New wave / No wave – Page 10

Review: Axis: Sova – Shampoo You

Chicago power-punks Axis: Sova tighten up but still keep plenty of live-to-tape fuzz and fury on their newest record – Shampoo You.

The opening riffs of “Terminal Holiday” are a great example of that. The guitar fuzz is almost funky and then almost psychedelic while the Peter Hook-inspired bass keeps you from free-floating beyond gravity.

The guitars are pure new wave on “New Disguise.” The skronks and squeaks are great, and the drum beat is like something from an early Knack record. “Crystal Predictor” is one of the sharpest post-punk tracks of 2018 with a catchy chorus and guitar chords that shred one moment and then ooze the next.

The dual vocals on “Dodger” are a great touch to an already keen track that is louder than you realize at first. “Stale Green” slows down the tempo but ups the power and grooves. The bass groove on “Shock Recognition” could be from a Cure B-side, while the guitar solos border on noise rock cacophony and the electric drums are so precise that they might cut you.

The album ends with the Black Angels-like “Same Person Twice,” which might be about reincarnation or being stuck in repetitive relationships. I like that they decided to end the record on a slightly mellow note. It’s like a cool-down after a high-intensity spin bike workout.

This is one of those records that gets better with each listen.

Keep your mind open.

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Stream “Out of This World” from Preacherman’s upcoming reissue of his classic, hard-to-find material.

Listen To Preacherman’s “Out Of This World”

Luaka Bop’s Forthcoming Reissue, Universal Philosophy: Preacherman Plays T.J. Hustler’s Greatest Hits, Out This Friday

(photo credit: Eric Welles-Nystrom)

This Friday sees the release of Luaka Bop’s forthcoming reissue of Preacherman’s (aka Tim Jones) music, Universal Philosophy: Preacherman plays T.J. Hustler’s Greatest Hits. After sharing “Feel It,” Luaka Bop is pleased to share another cut from the release, titled “Out Of This World.”
Stream Preacherman’s “Out Of This World” —
https://soundcloud.com/luakabop/preacherman-out-of-this-world/

In 1979, under the name T.J. Hustler, Jones self-released one extremely rare LP, Age Of Individualism. In the years since, he’s released two even rarer CD’s as Preacherman, of which the tracks on this forthcoming reissue are taken.

Throughout the 1980’s, Jones was a technician for IBM in both Las Vegas and San Jose. At night he world perform in the Las Vegas lounges. Thoroughly fascinated by technology and also an engineer in his own right, Jones adapted a Hammond B3 organ to play a Moog synth with some of the organ’s keys (some still played the organ) and also adapted the organ’s foot controlled bass levers to play two Moog synth bass pedals (a failed item Moog made for a few years). Thinking he wasn’t much of a live performer, he had a custom wooden puppet made named T.J. Hustler. Together, Tim Jones/Preacherman and T.J. Hustler would perform long philosophical soliloquies.

These days, Jones is CEO and founder of Up Productions and lives with his 103 year-old mother in Oakland, CA. With his Casio CTK-7200 keyboard, equipped with five wireless mics, a P.A., Jones performs karaoke, easily matching whatever song request you might have.

Perhaps even more so than his first album, Universal Philosophy grants listeners access, virtually for the very first time, to Jones’ outlook, his purpose, and the way he lives and experiences life on this planet. The music presented here is otherworldly, homespun, folk art funk; concise and stream-of-consciousness simultaneously.
Watch/Listen/Share:
“Feel It” stream – https://youtu.be/35waZLUTbU0
Universal Philosophy Teaser Video – https://youtu.be/S4xHRkwlWUY

Pre-order Universal Philosophy: Preacherman Plays T.J. Hustler’s Greatest Hits —
https://luakabop.lnk.to/Preacherman

Download album art & hi-res images of Preacherman —
http://pitchperfectpr.com/preacherman/

(Universal Philosophy: Preacherman Plays T.J. Hustler’s Greatest Hits album art by Kevin Harris)
Luaka Bop online:
luakabop.com
instagram.com/luakabop
facebook.com/luakabop1989
soundcloud.com/luakabop
youtube.com/luakabop
twitter.com/LuakaBop

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Review: CHAI – Pink

Originally released in Japan last October, but first released in the U.S. earlier this year, the four-piece pop-punk band CHAI might have released the most fun record of the last 12 months – Pink.

