NEW NOISE w/ Alexander Laurence (The Portable Infinite)
ONE HOUR NEW MUSIC SHOW
This coming Friday at 3pm Pacific Time, the debut of Alexander Laurence’s cutting edge 1-hour radio show, New Noise will broadcast on RadioKAJW on Live365.
January 31st, Friday at 3pm PST.
And it will repeat throughout the weekend every sixth hour.
LEGENDARY BRITISH BAND UNVEIL FIRST NEW LP IN THREE DECADES
FIRST SINGLE, "DON'T BELIEVE," AVAILABLE EVERYWHERE NOW
VERY SPECIAL CONCERT TO INCLUDE EXCLUSIVE FULL ALBUM PERFORMANCE
AT LONDON'S ROYAL ALBERT HALL (MAY 14)
MADE OF RAIN ARRIVES VIA COOKING VINYL ON FRIDAY, MAY 1
The Psychedelic Furs have announced the long awaited release of MADE OF RAIN - the groundbreaking British band's eighth studio album and first new LP in nearly three decades. MADE OF RAIN arrives via Cooking Vinyl on Friday, May 1; pre-orders are available now.
MADE OF RAIN is heralded by today's premiere of the album's anthemic first single, "Don't Believe," available now at all DSPs and streaming services. Additional new tracks will be unveiled in the weeks leading up to the album's release.
The Psychedelic Furs will celebrate MADE OF RAIN with a show at the suitably legendary venue: New London's Royal Albert Hall (May 14). This show will feature exclusive performances of the new album in its entirety along with a second set comprising the band's indelible catalog of greatest hits.. Additional North American headline dates will be unveiled soon. For updates and more, please visit www.thepsychedelicfurs.com.
Founded by visionary singer/lyricist Richard Butler and his brother, bassist Tim Butler, The Psychedelic Furs are among the most significant and lasting bands of the post-punk era, their remarkable canon encompassing seven milestone studio albums and such classic singles as "We Love You," "Sister Europe," "Love My Way," "The Ghost In You," "Pretty In Pink," "Heaven," "Heartbreak Beat," and "All That Money Wants," to name but a few. MADE OF RAIN - which follows 1991's WORLD OUTSIDE, highlighted by the #1 Modern Rock favorite, "Until She Comes" - sees the band returning to the fray as relevant and original as ever before, fueled by their always innovative sonic approach and Richard Butler's evocative, masterful songwriting. Produced by longtime associate Richard Fortus (formerly of Richard and Tim Butler's acclaimed mid-1990s band, Love Spit Love, and a current member of Guns N' Roses) and mixed by Tim Palmer (Pearl Jam, U2, Robert Plant), magnificent reiterations of The Psychedelic Furs' distinct, desperate wall of sound, melding haunting melodies and driving rhythms with ambition, aggression, and subversive lyrical power.
The Psychedelic Furs embarked on an extended hiatus in 1992 but finally reconvened in 2001 for what has proven an almost 20-year series of sold out world tours, each time affirming their lasting influence and astonishing musical vision. Highlights have included multiple North American runs (most recently, a 2019 co-headline trek alongside James), sold out shows at legendary venues like the Hollywood Bowl, show-stealing sets at festivals around the globe, and an acclaimed 2018 performance at London's Royal Festival Hall kicking off the 25th Meltdown Festival, curated by Robert Smith of The Cure. Last year saw the band's sold out tour of the UK and Europe culminate in a triumphant show at London's renowned Roundhouse.
Indeed, The Psychedelic Furs' extraordinary music has endured over numerous generations, inspiring countless artists - including such avowed fans as Nine Inch Nails, Foo Fighters, The Killers, Korn, Annie Lennox, R.E.M, and Bob Dylan - while continuing to be memorably featured on soundtracks spanning director John Hughes' beloved Pretty In Pink to Netflix' Stranger Things ("The Ghost In You") and 2017's Academy Award-winning Call Me by Your Name ("Love My Way").
