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The multi-talented indie starlet Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, is back with her sixth full-length release inspired by her father’s 1970s record collection.
Daddy’s Home is a tour de force of genre-mixing fueled by the influences of that amazing decade in music when the album ruled.
Reviews from around the webs:
The Independent (UK): “It sounds – for the first time in a decade – like Clark has slipped out of her high heels and found an equal strength in this barefooted soul.”
Mojo: “It’s masterful stuff: a full conceptual realisation, filled with great melodies, deep grooves, colourful characterisations and sonic detail that reveals itself over repeated plays. … A keeper for the decades to come. ”
musicOMH.com : Daddy’s Home may lack the more exhilarating, guitar-shredding moments of some of Clark’s earlier work, but it’s possibly her best, most considered album to date. Six albums into her career, St Vincent is arguably becoming the defining artist of her generation. All this publication’s reviewsRead full review
Clash Music: “It’s a record about growing up, and playing it straight; a more open, rounded experience than we’ve come to expect from St. Vincent, it’s a brave, fascinating record.”
If you haven’t heard the music of Misha Panfilov yet, here’s your chance.
The new single, “Horizon” from rising European musician Misha Panfilov is an airy, groove-rich, happy recording with horns, a funky rhythm and space-age keys shooting off into the nightime sky. Yet another fine track from Panfilov that sets a mood and a scene.
A prolific multi-instrumentalist based in Estonia, Panfilov has been attracting increasing attention in various nooks and crannies of the indie world. For the past few years, he has been recording and releasing groove-laden titles under his own name and with outfits such as Penza Penza, Centre El Muusa, and more, mostly via Detroit’s Funk Night Records.
His releases have consistently attracted big support on his own and other Bandcamp pages. One of his best is last year’s Days As Echoes EP.
“The opening track, ‘Days As Echoes,’ is a dedication to a much simpler time when the sky was bluer and the snow was whiter…just like how you remember it when you were a child. A time when people honestly cared more about everything as a given, and not as a selfish accolade. A time when optimism seemed within reach. In other words, nostalgia marred by awareness.” – Misha Panfilov
“Panfilov pulls from a vast pool of influences, from Italian library music to Zamrock to Kosmische Musik, while creating an urgent – sometimes nearly unhinged—sound that is entirely his own.” – Aquarium Drunkard
From his Bandcamp page: “The vibe on this sophomore release channels Krautrock philosophy and Library music, peppered with elements of jazz, Ethiopian, cinema, ambient and bits of everything between. This atmosphere is created from all the instruments Misha uses and the resulting compositions are heard as repetitive patterns that are forged from the multiple layering of melodies. Thus, creating six unique songs with emotional granularity, yet collectively encompass a genuinely positive “feel good” vibe…with a hint of nostalgia.”
The FBI has made the 10-page file pertaining to the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain available to the public, with minimal redactions, for the first time.
Although the case file is thin, it does confirm that friends, fans and one private investigator, named Tom Grant, do not agree with the official ruling of suicide, a determination made by the Seattle police department following Cobain’s controversial 1994 death.
The file includes official government responses that were issued to a pair of letters received in 2006. The authors of the letters, whose names were redacted, express concern with inconsistencies in the investigation by the police and request the investigation be re-opened.
Both replies from the FBI – with a few negligible differences between the two – stated:
However, most homicide/death investigations generally fall within the jurisdiction of state and local authorities. In order for the FBI to initiate an investigation of any complaint we receive, specific facts must be present to indicate that a violation of federal law within our investigative jurisdiction has occurred. Based on the information you provided, we are unable to identify any violation of federal law within the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI. We are, therefore, unable to take any investigative action in this case.
Also present in the case file is a tax from Cosgrove/Meurer Productions, the documentary company behind the TV series Unsolved Mysteries. Communications between the producers of the show and the Los Angeles and Washington D.C. FBI offices note inconsistencies with the investigation, and which was observed by private investigator Grant, who believed Cobain’s alleged suicide note was instead a “retirement letter” to fans.
The Foo Fighters sit in the back of their old touring van. Photo by The New York Times.Foo Fighters’ frontman Dave Grohl recently dropped the official trailer for his upcoming new documentary, ‘What Drives Us.’
Grohl’s new documentary, which he directed, explores what it takes for people to practically live in a van for weeks at a time, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles from show to show, and always on a tight budget.
