Alt rock – Page 27 – 7th Level Music

Ohmme takes us to “The Limit” with their newest single.

Ohmme – the Chicago-based duo of Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart – will release their new album, Fantasize Your Ghost, next Friday, June 5th on Joyful Noise Recordings, with the physical retail release date pushed to July 31, 2020. Today, they present a new single/video, “The Limit,” which follows previously released singles “Selling Candy,” “Ghost,” and “3 2 4 3.” “The Limit” is a dystopian dance rocker. With angular, winding guitar and Ohmme’s distinctive intertwining vocals, the track further stretches their already dynamic palette. Its eccentric video was directed by Hannah Welever, edited/VFX by Priscilla Perez, and animated by Connor Reed (Jazz Records Animations). It features Ohmme green screened over trippy clips and stock footage.

“The video for ‘The Limit’ was birthed out of the urge to create and collaborate with friends even while far apart,” says Ohmme. “Hannah Welever made it really exciting to explore the possibilities of creating a video together in isolation – putting new meaning to the song and applying it to the things we are experiencing now. Performing alone in front of a green screen was challenging, but left room for endless possibilities!”

“It was a blast working to adapt to the current climate of ‘making things’ with this new video,” says director Hannah Welever. “We had Sima and Macie film themselves at home on a green screen while I directed via Facetime, and my editor (Priscilla Perez) and I pulled Found Footage that felt like something you would see on an 80’s tube TV. I wanted to transport Ohmme to a nostalgic and colorful dream-scape to distract us from the cloud hanging above our world right now, and bring some lightness to the day-to-day monotony.”
Watch the Video for Ohmme’s “The Limit”
Fantasize Your Ghost is the direct result of the band spending more time on the road than in Chicago. It’s deeply concerned with questions of the self, the future, and what home means when you’re travelling all the time. Early sketches of Fantasize Your Ghost‘s tracklist were demoed at Sam Evian‘s Flying Cloud Studios in upstate New York through intensely collaborative and open sessions. The album was recorded over a six day session in August 2019 at the Post Farm in southern Wisconsin with journeyman producer Chris Cohen.

Though 2018’s Parts showcased their wildly burgeoning influences and talents, Fantasize Your Ghost captures the astounding magnetism and ferocity of their live show. It encapsulates the thrilling and sometimes terrifying joy of moving forward even if you don’t know where you’re going. It’s an album that asks necessary questions: When life demands a crossroads, what version of yourself are you going to pursue? What part of yourself will you feed and let flourish and what do you have to let go of? This is a record of strength, of best friends believing in each other. Unapologetic and brave, Ohmme are ready to figure it all out together.

Following their supporting dates with Waxahatchee in this Fall, Ohmme will play a headlining tour in the new year. A full list of dates can be found below and tickets are on sale now.
Listen to Ohmme’s “Selling Candy”

Watch the Video for “Ghost”

Watch the Video for “3 2 4 3”

Pre-order Fantasize Your Ghost

Ohmme Tour Dates
Sat. Aug. 8 – Ripon, WI @ Avrom Farm Party
Sun. Sept. 27 – Austin, TX @ Scholz Garten %
Mon. Sept. 28 – Houston, TX @ Satellite %
Tue. Sept. 29 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West %
Thu. Oct. 1 – Nashville, TN @ Exit In %
Fri. Oct. 2 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom %
Sun. Oct. 4 – Washington, DC @ Lincoln Theatre %
Mon. Oct. 5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer %
Tue. Oct. 6 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere %
Thu. Oct. 8 – Winooski, VT @ Monkey House
Fri. Oct. 9 – Providence, RI @ Columbus Theatre %
Sat. Oct. 10 – Holyoke, MA @ Gateway City Arts %
Mon. Oct. 12 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater %
Tue. Oct. 13 – Detroit, MI @ MOCAD %
Thu. Oct. 15 – Minneapolis, MN @ Cedar Cultural Center %
Fri. Oct. 16 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room %
Sat. Oct. 17 – Maquoketa, IA @ Codfish Hollow Barn %
Sun. Oct. 18 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre %
Sat. Jan. 9 – Kansas City, MO @ The Record Bar *
Mon. Jan. 11 – Denver, CO @ Lost Lake *
Tue. Jan. 12 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
Wed. Jan. 13 – Boise, ID @ Neurolux *
Thu. Jan. 14 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge *
Fri. Jan. 15 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza *
Sat. Jan. 16 – Vancouver, BC @ The Fox Cabaret *
Mon. Jan. 18 – Reno, NV @ Holland Project *
Tue. Jan. 19 – Bolinas, CA @ Gospel Flat Farmstand *
Wed. Jan. 20 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill *
Thu. Jan. 21 – Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst Atrium *
Fri. Jan. 22 – Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon *

