Israeli dream pop duo The Aprons recently released their debut single and video "Sound Stain". The pair, Hava (drums, vocals) and Talia (Bass, vocals) are, according to their bio, "urban nymphs that produce magical miniatures and haunting tunes." I don't know about the urban nymph part or the magical miniatures part but, they did produce a haunting tune which I really like. The "Sound Stain" video took a crew of 40 animators and a year realize. Check it out below and after you've done that, grab the single via the handy widget.
The title track showcases the mystery and windy melodies of their debut album "Sound Stains".
About the music video (From director Liran Goldberg): The concept came from the thought of taking the femininity and gentleness of the female pair and give it a visual interpretation to a world that everything feels organic yet fragile. From this concept I thought to film everything in the forest and wrap it with crystal made animals, where the hunters emphasize the conflict. The making of the video took a year to realize, with a crew of 40 animators that volunteered for the project.
Chicago based band Maps & Atlases have released the second video from their Beware & Be Grateful album. The clip, "Fever", was directed by Erin Elders and stars Barret Walz, Dennis Bisto and Megan Ligeti. Check out the clip below.
Maps & Atlases began a Euorpean tour last week and will begin the US leg in April. So far, no NY dates have been announced.
The clip, which further develops the story of an anonymous man introduced in their album trailer video, was directed by guitarist Erin Elders and produced by drummer Chris Hainey.
Since their formation in 2004, Maps & Atlases have captured the indie imagination with their extraordinarily artful amalgamation of polyrhythmic beats, elaborate melodies, and post-rock ingenuity.
Kacey Underwood and Alice Costelloe, better known as London based duo Big Deal are set to release their new album, June Gloom on June 4. To whet your appetite, check out the track “Terdactol” below.
Fleshing out their delicate, nocturnal tones Kacey and Alice take their sound to deeper, darker and more intoxicating height, courtesy of producer Rory Attwell (Veronica Falls, PAWS, Male Bonding) and a full band featuring bass and drums. As a result, the 11 other tracks here are an exploration of the newfound confidence of ‘teradactol’, with a refinement and bold directness. If Big Deal’s earlier tracks felt emotionally lacerating, this new body of work is noisy, boisterous, with a more than assured melodic hook. This evolution is made defiantly clear in the opener ‘golden light‘, which deliberately unhinges the listener by opening with sweetly strummed chords and interlocking vocals before building to a rousing climax. Similarly, ‘dream machines’ crests on a jagged undertow of pounding drums, and the sinister ‘pillow’ gradually opens up to become something vast, scorched and desolate. The pair infuse the volume with their own inimitable, off-kilter take on angst-ridden emotional terrain; on the aptly titled ‘pristine’, they sing,“darkness wash over me, I let it in, it let me be”, while on the otherwise upbeat ‘call and i’ll come’ Costelloe plaintively asks, “What if no one else compares/ what if no one else cares?”It all reaches a beautiful crescendo with the finale ‘close your eyes’, which explodes from an almost unbearably intimate confessional (“I won’t ask why/ if it was love/ we let it die”) into a coruscating maelstrom that is as indelibly affecting as it is thrilling.
Men Of North Country have been remixed! Their track "People of Tomorrow" has received the Markey Funk treatment. Check out "People of Tomorrow (The Visitor Remix by Markey Funk)" below. I'm not normally a fan of remixes but I like this one...a lot. The original track can be found on their album The North.
Markey's take on POT is a spaced-out psychedelic remix, inspired by The Tomorrow People, a 1970's cult British children's sci-fi TV-series.
And, for those that haven't seen it or want to see it again, here's the original.
Nashville based band Great Peacock, Andrew Nelson and Blount Floyd, are set to release their self-titled debut on March 5 via This Is American Music. The moment I heard "Take Me To The Mountain", I was captivated. Sometimes, a song crawls into your ear, embeds itself in your head and demands that you put it on repeat. This is one of those songs.
"Take Me To The Mountain" is without a doubt, my Song of the Day. Check it out for yourself.
Legendary rockers Whitesnake will be releasing a Live CD/DVD package, Made In Japan, on April 23 here in North America (April 19 in Europe and April 22 in the UK) via Frontiers Records. The performance footage was taken from the co-headlining set vocalist David Coverdale and his Whitesnake, Doug Aldrich (guitars), Reb Beach (guitars), Michael Devin (bass), Brian Tichy (drums) and special guest Brian Ruedy (keyboards) performed at the Loud Park festival in October 2011. The package will be available as a deluxe 2CD/DVD edition, Blu-ray and a stand alone DVD.
We all know I have a soft spot for The Coverdale so, I'm looking forward to this release.
The performance footage is shot in stunning HD in 5.1 and stereo and is taken from Whitesnake’s co-headlining set at the “Loud Park” festival on October 11th, 2011 held at Saitama Super Arena in Japan during their “Forevermore World Tour.” The performance was initially recorded only for Japanese TV and future Loud Park promotions.
