Leif Vollebekk takes flight, Donovan Woods fires up the way back machine, Elephant Stone say hollow, The Membranes remix it up and more in today’s Roundup. I am actually kind of excited about getting an extra hour of sleep this weekend due to the time change. That’s where my life is at.
1 | Leif Vollebekk | Transatlantic Flight
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Leif Vollebekk’s New Ways is out today. It is the sound of desire in its unfolding. A sonic documentation of everything that Leif felt; tenderness and violence, sex and rebirth. “Anything that I wouldn’t ever want to tell anyone – I just put it on the record,” he says. Leif also shared this week a live version of Transatlantic Flight, filmed at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto with a 10-piece string section. Vollebekk performed on the famous Glenn Gould Yamaha piano. “I kept picturing playing this live and being surrounded by string instruments. Cellos, violins, violas, double basses… and a grand piano being like a mast in the middle of this big wooden ship of musicians. I asked my manager if she thought something like that could ever happen. The next day she told me Massey Hall would love to do exactly that. And further, I would get to play their Glenn Gould piano. For all this – and more – I am eternally grateful to them.”
2 | Donovan Woods | Way Way Back
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Multi-award-winning artist Donovan Woods gives fans another reason to fall in love with his new single Way Way Back — via the release of its lyric video. Directed by Amanda Louise Macchia (Leon Bridges) and complete with ominous scenes from a nightlife city-scape, the lyric video visually represents the romantic-angst that comes from the push and pull of sexual tension between old and new partners. Written entirely by Woods, who has written songs for artists like Tim McGraw and Charles Kelley, Way Way Back showcases his knack for slice-of-life storytelling, touting poignant lyrics that echo the nostalgic emotions tied to past relationships. “My partner said something once about the idea when people get back together with past romantic partners,” says Woods. “You always go as far as you’ve gone. If you slept together back then, you’d sleep together again. I thought it was a funny thought, and definitely true. But, it’s not something I’d ever heard anyone say out loud. So, I took that idea and explored the peculiar space that old sexual partners seem to occupy in everyone’s mind. It can be hard to escape the comfort and nostalgia that memory lane offers, and that’s what Way Way Back is about. The whole song — production and arrangement — is indicative of this push and pull between the risky excitement of something new and the ease of something familiar.”
3 | Elephant Stone | Hollow World
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Montreal’s Elephant Stone is the Polaris Music Prize-nominated psyche-pop creation of Rishi Dhir (vox, bass, sitar) along with long-time collaborators Miles Dupire (drums), Robbie MacArthur (guitar) and touring member Jason Kent (keys/guitar). Debuting in 2009, Elephant Stone has released five critically-acclaimed albums and toured extensively throughout North America and Europe and enjoyed significant success on US college/non-comm and Canadian commercial radio. As a highly-regarded sitar player, Dhir has also collaborated with indie rock icons (Beck) and legendary cult bands (The Brian Jonestown Massacre) and is a member of psych “super-group” MIEN (ft. members of The Horrors and Black Angels). The band has released an official music video for the title track of their forthcoming Hollow World LP, set for release next year. “I’m sure I’m not alone in this sentiment. If social media has taught us anything, it’s that there are a lot of unhappy people out there who are trying to find a way out. They are looking for meaning and something to believe in… or nothing to believe in… We all want the same thing, but are trying to achieve it in different ways. With this in mind, we wrote and recorded our 6th full-length. I set forth writing a song-suite telling of a world of unhappy souls who have lost connection with each other. The storyline touches upon the plundering/poisoning of their home, the elite, demagogues, false idols, the truth as seen by children, and, ultimately, the fight for the survival of their species. Hollow World is where it all begins.”
4 | The Membranes | Nocturnal Remix by Kitty Lectro
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Iconic UK post-punk/alt-rock group The Membranes have released an EP featuring two remixes of their song Nocturnal by goth-rock/darkwave specialist Kitty Lectro. Nocturnal was originally released on The Membranes’ critically acclaimed new album What Natures Gives…Nature Takes Away on June 7. Having remixed artists such as Kommunity FK, Andi Sex Gang, Beauty In Chaos (Wayne Hussey, Simon Gallup and Michael Ciravolo) and more, Kitty Lectro adds an addictive dance floor spin to Nocturnal. Frontman and Membranes founder John Robb explains why they chose to remix the song: “Nocturnal is our death disco dance with Pan, or our dark Dionysian dislocation of the senses that has been remixed to shadowy dance floor brilliance by Kitty Lectro. It examines the beauty and violence of nature, in which we took our bass-driven post-punk and added choirs to it to create an epic brooding soundtrack to the theme of nature itself and its desperate struggle to survive the human race’s hell bent determination to destroy it.”
5 | Agnostic Front | I Remember
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Legendary NYHC pioneers Agnostic Front are back to the scene with their twelfth studio album Get Loud!, which will be released on Nov. 8. Today they release the music video for the second single I Remember, which focuses on Roger and Vinnie’s start with the band. Directed by Punchdance Studios, the song which highlights the bands roots is accompanied by video montage and photos of the group’s early days. Roger Miret comments, “Probably the most important song on Get Loud!, I Remember is such a super personal song reminiscing on me and Vinnie putting the AF and NYHC stamp on the map! Looking back at it, I feel like this song could have been the title track to Godfathers Of Hardcore documentary. We chose to call on our friends and family for the videography and photography to paint that magical picture of our glory days. Today, Tomorrow, Forever”
6 | Nightwish | Devil And The Deep Dark Ocean
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Nightwish recently announced their new live release Decades: Live In Buenos Aires, which is due to be released Dec. 6. Today, they release the first single and video for Devil And The Deep Dark Ocean. Released back in 2018, Decades was so much more than a run-of-the-mill best-of. This comprehensive chronology of the band’s first two decades not only marked the band’s 20th anniversary; it was also the end of yet another era in the stellar career of Finland’s internationally most successful group. The consequent tour, too, was so much more than a regular anniversary run.”
