Category: Single Review

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Thomas Jäger, Esben Willems, and Mika Häkki, Gothenburg, Sweden-based doom metal trio Monolord can trace its origins to 2013 when both Jäger and Willems started the band as a side project and opportunity to play dark and heavy material away from their primary gig as members of boogie rock band Marulk.  Häkki, who was best known for his work in The Don Darlings and Rotten Sound was recruited to flesh out the band’s sound and complete their lineup. And as the story goes, while working on material that would wind up comprising their debut effort, Empress Riding the trio realized that they had a special creative simpatico  — although interestingly enough Jäger took up vocal duties for the first time in his recording career.

Having met RidingEasy Records‘ head Daniel Hall through Instagram, the band immediately sent the finished album to Hall, and after hearing it, Hall immediately signed them and then released their back in 2014. Their long-awaited and critically applauded sophomore effort Vænir was released last year and building upon the buzz they’ve received both nationally and internationally, the doom metal trio will be releasing a 10″ EP on August 12, which they’ll be supporting with a lengthy headlining throughout August and September with Beastmaker and Sweat Lodge — and it’ll include an August 27, 2016 stop at Greenpoint metal den St. Vitus. And just as they announced tour dates, the members of Monolord released the latest single off their 10″ EP, “Die in Haze,” a sludgy power chord-heavy dirge with thundering drumming and Jäger’s vocals ethereally floating over the murky mix; however, interestingly enough if you pay close enough attention there’s a shoegazer-like quality as their sound manages to be equally enveloping — with a subtly contemplative beauty just underneath the surface.

Check out tour dates below.

 

MONOLORD LIVE:
08/05 Seattle, WA @ Barbosa at Neumos *
08/06 Bellingham, WA @ The Shakedown *
08/08 San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel *
08/09 Los Angeles, CA @ Viper Room *
08/11 San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar *
0812  Phoenix, AZ @ Rogue *
08/13 Albuquerque, NM @ Launch Pad *
08/15 Dallas, TX @ Rail Club *
08/16 Austin, TX @ Sidewinder *
08/17 Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall *
08/18 San Antonio, TX @ Korova *
08/19 New Orleans, LA @ Siberia *
08/20 Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum *
08/21 Ft Lauderdale, FL @ Kreepy Tiki *
08/22 Orlando, FL @ Will’s Pub *
08/23 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade *
08/24 Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry *
08/26 Baltimore, MD @ Windup Space *
08/27 Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus *
08/28 Philadelphia, PA @ Voltage *
08/30 Boston, MA @ Great Scott *
08/31 Montreal, QC @ Turbo Haus *
09/01 Toronto, ON @ Coalition *
09/02 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop *
09/03 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle Festival *
09/04 Minneapolis, MN @ The Cabooze *
09/05 Omaha, NE @ Lookout Lounge *
09/06 Denver, CO @ Lost Lake *
09/07 Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Bar *
09/08 Sacramento, CA @ Starlite Lounge *
09/09 Portland, OR @ Ash St. Saloon (no Beastmaker)
09/10 Vancouver, BC @ Astoria  (no Beastmaker)
* w/ Beastmaker, Sweat Lodge

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

With the release of two critically applauded EPs, We Are Sound and Everything You Imagine Is Real, the New York-based electro pop duo Corbu received praise from the likes of NYLON, Stereogum, The Guardian, NME and others for a sound that’s heavily influenced by the Warp Records roster, sci-fi imagery,  psychedelia and their own dreams. Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site over the past couple of weeks you may recall that I wrote about the cinematic “Battles,” one of the first singles off the duo’s highly-anticipated, soon-to-be released, full-length debut effort Crayon Soul; a track that has the band pairing a soaring and anthemic hook with a shimmering and breezy melody and plaintive vocals in a way that’s reminiscent to Moonbabies and M83.

Crayon Soul‘s latest single “Better Better Off” is a lush and shimmering psych pop, psych rock track that has the duo pairing angular guitar chords fed through gentle reverb and delay pedals, layers upon layers of gorgeous harmonies, shimmering synth cascades,  a soaring and anthemic hook, and a propulsive rhythm section in a song that sounds indebted to trippy 60s psych rock as much as it does to the likes of In Ghost Colours-era Cut Copy and the dream pop of the aforementioned Moonbabies, Summer Heart – but with a palpable bittersweet wistfulness under the song’s breezy surface.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Beginning his music career as a part-time musician in various underground bands in and around the San Francisco Bay Area, the insanely prolific multi-instrumentalist Ty Segall started his solo career back in 2008 with the release of the Horn The Unicorn through Wizard Mountain — and was later re-released by HBSP-2X on vinyl. After befriending Thee Oh Sees frontman and creative mastermind, and co-founder of Castle Face Records, John Dwyer, Segall signed to the renowned, garage rock label, which released his self-titled debut, also in 2008. Since then, Segall has released albums through Memphis, TN-based label Goner Records, frequent collaborations with renowned indie artist Mikal Cronin and for being a member of a number of bands including Fuzz, Broken Bat and GØGGS, and as a former member of The Traditional Fools, Epsilons, Party Fowl, Sic Alps, and The Perverts.

