News – Page 11 – 7th Level Music

Brace yourself for Fat Dog’s new single – “All the Same.”

South London-based Fat Dog have quickly made a name for themselves in the UK as “2023’s wildest live band” (NME) on the strength of their “manically riotous and joyous” (BBC 6 Music) live show supporting acts including Viagra Boys, Shame and Yard Act and playing their own headline gigs. Last summer, via Domino Records, they released debut single “King of the Slugs,” hailed by Clash as “a ridiculous seven-minute journey through sound . . . Utterly remarkable.” Today, the British five-piece return with the antidotal follow up, “All The Same,” and an accompanying video. Additionally, they announce they’ll make their US debut this spring playing SXSW, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Their next hometown show will be a headline gig in April at the 1500-capacity Electric Brixton, a sign of the genuine excitement growing around this band.

Co-produced by Fat Dog frontman Joe Love and James Ford, “All The Same” is propulsive and galvanizing, underpinned by orchestra hits and eagle noises as it races along to a dramatic conclusion in under three minutes. Fat Dog hint to the song’s narrative, suggesting: “What if you could turn the clock back and make a change? Just a single, well-placed kick, that perhaps could change the whole course of your life. Perhaps the party never has to stop?” The song’s video is a twisted, absurdist tale of time travel and fatherhood directed by Dylan Coates and starring Neil Bell (Dune, Andor).

Watch Fat Dog’s “All The Same” Video
Stream “All The Same”

A limited edition 7” of “All The Same” will be released on Fri. March 22nd backed by an exclusive B-side “Land Before Time.” Pre-order from Domino here.

Fat Dog Tour Dates:
Thu. Jan. 18 – Groningen, NL @ Eurosonic Noorderslag 2024
Thu. Feb. 15 – Dublin, IE @ Borderline Festival
Fri. Feb. 16 – Limerick, IE @ Dolans
Sat. Feb. 17 – Galway, IE @ Róisín Dubh
Sat. Feb. 24 – Bristol, UK @ Simple Things
Fri. March 1 – Paris, FR @ Les Inrocks Festival, Cent Quatre
Tue. March 12 – Queens, NY @ Trans-Pecos
Wed. March 13 – Sat. March 16 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
Tue. March 19 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Cid
Wed. March 20 – San Francisco, CA @ Popscene @ Brick & Mortar
Thu. Apr. 18 – London, UK @ Electric Brixton
Sat. Apr. 20 – Rotterdam, NL @ Motel Mozaique
Fri. Apr. 26 – Bourges, FR @ Le Printemps de Bourges
Thu. May. 9 – Sat. May. 11 – Wrexham, UK @ Focus Wales
Fri. May 31 – Sun. Jun. 2 – Mannheim, DE @ Maifeld Derby
Sat. Jul. 6 – Belfort, FR @ Eurockéennes
Fri. Jul. 26 – Mon. Jul. 29 – North Yorkshire, UK @ Deer Shed
Thu. Aug. 8 – Sun. Aug. 11 – Sicily, IT @ Ypsigrock Festival
Sat. Aug. 31 – Manchester, UK @ Manchester Psych Fest

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe.]

[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Lou Reed’s last solo album, “Hudson River Wind Meditations,” is remastered and out tomorrow.

Light in the Attic Records (LITA), in cooperation with Laurie Anderson and the Lou Reed Archive, proudly announces a definitive reissue of Reed’s Hudson River Wind Meditations, out January 12, 2024. Originally released in 2007, the deeply personal project provides the best example of Lou Reed’s decades-long exploration into drone and ambient music, as well as the pioneering artist’s final solo album.

For more than five decades, Reed (1942-2013) never stopped exploring new creative avenues. From his broadly influential albums with The Velvet Underground to his groundbreaking solo works, the two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer remained stylistically fluid as a singer, songwriter, musician, and poet. Reed experimented with minimalist drone feedback music in the early 60s while in the Velvet Underground, and released the highly provocative double-album Metal Machine Music in 1975. From there he further developed his passion for drone music using both guitar and keyboards, including “Fire Music” on The Raven in 2003. This experimental side of Lou’s musical life led to Hudson River Wind Meditations in 2007, and after that, live performances with the Metal Machine Trio and trios with Anderson and John Zorn. Reed was also a spiritual being, who devoted his later years to Tai Chi and routinely integrated yoga and meditation practices into his life. It was inevitable that his two passions would eventually mingle. Inspired to create a soundtrack for these quiet – yet powerful – exercises, Reed composed four compelling works, which comprise his 20^th and final solo album, Hudson River Wind Meditations.

