Fire Note Staff

John Andrew Fredrick has written and released seventeen the black watch albums of quality indie rock since the LA band’s inception in 1988. For this record Fredrick had the idea of letting producer-friends Scott Campbell, Rob Campanella, and Andy Creighton be his band and record the album. “I have had, I think, too much control, musically speaking, in the past.’ Fredrick says, “And the thought of experimenting this way was really thrilling.” The result may have yielded TBW’s best album in years.

Brilliant Failures is the title of the new record and it is out this Friday, March 27th 2020 on A Turntable Friend Records. Highly recommend checking this one out!

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A Turntable Friend Records

San Francisco’s Shasta supports an indie all-star cast featuring Micayla Grace (Albert Hammond Jr, Bleached), Jennifer Duardo, Jon Sortland (The Shins) and Cecilia Della Perruti (Gothic Tropic, Beck). You can hear this well skilled ensemble in their new single and video “Roaming Hearts.”

The song is from their new EP on Dowd Records and will be released on March 13th. “Roaming Hearts” gives you the full laid back West Coast experience with its catchy slow groove and floating harmonies that hook you in quickly as its story is about the up and down emotions of relationships.

There is a nice limited white vinyl copy 7″ of the single that contains two of the tracks and will you give you a digital download of the entire 3 song EP. You can pick up a copy HERE.

Waxahatchee (aka Katie Crutchfield) has announced her new album, Saint Cloud, to be released on March 27 via Merge Records. Along with the album news, Waxahatchee has also released this new video and a slew of spring tour dates which you can find below.

Saint Cloud is available for pre-order on CD, standard LP in a single jacket, and coke bottle-clear Peak Vinyl housed in a gatefold jacket (both vinyl editions include a large full-color poster) in the Merge store, HERE.

TOUR DATES:
4/10 – Detroit, MI @ Jam Handy *
4/11 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater *
4/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer *
4/15 – Holyoke, MA @ Gateway City Arts *
4/16 – Boston, MA @ Royale
4/17 – Providence, RI @ Columbus Theatre *
4/18 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere ^
4/19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere ~
4/23 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club *
4/24 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom *
4/25 – Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge *
4/26 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West *
4/27 – Birmingham, AL @ Saturn *
4/29 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Mid City Ballroom *
4/30 – Houston, TX @ The Satellite *
5/1 – Dallas, TX @ Sons of Hermann Hall *
5/2 – Austin, TX @ Scholz Garten *
5/4 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress +
5/7 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy and Harriet’s +
5/8 – Los Angeles, CA @ First Congregational Church of LA +
5/9 – San Francisco, CA @ The Castro Theatre
5/10 – Sonoma, CA @ Gundlach Bundschu Winery +
5/12 – Portland, OR @ The Old Church +
5/13 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater +
5/14 – Vancouver, BC @ Christ Church Cathedral +
5/15 – Seattle, WA @ The Neptune Theatre +
5/20 – Maquoketa, IA @ Codfish Hollow Barn
5/21 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe *
5/22 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre *

* w/ Ohmme
^ w/ Radiator Hospital
~ w/ Bonny Doon & Shamir
+ w/ Mirah

Black Lips have just released their new LP Sing In A World That’s Falling Apart on Vice/Fire. In Fact, TFN just featured the Black Lips HERE as Bandcamp Artist of the Week. To go along with the release of the country twang filled record here is the single and video for “Rumbler.”

The band is also hitting the road to support the album and the current dates can be found below.

BLACK LIPS TOUR DATES
Feb. 19 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle Back Room
Feb. 20 – Lancaster, PA – Chameleon Club
Feb. 21 – Asbury Park, NJ – Asbury Lanes
Feb. 22 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
Feb. 23 – Washington, DC – Union Stage
Feb. 24 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg
Feb. 26 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair
Feb. 27 – Portsmouth, NH – 3S Artspace
Feb 28 – Montreal, QC – Foufounes Electriques
Feb 29 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
March 1 – Detroit, MI – Deluxx Fluxx
March 3 – Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups
March 4 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom
March 5 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
March 6 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club
March 7 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown
March 8 – Des Moines, IA – Wooly’s
March 10 – St. Louis, MO – Duck Room, Blueberry Hill
March 11 – Memphis, TN – Growlers
March 12 – East Nashville, TN – The Basement East
March 13 – Atlanta, GA – The Earl
March 14 – Atlanta, GA – The Earl

The world-wide release of Kiwi Jr’s infectious debut album Football Money, the band has a new video for “Gimme More.”

