Tag: Julian Casablancas

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Throughout this site’s nine-plus year history, I’ve written about and championed a number of acts from across Northern Africa — in particular, Mali. During that same period of time,  Mali has been split apart by a bloody civil war between several different factions. In 2012, the National Movement for the Liberation of Azaward (MNLA) took control of Northern Mail; but shortly after, they were pushed out of the region by Ansar Dine, a jihadist group, which quickly imposed sharia law: cigarettes, alcohol and music were banned across the region. And as a result a large number of the country’s acclaimed musicians including Songhoy Blues’ founding trio Garba Toure, Aliou Toure and Oumar Toure (no relation, but all Songhoy people) were forced to relocate south to Bamako, the country’s capital.

As the members of Songhoy Blues have said, the band was formed “. . . to recreate that lost ambience of the North, and make all the refugees relive those Northern songs.”  The band recruited Nathanael Dembélé to compete their lineup, and began playing shows across the Bamako club circuit, attracting both Songhoy and Tuareg fans.  Interestingly, by September 2013, Africa Express, a collective of American and European musicians and producers led by Damon Albarn traveled to Bamako to collaborate with local musicians. The members of Songhoy Blues successfully auditioned and were introduced to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs Nick Zinner, who produced and recorded “Soubour” (which translates into English as “patience”), which appeared on that year’s African Express compilation Maison Des Jeunes. 

Following the success of “Soubour,” the band returned to the studio with Zinner and co-producer Marc-Antoine Moreau to record their 2015 full-length debut Music in Exile, which was a commercial and critical success, receiving praise from The Guardian, NME and others, and as a result the band received nominations for “Best New Act” at the Q Awards and “Independent Breakthrough Act” at the AIM Awards.  The quartet has opened for Alabama Shakes, Julian Casablancas and Damon Albarn, and have played sets at Glastonbury Festival, Bonnaroo Festival, Latitude Festival, Roskilde Festival, Green Man Festival, Byron Bay Bluesfest, WOMADelaide and The Great Escape Festival.

Building upon a growing international profile, the band’s sophomore album, 2017’s Resistance was released to critical praise, with Rolling Stone naming it one of the best albums of that year. Since then, the act has been busy touring, including a stop at Union Pool‘s Summer Thunder last year — and the writing and recording of their forthcoming EP Meet Me in the City, which is slated for an October 18, 2019 release.

The effort finds the acclaimed Malian act collaborating with Will Oldham, Matt Sweeney, Junior Kimbrough and Femi Kuti. Interestingly, the EP’s first single, the Will Oldham, Matt Sweeney and Songhoy Blues co-written “Time To Go Home” may be the most electronic-leaning they’ve released to date, it still retains some dexterous and trippy guitar work and the hypnotic grooves of the Desert Blues. And interestingly enough, it finds the band ambitiously desiring to pass the messages at the heart of their material to a much larger, international audience. (There are two different version of the track. One mixed by Grammy-nominated producer Blake Mills and one mixed by David Ferguson.)

Songhoy Blues says, “We’re really happy to introduce this new EP and our English-language debut on the song ‘Time To Go Home.’ Please enjoy it and get ready for a heavy new album coming up very soon.”

Matt Sweeney adds, “I think it’s safe to say that the brave poets of Songhoy Blues have a different idea what a ‘bad day’ is than pretty much all other rock bands. Their music and singing are powerful beyond words. Making a new song with them was a humbling honor and an unforgettable joy.”

On PBS’ American Masters, Will Oldham spoke of working with Songhoy Blyes, saying, “They are a Malian band that’s really trying to make sense of what they’ve been witnessing, what they’ve been experiencing, and create or transmit a message to people about what they’re seeing and how they’re trying to understand it and make change…And to think, well I want them to know that I’m trying to listen and trying to understand, and if I can give voice to some of what they’re experiencing, that they might be emboldened by this musical connection.”

Songhoy Blues will be embarking on a month long Stateside tour that includes two NYC area dates — September 22, 2019 at The Great Green Wall at The United Nations and October 24, 2019 at Baby’s All Right. Check out the rest of the tour dates below.