* = w/ V. V. Lightbody
% = w/ Waxahatchee

Keep your mind open.

[Why not subscribe while you’re here?]

[Thanks to Brid at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Protomartyr come out swinging with “Michigan Hammers.”

Protomartyr release a new single/video, “Michigan Hammers,” off of their new album, Ultimate Success Today, out July 17th on Domino. Following “Worm in Heaven” and “Processed By The Boys,” “Michigan Hammers” is fierce with staccato guitar and thrashing percussion. Singer Joe Casey’s voice is forceful and insistent: “The Michigan Hammers are on their way // A chant from the end of the bar, not all of them on pills // Break apart the surface lot // What’s been torn down can be rebuilt // What has been rebuilt can be destroyed.”

The accompanying video was directed by Yoonha Park, who was responsible for the band’s “Wheel of Fortune” and “Don’t Go To Anacita” videos, and was built entirely of found stock footage. “This video is a retelling of a well-known Michigan folk tale that describes timeless themes of greed, power, death and rebirth and nothing short of the conflict of good and evil,” says Park.

Joe Casey further explains: “Couldn’t make a ‘proper’ video due to the miasma. So why not make one using what tools remain? That’s sort of what MICHIGAN HAMMERS is about I think – building with rubble. It’s probably about that and mules, syndicates, too many parking lots, camaraderie, the ideal happy hour, failure, and takin’ what they’re givin’ ’cause we’re workin’ for a livin’ until we start takin’ it to the streets. Or something like that.”
WATCH PROTOMARTYR’S VIDEO FOR “MICHIGAN HAMMERS”

STREAM “MICHIGAN HAMMERS”

Protomartyr is Joe Casey (vocals), Greg Ahee (guitars), Alex Leonard (drums), and Scott Davidson (bass guitar). Ultimate Success Today features guest musicians Nandi Rose (vocals) a.k.a. Half Waif, jazz legend Jemeel Moondoc (alto sax), Izaak Mills (bass clarinet, sax, flute), and Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello).

Ultimate Success Today is available to pre-order now on LP, CD and digital formats. A limited blue-in-red colored edition of the LP is available exclusively on the Domino Mart.
WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “WORM IN HEAVEN”

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “PROCESSED BY THE BOYS”

PRE-ORDER ULTIMATE SUCCESS TODAY
Domino Mart | Digital

PRAISE FOR “WORM IN HEAVEN”

“pretty uncharacteristic one for the group, restrained up until its final shuddering moments. Moody and meditative, it’s almost what would pass as a ballad in Protomartyr’s world.” – Stereogum

“relatively low-key and mellow, following a slinky guitar line while singer Joe Casey reflects about how close he is to heaven’s gates.” – Consequence of Sound

PRAISE FOR “PROCESSED BY THE BOYS”

“The seismic first cut off the Detroit band’s fifth LP Ultimate Success Today rattles with “cosmic grief beyond all comprehension.” Its video, a bizarre tribute to the Brazillian meme “Gil da Esfiha vs Galerito,” is equally discombobulating.” – The FADER

“On lead single ‘Processed By The Boys,’ out now, Casey once again casts his drunken-philosopher gaze on the world’s ills, backed by a reverb-laden stomp that builds into the kind of cacophony this band does best.” – Stereogum

“the classic wall-of-noise feel of a Protomartyr track” – Paste
Protomartyr Online:
https://www.facebook.com/protomartyr
https://soundcloud.com/protomartyr
http://pitchperfectpr.com/protomartyr
https://protomartyr.bandcamp.com
http://www.dominorecordco.us/artists/protomartyr

Keep your mind open.

[Why not subscribe while you’re here?]

