7th Level Music

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have a “Hog Calling Contest” on their newest single.

Earlier this month, the ever restless King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard announced their 26th album, Flight b741, out August 9th via their own p(doom) records. Today the group share their new single, “Hog Calling Contest,” and announce a mini-documentary about the making of the album,“Oink Oink Flight b741: The Making of…”

Directed by Guy Tyzack, the mini-documentary captures the band’s creative process on 16mm film, which restricted Tyzack to shooting about five minutes of film per day, waiting for the right moment while sitting discreetly in the corner. “We were tasked with capturing the band make an album from scratch in two weeks, they purposefully didn’t prepare much for the recordings so it was very difficult for me to plan what to film,” Tyzack says. “I just knew they’d be in one room and three of them might drop out at any moment because they were expecting babies. The room looked brown and boring so I painted it like the sky to match the theme of the album in one 17hr stretch with three friends and a slab of mids.”

On the inspiration for “Hog Calling Contest,” the band explains: “While recording Flight b741, we occasionally had these ultra inspired tune-up/warm-up jams. Of course, we were never actually recording during these moments though. Lost to time. Except one time; This time. We learnt to record these moments; ‘Daily Blues’ came together this way too. But ‘Hog Calling Contest’ retains a unique unhinged-ness that only comes when you’re fooling around with your mates and you don’t think you’re being recorded. Happy in mud!”

LISTEN TO “HOG CALLING CONTEST”

WATCH “OINK OINK FLIGHT b741: THE MAKING OF…” MINI-DOC

As the band’s first release on their own newly minted p(doom) records imprint, Flight b741 showcases a remarkable change-of-pace, swapping the big picture ambition for the intimacy of six good friends enjoying each other’s company and collaborating on perhaps the warmest, most bonhomie-laden set the group have yet committed to wax.

With a recent run of expansive and conceptual albums behind them, which have spanned from a thrash-metal epic dealing with the current climate crisis to a Moroder-esque pre-digital synth album of proto-Kraftwerk bangers, Flight b741 sees King Gizzard ditch all the high-falutin’ scheming in favor of irresistible country-fried rock’n’roll and the kind of effortless songwriting that comes as second language when you’ve been playing music together 24/7 for almost a decade-and-a-half. The concept this time is ‘no concept’.

All hopped-up on early Steve Miller Band and the infinite wonderfulness of The Band, King Gizzard laid down the riffs, the grooves, the choogle. Once it was time for the vocals, however, they took a brand new tack – passing the mic, leading to what has become the most collaborative record in the group’s expansive discography.

King Gizzard will be undertaking a massive U.S. tour this coming fall, which includes 3 hour marathon sets in New York, Chicago, Austin, and Quincy, WA, 3 headlining sets at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, and a performance at The Forum in Los Angeles. Tickets to all dates are available here.

