News – Page 37 – 7th Level Music

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard climb “Magenta Mountain” on their new single.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard have released “Magenta Mountain,” a new track/video from their forthcoming album, Omnium Gatherum, which will be released April 22nd via the band’s KGLW label, and is available for pre-order now. It follows the majestic lead single, “The Dripping Tap.” Some tracks on Omnium Gatherum return to the synth-psych visions of Butterfly 3000, like the neon pop of “Magenta Mountain.” King Gizz’s Ambrose Kenny-Smith elaborates on the track: “You know when you have a really weird vivid dream and it sticks with you like glue? One day I came into the studio and Stu was trying to write one of them down. He kept banging on about this paradise called Magenta Mountain that he had seen but none of us believed him. Every day since then he’s been still trying to convince us all that it’s real and one day he will.”

The band has played the track at their shows before, but this is the official studio recording release. This video, directed by John Angus Stewart, is synched to one of the band’s live performances in Melbourne. “‘Magenta Mountain’ is a new track, which can always be a tricky one to film live as people are yet to have digested the song on their own,” says Stewart. “So we decided to use the normally unseen infrastructure of a gig to guide us through the performance. Giving the audience a ‘protagonist’ for a live show, in this case the watchful and sometimes forceful eye of a security guard. The brute in hi-vis clearing a path through sweaty fans is a beautiful thing to behold.”

WATCH KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD’S VIDEO FOR “MAGENTA MOUNTAIN”

Following 2020’s KG and 2021’s LW and Butterfly 3000, Omnium Gatherum was the first time King Gizzard recorded together as a band since the COVID pandemic hit, and Melbourne placed its citizens under a series of prohibitive lockdown measures. Omnium Gatherum’s sprawling 16 tracks of gonzoid prog jams, dizzying pop nuggets, rubber-legged hip-hop odysseys and passages of pure thrash-metal abandon offer plenty for Gizzard fans and neophytes alike to chew on. Typically, Gizzard albums pursue a single theme or style – for example, Infest The Rat’s Nest’s eco-themed metal barrage, or Butterfly 3000’s new age trance-pop, or Nonagon Infinity’s endless garage-prog contortions – and part of the thrill of Omnium Gatherum for the group was the opportunity of new ideas without committing to deliver an entire album in that vein. It’s the perfect entry point for newcomers, and a solid treat for the faithful as well.

Omnium Gatherum feels like a Greatest Hits album, in its variety and the strength of the songs – only you’ve never heard any of these tracks before. It’s the sound of a group operating at their absolute peak, a group motivated by a deserved confidence that they could try their hands at anything. It’s also the sound of a group ready to return to the road after two fallow years – a handful of live shows in Australia, performed in the brief windows between lockdowns, has reawakened King Gizzard’s taste for live action.

They’ll kick off their North American tour next month. Following, they’ll play shows across Europe and then return to the states this fall. Tickets are on sale now and a list of shows can be found below. To say that they’re “up for it” would be a dizzying exercise in understatement.

OMNIUM GATHERUM TRACKLISTING: 1. The Dripping Tap 2. Magenta Mountain 3. Kepler-22b 4. Gaia 5. Ambergris 6. Sadie Sorceress 7. Evilest Man 8. The Garden Goblin 9. Blame It On The Weather 10. Persistence 11. The Grim Reaper 12. Presumptuous 13. Predator X 14. Red Smoke 15. Candles 16. The Funeral

KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD TOUR DATES

Fri. April 22 – Indio, CA @ Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
Sun. April 24 – San Luis Obispo, CA @ Madonna Inn $ SOLD OUT
Tue. April 26 – Sonoma, CA @ Gundlach Bundschu $ SOLD OUT
Wed. April 27 – Petaluma, CA @ Phoenix Theater $ SOLD OUT
Thu. April 28 – San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo’s 365 Club ? SOLD OUT
Sat. April 30 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Festival
Wed. May 4 – Monterrey, MX @ Showcenter
Fri. May 6 – Mexico City, MX @ Quarry Studios
Sun. May 8 – Ixtapa Zihuatanejo, MX @ Loot/Musa
Sat. May 14 – Queretaro, MX@ Jardin Hercules
Sun. May 15 – Guadalajara, MX @ Teatro Estudio Guanamor
Fri. May 20 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre & SOLD OUT
Sat. May 21 – Columbus, OH @ KEMBA Live! Outdoor &
Sun. May 22 – Millvale, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre & SOLD OUT
Tue. May 24 – Rochester, NY @ Water Street Music Hall & SOLD OUT
Wed. May 25 – South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground & SOLD OUT
Thu. May 26 – South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground &SOLD OUT
Sat. May 28 – Boston, MA @ Boston Calling Music Festival
Tue. May 31 – Athens, GR @ Gagarin 205
Wed. June 1 – Athens, GR @ Gagarin 205
Fri. June 3 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound – SOLD OUT
Sun. June 5 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera in the City SOLD OUT
Mon. June 6 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera in the City SOLD OUT
Tue. June 7 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera in the City SOLD OUT
Thu. June 9 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound – SOLD OUT
Sat. June 11 – Mannheim, DE @ Maifeld Derby Festival
Sun June 12 – HIlvarenbeek NL @ Best Kept Secret
Tue. June 14 – Berlin, DE @ Tempodrom
Fri. June 17 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival
Sat. June 18 – Miami, FL @ Space Park &
Sun. July 31 – Waterford, IE @ All Together Now
Tue. Aug. 2 – Šibenik, HR @ St. Michael’s Fortress √
Wed. Aug. 3 – Šibenik, HR @ St. Michael’s Fortress √
Fri. Aug. 5 – Prague, CZ @ Archa Theatre √
Sun. Aug. 7 – Vienna, AT @ Arena Wien (Open Air) √
Tue. Aug. 9 – Leipzig, DE @ Parkbühne √
Wed. Aug. 10 – Munich, DE @ Tonhalle √
Fri. Aug. 12 – Sion, CH @ Palp Festival
Sun Aug 14- Helsinki, FIN @ Flow Festival
Wed. Aug. 17 – Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
Fri. Aug. 19 – Gueret, FR @ Check-In Party Festival
Sat. Aug. 20 – Saint-Malo, FR @ La Route du Rock Festival
Sun. Aug. 21 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
Tue. Aug. 23 – Cologne, DE @ E-Werk √
Wed. Aug. 24 – Hamburg, DE @ Markthalle √
Fri Aug 26- London, UK @ All Points East
Sat. Aug. 27 – Málaga, ES @ Canela Party
Sun. Oct. 2 – Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre * SOLD OUT
Tue. Oct. 4 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater* SOLD OUT
Wed. Oct. 5 – Vancouver, BC @ PNE Forum*
Thu. Oct. 6 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre *
Mon. Oc. 10 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre* SOLD OUT
Tue. Oct. 11 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre* SOLD OUT
Fri. Oct. 14 – St Paul, MN @ The Palace Theatre* SOLD OUT
Sat. Oct. 15 – Chicago, IL @ RADIUS* SOLD OUT
Sun. Oct. 16 – Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple*
Tue. Oct. 18 – Toronto, ON @ History* SOLD OUT
Wed. Oct. 19 – Montreal, QC @ L’Olympia*
Fri. Oct. 21 – New York, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium*
Sat. Oct. 22 – Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall* SOLD OUT
Sun. Oct. 23 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem at The Wharf*
Mon. Oct. 24 – Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit*
Wed. Oct. 26 – Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern*
Thu. Oct. 27 – New Orleans, LA @ Orpheum Theater *
Mon. Oct. 31 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion #

^ w/ Mildlife
~ w/ Mildlife, DJ Crenshaw
% w/ Amyl and the Sniffers, SPELLLING, DJ Crenshaw
! w/ The Chats, SPELLLING, DJ Crenshaw
$ w/ SPELLLING, DJ Crenshaw
? w/ SPELLLING
& w/ Jess Cornelius
* w/ Leah Senior
# w/ The Murlocs, Leah Senior
√ w/ Grace Cummings

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[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Cool Maritime reaches an “Apex” with his latest single.

Cool Maritime – the project of Sean Hellfritsch – releases a new single/visualizer, “Apex,” from his forthcoming album, Big Earth Energy, out May 20th on Western Vinyl. Following the lead single, “Temporal Dryft,” the smiling album-ender “Apex” perfectly embodies the quiet triumph of conquering a long-played video game; a mix of satisfaction and accomplishment with a tinge of tragedy at the notion that this little world where so much time and effort has been spent is now fully excavated, offering no more novelties to unearth. “‘Apex’ is the final piece on the album. Because this music was composed for an imagined video game, I ask you, the listener, to imagine for yourself how the story ends,” says Hellfritsch. “When I wrote it, I was reflecting on the eternally iterative flow of nature – how it’s always changing and growing to adapt – reaching for a peak that is itself, constantly in motion. I couldn’t think of anything more beautiful and hopeful. I was also mourning the massive loss of biodiversity that increases every day. I found myself suspended between parallel feelings of deep joyful awe and profoundly overwhelming sadness.” This track evokes that moment the last programmer name scrolls past, the copyright line dissolves, the title card reemerges, and the air of curiosity is renewed, emboldened by a sense of achievement. In a similar way, Big Earth Energy begs to be heard again from the top, knowing that the details that were missed on the first pass will be gleefully revealed this time around.