7 | Sam Weber | Everything Comes True
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Acclaimed Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist Sam Weber is sharing the lyric video for Everything Comes True, the title track of his new LP produced by LA-based Tyler Chester (session player with Andrew Bird, Joan Baez, Jackson Browne). The track, written at home on his parents’ piano, is described by Weber as being something of a snapshot of his past, present, and future. “I’m trying to say that good things and bad things will happen,” says Sam, “but not because they’re good or bad, but because they’re true, and the truth always comes out in the end. No matter how tragic or joyous.” It’s a gentle philosophical bent that surfaces throughout the new record but highlighted at its finest on Everything Comes True with lyrics that spell hard-earned wisdom and music that touches on the sound of The Band, Gillian Welch and Alice Coltrane via Weber’s twinkling piano and fuzzed guitar.”
8 | Melanie Peterson | Christmas Breaks My Heart
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Toronto singer, songwriter, musician and actress Melanie Peterson releases a lyric video as a preview for her upcoming, original holiday single called Christmas Breaks My Heart. It pursues Peterson’s ever-present songwriting theme of love and the melodic side of folk-pop. It was written during the summer of 2017 and recorded during the summer of 2018 and as she explains, “It was an interesting challenge getting into the Christmas spirit when its 35 degrees outside! … What inspired the song? To me, there is more than one side to Christmas. There’s the whimsical, childlike, magical side and then there is a melancholy, lonelier side. This year, I was really drawn and excited to write a sad Christmas song about someone who was facing Christmas with a broken heart. I strangely enjoyed tapping into the loneliness and sadness someone can feel when spending Christmas alone.”
9 | Nile | Snake Pit Mating Frenzy
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Technical death metal Egyptologists Nile are proud to release their ninth album, Vile Nilotic Rites, today. In celebration of the release the band offer fans the lyric video for the song, Snake Pit Mating Frenzy. Karl Sanders comments, “The arrival of the release day of Vile Nilotic Rites is the long awaited culmination of not only years of passionate, dedicated work from everyone involved, but also the sweeping realization, the promised land of the collective hopes and expectations of our fans. In truth, this day of deliverance is also their day, not just ours. Nile fans have always been loyal and supportive through the years, and evidenced themselves particularly so over and over during the long wait while we slaved over this album. Their eternal metal faith and encouragement were a continuous source of inspiration for us to push ourselves to make this the best Nile record we possibly could. This album has been a long time coming; but it is here at last, here at last..Thank the Metal Gods Almighty, Vile Nilotic Rites is here at last.”
10 | Matt Zaddy | Busy
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Toronto singer/songwriter Matt Zaddy releases his latest album Be. With a sound that seamlessly blends folk-rock and modern soul, there’s something for every music fan to love about Zaddy’s sophomore effort, but what’s immediately apparent is a sophistication that dramatically builds on the success of his 2015 debut EP, Perfect Moments. It’s impossible to ignore the positive vibes that Be radiates upon first listen. For Zaddy, the message behind Busy hinges on the line “you can be right or you can be happy,” one of those hard-earned life lessons. “Sometimes we want to be right so badly that we don’t care who we hurt in the process,” he observes. “I’ve found myself guilty of this more than once in my life, and writing this song was part of me realizing there has to be a better way. We can have open and honest conversation, and leave the daggers at the door.”
11 | Mountain Head | Circuit
THE PRESS RELEASE: “This song came to be when we brought home a Canadian made fuzz pedal, the first riff we played out of that pedal became the basis for Circuit. The song is an electric reflection of the nervous system, utilizing different circuits as the descriptor for different areas of the nervous system. The lyrics and music travel through these circuits, so press play and let the song Circuit take you through your own electric playground.”
12 | Elizabeth The Second | No One Cares
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Elizabeth The Second are Ben Moro (guitar and vocals), Michele Venturini (bass guitar) and Luca Gallato (drums). Their music is influenced by The Clash, Blur, The Libertines, Arctic Monkeys, Nirvana and The Stone Roses. Their upcoming EP Two Margaritas at The Fifty Five is a journey through impulsive sounds, seasoned with a captivating melodic compartment. Ahead of next Friday’s release, the band are previewing the second track off this EP, called Gimme One Euro. Markedly different from their debut single No One Cares, which draws closer comparisons to bands like The Strokes and The Libertines, this new track features a sound that is closer to the reggae-inspired output from bands like The Clash and The Police. But do you enjoy the full EP with its five tracks there is much here to enjoy.”
13 | Grid | Stranglehold: The World According to Herbert Huncke
THE PRESS RELEASE: “New York based noise-jazz trio Grid — Matt Nelson (saxophone), Tim Dahl (bass), Nick Podgurksi (drums) — have released a new single, featuring the legendary singer, poet, and self-empowerment speaker Lydia Lunch. On Stranglehold: The World According to Herbert Huncke, Lunch summons the spirit and philosophy of the original beat writer Herbert Huncke, who inspired Burroughs, Ginsberg, and Kerouac. Her performance is hypnotic, seductive, and haunting. In Lunch’s own words: “Grid exude a timeless atmospheric Out Surrounds.”
