“The Warlocks remain a superior alloy of Velvets cool and narcotic Spaceman 3/MBV tropes, as their first LP in five years able demonstrates.” Mojo ****
“The Warlocks return with an album that intensifies their drift into darker and experimental territory…” Uncut
“The Warlocks have created a maelstrom of sound which uses space to great effect to give you sense of disillusionment. It’s a cunning piece of work and one you will find yourself returning to.” Artrocker
“…Skull Worship is a welcome return, the musical landscape would be a much duller place without them.” DrownedinSound
“Skull Worship sees the LA noisemakers sleeker and more narcotically sublime than ever.” The Skinny
LA based, drone lords, The Warlocks will be returning to our shores this May! Since the release of their last album Skull Worship in 2013, the band have just signed a three album deal with the legendary Cleopatra Records. After their UK tour in May and US tour in June (including playing at Levitation Vancouver Festival), the band will back in the studio to work on on new material.
UK Tour Dates:
Saturday 2nd May – Birmingham, The Rainbow
Sunday 3rd May – Bristol, The Exchange
Monday 4th May – Cardiff, The Globe
Tuesday 5th May – Brighton, Sticky Mikes Frog Bar
Wednesday 6th May – Nottingham, Bodega
Thursday 7th May – London, Electrowerkz
Friday 8th May – Manchester, The Roadhouse
Sunday 10th May – Glasgow, Stereo
Formed in 2005, ScreamingFemales is singer/guitarist, Marisa Paternoster, bassistMichael Abbate and drummer, Jarrett Dougherty.
On the cusp of celebrating 10 years as a band, Screaming Females announces Rose Mountain, the New Jersey DIY-punk trio’s sixth LP due 23rd February on Don Giovanni Records. The band self-produced their previous releases (with Steve Albini engineering their 2012 LP Ugly and the 2014 concert album Live at the Hideout) but overturned the long-standing, self-imposed rule this time by bringing in Matt Bayles (Mastodon, the Sword) as a producer. Setting out with a vision so clear that it almost became a studio mantra, the resulting songs are concise, crisp and melodic, in essence creating at once their most complex and accessible record to date.
Experience the live ferocity of their stage shows as ScreamingFemaleswill be heading to our shores this April – UK dates below:
CaliforniaX‘s highly anticipated sophomore album Nights in the Dark will be released 2nd February 2015 in Europe via Don Giovanni Records. The new record not only stimulates the senses but it allowed the quartet to delve deeper into more conceptual work, the contrast between light and dark, contentment and longing. A follow up to their critically acclaimed eponymous debut, JustinPizzoferrato (Dinosaur Jr, Speedy Ortiz) once again helms the engineering deck, ensuring the new record retains all the distorted overdrive of the band’s characteristic fuzzed out, hard guitar-driven sound.
Drawing on influences from 70s rock to 90s alternative, “Hadley, MA” is an epic ballad with emotive lyrical harmonies and tremendous guitar solos. Yet another example of the indie rock scuzz-meets-growling grunge that the band is revered for.
Formed by friends Lemmy Gurtowsky and Dan Jones upon relocating to Amherst, MA,CaliforniaX have crafted a more mature sophomore record, that find solace in a heavy, lush and melodic home with the addition of Zach Brower on guitar and Cole Lanier on drums. An introspective vision is confronted as the band maneuvers, seamlessly as ever, from fuzzy power chords to conceptual ballads.
The Northern Irish trio, Axis Of have been winning hearts throughout Europe since the release of their debut album, Finding St. Kilda in 2012. Their records espouse their deep love of music, meeting new people and travel: “The touring we do completely shapes our music and lyrics,” explains Ewen Friers (lead singer and bassist). And on their latest offering, The MidBrae Inn this is taken to fascinating new emotional heights.
Recorded in the grip of an Irish winter, the daily trek to the recording studio proved to be a mission in itself: “There were deep snow storms and havoc on old coastal roads. One morning our van’s exhaust was ripped off by a wave.”
