The Phoenix Foundation call on the landline, Friday Pilots Club go for the gold, Rooks stay positive, The Big Easy bring the fun and games — up to a point — and more in your Tuesday Roundup. There are at least five bands here that I’ve never heard of before — and want to hear more from ASAP. I’d call that a good day.
ON REPEAT
1 | The Phoenix Foundation | Landline
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Award-winning New Zealand indie-folk six-piece The Phoenix Foundation are sharing their new single/video Landline – the latest to be taken from their forthcoming album Friend Ship, out Oct. 16. The band’s sixth LP comes littered with a whole host of talent from NZ – Nadia Reid, Hollie Fullbrook of Tiny Ruins, The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Dave Dobbyn and Anita Clark all make an appearance. Landline is a particular standout from this new sound, an intricate jangle-pop tune that draws on the sounds of the indie-pop sounds of the ’80s, a notion which is accentuated further with the video’s accompanying surreal video shot by Ezra Simons.”
2 | Friday Pilots Club | Look Better In Gold
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Breakout Chicago alt-rockers Friday Pilots Club strike gold again with Look Better In Gold, the latest effort from their forthcoming EP. Penned by singer Caleb Hiltunen and multi-instrumentalist Drew Polovick, the duo seamlessly come together to create the anthemic track celebrating our differences. Hiltunen explains, “This is stream of conscious writing in a way. Drew and I are actively trying to see the world as a better place and that starts with the way we see other people. That’s what this song is about; ridding our minds of bias and choosing to see that people are all just striving to be the best version of themselves.”
3 | Rooks | Yeah
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Calgary rock trio Rooks share their new single Yeah, from their forthcoming debut album The High Road, due out Nov. 6. The single is accompanied by a new video captured on an iPhone. Yeah is inspired by the countless hours logged on stage between its three members. The track is lead singer/guitarist Jay Bowcott’s way of venting as he navigates the world of the working musician. “This life ain’t an easy one, musicians are constantly trying to learn how to evolve with an ever-changing industry. You play everywhere to get by, you cut your teeth, you woodshed, and when it’s all said and done you’ve had enough wild and outlandish experiences to put together some of your own songs. Yeah is about how you learn to adapt and be resilient no matter the circumstances.”
4 | The Big Easy | It’s All Fun and Games Until Someone Gets Hurt
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Founded in 2014, The Big Easy was, for a while at least, the solo project of singer-songwriter Stephen Berthomieux. “I’ve always had a rotating cast of musicians around me,” says Berthomieux. “The initial idea was that no matter who floated in or out around me, The Big Easy would always be a thing.” With a lineup finally solidified, The Big Easy is now an actual band on A Long Year, The Big Easy’s debut record. From the first notes of It’s All Fun And Games Until Someone Gets Hurt, The Big Easy starts A Long Year with bombastic, buzzing music that sounds tailor made for a raucous loft party. “That song kind of felt like the first song I wrote for this record, without even knowing I was writing a record.”
5 | Rudy De Anda | Espume
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Conceived in the 1980s in Mexico and brought to California through the border inside of his six-month-pregnant mother, Rudy de Anda is releasing his debut solo record, a love letter to the long historical lineage of rock ’n’ roll music as interpreted through his multicultural lens. “I write my own story, I don’t want to be defined by any scene” De Anda proclaims of his personal journey. Watch the video for Espume now.”
6 | Oginalii | Pillars
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Nashville’s Oginalii recently announced the Oct. 23 release of Pendulum. The band just released second single Pillars, with fuzzed-out riffs that immediately change gear to an exploration of space reminiscent of the sonic landscapes of Portishead. “The song explores a moment I feel we all come to realize at some point in our lives,” says frontwoman and songwriter Emma Hoeflinger. “The moment you realize a hero figure, a parent, an idol, or anyone that is a symbol of wisdom becomes human in your eyes for the first time. That person has faults, messes up, and isn’t on that pedestal or “pillar” you’ve always placed them on. What do we do with this new information? Do we let it ruin the love and respect we have created for them?”
