Tag: Sonic Youth

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Acclaimed and Up-and-Coming Austrian Artist Inner Tongue Performs “2 Seconds”

Inner Tongue is the (mostly) solo recording project of a rather mysterious Vienna, Austria-based singer/songwriter, composer and musician, who grew upon an intensely musical home — his father is a saxophonist, who constantly wrote songs, so musical instruments were always lying around and his parents frequently shared their favorite albums with him; in fact, Inner Tongue formed his first band when he was 6. “We started out using one of my dad’s synths to play a pre-programmed beat,” he recalls. “I’d sing something that sounded to us like English.” Unsurprisingly, the Austrian artist, who cites Bjork, Moby, Portishead, Micheal Jackson, Sonic Youth, Radiohead, Pet Shop Boys, Aphex Twin, and The Cure’s The Cure In Orange as influences — although those influences don’t quite correspond to his own sound and songwriting approach continued playing and writing music, playing in a small number of bands, including one that had briefly worked with Duran Duran and David Bowie’s producer before getting dropped by their label. 

Interestingly, with the release of some of his earliest solo work, the Austrian artist quickly garnered comparisons to James Blake, Childish Gambino, Frank Ocean, Death Cab for Cutie, Sohn, and Chet Faker/Nick Murphy. His quietly released yet critically applauded 2015 debut EP Tz Ka allowed him to open for the likes of Ghostpoet, Everything Everything and others. The Vienna, Austria-based singer/songwriter, composer, and musician’s full-length debut Favours was released earlier this year, and interestingly, the album’s overall sound and thematic concern is inspired by a deeply personal yet remarkable story. Back in 2013, Inner Tongue was diagnosed with a rare vocal-cord disorder that was so severe that only a handful of specialists throughout the entire world were capable of treating it; but eventually his condition required surgery, which left him, for a time unable to talk. Understandably, the months that followed the surgery were emotionally and physically shattering but he began composing music again.  At the time, singing was out of the question and as the Austrian singer/songwriter, composer and musician says in press notes, “I decided to modify my musical focus temporarily by writing songs which could produce a melodic tension without vocals, but which featured the traits of forward-looking pop music. It was as if someone had pressed a resent button on the musical identity I had of myself.” Adds Inner Tongue, “I used to layer many sounds and melodies before, and felt like I hid the core of any idea behind that technique.”

Some of the Austrian artist’s full-length debut was made at home with most recorded in a friend’s stood in Vienna. Foals’ John Catlin, who collaborated with him on his 2015 debut EP assisted once again although his involvement varied throughout; however, as Inner Tongue says, Catlin “was continually involved as a producer and friend,” who also mixed the album with some further overdubbing where necessary. As the Austrian artist readily admits, the entire experience of writing and recording his full-length debut provoked ” “a lot of soul searching, trying to become a better mixing engineer and producer. I’m somewhat controlling when it comes to my music, and I need to get the little details right.”

However, unlike his debut EP, Favours was more of a collaborative effort, as he shared his ideas with a collective of very dear and close friends. “All contributions are built on a vision I initially had and then gain shape during the process,” Inner Thought says. His live backing band contributed much of the music with his father playing sax on “New York.” The live version of “2 Seconds,” Favours’ latest single features a sparse yet soulful arrangement centered around twinkling Rhodes piano keys and Inner Thought’s achingly tender vocals, which manage to express a plaintive, vulnerable need. It’s a delicate, sensitive yet incredibly sexy song that balances earnest emotion with deliberate attention to craft. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Scuzzy Guitar Pop of Atlanta’s Subsonics

Over the course of their two decades together, the Atlanta, GA-based trio Subsonics, comprised of Clay Reed (vocals, guitar), Buffi Aguero (drums) and Man or Astro Man?’s Rob Del Bueno (bass) have over the course of eight full-length albums have developed a reputation for pairing Reed’s frequently wry and surreal lyrics with a propulsive yet minimalist rhythm section within material that’s sonically indebted to 60s garage rock and bubblegum pop, as well as the noisy experimentalism of Sonic Youth.

Released earlier this year, the band’s eighth full-length album Flesh Colored Paint draws from several decades of pop culture, with the band openly citing Chuck Berry, Little Richard, David Johansen, Mad Magazine, kung-fu movies, commercial jingles and the The Bible as sources of inspiration — and unsurprisingly, their overall aesthetic is a mischievous yet seamless meshing of the trashy and the highbrow in a way that rock ‘n’ roll has long been great at, as you’ll hear on the album’s latest single “You Got Eyes.”