Now, as I mentioned in a post earlier today, as a native New Yorker, who has been covering music for over a decade, I’ve seen countless venues come and go — and soon as a well-regarded or beloved venue closes, another one pops up a few months later in another part of town; however, as both a passionate music fan and journalist, there are a handful of venues that hold a special part of your heart. And for me, Death By Audio held a very special place in my heart. Unlike most venues I’ve seen and covered shows in, there was always a  palpable sense of anything going and happening and in fact, I saw some of the most memorable shows I’ve ever seen; shows that transformed how I saw and wore about live music. Much like Metz, Segall has a connection to Death by Audio as he got his NYC area start at the now defunct DIY venue.

And as I mentioned in a post earlier today, as the venue was closing up shop back in 2014, its owners and bookers curated what turned out to be an epic final month featuring a number of currently renowned acts, who had gotten their start or had some kind of connection to the South Williamsburg, Brooklyn venue including A Place to Bury Strangers, Thee Oh Sees, Protomartyr, Ty Segall, Future Islands, Lightning Bolt, Metz and many others. What people most likely didn’t know was that the venue recorded the last month of shows at the venue and the end result is the compilation Start Your Own Fucking Show Space, which features highlights of the past month in chronological order, slated for release next week through Famous Class Records — and the compilation is meant not as bittersweet nostalgia but as a forceful call to go out and do something fucking awesome, like start a show space and have your friends and others play there.

The second and latest single off the compilation features Ty Segall and his backing band playing a somewhat bittersweet yet forceful and sludgy live version of “Wave Goodbye,” a song that structurally and sonically sounds as though it owes a debt to 90s alt rock as it consists of alternating, rousing and thunderous, power chord-based hooks and a quiet second around the verse. And as soon as you hear it, it should make you want to raise your beers up high and shout along — or mosh the fuck out.

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

With the 2014 release of their self-titled debut and the 2015 release of their sophomore effort II, Toronto, ON-based trio Metz have received attention across Canada, the States and elsewhere for sludgy, face-melting power chord-based sound reminiscent of Bleach and In Utereo-era Nirvana, A Place to Bury Strangers, Japandroids and others — and over that time the Canadian trio have quickly become a JOVM mainstay.

Now, as a native New Yorker, who has been covering music for over a decade, I’ve seen countless venues come and go — and soon as a well-regarded or beloved venue closes, another one pops up a few months later in another part of town; however, as both a passionate music fan and journalist, there are a handful of venues that hold a special part of your heart. I’ve publicly mentioned what the Bowery Ballroom has meant to me on several occasions but one of the other venues that has held a special place in my heart was the sadly, now-defunct DIY Death By Audio. Unlike most venues I’ve seen and covered shows in, there was a palpable sense of anything goes and in fact, I saw some of the most memorable shows I’ve ever seen; shows that transformed how I saw and wore about live music.

As the venue was closing up shop back in 2014, its owners and bookers curated what turned out to be an epic final month featuring a number of currently renowned acts, who had gotten their start or had some kind of connection to the South Williamsburg, Brooklyn venue including A Place to Bury Strangers, Thee Oh Sees, Protomartyr, Ty Segall, Future Islands, Lightning Bolt, Metz and many others. What people most likely didn’t know was that the venue recorded the last month of shows at the venue and the end result is the compilation Start Your Own Fucking Show Space, which features highlights of the past month in chronological order, slated for release next week through Famous Class Records — and the compilation is meant not as bittersweet nostalgia but as a forceful call to go out and do something fucking awesome, like start a show space and have your friends and others play there.

