Today, Manchester, UK-based trio Mandy, Indiana unveil the video for “Bottle Episode,” the lead single from their debut EP, ‘…’ out digitally November 19th via Fire Talk Records (physically out December 10th). “When I first heard ‘Bottle Episode,’ the driving drum beat immediately spawned dizzying, restless images.We created visuals that matched the track’s chaotic energy by physically putting a camera through torment,” says director Max McLachlan.
The band elaborates: “A key element of the track is movement and finding interesting ways for the camera to move was an idea we thought was worth exploring. The shoot was all very improvised with extras fighting over a camera, launching it in the air, smashing it on the ground, and attaching it to a drill. The camera becomes as much the subject of the video as the people and locations.” Watch Mandy, Indiana’s Video for “Bottle Episode”
Valentine Caulfield (vocals/lyrics) and Scott Fair (guitar/production) met a couple of years ago when their respective previous bands shared a bill. Caulfield was drawn to Fair’s aspirations to write beyond genre, while Fair was instantly taken with the singer’s magnetic stage presence and harsh, visceral vocals delivered in her native French. The pair also enlisted Liam Stewart (percussion), a touring musician who’s powerhouse rhythmic presence compliments the pair’s vision—emphasizing raw energy and emotion over meticulous composition to create a singular cathartic experience. The songs on ‘…’ EP were recorded in a variety of spaces, from rehearsal rooms and home studios to cavernous industrial mills. Including new remixes by Daniel Avery and Club Eat, as well as previously released singles “Alien 3” and “Nike of Samothrace,” the EP finds Mandy, Indiana bridging the worlds of post-punk, noise, and industrial dance music to create their brutal pop sound.
Mandy, Indiana will play their first shows in the US at SXSW 2022 as part of the official lineup. Pre-order ‘…’ EP
Mandy, Indiana Tour Dates Sat. Nov. 20 – Salford, UK @ White Hotel # Fri. Nov. 26 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall % Fri. Dec. 3 – London, UK @ Electric Ballroom % Sat. Feb. 26, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Dark Arts Festival March 14 – 20, 2022 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
# = supporting Part Chimp % = supporting The Horrors
Century Egg is a band of escape artists with a focus on playing visceral punk rock. Today the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based quartet are sharing their new single, “Moving On” which makes up the first half of a double A-side single release, the second of which will follow next month. The new track, released via Forward Music Group, marks the return of the band following their Bandcamp Daily and Exclaim-tipped EP, Little Piece of Hair which was released earlier this year (watch the video for “Do You Want To Dance?” here)
Following previous spots opening for the likes of Lido Pimienta – a self-proclaimed fan of the band with Robert Drisdelle, guitarist in Century Egg producing a track on her Polaris Prize-winning album, La Papessa – Partner, Julie Doiron, and more, Century Egg will be performing at Toronto’s Handlebar on November 14 and La Sala Rosa as part of M for Montreal (Mothland’s stage) on November 19 to celebrate the release of these new tracks. This new single, “Moving On” further cements their inspirations taken from Asian pop and rock artists such as Faye Wong, Jun Togawa, Spitz, Cui Jain, Pu Shu, along with the driving post-punk rhythm section and blistering guitar work taken from The Stooges, Thin Lizzy, etc.
Speaking about the new single, Century Egg says: “This is a song about trying to detach yourself from your past and let go of the trauma that holds you back from finally feeling better.”
Century Egg is made up of singer, Shane Song (she/her), bassist/backing vocalist, Matty Grace (she/her/they/them), guitarist, Robert Drisdelle (he/him) and drummer, Megumi Yoshida (she/her). Away from Century Egg, Song works as a visual artist/video game artist, Grace plays in numerous bands including Cluttered (tipped by Laura Jane Grace of Against Me!), Drisdelle plays and arranges with Lido Pimienta (amongst other projects) and Yoshida performs in Bad Vibrations, Dog Day, Not You and more.
