Thursday, January 31, 2013

How To Destroy Angels Cover & Tracklisting


As previously stated, on March 5, Trent Reznor's new band with his wife, Marqueen Mandig, and longtime collaborator, Atticus Ross - How to Destroy Angels will release their debut LP, Welcome Oblivion. Take a look at the cover for the vinyl version above (each format will have a different cover), and the tracklisting for both the CD and vinyl versions below, as well as their new video for "How Long?"


CD:
01 The wake-up
02 Keep it together
03 And the sky began to scream
04 Welcome oblivion
05 Ice age
06 On the wing
07 Too late, all gone
08 How long?
09 Strings and attractors
10 We fade away
11 Recursive self-improvement
12 The loop closes
13 Hallowed ground
Vinyl:
01 The wake-up
02 Keep it together
03 And the sky began to scream
04 Ice age
05 Welcome oblivion
06 On the wing
07 Too late, all gone
08 The province of fear
09 How long?
10 Strings and attractors
11 Recursive self-improvement
12 Unintended consequences
13 We fade away
14 The loop closes
15 Hallowed ground

Iron & Wine Cover & Tracklisting


On April 16, Iron and Wine will release their new record Ghost on Ghost. Take a look at the cover and tracklisting below and hear the first single, "Lover's Revolution."

01 Caught in the Briars
02 The Desert Babbler
03 Joy
04 Low Light Buddy of Mine
05 Graces for Saints and Ramblers
06 Grass Windows
07 Singers and the Endless Song
08 Sundown (Back in the Briars)
09 Winter Prayers
10 New Mexico's No Breeze
11 Lovers' Revolution
12 Baby Center Stage

Bad Religion on Fallon


Watch Bad Religion perform on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon!

Live Review - Quicksand @ Webster Hall



In one of the years most anticipated concerts after one of last years most beloved reunions, New York City post-hardcore heroes Quicksand returned home for the first of two sold-out shows at the legendary Webster Hall.

Immediately entering Webster Hall, the anticipation was so large, you could feel it all around you. Quicksand were a band that never got their due in the mainstream, after only releasing various EP’s, and two records, the bands relentless touring schedule in the 90’s got them critical and fan acclaim, but never achieved the massive recognition they deserved. After a rocky on again, off again relationship between members, the band reunited last year for their former label, Revelation Records, 25th Anniversary. With the success of two sold-out Bowery Ballroom gigs and much discussion, the band is currently on a small tour of the U.S. which led them back home.

As the houselights dimmed and the band took the stage, it was a heroes welcome for Quicksand, who for many in the audience was the first time they were seeing them and for others, a moment that they never thought they would see again. With a bombastic opening, Quicksand were back, the members on stage Walter Schreifels, Sergio Vega, Alan Cage, and Tom Capone, seemed as if they never left each others sides over the years. Schreifels, who famously started Rival Schools and Vega who has been filling the void of Chi Cheng in Deftones, have had successful post-Quicksand careers.

As the night progressed, it was Vega who became the clear cut star on stage, as fans crowd surfed, dove off stage and small pits would break out, in many ways, it seemed the gig would decrescendo in terms of momentum. The band would break from their traditional chomping sound and into jazzy space sounds and jams that really would bore many in the audience and had others run for the bar. While many deep cuts from Slip and Manic Compression were played, these extended songs and Schreifels altering the sound of his guitar would lose the bands momentum. Untimely it was Vega who stuck to the script and would get everyone involved and the crowed amped. Vega, who was wearing a Morrissey shirt would get to wear it proudly as the band did a very interesting cover of The Smiths classic, “How Soon Is Now?”

After all the years apart, the new recharged Quicksand seem to be taking a new direction. Who knows what sound and style they will alter with next.

Ben Folds Five on Conan



Watch Ben Folds Five perform "Draw A Crowd," and "Erase Me" on Conan!

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Quick News

The much anticipated Shane Meadows directed Stone Roses reunion documentary, Made of Stone, will be released this summer.

The United States Postal Service is honoring Johnny Cash with his very own Forever Postage Stamp. The stamp will be issued later this year. Take a look at what it will look like:

Swedish band The Mary Onettes will release their new record, Hit the Waves, in March.

After making one of the biggest comebacks of all time, Rodriguez will enter the studio in June to record his new record.

On March 26, The Strokes will return with their fifth album, Comedown Machine. Take a look at the old school inspired album sleeve below:

Ultraista on Fallon


Watch Nigel Goodrich's band, Ultraista, make their TV debut on Fallon!

Banned Pussy Riot Punk Prayer Video Released



 Nearly a year after the inncident that got members of Pussy Riot thrown in jail, footage of the punk prayer guerrilla gig in a Moscow cathedral has been released.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Live Pix - Peter Hook @ The Strand


On the second stop of a month long book tour promoting his new memoirs on playing with Joy Division, iconic bassist Peter Hook spoke to Sasha Frere-Jones of the New Yorker at The Strand in Union Square, New York City. Take a look at a few photos of the event and of course, buy this book, it is a MUST read for any Joy Division fan! 








