Man Made Lakes is the new album from singer-songwriter Reuben Bullock. A sonically rich and finely-textured recording, Bullock effortlessly connects the dots between such touchstones as Bruce Springsteen, Connor Oberst/Bright Eyes, and Neil Young. The album was recorded by producer Lorrie Matheson (Samantha Savage Smith, Ghostkeeper, Rae Spoon) in a small garage studio in Calgary, mostly as a live band, often in a single take. This comes as no surprise, however, as Bullock's band is comprised of some of the finest musicians around. Multi-instrumentalist Scott Munro (Chad van Gaalen, Ghostkeeper), Distance Bullock (whose background in hardcore bands Bring Fire and the Illustrated does nothing to pre...
Hailing from the San Fernando Valley, HAIM consists of, “Three sisters, and a mister” that has been shaking things up in the city of Los Angeles for the past four years. It is truly a family affair for the band which prides themselves on being able to switch from instrument to instrument with complete confidence and ease, and all while singing in three part harmony.The sisters, Este, Danielle, and Alana, grew up playing classic rock songs with their parents in a family band, called “Rockinhaim,” which played for charity events and street fairs. After years of playing with their parents, the girls decided to strike out on their own, and began writing their own material. Este, the eldest of the thr...
There was a time, in recent history, when you needed to have at least twelve members to even be considered a band in Canada. It was nearly impossible to tour if you didn’t have access to some kind of personnel carrier, and making a record involved several years of tambourine overdubs. You know there were kids out there who just wanted to get in a van and play loud as hell through an Ampeg stack or a four-piece drum kit, but how could you call it a band if you didn’t even know a French horn player? By 2008, band membership had reached a critical mass. You’d go to a show and you might be the only person in the room who wasn’t playing an instrument. Hard times.Thankfully, there are always a few naturally res...
Led by former Faith No More keyboardist Roddy Bottum, the alternative pop band Imperial Teen emerged from San Francisco in 1994. Co-founded with drummer Lynn Perko, a veteran of Bay Area groups like the Dicks and Sister Double Happiness, the lineup was completed by former Wrecks bassist Jone Stebbings and vocalist Will Schwartz. Debuting in 1996 with the critical favorite Seasick, Imperial Teen resurfaced in early 1999 with What Is Not to Love, a minor hit due to the success of the sultry "Yoo Hoo." A tour with Hole followed, but the majority of their live shows were done on a headlining club tour. On was the next release, their first for Merge Records and another fine example of their coy boy/girl pop. A live album was also re...
The Buster Bledsoe Band has been burning up the highways around Eastern New Mexico, Kansas, the Oklahoma Panhandle as well as the Texas Panhandle and Central Texas since early 2007. The band is made up of lead singer and acoustic guitar player Buster Bledsoe, drummer Israel Lupercio, bass player Kenny Rickwartz, lead guitar Chris Adame and sound guy and flashlight engineer Shawn T. White. The members of this band have very different and unique backgrounds, and when they come together, they put on an awesome live show with music that will scoot you around any size dance floor! Being voted Best of Amarillo Local Country Band in 2010, these guys have shared the stage with some of the top Texas Country Music artists around including Tommy Ga...
Sometime in the spring of 2012 the musicians that would go on to form the Chicago & Minneapolis based trio ON AN ON found themselves at a tipping point. The three of them—Nate Eiesland, Alissa Ricci, and Ryne Estwing—had played music with one another in various capacities for the better part of a decade. Most recently, they had shared the stage and studio as three fifths of the indie-pop outfit Scattered Trees, which had seen its fair share of success. But with the band’s studio time only a few weeks away and the other members now spread out across the country pursuing other endeavors, they would chart their own course and come out stronger for it. What emerged was ON AN ON.For ON AN ON...
Pushing the boundaries and safety net of today's genre of hard rock and metal, Brent Sutton takes a no holds barred approach with the release of his debut solo EP, 'Inception'. The style and attitude of the record is melodically dark, ebullient, moving and almost cinematic with lustrous blazing guitars, passionate vocals and an imagery-designed structure that will take you on a ride! The record features musicians that Sutton handpicked to embellish the record, including Rafe Sweet (Bionic Jive/Dying Tribe), Brandon Kruszeniak (ColdFusion), Danny Saba and others. Brent Sutton (born May 26, 1987) is an American musician from Arizona. Brent Sutton was raised in the small town of Williams, Arizona. Brent picked up the drums at age 9 a...