Watch Cool Maritime’s Visualizer for “Apex”

Big Earth Energy plumbs the depths of his multimedia mind and naturalist heart, spinning an impressionistic narrative world off of cultural touchstones like the PC game MYST and the work of Japanese composers like Hiroshi Yoshimura, Yoichiro Yoshikawa and Studio Ghibli’s Joe Hisaishi. Using those inspirations and guided by Hellfritsch’s experience as an animator and filmmaker, Big Earth Energy is the soundtrack to a hypothetical video game with a pointedly ecological premise and a twist of psychedelic charm. In Hellfritsch’s imagined virtual journey, the player assumes the perspective of a treefrog 65 million years ago, hopping epochs with each new level, forming a comprehensive picture of the massive changes the planet has gone through over eons. The ultimate goal of the game is not to amass resources, defeat enemies, or gain power, but to fully witness the unfolding of one of the biggest systems of energy imaginable. The album is steeped in exploratory RPG intrigue, possibility, and contemplation, lovingly overlaid with Miyazaki-an sentiments and aesthetics. Its meticulous polygonal arrangements recall the computerized sheen of late 80s Japanese environmental music, using true-to-period gear. Hellfritsch’s reconnaissance of virtual reality and actual reality feels skillfully balanced as if knowing how to navigate one dimension is merely training for traversing its opposite. On Big Earth Energy, he pinpoints the discovery, escape, introversion, and imagination that are mutual of the two worlds, which he scouts as if they are the same territory.

Watch the “Temporal Dryft” Video

Pre-order Big Earth Energy

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[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Ultraflex are bringing up “Baby” with their new single (and for real, too!).

Flamboyant twosome Ultraflex, the project of Norway’s Farao & Iceland’s Special-K, are back with their suave yet punchy love song “Baby“, which follows on from their debut album release in 2020 and recent single “Relax“.

The lyrics in “Baby” liken dancefloor-flirtation to a duel; you have nothing to lose except perhaps your reputation (which is, admittedly, long lost). The narrator claims not to be afraid – which, honestly, sounds like a lie – however, bravery is not about fearlessness, but as John Wayne put it: “courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway”. Accompanying the song are never-before-seen wedding photos of the band (including a future baby) and a steaming hot music video, straight out of Cairo’s nightlife.

Speaking about the track, the band said:

“Although the song is about romantic endeavours, we realised afterwards that it is also about our artistic collaboration. It emphasises the importance of taking risks (otherwise “you’ve already lost”) and indicates that whatever happens tomorrow, we’ve got each other right now, and that’s what counts – the energy of the moment is worth whatever the future brings, whether it’s happy-ever-after or heartbreak.”

Watch & listen to “Baby” here: https://youtu.be/6Czkqmzp8a4

Ultraflex released their debut album ‘Visions of Ultraflex’ to popular and critical acclaim in 2020, winning the Icelandic Music Awards for ‘electronic album of the year’ and The Kraumur Award, along with numerous international nominations and selling out their first edition of vinyls and cassettes.

The band also recently re-emerged with their single “Relax“, accompanied by an ASMR inspired music video that was said to have been “a little disturbing“.

With concert options being limited in the time around Visions of Ultraflex, the band instead prepared a highly visual promo package and sculpted a well curated yet wild internet presence. Music videos were made to every song on the album, either by the band themselves or in collaboration with other video artists (including a video trilogy in collaboration with OKAY KAYA). This quickly became an important part of Ultraflex’s identity, along with heavily choreographed, stylized and visually interactive concerts.

During the pandemic, Ultraflex performed on Icelandic live Television, as well as playing a sold out show in Reykjavík, doing a live stream for Berlin’s CTM Festival, a commissioned piece for Oslo Classics, screened a short film at Eurosonic and last but not least – played a packed concert in Cairo. That is where the music video to “Baby” was born.

Ultraflex was elected to be a part of Keychange 2022. Through the organisation they will play at MaMa Festival in Paris and take part in conferences in London and Hamburg this year. They are also booked for Iceland Airwaves and Vienna Waves and are playing in Berlin on April 23rd. Later this year, Ultraflex will also tour in Norway, Germany, England and Iceland.

Links:
Facebook
Instagram

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[Thanks to Frankie at Stereo Sanctity.]

Tool release deluxe vinyl edition of “Fear Inoculum” and embark on UK an European tour.

The eagerly-awaited vinyl version of TOOL’s critically-acclaimed fifth album, Fear Inoculum, is available now (https://Tool.lnk.to/FIVinyl) via RCA Records, with the GRAMMY®-Award winning release spread over 5 LPs and paired with new, extensive artwork.

Adam Jones reconceptualized the already impressive album packaging with each of the 180g vinyl discs emblazoned with a unique etching and accompanied by an elaborate pictorial booklet including never-before-seen artwork. The limited-edition set, which also features a new cover, is housed in a hard shell box.