PRE-ORDER FLIGHT b741

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “LE RISQUE” HERE

KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD TOUR DATES
Thu. Aug. 15- Washington, DC @ The Anthem % [SOLD OUT]
Fri. Aug. 16- Forest Hills, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium * %
Sat. Aug. 17 – Forest Hills, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium * % [SOLD OUT]
Mon. Aug. 19 – Boston, MA @ The Stage at Suffolk Downs %
Tue. Aug. 20 – Portland, ME @ Thompson’s Point % [SOLD OUT]
Wed. Aug. 21 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage &
Fri. Aug. 23 – Detroit, MI @ Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre ^ &
Sat. Aug. 24 – Cleveland, OH @ Jacobs Pavilion & [SOLD OUT]
Sun. Aug. 25 – Newport, KY @ MegaCorp Pavilion Outdoor &
Tue. Aug. 27 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Dell Music Center & [SOLD OUT]
Wed. Aug. 28 – Richmond, VA @ Brown’s Island &
Fri. Aug. 30 – Asheville, NC @ ExploreAsheville.com Arena & [SOLD OUT]
Sat. Aug. 31 – Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheater &
Sun. Sept. 1 – Chicago, IL @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island * & [SOLD OUT]
Tue. Sept. 3 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory &
Wed. Sept. 4 – Milwaukee, WI @ Miller High Life Theatre &
Thu. Sept. 5 – St. Louis, MO @ The Factory & [SOLD OUT]
Fri. Sept. 6 – Omaha, NE @ The Astro Amphitheater &
Sun. Sept. 8 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre & [SOLD OUT]
Mon. Sept. 9 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre [EARLY SHOW] &
Mon. Sept. 9 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre [LATE SHOW] &
Wed. Sept. 11 – Troutdale, OR @ Edgefield Amphitheater & [SOLD OUT]
Thu. Sept. 12 – Vancouver, BC @ Pacific Coliseum &
Sat. Sept. 14 – Quincy, WA @ The Gorge Amphitheatre * %
Fri. Nov. 1 – Inglewood, CA @ The Forum @
Sat. Nov. 2 – San Diego, CA @ The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park ^ @
Sun. Nov. 3 – Paso Robles, CA @ Vina Robles Amphitheatre @ [SOLD OUT]
Mon. Nov. 4 – Stanford, CA @ Frost Amphitheater at Stanford @
Fri. Nov. 8 – Las Vegas, NV @ Bakkt Theater at Planet Hollywood @
Sat. Nov. 9 – Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Financial Theatre #
Sun. Nov. 10 – Albuquerque, NM @ Revel Entertainment #
Tue. Nov. 12 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion #
Wed. Nov. 13 – Fayetteville, AR @ JJ’s Live # [SOLD OUT]
Fri. Nov. 15 – Austin, TX @ Germania Insurance Amphitheater *#
Sat. Nov. 16 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall #
Sun. Nov. 17 – New Orleans, LA @ Mardi Gras World #
Tue. Nov. 19 – Atlanta, GA @ Fox Theatre Atlanta # [SOLD OUT]
Wed. Nov. 20 – St. Augustine, FL @ St. Augustine Amphitheatre #
Thu. Nov. 21 – Miami, FL @ Factory Town #
Sun. May 18 – Tue. May 20, 2025 – Lisbon, PT @ Coliseu do Recreios
Fri. May 23 – Sun. May 25, 2025 – Barcelona, ES @ Poble Espanyol
Thu. May 29 – Sat. May 31, 2025 – Vilnius, LT @ Lukiškės Prison 2.0
Wed. June 4 – Fri. June 6, 2025 – Athens, GR @ Lycabettus Theatre City of Athens
Sun. June 8 – Tue. June 10, 2025 – Plovdiv, BG @ Ancient Theatre

* 3-HOUR MARATHON SET
^ ACOUSTIC SET
% w/ GEESE, DJ Crenshaw
& w/ GEESE
@ w/ KING STINGRAY, DJ Crenshaw
# w/ KING STINGRAY

Keep your mind open.

[Fly over to the subscription box while you’re here.]

[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Slowdive announces fall U.S. tour.

Slowdive announce a fall North American tour in support of everything is alive, their “hypnotically gorgeous” (Vulture) album released last year via Dead Oceans. Following an appearance at Austin’s Levitation Festival, they’ll return to New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, plus visit cities throughout the Southeast where the band hasn’t played in many years. On their last US runs, Slowdive routinely sold out shows, filling rooms with longtime listeners and younger fans alike. As the Chicago Tribune praised, “experimental and shimmery, [everything is alive] packs a lush and enigmatic punch. Don’t take their latest releases and live shows for granted.” Tickets for all shows will be on sale this Friday at 10am local time and a full list of dates can be found below.