The film also chronicles the early touring days of some of rock’s most enduring groups, including U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, and the Foo Fighters.
Those were the days before fame and big touring buses. Touring van bands have little money for the van (gas, repairs, parts, insurance, etc.) or even to get a room whenever possible to take a shower and crash on a bed; get some decent food; then, get shitfaced.
But they all stuck it out (one of the hallmarks of a great band) through all of the shit road bands go through, and especially back then when there were not the tech and conveniences many road bands have now.
In each case, little did the young and ambitious members of those bands know that their courage, commitment, and talent would lead to international stardom that few bands ever reach.
Grohl says he sought to capture the true essence of what it takes for four guys (or gals) to get into a van – a van, not a bus or RV – and tour and tour and play show after show and still stay together.
It sounds like a deep, yet unique, thing that only the people that have done it can understand. And that’s not hard to understand.
In fact, when you think about it, Grohl touches on a profound topic that affects so many bands. He includes some of them in the documentary as he told The Hollywood Reporterduring a recent interview.
One of the top revelations folks are talking about is Grohl’s admission that he and the other Nirvana bandmates used to do whatever it took to prevent Cobain from driving.
Rolling Stone magazine has done a full write-up on 11 Things We Learned watching ‘What Drives Us.’
‘What Drives Us’ is available now and only on Amazon Prime’s Coda Collection, which requires a seven day trial.
Come on Dave – let’s not help Amazon own EVERYTHING.
by Joshua Pickard This is a first in a series about the most influential alternative and indie rock albums, dating back 30 years
Sonic Youth is an indie rock institution. Their music has provided influence to countless aspiring musicians, [as well as] those with a fondness for noisy, often perplexing rhythms. The indie scene wouldn’t be the same if it weren’t for (them and) their DIY punk rock philosophies.
Melding the occasionally jarring guitar lines of post-punk with a fondness for jazz-inspired fractured beats, Sonic Youth created an entirely new aesthetic that continues to evolve to this day. There’s never been a band who so completely revitalized a sound and wound themselves so deeply within a genre that their very name [conjures specific musical landscapes] is nearly synonymous with indie rock.
But Sonic Youth wasn’t only interested in creating densely stuffed packets of harsh melodies and apoplectic bursts of sound (although that certainly came naturally). They were interested in creating something new and distinct, a sound that replaced the venom of punk with something that could pass for a warped sense of community and an interest in ragged lo-fi workmanship. Their music was an often-jarring combination of various genres and production choices that drew inspiration from aspects of art-punk and avant-rock histories. It wasn’t difficult so much as it was challenging and asked more from its audience than was generally expected at the time.
Formed in New York City in 1981, Sonic Youth was initially the home of bassist Kim Gordon, guitarist Thurston Moore and guitarist Lee Ranaldo. All of them shared vocal duties to some degree and were instrumental in shaping the early works of the band. They went through a series of temporary drummers before Steve Shelley came on in 1985 and solidified the classic lineup. They were primarily associated with the no-wave movement of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s—a scene that typically favored experimental atonality and dissonant sounds in contrast to punk rock’s ferocious, though occasionally atrophied, the reimagining of classic rock stereotypes. Their work was abrasive, aggressively hostile and absolutely essential at a time when most musical landscapes were prone to a particular melodic disposability [sic].
But Sonic Youth came along and shook the independent music scene to its foundation. Impressed with their sound and seeing the band working at the cusp of something completely new and revitalizing in music, avant-garde composer-guitarist Glenn Branca—a no-wave patron saint in his own right—signed the band as the first act on his Neutral Records label. In December 1981, they recorded five songs at a studio in New York’s Radio City Music Hall, which was released as “Sonic Youth (EP).” And though it didn’t receive much in the way of the press or commercial success, it did highlight the band’s strengths and allow them to further develop their sinewy and bristling musical bearings.
Their first full-length studio record, “Confusion Is Sex,” was released in 1983 and found the band working through their influences with maniacal glee. After a series of subsequent records that acted as a refinery for their insular and damaged sound, the band slowly began incorporating broken pop melodies into their songs, resulting in an experimental vibe with trace amounts of a more traditional rock perspective. Fans needn’t have worried, though, as their songs were still laced with barbed and serrated guitar lines and a sense of twisted functionality that had been one of their defining traits ever since they first began recording.
