Rock – Page 30 – 7th Level Music

Cloakroom tell “The Story of the Egg” with their newest single.

L-R Bobby Markos (Bass), Doyle Martin (Lyrics, Guitar), Tim Remis (Drums)
Photo By Vin Romero

Cloakroom’s new single, “The Story of the Egg”, is concise and boundless all at once. Sonically a duality, Cloakroom’s influence of punchy and downpicked punk of the late 70s / early 80s is matched with lush and amorphous compositions. The single is about “the new found anxiety and stress from the alertness that comes with finally feeling the otherwise positive effects of a full night’s rest,” drummer Tim Remis explains. “There was a phenomenon of feeling anxious after working with a sleep doctor, realizing I spent most of my adult life without getting rest, had dulled my human sensations. Upon getting some deep sleep and rest, my new, heightened senses were overwhelming and I was left with a different feeling of anxiety.”

Watch / Share “The Story of the Egg”

The Indiana three return next month with their next studio album, Last Leg of the Human Table – the follow up to 2022’s post-apocalyptic space western Dissolution Wave, and label debut for Closed Casket Activities. Each song showcases Cloakroom’s genre-bending capabilities and seemingly vast array of influences; whether it be the sampling of the post-disco Detroit group Was (Not Was) or the lifted NASA recording of the humming of Saturn’s rings. Recorded in December of 2023 at Electrical Audio in Chicago and Rec Room Recording in Des Plaines, Illinois, engineer Zac Montez (Whirr, Turnover) aided in smoothing out the rough and turning up the quiet.

For Cloakroom the world of modernity is in polycrisis and America has lost its soul. Narrative fetishism is all too usual of a literary mechanism for Cloakroom. If you listen closely you can hear the concern; not just for the teetering social structure but for what it means to be human and the high cost of the human experience.

Pop, shoegaze, doom, post-punk, folk only scratch the surface on Cloakroom’s shortest yet most essential release to date. Its title Last Leg of the Human Table may sound sardonic in its nature, but this group has always found some wonder in the scurrying chaos of modern life. In 37 minutes, the album imbues a sense of responsibility to the listener as if one leg were to falter, the whole table will fall.

Last Leg of the Human Table sees its release February 28 via Closed Casket, pre-order / pre-save it here.

Cloakroom have announced a headlining North American tour which kicks off in the Midwest next month. The run hits both coasts and includes dates with support from Null and performances at Slide Away 2025 in Los Angeles and New York City. See below for a full list of dates. For tickets and updates, follow Cloakroom on Instagram here.

Cloakroom Live Dates:

Mar 21: Paw Paw, MI – Lucky Wolf
Mar 22: Detroit, MI – Edgemen
Mar 23: Toronto, ON – Monarch
Mar 24: Montreal, QC – Bar le Ritz PDB
Mar 25: Kingston, NY – Tubby’s
Mar 26: Boston, MA – Deep Cuts
Mar 28: Philadelphia, PA – Ukie Club
Mar 29: Washington, DC – DC9
Mar 30: Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506
Apr 01: Asheville, NC – Eulogy
Apr 02: Atlanta, GA – The Earl
Apr 03: Pensacola, FL – The Handlebar
Apr 05: Birmingham, AL – Saturn #
Apr 06: Knoxville, TN – Pilot Light #
Apr 08: Louisville, KY – Nachbar #
Apr 09: Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups #
Apr 11: Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club #
Apr 12: Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle # (Album Release Show – Tickets)
Apr 25: Brooklyn, NY – Slide Away 2025 at Market Hotel (Opening Show)
May 25: Los Angeles, CA – Slide Away 2025 at The Echoplex (Closing Show)

# w/ Null

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Bailey at Another Side!]

Valerie June brings us “Joy, Joy!” with her new single.

GRAMMY-nominated singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Valerie June announces her new album, Owls, Omens, and Oracles, out April 11th via Concord Records, and releases its lead single “Joy, Joy!” alongside an accompanying video. Rooted in the belief that what we focus on is what we manifest, June dreams a songpath forward with Owls, Omens, and Oracles that leaves no one behind. Halfway through a decade of immense and rapid global change, June asserts a multidimensional Blackness steeped in laughter, truth, magic, delight, and interdependence. This album is a radical statement to break skepticism, surveillance, and doom scrolling – let yourself celebrate your aliveness. Connect, weep, change, open.

