The Ar-Kaics – “No Vacancy” [Video]

The Ar-Kaics take their cues from the first wave of ‘60s punk—American teenagers taking cues from the British Invasion, in turn taking cues from pilfers of the hinterland originators—with the added vantage of several subsequent decades worth of wayward balladeers, no names and psychedelic rock hangovers.

The Ar-Kaics have been delivering their off-brand, spot-on garage rock originals out of Richmond, VA, via a flood of small press singles and a self-titled debut album—all of which have since become highly desirable in the collectors market—and several successful DIY tours across the lower 48, with shows in Canada and Europe to boot.

Their new record In This Time was out last Friday on Wick Records. You can find a copy HERE.

The Safes – “Universal Heartbeat” [Video]

Chicago band The Safes have released a tribute to Juliana Hatfield today via American Laundromat Records. The record was engineered by the renowned Steve Albini at Electrical Audio. To turn this up to 11, The Safes asked their friends Ted Ansani and Mike Zelenko of Chicago’s one-and-only legendary power pop trio Material Issue to be the rhythm section for this recording.

The 7 inch features their cover of “Universal Heartbeat” and “I See You.” Purchase the 7 inch HERE and see below for full fall tour dates.

US Tour Dates:
Sat 10/13 – Des Moines, IA – Leftys
Fri 10/19 – Champaign, IL – Loose Cobra
Sat 10/20 – St Louis, MO – The Sinkhole
Fri 11/2 – Madison, WI – Mickeys
Sat 11/3 – Minneapolis, MN – Eagles Club
Fri 11/9 – Milwaukee, WI – Quarters Rock N Roll Palace
Sat 11/10 – Green Bay, WI – Lyric Room
Fri 11/16 – Lafayette, IN – Digbys
Sat 11/17 – Grand Rapids, MI – Tip Top Deluxe
Wed 11/21 – Chicago, IL – Schubas

Max Pain And The Groovies – “Checkin’ Out Late” [Video]

Max Pain and the Groovies have released their new EP, Sounds From The Hole, via Greenway Records. Their first release since relocating from Salt Lake City to Brooklyn, it was heavily influenced by the thousands of miles they’ve spent on the road touring.

Check out the video for lead single “Checkin’ Out Late,” a song about staying sane on tour. The video speaks to the many things that can go wrong: “whether it’s getting broken into, breaking down or getting played,” they share, “the only thing you can do is just keep on keepin’ on.”

You can find a hand-poured 7″ of the track right HERE via Greenway Records.

Lala Lala – “Scary Movie” [Video]

Lala Lala’s new album The Lamb was recently released on Hardly Arts records. Lala Lala (Lillie West) has a new video for album track “Scary Movie,” which contains recently-discovered footage that was originally filmed on 16mm by West’s parents before she was born. West re-edited it for the new song, explaining, “‘Scary Movie’ is primarily about perception and the often blurred line between reality and non reality.

Lala Lala is out on the road that include additional dates supporting WHY? and Mothers, including a stop at LA’s Resident on October 12th and a new NYC show at Brooklyn’s Elsewhere on November 30th. See below for all the tour dates.