In 2011, we spoke to Peter Hook about touring Joy Division's material with his band The Light. Take a look at our feature and interview HERE.

Wavves Cover & Tracklisting


On March 26 Wavves will release their new album, Afraid of Heights. The record features guest spots from  Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis and The Bronx's Jorma Vik on drums. Take a look at the cover above, the tracklisting and two songs below:

01 Sail to the Sun
02 Demon to Lean On
03 Mystic
04 Lunge Forward
05 Dog
06 Afraid of Heights
07 Paranoid
08 Cop
09 Beat Me Up
10 Everything Is My Fault
11 That's On Me
12 Gimme a Knife
13 I Can't Dream


She & Him Cover & Tracklisting


On May 7, M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel aka She & Him will release Vol. 3. The record was produced by Ward. Take a look at the cover above and the tracklisting below:

'I've Got Your Number, Son'
'Never Wanted Your Love'
'Baby'
'I Could've Been Your Girl'
'Turn to White'
'Somebody Sweet to Talk To'
'Something's Haunting You'
'Together'
'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me'
'Snow Queen'
'Sunday Girl'
'London'
'Shadow of Love'
'Reprise (I Could've Been Your Girl)'

Quick News

Lana Del Rey has entered the studio to work on the follow-up to last years release, Ready to Die. No word as to when the record will arrive.

Bjork has begun a Kickstarter campaign to help fund her Biophelia Education Program. The program, which launched in Iceland when her record of the same name arrived, is seeking to expand to other parts of the world. The program educates children about science and music through the apps which she launched with the album. The singer says, "The Biophilia Educational Program is a new way to teach children about science and music. It has met with success in many cities, sparking interest from kids and educators from all over the world, from South America to East Asia to Africa." For more information, click HERE.

MGMT will release their new record in June, the record has allegedly been influenced by Aphex Twin. 

On March 12, Eric Clapton will release his 21st solo studio record, Old Sock.

!!! Cover & Tracklisting


The always evolving indie favorites, !!!, will release their new record THRI!!ER at the end of April. Take a look at the awesome cover above, the tracklisting and album trailer below:

01 Even When the Water's Cold
02 Get That Rhythm Right
03 One Girl/One Boy
04 Fine Fine Fine
05 Slyd
06 Californiyeah
07 Except Death
08 Careful
09 Station (Meet Me at The)


Eric Burdon on Fallon


Iconic singer and former Animals frontman, Eric Burdon performed on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, take a look!

David Byrne & St. Vincent on Letterman


 Watch David Byrne & St. Vincent perform the appropriate song, "I Should Watch TV," on Letterman.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Quick News

It has been confirmed that Norah Jones will perform her song, the title track to Ted, at the Oscars®.

Morrissey was forced to cancel the remainder of his North American tour after he went into the hospital and it was discovered he has a bleeding ulcer.

Enigmatic French DJ's Daft Punk have reportedly severed ways with their label Virgin and have signed to Columbia and are going to release a new record in May.

Former As Tall As Lions members bassist Julio Tavarez and drummer Cliff Sarcona have formed a new back called theBlack&theWhite.

English band All The Young have entered the studio to begin work on their second album.

After announcing last week they were reuniting with singer Ron Reyes, Black Flag will release a new album later this year.

Speaking to Rolling Stone, Dave Grohl gave some insight as to what it is like to jam with Paul McCartney. Grohl, along with the surviving members of Nirvana - Kirst Novoselic and Pat Smear played with Macca at the 12-12-12 concert. Grohl said, "We started playing for the first two hours, maybe, we were so in awe of Paul that we forgot about Nirvana.It took a few hours before I realized, wait a minute . . . we haven't done this in maybe 20 years, Krist and Pat and I – wow, how cool. And f----n' Paul is here, too.The funny thing about musicians from that generation is that they're pioneers," he said. "The reason why they changed the world is that they were doing something that no one else was doing, and they weren't scared to do it. It's our generation that gets safe with music. A lot of people from my generation of music are so focused on playing things correctly or to perfection that they're stuck in that safe place. They're not willing to, like, f----n' get rad. And Paul definitely is."

Just in time for fun in the sun, Surfer Blood have announced that their new record, Pythons, will be out this summer.

James Blake has confirmed he will be releasing a new record at some point this year.

Iconic Pixies spin-off band, The Breeders have announced their final tour. The bands "Last Splash Tour," will kickstart in Brooklyn in March.

OMD have released the cover to their forthcoming record, English Electric. Take a look:

Sunday, January 27, 2013

EXCLUSIVE! All The Young INTV!


Fueled by the sound of Mod British guitar rock of the past and coupled with the attitude of today, Britain's All The Young have the perfect recipe for what makes a good band tick. The band, which formed when the Dooley brothers had enough of hearing nonsense on the radio and decided to do something about it, from there, All The Young was born. The band, which is a quintessential British band pull no punches and because of that major labels like Warner Bros. took notice as did NME, hailing them as one of 2012's best new bands. Now, as the new year unfolds, we spoke to singer and guitarist Ryan Dooley about the bands background, sound, and their style that would make Ben Sherman himself smile.


