2013 Album Of The Year

Imagine My Bloody Valentine mixed with Explosions In The Sky mixed with Slayer. Enter Deafheaven and their stunningly beautiful album Sunbather. Much of the focus of the album has been on its pink cover -- indeed an interesting choice for a black metal/blackgaze album -- but you'll forget about the album cover once you delve into the music. This most certainly isn't for everyone - the album will be off-putting for many shoegaze fans mainly due to the vocals - but do yourself a favor and give it a listen. It's a beautifully intense piece of work and the one album I couldn't stop listening to in 2013. Stream it in full here and enjoy a few tracks below:

"Dream House"



"Sunbather"



The eerie "Windows" includes samples of a preacher mixed along with audio of an actual drug deal featuring guitarist Kerry McCoy



Published on December 31st, 2013 @ 11:00 PM

Video: Tanya Donelly joins the Breeders in Boston

The Breeders have been on the road celebrating the 20th anniversary of Last Splash. Last night the band returned to Boston, and much like their May 2013 show at the Royale in Boston, ex-Breeder Tanya Donelly joined the band to perform Pod classic, "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" (Beatles cover). Check out video of the performance filmed at Paradise in Boston below:



The Breeders wrap up the Last Splash LSXX tour in Austin, Texas on New Year's Eve.

12/19 - NYC @ Webster Hall
12/20 - NYC @ Webster Hall
12/29 - New Orleans @ One Eyed Jacks
12/31 - Austin @ The Mohawk

Published on December 19th, 2013 @ 11:08 AM

Video: Chris Cornell performs new single "Misery Chain" on Letterman

Last night Chris Cornell performed his new single "Misery Chain" along with Joy Williams on Letterman. Watch the performance below. "Misery Chain" is available on Music From & Inspired By 12 Years A Slave.



Published on December 17th, 2013 @ 5:17 PM

Gary Numan brings North American tour to Detroit in 2014

Gary Numan announced a winter North American tour in support of his fantastic new album Splinter (Songs From A Broken Mind). The tour kicks off in March and includes a Detroit area stop at the Crofoot Ballroom on March 28th. Tickets for most of the dates including the Detroit stop go on sale Friday. Check out the tour itinerary below and if you haven't already, be sure to check out Numan's excellent new album.



3/05 – Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up
3/06 – Los Angeles, CA @ Mayan Theatre
3/07 – Las Vegas, NV @ Hard Rock Cafe
3/08 – Phoenix, AZ @ Marquee
3/11 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
3/12-14 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
3/17 – Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge
3/19 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
3/20 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Altar Bar
3/22 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
3/23 – Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero
3/24 – Boston, MA @ Paradise
3/25 – Montreal, QC @ Corona
3/27 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Theatre
3/28 – Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom
3/29 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
3/30 – Minneapolis, MN @ Mill City Nights
4/01 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall
4/02 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird
4/04 – Denver, CO @ Gothic
4/06 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore

Published on December 16th, 2013 @ 10:42 PM

Peter Murphy comments on drug arrest: "I'm a total teetotaler"

Peter Murphy has finally commented publicly on his March 17th arrest for hit & run and drug possession. Murphy admits to being involved in an accident, however he vehemently denies being in possession (or being a user) of methamphetamine. In an interview with the Australian music site The Music.co.uk (via Louder Than War), Murphy reveals he's a "total teetotaler" and has no idea where the meth police discovered came from:

"If you read the police reports you will see that my drug tests were completely clean. It’s not clear where the meth came from, but I can tell you that I have never touched the stuff."

Murphy escaped jail time and was sentenced to three months of probation in October. He'll release his tenth studio album, tentatively titled Lion, in 2014. The album was produced by Youth and is projected to be completed by year's end.

Earlier in the year, Peter Murphy guested on the new Dark Flowers album. Stream the track "Clean Break" from the album below:

"Clean Break"



Published on December 16th, 2013 @ 10:27 PM

The Ocean Blue release two new songs on Korda 2 Komp

Fresh off the release of the new album Ultramarine, the Ocean Blue are back with two more new songs on the newly released Korda 2 Komp. The tracks "No Money In That" and "Latin Blues" are streaming below, plus the full compilation which includes contributions from the Owls, Starfolk, Jim Ruiz Set and more is available to buy and stream here.





