Tag: Los Angeles CA

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Victoria Hesketh is a Blackpool, Lancashire, UK-born, Los Angeles, CA-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, electronic music artist, DJ and producer, best known by her critically and commercially successful solo recording project Little Boots, a project that actually derives its name from a nickname a girlfriend of hers gave to her, as a joking reference to Hesketh’s unusually small feet.

Hesketh’s forthcoming EP, Burn finds the renowned British-born singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, electronic music artist and DJ collaborating with some of the finest (and most talented) female, electronic music producers, and interestingly, the EP finds Hesketh leaning towards what may arguably be the most straightforward, club friendly material she has released in some time — perhaps since her 2013, Tim Goldsworthy-produced Nocturnes. “Creating a project focused on female talent is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and the process was incredibly inspiring. The producers involved hail from more underground backgrounds sonically and have very different approaches, but what tied everything together was their open mindedness and embrace of pop hooks and melodies,” Hesketh says of the concept behind the EP.  Burn‘s first single “Shadows,” pairs Hesketh’s sultry and ethereal vocals with a thumping yet shimmering, classic house music-leaning production, featuring infectious pop hooks from renowned underground producer Joyce Muniz.

As Hesketh explains, “The song is about trying to get on with your life but sometimes the past can get the better of you or overshadow you, and that’s ok. Sometimes you would rather take the darkest traces of someone’s love than lose it altogether, but when you finally break free from that cycle you open yourself up to new opportunities, and that’s often when beautiful things start to happen. Ultimately, the single finds Hesketh and Muniz focusing on the confusion of love and lust that should be universal and so frustratingly familiar — and yet, it makes such profound music.

“I really wanted to channel that dark, pulsing dance floor feeling but combine it with emotive lyrics and an uplifting melody, to get a kind of ’tears on the dance floor’ tension. I collaborated with Joyce Muniz, who is an amazing Brazilian producer and DJ based in Berlin. I’ve been a fan and spinning her tracks out for a while, so I was super excited to work together on this.”

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of founding members Ryan Walker (guitar) and Alex Hartman (bass) along with Suki San (vocals), the Los Angeles, CA-based post-punk trio Second Still initially formed when its founding duo met in 2007. Fast forward to 2011, and the duo relocated to New York — and at that point, they had written and recorded over 100 instrumental demos, which were inspired by French coldwave and No Wave. Walker and Hartman spent a great deal of time searching high and low for a vocalist that they felt could match their intensity and creative output. And as the story goes, when they met Suki San, the newly constituted trio felt an immediate connection.

Second Still’s first show was an infamous party at the now-condemned McKibbin Street Lofts that was shut down by the police during the band’s second song. Building upon the buzz of that incident, the band recorded their debut EP, Early Forms as a limited edition cassette, which quickly sold out. Making the most of their time, the members of the trio wrote and recorded the material that eventually comprised their 2017 self-titled, full-length debut — and from singles “Walls,” “Recover,” “You Two So Alike,” and “Strangers,” the album’s material thematically focused on decidedly post-modern subjects: depression, frustration, anxiety and alienation among a throbbing, seething mass of humanity, with a visceral emotionality while sonically drawing from Sixousie and the Banshees.

Equals, the Los Angeles-based post punk trio’s much-anticipated follow-up EP finds the band expanding upon their sound, pushing it towards new directions — while retaining some of the early elements that first caught the attention of the blogosphere and elsewhere. You’ll see hear the chorus and delay pedal effected guitar, sinuous bass-driven grooves and industrial-like drum machine beats paired with ethereal vocals and infectious, razor sharp hooks; however, the members of the band have begun employing the use of a couple of analog synthesizers, which adds an atmospheric element to their sound. Additionally, roughly half of the EP’s material (the A side) reportedly finds he band exploring a decidedly pop-orientated, lighter sound while the other half (the B side) find site band hewing towards the melancholy and gloomy roots. The EP’s latest single “Opening” is a decidedly melancholy, post-punk track that features the shimmering, chorus and delay pedal effected guitar lines, sinuous bass lines, industrial-like drum programming and ethereal vocals — and while further cementing their reputation for a sound heavily indebted to Siouxsie and the Banshees, with a gritty and visceral emotionality that belies its clean, modern production sheen.

