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Alex Huang

Alex Huang has written 28 posts for Lost In The Sound

Stream: Linkin Park – “Guilty All The Same”

Linkin Park Press 2014
Influential Californian band Linkin Park have recently released a new single, entitled “Guilty All The Same.” It will be the first single off an as-of-yet untitled forthcoming album. The song features an interesting collaboration with famous American rapper Rakim and brings the band’s sound to yet another new trajectory, especially following their previous single, “A Light That Never Comes,” which featured Steve Aoki. Stream “Guilty All The Same” below, and tell us what you think!

Stream: Young The Giant – “Mind Over Matter”

Young The Giant Press
The Californian indie-rock band Young The Giant have recently made their upcoming album, Mind Over Matter, available to the public for free streaming via iTunes. Mind Over Matter, one of the most anticipated indie albums of 2014, is slated for release on January 21 under the record label Fueled By Ramen; it is available for pre-order on their website. Young The Giant earlier this year announced a tour across North America to promote Mind Over Matter. Check out the dates below, and pre-order tickets here!

FEB 4 – Ventura Theatre – Ventura, CA *+
FEB 6 – Fox Theater – Oakland, CA *+
FEB 7 – Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles, CA *
FEB 9 – Soma – San Diego, CA *+
FEB 11 – Rialto Theatre – Tucson, AZ *
FEB 12 – Comerica Theatre – Phoenix, AZ *
FEB 14 – South Side Ballroom – Dallas, TX *
FEB 15 – Austin Music Hall – Austin, TX *
FEB 16 – Bayou Music Center – Houston, TX *
FEB 18 – Jannus Live – St Petersburg, FL *
FEB 19 – Maverick’s at The Landing – Jacksonville, FL *
FEB 21 – The Fillmore – Charlotte, NC *
FEB 22 – Tabernacle – Atlanta, GA *
FEB 23 – The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD *
FEB 25 – Rams Head Live – Baltimore, MD *
FEB 26 – Tower Theatre – Philadelphia, PA *
FEB 28 – Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY *
MAR 1 – Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY ^
MAR 2 – House Of Blues – Boston, MA ^
MAR 4 – The Dome – Wallingford, CT ^
MAR 6 – Metropolis – Montreal, ON (Canada) ^
MAR 7 – Kool Haus – Toronto, ON (Canada) ^
MAR 8 – The Fillmore – Detroit, MI ^
MAR 10 – Egyptian Room – Indianapolis, IN ^
MAR 11 – Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, TN ^
MAR 12 – House Of Blues – Cleveland, OH ^
MAR 17 – LC Pavilion – Columbus, OH ^
MAR 19 – The Midland – Kansas City, MO ^
MAR 21 – The Pageant – St Louis, MO ^
MAR 22 – Riviera – Chicago, IL ^
MAR 23 – The Rave – Milwaukee, WI ^
MAR 25 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN ^
MAR 27 – Garrick – Winnipeg, MB (Canada) ^
MAR 28 – O’Brians Event Centre (formerly Odeon Events Centre) – Saskatoon, SK (Canada) ^
MAR 29 – MacEwan Hall – Calgary, AB (Canada) ^
MAR 31 – Winspear – Edmonton, AB (Canada) ^
APR 2 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC (Canada)^
APR 3 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC (Canada) ^
APR 5 – Showbox at the Market – Seattle, WA ^
APR 6 – Showbox at the Market – Seattle, WA ^
APR 8 – McDonald Theatre – Eugene, OR ^
APR 10 – The Complex – Salt Lake City, UT ^
APR 11 – Boulevard Pool at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas – Las Vegas, NV

* with Cayucas
^ with Vance Joy
+ with Tapioca And The Flea

Review: The Swellers – “The Light Under Closed Doors”

The Swellers – “The Light Under Closed Doors”

The Swellers - The Light Under Closed Doors
Released: October 29, 2013
Label: No Sleep Records
Purchase: Digital | Vinyl | CD

The Swellers have been a staple in the punk scene for quite some time now, famous for releasing their incredible 2009 album Ups and Downsizing. The Michigan outfit have been criticized a little on signs that they were following the trend towards pop, but their recent album The Light Under Closed Doors, released just last week, has put those suspicions back in the closet. The Light Under Closed Doors demonstrates that the sound that people fell in love with is still there–and still strong.