Released in 2007, the ambient compositions were initially created for Reed’s personal use, to accompany spoken-word meditations that his acupuncturist recorded for him. Over time, they transformed into music for Reed’s beloved Tai Chi and yoga practices. Eventually, the artist chose to share them with his fans, crafting them into an album with the late producer Hal Willner (Saturday Night Live).

Available for pre-order today on 2-LP, CD, and digital, Hudson River Wind Meditations has been produced for re-release by GRAMMY®-nominated producers Laurie Anderson, Don Fleming, Jason Stern, Matt Sullivan, and Hal Willner; restored by GRAMMY®-winning engineer Steve Rosenthal; remastered by the GRAMMY®-nominated engineer John Baldwin with vinyl pressed at Record Technology Inc. (RTI). The 2-LP and CD sets are presented in a gatefold jacket designed by GRAMMY®-winning artist Masaki Koike and features new liner notes by renowned Yoga instructor and author Eddie Stern, who guided Reed’s practice for years. Also included in the physical editions is a fascinating conversation conducted earlier this year between author/journalist Jonathan Cott (Rolling Stone, New York Times, The New Yorker) and Anderson, who discusses Hudson River Wind Meditations, as well as her husband’s devotion to Tai Chi — one of the album’s primary inspirations.

The 2-LP is available in three different vinyl variants, including Black Wax, Coke Bottle Wax and Glacial Blue Wax, while the Deluxe Edition includes the CD or 2-LP, a set of five 8×10 photos of the Hudson River photographed by Reed and printed on 10-pt High Gloss Kromekote C1S cover stock and housed in a glassine envelope, plus a 24”x36” fold-out poster designed by Yolanda Cuomo.

“Listening to Hudson River Wind Meditations as a whole piece is moving through several modes and states of a sixty-five-minute meditation,”explains Anderson. Echoing that sentiment is Stern, whose weekly sessions with the musician always included Meditations. “The sounds immediately drew you into an inner flow of awareness; something was happening with the music, but at the same time something was happening inside of you,” recalls Stern. “As Lou began to move with the yoga postures and began to deepen his breathing, the sounds of Hudson River Wind Meditations moved with him or, perhaps, just simply moved him.”

Meditations were also composed with the musician’s Tai Chi practice in mind. Anderson shares that Reed’s teacher, “[Master Ren GuangYi] was one of the main forces in Lou’s life, and Lou wanted to express that, to honor him.”She adds that when Reed initially shared the music with Master Ren, many of his pupils were hesitant about the modern compositions. “The music wasn’t well-received at first,” she reveals. “But Master Ren… kept playing it, and then, eventually, people were agreeing. ‘This is the best thing we’ve ever heard for Tai Chi.’”

Hudson River Wind Meditations is comprised of four parts: “Move Your Heart” and “Find Your Note” (both of which clock in at around 30 minutes each), plus two shorter selections: “Hudson River Wind (Blend the Ambience)”and “Wind Coda.”

The original release of Hudson River Wind Meditations included a brief introduction by Reed, in which he wrote,“I first composed this music… to play in the background of life – to replace the everyday cacophony with new and ordered sounds of an unpredictable nature.”

Anderson muses,“I guess by ‘life,’ he meant something like what Brian Eno might mean – ambient music that colors the air in very interesting ways. For me, it resets my brainwaves.” She continues, “In Tibetan Buddhism teachings, heart and mind are the same word – citta – close to the chi of Tai Chi, which is pure energy. This music is pure energy; it breathes in and out. It’s not like here’s the beginning: dum da da! And now it develops, and now it ends! Rather, it’s one long loop that keeps changing in subtle ways.”

Similarly, Stern writes, “We exist in a continuous flow of creation…But underneath all of that is the steady, ever-present current of life that is what makes us alive and pulses in us like a gentle drone, the drone that Lou has so aptly captured through [Hudson River Wind Meditations].It’s the harmony that you keep with you once you leave the Tai Chi practice room, the harmony that whispers its music after you finish your yoga practice. It’s a song, and you only hear that song when you listen.” He adds, “On more than one occasion – and I don’t know if it was true or not – Lou said, ‘I don’t even know how I made this, and I couldn’t repeat it if I tried.’ How marvelous that is, to make a piece of music so profound that it can’t be repeated yet has been captured for future generations to enjoy.”