Compiled of old stock footage from the 60s, superimposed with kaleidoscopic and psychedelic imagery. As the band’s Clay Reed calls the video, “Lasik surgery for the surveillance generation.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Copenhagen’s Baby in Vain Performs “One Feather” at Tapetown Studios

Formed back in 2010, the Copenhagen, Denmark-based indie rock trio Baby in Vain, comprised of Lola Hammerich, Benedicte Pierleoni and Andrea Thuesen have received attention across Scandinavia and elsewhere for a sound that features elements of stoner rock, grunge rock, the blues and noise rock; in fact, the trio have been written about in Mojo, Vice and Intro Magazine — and adding to a growing the profile, the trio has opened for Ty Segall, Thurston Moore’s post Sonic Youth project Chelsea Light Moving and The Kills during their Stateside and European Union tours. Additionally,  they’ve made appearances across the European festival circuit, playing sets at Reading, Leeds, Great Escape and Roskilde among others. 

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site over the past year or so, you may recall that the Aarhus, Denmark-based recording studio  Tapetown Studios  along with Sound of Aarhus have developed a live video series in which they invite national, regional and internationally recognized touring bands to come into their studio during their free time to record a live session. And over that period of time, Tapetown has invited British indie rockers Ulrika Spacek, the Gothenburg, Sweden-based trio Pale Honey, the Bay Area-based JOVM mainstay Tim Cohen and his primary project The Fresh & Onlys, and the renowned British psych rockers The Telescopes. Recently, Tapetown and Sound of Aarhus invited the Danish indie rock trio to the studio, where they performed a slow-burning dirgey blues number “One Feather.” 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Chicago’s Ganser Releases Mischievous and Surreal Visuals for “Satsuma”

Over the past couple of months I’ve written quite a bit about the Chicago, IL-based post-punk act Ganser,  and with the release of their debut EP, This Feels Like Living, the members of the Chicago-based act received attention locally for an art rock-leaning post-punk/noise rock sound influenced by Sonic Youth and Magazine.  Now, as you may recall, the band’s full-length debut Odd Talk is slated for release later this month through No Trend Records, and the album’s material reportedly focuses on communication breakdowns, with the song’s narrators desperately seeking meaning in confusion and messiness, as though they were literally sorting through syllables and signals to find the right words to say what they wanted or needed to say.

“Satsuma,” Odd Talk‘s last official single will further cement their reputation for material that thematically can be grimly absurd yet comedic that points at the complexities and frustrations of human relationships paired with angular guitar chords and propulsive drumming that help evoke a sweaty, heart racing anxiety: the sort in which your thoughts are racing and pinballing within your head; but the difference here is that the song focuses on a weary reservation, on avoiding expectations and their inevitable heartache, of not showing your hand when things are uncertain.

Filmed by the renowned photographer Kirsten Micolli and directed and edited by the band, the recently released video for “Satsuma” follow a woman Kate Ziebart as she wanders a post-blizzard Chicago, who’s compelled to dance through the streets. Throughout the course of the video, the woman’s movement varies between graceful and frantic but she turns the mundane and routine to something altogether strange; in fact, her weirdness seems to be infectious, and everyone she passes begins to start acting as weirdly as she is — although the woman is actually completely unaware of her effect on her surroundings or on anyone else. 

Filmed by the renowned photographer Kirsten Miccoli in a post-blizzard Chicago earlier this year and self-directed and edited by the band, the video follows a woman (Kate Ziebart) as she wanders the city, compelled to dance, as she encounters each member of the band in turn as she goes. After being in Chicago, the video not only strikes me as only being possible in Chicago, it manages to evoke the accusatory and sarcastic nature of the song in a mischievously indirect fashion. 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Over the past couple of months I’ve written quite a bit about the Chicago, IL-based post-punk act Ganser,  and with the release of their debut EP, This Feels Like Living, the members of the Chicago-based act received attention locally for an art rock-leaning post-punk/noise rock sound influenced by Sonic Youth and Magazine.  Now, as you may recall, the band’s full-length debut Odd Talk is slated for release later this month through No Trend Records, and the album’s material reportedly focuses on communication breakdowns, with the song’s narrators desperately seeking meaning in confusion and messiness, as though they were literally sorting through syllables and signals to find the right words to say what they wanted or needed to say.

“Satsuma,” Odd Talk‘s last official single will further cement their reputation for material that thematically can be grimly absurd yet comedic that points at the complexities and frustrations of human relationships paired with angular guitar chords and propulsive drumming that help evoke a sweaty, heart racing anxiety: the sort in which your thoughts are racing and pinballing within your head; but the difference here is that the song focuses on a weary reservation, on avoiding expectations and their inevitable heartache, of not showing your hand when things are uncertain.

The band will be embarking on a tour to support their full-length debut and it includes an album release show at Chicago’s Empty Bottle on April 16, 2018 and two NYC area dates — April 27, 2018 at Alphaville and May 1, 2018 at Saint Vitus. 