Quite possibly the era’s most highly-anticipated album, Fear Inoculum arrived in August of 2019. Debuting at #1 on Billboard’s Top 200, the album earned heaps of critical praise with NPR saying, “Fear Inoculum was worth the 13 year wait,” Revolver proclaiming the album “a masterpiece to be dissected for years to come” and Consequence saying the release finds “Tool in peak performance.”

TOOL recently released “Opiate²” (https://TOOL.lnk.to/Opiate2), a re-imagined and extended version of the 1992 EP’s title track and an accompanying short film available exclusively via Blu-ray only. A three-minute preview of the “Opiate2” film can be viewed here.

TOOL tour dates:

April 23 Copenhagen, DK Royal Arena

April 25 Oslo, NO Spektrum

April 26 Stockholm, SE Avicii Arena

April 28 Hamburg, DE Barclaycard Arena

April 29 Frankfurt, DE Festhalle

May 2 Manchester, UK AO Arena Manchester

May 4 Birmingham, UK Resorts World Arena

May 6 Dublin, IE 3Arena

May 9 London, UK The O2 Arena

May 10 London, UK The O2 Arena

May 12 Paris, FR AccorHotels Arena

May 13 Antwerp, BE Sportpaleis

May 15 Berlin, DE Mercedes-Benz Arena

May 17 Cologne, DE Lanxess Arena

May 19 Amsterdam, NL Ziggo Dome

May 21 Krakow, PL Tauron Arena

May 23 Prague, CZ O2 Arena

May 24 Budapest, HU SportAréna

Keep your mind open.

[Thanks to Monica at Speakeasy PR.]

Kelly Lee Owens announces new album, “LP.8,” due April 29th.

Producer/musician Kelly Lee Owens announces a new album, LP.8, out April 29th (digital) and June 10th (physical) on Smalltown Supersound, and today presents two of its tracks, “Sonic 8” and “Olga.” Born out of a series of studio sessions, LP.8 was created with no preconceptions or expectations: an unbridled exploration into the creative subconscious.

After releasing her acclaimed sophomore album Inner Song in the early days of the pandemic, Owens was faced with the sudden realization that her world tour could no longer go ahead. Keen to make use of this untapped creative energy, she made the spontaneous decision to go to Oslo for a change of scenery and some undisturbed studio time. Arriving to snowglobe conditions and sub-zero temperatures with the borders closed once again, she began spending time in the studio with esteemed avant-noise Lasse Marhaug (known for his work with Merzbow, Sunn O))) and Jenny Hval).

Together, Owens and Marhaug envisioned making music somewhere in between Throbbing Gristle and Enya, artists who have had an enduring impact on Owens’ creative being. In doing so, they paired tough, industrial sounds with ethereal Celtic mysticism, creating music that ebbs and flows between tension and release. One month later, Owens called her label to tell them she had created something of an outlier, her “eighth album.” In Owens’ words, “For me, 8 meant completion – an album that will ripple infinitely with me personally.”

Watch “Sonic 8” Visualizer
Watch “Olga” Visualizer
Pre-Order LP.8

LP.8 Tracklist
1. Release
2. Voice
3. Anadlu
4. S.O (2)
5. Olga
6. Nana Piano
7. Quickening
8. One
9. Sonic 8

Kelly Lee Owens Tour Dates
Fri. June 3 – Melbourne, AU @ Rising Festival Hub
Sat. June 4 – Sydney, AU @ Motorik [DJ Set]
Wed. June 15 – Milan, IT @ Magnolia Fest
Sun. June 19 – Dublin, IE @ Body & Soul Festival
Sat. June 25 – Bristol, UK @ Bristol Sounds
Sat. July 2 – Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde Festival
Fri. July 8 – Bilbao, ES @ Bilbao BBK Live Fest
Sun. July 10 – Modena, IT @ Artivive Festival
Fri. July 22 – Macclesfield, UK @ Bluedot
Sat. July 23 – Hertfordshire, UK @ Standon Calling Festival
Sat. July 30 – London, UK @ South Facing
Sun. July 31 – Sicily, IT @ Ortigia Sound System Festival [DJ Set]
Sat. Aug. 20 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
Sun. Aug. 21 – Biddinghuizen, NE @ Lowlands Festival

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[Thanks to Jessica and Ahmad at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Dumb Numbers and Melvins combine their powers on “Broken Pipe.”

Dumb Numbers and the Melvins join forces for one of the season’s most unusual releases, a three-song single, dubbed the Broken Pipe EP (April 29, Joyful Noise Recordings), which arrives via a sawblade-shaped, limited-edition vinyl 12-inch.

The title track is streaming now (https://lnk.to/BrokenPipe).

