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Dent May falls in love with a “Picture on a Screen” on new song — listen

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The Internet has really done a number on modern romance. It seems like you aren’t dating right if you aren’t meeting people online in one form or another. The danger of this — besides a complete lack of social skills — is the dark hole using your WiFi to find love might lead to, where actual reality can no longer compete with love you can download.

It’s a concept Dent May explores on his new single, “Picture on a Screen”. “’Picture On A Screen’ is a love letter to a jpeg,” the Los Angeles indie songwriter tells Consequence of Sound. “It’s not just about falling in love on the Internet. It’s about falling in love with the Internet.” The track is as smooth as the resolution on the latest MacBook, with horns and plinking piano twinkling like pixels forming a lounge-y, psych pop image. “Reach out your hand to me/ I’m paralyzed in real life,” Dent May begs on the bridge. “Reach out your hand to me/ Some late night in real life.”

“Picture on a Screen” comes via the nostalgia-tinged lyric video below. There’s even a copy of Biography’s Diana: The True Story in the shot to emphasize the dangers of becoming infatuated with an image and an idea as opposed to the reality. Take a look:

“Picture on a Screen” is the latest single off Dent May’s forthcoming Across the Multiverse, due out August 18th. In support of the release, the indie pop artist has announced a new stretch of North American tour dates to take him through summer. Find those below.

Dent May 2017 Tour Dates:
08/23 – San Francisco, CA @ The Rickshaw
08/25 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall Roof Deck
08/26 – Seattle, WA @ Central Saloon
08/27 – Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt
08/29 – Calgary, AB @ The Palomino
08/30 – Saskatoon, SK @ Vangelis Tavern
08/31 – Winnipeg, MB @ The Goodwill Social Club
09/01 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Entry
09/02 – Chicago, IL @ The Hideout
09/03 – Ferndale, MI @ The Loving Touch
09/04 – Toronto, ON @ The Horshoe
09/06 – Boston, MA @ Once Lounge and Ballroom
09/08 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
09/09 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Sound Hole
09/11 – Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter
09/12 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
09/14 – Oxford, MS @ Proud Larry’s
09/16 – New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
09/18 – Houston, TX @ Walter’s
09/19 – Austin, TX @ Mohawk
09/20 – El Paso, TX @ The Monarch
09/21 – Tucson, AZ @ Hotel Congress
09/22 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Bootleg



Phoenix perform on Kimmel, KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic — watch

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Photo by David Brendan Hall

Phoenix have appeared on their fair share of fake TV shows as of late, including the retro Italian variety program Ti Amo Speciale and the throwback set seen in their “J-Boy” music video. This week, however, the French indie pop outfit performed in front of the camera for real.

In support of their newly released sixth album, the romantic Ti Amo, Phoenix played Jimmy Kimmel on Monday. Before a rapturous crowd, they showcased their warm, disco-flavored LP with performances of “Ti Amo” and “J-Boy”. Watch it down below.

(Read: The 25 Most Anticipated Tours of Summer 2017)

Additionally, the band recently filmed an in-studio session for KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic series. Over the course of the 35-minute in-studio set, Phoenix performed Ti Amo tracks “J-Boy”, “If I Ever Feel Better”, “Fior di Latte,” as well as dusted off “Girlfriend”, taken from their 2009 record, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. Check out the session below and/or over on KCRW’s official site.


Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis, a.k.a. Sad13, shares new song “Sooo Bad”— listen

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Adult Swim’s latest iteration of its Singles Program is the most ambitious yet, spanning an entire year with one brand new track released each week. The latest entry comes courtesy of Sad13, the solo project of Speedy Ortiz frontwoman Sadie Dupuis, and is entitled, “Sooo Bad”.

The new song is described as a “self-produced fuzzy synth experience” and features clattering percussion, crunchy guitars, and catchy synths. Earlier today, Dupuis explained why Sad13 was a natural fit for the Singles Program.

“Fun fact: the Sad13 album is called Slugger and it’s named after a character from [the Japanese anime TV series] Paranoia Agent, which, duh, aired on Adult Swim in the US,” she shared via Twitter.

Take a listen to “Sooo Bad” below.

Sad13 recently contributed a cover of Carole King’s “It’s Too Late” to the GRLMIC VOL1 compilation benefiting Planned Parenthood and the Willie Mae Rock Camp. Her aforementioned debut album, Slugger, was released in 2016.


Keep Shelly in Athens announce new album, share lead single “Leave in Silence”— listen

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Armed with a new singer in Aussie novelist/poet Jessica Bell, synthpop outfit Keep Shelly in Athens are readying a new album suited just for the summer. Dubbed Philokalia, it’s due out September 29th via their own Athenian Aura Recordings.

