Author: William Ruben Helms

William Ruben Helms is a Corona, Queens, NYC-born and-based African American music journalist, freelance writer, editor, photographer and founder of the DIY, independent music and photography site, The Joy of Violent Movement. Over the course of the past two decades, Helms’ writing and photography has been published in Downbeat, Premier Guitar Magazine (photography), Consequence, The Inventory, Glide Magazine.com (words and photography), Publisher’s Weekly, Sheckys.com, Shecky’s Bar and Nightlife Guide 2004, New York Press, Ins&Outs Magazine, Dish Du Jour Magazine, Aussie music publication Musicology.xyz (photography) and countless others, including his own site. With The Joy of Violent Movement, Helms specializes in covering music with an eclectic, globe-trotting, and genre-defying perspective that’s deeply inspired by and informed by his birthplace and home, arguably one of the most diverse places in the world. Since its founding back in 2010, The Joy of Violent Movement can proudly claim readers across the US, Canada, the UK, The Netherlands, France, Australia, and several others throughout its history. https://www.joyofviolentmovement.com https://www.joyofviolentmovement.com/shop https://www.instagram.com/william_ruben_helms Twitter: @yankee32879 @joyofviolent become a fan of the joy of violent movement: https://www.facebook.com/TheJoyofViolentMovement support the joy of violent movement on patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheJoyofViolentMovement hire me for headshots, portraits and event photography: https://www.photobooker.com/photographer/ny/new-york/william-h?duration=1?duration=1#
Single Review by William Ruben Helms

With the release of her first two EPs Run and Waters, the London-based singer/songwriter and guitarist Eliza Shaddad quickly rose to international prominence, receiving praise from a number of major media outlets including The Fader, Nylon, Stereogum, The Line of Best Fit, The Independent, Clash, The 405, as well as airplay from BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1Xtra, Beats 1 Radio and countless others for a sound that some have compared to the likes of PJ Harvey, Cat Power and others.

Over the past few years, I’ve written quite a bit about the acclaimed British singer/songwriter, and as you may recall, Shaddad’s highly-anticipated full-length debut Future is slated for an October 26, 2018 release through Beatnik Creative. Earlier this year, I wrote about Future‘s second single “My Body,” a moody track featuring shoegazer-like atmospherics and a dark, seductive, trip hop-inspired groove that evoked a plaintive and uncertain need. “This Is My Cue” the album’s third single continued in a similar vein as its predecessor — moody atmospherics but centered around a candid and ironically rousing breakup song.

Future‘s fourth and latest single “Just Goes to Show” continues a run of atmospheric tracks with a deceptively anthemic nature but much like its immediate predecessor, the track is deeply confessional and unabashedly honest description of the desperate, uneasy feelings of a breakup –but from the perspective of the person being left behind to deal with the aftermath. And while some have compared the song to The Cranberries, Wolf Alice and Marika Hackman, the song isn’t completely dire as it (subtly) suggests that life and one’s heart does go on after a while.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Earlier this month, I wrote about Liam Brown, an up-and-coming Liverpool, UK-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and electro pop artist, best known as Pizzagirl, and with the release of his debut EP An Extended Play earlier this year, Brown was championed by the likes of Huw Stephens, Annie Mac and Lauren Laverne, and received praise from DIY, Highsnobiety, Wonderland, The Line of Best Fit and others for an 80s synth pop inspired sound. And adding to a growing profile, Brown opened for acclaimed British act Her’s during their most recent UK tour.

