Today, post punk band Charm School share their fire-y new track, “Simulacra” from their forthcoming debut EP Finite Jest out July 21 via sonaBLAST! Records.
“Simulacra” was tracked and mixed by Nick Roeder, and features drum programming by Matia Simovich “INHALT” who worked on MIA’s “Paper Planes” as well as on several Boy Harsher tracks. Both Simovich and famed Chicago engineer Steve Albini did alternate mixes of “Simulacra” which will come out later this year.
Andrew of Charm School says, “‘Simulacra’ is our attempt at skewering the politics of now over a good dance beat. By way of Jean Baudrillard the song addresses our society’s profound sense of disconnection resulting from our constant interaction with fabricated representations of reality. Aka the disquieting fact that these counterfeit depictions of life are increasingly valued over reality itself, and the even more troubling reality that social media companies are profiting handsomely from this exploitative situation.”
Charm School is Andrew Sellers’ (aka Andrew Rinehart) new music project with longtime collaborators Matt Filip and Drew English and drummer and multi-instrumentalist Jason Bemis Lawrence. The name change signals a move away from Sellers’ folk and pop-based songwriting (as evidenced by his recent duet with Bonnie “Prince” Billy) toward a much darker and more aggressive sound. Think 70s post-punk mixed with 90s post-rock and you’ll be close. Originally from Louisville, KY, Sellers has paid his dues in both the NYC and LA DIY music scenes, co-founding The Body Actualized Center in Bushwick and booking shows at Basic Flowers in Downtown LA. Charm School represents a return to his punk and hardcore roots, to the kind of music that shaped his musical consciousness as a teenager (bands like Slint, The Jesus Lizard, Nation of Ulysses, Fugazi, etc.).
Rich Aucoin has one of those hobbies that I might have if I won some massive Powerball jackpot. He collects and plays vintage synthesizers and puts the results onto albums like Synthetic – A Synth Odyssey: Season 2.
You know you’re in for something special as soon as the first notes of “Wav” start playing from a 1939 Hammond Novachord (considered the first analog synthesizer) and the stacking, beautiful beats begin to lift your heart. It sounds like Fatboy Slim could’ve recorded this yesterday, but he didn’t and he’s probably wishing he could raid Aucoin’s storage facility as a result. “Shift” definitely shifts the feel of the record, sounding like the music you’d hear as you race alongside a magnetic track bullet train on your personal hover-bike in the year 3023.
Aucoin’s label describes “Pure” as sounding like 1990s French house music, and I’m not sure I can describe it any better than that. It’s a delightfully fun track. “Space” does indeed send you out of orbit and toward a distant nebula full of stars and growing planets. “Tech Noir” gets a bit symphonic, and, by the way, uses the same EMS VCS3 Prototype (on the cover, fourth column, four down from the top) used on Dark Side of the Moon.
“Roger Luther” is named after (and played on) the Moog synthesizer (on the cover, third column, second one down from the top) that’s named after a Moog employee who eventually became the company’s general manager. It peppy and a bit dangerous, reminding me of some darker Devo tracks.
“Lyra” has kind of a hip-hop sound to its beats and synth bass (and vocal loop). “Prophet” is at first what Pimpbot-3000 plays on his Sony Walkman as he struts down the street, and then it blooms into a video game hero’s anthem. The closing track, “Liminal,” is a subtle one that helps you slowly float back down to Earth and leaves you feeling a bit giddy and warm afterwards…like good sex.
It’s a neat project and a neat record, and Aucoin makes all these vintage synths sound like they’re brand new.
Producer / musician Kedr Livanskiy (neé Yana Kedrina) returns with a dance-floor-ready new EP, K-Notes. It’s an expert fusion of drum and bass, trance, and alt-pop anchored by Kedrina’s signature crystalline vocals. K-Notes feels at once nostalgic and remarkably current: Livanskiy filters today’s UK revivalism through her own unique lens, shaped by her upbringing in Russia’s underground music scene and her personal love of early electronic and alternative music.
Kedrina’s longstanding fascination with the natural world is still apparent in her lyrics, sung in her native Russian. Throughout these tracks, lovers disappear into clouds, seek shelter from the rain, and look back fondly on summers past. As always, Kedrina has a remarkable knack for world-building: her rich compositions envelop the listener in a dream-world so visceral that it transcends the barriers of language. Concise but immersive, K-Notes is a fresh dose of ebullience from an artist at the top of her craft.
Its vivacious lead single “With Love K…” is a melodic drum-and-bass love song and is out today alongside its amorous / nostalgic video which Kedrina directed herself.