There are metal bands and then there is Lamb of God.A new breed of modern American metal was erected in the 2000s, with Lamb of God serving as an architect, designing the blueprint that would become the standard by which bands that came after them would be judged. So often, the European metal scene has set the tone and established the creative high watermark of the global metal scene, providingthe template that their American brethren would follow. Then Lamb of God came along and all bets were off.It was Lamb of God who rewrote the rules, devised a new playbook and raised the standard. The genre was forever and irrefutably changed by what the band has done.By the mid-00s, there was a full metal Rena...
One of the most notable and successful ska-punk bands of all time, Sublime has sold over 17 million albums worldwide. The group's success stems from their multi-platinum landmark debut album 40oz. To Freedom, the lo-fi follow up Robbin' The Hood and the multi-platinum self-titled major label debut (a virtual greatest hits set in itself) all widely regarded as music collection staples. The founding members of Sublime, drummer Bud Gaugh and bass player Eric Wilson, along with new frontman singer/guitarist Rome Ramirez, make up Sublime With Rome. They recently completed their first new original work, Yours...
Tomahawk are an experimental/metal/alternative rock band from the United States.The band formed in 2000 when Fantômas, ex- Mr. Bungle and ex-Faith No Moresinger Mike Patton and ex-The Jesus Lizard guitar player ...
When the then 21-year old Mac DeMarco released his debut Rock and Roll Night Club 12″ just a short while ago in the Spring of 2012, it was accompanied by a barrage of bizarrely funny promo videos, wildly unhinged live performances and a not-so-subtle disparate range of promo photos. The glam facade was purely that, an image that was manufactured for fun to confuse the stiff and compartmentalizing world of indie music journalists. But it wasn’t all a jest, as that EP covered a whole range of music styles that were latent in the ex-Makeout Videotape frontman’s already impressive slough of cassette-only releases. The sincere and warm Mac who sang “Only You” was the same lipstick-wearing sleazoid that crooned ...
The very best type of pop music is the kind that mixes sweetness and light with dissonance and darkness, the sort which injects a perfectly addictive harmony with something sadder, stranger. Think of the gloomy melodrama of “Tell Laura I Love Her”, which kickstarted the “teenage tragedy song” craze in the 60’s, the bleak farewell of “Seasons In the Sun” in the 70’s, even The Smiths’ “Girlfriend in a Coma” in the 80’s – all meltingly beautiful melodies with something considerably darker lurking at its heart; the black cloud on a summer’s day, the bruise on a perfect face. It is a long and storied lineage, and one which London four-piece Veronica Falls ar...
Alex Larson, the charismatic frontman, guitarist and driving creative force behind Twin Cities based rockers Crankshaft and the Gear Grinders, asks a simple question of his rapidly expanding fan base in the first breath of the hard rumbling jam "When The Sun Goes Down"-the opening track of their latest fulllength album. Starting with the album title, he sings, "What You Gonna Do when the well runs dry?" Tongue firmly in cheek, Larson calls this "our apocalyptic song," but it's really about the way a person's mettle is tested under tough circumstances, like the difficult economy of the past few years. A true 21st century twist on American roots music, the high-energy 12 track set answers that question-and offers...
Kevin Kennedy, fresh off a national arena tour with Neverending White Lights opening for Our Lady Peace, decides to start a new project. Matt Weston, a longtime friend, drummer, and studio engineer is called in to help produce and most likely play drums on the project. The project hits a snag, or what was thought to be a snag, while auditioning bass players. The right mix of feel, ability, and reliability was not found. As an experiment on the first song, Weston hooks up his Roland Octapad to a bass amp and programs the root notes for the chords. A period of relearning how to play the drums while also playing the bass ensues and the rest is history!The Dyadics are formed and rehearse a full album's worth of ...