Does the name of the band come from the Bowie penned song for Mott the Hoople, “All the Young Dudes?”

The song that came to mind was All The Young Punks (new boots & contracts) by The Clash. The Bowie song is relevant too though I guess. We really liked the collective vibe in the songs so it started the ball rolling with the name. Names like Gang of Four and World Party are really inspiring titles for groups too as they unite the band and the audience in the same way. That's what we were trying to do and 'All the Young' kept sticking with us.

The band’s sound is very slick, who are some of your influences?

Bands like The Clash, The Manic Street Preachers and Joy Division have influenced our look I guess but as a whole it's many of the great UK guitar groups like The Cure, The Smiths and Oasis. These were guitar bands but they had brains, stories and they mattered. Too many of the recent guitars bands talk shit and don't play the guitar properly in my honest opinion. We want to change that...

Hailing from Stoke, England – how as the city influenced your music?

It's a pretty un-inspiring place these days as a lot of its industry is no longer there, but I guess that in turn has influenced us as people and as musicians. There are two choices for us and that's All the Young or the abyss. We chose All the Young!

In your music, you hear a deep root and influence of 90’s Britpop (which, on a personal level excites me), who of that era had that greatest impact on you on?

Oasis had such an impact on us all as kids. They were heroes. They were untouchable to most young lads in the UK back then. Along with that came some of the bands I name in question 2. The Stone Roses, Blur and Suede were big for us as well.  Oasis were most definitely the beginning for a lot of young guitar players though. We were like 11 years old and we would be buying all of their CDs and tapes with our  pocket money

Growing up was it team Oasis or Team Blur?

I guess it was team Oasis but I never hated Blur. They've done some great albums and the fact that the two used to row a lot made the whole scene that bit more special! We need more of that!

In many ways the 90’s Britpop seemed to make a bit of a comeback in terms of sound with bands like The Horrors, Viva Brother, Sulk, Arctic Monkeys, Borne Blonde and yourselves all releasing material in 2011 with some inspiration from the past. Do you ever think it will ever be as big as it once way?

We're not britpop and we're not lad-rock. These terms have been coined to pigeon hole some of the guitar bands of late. We could be compared to a lot of Heavier Rock bands too at times. We just play real songs, play solos and create massive endings to our live show. Britpop and lad-rock bands can't do that. Rock n'roll bands can!

In 2011, Morrissey asked you to open for him and has been singing your praises, what was that experience like?

It was such a crazy few weeks really. He came to one of our first London shows at The Proud galleries and he was waiting in our dressing room after the gig. It was so weird at first but he was a lovely bloke. He wouldn't talk about The Smiths or his own material he just wanted to know about us and that was really exciting. He was quite the gentlemen!

The style and look of the band seems to be just as important as the music, do you feel that the same amount of time of looking sharp goes into sounding good?

Ha ha. No way. Ironing a shirt and combing your hair is nothing compared to writing the songs and making the gigs great. We do conscientiously present ourselves well though. When we play a gig, we want great lights, great sounds.....great everything! That includes outfits...

Your live reviews have gained you much praise back home, what is it about your live gigs that has people talking?

We do things a bit differently at a gig compared to our CD. That's a must for any guitar band for me. We throw lots of extra parts in to our songs and play our songs with a different intensity. I think we come across better at a gig. We want to give people their money's worth!

What has been the best thing about playing in All the Young?

The best thing has been the reception we've had here in the UK so far. We've done some busy shows and the reaction we get is that we're giving guitar fans something that they haven't had for a while. That feels good because this whole thing was born of frustration. We're sick of this over-tuned and over-hyped pop music that pollutes the airwaves the moment. It's time to take the power back...

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Quick News

Iggy and the Stooges have finished their latest record, the album, Ready to Die will be released later this year. It is the punk legends first album since 2007's The Weirdness.

Pulp will officially release their James Murphy produced single, "After You," next week. The iconic Britpop band gave the song away to fans who attended their final homecoming gig in Sheffield, England, last month.

South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are going to produce a show about Dean Ween of Ween and Les Claypool of Primus, which centers around the two musicians fishing.

After the news of Flag, a band featuring Black Flag members Keith Morris,Chuck Dukowski and Bill Stevenson, was announced they were playing shows, a Black Flag reunion featuring Greg Ginn and Ron Reyes on vocals will play UK's Heavy Fest this summer.

Taking to Tumblr, Brian Fallon of Gaslight Anthem confirmed he is making a solo record, as well as writing new Gaslight material. Fallon said, "I’m definitely on a new page, and I have to start there. So, I’m going to make a record by myself, hopefully sometime this year. I’ve just started to work on these songs now, as well as new Gaslight Anthem songs for our next record."