Of the video the Toronto-based band say, “it was shot mostly at our favourite bar in Toronto – Black Dice Cafe. It’s a rockabilly bar and though Kiwi Jr is very unhip to that scene, we tried to pay it justice by wearing leather jackets. We’ve had probably every band meeting we’ve ever had at that bar, and the owner Hidecki was nice enough to let us shoot there as long as we didn’t break anything (which we did during load in before we even started shooting).” It was directed by Sean Foreman who states, “we wanted the video to feel like it was based off dream logic. Things don’t make sense, the band keeps popping up, rooms are oddly connected somehow, it’s nonsense but at the same time there seems to be some undercurrent of reason guiding things.”

Greg Dulli, frontman of The Afghan Whigs and The Twilight Singers, recently announced his first-ever solo record, Random Desire out February 21st via Royal Cream/BMG. Dulli has now shared the music video for the single, “Pantomima,” directed by long-time Whigs collaborator Philip Harder who also stars in the video. “The video is an homage to the movie All That Jazz,” said Dulli. “‘Pantomima’ feels like a show tune to me.”

Dulli also announced a full slate of North American tour dates to follow his previously announced European tour. The run kicks off in Minneapolis on April 24th and concludes in Los Angeles on May 28th. Other highlights include Metro in Chicago on April 25th, Webster Hall in New York City on May 6th and The Showbox in Seattle on May 23rd. Tickets go on sale Friday, January 24th. Full tour dates below.

You can pre-order Random Desire HERE.

Greg Dulli / 2020 Tour Dates:
March 19 – Róisín Dubh – Galway, IRELAND
March 20 – Whelans – Dublin, IRELAND
March 22 – SWG3 Warehouse – Glasgow, UK
March 23 – Gorilla – Manchester, UK
March 24 – Islington Assembly Hall – London, UK
March 26 – Paradiso Noord – Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS
March 27 – Muziekodroom – Hasselt, BELGIUM
March 28 – Trix – Antwerp, BELGIUM
March 30 – Luxor – Cologne, GERMANY
March 31 – Lido – Berlin, GERMANY
April 02 – Hotel Cecil – Copenhagen, DENMARK
April 03 – Debaser Strand – Stockholm, SWEDEN
April 04 – Parkteatret – Oslo, NORWAY
April 24 – 7th Street Entry – Minneapolis, MN
April 25 – Metro – Chicago, IL
April 26 – St. Andrew’s Hall – Detroit, MI
April 28 – Beachland Ballroom – Cleveland, OH
April 29 – Woodward Theater – Cincinnati. OH
April 30 – Mr. Smalls – Pittsburgh, PA
May 01 – The Great Hall – Toronto, ON CANADA
May 03 – Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA
May 05 – 9:30 Club – Washington, DC
May 06 – Webster Hall – New York, NY
May 07 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA
May 09 – The Grey Eagle – Asheville, NC
May 10 – Cat’s Cradle – Carrboro, NC
May 12 – The Loft – Atlanta, GA
May 15 – One Eyed Jacks – New Orleans, LA
May 16 – 3Ten @ ACL Live – Austin, TX
May 17 – Granada Theater – Dallas, TX
May 19 – Bluebird Theatre – Denver, CO
May 22 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR
May 23 – The Showbox – Seattle, WA
May 26 – August Hall – San Francisco, CA
May 28 – Palace Theater – Los Angeles, CA

Australia’s Cable Ties (that’s Jenny McKechnie, Shauna Boyle, and Nick Brown) have a killer new second album titled Far Enough out March 27.2020 via Merge Records (Poision City in Australia/New Zealand). The band also has has shows on the calendar which you can find below and this music video for Far Enough’s “Sandcastles.” Directed and shot on film by Danny Cohen (Courtney Barnett, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Mac DeMarco), it matches Cable Ties’ perfectly elemental approach to punk rock.

Cable Ties on tour:
Jan 18 Melbourne, AU – Fitz Ritz
Feb 14 Yarra Valley, AU – Gaytimes
Feb 15 Darebin, AU – Something Unlimited 2020
Feb 28 Sydney, AU – Vic On The Park
Feb 29 Wollongong, AU – Farmer and the Owl Festival
Mar 12 Los Angeles, CA – Zebulon
Mar 17–21 Austin, TX – SXSW
Mar 26 Brooklyn, NY – Union Pool
Apr 03 Glasgow, UK – Glad Cafe
Apr 04 Manchester, UK – The Castle Hotel
Apr 05 Brighton, UK – The Hope & Ruin
Apr 07 London, UK – Old Blue Last
Apr 09 Paris, FR – L’Espace B
Apr 10 Rotterdam, NL – V11
Apr 13 Hamburg, DE – Hafenklang
Apr 14 Berlin, DE – Zukunft

Okay Kaya – the project of Norwegian-born, New York-based Kaya Wilkins – has shared the new single/video, “Psych Ward,” from Watch This Liquid Pour Itself, her forthcoming album out January 24th on Jagjaguwar. She also announces initial performances in support of Watch This Liquid Pour Itself. A full list of dates can be found below.