Spanning eight tracks, it serves as the Greek group’s third to date and follows 2015’s Now I’m Ready. The album’s title comes from the name for a body of spiritual texts written between the 4th and 15th centuries, and its lead single, “Leave In Silence” seems to mirror that air of serenity.

Here, Bell’s voice floats weightlessly above a hazy yet tranquil mix of softly glowing synths and flickering percussion. Queue this one up for those humid August nights. Check it out below.

Philokalia Artwork:

philokalia Keep Shelly in Athens announce new album, share lead single Leave in Silence    listen

Philokalia Tracklist:
01. Leave in Silence
02. Marionette
03. Game Over (Daniel’s Scene)
04. Seattle
05. Philokalia
06. We Want More
07. Dark Light
08. Believe


Washed Out unveils new song “Hard to Say Goodbye”— listen

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Photo by David Brendan Hall

Just days after Ernest Greene announced Mister Mellow, his first album in nearly four years as Washed Out, he’s back with a new song. Entitled “Hard to Say Goodbye”, it’s the second single from the follow-up to 2013’s Paracosm.

The shimmery summer track comes on the heels of the hazy “Get Lost”. It features stuttery percussion, rising synths, and intermittent strings.

Hear “Hard to Say Goodbye” below.


Mister Mellow, out June 30th on Stones Throw, will be accompanied by a full-length visual piece featuring every form of animation, including collage and claymation. The album was influenced by various genres like free jazz, house, hip-hop, and even psych.

In support of the release, Greene has a handful of US dates line up for the summer. Check out the full schedule here.


Blonder talks love and desire on debut $5 EP: Stream

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Photo by Shervin Lainez

People who refer to Paris as the only true City of Love clearly haven’t been to New York City. More than a concrete jungle where dreams are made of, its 24-hour nightlife, radiant skyline, and panoramic views of the harbor and Atlantic beyond make for the perfect backdrop for getting swept up in a blossoming relationship or diving into a one-night stand. And between the top-notch pizzerias and DIY music venues, it’s literally impossible to run out of unique date spots.

Lifelong native Constantine Anastasakis, better known simply as Blonder, taps into this energy for his debut EP, $5, which is a vibrant mix of indie rock, synthpop, and post-punk (think fellow Brooklynites Beach Fossils meets Wild Nothing). There are moments of pure carnal fire, such as on the synth-heavy “What We Want”, which sees him tempt, “We could find it tonight/ Leave it up to your body.” Or on “Talk to Me”, a sensual number set in the back of a steamy car. Meanwhile, opener “Lean” sounds just like its title suggests, as though a partner is cuddling up close to whisper something into your ear.

“This record is a loose narrative about falling out of love but also about those moments that you fall into it,” Anastasakis tells Consequence of Sound of the EP, which was also musically inspired by his local peers and friends in Porches and Wet. “Each song is it’s own distinct world to me, but listened to as a whole should take you through an albeit fragmented story about love and desire. The title $5 is at once an ode to the historical days of five dollar rock shows in New York City, originally performing at shows for five dollars ourselves, but also a more sarcastic, tongue in cheek nod to streaming culture and the way we currently consume music.”

Ahead of the EP’s release on June 16th, CoS is premiering it in full below. Take a listen.

$5 Tracklist:
01. Lean
02. Talk To Me
03. In and Out
04. What We Want
05. Upstate


Lorde releases new album Melodrama: Stream/download

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Photo by Philip Cosores

Melodrama, the highly anticipated album from Lorde, has finally arrived. Subscribers of Apple Music and Spotify can stream it below.

The follow-up to 2013’s Grammy-nominated Pure Heroine serves as the Kiwi pop star’s second full-length overall. Its 11 tracks — including one of the year’s best in “Green Light” — were written and produced by Lorde with the help of Jack Antonoff, the pop maestro known for his work with Taylor Swift and his bands fun. and Bleachers.

(Read: The 50 Most Anticipated Albums of 2017)

According to Lorde, Melodrama was inspired by her first big heartbreak and her transition from adolescence to adulthood, which was punctuated by many long nights spent on the dance floor. She explained further in a lengthy update late last year:

“I turned inwards to my friends, my family, towards this moment, so I could learn more about who I was, and so I could let this new project show itself to me.

My heart broke. I moved out of home and into the city and I made new friends and started to realize that no-one is just good or bad, that everyone is both. I started to discover in a profound, scary, blood-aching way who I was when I was alone, what I did when I did things only for myself. I was reckless and graceless and terrifying and tender. I threw sprawling parties and sat in restaurants until the early hours, learning what it’s like to be an adult, even talking like one sometimes, until I caught myself. All I wanted to do was dance. I whispered into ears and let my eyes blaze on high and for the first time I felt this intimate, empire-sized inner power.”