Keep your mind open.
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[Thanks to Gabriel at Clandestine Label Services.]
London-based band Dry Cleaning continues their incredible year with a spring 2022 North American tour. Their debut album, New Long Leg, out now via 4AD, is one of 2021’s most praised albums thus far, championed by The New York Times, Pitchfork, New Yorker, Entertainment Weekly, and more. Since its release, the band has completely sold out their US fall run, which starts this Wednesday at Los Angeles’ Teragram Ballroom. The spring 2022 leg will see the band visiting many US cities for the first-time ever. Tickets for these shows will go on sale Friday, Nov. 12th at 12pm EST, but will be sure to sell out quickly, so the band is offering a pre-sale to all subscribers of their mailing list, which will be live Wednesday, Nov. 10th at 10am EST.. A full list of dates can be found below.
DRY CLEANING TOUR DATES (new dates in bold) Wed. Nov. 10 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom – SOLD OUT Thu. Nov. 11 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel – SOLD OUT Sat. Nov. 13 – Portland, OR @ Vitalidad Movement Arts Center – SOLD OUT Sun. Nov. 14 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theater – SOLD OUT Tue. Nov. 16 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle – SOLD OUT Wed. Nov. 17 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle – SOLD OUT Fri. Nov. 19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Market Hotel – SOLD OUT Sat. Nov. 20 – Brooklyn, NY @ Market Hotel – SOLD OUT Sat. Nov. 27 – Nottingham, UK @ Nottingham Arena ^ Tue. Nov. 30 – Cardiff, UK @ Tramshed ^ Wed. Dec. 1 – Hebden Bridge, UK @ Trades Club – SOLD OUT ^ Thu. Dec. 2 – Norwich, UK @ Norwich Arts Centre – SOLD OUT ^ Fri. Dec. 3 – Brighton, UK @ The Dome ^ Wed. Jan. 19, 2022 – Paris, FR @ La Maroquinerie * Thu. Jan. 20, 2022 – Lyon, FR @ Le Périscope * Fri. Jan. 21, 2022 – Milan, IT @ Circolo Magnolia * Sat. Jan. 22, 2022 – Bologna, IT @ Covo Club * Mon. Jan. 24, 2022 – Vienna, AT @ Chelsea * Tue. Jan. 25, 2022 – Prague, CZ @ Futurum * Wed. Jan. 26, 2022 Berlin, DE @ SO 36* Fri. Jan. 28, 2022 – Copenhagen, DK @ Loppen – SOLD OUT * Sat. Jan. 29, 2022 – Hamburg, DE @ Molotow * Mon. Jan. 31, 2022 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje * Tue. Feb. 1, 2022 – Brussels, BE @ Orangerie, Botanique * Wed. Feb. 2, 2022 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Noord – SOLD OUT * Fri. Feb. 4, 2022 – Rotterdam, NL @ Rotown – SOLD OUT * Sat. Feb. 5, 2022 – Tourcoing (Lille), FR @ Le Grand Mix * Mon. Feb. 14, 2022 – Liverpool, UK @ Arts Club Theatre % Tue. Feb. 15, 2022 – Dublin, IE @ The Button Factory – SOLD OUT % Wed. Feb. 16, 2022 – Belfast, IE @ Empire Music Hall % Fri. Feb. 18, 2022 – Edinburgh, UK @ Summerhall – SOLD OUT % Sat. Feb. 19, 2022 – Glasgow, UK @, Queen Margaret Union (Venue upgrade) % Sun. Feb. 20, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club – SOLD OUT % Tue. Feb. 22, 2022 – Birmingham, UK @ The Mill % Wed. Feb. 23, 2022 – Bristol, UK @ Marble Factory % Fri. Feb. 25, 2022 – Manchester, UK @ Academy 2 – SOLD OUT % Sat. Feb. 26, 2022 – Sheffield, UK @ Leadmill % Sun. Feb. 27, 2022 – Nottingham, UK @ Rescue Rooms – SOLD OUT % Tue. March 1, 2022 – Portsmouth, UK @ Wedgewood Rooms % Wed. March 2, 2022 – Brighton, UK @ Concorde 2 – SOLD OUT % Thu. March 3, 2022 – London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town % Wed. March 30 – Leicester, UK @ O2 Academy & Thu. March 31 – Cambridge, UK @ The Junction & Fri. April 1 – Manchester, UK @ Strage Waves @ The Ritz Sat. April 2 – Newcastle, UK @ Boiler Shop & Thu. May 12 