The band succumbing to the sea is an apt metaphor for The Mid Brae Inn. Across its eleven tracks, distorted bass swells and soars whilst guitars foam with effervescent hooks. One can almost taste the salt in the air on album highlights: “Wetsuit”, “Beachcombing” and “Quarrel Reef”.
Axis Of hail from the North Coast of the island, an area which in recent years, has bred some of the country’s most emotive and inspiring acts. Like others in their scene, Axis Of mix technology with technique and a unique brand of storytelling, deeply rooted in their surroundings: “16,000 years behind, war figures and cyber crimes. The bubbles under Yellowstone, the murderers that we bring home. The gas, the arms, the price, demands. Barry Horne and old showbands.’” – from “The Grey Man’s Path at Night”.
The sound that the bass-player-fronted three-piece has crafted is simultaneously melodic and thunderous – drawing comparison to the sound Biffy cultivated on their crossover Only Revolutions.“Over the last few years we’ve really pushed that idea of ‘poppy but heavy’. I think this record takes that idea and stretches it further at both ends” explains Niall. “I feel we’re now the band we were hinting at becoming, it just required a few hundred shows to get us to this point.”
A record built to be heard live, by men on a mission. Axis Of: coming soon, to a town near you (hopefully in a van with an intact exhaust).
The Mid Brae Inn will be released on the 23rd February 2015 via Smalltown America.
Confirmed tour dates – more to come!
31st December – Belfast, Empire (Album Launch Night)
25th March – Aberdeen, Tunnels
26th March – Edinburgh, Sneaky Pete’s
27th March – Sheffield, Corporation
28th March – Cardiff, Moon Club
29th March – Chester, Compass
30th March – Wolverhampton, Civic
31st March – Southampton, Joiners
1st April – Kingston, Fighting Cocks
15th April – Guildford, Boilerom
16th April – Nottingham Rock City
“Screaming Females are best known for their aggressive punk rock and Marissa Paternoster’s guitar heroics” – Rolling Stone
“Vocalist Marissa Paternoster roars over chunky guitar chops [on Empty Head] — her iconic snarl driving above colossal riffs — and the outro’s face-melting licks are the frayed ribbons that tie it all together.” – SPIN, December Singles Mix
“Though album cut “Empty Head” is still marked by face-melting shredding, classic rock structures, and a ruggedly stoned chorus, it’s also among the most clear-headed songs the trio has released to date.” – FADER
“Swirling together bits of crusty punk, booming metal, and more melodic hardcore, the trio’s forged a lean, mean anthem with little more than some static guitars, verbose percussion, and Marissa Paternoster’s visceral crooning.” – Consequence of Sound
On the cusp of celebrating 10 years as a band, Screaming Females announces Rose Mountain, the New Jersey DIY-punk trio’s sixth LP due 23rd February on Don Giovanni Records. The band self-produced their previous releases (with Steve Albini engineering their 2012 LP Ugly and the 2014 concert album Live at the Hideout) but overturned the long-standing, self-imposed rule this time by bringing in Matt Bayles (Mastodon, the Sword) as a producer. Setting out with a vision so clear that it almost became a studio mantra, the resulting songs are concise, crisp and melodic, in essence creating at once their most complex and accessible record to date.
Upon listening to the blazing guitar and ecstatic percussion on Rose Mountain, the word “restraint” may not initially come to mind. And while melody has always been a central part of the band’s music, the musicians have often layered them into massive thickets of interlocking sound on previous albums. However, on Rose Mountain the band was ready to try something more streamlined with Paternoster’s vocal melodies and lyrical themes being pushed into the forefront, while never skimping on the raw intensity they have become known for.
Formed in 2005, Screaming Females is singer/guitarist, Marisa Paternoster, bassist Michael Abbate and drummer, Jarrett Dougherty. Stay tuned for more info and opportunities to experience the band’s ferocity live on stage – UK dates to be announced soon.
The Johann Rashid-directed music video for ‘Back To You’, which premiered on Fader, captures Twerps and their radiant local surroundings with a romantic sensibility. The track “recalls the steady, sunny momentum of obvious guitar-pop forebearers like The Chills and The Feelies. “ (Fader)
‘Back to You’ has a vibrant and lighthearted way of addressing the relationship between insecurity and desire. Singer, Martin Frawley contemplates being tied down, letting the listener decide what exactly he’s tethered to.