The collection, which is not the first time the musicians have partnered together (see their 2015 JNR split series), also finds The Jesus Lizard’s David Yow lending his vocals to the track, “So-Called Solid Objects,” and longtime Melvins’ production partner, Toshi Kasai, remixing the song “Harvel.”

“I’m severely honoured to work with Buzz and Dale on this release,” says Dumb Numbers’ Adam Harding. “I actually wrote one of the songs in 1997 after seeing the Melvins play in my hometown of Geelong, Australia. I never dreamed that 20 years later I would get to record it with them.”

Pre-orders for the 1200-piece, hand-numbered release are available now (https://www.joyfulnoiserecordings.com/products/broken-pipe-ep), with the EP also available digitally.

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[Thanks to Monica at Speakeasy PR.]

Mac Sabbath announces massive fall U.S. tour.

MAC SABBATH will return to the road late this Fall to bring America another heaping helping of unhealthy – but irresistible – Drive-Thru Metal on the 2022 Pop-Up-Drive-Thru Tour, featuring special guests Speedealer, southern rock heavier and faster then anything this side of Motorhead and shoulders, and Lung, the electric cello and drums female duo, kicking off one heck of a party feast for the senses! A food fight to the death!

“MAC SABBATH will be popping up all over the States – just like in our debut release,” says the band’s perplexing clown faced frontman Ronald Osbourne. “Confusing the USA one more time!”MAC SABBATH has revealed details on their first book, Drive-Thru Metal, but don’t expect a stereotypical biography from the fast food-themed parody kings. There’s plenty of “juice” inside, albeit in the form of burgers cooking in the kitchen as the four members of MAC SABBATH take fans on a journey through a dystopian fast-food world polluted by its own waste in an innovative hybrid pop-up book. Mysterious MAC SABBATH frontman Ronald Osbourne comments on the book, “What’s that? A pop-up book is not what you were expecting? Well SUFFER! ….and you’re welcome.”

Available via Poposition Press, Drive-Thru Metal features illustrations by Gris Grimly, well-known for his darkly whimsical children’s books and the upcoming Netflix film adaptation of his Pinocchio book,and will be available in Regular and Special Editions. Both editions are available in limited quantities, so be sure to get your copy of this piece of “Drive Thru Metal” history! Both editions of Drive-Thru Metal include pop-up scenes highlighting “The Factory,” “The Ascension” and “Utopia” and include a special vinyl surprise with seven MAC SABBATH stories, including “Organic Funeral,” Sweet Beef” and “N.I.B.B.L.E.” The Special Edition is a super limited version complete with a foil stamped cover, a Gris Grimly art print and ketchup and mustard splattered vinyl surprise.

Drive-Thru Metal is available at https://macsabbath.bigcartel.com/

Mixing raucous comedy with borderline-horrific theatrics, the only thing more petrifying than impending health problems resulting from years of overeating is a MAC SABBATH show. MAC SABBATH puts on a theatrical, multimedia stage show – complete with a smoking grill, laser-eyed clowns, bouncing burgers and many more magical surprises… basically anything and everything an unwary show-goer could ever want in their wildest dreams. The band has been named by Buzzfeed as one of the “13 Metal Bands You Didn’t Know How to React To”, and as LA’s “Best Tribute Band” by LA Weekly.