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe.]

[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol stuffs rock in a “Body Bag” with their new single.

Austin trio Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol share the first single today from their forthcoming new album Big Bumb Riffs. The single “Body Bag” premieres via Invisible Oranges HERE. Pre-orders for Big Dumb Riffs are available via Bandcamp HERE and all DSPs HERE.

Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol also launch their Big Dumb Tour 2024 in late March. Western US dates announce today, with tickets on sale this Friday, January 12th. Eastern US dates will announce soon. Please see current dates below. Ticket links HERE.

“Our catalog has never been short on big dumb riffs, but the idea on this record was to really turn the screw,” says RBBP bassist Aaron Metzdorf. On Big Dumb Riffs, that screw is cranked incredibly tight.

“We just wanted ‘the part’: The opening of Pantera’s ‘Primal Concrete Sledge’, the breakdown in Primus‘ ‘Pudding Time’ — the shit that makes you move and lose your mind. Just that part the whole time.”

Across 11 concise, taut songs — most clocking in around 2 minutes or less — Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol demonstrates their skillful ability to blend the merciless low end of Leo Lydon’s 8-string guitar, Aaron Metzdorf’s masterful chordwork on the bass, and Sean St.Germain’s driving drumming.

Hot on the heels of their breakout 5th studio release Doom Wop (2023), Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol returns with Big Dumb Riffs: A whole new variant of the fuzzed out, overdriven, melodic, groovy music they have been making since 2016. While Big Dumb Riffs is decidedly more aggressive and rhythmic, it still retains the overtly melodic feel of Doom Wop. But Leo Lydon’s vocals are considerably more angry and negative (song titles like “1-800-EAT-SHIT” and “Body Bag” should be a clue.)

“The whole writing process was, ‘what if we just played two notes the whole song’,” Metzdorf says. “‘What if we tuned down to almost unusable string tension?’, ‘what if we write a record that will make everyone say ‘wow that is dumb’? Leo and I really move around on stage a lot. Being a dingus is crucial to the groove. All these riffs were designed to allow us to act bigger and dumber on stage.”

Big Dumb Riffs will be available for streaming and download on March 22, 2024. LP to follow in late Spring.

RICKSHAW BILLIE’S BURGER PATROL LIVE 2024:

02/03 Austin, TX – Sagebrush

03/09 Houston, TX – Moontower Sudworks

03/22 Austin, TX – St Elmo Brew – album release show

03/23 Dallas, TX – Double Wide

03/27 Phoenix, AZ – Linger Longer

03/28 Los Angeles, CA – Resident

03/29 San Francisco, CA – Kilowatt

03/30 Sacramento, CA – Cafe Colonial

04/02 Seattle, WA – The Funhouse

04/03 Portland, OR – Mano Oculta

04/05 Salt Lake City, UT – Quarters DLC

04/06 Denver, CO – Hi-Dive

Keep your mind open.

[Bag some music reviews and news by subscribing,.]

[Thanks to Dave at US / THEM Group.]

Punchlove wander into “Dead Lands” with their new single for their new label.

Punchlove are announcing their signing to Kanine Records. To mark the announce, the NYC quintet is sharing a new single entitled “Dead Lands” that is premiering today via FLOOD Magazine.

LISTEN TO PUNCHLOVE’S “DEAD LANDS”

Composed of multi-instrumentalists Jillian Olesen, Ethan Williams, Joey Machina, Ian Lange-McPherson, and visual artIst Viz Wel, the group quietly evolved from a bedroom project started by Olesen and Williams, into a full band whose live shows have begun attracting attention in their native New York. Their debut single on Kanine makes immediately clear why that is. Patiently constructed and subtly foreboding, the track uses three glassine guitars to create a shimmering wash of textures that swells and subsides under Olesen’s reflections on grief following a death in their family.

Olesen says of the track:
“You end up hurting yourself more when you don’t allow yourself to give into the greater static of the inevitable decay all around you, as well as the grief and change. It’s all part of being human. For me, this song is about the frustration you face when you try to avoid it.”

