Elvis Costello & Iggy Pop fly the flag, Kalidia get lost at sea, Young Gun Silver Fox savour the sound of silence, Foxes goes Hollywood and more as your gargantuan Weekend Roundup continues. If you’ve got this far, congratulations: You’re halfway there (wherever that is).
51 | Elvis Costello Avec Iggy Pop | No Flag
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Elvis Costello releases No Flag (en Français) avec Iggy Pop — a new version of Costello’s song No Flag, sung in French by the one and only Iggy. The track is accompanied by a new music video, featuring hand-drawn animation by frequent collaborators Arlo McFurlow and Eamon Singer. The original version of No Flag appears on Costello’s latest studio album Hey Clockface.”
52 | Kalidia | The Lost Mariner
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Italian melodic power metal band Kalidia just released a lyric video for The Lost Mariner, the first single from their upcoming re-recorded debut album Lies’ Device. Originally released independently in 2014, the re-recorded version will be released on Feb. 5.”
53 | Young Gun Silver Fox | Who Needs Words
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “On their album Canyons, Young Gun Silver Fox turned it up to 11. They are nothing but Kids cruising in the fast lane, totally over the top searching for the Dream Woman, touching down in Tokyo caught in a Long Distance Love Affair, imagining the theme for a lost ’70s TV series starring Danny Jamaica, being on the winning side in a Private Paradise, getting deep and soulful in Things We Left Unsaid and wondering how to spread All This Love, their bass lines, sound layers, brass arrangements and harmony vocals are immaculate. Everything fits perfectly. Just like this. Who Needs Words when everything is crystal clear? Exactly!”
54 | Foxes | Hollywood
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Foxes releases Hollywood, one of her most beautiful, raw and honest songs to date. The track is centred around the challenging experience of chasing her dreams to Los Angeles as a young songwriter. “Anyone who has spent some time in Los Angeles will understand the long shadow that amazing city can cast. When you step away from the glimmering lights and the star studded parties it can be a hard place, echoing with feelings of loneliness, isolation and rejection. I wrote this song after an extended stay in West Hollywood when i was feeling completely overwhelmed and really struggling as a young artist trying to make sense of it all.”
55 | Mordkaul | The Widow Black
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “One month ago, Belgian melodic death metallers Mordkaul were introduced to the audience as experienced musicians coming from bands such as Diablo Blvd, Hell City, Furia and Leng Tch’e. The Widow Black is from their upcoming album Dress Code: Blood. “Driven by a mutual passion for Swedish melodic death metal we have been working on our debut album over the past few years. The result is absolutely what we were aiming for.”
56 | Orden Ogan | Heart Of the Android
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “German power metal masters Orden Ogan are back with their single Heart Of The Android. The track is taken from the band‘s forthcoming new album Final Days, which will be released on March 12. Seeb comments: “Final Days is a dark-science-fiction-concept-record and it features all Orden Ogan trademarks: Fat and modern riffs, epic choruses and melancholic orchestral arrangements. On this record you will find the best songs that we have ever written. Final Days takes it to the next level.”
57 | Gavin James | Man On The Moon
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Gavin James is set to step into the spotlight with arguably his finest moment to date: Man On The Moon. “For Man On The Moon I tried to picture someone on the moon, thinking that they are all alone and not realising that the whole world is thinking about them. It’s about looking after the people you love because some days, they may feel like they have no one to talk to,” explains Gavin. “In particular this year, people might feel more disconnected than usual from their friends and family. This song is a gentle reminder that you are never alone.”
58 | Tulliah | Just My Type (A Little Bit Lonely)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Introducing 19-year-old singer-songwriter, Tulliah. Hailing from Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, Tulliah writes from a place of heartfelt experiences with melodies that seamlessly wash over you. Today, she has revealed her captivating single Just My Type (A Little Bit Lonely) — a deluge of earnest songwriting with a profound sound that catapults her well beyond her young years. She explains: “I wrote the song about falling for someone who you know isn’t good for you, but you still go there — one of those bad decisions!”