MAC SABBATH online: www.facebook.com/macsabbath/

https://twitter.com/macsabbath

www.instagram.com/officialmacsabbath

Tumblr: macsabbath

TikTok: @macsabbath

MAC SABBATH on tour: Tue 09/27/22 Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Wed 09/28/22 Goldfield Trading – Sacramento, CA – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Fri 09/30/22 Dante’s – Portland, OR – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sat 10/01/22 El Corazón – Seattle, WA – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Tue 10/04/22 Urban Lounge – Salt Lake City, UT – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Thu 10/06/22 WAVE – Wichita, KS – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Fri 10/07/22 Knuckleheads – Kansas City, MO – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sat 10/08/22 Wooly’s – Des Moines, IA – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sun 10/09/22 Fine Line – Minneapolis, MN – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Tue 10/11/22 Shank Hall – Milwaukee, WI – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Wed 10/12/22 Afterlife Music Hall – Lombard, IL – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Thu 10/13/22 Red Flag St. – Louis, MO – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Fri 10/14/22 Elevation – Grand Rapids, MI – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Sat 10/15/22 Magic Bag – Ferndale, MI – with Speedealer and Lung – 18+ Tue 10/18/22 HI-FI Indy & HI-FI Annex – Indianapolis, IN – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Wed 10/19/22 Beachland Ballroom – Cleveland, OH – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Thu 10/20/22 The Crafthouse Stage & Grill – Pittsburgh, PA – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Fri 10/21/22 Brooklyn Bowl – Brooklyn, NY – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sat 10/22/22 The Vault Music Hall & Pub – New Bedford, MA – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sun 10/23/22 Wall Street Theater – Norwalk, CT – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Wed 10/26/22 The Foundry – Philadelphia, PA – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Thu 10/27/22 Black Cat – Washington, DC – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Fri 10/28/22 Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center – Harrisburg, PA – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Sat 10/29/22 The Underground – Charlotte, NC – with Speedealer and Lung -All Ages Mon 10/31/22 The Grey Eagle Asheville, NC – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Tue 11/01/22 EXIT/IN – Nashville, TN – with Speedealer and Lung – 18+ Thu 11/03/22 The Charleston Pour House – Charleston, SC – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Fri 11/04/22 42nd Street Tavern/Reggies – Wilmington, NC – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Sat 11/05/22 Jack Rabbits Live – Jacksonville, FL – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Sun 1/06/22 Tuffy’s Bottle Shop/Lounge/Music Box – Sanford, FL with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Wed 11/09/22 Chelsea’s Cafe – Baton Rouge, LA – with Speedealer and Lung – 18+ Thu 11/10/22 Lafayette’s Music Room – Memphis, TN – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Fri 11/11/22 Come and Take It Live Austin, TX – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Sat 11/12/22 Trees – Dallas, TX – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Mon 11/14/22 Paper Tiger – San Antonio, TX – with Speedealer and Lung – 21+ Tue 11/15/22 RockHouse Bar & Grill – El Paso, TX – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Wed 11/16/22 Meow Wolf – Santa Fe, NM – with Lung – 21+ Fri 11/18/22 Marquis Theater – Denver, CO – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages Sat 11/19/22 Mesa Theater – Grand Junction, CO – with Speedealer and Lung – All Ages

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Maria at Adrenaline PR.]

Chelsea Jade’s new single is in “Good Taste.”

Chelsea Jade unveils the new single/video, “Good Taste,” from her new album, Soft Spot, out April 29th on Carpark Records. Premiering via FLOOD, “Good Taste” follows lead single “Optimist,” a calibration of Jade’s skills in passing pop through an R’n’B tinged lens, and is presented alongside a video illustrated by Frances Haszard. “It’s like a miracle // Feeling your charisma getting physical,” Jade begins atop svelte production courtesy of herself and Bradley Hale (Now, Now). “And yeah, I’m miserable // But oh it’s such a mood getting sad, getting sexual.” “Good Taste” features additional vocal engineering and production by Luna Shadows, and sees MUNA’s Naomi McPherson and Josette Maskin lending their guitar prowess.

Of the track, Jade says: “I met someone at a party while I was living in a hotel for a briefly opulent moment in time. The next night they met me in the lobby and eventually we made our way up to my room. It’s an implicitly sexy situation but we parted without touch. As soon as they left I asked if they wanted to come back and when the elevator opened on the ground floor, they got in and ignited the most cinematic make out plus I’ve ever had. This song is about that encounter. I imagine the first half to be an internal fantasy until the real first touch when the production explodes into maximalism.”

On the video, Haszard remarks, “The world already existed- black and white, linear and basey with augmented senses and ripples of distortion. These things translated easily into my frame by frame animation with my awkward impressions of 3D and motion. I’m self taught and a bad teacher so my style suits working with artists who enjoy imperfections and have a sense of humour about what unfolds.”

Watch Chelsea Jade’s “Good Taste” Video

Jade brings her “good taste” to Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheater where she’ll perform with Jai Wolfon June 8th. Tickets are available here. A New York City headline show to celebrate the release of Soft Spot will also be announced soon!

Quietly, Chelsea Jade spent 2020 and 2021 skulking around other people’s projects. In tandem with these collaborations, Jade has been funneling her skills into Soft Spot–adding animator, video editor, producer and engineer to her prolific creative résumé.

You can catch her as a dancer in Lorde’s “Mood Ring” music video, or in the credits as Deafheaven’s graphic designer for their 2020 vinyl release 10 Years Gone. She’s choreographed Aotearoa Music Awardwinning videos for Georgia Lines (“No One Knows,” “I Got You”) as well as Los Angeles based Trace Le. Over the years, she’s written songs for artists like The Chainsmokers, Cxloe and more. While it’s not unusual to collaborate in music, it might be considered rare to work with a diverse roster of artists in so many different ways.

Moreover, Soft Spot ventures beyond the exploration of delusions of grandeur that formed the focus of the critically acclaimed Personal Best (2018), a record that enjoyed two years on the shortlist for the APRA Silver Scroll Award in the company of Lorde, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Aldous Harding, and Marlon Williams, for excellence in songwriting for “Laugh it Off” and “Life of the Party”, respectively. A dynamic pre-Personal Best single, “Afterglow,” has made several TV appearances, most recently on the hit Netflix series “Emily in Paris.”

On the strength of this work and more, Jade was presented with an APRA Professional Development Award; signed a publishing deal, and co-founded a fxmale songwriting/producer camp in New Zealand with tutors like Susan Rogers (Prince) and Wendy Wang (Greg Kurstin). Now, Soft Spot aims from rougher terrain. A sonic sketchbook, Chelsea’s production falls on the textural side, a panorama littered with field recordings and conversations with friends as you travel through the record.

Watch “Good Taste” Video

Watch “Optimist” Video

Pre-order Soft Spot

Keep your mind open.

[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

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Horsegirl invite us to a “World of Pots and Pans” on their new single.

Chicago band Horsegirl have had an electric start to 2022 beginning with the announcement of their debut album, Versions of Modern Performance, out June 3rd via Matador. The trio were dubbed the “champions of SXSW 2022” by NME, and won the Grulke Prize for Developing U.S. Act before touring the Northeast, including a sold out New York City debut at Market Hotel. Today, they continue on that trajectory with the release of new single and lyric video, “World of Pots and Pans.” Following the propulsive “Anti-glory,” “World of Pots and Pans” has a rough, blown-out pop charm. The band elaborates: “‘World of Pots and Pans’ is the first love song Horsegirl has ever written—or the closest thing to it. We wrote it in Penelope’s basement while preparing to leave for our first ever tour. The lyrics, inspired by the misinterpretation of a Television Personalities lyric, imagine a (possibly unrequited) romance unfolding through references to Tall Dwarfs, Belle & Sebastian, and The Pastels.“We made the lyric video in a couple hours. The three of us had a fully formed vision of what it should look like and were able to quickly execute the real-time ‘animation’ in only two takes. It feels special to showcase our creative chemistry, and Nora was able to finally carry out her childhood dreams of making an OK Go (ish) type video.”

Watch Horsegirl’s Lyric Video for “World of Pots and Pans”

Penelope Lowenstein (guitar, vocals), Nora Cheng (guitar, vocals), and Gigi Reece (drums) – the best friends comprising Horsegirl – do everything collectively, from songwriting to trading vocal duties and swapping instruments to sound and visual art design. Reece and Cheng, college freshmen, and Lowenstein, a high school senior, learned to play—and met—through the significant network of Chicago youth arts programs. The warmth and strength of their bond crackles through every second of their debut. Horsegirl recorded Versions of Modern Performance at Chicago’s Electrical Audio with John Agnello (Kurt Vile, The Breeders, Dinosaur Jr.). One can hear elements of the ‘80s and ‘90s independent music the band love so deeply and sincerely—the scuzzy melodicism of what used to be called “college rock,” the cool, bubbly space-age sheen of the ‘90s vamps on lounge and noir; the warm, noisy roar of shoegaze; the economical hooks and rhythms of post-punk. There’s even a bit of no wave mixed in for good measure. But as Horsegirl fuse all of this together, it feels not like a pastiche or a hacky retread but something as playful and unique as its predecessors. With lyrics intentionally impressionistic and open-ended, and a sound that ranges with joy and enthusiasm across a range of styles, Versions of Modern Performance offers many pathways. Horsegirl will tour Europe and North America this summer following a special record release show in Chicago with other young, local bands on Sunday, June 5th. They will return to New York on August 10th to play the Bowery Ballroom.

Watch the “Billy” Video

Watch the “Anti-glory” Video

Pre-Order Versions of Modern Performance

Horsegirl Tour Dates
(new dates in bold)
Sun. May 29 – Allston, MA @ Boston Calling Festival
Sun. Jun. 5 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall (RECORD RELEASE SHOW) ^
Fri. Jun. 10 – Giessen, DE @ Stadt ohne Meer
Sun. Jun. 12 – Mannheim, DE @ Maifield Derby
Thu. Jun. 16 – Antwerp, BE @ Trix Bar
Fri. Jun. 17 – Paris, FR @ Pop Up Du Label
Sun. Jun. 19 – London, UK @ Paper Dress Vintage (EARLY SHOW) – SOLD OUT
Sun. Jun. 19 – London, UK @ Paper Dress Vintage (LATE SHOW) – SOLD OUT
Tue. Jun. 21 – Manchester, UK @ YES (Basement)
Wed. Jun. 22 – London, UK @ Bermondsey Social Club – SOLD OUT
Sun. Jun. 26 – Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Bristol
Tue. Jun. 28 – Cologne, DE @ Bumann & Sohn
Wed. Jun. 29 – Berlin, DE @ Monarch
Fri. Jul. 1 – Denmark, DE @ Roskilde Festival 2022
Sat. Jul. 2 – Hamburg, DE @ Molotow Upstairs
Fri. Jul. 15 – Vancouver, BC @ Wise Hall *
Sat. Jul. 16 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos *
Sun. Jul. 17 – Portland, OR @ Polaris Hall *
Tue. Jul. 19 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
Thu. Jul. 21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon *
Fri. Jul. 22 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo *
Sat. Jul. 23 – Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room *
Tue. Jul. 26 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line *
Wed. Jul. 27 – Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon *
Fri. Jul. 30 – Sat. Jul. 31 – Detroit, MI @ Mo Pop Festival
Sat. July 31 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza Music Festival
Tue. Aug. 2 – Columbus, OH @ Rumba Cafe *
Wed. Aug. 3 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop *
Fri. Aug. 5 – Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground *
Sat. Aug. 6 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus *
Wed. Aug. 10 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom *

^ w/ Lifeguard, Friko, Post Office Winter
* w/ Dummy

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jaycee and Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Marco Benevento’s new single, “Marco & Mimo,” is a bouncy delight.

This summer, hallucinatory keyboard wizard Marco Benevento pulls back the curtain on his latest studio effort, simply titled, Benevento. Due June 10 on Royal Potato Family, the 11-track collection presents 40-minutes of small-batch psychedelia, bubbled up from his home studio (Fred Short Studios) at the base of the Catskill Mountains in Woodstock, NY. Its title nods to Paul McCartney‘s first solo album and like Macca’s eponymous release, Benevento is a similarly loose, low-key affair where song sketches and sunrise jams share space with more constructed tracks. Benevento plays all of the instruments with exception of percussion from Mamadouba ‘Mimo’ Camara and backing vocals by his wife and kids on a handful of songs. He also produced and engineered the recording. The album’s latest single “Marco & Mimo,” which sets Afro-Caribbean melodic lines and sing-song, earworm vocals against the bump ‘n’ grind of Camara’s percussion, is out today (listen/share), while pre-order is available here.

“This record really acts as a psychedelic window into my studio and my brain,” Benevento explains. “The studio was a good place to be trapped for the last few years. I was surrounded by tape machines and gear. The album started to become this document of a crazy dude losing his mind in the woods—and maybe regaining it.”

Recording was conducted amidst stacks of gear in varying states of repair, all fodder for inspiration during long quarantine-dictated solo jam sessions. In this environment, Benevento unlocked his archives, mining for unfinished song ideas, and surrendered to the machines, coaxing beats and melodies from both go-to favorites and gear that had long been collecting dust. Benevento has since decamped to a new, significantly larger, home studio. As such, the album also acts as a swan song for his former workspace.

“Wall-to-wall keyboards, mics, amps, drums, the place was about to explode,” Benevento laughs.

In contrast to Let It Slide, his minimalistic 2019 full-length collaboration with producer Leon Michels, Benevento is heavily saturated and experimental, built from countless layers of keyboards, bounced to 4-track tape. Deeply indebted to the West African psychedelia of artists such as Francis Bebey, Kiki Gyan and William Onyeabor, the songs are rhythmic and repetitive, built into thick mosaics of sound. Each track features at least one keyboard solo, allowing Benevento ample time to explore sounds from the deepest recesses of his gear collection.

For the five songs with vocals, Benevento collaborated on lyrics with Al Howard, a San Diego-based poet. Howard handed over a 10 pages of lyrical sketches which Benevento worked into his tracks, occasionally chopping and mixing the lines or adding in words of his own.

“It was a new thing for me to dive in to—using someone’s lyrics,” Benevento says. “Or, I should say, finding a way to fit someone else’s lyrics into my tunes. I was a bit fed up with my own lyrical ideas, and was immediately drawn to Al’s writing.”

Despite stresses of the global pandemic, the vibe at Fred Short Studios was deeply peaceful and creative as Benevento patiently worked through years of accumulated ideas, lost, as he says, in the wonder of Woodstock. The experience ended up being so inspiring that—in another nod to McCartney—Benevento II is already in the works.

“I guess all my records are kind of experimental and weird, but this one is really unique,” Benevento says. “Records are snapshots of time, and this is from a time when it was just me, dialing knobs and making mixes and inventing how things could sound.”

As such, Benevento is sonic time capsule, a wormhole beckoning listeners to enter and explore. Throw away your preconceptions of time and space and dive in.

Benevento is out June 10 on Limited Edition Bubblegum Pink 180-Gram Vinyl,
Classic Black 180-Gram Vinyl and Digital formats from Royal Potato Family.
Pre-order available HERE

Marco Benevento
Tour Dates:

4/7 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair
4/8 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
4/9 – Fairfield, CT – Stage One
6/22 – Rochester, NY – Abilene
6/23 – Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird
6/24 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom
6/25 – Rothbury, MI – Electric Forest Festival
7/1 – Scranton, PA – Peach Music Festival
7/3 – Quincy, CA – High Sierra Music Festival
9/3 – Portland, ME – Ghostland Festival

Keep your mind open.

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

[Thanks to Kevin at Royal Potato Family.]