Twin sisters Mana (vocals and keys) and Kana (guitar) joined up with high school classmate Yuna (drums) and college pal Yuuki (bass) to create music that is cute, catchy, and crunchy all at the same time. It’s the aural equivalent of Pocky, and I mean that in the best possible sense.

Beginning with “Hi Hi Baby,” a song about babies being goofy, CHAI puts down infectious cowbell-heavy beats, post-punk bass, and even steel drums to produce something so fun that you’re almost not sure how to process it.

“You are so cute. Nice face, oh yeah! We are so cute. Nice face, oh yeah!” starts off “N.E.O.”, which is nearly three minutes of pop-punk laced with psychedelia and has maybe the sickest drum and bass groove of the last year. This is the kind of track that makes you think, “Where the hell have these women been all my life?” when you hear it. The bass gets fat and the guitars and synths get fuzzy on “Boyz Seco Men” while the dual vocals between Mana and Kana bring to mid early 1990’s glam-pop love songs.

“Horechatta” adds reverb and downright sexy vocals that remind me of late 1970’s yacht rock. I’m fairly certain “Fried” is about how great fried fish is, but I could be wrong. I doubt it, because a lot of songs on Pink are about food. Tempura fish, when done well, is great, as are Mana’s bright synths on the track. “She Is Kitty” bounces like a kitten looped on catnip and chasing a butterfly, and the psychedelic touches make you think the kitten has knocked over a lava lamp in the process.

Not weird enough for you? Then try “Gyaranboo,” which I won’t even attempt to describe. “Kawaii Hito,” a song about double standards of beauty, is almost as strange. “Walking Star” is lovely pop-punk with some of the toughest guitar riffs on the record. “Sayonara Complex” is a bass-driven song that seems to produce sunlight from your speakers. The closer, “Flat Girl,” strolls along like a happy tourist on a Japanese beach. By the way, it’s about women with small breasts.

This is one of the catchiest and surprisingly trippy records released in the U.S. this year. It’s the perfect antidote for these modern, angry times.

Keep your mind open.

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Unknown Mortal Orchestra surprises everyone with an instrumental album – “IC-01 Hanoi” – out later this month.

UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA
ANNOUNCES SURPRISE INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM

IC-01 HANOI, OUT 10/26 ON JAGJAGUWAR; LISTEN TO “HANOI 6”

While recording Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s latest release, Sex & Food, Ruban Nielson, his longtime collaborator Jacob Portrait and his brother Kody Nielson, found themselves in the Vietnamese city of Hanoi at Phu Sa Studios. During the recording process for Sex & Food the band recorded live sessions with local musician Minh Nguyen on Sáo Trúc, Đàn Môi, and Vietnamese Percussion and Nielson’s father, Chris, on Flugelhorn, Saxophone and keyboards. These sessions became IC-01 Hanoi: a sonic distillation of the band’s influences in Jazz, Krautrock, and the avant-garde. At its core Hanoi is a record of exploration, finding its closest antecedent in Miles Davis’ experimental On The Corner – itself a record full of nods toward avant-garde composers and jazz outsiders alike. Hanoi finds Ruban amplifying and stretching out on lead guitar, with a blown-out and wandering fuzz tone that slinks throughout the sessions. The rest of the group match Ruban’s melodic diversions with aplomb, mining their talents and finding as easy a role in the fusion of funk as they do in the more ambient and abstract tangents on Hanoi. IC-01 Hanoi will see release on October 26th via Jagjaguwar.

LISTEN TO “HANOI 6”
https://youtu.be/JDsmgYRh6nA

PRE-ORDER IC-01 HANOI
https://umo.ffm.to/ic-01hanoi

IC-01 HANOI TRACKLISTING
1. Hanoi 1
2. Hanoi 2
3. Hanoi 3
4. Hanoi 4
5. Hanoi 5
6. Hanoi 6
7. Hanoi 7

UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA TOUR DATES
September 25 – Kuala Lumpur, MY @ The Bee
September 26 – Jakarta, ID @ Empirica
October 4 – Guadalajara, Mexico @ C3 Stage
October 6 – Lomas Atlas, Mexico @ Festival Hipnosis @ Deportivo Lomas Atlas
October 26 – Madrid, ES @ Sala Mon
October 27 – Bilbao, ES @ BIME Live
October 29 – Porto, PT @ Hard Club
October 30 – Lisbon, PT @ Aula Magna
November 1 – Clermont-Ferrand, FR @ La Cooperative de Mai
November 2 – Antwerp, BE @ Filter Festival
November 3 – Paris, FR @ Pitchfork Music Festival Paris
November 4 – Frankfurt, DE @ Zoom Frankfurt
November 6 – Copenhagen, DK @ Vega
November 7 – Stockholm, SE @ Kagelbanan
November 8 – Oslo, NO @ Parkteatret – SOLD OUT
November 9 – Bergen, NO @ Landmark – SOLD OUT
November 11 – Groningen, NL @ Oosterpoort
November 13 – Vienna, AT @ Flex
November 14 – Zurich, CH @ Rote Fabrik
November 15 – Vevey, CH @ Rocking Chair
November 16 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
November 17 – Leipzig, DE @ Trascentury Update No. 3 Festival
November 19 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute
November 21 – London, UK @ Royal Albert Hall
November 22 – Brighton, UK @ Concorde 2 – SOLD OUT
November 23 – Sheffield, UK @ The Leadmill
November 25 – Dublin, Ireland @ The Academy
November 26 – Glasgow, UK @ SWG3
January 12 – Christchurch, NZ @ Hagley Park
January 14 – Queenstown, NZ @ John Davies Oval
January 19 – Auckland, NZ @ Western Springs – SOLD OUT

Listen to Sex & Food – https://unknownmortalorchestra.lnk.to/sexandfood
Watch “Hunnybee” – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJrKlSkxRHA
Watch “Not In Love We’re Just High” – https://youtu.be/uY82vChor2A
Watch “Everyone Acts Crazy Nowadays” – https://youtu.be/ad2Iy0DMCWU
Watch “American Guilt” – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-JlcmCxIXU
Download hi-res images here: http://pitchperfectpr.com/unknown-mortal-orchestra/

UMO Online:
https://twitter.com/umo
http://unknownmortalorchestra.com/
http://instagram.com/unknownmortalorchestra
http://www.jagjaguwar.com/artist.php?name=umo
https://www.facebook.com/unknownmortalorchestra

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Wharf Cat Records has brought us a new post-punk supergroup -Public Practice.

DARK OPTIMISM IN DEADPAN VOCALS AND FUNK GROOVES – STEREOGUM

Wharf Cat Records is pleased to introduce Public Practice – a Brooklyn DIY supergroup of sorts, featuring members of freshly-dead punk project WALL and local pop band Beverly. Comprised of singer Sam York, guitarist Vince McClelland, synth/bassist and vocalist Drew Citron, and drummer/programmer and producer Scott Rosenthal, their serious chops and dance-inducing live set are already pulling them into the sharp foreground of a scene growing all too warm-and-fuzzy.

Public Practice’s debut EP, Distance is a Mirror, is a confident, juried testimony of love steeped in dark optimism. Dry, deadpan vocals chant over skittish guitar and danceable 70s grooves—songs snapping like rubber bands—seesawing between post-punk and its insomniac twin sister disco. With contradicting references as overt as Talking Heads (without the shoulders), but as specific as Haruomi Hosono of Yellow Magic Orchestra (with some polka dots), the band is carrying a funky torch that does not get lit too often.

By the end of the short and bitter-sweet 4-song EP, punctuated by Sam York’s sign-off of “no you can’t take it back now,” Public Practice anchors themselves as a new band with wisdom like their influences, bringing songs distinctly fresh as they are familiar. Public Practice will privately change your mind about where guitar music is going. Tired of the familiar? Seeing dots? Wake up!

TBR 10/26 // First 150 EP’s Hand-Numbered // Special Edition EP’s (limited to 250) Feature Flexi-Disc w/Remixes by Austin Brown (Parquet Courts) and House of Feelings // All LP’s Include Insert w/Lyrics // Also Available on CD

PRE-ORDER: PUBLICE PRACTICE – DISTANCE IS A MIRROR EP SPECIAL EDITION W/REMIXES FLEXI ($20)

PRE-ORDER: PUBLICE PRACTICE – DISTANCE IS A MIRROR EP REGULAR EDITION (14$)

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Levitation Austin artist spotlight: Pow!