The Psychedelic Furs consist of Richard Butler (vocals), Tim Butler (bass) Mars Williams (saxophone), Paul Garisto (drums), Amanda Kramer (keyboards), and Rich Good (guitar).
On the 31st January 2000, Primal Scream’s sixth studio album ‘XTRMNTR’ was released. The critically acclaimed album included tracks ‘Kill All Hippies’, ‘Accelerator’ and ‘Swastika Eyes’.
“Weirdly, people always say that ‘XTRMNTR’ is political, but I don’t know why the fuck they say that. I think I must have been mouthing off in interviews at the time. I was probably moaning about NATO and ranting about ‘Swastika Eyes’, maybe I said a few things a bit strong, but it’s a rock ’n’ roll interview and I think you should say things to get attention.
But if you actually look at the work then it is really about what we were embroiled in at the time – which was UK drug culture. It was about how we’d bought into outsider drug culture as rebels, being anti-authoritarian, but really we got into it so deep we were just mutilating our lives.”
Song Machine Episode 1 ‘Momentary Bliss ft slowthai and Slaves’ is out NOW!
Each episode of Song Machine will be accompanied by Machine Bitez – bitesized conversations between cartoon band members and real life collaborators – LISTEN HERE.
Song Machine is the cartoon music contraption from 2D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel which spits out brand new episodes fresh from the studio, as and when they happen. Season 1 will see Gorillaz joined by an exciting and ever-evolving roster of as yet unannounced collaborators captured live in Kong Studios alongside the world’s most successful virtual band. The cameras are rolling 24/7, the fourth wall is broken, the kettle is on, the chaos is real, the door is open… What’s coming next? Stay tuned.
The band’s frontman 2D said, “Hello everyone who is reading these words. I’ll keep this short because once you say things you can’t unsay them and they exist in the universe forever, like Tupperware.”
Gorillaz drummer added Russel, “Song Machine is a whole new way of doing what we do. Gorillaz breaking the mold ‘cos the mold got old. World is moving faster than a supercharged particle, so we’ve gotta stay ready to drop. We don’t even know who’s stepping through the studio next. Song Machine feeds on the unknown, runs on pure chaos. So whatever the hell’s coming, we’re primed and ready to produce like there’s no tomorrow. Y’know, just in case…”
Song Machine is the newest concept from one of the most inventive bands around, with Gorillaz disrupting the paradigm all over again. In direct opposition to the usual traditional recording/single/album release cycle, the band again breaks convention in their own round the back door fashion with the spontaneous delivery of episodes throughout the year. The first song straight out of Kong is ‘Momentary Bliss’, which sees Gorillaz team up with slowthai and Slaves for a glorious start to 2020. View Episode 1 here.
Notes to Editors:
Virtual band Gorillaz is singer 2D, bassist Murdoc Niccals, guitarist Noodle and drummer Russel Hobbs. Created by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett, their acclaimed eponymous debut album was released in 2001. The BRIT and Grammy Award winning band’s subsequent albums are Demon Days (2005), Plastic Beach (2010), The Fall (2011), Humanz (2017) and The Now Now (2018). A truly global phenomenon, Gorillaz have topped charts around the world and toured the globe from San Diego to Syria, picking up hundreds of millions of streams and record sales along the way. Gorillaz have achieved success in entirely ground-breaking ways, winning numerous awards including the coveted Jim Henson Creativity Honor.
* The band are recognised by The Guinness Book Of World Records as the planet’s Most Successful Virtual Act.
Today Dua Lipa reveals the artwork and track listing information for Future Nostalgia, her highly anticipated sophomore LP due for release on April 3rd.
Future Nostalgia will include the global hit single “Don’t Start Now,” and new single “Physical,” which is available to stream today. The new album will be available for download on all digital platforms as well as physical pink neon vinyl, CD, picture disc, gold cassette and deluxe box set. All physical formats are now available for pre-order here.
Dua said of the album, “I’m so excited to launch the pre order for my new album ‘Future Nostalgia.’ It’s been an amazing experience making this record and I can’t wait for you all to hear it… Not long now.”