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern Fri. May 13 – Montreal, QC @ Théâtre Fairmount Sun. May 15 – Somerville, MA @ Crystal Ballroom Tue. May 17 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church Wed. May 18 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall Thu. May 19 – Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar Fri. May 20 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle Sat. May 21 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West Mon. May 23 – Houston, TX @ Satellite Tue. May 24 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada Wed. May 25 – Austin, TX @ Hotel Vegas Sat. May 28 – Mexico City, Mexico @ Palacio de los Deportes w/ Interpol
Washington, D.C.-based band Beauty Pill today announced their new EP Instant Night out December 3, releasing on limited edition vinyl, CD and digitally via Northern Spy Records and available to preorder here. Alongside the announcement the band is sharing the official video for “You Need A Better Mind“. On the track, Beauty Pill’s Chad Clark says:
“The Roland TB-303 is an old Japanese synthesizer that was designed to convincingly mimic the sound of a bass guitar. It was introduced in 1981, it sounded like a toy and failed miserably, and it was ultimately discontinued in 1984. It makes freaky, wiggly, cartoony sounds. It sounds fuck-all like a bass guitar. Why am I telling you this? One ended up in my hands for a week. I did a lot of silly stuff with it. I did come up with this one worthwhile riff, which I built a song around. The song is called “You Need A Better Mind.”
“It was recorded with my band in a single take at the end of a recording session for another song. We were tired. None of us cared that much if we failed. The fun spirit you hear in this song is mostly exhaustion… that kind of punchy exhaustion you get late at night when you’ll laugh at anything. The lyrics were inspired by the spooky/funny 10-minute movie “Rachel”. “The song is about the scourge of American loneliness. It is by far the fastest, easiest song Beauty Pill has ever created. We hope you like it.”
The EP’s title track “Instant Night” was originally written by Beauty Pill bandleader Chad Clark in 2015 after he watched Ann Coulter, as a guest on Real Time with Bill Maher, predict that Donald Trump would win the 2016 US presidential election. The Washington, D.C. based artist recorded and surprise-released the single in October 2020 out of urgency to inspire people to vote in the presidential election. Because the song was being recorded during the pandemic, and because Clark has an artificial heart that puts him at high risk for COVID-19, it was recorded on a rooftop, with meticulously planned social distancing.
“Instant Night” is Beauty Pill’s first single without drums, and it is also the first Beauty Pill song to conspicuously highlight the band’s woodwind quartet. The single was released alongside a music video featuring time-lapse footage of Trump, Lindsey Graham, and Mitch McConnell being drawn and depicted as monsters. The video was created and directed by the artist [ex-Beauty Pill member] Ryan Nelson.
MOTÖRHEAD…a life force, an energy, an attitude and the loudest, meanest, dirtiest music to smash the 20th and 21st centuries. With a bastard sound comprising an unholy synergy of rock, punk and heavy metal, MOTÖRHEAD comes coated in relentless, ear-curdling power. They were life-changing for millions, carrying a spirit and approach to life and music which proudly said, “Honey, we’re hoooome and don’t bother cleaning because we’re here to enjoy ourselves!” The ‘off’ switch was never employed in the MOTÖRHEAD lust for life, and they became legends as a result.