[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Squid release intriguing new single – “Broadcaster.”

Brighton-based five-piece Squid – comprised of Louis Borlase (guitars/vocals), Ollie Judge(drums/vocals), Arthur Leadbetter (keyboards/strings/percussion), Laurie Nankivell(bass/brass) and Anton Pearson (guitars/vocals) – release a new single, “Broadcaster,” the AA-side companion to their recent offering “Sludge.” A limited edition vinyl pressing of “Sludge” and an extended version of “Broadcaster” will be released on June 26th via their new label, Warp Records.

“Broadcaster” is built around an arpeggiated synth sequence conceived during a writing session in a woodland cabin by Arthur whilst the rest of the band were out hiking. As the song develops, guitars, drum machines and delays join the fray, pushing the track into its chaotic and visceral crescendo. All this works as the perfect foil to Ollie’s oblique lyrics.

“Lyrically the track was inspired by the visual artist Naim June Paik and his TV Garden installation,” says Ollie. “I thought it blurred the lines between a dystopian and utopian vision. I imagined what it must be like living synonymously amongst nature and technology in the most literal way I could imagine, with TVs towering over me amongst forests.”

Paired with their richly percussive and sonically evolving “Sludge,” “Broadcaster” opens up Squid’s sound without abandoning the experimentation and playfulness that made them such an exciting prospect when they burst on the scene just over a year ago. The band recently released a fan-sourced lyric video for “Sludge” inspired by a followers’ interpretation of the single. Squid fans around the world – and the band themselves – have contributed views from their isolation to create the visual.

The restless creativity of these new singles point the way forward for Squid, a band constantly expanding on their propulsive spectrum of sound.

Check Squid’s website for updates on live performances.

Listen to Squid’s “Broadcaster”
https://youtu.be/A7iqWuMdiqM

Listen to “Sludge”
https://squid.ffm.to/sludge

Pre-order “Sludge” b/w “Broadcaster” Limited Edition Vinyl
https://squid.ffm.to/sludge

Keep your mind open.

[I can broadcast music news and reviews to you if you subscribe.]

[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Clutch to perform virtual concert for charity with three opening acts on May 27th.

Clutch will perform a streamed concert titled “Live From The Doom Saloon Volume 1” on May 27th. They will be supported remotely by Crowbar, Blacktop Mojo, and Saul. This unique online concert format has been produced in conjunction with Sound Talent Group (STG), and LiveFrom Events and will use cutting-edge streaming technology to close the distance between the bands and the fans for an amazing virtual concert experience.

Tickets are on sale now at this location: www.livefrom.events/DoomSaloon

The show will be available for On Demand Viewing starting at 4PM EST on Thursday May 28th and will be available for 48 hours into Saturday, May 30th. The ticket price will remain the same for those viewers that were not able to join the live broadcast. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Angel Flight and Musicares.

Through a network of more than 1,800 volunteer pilots, Angel FlightWest provides free air transportation for people who need to travel long distances to access medical care and other essential services across the 12 Western states. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, AFW pilots have flown 150 missions to deliver more than six tons of PPE and other crucial supplies to the Navajo and Hopi Nations and other rural clinics, while also arranging commercial flights for medical personnel who are traveling to serve on the front lines, with tickets donated by Alaska Airlines.

For more information, visit https://www.angelflightwest.org/

Doors – @ 3:50PM EST Saul – 4PM EST (9PM UK time) Blacktop Mojo – 4:30PM EST (9:30PM UK time)Crowbar – 5:05PM EST (10:05PM UK time)Clutch – 5:50PM (10:50PM UK time)

For more information, check out the band’s website: www.pro-rock.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clutchband

Instagram: www.instagram.com/clutchofficial

Twitter: www.twitter.com/clutchofficial

Official: www.pro-rock.com

YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/officialclutch

Keep your mind open.

[Keep rocking by subscribing.]

You actually should be excited about The Beths’ new single – “I’m Not Getting Excited.”

The Beths share a fervent new single/video, “I’m Not Getting Excited,” from their second album, Jump Rope Gazers, out July 10th on Carpark Records. Following the rambunctious lead single, “Dying to Believe,” “I’m Not Getting Excited” is an urgent track about imposter syndrome. The track opens with driving guitar and a jockeying melody before bursting with a crashing rhythm section. The band performed the single on their “Live From House 2” live stream earlier this morning.

