Tag: Primal Scream

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Certainly, if you’ve been frequenting this site throughout its six-year history and especially over the past couple of months, you’ve come across posts featuring the Brooklyn-based shoegazer rock and art collective Dead Leaf Echo. And over that period of time the members of the collective have seen a growing national and international profile as they’ve played sets at several of the country’s largest and best known festivals, have opened for a list of renowned and well-regarded bands including The Wedding Present, A Place to Bury Strangers, . . . And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, The Psychedelic Furs, Chapterhouse, Ulrich Schnauss, Weekend, Lorelei, The Ocean Blue, The Warlocks, Beach Fossils, and The Telescopes and have made appearances on KEXP‘s John in the Morning and on Nic Harcourt’s KCSN show.

Since the 2013 release of the band’s 4AD Records-inspired full-length debut effort Thought and Language and its follow up true.deep.sleeper EP, the members of the band have been working on their much-anticipated sophomore, full-length effort but in the meantime, they’re releasing a cassette tape edition of the “Lemonheart” 7 inch through Wiener Records on November 4, 2016, as the two original vinyl pressings are completely sold out. Now, you may recall that as I wrote about “Lemonheart,” the single would further cement their reputation for crafting lush, shimmering shoegaze and dream pop in the vein of RIDE, Swervedriver and Slowdive. The 7 inch’s B-side “sparks.fly.from.a.kiss” reveals a thorough change in direction as layers of swirling and buzzing guitar chords and skittering, four-on-the-floor-like drum programming and boom bap beats to create a swaggering and strutting song that sounds indebted to Primal Scream, The Jesus and Mary Chain and others, as it may arguably be the most abrasive and scorching song they’ve released to date. But just underneath the abrasiveness is a swooning and passionate declaration of love.

Dead Leaf Echo have embarked on a Fall/Winter tour to support the release of the “Lemonhead” 7 inch cassette tape edition and it includes a two Brooklyn dates. Check out the tour dates below.

Fall/Winter 2016 Dates:
11.06 – New York, NY @ Berlin (Release Party w/ Midnight Hollow, Big Band)
11.09 – Ft Wayne, IN @ The Brass Rail (w/ March On, Comrade)
11.10 – Chicago, IL @ The Empty Bottle (w/ Lightfoils, Ganser)
11.11 – Detroit, MI @ Echo Fest
11.12 – Kalamazoo, MI @ Louis Trophy Room (Kalamashoegazer Festival)
11.19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Pete’s Candy Store (w/ Solilians, Landing)
11.25 – Nashville. TN @ TBD
12.03 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ortleib’s

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Dinowalrus Returns with Trippy, Motorik Groove-Driven Shoegaze and Psychedelic Visuals

FAIRWEATHER’s latest single “Falling to the Periphery” will further cement the band’s burgeoning reputation for crafting a sound that pairs ethereal melody and propulsive motorik groove. And while some of my colleagues have described “Periphery” as sounding as though it drew from Achtung Baby-era U2, which is a fairly apt description, the song to my ears reminds me much more of Primal Scream and TOY — in particular think of “Autobahn 66” off Evil Heat and “Conductor” off Join the Dots but possessing an airier quality.

The recently released music video however, features the band performing the song on top of a Brooklyn rooftop under increasingly psychedelic and neon-colored skies and interestingly enough, the video does reminds me of two distinct and completely different U2 videos — the video for “Where The Streets Have No Name” and the video for “Mysterious Ways.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Originally formed by its founding duo Genesis Breyer P-Orridge and video director Peter Christopherson after the breakup of Throbbing Gristle in the early 1980s, Psychic TV (also known as Psychick TV or PTV) was conceived as an experimental video art and music project. Throughout each of its three incarnations, the project has included a diverse and rotating cast of collaborators including Coil, Current 93, Hafler Trio, The Cult, Soft Cell, Fred Giannelli, XKP, Master Musicians of Jajouka, Matthew Best, Abino Brolle, Daniel Simon Black, William Breeze, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, Derek Jarman, John Gosling, Timothy Leary, Rose McDowall, Stephen Kent, Vagina Dentata Organ, Andrew Weatherill, Larry Thrasher, Z’EV, Zef NoiSe, Jeff Berner and a lengthy list of others. Interestingly, the project has a long-held reputation for relentless experimentation with its sound and aesthetic, and at one point for being incredibly prolific — with the release of a monthly series of live albums starting in 1986, the band earned an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records for most records released in one year.

