NEWS ROUNDUP: Apple, The Pixies & SXSW

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  • Apple Gets Rid of the Headphone Jack

    I am practically attached to my earbuds, yet I misplace them a million times a day. So it was with absolute dread that I learned that with the iPhone 7, Apple is trying to phase out normal headphone jacks (unless you want to buy an adapter). Instead, we’ll wear AirPods, which don’t attach to the phone, or to each other. It’s a change that seems to bring few, if any benefits, and a major drawback which is you’ll probably lose one or both or the pods and have to shell out $159 to replace them. Change is good, but sometimes this adage only applies to doing laundry.

  • Watch The New, Creepy Pixies Video

    What do you think of the new, Kim Deal-less Pixies? On the one hand, they seem more mature, and tamer, not always in a good way – you might find yourself switching it off to listen to Surfer Rosa instead. On the other hand, they’ve been around a long time and there’s probably few things more annoying than an old band getting flak for deviating from their old sound. Whatever your opinion is, the video for “Tenement Song” is worth a watch:

  • First Round of SXSW Artists Announced

    It’s only the first round, but it’s a pretty long list that includes Brooklyn bands such as Yoke Lore, Pastel Ghost, Lazyeyes and San Fermin. Check out the full list here.

  • Listen to “Ten Year Tenure” by halfsour

    The frantic, catchy song is about the difficulties of being an artist when your home is a big city, specifically the band’s, Boston. Their upcoming Charm School comes out 10/14 via Disposable America and Too Far Gone. Check out “Ten Year Tenure” below:

NEWS ROUNDUP: Aviv, CMJ & Cherry Glazerr

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  • Aviv To Close In October

    According to a Facebook post, the Greenpoint DIY venue will be closing when its lease expires at the end of October. The owners promised they would set up shop elsewhere at some point, but before it’s gone forever, check out some of their last upcoming shows: Parlor Walls (9/15), Pharmakon (9/17), Slingshot Dakota (10/10) and this weekend’s Summer’s End Music Festival, featuring Sonnymoon, Guerrilla Toss, Pill, Honduras, Surf Rock Is Dead, and more.

  • Watch Cherry Glazerr’s New Video

    “I’d Told You I’d Be With The Guys” is a track brimming with fierce intensity, that stresses the importance using female solidarity to escape everyday sexism. Singer/guitarist Clementine Creevy lounges in all white, as an endless parade of middle-aged men in red polos and khakis infiltrate the room the band plays in.

  • What’s Up With The CMJ Festival?

    After a series of articles that speculated CMJ wouldn’t happen this year due to lack of funds (to be fair, dates/lineups haven’t been announced yet), CEO Adam Klein sent Pitchfork a statement regarding its future. It read, in part, “We are all totally committed to protecting CMJ’s unique and ‘live’ heritage while adapting to the ever changing demands of artists, fans and the music industry….. A little patience and a whole lot less wild and unsubstantiated speculation is what we need right now.” So is it happening? Kinda maybe.

  • Watch Angel Olsen On ‘Colbert’

    I know, I know, there’s been a lot of Angel Olsen coverage lately. But, she’s amazing and her My Woman is finally out, today. Right now! You can also watch her perform “Shut Up Kiss Me” on The Late Show, below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGAHeeFr_E&feature=youtu.be

NEWS ROUNDUP: Sad13, Angel Olsen, & Sweet Synths

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  • Sadie Dupuis’s Announces Solo Project, Sad13

    Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz has announced a solo album and single under the name Sad13. “Get A Yes” is a shimmery, pop departure from her band’s 90’s rock sound, full of synths and electronics. It explores the idea of consent. As Dupuis told NPR, “How many kids learn about sex from pop music? And how many fun-sounding pop musicians do a heinous job as sex-ed teachers?… [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][like] ‘Blurred Lines,’ in which the narrator presumes to know what his partner wants?”

    Slugger comes out 11/11 via Carpark Records. Check out “Get A Yes” below.

  • Watch Angel Olsen’s “Sister” Video

    Continuing her steady stream of amazing new songs and videos from the upcoming My Woman, Angel Olsen released the single “Sister.” Not as wildly defiant as “Shut Up Kiss Me” and “Intern,” “Sister” paces along steadily and gracefully with images of Olsen walking through a Los Angeles desert landscape.  The video breaks the fourth wall at the end, with Olsen running over to a friend on the beach who asks, “Are you shooting a music video?”

  • Turn Your Laptop Into A Synth-Making Machine

    We just told you about cool music by other people, but maybe now you want to make your own? Here’s a unique, new way to do it. BlokDust is a website where you can program your own song, using a kind of visual synths system. You drag and drop and different effects and sounds onto your screen, and turn your laptop keyboard into, well, a real keyboard. The program, which “makes use of Tone.js as an audio frame,” was developed in the UK and is a collaborationn between Luke Twyman, Luke Phillips and Edward Silverton. Check it out here!

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NEWS ROUNDUP: Rock Shop & Featured Events

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  • The Rock Shop Is No Longer A Music Venue

    In today’s weekly installation of “what’s changed with local venues,” we have some bad news. As Brokelyn reported, The Rock Shop, one of the only music venues in Park Slope, will no longer have live music. Instead, the first level’s stage area will be become a game room. Its last show took place on Wednesday night and featured a Weezer cover band. Stay tuned for next week, when we tell you which of your beloved music hubs will be turned into a condo (hopefully not).

  • What’s going on this weekend? 

    Lots of stuff. Here’s some music we strongly suggest you see:

    PILL – Friday @ Park Church Coop

  • Surf Rock Is Dead – Saturday @ (le) Poisson Rouge

  • Far True Fest – Saturday @ Governors Island

    Featuring artists such as Wolkoff, Hannibal King, JBDK, Conrad Clifton and more!

NEWS ROUNDUP: Brooklyn Bazaar, Stranger Things, & Green Day

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  • Brooklyn Bazaar Is Reopening

    It seems like every week we’ve been reporting that a venue is opening or closing – usually closing. This week, we have some good news regarding the Brooklyn Bazaar. The beloved Greenpoint event, which featured live music and vendors, is reopening in September at the cross street of Manhattan and Greenpoint Avenue. As well as housing a music venue, the new space will be open every night of the week and feature a restaurant, four bars, and an arcade. The bazaar will officially open on September 9th with a Clap Your Hands Say Yeah show. Check out the show calendar here.

  • Listen To The ‘Stranger Things’ Soundtrack

    As well as being a freakin’ awesome and addictive show, “Stranger Things” has a surprisingly catchy soundtrack (when characters aren’t singing along to “Should I Stay Or Should I Go,” of course). It was created by the Austin synth duo Survive, aka Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein. Need something to listen to while you ponder what’s hiding behind your walls? Stream the soundtrack via Apple Music below.

 

  • Hey, Remember Green Day?

    Speaking of nostalgia, Green Day is back with a new track and lyric video. A quick review: it sounds very much like Green Day is supposed to sound/notable, puzzling lyrics are “I got my photobomb/I got my Vietnam” and “I want to be a celebrity martyr.” Watch below: 

NEWS ROUNDUP: Frank Ocean, Palisades & Cereal

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  • Frank Ocean Album Still Shrouded In Mystery

    After impatient speculation about when the singer would release his new album, Boys Don’t Cry,  it looked like it would finally be released today after a mysterious live stream began on Frank’s website, featuring people doing woodwork in a large hall while ambient music played and the singer in a Bowie t-shirt. As of now (11am), it’s not here yet. Sources say the album will be released exclusively through Apple Music, so get ready to pay another $10/month subscription if you want to hear it.

    Check out one of the tracks in the live stream below.

https://soundcloud.com/thisisallexperimental/frank-6-guitar

  • RIP Palisades

    As we mentioned in June, the venue on Bushwick’s Broadway was shut down during Northside Festival for several code violations. Apparently, the shutdown is permanent, as Brooklyn Vegan has reported the former DIY space is now up for rent. No offense guys, but you were definitely a fire hazard.

  • Old Rolling Stones Commercial Uncovered

    The Jingle was written by the band’s first lead guitarist, Brian Jones, and it’s kind of hilarious to listen to Mick Jagger mumble his way through singing the praises of Rice Krispies, including the slightly aggressive endorsement “Wake up in the morning there’s a crackle in your face.” 

  • Spotify Wants To Replace Albums With Playlists

    Via WIRED: “For decades, we all listened by the album: drop it on the turntable, put the needle down, sit back, and let the LP wash over you…. Somewhere in there, we lost the ability to just press play, close our eyes, and enjoy. Playlists are giving that back.” Today Spotify launches Release Radar, a weekly, 2 hour playlist curated just for you! (By an algorithm they use for everyone else, of course).

NEWS ROUNDUP: Music In Space, Prophets Of Rage, & The Strokes

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  • Coming Soon: Music In Space?

    It’s been a busy month for Jack White. After being named to Nashville’s new Council On Gender Equity, he and Third Man Records are planning to put a record player into the cosmos to be the first to play one in space. Their choice for the mission, which will take place tomorrow, is Carl Sagan’s A Glorious Dawn. I’m still not entirely sure if this is all a joke, but  I do want to know: are aliens more into vinyl, or cassettes?

  • Watch Prophets Of Rage On Jimmy Kimmel

    The supergroup contains Rage Against The Machine members Tim Comerford, Tom Morello and Brad Will, as well as Chuck D and DJ Lord from Public Enemy and B-Real from Cypress Hill. For their TV debut, they played “Killing In The Name Of” in front of a “Make America Rage Again” banner as the crowd moshed. The protest band’s performance comes soon after they played in Cleveland, in stark contrast to the RNC events taking place there. Watch them play “Killing In The Name Of” below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7KGJUbsfiU

  • Watch The Strokes On Jimmy Kimmel, Too

    On Tuesday, the NYC rock group played “Threat Of Joy,” with Julian Casablancas stumbling endearingly and almost making the whole performance without taking his sunglasses off. The song is from their new EP, Present Future Past, out now via Cult Records. Check the performance out below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gybGhy8fFk

NEWS ROUNDUP: Politics & PJ Harvey

  • Listen to PJ Harvey’s “Guilty”

    “Guilty” was recorded at the same time as Harvey’s latest album, The Hope Six Demolition Project. It’s a political shuffle that tackles subject as a corrupt judicial system and drones. Check it out:

  • Let’s Get Political

    Breaking news: The world sucks, guys. Here’s a brief roundup of musical responses to the tragedies of the past few weeks:

    My Morning Jacket: “Magic Bullet” – The lightly funky song was posted on Soundcloud on Monday with a long message condemning gun violence, which reads in part: “It does not matter your race/creed/sexual orientation we are all filled with the same beautiful blood- a mix of old and new generations… past present and future…we are all in there somewhere…in the blood lines together…all of humanity.”