Melodrama Artwork:

lorde stream melodrama album release download mp3 listen Lorde releases new album Melodrama: Stream/download

Melodrama Tracklist:
01. Green Light
02. Sober
03. Homemade Dynamite
04. The Louvre
05. Liability
06. Hard Feelings/Loveless
07. Sober II (Melodrama)
08. Writer in the Dark
09. Supercut
10. Liability (Reprise)
11. Perfect Places


Twinsmith share new synth gem “You & I”— listen

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Growing success as band brings with it increased access to the type of opportunities you don’t get when you’re just starting out. Home-brewed projects suddenly find themselves in professional studios with any number of mixers and producers sitting on the other side of the glass. As is often the case in life, however, gaining one thing means the loss of another. After recording two albums the “professional” way, Omaha’s Twinsmith were feeling the loss of the intimate songwriting process they had when they were starting out in their parents’ basement.

Thus, for their forthcoming third full-length, Stay Cool, the trio brought things back to the basics. With just some old synths, ’80s drum machines, and a solitary producer in Graham Ulicny (Reptar, The Faint), Twinsmith set to work writing and recording a restrained, intimate collection of synthpop.

The first track to come out of those sessions, “You & I”, is being shared today. It’s full of floating bubbles of synth that hover above looping sparks of drums, a bright combination that never lets the tension burst. “’You & I’ was the first song we wrote for Stay Cool, which really lead the path for the rest of the album,” the band’s Jordan Smith explains to Consequence of Sound. “We wanted to keep the chords very limited but have a rhythmic drum loop to help carry and drive the song along as the focal point.”

Take a listen below.


Pre-orders for Stay Cool, out July 14th via Saddle Creek, are going on here, and you can find Twinsmith’s live schedule here. Below, read the band’s Matt Regner’s detailing of how “You & I” came together in the band’s home studio.

“The song started out as a simple two chord sketch with the intention of adding parts throughout the process. After scratching a few different bad ideas, we decided to just stick with the two chords and instead focus on the rhythmic element. Having been way into West African pop grooves while writing the album, we found a cool filtered djembe/bongo loop that fit the chorus and completely brought the song to life. After that, it was just a matter of adding different rhythmic layers; arpeggiated synths, syncopated guitar lines, and the like. The guitar in the chorus might be my favorite example. Totally inspired by the Orange Juice song ‘Rip It Up,’ we wanted the guitar to sound more like a percussion instrument than simply strumming along. Switching the focus from melody to rhythm early on in the process really gave this song a cool identity in the end. It’s all about the groove with this one.”



Panama shares new EP, Hope for Something: Stream

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Photo by T Barkl/Future Classic

More than just a season of ice cream, BBQ, and beaches, summer is a time for breaking free and putting the past behind us. School’s out, vacations are booked, and we can finally emerge from our winter hibernation having shed our layers of clothes as well as the darkness of that long, cold season. There’s an optimism in the air that only comes during the months from late June through September.

This summer spirit is captured in the new EP from Panama, the Sydney synthpop act masterminded by songwriter/producer Jarrah McCleary. Titled Hope for Something, its five tracks deal with heartache, personal demons, and death, but with a distinct reassurance that, in time, things will always get better if we just open ourselves up to acceptance and the idea of letting go. The EP’s warm, soothing arrangements — think of a low-key, island disco party at sunset — only enhance McCleary’s therapeutic touch.

There’s the sweeping title track, which kindly advocates patience over haste in lines like, “Know something good takes time anyway.” Meanwhile, the second cut, “I Watched You Slip” is a funk-lined number about doing right by a loved one. On “The Highs”, McCleary sounds like James Blake turned Jamie xx, as somber piano eventually gives way to a tropical breeze.

McClearly offered up a statement on the EP to Consequence of Sound:

“The lyrics are real and the emotion can be thick, to the point where I struggled with some of the songs because of how naked they are to me. The positive tone of the EP seems to be the counter weight of the darker things I was experiencing when writing this project. I always draw upon personal experiences when I’m writing. It’s that fine line between truth and poetry. For the production this time around I was able to work with Classixx and also Filip [Nikolic, of Poolside], who were great to bounce ideas off in the studio.”

Hope for Something, the follow-up to 2013’s Always EP, officially arrives on June 24th via Future Classic (Flume, Nick Murphy) and 300 Entertainment, but CoS is premiering it in full below. Take a listen.

Hope for Something EP Artwork:

panama hopeforsomething coverart design 8531 fa 2 Panama shares new EP, Hope for Something: Stream

Hope for Something Tracklist:
01. Hope for Something
02. I Watched You Slip
03. The Highs
04. Undertow
05. Your Love (Lift Us Up)


Depeche Mode unveil immersive 360-degree video for “Going Backwards”— watch

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Today, Depeche Mode have shared a new music video for “Going Backwards”, a highlight taken from their recently released 14th LP, Spirit. Directed by frequent collaborator Timothy Saccenti, it’s an immersive and impressive 360-degree visual capturing the UK legends as they perform a stripped-back version of the song. Check it out above.

