Indie
Confidence Man Signs With I OH YOU, Books a ‘Holiday’
The new deal comes ahead of “Holiday,” the first track lifted from Confidence Man’s forthcoming sophomore album. Expect this “Holiday” to blow your hair back. “We’ve been wanting to try a ‘hands in the air’ banger forever. Everybody does. It’s quite difficult,” Bones explains. “But for some reason, this song has dropped out of the heavens.” Self-produced, and mixed by Ewan Pearson, “Holiday” was “pretty much perfect from the get-go,” he notes. Speaking over the phone from Sydney, singer Janet Planet describes the new cut as “Underworld meets M.I.A.” True, that’s an unusual vibe, she admits, “but for some reason it works.” “Holiday” is due out Nov. 11. Confidence Man “embody everything an I OH YOU artist should,” comments label founder Johann Ponniah, “they make...
Warren Costello Steps Down From Australia’s Mushroom Group
He returned to the fold in March 2000, when he joined forces with Gudinski to launch Mushroom Group’s Liberation label, and later, as managing director of the indie powerhouse’s label activities. In 2017, Costello and Gudinski co-founded the Bloodlines label, offering creative services to its stable of heritage acts. Just two months ago, Bloodlines had a No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart with Jimmy Barnes’ Flesh And Blood, the title track for which Barnes dedicated to Gudinski at the late industry legend’s state memorial in March. Throughout his career, Costello showed a knack for spotting an opportunity. In August of this year, he launched Mushroom Group’s new film distribution and production company, Long Play Music Films, with Phil Lynott: Songs For While I’m Away, Emer Reynolds’ award-win...
In Lieu of ‘Roo: A Recap of Phoebe Bridgers, Brittany Howard, and Sylvan Esso in Nashville
Following the cancellation of Bonnaroo 2021, in which Hurricane Ida rendered the campgrounds and festival site unusable just days before kickoff, artists are seeking ways to still connect with fans. Among the acts already in middle Tennessee announcing last-minute shows are Leon Bridges, The Band Camino, and Zach Bryan. Saturday, September 4th featured one of the more stacked impromptu lineups of the weekend when Ascend Amphitheater in Nashville welcomed Sylvan Esso, Brittany Howard, and Phoebe Bridgers (with a negative COVID test or proof of vaccination required for entry). Stretching over four hours, the show allowed ample time onstage for all the artists. As Phoebe Bridgers put it, glancing at the nearly 7,000 people gathered in downtown Nashville, “Bonnaroo would’ve been tight…but this...
The Dodos Announce New Album Grizzly Peak, Drop “Annie” and “The Surface”: Stream
The Dodos have announced their forthcoming new album, Grizzly Peak, and shared a pair of singles in “Annie” and “The Surface.” The indie rock duo’s eighth studio effort is slated to arrive November 12th via Polyvinyl Record Co., and serves as their first full-length since 2018’s Certainty Waves. Lead single “Annie” finds The Dodos at both their brightest and most regretful, pleading for forgiveness over virtuosic instrumentation and production. “Oh Annie/ Could it be something/ That I had been missing/ All along?/ Annie/ Can you forgive me?/ We were going to ride it/ Till the end,” Meric Long croons on the chorus. Meanwhile, “The Surface,” is a jaunty ode to depression and burnout, as Long sings of being, “Tired, almost out of ideas,” and wondering “how do I fake my death?” “We had a lot o...
Big Red Machine’s How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? Brings Late Summer Melancholy
On their sophomore outing as Big Red Machine, Aaron Dessner (The National) and Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) take their time. The end of August is here — much like last year’s folklore, an album with writing and production contributions from both artists, this period has arrived with an album that revels in the dog days of summer. Bon Iver and The National are two acts that followed similar timelines during their respective ascents within the indie rock world. (Perhaps the best way to contextualize their initial connection is with the reminder that Dessner and Vernon first became friends over MySpace.) There’s a gentleness associated with their music, both from their individual endeavors and from work together, and How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? fits that same bill, bobbing steadily ove...
Song of the Week: Halsey Delivers an Explosive Pop-Punk Jam in “Easier than Lying”
Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Halsey refuses to hold back with pop-punk jam “Easier than Lying.” Halsey lets loose in a multitude of ways on their new album If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, but nowhere more so than on “Easier than Lying.” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross co-wrote every song on the album, and “Easier than Lying” offers the perfect spot for their industrial sensibilities to reach full throttle. It’s wildly energetic and cathartic — and Halsey, who has proven to be adept at bouncing from genre to genre, truly shines in the pop-punk chaos of it al...