WORLD RENOWNED COMPOSER AND WOODWINDMASTER YOCHANAN SEBASTIAN WINSTON BRINGS A SOUL-STIRRING BLEND OF JAZZ, NEW AGE, CLASSICAL AND JEWISH MUSIC TO HIS DEEPLY SPIRITUAL EXPLORATION ‘THE KABBALAH SUITE’In recent years, the attraction of celebrities like Demi Moore, Ashton Kutcher, Madonna, Britney Spears and Gwyneth Paltrow to Kabbalah has brought the wisdom and practice of its ancient Jewish esoteric teachings into the limelight. But few musicians have explored it as deeply and expressed it as passionately as internationally acclaimed composer and woodwind virtuoso Dr. Yochanan Sebastian Winston, who has long been a vital and active force on the contemporary Jewish music scene. Created in...
Forged by a passion for the gorgeously strange alchemy of electronic music and shimmering pop, FutureKind has carved a unique path through the blistering desert since the mid 2000s. The Phoenix-based band's lush layered sound recalls the glory days of trip-hop while simultaneously stretching the outer limits of contemporary esoteric dream pop. Even though they favor a complex and rich amalgam of styles, FutureKind's music is without pretense and always approachable....
Pushing the boundaries and safety net of today's genre of hard rock and metal, Brent Sutton takes a no holds barred approach with the release of his debut solo EP, 'Inception'. The style and attitude of the record is melodically dark, ebullient, moving and almost cinematic with lustrous blazing guitars, passionate vocals and an imagery-designed structure that will take you on a ride! The record features musicians that Sutton handpicked to embellish the record, including Rafe Sweet (Bionic Jive/Dying Tribe), Brandon Kruszeniak (ColdFusion), Danny Saba and others. Brent Sutton (born May 26, 1987) is an American musician from Arizona. Brent Sutton was raised in the small town of Williams, Arizona. Brent picked up the drums at age 9 a...
Born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina, 24-year-old Chaz Bundick (aka Toro Y Moi) has been toying with various musical projects since early adolescence. Having spent his formative years playing in punk and indie rock acts, the protean Toro Y Moi project has been his vessel for further musical exploration since 2001. In his latter years studying graphic design at the University of South Carolina, Chaz became increasingly focused on his solo work, incorporating electronics and allowing a wider range of influences—French house, Brian Wilson’s pop, 80s R&B, and Stones Throw hip-hop—to show up in his music. By the time he graduate...
Glasgow is an outlet project which started about a year ago through notes and scrambled, random letters. The writing began to take form around October 2011 when the musical accompaniment started flowing with the words. Thanks in part to Chase Francis, Glasgow was able to produce the backbone of the future four song EP through emailed attachments of guitar riffs and percussion. Chelsey Henson and Jesse Brown bought into Glasgow around March 2012. Jesse's style of drumming meshed really well with the spacious guitar riffs and that Chelsey's glockenspiel/synth combo added a lot of depth to the sound. By May 5th Phil Secrest joined in to pla...
Formed in Brooklyn, NY in 2007, indie rockers The Clox possess a unique credibility that has the potential to bridge the gap between indie rock, alternative rock, and pop. With a starkness and euro flair that is rarely heard amongst most American indie bands, The Clox are bringing something new to the scene that has as much brooding as it does catchy rhythm....
“Helluva songwriter,” says bluesman Jimmy D. Lane of Hallal. “The right elements of blues and funky sensibilities keep it real” with his “gutbucket” band, says The Noise of BostonTheir sound is “tight… smoldering… electrifying…” declares Blues Bytes. And their new album, Hatchet Blues, is one of the Top 100 CDs of the year, judges Real Blues magazine, in the company of releases from Elvin Bishop, Roomful of Blues and other notables“Lyrically and sonically… a fine piece of work,” says the UK’s Blues Matters!. Have a taste. ...
Again is Clark Colborn's second album (the first released under the name "Clark Plays Guitar)." While that release garnered strong reviews, Colborn ups the ante with the follow up. The change can be noted by just looking at the credits as King's X's Ty Tabor serves as the mastering engineer on the release. But the difference doesn't stop there. Colborn admits that on the first disc he held back a bit, playing it a bit safe. With Again, he says, "I let the songs take control and go where they wanted to go. So I ended up with longer songs (the obvious single, "Lie to Me," is six and a half minutes long!), more complex arrangements (but they still flow and rock!), and vocals. I always try to write music that will flow,...