 

Tour Dates

09.21 – Franklin, TN – Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival 2019
09.22 – New York, NY – United Nations | Great Green Wall
09.23 – Atlanta, GA – The Earl
09.24 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn
09.26 – Oxford, MS – Proud Larry’s
09.27 – New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jacks
09.28 – Austin, TX – Antone’s
10.01 – El Prado, NM – Taos Mesa Brewing
10.04 – Los Angeles, CA – Moroccan Lounge
10.05 – Berkeley, CA – Cornerstone Berkeley
10.06 – Petaluma, CA – Mystic Theatre
10.09 – Eugene, OR – WOW Hall
10.10 – Portland, OR – Doug Fir Lounge
10.11 – Seattle, WA – Columbia City Theater
10.12 – Vancouver, BC, Canada – Rickshaw Theatre
10.15 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
10.17 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club
10.19 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
10.22 – Toronto, ON, Canada – Great Hall
10.24 – Brooklyn, NY – Baby’s All Right
10.25 – Easthampton, MA – New City Brewery
10.26 – Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall
10.27 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Andy Clockwise is a Sydney, Australia-born, Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and engineer, who emerged into his homeland’s music scene with the release of his critically applauded, commercially successful debut double album Classic FM. As a result of the album’s success, Clockwise earned opening slots for INXS and The Stranglers‘ Hugh Cornwell.

After briefly relocating to London, Clockwise eventually wound up in Los Angeles, where he quickly immersed himself into his new hometown’s music scene. Receiving airplay on NPR, KCRW and KROQ, Clockwise also discovered that the successful he attained back in Australia managed to translate rather quickly in the States, as he released a string of successful EPs before the release of his sophomore full-length effort The Socialite. Additionally, since relocating to Los Angeles, Clockwise founded his own record label, Exhibition Records, “to make as much music as possible before we are old,” the Aussie-born, Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and engineer says in press notes. In fact, labelmates Bella Darling and George Stanford released material on the Motown and Factory Records inspired label.

Last summer Clockwise released The Good Book EP, an effort that featured singles “Open Relationship,” a collaboration with Warpaint‘s Stella Mozgawa and “The Best,” which debuted on the US Speciality Radio Charts at #15 with fellow countrymen The Avalanches. Both singles spent several weeks on the FMQB Radio Charts in North America with “Open Relationship” landing at #1 on KROQ’s fan-voted Locals Only Charts — and the track received airplay on KCRW and Alt 98.7FM in the States, and double J and FBi in Australia.  He’s also toured with The Black Keys, Julian Casablancas, and Warpaint. Along with that Clockwise has been extremely busy working in the studio on multiple releases for artists and composing for film and television, with some of his compositions appearing in Netflix’s Wanderlust, Meet Me In Montenegro, Pump The Movie and several others.

Building upon that momentum, the Aussie-born, Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and engineering will be releasing his forthcoming album War Stories in three volumes over the next two years. After dealing with the illness and death of his mother, Clockwise took the time to work on the album’s material in his New South Wales-based studio, writing and recording the album primarily by himself — but with the assistance of co-producer and co-engineer Omar Yakar, Jr. at Boulevard Recording, once Clockwise returned to Los Angeles to finish it. “War Stories is about the wars we put each other through…a pop musical ode to human dysfunction, heartache, sex, grief, revolution, and the death of our youth,” Clockwise explains in press notes. “War Stories was pretty much made by myself in LA/London/Australia while my mum was ill and i was traveling back and forth to look after her and getting back to what I actually enjoy about music which is folk/classic post punk/ pop / my Irish trad music and early electronic house — I gave it a name Warrior pop. Something to stop you from thinking everything is awful. It sounds alright too.” 

