Following a critically acclaimed debut album and a fantastic year for their percussionist/beatmaker Jamie Smith (Jamie xx), The xx have finally returned to the studio to work on their second currently untitled album, and have released a demo for “Open Eyes” and a video with it for Christmas. The song, which you can check out on their blog or below, features singer Romy Madley Croft over an atmospheric and hazy backdrop. Although not much information on their sophomore album has been released yet, it should presumably be out mid 2012.
Jónsi has released the music video for “Gathering Stories”, which was written for the We Bought a Zoo OST. The movie We Bought a Zoo, starring Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson, came out in theaters on December 23 and its director, Cameron Crowe, specifically asked Jónsi to do the soundtrack. We Bought a Zoo OST (which you can buy here) features new original music, old songs by Sigur Rós, and songs from Jónsi’s debut solo album, Go. Watch the video for “Gathering Stories” below:
For Christmas, the post-hardcore band La Dispute, who recently released their newest LP, Wildlife, have their entire discography on a free/donation basis on their Bandcamp page. Starting at midnight EST time tonight and lasting until midnight EST tomorrow (the whole of Christmas day), you can grab all ten of the band’s previous releases. All donations made through the Bandcamp page will be donated to 826michigan, “a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students aged 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. 826 opened its doors in June of 2005. Since then, it has been blessed with students, tutors, and volunteers overflowing with enthusiasm.”
If you’re completely new to the band, I recommend starting with Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair, which in my opinion is their best release so far. If you’re more into punk and not lyrically up for fables about love and broken hearts, download Wildlife, which is their matured more punk-esque sounding sophomore release. Their split with Touché Amoré and their Untitled 7″ are also good listens, which you should definitely consider as they contain some of my personal favorite tracks. Just a reminder though before downloading, La Dispute are an acquired taste, with Jordan Dreyer’s emotionally driven vocals coming out as wails at times, combined with spoken-word poetic lyrics. Be sure to try this band out though because all the donations go towards a good cause!
For the holiday season, The Front Bottoms covered The Waitresses‘ classic Christmas song, “Christmas Wrapping” in their own acoustic punk style. If you liked their self titled LP which was released earlier this year, you will definitely enjoy this cover. Brian Sella’s vocals add the emotion that is pretty much expected in any song released by the band. In the spirit of Christmas it is up for free download below, along with a music video created specifically for the song.
Nick Cave, the frontman of alternative rock band Grinderman, has announced the end of the band. At the end of the band’s performance at the Meredith Music Festival, Nick Cave told the crowd of almost 12,000 that Grinderman is “over.” The band got together in 2006 and have released two albums with very positive reviews since. You can watch the video of “No Pussy Blues”, which was a single from their debut album Grinderman, below.
On December 19, Radiohead will finally release the digital version of The King of Limbs: Live From the Basement, along with a brand new two-song single: “The Daily Mail” and “Staircase”. In late January (the 23rd in the UK and the 31st in the US), the band will also release the DVD/Blu-Ray version of the sessions through independent record stores.
You can check out the full tracklisting and a live performance of “Staircase” on SNL below.
The King of Limbs: Live From the Basement Tracklisting:
01. Bloom
02. The Daily Mail
03. Feral
04. Little by Little
05. Codex
06. Separator
07. Lotus Flower
08. Staircase
09. Morning Mr. Magpie
10. Give Up the Ghost
11. Supercollider (Bonus Track)
To honor Bradley Manning, the American soldier who is currently being charged with giving defense information to WikiLeaks, singer-songwriter Cass McCombs has released a brand new song. McCombs has been extremely productive in 2011, releasing two full-length albums, and it looks like he’s poised to have yet another huge year in 2012, starting the year off with a brand new single, which will include “Bradley Manning”. You can already check it out below, but the track won’t be officially released through Domino Records until January 31st, when it will be backed by another new track entitled “Empty Promises”.
Bands:Mogwai, Wang Wen Location: Shanghai, China’s MAO Livehouse Date: November 28, 2011
Opening for a band you’ve revered for years and based your own music on must be one of the hardest things in the world. The other night, Chinese post rock band Wang Wen was put up to this very task when they solemnly took the stage as support for Glaswegian five-piece Mogwai, who were making their very first appearance in Shanghai.
And for the most part, they held their own, warming up the crowd for the main act. Aside from being surprised by the occasional, shrieking outbursts of the Shanghai concertgoers, Wang Wen found themselves enjoying the attention of a good-natured crowd hungry for some solid instrumental music. As they worked through their tremolo-heavy set, however, it became clear that people were aching to see Mogwai take their turn and the Chinese band good-naturedly wrapped things up, leaving the crew to set up and the venue to buzz excitedly about what was to come.
With a flash of lights and a blast of smoke, Stuart Braithwaite announced his band’s triumphant appearance with a few thank-you’s and waves. With that, Mogwai launched directly into Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will‘s opening track “White Noise”. Complemented by the hazy, smoke-filled venue’s dazzling light show, Mogwai’s music hit hard, sending the crowd into uproar.
Throughout the entire set, they played a lot of old fan-favorite songs that weren’t on the new album such as “Mogwai Fear Satan”, “Auto Rock”, and “Glasgow Mega-Snake”. Each transition was masterfully planned out and it ultimately became remarkable to see Mogwai seamlessly switch from a mellow tone to one that might appear at a metal concert. The build-ups of each song were probably the most impressive aspects of the show, something the band has been heralded for in the past. And from seemingly out of nowhere, Mogwai in unison would shock the crowd with a massive drop, blasting a chord or riff at maximum volume.
Perhaps the weirdest part of the night was the end of the final twenty-minute-long encore. Pumped by the adoration of the crowd, Braithwaite began a relentless wave of, well, sound. With around five different distortion pedals laid in front of him, Braithwaite would press each one in order to intensify the escalation of the song. As he fiddled with the pedals and his amp, he refused to end, building up layer after layer of fuzzy, heart-thumping noise. Ten minutes and a few broken strings later, he finally decided enough was enough and walked off the stage with the sound still going, leaving the crowd dumbfounded but thoroughly impressed by the craftiness of the guitar legend.
Setlist:
01. White Noise
02. Ithica 27 – 9
03. How To Be a Werewolf
04. I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead
05. Mexican Grand Prix
06. Helicon 1
07. Auto Rock
08. You’re Lionel Richie
09. Friend of the Night
10. Hunted By A Freak
11. Mogwai Fear Satan
12. Batcat
It seems like whenever you log onto the Internet nowadays, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’ll see New York City songwriter Lana Del Rey‘s name mentioned somewhere. Today was certainly no exception as just moments ago, BBC Radio 1’s Fearne Cotton premiered Lana’s newest single “Born 2 Die” from the upcoming debut album of the same name, which you can already check out below. The song has a somber tone, but according to Lana Del Rey herself, the song is a “homage to true love and a tribute to living life on the wild side.” I guess it’s for you to decide.
Lana Del Rey’s debut full-length Born 2 Die is expected to be released on January 30, 2012 via Interscope Records. This new single will reportedly be available a week earlier on January 23rd.
Last year, Brooklyn noise pop duo Sleigh Bells released their debut album, Treats, to much fanfare and critical acclaim, and now they’re at it again. When they’re not on stage jamming out in their “Bells” jerseys and letterman jackets, it appears the duo have been working on a new album titled Reign of Terror. Although not a lot of information has been released yet, you can check out a very cool and fitting teaser video here.
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