The first single off the compilation features Metz playing a blistering and frenetic version of “Get Off” and it should remind all of those, who are unfamiliar with the band and those who are familiar with the band that they are one of the most forceful, furious and noisy bands around. And they play some of the most mosh pit-friendly music around.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

With the 2014 release of The Moon is Shining Our Way EP, Kestrels, a Halifax, Nova Scotia-based indie rock/noise rock trio comprised of  Chad Peck (guitar/vocals), Devin Peck (bass) and Paul Brown (drums), emerged both nationally and internationally as the EP’s title track received radio airplay on CBC Radio 3 — and as a result of touring internationally with the likes of renowned indie acts such as Speedy Ortiz, Ringo Deathstarr, Beliefs, Grays and Ash. Interestingly enough, the sessions for The Moon is Shining EP reportedly laid the groundwork for the songwriting approach and sound the band would eventually take into the studio for their forthcoming third full-length and self-titled album, slated for a September 30, 2016 release through Hamilton, Ontario-based label Sonic Unyon.

While the album features guest spots from Ringo Deathstarr’s Elliott Frazier and Alex Gehring, its first single “No Alternative” is a decidedly power chord-based 90s alt rock-inspired song as power chords are played through various effects pedals and are paired with thundering and propulsive drumming, a tight bass line, an anthemic hook you can hear kids shouting along to in a sweaty club and Chad Peck’s plaintive falsetto floating over mix. While sonically speaking, the song reminds me quite a bit of Siamese Dream-era Smashing Pumpkins, Silversun Pickups, My Vitriol and others, complete with a swooning urgency.

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Bareto’s Mischievous and Breezily Futuristic Take on Peruvian Cumbia

Impredecible’s slow-burning yet buoyant new single “El impredecible,” possesses a languorous and looping rhythm, intricate and dexterous guitar lines familiar to Peruvian cumbia; however, the song manages to be simultaneously angular, as the looping rhythms are paired with complex polyrhythms and beats, ethereal electronics, warm blasts of horns coming out of the ether and earnest vocals to craft a sound that feels and sounds simultaneously traditional and futuristic.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Kool Keith is known as a co-founding member of renowned hip-hop act Ultramagnetic MCs, and an even lengthier and uncompromisingly weird solo career in which he has taken up a number of aliases and personas and collaborated with countless emcees while seeming to continually perfect and expand upon an inimitable style full of surreal and fantastic tangents, grimly violent and nightmarish imagery, and a rare ability to effortlessly switch perspective, moods, point of views  — sometimes within the same song.  Future Magnetic, the prolific Bronx-based emcee’s forthcoming effort is slated for a September 16, 2016 release through Mello Music Group and has the renowned and uncompromising strange emcee and producer collaborating with the likes of Ras Kass, Atmosphere‘s Slug, MF Doom and Dirt Nasty.

“World Wide Lamper”Future Magnetic‘s latest single is a collaboration that consists of the incredibly dexterous Kool Keith trading bars full of braggadocio, couplets that with insane punchlines that touch upon pop culture, the profane, the grisly violent, and the surreal with B.A.R.S. Murre and Dirt Nasty over a menacingly sparse and hypnotic production consisting of twinkling synths and subtle yet propulsive drum programming. Listening to this track should remind all listeners of several things — that Kool Keith is one of the most inventive and challenging emcees around; and that everything receiving airplay on your local multinational conglomerate hip-hop station is complete bullshit.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of signer/songwriter Max Greenhalgh, multi-instrumentalist Bryce Outcault and a revolving cast of musicians and collaborators, San Diego, CA-based project Inspired and the Sleep emerged locally and regionally with the 2015 release of Eyelid Kid, a collection dream pop; however, with “Sweet Company,” the Southern California-based duo have turned towards a breezier and lighter sound with the band returning to self-production combining electronic production techniques with live instrumentation. And in fact, you’ll hear a buoyant melody and hook paired with layers of shimmering and gently undulating synths, Greenhalgh’s plaintive vocals, subtle layers of guitar to craft a song that feels both wistful and yet deeply appreciative over both the good and bad times of one’s life and how they all influence and inform one’s life; after all, even in the most miserable of breakups, there was something positive — those relationships and their heartaches taught you something about yourself and what you want,  and even the lingering ghosts of those past lovers can serve to remind you that even if you’re not in love now, you had been and you will be again.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Bert Cannaerts (vocals/guitar), Giel Torfs (guitar/backing vocals), Philippe Corthout (guitar), Robby Geybels (bass) and Stef Gouwkens (drums), Newmoon are an Antwerp and Ghent, Belgium-based indie rock quintet derive their name from an Elliot Smith album, and although they formed in 2013, they can trace their origins to the breakup of locally renowned hardcore punk band Midnight Souls. Certainly, for anyone who may have been familiar with their previous project, Newmoon may superficially appear to be sonic change in direction, a proverbial left turn — despite the fact that reportedly, the band’s influences have almost always been the same: The Jesus and Mary Chain, Slowdive, Ramones, Oasis, and Sunn o))).