Leading the charge for their entire 40 year career was the cultural icon Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister, who swashbuckled around stages, streets and overseas like a glorious Mad Max pirate truthsayer, roaring for the good and screaming at the wankers. With his propulsive sound and lyrical might leading the charge, MOTÖRHEAD released 22 studio albums over those four decades, amassing chart topping records worldwide, a Grammy award and racking up around 20 million sales. Their hit song “Ace Of Spades” became MOTÖRHEAD’s anthem, perfectly capturing their attitude for millions, and punching giant holes in stereos worldwide to this day. Nothing was harder, nothing was faster, nothing packed more raw attitude and certainly nothing was louder, making MOTÖRHEAD a cultural elixir that was regularly imbibed across all genre lines. Don’t take our word for it, look around any heavy metal, punk or alternative gig, and you’ll see the indomitable warpig logo and MOTÖRHEAD gothic script on a t-shirt, a jacket, even an arm or leg or back (MOTÖRHEAD tattoos are everywhere), all sitting on the bodies of rockers, metalheads, punks, bikers, rebels, outcasts, freethinkers and even athletes all around the world. Yeah, that’s right, MOTÖRHEAD’s cultural reach remains virtually peerless to this very day (the one you’re living right now as you read this), and it continues to span fans young and old, igniting their adrenaline and giving them both entertainment and identity.
MOTÖRHEAD are proud to announce they are teaming up with MÖVEMBER for their annual fundraising campaign this year. Supporters are encouraged to ‘shave down’ on 31st October and grow a moustache – or in this case your very own ‘Lemmy Mo’, through the month of November, to raise funds and awareness. All funds go directly toward supporting men’s health projects across mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer.
By joining team MOTÖRHEAD and growing your own Lemmy Mo’ you’ll be raising much needed funds for MÖVEMBER and all the great work that they do. The biggest fundraisers will have a chance to win a selection of very special MOTÖRHEAD prizes!
Everything Louder Forever This collection is the definitive assembly of MOTÖRHEAD songs which have created this cultural phenomenon, and represents the first time all eras of the band’s recorded history have been represented in one place. And we feel that if in this mad, mad world we’re living in, some aliens decide to drop by your house for tea and demand an explanation as to, “what the fuck is this ‘MOTÖRHEAD’ is that we keep hearing and feeling bits of in our extra-terrestrial houses millions of miles away,” you could happily play Everything Louder Forever and know that the question will be thoroughly answered. Buy two copies though, because you know they won’t leave without taking one themselves! Or something like that anyway…
Georgia Harmer, Toronto-based singer-songwriter, and the newest signee to Arts & Cras, introduces herself to the world today with “Headrush.” Coming from a family of artists and poets, including aunt and labelmate Sarah Harmer, Georgia cut her teeth as a backing vocalist for Alessia Cara before beginning to focus on her own music. This debut single presents Georgia’s striking voice—a cross-hatching of Joni Mitchell’s birdsong, the emotional vulnerability of Adrianne Lenker and the seductive tones of Hope Sandoval. “Headrush” opens with cascading drums that fall into a deliberate stride, filling out with rich melodies accompanied confidently by electric guitar draped in distortion.
“Headrush” is a slow-burn with melodic release, alight with electricity, but tinged with the melancholy of late summer : “Hours go by / Let’s drink up the sky / And spend some time / Being little kids.” Georgia’s music is sweetness personified, but with a depth of emotion, style, and hunger that belies her twenty-two years. “I miss moments when I’m no longer in them,” Georgia says. “‘Headrush’ is about wanting to go back to a moment and be completely present. Back to that summer day I didn’t realize was heaven until it had passed, only grasping its potency in retrospect.”
Recorded live off the floor with friends crammed into the corner of a converted West Toronto garage, “Headrush” embodies that DIY essence, harnessing lightning in slow, measured doses. The accompanying video, directed by Jimmy Vi, captures this energy.