Bright and upbeat, K-Notes is more akin sonically to Kedrina’s 2019 album Your Need than her recent work. Where Your Need was a neon-tinged ode to early house, dub, and breakbeat, Liminal Soul saw her infuse her electronic compositions with organic textures and hone in on her vocal technique. More recently, she chased that inspiration further and teamed up with her partner Flaty to form the indie duo Kosaya Gora, experimenting with guitar-based folk and dream pop compositions on their debut record Kosogor. Her artistic focus has once again found the dance floor, and on K-Notes she channels the sounds of her spirited live show into a dynamic new collection.
K-Notes sees its release solely across digital platforms on Thursday, June 22 via 2MR. Pre-save it here.
Today, Nashville-based DIY outfit Snõõper present the rousing new single/video, “Fitness,” from their forthcoming debut album, Super Snõõper, out July 14th on Third Man Records. “Fitness” maintains the high octane speed of frantic lead single “Pod,” and its accompanying video — directed by vocalist Blair Tramel — showcases the puppetry used in their live performances. Almost all of the props and puppets in the video were made and reassembled by Tramel, and the video offers a glimpse of the playful mayhem that can be expected at one of their storied concerts. Of “Fitness,” Tramel states: “‘Fitness’ was written just for fun without much thought, which is exactly the way I think working out should be. This song is about competition, doing things for the validation of others, and how ridiculous that can be. Before our first show, I made a paper mache weight to use during this song. It was our very first prop and the only prop we used for a while. ‘Fitness’ is a special song to us because it is still one of our most fun songs to play live.” Watch Snõõper’s “Fitness” Video Snõõper is a band who, in a 33 ⅓ RPM world, make 45 RPM music they play at 78 RPM. They maintain super precise instrumentals and skillfully melodic vocals, even though they’re flooring it almost the entire time. Snõõper doesn’t play fast; they play at the speed of Snõõper. The project began in 2020 as a collaboration between local Nashville punk mainstay Connor Cummins (guitar) and Blair Tramel (vocals), an early education teacher with a sideline in wickedly funny animation and art. As their cassette tapes and homemade videos began to find scattered fans around the world, the duo brought the project to the live stage in late 2021 with the addition of Cam Sarrett (drums), Happy Haugen (bass), and Ian Teeple (guitar). Thus, Snõõper was born. Their debut album, Super Snõõper, was recorded at The Bomb shelter in Nashville. It follows EPs “Music For Spies” (2020), “Snõõper” (2021), and “Town Topic” (2022), as well as the live album LIVE AT EXIT/IN 11-23-22, released this past February. Given the brief glimpses into Snõõper’s music from their 7”s, EPs, and thrilling live performances, one might wonder if the group could hold the line for a full album. The answer is an enthusiastic yes. In the words of Henry Rollins, “Speaking selfishly, I want Snõõper to hurry up and make another album. Super Snõõper is a really cool record.” This summer, Snõõper will play a handful of shows in the US before embarking on an Australian tour. A full list of dates is below, with more to be announced soon. Watch “Pod” Video Listen to “Fitness” Pre-order Super Snõõper
Snõõper Tour Dates Fri. June 2 – Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Sat. June 3 – Savannah, GA @ Dog Days Fest ^ Sun. June 4 – Atlanta, GA @ Sabbath ^ Mon. June 5 – Nashville, TN @ Soft Junk ^ Fri. June 16 – Gold Coast, AU @ Vinnies Dive Bar # Sat. June 17 – Brisbane, AU @ The Bearded Lady # Thu. June 22 – Wollongong, AU @ La La La’s Fri. June 23 – Sydney, AU @ Oxford Art Factory #+ Sun. June 25 – Newcastle, AU @ Hamilton Station Hotel Thu. June 29 – Canberra, AU @ Sideway Bar Fri. June 30 – Melbourne, AU @ Last Chance Rock & Roll Bar Sat. July 1 – Melbourne, AU @ Nighthawks % Sun. July 2 – San Francisco, CA @ Mosswood Meltdown Wed. July 5 – Vancouver, BC @ Green Auto Fri. July 7 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge Sat. July 8 – Seattle, WA @ Clock Out Lounge Fri. Oct. 13 – Sun. Oct. 15 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival
Last month, London band Girl Ray announced their third LP, Prestige (out August 4th on Moshi Moshi). The three-piece comprising Poppy Hankin, Iris McConnell and Sophie Moss, made an immediate impact with the release of their 2017 debut Earl Grey on the influential indie Moshi Moshi (Anna Meredith, Florence & The Machine, Kate Nash), which channeled the baroque 70s soft pop of Todd Rundgren through the scrappy aesthetics of 80s UK indie and earned high praise from outlets like Pitchfork, The Guardian, Stereogum and FADER among many others. Their second LP, 2019’s Girl, saw the band change direction dramatically, taking on a kind of indie-fied R&B that The Guardian described as “the great sound of a band getting pop wrong,” and in 2021 the band returned in yet another new guise, releasing the one off, house-adjacent single “Give Me Your Love” that was produced with Hot Chip‘s Joe Goddard and Al Doyle.