“People always ask ‘are you excited!?’ and it’s a fair question, because exciting things do happen to us sometimes,” says Elizabeth Stokes. “Support slots, overseas tours, music releases. Stuff we’ve dreamed about for years. So the correct answer is always ‘yes.’ But the truth is that deep down there’s a tiny Liz saying, ‘don’t get excited.’ She is certain that anything good that could happen will most likely not happen, because of a freak accident. Or because somebody finally realises that we aren’t worthy, shouts ‘phony!’ and takes everything away. I wrote ‘I’m Not Getting Excited’ last year, well before everything really did get taken away. From everyone. It feels like the song has a new context, but we don’t know what it is yet. And now we all share a blurry, uncertain future.”

The official video was filmed during the first month of lockdown in New Zealand. It’s a spooky more-is-more collage of animated night terrors. The directors Sports Team “turned our laundry into a film studio and spent our inside time mastering the art of stop-motion animation. We animated old towels, all the cardboard in the house and The Beths themselves… frame by bloody frame. There’s a lot of scary imagery in the song that we wanted to play on. There’s a madness too, in the contradiction between what the song is about and its frenetic energy. It has defined the lockdown for us—being locked indoors but furiously busy.”

Watch “I’m Not Getting Excited” Video:
https://youtu.be/lvYrJxNwW5I

The Beths are Elizabeth Stokes (vocals/guitar), Jonathan Pearce (guitar), Benjamin Sinclair (bass), and Tristan Deck (drums). Jump Rope Gazers is the follow-up to Future Me Hates Me, “one of the most impressive indie-rock debuts of the year” (Pitchfork). The album received glowing praise and appeared on many year-end lists including Rolling Stone, NPR, Stereogum, and more.

Jump Rope Gazers tackles themes of anxiety and self-doubt with effervescent power pop choruses and rousing backup vocals, zeroing in on the communality and catharsis that can come from sharing stressful situations with some of your best friends. Touring far from home, The Beths committed to taking care of each other while simultaneously trying to take care of friends living thousands of miles away. That care and attention shines through on Jump Rope Gazers, where the quartet sounds more locked in than ever. Jump Rope Gazers stares down all the hard parts of living in communion with other people, even at a distance, while celebrating the ferocious joy that makes it all worth it.
Watch “I’m Not Getting Excited” Video:
https://youtu.be/lvYrJxNwW5I

Watch “Dying to Believe” Video:
https://youtu.be/CkzI93Aqztk

“Live From House” live streams:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2LoGf5dgISPCRk8epZGpw_iXKO9Mi6um

Pre-Order Jump Rope Gazers:
https://smarturl.it/thebeths_jrg

The Beths Tour Dates:
Sun. Nov 8 – Perth, WA @ HBF Park*
Wed. Nov. 11 – Melbourne, VIC @ Marvel Stadium*
Sat. Nov. 14 – Sydney, NSW @ Bankwest Stadium*
Tue. Nov. 17 – Brisbane, QLD @ QSAC Stadium*
Fri. Nov. 20 – Dunedin, NZ @ Forsyth Barr Stadium*
Sun. Nov. 22 – Auckland, NZ @ Mt Smart Stadium*

*w/ Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy

Keep your mind open.

[I’ll be excited if you subscribe.]

[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR!]

CHAI help us stay positive with two new singles.

The Japanese quartet and advocates of NEO-Kawaii CHAI release a new single, the self-championing “Ready Cheeky Pretty,” and an accompanying video. Following the recently-released “NO MORE CAKE,” “a weird, bafflingly catchy interrogation of beauty standards” (Stereogum), “Ready Cheeky Pretty” promotes self-love and finding motivation and confidence from within. Over jubilant synth and a steady snare, CHAI sing: “we are the upbeat cheeky monkeys ! // look up the mirror // oh! It’s pretty monkey! // we are good already // keep it real.” The band elaborates on the track: “KEEP IT REAL Go back to the real you! It’s all about moving forward and living by instinct! To go forward with the voice of your heart! Nothing symbolizes this more for us than the carefree nature, strength, and purity of a monkey. We pay homage to this in Ready Cheeky Pretty because we feel that animals have the ability to be REAL more than humans. It’s this type of song! Take a listen!