Full track listing:
1. Future Nostalgia
2. Don’t Start Now
3. Cool
4. Physical
5. Levitating
6. Pretty Please
7. Hallucinate
8. Love Again
9. Break My Heart
10. Good In Bed
11. Boys Will Be Boys
Dua is also revealing the super-charged rainbow colored video for “Physical” today. The striking video was directed by Lope Serrano, a member of the highly acclaimed design collective CANADA, who is also the creative force behind Tame Impala’s “The Less I Know The Better” video. Watch here.
Since arriving in style in 2015, Dua's debut album has eclipsed 4 million sales worldwide with single sales reaching 60 million. It is officially the most streamed album by a female artist in Spotify history. The video for her breakout hit “New Rules” made her the youngest female solo artist to reach one billion views on YouTube, and she made BRIT Award history in 2018 by becoming the first female artist to pick up five nominations, with two wins for British Breakthrough Act and British Female Solo Artist. In 2019, she received two Grammy awards for Best New Artist and Best Dance Recording for “Electricity,” her collaboration with Silk City. “Don’t Start Now,” the lead single from Future Nostalgia,has over 500 million streams globally and currently sits in the Top 5 at Top 40 radio in the U.S.
"Whenever the state of the world gets me down, I listen to him and I always feel better."
- NPR Music
"The World at Night is a shockingly good record. It will give you goosebumps; it will make you gasp; it
might make you cry. The album feels, above all else, real - an authentic document
of what Martin's life looks like."
- Noisey
"The World At Night might just be his masterpiece"
- Vogue Magazine
"A dreamy mosaic"
- Billboard
"The record pushes Martin's solo vision forward considerably."
- Flood Magazine
"Its gorgeous arrangements are fleshed out by strings, horns, and piano, and Walter gives a wearied, poetic performance that almost sounds a little like Leonard Cohen."
- Brooklyn Vegan
January 31, 2020 - Renowned songwriter and Walkmen co-founder Walter Martin released today his critically acclaimed new album The World At Night via Ile Flottante Music. Produced by multi-instrumentalist Josh Kaufman (The National, Hiss Golden Messenger, The War On Drugs), the album is Martin's most richly orchestrated and grandly cinematic collection to date, as well as his most poignant. Dedicated to his dear friend and late Jonathan Fire*Eater bandmate Stewart Lupton, it balances soul-baring intimacy with sophisticated arrangements as they walk a delicate tightrope between despair and hope, faith and doubt, security and uncertainty.
With sweeping strings and lavish horns fleshing out his spare, understated vocal delivery, The World At Night calls to mind everything from Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits to Randy Newman and Harry Nilsson. Lupton's memory looms large on this record and his spirit informs the music in ways both explicit and implicit. "I just couldn't ignore that when I was writing the record," Martin told Noisey. "So as I was working on stuff, that's what I was thinking about a lot. We've done so much together, and creatively we really grew up together, became musicians together. It was just something that I felt, directly and indirectly, made its way into a lot of the songs.
Along with Kaufman, Martin gathered an all-star cast of musicians which includes Sam Kassirer and Zach Hickman (Josh Ritter), Stuart Bogie (Arcade Fire, The Hold Steady), Rob Moose (Bon Iver, The National), and pianist Thomas Bartlett (Glen Hansard, Norah Jones). Album opener "October" sets the tone from the outset, pairing exuberant music and ominous lyrics about fate and mortality. It's followed by the title track "The World At Night (For Stew)" which grapples with the confusion of loss and draws much of its imagery from a collage that Stewart made that now hangs above Walter's writing desk. In a recent interview with Billboard, he stated, "I'm not really a religious person, but I do believe in ghosts and in magic and in plenty of beautiful stuff that I can't see. Writing this album - and especially this song - was an effort to get closer to that stuff. And to Stew."