Keep your mind open.

[Punch your e-mail address into the subscription box while you’re here.]

[Thanks to Tom at Terrorbird Media.]

You’ll be “Moonstruck” over Sheer Mag’s new single.

Sheer Mag break significant musical ground on their forthcoming album Playing Favorites, elevating their signature approach to rock and roll to lushly cinematic new heights. Their latest single “Moonstruck” lives up to its titular reference of Hollywood-sized surprise romance, spooling out a charming story of desire. Guitarist and lyricist Matt Palmer tells, “‘Moonstruck’ is about how invigorating it is to have a new crush. After too long lost in the wilderness, it’s gratifying to find a beacon of tenderness to help reorient yourself in the maze of love. Written in 2021 and originally intended for a disco EP, ‘Moonstruck’ has been reworked as a more expansive and lush arrangement and features some of our favorite guitar work on the new record.”

The accompanying video for “Moonstruck” was inspired by Rush’s “Limelight“ visuals which featured footage from their wintertime recording sessions at Le Studio in Quebec. Sheer Mag enlisted director and longtime friend Ryan Schnackenberg (Cult Images) to bring it to life. Watch below.

WATCH / SHARE “MOONSTRUCK” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

Sheer Mag have labored to carve out a discernibly singular position within the canon of contemporary rock: toggling with ease between the refined flourishes of a “connoisseur’s band” and the ecstatic colloquialism of populist songwriting—yet displaying no strict loyalty to either camp—their sound, while oft-referenced, is unmistakably and immediately recognizable as theirs alone. On Playing Favorites, Sheer Mag’s third full-length and first with Third Man Records, the band capitalize on a decade’s worth of devotion to their own collective spirit—a spirit refined in both the sweaty trenches of punk warehouses and the larger-than-life glamour of concert halls—emerging with a dense work of gripping emotions, massive hooks, and masterfully constructed power-pop anthems. This is the record the Philadelphian rock and roll four-piece has always been destined to make.

Playing Favorites expands with a sense of undeniable vitality, buoyed by rock and roll’s singular capacity to channel a relentless compassion for human life. While at times marked by an intensified sense of melancholy, this newest offering takes stock of the confusing flow of daily life without moralizing, refusing to fall into antagonistic cynicism. Sheer Mag leans into the chaotic thrall of city living, of a life subdivided by the jagged highs and lows of bars, parties, and nightlife culture, with sweetly empathetic remove.

The album burns with a sweetened gratitude for the lot one has been given in life: the luck of coming up punk; the luck of living an unalienated life; the luck of feeling love, and losing love. Sheer Mag began to work in earnest on their follow up to 2019’s A Distant Call in the summer of 2021, which they originally imagined would take the shape of a tautly constructed 4-song disco EP. Before long, the band realized this new material would perhaps be better served within the context of a fully fleshed out rock LP, bracketed by the support of a wider array of juxtaposing psychic moods and sonic textures.

Over a six-month stretch spanning the fall of 2022 to the winter of 2023, guitarist Kyle Seely and his brother Hart Seely (bass) set about tracking the instrumentals for the record, resetting their studio configuration each week in order to impose a more tailored, multi-session atmosphere upon the record’s acoustic landscape. Palmer rejoined vocalist Tina Halladay in Philadelphia the following spring to write and record the vocals for Playing Favorites, which depart rather markedly from the band’s prior material, placing an added emphasis on pronouncedly existential, interpersonal storytelling and ornate background harmonies.

Playing Favorites is undoubtedly a record by the same Sheer Mag that audiences of all stripes have spent the last decade falling in love with. In fact, for all of its sonic departures and evolutions, this record is perhaps the most “Sheer Mag” release yet. Not so much a return to form, but rather a realization of those greatest promises that the band has up until now only hinted at. With Playing Favorites, Sheer Mag cater to their tastes and their tastes alone: so long as they continue to do so, the future of rock and roll, that great human tradition, is in the best of hands.

Sheer Mag embark on an extensive headlining tour this Spring which kicks off in D.C. late March and routes them coast to coast through early May. Today they’ve confirmed performances at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom, a hometown show at Philadelphia’s First Unitarian Church and more. See below for a full list of dates. For tickets and updates, go here.

