Horsey show you how the sausage is made, Practice make bedroom eyes at you, Blindfolded & Led To the Woods take it outside, The Soviet Machines kick back with Jack and more in your Wednesday Roundup. Today’s keywords: Eccentricity, animation, wilderness, skulls, multiplicity and dementia. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
ON REPEAT
1 | Horsey | Sippy Cup
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “South London’s unclassifiable four-piece curios, Horsey, return with Sippy Cup. The single marks the band’s first new material since their 2019 EP Bread & Butter. Clocking in at just under two minutes, Horsey’s hyperactive offering sees the band traverse playful oddball pop, absurdist theatricality, and moments of avant-punk instrumentation that fragment and reassemble themselves at a frenetic pace. The band say Sippy Cup is about “being, living and acting like a child.” This theme is reflected in the accompanying imagery, which shows Jacob Read and Theo McCabe together as children, with them and most of the band having been lifelong friends since nursery.”
2 | Practice | I Saw Love
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The seed of I Saw Love started from a memory of a bassline of an Arthur Russell song. As I constructed the song, it became a story of moods, rather than words, like passing through a haunted funhouse of mirrors, traveling from optimism to triumph, despair, and ecstasy,” explains N.Y.C. indie electro-pop artist Michael Tapper of Practice. Tapper recalls that it “seemed appropriate” to run with the ominous, spooky mood themes for the accompanying music video. “I wanted it to be an allegory about being pursued by love, but with love as death.” Using early Luis Buñuel films as inspiration, he and his wife brainstormed ways to use simple camera and editing tricks to bring it to life and add a touch of surrealism.”
3 | Blindfolded & Led To The Woods | Atop The Wings Of A Magpie (ft. Karl Sanders)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “New Zealand tech/avant death metal outfit Blindfolded & Led To The Woods return with Atop The Wings Of A Magpie, which features guest vocals from Karl Sanders of Nile. Impressed by Blindfolded & Led To The Woods’ ability to, “capture and convey real emotion,” Sanders felt the song was “bursting with feeling and atmosphere [and] a real sense of disorientation, despair, fear of the unknown, and a loss of humanity.”
4 | The Soviet Machines | Get Your Kicks
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Soviet Machines are a three-piece rock band from Minneapolis, that began in 2006. In September, the band traveled to Seattle to work with legendary producer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Afghan Whigs). The self-titled album that resulted is filled with everything that makes the band great; big guitars, loud roomy drums and infectious melodies. The LP is slated to drop digitally on Jan. 1. Stream the latest single Get Your Kicks.”
5 | Shotgun Mistress | Collide
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Melbourne band Shotgun Mistress have released their latest hard rock onslaught Collide. It highlights the band’s now trademark style of combining stupefying guitar riff grenades, a combustible rhythm section and soaring vocals wrapped in a melodic maelstrom. Shotgun Mistress is as hard to define as it is difficult to ignore. Ignore them at your peril.”
ALSO ON THE PLAYLIST
6 | Catholic Guilt | Life In Three Part Harmony
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Melbourne’s Catholic Guilt debut a new animated video for Life In Three Part Harmony, off their LP This Is What Honestly Sounds Like. Singer Brenton Harris says: “Life in Three Part Harmony is a love song to the awesome connective power of live music. There’s something magical that happens when a music lover is watching their favourite act perform live. They become immersed in music. It takes over their mind, body and soul, and for those precious few minutes or hours, they are connected on a near-spiritual wavelength with the artist.”
7 | Audio Karate | Gypsyqueen
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Audio Karate have reissued their sophomore record Lady Melody on vinyl. Lady Melody has earned a cult following amongst musicians since its release in June 2004. It was recorded and mixed in two weeks in December 2003 at The Blasting Room in Fort Collins, Colo., by Jason Livermore and Bill Stevenson (Descendents/All), with Stevenson often touting its single Jesus Is Alive & Well (And Living in Mexico) as possibly his favorite thing he’s ever recorded. Check out the new video for Gypsyqueen.”
