News – Page 43 – 7th Level Music

Covet get all happy and fun with their new single – “Firebird.”

Covet, the Bay area trio fronted by the effervescent, and wholly unique, guitar whiz Yvette Young, return with their third album, catharsis, on April 7 via Triple Crown Records.

“We did a lot of risk-taking on this album,” Yvette explains. “I try to follow what excites me without heeding anybody’s expectations. I’m leaning into melodies, tones, and textures and trying to use them to transport listeners. The whole concept is escaping into a fantasy realm where the songs depict different characters and their own worlds. Each song is like their theme song. It’s mostly instrumental, but when you close your eyes, I hope people will be transported into the character’s story. Music has always been escapism for me and a great source of therapy. My hope for this music is that it will take people somewhere and stir their imaginations, or at the very least, make them feel something. I named this record ‘catharsis’ because the word to me feels like a triumphant exodus. No matter the dire circumstances, music is one of those things that I’ve always needed to create to survive (in all senses of the word), and time and time again, I turn to guitar and songwriting as my outlet to uplift and feel like I have control over something in this chaotic universe.”

A preview of the 8-song, Scott Evans (Thrice, Samiam) produced collection arrives today with the release of “Firebird,” a track Yvette says she hopes will take listeners on a “total melodic joyride.” A Tom Flynn-directed video (https://triplecrown.ffm.to/covet-firebirdmv) debuted this morning, with the clip reflecting the origin of the song, as Yvette adds: “When my mom first emigrated to America, she balled out and got a red Pontiac Firebird. I hope it sounds like cruising down the highway with the wind blowing in your hair. I really wanted to lean into the catchiness of a melody and see how I could push some rock-n-roll tropes until something almost becomes cheesy—but not quite yet. Hopefully, the lighthearted and silly nature of the video reflects that.”

Album pre-orders, which include several limited-edition vinyl variants, CD, and digital pre-saves are available here: https://triplecrown.ffm.to/covet-catharsis.

Covet catharsis tour dates:

April 7 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom

April 8 Vancouver, BC Biltmore Cabaret

April 9 Seattle, WA Neumos

April 11 Salt Lake City, UT Soundwell

April 13 Denver, CO Meow Wolf

April 14 Lawrence, KS The Bottleneck

April 15 St. Louis, MO Delmar Hall

April 17 St. Paul, MN Amsterdam Music Hall

April 18 Madison, WI High Noon Saloon

April 20 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge

April 21 Ann Arbor, MI Blind Pig

April 22 Toronto, ON Lee’s Palace

April 23 Montreal, QC Café Campus

April 25 Pittsburgh, PA Thunderbird Music Hall

April 26 Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn Bowl

April 27 Boston, MA Royale

April 28 Philadelphia, PA Brooklyn Bowl

April 29 Vienna, VA Jammin’ Java

May 1 Asheville, NC The Grey Eagle

May 2 Nashville, TN Brooklyn Bowl

May 3 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade (Hell)

May 5 Dallas, TX Studio at The Factory

May 6 Austin, TX Scoot Inn

May 8 Albuquerque, NM Launchpad

May 10 Phoenix, AZ Crescent Ballroom

May 11 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up

May 12 Los Angeles, CA The Roxy

Tickets for all shows are on-sale now. Scarypoolparty and altopalo open on all dates.

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[Thanks to Monica at Speakeasy PR.]

Sound Cipher release “Grid Incursion” ahead of their debut album due April 21, 2023.

Sound Cipher is the surreal, pulsating audio vision shared by three of modern music’s most uncompromising sound sculptors. It’s the sort of thing that emerges when Tim Alexander (Primus, Puscifer, A Perfect Circle) finds himself inside a thunderous duo improvisation with Skerik (Critters Buggin, Garage A Trois, Les Claypool’s Frog Brigade) during a soundcheck for Primus’ Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory tour in Oakland CA. One person surrounded by a circular percussion station of preposterous proportions, another person hurling psychedelic saxophonic screams into the hellfire of analog and digital circuitry.

