Category: Alt rock

Jamilla Woods and NE-HI team up for new charity single.

NE-HI COLLABORATE WITH JAMILA WOODS ON REWORK OF
“THE TIMES I’M NOT THERE“
ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT SOCIALWORKS;
CATCH NE-HI ON TOUR NOW 
Today marks the release of a new collaboration between two up-and-coming Chicago artists. NE-HI, the jangly guitar-slinging four-piece, have teamed up with soul-stirring singer Jamila Woods for a collaboration as unexpected as it is remarkable. The track is a rework of “The Times I’m Not There,” a song off NE-HI’s first album, with all parts rearranged and re-recorded by NE-HI and vocal duties reimagined by Woods. All proceeds from the sale of the single will benefit SocialWorks, a Chicago-based arts empowerment charity co-founded by Chance The Rapper. NE-HI’s James Weir had this to say of the collaboration:
“We spent some time this summer reimagining the arrangement and rhythmic approach to “The Times I’m Not There”, a song from our first record. The idea was to explore new melodies and textures to shape around the guitar hook and find a different voice to take the song somewhere else. Jamila Woods, being the amazing vocalist that she is, came on and completely led the song into a new life. After tampering around with the edit for a while, what started as an experiment turned out to be a memorable song and recording process. Shout out to Jamila Woods, Dave Vettraino on production, and Dee Lilly on the keys! This being a project between two Chicago artists, we wanted to give all the proceeds back to young people in the city through the arts empowerment charity, SocialWorks.”
Jamila Woods adds: “I had a great time working on the song with NE-HI, we had never worked together before but I really like their sound and it was fun to collaborate during the process. I think it’s dope that they chose to partner with SocialWorks for the release.” 
LISTEN TO “THE TIMES I’M NOT THERE, FEAT. JAMILA WOODS”
http://smarturl.it/nehi_jamila
Also, last Friday marked the release of NE-HI’s new 7-inch, “Rattled and Strange” b/w “Long Time.” They shared the video for “Rattled and Strange” about a month ago. Revisit the smoky pool hall ambiance below and don’t miss them on tour, as November sees the boys supporting Chad VanGaalen and fellow Chicagoans Whitney.
WATCH VIDEO FOR “RATTLED AND STRANGE”
http://smarturl.it/nehi.rattled

NE-HI TOUR DATES
Wed. Nov. 8 – Spokane, WA @ The Bartlett
Fri. Nov. 10 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern w/ Chad VanGaalen
Sun. Nov. 12 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge w/ Chad VanGaalen
Tue. Nov. 14 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel w/ Chad VanGaalen
Wed. Nov. 15 – Los Angeles, CA @ Satellite Club w/ Chad VanGaalen
Thu. Nov. 16 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar w/ Chad VanGaalen
Fri. Nov. 17 – Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar w/ Chad VanGaalen
Sat. Nov. 18 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sister Bar w/ Chad VanGaalen
Sun. Nov. 19 – Denver, CO @ Hi Dive w/ Chad VanGaalen
Tue. Nov. 28 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall w/ Whitney
Wed. Nov. 29 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theater w/ Whitney
Thu. Nov. 30 – Minneapolis, MIN @ First Avenue w/ Whitney
Fri. Dec. 1 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room w/ Whitney
Sat. Dec. 2 – Davenport. IA @ Raccoon Motel
Sun. Dec. 31 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall w/ Twin Peaks

Keep your mind open.

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Perpetual workhorse Ty Segall releases another single and is announced for Levitation Austin.

