by Kayla Hutton | Jan 30, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
Lanterns, the full-length debut from Atlanta 3 piece
A Very Loud Death opens with “Consumer” an atmospheric stage-setter for a lucid journey into a darkness that could be the background music to any Edgar Allen Poe story. Don’t question the production of a simple 3 piece band, somehow they pull off full spectrum sound that you would expect of a 5 piece. Chris Edge’s vocals are heartful and poignant, while the slow to medium paced music confirms the emotive romanticism of nurturing a heart you yourself inflicted damage upon.
The album overall has segments of dreary alternative rock, emo but not whiny, and some metal dynamics. With a vast audience opportunity, A Very Loud Death would appeal to fans of Chevelle, HIM, Mars Volta, and artists that have that hint of saddened macabre. Animated and heartfelt A Very Loud Death offers heart on sleeve honesty that you can feel with every musical change and vocal melody. “Lanterns” has a System of a down like guitar riff that takes an entirely new meaning once the chorus kicks in and tones become more epic and the vocals more desperately dyer. Applying instrument and vocal effects that expand the tonal dreariness yet cast a spooky shadow that is as perfectly subtle as a thin cloud coverage.
The vocals return with a soothing embrace on “The Ease of Absurdity”. Lightly brushed tom rolls accommodate a strong bass line that really takes the wheel and directs this track. The build-ups ad an unexpected turn that isn’t overpowering and breaks up the predictability that typically bores listeners. “The Wild” is the album’s most fast-paced song and pulls between the low dark overtone and a slight anger that cradles the ears yet instills that same uneasy feeling you get when someone shoots you an uncertain grin that you cant tell is sincere or wicked. With music that is melodic and driven to fulfill the albums intense theme, the lyrics have an offbeat obscurity that follows a rhyming pattern that kind of hints that a progressive rock influence had been tossed into the blender of sound that A Very Loud Death has inside their already genre-bending core.
In closing, the best way to describe A Very Loud Death’s latest offering is that there is enough dramatic loudness to wake up empathy in a stone-cold psychopath.
Keep up with the band
here.
by Veronica DeFeo | Jan 26, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
Kansas City, Missouri-based rock and roll indie band Listener is soon to release their full length album, Being Empty : Being Filled on February 2nd. Kansas City is home to a growing community of local indie/alternative artists, encouraged and supported by like-minded people, thanks in part to Kansas City being home to the largest revenue-making alternative radio station, 96.5 the Buzz. Thus, Listener couldn’t have a better place to call home and expand musically. However, they are by no means limited to the Midwest. Listener has been in the game for awhile, and has toured all over the world. A band of friends comprised of vocals and bass from Dan Smith, Kris Rochelle on drums, and guitar player Jon Terrey, Listener is a unique rock and roll band that pairs strong instruments with direct, bold lyrics.
From the first resonating notes of “Pent Up Genes”, you know that Listener is not a band that plays around. Already around for over a decade, the bandmates of Listener know their sound and own it unapologetically. Smith uses more spoken word than singing – what Listener calls “talk music” – in many of the tracks, which pairs well with the rock and roll tone of the band and allows for Rochelle and Terrey to sing through their instruments. While this idea of lack of singing in music may be something new for many, Listener makes it work. Focusing on the emotion and overall sound, at times, words are not even necessary, like in “Add Blue”. Aside from the clever title, already released single “Shock and Value” lives up to its name, filled with brash guitar and emotional vocals that at times surprise the listener (no pun intended). Place-themed tracks set right next to each other, “A Love Letter to Detroit” and “Manhattan Projects” encompass the feelings associated with those places. You can also view the video for “A Love Letter to Detroit” here. One of the most tender tracks on Being Empty : Being Filled is “Window to the World”, while maintaining Listener’s sound, with the simple yet touching repetition of “buddy, she was beautiful” and “the lights have to be bright to see anything at all”. Every track on Being Empty : Being Filled will leave with something to think about and hungry to hear more.
Listener is gearing up for a UK/Europe tour in March of 2018 with support from: Levi the Poet. Be sure to look for Being Empty : Being Filled, out February 2nd, 2018.
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by Kayla Hutton | Jan 25, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
Ready for heavy and hardcore?