Psychic TV’s latest effort Alienist can trace its origins back to 2009 when the project’s creative mastermind and primary member Genesis Breyer P-Orridge proposed that the band cover Funkadelic‘s “Maggot Brain” as a musical interlude while on tour. After that tour, the members of the band went into the studio to record their interpretation of “Maggot Brain,” that lead to the band recording a series of 12 inch records annually which included the band’s interpretation of a classic song on the A side and a new song on the B side. Mostly chosen by drummer and co-producer Edley ODowd, the band has covered Hawkwind‘s “Silver Machine,” Can‘s “Mother Sky,” and Captain Beefheart‘s “Dropout Boogie” among others. Alienist is the latest effort in their 12 inch series and the album includes the band covering Harry Nilsson‘s “Jump Into the Fire” and 60’s British psych rockers, The Creation’s “How Does It Feel to Feel,” one of Breyer P-Orridge’s all-time favorites, along with two original tracks “I’m Looking For You” and “Alienist,” a trippy, dance-floor friendly song that sounds as though it drew from Evil Heat-era Primal Scream, Zooropa-era U2 and house music, while also channeling the project’s acid house experiments of the late 80s.

 

 

.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Currently comprised of frontman Pete Feigenbaum, who has spent some time as a touring guitarist in Titus Andronicus; Max Tucker; Meaghan Omega; Dan Peskin; and John Atkinson, who joins the band as a touring member, the members of Brooklyn-based Dinowalrus have developed a national and international attention for a sound that draws from post-punk, krautrock, shoegaze, synth pop and psych rock as you’ll hear on their latest single “Tides,” which has the band pair shimmering and undulating synths, buzzing guitar chords, plaintive and ethereal vocals and a motorik groove. Interestingly enough, the song sounds as though the band had been listening to Toy, Primal Scream and the Manchester sound.

 

 

 

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal 70s and 80s Found Footage-based Visuals for DBFC’s “Automatic”

Comprised of its frontmen Manchester, UK-born and Paris-based David Shaw and Paris-born and based Dombrance, along with Guilluame Rosel (percussion) and Victor Paillet (bass), the Paris-based electronic music collective DBFC emerged onto the French electronic music scene with the release […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

With the release of a couple of EPs and a reputation for a being one of the best up-and-coming live sets in the UK scene, Bristol, UK-based post-punk band The Jacques have built up quite a buzz around themselves; in fact, this summer, the band will be touring the European Union and UK major festival circuit with opening sets for Noel Gallagher, Rudimental and The Charlatans at Kendal Calling’s main stage and for Primal Scream at Down To The Woods.

“Eleanor Ring Me,” the band’s latest single sounds as though it draws influence from 90s alt rock and grunge rock as the band pairs sludgy power chords,  distorted vocals, snarling vocals and an anthemic hook in a song that the band says is “a kick at the people and things that we are distancing ourselves from now. “ And as a result, the song possesses a “Fuck off — or we’ll kick the shit out of you” air.

Check out the band’s EU and UK tour dates below.

Tour Dates

Fri 13th May – l’Alimentation Generale, Paris France

Sat 14th May – Les Nuit Botanique, Brussels Belgium

Fri 27th May – Dot to Dot Festival, Manchester UK

Sat 28th May – Dot to Dot Festival, Bristol UK

Sun 29th May – Dot to Dot Festival, Nottingham UK

Fri 29th July – Kendal Calling Festival, UK

Sun 31st July- Damaris Festival, Amsterdam Holland

Sat 13th Aug – Down to The Woods Festival, Durham UK

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of its frontmen Manchester, UK-born and Paris-based David Shaw and Paris-born and based Dombrance, along with Guilluame Rosel (percussion) and Victor Paillet (bass), the Paris-based electronic music collective DBFC emerged onto the French electronic music scene with the release of several singles through renowned indie label Her Majesty’s Ship Records last year. Building on the attention they’ve already received the collective’s latest single “Automatic,” which was recently released through Different Recordings will further cement the act’s reputation for crafting slickly produced electronic music that’s indebted to French electronic music and to Kraftwerk as the French collective’s latest single has the act pairing cascading layers of shimmering and undulating synths with a driving, motorik groove and ethereally cooed vocals bubbling up and then floating over the mix in a song that sounds indebted to Kraftwerk’s “Trans Europe Express” and Primal Scream‘s “Autobahn 66” — but with a subtle cosmic glow around its edges.

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

With the release of “To Be Young” and “Radio Silence,” which received extensive radio airplay on BBC Radio X, Spanish radio station Radio 3 and Stateside on KCRW and KEXP, the Portsmouth, UK-based quintet Kassassin Street — comprised of Rowan Bastable (guitar, vocals), Tom Wells (bass, vocals), Andy Hurst (keys, samples), Ryan Hill (guitar, vocals) and Nathan Hill (drums) — quickly exploded onto the international scene last year. And as a result, the Portsmouth-based quintet had a busy summer playing the UK major festival circuit with appearances at Secret Garden Party, Bestival, Blissfields, Y Not, Great Escape, Beat-Herder and Isle of Wight, as well as a hometown slot at Victorious Festival — and they continued on that success with a successful UK tour, which included several sold out shows.

