Muso's Guide Underexposed 20140321

Pool - Harm

Get it as a free download here: www.berlinfestival.de/news/article/berlin-festival-hymne-2013.html

Watch the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZJLf3ze7Zc

Pool - Harm

"The West Wind" by Ryley Walker. 3 song 12" EP available now. Ryley's debut album will be released on Tompkins Square April 15th, 2014.

Ryley Walker is a 24 year-old singer/songwriter and guitarist from Chicago. His debut album will be released in April 2014 on Tompkins Square.

"With the charming swagger of jazz-folk troubadour Tim Buckley and the resonant, full picking style of Bert Jansch, "The West Wind" comes from Walker's first widely available release, a three-song 12". With acoustic guitar in hand and a voice like browned butter, Walker swings and sways in a lush string-and-piano arrangement right out of Buckley's Starsailor; it slowly picks up to a swirling gallop without bucking the rhythm." - NPR Music

Tour dates :

WITH WREKMEISTER HARMONIES :
03-08 Chicago - The Hideout
03-09 Kansas City, KS - FOKL
03-11 Dallas - Crown & Harp

03-13 Austin, TX (SXSW) - Stephen F's, Intercontinental - 10pm

03-17 Oxford, MS - Lamar Lounge
03-18 Little Rock, AR - Vino's Brew Pub
03-19 Louisville, KY - Dreamland
03-20 Lafayette, IN - Foam City


WITH CLOUD NOTHINGS :
04-10 Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
04-11 Clinton, NY - Tolles Pavilion
04-12 Hamden, CT - The Space
04-13 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
04-14 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
04-16 Washington, DC - Black Cat
04-17 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
04-18 Athens, GA - Georgia Theatre
04-19 Atlanta, GA - Masquerade (Hell Stage)
04-21 Orlando, FL - The Social
04-22 Tampa, FL - Crowbar
04-23 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder
04-24 New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa
04-25 Houston, TX - Fitzgerald's

The West Wind by Ryley Walker

Finland’s apocalypse-anticipating post-punk outfit, BEASTMILK, will release their Climax LP, worldwide on Black Friday, November 29th. Recorded, mixed, and produced in July of 2013 at GodCity Studios by Kurt Ballou, Climax conveys a true, genuine excitement and all-consuming state of euphoric thrall in the face of the bleak, end-of-days thematic narratives. Instead of stereotypically brooding and glacially plodding through the inherent darkness cast from Kvohst’s poetic spells, the instrumentalists of BEASTMILK apply a unique, surging catchiness composed of infectious anthemic charges and unbreakable spirit from beginning to end. True to form, when the end finally comes and consumes all else, Climax stands as the enduring battle hymn for the exhilarated survivors of a cold world.

Climax will see release in North America via Magic Bullet Records and on Svart Records for Europe; both labels will unleash the album on LP, CD and digital formats.

“Apocalyptic visions and a wicked sense of humor populate audio nightmares as BEASTMILK create visceral, unsettling death rock for the elite... a jangly post-punk death wish.” - Pitchfork

“The album is endlessly, almost dizzyingly climactic — a series of soaring peaks that combine the moody, precise darkwave/post-punk of Interpol or Cold Cave with the maximalist bombast of Arcade Fire.” - Stereogum

"BEASTMILK’s guitars are alive with bits of Siouxsie and The Banshees, Misfits and Cramps, but folded within structures straight from angry Echo And The Bunnymen, Joy Division and Bauhaus. I feel like I’m sixteen, sitting in my room in the dark listening to music. At the same time it’s completely modern. What the fuck?... BEASTMILK has entered the battle for my top album of 2013 with a machete. An astonishing debut. 9/10" - Crave Online

http://www.beastmilk.me
http://www.magicbulletrecords.com
http://www.facebook.com/magicbulletrecords
https://twitter.com/magicbulletrecs


BEASTMILK "Death Reflects Us"

Lead track from Forced Fun EP, released 31st March 2014 with Flatpack Recordings

Recorded, mixed & mastered by Dan Beesley

Cover artwork by Sam Huddleston

Temper Temper

The title song of the forthcoming début album from Candy Says, Oxford's lo-fi chic pop garage recording collective.

Not Kings (the album) will be released on 28 May 2014, and you can see Candy Says live:

28 May - The Waiting Room, London (album launch)
29 May - Truck Store, Oxford
29 May - Midnight live streaming gig from the garage
Tickets available from http://candysays.it


Not Kings

Moon Gangs - I

'Lungs' is the latest free track from <a href="http://www.abadgeoffriendship.com/artists/penguins-kill-polar-bears" target="blank">Penguins Kill Polar Bears</a>, taken from their debut album Building Homes From Broken Bones, out 7th April 2014. 

