How’s this for a bombshell? Australian rock legends Midnight Oil announced not long ago that they had some big news coming soon. Most of us figured it would be a new album, but they’ve announced a globe-spanning world tour instead.
The Great Circle tour is going to be a celebration of the band’s work and will start and end in their home country. The band will play everywhere from Brazil to the Czech Republic in-between those dates, so catch them if you can. I plan to catch them in Chicago.
Fountains of Wayne (Chris Collingwood – lead vocals, guitar, banjo, Jody Porter – guitar, vocals, Adam Schlesinger – bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals, Brian Young – drums, percussion) are perhaps the most clever songsmiths you might not have heard (or realized you’ve heard, as they’ve had multiple hit songs) and make great rock that salutes the Average Joe and Jane. Traffic and Weather is no exception.
Starting off with “Someone to Love,” the band gives a hopeful ode to those of us who “should be out on the scene” Thursday nights, but are instead “sitting at home watching The King of Queens.” They encourage us not to give up on finding someone to get us out of our funk. “’92 Subaru” is one of the great “Average Joe is actually a bad ass” songs that Fountains of Wayne do so well. It’s about a guy who buys said lame car, but has full confidence he’ll be able to trick it out and score more ass than a plush chair. It also has a nice solo from Jody Porter.
“Yolanda Hayes” is about Collingwood trying to score a date with an Average Jane woman who works a miserable job at the DMV. The title track is a crisp yet crunchy rocker about local news anchors confessing their love and lust for each other on live air. Schlesinger’s weird synths make this track bridge the gap between new wave and power pop.
“Fire in the Canyon” brings in some country music flair, which is no surprise since Collingwood has written songs for country artists. “This Better Be Good” has Collingwood confronting an ex-girlfriend about her choice in a new guy (“I saw you holding hands with some guy wearing light blue Dockers pants, and I thought I might just give you a chance to explain what the hell is in your brain.”). He turns the question back on himself with “Revolving Dora,” in which he confesses he’s smitten with a girl who might be off her rocker. The addition of Schlesinger’s piano is a nice touch to it.
“Michael and Heather at the Baggage Claim” is a sweet song about two lovers at the end of a rough trip and realizing that not even such a misadventure and lost baggage can defeat their care for each other. The vocals get synthesized and funny on “Strapped for Cash,” in which Collingwood sings about owing a guy fresh out of prison a large amount of money and failing at every turn to avoid him.
I wouldn’t be surprised if “I-95” was inspired by the band touring the U.S., as a good part of it involves the description of an amazing truck stop, but the song is about a determined lover who will make a nine-hour drive behind a slow-moving van just to see his girl. “The Hotel Majestic” was probably a place the band played while touring, and it’s a catchy song to boot (love those handclaps!). “Planet of Weed” is a fun poke at stoners and probably on thousands of mix tapes in Colorado by now.
“New Routine” is about people crave excitement and not realizing their drudgery might be inspiring others to break out of their own ruts. “Seatbacks and Traytables” is another countrified track about long tours and mistaking one town for another over the course of the long haul.
\You’ll like this record if you like power pop and witty songwriting. Fountains of Wayne are one of those bands that should be in your collection. You’ll wonder what took you so long.
I first heard Ron Gallo when I saw him open for Screaming Females last year. I was impressed by his mix of punk, blues, and garage rock and picked up his EP, RG3. That EP was one of my favorite records of 2016, so I was eager to hear his full-length debut, Heavy Meta. I’m sure it will be right up there with my favorite records of 2017.
Beginning with his sure-to-be classic, “Young Lady You’re Scaring Me,” Heavy Meta gets off to a solid start with Gallo’s sizzling surf sound guitar and near-crazed vocals about a crazy lover he fears but just can’t ditch. “Put the Kids to Bed” is a 1960’s psychedelic freak-out / freak-on as Gallo pleads with his lover for a kinky quickie even though he realizes they may have passion but love has long since checked out (“When we were young, we said, ‘One day, honey, you and I we’re going to share a grave.’ I didn’t know it’d come so soon.”).
