Although currently comprised of primary songwriter and founding member Jonathan Meiburg, Danny Reisch, Lucas Oswald, Abram Shook, Jesca Hoop and Josh Halpern, the Austin, TX-based septet Shearwater can trace its origins to when Meiburg and […]
Category: Video
Live Footage: Seattle’s Preeminent Brazilian act En Canto Performing “E Prohibido Cochilar”
The album’s latest single “E Prohibido Cochilar” will cement the septet’s burgeoning reputation for breezily coquettish and propulsive music that will make you get off your ass and dance, thanks to a spacious and swinging arrangement that allows room for each musician to play strutting and stomping solos — with De Roos and Maschler playing impressively lengthy solos.
New Video: Mello Music Re-Releases Another Single from a Rare Early 200os Collaborative Effort Featuring Ice-T, Kool Keith and Others
. The third and latest single “More Freaks” features a collective of emcees rhyming about pimping, hustling, being a bigger badass than anyone else, complete with ridiculous pop culture references, surreal imagery and punch lines that are both hilarious and morally bankrupt over a sample that features a looped horn sample and enormous, old school-leaning boom bap drum programming reminiscent of a sleazier version of Mary J. Blige’s “Real Lov
New Video: The Shimmering Sounds and Gorgeously Trippy Visuals for Corbu’s “Battles”
“Battles,” the latest single off the duo’s highly-anticipated dull-length debut Crayon Soul is a cinematic track with a soaring and anthemic hook paired with a shimmering and breezy melodies and plaintive vocals to craft a sound that’s reminiscent to Moonbabies and M83. As the band’s Jonathan Graves explains in press notes, the recently released video for “Battles” is a scene from a larger movie in its creators’ heads. “Every piece of artwork we make is a snapshot from it. Nothing you see is in order as far as the story, but it’s more fun that way. You have to put the pieces together yourself.” And as you’ll see the animated video is a mesmerizing, futuristic epic adventure with some gorgeous and trippy visuals.
New Video: The Creepily Uneasy Visuals for Tobacco’s “Human Om”
Sweatbox Dynasty, the long-awaited follow-up to Ultima II Massage is slated for release this summer, and as you may remember I wrote about “Gods In Heat,” the first single off the album. I think that single will further cement his burgeoning reputation for crafting scuzzy, abrasive and anthemic electronic music as he pairs layers of abrasive industrial clang and clatter, skittering drum programming, surface-level analog tape hiss and sizzle, a chanted mantra and an infectious hook; but with a subtle dreamy element that nods towards psych rock. The album’s second and latest single “Human Om” pairs layers of buzzing, whirring synths, industrial clang and clatter, mathematically precise handclap-led drum programming and mantra-like lyrics fed through vocoder. Interestingly, the song displays a dreamy and breezy melodicism just underneath the murky surface and as a result it gives the song a darkly mischievous feel; but while radiating a strange sense of calm.
Directed by the artist himself, the recently released music video employs the use of distorted rubber masks of celebrities, politicians and other characters nodding over the song’s distorted beats and superimposed over a variety of scenes and scenarios — and it gives the video a nightmarish, surreal logic while it lulls the viewer into an uneasy hypnotic state.
New Video: Hot Flash Heat Wave Returns with a Swaggering, New Single and Sleazy Visuals
The band’s latest single “Bye Bye Baby,” which will appear OIM Records’ OIM Records Volume 2 compilation and the single will further cement their reputation for blistering garage rock with infectious and anthemic hooks; however, the song find the band playing with a larger-than-life swaggering self-assuredness that subtly nods towards a gritty, sleazy psych rock — all while being a kiss off to a tepid, unfaithful lover.
The recently released music video emphasizes the song’s sleaziness while nodding at 80s porn, cheap art flicks, 80s horror movies and features sequences shot on grainy VHS tape.
New Video: The Surreal, Dream-like Visuals for Polyenso’s “17 New Years”
“The chorus is about that moment in a relationship when you realize that the person you love is using you as a scapegoat for their past emotional injuries. And despite how much you care for an desire this person, you can’t let them bring you down.”
As a black man, the recent deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling by police officers as well as the countless other deaths of black children, women and men have been on my mind and very little has offered much comfort from the feelings of fury, bitterness, confusion, horror, profound sadness and numbness I’ve been feeling over the past few days. And as a result, I’ve been obsessed with Syl Johnson‘s aching and bitter lament “Is It Because I’m Black” which my homey Abdul recently put me on to and Bob Marley‘s “War.” I think both songs will say just about everything that I feel about now.
New Video: Phoebe Ryan’s Modern, Feminist Anthem “Dollar Bill”
With the early 2015 release of a trippy, post-modern mashup/cover of of R. Kelly’s “Ignition” and Miguel’s “Do You Like,” followed the release of by her highly-anticipated full-length debut effort, Mine, Texas-born, New Jersey-reared and Los Angeles-based pop artist Phoebe Ryan exploded both across the blogosphere and nationally — and throughout the past year, Ryan has developed a reputation for a breathily coquettish vocal style, emotionally and sexually frank lyrics paired around infectiously catchy hooks and slickly contemporary electronic productions. Her latest single “Dollar Bill,” is a collaboration with Kid Ink and it will likely further cement her attention for infectiously catchy and coquettish pop while the song thematically focuses on the big dreams and the life of constant hustle that many artists have but just underneath the surface is a feminist anthem similar to Eurythmics and Aretha Franklin’s “Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves,” says — that a woman can clearly have dreams of taking over the world and picturing her own face on a dollar bill, just like the dudes.