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    https://soundcloud.com/my-morning-jacket/magicbullet

    “23 Ways To Die” – Alicia Keys organized celebrities and artists such as Beyoncé, Chance The Rapper, Rihanna, Common, Chris Rock and Taraji P. Henson for “23 Ways You Could Be Killed If You Are Black In America.” The video, which premiered on Mic.com, opens with a sparse piano track. The powerful video shows clips of those mentioned before, and others, stating the reasons Black people have been killed by police in America; simple things like wearing a hoody, failing to signal a lane change, and walking towards or away from the police.  Watch it here.

    Wahsa: “Justice” – The experimental Brooklyn band shared the song “Justice” on Facebook Sunday, with the following message: “A year ago, Max Mellman approached several artists and I in support of the Baltimore riots to compose songs around field recordings taken during the protests. Although the songs were never released, I feel now is a more relevant time than ever to share in support of those whose lives have been lost. My thoughts and prayers are with you.” The ambient track features the sounds of chanting in the background, and becomes suddenly intense at the end as the voices chant “justice.”

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    https://soundcloud.com/washamusic/justice

 

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NEWS ROUNDUP: St. Vincent, Led Zeppelin, & Angel Olsen

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  • Watch St. Vincent Perform As A Toilet

    During a benefit concert on Tuesday, St. Vincent performed several songs dressed as a toilet. (There’s probably a great potential for puns here, but we’ll let you take care of that). The benefit was for the song of Annie Clark’s drummer, Jasper Johnson, who is recovering from a severe seizure. Father John Misty,  Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright, Elysian Fields, Joan As Police Woman, Nina Persson also performed. Check out footage of “Bring Me Your Loves” below:

  • ICYMI: Led Zeppelin Is Innocent

    Rock legends Led Zeppelin were dragged into a lawsuit claiming that “Stairway to Heaven”’s signature guitar riff was actually a ripoff of Spirit’s “Taurus,” an instrumental song from 1968. Though Led Zeppelin had performed with Spirit before, they denied their song, written in 1970, was based off of “Taurus.” Now, the lawyer on Spirit’s side, Francis Malofiy, is being suspended from practicing law for 3 months. Apparently, Malofiy violated a bunch of rules of conduct during a previous copyright infringement lawsuit, involving Usher’s “Bad Girls.” Read more here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q7Vr3yQYWQ

  • Watch Angel Olsen’s “Shut Up Kiss Me”

    Angel Olsen dons a sparkly, silver wig once again in the video she self-directed for “Shut Up Kiss Me.” She also gets pretty wild on a roller skating rink. Check out the video below, and pre-order her upcoming album MY WOMAN here.

  • Support Phil Elverum’s Crowdfunding Campaign

    Phil Elverum, of the Microphones and Mount Eerie is currently raising money for his wife Geneviève, who was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer soon after the couple had a daughter. Other musicians are currently helping the cause by auctioning merchandise; Neutral Milk Hotel is offering a signed box set, and Fugazi and Bikini Kill are auctioning several things. Check out the crowdfunding campaign and auction.

NEWS ROUNDUP: Ticketmaster, LA Weekly, & Guitar Pedal Sneakers

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  • Ticketmaster Is Still The Worst

    Those outrageous “service fees” that get tacked on to each concert ticket you buy resulted in a $386 million class action lawsuit against Ticketmaster. You would think that would mean there would be no more fees, but instead, customers were informed that they would have access to ticket vouchers in their account and discount codes worth- wait for it- “a $2.25 credit on a future online ticket purchase of primary tickets.” You can use up to two of these per transaction, but many customers are having trouble accessing them.

    Of course, you could take advantage of the free tickets the company is offering to make up for their sketchy business practices, if you want to see artists such as The Kidz Bop Kids or an Elton John tribute band. Granted, there are some cool shows available, but as other sites have noted, shows are only available in 19 states.

  • Sky Ferreria vs LA Weekly

    The super-gross Sky Ferreria “thinkpiece” caused a lot of negative reactions on the internet; personally, it’s one of the most misogynist things I’ve ever read, though it inspired a pretty funny satire where Tom Hawking rewrote the article with John Lennon as the subject. LA Weekly has apologized for trying to be edgy with the article, but has decided to leave it online as a “topic of discussion, or outrage, or as a cautionary tale about how not to write about a female recording artist in 2016.” Pretty sure that nearly every other writer already knows that, but thanks for clarifying guys.

  • Watch J Mascis Test A Wah-Wah Pedal Shoe

    Hey musicians, Converse has gotten use one step closer to not having to carry around a bunch of pedals- just put them on your feet! The “All Wah” shoe allows you to plug directly into a Converse sneaker, and uses Bluetooth and microsensor technology to determine the position of your foot. Watch J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr test it out below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkF7Mq1ZUR0

NEWS ROUNDUP: Palisades, Deerhoof, & Patti Smith’s Nico Tribute

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  • Palisades Shut Down For The Summer

    Hopefully it’s temporary; during last weekend’s Northside Festival, the DIY space Palisades was shut down by police and the venue’s shows have been moved to other locations. Management tweeted that it would be closed for a few days, but it’ll be more like most of the summer after the NYC Department of Buildings gave them a complaint for problems like “GROUND FL OPERATED AS A CABARET WITHOUT A SPRINKLER SYSTEM CELLAR WORK W/O PERMITS & FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PREMISES.”

