The Dollyrots and Arcane Ghosts party on, Counterparts wing it, Jocelyn Alice has a sweetheart deal and more in today’s Roundup. So far, I am enjoying Danny McBride’s Righteous Gemstones. Though it would be nice if he didn’t play the same self-centred dumbass over and over again.
1 The Dollyrots cannot be stopped. The married pop-punks released a slew of singles and videos to preview their latest album Daydream Explosion, which burst onto the scene a while back. But if you thought that was it for the promo clips, think again. They’ve got yet another vid to share for the single I Know How to Party. If that doesn’t make you a Daydream believer, nothing will. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “The Dollyrots’ signature punk n’ rock style shines through with hard-charging guitars, tantalizing hooks, and punked-out percussion.” Hello again, Dolly:
2 Holy crap, it’s almost Labour Day. Where the hell did summer go? It seems like we were just celebrating Canada Day yesterday. Thankfully, Brampton post-punks Arcane Ghosts are here to help you relive those backyard-party highlights and hijinks with their latest video for Rooftops. Though it’s not really about a party. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: While the video finds the guys and their friends having the time of their lives at a backyard Canada Day rager, the band says the song itself is actually about something entirely different, explaining, “Rooftops is about that show where nothing is going right. Whether it’s you’re out of tune, or off time, or your bass player is playing the wrong part, everyone’s been there.” And done that:
3 Canadian metalcore outfit Counterparts will release their sixth studio album Nothing Left To Love on Nov. 1. If you can’t wait until then, feel free to tide yourself over with the video for their song Wings of Nightmares. Thankfully, they put far more effort into the song than the visuals — this clip clearly took about as long to edit together as it does to watch. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “Wings of Nightmares is a no-brainer first single because it’s a perfect blend of old and new Counterparts. Sounds like if we tried to rewrite a song off Prophets in our late 20s. It’s one of the most Counterparts songs on the record if that makes sense. I think it’s got something for everyone.” Except people who like videos:
4 Nobody wants to feel smothered in a relationship. Especially not Calgary singer-songwriter Jocelyn Alice, who lets her beau know that in no uncertain terms in the lyric video for her reggae-pop single Sweetheart, a preview of her Nov. 22 album The Dark. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “Sweetheart is about taking time for yourself and not feeling guilty about it. It’s about knowing that our relationships become stronger when we have space for ourselves.” And our air horn:
5 Up-and-coming artists often ask me for advice on how to make their music stand out. It’s one of those questions that basically answers itself: Do something different than everybody else. I have never communicated with Seattle singer-songwriter Ian Kurtis Crist, but he’s clearly a guy who understands the concept. One listen to his stark post-punk number Fade Out the World, the first single from his upcoming third album Jesus White, is all the proof you need. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “Sometimes to help write lyrics I’ll play the on song on an instrument and say whatever comes to mind on the fly. When I wrote the chord progression for this song, I tried this the first time I played it through. Call it luck or the grace of inspiration, but the lyrics came out as they are. I tracked everything else in the song to the 8-track tape machine over the next couple of hours. I felt very fortunate with how easily everything came together for this track when others had become victim of rigorous self-analysis.” Fade in:
