.jpg)
I haven’t even come close to headbanging since 1998, but, wow, Hunters are really pushing me back in that direction. This is real rock – heavy, chugging and powerful with grimy production and guidance from Nick Zinner and former Smashing Pumpkin James Iha. If anything, the main riff here reminds me of ‘the good Soundgarden,’ but there’s a cool veneer that makes this better for warehouses with peeling walls, sweaty twenty-somethings, inappropriate love and everything else that makes me love music. Oh, and Hunters are on tour right now with The Kills and Jeff The Brotherhood, so check them out.
While getting you the finest new jams to listen to will always be our main squeeze, sometimes it’s good to gain a little context into our favorite artists – a quick view into their brain that might demonstrate why we love their sounds so much. That’s the idea behind our new series On The RCRD. We use a flip on the classic Proust Questionnaire and let our favorites, well, do whatever with it.
Elephant & Castle, aka David Vincent Reep, is something of a wanderer, which bodes well for his sonic cameleon sensibilities. Take this one, "En Memoria," which features Merrill Garbus (Tune-Yards) on vocals and seems to pluck natural sound from all over the globe with an intensely spiritual focus. Atmospheric, lush and dreamy, flutes flicker while hands pound away on the rawhide of drums and keys hang in the wind – a great introduction to what will go down on Elephant & Castle’s debut, Transitions, which comes March 13 via Plug Research.
British rockers Sharks originally formed in 2007, releasing several EPs and compilations before commencing work on their official debut LP. The band will release that effort, entitled No Gods, on March 20 via Rise Records after much touring in the States and back home in the U.K.“Arcane Effigies" is the new album’s first single, and it showcases the record’s melodic punk sensibility – almost a throwback to bands like The Clash and Husker Du.
.jpg)
Mere moments after we crowned Frankie Rose one of our most anticipated artists for 2012, she’s out to prove us right with the feathery guitar-n-drum jam “Know Me” – a song which retains all the great stuff from her previous outfit (poppy sentiment, classic songwriting structure, infectious refrains) while infusing new, even greater elements: twists of texture, darkheart lyrics and ‘80s wisps that actually ring true. Get the single with a flip from Le Chev on January 17 before the full Interstellar album on Slumberland/Memphis Industries drops in February.
Youth Lagoon, a project from Boise bedroom popster Trevor Powers, understands the emotional heft that comes with a slow-burning crescendo. Take "July," which just received a surprisingly bloody video treatment. It’s a reverb-drenched torch song that’s perfect for a post-breakup drive through the mountains or napping in a pile of leaves. And of course, his aptly-named debut, The Year Of Hibernation, is out now via Fat Possum.
(Photo: The War On Drugs)
Perhaps we’ll remember 2011 as the year we returned to "the song." Yes, I know, music is almost always based around songs, but those elusive mysteries with actual choruses, verses, bridges (remember those?) and emotions seemed kind of rare for awhile. Whether in the loose slacker forms of Kurt Vile, the Petty-meets-experimental vibe of The War On Drugs, Drake making the club sound like some hellish, inescapable monster, Cass McCombs turning even further into stark emotional honesty or PJ Harvey reminding us that she is incredible and singular, it seems like songcraft has finally beat back the slew of by-the-numbers bedroom recordings.
Doesn’t it seem like songs honoring women for their greatness are increasingly rare? Good thing Lee Fields is an old soul. His new one, "You’re The Kind Of Girl," is all innocent, exuberant love and respect. Strings flutter like a heart (I suppose) while a funk guitar hits all the right spots (sorry). Get this and more on Field’s upcoming album Faithful Man, which arrives March 13 on Truth & Soul.
.jpg)
Maybe it’s a symptom of spending too much time on the Internet and in clubs rather than the real world, but I’m starting to associate Bombay Bicycle Club more with this kind of soaring dance remix than the jangling indie they’re perhaps more known for. Or maybe it’s a symptom ofFlipbook’s soaring remix, IDK. Whatever the ailment, I gotta say I’m enjoying it.
What would Black Flag sound like recording a garage rock album? The Energy, a punk rock band from Houston, answers this question on "I Can’t Stand Up." The group released its debut, Get Split, via Team Science Records a few months back, and this one is a great sample – a grungy punk track featuring a loose, impassioned performance and wide-eyed yelping vocals that balance between angry aggression and thoughtful intelligence. You know that’s hard to do.
Photos from a recent FOE gig - a friend of our friends Hold Your Horse Is - she’s gonna be big!!! Read the gig review after the jump.
Shots of North Carolina’s folk-rocking Avett Brothers’ stop in Glasgow - 22.08.11
Read the review of the gig here.
Take a look at the acts and art on offer at this year’s Latitude Festival in Suffolk. Included are the likes of Fight Like Apes, Lykke Li, Sea of Bees and Seasick Steve. Photos from our own...
Good time with Bad Guys. Photos from the May 29th gig at the Old Blue Last. Read the review by the Bad Guy himself, Stuart London after the jump.
Artrocker.com exclusive: for fans of White Lies and Crocodiles we’ve got some fresh pictures from their UK show at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire earlier this month, courtesy of Alessandro...
Follow us on
twitter here