WitchFeet is an indie rock band from Chicago, Illinois. The band is Indie Rock in the most classic sense of the meaning; loud, dissonant, and challenging to the listener, while still maintaining a focus on melody and plain good, catchy, well thought out songwriting. The has been compared to the likes of Guided by Voices, Archer's of Loaf, Oasis, Dinosaur Jr., Superdrag The Cure, Samiam, bands on the venerable Flying Nun label, Pixies, and even Siamese Dream era Smashing Pumpkins. While the influence of these artists can be heard in the music, WitchFeet has a sound all their own that seems to transcend labels, genres, and fads. It's best described as rock music for people who really like music.WitchFeet's roo...
Colin Tench, Petri Lemmy Lindström and Pasi Koivu began this collaboration almost by accident. Chance meetings on Facebook! We are all lovers of a huge variety of music. Pasi asked Colin to play guitar on Iron Pillows in late 2011. He did. Petri heard the result and asked if he could play bass on it. We KNEW what we had from that one small thing that we did. In 2012, Pasi sent Colin Ice King. That was the real start of the collaboration and album plans. After we had completed about 6 tracks, I think we were all stunned by what we were doing. The results were fun, moving, foot tapping and powerful. It sounded like we have been playing together for 10 years. Pasi, composer and keyboard player, with the most original and far ranging music...
Fort Worth based duo, PINKISH BLACK, announces their signing to Century Media Records. PINKISH BLACK is the duo Jon Teague on drums and vocalist/synthesizer, Daron Beck. They are the continuation of THE GREAT TYRANT, a three piece that released one LP posthumously following the passing of their bass player, Tommy Atkins. THE GREAT TYRANT was on its way to redefining what heavy music was. When Atkins died, the only changes were the name and how to achieve this as a two piece, the latter being no small feat.PINKISH BLACK's last, self-titled album, released on Handmade Birds, featured seven tracks of dark, intense and at times, haunting songs. As one of the heaviest bands of late to feature no stringed instruments, PINKISH BL...
How To Dress Well is the stage name of songwriter and producer Tom Krell. Krell’s burgeoning career began in 2009 when, having just moved from Brooklyn to Berlin, his songs began to emerge online via a hugely prolific string of free, digital EPs posted in anonymity on his blog. Combining a gorgeous falsetto with fractured R&B-influenced beats, an instinctive ear for subtly devastating melody and elements of noise, sound collage and avant-garde composition, Krell’s debut album Love Remains offered a beautiful window into a startlingly realised artistic imagination. Praised for both its conceptual strength and immediate emotional resonance, Love Remains duly garnered vast critical acclaim and highlights such as “Re...
"Most of my ideas are written at night" explains SBTRKT. "Late at night, when everything around is silent - that atmosphere is where most of this record came from, and for me it explains it's sound"SBTRKT is no stranger to writing, recording and releasing music. To date he's had multiple releases on Brainmath, Numbers, Ramp, Monkeytown and now home label Young Turks. Add to that reworkings of Radiohead and Goldie, and remixes of Modeselektor... However, this self-titled release is his first full-length album. "This release is the culmination of a longer period of constant writing and collaboration, tracks on previous EPs were written as singular pieces. This record is much more of a whole project, more r...
22 year old New York textile designer, song writer and artist, Kish Robinson, also know as kilo kish, debuted her new EP HomeSchool on April 1st via her website. Matt, Syd and Hal Williams of Odd Future produced most of the EP now available to stream on www.kilokish.com.Kish is featured on the Internet’s Purple Naked Ladies LP and is also working on her next projects incorporating all aspects of her artistry. She was an artist to watch at CMJ Music Marathon 2012. kilo kish is proud to announce the "Navy" single on The Blue Rider, making it the second release ever from the hot young label. Following the success of her self-released E...
Nipping at the ragged heels of their eagerly devoured Sod in the Seed EP, WHY? at last unleash their fifth long-player, a meticulous work of morbid fascination and offbeat romanticism dubbed Mumps, etc. Though there is a mysterious sickness (perhaps of the mind) that lurks about these thirteen songs, one might also imagine the title as describing the musically swole state of these three Midwestern&nb...
