Indie Rock
Chadwick Stokes Announces Solo Album
Chad Stokes Urmston of indie-rock acts Dispatch and State Radio will be releasing his first solo record this summer, choosing to use the moniker Chadwick Stokes. His new album, titled Simmerkane II, will be released on June 28th via Ruff Shod/Nettwerk Records. The deluxe version of the album includes two discs, including a second disc consisting of three tracks recorded with Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, a band formed by Sierra Leone refugees who were displaced to Guinea during the Sierra Leone Civil War.
Once he rounds up a two-month long tour with State Radio, Stokes will be embarking on the Dispatch reunion tour during the month of June and then beginning a solo tour in support of Simmerkane II. You can check out the tracklisting for the album after the break.
Tracklisting:
Disc 1
1. Adelaide
2. Crowbar Hotel
3. Back To The Races
4. Rainsong
5. Insulin
6. Religion On The Rails (I Saw You There)
7. Black Bottle
8. Ichabod and Abraham
9. I Love Your Army
10. Spider And Gioma
Disc 2 (Deluxe) (with Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars):
1. Coffee And Wine
2. All My Possessions (Ode To Troy)
3. Don’t Have You
New Sam Means Demo
Download a demo of a new song by Sam Means (guitarist of The Format) at his Bandcamp here. The new song is called “Bigger Heart” and features similar styles of classic mellowed-out by The Format songs.
Sublime with Rome Premiere First Single “Panic”
The new incarnation of Sublime, known as Sublime with Rome, are currently preparing for the release of their debut release Yours Truly, which is scheduled for a July 12 release via Fueled By Ramen. The album’s lead single, “Panic” can be heard at 107.7 The End.
The band is composed of Sublime founding members Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh and singer/guitarist Rome Ramirez. You can check out a list of upcoming shows below.
Sublime With Rome 2011 Tour Dates:
05/07 – Tucson, AZ @ KFMA Day
05/11 – Buenos Aires, AR @ Micro Stadium Malvinas
05/13 – Sao Paolo, BR @ Via Funchal
05/14 – Curitiba, BR @ Lupaluna Fest
05/15 – Brazil, BR @ Opera Hall
05/18 – Porto Alegre, BR @ Pepsi On Stage
05/19 – Belo Horizonte, BR @ Chevrolet Hall
05/20 – Fortaleza, BR @ Barraca Biruta
05/21 – Recife, BR @ Club Portugues
05/22 – Rio De Janeiro, BR @ Circo Voador
06/05 – Brantford, ON @ Hockeyfest
06/09 – Lisbon, PR @ Estoril Open Air
06/11 – Interlaken, CH @ Greenfield Festival
06/12 – Nicklesdorf, AT @ Rock Ness
06/18 – Scheessell, DE @ Hurricane Festival
06/19 – Neuhausen ob Eck, DE @ Southside Festival
07/02 – Gibbons, AB @ Boonstock Festival
07/06 – Wichita, KS @ Orpheum Block Party
07/08 – Bonner Springs, KS @ Capitol Federal Park at Sandstone Amphitheater #
07/09 – St. Louis, MO @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater #
07/12 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE #
07/13 – Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theater #
07/14 – Chicago, IL @ Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island #
07/16 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center #
07/17 – Columbus, OH @ Lifestyles Community Pavilion #
07/19 – Omaha, NE @ Red Sky Festival
07/21 – Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Art Center #
07/22 – Wantagh, NY @ Nikon at Jones Beach Amphitheater #
07/23 – Boston, MA @ Comcast Center #
07/25 – Bethel, NY @ Bethel Woods Center of the Arts #
07/26 – Philadelphia, PA @ Penn’s Island #
07/28 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Farm Bureau Live at VA Beach Amphitheater #
07/29 – Washington, DC @ Jiffy Lube Live #
07/30 – Atlanta, GA @ Aaron’s Amphitheater at Lakewood #
08/01 – Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater #
08/02 – Raleigh, NC @ Time Warner Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek #
08/05 – Live Oak, FL @ 311 Pow Wow Festival
08/11 – Lake Charles, LA @ L’Auberge Du Lac Casino #
08/12 – Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion #
08/13 – Dallas, TX @ GEXA Energy Pavilion #
08/14 – Austin, TX @ The Backyard #
08/16 – Denver, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheater #
08/17 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Usana Amphitheater #
08/19 – San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheater #
08/20 – Irvine, CA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater #
08/21 – Santa Barbara, CA @ Santa Barbara Bowl #
08/22 – Lancaster, CA @ Antelope Valley Fair
08/23 – San Francisco, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheater at Mountain View #
08/25 – Eugene, OR @ Cuthbert Amphitheater #
08/26 – Seattle, WA @ Marymoor Amphitheater #
# = w/ 311
Radiohead to Perform ‘The King of Limbs’ Live on TV
Radiohead will be playing their new album, The King of Limbs, in it entirety on TV, with the BBC internationally distributing the broadcast on July 1st. According to a press release, the 55-minute program will be entitled Radiohead – The King of Limbs: Live From the Basement and include additional behind-the-scenes footage.