Watch Georgia Harmer’s Video for “Headrush”
Georgia Harmer Tour Dates Mon. Nov. 22 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall ^
Tue. Nov. 23 – Kitchener, ON @ Centre in the Square ^
^ = w/ Dan Mangan
Keep your mind open.
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The curators of the popular Brown Acid compilation series of long-lost vintage 60s-70s proto-metal singles share a new track today via Decibel Magazine from the first edition of a new series titled Scrap Metal. Following chronologically where Brown Acid leaves off, Scrap Metal scours the world for long-lost, rare and unreleased Heavy Metal from the late-70s through late-80s. Hear/share The Beast‘s (featuring Scott Ruth, later of Dim Mak and Ripping Corpse) 1983 punk-metal hybrid “Enemy Ace” HERE. (Direct YouTube and Bandcamp.)
Album opener Rapid Tears‘ anthem “Headbang” premiered previously via Metal Injection HERE (And YouTube.) “69 in a 55”, a 1983 track from Bay Area band Air Raid launched via Ultimate Classic Rock HERE (and YouTube.)
Brown Acid & Scrap Metal series are created and compiled by L.A. based RidingEasy Records and Permanent Records.
By now you’re probably familiar with our wildly popular Brown Acid series of rare, lost and unreleased proto-metal and stoner rock singles from the 60s-70s. In the endless pursuit of those glorious gems, we often uncover equally brilliant rarities from the late-70s to late-80s Golden Age of Heavy Metal that also just must be heard, but they don’t fit the series’ aesthetic. Scrap Metal: Volume 1 collects some of the greatest unknown and lost Heavy Metal tracks, long buried beneath the avalanche of the era’s classic output.
We all know the old adage that history is told by the winners. But sometimes the losers tell the best stories. And while none of these bands found fame and fortune, this artifact and the volumes to come are testament to the enduring power of heavy music. You can hear the blood, sweat and beers that went into each of these singles. The recordings may be low budget, but the inspiration and talent is immutable. Not only are the amps turned up to 11, the boyish sexual innuendo is cranked to 69. You can hear the convergence of influences — NWOBHM, thrash, glam metal, doom, etc — colliding at once as the era birthed a wellspring of subgenres.
Many of these singles are self-released and were thus limited to a small run of copies. Those that remain are hoarded by collectors and sold for exorbitant amounts. We’ve collected the best of the best for you here. As with Brown Acid, all of these tracks are licensed legitimately and the artists all get paid. Because it’s the right thing to do.
Scrap Metal: Vol. 1 will be available everywhere on LP, CD and download on November 12th, 2021 via RidingEasy Records. Pre-orders are available for digital at Bandcamp, physical pre-orders at RidingEasy Records.
Today, Parquet Courts share a new single/video, “Black Widow Spider,” from their forthcoming album, Sympathy For Life, out October 22nd on Rough Trade Records. In conjunction, they announce extensive touring plans for 2022, starting with a run of North American shows in the spring. Following their highly-praised lead single “Walking at a Downtown Pace,” “Black Widow Spider” kicks off with scorching guitar. In A Savage’s words, “I told [producer] Rodaidh McDonald that I wanted to find a sound that was equal parts Can, Canned Heat and This Heat. He was really into that and probably took some glee in having such a bizarre challenge.” It’s one of the many songs on the new album that began with the band improvising onto tape, after which they started editing and cutting up, leading to the verse.
The accompanying video, directed and animated by Shayne Ehman, is simply great. “We were inspired by the claymation master Art Clokey,” says Ehmman. “I wanted the video to feel like it was shot in the 1950’s and so I used very old lenses. One was a brass projection lens from the 1860’s and another was radioactive.”