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Like countless other musicians, multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter Knox White relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a music career — and to support himself, White began working as a bartender. In a serendipitous turn of fate, Lionel Ritchie was one of his regulars, and after some time, Ritchie became a kind of mentor to the aspiring musician, giving advice and sharing stories about being on the road. The one thing that struck a deep chord with White was when Ritchie told him “Don’t sell your soul to the devil to get success in the music business. Stay humble and treat everyone like they are your friend.” On another night, Paul McCartney stopped by, and McCartney told him stories about The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. Towards the end of the night, McCartney told him that a musician with an incredible live show is a musician with super powers, and the legendary Beatle told him, “Get amazing first, and everything else will fall into place.”

Eventually, White relocated to New Orleans, arguably one of the country’s richest musical environments — and unsurprisingly, he immersed himself in the city’s music scene, playing everything from gospel to jazz; in fact, as the story goes, White was immediately hired to play guitar at the Household of Faith Church, playing alongside some incredibly accomplished musicians, who took him under his wing, introduced him to other musicians, which lead to ton of gigs.  He found himself playing at clubs across the city playing and mastering gospel, blues, calypso, jazz and contemporary fare until the early morning. And naturally, while exhausting, White felt reinvigorated, returned to Los Angeles, where he began collaborating with producer Josh Legg, best known as Goldroom, and began writing fusing the skills and knowledge he gained while in the Crescent City and his influences — Prince, Michael Jackson, Jimi Hendrix and Tame Impala.

White’s self-titled, debut EP is slated for release in July, and the EP’s first single “You’ve Been My Girl” is a sleek and slickly produced track that owes a tremendous debt to 80s synth funk  (i.e., Oran “Juice” Jones‘ “The Rain,” Cherelle’s “Saturday Love” and others) and Prince, thanks to some impressive guitar pyrotechnics throughout; but interestingly the song finds the narrator calling out a love interest for being indecisive and playing with his emotions. Certainly, we’ve all been there before.

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site over the course of the past month or so, you’ve likely come across a couple of posts featuring  Sydney, Australia-born, Los Angeles-based duo VOWWS. And with the release of 2015’s debut effort, The Great Sun, the Sydney-born, Los Angeles-based duo received attention for a sound that drew from a diverse array of influences including classic Western, electronica, surf rock, metal, post-punk and industrial rock. The duo’s highly-anticipated sophomore effort Under the World continues their ongoing collaboration with longtime friend, mentor, the renowned engineer and producer Kevin S. McMahon — and the album reportedly find the duo eschewing much of the familiar post-punk tropes of their previously released material, and focusing on razor sharp hooks, direct vocals and richer, more nuanced textures.

“Forget Your Finery” was an 80s New Wave-inspired track that featured a deliberate attention to melodicism and to infectious, arena rock friendly hooks while “ESSSEFF” was an industrial-like track that nodded at Depeche Mode‘s “Policy of Truth” and U2′s “Mysterious Ways” — and much like its immediate predecessor, it found the duo continuing with a deliberate attention to razor sharp and rousingly anthemic hooks. “Structure of Love,” Under the World‘s latest single is a a decidedly gothic-leaning track with an industrial thump, angular bass chords and the continued emphasis on arena rock friendly hooks. Interestingly, the new track also manages to be among their cinematic and soundtrack worthy track off the forthcoming album.

VOWWS’ sophomore effort is slated for a March 2, 2018 release through the band’s own Anti-Language Records, and throughout the mid-March and early April, the Sydney, Australia-born, Los Angeles, CA-based duo will be embarking on a North American tour that will include a March 22, 2018 stop at Saint Vitus. Check out the tour dates below.