PRE-ORDER / PRE-SAVE PLAYING FAVORITES HERE

Sheer Mag Live Dates:

Mar 29: Washington, DC – Songbyrd
Mar 30: Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle – Back Room
Mar 31: Asheville, NC – Eulogy
Apr 01: Nashville, TN – The Blue Room at Third Man Records
Apr 02: Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade, Purgatory
Apr 04: New Orleans, LA – Siberia
Apr 05: Houston, TX – The End
Apr 06: Austin, TX – Far Out Lounge
Apr 07: Dallas, TX – Double Wide
Apr 09: Mesa, AZ – The Underground
Apr 10: Tucson, AZ – Club Congress
Apr 11: San Diego, CA – The Casbah
Apr 12: Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room
Apr 13: Los Angeles, CA – Lodge Room
Apr 15: San Francisco, CA – Rickshaw Stop
Apr 17: Portland, OR – Star Theater
Apr 18: Seattle, WA – The Vera Project
Apr 19: Boise, ID – The Shredder
Apr 20: Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court
Apr 22: Denver, CO – Hi Dive
Apr 24: Omaha, NE – Reverb Lounge
Apr 25: Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry
Apr 26: Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon
Apr 27: Chicago, IL – Sleeping Village
Apr 29: Kalamazoo, MI – Bell’s Eccentric Cafe
May 05: Somerville, MA – Crystal Ballroom
May 06: East Haven, CT – Beeracks
May 08: New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
May 10: Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
May 01: Toronto, ON – Velvet Underground
May 03: Buffalo, NY – Mohawk Place
May 04: Troy, NY – No Fun
May 31 – Jun 02: Northampton, MA – Field Day Music Festival

Keep your mind open.

[I’ll be moonstruck if you subscribe.]

[Thanks to Bailey at Another Side.]

NORMANS unleash “Schloss Loss” from their upcoming debut album.

Southern California noise-punk band NORMANS share the last single today from their forthcoming debut self-titled album, to be released on January 12th, 2024 on Solid Brass Records. Hear/share “Schloss Loss” and 3 other singles on all DSPs HERE.

CvltNation recently launched the official video for “Murder Rich” HERE & on YouTube.

In 2021, in the lingering haze of the global pandemic and several nautical miles off the coast of Los Angeles in a broken down boat, Southern California natives and stalwarts of the local DIY music scene Matthew Reid (Blonde Summer) and Michael Perry Rudes (FEELS) decided it was time to embark on a new musical odyssey together; one that championed fearlessness, rawness, and above all, freedom.

NORMANS was born on the dirty streets of L.A. and baptized in the punk rich waters of Hermosa Beach; the city that gave us Black Flag, Redd Kross, Minutemen and more. Years of exposure and participation in the myriad of genres and sounds that make up the vibrant music scene resulted in a multi-genre-bending, bass and synth fueled cacophony that pays homage to the ghosts of Killing Joke, The Jesus Lizard, GVSB and The Birthday Party.

NORMANS have managed to stitch together elements of surf, post punk, noise rock and Wax Trax era electro-industrial music for a sound that is urgent, angry, and simultaneously danceable. Oozing with satire and shrouded in bizarre visual art and imagery, bassist and vocalist Matthew Reid explores issues of violence, drug use, and the terrified animal caged within us all. Where their musical journey takes them will keep us wondering. What is certain is the band’s willingness to propel themselves into uncharted waters, unlike the boat they started on just a few short years ago.

NORMANS will be available on LP and digital on January 12th, 2024 via Solid Brass Records. Pre-orders are available for North America HERE, UK/EU orders HERE.

Keep your mind open.

[I’ll be at a loss if you don’t subscribe.]

[Thanks to Dave at US / THEM Group.]

Church Chords releases “She Lays on a Leaf” from their upcoming album due Feb. 23, 2024.

Stephen Buono (by Matt Gribben) / Finom (by Alex Viscius) / Nels Cline / Ricardo Dias Gomes

Last month, Church Chords announced their debut album, elvis, he was Schlager, set to release on February 23rd via Otherly Love Records. The collaborative recording project led by musician/producer Stephen Buono brings together accomplished musicians from his time spent in Philadelphia, New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles, to create music that honors experimentation and collaboration.