“Psych Ward,” produced by Kaya with co-production from Christoph Andersson (Cautious Clay), follows previously released singles/videos “Asexual Wellbeing,” “Baby Little Tween,” and “Ascend and Try Again.” On “Psych Ward,” Kaya’s scene of nurses making rounds is based on her personal experience of time spent in a hospital.

Okay Kaya Tour Dates:
Mon. Jan. 27 – Brooklyn, NY @ Van Leeuwen Ice Cream (RSVP)
Tue. Jan. 28 – New York, NY @ Whitney Museum of American Art (DJ Set)
Thu. Feb. 13 – Brooklyn, NY @ National Sawdust
Fri. Feb. 28 – Oslo, NO @ By:Larm
Mon. March 2 – Paris, FR @ Pop Up
Wed. March 4 – London, UK @ SET
Sun. March 8 – San Diego, CA @ CRSSD
Mon. March 9 – San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord
Tue. March 10 – Los Angeles, CA @ Moroccan Lounge
Tue. March 17 – Sat. March 21 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
Fri. May 8 – Berlin, DE @ Pitchfork Festival

King Krule has announced the release of his forthcoming album Man Alive! with Archy Marshall’s first ever self-directed video. Man Alive! is set for release on February 21, 2020 via True Panther/Matador Records and will be the third King Krule titled studio album.

Marshall’s longstanding love of cinema seeps out in his first foray into directing, with a video for “(Don’t Let The Dragon) Draag On” that pulls influences from Carl Theodor Dreyer’s classic The Passion Of Joan Of Arc while still creating a typically wry King Krule visual.

You catch King Krule on tour in support of the album throughout Europe and the U.S this Spring. Find the full tour dates and up-to-date artist biography below.

Upcoming Tour Dates:
3/3 – Brussels, Belgium @ A.B
3/4 – Paris, France @ L’Olympia
3/5 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Melkweg
3/7 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ K.B Hall
3/8 – Berlin, Germany @ Columbiahalle
3/19 – Dublin, Ireland @ Olympia
3/21 – Glasgow, Scotland @ Barrowland
3/22 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall
3/24 – London, UK @ O2 Academy Brixton
3/25 – London, UK @ O2 Academy Brixton

4/2 – Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
4/3 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
4/4 – Austin, TX @ Stubbs Waller Creek
4/7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
4/8 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theatre
4/10 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox Sodo
4/11 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theatre
4/14 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
4/15 – Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre
4/17 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
4/18 – Montreal, QC @ Mtelus
4/19 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
4/21 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
4/22 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
4/24 – Brooklyn, NY @ Kings Theatre

TFN is excited for this new indie rock out of Madison, Wisconsin. Disq have officially signed to Saddle Creek Records, and announced their debut album Collector. Collector, will out March 6th, and you can pre-order HERE.

As you might expect, Disq is hitting the road to support the new record and you can check out their current dates below.

Tour Dates:
1/14 – London, UK @ The Lexington (Five Day Forecast)
1/15 – London, UK @ The Old Blue Last *
3/16-22 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
4/3 – Iowa City, IA @ Mission Creek Festival
4/4 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas ^
4/6 – Detroit, MI @ PJ’s Lager House ^
4/7 – Toronto, ON @ The Drake ^
4/9 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott ^
4/10 – New York, NY @ Rough Trade ^
4/11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Boot & Saddle ^
4/12 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd ^
4/14 – Nashville, TN @ High Watt
4/15 – Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theater
4/17 – Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
4/18 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
4/20 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar ~
4/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo ~
4/22 – San Francisco, CA @ Cafe du Nord ~
4/24 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza ~
4/25 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir ~
4/28 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St Entry
5/1 – Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon

* w/ The Districts
^ w/ Pom Pom Squad
~ w/ Girl Friday

“One Of Us” packs a fuzzed-out stomp alongside masterfully giddy melodies that sees lead singer and guitarist Chris McCrory recount “the welfare son of a welfare son”, taking aim at the billionaire-owned media and their Bullingdon Club ilk who shirk responsibility for sowing the division we see in the UK.

