Tag: Here Lies Man

Top 20 Singles of 2018: #’s 10 – 6

We’re in the top 10 now. Let’s get right to it.

#10: “Never Coming Back” by A Place to Bury Strangers – I was excited to learn that Lea Braswell was the new drummer for APTBS. I thought she’d match the powerhouse duo of Oliver Ackermann and Dion Lunadon well, and this single not only proved me right, but it also heralded a new sound for the band that was outstanding.

#9: “Asia (Adrenaline)” by Hprizm – This single, and really the whole album, reveals more and more with each listen. Plus, the beats on it are great (That referee’s whistle used for timing!). It’s a song that makes you want to explore more of Hprizm‘s catalogue (as you should).

#8: “Fighting” by Here Lies Man – I was sent this by HLM‘s label, Riding Easy Records, in a clever scheme to make me fascinated with HLM’s heavy Afrobeat jams. The scheme worked, because this single was not only all over my earbuds, I even heard it on BBC 6 Music.

#7: “Great Job” by CHAI – These post-punks from Japan are fully committed to the DIY life and have serious musical chops. You can’t help but love them, especially when they make music as good as this single from their new record due later this year.

#6: “Curse of the I-5 Corridor” by Neko Case – Stunningly beautiful, this song is a prime example of Case‘s vocal wonders and songwriting skill. Few artists nowadays can write and sing a song like her, and even fewer could write and sing something like this.

Who made the top 5? That will be revealed tomorrow!

Keep your mind open.

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Here Lies Man – You Will Know Nothing

Here Lies Man was introduced to me via their label (RidingEasy Records) with the following question – “What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?”

I’m not sure I can sum up HLM’s sound better than that.  They’re from Los Angeles (and consist of members of Antibalas), so it’s tempting to say there’s a touch of southern California rock and surf in there.  However, the majority of their sound is a blend of heavy riffs and Afrobeat rhythms.  It works.  Good heavens, does it work.

The heavy organ and crunchy guitar of “Animal Noises” get things off to a great start.  It sounds like a couple wild boars grunting alongside jungle birds.  It also cuts out and then fades back in with delicate psychedelic brush strokes.  “Summon Fire” could probably do exactly that under the right circumstances.  The guitar licks are hot enough, and the drums are perfect for a dance around the fire while spinning a spear overhead.  The lyrics are belted out like something from Parliament Funkadelic.  “Blindness” is a mostly instrumental with great organ / keyboard work throughout it, especially on the gothic fade-out that would make Bauhaus proud.

“That Much Closer to Nothing” is a good, yet bleak, way to describe living.  The title and the sludge-like riffs are nihilistic at first, but then blossom with an infectious energy that let you know that letting go of all your trappings is a good thing.  Those Sabbath influences are front and center on “Hell (Wooly Tail).”  The bass slithers, the guitars chug, the drums bubble, and the keys melt.  The songs ends with a child’s voice telling us to “Look in the mirror.”  It lends a bit of creepiness to the title of the next track – “Voices at the Window.”   The song is like a fog through which you see what may or may not be a deer along the road as you’re driving at 65mph.  In other words, it’s misty and a bit frightening.

The choppy, fuzzy sounds of “Taking the Blame” are heavy and will get your neck moving like a bobble head figure.  “Fighting” was the first single off the record, and choosing it was a no-brainer.  The groove on it is excellent and belongs at the top of your next workout playlist.  “Floating on Water” follows, and its one of the best psychedelic dream-rock songs of the year.  It like concentric ripples in a mountain lake.  “Memory Games” brings Cream to mind with its floor-stomping blues-based groove.  The closer is the lovely “You Ought to Know” – an instrumental that puts together shoegaze, stoner rock, psychedelia, and space rock / lounge.

You Will Know Nothing is the type of album that you can put on a loop and listen to three times in a row without getting bored.  It’s funky, heavy, and a great cure for anything ailing you right now.

Keep your mind open.

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Here Lies Man release new single – “You Will Know Nothing” – from album due June 15th.