Synth-punk weirdos POW! are playing Levitation Austin at Barracuda on April 29th at 10:50pm. It’s a sold-out show at with them opening for Oh Sees. They pay a quirky, catchy brand of electro-rock that I think will be a treat live. I hope you can make it.

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Caroline Rose – Loner

I first heard Caroline Rose when I got sent a press release about her first single off her album Loner. The song was “Money,” and it ended up being one of my favorite singles of 2017.

Loner, it turns out, is already one of the best releases of the winter. Her deft use of organs, synths, and keyboards turns the record into a blend of psychedelia, power pop, and electro. Plus, she’s one of the wittiest songwriters I’ve heard in a while.

“More of the Same” is a great opener about ennui and people wanting to be individuals just like everyone else. She unleashes impressive vocal chops as she sings about all of her friends having “alternative haircuts,” school being a colossal bore and a haven for crushed dreams, and wanting to get away from the ruts the world at large has created for her. “Cry!” reveals Rose’s love of Devo in the opening synth chords.

“Money” adds spaghetti western guitar and is one of the wildest cuts you’ve heard in a long while. Rose flat-out admits, and calls us out on, how much of her / our day-to-day activity is for the pursuit of cash. The roller rink keyboards of “Jeannie Becomes a Mom” perfectly sum up the fear, joy, and uncertainty of the song’s subject. Plus, the electric beats are wicked.

“Getting to Me” includes what sounds like a plucked violin as Rose sings about the life of a waitress who craves more out of life but yet is a master at her craft. Rose gets a David Lynch-vibe going on “To Die Today” with its echoing guitar, subtle percussion, and her haunting vocals about the feeling and release of death. It’s fitting that the follower is “Soul No. 5,” a song about embracing life (“I ain’t got a job, but I got a lot of time.). The synths during the chorus are exuberant, and they’re laced with surf rock on “Bikini” (a song about the benefits of sex appeal and the objectification of women).

The stabbing synths of “Talk” push the desperate narrative of the lyrics, in which Rose sings of blissful, sexy silence with her lover. The closer, “Animal,” with its synthesized handclaps and trippy keys, is a sexy song about two lovers in the throes of passion.

The whole album is a mix of sex, death, mishaps, and comedy. In other words, it’s about real life. Rose might consider herself a loner, but she’s really all of us.

Keep your mind open.

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Shopping – The Official Body

Are you shopping for Valentine’s Day gifts? Do you need something for your lover who hates everything played on commercial radio, or your husband who loves 80’s music, or your wife who enjoys funk and dance rock, or yourself? Let me save you some time: Buy them The Official Body by Shopping.

Consisting of just three members (Rachel Aggs – guitar and vocals, Billy Easter – bass and vocals, Andrew Milk – drums and vocals), Shopping’s third full-length is the grooviest post-punk album I’ve heard all year. The opener, “The Hype” (which you’d better believe with this band), begins with a Bow Wow Wow-like drum count before the three of them put down a groove that instantly gets you moving. I love their vocals bounce off each other like they took lessons from the B-52’s.

“Wild Child” (a song about keeping up appearances) continues the dance grooves (and Easter’s killer bass work), but brings in some subtle synths into the mix. The use of synths is frequent throughout the record and brings even more of a dance-punk feel to the album. Aggs’ guitar on “Asking for a Friend” is bouncy and tight, which is difficult to pull off, but she seems to do it with ease. “Suddenly Gone” is a sharp song about Aggs’ struggles of being black and queer in an industry dominated by straight white dudes.

Milk sings about losing one’s sense of self on “Shave Your Head” while Aggs’ guitar chatters over his typewriter-like beats. The synth bass on “Discover” is a bit jarring at first, but I love the darkness it brings to a song about being desperate for attention. “Control Yourself,” despite its title, will get your toes tapping before you realize it (thanks in large part to Milk’s wicked beat). I also love the chorus of “I know what I like, and I like what I know.” It sums up the (closed) mindset of many these days.