Building on a rather successful 2016, the members of Kassassin Street recently released their latest single “Hand In My Pocket,” a post-punk track which pairs an anthemic hook with a sinuous bass line, shimmering  and cascading synths, angular guitar chords and an uncanny sense of harmony in a shimmying, dance floor ready track that sounds indebted to Entertainment! and Solid Gold-era Gang of Four (in particular, I think of “Not Great Men” “He’d Send In The Army” and “Why Theory“), Kasabian‘s self-titled effort, Evil Heat-era Primal Scream (in particular “Detroit” and “Autobahn 66“) and New Order — but much like Gang of Four, the song possesses an underlying scathing sociopolitical message as the song focuses on social injustice and inequality in fiscal austerity-era UK.

 

 

 

 

 

 

synth rock by William Ruben Helms

Montreal, QC-based psych rock trio Elephant Stone — comprised of Rishi Dihr (lead vocals, sitar, bass), Jean-Gabriel Lambert (drums, backing vocals), and Miles Dupire (drums, backing vocals) — have developed a national profile across their native Canada and Stateside for a vintage psych rock sound reminiscent of The Beatles, The Kinks and severals as the Canadian trio’s earliest material paired elements of Eastern instrumentation — mainly, the sitar — with Western songwriting, arrangements and instrumentation. And rather unsurprisingly, over the past few years the Montreal-based trio have also become a JOVM mainstay artist.

With the 2014 release of Elephant Stone’s third full-length effort, The Three Poisons, the Canadian trio went through a major and rather decided change of songwriting approach and sonic direction in which sitar was pushed back to the background — and when it was employed, it was seemingly used to add additional texture and color. Since then, the Canadian trio have released a batch of singles including “The Devil’s Shelter,” which was released at the end of last year. That single, which featured a guest spot from The Black Angels‘ Alex Maas was yet another example of the trio experimenting with their sound as tense, undulating synths, shimmering sitar and guitar chords and a driving motorik-like rhythm were paired with Dihr’s and Mass’ alternating vocals to create an ominous and murky sound that channeled The Black Angels “Don’t Play With Guns.”

Early last month, the trio released “Where I’m Going” a single that continued the band’s most recent sonic experimentations while suggesting that the band may have been listening to Evil Heat-era Primal Scream — in particular, I think of “Autobahn 66” and “Detroit”  as Dihr’s ethereal cooing is paired with shimmering guitar chords, a tight and propulsive, motorik groove, four-on-the-floor drumming and layers of shimmering and undulating synths in what may arguably be the most dance-floor ready songs that they’ve released to date. “Andromeda,” the band’s latest single sounds like a return to the vintage psych rock sound that first caught the blogosphere’s attention as shimmering guitar chords and a propulsive and driving rhythm are paired with Dihr’s plaintive cooing about the nature of the universe; however, swirling synths and a brief burst of tribal drumming manage to reveal a band that’s relentlessly experimenting and attempting new ways to expand upon their sound while retaining familiar elements.

The band will be on tour throughout March, and it includes an NYC date. Check out the tour dates below.

 

ELEPHANT STONE TOUR DATES
03/10 Toronto ON – Sneaky Dee’s (Tickets)
03/11  Indianapolis IN – Joyful Noise (Tickets)
03/12  Little Rock AR – Vino’s (Tickets)
03/14  Austin TX – SXSW
03/18  Memphis TN – Hi-Tone (Tickets)
03/19  Cincinnati OH – MOTR (Info)
03/20  Brooklyn NY – Baby’s All Right (Tickets)
04/14  Montreal QC – La Sala Rossa (Tickets)
Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Rishi Dihr (lead vocals, sitar, bass), Jean-Gabriel Lambert (drums, backing vocals), and Miles Dupire (drums, backing vocals), Montreal, QC-based psych rock trio Elephant Stone have developed a national profile across their native Canada, as well as a profile Stateside for a vintage psych rock sound reminiscent of  The Beatles, The Kinks and others, as it the Canadian trio’s material employed elements of traditional Eastern instrumentation — i.e., the sitar — with Western songwriting. And as a result, over the past few years, Elephant Stone has become a JOVM mainstay artist.