June has been softening and clarifying her sound since the 2013 release of Pushin’ Against A Stone, through The Order of Time, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers, and Under Cover. “A willed and unblinking optimism courses through Valerie June’s songs” (New York Times); this newest work shows her own spiritual growth and the opening of ancestral channels into both her dynamic and distinct voice and her tender lyrics. June is not alone in crafting this sacred field for the contemplation of love and being human. Produced by M. Ward (Mavis Staples, She & Him) and engineered by Pierre de Reeder (Rilo Kiley, Jenny Lewis), Owls, Omens, and Oracles also features a cast of contributors, including The Blind Boys of Alabama and Norah Jones.

An instant foot-stompin’ hip-shaker, lead single “Joy, Joy!” opens the album with an undeniable exuberance. June, playing acoustic guitar, sings: “And when you feel you’re not enough / Has this old been hard and rough / A golden seed beneath dark soil / To seek the sun is often rough” while backed by Kaveh Rastegar on bass (John Legend, Beck), Steven Hodges on drums (Tom Waits, David Lynch), and keys and horn arrangements by Nate Walcott (Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band). In line with praise by the New Yorker, “[June’s] every quiver bespeaks emotional honesty.”

Reflecting on “Joy, Joy!,” June says: “Everyone has felt moments of darkness, depression, anxiety, stress, ailments, or pain. Some say it takes mud to have a lotus flower. This song reflects on the hard times we might face: to fail, to fall, to lose, to be held down, to be silenced, to be shut out yet still hold onto a purely innocent and childlike joy. I come from a heritage of ancestors who lived this truth by inventing blues music. Generations after they’ve gone, the inner joy they instilled in us radiates and lifts cultures throughout the world. From the world to home, what would a city council focused on inspiring inner joy for all of a town’s citizens look like? As the times are changing across the planet, what would it look like to collectively activate our superpowers of joy?”

Watch the Video for “Joy, Joy!”

Listen to “Joy, Joy!”

Owls, Omens, and Oracles is expansive, growing from June’s psychedelic folk, indie rock, Appalachian, bluegrass, country soul, orchestral pop, and blues root system into an intergalactic web of wisdom. Every single note she sings is dusted with her “unorthodox, howling tin-pan of a voice” (ELLE), “like raw silk–intimate, elegant and strong” (Garden & Gun). The visceral twists and fierce raw emotion of her voice threads textures and tones through the needle of a multi-genre American quilt. Gracefulness and gentleness harmonize with edginess and precarity, evoking a tenderness within even the hardest heart as June holds the complexity of “My life is a country song,” and “I am multidimensional, beyond category.”

June recently announced the Owls, Omens, and Oracles Tour, which kicks off the week after the album release and runs through late June. All shows are full band; a full list of dates can be found below, and tickets can be purchased here.

Portions of the above text are pulled from an Owls, Omens, and Oracles bio by adrienne maree brown.