“Kill the Medicine Man” is blues filtered through a lava lamp in Marc Bolan’s living room. “Poor Traits of the Artist” continues the crunchy fuzz that Gallo and his band mates have not only embraced but mastered stunningly early in their careers. “Why Do You Have Kids?” is a hysterical diatribe against people who can’t take care of themselves trying to take care of children. “The kid’s got nothin’ to look up or forward to, no chance,” Gallo sings. We all know someone like that, and Gallo blares out the words we desperately want to say to him or her.
“Please Yourself” reveals Gallo’s love of sixties garage rock (listen to that near-bop beat for starters). “Black Market Eyes” switches gears and becomes a ballad that would make Wolfmother envious with its desert rock-like sound and rough-edged vocals. “Can’t Stand You” is an angry kiss-off to an ex. “Started a War” is a lazy psych-rock reverb dream about a woman storming out on Gallo for reasons he can’t figure (“Started a war, and all I said was nothin’.”).
“Don’t Mind the Lion” is about another woman Gallo wishes he could comfort after she’s fallen on hard times. The album ends with “All the Punks Are Domesticated,” in which Gallo offers a eulogy for everyone who thought they were going to stick it to the Man and change the world but have instead sold out and opted for smartphone screens and a world in which “Pop-Tarts climb the pop charts” and “No one really has anything to say.” He’s mostly right. Hardly anyone wants to do anything dangerous in the world of art and would rather talk about him or herself than have a conversation about anything that might challenge the fragile ecosystem they’ve built around them. Gallo even thinks that he’ll “be forgotten in two generations.”
He won’t be if he keeps up albums like this, however. He’s not only made a good rock record (which we need more than ever these days), he’s given us a glass of cold water in the face. Wake up and do something. Start with getting this album.
Kane Strang Shares New Single, “Oh So You’re Off I See” Listen Here Debut North American Tour Starts Next Month
“Strang has a gift for pulling diamonds from the rough” – Pitchfork
Kane Strang has shared new music for the first time since 2016’s Blue Cheese in the form of “Oh So You’re Off I See.” It’s the first single from the New Zealander’s forthcoming album that he is currently putting the finishing touches on. That record is due out later this year on Dead Oceans.
On “Oh So You’re Off I See,” Strang has moved away from the bedroom and into the studio. The song is robust and bright, showcasing his new collaborative approach to recording and writing with his band. The four-piece twists Strang’s melodies upside down and pushes his hooks inside out.
Strang’s North American tour kicks off next month at Baby’s All Right in Brooklyn and takes him to Savannah Stopover, SXSW and Treefort. These are his first shows ever outside of New Zealand. A full list of dates is below.
Kane Strang Tour Dates: Thu. Feb. 23 – Dunedin, NZ @ None Gallery Fri. Feb. 24 – Auckland, NZ @ Cassette 9 (w/ Fazerdaze) Sat. Feb. 25 – Wellington, NZ @ Caroline (w/ Fazerdaze) Fri. March 3 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right Sun. March 5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s Mon. March 6 – Washington, DC @ DC9
Tue. March 7 – Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter Wed. March 8 – Durham, NC @ The Pinhook Thu. March 9 – Savannah, GA @ Savannah Stopover Music Festival Fri. March 10 – Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury Sat. March 11 – New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa Sun. March 12 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall Mon. March 13-Sun. March 19 – Austin, TX @ SXSW Mon. March 20 – Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf Tue. March 21 – Denver, CO @ Lost Lake Wed. March 22 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court Thu. March 23 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Festival Fri. March 24 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios Sat. March 25 – Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt Sun. March 26 – Seattle, WA @ The Vera Project Wed. March 29 – San Francisco, CA @ Swedish American Hall Thu. March 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Theater Fri. March 31 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
Today, Hannah Lew signals the return of Cold Beat with the announcement of her third album, Chaos By Invitation, out April 7th via her own Crime on the Moon label. As compared with previous releases, Chaos By Invitation began in Lew’s home, alone, with additional tracking done later by Phil Manley (Trans Am) at El Studio and Mikey Young (Total Control) – only to return to Lew’s home for completion over the course of many months. As a result, the offering is much more personal and direct than Into The Air, which was more of a band effort. Collages from Lew’s home environment make up many of the textures of Chaos By, woven in to create an intimate atmosphere, a sort of chaos by necessity and design. The album also features performances by her friends Kyle King, Alex Shen, Jackson Blumgart, and Mikey Young.