Here Lies Man share “Taking The Blame” from forthcoming album You Will Know Nothing
Antibalas members “if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat”
Hear & share “Taking The Blame” (YouTube) (Bandcamp)
“An evolutionary step forward for their sound.” – Metal Hammer
“A woozy wall of Afrobeat inspired fuzzbox riff worship and pounding circular rhythmic power, Here Lies Man connect the stoner rock underground straight to downtown Lagos.” – The Quietus
“This is a band ahead of their time.” — The Obelisk

Los Angeles quintet Here Lies Man share a new single from their forthcoming highly anticipated sophomore album today via The Obelisk. Hear and share “Taking The Blame” HERE and at Bandcamp and YouTube. The album, You Will Know Nothing will be released June 15th via RidingEasy Records.
Earlier in the month, the band released “That Much Closer To Nothing” via YouTube. Back in March, the band dropped the first song, “Fighting” via YouTube.
Here Lies Man play the prestigious Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain tomorrow before hitting the road with Earthless in June. Later in Fall, the band hits the massive Desert Daze festival in Southern California. Please see current dates below.
Here Lies Man took the music world by storm in 2017 with their self-titled debut positing the intriguing hypothesis: What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?
Rough Trade named Here Lies Man in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises.
This June, the L.A. band comprised of Antibalas members quickly follow their auspicious debut with the even more thoroughly realized album You Will Know Nothing. Its 11 tracks expand upon the band’s exploration of heavy riff-based rock and psych within the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” explains founder and vocalist/guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Marcos Garcia (who also plays guitar in Antibalas) of the band’s sound. “Tony Iommi‘s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Sonically, on You Will Know Nothing the dynamic range is thicker, crisper and more powerful. It glistens as much as it blasts. The songs are even catchier, more anthemic, and the production reflects that of a band truly come into its own. Lyrically, it’s an equally more conceptualized effort that reflects upon states of being and consciousness – a driving force that carries throughout the words and moods of all of the band’s releases, interconnected to their trancelike music. Here Lies Man have honed their sound and their focus, and soon, you will truly know Nothing.
“We wanted to go deeper with the sonic experience,” says Garcia. “Even though it sounds more hi-fi than the first record, it was important that it didn’t sound too polished.”
While You Will Know Nothing certainly maintains its gritty grooves, there’s an interesting conceptual mathematics to the entire proceedings. “There are interludes between each song that are 2/3 to 3/4 of the tempo of the previous song,” Garcia says. “The reason it breaks down to 2 over 3 or 3 over 4 is that everything in the music rhythmically corresponds to a set of mathematical algorithms known as the clave. The clave is an ancient organizing rhythmic principle developed in Africa.”
“We dove deep into the texture of the music, beyond the groove and the riff,” says HLM cofounder and drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann.) “Although something might sound like one instrument, there are subtle layers shifting through. It’s definitely a headphone album.”
Garcia and Mann recorded the album much like they did the debut, at their own L.A. studio on a Tascam 388 8-track tape machine. Congas were later recorded by percussionists Richard Panta and Reinaldo DeJesus. Then, Garcia went to NY to record interludes with former Antibalas keyboardist Victor Axelrod. Mixing took the most time in order to find the proper sonic space for each layer of musical detail, with first album engineer Jeremy Page mixing the drums and the band tackling the remainder while also juggling a hectic touring schedule.
Here Lies Man has already spent much of early 2018 on tour, with dates supporting Antibalas and Fu Manchu as well as a headlining trek through the EU & UK. Many summer festival dates and headline tours await later in the year as Here Lies Man continues its infectious charge onward.
You Will Know Nothing will be available on LP, CD and download on June 15th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records.
HERE LIES MAN LIVE 2018:
05/31 Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Festival 
06/02 Dudingen, CH @ Bad Bonn Kilbi
06/05 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight *
06/06 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade *
06/07 Spartansburg, SC @ Ground Zero *
06/08 Orlando, FL @ Wills Pub *
06/09 Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury *
06/10 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
06/12 Houston, TX @ White Oak Upstairs *
06/13 Austin, TX @ Barracuda *
06/14 Ft Worth, TX @ Ridgela Room *
06/15 Memphis, TN @ Growlers *
06/26 Seattle, WA @ Nectar Lounge
06/27 Bellingham, WA @ The Shakedown
06/28 Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret
06/29 Portland, OR @ Star Theater
06/30 Grant’s Pass, OR @ The Haul
07/01 Chico, CA @ Naked Lounge
07/02 San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
07/05 Los Angeles, CA @ Resident DTLA
08/24 Hudson Valley, NY @ Huichica Festival
08/31 Los Angeles, CA @ Levitt Pavillion (MacArthur Park)
10/12-14 Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze 2018
* w/ Earthless

Artist: Here Lies Man
Album: You Will Know Nothing
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: June 15th, 2018
01. Animal Noises
02. Summon Fire
03. Blindness
04. That Much Closer
05. Hell (Wooly Tail)
06. Voices At The Window
07. Taking the Blame
08. Fighting
09. Floating On Water
10. Memory Games
11. You Ought To Know

On The Web:

Keep your mind open.
[You’ll know plenty about music when you subscribe.]