After nearly seven years, The Knife will release their new album, Shaking the Habit in April. Take  a look at the tracklisting below, and in case you were wondering, the album clocks in an over 100 minutes:
01 A Tooth for an Eye 6:04 
02 Full of Fire 9:17 
03 A Cherry on Top 8:43
04 Without You My Life Would Be Boring 5:14
05 Wrap Your Arms Around Me 4:36
06 Crake 0:55
07 Old Dreams Waiting to Be Realized 19:22
08 Raging Lung 9:58
09 Networking 6:42
10 Oryx 0:37
11 Stay Out Here 10:42
12 Fracking Fluid Injection 9:54
13 Ready to Lose 4:36

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Playlist

Welcome to the first playlist of 2013. Take a look at our 25 track playlist and hear it on SPOTIFY!


Depeche Mode Cover & Tracklisting


On March 26, Depeche Mode will release their new studio album, Delta Machine. 

In a press release, principal songwriter and guitarist, Martin Gore said, "Writing this album was incredibly daunting as I wanted the sound of this collection to be very modern. I want people to feel good about listening to this record, to get some kind of peace. It's just got something magical about it." Dave Gahan said, "With this release we've completely shifted our idea of how to create an album. When we hit a wall where we realize the album is beginning to sound too normal, we'll mess it up and really give it that organic Depeche Mode Sound. Delta Machine is no different, and I can’t wait for all of our fans to hear it."
Take a look at the cover above and the tracklisting below:

01 Welcome to My World
02 Angel
03 Heaven
04 Secret to the End
05 My Little Universe
06 Slow
07 Broken
08 The Child Inside
09 Soft Touch/Raw Nerve
10 Should Be Higher
11 Alone
12 Soothe My Soul
13 Goodbye


Quick News

During a Reddit session, Sigur Ros have confirmed they are working on a new record with a much more "Aggressive," sound than their last LP, 2012's Valtari. The band also confirmed that they will be playing new material on their forthcoming U.S. tour and that multi-instrumentalist Kjartan Sveinsson has officially left the band, leaving the Icelandic art rockers down to three original members.

Justin Timberlake's new album, The 20/20 Experience, will be out March 19.

The family of J.Dilla will release a posthumous record, Music From The Lost Scrolls Vol. 1 on February 5, two days shy of what would have been Dilla's 39th birthday.

Havoc of Mobb Deep announced the title of his new record. The album will be called 13 and will be out sometime this year.

Karl Hyde, one half of Underworld, will release his solo debut Edgeland in April. Take a look at the tracklisting below:
The Night Slips Us Smiling Underneath It's Dress'
'Your Perfume Was The Best Thing'
'Angel Café'
'Cut Clouds'
'The Boy With The Jigsaw Puzzle Fingers'
'Slummin' It For The Weekend'
'Shoulda Been A Painter'
'Shadow Boy'
'Sleepless'

Flaming Lips Cover & Tracklisting


On April 2, the legendary Flaming Lips will release their brand new studio album, The Terror. In a press release, singer Wayne Coyne said, "We want, or wanted, to believe that without love we would disappear, that love, somehow, would save us that, yeah, if we have love, give love and know love, we are truly alive and if there is no love, there would be no life. The Terror is, we know now, that even without love, life goes on... we just go on… there is no mercy killing." Take a look at the cover above and the tracklisting below:


01 Look...The Sun Is Rising
02 Be Free, A Way
03 Try To Explain
04 You Lust
05 The Terror
06 You Are Alone
07 Butterfly, How Long It Takes To Die
08 Turning Violent
09 Always There...In Our Hearts 

Gin Wigmore on Kimmel



Watch Gin Wigmore perform her new songs "Man Like That," and "Black Sheep" on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Electric Guest on Conan



Watch Electric Guest perform "The Bait" on Conan!

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

RIP Mars Volta


This time last year the music world was rejoicing after hearing that Mars Volta members Cedric Bixler - Zavala and Omar Rodriguez- Lopez were reuniting with their former band At The Drive-In. Now, a year later, while ATD-I is back on hiatus, it appears The Mars Volta are no longer either.

In October 2012, Rodriguez-Lopez revealed that the band were on hiatus and Rodriguez-Lopez was working on his new band, Bosnian Rainbows. 

Taking to Twitter on Wednesday night, singer Cedric Bixler- Zavala announced his departure from the band and thus announcing the end of The Mars Volta. Bixler - Zavala said, "Thank u 2 all VOLTA fans u deserved more especially after the way u rooted for us on this album. I tried my hardest to keep it going. But Bosnian Rainbows was what we all got instead. I can't sit here and pretend any more. I no longer am a member of Mars Volta. I honestly thank all of you for buying our records and coming to our shows. You guys were a blast to play in front of. We could never had done it with out you. My dream was to get us to the point were Jon Theodore and Ikey Owens came back but sadly it's over. Thank u a million times over for ever giving a fuck about our band. For the record I tried my hardest to get a full scale North American tour going for Noctourniquet but Omar did not want to. I guess a break from mars volta means starting another band and ignoring all the support the fans gave us. I tried my hardest guys. All I can do is move forward with my music and just be happy that mars volta ever happened at all. God Damn we had a blast. Thank u again. I just feel really guilty for not even really saying the truth because a hiatus is just an insult to the fans. My record will see the light of day soon and I'm excited because it sounds nothing like my previous endeavors. And no I'm not joking about any of this, I owe it 2 u guys to all fans to be serious about this. Thank u to all past members who helped Volta along as well. we blasted through like a comet and left our mark!  If u ever see me in person and want to know why I'll tell u my story."