7 | Calboa | Admission
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Yorkshire rocker Calboa is catapulting himself to the vanguard of contemporary indie with his brand-new release Admission. Hailing from Hull, the singer-songwriter hits the peg on the crest with jingly-jangly guitar strains, a drumbeat which strikes like thunder and an omnipotent vocal which takes no prisoners. Vocally, Calboa shimmers like a luminous beam with him speaking for the generation with poetry which will slap you round the jowls. He is witty, and his confidence drips all over the mix with heartfelt conviction. It is the antidote for the lockdown blues with its feel-good vibe and a melody which will boot you off your chair.”
8 | Yukon Blonde | Vindicator
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Yukon Blonde have been characterized in a lot of different ways. With their fifth release, Vindicator, they rewrite their story again. Jeffrey Innes (vocals/guitar/keys), Brandon Scott (vocals/guitar), Graham Jones (vocals/drums), James Younger (vocals/bass/keys), and Rebecca Gray (vocals/keys) douse keyboard melodies and relaxed grooves with psychedelic hues that are both playful and expansive. Today the band share new single You Were Mine. “We were all on Galiano island for this recording,” says Innes. “James brought the initial idea to the table, and after several hours of jamming, eating Scooby-snacks and drinking Churchill martinis, it started to fall apart in the most perfect way imaginable. I feel like this song somehow epitomizes the spirit of a successful collaboration in our band. Words like ‘compromise’ had no place in that session; everyone sings leads at some point, everyone plays everything. It’s certainly among our favourites from the record.”
9 | Horsewhip | Inertia Waits
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Saint Petersburg, Florida hardcore/crust outfit Horsewhip, formed by members of Reversal Of Man, Early Grace, Combatwoundedveteran, Order Of Importance, Sutek Conspiracy, and more, prepare to release their second album Laid To Waste on Sept. 25. With the LP nearing, a video for the album’s Inertia Waits has been issued. Vocalist Mike Grantham describes Inertia Waits” as, “An inner pull to abandon your life as it exists. Escape to a distant place and be free of all the negative thoughts and disappointments that consume every waking breath.”
10 | Meanwhile Project Ltd. | Selina
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Meanwhile Project Ltd. has been making music together for more than 20 years and played together in alternative rock band Lunatic Skydance, which was active from the late ’90s to mid 2000 and had a broad fan base. Marcell is also a member of the Cologne electropop duo Schmackes & Pinscher. With Meanwhile Project Ltd., the duo combine their most personal musical preferences, how different they may be. Epic post-rock-crackers and folky singer-songwriter ballads meet dust-dry Americana songs and experimentally playful Indie-Rock. Influences from bands as diverse as dEUS, Motorpsycho, Villagers or Calexico flash up here and there. Taken from latest album Marseille, the duo share a brand new video for the driving forward track Selina.”
ALSO ON THE PLAYLIST
11 | Helion Prime | The Gadfly
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Helion Prime have released their third single and the first music video from the upcoming album Question Everything, due out Oct. 5. The Gadfly is based on the Greek philosopher Socrates. He was found guilty of impiety and corrupting the young” sentenced to death, and then required to carry out his own execution by consuming a deadly potion of the poisonous plant hemlock. The video reflects Socrates’ ultimate decision to honor his conviction and carry out his death by hemlock while his followers and friends stood by having to accept his fate.”
12 | Realize | Melted Base
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Arizona’s Realize channel Godflesh, Nailbomb, and Meathook Seed with their sophomore full-length Machine Violence, assembling an abrasive and hyper-aggressive take on industrial metal. In advance of the record’s Sept. 25 release, the band unveil a video accompaniment to the track Melted Base. Realize, featuring Kyle Kennedy (Sex Prisoner), Matt Underwood (Sex Prisoner), and Matt Mutterperl (North and Languish), amalgamate crushing metal riffs with driving, yet often unorthodox industrial rhythms and dissonant noise.”