Its accompanying video, co-directed by Hideto Hotta and by bassist YUUKI, is largely made of colorful, animated drawings (all illustrated by YUUKI). It also features famous paintings and video clips and images of the band intertwined throughout. It was shot entirely at YUUKI’s home and is centered in a world where CHAI is getting back to their real selves. As YUUKI describes, “it isn’t so much about shooting CHAI with a specific vision like any other MV, but more so about ‘putting CHAI into’ a vision that WE have.”

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “READY CHEEKY PRETTY”
https://youtu.be/zuiIplaXsUc

Throughout quarantine, the band has started live streaming three times a week – YUNA on Monday’s, YUUKI on Wednesday’s, and MANA and KANA on Friday’s. These livestreams can be viewed on the band’s Instagram at 11pm ET / 8pm PT. Yuna has also created her own Youtube / IGTV series called “HELLO, I’M YUNA!,” which covers all of YUNA’s interests from interviewing her fellow band members, to cooking, to giving an inside look at song and music video releases. Her “journalist alter-ego,” YUNA-jana, is featured as the main interviewer. It’s adorable and we suggest you tune in.

Additionally, CHAI has covered Kyu Sakamoto’s “Ue o Muite Arukō” or “Sukiyaki Song,” the unofficial anthem of Japan that is often sung to uplift during hard times. The lyrics “Ue o Muite Arukō” translate to “I Look Up As I Walk” and tells the story of a man who looks up and whistles while he is walking to avoid his tears from falling down. Everyone has been affected in different ways by COVID-19, some more than others. CHAI made this video using only what they could find within their homes to bring positivity, fun, and keep the music going.

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “SUKIYAKI SONG”
https://youtu.be/_tQLnrE552Y

Keep your mind open.

[Hop like a monkey over to the subscription box while you’re here.]

[Thanks to Jaycee at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Ohmme announce new tour dates and single – “Selling Candy.”

“Ohmme’s music feels experimental and strange yet still accessible, with an underlying gut-level rumble that keeps its songs from floating into the ether.” – NPR Music

“You might think OHMME is a mantra, but it’s in fact the place to be to hear remarkable music from a Chicago band in rare form” – Chicago Tribune

“Their latest single, ‘Ghost,’ has more narrative shape, yet its acute details are preserved…The instrumentation is minimal at first, but a wheedling guitar solo preserves the static. The two women clear a path through this haze with a final, unambiguous declaration: ‘I’m sick of looking at the stupid look on your face.’” – Pitchfork

Ohmme – the Chicago-based duo of Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart – share a new single, “Selling Candy,” and announce rescheduled tour dates. “Selling Candy” is the third single they’ve released that appears on their new album, Fantasize Your Ghost, out June 5th on Joyful Noise Recordings. Following “Ghost” and “3 2 4 3, “Selling Candy” is riveting. The track, which has only six lines, is filled with Cunningham and Stewart’s harmonies, which soar over heavy, sludgy guitar and pummeling percussion. Eventually, the song ends in a noisy freakout.

“‘Selling Candy’ was pieced together from little snapshots of my childhood growing up on my block in Chicago,” says Cunningham. “It felt like its own tiny world where I could explore my imagination, enjoy independence from my parents, and meet all kinds of people, including the pissed off hot dog vendor from whom I bought a boiled hot dog from as often as I could get my hands on a buck.”

Listen to Ohmme’s “Selling Candy”
https://lnk.to/SellingCandy

Fantasize Your Ghost is the direct result of the band spending more time on the road than in Chicago. It’s deeply concerned with questions of the self, the future, and what home means when you’re travelling all the time. Early sketches of Fantasize Your Ghost‘s tracklist were demoed at Sam Evian‘s Flying Cloud Studios in upstate New York through intensely collaborative and open sessions. The album was recorded over a six day session in August 2019 at the Post Farm in southern Wisconsin with journeyman producer Chris Cohen.