  • Patti Smith to Release Nico Tribute

    Patti Smith recorded a tribute to the late Velvet Underground singer, with Smith’s daughter contributing as well. “Killer Road” is inspired by Nico’s own poetry, her harmonium is used on the track. It sounds kind of like Nick Cave decided to take a shot at ambient music: chilling and foreboding with whispers in the background alluding to death. The track will be officially released on the Soundwalk Collective’s Killer Road, coming September 2nd. Listen below:

https://soundcloud.com/soundwalk-collective/sets/soundwalk-collective-jesse

  • Deerhoof’s The Magic Now Streaming on NPR

    The unpredictable band recorded The Magic by renting an abandoned New Mexico office building and recording for a week with no prepared material. NPR describes the result as a “tense, visceral, unpredictable sound that doesn’t let listeners get comfortable for very long.” Stream The Magic here, and watch the video for “Criminals Of The Dream,” which appears on the album, below:

NEWS ROUNDUP: Northside Fest & Opening/Closing Venues

 

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  • Northside Festival Continues This Weekend

    That means, there’s amazing shows everywhere. From Greenpoint to Bushwick to Far North East Williamsburg, or whatever the newest, cool made-up neighborhood is. Feeling overwhelmed? We even wrote you a guide to cool shows. Look at how much fun everybody had last year:

  • Other Music Farewell Shows

    As we’ve written about before, Manhattan record store Other Music will be closing at the end of this month. But, you can catch an awesome goodbye show at Bowery Ballroom on 6/28. Performers will include Yo La Tengo, Julianna Barwick, Sharon Van Etten, Frankie Cosmos, Helado Negro, Menahan Street Band, Matana Roberts, and John Zorn’s Simalacrum (with John Medeski, Matt Hollenberg, and Kenny Grohowski). Check out this performance by Regina Spektor at the store in 2009: 

  • New Brooklyn Venue Opens, Two Set To Close

    The Glove held their soft opening on Wednesday, and Facebook posts state that their calendar will be opening soon. From the venue’s page: “Members of The Bohemian Grove present a new space: The Glove… an experimental venue, theater, gallery, and multimedia studio space.” It is located in Bushwick between the Kosciusko and Gates stop on Broadway.

    However, posts today indicated that both the Grand Victory in Williamsburg and Secret Project Robot in Bushwick will cease operating at their current locations, because of rising rents.

  • Stream Mitski’s Puberty 2

    The Brooklyn-based singer songwriter has received rave reviews for her new album, Puberty 2. It comes out next week via Dead Oceans, but you can listen to the stream on NPR and check out the video for “Your Best American Girl” below.

  • Lithuania Single Benefits ‘Women Against Abuse’

    This week the band premiered “Kill The Thing You Love,” a song that wasn’t included on their last album, Hardcore Friends, but will be released as a single. All proceeds from the song will benefit ‘Women Against Abuse,’ an organization that provides domestic violence services. Listen to the song on Post-Trash, and check out our interview with the band here.

 

NEWS ROUNDUP: Brooklyn Events, Angel Olsen & Turntable Kitchen

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  • Angel Olsen Releases “Intern”

    “I don’t care what the papers say/ It’s just another intern with a resume.” The new Angel Olsen track has a soaring, cinematic feel to it, as if was created for the emotional climax of a vintage movie. The accompanying video features Olsen donning a sparkly silver wig as she sings into a headset and is interviewed on a movie set. Check it out:

  • Brooklyn Events

    This weekend is all about Bushwick- here are some cool events for those of you in the area:

    Color Me Bushwick – This event combines style and sound, in the form of a three day, free music, art and hair festival at Pickthorn Studio salon. Performing artists include Sharkmuffin, Cosmonaut, Milan to Minsk, Gingerleys, The Teen Age and many, many more. More details here.

    Bushwick Collective Block Party – Another three day festival, this event will feature a live performance by Jadakiss, DJs, food trucks, live graffiti painting, and an art exhibition. Details here.

  • Turntable Kitchen Launches New Project

    Turntable Kitchen “is a site connecting food and music” that aims “to introduce food lovers to music and vice versa.” While I’m pretty sure most people have already discovered that both food and music are pretty awesome, their new project, Sounds Delicious, looks great. Artists like The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Mitski, Skylar Spence, Mutual Benefit, Quilt, Jonathan Rado, Yumi Zouma, GEMS, Salt Cathedral and others will pick an album, and then record a full length cover of it to put on vinyl; it’s currently in the Kickstarter phase.

  • End Your Week With A New Music Video

    “You And I” by Margaret Glaspy is a fun, rowdy track with a bright, playful video. Check it out!

NEWS ROUNDUP: New Singles, Bob Dylan, & Mitski

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  • Quadruple Singles
    • There was a ton of great new music released this week. Here’s four of the best singles we heard:
  • The Strokes: “Threat of Joy” is the latest single from The Strokes’ upcoming EP Future Present Past.  They take an easy-going beat and infuse it with tense energy, the lyrics quietly seething. The EP will be released via Cult on 6/3; check out the single below.

  • HOLYCHILD: The shimmering “brat pop” duo are back with “Rotten Teeth,” which features Kate Nash. Their music sounds like it comes from whatever pop factory churns out radio friendly hits these days, but pulls at the stray threads of culture, exposing the darker side with lines like “I know I’ll never be the girl I want to be” and “Do we eat or just starve ourselves tonight?”