The album gives a lot to laud about. As per usual, the new album’s lyrics are just as defining as ever, employing the classic “internal tension and melancholy” theme with catchy hooks, inducing the pop punk-esque ambivalent beauty and angst that The Swellers have expressed so well in the past. The riffs and melodies are catchy and engaging–definitely something worth dancing to (or, for the softcore, bobbing your head to). The juxtaposition between (comparatively) slower, more melody-driven songs like “Friends Again (We Can’t Be),” “Designated Driver,” and “High/Low,” and more gung-ho, in-your-face tunes like “Call It A Night,” “Big Hearts,” and “Great Lakes State” are also great. Even the questionable quality of the album, usually a negative feature on a studio recording, seems to paradoxically add to the album, giving a feeling of homeliness and intimacy, as if the songs were being performed on stage.

To be honest, there really isn’t much that detracts from the album. Those unfamiliar with heavier genres could probably note that the “wave of sound” in The Light Under Closed Doors is overwhelming and too uniform; also, very staunch fans of The Swellers could, imaginably, compare this as still being in the shadow of Ups and Downsizing. However, as long as you’re interested in the overarching punk genre at all, you won’t regret taking a listen to this at all. In fact, you might just be like me and love it.

9.0

Standout tracks: “Big Hearts,” “Got Social,” “Call It A Night,” “Becoming Self-Aware”

Track listing:
01. Should
02. Big Hearts
03. Got Social
04. High/Low
05. Great Lakes State
06. Becoming Self-Aware
07. Friends Again (We Can’t Be)
08. Designated Driver
09. Favorite Tune
10. Call It A Night

Watch: TRC – “10,000 Hours”

TRC Press

UK hardcore outfit TRC have recently released a music video of one of their newest tunes, “10,000 Hours.” The song hybridizes vocalist Chris Robson’s rapping with heavy instrumental backing, creating a unique and refreshing blend of sound that all fans of heavy music should consider listening to.

Regarding the video and the meaning of the song, Robson says, “It was great to work with Daniel Broadley again, after the fantastic job he did on “We Bring War.” The tune is about the rule of success being 10,000 hours of applied effort, and was inspired by Malcolm Gladwell’s book, ‘Outliers’. No matter what the distraction, we’ve kept pushing on with TRC. 10,000 hours equates to approx. 10 years, which is quite funny because TRC released our first demo 10 years ago. What’s even funnier, was the fact we recorded the band performance scene in the studio where we recorded that very first demo. Everything came full circle. It’s my favourite track off ‘Nation’.”

10,000 Hours is one of several tracks off their second and newest album Nation, produced in tandem with Steve Sears (Gallows, Lethal Bizzle). You can purchase Nation here via No Sleep Records. And while you do that, be sure to watch 10,000 Hours below:

Listen: Sleepwave – “Rock and Roll Is Dead and So Am I”

Sleepwave Press
Sleepwave is a brand new band, launched last week via two cryptic Youtube videos (which can be viewed here and here), featuring former Underoath frontman Spencer Chamberlain and his long time friend Stephen Bowman. Together the two have recently released their first song, entitled “Rock and Roll Is Dead and So Am I.” The song is available for download free on their website.

Regarding the free download, Chamberlain says, “I’ve been dying to share this music with the world and I don’t want kids to have to pay to find out what Sleepwave sounds like, so this one is free for everyone who has stuck it out with me- thank you.”

Alongside the free download, Sleepwave have announced four intimate shows this November. Tickets are already available online and can be found on the same page as the music download, while tour dates are listed below:

November 16th– State Theatre, St Petersburg, FL.

November 17th– Masquerade, Purgatory, Atlanta, GA

November 20th– Santos Party House, New York, NY

November 21st– North Star Bar, Philadelphia, PA

“We decided to play these shows in smaller, more intimate rooms,” Chamberlain says of the upcoming tour.  “Before this record comes out and I’m back behind a barricade or on some festival, I really want to get in a room with some excited people, get face to face and meet every single one of them.  Something special, something different, something to be remembered.”

If you were an Underoath or simply a fan of rock in general, be sure to download the song. Also like them on Facebook and subscribe to their Youtube channel! This rock duo have already started out strong and will no doubt continue to produce amazing tunes in the near future.