Building upon the growing buzz surrounding him, Brown’s sophomore Pizzagirl effort season 2 is slated for a November release, and as you may recall EP single “highschool” was an achingly wistful and pensive synth pop track centered around arpeggiated synths, thumping beats and a sinuous hook that immediately brought Washed Out, St. Lucia and classic 80s synth pop to mind. “gymnasium,” season 2‘s latest single continues on a similar vein — swooningly heartfelt and oversized teenaged sentiment paired with a breezy yet decidedly DIY production featuring twinkling keys, thumping beats, Brown’s plaintive vocals, a Tears for Fears-like bridge and incredibly infectious hooks. Just as important, Brown manages to accurately capture and evoke what it feels like to be a high schooler and desperately in love.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Calvin Johnson Returns with a Meditative Bit of Bubblegum Pop

 Over the past couple of months, I’ve written quite a bit about Calvin Johnson, an  Olympia, WA-born and-based guitarist, singer/songwriter, producer and DJ best known as a founding member of Cool Rays, Beat Happening, The Go Team and The Halo Benders, all of which prominently feature his sonorous baritone. He’s also the founder and owner of renowned indie label K Records — and he was one of the major organizers of the International Pop Underground Convention.

Now, as you may recall, Johnson’s forthcoming A Wonderful Beast is slated for an October 12, 2018 release through his own K Records, and the album, which was recorded at  Audio Eagle Studios in Nashville, TN finds Johnson collaborating with the The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney, who cowrote and produced the album and Michelle Branch, who contributes backing vocals on three songs.  Johnson can trace the origins of his collaboration with Carney back to 2005, when the Olympia, WA-based singer/songwriter guitarist, producer and DJ was on a Stateside tour to support his sophomore solo album Before the Dream Faded — and Carney and Johnson met during that tour. As the story goes, the two kept in touch over the years, with Carney suggesting that they should collaborate; but based on their schedules they were only able to work with each other recently. Branch, a solo artist of note is best known for being a member of The Wreckers, and as it turns out that she lives next door to Audio Eagle Studios. Intrigued by the sounds she heard from the shack that houses the studio, she walked over to see for herself what was going on, and she wound up on the album.

“Kiss Me Sweetly,” A Wonderful Beast’s first single was centered around a 60s bubblegum pop-like arrangement featuring a propulsive rhythm section consisting of a thumping, almost boom-bap-like backbeat, a funky bass line and blasts of swirling, kaleidoscopic guitar playing — but by far, the star of the song is the harmonizing between Johnson’s rich, sonorous baritone and Branch’s ethereal soprano, which further emphasizes the song’s swooning nature.  The album’s second single was the Tom Vek meets bubblegum pop-like “Like You Do,” a track that features jagged blasts of guitar, soaring synths and a dance floor friendly hook — but unlike its predecessor, the album’s latest single possesses a mischievous irony at its core, as it features a self-obsessed, self-absorbed narrator, who only sees his own greatness. Interestingly, the album’s latest single “(I’ve Still Got) Sand In My Shoes”  continues in a similar vein as its predecessors, as its a bubblegum pop-inspired yet meditative arrangement, featuring an angular and propulsive rhythm section and blasts of swirling guitar and synth lines, centered by Johnson’s sonorous baritone and Branch’s ethereal vocals harmonizing to give the song a breezily coquettish yet wistful air. It’s the sound of another summer ending, of cooler weather coming and the impending end of yet another year. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Introducing the Slickly Produced and Mediative R&B of Honors

Honors is an up-and-coming Canadian indie R&B act that quickly emerged into the international scene with the release of their #1 Global Viral Spotify chart hit “Over” — although their success wasn’t an overnight one. The members of the up-and-coming act met over a decade ago and have worked in a number of different projects before forming Honors. Their latest single “Feel Better” will further cement their reputation for slickly produced and atmospheric material that effortlessly bridges trap, contemporary electro pop and contemporary R&B as the song features achingly tender vocals, thumping beats and a sinuous hook.

Interestingly, while seeming bleak sonically, the song is unabashedly positive, with its narrator actively seeking light in extremely dark times, suggesting that there’s frequently some sort of struggle before achieving any sort of success; in fact, the song may be among the most personal they’ve ever released, as its inspired by the bandmembers own personal struggles, while trying to make it as artists.  In another way, it’s also a reminder that the journey is as important as the destination; that without understanding the journey, the destination doesn’t make much sense. 