Skerik and Tim Alexander knew they were onto something. The first official Sound Cipher excursion was scheduled for January 2, 2017 at Studio Litho in Seattle WA with Randall Dunn (Sunn O))), Six Organs of Admittance, Akron/Family) at the production helm. He would bring aboard Timm Mason (Master Musicians Of Bukkake, Wolves In The Throne Room, Eyvind Kang & Jessica Kenney, Jóhann Jóhannsson) to assist with modular synth processing during this first session, generally a technical advisory role involving lab coats and clipboards and chin-scratching. The participants arrived and were surprised to find Mason setting up in the live room instead of the control room. As the recording unfolded, Mason’s direct in-the-moment sonic manipulation of the proceedings made it clear that he belonged at the creative core of the project where he remains today.

Listeners and innocent bystanders have reported spiritual resemblances to the experimental German scene of the ’70s with traces of Can, Faust, Neu and early Kraftwerk, the dark manic rumble of Peter Gabriel‘s early work and the complex digital hardcore first birthed by Aphex Twin and Squarepusher, all of it wrapped in an unsettling atmosphere that verily reeks of familiar ingredients: a tumbling machine-tight groove, a wash of analog synths direct from your midnight movie memories, a snippet from your grandpa’s old Louis Armstrong records stretched across miles of fizzling voltage and contorted into barely recognizable and altogether quite mind-altering new shapes.

Initial plans to release the 2017 session as Sound Cipher’s unveiling were revised when the trio found a new level of clarity in shaping their ideas following a series of live performances in 2018. Further recording and mixing took place in 2018 at Avast Studios, also in Seattle. Now, six years after that initial studio date, the finest flowers from those multiple sessions are available to adventurous listeners everywhere in the form of Sound Cipher’s debut LP, All That Syncs Must Diverge, to be released April 21, 2023 on vinyl and digital formats via Royal Potato Family. The opening track “Grid Incursion” (listen/share) is out today on all streaming platforms. In addition, Sound Cipher will reconvene for three live sonic adventures in accordance with the album’s release.

SOUND CIPHER
All That Syncs Must Diverge

Track Listing:
1. Grid Incursion
2. Ransomwar
3. Church Turing
4. Permissive Action Link
5. God Mode
6. Entropy Pool

Out April 21 On Vinyl & Digital Music Platforms
Pre-Order / Pre-Save Here

Album Release Shows

April 21 – Seattle WA – Clock-Out Lounge
April 22 – Portland OR – Star Theater
April 24 – Livestream – Nugs.net

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[Thanks to Kevin at Royal Potato Family.]

“Believe” in Jacques Greene’s new single.

Canadian-based electronic musician Jacques Greene unveils “Believe,” his first new single/video of 2023, out today via LuckyMe. Wasting no time, “Believe” sets the pace immediately. With an urgent vocal refrain and a driving beat, “Believe” is one of Greene’s most direct tracks of his career thus far. The accompanying video, directed by Cameron Morse, harnesses the frenetic energy of a Jacques Greene set, with the underlying track displaying all the familiar JG hallmarks. “Believe” marks Greene’s first new solo music since the release of 2022’s Fantasy EP, and follows the success of Greene’s collaborative single with Bonobo, “Fold.” Of “Believe,” Greene adds: “Channeling the feeling of a year spent back in the real world. Fresh energy and bright colors. Fun for the sake of it.”

Watch Jacques Greene’s “Believe” Video

Greene has been making music “about the club” for over a decade. Over the course of multiple EPs, singles, and two full-length albums — 2017’s Feel Infinite and 2019’s Dawn Chorus — his sound has developed into an emotional haze. In 2020, Greene made headlines for creating “Promise,” the first single released with associated NFT that staked the owner to music publishing, and the following year released ANTH01, a collection of unearthed tracks spanning the earliest years of his career alongside previously unreleased tracks. Outside of his own releases, Greene has explored his relationship with the club in a variety of contexts, from remixing Radiohead to producing for Katy B, Tinashe and touring with The xx.