Alongside the release of their first single last month, the band also announced the Power of Eleven – eleven global happenings that will occur around the release of the album. The first of these took place in Manhattan with the Gay & Lesbian Big Apple Corp marching band debuting “Walking At A Downtown Pace”. The second of these is happening in Tokyo in conjunction with Big Love Records, with an extremely limited “Black Widow Spider” 7” and t-shirt. More info for this event and the others has been revealed on the band’s website. Sign up to their mailing list for updates.
Sympathy For Life was built largely from improvised jams and produced in league with Rodaidh McDonald (The xx, Hot Chip, David Byrne) and John Parish (PJ Harvey, Aldous Harding, Dry Cleaning). Unlike its globally adored predecessor, 2018’s Wide Awake!, the focus fell on grooves rather than rhythm.
“Most of the songs were created by taking long improvisations and moulding them through our own editing,” explains Austin Brown. “The biggest asset we have as artists is the band. After 10 years together, our greatest instrument is each other. The purest expression of Parquet Courts is when we are improvising.” In a very real sense, the band sampled themselves, molding and chopping their rhythmic and melodic jams to create these songs, to manifest something new.
On Sympathy For Life, Parquet Courts’ thought-provoking rock is dancing to a new tune. The album finds the Brooklyn band at both their most instinctive and electronic, spinning their bewitching, psychedelic storytelling into fresh territory, yet maintaining their unique identity.
Thu. Oct. 28 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom ^ Fri. Oct. 29 – Richmond, VA @ The National ^ Sat. Oct. 30 – Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar ^ Sun. Oct. 31 – Lancaster, PA @ Tellus360 ^ Wed. Nov. 03 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground ! Thu. Nov. 04 – Portland, ME @ State Theatre ! Fri. Nov. 05 – Holyoke, MA @ Gateway City Arts ! Sat. Nov. 06 – Asbury Park, NJ @ The Stone Pony ! Mon. Nov. 15 – Dallas, TX @ Studio at the Factory Wed. Nov. 17 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall Fri. Nov. 19 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheatre Sun. Nov. 21 – Mexico City, MX @ Corona Capital Music Festival Sun. Feb. 27 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel * Mon. Feb. 28 – Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre * Wed. March 2 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse * Thu. March 3 – Birmingham, AL @ Saturn * Fri. March 4 – Nashville, TN @ Cannery Ballroom * Sat. March 5 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant * Mon. March 7 – Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall * Tue. March 8 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room * Thu. March 10 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue * Fri. March 11 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall * Sat. March 12 – Chicago, IL @ The Riviera Theatre * Sun. March 13 – Detroit, MI @ MOCAD * Tue. Mar. 15, 2022 – Millvale, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre * Wed. Mar. 16, 2022 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre * Thu. March 17 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre * Fri. March 18 – Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre * Thu. March 31 – Boston, MA @ Royale # Fri. April 1 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel $ Sat. April 2 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel # Mon. April 4 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club # Tue. April 5 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore % Fri. April 22 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox at the Market Sat. April 23 – Vancouver, BC @ The Imperial Mon. April 25 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom Wed. April 27 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater Thu. April 28 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern Theatre Fri. April 29 – Pomona, CA @ The Glass House Sat. April 30 – San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park Sat. May 21 – Paris, FR @ La Trianon Sun. May 22 – Antwerp, BE @ Trix Tue. May 24 – Cologne, DE @ Stollwerck Wed. May 25 – Berlin, DE @ Heimathafen Neukölln Fri. May 27 – Hamburg, DE @ Uebel & Gefährlich Sat. May 28 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje Mon. May 30 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Tue. May 31 – Lille, FR @ Le Grand Mix Wed. June 1 – Lyon, FR @ Epicerie Moderne Fri. June 3 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Wed. June 8 – Brighton, UK @ Chalk Thu. June 9 – London, UK @ Brixton O2 Academy Sat. June 11 – Dublin, IE @ Helix Sun. June 12 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall Mon. June 13 – Leeds, UK @ Stylus Wed. June 15 – Glasgow, UK @ The Barrowland Ballroom Thu. June 16 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute
& supporting Portugal. The Man ^ w/ P.E. ! w/ Public Practice * w/ Mdou Moctar # w/ Hailu Mergia % w/ Sun Ra Arkestra$ w/ Yu Su
Keep your mind open.