(Read: Depeche Mode’s Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher Explain How to Save the World)

Tomorrow, June 23rd, the group will release a new audio bundle featuring the original album version of “Going Backwards” and the Highline Sessions one heard in the clip. Depeche Mode are currently on their Global Spirit Tour; for the kick-off concert, they paid homage to David Bowie with a cover of “Heroes”.


The xx share video for “Brave For You (Marfa Demo)”, plus hear their Drake-sampling “Naive”

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Today, The xx release a deluxe edition of their third studio album,  I See You. The expanded set offers up three bonus tracks, including an acoustic recording of “Brave For You”. This stripped-down rendition, retitled “Brave For You (Marfa Demo)” after the Texas city where they recorded, has also received a music video. In the clip, which is comprised of home movie footage, all three band members can be seen wandering down an abandoned road as night sets in. Watch it up above.

(Read: The Top 25 Albums of 2017 (So Far))

The deluxe edition also includes “Naive”, a bonus track that samples Drake’s “Doing It Wrong”. Listen to it along with the rest of the album’s deluxe edition below.


Gary Numan announces 2017 North American tour

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Later this year, Gary Numan is expected to return with Savage, his first new album since 2013’s Splinter (Songs From a Broken Mind). To coincide with the album’s release, the new wave and electronic music pioneer has lined up a North American fall tour.

Set to commence in mid-November and run through much of December, the “Savage” jaunt promises stops in cities such as Los Angeles, Portland, Vancouver, Chicago, Boston, Brooklyn, and Houston. It follows a similar outing across the pond in Europe and will feature New York City-based outfit Me Not You as openers.

Consult the full schedule below.

Gary Numan 2017 Tour Dates:
07/27 – Liverpool, UK @ Exhibition Centre
07/28 – Hull, UK @ The Welly
07/29 – Leamington Spa, UK @ The Assembly
07/30 – Hertfordshire, UK @ Standon Calling
09/30 – Cardiff, UK @ Tramshed
10/02 – Bournemouth, UK @ O2 Academy
10/03 – Leeds, UK @ O2 Academy
10/05 – Bristol, UK @ Colston Hall
10/06 – Oxford, UK @ O2 Academy
10/07 – Nottingham, UK @ Rock City
10/09 – Newcastle, UK @ O2 Academy
10/10 – Glasgow, UK @ O2 ABC
10/11 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute
10/13 – Manchester, UK @ Academy
10/14 – London, UK @ O2 Academy
10/16 – Brighton, UK @ Dome
10/17 – Norwich, UK @ UEA
10/18 – Southend, UK @ Cliffs Pavilion
10/19 – Leuven, BE @ Het Depot
10/20 – Paris, FR @ La Trabendo
10/21 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
10/24 – Bratislava, SK @ Majestic Music Club
10/25 – Cologne, DE @ Essigfabrik
10/26 – Berlin, DE @ Columbia Theater
10/27 – Lodz, PL @ Soundedit Festival
11/15 – San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park
11/16 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
11/17 – Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
11/19 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
11/21 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
11/22 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune
11/23 – Vancouver, BC @ The Rickshaw Theatre
11/24 – Calgary, AB @ Commonwealth
11/26 – Winnipeg, MB @ Pyramid Cabaret
11/28 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
11/29 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
11/30 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall
12/01 – Toronto, ON @ Opera House
12/04 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
12/06 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
12/07 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
12/09 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
12/11 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
12/12 – Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
12/14 – Dallas, TX @ Trees
12/15 – Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live Studio
12/16 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk

gary numan north american tour Gary Numan announces 2017 North American tour

Revisit acclaimed Splinter single “I Am Dust”:


Baby Dayliner premieres video for quirky new song “The Triumph of Sarah’s Past”— watch

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Photo by Damien Paris

New York electropop songwriter Ethan Marunas, aka Baby Dayliner, is prepping his first release in over 10 years, an EP titled You Push, I’ll Go. The follow-up to 2006’s Critics Pass Away is due out July 7th through Brassland, the indie label co-founded by The National‘s Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner.

The Dessner brothers were instrumental in Baby Dayliner’s early success, signing Marunas to Brassland in the mid-2000s. Baby Dayliner also then went on to tour with The National and gain widespread exposure. In addition to the sibling musicians, Marunas has found great support in Matt Berninger. The National frontman cites Marunas’ work as inspiration for his own in many ways; Berninger is such a believer in Marunas that he’s written the glowing and insightful new Baby Dayliner bio that’s accompanying press releases for the new EP.

