Clipping get bloody, Divine Comedy make a double play, Grande Fox present their papers, Greek Fire show their true colours and more in today’s Roundup. I finally got around to watching the series finale of Preacher. Meh.
1 | Clipping | Blood of the Fang
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Clipping has delivered an official and powerful new video for Blood of the Fang directed by multidisciplinary artist Lars Jan, from There Existed an Addiction to Blood, the group’s forthcoming album. The Blood of the Fang visual is inspired by a photo of Huey Newton — co-founder of The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense — hand-cuffed to a hospital gurney while being treated for a gunshot wound in the abdomen after a gun battle with Oakland police in October 1967. The song itself is built around a sample from Sam Waymon’s score to the 1973 experimental vampire film Ganja & Hess. Daveed Diggs’ lyrics conjure an alternate history of black political struggle in the 1960s and 70s, name-dropping radical activists and reimagining them as a pantheon of undead superheroes fighting against systems of oppression.”
2+3 | The Divine Comedy | Infernal Machines & You’ll Never Work In This Town Again
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Neil Hannon, aka The Divine Comedy, unveils a stunning combined animated video for new double A side Infernal Machines and You’ll Never Work In This Town Again. The two tracks illustrate Neil Hannon’s diversity as a songwriter. The industrial glam of Infernal Machines and the murky Latin syncopations of You’ll Never Work In This Town Again both expertly comment on the reluctance to fully place our lives in the hands of technology. Talking of the tracks, Hannon comments; “These two songs really are at the very heart of what I was trying to do and say on Office Politics. Lyrically; that I’m not greatly enamoured of our rush to hand over our world and our lives to technology, and musically; that I would use all means at my disposal to properly frame these ideas.”
4 | Grande Fox | Documento
THE PRESS RELEASE: “By having a clear approach to today, through their own unique way, experimental heavy rockers Grande Fox introduce us their new video for the track Documento. In a multifaceted and unfavorable reality for most people, through this song they are trying to express today’s harsh reality, showing their sensitivity and at the same time their concern for the direction our world has taken, with the ultimate goal of awakening and reviving values that have been lost through their creative tendencies.”
5 | Greek Fire | True Colors
THE PRESS RELEASE: “St. Louis alt-rock group Greek Fire has released their powerful new music video for True Colors, an emotional, self-empowering anthem and a timeless pop track included on their LP Broken. “True Colors is an important message for anyone who feels they or someone close to them is ashamed and afraid of vulnerability” says singer/guitarist Moon. “The need for perfection and how social media projects life is never reality, and leads to people feeling anxious, depressed and often leaving us feeling unfit to simply be happy.” The song was massively popular in the ‘80s when originally released by Cyndi Lauper and again in the late ‘90s when Phil Collins released his cover. Greek Fire found True Colors to be a song that resonates heavily with their purpose as a band, and were proud to put their own stamp on the track.”
6 | Janet Devlin | Confessional
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Irish songwriter Janet Devlin returns to the big leagues with a brand-new release. Confessional, a darkly defiant folk-tinged anthem, showcases her enchanting vocal style and alludes to her Irish heritage. With its thundering drums – not to mention uilleann pipes, accordion, fiddles, bodhrán, cows ribs and whistles – Confessional is the fusion of Janet’s identity, inspirations and influences, transforming it from not only a great introductory piece for an upcoming album, but also a fitting foundation for her re-entry to the musical landscape. “Confessional feels like the real beginning,” says Janet. “This collection of songs saved me, so the least I could do to repay them was to let the world have a listen. I can’t wait to release my album out into the wild and follow the songs wherever they take me next.”
7 | Grizzly Coast | High-Functioning
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Grizzly Coast is the musical project of Toronto indie-rock musician Alannah Kavanagh. Her new single High-Functioning serves as a reminder that the surface-level doesn’t illustrate the whole picture. With a high-energy melody and bouncy riffs, the song evokes the feeling of chaos you experience when your anxious thoughts are starting to run you while you’re trying your best to keep up.”
8 | Tymo | Sanity Clause
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Edmonton’s Tymo have fleshed out a new single Sanity Clause, the first release from the band since their 2017 album Purge and Reset! Influenced by thrash heavyweights including Megadeth, Slayer and Municipal Waste, the single is their first that will depart from the melodic end of the metal spectrum exhibiting more speed, energy and technicality that is akin to the traditional thrash sound. In their own words: “It’s a fast, skull crushing song, which tells the story of one not being able to escape their consciousness. When the obstacles in life become too hard, they take their own life only to realize it’s much worse in the afterlife and the consequences are worse.”
9 | Kill Chicago | Moonlight
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Kill Chicago have a careful knack for weaving heartfelt messages through boisterous rock’n’roll. Natural storytellers with a political core, this New Brunswick-based quartet has made a name for itself through electrifying live shows and an honesty that reflects their blue collar history. Their upcoming album The Fix amplifies their dissent with relatable working class anthems, breaking the fever dream of societal expectations. Ahead of the album, the band just released single Moonlight, an emotionally-driven rock track. When not performing, Greg Webber (guitar/vox) teaches music at Fredericton High, developing the next generation of artists, and the new song features 88 of his students singing backup.”
10 | Gidon Schocken | Show Me The Way
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Electronic artist Gidon Schocken was born in the USA but moved to Israel as a youngster, now residing in Tel Aviv, where he is inspired by the cultural mosaic the city has to offer, and the opportunity to collaborate and connect with like-minded musicians from all over the world. On Show Me The Way he truly shows his versatility as an artist, showcasing a sound that draws parallels to the likes of Gesaffelstein, Perturbator and SebastiAn. Speaking of the track, Schocken explains: “The track is about the fragility of life, how death can be so sudden and abrupt and how sometimes there’s no time to truly say goodbye to a loved one. I’d met up with a good friend for dinner who had told me of a family member’s sudden passing. A few hours later I got back home, worked on the track and added the main synth that comes in around the middle that set the tone for the rest of the song.”
11 | Bonnie Bishop | The Walk
THE PRESS RELEASE: “I believe this song came to me from somewhere beyond this world, because I heard it like a chant from a native tribe of people. Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh. I was walking through a park in Georgia that was a known Indian battleground and although there were no words at first, I felt that something was trying to communicate the idea that humanity is the eternal thread. Even though we all leave this world one day, the souls that tread this ground before us remain part of the fabric of life. Now. you can’t talk about the journey of life and not talk about death, that’s a fact. But nothing stirs up people’s doubts and fears of the unknown quite like death does. The lines at the beginning of this song hold so much more meaning to me now than they did when I wrote them, having just lost my beloved grandmother and a dear friend, separately, in a tragic accident: “Well the past is never dead, they say. So maybe we’ll meet on the walk someday.” Walking through the loss and sadness of both of these experiences, the incongruity with which a person exists and then is suddenly gone…it can really make you question what is real. Doubting what we know, or what we think we know, is part of the natural process of The Walk, but that doesn’t make it any less scary.”