Tour Dates 

3.19 – 529 – Atlanta, GA
3.20 – Strange Matter – Richmond, VA
3.22 – Saint Vitus – Brooklyn, NY
3.23 – Meatlocker – Montclair, NJ
3.24 – Geno’s – Portland, ME
3.25 – Kung Fu Necktie – Philadelphia, PA
3.26 – Cafe Nine – New Haven, CT
3.27 – O’Brien’s – Boston, MA
3.28 – Casa Del Popolo – Montreal
3.29 – Coalition – Toronto
3.30 – Now That’s Class – Cleveland, OH *
3.31 – Deluxx Fluxx – Detroit, MI *
4.1 – Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL *
4.3 – Reverb Lounge – Omaha, NE *
4.4 – Hi Dive – Denver, CO *
4.5 – Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UT *
4.6 – Neurolux – Boise, ID *
4.7 – Barboza – Seattle, WA *
4.8 – Tonic Lounge – Portland, OR *
4.10 – Old Nick’s – Eugene, OR *

* w/ Soft Kill and Choir Boy

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Cinematic and Surreal Visuals for Oddnesse’s Sultry “Are You Down”

Comprised of singer/songwriter Rebeca Arango and producer Grey Goon, the Los Angeles, CA-based indie pop project Oddnesse can trace its origins to when both members independently relocated from the East Coast to Los Angeles haunted by the ghosts of expensive degrees in music, several failed bands and countless gigs at  Cake Shop and others. And as the story goes, Arnago and Goon bonded over a shared vision for infectious and beautiful music with a dark, heavy groove — and initially, they stopped by the studio as two friends jamming and experimenting with ideas before they began to take it as a serious endeavor.

“Are You Down,” the duo’s latest single finds the duo pairing Arango’s self-assured and coquettish crooning with a shimmering Mazzy Star-like production featuring a soaring hook. As Rebeca Arango explained in press notes, “Are You Down,” is her “Pina Colada” song, as “it’s a very confident and laid-back anticipation of my next lover, where I’m getting specific about calling in someone, who can match my energy and approach to life. The question of going ‘slow’ isn’t about romantic pacing per-se (though that is important), it’s more about generally moving slow, never rushing to pack in too much all at once or getting anxious about ‘missing out,’ and preferring to to sink in and explore the depths of all things.”

Directed by Thaddeus Ruzicka, the recently released video for “Are You Down” is a cinematically shot fever dream that subtly draws from old movies and early 80s music videos — and features a protagonist in gorgeous yet somewhat surreal settings.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The 80s Crime TV Show-Inspired Visuals for Swimsuit Issue’s “Look Now”

Fronted by founding duo New York-born, Los Angeles, CA-based duo Miles Garber, who’s best known prominent male model and Dave Gagliardi, who’s best known as a member of renowned punk act Trash Talk, Swimsuit Issue can trace their origins to when the duo met outside of an art show on the Bowery back in 2014. And instead of quickly rushing to put out material, the duo, along with a rotating cast of collaborators spent the next two years honing and refining their sound with the end result being their anthemic, 120 Minutes-era MTV meets contemporary indie rock- like debut single “Look Now,” complete with jangling and fuzzy power chords, a propulsive backbeat paired with Garber’s crooning vocals, in a song that manages to balance earnest emotionality with a deliberate attention to craft.

The band’s self-directed video draws from 80s cop movies, crime documentaries and crime TV shows — and a little bit of Trading Places as the video features Dave Gagliardi as a blatantly corrupt and thieving inside trader, who’s investigated and then arrested by his bandmate Miles Garber. Filmed in a series of flashbacks, the video features a number of talking heads, along with the video’s villain and protagonist singing along to various points of the song in a way that reminds of one of Magnolia’s many surreal turns. Interestingly, the video manages to emphasize the song’s aesthetic and vibe, with each miserable character seeming to be yearning for something more than what they have in front of them.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Alice Merton Performs Viral Hit “No Roots” on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”

Alice Merton is a Canadian-born, Berlin, Germany-based singer/songwriter and pop artist, who has lived a rather nomadic life, as she was raised in Canada, finished high school in Germany and then with the rest of her family, relocated to England. Of course, music was a major part of her life, no matter where on Earth she was; she started taking classical piano lessons when she was five and by the time she was nine, she was introduced to vocal training. As the story goes, after spending the better part of a decade being classically trained, Merton discovered contemporary songwriting during one of her high school courses in Germany. And from that point forward, she went on to study songwriting and began pursuing her dream of becoming a professional singer/songwriter.