The band released six records together, most recent was 2012's awesome Noctourniquet, now, as we are left with the next chapter in these musicians careers, we thank The Mars Volta for being  band that saw no boundaries and saw no limits to what sound and music can make. In a day and age when most bands want to conform or sell records, Volta made a career out of playing by their own rules and pushing the horizons. We hope you get back together in the future and give fans another mind blowing musical experience.

Quick News

Due to financial reasons, Lollapalooza Israel, which was set to take place in August, has been postponed indefinitely.

The Academy Awards confirmed that Adele will perform the theme to the latest James Bond film, Skyfall, at this years awards in February.

Speaking to MTV News at Sundance, Dave Grohl has confirmed there will be a new Foo Fighters record, despite the fact that the band are on hiatus, a new record will be released and it is unknown when. Grohl said, "We have a plan, we know exactly what's coming next, and I have the music for the next record and we're going to start working on it once we finish doing all this stuff. And we have really awesome, big plans for the next album and I'm really excited about it. If I give you something now, it means I'll actually have to make that deadline."

Post-punk legends Wire will release their new album, Change Becomes Us in March. Take a look at the tracklisting below:
'Doubles & Trebles'
'Keep Exhaling'
'Adore Your Island'
'Re-invent Your Second Wheel'
'Stealth Of A Stork'
'B/W Silence
'Time Lock Fog'
'Magic Bullet'
'Eels Sang'
'Love Bends'
'As We Go'
'& Much Besides'
'Attractive Space'

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Quick Spins



A$AP RockyLong.Live.A$AP.
The long awaited major label debut from one of the most talked about new rappers has finally arrived. While it is safe to say that Long.Live.A$AP. was worth the wait, it also hears the voice of a promising new rapper to take charge of the game. With guest spots from Action Bronson, Roc Marciano, Riff Raff, Drake, and others, A$AP is going to be one of the most talked about artists of the year.
FINAL GRADE: A

BurialTruant / Rough Sleeper
While Burial has not released a proper full record in six years, we keep getting little EP’s and mixes from the mysterious dubstep legend. With his latest offering, a near thirty minute dark odyssey stretched over two songs, it proves that this London DJ and producer can do anything and it will be master class.
FINAL GRADE: A

FIDLAR
The self-titled release from one of our 10 Artists to Watch in 2013 has finally arrived and it does not disappoint. These California garage rockers clearly are having the time of their lives doing what they love and their debut reflects that.
FINAL GRADE: A-

Pantha Du Prince and The Bell LaboratoryElements of Light
When acclaimed German producer Pantha Du Prince announced he was linking up with The Bell Laboratory, it seemed as if the possibilities of a musical collaboration between these two talents would be endless. Their five-song offering is a journey into the minds eye of musicians far ahead of their time.
FINAL GRADE: A-

New OrderLost Sirens
After releasing their final album with Peter Hook, Waiting for the Sirens Call, in 2005, rumors of a B-Sides record were emerging for years. Now, finally, the band has released Lost Sirens which is the B-Sides and outtakes from their final recording sessions with Hooky. Lost Sirens plays more like a mini-album or EP than it does a lost record collection and only makes us hope for more New Order material down the line, with or without Hooky.
FINAL GRADE: A-

DelphicCollections
The second studio record from Manchester, England’s Delphic hears the band taking a page out of the previous Manchunian bands before them, like New Order. Collections is a vibrant mix of dance rock, electronica and hears the band get out of their comfort zone and into some new territory.
FINAL GRADE: B+

Chris Wollard and the Ship Thieves Canyons
While Hot Water Music had a busy 2012, at the tale end of the year, guitarist Chris Wollard was able to release his new solo record with his band The Ship Thieves. Canyons may not have the aggressive nature of what Hot Water Music has to offer, but it is a testament and love letter to the everlasting power of rock and roll.
FINAL GRADE: B+

Tegan and Sara Heartthrob
The Quin sisters return and Canada’s favorite twins have a new record to rejoice in. Heartthrob is a fantastic odyssey of electronic music, passionate lyrics and catchy hooks. Heartthrob is the duo’s best record since 2007’s The Con and will be just as talked about and praised as that landmark record.
FINAL GRADE: B+