Slowdive Tour Dates
(New Dates in Bold)
Sat. Nov. 2 – Mexico City, MX @ Hipnosis Festival
Sun. Nov. 3 – Austin, TX @ The Far Out Lounge (Levitation Festival)
Wed. Nov. 6 – Queretaro, MX @ Cerveceria Hercules
Fri. Nov. 8 – Guadalajara, MX @ C4 Concert House
Sun. Nov. 10 – St. Augustine, FL @ St Augustine Amphitheatre
Mon. Nov. 11 – Charleston, SC @ The Refinery
Tue. Nov. 12 – Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
Thu. Nov. 14 – Richmond, VA @ The National
Fri. Nov. 15 – Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall
Sun. Nov. 17 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem
Mon. Nov. 18 -Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
Thu. Nov 21 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
Fri. Nov. 22 – Columbus, OH @ KEMBA Live! Indoor Stage
Sat. Nov. 23 – Detroit, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre

Purchase everything is alive
Watch “alife” video
Watch “kisses” Video
Watch “skin in the game” Visualizer
Watch “the slab” Video

Keep your mind open.

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

[Thanks to Jaycee at Pitch Perfect PR.]

WSND DJ set list: Throwback Thursday – August 01, 2024

Thanks to all who listened to the latest edition of Throwback Thursday on WSND. Here’s the set list!

The Staples Jr. Singers – Get on Board (1975)
Bee Gees – Night Fever (1977)
Freddie King – Things I Used to Do (live) (1975) (request)
David Bowie – Life on Mars? (1973)
Seals & Crofts – Summer Breeze (1972)
M – Pop Muzik (1979)
Black Sabbath – Planet Caravan (1970)
Tavares – Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel (1976)
Blue Cheer – I’m the Light (1971)
Foreigner – Double Vision (1978)
Madness – Night Boat to Cairo (1979)
Stray Dog – Chevrolet (1973)
Duran Duran – Hungry Like the Wolf (1982)
Billy Idol – Eyes Without a Face (1983)
Lonnie Mack – Double Whammy (1985) (request)
The Jesus and Mary Chain – Taste of Cindy (1985)
Thomas Dolby – Hyperactive! (1984) (request)
Bow Wow Wow – Do You Wanna Hold Me (1983)
Judas Priest – Electric Eye (1982) (request)
Queen – Radio Ga Ga (1984)
Modern English – I Melt with You (1982) (request)
The Smiths – This Charming Man (1983)
MC 900 Foot Jesus – Real Black Angel (1989)
Earth, Wind and Fire – Let’s Groove (1981)
Pixies – Here Comes Your Man (1989) (request)
Boys Club – I Remember Holding You (1988)
Nine Inch Nails – I’m Looking Forward to Joining You, Finally (1999)
Blur – Girls and Boys (1994)
Rory Gallagher – Bullfrog Blues (live) (1990) (request)
Living Colour – Pride (1990)
Live – I Alone (1994) (request)
Shonen Knife – Quavers (1994)
Nirvana – Sliver (1991)
Beck – Loser (1994)
Crystal Waters – 100% Pure Love (1994) (request)
Madonna with Massive Attack – I Want You (1995)
Oingo Boingo – Long Breakdown (1990)
Junior Brown – Highway Patrol (1993)
Radiohead – Karma Police (1997)
Soledad Brothers – Loup Garou (2006)
Magic Slim and The Teardrops – Gimme Back My Wig (2008) (request)
Nicole Willis and The Soul Investigators – If This Ain’t Love (Don’t Know What Is) (2008)
Goldfrapp – Strict Machine (2003) (request)
Ladytron – Flicking Your Switch (2002)
Ram Dass and Kriece – Desire (2008)
Franz Ferdinand – Take Me Out (2004)
Bad Religion – Who We Are (2003)
Kaiser Chiefs – Ruby (2007)
The Donnas – All Messed Up (2002)
The White Stripes – Seven Nation Army (2003)
Black-Eyed Snakes – Chicken Bone George (2001)
The Bravery – An Honest Mistake (2004)
Rasoul – Git Down Wit Yo Bad Self (2001)
Kelis – Milkshake (2003)
The Dirtbombs – Correspondence (2005)
Leslie West with Slash – Mudflap Mama (2011) (request)
Ron Gallo – Put the Kids to Bed (2017)
Black Midi – bmbmbm (2019)
Pet Shop Boys with Example – Thursday (2013) (request)
Tycho – A Walk (2014)
Sisters of Your Sunshine Vapor – Major Medicine (2015)
Pelada – Ajetreo (2019)
Shopping – The Hype (2018)
Thee Oh Sees – Enemy Destruct (live) (2012)
Foals – Inhaler (2013)
Failure – Distorted Fields (2018)
Diagonal – Jump Back (2018)
Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol – Born to Lose (2017)
Warm Drag – Cave Crawl (2018)