Their debut EP was released Touché Amoré’s label Secret Voice/Deathwish Inc. and the reconvened and rebranded quintet quickly built up a profile across the European Union as they’ve toured with the likes of Touché Amoré, Basement, Nothing and Cloakroom, and others. Building upon the buzz they’ve received, the band will be releasing their anticipated full-length debut as Newmoon, Space in October through PIAS Records. And the album’s first single “Head of Stone,” which was written while the band was on a bullet train between Tokyo and Kyoto and is primarily about the feeling of being lost and alone when you confront an impenetrable language barrier — the sort in which you don’t speak or understand a word of that country’s language and the people around you don’t speak your language. As the band’s Bert Cannaerts explains in press notes, “I realised that there’s something very frightening about being in a place where you are unable to connect to people in any way. You cannot understand the language they are speaking; you can’t understand any visual cues. This can make you feel isolated and invisible. The same thing can happen with emotional relationships. They get to a point where people become unable to communicate, and emotions and nuances are lost. This leads to isolation and resentment and people go their separate ways.”

As for the song you’ll hear propulsive, four-on-the-floor drumming, layers upon layers of gently buzzing power chords and anthemic hooks with ethereal vocals bubbling over an enveloping and dreamy sound and to my ears, I’m reminded of My Vitriol‘s Finelines, A Storm in Heaven and A Northern Soul-era The Verve and others — but with a subtly expansive song structure as the song possesses an explosive introduction,  the previously mentioned anthemic hook and a towering bridge with a mind-altering guitar solo.

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Although formed more than a decade ago, Athens, GA-based act Cinemechanica have managed to only release their groundbreaking debut effort, The Martial Arts and its follow-up, Rivals EP; however, the band featuring the primary and founding trio of Bryant Williamson (guitar), Joel Hatstat (bass) and Maserati‘s Mike Albanese (drums have developed a reputation for being one of the Southeast’s pioneering math rock/noise rock acts — and for a meticulous attention to detail, frequently taking several months to write on songs that may only last a few seconds.

The band’s long-awaited sophomore, self-titled, full-length effort is slated for a September 23, 2016 through Arrowhawk Records — and the album, which was recorded with Kevin Ratterman, best known for his work with Young Widows and My Morning Jacket and mixed by Converge’s Kurt Ballou has the band collaborating with Manray‘s Jordan Olivera (guitar/vocals) and with Lazer/Wulf’s Bryan Aiken for live shows.

Clocking in at a little over two minutes, the self-titled album’s first single “Vietnamese Pool Party” brings to mind a number of adjectives — often simultaneously: punishing, frenetic, tense, blistering, abrasive, aggressively sneering, teeth-baring, muscular, insistent, angular. And that shouldn’t be surprising as the band pairs dense, cascading sheens of angular guitar stabs, thundering and rolling drumming and frayed vocal chord howling in a song that feels and sounds as though the band is trying to squeeze as many notes as humanly possible within a bar of music, while structurally leaning towards spastic and impatient prog rock as the song actually is comprised of three distinct sections of incredibly dexterous guitar work by Williamson and Olivera held together by Albanese’s propulsive and forceful drumming.

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Growing up in New South Wales’ Blue Mountains to a family of teachers and educations, Julia Jacklin originally thought she would follow a similar path as a social worker; however, the young Jacklin chanced upon a documentary about Britney Spears  while on a family vacation that changed the course of her life. As Jacklin mentions in press notes “By the time Britney was 12, she’d achieved a lot. I remember thinking ‘Shit what I have done with my life? I haven’t achieved anything.’ So I was like ‘Mum, as soon as we get home from this holiday, I need to get singing lessons.”

As the story goes, classical singing lessons were the only kind a young Jacklin could take in the area, but she took to it; however, by the time she was in her teens the lack of her own personal expression and she quickly joined a high school band, in which she spent time singing Avril Lavigne and Evanescence covers. And as you can imagine, she was quickly hooked — and recognized that music was something she should consider.

Recognizing you have to take a creative path and figuring out which path it should be often comes about in a series of epiphanies and serendipitous events. Jacklin’s second major epiphany came after she had finished high school. While traveling through South America, she ran into high school friend and future collaborator Liz Hughes. Bonding over a love of indie, Appalachian folk trio Mountain Man, the duo started a band together, initially with Jacklin singing the songs that Hughes wrote. “I would just sing,” Jacklin explained in press notes. “But as I got my confidence I started playing guitar and writing songs. I wouldn’t be doing music now if it wasn’t for Liz or that band. I never knew it was something I could do.”