As the show’s title suggests, the live performance will be a part of Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich’s “From The Basement” series. “The programme is filmed in HD, will have no audience and no presenter – just a rare opportunity to see an intimate performance from one of the greatest bands in the world.”
Watch: MGMT With The Flaming Lips for “Kids”, Join Kid Cudi for “Pursuit of Happiness”
During their performance at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis this weekend, MGMT joined the stage during The Flaming Lips‘ set, with the two groups performing an acoustic version of MGMT’s well-known “Kids”. You can check out a fan-recorded video of the performance above.
A few days back, Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser also made an appearnce on stage with rapper-turned-rocker Kid Cudi at the Roseland Ballroom. Cudder and MGMT performed their single “Pursuit of Happiness” from 2009’s Man On The Moon: The End of Day. Fellow contributors Ratatat did not, however, make an appearance. Check out a fan-recorded video below.
Dredg Releases Fifth Album Tomorrow
Dredg will be releasing their fifth full-length album, Chuckles and Mr. Squeezy, on Tuesday, May 3rd via Superball Music. Not many of their fans know what to expect, for on their official website, it claims that, “this album is completely different from everything that dredg has done before.” Many have thought that it would be a continuance of their last album released in 2009, The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion, but dredg claims that there will be no doubt of surprise within the new album. It has been released in Europe throughout the past week, so some leaks may be available on the Internet, but I think I’ll wait until tomorrow to see what kind of change the band is talking about. Dredg is currently on this album’s promotional tour with The Dear Hunter, Balance and Composure, and The Trophy Fire.
12 Good Looking Album Artworks (Post-2000)
Album artwork made its first appearance in 1938, when Alex Steinweiss introduced artwork over the previously, plainly labeled covers. This “invention” provided every album with its own unique identity and images that fans could associate their music with. When we think of an album, the first thing that often comes to mind is the cover; it’s become a peripheral of music that no album, EP, or single can do without, remaining with us even in the digital format.
The following twelve album artworks are not ranked in any particular order.
Fall Out Boy – Infinity On High
The flying sheep and dream-like atmosphere are this cover’s best features. The artwork has depth and gives you plenty to look at, especially the various contrasts that coexist (moon/wall and crow/wall with light and dark values, closet interior/wall with temperature values). The artwork just has a unique dream feel.
Brand New – Deja Entendu
I have no idea why the astronaut is there, but this cover just looks, to put it simply, cool. Contrasting temperatures result in an odd feel that absolutely fits Brand New’s distinct rock sound. This feel is further expressed by the textures of the water and sky.
Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs
No stairs here to reflect the album title, but the cover looks fantastic nonetheless. The multi-hued red, green and blue colored strips of paper being layered have great visual texture and the fact that no two strips share the same tone (more or less) gives this cover a lot of interest.
Radiohead – In Rainbows
This pop art styled cover designed by Stanley Donwood, who has done every Radiohead artwork since 1994, looks like something created digitally when in fact it (surprisingly) isn’t. It features a galaxy photograph layered with paint and interesting type that looks simple and fits Radiohead’s style of experimental music. The variety of color also serves to reflect the album title itself.
MGMT – Congratulations
‘Psychedelic’ just about sums up this cover. Odd colors, an i-don’t-know-what’s-going-on scene, and the cartoony style makes the cover seem like it’s something you’d see in a weird dream or trip (drugs are bad for you, kids).
Jay-Z – The Blueprint 3
Clean cover, with something other than the generic rapper’s face or body photograph. From a distance, the red bars have strong dominance and clearly indicate the cover is of the 3rd installation of Jay-Z’s ‘Blueprint’ records. Closer up you notice the objects piled up which adds complexity and depth.