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Windhand’s Dorthia Cottrell to release solo album, “Death Folk Country,” April 21, 2023, but you can experience “Family Annihilator” now.

Dorthia Cottrell envisions her music as both a document of love and a reconciliation with death. On her new album, Death Folk Country, Cottrell wards off death through creation – the most distilled form of love. The spirit of love passed on through her words will be the ultimate reward for earthly suffering. Cottrell’s enigmatic presence guides listeners down a path of introspection – Death Folk Country‘s massive scope touches upon tales of love, loss, and so much more.

Cottrell was raised in rural King George, Virginia, a town with less than 5,000 inhabitants. Forests and tall-grass fields stretched before her. Beauty and boredom soared. That vague melancholy and memory of the American South is smudged all over Cottrell’s music. Cottrell grew up a goth, an outcast in a small town – a time and place she revisits throughout Death Folk Country.

“This album to me is about painting a picture of a place where my heart lives,” Cottrell explains. The title Death Folk Country is partly me describing a genre that fits the sound – but it’s also meant to be taken as a Naming, a coronation of the world inside me. Death Folk Country is the music and also the land where the music takes place, and the two have always been inextricable from each other.”

The album’s lead single “Family Annihilator” directly speaks to the unease and tension of Cottrell’s surroundings. “Porch lights keep the demons at bay,” she sings over crashing cymbals and a field recording of birds. “I had never played it before, I kind of brought it out of the attic,” Cottrell says of the song. Despite being over a decade old, “Family Annihilator” spoke to the moment she was in. With the threat of another four years of conservative offices in power, Cottrell thought of family back in the South who would be voting, and remembered something her grandfather, a farmer, had told her years ago: “If a crop is diseased, you have to burn the whole crop.” “‘Family Annihilator’ is a result of me wondering if the whole field must burn today, to save the flowers of tomorrow,” Cottrell says.

Listen / Watch / Playlist “Family Annihilator”

Elsewhere, the sounds of Cottrell’s childhood can be heard all over the album, and no more so than on “Harvester” and “Black Canyon” – tracks decorated with chimes and monk’s bells; what Cottrell would have heard when sat out on her front porch in King George. These are sounds of nature longing. These are sounds Cottrell associates with both her upbringing and also the world of Death Folk Country.

Cottrell’s voice, a quavering alto, fills the emptiest of canyons. Singing in echoing harmony with itself, her voice is a kind of prophecy, bringing home to the present thoughts and realizations from the future, even as Cottrell buries herself in remembrance of the past.

“I grew up deep in a Virginia Pine forest in a house built entirely by my grandpa,” Cottrell recalls. “The only type of door I knew was made of plywood and had a hook instead of a knob. We were excited to have our washing machine and dryer on the porch so we didn’t have to hang clothes up to dry in the winter. Our heat came from burning wood. If you didn’t cut the wood you didn’t get warm. If you didn’t make a specific effort for something, you went without it. And I loved it. I still love it. The smell, the air, the way it looks, the way it sounds. The way it doesn’t sound. The feeling.”

Death Folk Country takes these nostalgic ideas of “home” and confronts them with their own imperfections and darkness.

“There are things I don’t love about it too. Dark things. Misguided ideas. Fear of things not understood. An altogether monstrous and violent evil that seeps unsuspecting and aloof (seemingly) into even the most (seemingly) innocent conversation. As I grow older, the things I love and hate about it only become more and more vivid and I often think about how to keep the two worlds apart–how to separate the divine from the evil and if it’s even possible.”