“The lyrics of so many pop songs feel like they were chosen by a committee from the same stale bag of recycled thoughts. I never get this feeling with Baby Dayliner,” reads the Berninger-penned bio, which Consequence of Sound is pleased to premiere today. “He writes in an extraordinarily personal tone that I’ve never heard in pop music. He writes about the small vulnerable moments of life and nails the details. He goes on little narrative runs that put me right in the moment.”

“What I like most Baby Dayliner’s writing is that there’s rarely any meanness in his songs,” Berninger adds, “no forced posturing or aggressiveness; and they are loaded with empathy. He sings about flawed and vane characters but with genuine understanding and kindness. The music is catchy, smart, and weird — something beautiful and odd, that only he does.”

As a taste of this deft songwriting, CoS is also premiering “The Triumph of Sarah’s Past”, a quirky yet infectious pop cut about a woman who seems to leave a path of destruction wherever she goes. “Sarah behaves extremely rashly,” Marunas tells CoS. “She doesn’t consider consequences. In her impulsiveness her dreams are never met. She wants to hit home-runs but all she does is miss. She lives in the past, unable to feel the present. Through vice she perpetuates denial, and hence staves off recovery and actualizing her ambitions. She doesn’t like or trust herself, and sees herself in the narrator, and so does not trust him either.”

True to Berninger’s testimonial, the new song manages to capture the finer details of human nature and complex feeling. It’s as though Marunas has X-ray vision and is reading the tiny, tiny spaces that exist between the lines. See/hear it for yourself down below via the track’s corresponding Damien Paris-directed video, which stars Marunas as one of Sarah’s ex-lovers.

You Push, I’ll Go EP Artwork:

unnamed 63 Baby Dayliner premieres video for quirky new song The Triumph of Sarahs Past    watch

You Push, I’ll Go Tracklist:
01. Don’t Ghost Me (featuring Blockhead)
02. The Triumph of Sarah’s Past
03. You Push, I’ll Go (featuring Alex Sanchez)
04. All Parties Are Over

Read Berninger’s full Baby Dayliner biography:

“The lyrics of so many pop songs feel like they were chosen by a committee from the same stale bag of recycled thoughts. I never get this feeling with Baby Dayliner. He writes in an extraordinarily personal tone that I’ve never heard in pop music. He writes about the small vulnerable moments of life and nails the details. He goes on little narrative runs that put me right in the moment.

It’s almost like being inside his head while he thinks to himself — while pivots from a personal tone to an ornate one within the same song keeps me connected and on my toes.

Baby Dayliner’s live performances are as idiosyncratic as his records. Whenever I’ve seen him live he’s been alone on stage with nothing but a microphone singing to his recorded backing tracks; beats, synths, loops and layers of harmonizing backing vocals, all him. He pans these harmonies far away from each other in the stereo field creating moments when different versions of Baby Dayliner suddenly step into the room and join the party. It’s like he’s cloned himself and given them all different roles to play in his tiny personal pop opera.

And Baby Dayliner dances when he performs — minimal shuffles and struts that appear to have been strictly choreographed and rehearsed. It feels like I’ve been invited into someone’s tiny apartment just to watch them being themselves. Within minutes I feel welcome and at home. His charm and unselfconsciousness is contagious and before long my own social anxieties dissolve and I’m singing and dancing along. He’s not kidding when he says ‘You’ll forget about yourself.’ He likes to put little call and response moments in the middle of his songs like he’s teaching rally chants to freshman cheerleaders. ‘You say strange. I say dreamin’. Strange. Dreamin’. Strange. Dreamin’.’ At his shows people will start singing with him and answering his calls without ever having heard the songs before. I’ve never seen that happen with any other artist.

What I like most Baby Dayliner’s writing is that there’s rarely any meanness in his songs; no forced posturing or aggressiveness; and they are loaded with empathy. He sings about flawed and vane characters but with genuine understanding and kindness. The music is catchy, smart, and weird— something beautiful and odd, that only he does.

Baby Dayliner is something uncommon in pop music. He’s unique.”


Millie Bobby Brown, Paris Jackon, Ashton Sanders star in The xx’s “I Dare You” video — watch

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The xx have thus far teamed with director Alasdair McLellan twice for videos from their latest release, I See You.  Each clip has been an homage to one of the cities where the album was recorded, with “On Hold” spotlighting Marfa, Texas and “Say Something Loving” focusing on the band’s London hometown. The dream pop trio and McLellan have now re-teamed for a third visual tribute, this time showing their love for Los Angeles in the video for “I Dare You”.