Delphic – Acolyte
The artwork is absolutely amazing. Great photo-manipulation of the band members and the smoke they fade into. It’s something you definitely won’t mind looking at on your ipod.The background may be a tad simple when the complex photomanip is placed on top, but the Delphic typeface works to ease the combination.
Jimmy Eat World – Chase This Light
Beautiful photograph with vibrant colors, giving insight to what the music itself is like. Nothing really much to say, just a wonderful looking cover.
The Killers – Hot Fuss
Smoooth. A soft blue dominates the cover (plus hints of red), and gives off a fuzzy, mellow feel. The Killers’ logo typeface fits well too, although I’m not sure I can say the same for the buildings lining the bottom…
Kanye West – Graduation
The cartoon style of this artwork by Takashi Murakami is great and the colors are extremely eye-catching. The illustration features West in a teddy-bear form (known as “Dropout Bear”, referencing an earlier record) being shot out of a colorful, vectorized who-knows-what. This is one creative rap album cover that sets it apart from nearly every other.
Passion Pit – Manners
Green paint, white text. What else do you really need?
Pendulum – Immersion
The feel of this cover is great. This artwork by Polish artist Valp is mysterious and just seems to fit the sound of Immersion. The colors are great, using a majority of cool green and blue while adding hints of warmer purple and red to increase interest. There is just so much going on here that some may not notice all the subtle elements of the art from a quick glance or from their music player screens.
Review: Thursday – No Devolución
Thursday – No Devolución
Released: April 12, 2011
Label: Epitaph Records
Purchase: iTunes | Insound | Amazon
When pre-release songs from No Devolución started streaming online, certain fans decried the notable change in Thursday’s sound. The band has steadily inched from intense to atmospheric since the introduction of synthesizers in A City by the Light Divided. Two albums later, the synths are now the defining part of the sound. Contrary to these fans’ response, though, this style, when coupled with their best lyrics in years, feels like a natural progression that is still a perfect fit for the band.
“No Answers” is most demonstrative of this new sound, with drums backing thick synths and only minimal, yet still effective, guitars until the chorus. The atmosphere created by these perfectly-balanced textures complements the lyrics, which give a feeling of both intimacy and reluctant distance.
More often than not, the guitars take backseat to the other instruments in general, not just the synths. The drums and heavy, active bass drive the music much more frequently than they ever used to, such as in “A Darker Forest” and the U2-reminiscent “Sparks Against the Sun.”
This is not to say that the band has completely abandoned its post-hardcore roots, however. “Open Quotes” is purely vintage Thursday, faltering only when it hits the underwhelming chorus. “Turnpike Divides” pays homage not only to their New Jersey origins, but their earlier sound with heavier guitars and the blend of singing and screaming in the chorus.
The balance between heavy and atmospheric has produced some of Thursday’s best songs in years. “Sparks Against the Sun” mixes a distorted bass line with an meaningful piano progression to create a song that’s engaging before the singing even begins. The pre-chorus is extended so listeners can bask in the music before building up with a two measure synth line, leading to a powerful chorus.
“Past and Future Ruins” begins with a minute of anticipatory guitars and atmospheric noises until the intense drums kick in. The vocals and drums carry the song until the explosive chorus, which culminates in some of the darkest music and loudest howling that Thursday has every produced. Adding to this power are the excellent lyrics, a lamentation of our increasingly artificial culture.
No Devolución’s lyrics are also an excellent return for the band, yielding some of their best since their 2001 masterpiece Full Collapse. They cover universal themes such as broken relationships and satisfaction with one’s life, such as when “A Gun in the First Act” asks, “Do you find sleep comes easy / dancing with the empty silhouette of everything?” Even when one can’t discern a specific meaning, the careful word choice almost always sounds meaningful.
In fact, the lyrics are so integral to the album that they are a necessary part of many songs. As musically wonderful as almost every song is individually, some may have a tendency to sound similar or blend together were it not for the lyrics to give each a subtle personality.
The only songs that come up short in lyrics are the musically peppy “Millimeter” and “Magnets Caught in a Metal Heart,” the latter of which is weakest in terms of music as well. For a lighter song, it doesn’t use the synths as one may expect and Geoff Rickly’s vocals sound uncharacteristically bland.
The change in style has also hurt Rickly’s vocals on the whole. He employs an atmospheric moan in many songs, even sounding similar to Deftones’ Chino Moreno in the chorus of opener “Fast to the End.” With the exception of the two songs involving screams and the beautifully raw, stripped-bare “Empty Glass,” there is a general lack of dynamic range throughout the album.