TOUR DATES

Tue, Oct 2 – Gasa Gasa, New Orleans LA (w/ Mothers)
Wed, Oct 3 – White Oak Music Hall, Houston TX (w/ Mothers)
Thu, Oct 4 – Barracuda, Austin TX (w/ Mothers)
Fri, Oct 5 – Curtain Club, Dallas TX (w/ Mothers)
Mon, Oct 8 – Lowbrow Palace, El Paso TX (w/ Mothers)
Tue, Oct 9 – 191 Toole, Tuscon AZ (w/ Mothers)
Wed, Oct 10 – Soda Bar, San Diego CA (w/ Mothers)
Thu, Oct 11 – Constellation Room, Santa Ana, CA (w/ Mothers)
Fri, Oct 12 – Resident, Los Angeles CA (w/ Mothers)
Sat, Oct 13 – Cafe du Nord, San Francisco CA (w/ Mothers)
Thu, Nov 1 – The HiFi, Indianapolis IN (w/ WHY?)
Fri, Nov 2 – Beachland Ballroom, Cleveland OH (w/ WHY?)
Sun, Nov 4 – Cedar Cultural Centre, Minneapolis MN (w/ WHY?)
Mon, Nov 5 – Waiting Room, Omaha NE (w/ WHY?)
Tue, Nov 6 – Record Bar, Kansas City MO (w/ WHY?)
Thu, Nov 8 – Gothic Theater (CO), Denver CO (w/ WHY?)
Fri, Nov 9 – Urban Lounge, Salt Lake City UT (w/ WHY?)
Sat, Nov 10 – Visual Arts Collective (VAC), Garden City ID (w/ WHY?)
Mon, Nov 12 – Neumos, Seattle WA (w/ WHY?)
Tue, Nov 13 – Revolution Hall, Portland OR (w/ WHY?)
Wed, Nov 14 – WOW Hall, Eugene OR (w/ WHY?)
Wed, Nov 21 – Ready Room, St Louis MO
Fri, Nov 23 – The Loving Touch, Ferndale MI (w/ WHY?)
Sat, Nov 24 – Sprit Hall, PIttsburgh pA (w/ WHY?)
Sun, Nov 25 – Space Ballroom, Camden CT (Space Ballroom)
Tue, Nov 27 – 3S Artspace, Portsmouth NH (w/ WHY?)
Wed, Nov 28 – The Sinclair, Boston, MA (w/ WHY?)
Thu, Nov 29 – Union Transfer, Philadelphia PA (w/ WHY?)
Fri, Nov 30 – Elsewhere, Brooklyn NY (w/ WHY?)
Sat, Dec 1 – U Street Music Hall, Washington DC (w/ WHY?)
Mon, Dec 3 – The Broadberry , Richmond Canada (w/ WHY?)
Tue, Dec 4 – Motorco, Durham NC (w/ WHY?)
Wed, Dec 5 – Terminal West, Atlanta GA (w/ WHY?)
Thu, Dec 6 – Grey Eagle, Asheville NC (w/ WHY?)
Sat, Dec 8 – Cosmic Charlie’s, Lexington KY (w/ WHY?)

Track Premiere: King Serpent – “Ohio Honey”

Today’s premiere track is from the Columbus, Ohio indie rock group King Serpent. The duo consists of guitarist Elizabeth Rasmussen and bassist Mathew Franklin, which both have been playing music live for 15+ years. King Serpent was formed in 2017 with the idea of creating something unique to both members experience which is why you will hear a drum backing track on “Ohio Honey.”

This debut single and band is best summed up by the group themselves: “We’re really excited to finally share a project we’ve been working on for almost two years now; it pays tribute to our rock ‘n roll roots while simultaneously shining a light on our unabashed love for the perfect pop song.” TFN could not have said it better!


Of course, when you spin todays premiere track, “Ohio Honey,” your focus will not be on the backing drums or newness of the group but on the fierce vocals of Rasmussen. Her vocal power is relentless as it cuts through King Serpent’s power riffs which just pulse. “Ohio Honey” is heavy rocker that will kick your weekend off right. Enjoy your Friday!

If you like what you hear today make sure to pick up the single and then keep a lookout for more new music from King Serpent soon. You can also catch them live if you are around the Columbus, Ohio area on October 20th when they play their debut show at Rumba Cafe.

King Serpent Website
King Serpent Facebook
Buy “Ohio Honey” Single

Amyl And The Sniffers – “Cup Of Destiny” [Video]

Here is the latest and greatest from Flightless & ATO Records. Melbourne punks Amyl and the Sniffers have just released a limited edition 7” vinyl and “Cup of Destiny” is the b-side. The young band opened for King Gizzard on their 2018 summer tour. Singer Amy Taylor’s stage presence are all you need to see and hear to enjoy this group.

The band will release their debut album in early 2019 on ATO/Flightless Records (North America) / Flightless Records (Australia & New Zealand) / Rough Trade (ROW). The band is currently in the midst of a worldwide tour and will hit North America in October for a series of dates in major cities including NYC, LA, Chicago and more (all tour dates below).

Amyl and the Sniffers tour:
9/27 – London, UK @ International Festival Forum
9/29 – Memphis, TN @ Gonerfest
9/30 – Nashville, TN @ Springwater
10/02 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
10/03 – Ferndale, MI @ The Loving Touch
10/04 – Cleveland, OH @ Happy Dog
10/05 – Toronto, Canada @ Hard Luck Bar
10/06 – Montreal, Canada @ La Sala Rosa
10/08 – Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
10/11 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
10/12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Beautiful World Syndicate
10/13 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd Music House
10/15 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
11/07 – Newcastle, UK @ O2 Academy
11/08 – Glasgow, UK @ Barrlowland
11/10 – Nottingham, UK @ Rock City
11/12 – Belfast, IE @ The Limelight
11/15 – Norwich, UK @ UEA
11/16 – Liverpool, UK @ O2 Academy
11/17 – Manchester, UK @ Manchester Academy
11/19 – Leeds, UK @ O2 Academy
11/20 – Briston, UK @ O2 Academy
11/22 – Cardiff, UK @ Tramshed
11/23 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Academy
11/24 – London, UK @ Alexandra Palace