I’m back on air August 08, 2024! Don’t miss it!

Keep your mind open.

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Desert Daze releases 2024 lineup.

As usual, Desert Daze has a killer lineup this year.

Jack White, Fleet Foxes, and The Mars Volta are sure to have packed crowds, but don’t miss Sleep, Thundercat, The Kills, All Them Witches, Temples, Frankie and The Witch Fingers, or Psymon Spine.

There are plenty of great bands on this list, and plenty of cool things to do when you’re not rocking out in the desert. Yoga classes! Messages from David Lynch! Art installations!

Passes are on sale now, and the first pricing tier is already sold out. Don’t wait.

Keep your mind open.

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Live: Jon Spencer and The Sueves – Stockroom East – South Bend, IN – July 11, 2024

I was stunned to discover that blues-punk garage rock and roller Jon Spencer was playing a gig a mere forty-minute drive from my house at South Bend, Indiana’s Stockroom East. It’s a small venue made for intimate shows, and I’d hadn’t been there before July 11, 2024.

My first thought upon entering was, “Spencer’s going to flatten this place.” I hadn’t seen Mr. Spencer perform in many years, last catching him with his fellow members of The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion in Bloomington, Indiana on their Plastic Fang tour in 2002. They blew the walls off the place then, and I wondered if most of the audience in attendance knew what they were about to hear and feel.

First up were Chicago post-punks The Sueves, who put on a fun set of power trio crushers. A good number of their friends and family members made the drive from Chicago to see them, and the energy among them was great.

A pleasant surprise with Spencer’s set is that his current rhythm section consists of The Bobby Lees‘ Kendall Wind on drums and Macky Bowman on bass. In case you missed it, The Bobby Lees’ Bellevue album was among my top ten albums of 2022.

Sure enough, the trio of Spencer, Bowman, and Wind came out and proceeded to sonically punch everyone in the face from the first note.

Spencer and crew played a wild set, barely taking time for anyone (let alone them) to catch a breath. The set spanned tracks from the JSBX, Pussy Galore, The Hitmakers, and more. They started with “Skunk” from Now I Got Worry and it was off to the races.

“Bellbottoms” was a big hit with the crowd, and so was every damn song they played, really. The crowd was at first stunned by the magnitude of sound they put out and soon absorbing it as fast as Spencer and his bandmates could dish it.

There was no encore. They didn’t need one. They left us all sweaty and wanting more.

Many thanks to Mr. Spencer for signing my copy of Meat and Bone after the show!

Keep your mind open.

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WSND DJ set list: Nocturne July 28, 2024

Thanks to all who listened to my latest Nocturne show on WSND. It was a fun show with some heavy stuff. Here’s the set list:

Frayle – All the Things I Was
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – A New World
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Altered Beast I
John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers – A Hard Road (request)
Halloween radio spot
The Death Wheelers – Triple D (Dead, Drunk and Depraved)
Psycholona – Resin
Comacozer – Nystagmus
Amyl and The Sniffers – Some Mutts (Can’t Be Muzzled)
Duran Duran – The Reflex
Shonen Knife – Magic Joe
Bebel Gilberto – Tanto Tempo (Peter Kruder remix)
LCD Soundsystem – Jump into the Fire (live)
Bonde Do Role – Solta O Frango (Ladytron remix)
Radio ad for Spirit’s Clear album
Spirit – Dark Eyed Woman
The Black Angels – No Satisfaction
The Circle – When the Levee Breaks (live) (request)
Jack Palance – Si Può Fare…Amigo
Hall and Oates – Rich Girl (request)
Frankie and The Witch Fingers – Mother’s Mirror
Peter Gabriel – I Go Swimming (live) (request)
The Mummy radio ad
Holy Wave – Wet & Wild
New York Dolls – Trash
Elephant Stone – Cast the First Stone

I’m back on air August 01, 2024 for Throwback Thursday! Don’t miss it!