Recorded in New Zealand’s Sitting Room Studios with Ben Edwards, best known for his work with Marlon Williams, Aldous Harding and Nadia Reid, Jacklin’s forthcoming full-length debut Don’t Let The Kids Win is indebted to the influence of Fiona Apple, Anna Calvi while drawing heavily from folk, alt-country and classic country as you’ll hear on the album’s first single “Leadlight,” a single I recently stumbled on while writing about another single. And if you can imagine it, I stopped what I was doing at my cluttered desk and was immediately moved by the ancient ache in this young singer/songwriter’s voice  — an ache of lost and squandered chances, terrible decisions, lost loves and longing that manages to be both a bittersweet lament that has its narrator seemingly saying “how did I fuck that all up — again?” and the wisp of a smile over the fact that life is often embittering, messy and enchanting. Such wisdom in someone so young — the singer/songwriter is only 25 — is a rarity and with a voice that hints at Patsy Cline and others, I think we’ll be hearing quite a bit from Jacklin.

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Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Phoebe Lou and Joey Clough, the Melbourne, Australia-based duo Two People‘s debut single “Falling” received over 700,000 streams, was on regular rotation on renowned, Australian radio station Triple J and reached the Top 10 on Hype Machine‘s Popular Charts. Building on the buzz they’ve already received, the duo’s second and latest single “If We Have Time” pairs Phoebe Lou’s aching vocals with an atmospheric production comprised of swirling electronics, stuttering drum programming, twinkling keyboards and guitars played through reverb in a song that manages to  be simultaneously intimate and cinematic in a way that reminds me quite a bit of both Portishead and Goldfrapp‘s gorgeous Tales of Us.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Formed back in 2002 and comprised of Nashville, TN-based sibling duo Jake and Jamin Orral, JEFF The Brotherhood have developed a reputation for a sound and overall aesthetic that’s been influenced by jazz, black metal, hard rock, the films of Werner Herzog, the choreography of Kate Bush and the rivers of their home state. And over the past decade the duo have played well over 1,000 shows across North America, New Zealand and elsewhere, touring to support 11 full-length albums, as well as creating a number of related zines, puppets and videos among other things.

 

The duo’s forthcoming effort Zone is an experimental rock album that was recorded and co-produced by Collin Dupuis in a converted warehouse dubbed Club Roar and is the last part of a spiritual trilogy of albums that began with 2009’s Heavy Days and 2011’s critically applauded We Are The Champions, and it features a guest appearance from Bully’s Alicia Bognanno. Zone’s first single “Punishment”isa trippy prog rock-leaning track that begins with a lengthy garage, psych rock intro before turing into a towering squall of power chords and feedback with one of the most impressive guitar solos I’ve heard this year; naturally, the song confirms the duo’s long-held reputation for crafting anthemic and trippy songs with rapid tempo changes, blistering solos and driving rhythms and blistering guitar work.
 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Swedish Collective GOAT Return with a Hypnotic, Psych Folk-Leaning, New Single

Building on the attention they’ve received internationally, the mysterious Swedish collective will be releasing their highly-anticipated, third full-length effort on October 7, 2016 and the album’s “Try My Robe” continues on a similar vein as the singles they’ve released this year with the song the song manages to evoke a hushed, psych folk aesthetic. Sonically, the collective pairs chanted/shouted vocals with a shimmering and dexterously looping guitar work, mischievously complex, handclap led percussion and a slow, shuffling bass line that manages to be deceptively propulsive in a song that sounds subtly influenced by African and Middle Eastern music. By far, it may be the trippiest song they’ve released to date, as the song evokes a mind-bending and mesmerizingly hypnotic quality.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

At the end of last month, I wrote about the Leeds, UK-based indie rock/post-punk trio Cowtown. Comprised of David Michale Shields (drums), Hilary Knott (bass, keys and vocals) and Johnathan Nash (guitar,vocals), the British trio have over the course of three full-length albums have developed a reputation for  angular, super caffeinated post-punk that draws from Gang of Four, DEVO, Talking Heads, much like “Motivational Speaker,” the first single off the band’s forthcoming album Paranormal Romance slated for an August 19, 2016 release through Athens, GA-based HHBTM Records in the US and Sheffield, UK-based label Audacious Art Experiment.

Clocking in at 92 seconds, Paranormal Romance‘s second and latest single “Tweak” sounds as though it were indebted to the Ramones and 90s alt rock, as the the trio pairs propulsive and thundering drumming with blistering power chords and an anthemic and infectious “oh oh oh” at the hook that you can imagine a crowded and sweaty bunch of kids yelling lustily while moshing — and with a youthful abandon.