Twerps will release their debut full-length for Merge entitled, Range Anxiety, on 2nd February 2015 in Europe.
Formed in Melbourne in late 2008, Twerps enjoyed immediate success, releasing a series of vinyl singles and cassettes on various labels around the world. The release of their 2011 self-titled debut album led to appearances at SXSW and CMJ and tours with Real Estate, Mac DeMarco, and others. Not wanting to wait until 2015 to unleash new songs on present and future fans, Twerps quickly recorded the delightful Underlay EP, which Pitchfork described as “songs fraught with universal, emotionally familiar sentiments.”
Twerps are Martin Frawley (guitar, vocals); Rick Milovanovic (bass, vocals, synthesizer); Alex Macfarlane (drums, guitar, vocals); and Julia McFarlane (guitar, vocals, keyboards).
The song ‘Breathe In’ tells a tale of frustration, fear and urgency. Shot in and around Cardiff, the Welsh creative team at Storm and Shelter have carefully crafted a visual representation of this, interwoven with performances from the band. A man and woman embrace each other underwater, but the woman becomes lifeless, starved of oxygen. In desperation the man pushes her to the surface, chasing the breath that will save her. The video was directed and produced by Josh Bennett, Gruff Vaughan and Nick Patterson.
Golden Fable are Rebecca Palin, Tim McIver and Jack McCarthy, and together they create music described by The Line Of Best Fit as “nothing short of inspirational”. Hailing from the foothills of mountainous north Wales, Golden Fable compose their music within its abundant, richly varied landscape. Pairing these organic influences with modern instrumentation, debut album, Star Map released in 2012 was constructed from electronic beats, synths and processed effects alongside guitars, pianos and strings.
Twelve months of writing and evolving followed, and the band resurfaced from their creative retreat with second album, Ancient Blue. Recorded with David Wrench (Bat For Lashes, Caribou) and Jimmy Robertson (Anna Calvi) in Snowdonia, Ancient Blue is impassioned, intense and bolder than its predecessor. It is both strident and intimate, reflecting the intrinsic connection between human forces and natural forces.
Throughout Ancient Blue, Golden Fable move effortlessly between the heart-wrenching stillness of Low or Dead Can Dance, and the textured, melodic electronica of The Album Leaf or M83. ‘Breathe In’ utilises synths, electronic drums and a much fuller guitar sound to create a buoyant, boisterous mood.
Golden Fable’s deliciously haunting sound has received extensive radio play and wowed crowds at End of the Road, Bestival, Green Man and SWN festivals. The band have toured with Field Music, Cherry Ghost and Wave Machines.
The Breathe In EP includes the new single ‘Breathe In’ and three non-album tracks, it will be released on 27th October. The album, Ancient Blue will be released on 10th November on Full of Joy Records.
Golden Fable’s forthcoming shows:
Friday 14th November – Wrexham, Galeri 3B
Tuesday 25th November – London, Madame JoJos (White Heat)
Tuesday 2nd December – Chester, Telford’s Warehouse
Splendid second studio set from Sweden’s hardest-rocking ritualist ruminants” – Mojo
“The African elements consistently elevate Commune to a higher, fierier plane” – Wire
“Masked festival favourites continue their worldwide masquerade” – Uncut
“A follow-up record that oozes with a confident, natural progression and succeeds in being both a continuation and evolution of ‘World Music’” – Loud & Quiet
“Commune is a truly artistic statement.” – The Quietus
“The hypnotic epiphanies of oat make for an extraordinary experience.” – Classic Rock
“You get the feeling that Goat could just keep this sinuous groove going forever.” – The Observer
“One of the world’s most exciting live acts.” – NME
GOAT’s Commune is the Swedish collectives critically acclaimed follow up to 2012’s World Music. It has become their first UK Top 40 Album and a Billboard Top 200 albums chart debut. Now it has spawned their first ever official video.
