January 2022 – Page 3 – 7th Level Music

Yard Act releases “Rich” ahead of full album due January 21st.

The buzzing Leeds band Yard Act are preparing to release their highly anticipate debut The Overload later this month (Jan 21st) via Island Records and their own imprint Zen F.C., and today they are sharing their final single from the album, a track called “Rich.” The album arrives following a banner year for the band, and the excitement around them has continued to heat up at the start of 2022. Following a late 2021 appearance on Later…w/ Jools Holland, Elton John called Yard Act one of his favorite new bands in an NME feature (he described their sound as “a different ball game“), the band were named an NPR Slingshot artists for 2022 with NPR proclaiming that “Yard Act will be 2022’s breakthrough English post-punk act“, saw features in Rolling Stone and The Guardian, and their album has received some glowing early reviews including 5* reviews from Rolling Stone UK and DIY Magazine, 4.5* stars from Uncut, 4* and the coveted album of the month award from MOJO.

WATCH: Yard Act’s “Rich” video HERE

Speaking about the new track, which follows the November single “Payday“, frontman James Smith explains: “‘Rich’ is the natural successor to ‘Payday’. That’s the end of the story right? Success! Status! Security! Except, there’s always more money to be made, and you’re deemed a failure if your life starts to head back in the direction it came from. It’s about being so lost you’re sure you know exactly where you are and how you got there. I also wrote it because I thought it would be quite funny if Yard Act made a shit ton of money after I’d written an anti-capitalist concept album. It’ll be funny if I’m singing this song on stage when I’ve made my mint.”

He elaborates: “At worst it makes no sense, at best it comes off as pretentious, but that’s the point I’m trying to make when I write anything really. Things only really make sense if you exclude the bits that don’t back up the point you’re trying to make. I’m a hypocrite just like everyone else. I don’t have the answers and I’m just trying to do the best I can. It’ll never be good enough though. Enjoy the ride, life is short and you never know what’s round the corner.”

The accompanying video is the band’s fourth collaboration with director James Slater and his production team, following ‘The Overload’, ‘Land Of The Blind’, and ‘Payday’ and further develops the world Yard Act have created and the characters that exist within it.

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King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard team up with DJ Shadow for a remix of “Black Hot Soup.”

Today, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard release a new single/video, “Black Hot Soup (DJ Shadow “My Own Reality” Re-Write),” from their forthcoming remix album, Butterfly 3001, out January 21st on KGLW. Following last month’s “Neu Butterfly (Peaches Remix)” and “Shanghai (Dub By The Scientist),” King Gizzard continue their remix streak with “Black Hot Soup (DJ Shadow “My Own Reality” Re-Write)” and expand on it with an accompanying video directed by John Angus Stewart, starring iconic Australian author, satirist, radio presenter and documentary maker John Safran, and featuring appearances from Alkiviadis Grapsas and John Dimoulas.

Watch the Video for “Black Hot Soup” (DJ Shadow “My Own Reality” Re-Write)

“’Black Hot Soup’ is an almost perfect way to describe the world as we know it in the present. A bubbling, thick, sticky, confusing angry place that seems to be made for generations long past. Therefore I wanted to portray a character somehow revelling in the chaos, dancing on the ashes of society. There is an inherent freedom watching someone hitting bottom so hard with a smile. To me it’s a non cynical representation of expression through music! As DJ Shadow fully reworked ‘Black Hot Soup’ I cast John Safran to fully re-work the song again within a performance. Calling it a dance is a stretch, I’d call it more of a full body dry heave.” – John Angus Stewart
King Gizzard’s Joey Walker elaborates: “We’ve put off doing a remix album for a long time. Maybe it was conscious, maybe it wasn’t. But it’s happening now. That’s not to say that Butterfly 3000 makes the most sense to remix. It might seem like the obvious one, but it’s not. Yes it’s electronic. But so is a fridge. Have you tried to dance to Butterfly? It’s hard. It ties your shoelaces together. It’s duplicitous in its simplicity. But Butterfly 3001 expands on this. It also deviates and obliterates. We’re honoured to have such esteemed people go to work on these songs. We hope you love this album as much as we do. See you in DA CLUB!!!”

Listen to “Neu Butterfly” (Peaches Remix)

Listen to “Shanghai” (Dub by The Scientist)

Pre-Order Butterfly 3001

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Wah Together release single from upcoming album, “Let’s Wah Together,” due March 04, 2022.