Naturally, while in school Merton would up working with a number or producers on projects and as you can imagine, finding the right producer, who can both compliment and challenge a singer/songwriter as a true collaborator is a rarity. And when she met Berlin-based producer Nicolas Rebscher, Merton quickly recognized that she finally found her musical match; in fact, the duo have managed to specialize in an anachronistic  sound that features Merton’s soulful pop belter vocals over a slick production consisting of analog synths, classic soul music-inspired instrumentation paired with hook driven, contemporary songwriting. 

Merton’s swaggering and bluesy debut single “No Roots,” features Merton’s self-assured and soulful pop belter vocals paired with a Rebscher production that features enormous, tweeter and woofer rocking beats, a sinuous bass line, brief blasts of funk guitar, squiggly blasts of synths and a rousingly anthemic hook that nods at Amy Winehouse, Lorde, Taylor Swift and others but while managing to feature a narrator that simultaneously expresses a wizened and resilient spirit; but just underneath there’s a visceral ache over a life frequently thrown in disarray with sudden moves before the narrator could get adjusted to a new place, and the realization that she’s never quite belonged. 

Already “No Roots” has won the up-and-coming Merton an immense amount of attention across the European Union, Stateside and elsewhere, as the song has already seen millions of streams on Spotify and YouTube, and has recently been added to the playlists of several Stateside Adult Alternative Album radio stations, including stations in Los Angeles, Austin, Dallas, San Francisco, Minneapolis, the NYC area, as well as Sirius Alt Nation. Adding to a growing profile, thanks in part to the success of her debut single, Merton recently signed to renowned indie label Mom + Pop Music. Recently Merton, along with her backing band recently made their national television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where she performed her viral hit. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: No Joy’s Jasamine White-Gluz and Sonic Boom (a.k.a. Spacemen 3’s, Spectrum’s. and E.A.R.’s Pete Kember) Team Up For a Disco-Inspired Psych Pop Track

he band quickly signed to renowned indie label Mexican Summer, who released their debut 7 inch single “No Summer”/”No Joy,” an effort that allowed them to book their own national headlining tour with Katy Goodman and her project, La Sera. The 7 inch quickly sold out, and by November 2010, the duo released their full-length debut Ghost Blonde to critical praise from the likes of Pitchfork, AllMusic.com, The New York Times, Brooklyn Vegan, The Guardian and others. Building upon a growing profile, the duo released the “Hawaii” 7 inch in the UK,  a release that featured a remix of “Indigo Child” done by Stereolab’s Time Gane — and unsurprisingly, the members of No Joy toured the UK with Surfer Blood, which was promptly followed with a London show opening for Wire, and an appearance at Barcelona’s Primavera Sound Festival.
The rest of 2011 saw the band touring North America — and it included a busy SXSW appearance schedule, a tour with Vivian Girls and a co-headlining tour with Marnie Stern with whom they released a split single, which featured No Joy’s cover of the Shangri-La’s “He Cried.”
Since then, the band has released 2012’s Negaverse EP and Wait to Pleasure, 2013’s Pastel and Pass Out EP, 2015’s More Faithful, 2016’s Drool Sucker, the first of a planned series of EPs and last year’s Creep, which was released through the band’s new label Grey Market Records.  Interestingly, 2018 founds No Joy’s primary songwriter and founding member Jasamine White-Gluze collaborating with Pete Kember, a.k.a. Sonic Boom. who’s best known for his work with Spacemen 3, Spectrum and E.A.R. And although White-Gluz and Kember can’t accurately remember how they met, what the duo does recall that they first brought up the idea of working together in an email exchange in 2015. At the time, No writJoy had just finishing touring to support their third, full-length effort More Faithful, one of their hardest efforts to date, and White-Gluz was eager to try new ideas and do something different. “No Joy functioned as a four-piece ‘rock band’ for so long,” White-Gluz explains in press notes. “I wanted to pursue something solo where I collaborated with someone else who could help me approach my songs from a completely different angle. Pete is a legend and someone I’ve admired for a long time. Being able to work with him on this was incredible.”