Centered around propulsive drumming, atmospheric synths, a sinuous bass line, shimmering guitars, War Stories‘ latest single is the moody and rousingly anthemic, New Wave meets Bruce Springsteen-like “This Town (Used To Be Great).” The song’s heartbroken narrator tells a familiar tale of finding love and failed love in a new town — and as a result, the song is imbued with the lingering  ghosts of past love and the bitter and uncertain feelings it can invoke.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Tim Carr is a Marin County, California-born, Los Angeles, CA-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer, who grew up within a family of musicians. Unsurprisingly, at an early age, Carr was immersed in music, and as a result, he eventually studied jazz drums at the California Institute of the Arts. After earning a BFA, Carr began working with a number of renowned and notable acts including HAIM, Julian Casablancas, Nick Cave, and Lucinda Williams, among others. Carr can also claim a stint as a member of The Americans, with whom he performed on Late Show With David Letterman. Additionally, as member of The Americans, Carr has recorded with T. Bone Burnett and was featured in the Emmy-nominated documentary American Epic (which was produced by the aforementioned T. Bone Burnett with Jack White and Robert Redford.)

As a solo artist, Carr’s work can be described as minimalist folk, inspired by African rhythms, French Romantics and 60s pop, mixed with instrumentalist melodies — and interestingly enough, his work caught the attention of Robert Redford, who featured material off Carr’s 2016 effort, The Last Day of Fighting on the soundtrack for his movie Watershed alongside material from Beck and Thom Yorke. Carr’s forthcoming EP Swing & Turn is the anticipated follow-up to The Last Day of Fighting, and the EP reportedly derives its name after the feeling of movement, with the material sonically and thematically being a dance between intimacy and independence. The EP’s latest single is the hauntingly beautiful “Take Me There,” which is centered around Carr’s plaintive and tender falsetto, shuffling rhythms, some strummed acoustic guitar and a coda that ends with a bluesy blast of electric guitar, and finds Carr balancing a balladeer/troubadour-liek introspection and thoughtfulness with a cinematic vibe. That shouldn’t be surprising as the song is focuses on the desire to escape apathy, highlighting the difficult but necessary need to either let go and fully love — or to let go of a love, and as a result, the song has a bittersweet air to it.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Hazy and Dream-like Visuals for INHEAVEN’s “Sweet Dreams Baby”

With the release of their debut single “Regeneration” through Julian Casablancas’ Cult Records, the London, UK-based quartet INHEAVEN, comprised of Chloe Little (bass, vocals), James Taylor (vocals, guitar), Joe Lazarus (drums) and jake Lucas (guitar) quickly received national attention as BBC DJs Annie Mac, Phil Taggart, Steve Lamacq and Chris  Hawkins played the single on their respective radio shows. Adding to a growing profile, the London-based quartet were named one of XFM’s one to watch for in 2016 and were featured in DIY Magazine and NME — with NME naming them “One of the UK’s most exciting new bands.” 

Throughout the course of 2016 and 2017, the members of INHEAVEN opening for the likes of Sundara Karma, Circa Waves, Jamie T, Blossoms, Yak and The Magic Gang and played at a number of the world’s biggest festivals including Reading, Leeds, Glastonbury and Bilbao BBK before closing out last year with the release of their critically applauded debut album. 

The British indie rock quartet’s latest single “Sweet Dreams”  is the swooning and anthemic follow up to their buzz worthy debut and the critically applauded Acoustic EP and as the band mentions in press notes, the song was written as an anthem for those who are hoping for better things to come in 2018 — all while reminding the listener that they shouldn’t lose sight of their dreams. Sonically, the song finds the band drawing from Phil Spector’s famous “wall of sound,” complete with boy/girl harmonizing as well as 90s alternative rock, which helps the song manage to be arena rock and radio friendly. 

The recently released video manages to be stylistic yet dreamlike, as it flickers between the band performing the song and sepia-toned, intimate close ups of James Taylor and his bandmates as they perform the song, capturing the earnestness behind the song. 

Uncategorized by William Ruben Helms

After Louis XIV’s last world tour, the band’s frontman and producer, Jason Hill covered an isolated, 100 year old house in the Hollywood Hills into a recording studio, he called Ulysses. Brimming with instruments and […]