By the time 1988 rolled around, the group had cemented its position as one of the greatest rock acts of the decade and was still charging ahead through new and often divisive musical landscapes. Having previously cut ties with Branca’s smaller imprint and subsequently with the coveted SST Records label, the band decided to release their double-LP “Daydream Nation” on Enigma Records, which was distributed by Capitol Records and was also affiliated with EMI. This record was the band’s first breakout commercial success—they had had some measure of it before, but now that they had some muscle behind their distribution, their records were reaching a far larger audience than ever before.
Unanimously hailed as a masterpiece by critics and fans alike, “Daydream Nation” is a sprawling work of art that fashions high-concept rock from the band’s punk and DIY ethos. Recorded at New York’s Greene Street basement studio, the album became one of the most influential releases of the burgeoning indie rock genre and continues to stand as one of the most important releases of the ‘80s, regardless of genre. Sonic Youth took the harsh noise of their early no wave experiences and riveted it to a skewed rock skeleton, resulting in a collection of songs that are as fiercely distorted as they are meticulously crafted.
From the opening rock salvo of “Teen Age Riot” to the lengthy and fractured closing track, “Trilogy,” the band brought the sum total of all their influences and inspirations to bear on this record. They were reveling in the mixture of pop, rock, jazz and strains of experimental music that find purchase in these songs. “Daydream Nation” was both their most accessible record up to that point and their most contentious among certain fans. This was the moment when Sonic Youth shook loose the underground characterizations and were exposed to the mainstream musical marketplace—and rock music would never be the same.
Taking their rightful place in the pantheon of indie rock bands who pushed past the limitations of their own time and constructed an entirely new perspective on their approach to music, Sonic Youth became the example, the band people pointed to when trying to describe other bands who couldn’t be easily labeled or categorized. When looking at “Daydream Nation” specifically, and the band in general, genres didn’t matter. The music is less a product of its direct surroundings and more an expulsion of sordid creative debris from a group of like-minded individuals who were infatuated with the possibilities of their musical impulses. It is a wild, unpredictable and uninhibited view into the creation of something necessary and new. And as it turns out, unsurprisingly, that was exactly what people needed.
Tracklisting:
Teen Age Riot 6:56 Silver Rocket 3:46 The Sprawl 7:39 ‘Cross The Breeze 7:00 Eric’s Trip 3:46 Total Trash 7:30 Hey Joni 4:17 Providence 2:39 Candle 4:57 Rain King 4:38 Kissability 3:06 Trilogy: a) The Wonder 4:27 Trilogy: b) Hyperstation. 7:04 Trilogy: z) Eliminator Jr. 2:37
One critique has overshadowed the music of Greta Van Fleet since their 2017 debut EP From the Fires: “They sound too much like Led Zeppelin.” Whether the critique is valid or not depends on the ears of the beholder, but the Grammy award-winning band’s latest album, The Battle at Garden’s Gate, finally put enough distance between their music and the sound of their inspirations.
The album, out via Republic Records, sounds freer than any music Greta Van Fleet has released before– somewhat shocking considering it was recorded during the coronavirus pandemic. But they made up for the lack of social freedom in the studio, introducing listeners to their most explorative album yet. They also moved from their tiny hometown of Frankenmuth, Michigan to Nashville, Tennesse, and worked with a new producer, hiring Greg Kurstin– an eight-time Grammy winner and two-time Producer of the Year, working with talents such as the Foo Fighters, Paul McCartney, and Adele.
They make this shift immediately obvious, beginning Heat Above, the first track on the record, with a resonant synth held on one chord. As it pulsates in the background, they slowly introduce a disorganized organ solo. Listeners get quickly lulled into this false sense of relaxation before they rip the rug out from under their feet, and the stellar rock album officially begins. They did, similarly, open their 2018 album, Anthem of the Peaceful Army, with this quiet before the storm approach, but this time around they used more updated sounds that music fans in the 2020s expect, as opposed to the classical approach taken in 2018.
The Barbarians and Trip the Light Fantastic may be the most experimental song Greta Van Fleet has ever put out. The ladder of the two is a striking track that begins with some sort of congested electric piano/synth that plays a catchy riff that loops throughout the song. The lead guitar also has a funk element to it that fans of the band have never had the chance to hear. While Trip the Light Fantastic issimilarbut incorporates classic guitar power chords.