  • Cass McCombs & Angel Olsen: McCombs and Olsen teamed up on “Opposite House,” a faintly jazzy track that creates a mystical space for guitar riffs to flutter in and out of and gentle harmonies to float through. Look for its accompanying album, Mangy Love, on 8/26.

  • Dinosaur JR: On Tuesday, Dinosaur Jr. debuted “Tiny,” the single from Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not, on Later… With Jools Holland. It’s classic alternative rock typical of the band.

  • Bob Dylan Celebrates 75th Birthday

    In honor of Dylan’s 75th birthday on Tuesday, Animal Collective released their own, remixed version of “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.” Other artists honored the folk legend by covering his songs, such as Kesha. She sang  “It Ain’t Me” at the Billboard Music Awards and “I Shall Be Released” at Dylan Fest in Nashville.

  • Watch Mitski’s New Video for “Happy”

    On Monday Mitski released her music video for “Happy.” It takes a lot of twists and turns: a romance blossoms, then turns to heartbreak, with a gory ending that’s unexpected and somewhat terrifying. The song itself is a contemplative look at love and loneliness, and as a bonus, has an awesome saxophone part.

NEWS ROUNDUP: The Beastie Boys, Radiohead, & Brooklyn Weekend Events

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  • Father John Misty Shares “Real Love Baby”

    “What’s wrong with feeling?” After a series of sarcastic Soundcloud uploads, Father John Misty gets sentimental on his new song “Real Love Baby.” Although he stated on Twitter that the track “is just a thing” and won’t be on his upcoming album, the feel good, sappy love song is worth a listen.

  • Recommended Events

    Words & Guitars Fest: Words & Guitars is a “two day DIY zine, music, and art fest” that focuses on feminist art, and it starts tonight at Bushwick Public House. As well as performances by bands such as Yeti, Lady Bits, Drella and Lady Bizness, on Saturday there will also be a panel featuring members of the local punk scene on “their place as women in this scene today as musicians, educators, creators, and so much more.”

    She Shreds‘ 10th Issue Release Party: She Shreds is a magazine that focuses on women who play bass and guitar. Their 10th issue release party will be held at Market Hotel and will include performances by Lady Lamb, Allison Crutchfield, Field Mouse, and Holly Miranda. Buy tickets here.

  • John Berry of the Beastie Boys Dies

    As well as being a founding member of the group, Berry was the one who came up with their name. Though he left the group after they recorded their first EP Polly Wog Stew in 1982, the remaining members always mentioned him as an important member of the band. Berry died at age 52 from frontotemporal dementia, according to his father.

 

  • Radiohead Release Clip of “Numbers” Video

    The clip previews an upcoming music video, directed by Oscar Hudson. It features ominous background music as a man tidies up a small room, a futile task since sand is pouring in from a hole in the ceiling. Check it out:

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NEWS ROUNDUP: Radiohead, Prince Tributes, & Grimes

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  • Radiohead is Back!

    After erasing their social media presence, the band returned with their new single, “Burn The Witch.” Um, it’s awesome. The accompanying video looks like a cutesy stop-motion animation, until things take a darker turn (as the song’s title suggests). The animator states that it was inspired by the European refugee crisis. Radiohead has also announced tour dates, including Madison Square Garden, Primavera Sound Festival, Secret Solstice Festival, Osheaga Music and Arts Festival and Lollapalooza. Read our review of “Burn The Witch,” and check out the video below.

  • A Brief Roundup of Prince Tributes

    It’s been two weeks since Prince died, and plenty of tributes have been performed. Here are some highlights:

      • The touching tribute: One of Prince’s best songs is “Nothing Compares 2 U,” which opens with the line “It’s been seven hours and 13 days since you took your love away.” In honor of Prince, US radio stations coordinated to play the song at 5:07pm, 13 days and seven hours after his death. Stations all over participated in the event, initially started by the Minnesota public radio station The Current. Prince originally wrote the song in 1985 for The Family, who was signed to his Paisley Park label; on May 4th, they released a re-recorded version in memory of Prince under the band name fDeluxe.

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        The ensemble tribute: both the cast of Hamilton and The Color Purple have paid their respects by covering “Purple Rain.”

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        The big name tribute: Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen both performed Prince covers after his death. The ex-Beatle performed “Let’s Go Crazy,” while The Boss played “Purple Rain.”

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      •  The bizarre tribute: Mac DeMarco released a video covering “It’s Gonna Be Lonely,” accompanied by some interesting characters.

    Grimes Makes A Spectacle On Late Night TV

    Grimes brought dancers, dizzying background graphics and musician Hana Pestle to The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon. She performed “Flesh Without Blood” from her latest album Art Angels, and said in an Instagram post that it was her first time performing in a corset. Check it out: 

 

  • Bad News For Musicians

    If you’re not a rockstar, you probably don’t have to worry about this. For the rest of you, take note: a recent study revealed that musicians die 25 years younger than the rest of the population. Conducted by the Australian psychology professor Dianna Kenny, the study “examined the lives and deaths of 12,665 musicians and stars from all popular genres who died between 1950 and June 2014,” and found that musicians were more susceptible to suicide, homicide, and accidental deaths. You can read the report here.

