Videos

Primo! – “Machine” [Video]

Primo! just released of their second full length album, Sogni, on April 17, via Upset The Rhythm. Sogni is the follow up to 2018’s Amici and now you can check out the video and single “Machine.”

“Machine” is a propulsive jangle of a track dealing with notions of work-hierarchy struggle and the video sees the Melbourne quartet putting in some serious elbow grease down the auto-shop to convey this message.

Suzanne Walker from Primo! explains further “it’s the feeling of being like a machine inside the machine but as well the fact that sometimes great ideas, thoughts & observations come to you during the working day, in unexpected ways. Rhythmically the pacing is like that of a machine, speeding up and slowing down, at times frantically chugging, spattering vivid bursts of greasy colour before halting to a stop and slipping the key from the ignition.”

Spanning just under 30 minutes, Sogni’s twelve songs were conceived collectively in the rehearsal room and perfected in a live setting, before being recorded to an 8-track with Al Montfort across a number of home studios in Melbourne.

You can order a copy of Sogni HERE.

Muzz – “Red Western Sky” [Video]

Muzz, the new project of Paul Banks (Interpol), Josh Kaufman (producer/multi-instrumentalist and one third of Bonny Light Horseman), and Matt Barrick (drummer of Jonathan Fire*Eater, The Walkmen, and Fleet Foxes’ touring band), announce their self-titled, debut album, out June 5th on Matador, with this new single/video, “Red Western Sky.” The album, written, arranged and performed by all three.
 
Muzz was born out of longstanding friendship and collaboration. Banks and Kaufman have known each other since childhood, attending high school together in Spain before separately moving to New York. There, they independently crossed paths with Barrick while running in similar music circles. They kept in touch in the following years: Barrick drummed in Banks + Steelz and on some of Kaufman’s production sessions; Kaufman helped on Banks’ early Julian Plenti solo endeavour; various demos were collaborated on, and a studio was co-bought.
 
Taking shape at a simmer, the first Muzz recordings date back to 2015. A typical session incorporated demos Banks or Kaufman brought to the table with room for any member to build upon, or with a new skeleton composed during a jam in the live room. All three contributed lyrics and helped shape things vocally (a first for Banks who is usually the sole lyricist). “Josh has more training as a theory musician while Paul comes from a different perspective,” Barrick says. “You never know how Paul’s gonna approach a song, lyrically and melodically, so it’s always unusual and exciting. Everyone is open to everyone else’s ideas. I think three is a great number of people for a band. We all had a big hand in everything.”
 
Sonically, “the music has this weird, super removed vibe but is also personal and emotional at the same time,” Kaufman says. “If something felt natural in a simple way, we left it. I’d never heard Paul’s voice framed like that—a string section, horns, guitars—we know none of that is visionary but it felt classic and kind of classy.” In fact, the band’s name holds a meaning that serves to describe that very feeling – Kaufman used the word “muzz” to describe the music’s subtle, analog quality and texture.
 
In conjunction with today’s announcement, Muzz present the galloping “Red Western Sky” with a video, directed and produced by the band. It’s the first video to ever be shot at the immersive, psychedelic American Treasure Tour Museum, a location chosen after a Barrick family visit. The single follows two previously released songs—the sparse and rustic “Broken Tambourine” and “Bad Feeling,” which chimes with melodic introspection. No matter the sonic direction Muzz go, they go there as if effortlessly and with maximum emotional charge.

Pre-order Muzz
https://muzz.ffm.to/muzz
 
Muzz Tracklist:
1. Bad Feeling
2. Evergreen
3. Red Western Sky
4. Patchouli
5. Everything Like It Used To Be
6. Broken Tambourine
7. Knuckleduster
8. Chubby Checker
9. How Many Days
10. Summer Love
11. All Is Dead To Me
12. Trinidad

Brendan Benson – “Richest Man” [Video]

The Raconteurs frontman, Brendan Benson, has shared the Wartella-directed video for “Richest Man,” the newest single from his first solo LP in almost seven years, DEAR LIFE and first album for Third Man Records which is out April 24. You can pre-order the album HERE.

“This was a very different video making experience,” Benson said. “I had to pantomime the whole thing with notes from Wartella (who lives in another city), about the different scenes. I had to hold an imaginary umbrella and arrange an imaginary vase with flowers. It was all very mysterious and I had no idea if I was doing a good job or anything until it came back after being animated. Turns out I’m a pretty good mime!”