Initially, the collaboration began as a bit of exploration between two friends, who admired each other’s work with each one passing songs back and and forth with White-Gluz writing and producing songs in her hometown of Montreal and Kember writing, arranging and producing in Portugal. The end result was their collaborative EP together — four tracks that reportedly walk the tightrope between electronica, trip hop and experimental noise.  As White-Gluz says in press notes, “I wrote some songs that were intended for a full band and handed them off to Pete, who helped transform them. I barely knew how to use MIDI so I was just throwing him these experiments I was working on and he fine-tuned my ideas. There are barely any guitars on this album, because I was focused on trying to find new ways to create sounds.”

The EP’s first single “Obsession” pairs White-Gluz’s ethereal vocals with layers of Giorgio Moroder meets Evil Heat-era Primal Scream -like undulating synths in an expansive song structure that allows the duo to display their uncanny ability to craft a mesmerizing, trance-like groove. The recently released video filmed by Nuno Jardim, featuring video synthesis by Sonic Boom ad starring Samantha Tyson manages to further emphasize the trippy and trance-like vibes of the song as it features wobbling visuals, neon bright colors, flashing lights and colors in the background and so on.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site for some time, you may be familiar with the Los Angeles, CA-based JOVM mainstays Sego. And as you may recall, the indie act, comprised of the Mapleton, UT-born duo Spencer Peterson and Thomas Carroll, eventually relocated to Los Angeles to seriously purse careers in music — and as soon as the duo landed in Los Angeles, Peterson and Carroll quickly developed a reputation for employing contemporary production techniques while maintaining an eccentric and human touch that drew upon several disparate sources. “Townland,” the first single I wrote about reminded me of Talking Heads and Superhuman Happiness, while  “Obscene Dream” off their full-length debut, Once Was Lost Now Just Hanging Out was reminiscent of Sound of Silver-era LCD Soundystem.

Last December, the duo closed out 2017 with “Sucker/Saint,” which found the duo  adopting a jangling, hook-driven, 90s grunge rock-inspired sound, reminiscent of Pixies, The Posies and others while revealing some rather ambitious songwriting, as the duo nodded at psych rock, krautrock and guitar pop. “Cigarette Kids,” the Los Angeles-based duo’s first single of 2018 continues in a somewhat similar vein as its immediate predecessor as it features a jangling and shuffling hook; however, there this particular song seems to have more of a dreamy, almost krautrock vibe thanks to atmospheric synths and a motorik-like groove. And yet, underlying the dreamy vibes of the entire thing, the song reportedly dives further into Spencer Petersen’s relationship with his adopted hometown and its day-to-day culture — and in some way, it’s a bemused view an outsider, who can’t figure out why the people he’s around say the things they say or do the things they do.

The JOVM mainstays will be touring throughout March and it’ll include some SXSW sets, as well as a hometown show in Provo, UT. Check out tour dates below.

TOUR DATES
3/10: Tucson, AZ @ Flycatcher+
3/14: Austin, TX @ SXSW
3/15: Dallas, TX @ Not So Fun Wknd
3/16: Austin, TX @ SXSW
3/17: Norman, OK @ Opolis^
3/19: Taos, NM @ Taos Mesa Brewing
3/20: Fort Collins, CO @ Surfside 7#
3/22: Provo, UT @ Velour
3/26: Seattle, WA @ Vera Project*
3/27: Portland, OR @ Bunk Bar*
3/29: San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill*
4/8: Las Vegas, CA @ Emerge Impact + Music
+ with Fenster
^ with Dick Stusso
# with Pujol
* with Dante Elephante

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Lush Swooning and Psychedelic Visuals and Sounds of Jonathan Wilson’s “Loving You”

Jonathan Wilson is a Los Angeles, CA-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, who has collaborated with the likes of Father John Misty, Lucius, Karen Elson and Conor Oberst, contributed guitar and vocals as a member of the backing and touring bands for Roger Waters‘ Grammy nominated Is This The Life We Really Want?, and throughout that same period, the highly sought after Wilson has released two albums which have garnered comparisons to the Laurel Canyon troubadours of the 1960s and 1970s — in particular Crosby, Stills and Nash, Neil Young, Dennis Wilson, Tom Petty and others; however, Wilson’s third and forthcoming album, Rare Birds, which is slated for a March 2, 2018 release through Bella Union Records is reportedly one of the singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer’s most ambitious, “maximalist” works to date featuring contributions from collaborators Father John Misty and Lucius, as well as Lana Del Rey and New Age musician Laraaji.

