Dobet Gnahoré gets you on your feet, Mista Savona crosses contintents, The Gary have information overload, Graham Sharp is talking ’bout his generation, Rhiannon Giddens is all wet — and things are just heating up in your latest mega-mondo Weekend Roundup. Kick it:
21 | Dobet Gnahoré | Lève-Toi
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “With the release of the scorching debut single and video Lève-Toi, Dobet Gnahoré, one of Africa’s most beloved talents, announces her upcoming album Couleur. Scheduled for June 4, the album marks an energetic homecoming and exciting new artistic direction for this dynamic diva from Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).”
22 | Mista Savona | The Fire from Africa
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Fire From Africa blends roots Jamaican reggae with Afro-Cuban chants, bringing together traditional and spiritual elements of both islands. The song features Jamaican stars Micah Shemaiah, The Gideon and Sly & Robbie along with Cubans PuchoMan and Anyilena.”
23 | The Gary | Info
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Austin band The Gary have dropped their first new release since 2014: The Fallow EP. The single Info laments the loss of our humanity to our accessories. Frontman Dave Norwood says, “Info is about our divorce from actuality and the substandard conditions of the virtual world. It compares the endless internet scroll to ‘a blighted river’ and suggests that it takes far more than it gives, dulling one’s edge and replacing one’s brain space with useless and impertinent information.”
24 | Graham Sharp | Generation Blues
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Graham Sharp has made a name for himself as the chief songwriter and a founding member of the Grammy-winning Americana group Steep Canyon Rangers. As the world entered lockdown in 2020, Sharp began to draw inspiration from a wellspring of emotions. On his first solo album, Truer Picture, the songwriter tackles difficult feelings of isolation and addresses the ever-topical political unrest we continue to see in the country. What we’re given is a raw portrait of one of the finest songwriters of our time.”
25 | Rhiannon Giddens | Waterbound
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Rhiannon Giddens has released Waterbound, a new song from her upcoming album They’re Calling Me Home, and a video for the same. “Waterbound, and I can’t get home, down to North Carolina,” goes the refrain to this traditional fiddle tune, capturing a central theme of the new album: longing for the comfort of home and family in this time of prolonged isolation.”
26 | Peggy Seeger | How I Long For Peace
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Peggy Seeger just released How I Long For Peace, the latest track from what is ‘likely’ to be her final album of original material, First Farewell, due out on April 9. Peggy says: “How I Long for Peace is a completely truthful song and sometimes it’s important to just say things as they are. When people talk about hypocrisy and greed, they normally mean someone else’s hypocrisy and greed. We consume an enormous amount, and I’m the same — I’m guilty too. We all are. When I wrote this song, I wanted to state very simply my deep desire for human beings to stop the fighting, the battling, the tearing down other people and being rude and assembling riches while so much of the world is poor.”
27 | The Slowinks | One Shoe
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “With a sound that combines classic country, jazz and western swing, Montreal’s The Slowinks have successfully charmed their hometown and are now poised to do the same to the wider world with their debut album Stay With Me Awhile, due April 2. A sense of spontaneous combustion is certainly evident on One Shoe, on which Felicity Hamer cuts loose in full Rose Maddox-meets-Neko Case fashion. She says the song was written with her longtime friend, songwriter/producer Maïa Davies as a reminder of wild nights on the town when sometimes you end up coming home with, well, only one shoe.”
28 | Vaneno | Nightrider
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Portuguese band Vaneno just released a video for Nightrider, from their debut EP Struggle Through Absurdity, released last year. This video features parts of the movie Mad Max.”
29 | Venomous | Eerie Land
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Venomous present a versatile sound, combining classic and modern metal with Brazilian regional rhythms. The band continue promoting new work with the video for Eerie Land, from their new EP Tribus. It brings fast riffs and rhythmic grooves with a lot of weight and aggressiveness, revisiting the band’s roots and bringing new characteristics. Hailing from São Paulo, Venomous offer a unique, heavy, versatile, comprehensive and aggressive combination.”