Published on December 15th, 2013 @ 6:18 PM

Video: Morrissey at the Nobel Peace Concert

Morrissey performed at the Nobel Peace Concert in Norway earlier today. The performance is his first live appearance since March 2013. Watch the three song performance below via Pitchfork.



01. People Are The Same Everywhere
02. Satellite Of Love
03. Irish Blood, English Heart

Published on December 11th, 2013 @ 6:59 PM

Bob Mould celebrates 'Workbook' anniversary with reissue & tour

Bob Mould's brilliant debut solo album Workbook is turning 25 years old and to celebrate, Mould is reissuing the classic record and hitting the road for a (ridiculously short) tour. The Workbook 25 reissue includes the original material, the b-side "All Those People Know," plus an extra disc of mostly live material recorded in 1989 at Cabaret Metro in Chicago. The reissue will also be released on 2 LP vinyl [note - the vinyl version won't include the extra live recordings, only the extra b-side "All Those People Know."] Workbook 25 will be released through Omnivore Recordings on February 25th. For more details, visit Bob Mould's official site or Omnivore Records. The tracklisting for Workbook 25 is posted underneath the dates for Mould' short anniversary tour.



Workbook 25 Tour

02/27 – San Francisco, CA @ Noise Pop
03/01 – Chicago, IL @ Old Town
03/02 – Chicago, IL @ City Winery
03/04 – Minneapolis, MN @ Women’s Club
03/05 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03/07 – New York, NY @ City Winery
03/08 – New York, NY @ City Winery

Disc 1

01. Sunspots
02. Wishing Well
03. Heartbreak A Stranger
04. See A Little Light
05. Poison Years
06. Sinners & Their Repentances
07. Brasilia Crossed With Trenton
08. Compositions For The Young & Old
09. Lonely Afternoon
10. Dreaming, I Am
11. Whichever Way The Wind Blows
12. All Those People Know

Disc 2 - Live at Cabaret Metro

01. Sunspots
02. Wishing Well
03. Compositions For The Young & Old
04. Heartbreak A Stranger
05. Dreaming, I Am
06. If You're True
07. Poison Years
08. Sinners & Their Repentances
09. Lonely Afternoon
10. Brasilia Crossed With Trenton
11. See A Little Light
12. Whichever Way The Wind Blows
13. All Those People Know
14. Shoot Out The Lights
15. Hardly Getting Over It
16. Celebrated Summer
17. Makes No Sense At All

Published on December 10th, 2013 @ 6:15 AM

Swervedriver premieres video for "Deep Wound"

Swervedriver's limited edition 7" of "Deep Wound" released earlier this year is now available as a digital download. "Deep Wound" b/w the dub version "Dub Wound" (featuring Ride's Mark Gardener on backing vocals) is available on Bandcamp, iTunes, and Amazon. Swervedriver premiered the official video for "Deep Wound" yesterday which includes footage taken from their live session at KEXP in Seattle last April. Check out the official video and KEXP performance from 2012 below:

"Deep Wound" (official video)



"Deep Wound" (KEXP session, April 4, 2012)



As mentioned above, the remix version of "Deep Wound" (titled "Dub Wound") includes backing vocals from Ride's Mark Gardener. The "Deep Wound" single was recorded at Gardener's OX-4-Sound studios in Oxford, England (the home of Swervedriver, Ride, and tons of other awesome bands).



As an aside, pretty cool to see old Ride bandmates Mark Gardener and Andy Bell tweeting to one another...

@Andybebop @SwervedriverUK Thanks Andy,I don't get out much these days ! It was a great night in @ox4sound with @AFBoltsofMelody !
— Mark Gardener (@MarkGardener) December 10, 2013

Published on December 9th, 2013 @ 6:00 AM

The Ultimate Joy Division Quiz

Test your Joy Division knowledge by taking the Ultimate Joy Division Quiz over at Shortlist. Though there are a few throwaway/easy questions, only huge fans are going to ace this one. Take the 20 question test here.

Published on December 10th, 2013 @ 5:33 AM

Pixies announce new touring bassist & premiere new video

The Pixies announced Paz Lenchantin (A Perfect Circle, ZWAN) will be joining the band as their touring bassist for their live dates in North America and Europe in 2014:

"We are really looking forward to playing with her on these dates,” said Lovering. “Working with different bass players is very new for the band, but we’re having a great time doing it."

