *
Tue. Oct. 2 – Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre *
Sat. Oct. 6 – Providence, RI @ The Strand *
Mon. Oct. 8 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls *
Thu. Oct. 11 – Lexington, KY @ Manchester Music Hall *
Fri. Oct. 12 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s *
Sat. Oct. 13 – Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe at Old National Centre *
Mon. Oct. 15 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Elevation at The Intersection *
Wed. Oct. 17 – Bloomington, IL @ The Castle Theater *
Sat. Oct. 20 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge *
Sun. Oct. 21 – Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom *
Tue. Oct. 23 – Oxford, MS @ Lyric Theatre *
Thu. Nov. 1 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
Fri. Nov. 2 – Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom
Sat. Nov. 3 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
Tue. Nov. 6 – Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground
Wed. Nov. 7 – Ferndale, MI @ The Loving Touch
Thu. Nov. 8 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
Fri. Nov. 9 – Iowa City, IA @ The Mill
Sat. Nov. 10 – St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
Tue. Nov. 13 – Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar
Wed. Nov. 14 – Columbus, OH @ Rumba Cafe
Thu. Nov. 16 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
Fri. Nov. 17 – Washington, DC @ Rock & Roll Hotel

* = with Rainbow Kitten Surprise

Praise for LONER:

“[LONER is] a wonderful, rollicking beast.” – MOJO

“Loner is a thrillingly odd take on pop, braiding her sardonic lyrics with off-kilter songs that groove and groan.” – Boston Globe

“Rose has a newly loosed imagination and a flair for exaggerating the absurdities we’re living with, and the way she’s put them to use is a timely gift.” — NPR Music

“With its mix of sunny melodies and acerbic wit, the material from her newly released LP, Loner, was frenetic and freewheeling.” – Rolling Stone

“In an era of endless, ear-numbing streams, LONER grabs your chin and commands your eyes.”
— Consequence of Sound

“Rose is a fascinating person, and from DIY production trickery to her multi-role star turns in her videos, LONER represents her at her best.” — Stereogum “Artist to Watch”

“an often wickedly funny and winningly sardonic indie-pop act with lots of surprising musical moves on her new album, Loner.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

“With her newly honed interest in producing, Caroline Rose has made an unwaveringly entertaining album filled to the brim with songs that are at once contemplative and coax the listener to get out of their seat and dance.” — Rookie

“Rose is a joy to behold . . . LONER whacks the listener swiftly upside the head with our red-clad protagonist’s winning charisma, leaving ya dizzy and begging for more.” — Under The Radar

“…a punchier, studio-powered pop sound, packed with danceable beats, prominent synths, big choruses and plenty of swagger. She remains unafraid of singing about serious subjects (capitalism, sexism, death, etc.) but on LONER, she delivers them through a bold, candy-colored filter that’s always intriguing and often irresistible.” — Paste

Download hi-res press images and cover art

Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

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David Nance Group release first single, “Poison,” off upcoming album.

DAVID NANCE GROUP ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM
AND SHARE FIRST SINGLE “POISON“

PEACED AND SLIGHTLY PULVERIZED
OUT 10/5 ON TROUBLE IN MIND

“POSSIBLY THE BEST SONGWRITER IN THE UNITED STATES THAT NOBODY OUTSIDE DIY TAPE COLLECTORS AND HIS FRIENDS HAS HEARD.” -NOISEY
Omaha, NE musician David Nance is nothing if not prolific. Over the course of the past six years, he has released three full-length albums for labels Grapefruit and Ba Da Bing, a 7-inch, numerous cassettes, CDRs, and unlicensed “cover albums” of artists like Lou Reed, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Doug Sahm. He’s collaborated with Simon Joyner and Bill Direen (The Bilders), His latest full-length, coming out on Chicago’s Trouble in Mind Records on October 5th, is credited to the “David Nance Group” and features Nance alongside his recent hot-shit live band of fellow Omaha musicians; guitarist Jim Schroeder, bassist Tom May, and drummer Kevin Donahue.

Appropriately, the album is called Peaced and Slightly Pulverized, as the sounds therein are alternatingly tender & brusque. Nance has an enviable way of conveying intensity and pathos in his music without necessarily resorting to clicking on a distortion pedal, instead relying on the build-up and tension from the interplay of his bandmates with his cracked, impassioned wail. That said, there’s also plenty of fuzz and distortion too, which should be clear from the first single, the anthemic “Poison,” with its fuzzed-out guitar riff that leans into a Crazy-Horsian guitar maelstrom and white-hot solo. It’s a blisteringly brief journey that is impossible to not be swept up by and wake up dizzy and confused in a nearby dumpster. The track was premiered today on Stereogum.

Peaced and Slightly Pulverized was mastered by Mikey Young of Total Control and Eddy Current Suppression Ring. A limited purple vinyl version is available for direct order here, while digital pre-orders can be make here.