Bleeding RainbowYeah Right
Bleeding Rainbow are an interesting band, they are one of the few to take psychedelic 60’s rock and mix it with pop, punk, and shoegaze and still sound fresh and original. Their latest offering, Yeah Right, hears that amalgamation of sound blend together so well, it leaves many of their contemporaries in the dust.
FINAL GRADE: B

Local Natives Hummingbird
The L.A. indie band return with a record that hears them more mature, constructed, and disciplined than ever before. Hummingbird is an ode to nature and the joy of what the world outside brings, the band manages to capture that and channel it into a moving new album that will have fans of their previous work smiling and will certainly hear them gain new followers.
FINAL GRADE: B

Delhi 2 DublinTurn Up The Stereo
The idea of taking Indian pop music (think the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack) and mix it with Irish folk sounds totally crazy, but Delhi 2 Dublin make it sound so brilliant. The fusion of cultures from far parts of the globe proves that music is our universal language and thanks to Delhi 2 Dublin, we have proof of that.
FINAL GRADE: B

Anders and KendallWild Chorus
The debut record from this Americana duo is reminiscent of The Civil Wars with its minimal style, passionate lyrics and male/female vocals, yet, Anders and Kendall seem to kick it up a notch thanks to their devotion to impress new listeners.
FINAL GRADE: B-

Bad ReligionTrue North
The California punk legends return with their new record in three years and like prior Bad Religion records, it is fast, hard charging, and harmonizing on a furious pace, but at points it still sounds like prior Bad Religion records.
FINAL GRADE C+

Dropkick Murphys Signed and Sealed in Blood
The legendary Boston Irish punks return with their eighth record and while it is something to smile over as to how much this band still stays strong after constant line-up changes and label difficulties, it is also a bid redundant that nearly every song sounds the same and they have not evolved over time.
FINAL GRADE: D+

Live Pix - Cannibal Ox @ Beauty Bar - Las Vegas



Our photographer RICH D SMOOV went out to Vegas, baby, Vegas for the weekend! Yet, while he was living the high life, he captured one of the reunion gigs of iconic hip-hop crew, Cannibal Ox, who performed an intimate set at Beauty Bar. Take a look at the pix below: 












Quick News

Vampire Weekend will release their yet-to-be titled third record in May.

Guns 'N Roses will release a 3-D concert film later this year. The film, which was shot during the bands Las Vegas residency will be the first live concert video the band has released in decades.

Speaking to Billboard, Questlove, who is producing the new and much anticipated D'Angelo album, says the record is "99% done." The duo hope to turn the record in next month and have it released this year. Questlove went on to say, "He's one of those artists that have, of course, taken 13 years to follow up a record. It's going to take you about 10 years to digest this record. Totally brilliant. Just the way this society works with music . . . being able to judge if something is a classic after the first listen, you can do that after 30 seconds on this. And the fact that we started this record in 2004, and it still sounds like it came out five years from now, it is a testament to the timelessness of it."

Pete Doherty has begun work on a new Babyshambles record and producing the project is legendary producer, Stephen Street. The project was initially set to be Doherty's second solo record but as now morphed into a full on Babyshambles project.

Yoko Ono will be celebrating her 80th birthday with a music performance at the legendary VolksbĂĽhne in Berlin on February 17 with the Plastic Ono Band. In 2011 we interviewed Ono, take a look at that HERE.

You can now own a piece of hip-hop history. The record collection of the late legendary producer J. Dilla is now up for auction on Ebay. Every purchase comes with a signed and numbered certificate from Maureen Yancey, Dilla's mother. .

Guided By Voices Cover & Tracklisting


The reunited classic line-up of Guided By Voices has been on fire. After releasing three records in 2012, the band will return in 2013 with a new album, English Little League in April. Take a look at the cover above and the tracklisting below:

Side 1: English Little League
1. Xeno Pariah
2. Know Me As Heavy
3. Island (She Talks In Rainbows)
4. Trash Can Full Of Nails
5. Send To Celeste (And The Cosmic Athletes)
6. Quiet Game
7. Noble Insect
8. Sir Garlic Breath

Side 2: Department Of Dust
1. Crybaby 4-Star Hotel
2. Biopgrapher Seahorse
3. Flunky Minnows
4. Birds
5. The Sudden Death Of Epstein's Ways
6. Reflections In A Metal Whistle
7. Taciturn Caves
8. A Burning Glass
9. W/ Glass In Foot

Coheed & Cambria on Conan


Watch the always epic Coheed & Cambria perform "The Dark Side of Me" on Conan!

Monday, January 21, 2013

Quick News

Following the success of their latest record, Four, Bloc Party have confirmed they will enter the studio in the Spring to record an EP.

Aside from Dave Grohl's Sound City Players and documentary making major headlines at Sundance, it is not the only music news coming from the Park City, Utah, film festival. HBO has just acquired a documentary on Pussy Riot called, Pussy Riot - A Punk Prayer. No word as to when the film will air on the network.

The Postal Service will reunite for Coachella and will release their landmark debut, Give Up as a 10th Anniversary Edition LP and special CD package.