Tour Dates
3/09 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall (w/ Ought, Snail Mail)
3/28 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen (w/ Shopping, Tyvek)
4/16 – Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle (Record Release Show)
4/25 – Detroit, MI – Outer Limits Lounge %
4/26 – Pittsburgh, PA – Howlers %
4/27 – Brooklyn, NY – Alphaville %
4/28 – Philadelphia, PA – Mothership %
4/29 – Providence, RI – Alchemy %
5/01 – Brooklyn, NY – Saint Vitus
5/02 – Baltimore, MD – Sidebar
5/03 – Richmond, VA – Flora
5/04 – North Carolina TBD
5/05 – Atlanta, GA – 529
5/06 – Memphis, TN – Bar DKDC
% – with Bloody Knives

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstays Modern Time Machines Send Up Classic TV Shows in Video for Album Single “Freefall (Can’t Stop)”

Over the past couple of years of this site’s history, I’ve written quite a bit about the Los Angeles, CA-based shoegazer act Modern Time Machines, and as you may recall with the release of singles like Dweeb,” the band comprised of Ben Golomb, Justin Bond, Nadia Franks and Neil Johnson have received attention for a pairing dreamy boy/girl harmonizing with a sound that has drawn comparisons to  M83, Medicine, Sonic Youth and others. Adding to a growing profile, the band has received airplay on  KROQ 106.7FM, have 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. 
The up-and-coming, Los Angeles-based shoegazers’ Josiah Mazzaschi-produced, sophomore effort MTM is slated for release next week, and the album features 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. Earlier this year, I’ve written about the A Storm in Heaven-era The Verve “High Noon” and the  Dinosaur, Jr-like “Failsafe,” off the album — both of which further cemented their reputation for crafting 120 Minutes-era MTV-like indie rock. And much like its predecessors, MTM’s latest single “Freefall (Can’t Stop) continues in a similar vein as the band has a penchant for soaring hooks, feedback drenched guitars and dreamy boy/girl harmonizing, centered around earnest and plaintive lyrics. 

Directed by the band’s Ben Golomb and featuring a lengthy cast, the recently released video is a hilarious and ridiculous send up on a number of classic TV shows including Mary Tyler Moore, Small Wonder, Gilligan’s Island and others.  

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Chicago’s Ganser Returns with a Tense and Propulsive Single Paired with Badass B-Movie Visuals

Last month, I wrote about the Chicago, IL-based post-punk act Ganser, and as you may recall the act, comprised of  Alicia Gaines (bass, vocals), Nadia Garofalo (keys, vocals), Brian Cundiff (drums) and Charlie Landsman (guitar) formed back in 2014  — and with the release of their debut EP This Feels like Living, the quartet received attention locally for a art rock-leaning post-punk/noise rock sound that was influenced by Sonic Youth and Magazine. 
The Chicago, IL-based post-punk quartet’s forthcoming, full-length debut Odd Talk is an April 20, 2018 release through No Trend Records, and the album reportedly focuses on communication breakdowns — with the song’s narrators desperately seeking meaning in confusion and messiness, as though they were figuratively sorting through syllables and signals to find the right words to say what it is you want or need to say. Album single “PSY OPS” found the band walking a careful tightrope between angular Wire-like post-punk and the furious, bruising punk of Memphis‘ Ex-Cult and Nots but with explosive bursts of discordant noise, and the whole thing was held together by a rhythm section that was propulsive, frenzied and yet strangely danceable. Over that, Garofalo shouted and barked lyrics that sounded and felt like absurdist non-sequiturs. 

Odd Talk’s latest single “Avoidance” is arguably the most decidedly straightforward post-punk songs they’ve released as it features propulsive and angular bass chords, slashing guitar lines, tribal-like drumming and blasts of synths over which Garofalo’s voice rises and falls with increasing frustration, followed by a weary sort of acceptance. Interestingly, the song is about the sharp pain of miscommunication with someone you love and the exhaustion of trying to be understood when your language is just completely wrong. And ultimately, it makes communication and trying to be understood absurd and pointless. 

Centered around edited stock footage taken from 60s and 70s B movies, the video features classic muscle cars racing in a desert landscape towards an unknown end further emphasizing the absurdity at the heart of the song. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Chilean Shoegazers MAFF Release Eerie 120 Minutes MTV-like Visuals for Cinematic “Act 2”

Currently comprised of childhood friends and founding members Richard Gómez (vocals, bass and guitar) and Nicolás “Nek” Colombres (drums), along with the band’s newest members, Valentina Cardenas (bass) and Martin Colombres (guitar), the Santiago, Chile-based shoegazer act MAFF formed back in 2012 but interestingly enough the band can trace its origins to Gómez and Colombres collaborating in a number of local punk bands before starting their latest project, which is largely influenced by The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Pixies, RIDE, Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine. Now, if you had been frequenting this site a few years ago, you may recall that the Chilean shoegazers’ self-titled debut received attention both nationally and internationally among musicians, critics and fans for material that thematically explored innocence, mysticism, love, loss, freedom and timelessness among other things.