Death Folk Country sees its release April 21 via Relapse Records, her first for the label and follow up to her highly acclaimed, 2015 S/T solo debut. All songs on Death Folk Country were written / played by Dorthia Cottrell and recorded / produced by Jon K. and Cottrell at SANS Studios in Richmond, Virginia.

Pre-Order / Pre-Save Death Folk Country Here

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[Thanks to Bailey at Another Side.]

Kali Horse release new single, “Wigs,” that encourages you to become someone new (if you feel like it).

Kali Horse (formerly Kaleidoscope Horse) is a psychedelic art-rock band from Toronto, ON. Their sound is theatrical and dreamy – bouncing between highly melodic and rhythmic, groovy sections. Driven both by strong song-writing and abstract sound-play, the band creates dimensions that are often jarring in comparison to one another, playing on tension and release. The contrast between Desiree Das Gupta’s powerful alto, and Sam Maloney’s feathery vocal timbre creates a balance of light and heavy, backed by full band harmonies.

Kali Horse’s world is an immersive world that they invite the audience into. Kali Horse are storytellers, their music is about telling a story with sound rather than a specific genre. The band are queer, multi-instrumentalist performers whose friendship is the bond of the band.

Sam and Des have been best friends for a decade and have been making music together for 7 years under different names, they are a huge part of the Toronto music community.

Kali Horse feature guest players from the Toronto music community on their recordings, including Luna Li (plays all the strings, violin, harp), Dylan from Hot Garbage plays stand-up bass and Sam’s partner plays singing bowls and tum drum.

Regarding, “Wigs,” Kali Horse says, “Ever wanted to change everything about yourself? Wigs is about trying things on – identity, bravado. Ever had a day so bizarre you felt like a different person? Through self-experimentation you discover a healthy aggression. You remember you’re worth a little more than what you’ve been putting up with, and you want everyone to know. The drums are in 7/4, the guitars in 4. You tell the moon what to do. You let the band catch up. You might not know where you belong, but you know nothing’s going to stay the same. Electronic trash drums mixed with a live kit thrash while the synth bass waves beneath. Wigs is a command, and Kali Horse will not stay in line.”

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[Thanks to Mar Sellars!]

Nevaris brightens up your day with “Dub Sol.”

Touted by Carlos Santana as “a work of supreme creativity”, Manhattan-based artist Nevaris has announced his forthcoming ‘Reverberations’ LP, to be released this spring via celebrated boutique label M.O.D. Reloaded. Ahead of that, they present the lead track ‘Dub Sol’.

Created by Nevaris (percussion, keyboards) and bassist-producer Bill Laswell, the current artist lineup also includes DJ Logic, Will Bernard, Peter Apfelbaum, Lockatron and Matt Dickey.

A musician and visual artist, Nevaris is a percussionist, keyboardist, vocalist and composer, who is heavily influenced by Afro-Latin, dub, and funk music. Born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, he is of European and Mexican descent with multi-generational roots in both NYC and LA’s Echo Park neighborhood.

Prior to recording ‘Reverberations’, Nevaris recorded and performed with an evolving lineup of musicians under the name Loud Apartment, most notably Bernie Worrell of P-Funk and Talking Heads fame.

‘Reverberations’ is the third collaboration between Nevaris, Bill Laswell and this lineup of musicians (with the addition of Matt Dickey), here focusing more on the dub aspects of their sound. This instrumental recording combines dub, funk, afro-latin rhythms, turntablism and extended improvisation.

“This record builds on the momentum from ‘System Breakdown’ and ‘New Future’, which we released in 2020 and 2022 under the name Loud Apartment. There were dub aspects of those recordings, so Bill Laswell and I decided to create a recording entirely focused on that sound. It was a logical next step and came together in an organic way. We let the music go where it needed to go,” says Nevaris.