The World At Night is Walter's fifth solo effort and follows the release of 2018's Reminisce Bar & Grill which he first unveiled during a performance at NPR Music's Tiny Desk. Martin is also an award-winning composer/songwriter with work that has appeared in the Golden Globe winning and Oscar-nominated film Missing Link, Zach Galifianakis' Netflix film Between Two Ferns, and a series of music videos for Cheerios designed to help foster conversations with kids about inclusion, diversity, and kindness which won a Clio Award and a Bronze Award at Cannes. Last week, Martin attended Sundance Film Festival to perform with The National's Matt Berninger for his forthcoming solo album which includes a couple songs he helped co-write.
Smoke Fairies New Album: Darkness Brings The Wonders Home Out Today
Metro ★★★★★ - “A masterpiece." MOJO ★★★★ - “This is Smoke Fairies’ strongest, most urgent album to date." Record Collector ★★★★ - "Jessica Davis and Katherine Blamire continue to beguile.” Uncut 8/10 “Spellbinding" Clash 8/10 “An album you can truly get lost in." Louder Than War 8.5/10 “Plays like a dark, twisted fairytale. It’s tenebrous beauty shares a degree of commonality with the sensual magical realism of Kate Bush."
January 31, 2020, New York NY/London, UK: Smoke Fairies release their first new album in four years today: Darkness Brings The Wonders Home. The set is the sixth studio LP from the band. Smoke Fairies are Jessica Davies and Katherine Blamire who first met at school in their native England and for this LP they traveled to our side of the pond to record in Seattle with producer Phil Ek (The Black Angels, FleetFoxes, The Shins.) Over the course of a rigorous month-long session they adopted a purposely intimate approach to achieving a singular sonic tone.
“Times of darkness are when people are often the most imaginative,” saysJessica Davies in reflecting on the album’s title. “It helps you to see all the wonders of the world you hadn’t noticed before - the things you’ve been blind to because you’ve been on autopilot for so long.”
Darkness Brings The Wonders Home is available in CD format, deluxe CD, Vinyl in black and gold, and cassette and can be purchased at http://www.SmokeFairies.com.
To celebrate the release, the ladies did a session with BBC6's Marc Riley last night:
Smoke Fairies recentlyplayed a sell-out single launch at The Social in association with Rough Trade to celebrate the release of a limited edition 7”. The song landed at #3 in the UK Vinyl Singles chart, surrounded by Coldplay, Queen and Kate Bush. They will play additional UK dates (below) in February just after the release of Darkness Brings The Wonders Home.
Also keeping the band busy is the new podcast 'Smoke Signals' launching to a great response upon the release, ranking in the Top 10 in Music on Apple Podcasts, #1 in the Music Commentary category in fact, beating Dolly Parton & Robert Plant. A new episode was just released. Check it out here: https://smarturl.it/smokesignalspodcast
Smoke Fairies were the first UK act to release a single on Jack White's label Third Man Records and was produced by White who also played guitar and drums. Other notable recordings include a cover of Neil Young’s‘Alabama’ from his Harvest LP which appeared on a special Mojo album to mark the approaching fortieth anniversary of the album. Jessica and Katherine also contributed vocals to the track ‘Valentina', a tribute to Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space on The Race For Space, the second album by Public Service Broadcasting. The band has toured this side of the Atlantic with Laura Marling, Rasputina, and most recently Blitzen Trapper and Dawes. The ladies plan to play stateside again with shows to be announced at a later date.
Smoke Fairies UK Tour Dates: Feb. 1 - Soup Kitchen - Manchester, UK -SOLD OUT Feb. 2 - Oporto - Leeds, UK Feb. 3 - Norwich Arts Centre - Norwich, UK Feb. 5 - The Bullingdon - Oxford, UK Feb. 6 - Hoxton Hall - London , UK - SOLD OUT Feb. 7 - Sunflower Lounge - Birmingham, UK - SOLD OUT Feb. 8 - Rough Trade - Bristol, UK Feb. 9 - Square Tower - Portsmouth, UK - SOLD OUT