While much of the album’s material thematically and lyrically find Wilson meditating on a failed relationship and its aftermath, he has insisted in press notes that it’s not meant to specifically be a concept album. “It’s meant more as a healing affair, a rejuvenation, a reconciliation, for others, and for me. I wanted to balance personal narrative with the need I feel for calming, healing music. I think we need journeys in sound, psychedelic gossamer-winged music, to incite hope, positivity, longing, reckless abandon and regret. It’s all in there.” Late last year, I wrote about the album’s first single “Over The Midnight,” which brought to mind Peter Gabriel 3, Security and So-era Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush and Tears for Fears  while nodding at the lush psych pop of Tame Impala; but the song is underpinned by a swooning Romanticism, as it’s about a sacred and profoundly safe space where lovers could exist and freely be in love, escaping a world on the verge of collapse.

Rare Birds’ latest single “Loving You” continues in a similar vein as its predecessor as its a lush yet deeply meditative track with the bittersweet tinge of regret of someone, who’s looking back at a major relationship in his life, and of all the things he felt and believed that he should have or could have done. And as a result, it evokes the lingering ghosts of a man, who’s lived a messy and complicated life. Wilson says in press notes about the song, “One day, one of my musical heros Laraaji came into my studio to just experiment and record some music. I had the ditty ‘Loving You’ lying around, (it was a song I wrote from a feeling or inflection of a word I heard John Lennon emote in one of his songs) and I then put down a simple little drum machine beat along with the piano and vocal that you hear now. Laraaji then beautifully chanted over the song, one take … then he played his cosmic zither, undulated gracefully with his ipad, and truly shaped the scope of the track. I then added a specific drum/cymbal treatment used throughout Rare Birds, my funky Crumar bass, Lana Del Rey, a few other things and boom that was the genesis of the new album Rare Birds, that song set the tone.”

Directed By Matthew Daniel Siskin, the recently released video for “Loving You” will also continue Wilson’s run of pairing trippy and beautiful visuals to lush instrumentation. In this case the video features the renowned New Age multi-instrumentalist Laraaji floating over some gorgeous natural scenery — at points holding an old TV monitor that features a meditative Wilson singing the song. Later on, Wilson’s face and on that old TV monitor is seen in a number of New York locales, including an airport, a train station, a Manhattan intersection and so on. And interestingly, the visuals manage to further emphasize the swooning nature of the song.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Up-and-Coming Los Angeles-based Shoegazers Modern Time Release PT Anderson-Inspired Visuals for Wistful New Single “High Noon”

With the release of their debut single “Dweeb,” which received airplay on KROQ 106.7FM and several other singles, the Los Angeles, CA-based shoegazer act Modern Time Machines, comprised of Ben Golomb, Justin Bond, Nadia Franks and Neil Johnson, have received attention for pairing dreamy boy/girl harmonies with feedback and distortion pedal effected guitars — while drawing comparisons to M83, Medicine, Sonic Youth and others. Adding to a growing profile, the Los Angeles-based shoegazers appeared on Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show and will have some of their music featured in director Ashley York’s upcoming film So Help You God.

Modern Time Machines’ Josiah Mazzaschi-produced, sophomore effort MTM is slated for an April 6, 2018 release and will feature guest spots from Nightmare Air’s Dave Dupuis, Bell Gardens’ Kenneth James Gibson, that dog.’s Kaitlin Wolfberg and a remix from electronic music production and artist duo De Lux. “High Noon,” MTM’s latest single will further cement their growing reputation for pairing wistful, boy/girl harmonizing with layers of feedback drenched guitar chords, soaring hooks and four-on-the-floor drumming — and in some way, the track to my ear is reminiscent of A Storm in Heaven-era The Verve.