Though 2018’s Parts showcased their wildly burgeoning influences and talents, Fantasize Your Ghost captures the astounding magnetism and ferocity of their live show. It encapsulates the thrilling and sometimes terrifying joy of moving forward even if you don’t know where you’re going. It’s an album that asks necessary questions: When life demands a crossroads, what version of yourself are you going to pursue? What part of yourself will you feed and let flourish and what do you have to let go of? This is a record of strength, of best friends believing in each other. Unapologetic and brave, Ohmme are ready to figure it all out together.

Additionally, Ohmme announce rescheduled North American tour dates for January 2021. Following their supporting dates with Waxahatchee in October, they’ll play a headlining tour in the new year. A full list of dates can be found below and tickets are on sale now.
Watch the Video for “Ghost”
https://youtu.be/hstB_R4pahw

Watch the Video for “3 2 4 3”
https://youtu.be/n9E9ngQ9lVI

Pre-order Fantasize Your Ghost
http://joyfulnoi.se/FantasizeYourGhost

Ohmme Tour Dates
Sat. Aug. 8 – Ripon, WI @ Avrom Farm Party
Sun. Sept. 27 – Austin, TX @ Scholz Garten %
Mon. Sept. 28 – Houston, TX @ Satellite %
Tue. Sept. 29 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West %
Thu. Oct. 1 – Nashville, TN @ Exit In %
Fri. Oct. 2 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom %
Sun. Oct. 4 – Washington, DC @ Lincoln Theatre %
Mon. Oct. 5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer %
Tue. Oct. 6 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere %
Thu. Oct. 8 – Winooski, VT @ Monkey House
Fri. Oct. 9 – Providence, RI @ Columbus Theatre %
Sat. Oct. 10 – Holyoke, MA @ Gateway City Arts %
Mon. Oct. 12 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater %
Tue. Oct. 13 – Detroit, MI @ MOCAD %
Thu. Oct. 15 – Minneapolis, MN @ Cedar Cultural Center %
Fri. Oct. 16 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room %
Sat. Oct. 17 – Maquoketa, IA @ Codfish Hollow Barn %
Sun. Oct. 18 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre %
Sat. Jan. 9 – Kansas City, MO @ The Record Bar *
Mon. Jan. 11 – Denver, CO @ Lost Lake *
Tue. Jan. 12 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
Wed. Jan. 13 – Boise, ID @ Neurolux *
Thu. Jan. 14 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge *
Fri. Jan. 15 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza *
Sat. Jan. 16 – Vancouver, BC @ The Fox Cabaret *
Mon. Jan. 18 – Reno, NV @ Holland Project *
Tue. Jan. 19 – Bolinas, CA @ Gospel Flat Farmstand *
Wed. Jan. 20 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill *
Thu. Jan. 21 – Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst Atrium *

* = w/ V. V. Lightbody
% = w/ Waxahatchee

Keep your mind open.

[It would be sweet if you subscribed.]

[Thanks to Brid at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Why Bonnie – Voice Box

Austin’s Why Bonnie have put out an EP that sounds like it could’ve been recorded this year or in the early 1990’s when bands were still experimenting with different ways to produce loud yet atmospheric sound instead of just blasting guitars and yelling lyrics about being angry at their fathers. Why Bonnie’s Voice Box is lush, a bit smoky, and intriguing, and the influence of Austin’s psychedelic music scene is evident at the edges.

The opening guitars of “Bury Me” reflect that Austin sound as singer / guitarist Blair Howerton sings about wishing her ex could bury her (metaphorically, that is) and the past and move on from something that was never going to work out in the first place. My favorite line in the song is “I based too much of my happiness on the site of your face.” Not “sight of your face,” but rather “site of your face” according to the EP’s lyric sheet. Howerton realizes se wasn’t so much dependent on her lover’s looks, but rather on her lover just being there – as normal a sight as a lamp or the refrigerator.

The title track has Howerton singing a lovely song about controlling her rage (“I don’t wanna yell. Take my voice box out. I can’t control myself.”). The growling bass of “Athlete” begins the great swagger of the tune pushed along by the drum beat. Howerton admits she can’t keep up with her lover, who doesn’t even want her on their team.

The guitars of “Jet Plane” sound a bit like a music box as Howerton sings about wishing her lover would stay behind but also knowing she can’t hold them in place forever. The rhythm of “No Caves” is intoxicating, and its lyrics about Howerton thinking of a lost lover while she performs at a gig are revealing and witty.