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NEWS ROUNDUP: The Politicization of Music, RHCP, & Radiohead

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  • Beyonce & the Politicization of Music

    Though Beyonce’s Lemonade contains unlimited potential for trivial gossip (Who is Becky?), the visual album is way deeper than that, as explained in The Rolling Stone here. Music has gotten a little more political lately, with artists canceling shows in anti-LGBTQ states or performing in support of political candidates (well, mostly Bernie Sanders), but when Beyonce weighs in, you know we’ve reached the peak of the politicization of music.

    [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]

  • Red Hot Chili Peppers Accused of Sexual Harassment

    Julie Farman, who worked at Epic Records in the 90’s, wrote a blog post detailing a “fucked up” experience she had during a meeting with members of the band. Farman wrote she was inspired to speak up after Amber Coffman broke her silence about Heathcliff Berru earlier this year, and blamed “the misogynistic culture of the music industry that kept [/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][her] from speaking up in 1991.”

  • Watch White Lung’s Video For “Below”

    The band plays in a dark theater, their only audience a handful of Marilyn Monroe impersonators who are brought to tears by the performance. “Below” is from White Lung’s upcoming album Paradise, out on May 6.

  • Levitation Festival Is Cancelled

    Artists including Animal Collective, Courtney Barnett, Ty Segall, Ween and many more were scheduled to play the festival, which was cancelled due to dangerous weather in Texas.

  • A New Radiohead Album Might Be In The Works

    The band is promoting it in kind of a creepy way: sending fans in the UK leaflets that say “We know where you live” and referencing the early 2000’s song “Burn The Witch.” It’s the latest sign that a new album is coming, after they announced a world tour and registered the companies Dawn Chorus LLP and Dawnnchoruss Ltd. When it comes out, it’ll be the band’s first new album since 2011’s The King Of Limbs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uejn1f6pqMQ

  • Blink-182 Are Back?

    The pop punk group replaced Tom Delonge with Matt Skiba from Alkaline Trio and released the first song from their upcoming album. California will be out July 1st, but “Bored To Death” was just presented to the internet in the worst way possible: a lyric video. Seriously, why do bands use these things? Anyway, here it is:

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NEWS ROUNDUP: LCD Soundsystem, Andrew Bird & Wolkoff

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  • LCD Soundsystem Is Playing NYC This Weekend!

    Guess the breakup didn’t last too long- after announcing plans for a new record and festival dates, the band will be playing at Webster Hall 3/27 and 3/28. Tix are first come, first serve, so you’ll have to enter a lottery to even get the chance to buy them. Do it here!

  • Tickets For RBMA Festival Are Now On Sale

    The energy drink sponsored festival will take over NYC at the end of April, bringing select performances, events and lectures to a variety of venues. Highlights for 2016 include a talk with Spike Lee, Dizzee Rascal (Performing ‘Boy in Da Corner’), a performance with Kamasi Washington, Pharaoh Sanders and The Sun Ra Arkestra and a Brooklyn Flea Record Fair. Plus many, many more.

  • Stream Are You Serious by Andrew Bird

    The 13th album by the whistling violinist is streaming on NPR ahead of its April 1st release date. It includes “Left Handed Kisses,” a duet with Fiona Apple. Check out the song’s video, which features a playful singing showdown between the two, below:

 

  • Wolkoff Releases “The Homecoming” Video

    The song is frenetic yet hopeful, and its video stars a dog (played by a girl in a mask) who struggles to fit into a domestic life. It’s both strange and heartwarming. You can read more about its origins and meaning on Jezebel, and watch it below.

 

  • Ty Segall Is Scary (In A Good Way)

    First he terrified the audience of Stephen Colbert’s late night show by throwing candy at them while dressed like a more low-key version of The Joker. Turns out, he also likes haunt your dreams by wearing a creepy baby mask. Check out the getup on his Conan performance, where he plays the song “Californian Hills:”

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]http://teamcoco.com/video/ty-segall-and-the-muggers-03-22-16

 

  • RIP Phife Dawg

    Phife  Dawg, aka Malik Taylor passed away on Tuesday at age 45. A founding member of Tribe Called Quest, his unique style resulted in classic songs like “Buggin’ Out,” “Electric Relaxation,”, and “Butter.” For a full obituary, click here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB9PiW68yQg[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

NEWS ROUNDUP: If You’re Reading This, You’re Not At SXSW

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  • If You’re Reading This, You’re Not At SXSW

    Right now, scouring Twitter for music news is a basically like opening up Instagram and seeing that all of your friends have thrown a party without you: everyone is having the time of their life in Austin, TX. There’s two more days left, but here’s a brief rundown of the highlights so far:

  • Old-school acts are still a big deal: Charles Bradley brought a serious dose of soul to the festival, Iggy Pop  played a 22 song set with his new band, and country legend Loretta Lynn  made an appearance.
  • The Obamas were thereMichelle stated that she won’t be running for president, and also about her “Let Girls Learn” initiative on a panel that included Missy Elliott, Diane Warren, Sophia Bush and Queen Latifah. The President focused on how technology relates to government matters in his keynote interview.
  • Vince Staples aired some grievances with Spotify: The streaming service has been criticized for how little it pays the musicians who host their music on the site. As Staples told the crowd during his performance, “Listen to your favorite album 2,000 times so everybody can get an album sale.”
  • A picture is worth 1,000 words: for photographic coverage of the festival, head to Paste Magazine, which has some great snapshots of artists from the first, second, and third day of the festival.