Dates for their North American tour and summer festival schedule can be found below the band's new video for "Another Toe In The Ocean."



1/15 - Toronto @ Massey Hall
1/16 - Montreal @ Metropolis
1/18 - Boston @ Orpheum
1/19 - Port Chester, NY @ Capitol Theater
1/21 - Newark, NJ @ New Jersey Performing Arts Center
1/22 - New Haven, CT @ Shubert Theater
1/24 - Philadelphia @ Electric Factory
1/25 - Pittsburgh @ Carnegie Music Hall
1/26 - Washington DC @ Strathmore
1/29 - Richmond, VA @ National Theatre
1/31 - Durham, NC @ Durham PAC
2/01 - Asheville, NC @ Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
2/02 - Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
2/04 - Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
2/06 - St. Louis, MO @ Peabody Opera House
2/07 - Columbus, OH @ LC Pavilion
2/08 - Detroit, MI @ Fillmore Detroit
2/09 - Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theater
2/11 - Kansas City, MO @ Midland Theater
2/13 - Denver, CO @ Fillmore
2/14 - Aspen, CO @ Belly Up Tavern
2/15 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Great Salt Air
2/17 - Vancouver @ Orpheum Theatre
2/18 - Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
2/19 - Portland, OR @ Schnitzer
2/21 - Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
2/22 - San Jose, CA @ Civic Theater
2/23 - Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint
2/24 - Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre
2/25 - Albuquerque, NM @ Kiva Auditorium
2/27 - Houston, TX @ Bayou Music Center
2/28 - Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom
3/01 - Austin, TX @ Music Hall
3/29 - 3/30 - Lollapalooza Chile
4/01 - Uruguay - Rock & Fall Festival
4/01 - 4/03 - Lollapalooza Argentina
4/03 - 4/05 - Bogota, Colombia
4/05 - 4/06 - Lollapalooza Brazil
5/29 - 5/31 - Primavera Sound
6/05 - 6/07 - Primavera Sound
6/08 - London @ Field Day
6/15 - Risskov, Arhus - Denmark - Northside
6/20 - Hilvarenbeek @ Best Kept Secret Festival
6/20 - 6/22 Neuhausen auf den Fildern - Southside
6/20 - 6/22 Hurricane Festival
6/22 - 6/22 Southside Festival
6/25 - Croatia
6/29 - Dublin, Ireland
6/30 - Cork, Ireland
7/05 - Rock Werchter Festival
7/06 - Beauregard Festival

Published on December 9th, 2013 @ 6:06 AM

R.E.M.'s Peter Buck announces Detroit area date

R.E.M. guitarist, Peter Buck announced a Detroit area date - he's playing the Magic Bag in Ferndale on February 21st. Alejandro Escovedo is also performing at the Magic Bag that night.  Grab tickets here.

Peter Buck released his debut solo album last year as a limited edition vinyl pressing and is expected to release a follow up to that soon. Like the first record, the new record is likely going to be a vinyl only release - he told Salon earlier this year that he enjoys releasing music that way.

"...honestly, when I download a record, do I really care about it as much as if I’ve gone somewhere and actually walked a mile? So if you want my record you either have to write away to order it or you have to drive or walk somewhere to pick it up. I mean there’s less than 6,000. I’m not going to sell a million records."

Stream Buck's solo record below



Published on December 7th, 2013 @ 3:35 PM

Swervedriver releases digital version of "Deep Wound"

Swervedriver's limited edition 7" of "Deep Wound" released earlier this year is now available as a digital download. "Deep Wound" b/w the dub version "Dub Wound" (featuring Ride's Mark Gardener on backing vocals) is on Bandcamp now and will be available through iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play on December 9th.  Stream both tracks below.





Published on December 7th, 2013 @ 9:40 AM

Nine Inch Nails: Tension 2013 concert film

As reported previously Nine Inch Nails premiered their 90 minute concert film on Vevo today. The footage was shot November 8th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles as part of the Tension tour. The concert is streaming below, and a physical version (DVD/Blu-Ray) will be released next year. Those interested in obtaining the physical version can sign up for the mailing list over at the NIN website.