Inspired musically by bands such as NEU! and Tubeway Army, Lew was also influenced by her own burgeoning interest in astronomy. The first single, “62 Moons,” is a song about love taken for granted, analogous to the 62 moons of Saturn, which are in constant loving orbit around a beautiful siren planet with many satellites. The artwork (above), done by Kevin McCarthy – of legendary Bay Area post-punk band Rank Xerox – was made to be machine readable, with some far distant expectation some synthetic intelligence would be able to understand this extremely personal and human album.
“’62 Moons’ is the first single, a synth-pop song that swims in crystalline guitars a la Modern English, with a Brill Building romanticism. In its final minute, a wistful, whistling monosynth lead launches the track from Earth, as Lew exhales her ‘fade to black.'” – NPR Music
CHAOS BY INVITATION TRACKLISTING:
1. In Motion
2. Thin Ice
3. Don’t Touch
4. Black Licorice
5. UDW
6. 62 Moons
7. False Alarm
8. Chainmaille
9. Ivory Tower
10. Strawberry Moon
11. In Motion Reprise
PRAISE FOR INTO THE AIR
“Over the four years of its existence, San Francisco’s Cold Beat has made simultaneously dynamic and atmospheric post-punk that plays to Lew’s songwriting acumen and surreal lyricism.” – NPR Music
“Cold Beat’s second album, Into the Air, reaffirms Hannah Lew’s penchant for writing songs that are at once ebullient and subtly sinister.” – Rolling Stone (10 Artists You Need To Know)
“Only two albums in, Cold Beat have nailed wiry, wistful post-punk so well; they can already play with their sound in unexpected ways.” – Pitchfork
“For as much chemistry as this four-piece has, it’s still Lew’s sugar-sweet vocals — now soft and yielding, then tough and brittle — that convey the frustration [‘Cracks’] encompasses. Cold Beat whip these emotions into a beautiful storm, fusing anger and destruction into a glassy, pulsing missive.” – Stereogum
CLUTCH ANNOUNCE MAY HEADLINE TOUR DATES ALONG WITH FIRST ANNUAL EARTH ROCKER FESTIVAL AT SHILEY ACRES IN INWOOD, WV
February 8th, 2017 – Clutch has just announced a string of headline tour dates for May. Supporting the tour will be Lucero and The Sword. The band is also pleased to announce their first annual Earth Rocker Festival at Shiley Acres in Inwood, WV on May 20th. Full line-up to be announced soon. Pre-sale tickets will start at 10am ET today, public stale starts 10am ETon Friday.
“We did a whole bunch of touring in 2016” states the band’s front man Neil Fallon. “Right now, we’re cooling our heels and starting to kick around some riffs for the next record. We hope to be recording the LP come the end of the year. Where and with whom is yet TBD. At the moment though, we’re really just at the beginning phase of writing and we already have a surplus of ideas.”
“In other news, this Spring we will be hosting the first annual Earth Rocker Festival. It’ll take place in Shiley Acres, West Virginia. We played at Shiley Acres last year and it was a real blast. Our intent is to have a really diverse bill. If all goes as planned, Earth Rocker Festival will continue as an annual event, hopefully growing in scope over the years.”
Psychic Warfare is the latest and eleventh studio effort from Clutch. The disc debuted at No. 11 on the Billboard 200, No. 2 on the Billboard Independent, No. 1 on the Billboard Hard Rock and Billboard Rock charts. On Record Store Day this past April 16thClutch released a limited edition numbered etched vinyl 12 inch that included two previously unreleased tracks from the Psychic Warfare sessions: “Mad Sidewinder” and “Outland Special Clearance“. Psychic Warfare was produced by longtime producer Machine (Lamb Of God, Every Time I Die).