Since the release of their full-length debut, the acclaimed Colombian shoegazers went on a lengthy hiatus in which Gomez fathered a daughter, Augusta, who wound up inspiring their soon-to-be released EP Melaniña, an effort that derives it’s name from an amalgamation of the word melanin, chosen because Augusta Gomez is slightly albino with the Spanish word for little girl, niña. The album artwork, which was created by the band’s Nicolas Colombres, features an image of little Augusta, who witnessed the entire creative process of the EP.  “During our break between albums, I learned to be a father and learned to play the guitar. I started to write music surrounded by new feelings in my life,” Ricardo Gomez says in press notes. “It is always fascinating to keep learning new things, and I was fortunate to have these two moment’s crash together in the same period of my life. I locked myself in my home studio and started to write music”. “She’s been my source of inspiration,” Gomez continues. “This is my gift to her.”
Melaniña’s latest single “Act 2” was written and conceived as a sequel to “Act 1” off the band’s self-titled album, and as a result the incredibly cinematic instrumental track features some impressive guitar pyrotechnics, with guitars played through effects pedals paired with a propulsive rhythm section — with an expansive yet dreamy vibe familiar to classic shoegaze that also nods at Finelines-era My Vitriol and Collapse Under the Empire.
Directed by Tim Busko, the recently video continues the band’s ongoing collaboration with the Pennsylvania-based director and filmmaker, and much like its predecessor, the black and white video is comprised of shaky, handheld images of household items — radios, teacups, breakfast food, household plants, model planes, kids playing and natural phenomenon with a creepy yet hallucinogenic feel.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Modern Time Machines Return with 120 Minutes-era MTV Inspired Visuals for Rousingly Anthemic Single “Failsafe”

Earlier this year, I wrote about  the Los Angeles, CA-based shoegazer act Modern Time Machines, and as you may recall with the release of their debut single “Dweeb,” and several other singles, which received airplay on KROQ 106.7FM, the band comprised of  Ben Golomb, Justin Bond, Nadia Franks and Neil Johnson have received attention for pairing dreamy boy/girl harmonies with a sound that’s drawn 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. And as you may recall, album single “High Noon” featured the boy/girl harmonies that first garnered them attention while sonically reminding me quite a bit of A Storm in Heaven-era The Verve. Interestingly, MTM’s latest single “Failsafe” is a decidedly 120 Minutes-era MTV affair — in particular, I’m somehow reminded of Dinosaur, Jr. and others, as the song features feedback drenched and pedal effected power chords, rousingly anthemic hooks, a propulsive and insistent rhythm section and those boy/girl harmonies; but underneath the dreamy vibes is an aching yearning.

Directed, edited and filmed by Kimberly Zsebe of ZB Images, the recently released video, much like the song itself seems heavily indebted to 120 Minutes-era MTV, as it features the band performing the song while partially shot under kaleidoscopic filters, which gives the video a trippy feel.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Introducing the Paranoid Post-Punk of Chicago’s Ganser

Comprised of Alicia Gaines (bass, vocals), Nadia Garofalo (keys, vocals), Brian Cundiff (drums) and Charlie Landsman (guitar), the Chicago, IL-based post-punk act Ganser was formed in 2014, and with the release of their EP, This Feels like Living, the quartet received attention locally for a sound that was influenced by Sonic Youth and Magazine — or in other words for embracing art rock, post-punk and noise rock.

Ganser’s forthcoming, full-length debut Odd Talk is slated for an April 20, 2018 release through No Trend Records, and the album thematically speaking focuses on communication breakdowns — with the band seeking meaning in confusing, ugly, messiness; figuratively sorting through syllables and signals to find the right words for what they need to say. Sonically speaking, the band’s sound, as you’ll hear on Odd Talk’s first single “PSY OPS” walks a tight rope between angular post-punk, the furious and bruising punk of Memphis’ Ex-Cult and Nots and explosive bursts of discordant noise held together by a  rhythm section that’s propulsive, tense, frenzied and yet strangely danceable. And over it, the band’s Garofalo shouts and barks lyrics that feel like absurdist non-sequiturs.

Directed by the band and featuring camera work by Jason Kraynek, the recently released video for “PSY OPS” focuses on routine as a sort of absurdist and ridiculous spectacle with the individual members of the band observing and haunting the video’s protagonist as he’s preparing for his day — with the video and its protagonist (rightfully) becoming increasingly paranoid.