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Today, Los Angeles-based artist Hana Vu releases “Keeper,” the newest single from her upcoming album Public Storage, out November 5th on Ghostly International, following “Maker” and “Everybody’s Birthday.” “Keeper” is a pulsating new wave cut, replete with soaring dreamy synths and a cool-voiced narrator. The accompanying video, directed by Meagen Houang and choreographed by Jas Lin, sees Vu honing in on her artistic craft, both sonically and physically. It was shot in a single take on 16mm film by cinematographer Andrew Yuyi Truong and it’s a compelling exploration of feeling unnoticed. “Shooting ‘Keeper’ was really an intense experience,” says Vu. “We had a few choreography rehearsals leading in, and then on shoot day we rehearsed for about 9 hours and only shot in the last hour.”
“When I listened to ‘Keeper,’ I thought about how we’re all trapped by different societal expectations — whether it’s from work, family, friends or the devil inside ourselves,” says Houang. “I wanted to make a video that expressed the feeling of not being seen when all you really want to do is explode. By shooting the video in a single take we never let the audience off the hook. Just like Hana, we’re trapped in a cycle of being constantly ignored. I set the film in a family environment because as viewers we usually associate families with a sense of security and safety. The family environment created a contrast to Hana’s bursting performance and underscored the pain of not being visible, even sometimes by your own relatives.”
Storage units hold possessions on pause from the outside world, objects capable of reconnecting us to a time or place. Vu grew up with her family making regular use of public storage spaces in Los Angeles, moving every few years, leaving a mix of the sacred and the mundane to sit inside concrete and steel. The 21-year-old musician sees the art of making and releasing songs in a similar sense: “these public expressions of thoughts, feelings, baggage, experiences that accumulate every year and fill little units such as ‘albums.’”
Public Storage builds on the sound of Vu’s early work, underscoring her strengths as a songwriter with a deeper sense of luster, sophistication, and urgency. She calls it “very invasive and intense sounding music,” refreshingly out of step with contemporary trends; this is music to engage with rather than lean back to. For the first time, she welcomes a co-producer, Jackson Phillips (Day Wave), who helps Vu create a vast, grainy, multifaceted world to stretch into vocally, her distinct contralto drifting freely between evocative low-lit ruminations and soulful, skyward bursts.
Toronto-based composer and multi-instrumentalist Robin Hatch has released the new single “Mockingbird” today, a sublime peace floating on spacious synths featuring Nick Thorburn of indie rock staple Islands and The Unicorn on synth and drum machines. The track comes from the upcoming album T.O.N.T.O., out October 29th on Robin Records, which was written and recorded during a 4-day residency on the behemoth synth that the album takes its title from.
Robin describes the equipment used to make the recording, working with Thorburn, and where the track’s title comes from.
“Mockingbird features the Maestro drum machine built into the TONTO synthesizer. I improvised this song on the second day of my residency. The bass line is a study in triggering the envelope filter of its Moog Modular 3 system as the arpeggiator runs to create a wah-pedal type sound reminiscent of Jan Hammer Group or Penguin Cafe Orchestra. The outro has the Yamaha CS80 and features Randy Bachman’s Space Echo pedal. I threw in a VST of a CMI Fairlight to give it an Enya touch in the chorus.”
Besides his prodigal output as an indie frontman, Nick is also a real deal composer and he helped me flesh out this song with an Atari chiptune synth, Roland Jupiter 4, Korg M1, and Compurhythm drum machine.
The title is a tongue-in-cheek reference to the duet by James Taylor and Carly Simon.”
Keep your mind open.
[Fly over to the subscription box while you’re here.]