Stream: ODDESSA – “Intrigue”

ODDESSA

 

New label meets new sound. Australian Pilot Records are just a year old, but ever since their inception they have been looking for the best electronic-instrumental projects out there. They are dedicated to releasing new music in their own ‘hybrid electronic’ style; music with a live electronic character that incorporates traditional ‘band’ instruments. That’s when Pilot and ODDESSA crossed paths; and we at Lost In The Sound couldn’t be more excited about it.

ODDESSA is Phil Rogers, owner of the Adelaide bar/club Cuckoo and local label Cuckoo Music. With help from Pilot Records and friends Surahn Singh Sidhu (Empire Of The Sun) and Ben Smith (URTEKK), Rogers has exclusively released his debut album Intrigue via Juno Digital Release. He will be releasing Intrigue everywhere else later this October.

For now, you can take a sneak peek at what ODDESSA sounds like on his Soundcloud, below:

Stream: Dance Gavin Dance – “Acceptance Speech”

Dance Gavin Dance Press
Post-hardcore band Dance Gavin Dance have recently uploaded all of the songs on their upcoming album Acceptance Speech on the Rise Records Youtube Channel. The album will be the Sacremento outfit’s first full-length album since 2011’s Downtown Battle Mountain II, and it will be the first album to feature new clean vocalist Tilian Pearson, formerly from the band Tides Of Man.

Acceptance Speech will be available for purchase starting October 8, but in the meantime, you can stream its entirety below:

All-In-One Electro with DeckaJam

DeckaJam

Enjoy listening to mesmerizing trance, bass-kicking dubstep, and eargasmic D&B? How about mixing all of those together, dropping a few extra instruments in the mix, and topping the cauldron off with a female vocalist? If you like that description, good on you; and if it doesn’t seem to catch your fancy, it’s about to.

DJ Kevin Thorpe aka Kevin Energy, who is a recipient of UK’s “Best Hard Dance DJ”, owns a record company that has released over 500 EPs, and guitarist/pianist Nick Sanett, who has played in several bands and currently is working on a solo project called “Nick 235,” have struck gold with their unique electronic project DeckaJam. Riding along the veins of popular EDM artists such as Nero, Chase & Status, and The Prodigy, this duo has the sound that can potentially take the electronic music industry by storm.

Taken from their biography on Onesheet, “DeckaJam encompasses all forms of dance music both mainstream and underground. The band aims to explore all forms of party music as part of their journey, so you can expect to hear a wide range of sounds with one thing in common – an intent to rock crowds at live parties!” And the balance is perfect – dubstep and drum & bass hits you at all the right times, while the transitions to softer, smoother, and more melodic phrases are spot on.

The duo has over sixteen years of experience in the music world, slowly earning their place in multiple genres and industries. Teamed up with other musicians such as Rhona, Jones 2.0, and Laura Bayston, DeckaJam has already spit out several sick tunes, and more is sure to follow.

DeckaJam have recently teamed up with Infectious Magazine in an effort to, much deservedly, become more well-known on a global scale. If you liked what you heard in the above videos, be sure to check out their other songs on their Youtube and Soundcloud channels; also like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Stream: Anberlin – “City Electric”

Anberlin 2013
American rock band Anberlin have released a new single, entitled City Electric, on Radio.com. “City Electric” will be a part of the Floridian band’s upcoming album Devotion: Vital Special Edition, which contains over forty remixes, b-sides, and new songs. The album is slated for release on October 15 and can be pre-ordered at their merch store.

Regarding the album, drummed Nathan Young said, “It’s actually a re-release but we wanted to do cooler stuff to it. We did three new songs and we remixed the whole record as well. We were just like, let’s go for it and see what happens.”

More information and the embed stream can be found at Radio.com’s official article here. Also, Anberlin will be touring for around a month in October with bands such as The Maine and Taking Back Sunday; information regarding that can be found on their official website here.

Watch: Mayday Parade – “Girls”

Mayday-Parade-“Girls”-Artwork
Mayday Parade have just released a new song, entitled “Girls.” The tune is the second released single off of the Floridian band’s upcoming full-length album Monsters in the Closet, set for release on October 8th via Fearless Records.

While you watch the lyric video below, remember that Mayday Parade is also headlining the Glamour Kills Tour, where they will be joined by bands Man Overboard, Cartel, and Stages & Stereos. Also, if you’re looking to pre-order Monsters in the Closet, be sure to buy one of the twelve available bundles here!