‘Hide From The Sun’ was directed by Sam Macon (Dum Dum Girls “Bedroom Eyes”) and features artwork from Stacey Rozich (character illustrations in Fleet Foxes “The Shrine / An Argument”). Sam and Stacey collaborated closely to create a dark, psychedelic, mythical trip across three distinct worlds. As Sam states, ” It isn’t a story set in the past, nor is it a story set in the present or future. It simply exists in its own realm.”
The hypnotic World Music introduced us to the mysterious, masked music of GOAT. They have awed the world since with their intense, ritualistic live shows, playing festivals such as Glastonbury, Coachella, SXSW, Latitude, Incubate, Liverpool Psych Fest and a recent sell-out European tour. This has continued with the release of Commune, and now ‘Hide From The Sun’ gives us even more insight into the world that is GOAT.
“this time around, the band are firing on all cylinders” – Pitchfork
“their punk rock beats have been the perfect soundtrack to our weekend shenanigans for the past seven years.” NYLON
“tightly controlled sense of menace and impending chaos” – Paste
“Top 5 Most Overlooked Albums of 2014” – SPIN
If you’re familiar with The Coathangers then you probably know the Atlanta group’s premise. The story goes that four young women decided to start a band for the sole purpose of being able to hang out and play parties. They weren’t going to let the fact that none of them knew how to play any instruments get in the way of their having a good time. The backstory certainly added to the charm of early songs like “Nestle In My Boobies” and “Stop Stomp Stompin’”–songs that resided somewhere between no-wave’s caustic stabs of dissonance and garage rock’s primal minimalism. In the seven years since their formation, The Coathangers have released a slew of records and toured across North America and Europe countless times. The persistence of such a casual endeavor is a testament to the infectious quality of their songs and the electric nature of their unruly live show.
Suck My Shirt is the The Coathangers’ fourth full-length. The title refers to an incident involving the salvaging of spilled tequila during the recording session for the album. While the title implies that little has changed with regards to the band’s celebratory mission statement, even just a cursory listen of their latest album demonstrates that there have indeed been changes in The Coathangers’ camp. First off, the quartet was reduced to a trio for the latest record, with keyboardist Bebe Coathanger (Candice Jones) stepping down from her duties. But the absence of keyboards isn’t nearly as noticeable of a difference as the band’s refined songwriting approach. Refinement is an attribute we expect to see in any group that has a career spanning more than a couple of years, but the extent to which The Coathangers have honed their trade with each successive album dwarfs most bands’ maturation. This isn’t to say that The Coathangers have polished their sound; the group once again worked with Ed Rawls and Justin McNeight at The Living Room to attain the same production values of their Larceny & Old Lace album and their recent slew of split 7”s. Rather, the refinement can be heard in the quality of the songs themselves. While the band retains the alluring spontaneity and happy accidents of their early releases, the trio’s current work sounds far more deliberate and locked-in than anything they have done in the past.
“It’s a balance between overthinking and just going for it,” guitarist Crook Kid Coathanger (Julia Kugel) says of their songwriting strategy. It’s a duality immediately apparent with the album opener “Follow Me”. It’s a classic Coathangers tune with the raspy vocals of Rusty Coathanger (Stephanie Luke) belted out over the signature grimy rock laid down by Crook Kid and bassist Minnie Coathanger (Meredith Franco). But the chorus opens into one of the most accessible hooks in the band’s canon, just before segueing into the next verse with a squall of violent dissonant guitar. From there the band launches into “Shut Up”, a title that harkens back to the brash sass of their first record. The song still has its spikey guitar riffs and shouted chorus, but here The Coathangers sound less like a jubilant version of Huggy Bear and more like the art-pop of late-era Minutemen. Dedicated Coathangers fans will recognize the re-worked versions of “Merry Go Round”, “Smother”, “Adderall”, and “Derek’s Song” from their run of limited edition split 7”s, and hearing them in the context of the album shows that these tracks weren’t merely isolated examples of the band’s more sophisticated side, but were actually demonstrative of the group’s increasing capacity for nestling solid melodic hooks and rock heft into their repertoire. By the time the band wraps up the album with the humble pop perfection of “Drive”, it’s hard to believe this was the band that garnered their reputation with raucous bombasts like “Don’t Touch My Shit”.