Their latest album, which they made with the revered producer Ben H Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective, MIA, Belle & Sebastian), sees the band adjust the formula once more, incorporating a disco influence that in Girl Ray’s hands led FADER to describe their sound as the music “Dua Lipa would make if she was more used to playing pubs than arenas.” The early response to their new direction has been extremely enthusiastic in the press, with the lead single “Hold Tight” and pre-announce track “Everybody’s Saying That” earning praise from outlets like FADER, Billboard, Paste, Consequence, BrooklynVegan, Line of Best Fit, Clash, The Guardian, Under The Radar and Stereogum who described the lead single as “like if Haim were hopping on Vampire Weekend tracks when Rostam was still in the band.”
Today, the band are sharing a new preview of their new album, the groove-oriented “Up” that recalls Young Americans-era Bowie as filtered through the blended synths and strings aesthetic of early Giorgio Moroder.
“This song was written at the beginning of my current relationship, and it deals with all the emotions of a fledgling romance: adoration, self-doubt, and everything in between! Musically we wanted to pay homage to the sparseness of Queen’s ‘Cool Cat’, and the groove of Bowie’s ‘Fame.'”
In support of the new LP Girl Ray have announced a UK tour that will begin in November. Full details can be found below.
Prestige will be released August 4th on Moshi Moshi. It’s available for preorder/presave here.
Tour Dates 04/08 – London, Rough Trade East 09/08 – Nottingham, Rough Trade Nottingham 10/08 – Bristol, Rough Trade Bristol 17/08 – Brecon Beacons, Green Man Festival 12/11 – Amsterdam, Paradiso 13/11 – Hamburg, Aalhaus 14/11 – Copenhagen, Ideal Bar 16/11 – Berlin, Marie-Antoinette 17/11 – Brussels, Witloof Bar 20/11 – Paris, Boule Noire 21/11 – Brighton, Patterns 22/11 – Bristol, Fleece 24/11 – Manchester, The Soup Kitchen 25/11 – Glasgow, Room 2 26/11 – Dublin, The Workmans Club 28/11 – Leeds, Belgrave Music Hall 29/11 – Nottingham, Rescue Rooms 03/12 – London, Village Underground
Here’s a riddle for you: What’s an album that was made in 2023 by Swedes, but sounds like it was a horror film score made in 1977 by Italians? If you guessed Pericolo Di Morte (“Death Danger”) by Contaminazione (Contamination), you’re right!
Right out the gate with the title track, the trio of keyboardistSofia Rydahl, drummer Mikal Styrke, and bassist Staffan Tengnér change the tone of wherever you are to something creepy and otherworldly. It sounds like something you’d hear while walking down into Lucio Fulci’s basement. I mean, the track is named “Death Danger.” Rydahl’s keys invoke fear and terror, while Styrke and Tengnér invoke dread…yet it’s danceable dread.
Tengnér’s thick bass on “Vivi Vilocemente, Muori Lentamente” (“Live Fast, Die Slowly”) sounds like the relentless footsteps and breath of a horrible monster coming at you from Fulci’s basement as Rydahl’s synths open up strange portals between worlds that you hope you can close before horrible things emerge from them.
“Il Necroforum” is what you hear when you’re trying to figure out a murder’s motivation and scheme in a Dario Argento giallo movie. Styrke’s beats convey the sensation of sweat beading on your forehead and neck as you get closer and closer to learning the identity of the masked butcher who’s been plaguing the city’s fashion models. Rydahl’s synths are the killer’s entrance music as he, unbeknownst to you, ascends the stairs to your apartment.
Not to be outdone, Tengnér puts down a funky, spooky groove on “I’Ultima Setimana Di Vita” (“The Last Week of Life”) that blends so well with Rydahl’s spacey synths that the track would be perfect in a 1970s Euro-disco. Tengnér’s bass on “Tema Principale” (“Main Theme”) is extra-thick, which makes Rydahl’s synths sound more ethereal (bordering on synthwave sounds).
It’s a killer (pun intended) record. Someone needs to hire them to score a modern-day giallo.