Pre-order Owls, Omens, and Oracles

Valerie June Owls, Omens, and Oracles Tour Dates
Thu, Mar. 27 – Gettysburg, PA @ Majestic Theater
Tue. Apr. 15 – Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
Wed. Apr. 16 – Alexandria, VA @ The Birchmere Music Hall
Thu. Apr. 17 – Richmond, VA @ The National
Fri. Apr. 18 – Annapolis, MD @ Rams Head Onstage
Sat. Apr. 19 – Annapolis, MD @ Rams Head Onstage
Tue. May 6 – New York, NY @ Town Hall
Wed. May 7 – Norwalk, CT @ District Music Hall
Thu. May 8 – Brownfield, ME @ The Stone Mountain Arts Center
Fri. May 9 – Albany, NY @ Swyer Theatre @ The Egg
Sat. May 10 – Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse Music Hall
Sun. May 11 – Boston, MA @ City Winery
Tue. May 27 – Ferndale, MI @ The Magic Bag
Wed. May 28 – Chicago, IL @ Park West
Thu. May 29 – Milwaukee, WI @ Vivarium
Fri. May 30 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre
Sat. May 31 – Minneapolis, MN @ State Theatre
Sun. June 1 – Iowa City, IA @ The Englert Theatre
Tue. June 3 – Indianapolis, IN @ Hi-Fi Annex
Wed. June 4 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
Fri. June 13 – San Diego, CA @ Music Box
Sat. June 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre
Sun. June 15 – Santa Barbara, CA @ Lobero Theatre
Tue. June 17 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Rio Theatre
Wed. June 18 – San Francisco, CA @ Palace of Fine Arts Theatre
Fri. June 20 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
Sun. June 22 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Red Fang to celebrate their 20th anniversary with an album chock-full of “Deep Cuts.”

Red Fang kicks off their 20th-anniversary celebrations with the March 14 release of Deep Cuts, an extensive 26-song collection of non-album tracks, covers, and previously unreleased singles.

A preview of the album arrives today with the release of “It’s Always There” (https://orcd.co/redfang-deepcuts), a track from the deluxe version of Whales and Leeches. “I remember really liking the melancholic vibe of ‘It’s Always There,’ but Aaron and I had no vocal ideas coming to mind,” recalls Bryan Giles. “When I lived in San Diego, I became friendly with Pall Jenkins, and was always a fan of Three mile Pilot and The Black Heart Procession, so it was exciting for me to enlist his help bringing the song to life. I think he did a really beautiful job on it!”

Deep Cuts also includes several covers, such as the Wipers’ “Over The Edge,” and Tubeway Army’s “Listen To Sirens,” along with rare Red Fang originals like “Antidote” (from the mobile game, “Red Fang: Headbang!”) and “Wires (demo),” which makes its vinyl debut.

“Perhaps unremarkable to anyone else, it’s fucking amazing to me that we have made it TWENTY YEARS,” Aaron Beam shares. “Before we started jamming in John Sherman’s basement, I’d already been in 40 (maybe more!) bands, none of which lasted more than a year or two. Yet somehow in 2005, for the first time since probably 1987 I found myself without any band to play in. It turned out this was also true of John, David, and Bryan! So it was only natural that we’d start playing together.

All we ever wanted to do was make music that we knew our friends would be stoked to hear at a basement party. Our first show was in David’s basement, and no matter how big the stages were that we ended up playing, we always tried to bring as much of that basement party feeling as we could.

In that regard, this double album feels very much at home. It’s got a sampling of the weird variety of covers that reflect the different shit that inspire us. The computer drum-laden home demo for ‘Wires’ gives a little peek into the process that we pretty rarely but sometimes used for writing (more often than not, all the writing happened in the jam space). There’s of course a generous helping of rare B-sides and bonus tracks that might be hard to find even in today’s digital world. And there’s even a smattering of pretty atypical GarageBand demos that are some of my favorite things to listen to on this record. They could probably never make a regular Red Fang release, but really let you see what is going on in our heads when we’re not banging them!

Please enjoy this record that we are happy to have made for you.”

Deep Cuts is available as a 2xLP set, as well as on CD and digital formats. Pre-orders are available now: https://www.relapse.com/pages/red-fang-deep-cuts.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Monica at Speakeasy PR.]

Free Range announces new album, “Lost & Found,” and new single, “Hardly.”

Free Range, the project of Chicago-based musician Sofia Jensen (they/them), announces their second album Lost & Found, out March 28th via Mick Music, and unveils its lead single “Hardly.” Lost & Found follows their sharp 2023 debut, Practice, which “confront[ed] and reflect[ed] on youthful confusion and alienation, and the feelings that inspired them” (Chicago Reader). Lost & Found is about the logical next step of trying to feel like an adult. Much of the album stems from the experiences of 21-year-old Jensen, who formed Free Range when they were 15, moving out from their parents’ house and expanding their world in the Chicago music scene. Amid these changes, Jensen experienced feelings common in one’s early twenties but pervasive throughout adulthood: striving for connection even when you’re surrounded by people, and struggling to be emotionally open.