“Sayonara” is the debut single by Wah Together which features Phil Mossman (ex LCD Soundsystem), Vito Roccoforte (The Rapture), Steve Schiltz (Longwave) and front woman Jaiko Suzuki (Electroputas). On “Sayonara”, Infectious Japanese Yé Yé beats swipe right on noisy, noir-tinged motorik excursions to form a psychedelic garage-rock power couple at 45 rpm. “Sayonara” bids a fond farewell to sweet memories of a lost lover with skewed-but-sugary ‘60s pop melodies, swinging, big beat drumming and no-wave guitar rave-ups like The Runners Four-era Deerhoof raining on Broadcast’s Tender Buttons parade. Wah Together is an impassioned defense for a shared act of creation. Tracked spontaneously and principally live, “Sayonara” captures the immediacy and spontaneity of a group of musicians listening to— and playing off— one another with genuine affection, curiosity and joy.

On their debut LP, Let’s Wah Together, the NYC-based quartet revel in the communal delight that happens when happy accidents are caught on tape. Tracked principally live and in close quarters, Let’s Wah Together captures the immediacy and spontaneity of a group of musicians listening to—and playing off— one another with genuine affection, curiosity, and joy. From the skronk n’ stomp of “I’m A Swimmer” to the Japanese Yé Yé beat inflected “Sayonara,” the dense ear-busting wistfulness of “Teen Vito” and the storming acidic drive of “Out! Out! Out!,” Let’s Wah Together is a loud and commanding recommitment to the cooperative spirit and familial love that always marks New York’s most vital eras.

New York City might be a gilded husk of its former self, but Wah Together have blown out a hole in the sweat-stained wall, churned up the asphalt and uncovered untrammeled layers of the city’s garage/psych-underground. No mere ruddy-cheeked baby-band, Wah Together instead assembles a loose group of friends and musicians, each seminal to the city’s musical legacy. The band met-cute in 2019 at a “chance” jam session Mossman slyly arranged in his dark DUMBO basement studio roping in long-time friend and drummer Vito Roccoforte to play with guitarist and producer Steve Schiltz.

The sound the three produced that day was an emphatic mix of contorted rave-ups, feedback drenched space oddities and pulsating Krautrock but it might have only remained a sprawling and allusive project the three conjured periodically if not for Jaiko Suzuki. Suzuki, former go-go dancer, avant-garde percussionist and occasional Coney Island “mermaid,” leant vocals to a variety of projects but never really sung in a band until being recruited by her old pal Roccoforte. Suzuki’s voice, at once both effervescent and direct, digs into her bandmates tightly linked motorik and shoegazed jams, coaxing out hooks and adding ballast to the shattering volume they produce.

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[Thanks to Steven at Dedstrange.]

Shilpa Ray hits hard on her newest single, “Bootlickers of the Patriarchy.”

New York City’s Shilpa Ray shared “Bootlickers of the Patriarchy,” a scathing new track written about Senator Susan Collins and her infamous press conference after the Kavanaugh/Blasey Ford hearings. “It’s about women who succeed from undermining the success of other women or choose to gain success from exploiting the oppression of other women,” says Ray. “This is a character who has taken many forms throughout history, the kind of woman who seems perfectly content playing Gamma to the Alpha male. ‘Bootlicker’ is my direct challenge to the notion of ‘women supporting other women,’ as well as the falsehoods and unrealistic expectations that come with a statement like that.”

“I wrote the song to be played in two different arrangement styles, the first half being slow and haunting and the second going balls-to-the-wall rage. I was re-exploring a lot of industrial/proto-industrial music I had listened to as a teenager in the 90s and used some elements of synth/drum machine sounds to convey all that anger, panic and darkness.”

“Bootlickers of the Patriarchy” is backed with a cover of Ministry’s “I’m Not An Effigy.” Ray explains: “I was obsessed with the Ministry album With Sympathy when writing tracks for my next full length album. It is the record Al Jourgenson has stated multiple times that he’s ashamed of most, which is saying a lot considering this man’s autobiography. I teamed up with my friend Heather Elle of Flossing, formerly of post punk bands Bodega and The Wants for this collaboration. It’s my first official recorded track where I’m playing guitar, so as the saying goes, it’s never too late to pick up a new instrument and get totally lost in it.“

The two tracks are on 7” vinyl and is available to order from Northern Spy here.

