Indie
Becca Mancari Unveils New EP Juniata: Stream
Indie folk songwriter Becca Mancari has unveiled her new EP Juniata, out via Captured Tracks. Stream it below via Apple Music or Spotify. The project, which she announced last month, is her first collection of new material since her 2020 sophomore LP, The Greatest Part, which earned her Artist of the Month honors and placement on our best albums of 2020 list. That record was produced by Paramore’s Zac Farro, and it saw the Nashville-based singer-songwriter strike a fine balance between dusty indie-folk and brisk indie rock. This new offering slows things down quite a bit. The only brand new track on here is its lead single “Annie”, while the other three are acoustic renditions of The Greatest Part cuts “First Time”, “Bad Feeling”, and “Stay with Me”. The project is a great opport...
Charles Caldas, Ex-Merlin CEO, Talks Exceleration Music
Prior to leaving at the end of 2019, Caldas had struck licensing deals with Spotify, YouTube, Deezer, SoundCloud, Pandora, Facebook, Tencent and more. Merlin is a multiple winner of the A2IM Libera Awards’ Independent Champion honor, Caldas is a recipient of the Indie Champion honor at the AIM Independent Music Awards. Post-Merlin, Caldas stayed true to his independent roots by joining the newly-formed Exceleration Music, spearheaded by former Concord Music Group CEO Glen Barros with a calling to “invest in the future of independent labels and artists.” Unveiled earlier in the year, its mission statement touts a values-led approach to investment and acquisition, and a mindset of preserving and building on the legacies of labels and the artists the venture works with, with an eye to a...
Michael Gudinski’s State Memorial Set For Rod Laver Arena
The 15,000-capacity first opened its doors for a concert back in 1988, when AC/DC rocked the house. In the years since, Gudinski’s Mushroom Group and Frontier Touring have brought some of the world’s biggest artists to Melbourne & Olympic Parks, including Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Taylor Swift, and Ed Sheeran. Gudinski passed away last Monday (March 1), at the age of 68. As news spread, Rod Laver Arena and the neighboring AAMI Park were lit up as a mark of respect. Last Wednesday, Victoria’s Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed the music man would be remembered “somewhere iconic that we can come together and celebrate his life.” He continued, “It will be a celebration of his life; the details will be finalized in coming days. It’s got to be COVID-safe of co...
Julien Baker Gives Stirring Performance of “Hardline” on Seth Meyers: Watch
Julien Baker supported the release of her brilliant new solo album Little Oblivions with an appearance on Monday’s edition of Late Night with Seth Meyers. Accompanied by a full band, Baker delivered a stirring performance of the album’s opening track, “Hardline”. Catch the replay below. Little Oblivions, Baker’s third solo album to date, was released last Friday. In her review of the album for Consequence, Natalia Barr called Little Oblivions a remarkable and devastatingly honest listen that finds Baker searching for answers that refuse to come easily. Also revisit Baker’s recent appearance on Going There with Dr. Mike, where she spoke candidly about her history with depression and OCD. [embedded content] Related You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Onlin...
Phoebe Bridgers Guitar Smashes Her Way Into SNL Lore With Epic Two Song Performance: Watch
Phoebe Bridgers proved to be one of the few bright spots of 2020, as the talented Los Angeles-based songwriter managed to become a full-blown superstar while hunkered down in quarantine. She released one of the year’s best albums with Punisher. She then proceeded to deliver memorable covers of Radiohead, John Prine, and Goo Goo Dolls; launched her very own record label; made a music video with Phoebe Waller-Bridge; and recorded and released another collection of music with Copycat Killer EP. All the while, she masterfully navigated the limitations of performing remotely, setting a standard that few have been able to match (see: her bathtub performance on Kimmel, her karaoke rendition of “Kyoto” on Colbert, and her NPR Tiny Desk set, to name just a few). For her efforts, Bridgers was honore...
Rostam Shares New Solo Song “These Kids We Knew”: Stream
Last month, Rostam set Amanda Gorman’s now-famous Inauguration poem to music using piano arrangements. The former Vampire Weekend member is back today, this time with a dazzling original song of his own dubbed “These Kids We Knew”. Stream it below. This new offering revolves around a musical pulse meant to reflect the innocence of youth and the impermanence of stability. According to a press release, Rostam wrote “These Kids We Knew” in a “fever-dream state” in March of last year — during which he was recovering from COVID-19 — while reflecting on the push and pull of societal responsibility. “I was thinking of three generations while I was writing this song,” he explained. “There’s a generation of adults who don’t see global warming as their problem because they think they won’t...