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe!]

WSND DJ set list: Deep Dive of Pink Floyd

Thanks to all who tuned into for three hours of prog-pysch in my Deep Dive of Pink Floyd on WSND. Here’s the set list!

Pink Floyd – Another Brick in the Wall (Pt. 2)
The Searchers – Sweets for My Sweet
Pink Ander – I Got a Woman ‘way Across Town
Floyd Council – Runaway Man Blues
Pink Floyd – Arnold Layne
UFO Club – Chapel in My Mind
David Bowie – See Emily Play
Pink Floyd – Flaming
Pink Floyd – Astronomy Domine
The Well – Lucifer Sam
Jokers Wild – Don’t Ask Me What I Say
Pink Floyd – It Would Be So Nice
Pink Floyd – Careful with That Axe, Eugene (live)
Pink Floyd – Jugband Blues
Pink Floyd – Let There Be More Light
Pink Floyd – See-Saw
Pink Floyd – Point Me at the Sky (live)
Pink Floyd – The Narrow Way Part III
Pink Floyd – The Committee No. 1
Pink Floyd – Cymbaline
Pink Floyd – Heart Beat, Pig Meat
Pink Floyd – Fat Old Sun
Pink Floyd – Fearless (request)
Pink Floyd – Free Four
The Alan Parsons Project – Eye in the Sky
Pink Floyd – Brain Damage
Pink Floyd – Any Colour You Like
The Flaming Lips and Stardeath and White Dwarfs – Speak to Me / Breathe
Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here
Primus – Have a Cigar (request)
Pink Floyd – Pigs on the Wing (Part 1)
Pink Floyd – Pigs on the Wing (Part 2)
Bryan Adams – Young Lust (live)
Pink Floyd – Learning to Fly

Come back soon for another Deep Dive!

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – Meat and Bone (2012)

Meat and Bone was the first album in eight years by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion when it was released in 2017. The trio (Jon Spencer – guitar and lead vocals, Judah Bauer – guitar, Russell Simins – drums) had worked on various side projects here and there and thankfully returned for another wild ride.

Opener “Black Mold” drops you right back into that solid grove the JSBX can only seem to pull off – chaotic yet tight at the same time. You can tell that they felt like they wanted to make up for “lost” time and unleash plenty of power in just three minutes or so.

“Are you ready for your new career?” Spencer asks at the beginning of “Bag of Bones,” prompting us to wonder if we need to tip over our desks and cubicles and strut around like the rock stars we are instead of the tired, locked-in-the-past worker bees we’ve become. “Boot Cut” has a great, gritty grind all the way through it.

“Get Your Pants Off” is a wild, wicked track about wanton women doing naughty things. The bass tone on “Ice Cream Killer” is as cool as its namesake. “Stranger Baby” has Spencer and his mates screaming the chorus and growling the verses. “Bottle Baby” has some of Simins’ wildest drumming. He seems to switch tempos every thirty seconds and yet he’s in the groove all the time.

“Danger” is a vicious rocker, and “Black Thoughts” has so much guitar fire in it that I’m not sure if Spencer or Bauer is putting out the most volume. “Unclear” is a fast, fuzzy cut, and “Bear Trap” snaps hard and has a heavy, swaggering menace to it. Spencer’s vocals are often distorted almost to the point of becoming just weird sounds, which is often the point.