Bono can add a new title to his locker, spider species. You are not reading that wrong, nor is his acting in his own Broadway musical on Spider Man, but the singer's name is being used for a new species of spider found in Joshua Tree park in California. The reason for the name comes U2's landmark record, The Joshua Tree.

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld will appear on the new Wale record. Seinfeld, whose wife is a Wale fan told the comedian about the rappers liking to his work, thanks in part to his 2008 mixtape, A Mixtape About Nothing and now, Seinfeld will lend his skills to the D.C.'s rappers forthcoming record.

Lupe caused a fiasco in Washington. Chicago rapper Lupe Fiasco was removed from the stage at a pre-inaugural event for President Obama. Performing a 30-minute version of his song, "Words I Never Said, Fiasco repeated the lines, "Limbaugh is a racist, Glenn Beck is a racist/ Gaza Strip was getting bombed, Obama didn't say shit/ That’s why I ain't vote for him, next one either." He was told to move onto the next song, and when he didn't he was kicked off the stage.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

EXCLUSIVE! Sirkus Sirkuz INTV!

After leaving Northen Ireland DJ collective, The Japanese Popstars in the fall of 2011, DJ Decky Hedrock has been thumping heads with his own brand of electronica. Hedrock, who now goes under the moniker Sirkus Sirkuz worked for most of 2012 on his own crafting a series of explosive EP's for fans and reinvented himself to the EDM world. Now, as 2013 brings on new sights and sounds, Sirkus Sirkuz has his eye on the prize to become one of the worlds most premiere DJ's and party starters. In one of his first interviews on his own, we spoke to Hedrock aka Sirkus Sirkuz about going solo, his new music and new direction. Take a look at our interview below.

What prompted the decision to go solo and do this on your own?

I think it originally came from the idea of being able to sit and write music for myself again and to get away from a major label or writing as a group with the pressures of being signed to a major label. I had built a new studio in March 2011 and started to feel I wanted to collaborate with other artists and also to write some music that was more me. I had an idea around November 2011 to step outside my own comfort zone and see if I could experiment with different styles or genres by working with other producers that I respected or I was actually a fan of. So there was probably a spark of Sirkus Sirkuz back then from that.
Somewhere over this period of time, I wrote “Rapier” and sent it out to a few labels, just to get some 3rd party feedback, and everyone I sent it to really liked it. I had about five different record labels offers to sign it, but of course, I was signed to EMI and part of The Japanese Popstars, so there was a bit of red tape and formality to release a track outside my normal world, as you could imagine.
Once I got the “blessing” from the powers that be, the ball had started to roll and I had actually then done a remix for an act called “Crossfaders”, now under this Sirkuz alias and had chatted about a few collab ideas with some producers and I had taken some time to write a few more of my own tracks. Everything started to get really positive and exciting!

What is it like to be on your own for the first time?

Well its not really my first time. I had been releasing as Hedrock Valley Beats from the late 90s, it was quite successful too. I even had a number 1 in Australia amongst various other chart places in different countries! So writing as Sirkuz, to me, is sort of like a return to my roots in a way.

Was this originally something you were going to do as a side project from Japanese Pop Stars or ultimately the reason you left?

Yeah, we all (The Japanese Popstars) had an idea to have our own “silent side projects” over the last few years, its an idea we all threw around to metaphorically let our hair down and we had plans to individually release separately under pseudonyms without any proper push behind them. It was all pretty casual. Just something where we could release some music quietly and keep The Japanese Popstars completely separate. When Sirkus Sirkuz started to kick off for me, I decided to focus my time on building that up instead. It was quite refreshing and a massive change from what I’ve been at for the last few years with the Popstars. Its allowed me to take full control of what I’m doing and get my creative juices flowing.

Do you still keep in touch with the other guys from Popstars?

Since we normally only really saw each other when we played out or when we got into the studio to work together on music (although that meant nearly every day and most weekends!), nothing really has changed although I haven't seen them in a few months. As we are all in different studios these days or touring and Gareth now lives 4 hours drive from me in Dublin, we don’t get to spend time together anymore, as we are all busy working on our own careers and not really getting a chance to catchup.

How did you end on the name Sirkus Sirkuz?

Well I have a habit of coming up with bizarre names that are hard to spell or basically make no sense e.g. Hedrock Valley Beats and The Japanese Popstars! So, I randomly got to thinking of different ways to spell “Circus” one evening and liked the nonsensical way that it confused me trying to spell it at the beginning. Yep, I couldn’t remember how to spell it properly for about 2 weeks after coming up with it but it still fell off the tongue with ease, obviously because of the Las Vegas casino with the same sounding name. So I kept it. Did you know, Sirkus is actually the Norwegian spelling for “Circus”? And between you and me I was originally thinking of calling it “Hot Beef”!

Why hide behind a name instead of using your real name?