Directed by Nikola Crnobrnja, the recently released meditative video for “Feel Better,” features the members of the Canadian act driving around without much of a destination. As the members of the band explain in press notes. “We didn’t want to make traditional, or narrative based videos on our new project ‘Feel Better,’ so instead we wanted to imagine a visual counterpoint to the emotion and feeling of the song. Driving is transportative literally, but also metaphorically. It is very introspective. For us ‘Feel Better’ is an autobiographical song about making peace with the journey, while continuing to move forward in the direction of your dreams.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Up-and-Coming Danish Artist Selma Judith Releases Vulnerable Visuals for Intimate, Debut Single “Kind Of Lonely”

Selma Judith is a heavily tattooed Copenhagen-Denmark-based harpist, who was best known for collaborating with The National’s Arron and Bryce Dessner, Vera, and MØ among others; however, with the release of her debut single”Kind Of Lonely,” the Danish harpist has revealed that she specializes in a delicate, woozy yet swooning and heartfelt electro R&B, centered around a production of stuttering beats, Selma Judith’s self-assured and sultry vocals, ethereal synths and a sinuous, Quiet Storm-like hook. As the up-and-coming artist says of the song, “Sometimes you love someone ‘despite of…’, instead of ‘because of…’. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the emotions we feel for the person are any weaker – it can be quite the contrary. This kind of relationship can reach wuthering heights, but although the view might be grand and beautiful, the fall is further down. The thin air up in these clouds is addictive, but in the long run, it can really damage you.”

Directed by Masha Koppel, the recently released video was shot in single take and captures Selma Judith in an incredibly simple, intimate, vulnerable fashion  — a young woman in her apartment, playing with her cat, singing along to her song before moving to her bathroom to undress and shower, before ending with her casually smoke a cigarette out of her window.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay Boys Noize Teams Up With Steven A. Clark on an Industrial Take on Adamski and Seal’s Classic “Killer”

Throughout the course of this site’s eight year history, I’ve written quite a bit about Berlin, Germany-based JOVM mainstay producer, electronic music artist, DJ and Boys Noize Records label head Alex Ridha, best known as Boys Noize. Now it’s been a while since I’ve personally written about Ridha, but he’s been remarkably busy as he’s released 2016’s Mayday and has spent the past couple of years collaborating with a diverse and impressive array of artists including Lady Gaga, 03 Greedo, A$AP Rocky, RL Grime and Steven A. Clark.

Interestingly enough, while working with Clark on his recently released Where Neon Goes to Die, Clark and Ridha bonded over a mutual love and appreciation of Seal and Adamski’s “Killer,” an acid house anthem that dominated European charts in 1989, appeared on Seal’s eponymous 1990 self-titled debut and covered by George Michael in 1993. Clark’s and Ridha’s cover hews closely to the original but with a punchier and harsher, industrial take on the house music classic. It’s subtly 

As Ridha says of the cover, “Being a 90’s kid, I kind of grew up with this song which later became one of these tunes I’d play out at the end of the night. When I met Steven and heard his voice for the first time I immediately thought of that track and the idea of doing a cover version was born. It was initially just for fun, but it turned banging and lit the dancefloors wherever I’d drop it – so here I am sharing my industrial KILLER.”

Directed by long-time collaborator LIL INTERNET, the recently released video is a remake of the original video, shot at Berlin’s c-base, known for being “the mother of all hackspaces,” with the bulk of the video shot in a space referred to the “airlock,” with the members of the c-space crew referring to themselves as a Space Station. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Cavemen Return with a Scuzzy and Boozy New Single Paired with Debauched Visuals

Earlier this year, I wrote about the Auckland, New Zealand-based punk rock quartet The Cavemen, and as you may recall, the band which was originally comprised of Paul Caveman (vocals), Jack Caveman (guitar, vocals), Nick Caveman (bass) and Jake Caveman (drums), formed while in high school — with the band’s founding members bonding over a shared love of glue and wild rock ‘n’ roll. After spending several years drinking and loitering around their hometown’s basements, graveyards and parking lots, the band’s original lineup honed their sound and over the course of 2014-2015 or so recorded their full-length debut, which received attention locally for material that could be roughly described as face-melting and furious punk that drew from The Ramones, The Cramps, The Stooges, The MC5 and others but thematically focused on grave-robbing, necrophilia and other weird shit with a sneering sense of humor; in fact, they’ve developed a reputation for being infamous — or as the band once claimed they were a “great band to clear a party.” 