“It’s a dub based project, with breakbeat, funk, ambient, and afro-latin elements. It’s rhythm based music where the pocket is essential. Lockatron is a huge part of that, as, of course, is Bill Laswell, DJ Logic and everyone else involved. Peter Apfelbaum’s horn arrangements are also a core aspect. In my mind, it’s a cohesive piece of music that is best listened to as a whole rather than as individual songs. And Bill takes it where it needs to go with the production like no one else really can.”

In addition to his work as a musician, Nevaris is a visual and multimedia artist, who has worked on a vast array of creative projects across mediums. He also co-founded Nolej Records, Nolej Studios and the Uncomun Festival.

‘Dub Sol’ is out now, available from fine digital music platforms, including Spotify and Bandcamp. The full ‘Reverberations’ album will be released on May 25.

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[Thanks to Shauna at Shameless Promotion.]

RVG discuss the perils of time travel on “Squid.”

(Photo Credit: Izzie Austin)

RVG – the Melbourne post-punk band of lyricist/frontwoman Romy Vager, guitarist Rueben Bloxham, drummer Marc Nolte, and bassist Isabele Wallace – share new single “Squid” from their forthcoming album Brain Worms, out June 2nd on Fire Records. Following lead single “Nothing Really Changes,” which debuted in the top 3 of the Published Top 10 singles chart at specialty radio in the U.S., “Squid” powers through the walls of realism and out the other side, imagining what might happen if we were to go back in time, step on something, and … become a squid. “I didn’t intend to be // Some hideous turquoise thing // Some hideous third thing,” Vager sings, bringing an earnestness and desperation so real that feelings suddenly cut through the song’s absurdity.

All throughout Brain Worms, it’s apparent that RVG is in very fine form. Named for the recognizable experience of each day bearing witness to a world of private obsessions being aired out in the infinite, Brain Worms may not be wholly new territory for the Melbourne post-punk band, but this time around, there’s a newfound radical acceptance glistening overtop everything. Recorded in London at Snap Studios with James Trevascus (Billy Nomates, Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, The Goon Sax), all ten Brain Worms tracks surge with lush sounds and clear intentions. RVG have moved past their influences, pushed themselves, and tried new things. And they made a record they can call their best.

After a momentous first five years — finding critical acclaim for their 2017 debut A Quality of Mercy, landing on countless end-of-year Best Of lists, and playing alongside some of the world’s biggest acts — RVG released their second album Feral as the world was locking down in 2020. Feral was hailed by Rolling Stone Australia as “the record of a lifetime,” but between the four bandmates, Brain Worms is the most confident they’ve ever felt in RVG. “If we could only make one more album, it would be this one,” says Vager.

Watch RVG’s “Nothing Really Changes” Video

Pre-order Brain Worms

RVG Tour Dates:

Mon. Apr. 17 – Cardiff, UK @ Tramshed (w/ Billy Nomates)

Wed. Apr. 19 – Nottingham, UK @ Rescue Rooms (w/ Billy Nomates)

Thu. Apr. 20 – Manchester, UK @ New Century Hall (w/ Billy Nomates)

Fri. Apr. 21 – Leeds, UK @ LUU-Stylus (w/ Billy Nomates)

Sat. Apr. 22 – Glasgow, UK @ QMU (w/ Billy Nomates)

Mon. Apr. 24 – Newcastle, UK @ Boiler Shop (w/ Billy Nomates)

Tue. Apr. 25 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute Birmingham (w/ Billy Nomates)

Thu. Apr. 27 – London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town (w/ Billy Nomates)

Fri. Apr. 28 – Brighton, UK @ CHALK Live (w/ Billy Nomates)

Sat. Apr. 29 – Bristol, UK @ Marble Factory (w/ Billy Nomates)

Tue. May 2 – Paris, FR @ Supersonic

Thu. May 4 – Rotterdam, NL @ V11

Fri. May 5 – Haldern-Rees, DE @ Haldern Pop Bar

Sun. May 7 – Nijmegen, NL @ Merleyn

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Caroline Rose says “Tell Me What You Want” on their new single.