I love that the album ends with an instrumental, “Zimgar,” showcasing the band’s wild and sometimes weird sounds. The JSBX returned from an eight-year hiatus and showed they hadn’t lost a thing. It’s almost like they went into cryogenic hibernation, shook off the frost, and walked into the studio and proceeded to melt everything around them.

As they always did.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: The Limiñanas – Electrified (2022)

I first learned of the French psych-rock giants The Limiñanas when they teamed up with Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre to form L’Épée and put out an outstanding record, Diabolique, in 2019. I had no idea that the band had been around since at least 2010. I’d been looking for some of their music for a while in physical form, and ended up finding their two-CD collection, Electrified, in a record store in Edinburg, Scotland.

Starting with “Migas 2000,” Lionel Limiñana‘s fuzzy guitar riffs grab your attention right away and have you dancing like you’re an extra on Shindig. Marie Limińana‘s drums on “I’m Dead” pound out a hip-shaking beat you can’t ignore and (former Les Bellas bandmate) Nadége Figueroa‘s playful vocals about death are just delightful. “Je Ne Suis Pas Très Drogue” (“I Am Not Very into Drugs / Very High”) is so trippy that you think they’re probably lying. Lionel’s guitar sounds like a buzzsaw on “Down Underground,” and Mu‘s guest vocals on “Je Suis une Go-Go Girl” hypnotize you straight away.

Lionel sings lead on “La Fille de la Ligne 15” (“The Woman on Line 15”), in which he laments about seeing her each day and wondering who she is and if he has enough bravery to finally speak with her. The looping synths on “Je M’en Vais” (“I Am Leaving”) combine with a bouzouki to transport your brain out of your head.

“Wind is blowing, black cloud approaching. I remember nothing when I think of you,” Figueroa sings on the sultry and slightly snarky “Salvation.” The band poke fun at themselves and one of their biggest genre influences on “Votre Coté Yéyé M’emmerde” (“Your Yéyé Annoys Me”). Marie’s vocals on “Cold Was the Ground” are breathy, sexy, and, of course, sad as she sings about missing her lover as one of them is on the other side of the veil. Lionel’s bass groove on “My Black Sabbath” is super-slick. I love that they have a song (and instrumental, no less) called “Carnival of Souls,” and that it’s full of weird organ riffs by Pascal Comelade – which you know makes perfect sense if you’re a fan of the film of the same name. The slow, quiet groove of “El Beach” will have you playing it every time you come back from a late night swim. “Prisunic” takes us down to the “Dime Store” and encourages us to hang out with all the weirdos there. “Dahlia Rouge” starts off with a low motorcycle rumble and then bounces into a playful yé-yé tune.

The last three tracks on disc one (Yes, all of the above-mentioned songs are just on one CD) are all team-ups. The first, “Garden of Love,” features none other than Joy Division and New Order bassist Peter Hook, whose trademark crisp bass lines are all over the track. “Istanbul Is Sleepy” has The Brian Jonestown Massacre‘s Anton Newcombe on lead vocals and guitar for a powerful psych-track with a great beat from Marie. Mr. Hook returns on the last track of Disc One – “The Gift.” It’s a lovely track with slight goth and shoegaze touches.

The team-ups continue through most of Disc Two, starting with French actress, model, and signer Emmanuelle Seigner (who would later go on to form L’Épée with them and Newcombe) on the groovy and slightly gritty “Shadow People.” “Dimanche” (“Sunday”) with French actor and singer Bertrand Belin is hypnotizing and somewhat sinister. Speaking of French singers and musicians, French 1980s synthpop star Étienne Daho joins them on “Blood Circle,” singing in English about a tale of what appears to be murder or a tragic accident. Spanish siren / vixen Nuria contributes sexy vocals to “Calentita” (“Warm”), which, as far as I can tell, is about getting high and seeing funky phantoms.

French DJ Laurent Garnier adds house beats to Mr. and Mrs. Limiñana’s spooky pych jams to great effect on “Saul.” “USA Motorbike” (with film composer David Menke) is a great psych-instrumental. I’d take a whole record of stuff like that. Areski Belkacem has been making music and comedy since at least the late 1960s, and here he is co-creating trippy psych-jams on “La Musique.”