(Read: The Top 25 Albums of 2017 (So Far))

Created in collaboration with Calvin Klein’s Chief Creative Officer Raf Simons, the video finds a quintet of friends exploring a supposedly haunted but actually gorgeous LA home. The group is made up of a number of familiar faces: Stranger Things star Millie Bobby BrownMoonlight’s Ashton Sanders, and famous heir Paris Jackson all appear, as do models Lulu and Ernesto Cervantes. When they enter the strange looking house, they stumble upon what’s essentially a private The xx show. Watch the clip above.

The xx recently had to cancel their Iceland Night + Day Festival due to the planned site being deemed an endangered area, but they have plenty of other shows coming up this year. Find their complete itinerary here.


Washed Out releases new visual album Mister Mellow: Stream/watch

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Photo by Eric Tra

Tomorrow, June 30th, marks the official release of Mister Mellow, the new audio/visual album from Washed Out. The visual component of the LP has been made available a day early and can be seen below.

Due out through Stones Throw Records, Mister Mellow follows 2013’s Paracosm and took about two years to complete. Thematically, the LP takes a hard look at our generation’s tendency to be apathetic and unhappy despite our blessings. “Boredom. Laziness. Complete apathy. Is it a quarter-life crisis or just an excuse to never grow up?” a press release asks, before explaining the new album’s role in this line of questioning:

“In classic Millennial fashion, most young adults’ perception of their own lives are overblown and over-dramatized to the point of absurdity — as are the many ways they distract themselves from the insecurities faced on a daily basis (see social media, fantasy, drugs, music). Mister Mellow shines a light on the humor found in this paradox — how we can be so bored and unhappy in what is often a very privileged, contented life?”

The statement goes on to note that Washed Out’s Ernest Greene was influenced by various genres like free jazz, house, hip-hop, and even psych. The accompanying full-length visual piece features various forms of animation, including collage and claymation; there’s also an interview segment starring Saturday Night Live’s Kyle Mooney. Each clip “reflects the handmade, ‘paint outside the lines’ style of Greene’s music – and again is a reaction against the sterile, hyper-realistic renderings of most modern digital-based art.”

Mister Mellow Artwork:

washed out mister mellow album stream Washed Out releases new visual album Mister Mellow: Stream/watch

Mister Mellow Tracklist:
01. Title Card
02. Burn Out Blues
03. Time Off
04. Floating By
05. I’ve Been Daydreaming My Entire Life
06. Hard to Say Goodbye
07. Down and Out
08. Instant Calm
09. Zonked
10. Get Lost
11. Easy Does It
12. Million Miles Away



Toro Y Moi shares new album Boo Boo via short film: Stream/watch

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Tomorrow marks the official release of Boo Boo, the latest album from Toro Y Moi. In advance, the synthpop musician has shared the LP in full via a short film. Directed and produced by Company Studio, it follows Toro Y Moi as he’s driven around the beautiful Bay Area. Stream/watch it up above.

The follow-up to 2015’s What For? serves as his fifth to date and is said to be “the most personal work to date” for Chaz Bear (formerly Chaz Bundick). The intimate and revealing nature of the LP’s 12 tracks is the result of a confusing identity crisis, in which the synthpop musician found himself struggling to settle into life as a “famous” person.

“My dreams had become my reality, yet I was somehow unable to accept this new environment,” Bear explained in a press statement. “I felt as though I no longer knew what it was that I actually wanted and needed in and out of life, and at times I felt unable to even tell what was real.”

To help cope, Bear turned to music, and not just his own. He counts material from Daft Punk, Frank Ocean, and Oneohtrix Point Never as major influences on the new album.

Read Bear’s full statement on Boo Boo:

“After 7 years of touring and recording, I found myself becoming self conscious about my position in life as a ‘famous’ person, or at least my version of whatever that is. My dreams had become my reality, yet I was somehow unable to accept this new environment. I couldn’t help but fall into what might be described as an identity crisis. A feedback loop of fearful thoughts left me feeling confused. I felt as though I no longer knew what it was that I actually wanted and needed in and out of life, and at times I felt unable to even tell what was real.

During this time of personal turmoil, I turned to music as a form of therapy, and it helped me cope with the pain that I was feeling. I’d listen to the same ambient song over and over again, trying to insulate myself from reality. I fell in love with space again.

By the time I felt ready to begin working on a new record, I knew that this idea of space within music would be something that propelled my new work forward. The artists that were influencing what I was making included everyone from Travis Scott to Daft Punk, Frank Ocean to Oneohtrix Point Never, Kashif and Gigi Masin. I recognized that the common thread between these artists was their attention to a feeling of space, or lack thereof. I decided that I wanted to make a Pop record with these ideas in mind. That idea for a record is what eventually became Boo Boo.”