My real name is Declan McLaughlin, which is probably one of the most common names where I’m from in Derry– its not very adventurous and there are far too many of us called that here in Ireland! Plus, there is actually another musician from Derry who goes by his name Declan McLaughlin and people get us confused with each other. There even was one time that I received some of his royalty cheques from the BBC when he had played some shows for them, and the BBC had mistakenly sent me his payment. But being an honest person, I sent them back and explained the confusion. It was then I decided to nickname myself “Decky Hedrock”, as I was “Hedrock Valley Beats” at the time, to try and break away from his name.

Anywho, as Sirkus Sirkuz originally started off as a “silent side project” it was all just a bit of fun at the beginning but then when it started to take off more, I thought I’d keep it the name rather than change it.

We have seen EDM explode over the last few years, as someone making EDM for a while, why the burst in popularity?

That's a big thanks to David Guetta in my book. Dance music has been pretty underground for years with certain songs becoming more mainstream and some electronic artists making a bigger splash than others. But America has never really embraced the dance culture until recently, yet it has been around for the last 20 years and probably even more “underground” in the US than anywhere else in the world. Its strange when you see that the roots of house music come from Chicago and Detroit but it was a tougher country to crack in terms of this style!

So, when David Guetta started to work with the pop icons like the Black Eyed Peas, it opened people up and made it accessible to the more commercial tastes of the general public. Although to me, what David has done with BEP is still pop music and in reality a lot of the music that has been tagged as EDM, is more pop music with some underground house ideas threw in.
I also think that the EDM movement just came a long at the right time, and then when America decided to embraced it, it became a big event.

From my experience of playing more shows in the USA over the last 4 years, I saw the scene grow and grow and get more serious. In my eyes, my gigs got bigger and better, to the point that lots more money was being invested in this “new” exciting scene that was taking off in America. Production values where getting insane and more people wanted to be part of these “audio and visual festivals of light and sound”. In fact, I heard that now some DJs are getting paid more than the likes of Bon Jovi or Van Halen where being paid at the height of their popularity in the 80s!

It is actually great to see and amazing to be part of this movement, atm.

 What is so different about your work that makes you proud to be making it?

That's simple. Because its me. I love making music. So to be able to get up everyday and switch on a studio to make music, it feels like a perfect job.

What are you doing now is loud and furious and thanks to you, Justice, Nero, Skream and Banga, we are hearing EDM get stadium style sound. Is this where you think the genre is headed?

Wow, where could it be headed? I’m not sure. I was never a fan of the dubstep sound thats popular now but I am more into the rave sound. These days I’m a big fan of the “Future Techno” or “Electro Tech” sound. I really like what's coming out of Belgium, at the minute, nearly every artists I’m hearing from there is amazing – it must be something in the water!! Also artists like Turbo Turbo, Attaque, Mumbai Science, Loops Of Fury are making incredible music!

What was it like crafting the three EPs for your trilogy? Did each mean more than the last?

It was only after the tracks where finished and when Projectzion delivered the artwork that the concept for the Trilogy EP came together. It sort of all made sense once the artwork came about. Projectzion had created these wonderful sleeves for the individual releases but I realized that they would be going to waste, as the online stores didn't allow multiple artworks for a single EP. So, I came up with the idea of making 3 EPs released as one on the same day. It sort of is a homage to the days of old when I would receive vinyl EPs that had 5 or 6 remixes of the main track, and then a month later I would receive another EP full of new remixes of the same track. I miss those days and this was a way to capture that feeling but also do something that had never been done before by releasing the 3 EPs together on the same day, from the same label, and linking all the artwork together. Thanks to Jamie (Projectzion) and Kevin at 9G Records they were big fans of this idea and we brainstormed various ways to make it work. Jamie devised the motif idea for the sleeves too which acted like a glue that holds it all together. It was then that it all seemed to fall in place. Plus I then decided to call it the “Trilogy” EP because we are all Star Wars fans, which you can see an influence in the motif, and funnily I had just booked my tickets to goto Star Wars Celebration VI in Orlando, so I was buzzing on Star Wars at the time!

Once we had a plan I asked some artists that I to remix the various tracks and sent them the track I thought they would work best on to hear. Luckily they agreed and every remix was amamzing! Dollface Devereaux, Elektropusher, Galactus, McLennan, Kik Katz, We Take Polariods, Alexander Technique and Superstringz all delivered unbelievable music for this release. The package became even more diverse yet still working great together as a whole package of 12 tracks and now appealed to various different DJs. The feedback is coming through from promos and its very exciting, atm. Many thanks to everyone involved!

When can we expect a full album?

There are no plans for an album yet. My plan is simply to release more Sirkuz tracks. I’m also working on a some more collabs with artists like Shadow Dancer and Run Riot which should be released very soon and I have some remixes coming out over the next 6 months too. Touring as Sirkus Sirkuz is also my focus, so I’ll be putting together my live show and DJing more over the next while. An album could be down the line - yeah, thats still an option but I’d like to just get everything solid first before thinking of a Sirkus Sirkuz Long Player but who knows!
Anyhow, hope to see you on the dancefloor!