13 | Donovan Woods | Seeing Other People
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Donovan Woods shares the new video for his recent single Seeing Other People, from his upcoming LP, Without People. “To me the song is about, not only watching someone you love move on, but coming to terms with the realization that not only do you have to learn to let them go, but you have to be happy for them,” says Woods. “I think the video is watching a fella do just that. You’ve got memories to hold on to, but the journey of adulthood always includes learning to live without people in one way or another. At the end of the video, I suppose we see him begin his journey.”
14 | Michael Scott Dawson | London, 4AM
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Library Voices member and sound artist Michael Scott Dawson’s solo debut LP Nowhere, Middle of, is due out Oct. 16. Dawson has shared the second single from the album, London, 4AM, alongside a dreamlike video directed by Hannah Barnes. “A number of the pieces on the album are named after specific places but London, 4AM is probably the outlier of the lot,” says Dawson. “London isn’t somewhere I would typically place adjacent to descriptors such as peaceful or restorative.The song was built around a recording of birds singing and slow rain falling in a courtyard outside the open window of a rented room in the wee hours of the morning. I was staying near King’s Cross and had fallen asleep to the fresh hell of loud traffic, loud drunks, and amplified buskers but woke up completely jetlagged at 4AM to discover a rare moment of tranquility in the city.”
15 | Crystal Spiders | Fog
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “North Carolina’s one and only doom and hard rock duo Crystal Spiders release Fog, the third video from their debut album Molt out Sept. 25. The band previously released a hectic video for C-U-N Hell as well as an eerie visualizer for Trapped. Crystal Spiders’ debut album Molt sets things straight with nine instant proto-doom classics, dripping with enough swagger and fuzz to make the house crumble down. Enhanced by the unrivaled production of Mike Dean (Corrosion Of Conformity), Brenna Leath’s hoarse vocals strike hard on top of the duo’s devastating rhythm section, giving a strong, catchy hard rock depth to the whole record.”
16 | Noble Oak | Morning (Kongos Remix)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Noble Oak’s shimmery track Morning has received the famed Kongos remix treatment. While the album version of Morning evokes a War On Drugs-meets-Washed Out sonic journey, Kongos have elevated the track in showcasing an arena-worthy track full of kaleidoscopic beats and flourishing synths. The original version of Morning is featured on the Vancouver electro dream-pop artist’s album Horizon, released earlier this summer. Horizon is an enchanting collection of post-chillwave pop, a sumptuous suite of sativa songs for hazy, lazy days.”
17 | Helena Deland | Truth Nugget
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Montreal’s emerging singer-songwriter Helena Deland shares Truth Nugget, the third single from Someone New, the long-awaited, highly-anticipated debut album due out Oct. 16. “Truth Nugget is about the distance that exists even between the closest people and how friendship involves nurturing the other’s solitude.” says Deland. “It also touches upon how I experience my guardedness as being part of how I perform my gender.” The song’s dreamy magic is perfectly captured by an accompanying visualizer directed by Félix Marquis-Poulin, about which Helena says: “The fountain in a forest at night is what came to mind based on the sounds of the song, but metaphorically it stands as something beautiful, private feeling and reassuring that you stumble upon unexpectedly, familiar but exciting, the way friendship can be.”
18 | Gunship | Blood Black Red Kiss
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Taken from their second full-length Dark All Day, Gunship’s latest single Black Blood Red Kiss takes the cyberpunk noir band into a seductive and sensual dreamlike realm, exploring the intriguing relationship between pain and pleasure. The song features musician, tattoo artist and entrepreneur Kat Von D, who brings a warm and atmospheric vocal performance to the chorus as well as a hair-raising build up on the song’s central breakdown. “I’ve always been a fan of dark wave and synth heavy bands like Depeche Mode, The Cure and IAMX, so when I heard Gunship for the first time, it was all the things I loved rolled into one band,” says Kat. “When they asked me to sing on Black Blood Red Kiss I was half excited and half intimidated! But once I heard the demo, it felt like a perfect match made in heaven… or hell.”