“Les Hommes et les Ombres” (“The Men and the Shadows”) is a cool Ennio Morricone-influenced instrumental with neat guitar work, and the following instrumental, “Domino,” (with Golden Bug) throbs with synth-bass and industrial hisses for a wild contrast between the two tracks. A third instrumental track, “Pulsing,” reunites The Limiñanas with David Menke for a growling, snarling, guitar-driven instrumental that has fuzz chords mingling with weird synths and sci-fi sounds.

The last seven tracks are all from the first group Mr. and Mrs. Limiñana were in – Les Bellas – a psych-rock group they had along with guitarist Giom Picard and vocalist / trumpeter Figuerola that was active from about 2003 to 2007. The tracks are a great addition here. “Hey I’m Going Down” sounds like it could’ve been a lost Dum Dum Girls track with it’s fierce beats and 60s garage rock guitars. “She’s on My Track” is a perfect slice of 60s girl group vocals and wall of sound fuzz. “A Dream That Sleeps” mixes rock and surf guitar with heavy organ riffs and Figuerola’s trumpet taking on a great solo.

The title track of this collection comes from a Les Bellas song, and it has a snappy post-punk edge to it that punches hard. Marie Limiñana’s beats on “You Got My Soul” roll back and forth between subtle and smashing. “Drown” mixes sexy vocals with psych-guitar riffs, Spanish trumpet blares, and almost Styx-like synths. The collection ends with the title track from Les Bellas’ lone album, “Belladellic,” a playful, fuzzy yé-yé track that reminds me of a cute kitten playing with you one moment and shredding your hand the next,

It’s a fun collection of rock that will instantly make you feel cooler and make people ask, “Where did you find this?” when you play it.

Keep your mind open.

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Dummy takes us into “Nullspace” with the first single from their upcoming album due September 06, 2024.

Dummy — the Los Angeles band comprised of Alex Ewell, Emma Maatman, Nathan O’Dell, and Joe Trainor — announces its new album, Free Energy, out September 6th on Trouble In Mind Records, and shares the lead single/video, “Nullspace.” Pop has always been a big part of Dummy’s sound, but it manifests differently on Free Energy. Sometimes it’s quite literal (and funny), such as the bubbly synth sequence made with a Korg EM1 popping all over lead single “Nullspace,” which features a melody written by O’Dell and is the song the band calls the record’s “sonic mission statement and really influenced by Mark Van Hoen, especially the cut-up dreamy dance-pop he was making on the Locust record Morning Light.”

Watch the Video for “Nullspace”

Dummy’s debut full-length Mandatory Enjoyment arrived in late 2021 and quickly became one of the year’s sleeper hits. Pitchfork, Bandcamp Daily, Stereogum, Aquarium Drunkard, and other publications praised Dummy’s mix of ambient and twinkly guitar pop, their deep musical references, and the intentionality with which they patchworked it all together. Fans bought copies of Mandatory so quickly that Trouble in Mind couldn’t keep it in stock. Sub Pop Records also invited the band to contribute to their legendary Singles Club series. Bands loved Dummy, too, and the group were asked to open for Horsegirl, Botch, Black Country, New Road, Luna, Spirit of the Beehive, Dehd, Snooper, Sweeping Promises, Snail Mail, and more.

Where Mandatory Enjoyment was cerebral and lo-fi, the product of a lot of time inside, Free Energy is all movement, presence, and physicality. A creatively restless band, Dummy felt like they had done the best version of motorik pop that they could do, and wanted to get harder, dancier, a little more psychedelic. Ewell and Trainor began experimenting with home recording, using DAW as kind of an instrument for composition rather than simply a tool. O’Dell dug deeper into instrumental/sample composition, in addition to contributing more guitar leads. Maatman also steps into the spotlight in a big way, her vocals noticeably foregrounded and confident, adding to the live performance feel that forms the foundation of Free Energy. The result is a record that celebrates music’s ability to move the body, whether that be through a teeth-rattling wall of MBV-esque noise, a sticky pop chorus, or a joyous drum machine—or, if you’re Dummy, maybe all of them in the same song.