Aggs’ guitar work on “My Dad’s a Dancer” is a bit Middle Eastern and her vocals about bigotry (i.e., “Would you like me if I looked like you?”) are sharp as a knife. “New Values” begins with synth bass that reminds me of weird 1990’s 16-bit video games, but Easter’s vocals are solidly in the modern world. “Overtime” seamlessly blends the synths and the traditional instruments as it builds in tempo toward an exhilarating finish to the record.

I’ve been on a post-punk kick all year, and The Official Body is a great kick-off to 2018 for me and the genre. Don’t let it slip by you.

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Top live shows of 2017: #’s 20 – 16

We’ve reached the top 20 live shows I saw this year. Read on to see who made the cut.

#20 – A Tribe Called Quest – Pitchfork Music Festival – Chicago, IL July 15th.

It was one of their first performances without Phife Dawg, and they paid him many great tributes during it. ATCQ also came to preach and teach, and Q-Tip was absolutely fierce on the mic. The whole crowd was with them the entire time.

#19 – Cut Copy – Mamby on the Beach – Chicago, IL June 25th.

Cut Copy were easily the best band we saw on Day 2 of Mamby on the Beach. They played an energetic set that had the whole beach crowd jumping before it was even halfway done.

#18 – Will Clarke – Mamby on the Beach – Chicago, IL June 24th.

Speaking of great Mamby sets, DJ Will Clarke‘s was our favorite DJ set by far. He seemed to be having a great time behind the decks and inspired me to dust off my digital turntables.

#17 – Nicolas Jaar – Pitchfork Music Festival – Chicago, IL July 16th.

We ended our Pitchfork experience with Nicolas Jaar, and it was a lovely, trippy way to end the festival. He created a neat soundscape that drifted and swirled around the crowd like a warm fog.

#16 – Derrick Carter – Pitchfork Music Festival – Chicago, IL July 16th.

If you need a boost to start your final day of a big music festival, go see Chicago house music DJ legend Derrick Carter. His set in the early hours of the last day of Pitchfork was outstanding. Everyone worked up an early sweat and enough energy to make it through the rest of the day. He put on a clinic.

Who’s in the top 15? Come back tomorrow to see.

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Live: Gary Numan and Me Not You – Chicago, IL – November 29, 2017

I hadn’t seen electro / industrial legend Gary Numan live for many years. His new album, Savage, is getting rave reviews and debuted as high as #2 in the U.K. His live shows are loud, dazzling, and impressive affairs, and his November 29th show at Chicago’s Thalia Hall was no exception.

Opening for him were the Brooklyn quartet Me Not You, who put on a nice set of shoegaze and synth-rock. I’d like to hear more of their material. Unfortunately, I missed part of their set due to getting a phone call from work that I had to take.

Numan and his four-man band came out and immediately kicked down the back wall with a blast of industrial rock on “Ghost Nation” – the lead track from the new record. Upon hearing it, I immediately thought, “Yeah, I need to get this record.”

Although he’s not much for nostalgia, Numan delivered a great version of “Metal” right afterwards. He had the crowd in his hand by this point, and it was only the second song. Other solid cuts from the new record were “Bed of Thorns,” “Mercy,” “Pray for the Pain You Serve,” “My Name Is Ruin,” and “When the World Comes Apart.”

Gary Numan might be a Green Lantern. It wouldn’t surprise me at all, really.

“Down in the Park,” of course, remains one of the best electro-goth songs ever, and Numan’s path down more industrial roads puts a new spin on a lot of his classic material. He has the bass brought up on “Cars” to make it almost a metal track, for example. “Love Hurt Bleed,” from his Splinter album, is a new highlight to his show. It’s everything Trent Reznor owes Numan in one song.

Perhaps Mr. Numan is actually a herald of Galactus. I’d believe that, too.

He performed “M.E.” and “Are Friends Electric?” for an encore. Both were stunning, especially “Are Friend Electric?” – which is the greatest song Phillip K. Dick never wrote.

This was easily one of the best performances I’ve seen all year. The crowd was a fun mix of aging hipsters like yours truly, young industrial fans, old punks, metal heads, and goths. I know this makes me sound old, but it was great to see people younger than I having a great time at the show. It ensures me that Numan’s music will continue through new generations of fans. Don’t miss this tour if it gets close to you.

Thanks to the lucky lady who scored this set list for letting me take a photo of it.

Keep your mind open.

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