LISTEN TO TY SEGALL’S NEW SINGLE, “MEANING”

Ty Segall reaches deep down into his deep bag of rocks and pulls out an uptempo dance number, an armload of guitars and a hardcore jam, urging us ultimately to jailbreak from the self-imposed thought prison we’ve all been raised in. No, tonight’s not the night, do it now! Denée Segall‘s lead vocals hammer home “Meaning” with unbridled strength: “I see fear in freedom…” Is this what’s holding us back? Ask yourself, man!
Listen to Ty Segall’s “Meaning” –
https://tysegall.bandcamp.com/track/meaning
https://itunes.apple.com/album/id1296428037

Ty Segall Tour Date:
Fri. Nov. 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room (LA United for Puerto Rico benefit)
Sat. Dec. 9 – Mexico City, MX @ Hipnosis Festival

Segall has also been announced as the headliner for the first Levitation Austin 2018 kick-off party.  He’ll be playing April 26th at Stubb’s BBQ in downtown Austin with Parquet Courts and A Giant Dog.  Tickets for that show are already on sale.
Keep your mind open.

All Them Witches to start second 2017 North American tour November 3rd.

Nashville’s All Them Witches will be returning to the U.S. and Canada for another tour in support of their excellent album Sleeping Through the War.  The tour starts November 3rd in North Carolina and ends November 18th in Milwaukee.  Don’t miss them if you get the chance to see them.  They are great live and amiable chaps to boot.

NOV 3 • Cat’s Cradle • CARRBORO, NC
NOV 4 • The Southern Cafe and Music Hall • CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA
NOV 5 • Rock & Roll Hotel • WASHINGTON, DC
NOV 7 • The Foundry at The Fillmore • PHILADELPHIA, PA
NOV 8 • Music Hall of Williamsburg • BROOKLYN, NY
NOV 9 • Higher Ground • SOUTH BURLINGTON, VT
NOV 10 • Fairmount Theatre • MONTREAL, CANADA
NOV 11 • Lee’s Palace • TORONTO, CANADA
NOV 12 • The Bug Jar • ROCHESTER, NY
NOV 14 • Ace of Cups • COLUMBUS, OH
NOV 15 • Hi-Fi • INDIANAPOLIS, IN
NOV 16 • The Mill • IOWA CITY, IA
NOV 17 • Turf Club • ST. PAUL, MN
NOV 18 • The Back Room at Colectivo Coffee • MILWAUKEE, WI

Keep your mind open.

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Blacktop Records to release 12th anniversary compilation. Kill Surf City’s track on it now available.

Blacktop Records has recently signed Kill Surf City with a cassette tape release planned for later this year. To celebrate the signing and the 12th
anniversary of Blacktop Records the label will be releasing a compilation album Oct 27th on compact disc/digital featuring a brand new unreleased
song from Kill Surf City titled “Transistor.” The compilation also features tracks from Kevin Seconds (7seconds) Jonah Matranga (onelinedrawing) Open Hand, Wheatus, MC Lars and Green Jelly.

Keep your mind open.

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Django Django’s new album due January 26th, but the catchy first single from it is already here.