Clutch, Lucero and The Sword May Tour Dates:
05-10-17 in Asheville, NC at Highland Brewing Company
05-12-17 in Louisville, KY at Palace Theatre
05-13-17 in Grand Rapids, MI at 20 Monroe Live
05-15-17 in Brooklyn, NY at Brooklyn Steel
05-16-17 in Providence, RI at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
05-17-17 in Port Chester, NY at The Capitol Theatre
05-19-17 in Norfolk, VA at The NorVa
05-20-17 in Inwood, WV at “Earth Rocker Festival” at Shiley Acres
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:
Neon Coven, the new industrial rock band from Los Angeles, CA, has released its debut EP “Risen” today via New Ocean Media. Recorded in Hollywood, the EP was produced by Jacob Bunton. The EP consists of 4 tracks ranging from songs about survival and balance to emotionally charged anthems.
Neon Coven is comprised of Anthony Montemarano (vocals), Jacob Bunton (bass), Ace Von Johnson (guitar), and Kyle Cunningham (drums).
The album’s title Risen is a dedication to the fallen and broken who refuse to back down and give up on their dreams. “The idea behind music is to connect, create and inspire” states frontman Anthony Montemarano. “Between life and death, we are always riding the quantum edge.”
“These songs reflect on the uncertainties of life and coming to grips with our own mortality” adds bassist Jacob Bunton. “The only guarantee we have in life is that one day it will end. It’s up to each one of us to create our own destiny and live life to it’s fullest. The world is full of ups and downs, but I’ve always believed in the Rocky Horror quote ‘if you can dream it, you can be it.”
From Los Angeles, CA, Neon Coven abandoned much of the ethos of the tradition of heavy rock to create an intellectual and theoretical sound, linked to an emphasis on anthemic, synth-heavy dance-rock.
“Risen” track listing:
01. Down
02. No One Knows You’re Dead
03. Bleeding Love
04. Queen Of Scars
For more information, check out the band’s Web Properties:
Josee Caron and Lucy Niles, otherwise known as Partner, were kind enough to sit down for an interview in the Schuba’sgreen room before their first-ever appearance in Chicago on January 22nd. I learned about the origin of their band’s name, their love of pop music, that Josee Caron has a delightful laugh, that Lucy Niles has a mischievous smile (and is willing to destroy a coffee table to open a bottle of beer if necessary), and more.
7th Level Music: I discovered the two of you when I almost got to go to [Chicago’s] Riot Fest last year.
Lucy Niles: We almost got to go, too.
7LM: I was researching bands, and you were the second band I looked up.
LN: Oh, nice.
7LM: I heard “The ‘Ellen’ Page” and went, “Holy cow, I have to see these ladies,” and after that I found “Hot Knives” and I thought, “Yeah, I have to track these ladies down.”
7LM: So it fell through and I couldn’t make it to Riot Fest, but then I found out you two couldn’t make it either. I’m sorry you couldn’t make it.
JC: It’s all good. The visas were delayed. There were a bunch of applications and the processing time just took longer, but we used that time to find who was going to mix the album and stuff. We took that week to finish the record and got it sent off, so it was really a blessing in disguise.
7LM: When’s the record coming out?
JC: We don’t really know.
LN: We’re looking for…(looks at Josee, and then points at a mini-fridge) Actually, you go. I’m going to grab one of these beers.
[Lucy will spend the next few minutes attempting to open a bottle of said beer without a bottle opener since one (for reasons unknown) wasn’t in the green room.]
JC: We’re looking for an American label to help us put it out. We’re kind of working behind the scenes right now. Everything’s done. It just needs to be mastered. It’s mixed by a guy named Chris Shaw. He is known for working a lot with Ween, and he mixed the “blue album” by Weezer. We wanted our guitars to sound kind of similar. We don’t know when it’s going to come out, but sometime this year, likely the fall.
7LM: [And] I found a great clip of you two in Go Get Fucked.
LN: Oh wow! Where did you find that?
JC (almost rolling with laughter): What?
7LM: You were playing at some deli or something.
JC (still laughing): Yes!That is crazy!
LN: Who posted that? I thought our friend was the only one who had that! That’s awesome.
7LM: It was hysterical.It was a set where, Lucy, you dropped a drumstick halfway through it and kept going. I thought, “That’s the greatest thing.”
LN: Yeah. That was a long time ago.
7LM: The name alone is amazing.
LN: That’s sweet.
JC: That’s how it all started, actually.