MADE IN JAPAN contains songs from Whitesnake’s most recent studio album, FOREVERMORE, as well as classic hits such as “Is This Love,” “Still Of The Night” and “Here I Go Again.” The bonus CD also includes never-before-heard outtakes and acoustic versions of material from the award winning FOREVERMORE album that were recorded during soundchecks on the 2011 Japanese tour. Additional DVD content includes various band photo slideshows and fan-shot videos. Please see below for the full content listing.
Track List CD1:
Best Years
Give Me All Your Love Tonight
Love Ain’t No Stranger
Is This Love
Steal Your Heart Away
Forevermore
Six String Showdown
Love Will Set You Free
Drum Solo
Fool For Your Loving
Here I Go Again
Still Of The Night
Bonus CD 2 – Soundcheck:
Love Will Set You Free
Steal Your Heart Away
Fare Thee Well (Acoustic Version)
One Of These Days (Acoustic Version)
Lay Down Your Love
Evil Ways
Good To Be Bad (Acoustic Version)
Tell Me How (Acoustic Version)
Dvd / Blu-Ray:
Best Years
Give Me All Your Love Tonight
Love Ain’t No Stranger
Is This Love
Steal Your Heart Away
Forevermore
Six String Showdown
Love Will Set You Free
Drum Solo
Fool For Your Loving
Here I Go Again
Still Of The Night
Fan Videos For Forevermore and Steal Your Heart Away
Canadian band Enter The Haggis are set to release their latest album, The Modest Revolution on March 30. Towards the end of last year, the band launched an extremely successful Kickstarter project. Earlier this week backers received a digital pre-release copy of the record while the rest of the world were able to begin pre-ordering the record. If you haven't checkedthis band out, you should. I was introduced to their music about four years ago when I saw them put on a killer live show.
Leafing through a local paper in a small town this past winter, we were struck by the sheer number of interesting story-lines we found. After some discussion, we hit on an unusual idea: why not capture a snapshot of a single day musically? We bounced the idea around and eventually decided we were going to pick a day at random, buy a newspaper and write an entire album inspired by the stories and headlines we found within.
UPDATE!!! New Date -- This show will take place on Monday, March 18 instead of the previously announced, March 13. See full details below.
The The The Thunder My Roaring Twenties, Great Caesar Monday, March 18 Glasslands 289 Kent Ave Brooklyn 8:30pm Tickets $10 21+
The The The Thunder are hitting the road! And, the deity of show booking has them making a stop in our parts. They'll take the stage over in Brooklyn at Glasslands on Wednesday, March 13Monday, March 18at 8:30PM and it'll cost you $10. See below for full show details. These folks came onto my radar last year when I was introduced to their album All At Once. To whet your appetite, scroll down and give a listen to my favorite TTTT track, "Leave Us".
The The The Thunder My Roaring Twenties, Ancient Sky Wednesday, March 13 Monday, March 18
Today, the Newport Folk Festival, which takes place July 26 - 28, announced that Jim James will be returning to the festival this summer. As mentioned previously, the festival has been using the trickle method to announce this year's artists. Over the last several days they've announced Michael Kiwanuka, Jason Isbell, Nicki Bluhm & The Gamblers as well as the return of the Spirit Family Reunion who wowed the crowd last year. I recommend getting tickets nowbefore theysell-out! The line-up so far...
Brooklyn based band Sharkmuffin just released their debut single, "The Lake". When I read there were some Chrissie Hynde comparisons I was a little skeptical. But, I hear it! I also hear a little Patti Smith grit & attitude in there too. It's a lovely piece of dirty pop ... a little fuzz, a little jangle and a lot of good ol' fashioned, unabashed rock 'n' roll. I'm looking forward to hearing their EP which is scheduled for a March release. Check out "The Lake" HERE.
Giveaway Alert!!!
1)Sharkmuffin will be at The Delancey on Monday, February 25 at 9:30PM. We have a pair of tickets to give to one lucky reader...21+! For a chance to win, email contest@quirkynychick.com. Please put "Sharkmuffin Tickets" in the subject line.
2) We also have a copy of the 7" single "The Lake/Big" for one lucky reader. For a chance to win this goodie, email contest@quirkynychick.com. Please put "Sharkmuffin 7"" in the subject line.
A winner (US only) will be chosen for each prize, at random, on Thursday, February 21.
The combination of singer/guitarist Tarra Thiessen, alongside bassist Natalie Kirch with Drew Adler on drums, is deadly. Thiessen delivers gutsy vocals that will send shivers down your very spine. Jumping between gentle moans to rough, forceful screams, her vocals are sweetly complimented by Kirch's lighter, dreamier melodies which make you expect the unexpected. Their admiration for 90s alternative Grrrl group-esque hooks are paired perfectly with heavy 1970s inspired guitar riffs that create a raw sound not to be messed with.
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