Howerton is a skilled songwriter and singer, and her band pack a strong punch behind her. Voice Box is one of the more intriguing EP’s of 2020 so far.

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you split.]

Protomartyr have to cancel tour dates, but still release a new single – “Worm in Heaven.”

Today, Protomartyr present a new single/video, “Worm In Heaven,” off of their forthcoming album, Ultimate Success Today, which has had its release date moved to July 17th, out onDomino. Additionally, Protomartyr must sadly cancel their scheduled 2020 tour dates. Ticket buyers should seek refunds at the point of purchase. The band looks forward to bringing these songs on the road as soon as safely possible.

Following lead single “Processed By The Boys,” “Worm In Heaven” winds with meandering guitar, mellow drums, and Joe Casey’s consuming voice: “I am a worm in heaven / so close to grace / could lick it off of the boot heels of the blessed.” Eventually, the track rises with crashing instrumentation and a repeated refrain. The accompanying video, directed by Trevor Naud, is a collection of abstract still images stitched together. It was inspired by the 1962 Chris Marker short film La Jetée and was shot using limited resources, mainly a 35mm film camera, with no film crew. As the video goes on, the images grow stranger and more off-putting.

“The idea is a sort of dream chamber that has lured its creator into a near-constant state of isolation,” says director Trevor Naud. “She lives out her days trapped as the sole subject of her own experiment: the ability to simulate death. It is like a drug to her. Everything takes place in a small, claustrophobic environment. With soft, yet sterile visuals. Perhaps a strange combo to reference, but imagine the cover of the Rolling Stones’ Goat’s Head Soup and the character of Carol White in Todd Haynes’ 1995 film Safe.”

“I’d been experimenting with shooting multiples of still photographs and stitching them together so that there’s subtle movement,” explains Naud, “almost like a 3-D camera effect, but awkward and sort of unsettling–like looking at a photograph under shallow water. I shot upwards of 700 still frames on a Nikon F Photomic camera. I embraced the lines and artifacts from the film scans, which give a sort of Xerox quality to some of the images. All the special effects were done in-camera using mirrors, projectors and magnifying glasses.”
WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “WORM IN HEAVEN”
http://smarturl.it/WormInHeaven

Protomartyr is Joe Casey (vocals), Greg Ahee (guitars), Alex Leonard (drums), and Scott Davidson (bass guitar). Following the release of Relatives In Descent, the band’s critically acclaimed headlong dive into the morass of American life in 2017 (featured on myriad “best of” lists, including The New York Times, Esquire, Newsweek, and more), Ultimate Success Today continues to further expand the possibilities of what a Protomartyr album can sound like.

“There is darkness in the poetry of Ultimate Success Today; the theme of things ending, above all human existence, is present,” says Ana da Silva, founding member of The Raincoats and friend of the band. “There are exquisite, subtle gifts from other instruments that always heighten the guitar, instead of fighting with it. They help to create a harmonious wall of sound all of its own. This was intentional. Ahee wanted to use different textures other than pedals, and the drone quality of some of those instruments colours the guitar and the whole sound with a warm, rich in reverb, landscape for Casey’s voice.”

Ultimate Success Today features guest musicians Nandi Rose (vocals) a.k.a. Half Waif, jazz legend Jemeel Moondoc (alto sax), Izaak Mills (bass clarinet, sax, flute), and Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello).

Ultimate Success Today is available to pre-order now on LP, CD and digital formats. A limited blue-in-red colored edition of the LP is available exclusively on the Domino Mart.
WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “PROCESSED BY THE BOYS”
http://smarturl.it/PBTBYT

LISTEN TO “PROCESSED BY THE BOYS”
http://smarturl.it/PBTBStrm

PRE-ORDER ULTIMATE SUCCESS TODAY
Domino Mart | Digital

PRAISE FOR “PROCESSED BY THE BOYS”

“Casey once again casts his drunken-philosopher gaze on the world’s ills, backed by a reverb-laden stomp that builds into the kind of cacophony this band does best.”
– Stereogum

“A post-punk stomper, the track vibrates with meditations from the guest performers’ reed instruments.” – Consequence of Sound