Additionally, Free Energy features guest appearances by friends Dummy has played with on tour, including Oakland-based saxophonist and electroacoustic artist Cole Pulice and Jen Powers of Powers / Rolin Duo, along with a series of field recordings the band made while on tour: the rushing of water, the rumbling of the van, indistinct voices, chirping birds; the sounds of mundanity rising to cacophony before petering out, treated no differently than the ecstatic rhythms, explosive hooks, and blissful ambient stretches that came before. If there is any key to understanding what makes Dummy such a compelling band, perhaps it is this: it’s all music to them.

Pre-order Free Energy

Free Energy Tracklist:
1. Intro-UB
2. Soonish
3. Unshaped Road
4. Opaline Bubbletear
5. Blue Dada
6. Nullspace
7. Minus World
8. Dip In The Lake
9. Sudden Flutes
10. Psychic Battery
11. Nine Clean Nails
12. Godspin

Dummy Tour Dates:
Sat. Sept. 7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room
Wed. Sept. 11 – San Francisco, CA @ Kilowatt
Fri. Sept. 13 – Portland, OR @ Lose Yr Mind Fest
Sat. Sept. 14 – Vancouver, BC @ The Pearl
Sun. Sept. 15 – Seattle, WA @ Madame Lou’s
Wed. Sept. 18 – Reno, NV @ Holland Project
Fri. Sept. 20 – Sacramento, CA @ Cafe Colonial
Sat. Sept. 21 – Oxnard, CA @ Mrs. Olson’s
Thu. Oct. 31 – Breda, NL @ Mezz
Fri. Nov. 1 – Utrecht, NL @ ACU
Sat. Nov. 2 – Groningen, NL @ Vera
Sun. Nov. 3 – Nijmegen, NL @ Merleyn
Tue. Nov. 5 – Copenhagen, DK @ Loppen
Wed. Nov. 6 – Stockholm, SE @ Hus 7
Thu. Nov. 7 – Oslo, NO @ Blå
Fri. Nov. 8 – Malmo, SE @ Plan B
Sat. Nov. 9 – Berlin, DE @ Synästhesie Festival
Sun. Nov. 10 – Warsaw, PL @ Chmury
Mon. Nov. 11 – Vienna, AT @ Arena
Tue. Nov. 12 – Salzburg, AT @ Rockhouse
Wed. Nov. 13 – Zurich, CH @ Bogen F
Thu. Nov. 14 – Annecy, FR @ La Brise Glace Festival
Fri. Nov. 15 – Dijon, FR @ Le Consortium
Sat. Nov. 16 – Rennes, FR @ Kool Thing Festival
Sun. Nov. 17 – Clermont Ferrand, FR @ La Coopérative de Mai
Tue. Nov. 19 – Marseille, FR @ L’Intermédiare
Wed. Nov. 20 – Lyon, FR @ Sonic
Thu. Nov. 21 – Bordeaux, FR @ Iboat
Fri. Nov. 22 – Angers, FR @ Joker’s Pub
Sun. Nov. 24 – Paris, FR @ La Boule Noire
Tue. Nov. 26 – London, UK @ Moth Club
Wed. Nov. 27 – Bristol, UK @ The Lanes
Thu. Nov. 28 – Coventry, UK @ Just Dropped In
Fri. Nov. 29 – Newcastle, UK @ The Lubber Fiend
Sun. Dec. 1 – Glasgow, UK @ Broadcast
Mon. Dec. 2 – Edinburgh, UK @ Sneaky Pete’s
Tue. Dec. 3 – Leeds, UK @ Headrow House
Wed. Dec. 4 – Manchester, UK @ Yes
Thu. Dec. 5 – Brighton, UK @ Dust

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]