Kutosis have just released their new album Dream It Away via Jealous Lovers Club.
This sophomore see’s the acclaimed Cardiff trio gathering their shoegaze and rock influences and fusing them with true pop sensibilities. Produced by Rory Attwell (Yuck, Veronica Falls, Palma Violets), this is an album of swirling summer soothers, not to be overlooked likely. Stream Dream It Away in its entirety below.
It was only two weeks ago that Death Grips released another epic album pushing their unique cacophony worldwide through the web but tonight they have just announced that enough is enough from this statement below. All we can say is that if this is to be true thank you so much for bringing something so special to the scene.
“we are now at our best and so Death Grips is over. we have officially stopped. all currently scheduled live dates are canceled. our upcoming double album “the powers that b” will still be delivered worldwide later this year via Harvest/Third Worlds Records. Death Grips was and always has been a conceptual art exhibition anchored by sound and vision. above and beyond a “band”. to our truest fans, please stay legend.”
Eugene Quell
A Great Uselessness
Sonic Anhedonic
Here’s a Eugene Quell statement to think over: “I am making the most fun and unoriginal music I have ever made”. Logically, it’s an oxymoron – I mean, where’s the fun in unoriginality? We want new, right? Thankfully, forthcoming Quell release A Great Uselessness is a sharp lesson in how to juggle nostalgia and pastiche without tarnishing the memory. And there’s plenty of fun too.
Actually, A Great Uselessness isn’t devoid of originality at all – long-time fans of Quell brainchild Tobias Hayes (Meet Me in St Louis, Shoes and Socks Off) will recognise those unexpected chords straight from the off. Sure, there’s more than a cupful of nineties fuzz and grunge thrown in there (check the Francis/Deal duet during the Pixies-esque ‘Hell Presidente’), but there are also moments of charm and freshness alongside.
That none of the four songs break the three minute barrier says a lot about the focus of the EP – there’s no time for meandering here. Instead, it feels more like Hayes’ stream-of-thought layered over lo-fi slacker-rock; a lean eleven minutes with not an ounce of fat on it.
The adrenaline-soaked lead single, ‘That One Song’, is the shot in the arm we didn’t realise we needed, with a killer hook-line that comes from nowhere but stays for days. Only ‘And There Goes The Drugs’ slows the pace of the record – a bedroom jam that relies on subtlety instead of speed to level the record out.
On the eve of the first headline Eugene Quell show this week at The Old Blue Last, and with two solid EPs under his belt, Hayes is whetting the ol’ appetite somewhat. A debut LP can’t be far away, and if it’s anything like the material we’ve already heard, it’ll be worth the wait.
A Great Uselessness is due for release from July 7th via Sonic Anhedonic.
Chris Bunt
Following a Glastonbury triumph on the John Peel stage, Wolf Alice have shared a video clip of ‘Storms’, taken from their recent Toe Rag Studios session.
Their 2nd EP Creature Songs, out now on Dirty Hit Records, see’s the band raising the bar phenomenally high with four sincerely snarling songs, stream it now from their SoundCloud.
The Proper Ornaments have shared a new music video for their single ‘Magazine’.
Taken from recent their Fortune Pop! debut LP, Wooden Head, ‘Magazine’ see’s The Proper Ornaments showing the hazier, laid-back side to their songwriting personality. Stream the video below and grab a copy of their debut album to soundtrack your summer in an instant.
Following Mondays news of an angry local taking it upon himself to cleanse the Philadelphia neighbourhood of its commissioned Kurt Vile mural, the artist, Steve ‘ESPO’ Powers, has issued a statement on his website urging fans to forgive the offender, assuring them he will re-paint and restore the mural to it’s former glory.
“We’ll fix the wall, it will be better than it was in the first place (it’s ALWAYS better the second time). Lee the buffman is retired, now he’s Lee Major Crimes Unit. We forgive Lee, we don’t want anybody in trouble for painting a wall. And graffiti will come and go as it has since the caves in Lascaux. Let’s all go back to not caring too much either way.”
Read the full statement from Steve here.
It’s refreshing to hear that Steve is not phased by his work being defaced, happy to write the event off as a misunderstanding. Maybe we can all learn a lesson from him. Hit play below and recline.
GOAT
‘Hide From The Sun’
Rocket Recordings
Swedish psychedelic rock collective GOAT have announced the release of their highly anticipated second LP, Commune.
Lead single, ‘Hide From the Sun’ ventures into an unexplored, desert sand-storm of the sonic spectrum. Sounding like Jefferson Airplane produced by Ennio Morricone straight off the bat, GOAT also channel some traditional indian-raga-like vibes into the mix.