Directed and edited by the band’s Ben Golomb, the recently released music video begins with the members of the band driving around Los Angeles on a gloriously sunny day, stopping to pick up instruments and band members before shifting to the band in their rehearsal room performing the  song. Throughout the video, there are reportedly over a dozen mischievously hidden Paul Thomas Anderson-related visual gags.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Initially begun as the solo recording of the Michigan-born, Los Angeles, CA-based singer/songwriter and multimedia artist Ben Schneider, Lord Huron expanded into a full-fledged band with the addition of Mark Barry (percussion), Miguel Briseño (bass) and Tom Renaud (guitar) — and with the appearance of “The Night We Met“off  2015’s Strange Trails EP on the hit Netflix show, 13 Reasons Why, Schneider and company quickly saw a growing profile that included a period of extensive touring, with appearances at some of the biggest national and internationally renowned festivals. Adding to a growing profile, “The Night We Met” was recently certified platinum earlier this month.

The Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock band’s third full-length album Vide Noir is slated fro an April 20, 2018 release through Whispering Pines/Republic Records, and the album is the anticipated follow-up to their critically applauded and commercially successful Strange Trails EP.  Written and recorded over a two year period at the band’s Los Angeles-based studio and clubhouse Whispering Pines, the album’s material is largely inspired by Scheider’s restless nighttime wandering across LA. “My nighttime drives ranged all over the city—across the twinkling grid of the valley, into the creeping shadows of the foothills, through downtown’s neon canyons and way out to the darksome ocean. I started imagining Vide Noir as an epic odyssey through the city, across dimensions, and out into the cosmos. A journey along the spectrum of human experience. A search for meaning amidst the cold indifference of The Universe,” Schneider explains in press notes. Building upon Schneider’s work as a multimedia artist, the album will be accompanied by imagery, videos and immersive experiences crafted to expand upon the album’s narratives and themes as a way of deepening and enriching the listening experience.
The band has released two singles, “Ancient Names (Part 1)” and “Ancient Names (Part 2)” as a preview of what listeners, fans and critics should expect from the album. The expansive and mind-bending “Ancient Names (Part 1)” finds the band drawing from retro-futuristic psych pop, jangling and anthemic indie rock and atmospheric, synth-based dream pop while the song details the narrator’s story of coming across a fortune teller, who tells him how certain aspects of his life are predetermined; that destiny can’t be avoided. But instead of succumbing with a sense of defeat, the narrator feels a desperate urge to question what he’s heard and then to flee, even if he doesn’t know where or how. “Ancient Names (Part 2)” continues its immediate predecessor’s theme but possesses a frenetic, almost anxious vibe as it draws from New Wave, post-punk and even bhangra to close out the song. And of course, while revealing a band that can draw from incredibly diverse array of influences, often simultaneously, the album’s first two singles also finds the band asking the “big questions” but in accessible and rousingly populist fashion.

 

The members of Lord Huron will be embarking on a US headlining tour that begins on April 20, 2018 in Grand Rapids, MI and will have the band playing at some of the largest venues they’ve played to date including a hometown set at the Greek Theatre and a May 3, 2018 at the Beacon Theatre. Check out the tour dates below.

 

TOUR DATES
March 24—Tempe, AZ—Innings Festival
April 20— Grand Rapids, MI—20 Monroe Live
April 21—Chicago, IL— Riviera Theatre
April 22—St. Paul, MN—The Palace Theatre
April 23— Milwaukee, WI—Riverside Theatre
April 25—Kansas City, MO—The Truman
April 26—Indianapolis, IN—The Vogue
April 27— Royal Oak, MI—Royal Oak Music Theater
April 28-29—Cincinnati, OH—Homecoming Festival
April 30—Boston, MA— House of Blues
May 1—Philadelphia, PA—Electric Factory
May 3—New York, NY—Beacon Theatre
May 4—Washington, DC—The Anthem
May 4-6—Atlanta, GA—Shaky Knees Festival
June 1—San Diego, CA—House of Blues
June 2—Los Angeles, CA—Greek Theatre
June 3—Oakland, CA—Fox Theater
June 5—Portland, OR—Crystal Ballroom
June 7—Seattle, WA—Moore Theatre
June 15-June 17—Dover, DE—Firefly Festival