Primal Rite comes from San Francisco, an area that is known for cranking out metal (and any sub-genre of it) awesomeness. This crossover (metal with punk attributes) 6 piece began in 2016 and have released 3 singles and an E.P. throughout 2017. There can’t be a better way to bring in 2018 than by releasing their debut full-length album
Dirge Of Escapism set to release on
January 26th via Revelation.
The album begins with “Chapter Zero” a wind swirling intro that lands upon a beat fit to send the troops into battle. The introductory guitar riff induces a metal trance that will find you thrusting your upper torso back and forth. With a rawness similar to that of Sepultura’s Schizophrenia album there is no shortage of leads that squeal like an air raid siren.There are metal grooves with dynamics that offer each transition a welcome pass to slide on in.
“Interference” possesses a classic thrash/speed metal feel that is sure to gain the respect of any true metal head, “Sensory Link to Pain” shows some serious in the pocket groove and stomp that will have you pumping your fists to the sky. You can hear an influence that is a conglomeration of classic 80’s bay area thrashers with a hint of East Coast punk/hardcore.
If there is anything you need to know before you head over to their
Bandcamp and pre-order your copy of “Dirge of Escapism” it’s this, it’s heavy, it’s brutal, it’s reminiscent of a sweaty nightclub of clashing moshpitters and hardcore dancers. The album as a whole captures the energy of what a live show would be like. As a bonus, if you pre-order
Dirge of Escapism, you get 3 tracks now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released.
I almost forgot to mention, those guttural vocals, no it’s not Martin Van Drunen from Asphyx, it’s Lucy. That’s right a female. Don’t even think there is a moment of weak, pretty, “hand me my skirt” moments. This chick has raised the bar and proven when it comes to metal, it’s not just boys that can lay it down. Horns up to Primal Rite.
by Meredith Schneider | Jan 19, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
UK-based musician Ian Parton has developed a new and invigorating sound in this second iteration of The Go! Team, live players Simone Odaranile (drums) and Angela ‘Maki’ Won-Yin Mak (vocals), as well as two original members, guitarist Sam Dook and rapper Ninja. With the help of a few more friends, the project releases its brand new album Semicircle on Friday. Just ahead of its release, we got a little listen to what’s to come and, boy, were we blown away!
From the very first notes of “Mayday” to the very end of twelfth song “Get Back Up”, you’ll be mesmerized by their energy and affinity for creating a fun and uplifting soundscape for us. Though the vocals in “Chain Link Fence” feel slightly like turn of the century bubble gum pop-meets-Jackson 5, we’re certainly not knocking it. In fact, it’s what drives the song and keeps our ears glued to what’s next. It isn’t until third track “Semicircle” that we notice how intense the musicianship is in the album. (Trust us, you’ll understand when you listen.)
Fourth track “Hey!” exists, for us, behind the montage scene of a chick flick, most likely when a shopping spree is taking place. But, boy, does it bring a vitality to the album that makes us want to play it everywhere! “The Answer’s No – Now What’s The Question?” – though one of the more hilarious titles we’ve seen in a while – demonstrates the band’s ability to create depth with an often addicting, sweet-as-candy sound to it. “Chico’s Radical Decade” takes us right back in time, no vocals to be heard to distinguish it as more modern. Close your eyes and picture the brown carpet, the fun hats, people probably saying “Groovy” whether it’s culturally relevant or not…
“All The Way Live” is as sticky sweet as its predecessors, which makes us realize we’re not getting out of this one without dancing. (And we thought we could fool our coworkers into thinking we were being productive!) But doesn’t the island vibe in “If There’s One Thing You Should Know ‘If There’s One Thing You Should Know'” make you wish that it was time for some warm weather around North America at the moment? (That’s OK… this album will still be ripe for the pickin’ once spring rolls around, we guarantee it.)
Though they certainly named a few of our faves in “Tangerine / Satsuma / Clementine”, it has a little more of a mellow tempo to it, bringing our heartbeat down just slightly and adding a head bob into our awkward back and forth dance movement. And with the sentiment of the title alone of “She’s Got Guns”, we’re groovin’ around the room. While we’re on board with both the title and the percussion in “Plans Are Like A Dream U Organise”, “Getting Back Up” is so inspirational in title, instrumentals, and chorus music, that we’d be surprised if a one of you didn’t end the album with a smile on your damn face.