LISTEN TO “POISON”
https://bit.ly/2vLpmHI

PEACED AND SLIGHTLY PULVERIZED TRACKLISTING
1. Poison
2. Ham Sandwich
3. 110 Blues
4. Amethyst
5. In Her Kingdom
6. When I Saw You Last Night
7. Prophet’s Profit
DAVID NANCE GROUP TOUR DATES
Sept 8th – St. Louis, MO – Pü Fest
Sept 15th – Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle – Trouble In Paradise Festival
Sept 29th – Memphis, TN – Gonerfest 15
Oct 12th – Omaha, NE – Reverb Lounge
Oct 24th – St. Louis, MO – RKDE
Oct 26th –  Nashville, TN – Third Man
Oct 27th – Birmingham, AL – The Fire House
Oct 28th – Hattiesburg , MS – house show (ask a punk)
Oct 29th – Atlanta, GA – 529 Club
Oct 30th – Orlando, FL – Will’s Pub
Oct 31st – Asheville, NC – Fleetwood’s
Nov 1st – Chapel Hill, NC – The Cove
Nov 2nd – Harrisonburg, VA – Pale Fire Tap Room
Nov 3rd – Philadelphia, PA – Jerry’s
Nov 4th – Brooklyn, NY – Union Pool
Nov 5th – New Haven, CT – State House
Nov 6th – Cleveland, OH – Happy Dog
Nov 7th – Columbus, OH – Café Bourbon Street
Nov 8th – Detroit, MI – Third Man
Nov 9th – Indianapolis, IN – State Street Pub
Nov 10th – Louisville, KY – Zanzabar
Nov 11th – Iowa City, IA – Trumpet Blossom Cafe
PAST PRAISE FOR DAVID NANCE

“This is spastic dance music for rock ‘n’ roll deviants, a jabbing pointer finger at the soullessness of the pixelated present, blown out and blown up like a basement tape.”
– NPR Music on “Negative Boogie”

“Like some unholy merger of David Thomas and David Yow, Nance caterwauls over art-rock grooves that can’t quite figure out if they love classic rock ’n’ roll or abhor it.”
– Chicago Reader

“Nance’s music comes drenched in sweat from ferocious jamming in basements and melodies ten years in the making.” – Noisey

Download album art & hi-res photos: http://pitchperfectpr.com/david-nance/

David Nance Online:
https://davidnance.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/davidnanceband/
https://www.instagram.com/davidkennethnance/
Keep your mind open.

[There’s nothing poisonous about subscribing.]

Clutch releases some killer pre-order bundles for their upcoming album, “Book of Bad Decisions.”

NEW ALBUM PRE-ORDER AND MERCH BUNDLES AVAILABLE NOW!
CLUTCH TO RELEASE THIRD SINGLE TRACK
FROM THE NEW ALBUM “BOOK OF BAD DECISIONS” TODAY
Maryland rockers CLUTCH are now offering a variety of exclusive “Book of Bad Decisions” pre-order bundles such as the “Limited Edition Collectors Bundle” which includes rare picture disc vinyl, flask, flag, shirt, long sleeve, HATCHET with autographed box, and more!  Bundles will be delivered on or before the album release date of September 7th.
All “Book of Bad Decisions” pre-order bundles, music and merch options are available now exclusively at www.clutchmerch.com
CLUTCH are releasing the third single from their upcoming album Book of Bad Decisions as an instant gratification track at iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/book-of-bad-decisions/1376829212&app=itunes) and Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CNYD1R7).  Spotify has it here (http://open.spotify.com/album/7fJuTpSrV3TYbSExbo3emk)
Clutch’s song “Hot Bottom Feeder” is, in essence, a recipe for Maryland crab cakes set to Clutch’s inimitable style.  Watch the accompanying lyric video here https://youtu.be/SOTrHrGSeNM.
Each of the single releases from Book of Bad Decisions is accompanied by a Spotify playlist put together by one of the band members.  In this instance Dan Maines who asks you to “Check out our latest release Hot Bottom Feeder and beat the heat with these stone cold classics.”
CLUTCH:
Neil Fallon – Vocals/Guitar
Tim Sult – Guitar
Dan Maines – Bass
Jean-Paul Gaster – Drums/Percussion
For more  information, check out the band’s website:
Official: www.pro-rock.com
Keep your mind open.
[It’s never a bad decision to subscribe.]

Live: Radiohead – United Center – Chicago, IL – July 07, 2018

I hadn’t seen Radiohead in concert since 2012.  They’d put out a couple albums since then, and I had been looking forward to this show for months.  It was a bonus show of sorts, as the original show the previous night sold out within minutes.  They added the second show to make up for those of us who couldn’t get tickets to that one, and even this show sold out in rapid time.  I had to refresh websites on my phone and laptop computer just to score tickets on the third level.

That being said, it was worth it.

They started with “Daydreaming” and “Desert Island Disk” to lull the crowd into a  nice trance before breaking out tracks like “Myxomatosis” and “Lucky” to get everyone moving.

A real treat was their first performance of “Spectre,” the rejected theme from the Bond movie of the same name.  It was great to hear “Idioteque” (which had the whole place jumping) and “My Iron Lung” (a personal favorite).  “Bodysnatchers” almost blasted the back wall off the United Center.

Their first encore consisted of “You and Whose Army?”, “Airbag” (which had a friend of ours dancing in the aisle), “The National Anthem” (another personal favorite), “2 + 2 = 5,” and “Street Spirit (Fade Out).”  Their second encore brought us “Everything in Its Right Place” (which was jaw-dropping), “Pyramid Song,” and “Karma Police” (which had the whole place singing).

It was great to see them again.  I didn’t realize how much I missed seeing them until that night.  They’re one of those must-see bands anytime they’re close.

Keep your mind open.

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