Today, Church Chords returned to share “She Lays on a Leaf,” their avant-pop krautrock featuring guitar from Nels Cline (Wilco) and vocals by Finom‘s Macie Stewart and Sima Cunningham alongside Ricardo Dias Gomes (Caetano Veloso), who also penned the song’s lyrics.

When asked about the track, Buono shared more about collaborating with Cline: “For this song, I asked Nels to imagine John McLaughlin playing the opening guitar solo on ”Mother Sky” by Can. I think the solo on the alternate version is one of his best on record. It is such an integral part of the song that I gave him writing credit. On the album version, I love how co-producer John Herndon synthesized the solo to sound like I don’t know what.”

STREAM: “SHE LAYS ON A LEAF”

The story of elvis, he was Schlager, begins ca. 2016 in Chicago where Buono had relocated after four decades as a Philadelphia area resident, who frequently traveled to New York in his 20s & 30s soaking up the scenes at Tonic and The Village Vanguard. In Philly, in addition to his ubiquitous presence at a multitude of performances, Buono notably volunteered for the renowned avant garde presenter Ars Nova Workshop and put on his own live events at a series of West Philadelphia spaces. He also founded, wrote music for, and played guitar in the post-punk outfit, Split/Red, which BrooklynVegan called “Beefheart-ian….punk with an unbridled, avant-garde antagonism.”

Deeply embedded and inspired by the fertile music scene in the Windy City, where he moved at 38, he wanted his first Church Chords album to be fully Chicago-centric, using only locals. Buono oversaw a session at Steve Albini’s famed Electrical Audio that attempted to, as he puts it, “synthesize ‘electric-era’ Miles Davis with Black Sabbath.” A laudable experiment that he felt was ultimately a failure, opting to stick it in his back pocket for re-evaluation later on.

In Fall 2016 Buono relocated to Los Angeles and, a year to the day after his Electrical Audio session, dusted off the shelved material in a session with bassist Devin Hoff (Julia Holter, Sharon Van Etten), percussionist John Herndon, and multi-instrumentalist Ben Boye (Ty Segall, Bonnie “Prince” Billy). The trio laid down new rhythm tracks for six songs from the original session — a 35-minute continuous improvisation that changed the dynamic and structure of the work. In addition, Buono produced an additional 4 songs from tracks laid down by Chicagoan multihyphenate Jim Baker on ARP2000. Elliot Bergman (Wild Belle) produced one of these songs, “Recent Mineral” aka “Renda,” which has versions in both English and Portuguese.

For the next little while, Buono started massaging this mass of material into shape alongside co-producers in the vein of a hip-hop producer. As he did, more voices and players from an equally vibrant L.A. scene were folded into the proceedings. Among them, keyboardist Sam Barsh (Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar); guitarists Nels Cline, Jeff Parker (Tortoise), Mark Shippy (US Maple), Brandon Seabrook; horn player Josh Johnson (Leon Bridges’ musical director); percussionist Kenny Wollesen (Bill Frisell, Tom Waits); and Nate Walcott (a multi-instrumentalist known for his work with Bright Eyes, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Phoebe Bridgers).

It was at this point that Buono made some crucial decisions related to the album and the Church Chords project as a whole. The biggest was that he opted to lessen his contributions as a performer; to instead take on the role of a producer in the mode of Teo Macero or a member of Public Enemy’s Bomb Squad. He would be directing the sessions and helping finesse the finished product but otherwise staying out of the musicians’ way as they wrote lyrics and improvised.

As well, Buono decided early on that the material he was conceptualizing for elvis, he was Schlager needed vocals, and lyrics. Through his many connections in the community, he became friends with Ricardo Dias Gomes, a Brazilian artist who has worked with the likes of Caetano Veloso and Arto Lindsay. Initially, Gomes was going to contribute lyrics to a single song, but as he heard more of the music, he was inspired to write words for the majority of the tracks. Also making vital contributions were multi-instrumentalist/producer Matt Mehlan, who wrote “Warriors of Playtime,” a powerful song written in the wake of George Floyd’s murder; and old friend Kristin Slipp (Dirty Projectors, Mmeadows) who contributed words and vocals to “Alone, Under The Water” and several others.