59 | Corrosium | I Remain
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Corrosium is a five-piece alt-metal band from Kytäjä, Finland. They got started several years ago as an idea to make music that’s simple but melodic and thus, addictive. The original idea was to just record a few songs and be done with it. However, the songs turned out too good not to play live, and so it was decided to officially form a band and give it a name. The band comments: “We started making this EP Undertow from a different situation than the debut album. This time all songs were composed specifically for Corrosium, whereas the previous album had songs written before the birth of the band. Still we managed to keep the trademark atmosphere, melodies and low grinding riffs in the mix.”
60 | Baby Fuzz | Welcome To The Future
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Baby Fuzz releases the environmentalist arena rock anthem Welcome To The Future, the title track from his album due out early next year. Glam rock environmentalist “sounds like a paradigm, but that’s kind of the point. The lyrics comically inhabit the carefree lives of a Karen, a Kevin, and even an alcoholic orca to point out the fleetingness that is Earth. It has this incredible arena rock energy that conveys the scale and importance taking care of the planet, but also hyper-lowbrow lyrics that make the idea feel more like a dada indictment of our current outlook rather than a didactic We Are The World spinoff.”
61 | Amigo the Devil | Another Man’s Grave
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Dark Americana artist Amigo The Devil has just released Another Man’s Grave, the first single off his forthcoming second album Born Against, set to drop on Feb. 19. Another Man’s Grave is a storytelling marvel, as Amigo laments the trials and tribulations of the human condition over a swelling orchestral crescendo. “This is very much a coming to terms song. It’s the realization that the habits and routine we’ve been living, the behaviors, and outlook displayed aren’t true to the person that we know exists somewhere within. It’s about the purgatory-like time between accepting this and the moment we truly decide to do something about it. It’s about the fear and self-doubt that keep us believing we aren’t strong enough to be the person we genuinely know we are whether it’s because of social pressure, trauma, addiction or any combination of circumstances that keep us stuck in a grave we know we don’t belong in.”
62 | Flood Peak | Urnfield
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Portland trio Flood Peak’s EP Fixed Ritual arrives Jan. 22. Flood Peak made their entrance in 2016 as outsiders, but their monolithic, gloom-ridden blackened post/sludge started to spread steadily through word of mouth and live shows. Swallowing elements from different extreme and experimental music territories, their impenetrable wall of sonic filth encompasses a mix of chaotic and droning riffs, creatively frantic drums, sparsely raw vocals, and monstrous basslines.”
63 | Alabama Slim | Rock Me Baby
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “New Orleans bluesman Alabama Slim (I know that’s conflicting geography) will release his new album The Parlor on Jan. 29. Alabama Slim (Milton Frazier) is influenced by Bill Broonzy and Lightnin’ Hopkins, as you can hear on Rock Me Baby. Says Slim: “I first heard it by Muddy Waters. I didn’t do it exactly like him, changed it around in there. I say ‘Rock me baby, don’t let me go home,’ yeah. I heard that, hell, I don’t know, 16 or 17 years old. I was trying to play guitar but my fingers would get sore. I would soak ’em at night or put talcum powder. One day I just started playing!”
64 | Charles Ellsworth | Max & Geraldine
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Brooklyn transplant (by way of Arizona) Charles Ellsworth will release his album Honeysuckle Summer on March 5. Just as the pandemic was taking seed around the country earlier this year, the singer-songwriter managed to recruit several musicians from the Brooklyn scene — including Jared Schapker (Grandpa Jack) and Blake Suben (Dirty Bird) — to help him record this album with producer Joe Reinhart at his Headroom Studio in Philadelphia.”
65 | Petit Biscuit | Drivin’ Thru The Night (Jerro Remix)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “French producer, composer, and songwriter Petit Biscuit recently stepped into the role of assured frontman on his long-awaited Parachute LP. As momentum continues to build around the project, he’s enlisted Belgian producer Jerro for a brilliant remix of the album’s standout single, Drivin Thru The Night. Petit Biscuit remarks, “Jerro’s remix reminds me of something that I’ve already known, and at the same time, something very new and fresh. A kinda Avicii touch that is transposed into a 2020 era.”
66 | Cristina Vane | Muddy Water
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The fourth title in the acclaimed singer-songwriter series The Magnolia Sessions spotlights a performance by Nashville blues/folk artist Cristina Vane. The album is out today, along with a stream of Muddy Water. Vane says, “I used to get nervous about tracking live — I wanted everything to be meticulous and as perfect as it could be, which in my mind, left no room for the inherently imperfect nature of a single take. But many hours of playing and touring have transpired since those days, and I jumped at the chance to do something a little different.”