Shilpa Ray began releasing music in 2006 with her projects Beat The Devil and later Her Happy Hookers. In 2011, she began touring with Nick Cave as a backup singer and supporting act, playing under her own name and going on to release highly lauded works, including Last Year’s Savage (2015) and Door Girl (2017). Bootlickers of the Patriarchy 7” follows 2020’s standalone tracks “Manic Pixie Dream Cunt” and “Heteronomative Horseshit Blues” which earned critical praise from Paste Magazine, Brooklyn Vegan, Louder Than War, MXDWN, FLOOD Magazine, Alt Citizen, American Songwriter and Billboard, among many others.

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[Thanks to Cody at Clandestine PR.]

A Place to Bury Strangers encourages us to focus on the good times with their new single, “Hold on Tight.”

Last month, post-punk legends A Place To Bury Strangers announced their sixth studio album, See Through You, out February 4, 2022 on Dedstrange, and shared its lead single “Let’s See Each Other.” Today, they return with “Hold On Tight,” a noise-pop ripper bursting with chaotic delirium. The accompanying video, directed by Meriel O’Connell, sees bandleader Oliver Ackermann moonlighting as the concierge of New York’s most eccentric hotel. When a candlelit dinner suddenly turns into a lovers’ quarrel, Ackermann joins a mysterious lone patron (drummer Sandra Fedowitz) and maître d’ (bassist John Fedowitz) to bring the noise. “When the getting’s good, I hold on tight. Sometimes I forget to enjoy where I am and the people around me. It is critical to be thankful and enjoy existence and have fun. Having a bad night? Reflect and kick yourself into gear,” says Ackermann.

Watch “Hold On Tight” Video

A Place To Bury Strangers have been delighting and astonishing audiences for close to two decades, combining post-punk, noise-rock, shoegaze, psychedelia, and avant-garde music in startling and unexpected ways. See Through You is an explosive journey which explores the listener’s limits of mind-bending madness while simultaneously offering the catchiest batch of songs in the band’s discography. Outpacing even their own firmly blazed path of audio annihilation, See Through You repeatedly delivers the massive walls of chaos and noise that every A Place To Bury Strangers fan craves in spades. It’s a nod of the cap to the art school ethos of the band’s origins, while forging a new and clear direction forward.
Watch/Stream “Hold On Tight”

Watch “Let’s See Each Other” Video

Pre-order See Through You

A Place To Bury Strangers 2022 Tour Dates
Mon. January 31 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd #
Tue. February 1 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s #
Wed. February 2 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz #
Fri. February 4 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace #
Sat. February 5 – Detroit, MI @ El Club #
Sun. February 6 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Mon. February 7 – Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club #
Tue. February 8 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Ave. 7th Street Entry #
Fri. February 11 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos %
Sat. February 12 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios %
Sun. February 13 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre %
Tue. February 15 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel %
Wed. February 16 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom %
Fri. February 18 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar %
Sat. February 19 – Tucson, AZ @ Hotel Congress %
Tue. February 22 – Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge %
Wed. February 23 – Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck %
Fri. February 25 – Nashville, TN @ The High Watt %
Sat. February 26 – Atlanta, GA @ 529 %
Sun. February 27 – Chapel Hill, ND @ Cat’s Cradle
Fri. March 4 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg !
Wed. March 9 – Hamburg, DE @ Hafenklang &
Thu. March 10 – Dresden, DE @ Beatpol &
Fri. March 11 – Warsaw, PL @ Klub Poglos &
Sat. March 12 – Prague, CZ @ Futurum &
Sun. March 13 – Bratislava, SK @ Randal Club &
Mon. March 14 – Budapest, HU @ Durer Kert &
Wed. March 16 – Bucharest, RO @ Control Club ^
Thu. March 17 – Sofia, BG @ Mixtape5 ^
Fri. March 18 – Thessaloniki, GR @ Eightball ^
Sat. March 19 – Athens, GR @ Temple ^
Mon. March 21 – Skopje, MK @ 25th of May Hall ^
Tue. March 22 – Belgrade, RS @ Club Drugstore ^
Thu. March 24 – Zagreb, HR @ Mochvara ^
Fri. March 25 – Bologna, IT @ Freakout Club ^
Sat. March 26 – Rome, IT @ Largo ^
Sun. March 27 – Milan, IT @ Legend Club ^
Tue. March 29 – Zurich, CH @ Bogen F ^
Wed. March 30 – Munich, DE @ Backstage ^
Thu. March 31 – Martigny, CH @ Caves Du Memoir
Fri. April 1 – Paris, FR @ La Trabendo *
Sat. April 2 – London, UK @ Lafayette *
Mon. April 4 – Antwerp, BE @ Kavka *
Tue. April 5 – Munster, DE @ Gleis 22 *
Wed. April 6 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg *
Thu. April 7 – Groningen, NL @ Vera *
Sat. April 9 – Stockholm, SE @ Hus 7 *
Sun. April 10 – Oslo, NO @ John Dee *
Mon. April 11 – Copenhagen, DK @ Pumpehuset *
Tue. April 12 – Berlin, DE @ Hole 44 *
Wed. April 13 – Cologne, DE @ MTC *