McCrory comments on the video; “Our good friend, musician, filmmaker and comedian Romeo Taylor came over to our rehearsal room with some lights, a camera, beer and a tarpaulin. We then proceeded to drink (some of) the beer and mime for the camera. An hour or so later, we had something for people to look at while they listen to the song. So, we took a walk down by the river before having a nice dinner together, as friends often do. Thanks Taylor.”

Catholic Action’s new album, Celebrated By Strangers, is set to release March 27th via Modern Sky Records. You can pre-order a copy HERE.

Indiana-based songwriter Kevin Krauter has announced his sophomore album, Full Hand, which is out February 28th on Bayonet Records, and has shareed the single/video, “Surprise.” Following his 2018 debut Toss Up, a quiet album that was built on intricate guitar riffs that looped back on themselves to create a feeling of sunlit calm, Full Hand dives further into the world he’s created. The songs are evocative of late afternoon light, or dust settling on a creaky floorboard, but with lyrics that probe Krauter’s personal life, grappling with sexuality and religion, while exploring what it means to grow up, grow more critical, and, in turn, more self-confident.

Across 12 tracks, Krauter tackles these emotional states and ideas through elliptical songwriting that is at once poetic and truthful. “A lot of the lyrics touch on how I was raised religiously, touch on me understanding my sexuality more and more in recent years,” Krauter says, “just growing up and becoming more confident in myself…that process of looking inward and taking stock of myself.” It’s not especially uncommon for artists to probe deep into their own psyche to uncover what makes them tic, but Krauter’s light touch feels like something all his own. There’s a palpable sense of joy in Krauter’s acceptance of dire, stressful moments, and a liberation that comes from hearing him realize that the present will eventually be the past, and he’ll be able to look back and find peace.

You can pre-order the new album HERE.

Squirrel Flower – the moniker of Ella O’Connor Williams – recently announced I Was Born Swimming, her debut album, out January 31st on Polyvinyl. Following its lead single/video, “Red Shoulder,” she now releases its follow-up single/video, “Headlights.”

Speaking of the track Squirrel Flower says: “’Headlights’ takes place in a moment of solitary reflection; a glance back and a glance forward. I wrote it on tour driving through the pioneer valley in Massachusetts in some heavy fog. Suddenly I was aware of the space the car was plummeting through, both physical and temporal.”

Director Bao Ngo explains the inspiration behind the video: “The video for ‘Headlights’ was inspired by cheesy, classic imagery of actors riding in cars through LA— evoking glamour and sunshine. Here, we ran with the concept and placed it in a Massachusetts suburb on a cold winter day, driving around in circles in a convertible, shooting from morning til night, playing with a slightly warped sense of time so that the video would feel a little cold and a little lonely, and perhaps at times a little jarring, while still aiming to subtly reference the beauty of older Hollywood films.”

You can pre-order I Was Born Swimming HERE. You can check out Squirrel Flower’s 2020 tour dates below.

Squirrel Flower Tour Dates:
Tue. Jan. 28 – London, UK @ The Islington
Fri. Jan. 31 – Brighton, UK @ Resident Records
Sat. Feb. 1 – Bristol, UK @ Friendly Records
Sun. Feb. 2 – Leeds, UK @ Jumbo Records
Tue. Feb. 4 – Diksmuide, BE @ 4AD * [Sold Out]
Wed. Feb. 5 – Nijmegen, BL @ Doornroosje *
Thu. Feb. 6 – Brussels, BE @ AB *
Sat. Feb. 8 – Amsterdam, NL @ Bitterzoet * [Sold Out]
Thu. March 5 – Freeport, ME @ Cadenza
Fri. March 6 – Middletown, CT @ Mac 650 Art Gallery &
Sat. March 7 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott &
Wed. March 11 – Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade &
Thu. March 12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Everybody Hits &
Sat. March 13 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd &
Mon. March 23 – Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge %
Wed. March 25 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo %
Thu. March 26 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill %
Sat. March 28 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza %
Sun. March 29 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge %
Tue. March 31 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court %
Thu. April 2 – Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge %
Mon. April 6 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry %
Tue. April 7 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas %
Wed. April 8 – Cleveland, OH @ Mahall’s %
Fri. April 10 – Toronto, ON @ Drake Hotel &
Sat. April 11 – Montreal, QC @ Casa Del Popolo &

% = w/ Why Bonnie
& = w/ Cedric Noel
* =w/ Strand of Oaks