“I have a pretty easy time being honest lyrically and in music, and it feels like such an avenue for me to just express,” Jensen says. “But in my daily life, I’m a pretty private person and have a hard time telling people exactly how I feel…Being truly vulnerable with other people is a lot harder than you think.” Lost & Found is filled with nuanced, mature reflections on how tough forthrightness can be.

Lead single “Hardly” is a full-on overdriven electric guitar barn-burner about what it feels like to really lean on someone, and how that can lead to an uneven and slightly dysfunctional relationship. Jensen sings “I hardly notice when I measure you / against me / but I could tell when you were pulling me through / the darkness in this room / cause all I wanted was just someone to look to / you hardly notice when I glance at you.” It also navigates the role that broken communication plays in a relationship where two people do care about each other, but can’t seem to find themselves on the same page.

Watch the video for “Hardly”

Jensen demoed most of Lost & Found in October 2023 in Silsbee, Texas, where producer Tommy Read, his sister Hannah Read (Lomelda), and Eric Adams (Acre Memos) helped Jensen whittle down 50 songs to a batch of 15. Jensen returned to Texas in January 2024 to record with the full Free Range band: bassist Bailey Minzenberger, drummer Jack Henry, and new member Andy Krull on pedal steel.

Next month, Free Range will support Horsegirl on a North American tour. A full list of dates can be found below and all tickets are on sale now.

Pre-order Lost & Found

Free Range Tour Dates
Fri. Mar. 21 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church %
Sat. Mar. 22 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat %
Sun. Mar. 23 – Raleigh, NC @ Kings %
Mon. Mar. 24 – Richmond, VA @ The Warehouse %
Wed. Mar. 26 – Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom %
Thu. Mar. 27 – Somerville, MA @ Arts at The Armory %
Fri. Mar. 28 – Woodstock, NY @ Bearsville Theater %
Sat. Mar. 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw %

% w/ Horsegirl

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[Thanks to Jaycee at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Rewind Review: Flat Worms – Live in Los Angeles (2022)

I have yet to see Flat Worms live. This seems like a crime to me. They’re a great power trio with darkly humorous lyrics and power you cannot deny. So, Live in Los Angeles (recorded in 2019) will have to do until I can catch them at a somewhat dingy venue that feels like a sweatbox and smells like beer mixed with incense.

“Pearl” starts off the raucous set with Will Ivy‘s guitars sounding like a sped-up hotel fire alarm and his vocals bringing angry post-punk lyrics about keeping up with the Joneses to the crowd. “Motorbike” roars like its namesake and Justin Sullivan‘s chops on the drums turn on a dime at any given moment. The live version of “Into the Iris” slows it down a bit but doesn’t lack in power. It’s almost a sludge rock tune in the first half and then kicks into near-punk fury for the second half. It’s songs like this in which Tim Hellman excels on bass. He can lock down any track at any speed and in seemingly any genre, and he plays like a time bomb is about to off on “Plaster Casts.”

“Condo Colony,” a great takedown of gated communities and HOA madness, absolutely slays on this. It’s impossible to choose which of the three is killing it more. The short-instrumental “Scattered Palms” explodes into the snarky “11816.” The album ends with “Red Hot Sand,” and yes, it’s blistering. Hellman’s bass is frantic, Ivy’s guitar is a race car tearing up a dirt track, and Sullivan’s drums threaten to crack the floor under you.

It’s a great capture of a trio clicking on all fronts and crushing everything around them. If you can’t see them live, this is a worthy alternative.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Goat (self-titled)

It’s always good news when Goat decides to release a new album, and their self-titled album from October 2024 is full of their characteristic voodoo-psych sound with complex guitars, hand percussion, dual female vocals, and themes of death, rebirth, and how our spirits are never-ending.