DJANGO DJANGO ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM, MARBLE SKIES,
OUT JANUARY 26 VIA RIBBON MUSIC

WATCH VIDEO FOR LEAD SINGLE, “TIC TAC TOE”
http://smarturl.it/PreMarbleSkies

Photo credit: Fiona Garden
Django Django – David Maclean (producer/drummer), Vincent Neff (vocalist/guitarist), Jimmy Dixon (bass) and Tommy Grace (synths) — return, exploring new sounds with their third full-length album, Marble Skies, out January 26th on Ribbon Music. It’s a concise and focused album that recalls their dynamic, genre-blurring debut and its handmade, cut-and-paste approach. Today, the album launches with lead single, “Tic Tac Toe,” a rousing, trippy rock number, and its accompanying video.
Following the release of Django Django’s 2012 Mercury Prize-nominated debut and 2015’s Born Under Saturn, the process for Marble Skies began with a back-to-basics approach in line with the DIY ethos of the band’s early days. In late 2016, Django Django (minus Maclean) assembled at Urchin Studios in Tottenham, London with Metronomy drummer Anna Prior to experiment with new material. After ten days of recording, there was plenty of raw material to send to Maclean for him to edit, refine and evolve before the band rejoined for recording proper. Marble Skies was completed in mid-2017 in their small, equipment-crammed studio in north London – a similar environment to the first record, which was recorded in Maclean’s bedroom.
While Marble Skies features hazy Zombies-like summer pop, hypnoic Krautrock grooves, Jamaican dancehall influences and electro pop, lead single “Tic Tac Toe” nods to Django Django’s more rockabilly-inclined influences. It was cut from the same long recorded jam that produced “WOR” and “Shake and Tremble.” Directed by John Maclean, brother of Dave and director of the critically acclaimed modernist western film Slow West,  the “Tic Tac Toe” video depicts Neff enjoying a day-trip to a beach town which takes a turn to the sinister, when a ghost train puts him on a collision course with a grim reaper inspired by Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal. As John Maclean explains: “The film could be about the fading era of the beach arcades, time moving too fast, love and games, horror and happiness but it is actually about a man who needs to go buy a pint of milk to make a cup of tea.”
Marble Skies will be released digitally, CD, standard LP and a deluxe colored starburst vinyl via the Ribbon Mart.

Watch and Listen to Django Django’s “Tic Tac Toe” Video –
http://smarturl.it/PreMarbleSkies

Marble Skies album tracklisting:
1. Marble Skies

2. Surface To Air
3. Champagne
4. Tic Tac Toe
5. Further
6. Sundials
7. Beam Me Up
8. In Your Beat
9. Real Gone
10. Fountains
Pre-order Marble Skies:
http://smarturl.it/PreMarbleSkies

Wavves – You’re Welcome

Surf / garage punks Wavves (Alex Gates – guitar and vocals, Brian Hill – drums and vocals, Stephen Pope – bass and vocals, Nathan Winters – guitar and lead vocals) make no bones about what they think of their new record.  It’s entitled You’re Welcome.  It’s their gift to us, and we should be thankful for it.

Opener “Daisy” is all about wanting to make it with a cute girl, and the title track right after is an uplifting track.  Both are fuzzy and catchy and just the kind of carefree rock we need in these turbulent times.  The opening distortion on “No Shade” breaks into a wicked performance by the rhythm section and rips past you faster than a cute girl ignoring you as she runs late to the bus station.

“Million Enemies” has Wavves not caring about forces conspiring against them.  “I got enemies, a million enemies; but, baby, I’m feelin’ fine.”  The guitar solo on it is a great, squeaky mess.  I’m sure this song generates a lot of call-back singing when they play it live.  The bass on “Hollowed Out” is downright funky, and “Come to the Valley” is a love letter to Wavves southern California neighborhood. “Animal” has more great bass work, and “Stupid in Love” is a great title for a Wavves song because it sums up many of the themes in their work so well.  Wavves have always crafted catchy songs about the weirdness of love and attraction, and this fun pop-punk track is a prime example of their knack for such tunes.

“Exercise” isn’t so much about physical activity as it is about exercising your right to protest.  Lyrics like “Dancing while the world is burning down,” “I can’t believe the shit they feed to us,” and “They’re lying to our face.” only reinforce the belief.  “Under” is about how love can drag us down if we hold onto it too tight.  “Close your eyes, I’ll be whatever you want me to be…It builds until I can’t take it.  It bends and then you break it.”

“Dream of Grandeur” is about the hopes of a new relationship and quickly realizing those hopes were pipe dreams, and it’s appropriate that an album so heavy on themes of love and strange relationships ends with a track entitled “I Love You.”  It’s also appropriate that it sounds like a 1950’s jukebox favorite love song with its vocal harmonies and guitar strumming.

You’re Welcome is probably the most fun record about the weird world of love I’ve heard all year.  Thank them for it if you get the chance.

Keep your mind open.

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Chicago’s NE-HI have a sharp new single – “Rattled & Strange.”

