Indie
Panda Bear on the Inspirations Behind Animal Collective’s ‘Time Skiffs’
As a band that helped inspire and define the 21st century indie music boom, Animal Collective has certainly earned the right to rest on its laurels. But listening to their new studio album, Time Skiffs, it’s obvious the group’s drive to play around in that bottomless sandbox of 12 notes remains as strong as ever. A frisky, adventurous nine-song set, Time Skiffs is Animal Collective at its exuberant best. You can feel the joy of discovery as Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Avey Tare (David Portner), Geologist (Brian Weitz) and Deakin (Josh Dibb) explore ideas across bright, quirky soundscapes that are a delight to dip your toes into. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Speaking to Billboard from his newly built home studio in Lisbon, Portugal, Lennox says...
Top 12 Live Shows of 2021
Our 2021 Annual Report continues with our Top Live Shows list. As the year winds down, stay tuned for more awards, lists, and articles about the best music, film, and TV of 2021. You can find it all in one place here. Not to be dramatic, but the absence of live music for the majority of 2020 was miserable. In the face of some serious global trauma, many of us were looking for a communal experience to lift us up. Yet, with each scary news headline came an even scarier thought: Would live music ever return? And when it did, would it be the same? Lucky for us concertgoers, the first major wave of COVID-19 vaccinations in early 2021 allowed for us to visualize a world in which concerts could return safely, and as summer rolled around, we emerged from the fray and experienced live music again. ...
Song of the Week: Bon Iver and Nicholas Britell’s Cinematic “Second Nature”
We’re taking a break from our Annual Report to highlight the Song of the Week. In this feature, we talk 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, Bon Iver shares a standout track from the soundtrack of Netflix’s Don’t Look Up. Despite the relatively mixed reviews pouring in, film lovers are definitely discussing Netflix’s incredibly star-studded Don’t Look Up. If the promise of Jennifer Lawrence’s return to the screen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep, Ariana Grande, and Timothee Chalamet (among many, many others) wasn’t enough, the music for the movie is worth taking a look at as well. The score for the film w...
Outside Lands 2021 Day 2 Live Gallery: Vampire Weekend, Lizzo, Rico Nasty, Angel Olsen and More
Day 2 of Outside Lands brought double the energy and double the costumes: with plenty of Ted Lassos, Squid Game tracksuits, Super Mario and Where’s Waldo outfits, San Francisco showed up on Halloween Eve (October 30th) in style. Even more eclectic were Saturday’s epic performances, capped off brilliantly by a one-of-a-kind headlining set from Lizzo. Elsewhere in Golden Gate Park on Saturday was a rock-forward set from Vampire Weekend, a pair of great rap shows from Rico Nasty and Aminè (who replaced Young Thug at the last minute), and an impressive, face-melting performance from Post Animal. Advertisement Related Video The Strokes’ Albert Hammond Jr. even showed up to make cream puffs with chef Elizabeth Falkner at the fest’s new Gastromagic stage — proving that Outside Lands is a festival...
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...