  • There Are Still Cool Things To Do In NYC

    ….& we recommend these shows this weekend:

  • Christopher Owens (of Girls) @ Union Pool – Tonight

  • Dr. Dog & Hop Along @ Terminal 5 – 3/19

  • Pile @ The Silent Barn – 3/20

  • Also, Glitterbust Shared A New Video

    The project is a collaboration between Kim Gordon and Alex Knost of Tomorrows Tulips. A few weeks ago they debuted “The Highline,” and now there’s a video to go along with the track:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=PtdyyPfjxBs

NEWS ROUNDUP: George Martin, Tiny Desk, & Iggy Pop

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  • George Martin Dies

    Let’s get the bad news out of the way first: George Martin, famed Beatles producer, has died at age 90. Martin spent seven years working with the Fab Four, helping them arrange and shape their sound. His closeness with the band earned him the nickname “the fifth Beatle,” though he also worked with other artists such as Peter Sellers, Shirley Bassey, America, Cheap Trick, Jeff Beck and Celine Dion. Many of the Beatles songs wouldn’t be the same without him- For example, check out “Tomorrow Never Knows,” a track on which Martin humored the band’s request for backward tape loops:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etN0h_e5rvI

  • Watch Mothers “It Hurts Until It Doesn’t” Video

    Feeling sad yet? Just wait until you learn the story behind the Mothers track “It Hurts Until It Doesn’t.” Singer  Kristine Leschper wrote the song about her missing cat. Footage of her cat is briefly featured in the video, and she describes it as “the only remaining video I have of my best friend, who was so often the only thing keeping me rooted in reality, feeding me optimism, helping me survive.” If you’ve ever had a lost cat, you’ll understand.

  • NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest Winner Announced

    This year’s winner of the Tiny Desk Contest is Gaelynn Lea, from Duluth, Minnesota. Lea sings and plays the fiddle, though her brittle bone disease requires her to play a very small violin which she holds upright, like a double bass. Her song, “Someday We’ll Linger In The Sun,” has a haunting, heartbreaking melody that remains in your head long after the song ends, yet still manages to convey a sense of hope. Check out her winning performance:

  • Stream Post Pop Depression, The New Iggy Pop + Josh Homme Collaboration

    Iggy Pop has described the album as a sort of sequel to Lust For Life, on which he collaborated with David Bowie. He recorded Post Pop Depression the Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme, in some secluded desert location, as is Homme’s style (that information alone means it’s going to be pretty awesome).  You can stream the nine tracks on NPR, here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DngIWkQVPgU

 

NEWS ROUNDUP: New Tracks, New Kendrick, & SWSW

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  • New Tracks By New York Artists 

    First up is “Your Best American Girl” by Brooklyn’s Mitski. The song is from Puberty 2, which will be released via Dead Oceans in June. It’s a sorrowful track about living up to expectations, full of soaring highs and the squeal of feedback amongst quieter moments.

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  • Monday was Leap Day, which is special day for Leaplings, the kids who were born on February 29th and finally get to celebrate their real birthday. Dan Arnes, the frontman of Leapling, is one of these people, and to take the “holiday” an extra step further, announced the band’s upcoming album Suspended Animation and debuted “Alabaster Snow.” Check it out below:

  • Parquet Courts are releasing their upcoming album Human Performance on April 8th. On Wednesday, they performed another new song, the cowboy-tinged punk “Berlin Got Blurry,” on Conan. Check out the official video below, which features the band exploring a foreign land.

  • Yeasayer are also releasing a new album (Amen & Goodbye, due out on April 1st) and shared a new track this week, “Silly Me.” I miss the “kind of folky in an apocalyptic” sound of their first album, but this song has a pretty good groove.

https://youtu.be/5rQxrZn8-A0

  • The Cost of SXSW

    Many bands view Austin’s SXSW festival as essential for gaining any notoriety in the music industry, but schlepping bandmates and gear to Texas can also be stressful and expensive. Is it worth it? You may have read some thinkpieces that may you want to hide your wallet, but you should read Ed Rodriguez’s take on the matter on The Talkhouse. Rodriguez, who plays in Deerhoof, argues that there’s a cheaper way to do the showcase, or any tour. Read his article here.

  • Kendrick Lamar Drops New Album

    After what appeared to be a Spotify mishap that gave away the track list, Untitled Unmastered was released as a follow-up of sorts to To Pimp A Butterfly. Buy it here.

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NEWS ROUNDUP: FKA Twigs, Kim Gordon, & Brian Eno

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  • FKA Twigs Performs On Jimmy Fallon

    Watch the relentlessly unique FKA Twigs give a stunning performance of her song “Good To Love” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhX1X3eJlnE

  • Stream M. Ward’s More Rain

    The singer/songwriter’s easy, smoke-filled voice has an undeniable charm. More Rain features guests such as Neko Case, k.d. Lang, and Peter Buck. You can stream the album on NPR ahead of its March 4 release date, and check out the video for “Confession” below:

  • Brian Eno Announces New Album

    “Humankind seems to teeter between hubris and paranoia: the hubris of our ever-growing power contrasts with the paranoia that we’re permanently and increasingly under threat… Somebody, something is going to take it all from us: that is the dread of the wealthy.” That’s a quote from Brian Eno explaining his upcoming album The Ship, which will be available via Warp on April 29. In the meantime, check out a song from his last release, Lux:

  • Kim Gordon Forms Glitterburst 

    The former Sonic Youth bassist has started a new project with Alex Knost, the guitarist from Tomorrows Tulips; it’s called Glitterburst, and their first album comes out on March 4. Check out their song “The Highline,” a spacey, droning track that morphs into the controlled chaos which is slightly reminiscent of Gordon’s former band. 

https://soundcloud.com/burgerrecords/glitterbust-the-highline

  • Robert Pollard Shares “I Can Illustrate”

    This was a great week for new releases; among the artists sharing new music or announcing new albums is Robert Pollard, known for his solo work and his Guided By Voices project. “I Can Illustrate” is from his upcoming album Of Course You Are, and it’s an incredibly catchy track from the offbeat, prolific songwriter. The album will be available in full on March 4.