Benson finds himself in an enviable spot as he enters the third decade of a remarkably creative, consistently idiosyncratic career – an accomplished frontman, musician, songwriter, producer, band member, husband, and dad. DEAR LIFE marks this consummate polymath’s most inventive and upbeat work thus far, an 11-track song cycle about life, love, family, fatherhood, and the pure joy of making music. Produced and almost entirely performed by Benson at his own Readymade Studio in Nashville, the album sees the Michigan-born, Nashville-based artist – and co-founder, with Jack White, of The Raconteurs – reveling in a more modernist approach than ever before, fueled by a heady brew of cannabis, hip-hop, and a newly discovered interest in software drum programming.

Benson has been live-streaming a song from his Instagram every day as part of his “Boy In A Bubble” series — tune in at 4:20pm CT every day HERE.

Phoebe Bridgers – “Kyoto” [Video]

25-year old singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers has confirmed details of her sophomore solo album, Punisher, to be released on Dead Oceans on June 19th. Today’s announcement comes with a new video – for brand new single “Kyoto” – a song she wrote following her first trip to Japan in February 2019. Bridgers will perform “Kyoto” on tonight’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! – live from her Los Angeles’ bathroom.

You can pre-order the new album HERE.

The Beths – “Dying To Believe” [Video]

The Beths announce their new album, Jump Rope Gazers, out July 10th via Carpark Records, and share its lead single/video, “Dying to Believe.” Jump Rope Gazers is the follow-up to Future Me Hates Me.

After touring non-stop for a year and a half, playing to crowds of devoted fans and opening for acts like Pixies and Death Cab for Cutie, The Beths regrouped to write and record Jump Rope Gazers. The band – composed of Elizabeth Stokes (vocals/guitar), Jonathan Pearce (guitar), Benjamin Sinclair (bass), and Tristan Deck (drums) – settled down at Pearce’s Auckland studio, where he recorded and produced the album.

Stokes’s writing on Jump Rope Gazers grapples with the uneasy proposition of leaving everything and everyone you know behind on another continent, chasing your dreams while struggling to stay close with loved ones back home. Rambunctious lead single “Dying to Believe” reckons with the distance that life necessarily drives between people over time: “I’m sorry for the way that I can’t hold conversations // They’re such a fragile thing to try to support the weight of,” Stokes sings. The accompanying visual is an eccentric four-step “How to be the Beths” instructional video featuring the band.

Touring far from home, The Beths committed to taking care of each other while simultaneously trying to take care of friends living thousands of miles away. That care and attention shines through on Jump Rope Gazers, where the quartet sounds more locked in than ever. Jump Rope Gazers stares down all the hard parts of living in communion with other people, even at a distance, while celebrating the ferocious joy that makes it all worth it.

Pre-Order Jump Rope Gazers: HERE

Jump Rope Gazers Tracklist:

  1. I’m Not Getting Excited
  2. Dying to Believe
  3. Jump Rope Gazers
  4. Acrid
  5. Do You Want Me Now
  6. Out of Sight
  7. Don’t Go Away
  8. Mars, the God of War
  9. You Are a Beam of Light
  10. Just Shy of Sure

The Beths Tour Dates:
Sun. Nov 8 – Perth, WA @ HBF Park*
Wed. Nov. 11 – Melbourne, VIC @ Marvel Stadium*
Sat. Nov. 14 – Sydney, NSW @ Bankwest Stadium*
Tue. Nov. 17 – Brisbane, QLD @ QSAC Stadium*
Fri. Nov. 20 – Dunedin, NZ @ Forsyth Barr Stadium*
Sun. Nov. 22 – Auckland, NZ @ Mt Smart Stadium*

*w/ Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – “She’s There” [Video]

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever announce their second record, Sideways to New Italy, out June 5th on Sub Pop, and today present a new single, “She’s There.” For the five-piece, returning to Melbourne after long stretches looking out at the world through the windows of airplanes and tour vans lead to a dislocation, like being the knot in the middle of a game of tug-o-war. Sideways to New Italy sees the band interrogate their individual pasts and the places that inform them.  In clicking the scattered pieces back into place, they have crafted for themselves a new totem of home to carry with them no matter where they end up.

Lead by singer-songwriter-guitarists Tom RussoJoe WhiteFran Keaney, and rounded out by bassist Joe Russo and drummer Marcel Tussie, the band began grasping for something reliable after emerging from relentlessly touring their critically regarded debut Hope Downs. Rather than dwell in the displacement, Keaney was determined to channel how he was feeling into something optimistic. The album is inspired by New Italy – a village near New South Wales’s Northern Rivers – the area Tussie is from. A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it pit-stop of a place with fewer than 200 residents, it was founded by Venetian immigrants in the late-1800s and now serves as something of a living monument to Italians’ contribution to Australia, with replica Roman statues dotted like souvenirs on the otherwise rural landscape.