# with Glove
% with TV Priest
& with Jealous
^ with Plattenbau
* with Lunacy
! with Native Sun, GIFT

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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]

CHAI to release “Wink Together” remix EP ahead of a massive tour.

This year, CHAI made their Sub Pop debut with WINK, securing their position as “a professional purveyor of whimsy” (The New York Times). Today, the band announces their forthcoming WINK TOGETHER EP, a reimagination of songs from their beloved record, and reveals “END” (Confidence Man Remix). For WINK TOGETHER, CHAI tapped their favorite artists from around the world for what they call their “most powerful album yet.” Collaborators include Korea’s Beenzino, Japan’s ZAZEN BOYS and STUTS, as well as Australia’s Confidence Man. “CHAI and ConMan are a match made in party heaven,” Confidence Man explains. “When we heard their track ‘END,’ we just knew we had to put our hands all over it. Make the girls the 90’s hip hop stars they truly are. And if we do say so ourselves, it’s truly turned into the collab of our dreams.”

LISTEN TO “END (CONFIDENCE MAN REMIX)”

Today’s remix is a small taste of what CHAI have in store with WINK TOGETHER, as well as what they will bring to their 2022 North American tour of the same name. The WINK TOGETHER tour will see CHAI bookending their run of dates supporting Mitski, including stops in Chicago, Brooklyn, and Los Angeles.

WINK TOGETHER Tracklist 1. END (Confidence Man Remix) 2. ACTION (with ZAZEN BOYS) 3. Miracle (Scoobert Doobert Remix) 4. PING PONG! (Busy P Remix) 5. Nobody Knows We Are Fun (STUTS Remix) 6. Donuts Mind If I Do (with Beenzino)

CHAI TOUR DATES
Fri. Feb. 4 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
Sat. Feb. 5 – Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club
Sun. Feb. 6 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Wed. Feb. 9 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
Fri. Feb. 11 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
Sat. Feb. 12 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry
Sun. Feb. 13 – Washington, DC @ Union Stage
Tue. Feb. 15 – Brooklyn NY @ Elsewhere
Thu. Feb. 17 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel * – SOLD OUT
Fri. Feb. 18 – Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz * – SOLD OUT
Sat. Feb. 19 – Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern * – SOLD OUT
Mon. Feb. 21 – Birmingham, AL @ Iron City * – SOLD OUT
Tue. Feb. 22 – New Orleans, LA @ Civic Theatre * – SOLD OUT
Thu. Feb. 24 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall (Outside Lawn) * – SOLD OUT
Fri. Feb. 25 – Dallas, TX @ The Bomb Factory * – SOLD OUT
Sat. Feb. 26 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater * – SOLD OUT
Mon. Feb. 28 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren * – SOLD OUT
Wed. March 2 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Expo Hall * – SOLD OUT
Thu. March 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Expo Hall * – SOLD OUT
Fri. March 4 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater * – SOLD OUT
Sat. March 5 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater * – SOLD OUT
Mon. March 7 – Portland, OR @ Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall * – SOLD OUT
Wed. March 9 – Seattle, WA @ Moore Theatre * – SOLD OUT
Thu. March 10 – Seattle, WA @ Moore Theatre * – SOLD OUT
Sat. March 12 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Sun. March 13 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Tue. March 15 – San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo’s 365 Club
Thu. March 17 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
*= supporting Mitski

CHAI Online:
https://chai-band.com/en/
http://pitchperfectpr.com/chai/
https://twitter.com/CHAIofficialJPN
https://www.instagram.com/chaiofficialjpn/
https://www.facebook.com/CHAIofficialJPN/

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[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Squid announce North American tour.