Also: NIN is doing a Reddit AMA (ask me anything) at 3PM ET today





Published on December 5th, 2013 @ 12:48 PM

David Bowie premieres new video for "I'd Rather Be High"

David Bowie premiered a new video for the Venetian mix of "I'd Rather Be High." The new remix is featured on Bowie's forthcoming "Love Is Lost" single. The limited edition 12" single comes pressed on white vinyl and includes the James Murphy mix of "Love Is Lost" b/w "I'd Rather Be High" and the edited version of "Love Is Lost." The single will be released on December 16th.



Published on December 5th, 2013 @ 5:49 AM

Mark Lanegan anthology coming in January + download free remix

Mark Lanegan releases his 32 track collection Has God Seen My Shadow? An Anthology 1989-2011 on January 14th. The collection features material from his solo career and includes 12 previously unreleased tracks.  Pre-order on vinyl or cd through Amazon.

Lanegan released a covers album titled Imitations in September and he release a single with Moby for Record Store Day in April. In May, Lanegan teamed up with Duke Garwood for the project Black Pudding. Download a remix of Black Pudding's "Cold Molly" below for free from Soundcloud:



In 2012 Mark Lanegan discussed several of the albums he's worked on over the years, plus talked about working with Josh Homme, Isobel Campbell, and his unfinished collaboration with Kurt Cobain. Read the article here.

Published on December 4th, 2013 @ 6:57 PM

Black Francis writing a graphic novel + watch Pixies hourlong BBC session

A graphic novel by the Pixies' Black Francis titled The Good Inn will be published by SelfMadeHero in May. The book has been described as "a fantastical piece of illustrated fiction based on a yet-to-be-written soundtrack to a movie that doesn't yet exist." The Good Inn was co-written by Pixies biographer, Josh Frank. Read more about the book over at the Guardian.

Meanwhile, back in October, the Pixies played an hourlong session at the famed Maida Vale Studios in London for the BBC. The session includes 18 songs and a couple of short interview segments with Black Francis. Enjoy the Maida Vale session below:



Setlist

Bone Machine
Break My Body
Monkey Gone to Heaven
Bagboy
I've Been Tired
Hey
Indie Cindy
Gouge Away
Havalina
Velouria
Mr. Grieves
Another Toe in the Ocean
What Goes Boom
Isla de Encanta
Winterlong
Here Comes Your Man
Vamos
Where Is My Mind?

Posted on December 4th, 2013 @ 4:27 PM

Nine Inch Nails premiere Tension '13 concert film

Nine Inch Nails are premiering a 90 minute concert film on Vevo tomorrow (December 5th) at noon ET. The footage was shot in Los Angeles on the November 8th stop of the Tension 2013 tour. While you're waiting for that, check out part 2 of NIN's behind the scenes look at the Tension tour below:



Trent Reznor also announced his streaming music service Beats Music launches in January. Find out more about that here.

Published on December 4th, 2013 @ 2:20 PM

Morrissey releases "Satellite of Love" cover & 'Autobiography' in North America

Morrissey's cover of the Lou Reed classic "Satellite of Love" was released today in North America. The cover was recorded at The Chelsea Ballroom at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas on November 25, 2011 and is available as a digital single from iTunes or Amazon. A 7" picture disc of "Satellite of Love" will be released on January 28th, and will be backed with Moz's 1992 track "You're Gonna Need Someone On Your Side" produced by Mick Ronson (co-producer of Reed's original version of "Satellite Of Love" and its parent album, Transformer) as well as a previously unreleased live version of "You Say You Don't Love Me," recorded live in Hyde Park on July 4, 2008.

Autobiography by Morrissey is also out today.



Published on December 3rd, 2013 @ 5:05 AM

Stream TOY's outstanding new LP 'Join The Dots' ahead of its release

TOY is one of the best bands around right now.  If you enjoy psychedelica and you're not familiar with this band, you need to stop everything and check them out.  Last year they released their debut full length album TOY (check out the epic "Kopter" from TOY below), and they've already followed up the debut with a brilliant new album titled Join The Dots.  The album arrives December 10th, which is well after every music publication known to man shuts down for the season so don't expect this to appear on too many year end lists (since they're already written). Stream Join The Dots in full ahead of its release over at the Guardian.





TOY have a North American tour planned for January. Go see them:

1/09 - Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands Gallery
1/10 - New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
1/14 - Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
1/15 - Detroit, MI @ PJ's Lager House
1/16 - Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
1/18 - San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
1/19 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo

Catch up with TOY on the web.

Published December 2nd, 2013 @ 7:34 PM