67 | Robert Glasper | Better Than I Imagined (Kaytranada Remix ft. H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Grammy-winning musician Robert Glasper has teamed up with Best New Artist nominee Kaytranada to deliver a remix of the single Better Than I Imagined. The original version features R&B chanteuse H.E.R. and Meshell Ndegeocello. Better Than I Imagined is an ode to Black love that Glasper has expanded upon beyond the music and video: “No one wants a life without love, but we have generations of people in our community who haven’t had the tools to actually be in healthy relationships. It seems like people are finally ready to open their eyes to systemic racism in this country, and if we’re going to talk about it, we have to also talk about how it affects our relationships.”
68 | The Brooks | Merry Christmas Baby
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “As an extra gift for this holiday season, Montreal’s funk/soul/jazz band The Brooks have recorded their version of the soulful Otis Redding classic Merry Christmas Baby. Written by Johnny Moore & Les Baxter, Merry Christmas Baby was an old favorite of the Prater household in Jacksonville. Recorded live at Tone Bender Studio in Montreal and as the band explains, “adorned in industrial quantities of hand sanitizer, face masks and wipes, we managed to do the impossible and bring you this rendition, just in time for the holidays.”
69 | Needlepoint | Rules Of A Mad Man
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Needlepoint is a Norwegian group that straddle the border between jazz and prog in a unique and timeless way. Based around the renowned guitarist Bjørn Klakegg, the band is rounded out by a veritable who’s-who of the Nordic jazz and rock scene, including members of Elephant9, Møster!, Bigbang and others. Today the band is out with the frist single Rules Of A Mad Man.”
70 | Tunic | Exhaling
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Winnipeg is cold. Ice cold. And judging by the emotional brawn and hardcore might of the three-piece Tunic, it can get very very dark. That darkness is explored on the band’s EP Exhaling, a three track effort due April 9. Title track Exhaling is about “frustration and feeling trapped in a situation and feeling like you have no one to turn to. You feel miserable, wrecked and exhausted and know that you’re going to get into a fight. It’s a song to sit and stew with your anger and your frustrations with.”
71 | Seth King | Numb
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Up-and-coming hit maker Seth King is back with his latest release Numb, from his forthcoming EP 2020 Got Me Feeling Like. “I wanted to be someone who cared about the world … but with 2020, the fires, hurricanes, human rights breaches and a global pandemic, I found myself becoming numb to it all,” explains Seth. But “I woke up at 3 a.m. one morning and realised I don’t want to be numb in this world.”
72 | Jesse Roper | Brightside
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “A creative soul, dedicated to writing and making music, Jesse Roper has always stood out as someone on a mission to bring his piece of peace to the world. He has a story to tell and he won’t stop until he gets his message just right. “It took me the better part of a year to get the lyrics feeling good. There’s a fine line between cheesy and meaningful. I’m sure there’ll still be some folks out there who find it cheesy but that’s OK. Sometimes you have to let the message send itself. I feel lucky to live the life I live.”
73+74 | K-Riz | A Place Where Love Is + What A Shame
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Edmonton-by-way-of-Toronto hip-hop artist K-Riz is releasing two new tracks, A Place Where Live Is feat. Yolanda Sargeant and What A Shame, off his forthcoming The Room EP, set for release on Dec. 18. With elements of ‘90s-inspired R&B, jazz-infused samples, and compassionate, self-aware rhymes, the tracks showcase the duality of an artist whose music is sonically golden-era while spiritually in the present.”
75 | Jesse Markin | Counting Money On A Sunday
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Hailing all the way from Finland, Liberian-born composer Jesse Markin utilises elements of indie-pop, rap, R&B and African folk to create a sound palette that is entirely his own. The singer is back to unveil his latest single Counting Money On A Sunday. Markin tells us: “Counting Money On A Sunday is a progressive rock song with elements of gospel. With this I wanted to underscore the fact that we are at a point where you either worship the machine or try to break from it, either way, the money has to be counted.”