19 | Storry | Telling
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Emerging from a time of isolation comes transition, and Juno-nominated Toronto artist Storry delivers the Storr-ies between chapters with her second project this year, Interlude-19. Released on Saturday, Sept. 5 (Storry’s birthday), the visual album explores themes like time, waiting, power, self-deprecation and death. It arrives with a video for third single, Telling, a commentary on society’s reliance on technology and the power it has over our lives. “We’re in reflection, in limbo. We’re waiting and are uncertain of what the world will be after all. It can feel like purgatory, springing up a multitude of emotions. It’s an interruption from our ‘busy’ness and our frenzied state of ego and consumption. We are now forced to either look at ourselves, at our world, or otherwise attempt to drown ourselves with frivolous distractions.”
20 | Overgrass | Feel Alive
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “A couple of months after the official release of their their brand new album Killing Time, Swiss alternative-garage indie-rock trio Overgrass just unveiled a new official music video illustrating the song My Life, single extracted from the effort and available right now. In other news, Killing Time is still available worldwide.”
21 | Newcastle Kings | Problem Solver
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Hailing from the frozen Canadian North, Newcastle Kings released have their new single Problem Solver, the latest of two new singles and the followup to Dreams. Newcastle Kings deliver an aggressive alternate rock sound that drags in the epic sound of the classic early 2000s with a modern rock sheen. The band’s recent work saw a breath of fresh life and excitement brought into the band with the introduction of Colin Munroe on lead guitar. His assault of electric delirium is forefront on track Problem Solver. A wall of distorted guitars, and a rhythm section like a kick in the chest. A poignant and guttural lyrical exploration of mental health, and lack thereof… Come sing along to pissed off victory anthems for the brokenhearted.”
22 | J. Pavone String Ensemble | Rise and Fall
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Lost and Found will be the second release for the J. Pavone String Ensemble, an unconventional quartet consisting of Jessica Pavone and Abby Swidler on violas, and Erica Dicker and Angela Morris on violins. Founded in 2017, they present original compositions that expand on the themes of Pavone’s extensive solo work while facilitating recent research into the effects of sonic vibration on human physiology and emotional health known as Cymatics. Rise and Fall highlights the use of free movement within a structured composition and clearly demonstrates Pavone’s recent experimentation of using both time-based and metered sections within a given piece. The ensemble oscillates between converging from meterless time-based material to bars of the notated score only to then eventually emerging back to free space, demonstrating the beauty created when string instruments are left to oscillate between given pitches at their own chosen rate within a structured piece.”
23 | Brothertiger | Paradise Lost
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Electronic music linchpin John Jagos, aka Brothertiger, has revealed the title track of his upcoming LP. Paradise Lost is Brothertiger’s first album of original material in five years and is due out Sept. 11.”
24 | Speed Control | Inspector Tang
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Hailing from Canada’s North in the Yukon, Speed Control is the rock band that can make you move even at -40°. Brothers Graeme and Jody Peters have been joined by new members Eric Holland (Drums, Vocals) and Greg McLaughlin (lead guitar, vocals). With the added depth and creativity, new material and new energy is on the way. Inspector Tang is the first single Speed Control are sharing from their upcoming fourth album. Born out of an odd time signature guitar riff, =Inspector Tang quickly transformed into a punchy, hard-hitting rock song.”
25 | Ana Roxanne | Because Of A Flower
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The sublime songs comprising Los Angeles-based musician Ana Roxanne’s second record Because Of A Flower germinated gradually across five years, inspired by interwoven notions of gender identity, beauty, and cruelty. She describes her process as beginning with “a drone element and a mood,” then intuiting melody, syllables, and lyrics incrementally, like sacred shapes materializing from mist. The experience of identifying as intersex informs the album on levels both sonic and thematic, from spoken word texts borrowed from tonal harmony textbooks to cinematic dialogue samples and castrati aria allusions. It’s an appropriately interstitial vision of ambient songcraft, a chemistry of wisps and whispers, sanctuary and sorrow, conjured through a fragile balance of voice, bass, space, and texture.”
26 | Dan Diggas | No Drama ft. J Warner & Marie Dahlstrom
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “London producer/musician Dan Diggas has released his debut solo single No Drama, featuring vocal contributions from fellow Londoner J Warner and Danish singer/producer Marie Dahlstrom. Diggas said: “This track depicts a relationship between a couple where a man is trying to charm a previous love, in the track he tries to reconcile the relationship by getting past her insecurities, promising to give her everything she needs with no drama (no issues). On the other hand the woman feels that she’s been down this road before and thinks nothing has changed, yet still tempted by his advances.”