30 | Midnite City | Atomic
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Since bursting onto the scene with a vengeance in 2017, Midnite City have taken on the world and hustled themselves to the top of the pile to be crowned the true kings of hair metal. Hot on the heels of two highly acclaimed albums, Midnite City will return in 2021 with their highly anticipated third album. The band are back looking and sounding better than ever, with a new array of songs that will melt your face, so strap yourselves in for the ride of your life. It’s all about the good times!”
31 | Being As An Ocean | Catch The Wind
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “To mark their new single Catch The Wind, Being As An Ocean have just released a video. Catch The Wind is a deep and intense track for all diehard fans of the band’s first releases.Vocalist Joel Quartuccio states: “Catch The Wind is about the pivot — finding the silver linings in life’s circumstances and leaning into the winds of change that sweep unexpectedly into our lives.”
32 | Perseide | Sell Yourself
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Ten months after the official release of their debut album The Only Thing, French alternative-metal/rockers from Lyon Perseide continue to be active — and have just shared a live studio session for the single Sell Yourself.”
33 | Cryptosis | Death Technology
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Cryptosis deliver their single & video to Death Technology. The band checked in with the following quote: “For decades, people have tried to store their deceased bodies using low-temperature freezing techniques. This song is about a person who wakes up from cryosleep in the year 2149 and realises he is being detained and used as a test subject in a secret lab. The lyrics describe a technology that is very advanced and complex seen through the eyes of the test subject. The music is a reflection of that intricate technology.”
34 | Witherfall | … And They All Blew Away
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “L.A.’s Witherfall celebrate the release of their new album Curse Of Autumn with another cinematic video for … And They All Blew Away. The band say: “So this is a total edit of this song … for those who dare there is a 15+ minute version on the record that is by far the most progressive thing Witherfall has ever written and features an incredible drum performance by the legendary Marco Minnemann as well as an amazing display of eclectic bass techniques by Anthony Crawford.”
35 | An Autumn For Crippled Children | Carefully Breathing
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “It’s wild to think that it’s only been a year since their last album All Fell Silent, Everything Went Quiet, but An Autumn For Crippled Children have announced their return with a new disc titled As The Morning Dawns We Close Our Eyes. The Dutch black metal-meets-shoegaze band have also released the single Carefully Breathing, complete with an entrancing video.”
36 | Depths Of Hatred | Pulsating Rhythm
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Depths Of Hatred brought the death metal goods with a single titled Pulsating Rhythm. As razor sharp and technically vicious as ever, Pulsating Rhythm is the fourth single from their upcoming album Inheritance, due out on March 19. Depths Of Hatred have also released a suitably haunting video for the single.”
37 | The Ember, The Ash | Fixation
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Ember, The Ash share the second single and title track from the upcoming album Fixation. The solo project from a musical polymath known only as 鬼, The Ember, The Ash balances modern metalcore intensity with symphonic black metal on a punishing level — whilst offering recognisable glimpses into emotional turmoil.”
38 | Liar Thief Bandit | Right from Wrong
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Liar Thief Bandit released the single Right from Wrong last Friday. Today the band share a video for the track. The third single leading up to the band’s new album Deadlights, Right from Wrong is a true garage-rock explosion that captures the essence of Liar Thief Bandit’s modern, uplifting, and straight-forward sound.”
39 | Chaser | A New Direction
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “On April 9, Chaser will release their fifth album Dreamers. Jesse Stopnitzky shares: “Dreamers is a 13-song burst of anthemic and melodic punk energy with self-reflecting and hopeful lyrics. It is a reminder to keep chasing your dreams and keep your head up. It’s the most personal album we have written, touching on the highs and lows of life, but as always, with a positive Chaser twist.”
40 | Taken Days | How’d It Come To This
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “SoCal punks Taken Days are unveil the single and video How’d It Come To This, off their forthcoming full-length Every Second…, out March 19. Produced by Cameron Webb, the record is set to become a pop punk staple. Taken Days are inspired by punk, emo and pop punk from the ’90s and early 2000s.”