Almost anticipating fans’ response to the album, the epic closing track “Stay True” reminds listeners to not sell out, to remain who they are. Looking beneath the musical surface, the soul of Thursday has followed this advice and remained true to itself. No Devolución is an excellent, progressive step forward for a band that appeared to have their best work already behind them.
8.9
Standout Tracks: “Sparks Against the Sun”, “Past and Future Ruins”, and “A Gun in the First Act”
Review: Explosions in the Sky – Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Explosions in the Sky – Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Released: April 25, 2011
Label: Temporary Residence Limited
Purchase: iTunes | Insound | Amazon
It’s been a while since post-rock band Explosions in the Sky released their album, All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, and many questions lurk through the fans’ minds: what has changed in the last 4 years, and how will Explosions in the Sky be able to create new music that is fresh and adds something new to their incredible, innovative discography? Few albums have impressed me at first listen as much as their 2003 album, The Earth is a Cold Dead Place. While Take Care, Take Care, Take Care is quite engaging on first listen, it is an album designed for repeated listens.
Drummer Chris Hrasky once said that “I think we just liked the idea of a band that there was not a leader or main songwriter, everyone collaborating and has their own say. I don’t think any of us want the sort of ‘leader role’, so a leaderless band is kind of the best option for us.” A band that doesn’t employ words must use the entire band to make sure that the music can stay radical, and Explosions on the Sky thrives on this. Everyone plays a role in each song instead of having one, main front man for the group. The band members’ technical abilities and musicianship complement each other extremely well. As critical as the guitar is used in their songs to create the melody, the drummer is just as important. Chris Hrasky utilizes his drum kit to create the entire atmosphere for each song. In the track, “Trembling Hands”, the drumming is so momentous that it is the focal point of the song.
“Trembling Hands” is the only song that utilizes vocals in Take Care, Take Care, Take Care, and it is the first time in six years that they have done this. The one and only other time they have done this was in “Day Two” on their experimental eight-day project, Travels in Constants, Volume 21: The Rescue. “Trembling Hands” is a track that is much different than the rest of the album, and discography. The singing, along with the drums, gives the band energy that has never been heard before in an Explosions in the Sky song. It is probably the most inventive song on the album.
In a few days on April 30, Explosions in the Sky will be playing at Hollywood Forever Cemetery to promote their new album, Take Care, Take Care, Take Care. Post-rock is a genre of music that is normally made to be very despondent and tragic, so playing the album at that venue will be quite fitting. “Human Qualities” seems to be a rather quiet and desolate song. However, this long 6 minute and 49 second build-up makes the last minute incredibly awe-inspiring. Explosions in the Sky does a good job of this in Take Care, Take Care, Take Care. Explosions in the Sky fabricate songs that are not only melancholy, but they also create songs that are extremely inspirational and hopeful for its listeners. For the genre of post-rock, it is not the band that always chooses the meaning of the music, but rather the listener to discover how the music impacts them. Explosions in the Sky connect their listeners to an emotional level that can sometimes never be done with words.
With the exception of “Trembling Hands”, not much has changed in this album. For a band that is so inherently inspiring to others, Explosions in the Sky does not attempt to achieve many new heights. You could probably compile Take Care, Take Care, Take Care along with their first album, How Strange, Innocence, and not notice a difference. However, this is not a problem for Explosions in the Sky. If not changing their musical direction is a problem, fans would be complaining by their second album. Explosions in the Sky seem to keep faithful to their fan base by giving their supporters what they want.
With the release of Take Care, one has to wonder what’s next for this band? For now, the band that seems to be going nowhere but up, will keep themselves playing shows alongside Arcade Fire and a countless number of festivals such as Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza.
8.5
Standout Tracks: “Human Qualities” and “Trembling Hands”
Free White Lies Single and New Tour Dates
London’s White Lies are giving away a free MP3 download of “Holy Ghost”, the second single from the band’s new release Ritual. The band will be launching a seven-city tour in the United States by making an appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman on May 16. They will return to the States later this summer with an appearance at this year’s Lollapalooza. Download the MP3 and check out the band’s tour dates below.
White Lies
May 17 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
May 19 – New York, NY – Terminal 5
May 20 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
May 21 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
May 24 – Austin, TX – Antone’
May 25 – Houston, TX – Fitzgerald’s
May 26 – Mexico City – Vive Cuervo Salon
August 5-7 – Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza
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