LN: That’s when we were younger.
JC: We were younger. We had a lot of energy.
LN: We used to get drunk three times a week and practice. Actually, [touring bassist] Kevin was in that band, too.
7LM: I’m really intrigued with how you settled on the name Partner. I didn’t know if you approached it from the noun or the verb, as in to partner or team up with someone.
JC: Definitely the noun.
LN: It was kind of an elaborate joke. We were kind of making fun of “normy” adults.
JC: We both worked at cafes and lots of the people there were like, “My partner…” It was a word that we heard a lot. To describe our relationship, we’re not partners.
LN: We thought it was funny because we’re not partners. Obviously everyone thinks that we are, but we’re not.
JC: So it’s very tongue-in-cheek.
7LM: I was going to ask you to finish this sentence: If we had two bucks for every time someone thought we were a couple, we could buy…
LN: A lot of weed.
[Laughter erupts.]
7LM: I figured it was something like that.
LN: I guess we could buy some other stuff, but that’s probably what we would buy.
JC: We just love the word, because we have partners. It’s just tongue-in-cheek because we’ve never…
LN: My tongue in your cheek?
[More laughter erupts.]
7LM: Tell me about the five-piece, because you’re touring as a five-piece, right?
LN: Yeah. We’ve got Kevin [who] plays bass and he also does a lot of administrative work. Brendan plays drums and does most of the driving. Dan plays third guitar, and he’s a great bandmate. We’ve had various other friends of ours fill in, and that’s pretty much our core group right now, but we keep it open if one of them can’t make it then we have other people who know the songs.
JC: This is our solid touring line-up. We all moved to Windsor together.
7LM: Is this your first tour in the U.S.?
LN: Yeah.
7LM: How’s it going so far? I know this stop was fairly early.
LN: Great.
[Lucy manages to knock the cap off the bottle of beer by banging it on the edge of a coffee table, forcing her to chug most of said beer before it spills all over the floor. She then attempts to open one for Josee in the same manner, but all of us decide she needs to save her hand – and teeth – “until we can get group insurance,” says Josee.]
7LM: Where are you off to after this?
JC: We’re just doing three dates, still getting our feet wet.
LN: We did Hamtramck (Michigan), which was awesome.
7LM: Was it good, then?
JC: It was awesome.
LN: It was so great. We ate delicious pizza.
JC: We played a little record-book shop called Lo and Behold.
LN: With a bunch of really cool, like-minded folks. It was pretty crazy. It was the night after the election, so we were pretty interested to go and see what everyone had to say. [There] were a lot of queer kids and queer kids of color who had a lot of interesting input. The next day we played Kalamazoo, which was awesome. The American punk scene is pretty cool to be observing.
7LM: I was going to ask you two about bands up your way that you think people should know about.
LN: A lot of our friends have sweet bands. [Looking at Josee] Who’s a good active band right now?
LN: We love this band from Winnipeg called Trampoline. Our friends have so many cool bands. I’m going to forget someone. Protruders are cool right now. Our friends are always starting good bands.
JC: We’re from Sackville in New Brunswick. A lot of our friends’ bands started there.
LN: It was like a snowball effect. There were a lot of people that happened to be playing in bands, and then everyone who didn’t play music started playing music because everyone else was doing it. It was very accessible, and there’s not that shitty, macho vibe to the punk scene at all. It’s very inclusive in Sackville.
7LM: I’d heard that you guys had a really collaborative thing going up there.
JC: Yeah.
LN: We had fairly limited resources, but the resources that were there were awesome. We’d share gear, share a shed, and take advantage of the radio station. Everyone had a lot of energy. [It’s] a beautiful spot.
JC: Yeah, we’re really lucky to have art all the time there.
7LM: Are there any bands that your fans might be surprised to find you’re influenced by?
JC: Yeah.
LN: Our fans would probably be surprised by most of the things we like. We don’t really listen to cool music anymore. We’re really into exploring super bizarre music, and not necessarily cool bizarre music.
JC: Yeah, I listen to music for different reasons. I got different things out of it. I listen to a lot of pop music. I love to do research and listen to really good songs. I really love Rihanna. Anti is such a great album, obviously.