Caroline Rose’s The Art of Forgetting, out March 24th on New West Records, is a “brave document of turmoil and heartbreak full of sumptuous arrangements and powerful lyrics” (Bandcamp). Today, Rose presents a new single and video, “Tell Me What You Want,” which chronicles conflicting feelings nearing the end of a relationship. Although the album largely deals with regret and grief, loss and change, shame and the inevitability of pain, on “Tell Me What You Want” Rose’s impish humor pops up unexpectedly: “I’m beating my head // Against the dashboard of your compact car // Just tell me what you want // Testing testing // Is this thing on? // Boy, you’re gonna hate this song // Tell me what you want.” It showcases the kind of dark comedy with which we’ve become familiar in their catalog, fusing upbeat melodies with oft-hilariously deflating lyrics.

Rose further elaborates on “Tell Me What You Want”: “When I listen to this I really feel for myself during that time. My head was like a cesspool of voices trying to tell me what to do. You know, the end of a relationship can be so confusing. There are all these emotions swirling around and really no handbook. You realize when all your attempts to connect with your partner aren’t working, you either have to find a way to stick it out or leave… And both options suck. This song is about being in that pickle of desperation, between trying to protect yourself and feeling the immense guilt and regret of walking away from someone you love.”

Additionally, Rose and director Sam Bennett announce The Art of Forgetting short film, which is a loose recreation of real life events. Each of the film’s three chapters weave together a story of Rose navigating a transformative heartbreak. The “Tell Me What You Want” video is a chapter of the film, which picks up where the “Miami” video ends.

“It’s strange to recreate things that happened in the past, in the places where they happened, because they are obviously not the same as they were. I was trying to put my finger on this feeling and someone mentioned the Brazilian Portuguese word ‘saudade,’ a sensation that blends nostalgia, melancholy, desire and longing all in one.” – Caroline Rose

The Art of Forgetting film will premiere on Thursday, March 23rd via youtube and feature a live Q+A with Rose. Access to the watch party is open to anyone who pre-orders The Art of Forgetting before March 22. Additionally, there will be two free, in-person screenings of the film on March 24th at a release day party at Tower Records in Brooklyn. Space is limited and RSVP is required. A wide release of the film will take place in the coming months (details to be announced at a later date).

Watch Caroline Rose’s Video for “Tell Me What You Want”

Caroline Rose will embark on an expansive North American tour this spring. Following, they’ll head across the pond to Europe. Tickets for all dates are on sale now and a full list of dates can be found below.

Watch the “Miami” Video

Listen to “Love / Lover / Friend”

Watch the “The Doldrums” Visualizer

Pre-order The Art of Forgetting

The Art of Forgetting Film Screenings
Info available at www.carolinerosemusic.com/taof-film
Thu. March 23 – 3pm ET – Youtube Livestream & Q+A
Fri. March 24 – 9:15pm ET – Brooklyn, NY @ Tower Records [RSVP required]
Fri. March 24 – 10:15pm ET – Brooklyn, NY @ Tower Records [RSVP required]

Caroline Rose Tour Dates
Fri. March 31 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Arthur Zankel Music Center
Sat. April 1 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
Tue. April 4 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
Wed. April 5 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
Thu. April 6 – Boston, MA @ Royale
Sat. April 8 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern – SOLD OUT
Sun. April 9 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
Tue. April 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
Wed. April 12 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
Fri. April 14 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
Sat. April 15 – Richmond, VA @ Richmond Music Hall
Sun. April 16 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
Tue. April 18 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
Wed. April 19 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
Fri. April 21 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall – SOLD OUT
Sat. April 22 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom
Sun. April 23 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
Tue. April 25 – Denver, CO @ The Gothic Theatre
Fri. April 28 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
Sat. April 29 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
Wed. May 3 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
Fri. May 5 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre
Sat. May 6 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet’s
Sun. May 21 – Guadalajara, MX @ Corona Capital
Sat. May 27 – Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher
Mon. May 29 – Cologne, DE @ Stadtgarten
Wed. 31 May – Manchester, UK @ Band on the Wall
Thu. 1 June – Dublin, IE @ Whelan’s
Sat. 3 June – Glasgow, UK @ Stereo
Sun. 4 June – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Mon, 5 June – London, UK @ HEAVEN
Wed. June 7 – Brighton, UK @ Patterns
Sat. June 10 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Bogen F
Tue. June 13 – Brussels, BE @ AB
Wed. June 14 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso (Upstairs)
Fri. June 16 – Paris, FR @ La Hasard Ludique
Sat. June 17 – Mannheim, DE @ Maifeld Derby
Sun. June 18 – Duisburg, DE @ Traumzeit Festival