Says Parton of the project:
It’s about reminding yourself of the good things in life. We don’t want to be dumbly optimistic and say, ‘Hey, isn’t everything great!’ but there’s something to be said for just getting on with it, for getting organized and not letting the fuckers get you down. Party for your right to fight!
Be sure to catch The Go! Team on tour soon if you’re in the UK!
Instore dates:
01/18 – Kingston, UK @ Banquet Records
01/19 – London, UK @ Rough Trade East
01/22 – Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Bristol
01/23 – Nottingham, UK @Rough Trade Nottingham
Headlining/Festival dates:
* with GURR
# with Neon Saints Brass
+ with The Daniel Wakeford Experience
02/09 – Glasgow, UK @ QMU *
02/10 – Leeds, UK @ The Wardrobe *
02/11 – Brighton, UK @ The Haunt *#
02/15 – London, UK @ Electric Ballroom *+
02/16 – Newcastle, UK @ Riverside *
02/17 – Manchester, UK @ Gorilla * SOLD OUT
02/22 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
02/23 – Dunkirque @ Les 4 Ecluses
02/24 – St Malo @ Route Du Rock Festival
03/02 – Cologne, DE @ Gebäude 9
03/03 – Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher
03/04 – Berlin, DE @ Bi Nuu
03/24 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
03/25 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah
03/27 – San Francisco, CA @ Independent
03/29 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir
03/30 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
03/31 – Vancouver, BC @ Fox
04/03 – St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
04/04 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
04/05 – Detroit, MI @ El Club
04/06 – Toronto, ON @ Great Hall
04/08 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair
04/09 – New York, NY@ Le Poisson Rouge
Keep up with The Go! Team here.
by Ron Boling | Jan 4, 2018 | review, snapshot
Deathbeat owned the stage and the crowds attention last night at Pianos. The band hails from Melbourne Australia, they played with power and enthusiasm despite the foreign arctic blast engulfing the city for much of their time here. They kicked off with “Dust The Book” a song which hinges on a hypnotic rhythm from drummer Steve Tyssen. The drum trance coupled with the hazy but precise guitar from Julian Schweitzer foreshadowed the rest of the set. Track after track the duo powered through with distorted guitar and booming percussion.
The fourth track in “Vibe Police” seemed like a tongue in cheek statement about youth and authority. Julian’s presentation of lyrics let the listener know to swallow with a grain of salt. The group next played “Heartbreaks”. This track is reminiscent of “Sabotage” era Beastie Boys. “Heartbreaks” has an accompanying video you can watch with the link below.
The band finished the set with “ZAP 5”. The song has giant Tom Morello – esque guitars that provided emotional closure on a carefully placed and muscular set list. The band will head back home to Australia next week you can keep up with them on social media via the links below.
by Annjelica Houston | Dec 18, 2017 | snapshot
On Sunday, at Immanuel Baptist Church in Los Angeles, hundreds gathered to witness the incomparable James Blake.
When he got to the stage, he was humble, and friendly—even his attire was casual (a red and white soccer jersey). His demeanor was reminiscent of a friend that was asking you to listen to their new music as you both sat casually in a makeshift studio.
Once he began to play, it was clear that James Blake performing in a place of worship was all too perfect. The crowd became deafeningly silent, and like a tsunami, Blake was still and suddenly commanding, prominent—like a pastor in the middle of a passionate sermon. Heads bowed and swayed in sync, as if in trance.
His set list included the beloved, “Limit to Your Love,” “Retrograde,” and “Love Me In Whatever Way,” “Wilhelm Scream,” and other ethereal tracks. A new song he gifted the audience with was “Asking for a Friend.”
By the end of the show, it was clear that while it wasn’t his intention, Blake became the leader of a new religion: a group of people mesmerized by his (incomparable) vocal abilities, modesty and genuine connectivity.
If you get the opportunity, it would serve you well to see James Blake live in concert, it may not save your soul, but you can feel like it for a couple of hours.
Keep up with James Blake here.
by Meredith Schneider | Dec 18, 2017 | wolf tracks
New Jersey-based indie psych rock band Speed The Plough – comprised of John, Toni and Mike Baumgartner and Ed Seifert, joined by former STP bassist Dan Francia and drummer Ken Meyer – released their latest full length on December 8th. The album, titled …And Then, is comprised of ten tracks that dare to drag you into a soundscape that doesn’t altogether make sense in one grouping. From one track to the next, the group displays their musical prowess and keeps the listener on their toes with the variety of sounds they are able to create together.