LN: All the best albums last year, in my opinion, were the mainstream popular albums. What a crazy year for music! Beyonce, Solange, Frank Ocean, all that shit. So crazy, so good, so much more avant-garde than most punk music, I find.
JC: We’re really excited about that.
LN: We love mainstream music, and really not mainstream music.
JC: We’re constantly in pursuit of true expression, unfettered self-expression.
LN: Sometimes really weird or bad-sounding synth, but when you can tell it’s exactly the statement someone wanted to make…
JC: Yeah, we’re really into exploring that.
7LM: I always say that as long as it’s good, I’ll listen to it.
LN: Sometimes when it’s not good, we’ll listen to it.
JC: As long as it’s pure.
7LM: Do you have any favorite misheard versions of your lyrics? Do people come up to you and say things like, “I love your song ‘Hot Wives?'”
LN: All our wives are hot!
JC (laughing): Hot Wives!
LN: There’s probably some good ones.
JC: People have trouble hearing the words because most of our stuff is live. We don’t have a lot of content, so people don’t really have the opportunity to mishear anything. It’s just a mess anyway.
LN: We try to be as audible as possible.
JC: So they can hear all our punchlines.
7LM: Lucy, who do people say you look like?
LN (pointing at Josee): So she’s Ellen Page, obviously. I’ve gotten [Dinosaur Jr.’s] J. Mascis. I think it’s the hair and the glasses. People say that I look like my sister sometimes.
JC: Yeah, you really do, and your Mom.
7LM: I get Christopher Walken a lot.
LN: You look like this guy Anthony we know.
JC: Yeah! From the cafe!
LN: She looks like a kid from a horror movie, the Ring girl.
JC: When I used to have long hair. That used to really bug me, but I’ve embraced it now.
7LM: You should rock that. Easy Halloween costume.
JC: Yeah, start a goth group.
7LM: I’m not sure if you’ve done this, but if you go to Google and type in “Partner band,” one of the most common things to come up is this exercise…
JC: Yeah, the partner band!
LN: Yeah!
7LM: So what’s your favorite weird exercise?
LN: We should start doing that. We should start exercising.
7LM: That’s a whole video right there.
JC: We’re going to start getting into dance soon. Lucy has a more natural talent for it. It’s going to be a steep learning curve for me
LN (nearly doing a spit take): Because I learned that dance last week? A friend one day taught me this line dance to “Chattahoochee.”
JC: I was pretty impressed.
LN: It’s pretty sick. I’ll teach it to you.
7LM: Where can people go to find your stuff? Your Bandcamp page, obviously…
JC: On my Dad’s YouTube channel, TheStones1965, you can find tons of bootleg vids of our live performances that I did not give him permission to post.
LN: We do have a Twitter, and we also have an Instagram. You should absolutely check it.
JC: It’s all partner_band across the board. You can find us there and send us messages.
LN: And failing that, you can catch us wherever we’re playing.
JC: We’re going to go shoot a video for the first track that we’re going to release off the LP. We’re going to film that in February and it should be out in March or April.
7LM: Will it involve elastic bands?
JC: No. Hell no.
LN: It’s called “Comfort Zone,” so we won’t be exercising.
7LM: One last thing about the new record, was it you two in the studio playing everything?
LN: No, that was our original dream. Our EP is all us.
JC: Yeah, so everything you’ve heard is all us.
LN: I played drums, she played guitar, and we both played bass. [On] our new record, we had our friend Simone TV play drums. She’s a big Toronto drummer in tons and tons of different cool bands, Kevin played bass, I played guitar, and Josee played fifty more guitars.
7LM (motioning toward Josee): I caught of video of you rockin’ a double neck.
LN: We might have the double neck tonight.
7LM: Double neck guitars, and if a band has Orange amps it’s going to be a rockin’ show.
JC: We don’t own amps. We’ve gotten this far not owning any amps.
7LM: Wow! Nicely done.
JC: Well, Lucy owns one. It was her graduation present.
LN: My Dad bought it for me for graduating. Thanks, Dad. Well, we’ve got a hundred dollar Peavey amp.
JC: It’s communally owned.
LN: Brandon has a lot of gear in his basement, and that’s where we practice. We really depend on our friends.