As the story goes, just two weeks before the members of The Cavemen were to relocate to London, they went on an infamous national tour to support their debut album, and unsurprisingly, the tour included an ill-fated graveyard tour that had to be canceled when the band’s Nick Caveman died in a tragic car accident: their tour van’s engine exploded, and as Nick Caveman was trying to see what was wrong, a passing motorist hit him. Now as you’d also recall, the British record label Dirty Water Records re-released their debut album for release in Europe and elsewhere, and from album single “Stand By Your Ghoul,” the band specialized in filthy, cretinous punk, centered around fuzzy power chords and howled lyrics. Unsurprisingly, the band has released the “Burn Out For Love” 7 inch and it’s a boozy, grimy and filthy punk ripper, full of power chords, amphetamine-fueled drummer and howled vocals. Sonically speaking, the song brings to mind, punk’s riotous boozy and revolutionary roots. 

The accompanying video is a cheap and scuzzy cut and paste job on the Mexican punksploitation film Intrepidos Punks featuring the prerequisite debauched orgy of car crashes, breasts and gratuitous biker violence. Enjoy! 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Introducing the Psych Pop-Inspired Sounds of Sweden’s Mysterious Kallblod

Kallblod is a rather mysterious Swedish electro rock duo that have begun to receive attention with the release of their debut single “Bone & Cream,” which finds the act effortlessly meshing 60s psych pop and 80s New Wave in a way that’s mischievously anachronistic and lushly textured as the duo pair jangling guitars, shimmering synths and an infectious hook.

The recently released music video follows our mysterious — and masked duo — through their own hilariously adorable relationship, including kids and marriage, but before that through a series of weird adventures.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Introducing the Soaring and Earnest Synth Pop of Norway’s Chain Wallet

With the release of their self-titled debut, the Bergen, Norway-based dream pop act Chain Wallet, featuring core members Stian Iversen, Christian Line and Frode Boris, quickly received attention both nationally elsewhere for material that was infectious yet hazy and melancholic synth-based pop. Written in and by inspired by the trio’s hometown, their full-length debut is centered around a narrative structure in which a deeply conflicted protagonist is followed throughout — while thematically, the album focused on unresolved ambition and the desperate attempt to let go of the past. 

The trio’s highly-anticipated sophomore album No Ritual which is slated for a February 15, 2019 release through Jansen Records found the members of the up-and-coming Norwegian dream pop act retreating to a small cabin on a remote beach in southwestern Norway. And while walking the beaches and hanging out among surfers, the members of the band were inspired by the surroundings — and interestingly enough, the album continues to follow the protagonist of their self-titled debut but thematically speaking, the album finds him in a state of spiritual limbo, desperately reaching out and trying to establish new symbolic meanings.  Interestingly, the album’s first single “Ride” is a gorgeous and cinematic bit of synth pop featuring an arrangement of shimmering synths, equally shimmering guitar lines, a motorik groove and a soaring hook that to my ears reminds me a little bit of John Parr’s “St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)” and contemporaries like Moaning and others; but with an earnest yet effortless slickness. As the members of the band explains in press notes, “Ride” was the first song they wrote for their sophomore album, and “thematically, the song evokes elements of ‘the drifter on a cook bike’ trope. It’s about riding away from something, not realizing that you can’t outride your own demons.” 
Directed by the members of the band, the recently released video finds the members of the band literally riding different modes of transportation but juxtaposed with shots in static environments. The video is decidedly DIY in nature, but as the members of the band explain, “To be honest, the idea for this video would be too complex to capture with the technology we had at hand (a VHS camera and iMovie),” the band continues. “We adjusted the artistic vision, and went for a literal interpretation of the title. This is why the video ended up being a neat collection of shots of the band riding different means of transportation, juxtaposed with shots in static environments.”