Looking past the obvious, there is a substantial amount of growth in their lead guitarist Jake Kiszka. For the first time in the band’s discography, the guitar solos tell a story instead of merely being a show-off jam session. Broken Bells is the best example of this, as Kiszka shreds an emotional solo before his brother Josh shrieks outro with his built for rock and roll voice.
This album also showcased an even more powerful brand of rock music. Not only the solos full of life, but the riffs are also punchier, while the vocals breathe passionate life into the music. The band was set to open for the iconic metal band Metallica, which may have been the boost they needed to take their music to the next level.
But for as much progress as Great Van Fleet showed, the album did have low points. For one, the songwriting was often too ambiguous to nail down exactly what meaning they wanted listeners to take from the song. In interviews, the band often alluded to the album being societal expectations, which makes sense, but it is hard to deduct that without an explanation. On many songs, Jake’s guitar did the talking, not the lyrics. Still, Josh’s voice is so infectious and interesting it almost doesn’t matter what he is saying.
For two, they did step out of their comfort zone, but, overall, they did not give us anything we haven’t heard before. In fact, even on songs where the band showed personal strides, it still followed the same formulaic outline. It’s enjoyable, but over the course of the hour-long album, it can really start to weigh on the listener.
That being said, it is still incredible rock music that put substantial distance between their freshman EP and album. A great album doesn’t have to be groundbreaking to delight the ears of listeners. At the end of the day, The Battle at Garden’s Gate is an album that’s easy for almost anyone to get into and is sure to delight both Great Van Fleet and rock music fans.
Phish’s song, “Sleep,” landed as the ninth track on their 2000 album, Farmhouse. The band first performed it live on October 17, 1998, at the first of two Bridge School Benefit Concerts held by Neil Young and his late ex-wife Pegi Young at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California.
Neil and Pegi co-founded northern California’s Bridge School for severely disabled children in 1986. The couple was motivated to improve the life of their son Ben who was born with cerebral palsy. Bridge School Benefit Concerts were held annually from 1986 through 2016 (despite Neil and Pegi’s divorce in 2014 after 36 years of marriage). Phish, like the scores of all-star acts that played the Bridge School School Benefits, performed acoustically at Shoreline and thus “Sleep” was introduced during an “unplugged” set.
Full band acoustic renditions of “Sleep” followed when Phish taped an episode of PBS’ Sessions At West 54th on October 20, 1998, and when the band opened their Fall Tour 1998 a show on October 29 at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. “Sleep” went electric during the show on November 11, 1998, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Guitarist Trey Anastasio, who co-wrote “Sleep” with lyricist Tom Marshall, was the only member of Phish go acoustic when “Sleep” was played two more times on Fall 98 Tour. Another full-band acoustic delivery came on December 28, 1998, when a mini-stage was set up in the first set at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Quickly falling into rarity status and remaining fully electrified, “Sleep” was performed by Phish only two times in 1999. Another three performances came in 2000, one of which was part of a taping for another PBS program, Austin City Limits. Phish, who went on hiatus from late-2000 through 2002, brought “Sleep” out just once in 2003, and it stayed in hibernation the following year. When Phish ended a second hiatus that spanned mid-2004 through early-2009, “Sleep” emerged at two shows in summer 2009. After taking 2010 off, “Sleep” came back just one time in 2011 before being tucked away for several years.
“Sleep” ended a 289 show absence when Phish busted it out on July 3, 2019, at Saratoga Springs Arts Center (SPAC) in New York. The most recent Phish performance of “Sleep” came during the encore on November 29, 2019, at Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island — the same night they busted out fellow Cluster Flies song “Bye Bye Foot.”
”Sleep” was covered by Amy Helm for Cluster Flies. Helm was accompanied by Daniel Littleton (acoustic & electric guitars, dulcimer, harmonium) and Pete Hanlon (Moog) for her version of “Sleep” that more than doubles the 2:07 running time on Phish’s Farmhouse recording.
Listen to Amy Helm’s Cluster Flies cover of Phish’s “Sleep” below:
Amy spoke to JamBase’s David Onigman about her participation in Cluster Flies. The interview is featured in today’s episode of The JamBase Podcast.
Manic Street Preachers have shared some new details about their upcoming new album.
After sharing a list of nine potential song titles back in January, followed by an Instagram post teasing a few lyrics, the band have now given another update on their 14th LP.
Speaking in the latest print edition of MOJO (via Contact Music), the Manics recalled their time recording the album at Rockfield Studios in Wales last year.