Here Lies Man unleash new single, “That Much Closer to Nothing,” from upcoming album.

Here Lies Man share new single from forthcoming album You Will Know Nothing
Antibalas members “if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat”
Hear & share “That Much Closer To Nothing” (YouTube) (Bandcamp)
Los Angeles quintet Here Lies Man share a new single from their forthcoming anticipated sophomore album today via Bandcamp and YouTube. The album, You Will Know Nothing will be released June 15th via RidingEasy Records.
Back in March, the band dropped the first song, “Fighting” via YouTube.
Here Lies Man play the prestigious Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain later this month before hitting the road with Earthless in June. Later in Fall, the band hits the massive Desert Daze festival in Southern California. Please see current dates below.
Here Lies Man took the music world by storm in 2017 with their self-titled debut positing the intriguing hypothesis: What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?
Rough Trade named Here Lies Man in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises.
This June, the L.A. band comprised of Antibalas members quickly follow their auspicious debut with the even more thoroughly realized album You Will Know Nothing. Its 11 tracks expand upon the band’s exploration of heavy riff-based rock and psych within the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” explains founder and vocalist/guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Marcos Garcia (who also plays guitar in Antibalas) of the band’s sound. “Tony Iommi‘s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Sonically, on You Will Know Nothing the dynamic range is thicker, crisper and more powerful. It glistens as much as it blasts. The songs are even catchier, more anthemic, and the production reflects that of a band truly come into its own. Lyrically, it’s an equally more conceptualized effort that reflects upon states of being and consciousness – a driving force that carries throughout the words and moods of all of the band’s releases, interconnected to their trancelike music. Here Lies Man have honed their sound and their focus, and soon, you will truly know Nothing.
“We wanted to go deeper with the sonic experience,” says Garcia. “Even though it sounds more hi-fi than the first record, it was important that it didn’t sound too polished.”
While You Will Know Nothing certainly maintains its gritty grooves, there’s an interesting conceptual mathematics to the entire proceedings. “There are interludes between each song that are 2/3 to 3/4 of the tempo of the previous song,” Garcia says. “The reason it breaks down to 2 over 3 or 3 over 4 is that everything in the music rhythmically corresponds to a set of mathematical algorithms known as the clave. The clave is an ancient organizing rhythmic principle developed in Africa.”
“We dove deep into the texture of the music, beyond the groove and the riff,” says HLM cofounder and drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann.) “Although something might sound like one instrument, there are subtle layers shifting through. It’s definitely a headphone album.”
Garcia and Mann recorded the album much like they did the debut, at their own L.A. studio on a Tascam 388 8-track tape machine. Congas were later recorded by percussionists Richard Panta and Reinaldo DeJesus. Then, Garcia went to NY to record interludes with former Antibalas keyboardist Victor Axelrod. Mixing took the most time in order to find the proper sonic space for each layer of musical detail, with first album engineer Jeremy Page mixing the drums and the band tackling the remainder while also juggling a hectic touring schedule.
Here Lies Man has already spent much of early 2018 on tour, with dates supporting Antibalas and Fu Manchu as well as a headlining trek through the EU & UK. Many summer festival dates and headline tours await later in the year as Here Lies Man continues its infectious charge onward.
You Will Know Nothing will be available on LP, CD and download on June 15th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records.
HERE LIES MAN LIVE 2018:
05/22 San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
05/23 Visalia, CA @ Cellar Door
05/27 Palm Springs, CA @ Ace Hotel
05/31 Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Festival 
06/05 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight *
06/06 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade *
06/07 Spartansburg, SC @ Ground Zero *
06/08 Orlando, FL @ Wills Pub *
06/09 Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury *
06/10 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
06/12 Houston, TX @ White Oak Upstairs *
06/13 Austin, TX @ Barracuda *
06/14 Ft Worth, TX @ Ridgela Room *
06/15 Memphis, TN @ Growlers *
06/26 Seattle, WA @ Nectar Lounge
06/27 Bellingham, WA @ The Shakedown
06/28 Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret
06/29 Portland, OR @ Star Theater
06/30 Grant’s Pass, OR @ The Haul
07/01 Chico, CA @ Naked Lounge
07/02 San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
07/05 Los Angeles, CA @ Resident DTLA
08/24 Hudson Valley, NY @ Huichica Festival
08/31 Los Angeles, CA @ Levitt Pavillion (MacArthur Park)
10/12-14 Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze 2018
* w/ Earthless

Artist: Here Lies Man
Album: You Will Know Nothing
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: June 15th, 2018
01. Animal Noises
02. Summon Fire
03. Blindness
04. That Much Closer
05. Hell (Wooly Tail)
06. Voices At The Window
07. Taking the Blame
08. Fighting
09. Floating On Water
10. Memory Games
11. You Ought To Know

On The Web:

Keep your mind open.
[Here lies your e-mail inbox…without updates.  Subscribe now and change that.]