Take “Crossing the Tizsa” for example. The lyrics are almost like a fairy tale or a beautiful children’s story, set over dark instrumentals that eventually lighten into a Renaissance-like tranquility. This makes sense, as it was found in a songbook of Hungarian folk songs. (John’s mom is the one who can be heard in the spoken word section, by the way. Props to her!) “Take Me” allows the album to take on a whole different persona, introducing itself with bass that would rival the best oughts’ pop/punk tracks. And while “Azimuth” has an unmistakable 70s vibe, perhaps driven by the keys that make up the melody, “The Bitter End” feels abrupt and intense in its disposition. By the time we reach fifth track “Marina”, we’re not sure what to expect, as Speed The Plough tends to switch up the sound on us from one track to the next. For example, “Marina” brings back that beautiful renaissance-meets-rock feel to it, almost as though it should be on an A/B Side with “Crossing the Tizsa”.
“By This River” is light as a feather, largely driven by simple and delicate piano chords. Its sound is slightly different from its predecessors as well, if not only for the fact that it is a cover originally done by Brian Eno. While we might expect “Why We Fall in Love” to be some sort of intense love ballad, it’s more of a quirky indie track with percussion that feels primal, and perhaps groups it back in that “far-off places, daring sword fights, magic spells” territory. (Guess that reference in the comments and you’ve got a new bets friend!) “The Bird Has Flown” is almost theatrical in its presence, notable for its robust piano chords and delicate guitar.
Last two tracks “Running On” and “Dark Continents” happen to have been originals from an earlier iteration of the band called The Trypes. These tracks hadn’t gotten the studio attention the band thought they needed to thrive, so these tracks happen to have a different, low-key, “vibing out” feel to them that really tends to invigorate as the last track fades out beautifully.
…And Then is available now. Keep up with Speed The Plough here.
by Christie McMenamin | Dec 12, 2017 | snapshot
The line wrapped around Times Square, making a mess of Broadway. Swarms of fans covered themselves in swaths of red and green, draping blinking Christmas lights across their bodies and topping them off with Santa hats. And some were decked out another way: t-shirts with pictures of three smiling brothers were the most common, and even fashionable, accessory.
Right on the heels of their Middle of Everywhere tour, honoring 25 years as a band, Hanson was intent on closing 2017 with a bang. With October 27th’s release of their new Christmas album, Finally It’s Christmas, Hanson added an implicit nod to their fanbase. Every year since the release of their first Christmas record twenty years ago, Snowed In, Hanson’s fans have been eagerly and incessantly clamoring for another. And this year, an early Christmas gift arrived, complete with celebratory shows in select cities, almost all of them sold out. November 28th was the first of Hanson’s two-night run at the PlayStation Theater.
The stage was set, adorned with lights and garland, readying the audience for what was to come as greetings were given, drinks were purchased, and laughter wafted through the air. Projections of snowflakes swept across the floor, lending a more wintry feel to a surprisingly warm November night.
And then the lights were lowered. Screams, cheers, and claps commenced as Hanson stepped out, each formally dressed as if on the way to a holiday party; guitarist Isaac Hanson sported a green tie, drummer Zac Hanson a red bowtie, and pianist Taylor Hanson with a blue scarf dotted with white, resembling the snowflakes on stage. Immediately breaking into “Finally It’s Christmas,” the triumphant first track kicking off the new album, the crowd began singing along at the top of their lungs; they already had it memorized. Accompanying Hanson was a saxophone player, who often danced in coordinated movements with their bass player, laughing as they did so and giving a new meaning to the word “merry.” With this inclusion, Hanson’s sound was more jubilant than ever before, an elevation to a fuller, louder plane, similar to 2010’s Shout It Out, which features horns on many of its tracks. Hanson crafts each song in a different way, and are always up for experimentation. With 25 years under their collective belt, they search for new and innovative ways to enhance their music, and this new record is proof.
Hanson not only played songs off Finally It’s Christmas, but also songs off Snowed In. Though they were only children at the time, they still penned three original Christmas tracks, “At Christmas,” “Christmas Time,” and “Everybody Knows The Claus” as well as their own medley of “O Holy Night,” “Silent Night,” and “O Come All Ye Faithful.”