“I recorded my entire fucking bass parts with a mask on,” said bassist and lyricist Nicky Wire. “But it’s the most rehearsed we’ve ever been for an album.”
Describing the sound of the album, he added: “The catchphrase was ‘like The Clash playing Abba’ – The Clash when you felt they could play in any style.”
“It’s quite a subtle record. There are, always, guitars, but it’s very restrained for us, and really tasteful,” he continued. “It’s the usual thing, miserable lyrics, and great pop.”
Still awaiting a track from the album! In the meantime, here is something from the last:
On the first day of recording at Rockfield it began to snow; frontman James Dean Bradfield took this as a good omen.
“It was snowing. And when the first snowflake came down and you wake up to a beautiful blanket of snow, it was, ‘Yeah, this is going to be a really good record,’” he said.
The pair went on to explain that the songs they laid down were influenced by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
“I had a very smug idea of how I saw the world, but I’ve realized I’d undervalued absolutely everything in my life,” said Bradfield.
“I think that’s what the album became about,” he continued. “That’s what the music did, it found a way out of lockdown.”
“There’s a lot of exploring the internal galaxies of the mind on this album, and understanding,” said Wire. “It didn’t feel like the right time for spite. It’s more internalized, bathed in comforting melancholia, rather than a self-defeating one.”
He added: “I certainly feel like these are some of the best words I’ve ever written.”
Meanwhile, the Manics will play their rescheduled Cardiff Arena shows for the NHS in July 2021. The concerts were originally due to take place this December at Cardiff Motorpoint Arena, with one free for healthcare workers and the other a fundraiser for health service charities.
They’ve also announced more details of a show at Halifax Piece Hall on Friday, September, with support from British Sea Power, Adwaith, and The Anchoress. The latter recently released acclaimed second album ‘The Art Of Losing‘, featuring guest vocals and guitar from Bradfield.
The post-Manic Street Preachers say the new album sounds like “The Clash playing Abba” appeared first on NME.
English rock band Field Music (led by brothers Peter and David Brewis) have released a new album, Flat White Moon, today via Memphis Industries. Now that it’s out you can stream the whole thing below. The album includes “Orion From the Street,” a new song the band shared in January that was one of our Songs of the Week. Then when the album was announced they shared its second single, “No Pressure,” via an amusing tutorial music video that shows fans how to achieve the band’s signature sound.
Finally, the long-awaited, much-anticipated debut album, Infinite Pleasure, from Newcastle rockers The Pale White is here. The trio (made up of Adam and Jack Hope and Tom Booth) had a meteoric rise through the ranks after releasing their 2018 EP Take Me To Strange– making Indie Central Music’s “Ones To Watch” list in 2019. Even before that, the band was garnering attention from top publications, like NME and BBC, while drawing comparison to Queens of the Stone Age. All of which made their debut album a bit of a letdown, as the album doesn’t show any real growth and, at times, feels flat.
The record begins with the title track, immediately giving listeners a taste of dense, emphatic drumming. Coupling this with trademark infectious riffs and heavy bass lines, the track seems like it is setting the tone for a brilliant rock album.
The singles from the album are also a show of force. Glue starts with a hefty guitar riff, after which a steady drumbeat leads listeners through the standout track. Take Your Time‘s bass riff is catchy, That Dress has a great metal influence in it, Medicine opens with the sound of a rattling pill bottle followed by a great vocal performance, and Confession Box is a much-needed change of pace, with a grungy opening.
The problem is it doesn’t go anywhere from there. Every song, including the enjoyable singles, follow the same pattern that really starts to weigh on the listener. It’s a sound that starts as flavourful but ends up being tasteless.
The lyrics of this album also tended to fall flat, some even border on the line of cringy or, even, lazy. Like, “When life gives you limes/ Lemonade is something to die for,” as lead singer Adam Hope sings in Glue. Or the awkward arrangement of, “You show me the door when I need more/ Now I get less,” in That Dress. They feel out of place and painfully obvious.
But for as glaring as the problems are, The Pale White still delivers great stadium, radio rock music. Any one song on this album would be perfect at a festival or party, it’s just Infinite Pleasure as a whole can be a taxing listen and feel like a chore towards the end.
by Joshua Pickard
Ahead of the release of Sixty Summers next week, on 30 April, Julia Stone is our latest Off The Road guest.>