JC: And other bands. Shout out to all the bands who have ever helped us.
[Shout out to Mar Sellars for setting up this interview and getting me press credentials.]
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR ANNOUNCED; PLAYING SXSW, LA, SAN FRANCISCO, CHICAGO, PHILADELPHIA, NYC, AND BOSTON;
SUPPORTING TEGAN AND SARA IN THE UK NEXT MONTH
(photo credit: Kane Gibbered)
“The sentiment is simple and familiar—and yet so is the wind that whips through your hair while racing down a highway in the summer with friends, and who ever gets sick of that?” — Pitchfork, on “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me” [BEST NEW TRACK]
“Earlier this year, Melbourne’s Alex Lahey released her debut EP, ‘B-Grade University,’ which is the kind of startlingly impressive debut that you just know is going to catch on…” — Brooklyn Vegan
“The fact she’s made something so vibrant and altogether fun out of a concept as straightforward as ‘being in your early 20s and just figuring shit out’ speaks volumes about her ability to put her own thoroughly entertaining spin on the ups and downs of the everyman.” — DIY Magazine
Relationship problems. Post-graduation life choices. The troubles of early-20s life. They’re millenials’ problems, sure, but weren’t they everyone’s at one point? Few people can detail these worries quite like AlexLahey, a 24 year-old Melburnian (that’s Melbourne, Australia) who’s EP “B-Grade University” is outnow on DeadOceans. Having already garnered a Best New TrackfromPitchfork for her debut single, “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me,” Lahey’s fuzzed-out, catchy-as-hell indie rock is stacked with emotion, weighing the sound of youthful anxiety against cutting, sophisticated wordplay. Watch the EP’s first video for “Wes Anderson,” premiered earlier today via Noisey.
Alex Lahey originally released “B-Grade University” on her own label in summer 2016, shortly before playing iconic Australian festival Splendour in the Grass. Lead track, “Ivy League,” pretty much wrote itself: “I went and studied sax at uni for a few years and just fucking hated it” she told DIY Magazine last November. Lahey dropped out to concentrate all her efforts on the songwriting that she cared most about. That cliffjump proved a great decision: “B-Grade University” immediately went onto heavy rotation on TripleJ, with the single “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me.” Lahey closed 2016 being the most played artist on Triple JUnearthed, as well as being voted BestFemaleArtist at the AgeMusicAwards.
Even if your woes are not the same, Lahey’s themes demand you to sing along, close your eyes and punch your fist in the air. Underneath the millennial angst, there’s an aura of positivity, universality, good times and looking towards the future that we all need right now. WATCH “WES ANDERSON” VIDEO — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAQNnd7QIkk
ALEX LAHEY TOUR DATES: Mon. Feb. 13 — London, UK @ Roundhouse w/ Tegan & Sara Tue. Feb. 14 — Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall w/ Tegan & Sara Wed. Feb. 15 — Bristol, UK @ O2 Academy w/ Tegan & Sara Fri. Feb. 17 — Glasgow, UK @ O2 ABC w/ Tegan & Sara Sat. Feb. 18 — Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institution w/ Tegan & Sara Sun. Feb. 19 — Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street w/ Tegan & Sara Mon. Feb. 20 — London, UK @ Old Blue Last Sat. March 11 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo Sun. March 12 — San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop Tue. March 14 – Sat. March 18 — Austin, TX @ SXSW Mon. March 20 — Chicago, IL @ Schubas Wed. March 22 — Washington, DC @ DC9
Thu. March 23 — Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live Fri. March 24 — Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade NYC Sat. March 25 — New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge Sun. March 26 — Boston, MA @ Great Scott
“B-GRADE UNIVERSITY” TRACKLIST:
01. Ivy League
02. Let’s Go Out
03. Wes Anderson
04. You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me
05. L L L Leave Me Alone
SPRING TOUR ANNOUNCED INCLUDING WEST COAST DATES WITH THE DAMNED
[photo credit: Nicole Anne Robbins]
“Bleached’s furious and fun sound, mixed with a slacker vibe, invites you to enjoy your youthful worries while they last.” — NPR Music
“Driving, insistent pop-punk from the pastel-haired LA trio with a flare for re-routing punk brio into catchy, mainstream pop.” —MOJO
Los Angeles band Bleached – the punk band lead by sisters Jennifer and Jessica Clavin — are set to release their new EP, “Can You Deal?,” on March 3rd via Dead Oceans. The EP follows the release of their most recent album, Welcome The Worms, for which the band played Late Night With Seth Meyers. In conjunction with the EP, Bleached are touring this spring, including an upcoming tour supporting The Damned. Additionally, Jennifer Clavin has compiled and will be publishing a limited edition zine also titled “Can You Deal?” with contributions from Hayley Williams (Paramore), Tegan Quin (Tegan and Sara), Jane Wiedlin (The Go Go’s), Liz Phair, EMA, Alice Glass and more. All net proceeds from the zine will go to Planned Parenthood and it is also available March 3. Pre-order link is below. Listen to the EP’s title track and read Jennifer’s statement about the project below.