Squid’s acclaimed debut album Bright Green Field, released via Warp Records, has been called one of the best albums of 2021 by Pitchfork, Stereogum, The Quietus, Consequence, Paste, Exclaim!, and beyond. On the heels of their sold out first-ever US tour, the UK band announces a 2022 North American tour which sees them playing their biggest venues yet. Having built a reputation for their must-see live performances, Squid — Ollie Judge, Louis Borlase, Arthur Leadbetter, Laurie Nankivell, and Anton Pearson — are not to be missed. Tour dates are listed below and tickets are on sale here.

Squid Tour Dates
Wed. Jan. 26 – Belfast, UK @ Empire Music Hall
Thu. Jan 27 – Galway, IE @ Roisin Dubh
Fri. Jan. 28 – Cork, IE @ Cyprus Avenue
Sun. Jan. 30 – Dublin, IE @ The Button Factory
Mon. Jan. 31 – Dublin, IE @ The Button Factory
Mon. March 7 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
Tue. March 8 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Wed. March 9 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre
Sat. March 12 – San Francisco, CA @ August Hall
Sun. March 13 – Los Angeles, CA @ Regent Theater
Wed. March 16 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
Thu. March 17 – Detroit, MI @ El Club
Fri. March 18 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
Sat. March 19 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz
Mon. March 21 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
Tue. March 22 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
Wed. March 23 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Fri. March 25 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
Sun. June 5 – Sun. June 12 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
Fri. Jul. 8 – London, UK @ Somerset House
Fri. Aug. 5 – Sun. Aug. 7 – Katowice, PL @ OFF Festival
Wed. Aug. 17 – Sat. Aug. 20 – Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
Thu. Aug. 25 – Sun. Aug. 28 – Saint Cloud, FR @ Rock en Seine
Mon. Sep. 16 – Sun. Sep. 18 – Los Angeles, CA @ Primavera Sound LA

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[Thanks to Ahmad at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Jake Xerxes Fussell releases two singles from his new album due January 21st.

Singer, guitarist, and folk music interpreter Jake Xerxes Fussell shares two new songs, “Breast of Glass” and “Frolic,” from his forthcoming album, Good and Green Again, out January 21st on Paradise of Bachelors. Produced by James Elkington (Jeff Tweedy, Michael Chapman, Steve Gunn, etc.), Good and Green Again is Fussell’s most conceptually focused and breathtakingly rendered album to date, a transcendent place on a musical map of melancholy, quietude, and foot-stomping joy. Following previously released album opener “Love Farewell,” “Breast of Glass” features beautiful, sparse horn arrangements written by Fussell and Elkington and performed by Anna Jacobson. “Frolic,” one of the three airy instrumentals on Good and Green Again, punctuates the program, offering respite and light in the form of crisp, shuffling play-party tunes.

Listen to “Breast of Glass”

Listen to “Frolic”

Fussell has distinguished himself as one of his generation’s preeminent interpreters of traditional (and not so traditional) “folk” songs, a practice which he approaches with a refreshingly unfussy lack of nostalgia and preciousness. By recontextualizing ancient vernacular songs and sources of the American South, he allows them to breathe and speak for themselves and for himself; he alternately inhabits them and allows them to inhabit him. In all his work, Fussell humanizes his material with his own profound curatorial and interpretive gifts, unmooring stories and melodies from their specific eras and origins and setting them adrift in our own waterways. The robust burr of his voice, which periodically melts and catches at a particularly tender turn of phrase, and the swung rhythmic undertow of exquisite, seemingly effortless guitar-playing pull new valences of meaning from ostensibly antique songs and subjects.

For Good and Green Again, Elkington and Fussell enlisted engineer Jason Richmond and a group of formidable players hailing from Durham, North Carolina (where Fussell lives) and elsewhere, including regular band members Casey Toll (Mt. Moriah, Nathan Bowles) on upright bass, Libby Rodenbough (Mipso) on strings, and Nathan Golub on pedal steel. They were joined by welcome newcomers Joe Westerlund (Megafaun, Califone) on drums, Joseph Decosimo on fiddle, Anna Jacobson on brass, and Bonnie “Prince” Billy, who contributes additional vocals.