8 | Peter Katz | Come Down
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Juno-nominated artist Peter Katz released his new album City of Our Lives today. Produced by Derek Hoffman, City of Our Lives is a collection of 11 new songs like you’ve never heard from Peter before. It’s the Peter Katz record where Peter Katz comes into his own; the Peter Katz record that elevates him from one of those sturdy Canadian singer-songwriter types forever crowding the edge of the radar to the Peter Katz who makes you wonder why you haven’t been paying more attention to him all along.”
9 | Busty & The Bass | Eddie
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Eight-piece Canadian soul-jazz collective Busty and the Bass release a video for their sophomore album’s title track Eddie. The video, directed by June Barrie with animation by Vincent Hurtu, is a beautiful, trippy piece that flawlessly matches the band’s romantic R&B and psychedelic funk soundscape.”
10 | M. Byrd | Mountain
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “M.Byrd has quickly forged his own path in the industry with his infectious indie neo-psych-folk sound. His debut single Mountain features waving reverb, stoic, laid-back drums by André Albrecht and floating choirs by Doreen Albrecht, creating a space in which Byrd’s voice moves in wishful, yet familiar warmth. The songwriter shares: “I visited the highest mountain of Denmark called Himmelsbjerget, which roughly translates to Sky Mountain or Mountain of Heaven. I thought it was quite a name for a mountain that is only 147m high, but when you climb on top of it, it feels so high, you can almost see the ocean. So Mountain became this idea of a song that puts things into perspective — if even the seemingly smallest hill can be a mountain, what good things are actually surrounding me right now?”
11 | Yelle | Vue D’En Face
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Yelle has saved us with a beautiful video for Vue D’En Face, starring her great friend Nicolas Maury. Brilliant and soft, Vue D’En Face brings us the light in our strong interior. A Twin Peaks atmosphere (Scandinavian version) envelops them, without too much information, just enough to feel the weird balance of the song.”
12 | Demonstealer | A Festering Wound
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Sahil Makhija aka Demonstealer has released a new song off of his upcoming EP And This Too Shall Pass. “No God will save you” screams Makhija halfway into this scathing, blastbeat-heavy ripper that channels his abject hatred for religion and all the ill it’s spawned. He adds: “It refers to humanity and how we’re almost like a cancer on this planet; how we’ve created God, religion and blinded the masses with these man made creations.” And This Too Shall Pass arrives Dec.11.”
13-15 | Isabel de Sade | Wrong Choice + Not Even You + Burn Again
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Italian alternative metal four-piece Isabel de Sade have published three new lyric videos to promote their EP Undivided from Desire, which is available for free on their Bandcamp page. The tracks are connected by a unique meaning and also with original visual arts, where digital illustrations took life to enhance the storytelling behind the music.”
16 | Charlotte Jane | Get It Right
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Charlotte Jane’s debut EP Nowhere To Hide established her as one of the UK’s brightest new voices. Her single Get It Right does just that, as you can see in her video. The video depicts the sentiment of the song — looking back and learning from one’s mistakes. She explains: “I think it’s a really beautiful way of showing how we can look back, learn from past mistakes and move forwards. It’s about that lightbulb moment when you realise your own self-worth and stop letting people string you along.”
17 | Ruth Brosnan | Electric Gold
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Cork pop musician Ruth Brosnan is back with another high energy dance track. Electric Gold is influenced by a mix of ’80s and modern electronic elements. Ruth was inspired by the different effects of the COVID-19 pandemic for the lyrics of the song, from the restrictions we all face to the endurance of the front-line and key workers. “It’s about realizing that we are all our own heroes and will overcome these tough times and emerge together stronger. It is a shot of adrenaline to all of those obeying the rules so far to keep on going and a thank you/acknowledgement to frontline staff.”
18 | Mark Clennon | Don’t Start A Fire
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Future-soul artist Mark Clennon is back with a poignant new single, Don’t Start A Fire. The Toronto artist explores relationship ambiguity and the far-too-common phenomenon of playing with another person’s feelings. This song encapsulates what the Jamaican-born musician is all about, using his powerful, touching voice to honestly sing over this sweeping track. Don’t Start A Fire is the first single from Clennon’s upcoming EP Foreign.”