27 | Bastian Benjamin | Concrete
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Innovative producer Bastian Benjamin has released his latest single Concrete from his upcoming album Two Truths, available on Dec. 4. Using basslines and harsh electronic elements, Benjamin provides his own social commentary on the world, encouraging listeners to refrain from becoming too concrete in their opinions. Benjamin reveals the deeper meaning behind the single: “The consequences of drawing conclusions too quickly are underestimated. If you only accept your own world, you’ll end up in strange places that you can never escape from. Only good thing is that you won’t be alone there.”
28 | Psyrena | Jedi Master
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Fast-rising London alt-pop musician / animator Psyrena (Madeleine Wise) returns with an effervescent, modern day electro-pop jam Jedi Master, lifted from her forthcoming EP Quarantella Rockefella due later this year. Jedi Master is a powerful 8-bit electronica synth-fest with a much deeper message. Psyrena says: “It all started with this synth melody, which I wanted to find words to. Then rewatching Star Wars during lockdown, I was inspired by the wisdom of Yoda and somehow I ended up finding a proverb by Xún Zi, a Confucian philosopher. Two Chinese friends read this out to me and it fit the melody to a T — as if it was meant to be — that’s how Jedi Master was born.”
29 | Star Crossed Lovers | Lunar Tide
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Eddie The Kidd & Kisos team up for an intergalactic journey through space on synth-heavy smash Lunar Tide. The pair became fans and friends of each other’s on social media, but after Kisos heard Eddie’s This Isn’t Love, he reached out to collaborate. Plot twist, Eddie ghosted him! But weeks later it turned out to be an accident as Eddie excitedly reached out to Kisos hoping he would hop on Lunar Tide. The duo quickly whipped up the perfect collaboration about a lover needing space, but realizing what they thought was a temporary break, would become a permanent rift.”
30 | Marsupial Lion | Red Planet
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Red Planet is a stylish new track from Marsupial Lion, the Ithaca, NY-based project of Travis Jonathan. Like Mars, Red Planet is craterous, cold, and desolate. Cut from the same sonic cloth as Marsupial Lion’s previous single Here’s Wishing!, Red Planet is a collision of explosive synthesizers and wailing guitars. Lyrically, Red Planet departs from the technology-reshaping-humanity narrative driving much of Juvenilia, opting to focus on humanity’s uncanny ability to sabotage itself. With tongue in cheek, Marsupial Lion muses on an interplanetary humanity, still enthralled by the pettiest of squabbles. “We grow greater with each crater” is no celebratory salute, but a dark and worried warning for a civilization whose spiritual prowess has long been surpassed by its technological prowess.”
31 | Homeboy Sandman | Trauma
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “When two brilliant artists like Homeboy Sandman & Quelle Chris come together to work on a full length album, it should be apparent how important that is. The combination of styles on the new collaborative album Don’t Feed The Monster is elegant and poignant. As Homeboy Sandman’s most vulnerable & honest record yet, it’s a gripping and moving journey through the mind of one of the brightest MCs working today. The first single, Trauma is out now. Don’t Feed The Monster will be out Oct. 9.”
32 | Penfriend | The Only Way Out Is Through
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “I can’t do much of anything when I’m feeling down, let alone write a song about it, but one day in 2019 when I was trudging my way back, I made an attempt to leave a breadcrumb trail for my future self. The Only Way Out Is Through is my attempt to trap the “shapeless forces” that pull at me, making them solid by assigning words to them, reducing their power and size to something I might feasibly be able to overcome. The aspirational sentiment that “resistance is crucial, forgiveness is beautiful” is one I find very hard to enact in the moment, but something I can at least continue to strive for. Ironically, this song is being released during my lowest fortnight of the last 12 months, so the safety line of lyrics I knotted inside the music is a helpful reminder of brighter days.”