NEWS ROUNDUP: Award Shows, Tiny Desk Concert, & Eartheater

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  • Vote For The Best ‘Tiny Desk Contest’ One-Person Band

    Around this time last year, every social media feed you had was suddenly flooded with home-made videos featuring small desks, coffee tables, or some sort of writing surface. Every friend you had in a band made one, along with everyone who had a thirst for fame and knew a few chords (Obviously, most entries were seriously amazing, even if you found out the hard way your cousin wrote love songs on an out-of-tune ukulele). Well, the whole process was repeated this year, and while you wait for the final winner to be announced, NPR will be letting the public vote on their favorite performers in certain categories. This week, the focus is on one-person bands. You can check them all out here, but here’s one of our favorites:

 

  • Noisey Breaks Down (More Of) The Music Industry’s Diversity Problem

    In this noisey.com article, writer Emma Garland discusses the Billboard Power 100 list. Released last week, it doesn’t feature musicians or performers, but “your chairmen, your CEOs, your executives; the people we don’t tend to think about but who spend most of their time influencing everything we hear.” The list is pretty much a bunch of white dudes; the 10 people at the top are white males, 96% of the top 50 are white and just 9% of the people on it are women. Statistics like these shed light on the fact that even in creative industries, there’s some sort of glass ceiling that cannot always be broken. You can check the actual list out here.

  • Courtney Barnett Performs On Stephen Colbert

    The Australian singer/songwriter/bad-ass guitarist didn’t seem at all upset that her nomination for this year’s Best New Artist Grammy award didn’t pan out; on Wednesday, she gave a spirited performance of “Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go to the Party,” from last year’s Somethings I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zBy7JyV9_E

  • That Little Thing Called The Grammys

    Red Carpet! Crop tops! Swift/Kanye drama! Mic malfunctions, tributes, medleys, and Dave Grohl with…. a Solo cup? A lot of stuff happened that you probably already know about, but make sure you watch Kendrick Lamar’s goosebumps-inducing performance:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTBUuQv0kpg

  • That Other Thing Called The NME Awards

    NME readers voted 5 Seconds of Summer 2015’s worst band, and Bring Me The Horizon destroyed Coldplay’s table. You can read the full list of winners here. There are some interesting categories like “Best Fan Community,” “Villian of the Year” and the “Godlike Genius” award, which went to Coldplay.

  • Eartheater Releases “Homonyms” Video

    The NYC based artist, whose name is actually Alexandra Drewchin, creates electronic music that is also folky and organic. The video for “Homonyms” features dancers in a beautiful, lush wilderness that seems more like a dream than reality. Her vocals oscillate between hushed whispers and angelic cries, which contribute to the effect. Check it out below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wimrg1l57nc&feature=youtu.be

NEWS ROUNDUP: Beyonce, Lana Del Rey, & Daytrotter Festival

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  • Father John Misty Stars in Lana Del Rey’s “FREAK”

    In the 11-minute long video, the two go on a hike before dropping acid. The last few minutes are slow motion footage of people frolicking in a swimming pool, set to a gentle piano ballad. According to Father John Misty, the video was inspired by a time he took acid at a Taylor Swift concert. Uh, sure it is. Read our review here.

  • Inaugural Daytrotter Downs Fesitval Starts Next Week

    What is Daytrotter? They bring in fairly well-known artists for recording sessions featuring alternative or reworked versions of their songs, and sometimes brand-new material. And from February 18 to February 20, they’ll be hosting a music festival in Davenport, IA featuring artists such as Lizzo, Mothers, and Curtis Harding. Check out a Daytrotter session from the Alabama Shakes below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo-qvB9hZtU

  • Beyonce Drops New Video, Internet Explodes

    There’s not much left to say about Beyonce’s “Formation;” she released the song and video the night before the Superbowl, but didn’t stop there. After her halftime performance, she announced a 2016 tour and a new, upcoming album. Trying to buy some cheap tickets? Good luck.

  • Happy Valentine’s Day From Paul McCartney & … Skype?

    Nothing says “Rock & Roll” or “I Love You” quite like corporate sponsorship. Skype is introducing some new love-themed Mojis, and the company put Paul McCartney to work recording their sound effects. Meanwhile, I’m still waiting for some desperate artist to do a MailChimp collaboration.

  • OK Go Release Video For “Upside Down & Inside Out”

    “Gravity’s just a habit that you’re really sure you can’t break:” OK Go is known for their off-the-wall music videos, and “Upside Down & Inside Out,” which was released yesterday, is no exception. It features the band literally bouncing off the walls in zero gravity along with some dancing flight attendants. While the song was included on the 2014 album Hungry Ghosts, it’s safe to assume to the delay was necessary to rehearse in that crazy setup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6fyWs8KSdE