Boo Boo Artwork:

toro y moi album boo boo stream listen watch short film Toro Y Moi shares new album Boo Boo via short film: Stream/watch

Boo Boo Tracklist:
01. Mirage
02. No Show
03. Mona Lisa
04. Pavement
05. Don’t Try
06. Windows
07. Embarcadero
08. Girl Like You
09. You and I
10. Labyrinth
11. Inside My Head
12. W.I.W.W.T.W.


Gary Numan announces new album, Savage (Songs from a Broken World), shares “My Name is Ruin”: Stream

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Gary Numan announced his 2017 tour schedule late last month, and now he’s revealed what he’ll be touring behind. The industrial gothic icon has announced his new album, Savage (Songs from a Broken World), set for a September 15th release via BMG.

Marking Numan’s 22nd full-length of his career, Savage follows 2013’s Splinter (Songs From a Broken Mind). Produced by Ade Fenton and recorded in Los Angeles and the UK, the record was largely written during the last presidential election. Trump’s victory and climate policies became Numan’s twisted inspiration, leading to a concept album set in a post-global warming apocalypse. A press release describes the concept best:

“There is no technology left and most of the planet has turned to a desolate desert wasteland. Food is scarce, water even more so, and human kindness and decency are just a dim and distant memory. Western and Eastern cultures have merged, more because of the need to simply survive than any feelings of greater tolerance or understanding. It’s a harsh, savage environment, as are the survivors who still roam across it.”

“The songs are about the things that people do in such a harsh and terrifying environment,” Numan said in a statement. “It’s about a desperate need to survive and they do awful things in order to do so, and some are haunted by what they’ve done. That desire to be forgiven, along with some discovered remnants of an old religious book, ultimately encourages religion to resurface, and it really goes downhill from there.”

As a first taste, Numan has shared the haunting “My Name is Ruin”, which features backing vocals from his 11-year-old daughter, Persia. Listen below.

While Savage (Songs from a Broken World) will be available on all standard formats, vinyl versions will include the additional tracks “If I Said” and “Cold”, while the deluxe CD will also have “If I Said”. Find the vinyl tracklisting below along with the album art.

Savage (Songs from a Broken World) Artwork:

unnamed 1 Gary Numan announces new album, Savage (Songs from a Broken World), shares My Name is Ruin: Stream

Savage (Songs from a Broken World) LP Tracklist:
01. Ghost Nation
02. Bed Of Thorns
03. My Name Is Ruin
04. The End Of Things
05. And It All Began With You
06. When The World Comes Apart
07. Mercy
08. What God Intended
09. If I Said
10. Pray For The Pain You Serve
11. Broken
12. Cold


AlunaGeorge share two new tracks, “Turn Up the Love” and “Last Kiss”: Stream

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On their two new tracks, AlunaGeorge turn love over in their hands and explore its dichotomous nature. “The creative concept is to release two tracks, one upbeat song and one ballad, to symbolize ‘light and shade’ and highlight the duality of both songs,” singer Aluna Francis said in a statement.

With “Last Kiss”, the London duo look at a slowly disintegrating relationship over a downbeat tropical tempo. “Please don’t do this,” Francis pleads, begging for the bandaid to simply come off. “You don’t have to prove that/ You’re free just by hurting me.” Take a listen:

The “upbeat song” comes in the form of “Turn Up the Love”, a springy mesh of synth grooves and light electro-percussion. Instead of begging a lover to put an end to a slow descent, this song finds Francis sending out a call to the world to reverse its own decline by doing one thing: “Run it up, run it up/ I swear it’s simple, turn up the love.” Check it out:

The new tunes come as AlunaGeorge prepare to hit the road with Coldplay this August. Find their upcoming itinerary below.

AlunaGeorge 2017 Tour Dates:
07/29 – Scottsdale, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Pool #
08/01 – East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium *
08/04 – Foxborough, MA @ Gillette Stadium *
08/06 – Landover, MD @ FedExField *
08/08 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre *
08/09 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre *
08/12 – Minneapolis, MN @ US Bank Stadium *
08/14 – Omaha, NE @ CenturyLink Center *
08/15 – Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center *
08/17 – Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field *
08/19 – Cleveland, OH @ Quicken Loans Arena *
08/21 –Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre *
08/22 –Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre *
08/24 – Austin, TX @ Kingdom #
08/25 – Houston, TX @ NRG Stadium *
08/28 – Miami, FL @ Hard Rock Stadium *

# = DJ set
* = w/ Coldplay

“Last Kiss” Single Art:

alunageorge e28093 last kiss AlunaGeorge share two new tracks, Turn Up the Love and Last Kiss: Stream

“Turn Up the Love” Single Art:

turn up the love single AlunaGeorge share two new tracks, Turn Up the Love and Last Kiss: Stream


Cults announce new album, Offering, share title track: Stream

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Photo by Shawn Brackbill

Over the last week, synthpop duo Cults have been teasing a return through a series of videos posted on their Instagram account. Now, they’ve made it official by announcing a new album called Offering. The follow-up to 2013’s Static is scheduled for release on October 6th via Sinderlyn.