I wanted to write songs that I could use as some sort of bedrock of hopefulness to stand on, something to be proud of,” says Keaney. “A lot of the songs on the new record are reaching forward and trying to imagine an idyll of home and love.” This is the bulk of Sideways to New Italy, which boasts love songs, and familiar voices and characters, grounding the band’s stories in their personal histories.

“She’s There” is about love and heavy delusions. Over pummeling guitar and fundamental percussion, White sings: “I should’ve done better but the time rolls on // Open the window, in the air, in a mirror, she’s there // Every time I speak her name there’s a cold shiver in my veins.” The accompanying video was directed by Nick McKinlay at Melbourne’s Coburg Motor Inn. “We tried to convey that feeling in a dream where you need to be somewhere, and you don’t really know why, but you are determined to overcome every obstacle to get there,” says the band.

“We tried to make these little nods to our friends and loved ones, to stay loyal to our old selves,” Russo explains. There’s something comforting, too, in knowing the next time they’re buffeted from stage to stage around the world, they’ll be taking the voices of their loved ones with them, following cues from their neighbours and ancestors and anyone else who responded to their newfound displacement by crafting a utopia in their own backyard.

Sideways to New Italy is now available for preorder from Sub Pop. Preorders of the LP through megamart.subpop.com and select independent retailers in North America, the U.K., and Europe, will receive the limited Loser edition (while supplies last). There will also be a new T-shirt design available. 


Sideways to New Italy Tracklist:
1.The Second Of The First
2. Falling Thunder
3. She’s There
4. Beautiful Steven
5. The Only One
6. Cars In Space
7. Cameo
8. Not Tonight
9. Sunglasses At The Wedding
10. The Cool Change

the black watch – “Brilliant Failures” [Video]

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!

the black watch Facebook
A Turntable Friend Records

Shasta – “Roaming Hearts” [Video]

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 – “Fire” [Video]

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 – “Rumbler” [Video]

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

Kiwi Jr. – “Gimme More” [Video]

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 – “Pantomima” [Video]

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

Cable Ties – “Sandcastles” [Video]

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 – “Psych Ward” [Video]

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 – “(Don’t Let The Dragon) Draag On” [Video]

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

Nick Kizirnis – “Slipping Away” [Video]

Nick Kizirnis has been a staple on the Dayton, Ohio music scene dating back to the late 80’s. From indie rock to surf to rockabilly and beyond, Nick has covered a multitude of genres and been included in a multitude of projects. That musical road has now arrived at his new solo album The Distance which is out February 1 via Atom Records. “Slipping Away” is the first video from the record which was directed by Sam Manavis.

The Distance features Kate Wakefield (Lung) and Mark Patterson (Son Volt) as well as Tod Weidner (Shrug, Motel Beds), Crazy Joe and Patrick Himes (Bribing Senators). The best description of the album comes straight from Nick in his own words:

“The Distance is a collection of songs about heartbreak and heartache from different points of view. The album began as a personal songwriting challenge, and when I found that I had a large set of songs but was having trouble finishing them, I tried to imagine what they would sound like if I DIDN’T sing them, or even play them. How would they change? It was something I had never done before and it opened up all sorts of possibilities, especially the chance to work with It was a completely new experience and the most rewarding one I’ve had in all these years of making music.”

Disq – “Daily Routine” [Video]

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

Noise Addict – “16” [Video Classic]

Ben Lee recently released a new album of covers called Quarter Century Classix via New West Records. The 13-song set was produced by Lee and features his interpretations of early ‘90s indie rock favorites by Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Pavement, The Breeders, Superchunk, Built To Spill, Archers of Loaf, Daniel Johnston, Dinosaur Jr., Guided By Voices, Sebadoh, Smudge, and Beat Happening. Lee’s main collaborator on Quarter Century Classix was the innovative electronic artist Julianna Barwick and the album also features appearances by the punk rock icon Mike Watt of the Minutemen & Firehose, William Tyler, Petra Haden of that dog. & The Haden Triplets, Maria Taylor of Azure Ray, the harpist Mary Lattimore, and drummer Joey Waronker.

With this release you clearly can hear Lee’s indie influences and if you are not aware of his first band, Noise Addict, you should check out their 1995 record Meet The Real You. “16” is a single from that record and worth a revisit!

Catholic Action – “One Of Us” [Video]

“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.