The opening track is even called “One More Death.” It’s a song about reincarnation and how death isn’t anything we haven’t already experienced. The drums and percussion on it grab you straight away and you’re encouraged to cast away fear and step forward on the new journey…and, good heavens, when the guitar solo kicks in it almost shoves you into the astral plane.

It wouldn’t be a Goat album without a song with “goat” in the title, and this time it’s “Goatbrain” – a song about, among other things, “vibrations made by love, moments on Earth.” It has this cool rhythm to it that only Goat see able to create. The flute of the instrumental “Fool’s Journey” seems to come to you from the other side of a valley you’ve only seen in meditations.

“Dollar Bill” is a gritty, great takedown of upper crust rich and the illusion of wealth (“Everyone is going mad. Dollar bills inside your head.”). “Zombie” brings in hip hop beats and loops and is an absolute jaw-dropper. You’ll want this booming out of your car windows. If this doesn’t get you dancing, then “Frisco Beaver” certainly will with its themes of giving up worry (“Do what you like.”) and fear (“Don’t be afraid.”). The guitar riffs sizzle across the whole track. “Look and you will find light of the fire,” they say, and you believe them.

“The All Is One” is another guitar-rich meditative track that weaves back and forth from psychedelia to desert rock. The addition of birdsong in it gives you a contented smile when you hear it. The album ends (Or does it?) with “Ouroboros” – a song named after the symbolic snake eating its tail. Dance beats mix with echoing vocals that remind you that “God lives in every part of you.” The bass kicks in and you’re dancing all over the place, happy to know that all is endless and death and rebirth is not to be feared (and don’t miss the epic saxophone solo!).

It’s one of Goat’s best albums, and that’s saying something since they’ve yet to make a bad record. They’re somehow still one of the best kept secrets out there.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Slowdive – Pygmalion (2011 reissue)

This might be one of the most divisive albums ever made.

It’s rare that you find someone like yours truly who thinks Slowdive‘s 1995 album Pygmalion is “Okay.” People seem to either love it or hate it. The lovers contend that it’s an ambient dream music masterpiece and the haters think it’s an atmospheric Neil Halstead vanity project that barely qualifies as music.

The first thing that strikes you is that there’s almost no percussion on this album. Drummer Simon Scott had left the band, and was replaced by Ian McCutcheon…who doesn’t have that much to do apart from making background noises. Don’t expect massive drum fills, cymbal crashes, or rock beats on this album. They’re not here. Acid jazz beats are, albeit quiet ones.

The album opens with “Rutti,” which is over ten minutes long and I think is about death, or perhaps embracing the process of aging. I know it’s mesmerizing if you give it a chance. “Crazy for You” starts to let more sunlight through the clouds, and Slowdive fans back in the day were probably thinking, “Here come the roaring guitars!” during its first minute…but they never arrive. It’s just mantra-like guitars and vocals for almost five minutes.

“Miranda” has unintelligible vocals from Rachel Goswell, who co-wrote it with Halstead, and looping synths that border on becoming white noise. The same goes for “Trellisaze,” but the synths are replaced with guitar strums and slow, almost mechanical hand percussion.

The quick instrumental of “Cello” leads to “J’s Heaven” – a song about depression (“Why am I so low? Isn’t life cheerful?”) with Goswell’s vocals sounding like they’re coming from a haunted well. Goswell’s vocals on “Visions of LA” are clearer, and are a beautiful song to a friend she’s trying to calm as he battles with fear.

“Blue Skied an’ Clear” is the most upbeat song on the album (even with the slow, faint drums and airy guitars and vocals), as it’s about finding encouragement in life when a lover tells you, and means it, that everything will be okay. “All of Us” seems to be about aging, and the realization that it comes to all of us at some point.

This isn’t an album you crank on your hi-fi. I wouldn’t listen to it while driving, as it might make you fall asleep some late night behind the wheel. It’s a classic “headphones record” that is best for times when you just need to lie back and look at the sky while everything races past you.

Keep your mind open.

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SPY’s new single is “Dim,” but it’s also really loud.