For the album’s recording sessions, vocalist Madeline Follin and guitarist Brian Oblivion linked up with longtime engineer Shane Stoneback. They drew on Pink Floyd as a big inspiration for the record, which was the result of a more collaborative effort between Follin and Oblivion. Instead of trading ideas back and forth, they worked together in a room to bring their songs to fruition.

“It was exciting, because writing stopped feeling like a homework assignment,” Follin shares via press release. “I was able to sit down and do it only when I wanted to. These songs are less art projects, less thinking ‘this is a heartbreak song, what would Lesley Gore do?’ and more reflective of things that have happened in our own lives.”

Ahead of the upcoming album, Cults have unveiled its glittery, synth-laden title track. According to the duo, the song is about “finding hope in what can seem like a hopeless situation.” Follin and Oblivion add, “In stressful moments we think it’s important to focus on the people who have helped you out and are there for you. Every cool thing that ever happened started with just a few close people in a room together.”

Hear “Offering” below.

Cults will embark on a fall tour in support of the album. Find the full schedule below.

Cults 2017 Tour Dates:
10/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
10/15 – Washington, DC @ Rock & Roll Hotel
10/17 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
10/18 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
10/19 – Albany, NY @ The Hollow
10/20 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
10/21 – Detroit, MI @ Marble
10/22 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
10/24 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
10/25 – Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon
10/27 – Kansas City, MO @ Riot Room
10/28 – Denver, CO @ Globe Hall
10/29 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
10/31 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
11/01 – Portland, OR @ Star Theater
11/03 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
11/04 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy and Harriet’s
11/05 – San Diego, CA @ The Irenic
11/06 – Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room
11/07 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
11/09 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
11/11 – Dallas, TX @ Dada
11/12 – Austin, TX @ Antone’s
11/13 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
11/14 – New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks
11/15 – Birmingham, AL @ Saturn
11/16 – Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
11/17 – Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5
11/18 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
11/19 – Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar

Offering Artwork:

cults offering album art Cults announce new album, Offering, share title track: Stream

Offering Tracklist:
01. Offering
02. I Took Your Picture
03. With My Eyes Closed
04. Recovery
05. Right Words
06. Good Religion
07. Natural State
08. Nothing Is Written
09. Talk in Circles
10. Clear from Far Away
11. Gilded Lily


Top 50 Albums of 1987

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Decades is a recurring feature that turns back the clock to critical anniversaries of albums, songs, and films. This month, we dial it back to the top 50 albums of 1987.

Ah, yes. 1987. I remember it well. Actually, not very well at all. Thirty years ago, I would’ve been a little less than three weeks away from turning four years old. So, I can be forgiven if I don’t recall Ronald Reagan urging Soviet Premiere Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall, Pope John Paul II making his first ever papal tour up the coast of California, or even China opening its inaugural Kentucky Fried Chicken location. Likewise, I wasn’t present at a chain record store (remember those?) on release day to buy any of the albums that appear on this list. Practically everything I know about 1987, including its music, I learned well after that fact – in some cases, as recently as over the past few days.

The other contributors working on this feature are about my age or younger; some weren’t even born when these albums originally dropped, and yet here we are writing about them. Despite Time’s best attempts to bury these records by relentlessly piling days, months, and decades upon them, we still found out about them. We found out about them through our parents or somebody else’s; through older siblings, cousins, and friends; and through classic radio, old-fashioned crate digging, and, in a couple cases, a Spotify recommendation. In some instances, we know these albums simply for the fact that nearly all of us were raised in civilization (relatively speaking) rather than by wolves in the wilds of some jungle. Others, had we not started digging, would’ve eluded us forever. Now that we know what we’d have been missing, that’s a terrifying thought.

But good music will out. And more than ever, our pop-culture artifacts can be excavated via a simple click, search, or suggestion algorithm. It’s all there, like an ancient treasure trove (or village dump) to be rummaged through and picked over. We find these records, and they tell us so much about the exciting, beautiful, and complicated world that floated all around us before we even had acquired the requisite motor skills (let alone permission) to drop a needle into a groove, shove a compact disc into a CD player, or spin the dial on our parents’ car radio. These records (and others we cringed at) act as Exhibits A through Z in that argument that children of all generations must hear: that their elders’ music was better than theirs. Well, as we now know, the future may not always agree, but it will be listening.

So, 1987. We don’t remember you much, but we grew up and listened. These are the albums we wish we’d have been old enough to appreciate back then and are grateful for now.

Sincerely,
The preschoolers, toddlers, babies, fetuses, and mere twinkles in their fathers’ eyes of ‘87

–Matt Melis
Editorial Director

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