Here Lies Man get scrappy on their new single – “Fighting”

Here Lies Man announce new album
You Will Know Nothing
Antibalas members “if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat”
Hear & share “Fighting” (YouTube) (Bandcamp)
Los Angeles quintet Here Lies Man announce their forthcoming sophomore album today, sharing the first single “Fighting” via Bandcamp and YouTube. The album, You Will Know Nothing will be released June 15th via RidingEasy Records.
Here Lies Man play the prestigious Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain in May before hitting the road with Earthless in June. Later in Fall, the band hits the massive Desert Daze festival in Southern California. Please see current dates below.
Here Lies Man took the music world by storm in 2017 with their self-titled debut positing the intriguing hypothesis: What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?
Rough Trade named Here Lies Man in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises.
This June, the L.A. band comprised of Antibalas members quickly follow their auspicious debut with the even more thoroughly realized album You Will Know Nothing. Its 11 tracks expand upon the band’s exploration of heavy riff-based rock and psych within the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” explains founder and vocalist/guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Marcos Garcia (who also plays guitar in Antibalas) of the band’s sound. “Tony Iommi‘s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Sonically, on You Will Know Nothing the dynamic range is thicker, crisper and more powerful. It glistens as much as it blasts. The songs are even catchier, more anthemic, and the production reflects that of a band truly come into its own. Lyrically, it’s an equally more conceptualized effort that reflects upon states of being and consciousness – a driving force that carries throughout the words and moods of all of the band’s releases, interconnected to their trancelike music. Here Lies Man have honed their sound and their focus, and soon, you will truly know Nothing.
“We wanted to go deeper with the sonic experience,” says Garcia. “Even though it sounds more hi-fi than the first record, it was important that it didn’t sound too polished.”
While You Will Know Nothing certainly maintains its gritty grooves, there’s an interesting conceptual mathematics to the entire proceedings. “There are interludes between each song that are 2/3 to 3/4 of the tempo of the previous song,” Garcia says. “The reason it breaks down to 2 over 3 or 3 over 4 is that everything in the music rhythmically corresponds to a set of mathematical algorithms known as the clave. The clave is an ancient organizing rhythmic principle developed in Africa.”
“We dove deep into the texture of the music, beyond the groove and the riff,” says HLM cofounder and drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann.) “Although something might sound like one instrument, there are subtle layers shifting through. It’s definitely a headphone album.”
Garcia and Mann recorded the album much like they did the debut, at their own L.A. studio on a Tascam 388 8-track tape machine. Congas were later recorded by percussionists Richard Panta and Reinaldo DeJesus. Then, Garcia went to NY to record interludes with former Antibalas keyboardist Victor Axelrod. Mixing took the most time in order to find the proper sonic space for each layer of musical detail, with first album engineer Jeremy Page mixing the drums and the band tackling the remainder while also juggling a hectic touring schedule.
Here Lies Man has already spent much of early 2018 on tour, with dates supporting Antibalas and Fu Manchu as well as a headlining trek through the EU & UK. Many summer festival dates and headline tours await later in the year as Here Lies Man continues its infectious charge onward.
You Will Know Nothing will be available on LP, CD and download on June 15th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records.
HERE LIES MAN LIVE 2018:
05/31 Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Festival 
06/05 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight *
06/06 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade *
06/07 Spartansburg, SC @ Ground Zero *
06/08 Orlando, FL @ Wills Pub *
06/09 Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury *
06/10 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
06/12 Houston, TX @ White Oak Upstairs *
06/13 Austin, TX @ Barracuda *
06/14 Ft Worth, TX @ Ridgela Room *
06/15 Memphis, TN @ Growlers *
10/12-14 Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze 2018
* w/ Earthless
Artist: Here Lies Man
Album: You Will Know Nothing
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: June 15th, 2018
01. Animal Noises
02. Summon Fire
03. Blindness
04. That Much Closer
05. Hell (Wooly Tail)
06. Voices At The Window
07. Taking the Blame
08. Fighting
09. Floating On Water
10. Memory Games
11. You Ought To Know
Keep your mind open.
[Don’t fight it.  Just subscribe.]