There were too many highlights of the show to count: you could say the best part was Taylor walking to the front of the stage during “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” shaking a tambourine and encouraging the crowd to sing background vocals with Isaac and Zac. Or when Isaac issued a challenge to the audience during “Til New Year’s Night,” one of the most standout tracks on Finally It’s Christmas, imploring the crowd to name each reindeer before launching back into the song Chuck Berry-style. Or maybe it was when Zac took over the piano during “Please Come Home,” his voice soaring over the keys while Taylor played drums. Objectively, however, it was “Joy To The Mountain” a capella that stood out the most, with Hanson’s harmonies in flight, echoing from floor to ceiling in the near-silent theater. It grabbed the audience and arrested them into a quiet trance, the lull of a Christmas lullaby.
The end of the show featured “Everybody Knows The Claus,” one of Snowed In’s most beloved tracks. Everyone was dancing with abandon, recalling the days of childhood and the mad dash to the local record store on the day Snowed In was first released, relishing every bit of it, second after second, minute after minute, meticulously taking it all in on cassette tape. And 20 years later, those experiences and memories are still emblazed in the brain and heart, which is what made this show so meaningful. Hanson always delivers to their fans, giving them nearly two hours of music, finally ending the encore with “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.”
It was the perfect note to end on, allowing a moment of reflection and pause before the final bow and goodbye—until 2018.
by Meredith Schneider | Dec 5, 2017 | wolf tracks
At the end of November, Polish avant-pop duo Legumina released their debut album, a 11-track collection affectionately titled Something Pasty and Probably Yellow. But this album comes from a different place than many others come from, and it’s something we definitely took interest in right off the bat. Legumina is the marriage of two stunningly vibrant personalities who, as it just so happens, chose to end their romantic relationship quite some time ago. But in 2013, the pair of Mon Sadowska (vocals, lyrics) and Marcin Gręda (guitar, ukulele, electronics, laptop, earlier Letdown Dept.) chose to reconcile those differences enough to form a duo, and to create an album that seems to serve as both closure on their romantic past and as a new beginning for their artistic futures. It’s unique, well-written, and beautiful to a point that we have to make it known.
Beginning with light, staccato notes accompanied by strangely contrasting lines of voiceover, “(Not That) Yellow” makes you feel like you’re in a futuristic lullaby. Pair that with the slow, ethereal notes of “Berlin” and the twinkling sounds of “Probably June”, and Something Pasty and Probably Yellow starts out in this quirky, beautiful space that you would assume a She & Him album might steer toward. Once Sadowska’s vocals hit a track, even if it existed in another soundscape altogether, she immediately brings a fairy-like presence to it all. A fact that comes to us as incredibly quirky and endearing, especially with fourth track “Song of the Northern Pole” which – instrumentally, at least – does perfectly capture the way you assume being in the North Pole would feel. Fifth track “Swim Safety” plays a little more with dissonance in the intro, swirling into this impossibly gorgeous track.
As you reach “Parking Space Inequity”, you’re so used to the upbeat feel of its predecessors that you don’t quite expect the melancholic twinge to kick in at that point. With the pace of the lyrics versus the instrumentals, it almost feels like Legumina found their inspiration in aughts emo and punk music, but it’s been updated with an electro pop feel that slightly resembles trance music at a rave. While “Sink Sank Song” makes you feel like you’re actually inside a video game – which makes the song that much more fun -, “Short Guide to Palm Reading” is considerably less witchy than what we would assume from the title. We are 100% on board with the bizarre title of track 9, and totally agree with the sentiment that “Happiness Isn’t Happiness Without a Violin-playing Goat”. The name of the track itself made us feel like we were wandering back into that punk/emo inspiration, a la the long titles that Fall Out Boy and Panic! at The Disco have become known for. “Elementary” slows things down to a crawl – really returning to that lullaby feeling – and the band expertly rounds out the album with the track “Farewell Captain” (ft. Edyta Glinska) which audibly insists on the closure of the album. The audience feels a finite energy in this track, bittersweet in its delivery, much like the closure the duo found through the production of this album.
Check it out below, and let us know what you think in the comments!
Something Pasty and Probably Yellow is available now. Keep up with Legumina here.