The infectious, funk-infused lead line sounds like Ravi Shankar dropped acid and started playing his sitar through a wah pedal. The results ooze a rich, psychedelic groove that winds its way around your subconscious before lowering the tones to a sub-frequency, fuzzed out interlude.
‘Hide From The Sun’ will leave you more than excited for GOAT’s sophomore album and if this track is anything to go by, Commune is sure to provide the heaviest dose of acidic groove. Look out for it from September 22nd via Rocket Recordings.
Dave Palmer
Nails / Inherit @ Birthdays, Dalston 26/06/2014
Words: Tim Lewis
Photo credit: Sam Bush
Little has changed since Nails last played in the UK. Still the same four men on stage, the same songs and as heavy as ever. Since their November UK tour the band have signed to Metal Blade Records, former home to genuine metal legends Trouble and Slayer. With that in mind, its needless to say that this show sold out far in advance and the room is heaving.
Despite a very clear metal influence, Nails are undoubtedly a hardcore band meaning the crowd is a mix of Minor Threat and Obituary shirts. Similarly, their support act, Inherit, take influence from both thrash metal and hardcore to create a noise that could be easily compared to Leeway or Cro Mags.
Drawing from past encounters with Inherit, they’ve often left me a little cold. I feel they tend to play for a little too long, and with only eight songs released, setlists are often similar. For whatever reason, tonight feels more like the first times I saw them, an exciting band with excellent crossover riffs. Opening with an intro that sounds so much like Slayer you’d assume it was taken off of Hell Awaits, and the crowd are right behind them. Frontman Adam Malik discusses with passion the similarities between hardcore and metal, singing Nails’ praises for playing tiny backroom shows despite being able to fill rooms twice this size. Ending on a cover of Zero Tolerance’s ‘A Minute to Pray’ is something I’ve seen Inherit do for years, and as ever, it gets people moving, despite their unfamiliarity with a metal audience.
After a short changeover, its time for California’s Nails. With this London show being the only UK date of their European tour, the excitement is high. It takes about three seconds of the intro before the crowd start destroying each other, and this rightly continues as the band rip through their desperately heavy back catalogue.
When vocalist Todd Jones was in Terror he had a bit of a reputation for being a fairly negative individual. However, between songs tonight he jokes with the crowd, pays tribute to the UK hardcore scene, and seems genuinely grateful to perform to a sold out venue.
Its perhaps predictable to say that the tracks from last year’s breakthrough record, Abandon All Life, create the most carnage. However when genuinely monsterous songs such as ‘Wide Open Wound’ encourage as much mayhem as can be seen, its hardly any surprise. Ending on a cover of Breakdown’s classic ‘Sick People’ -with Inherit’s Adam Malik on vocals- may seem like an unusual closer, but for those who know it they’re in paradise, with stage pile ons and mass stage diving taking place. Todd Jones ends on the promise of returning to the UK next year to host a release show for their next full length here in London, and as the band leave the stage, its clear that the love the UK has for Nails is mutual.
Toronto’s finest noise rock trio have shared a Urinals cover version online. As we all know, METZ do nothing by half measure, and this raging rendition of ‘I’m A Bug’ is just the onslaught you need in your ears right now.
METZ are currently working on new material and are set to embark upon a full USA tour with some tasty UK dates for August in there too, see below.
Tour Dates
8/10 North Yorkshire, @ Beacons Festival
8/11 Birmingham, @ Hare & Hounds
8/12 Sheffield , @ Harley
8/13 St Albans, @ The Horn
8/16 London, @ ExCeL London, Jaberwocky Festival
Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend have revealed they will enter the recording studio for one final time this summer.
Marking their 50th anniversery as a band this year, the now two piece line-up also plan to tour in celebration of the milestone they’ve reached since releasing their first single ‘Zoot Suit’ in 1964. The tour, billed as ‘Hits, Picks and Misses’, will see the Who playing nine arena dates across the UK through November and December.
Tickets for the tour dates below go on sale at 9am, July 4th. Sure to sell out fast, make sure you snap one of these up for what could well be the last time the duo decide to tour.
Tour Dates
30th November Glasgow – SSE Hydro
2nd December Leeds – First Direct Arena
5th December Nottingham – Capital FM Arena
7th December Birmingham – NIA
9th December Newcastle – Metro
11th December Liverpool – Echo Arena
13th December Manchester – Phones 4U Arena
15th December Cardiff – Motorpoint
17th December London – O2 Arena