Kevin Krauter – “Surprise” [Video]

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 – “Headlights” [Video]

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

The Jay Vons – “Keep on Moving” [Video]

The Jay Vons have a new video for “Keep On Moving” off their debut album, The Word, which is out now via La Castanya. Discussing the video, director Artur Tort (Escafior Films) stated, We wanted to create a very rhythmic piece, mixing apparently random images collected during a short stay in New York with images of the Jay Vons performing at a small studio. It is a kind of back and forth movement between the almost infinite space of the city and the very condensed, narrow location where the band rehearses. Frantic movement of buildings, trains, and urban shapes penetrate inside the studio, and at the same time music and lyrics escape into the constantly evolving landscape.

The Word, recorded at Daptone Studios, Dunham Sounds and Diamond Mine Studios with engineers/producers Wayne Gordon (Sharon Jones/Charles Bradley/King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard/Bad Bad Not Good) and Tommy Brenneck (Mark Ronson/Lee Fields/Bebel Gilberto), showcases how this rhythmic tour-de-force blends their love for ‘60s rock and soul with a deftness born from decades of obsessive record collecting and delivered by countless hours of writing and performing. You can order a copy of the album HERE.

The Murder Capital – “More Is Less” [Video]

Dublin’s The Murder Capital have shared a new video for ‘More Is Less’ – the live version of which went viral and forged the band’s breakthrough last year. The video follows the release of their debut album When I Have Fears in August, which reached a Top 20 chart position in the UK, and a #2 position in their native Ireland.
The new album is available on gatefold colour LP, black LP, as part of a limited bundle (gatefold colour LP, t-shirt, pin & journal), CD and as a digital download. You can order the album HERE.

Produced by Flood (PJ Harvey, New Order, Foals) the album features all four singles from the band so far, ‘Feeling Fades’, ‘Green & Blue’ & ‘Don’t Cling To Life’ and ‘More Is Less.’ Alongside the new video the band have a huge string of live dates for 2020 which are listed below, including their biggest London headline show to-date at Electric Ballroom. The band are currently on a sold out UK headline tour and will be playing across Europe in November.

24 January – Chelsea – Vienna, AT
25 January – Strom – Munich, DE
26 January – Underdogs – Prague CZ
28 January – Klub Hydrozagadka – Warsaw, PL
29 January – Projekt LAB – Poznan, PL
31 January – Loppen – Copenhagen, DK

1 February – Atlas – Aarhus, DK
3 February – Musik und Frieden – Berlin, DE
4 February – Gleis 22 – Munster, DE
6 February – Vera – Groningen, NL
7 February – Grauzone Festival – Den Haag, NL
11 February – Botanique – Brussels, BE
13 February – Leeds Irish Centre – Leeds, UK
14 February – Manchester Academy 2 – Manchester, UK
15 February – The Art School – Glasgow, UK
17 February – Rescue Rooms – Nottingham, UK
18 February – Wedgewood Rooms – Portsmouth, UK
19 February – SWX – Bristol, UK
21 February – Electric Ballroom – London, UK
22 February – The Leadmill – Sheffield, UK
24 February – The O2 Institute 2 – Birmingham, UK
25 February – O2 Academy 2 Liverpool – Liverpool, UK
27 February – Vicar Street – Dublin, IRE

Psychedelic Porn Crumpets – “Mundungus” [Video]

Following a huge tour across America, Canada, Europe and the UK, Perth’s Psychedelic Porn Crumpets share their new video for “Mundungus”, shot by the band on super 8 and taking us along for the ride of their whirlwind past few months. A new favourite addition to the live set, “Mundungus” premiered on Annie Mac’s BBC Radio 1 show, and is the band’s first release since they shared their new album And Now For The Whatchamacallit earlier this year. “Mundungus is the rare post tour recovery period where all our surrounding friends and family assume we’re crippled with alcoholism, burdened with lives of social estrangement and are far too disillusioned to foresee our self destructive tendencies”. – Jack McEwan Psychedelic Porn Crumpets

Returning home for this year’s Spilt Milk Festival and summer’s Falls Festival, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are gearing up for a homecoming tour to remember. You can find their current dates below.

AUSTRALIAN TOUR DATES
Saturday 23rd November Spilt Milk Festival Canberra SOLD OUT
Saturday 30th November Spilt Milk Festival Ballarat SOLD OUT
Saturday 28th December – Wednesday 1st January Falls Festival Lorne
Sunday 29th December – Tuesday 31st December Falls Festival Marion Bay
Tuesday 31st December – Thursday 2nd January Falls Festival Byron Bay
Friday 3rd January – Saturday 4th January Falls Festival Fremantle