Gomes, Slipp, and Mehlan’s lyrics were treated with immense care and compassion by the people Buono tapped to sing on elvis, he was Schlager. As with the rest of the album, the vocalists are an array of jaw-dropping talent from Genevieve Artadi, here singing in Portuguese for the first time on record, Brazilian Thalma de Freitas (Kamasi Washington, Madlib), electropop genius Takako Minekawa to L.A. dynamo zzzahara (the Simps) to the avant pop group Finom (f.k.a. Ohmme) to Ako Castuera, an artist who worked behind on Adventure Time.

The number of contributors and the storyline behind elvis, he was Schlager, is a little dizzying to comprehend. And it may sound like a recipe for a mess — a situation with too many cooks. But thanks to Buono’s steady hands guiding each step of the process, the album is a complete, cohesive statement. An exploratory, daring, and engaging expression of music’s transformative power. A mood piece that flows steadily and smoothly from vibe to vibe, guiding the listener through each melodic twist and rhythmic turn.

Keep your mind open.

[Lay your e-mail address on the subscription box while you’re here.]

[Thanks to Cody at Terrorbird Media.]

Mac Sabbath announces early 2024 western U.S. tour with The Darts.

Drive-thru metal rockers Mac Sabbath are about to launch a short western U.S. tour with psych-rockers The Darts, starting at the legendary Pappy and Harriets in Pioneertown, California and ending at the wild Area 15 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Don’t miss them. Tickets are on sale now.

01/17/24 – Pioneertown, CA – MAC SABBATH – Pappy And Harriets

01/19/24 – Flagstaff, AZ – MAC SABBATH – Orpheum Theater

01/20/24 – Tucson, AZ – MAC SABBATH – Rialto Theatre

01/21/24 – Las Vegas, NV – MAC SABBATH – The Portal Inside AREA 15

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]

[Thanks to Maria at Adrenaline PR.]

TOOL announces 2024 European dates.

TOOL make their highly-anticipated return to Europe this Spring, with a month of dates slated for the 2024 trek, including outings at London’s The O₂Arena, Stockholm’s Tele2 Arena and Paris’ Accor Arena, as well as festival outings at Graspop Metal Meeting, Tons of Rock and CopenHell.

News of the band’s European tour follows a particularly busy time for the Los Angeles-based band, with the foursome featuring Danny Carey, Justin Chancellor, Adam Jones and Maynard James Keenan, currently in the midst of a North American tour that extends into February. Over the last five months, TOOL has headlined Aftershock, Welcome to Rockville, Louder Than Life and the Sonic Temple Arts & Music festivals, as well as a once-in-a-lifetime performance at Power Trip, which Metal Hammer described as “a mind-melting, triumphant showcase of just how singular their art is, a transcendental experience that surpasses genre boundaries.”

Tickets for all headlining dates are on-sale now.

TOOL European tour dates:

25 May Hannover, DE ZAG Arena

27 May Amsterdam, NL Ziggo Dome

30 May Birmingham, UK Resorts World Arena

1 June Manchester, UK AO Arena

3 June London, UK The O₂ Arena

5 June Paris, FR Accor Arena

8 June Berlin, DE Parkbühne Wuhlheide

10 June Wien, AT Wiener Stadthalle

11 June Kraków, PL Tauron Arena

13 June Budapest, HU BudapestAréna

18 June Köln, DE Lanxess Arena

20 June Dessel, BE Graspop Metal Meeting

22 June Copenhagen, DK CopenHell

25 June Stockholm, SE Tele2 Arena

27 June Oslo, NO Tons of Rock

TOOL North American tour dates:

10 January Baltimore, MD CFG Bank Arena

12 January New York, NY Madison Square Garden

13 January New York, NY Madison Square Garden

18 January Hollywood, FL Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood

19 January Hollywood, FL Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood

21 January Charlotte, NC Spectrum Center

23 January Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena

24 January Atlanta, GA State Farm Arena

26 January Birmingham, AL The Legacy Arena at The BJCC

27 January Biloxi, MS Mississippi Coast Coliseum

30 January Corpus Christi, TX American Bank Center

31 January Austin, TX Moody Center

2 February Dallas, TX American Airlines Center

3 February Oklahoma City, OK Paycom Center

5 February Denver, CO Ball Arena

7 February El Paso, TX UTEP Don Haskins Center

9 February Phoenix, AZ Footprint Center

10 February Phoenix, AZ Footprint Center

12 February Fresno, CA Save Mart Center

14 February Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena

15 February Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena

17 February Ontario, CA Toyota Arena

18 February Las Vegas, NV T-Mobile Arena

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]

[Thanks to Monica at Speakeasy PR]

Ty Segall announces new album due January 26 – “Three Bells.”