19 | Magefa | Instrument Inside
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Magefa, a death metal band from Frankfurt, have released Instrument Inside. The single is part of a future EP that will be released in the beginning of 2021. The new song sees the band moving into a more complex song structure, delivering great riffs and drums, while maintaining the groove elements and influences from old Carcass material combined with some new and genuine modern approach.”
20 | The Magician | Magic Tape 99
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Belgian DJ / Producer The Magician (Stephen Fasano) has dropped Magic Tape 99, the latest chapter in his ongoing mix series. Drawing on a myriad of influences from house, disco, funk, soul, techno and R&B, Magic Tape 99 features a clutch of exclusive tracks from established and rising acts and is a testament to Stephen’s inimitable style and knack for discovering rising talent. Stephen will follow up his 99th release with a very special 100th edition on Jan. 27. Spanning over a decade since its first inception 10 years ago, the Magic Tape series has grown from strength to strength, gaining a dedicated global following along the way.”
21 | Jay Wud | I Can’t Breathe
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Diverse and multi-talented producer Jay Wud will release of his new album Dark Cinema on Nov. 30. It includes the song I Can’t Breathe. The track is the sonic embodiment of anxiety, with the heavy breathing and scattered electronic stylings. Overall, Dark Cinema can be seen as a musical time capsule that will highlight the strangeness of 2020 while including a bit of humour and light embellishments to show that not all hope is lost.”
22 | Brad Lee Curtis | Surrender
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Indie-rock artist Brad Lee Curtis just released Surrender, his debut single as a solo artist. Sonically, the song lands somewhere between Fleetwood Mac and The War on Drugs, evoking celebration of the strength, will and determination that is required to follow your dreams and create your own destiny. “When I wrote Surrender the music came first so I was trying to find the right words to fit. I kept envisioning these desolate desert scenes in my mind and this idea of going through an existential journey. It was something I think I was going through at the time.”
23 | Montezuma’s Revenge | Comfort Of The Sick
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Originally formed in Moscow in 2004, Russian quartet Montezuma’s Revenge are not only a formidable sludge rock machine, they’re quite possibly one of Eastern Europe’s best-kept underground secrets. Their latest single heralds the band’s first official offering since their phenomenal 2017 sophomore album Them. A slow swirling hammer attack of riffs and cosmic doom, Comfort of the Sick swings menacingly between celestial rock and relentless stoner metal. As guitarist Ilya explains: “This is one of our very few ‘radio friendly’ songs, and it’s very fitting that we recorded it with our new vocalist Andrew, who could sing the Pope out of the woods.”
24+25 | Jesse Mac Cormack | Let It Go + Incomplete
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Jesse Mac Cormack is keeping busy during these strange times, as evinced by Let It Go and Incomplete. About the first track, Jesse says: “Let go of the things you can’t change. Two individuals have entangled themselves in a relationship that from the outside is clearly based on manipulation and control. What can you do? After such a long time, you wonder if they can still remember what feeling free feels like.” About Incomplete, he adds: “That’s me having a conversation with God. Now he’s living on the streets and is a victim of his own invention. It was never his intention to corrupt, lie and hurt. Now that the blue world is dying and that the extreme left and right are meeting at the bottom of the circle, he wishes for a change.”
26+27 | Leif Vollebekk | Long Blue Light + 29 #Strafford APTS
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Leif Vollebekk doubles your pleasure with Long Blue Light / 29 #Strafford APTS, his new two-song EP. The title track is a brand new original, while the second is a Bon Iver cover.” Leif explains: “Long Blue Light was recorded during the sessions for New Ways, live with just myself and a drummer, Homer Steinweiss. I had all but abandoned it but this year I kept coming back to it. I added some overdubs and had Cindy Cashdollar finish it off with a gorgeous dobro part. It was supposed to fade out but I rather liked how it just falls apart at the end.”