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jaycee at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Half Cut announces new “Floor Five” EP.

HOMAGE has been at the forefront of electronic music in Brooklyn since its inception in 2017. Originally starting as an event series, the party was a nod to their predecessors in New York, those who pioneered a thriving nightlife scene in dynamic and intimate locations. Jump six years and HOMAGE is on its own path, having released a diverse selection of records from Kettama to Aldonna. Now the label readies its twenty-first release with a relatively new name, Sydney-based producer Half Cut, who over the course of seven tracks explores euphoric house, coiling electro, and jacking acid; tied together by a remix from Panorama Bar regular & Potency Records boss Cromby.

Speaking on the EP, the labels co-founder Ryan Clover says:

Kain sent us a pack of demos before the pandemic and they were all fantastic. He’s one of a few artists that have sent us a cold email and gotten signed immediately. Kain is half Japanese/half Australian and is based in Sydney, and he’s started to cut his teeth in the local circuit. While he’s a relative newcomer to the scene, his tunes have already seen support from Craig Richards, Gene on Earth, Cromby, Youandewan, Perdu, ANOTR, and Who is Arcadia, and in 2022 he had his first song signed to a VA for Limousine Dream (Nug-Net), Gene on Earth’s highly regarded label.

Half Cut has recently shared the first single from the EP titled Floor Five – a certified dance-floor filler, that brings smiles, energy and the type of sweaty hugs only those who have fallen in love on a dance floor will know.

PRE-ORDER

SHARES NEW SINGLE ‘FLOOR FIVE’

LISTEN TO TITLE TRACK

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[Thanks to Harbour Music Society.]

D-Tension seeks justice with his new single, “Charlie.”

D-Tension is an award winning musician/vocalist/producer from Lowell, MA. He first made a name for himself as a hip hop artist, touring North America and Europe regularly for two decades. However, like most sample based hip hop producers, D’s love of music was not limited to hip hop. Always a multi instrumentalist, D began to write and record rock and roll songs and took a greater interest in playing the guitar. This passion lead to two “Secret Rock and Roll Projects” that featured D’s songs with collaborations with a team of musicians including guitarists Frank Pino (Watham/Andrew WK) and Craig Silverman (Agnostic Front) and drummer Brian Viglione (Dresden Dolls/Violent Femmes). The Secret Project featured the 2021 single “Kenmore Square,” an ode to the glory days of the Boston rock scene. The song was well received and the video was viewed 125,000 times on Youtube, Facebook and Instagram.

Always up for a challenge, D-Tension is poised to release his first all-solo rock record, Tales from the Pub. D wrote and performed the record in its entirety and the record is set for a spring 2023 release on Boston record label Red On Red Records. His first single, released independently in January 2023 “The No Name Song” was featured on radio, blogs and newspapers nationwide. The first single with Red On Red, “Charlie” manages to be upbeat and catchy despite its dark subject matter; the mysterious deaths of three Lowell women who all happened to disappear while dating the same guy. Known for his use of humor, the song is a bit of a departure for D but showcases his ability to be a multidimensional artist.

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[Thanks to D-Tension.]