I create music and art because I need to. To express, to bond, to reconcile, and to connect. And to use my voice. To have it received with such a generic labeling as “girl band” and consistently referenced as “female fronted” is insulting and reductive. The title track to this EP, “Can You Deal?” is about this experience. Last year we released a deeply personal full length album titled Welcome The Worms. It was a record about being in an emotionally abusive relationship. It was a record about getting spun out on drugs and alcohol. It was a record about totally losing myself in order to find myself. It was also our most ambitious body of work yet, with guitar work and guitar sounds and production we had only dreamed of until then. And yet to this day I am still fielding interview questions that have more to do with my gender than with the art I am creating. Somehow the conversation usually derails into some variation of the following question: “What is it like to be a girl in a rock band?”. And the ensuing story will define us based on our sex. Why is gender pointed out in nearly all coverage of our band? Labeling me as a woman in a band just puts me in a box, and doesn’t allow everything else I am to be seen and heard. It’s 2017, Can You Deal with women playing rock and roll yet? –Jennifer Clavin
Can You Deal? Zine is a collection of shared experiences on this subject through essay, visual art, poetry, lyrics and more from artists.
Can You Deal? Zine Contributors in Alphabetical Order:
Mecca Vazie Andrews (Sex Stains)
Julien Baker
Alicia Bognanno (Bully)
Jennifer Clavin (Bleached)
Jessica Clavin (Bleached)
Sadie Dupuis (Speedy Ortiz)
EMA
Alice Glass
Micayla Grace (Bleached)
Allie Hanlon (Peach Kelli Pop)
Hinds
Maryn Jones (All Dogs)
Ali Koehler (Upset, Vivian Girls)
Sara Landeau (the Julie Ruin)
Lizzo
Dani Miller (Surfbort)
Kate Nash
Liz Phair
Jane Weidlin (The Go Go’s)
Allison Wolfe (Sex Stains, Bratmobile)
Tegan Quin (Tegan and Sara)
Patty Schemel (Upset, Hole)
Kim Schifino (Matt and Kim)
Mish Way (White Lung)
Hayley Williams (Paramore)
And more TBA!
Bleached Tour Dates: Tue. Feb. 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom^ Thu. Apr. 6 – Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex Fri. Apr. 7 – San Diego, CA @ House of Blues* Sat. Apr. 8 – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues* Sun. Apr. 9 – Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues* Tue. Apr. 11 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore* Wed. Apr. 12 – Sacramento, CA @ Ace of Spades* Fri. Apr. 14 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom* Sat. Apr. 15 – Vancouver, BC @ The Commodore* Sun. Apr. 16 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox* Tue. Apr. 18 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot* Wed. Apr. 19 – Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall* Fri. Apr. 21 – St. Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall* Sat. Apr. 22 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line* Sun. Apr. 23 – Chicago, IL @ House of Blues* Mon. Apr. 24 – Louisville, KY @ Mercury Lounge* Wed. Apr. 26 – Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe (Old National Center)* Thu. Apr. 27 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s* Fri. Apr. 28 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues* Sat. Jul. 29 – New York, NY @ Panorama Music Festival
^Jennifer & Jessie duo w/ Ty Segall, King Tuff, Kevin Morby, Mikal Cronin
*w/ The Damned