New Video: The Gorgeously Cinematic and Symbolic Video for Joseph’s “White Flag”
Now, as you may remember “White Flag” is the first single off the trio’s forthcoming full-length debut I’m Alone, No You’re Not, which is slated for an August 26, 2016 release. And as you’ll hear the song pairs an ambient and gently undulating production consisting of swirling and ambient electronics, handclap-led percussion and folky guitar chords, a rousingly cathartic and anthemic hook and the Closner Sisters’ gorgeous vocals in a song that sonically reminds me of Pearl and the Beard and Lucius, complete with the same earnest urgency. While lyrically, the song possesses a powerfully positive message — that despite what everyone around you may tell you about your dreams and desires that you should never give up if it’s what you desperately feel that it’s what you must be doing.
The recently released music video for the song is a gorgeously cinematic video that features the Closner sisters in what appears to be the Oregon woods, building a bonfire to set a white flag on fire — and as a result the video manages to be both literal and symbolic.
New Video: The Tense and Frenetic Visuals for Crystal Castles’ Concrete
“Concrete,” the latest single off the forthcoming album manages to be tense and propulsive as Kath’s production, which consists of layers of undulating synth stabs, propulsive drum beats, malevolent atmospherics and industrial clang and clatter are paired with Frances’ heavily distorted vocals. And while bleak and murky, the song manages to be dance floor friendly — thanks to an anthemic hook.
New Video: The Quietly Post Apocalyptic Visuals for Tuskha’s “First Date”
“First Date,” Moore’s first Tuskha single pairs his aching and tender vocals with gently undulating synths, skittering drum programming and twinkling keys in a song that captures both a sense of melancholy and hope, while reminding the listener that not only are both necessary, that both inform each other in rather profound ways –in some way the song feels as though it’s mourning over the end of a relationship while being grateful that it had happened. Sonically speaking, the song manages to effortlessly mesh the intimacy and earnestness of a singer/songwriter confessional, slickly produced electro pop and jazz; and interestingly, it’s also a song that gains slightly different interpretations with increased plays.
As the video’s director Elise Tyler explains in press notes “When I heard ‘First Date,’ I was struck by how sweetly melancholy it was- hopeful but somewhat reserved. I wanted the imagery to possess the same qualities, a balance between simplicity and depth. We filmed at the nearly-abandoned Hickory Hollow Mall in Nashville, which was once a bustling spot like any other mall in America. It is still open, but what remains is a strange coming together of no-name stores and a food court with three Salvadorian restaurants. Dustin Lane did a fantastic job building on quiet moments and allowing the performance to shine through. We shot on 35mm and I couldn’t be happier with the finished product.” And as a result, the video possesses an eerie, post apocalyptic feel.
New Video: The Surreal and Ironic Visuals for Courtney Barnett’s Equally Ironic “Elevator Operator”
With the release of her first two critically applauded EPs I’ve Got a Friend Called Emily Farris and How to Carve a Carrot Into a Rose, Melbourne, Australia-based singer/songwriter and guitarist Courtney Barnett quickly received attention from the North American, British […]
New Video: Check out Allen Stone Performing a Soulful and Aching Cover of Goyte’s Mega-hit “Somebody That I Used To Know”
With the release of his latest album Radius, Seattle, WA-based soul singer/songwriter Allen Stone has firmly cemented a burgeoning reputation for crafting uncompromising music that defies pop music conventions — and as a result, not only has the Seattle-based singer/songwriter received attention across the blogosphere, he’s recently been invited to play at Stevie Wonder’s British Summer Time show next week, which will most likely add to a growing international profile. And to celebrate a set of European shows and his addition to the Stevie Wonder show, Stone and his backing band released a video performing a slow-burning, Quiet Storm-soul cover of Goyte’s mega-hit “Somebody That I Used to Know” at Bear Creek Studio that actually possesses a deeper sense of the confusion, heartache, guilt, accusations and bitterness within the song than the original in mind; in fact, when Stone sings the line “you didn’t have to stoop so low,” I guarantee that you’ll feel punched the gut.
New Video: Israeli Superstar Ninet Tayeb is Set to Take Over the World with Ass-Kicking Visuals for “Superstar”
With a relocation to Los Angeles and the forthcoming Stateside release of her fifth full-length release this fall, Tayeb hopes to become an international superstar — and with the aptly titled first single “Superstar” Tayeb may well be the next big thing. Although some have said that the Israeli-born singer/songwriter and actress seems to take cues from Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O., The Kills’ Allison Mossheart, sonically her sound reminds me quite a bit of Garbage — namely the self-titled debut and Version 2.0 — as the song is comprised of buzzing power chords, propulsive and thundering drumming, rousingly anthemic hooks and a towering self-assuredness that simply says “I’m here and I ain’t fucking around.”
The recently released music video directed by Yoni Ronn features Tayeb in action movie-like music video that features the singer/songwriter as a vengeance-seeking assassin, following her enemy through the streets of New York.