The Fiery Furnaces Announce First Tour Dates in a Decade
The Fiery Furnaces are hitting the road. Today, the reunited indie rock duo announced they’re heading out on a three-date mini tour across the US this fall, which mark their first shows together in a decade. Following their previously-announced appearance next month at the Pitchfork Music Festival, the band will kick off the trio of dates on November 13th at Brooklyn Steel in New York City, followed by shows in Chicago on the 15th and Los Angeles on the 17th. For all three dates, Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger be joined by special guest Fred Armisen. “We’re very excited to be playing again, to get a chance to do new things with old stuff, or old things with new people,” the band said in a statement. “And we’re very happy to have Fred opening the shows. We’ll be six on stage, joined by Bri...
Marissa Nadler Announces New Album The Path of the Clouds, Shares “Bessie, Did You Make It?”: Stream
Marissa Nadler is gearing up to release her ninth studio album. The Path of the Clouds, the forthcoming LP from the Boston singer-songwriter, arrives October 29th via Sacred Bones and Bella Union. As a preview of what’s to come, Nadler has shared the album’s opening track, “Bessie, Did You Make It?,” along with the song’s pensive music video. Nadler wrote the bulk of The Path of the Clouds in quarantine, during which she found an odd solace in the documentary series Unsolved Mysteries. The show’s frequent topics of cold cases and paranormal wonders pushed Nadler to go for a similarly eerie approach with The Path of the Clouds, which sees her grow in her musical exploration. Here, reality and the metaphysical feel less distinct from each other, driven by simultaneous anxiety and curiosity a...
Example Signs With BMG: Exclusive
Example (real name Elliot Gleave) and his family is now based in Australia, where he struck the recording agreement with the domestic affiliate of BMG. “I never thought I’d sign another record deal,” he says in a statement. “I’d had so many experiences over the years—many good but also many negative—that I was looking forward to being independent for the foreseeable.” After meeting Heath Johns, BMG managing director Australia & New Zealand, and the label’s team in Sydney, “I was blown away with their ethos and their ambition,” Example recounts. “I have been given a fair deal that puts me and my team in the driving seat albeit with an incredible world class team at our disposal”. Ahead of the BMG deal, Example joined the management roster for boutique Brisbane, Australia-based mus...
Laura Marling and Mike Lindsay on LUMP’s Boombastic Shoegaze Wonder-Journey
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Pocket Casts | Radio Public | RSS Laura Marling and Mike Lindsay catch up with Kyle Meredith to talk about Animal, their sophomore release as LUMP. Advertisement Related Video The British electronic duo take us through taking musical inspiration from Bowie’s Berlin Years, visualizing the world of LUMP as a sort of Stranger Things’ Upside Down, and the possibilities of expanding the visual presence of the project. For her part, Marling also discusses finding meaning within her free-form lyrics, portraying a more masculine side of her personality, and the American hedonism that weaves its way through the songs. Stream the interview with LUMP above, or via the YouTube player below....
Courtney Barnett Takes a Stroll Down ‘Rae Street’ on ‘Tonight Show’: Watch
Barnett and her band zoomed in from the studio, a rustic space laden with more antiques than a museum. Things Take Time, Take Time is the followup to 2018’s Tell Me How You Really Feel, which cracked the Top 10 in the U.K. and Australia and peaked at No. 22 on the Billboard 200 chart. It’ll drop Nov. 12 on Mom+Pop Music / Marathon Artists in North America, and in Australia via Barnett’s own, Melbourne-based indie Milk! Records (with distribution through Remote Control Records), a two-time winner of best independent label at the AIR Awards. Tour dates in support of the new album will kick off Sept. 25 at El Cosmico in Marfa, TX. Watch Barnett’s late-night performance below. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. ...
Low Want “More” From Life on New Single: Stream
Slowcore legends Low have been teasing their upcoming album HEY WHAT before it comes out in September with a string of new singles. Their latest preview of the record is “More,” and it might just be the best track we’ve heard from it yet. Stream it below. “More” runs out the gate with blistering distortion and blown-out fuzz that, despite their volume, are actually quite melodic and pretty. Alan Sparhawk’s guitar is emotive as ever thanks to that textural filter, and Mimi Parker’s timeless falsettos further draw out that airy feeling. “I saw more than what I ever sought,” she sings. “I should have asked for more than what I got.” It’s a dense two minutes, there’s no doubting that, but it goes by in a flash. Accompanying the Low song is a music video by Julie Casper Roth. The stop-motion cl...