Listen to “Love Farewell”

Pre-order Good and Green Again

Jake Xerxes Fussell Tour Dates (new dates in bold):
Fri. Jan. 21 – Chapel Hill, NC @ The Nightlight
Sat. Jan. 22 – Richmond, VA @ The Camel
Sun. Jan. 23 – Washington, DC @ Pie Shop
Tue. Jan. 25 – Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA
Wed. Jan. 26 – Brooklyn, NY @ The Knitting Factory
Thu. Jan. 27 – Boston, MA @ Club Passim
Fri. Jan 28 – Keene, NH @ Nova Arts
Sat. Jan. 29 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Caffe Lena
Thu. Feb. 17 – Los Angeles, CA @ Gold Diggers *
Sat. Feb 19 – Santa Monica, CA @ McCabe’s Guitar Shop *
Tue. Feb 22 – Portland, OR @ The Old Church *
Sun. May 1 – Kilkenny, IE @ Kilkenny Roots
Mon. May 2 – Kilkenny, IE @ Kilkenny Roots
Tue. May 3 – Dublin, IE @ Bello Bar
Wed. May 4 – Belfast, UK @ Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival
Fri. May 6 – Manchester, UK @ Gulliver’s
Sat. May 7 – London, UK @ Oslo
Sun. May 8 – Glasgow, UK @ Glad Cafe
Mon. May 9 – York, UK @ Fulford Arms
Wed. May 11 – Ultrecht, NL @ Tivoli (Club Nine)
Fri. May 13 – Nijmegen, NL @ Merleyn
Sat. May 14 – Cologne, DE @ King Georg
Mon. May 16 – Hamburg, DE @ Aalhaus
Tue. May 17 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso

* w/ special guest Tom Brosseau

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Boy Harsher to release their first horror film, “The Runner,” on Shudder.

Darkwave duo Boy Harsher have announced the release of their debut horror film, The Runner, with Shudder – AMC Network’s premium streaming service for horror, thriller, and the supernatural – to stream the film in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand beginning Sunday, January 16th (Mandolin will host the film for the rest of the world).

Written, directed, and produced by Jae Matthews and Augustus Muller of Boy Harsher, The Runner follows a strange woman as she travels to a secluded, rural town where her violent compulsions are slowly revealed. The story intertwines with Boy Harsher performing on a public access channel. Their music scores the strange woman’s descent deeper into the unknown. The Runner features break-out performances by musician Kris Esfandiari (King Woman), performance artist Sigrid Lauren (FlucT), and musician Cooper B. Handy (Lucy).

Watch The Runner Trailer

Last year, in the midst of the obvious chaos, but additionally with Matthews’ MS diagnosis, Muller started working on moody, cinematic sketches. It was uncertain what these pieces would become other than catharsis — the duo were unable to tour and making “club music” did not feel right. In Matthews’ period of convalescence, she kept thinking about a sinister character: a woman running through the woods. Together, the duo developed this idea further into a film that explores lust, compulsion, and the horrific tendencies of seduction. The movie is intercut with a meta-style “documentary” about Boy Harsher’s recording process. Being released alongside the film is Boy Harsher’s new album, The Runner (Original Soundtrack), out January 21st on Nude Club/City Slang. The soundtrack balances eerie instrumentals with pop songs that push the boundaries of the duo’s sound.

This winter, Boy Harsher will be performing live and hosting film screenings of The Runner across North America and Europe. Visit therunner.film for a list of screenings and tickets.
Watch the “Tower” Video
Listen to “Give Me a Reason”
Pre-order The Runner (Original Soundtrack)

Boy Harsher Tour Dates
Thu. Jan. 20, 2022 – Boston, MA @ Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theatre %
Fri. Jan. 21, 2022 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer %
Sat. Jan. 22, 2022 – Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry %
Sun. Jan. 23, 2022 – Durham, NC @ Motorco %
Mon. Jan. 24, 2022 – Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle %
Tue. Jan. 25, 2022 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West %
Wed. Jan. 26, 2022 – Nashville, TN @ High Watt %
Fri. Jan. 28, 2022 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat %
Sat. Jan. 29, 2022 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg % *SOLD OUT*
Sun. Jan. 30, 2022 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg %
Wed. Feb 2, 2022 – Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory %
Thu. Feb. 3, 2022 – Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco Theater (+ film screening) % *SOLD OUT*
Fri. Feb. 4, 2022 – Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco Theater (+ film screening) % *SOLD OUT*
Sat. Feb. 5, 2022 – San Francisco, CA @ Gray Area % *SOLD OUT*
Mon. Feb. 7, 2022 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom % *SOLD OUT*
Tue. Feb. 8, 2022 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom %
Wed. Feb. 9, 2022 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre % *SOLD OUT*
Thu. Feb. 10, 2022 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile %
Fri. Feb. 11, 2022 – Olympia, WA @ Capitol Theater %
Mon. Feb. 14, 2022 – Paris, FR @ Cabaret Sauvage (+ film screening @ La Peniche Cinema) ^^
Tue. Feb. 15, 2022 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje (+ film screening @ Lux Cinema) ^^
Wed. Feb. 16, 2022 – Leipzig, DE @ WERK2 (+ film screening @ UT Connewitz) ^^
Thu. Feb. 17, 2022 – Berlin, DE @ Astra (+ film screening @ Intimes Kino ) ^^
Fri. Feb. 18, 2022 – Frankfurt, DE @ Zoom ^^
Sat. Feb. 19, 2022 – Hasselt, BE @ Muziekodroom (+ film screening @ Zed Cinema) ^^
Sun. Feb. 20, 2022 – London, UK @ Earth (+ film screening @ Rio Cinema) !
Sat. June 4, 2022 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound

% = w/ Hiro Kone
^^ = w/ Kris Baha
! = w/ Helm

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[Thanks to Ahmad at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Gustaf gets remixed by Beck and announces a massive U.S. / U.K. tour.

After a stellar year that saw them release their debut album and join IDLES on a largely sold-out nationwide tour, Brooklyn art punks Gustaf have returned with a fiery remix of their track “Design” by none other than the multi-time Grammy-winner Beck. Their friendship with Beck blossomed after he invited them to play a secret loft party at his New York apartment, and his re-work of their first ever recorded single comes alongside a throughly enjoyable Interview Magazine piece in which they discuss the merits of creating and sharing outside of the box. Today, they’re also announcing a slew of headline dates across the United States and the UK, as well as a Talkhouse conversation with tourmates IDLES.

LISTEN: to Beck’s remix of Gustaf’s “Design” on YouTube

READ:
Gustaf’s conversations with Beck for Interview Magazine
&
IDLES for Talkhouse

Audio Drag For Ego Slobs came out via Royal Mountain Records on October 1st to rapturous praise from the likes of NPR, NME, BrooklynVegan, DIY, Paste, and the band will continue to prove why they are one of America’s most “reliably fun bands” as they head out on a full US headline tour with stops at SXSW, Treefort, Savannah Music Fest and many more, before jumping across the Atlantic for their first UK shows, a run that will see them appearing at Brighton’s The Great Escape festival.

Beck’s remix of Gustaf’s “Design” is out now on Royal Mountain Records. It is available to stream here.

Tour Dates

2022
3/10 – Washington, DC @ DC9
3/11 – Durham, NC @ Pinhook
3/11-12 – Savannah, GA @ Savannah Stopover Music Fest
3/13 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
3/15 – Dallas, TX @ Sundown at Granada
3/16-18 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
3/20 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
3/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
3/23 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
3/23-27 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest
3/25 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern
3/26 – Portland, OR @ Bunk Bar
3/31 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St Entry
4/1 – Milwaukee, WI @ Colectivo
4/2 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
4/3 – Columbus, OH @ Ace Of Cups
4/5 – Toronto, ON @ Garrison
4/7 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
4/8 – Portland, ME @ Portland House of Music
4/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
4/15 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
4/16 – New York, NY @ The Broadway
4/29 – Nottingham, United Kingdom @ Bodega
4/30 – Edinburgh, United Kingdom @ Stag & Dagger Edinburgh
5/1 – Glasgow, United Kingdom @ Stag & Dagger Glasgow
5/3 – Dublin, Ireland @ The Workman’s Club
5/4 – Manchester, United Kingdom @ YES / Pink Room
5/6 – Leeds, United Kingdom @ Headrow House
5/7 – Coventry, United Kingdom @ Coventry Central Library
5/8 – Birmingham, United Kingdom @ Hare & Hounds
5/9 – London, United Kingdom @ Moth Club (co-headline w/ Kills Birds)
5/10 – London, United Kingdom @ Moth Club (co-headline w/ Kills Birds)
5/11 – Cambridge, United Kingdom @ The Portland Arms
5/13 – Brighton, United Kingdom @ The Great Escape Festival
5/14 – Bristol, United Kingdom @ Crofters Rights

Keep your mind open.

[I desire your subscription.]

[Thanks to Tom at Hive Mind PR.]