NE-HI ANNOUNCE NEW 7″, SHARE VIDEO FOR
“RATTLED AND STRANGE”

US TOUR CONTINUES WITH HEADLINE SHOWS AND DATES WITH WHITNEY, CHAD VANGAALEN, & MORE

Today, NE-HI announce a new 7″ featuring the songs “Rattled and Strange” and “Long Time,” and they share the video (a Weird Life Films production) for the former. “When you’re on the road as much as we are, it’s crucial to have something to occupy your time in between gigs,” says bassist James Weir. “As dive bar aficionados, the game of pool has become that activity. The ‘Rattled and Strange’ video is an homage to The Hustler sequel aka 1986 pool hall drama The Color of Money. The reason being that it’s about the combination of three of the Earth’s most revered treasures: the game of pool, Chicago, and Martin Scorsese.”

The 7″ is out November 3rd on Grand Jury, which happens to be the same week they launch their tour. This will include headline dates, as well as support slots for friends Whitney and Chad VanGaalen. The band also recently recorded a studio session for the AV Club, which can give fans an idea of what to expect on the upcoming dates. Watch it here, here, and here.

WATCH “RATTLED AND STRANGE” VIDEO / PRE-ORDER 7″
http://smarturl.it/nehi.rattled

NE-HI TOUR DATES
Wed. Oct. 18 – Urbana, IL @ Pygmalion Festival (Canopy Club)
Thu. Oct. 19 – Dekalb, IL @ The House Cafe w/ Surfer Blood
Sat. Oct. 28 – Gambier, OH @ The Horn Gallery (Kenyon College)
Thu. Nov. 2 – Chicago, IL @ Metro w/ Whitney, Mt. Joy (Red Bull 30 Days In Chicago)
Sat. Nov. 4 – Sioux Falls, SD @ Total Drag
Sun. Nov. 5 – Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium
Wed. Nov. 8 – Spokane, WA @ The Bartlett
Fri. Nov. 10 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern w/ Chad VanGaalen
Sun. Nov. 12 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge w/ Chad VanGaalen
Tue. Nov. 14 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
Wed. Nov. 15 – Los Angeles, CA @ Satellite Club
Thu. Nov. 16 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
Fri. Nov. 17 – Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar
Sat. Nov. 18 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sister Bar
Sun. Nov. 19 – Denver, CO @ Hi Dive
Tue. Nov. 28 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall w/ Whitney
Wed. Nov. 29 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theater w/ Whitney
Thu. Nov. 30 – Minneapolis, MIN @ First Avenue w/ Whitney
Fri. Dec. 1 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room w/ Whitney
Sat. Dec. 2 – Davenport. IA @ Raccoon Motel
Sun. Dec. 31 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall w/ Twin Peaks

Clutch to release limited picture discs for vinyl collectors and fans.

CLUTCH TO RELEASE LIMITED EDITION VINYL COLLECTOR PICTURE DISCS
THE FIRST IN THE SERIES “LIVE AT THE GOOGOLPLEX” OUT TODAY  
October 6th, 2017 – Clutch and Weathermaker Music have prepared three very special Clutch limited edition vinyl collector picture discs.  The first in the series, “Live At The Googolplex” will be available tomorrow.
Recorded in 2002 in Chicago, Montreal, Kansas City, and Columbus, OH.  “Live At The Googolplex”, like all three releases in the series will be the first time these releases will be available as a picture disc vinyl.
The next two releases in the series will be “Jam Room” (scheduled for release October 27th, 2017) and “Pitchfork & Lost Needles” (scheduled for release November 24th, 2017).
“Weathermaker Music is releasing 3 limited edition picture discs” states frontman Neil Fallon.  “The first will be Live at the Googolplex.  That will be followed up by Jam Room and thenPitchfork and Lost Needles.  All feature art from the original releases.  For what it’s worth, I drew Medusa’s head for the Jam Room release.  With a pen.  And paper.  This is your chance to own a bit of art history”.
All 3 in the series will be available at all major vinyl outlets and is available to pre-order now at https://www.indiemerchstore.com/b/clutch.
Clutch is set to embark on another leg of the Psychic Warfare World Tour 2017starting November 29th, 2017 and running through December 31st, 2017. All tour and ticket info can be found at:https://www.pro-rock.com.
Clutch is currently in the throes of working on new material for a 2018 release.
CLUTCH:
Neil Fallon – Vocals/Guitar
Tim Sult – Guitar
Dan Maines – Bass
Jean-Paul Gaster – Drums/Percussion
For more  information, check out the band’s website:

Flat Worms’ new single, “Pearl,” sure to melt your face.

FLAT WORMS ANNOUNCE SELF-TITLED DEBUT ALBUM,
OUT OCTOBER 20TH VIA CASTLE FACE

WATCH VIDEO FOR DEBUT SINGLE, “PEARL”
https://youtu.be/HA7AU95C_zU
 [photo credit: Cayal Unger]

Flat Worms announce their self-titled debut full-length album, due out October 20th via Castle Face. Today the band, comprised of Will Ivy (Dream Boys, Wet Illustrated, Bridez), Justin Sullivan (Kevin Morby, the Babies) and Tim Hellman (Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall, Sic Alps) also share the Kevin M. Gossett directed video for lead single, “Pearl.”

Having already released a 7” on Volar, Flat Worms continue their ride on a buzzsaw wave of feedback-tipped riffs into the middle distance, smog choked sunset receding in the rearview, a thousand yard dead-pan surgically pinned to a high octane set of boredom energized punk pistons. Flat Worms – an ears-a-ringing missive from the end of the cul-de-sac, the mirage of direction wavering above a mid-sized American suburb at dusk, constellations bleached black by the sprawl. A little Wipers, a little Wire, and a lot of late-capitalist era anxious energy – Flat Worms scratch the itch quite nicely, we think.
Watch video for “Pearl” –
https://youtu.be/HA7AU95C_zU

Flat Worms Tracklisting:
01. Motorbike
02. Goodbye Texas
03. Pearl
04. Accelerated
05. White Roses
06. 11816
07. Followers
08. Faultline
09. Question
10. Red Hot Sand

Pre-order Flat Worms:
https://midheaven.com/item/flat-worms-by-flat-worms

[Flat Worms album artwork]
Flat Worms online:
Instagram
Bandcamp

Ty Segall has a new single for you.

TY SEGALL PRESENTS NEW SINGLE, “ALTA”
It’s a new day in the world of Ty Segall, and every truly new day means another truly great song! Captured in gleaming widescreen, “Alta” is a hometown jam that Ty (with his Freedom Band) has been playing at shows all over the place this year. It’s a nature jam as well – basically a “f**k-the-last-500-years” jam – which shows just how far back Ty‘s willing to go to get really back to nature. It’s a love song to the natural state of hometown grounds – and to convey the feelings, a wistful electric piano lick is ridden out on some crazy guitar horses and Ty’s heartstruck vocal. Ty(guitar, vocals, percussion) now reconvenes with the Freedom Band — Emmett Kelly (guitar, vocals), Mikal Cronin (bass, vocals), Charles Moothart (drums) and Ben Boye (keyboards) – for new single, “Alta,” recorded at Electrical Audio with Steve Albini during a break on tour this past spring. A shining new day indeed!
Listen to Ty Segall’s “Alta” –
https://tysegall.bandcamp.com/track/alta
https://itunes.apple.com/album/id1288117513

Ty Segall Tour Dates:
Thu. Oct. 5 – Tucson, AZ @ The Rialto Theatre
Fri. Oct. 6 – Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf
Sat. Oct. 7 – Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall
Sun. Oct. 8 – Boulder, CO @ Fox Theatre
Tue. Oct. 10 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Bunkhouse Saloon
Fri. Oct. 13 – Joshua Tree, CA @ Institute of Mentalphysics