Rest Easy (featuring members of Daggermouth) have released the new song “Hey Maxine.” Stream “Hey Maxine,” watch the lyric video, and pre-order the record.
Review: Alex G – God Save the Animals
Alex G doesn’t do a lot of interviews, but for being a rising enigma in DIY and indie-rock, he seems like a pretty normal guy. In a recent Pitchfork feature, Giannascoli admitted to doing a lot of things on the fly; sure, he’s always writing, but when it comes to the prolific singer-songwriter’s experimental textures and vocal distortions, he’s really just trying to create something he finds interesting. (Ironically, he’s also convinced that every new project he releases is his worst, at least initially.) Giannascoli chose the title God Save the Animals based on intuition, and to further prove the down-to-earth nature of his work, he chose which studios the album was recorded at based on who was available that day.
All this to say, if Giannascoli isn’t being meticulous about his constantly evolving craft, he could have fooled us. At times, God Save the Animals sounds as lush (“Cross the Sea”) as Rachel Giannascoli’s watercolor artwork; elsewhere, it sounds barren, quiet, and lonesome (“Ain’t It Easy”). The album does exactly what most new albums should: it takes the best aspects of Alex G’s past work (his long-term penchant for storytelling, Rocket’s relatively straightforward, country-leaning compositions, and House of Sugar’s use of striking electronic flourishes and pitch-shifted vocals) and miraculously weaves them into something new. The album is rich with details that become more rewarding with every listen, making God Save the Animals not only an album of the year contender, but among the best work of the songwriter’s career.
Read More “Alex G – God Save the Animals”The Smashing Pumpkins – “Beguiled”
The Smashing Pumpkins have released the new song “Beguiled.”
Read More “The Smashing Pumpkins – “Beguiled””Thrice – “Open Your Eyes and Dream”
Thrice have released the new song “Open Your Eyes and Dream.”
Read More “Thrice – “Open Your Eyes and Dream””The Wonder Years Talk New Album
Dan Campbell of The Wonder Years talked with BrooklynVegan about their new album:
Dan also, as many bands who have been at it this long probably do, has been thinking about the day The Wonder Years just don’t get to do this anymore, and he addresses that on “Lost It In The Lights,” where he muses, “What if the magic’s gone? I guess I should be glad that there was any at all.” “I was thinking about career arcs,” Dan tells us. “It can be very easy to, and I have seen other artists almost get angry towards the end, or like bitter, as they realize their career is like winding down. And I was thinking about how I can’t be anything but grateful, because there’s just like, logically no reason this should’ve happened. There’s a lot of times where I’m like, ‘Is this real?’ Like is my fucking life real that I get to do this thing for a living, for all these people, to commiserate with all these people. So I wanted to make sure that I expressed that like, when the day comes that we don’t get to do that anymore, the only thing that I will feel towards those people is gratitude.”
Every Time I Die Get a New Pressing
A new pre-order for Every Time I Die’s New Junk Aesthetic on vinyl is now available.
Relient K Re-Press ‘Air for Free’
A new pressing of Relient K’s Air for Free is now available.
Sponsor: Rest Easy Release New Song “Hey Maxine”
Rest Easy (featuring members of Daggermouth) have released the new song “Hey Maxine.” This is the latest single off the band’s upcoming album titled Hope You’re Okay, set for release on October 28th via Mutant League Records.
Stream “Hey Maxine,” watch the lyric video, and pre-order the record.
Read More “Rest Easy Release New Song “Hey Maxine””Yellowcard Reunite at Riot Fest
Yellowcard reunited at Riot Fest and played Ocean Avenue in full. Some live videos can be found on YouTube. The band also heavily hinted more may becoming from them in the future.
Read More “Yellowcard Reunite at Riot Fest”Midtown/Academy Is… Reunion Show Videos
A bunch of fan-shot videos from the Midtown and The Academy Is… reunion show in Chicago have been uploaded to YouTube.
Read More “Midtown/Academy Is… Reunion Show Videos”Paramore Announce New York Show
Paramore have added a New York City date to their run of intimate performances across the U.S.
Read More “Paramore Announce New York Show”The Furniture – Live Set (Video Premiere)
Today is a great day to share a live performance from Baltimore experimental rock duo, The Furniture. The band recently released their debut, self-titled LP via the label, Spanish Prayers. On this latest performance-based video, the band shared, “From a distance this band has two moving parts but when you’re able to peer over our shoulders and under our noses, there’s a lot more going on. It’s almost like a micro-world happening with the various instruments and sound makers. The video captures this beautifully, putting the viewer in the micro-world.” If you’ve been looking for that next great rock band that transcends musical genres, look no further than the ultra-talented The Furniture.
Read More “The Furniture – Live Set (Video Premiere)”9/18/22 (Ten Songs)
Ten songs is a weekly playlist from Jason Tate featuring songs enjoyed over the previous week. It is included in every edition of the Liner Notes newsletter and is free to sign up for via email.
This playlist is available on Spotify and Apple Music.
Read More “9/18/22 (Ten Songs)”Liner Notes (September 18th, 2022)
This week’s (kinda late) newsletter has first impressions of the new iPhone 14 Pro, some thoughts on iOS 16, and some commentary on one of the better release weeks this year. There’s also a playlist of ten songs I enjoyed this week, and this week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.
If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.
Read More “Liner Notes (September 18th, 2022)”Review: The Killers – Battle Born
It’s easy to love a thing that everyone else loves. In the music world, there is something thrilling about the communion that comes with shared adoration: about falling head over heels for something that resonates with a lot of other people at the same time as it resonates with you, or of getting the affirmation that comes from seeing all your friends and family and acquaintances fall in love with an album or artist you already adored. It’s far harder to stand your ground when you love something that everyone else says is dogshit. It’s difficult to keep carrying the torch for an album when even the artist who made it has come to view it as sub-par.
I bring all of this up because this weekend marks 10 years since The Killers released Battle Born, their fourth album and an LP that just about everyone – frontman Brandon Flowers included – is convinced is mediocre or downright bad. They’re all wrong: This album fucking rules. It has always ruled, and it will always rule, and it is the perfect bridge between The Killers that were and The Killers that are today. There have been times, over the years, where I would have called it the band’s best album. (I believe that my review of the album for AbsolutePunk.net, still listed as the most positive write-up the album got on Metacritic, made precisely that claim.) From the vantage point of 2022, following two game-changing, band-redefining albums from The Killers in 2020 and 2021, I’m not even sure what my favorite Killers album is anymore. Best or not, though, Battle Born deserves more credit than it got in 2012, and I’m here to make the case for it – even if no one else will.
Read More “The Killers – Battle Born”