Formed in Oakland, CA in late 2019, SPY has built on the foundation of bands like Bad Brains and Poison Idea rather than following the current wave of metallic hardcore. They’re set to unleash their latest release, Seen Enough, on Closed Casket Activities on February 21. No song on the EP ever overstays its welcome, instead embodying what makes hardcore frenetic. Burning through six songs in under ten minutes, every track is a testament to the energy the band has built up through relentless touring.

Today, the band shares the EP’s new single, “Dim.” SPY vocalist Peter Pawlak says, “The song’s recurring line (‘you’re the problem but you don’t see it’) is just as easily applicable to some of those you may know in your personal life as it is to a wide array of presently prominent public figures. I’m sure you’re just as sick of all of them as I am.”

Seen Enough doesn’t hide what it’s about: society’s continued descent with diminishing hope for course correction. From the jump, SPY has followed in the lineage of Bay Area punks like Dead Kennedys and Ceremony in both attitude and awareness. Their latest offering maintains the critical edge of their earlier material while expanding their lyrical scope, delivering a streamlined punch that hits hard through its runtime.

Recorded by Jack Shirley at Oakland’s Atomic Garden, Seen Enough was recorded live to tape, eschewing the modern practice of individual tracking in favor of a more immediate, visceral approach that better represents their explosive live show.

By staying true to themselves, SPY have carved out their own niche in the modern hardcore landscape. After touring with legends and contemporaries alike including Gel, Full of Hell, Ceremony, Municipal Waste, Sunami and playing basically every fest worth caring about including Sound and Fury, Outbreak, Sick New World and LDB, 2025 is set to be a monstrous year for SPY.

Pre-order Seen Enough here and look for more news from SPY soon.

SPY, on tour:

Feb. 21 San Francisco, CA – Neck of the Woods [record release show]
Feb. 28 Portland, OR – Stronger Skatepark
Mar. 01 Tacoma, WA – Airport Tavern
Mar. 02 Boise, ID – The Shredder
Mar. 05 Denver, CO – Marquis Theater
Mar. 07 Denton, TX – Rubber Gloves
Mar. 08 Austin, TX – Not So Fun Weekend
Mar. 09 Houston, TX – The End
Mar. 12 Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
Mar. 13 Las Vegas, NV – Sliced
Apr. 11 Richmond, VA – Municipal Waste 25th Anniversary Weekend
Apr. 25 Louisville, KY – LDB
Jun. 14 Manchester, UK – Outbreak Fest
Jun. 21 Clisson, FR – Hellfest
Jun. 25 Viviero, ES – Resurrection Fest
Jun. 27 Ysselstein, NL – Jera On Air

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Stephanie at Another Side.]

Versus Machine unleash new single – “Seafoam” – from upcoming album.

Lancaster, PA trio Versus Machine share the official video today for “Seafoam” from their forthcoming sophomore album via Echoes & Dust. Watch/share “Seafoam” HERE. (Direct YouTube HERE.) (And now on all DSPs HERE.)

It’s Psychedelic Baby Magazine recently launched the lead track “Seafoam” in an extensive interview HERE. ProgRock Journal recently hosted “Red Queen” single with an interview HERE.

Versus Machine is an innovative and genre-blending rock band whose members bring together years of experience from diverse musical backgrounds. The band’s core is made up of singer/guitarist Stephen Tilley, bassist Michael James Stipe, and drummer Brian Doherty, with the group’s formation rooted in both past musical connections and newfound collaborations.

Stephen Tilley and Brian Doherty grew up together, forming a deep musical bond during their early years. Although they spent nearly a decade apart from playing together, their shared passion for music never faded. In 2021, Doherty reached out to Tilley, reigniting their creative partnership and rekindling a sense of musical chemistry that had been dormant for years. Their reunion marked the beginning of something fresh and exciting, laying the groundwork for what would eventually become Versus Machine.

To bring their musical vision to life, Doherty and Tilley enlisted Michael James Stipe, a bassist known for his work with the band Babel Map. Stipe, with his distinct style and musical sensibilities, quickly became a key member of the group. It was Stipe who coined the band’s name, Versus Machine, a title that encapsulated the band’s blend of raw energy, modern aggression, and intricate songwriting.