“Ultimately, every album is a snapshot of who we were at the time,” says Crook Kid. And while that might mean that The Coathangers in 2014 don’t feel compelled to chronicle the youthful piss and vinegar that yielded the Teenage Jesus & The Jerks-esque spasms of their debut album, it’s exciting to hear the output of the band as they explore the range of their temperaments with a broader musical palette at their disposal.
Suck My Shirt will be released in the UK on 3rd November 2014 via Suicide SqueezeRecords. The band will be touring Europe in November.
UK dates:
12th November, Leeds – Wharf Chambers
13th November, Glasgow – Broadcast
14th November, Birmingham – Temple (with The Growlers)
15th November, London – Shacklewell Arms
16th November, Brighton – Prince Albert
Described by the NME as sounding like “Weezer being beaten up by The Dillinger Escape Plan”,Carnivores draw influence from Fugazi, At The Drive-In, Idlewild, Helmet, Elvis Costello and Nirvana.Carnivores are a three-piece rock band based in Paisley, Scotland. Formed by college friends, Kenny Leckie and Grant MacCall – Carnivores got to work the old fashioned way, touring every venue imaginable in Scotland in their battered estate car, building a fans show by show. They have gained a reputation as one of the hardest working and incendiary live bands in Scotland – taking on guerilla gigs in abandoned buildings, countless house parties and most impressively 450ft up in the Glasgow Science Centre Tower, the tallest fully rotating structure in the world.
After hitting their stride with a series of self-released EP’s and singles, Carnivores went on to play T in the Park, headline Glasgow’s King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut and playing Glasgow Barrowland at a sell-out show supporting Twin Atlantic. In 2013, the band replaced David with new drummer Martin Johnston and got down to making their debut album, Let’s GetMetaphysical. Recorded live in just six days with producer, Bruce Rintoul (Twin Atlantic/Fatherson), the album captures the raw intensity of the band’s live show matched with a more melodic, introspective aspect to Carnivores sound.
A strong theme on Let’s Get Metaphysical is about looking at the world that we’ve inherited from previous generations and seeing how irresponsible those generations have been with it – Kenny explains “We’ve all been brought up in working classing households and the people that our parents and grand-parents put trust in have sold out the working classes in a big way. In a song like ‘Lion Tamer’ we’re singing about our home towns but it could be anywhere in the UK, the same with ‘The Second Wave of Yuppie Scum’, it’s about someone specific to us turning out to be a class traitor – I think that’s a feeling that everyone can relate to.” Leckie continues, “Most rock music you hear these days is very polished and homogenised. We wanted to go the opposite way and make something that was musically and emotionally very raw and real. It’s just three guys in a room playing loud rock music. Lyrically, it’s like an open wound, for better or worse it’s practically a diary of the last six months of my life”.
Scotland is a nation in a state of flux, with many important decisions for its inhabitants ahead. Let’s Get Metaphyscial provides a state of the nation address from young men in touch with their history and a strong sense of what lies ahead. But just how ‘metaphysical’ is this record? “I’m an armchair metaphysicist” admits Kenny, “I’m not ashamed to admit that all my knowledge on philosophy comes from Wikipedia. We had a Soren Kiekergaard quote on our first EP, I only know him because he was mentioned in Wayne’s World. Where’s my honorary doctorate at?”
Carnivores debut album, Let’s Get Metaphysical will be released on 27th October on Smalltown America.
TOUR DATES
18/9: Glasgow, Bar Bloc
25/9: Edinburgh, Opium
26/9: Stewarton, StewartonArms
27/9: Inverness, Mad Hatters
02/10: Ayr, UWS Union
13/10: Aberdeen, Downstairs
15/10: Sheffield, South Sea
16/10: Cheltenham, The Frog & Fiddle
17/10: London, Camden Barfly
18/10: Derby, The Victoria Inn
24/10: Paisley, Bungalow Bar
25/10: Glasgow, 13th Note Cafe