“”the classic wall-of-noise feel of a Protomartyr track” – Paste

“The seismic first cut off the Detroit band’s fifth LP Ultimate Success Today rattles with ‘cosmic grief beyond all comprehension.’ Its video, a bizarre tribute to the Brazillian meme ‘Gil da Esfiha vs Galerito,’ is equally discombobulating.” – The FADER

“heavy and fierce” – Brooklyn Vegan
Protomartyr Online:
https://www.facebook.com/protomartyr
https://soundcloud.com/protomartyr
http://pitchperfectpr.com/protomartyr
https://protomartyr.bandcamp.com
http://www.dominorecordco.us/artists/protomartyr

Keep your mind open.

[I’d be in heaven if you subscribed.]

[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR!]

The Beths release “Dying to Believe” ahead of new album coming in July.

“[The Beths are] brilliant at bright guitar frenzy, instantly memorable melodies and tune-mad group sing-alongs with the joy of Sixties bubblegum rock; there’s a love of pop formula here… but they never lose the sense of discovery at heart of rock and roll.” — Rolling Stone

The Beths announce their new album, Jump Rope Gazers, out July 10th via Carpark Records, and share its lead single/video, “Dying to Believe.” Jump Rope Gazers is the follow-up to Future Me Hates Me, “one of the most impressive indie-rock debuts of the year” (Pitchfork). The album received glowing praise and appeared on many year-end lists including Rolling Stone, NPR, Stereogum, and more. Jump Rope Gazers tackles themes of anxiety and self-doubt with effervescent power pop choruses and rousing backup vocals, zeroing in on the communality and catharsis that can come from sharing stressful situations with some of your best friends.

After touring non-stop for a year and a half, playing to crowds of devoted fans and opening for acts like Pixies and Death Cab for Cutie, The Beths regrouped to write and record Jump Rope Gazers. The band – composed of Elizabeth Stokes (vocals/guitar), Jonathan Pearce (guitar), Benjamin Sinclair (bass), and Tristan Deck (drums) – settled down at Pearce’s Auckland studio, where he recorded and produced the album.

Stokes’s writing on Jump Rope Gazers grapples with the uneasy proposition of leaving everything and everyone you know behind on another continent, chasing your dreams while struggling to stay close with loved ones back home. Rambunctious lead single “Dying to Believe” reckons with the distance that life necessarily drives between people over time: “I’m sorry for the way that I can’t hold conversations // They’re such a fragile thing to try to support the weight of,” Stokes sings. The accompanying visual is an eccentric four-step “How to be the Beths” instructional video featuring the band.

Touring far from home, The Beths committed to taking care of each other while simultaneously trying to take care of friends living thousands of miles away. That care and attention shines through on Jump Rope Gazers, where the quartet sounds more locked in than ever. Jump Rope Gazers stares down all the hard parts of living in communion with other people, even at a distance, while celebrating the ferocious joy that makes it all worth it.

Acoustic versions of “Dying to Believe” and Future Me Hates Me favorites “Great No One” and “Little Death” as well as a Q&A with The Beths can be viewed from their recent livestream here.

Watch “Dying to Believe” Video:
https://youtu.be/CkzI93Aqztk

Pre-Order Jump Rope Gazers:
https://smarturl.it/thebeths_jrg

Jump Rope Gazers Tracklist:
1. I’m Not Getting Excited
2. Dying to Believe
3. Jump Rope Gazers
4. Acrid
5. Do You Want Me Now
6. Out of Sight
7. Don’t Go Away
8. Mars, the God of War
9. You Are a Beam of Light
10. Just Shy of Sure

The Beths Tour Dates:
Sun. Nov 8 – Perth, WA @ HBF Park*
Wed. Nov. 11 – Melbourne, VIC @ Marvel Stadium*
Sat. Nov. 14 – Sydney, NSW @ Bankwest Stadium*
Tue. Nov. 17 – Brisbane, QLD @ QSAC Stadium*
Fri. Nov. 20 – Dunedin, NZ @ Forsyth Barr Stadium*
Sun. Nov. 22 – Auckland, NZ @ Mt Smart Stadium*

*w/ Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy

Keep your mind open.

[I’m dying to believe you’ll subscribe.]

[Thanks to Pitch Perfect PR!]