In 2022, Versus Machine recorded their debut album at Noisy Little Critter Studios with renowned producer Mike Bardzik. The album marked the band’s arrival, showcasing their ability to fuse elements of post-grunge, alternative rock and psychedelia with an infectious energy and emotional depth. The record quickly gained attention from both fans and critics for its bold sound and honest, often introspective lyrics.

Following the success of their first album, Versus Machine continued to evolve. In 2024, they recorded their highly anticipated follow-up LP, set for release in February 2025. The new album is shaping up to be an even more ambitious project, blending hard-hitting rhythms, complex melodies, and daring sonic experimentation. The band’s sound has matured, and the new record promises to push boundaries even further, establishing them as one of the most exciting acts in the modern rock scene.

In addition to their work as Versus Machine, Tilley has been involved in several high-profile musical collaborations. He has worked with Kellii Scott, the acclaimed drummer of Failure, on two EPs. The second of these EPs is also slated for release in 2025, further cementing Tilley’s place in the alternative rock landscape.

Meanwhile, bassist Michael James Stipe and drummer Brian Doherty have garnered recognition for their contributions to Babel Map’s new album, Teeth, which was produced by Kurt Ballou of Converge. The duo’s work on the album earned them a prominent feature on the front page of Bandcamp Daily highlighting their growing influence in the underground and alternative music scenes. Doherty and Stipe are also slated to work with Martin “Youth” Glover in 2025 on their 4th album with their band Northern Gloom.

With the release of their follow-up album on the horizon, Versus Machine is poised to expand their fanbase and continue making waves in the rock world. Their combination of relentless drive, musical innovation, and heartfelt lyrics has already established them as one of the most promising and dynamic bands in the genre today. As they prepare to take the stage once again in 2025, all eyes are on Versus Machine, eager to see where their bold musical vision will take them next.

II will be available for download and streaming on February 27th, 2025. Pre-order HERE, pre-save HERE.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave at US / THEM Group.]

Review: Drop Nineteens – 1991 (2025 reissue)

Back in 1991, Drop Nineteens were recording songs in their dorm rooms and sending them out on cassette to various labels in the U.S. and the U.K. These demos sat unreleased for over three decades and are now finally seeing the light of day with 1991, putting another feather in the band’s cap after touring for the first time in that long in 2023 and releasing their last new album, Hard Light, last year.

1991 (sometimes known as Mayfield in some bootleg releases) is a great slice of time and shoegaze sound. “Daymom” instantly drops you into another world that’s brighter and lusher than the one you’re experiencing right now. The gorgeous guitars, tight beats, and misty vocals are intoxicating. “Song for J.J.” has great rolling beats and more vocals you can’t quite make out but know make you feel good. The thudding bass of “Back in Our Old Bed” reminds me of early Cure tracks, and is largely an instrumental track – which I love. The drop-out in the middle with swirling vocal sounds and guitar effects is a stunner.

Female vocals chant and call in “Soapland,” making you think of sirens luring sailors to either jagged rocks or island paradises. You’re not sure which. The unofficial title track, “Mayfield,” growls like an angry cat with guitars that would make Oliver Ackermann of A Place to Bury Strangers sit up and smile. “Shannon Waves” hits you in waves, and is a pure instrumental that washes over you like a slow-rolling hot tub.

“Kissing the Sea” glistens like sunbeams atop the water at first, and then the drums roll in and almost change the track to an adventurous sail across a secluded bay. It’s not yacht rock by any means, but it’s just as smooth. “Snowbird” sounds like something being sun from atop a snowy mountain, so the title is appropriate. There are no drums on the first half of track, just swirling guitars and synths, but then the song grows into a thumping rocker with buzzsaw guitars everywhere.

Ending with “Another Summer,” 1991 goes out on the fastest notes of the album and is a glimmering rock track that’s perfect for your summer playlists and leaves you optimistic.

This was a stunning debut that had multiple labels scrambling to sign Drop Nineteens. Caroline Records eventually won the skirmish, and Drop Nineteens became legends.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Tom at Terrorbird Media.]