The 2014 release of the Canadian trio’s third full-length effort, The Three Poisons, revealed a band that was in the process of a major change in sonic direction. Unlike the band’s first two albums, the material on Three Poisons pushed sitar to the background — and when it was employed, it was mainly to add texture and color. Now, if you were frequenting this site towards the end of last year, you may recall that I wrote about “The Devil’s Shelter,” a song that featured a guest spot from The Black Angels‘ Alex Maas. The members of Elephant Stone pair tense, undulating synths, shimmering sitar and guitar chords, and propulsive rhythm with Dihr’s vocals for the song’s verses and Maas’ vocals to craft a song that feels (and sounds) ominous and murky, while channelling The Black Angels “Don’t Play With Guns.”

The Montreal-based trio’s latest single “Where I’m Going” continues where the trio’s experimentation left off — while suggesting that the band’s newest sonic direction has been inspired by the likes of Primal Scream (in particular, I think of “Autobahn 66” and
“Detroit”  as Dihr’s ethereal cooing with shimmering guitar chords, a tight and propulsive, motorik groove, four-on-the-floor drumming and layers of shimmering and undulating synths in what may arguably be the most dance-floor ready songs that they’ve released to date — all while remaining as psychedelic as ever. Interestingly, the band have been working on their fourth full-length effort, and if the last two singles they’ve released are indicative of its sound, the members of Elephant Stone are set to push their sound — and in turn, psych rock — in new directions.

The band will be on tour throughout March, and it includes an NYC date. Check out the tour dates below.

 

ELEPHANT STONE TOUR DATES
03/10 Toronto ON – Sneaky Dee’s (Tickets)
03/11  Indianapolis IN – Joyful Noise (Tickets)
03/12  Little Rock AR – Vino’s (Tickets)
03/14  Austin TX – SXSW
03/18  Memphis TN – Hi-Tone (Tickets)
03/19  Cincinnati OH – MOTR (Info)
03/20  Brooklyn NY – Baby’s All Right (Tickets)
04/14  Montreal QC – La Sala Rossa (Tickets)
Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sky Ferreira and Primal Scream Team Up for the Shimmering, Dance Floor-Ready Single “Where The Light Gets In”

http://cache.vevo.com/assets/html/embed.html?video=GBBGB1500163&autoplay=0 Currently comprised of Bobby Gillespie (vocals), Andrew Innes (guitar), Martin Duffy (keys), Simone Butler (bass), Darrin Mooney (drums) and Barrie Cadogan (guitar), the Glasgow, Scotland-based quintet Primal Scream can trace their origins back to […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Led by its founder and primary singer/songwriter Arthur Lee, the Los Angeles-based band Love was one of the first racially diverse American pop/rock bands in a time when it was largely unheard of — the late 1960s-early 1970s. And although they had a sound influenced by rock, garage rock, folk and psych rock, the band had found modest commercial success during the peak of their recording career; however, in the roughly 40 years since the band’s breakup the band has been praised by critics as one of the finest and most important American rock acts of its era, with their third album Forever Changes being regarded as the band’s masterpiece. In fact, Forever Changes has recently been listed on a number of greatest albums lists and the band has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, among some other relatively recent recognitions.

Despite their relative anonymity to most music listeners, the band’s influence has managed to quietly loom larger than perhaps the members of the band could possibly imagine, as bands like Television Personalities, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Damned, The Stone Roses, Primal Scream, The Hellacopters, The Bluetones, Ricky and others have publicity cited the band and Forever Changes as an influence on them, have covered Love songs or had titled an album in tribute.

Over the past couple of years, there’s been a resurgence of interest in Love and as a result, the band has been re-issuing long lost material. Lee and company, along with High Moon Records will be re-issuing a deluxe edition of the last proper Love album, Reel to Reel on CD and digital for the first time ever, and on vinyl for the first time in 41 years. The deluxe re-issue features the official album’s 11 tracks and 12 previously unreleased bonus tracks, including the album’s second single, the previously unreleased single “Graveyard Hop,” which is of course, perfect for Halloween season.

Recorded in one take  “Graveyard Hop” is an impromptu, satirical take on “Jailhouse Rock” that’s absurd, hilariously campy, falling completely off the rails unhinged, menacing and perhaps just as important, raw, primal straight out of the garage rock with Lee howling like a man possessed — or set on fire. And the band manages to sound like Chuck Berry‘s backing band after drinking a fifth of Jack Daniels and smoking PCP as the song clocks in at a 107 seconds. But man, the song kicks ass takes names and leave you panting for more.

Uncategorized by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Adrian Acosta (guitar, programming, vocals), Jessica Huang (guitar, keys, vocals), Adrian De La Cruz (guitar). Carlos Michel (bass, sampler) and Danny Rossi (drums), the Los Angeles, CA-based shoegaze quintet of Draag began under […]