Ty Segall returns with his most ambitious, elastic set of songs to date, Three Bells, to be released January 26th via Drag City. Following 2022’s acoustic introspection opus, “Hello, Hi,”Three Bells is a deeper, wilder journey to the center of the self, with Ty using his musical vocabulary with ever-increasing sophistication. In conjunction with today’s announcement, Tyunveils the new single/video, “My Room.”

Three Bells is an obsessive quest for expression. With much of the album being played by Ty in conversation with himself, a decision that further elevates the album’s conception, it answers back to the riptide always pulling Ty subconsciously into the depths. Questions we all ask in our own private mirrors are faced down here — and regardless of what the mysterious “Three Bells” mean in the context of the album’s libretto, you can be assured that Ty’s ringing them for himself, and for the rest of us in turn. With all fifteen songs brimming with perspectives, shape-shifting incessantly, Ty pushed them out farther and farther compositionally, challenging the way they’d be played. Each song moves through repetitive, thematic material in its own way, building a claustrophobic/paranoia vibe, cycling bold thrusts forward into ego deaths, the one-step-forward, two-steps-back patterns framing an overriding ask: what can we do to get past the back-and-forth conversation, to arrive at a place of acceptance?

On Three Bells, Ty and Denée Segall collaborated on five of the songs, including the previously released single, “Eggman.” Some of the songs needed the kind of playing Ty couldn’t get alone. Emmett Kelly’s bass parts not only addressed that need, but inspired the way the songs eventually went down. The remaining members of the Freedom Band were called in to play, transforming the material. Co-producer Cooper Crain, who deeply contributed to both Harmonizer and “Hello, Hi”, engineered and mixed most of the album.

With todays’ single, “My Room,” Ty rings the bell of the introvert who is empowered by the world inside his own room. The layers of acoustic and electric guitars dance around each other, quickening the already swinging tempo, while fuzz distortion blows the walls farther back as he takes us deeper. The accompanying music video was directed by longtime collaborators MattYoka and Ty, and features Ty steadfastly performing the song on stage as bananas are launched in his direction. He remains resolute in dedication to the craft, only to reveal a surreal dialogue between the dual facets of his own identity.

Three Bells takes Ty Segall’s trips so much deeper and farther than they’ve gone before — a masterpiece of personal expression, expressed through words, music and production, parabolically addressing malaise with compassion in a flowing, unstoppable hour-plus of intoxicating sound. Following the album’s release, Ty will tour throughout North America. Tickets are on sale now.

Pre-order Ty Segall’s Three Bells

Listen/Watch Ty Segall’s “My Room”

Listen/Watch Ty Segall’s “Void”

Listen/Watch Ty Segall’s “Eggman”

Three Bells Tracklisting:
1. The Bell
2. Void
3. I Hear
4. Hi Dee Dee
5. My Best Friend
6. Reflections
7. Move
8. Eggman
9. My Room
10. Watcher
11. Repetition
12. To You
13. Wait
14. Denée
15. What Can We Do

Ty Segall 2024 Tour Dates:
(new dates in bold)

Tue. Feb. 20 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
Wed. Feb. 21 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
Fri. Feb. 23 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern *
Sat. Feb. 24 – Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up
Fri. Apr. 19 – Tucson, AZ @ 191 Toole
Sat. Apr. 20 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sister Bar
Mon. Apr. 22 – Austin, TX @ Mohawk (Outside)
Tue. Apr. 23 – Jackson, MS @ Duling Hall
Wed. Apr. 24 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
Fri. Apr. 26 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
Sat. Apr. 27 – Washington DC @ Lincoln Theatre
Sun. Apr. 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
Mon. Apr. 29 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
Wed. May 1 – Boston, MA @ Royale
Thu. May 2 – Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
Fri. May 3 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
Sun. May 5 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
Mon. May 6 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
Tue. May 7 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
Thu. May 9 – Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre
Sat. May 11 – Sacramento, CA @ Harlow’s
Fri. June 28 – London, UK @ Roundhouse

# w/ Mike Donovan
* w/ White Fence

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]

[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]