The Staves on Being Influenced by The War on Drugs
Kyle Meredith With… The Staves Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS The Staves return with Good Woman, a record that finds the trio of sisters at their most honest amidst volatile times. Both Jessica and Camilla Staveley-Taylor join Kyle Meredith to discuss whether or not they wanted to continue as an outfit, having songwriting in their lives, working with producer John Congleton, experimenting with their sound, and taking inspiration from The War on Drugs. Bonus: We’ve also included a 2017 interview with Jessica. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in which WFPK’s Kyle Meredith speaks to a wide breadth of musicians. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Meredith digs deep i...
Orla Gartland Drops New Song “More Like You”: Stream
Emerging Irish songwriter Orla Gartland has dropped the new song “More Like You”. Born in Dublin, Gartland began writing music at 14. Her early attempts to play in Dublin’s 18+ clubs were rebuffed, but this rejection turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as she began cultivating an online presence that continues to serve her today. After a pair of buzzy EPs — 2019’s Why Am I Like This? and 2020’s Freckle Season — she started working on her debut album. “More Like You” was co-written by Tommy King, who has toured and collaborated with HAIM and Vampire Weekend. The song channels envy into an effervescent exploration of insecurity of self-love. “I heard it from a woman on the internet,” she sings, “She told me to eat well and try to love myself/ Then maybe I won’t wish that I wa...
Kelsey Lu and Yves Tumor Share New Collaborative Song: Stream
Kelsey Lu and Yves Tumor have teamed up for a new song called “let all the poisons that lurk in the mud seep out”. It’s a murky experimental track that also features contributions from Kelly Moran and Moses Boyd. Lu’s 2019 album Blood and Tumor’s 2020 opus Heaven to a Tortured Mind are quite different in many ways, but they share a low-lit ambiance and a sense of cathedral-like beauty. On this collaborative single, both of their steamy falsettos sound part of the same whole, blending and swirling around one another over woozy piano lines. Eventually, some congas and electronic production enter the fray, and the track concludes with a tastefully busy arrangement. Take a listen to the full tune below. In a statement, Lu described the intense emotions the song is...
Maggie Rogers Shares Notes from the Archive: Recordings 2011 – 2016: Stream
Maggie Rogers has uncorked a collection of old and never-before released songs on her new collection Notes from the Archive: Recordings 2011 – 2016. Scroll onwards to stream it using Apple Music and Spotify. While many artists build a career out of dingy venues, cramped van rides, and the slow accumulation of fans, Rogers had one of those classic A Star Is Born moments. In 2016, Pharrell Williams gave a master class at New York University, and when a 22-year-old Rogers played him “Alaska”, he spent the entire duration of the song shaking his head in disbelief and mouthing “wow” to the cameras. Since then she’s been on a steady upwards ride that culminated in a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist this year. But while her major label debut Heard It in a Past L...
Top 50 Albums of 2020
As we return from Thanksgiving and head into December, our Annual Report will spend the next few weeks looking back upon the strange year that was 2020 and the music, film, and television that came with it. We begin today with our Top 50 Albums of 2020. You’ve heard it from me dozens of times already: 2020 has not been a normal year. And by that, I mean absolutely nothing has been normal. The music world hasn’t been immune, of course. I’ve spent more time cancelling flights and accommodations and trying to get tickets refunded than I actually did watching live music this year. Instragram became a concert venue, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions had no performances, and livestreams (which are pre-taped) seem to be the often-underwhelming future of live music at least for the forseea...
Jeff Tweedy Performs “Gwendolyn” on Late Night with Seth Meyers: Watch
Jeff Tweedy continued his quarantine domination by guesting on Late Night with Seth Meyers to promote his recent ventures, perform the song “Gwendolyn”, and recall a hilarious Grammy memory. The Wilco frontman has kept extremely busy throughout 2020 by releasing a new solo album and a new book. The record, titled Love is… Please click the link below to read the full article. Jeff Tweedy Performs “Gwendolyn” on Late Night with Seth Meyers: Watch Eli Enis You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of...