The album is the follow-up to their 2011 EP Sapling, which raised rock hairs and post-rock eyebrows from the likes of The Line of Best Fit to Rock Sound, This Is Fake DIY to Clash Magazine and everyone in between.

The album is an atmospheric genre bending masterclass that fans of Mogwai, Aereogramme and Explosions In The Sky would happily have in their personal collection. Each song flows effortlessly into the next with the boys taking their songwriting to a new level, smoothing out the rougher edges of their previous EPs and transforming their sound into something more intelligent, thoughtful and esoteric. 

Although they take the music seriously, their influences stretch far, from the aforementioned post-rock greats to Smashing Pumpkins and Limmy’s Show. 

PKPB have already played sold out shows with The Twilight Sad, And So I Watch You From Afar, The Xcerts and British Sea Power, even ‘the curse of the merch stand’ hasn’t put them off playing a blinding live set; every time they’ve set out on tour their merch stand has either been robbed or set on fire!

Now the line-up is complete with Gregor Graham taking on bass and vocal duties, the Linlithgow lads - Ben Proudlock, Fraser Sanaghan and Kieran McGuckian - are ready to represent as one of Scotland’s finest young exports.

Building Homes From Broken Bones is released 7th April via So Say We All.

Lungs

Gulp - Season Sun
Release Date: June 24, 2014
Optimism can be a hard quality to come by, especially in a world that seems to pride itself on cynicism and negativity. But that’s exactly why we need a band like Gulp in our lives. The lush Welsh/Scottish pop group is happy to consider itself an antidote to the creeping pessimism of modern life.
“It’s what comes out of us naturally,” says Gulp’s vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Lindsey Leven. “Everything that you’re writing from the heart is a reflection of what’s going on in your life.” Her husband and bandmate Guto Pryce agrees, “It’s even in times of adversity that we try to remain optimistic.”
In 2014, Gulp has plenty to be enthused about! Pryce has a musical legacy to be proud of, having spent the past 20 years as a founding member of UK pop superstars Super Furry Animals. And Pryce and Leven are both glowing from the joy of writing and recording music together.
But even amid that, there could have been a turn towards more moody and desperate material. Instead, the pair, with bandmates Gid Goundrey (guitars) and Gwion Llewelyn (drums/vocals), came out with Season Sun, a fuzzy, buzzing upbeat ode to the changing seasons, watching plants grow, dancing, and as they sing on “Vast Space,” being willing to “open up your heart and let the love flood in.”
The “vast space” isn’t just the one within, either. The natural world played a key part in the creation of these songs, some written while Pryce and Leven were vacationing in the California desert, others while road tripping through the Scottish Highlands (you’ll find images of these adventures with the album art) .
There’s some connection to be found between these sounds and what Pryce accomplished as a member of the Furries – the two projects share a love of warm vintage synth sounds and a burnished brand of psychedelia. But Gulp expresses itself with almost throwback sentiments. Apart from a few moments, Season Sun could easily be mistaken this for a lost gem of the late ‘60s unearthed by a studious crate digger.
For as verdant as Gulp’s sound is, the core belongs the musical relationship between Pryce and Leven. When the project began back in 2012, their first efforts centered on just the couple and their trusty drum machine, a Roland 505 donated to them by Leven’s yoga teacher. And even amid the fine contributions of Goundrey and Llewelyn, the heart of each song is the harmonic interplay between Levin’s Leven vocals and the warming synth and bass notes from her musical co-pilot.
Gulp’s humble beam of multicolored musical light has already made its way through the band’s native UK thanks to a well loved lead single “Game Love” and a tour supporting Django Django. The quartet is now looking to taking their message of optimism through the US with their first stop being this year’s SXSW Festival and hopefully some more touring to round out the rest of 2014.

Gulp - Vast Space

Released 6 March 2014.

facebook.com/theworriersband
twitter.com/the_worriers
instagram.com/theworriers

Cruel To Be Kind

Taken from Omi Palone's S/T debut LP co-released by Faux Discx and Negative Space on 14th April 2014, available on vinyl LP (limited to 300) and digital download.

PRE-ORDER NOW:
Via Faux Discx: https://fauxdiscx.bandcamp.com/album/omi-palone
Via Negative Space: http://negativespacemusic.bigcartel.com/product/omi-palone-omi-palone-12

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Following their long sold-out self-released cassette of 2011 and two split 7”’s in 2012, Omi Palone will release their debut self-titled long-player as a joint release between Faux Discx and new label Negative Space. 

The 8-track record is a frenetic fuzz-tinged pop headrush of barely-restrained punk outbursts. Singer-guitarist Philip Serfaty's deep and sleepy baritone reverberates over urgent, rushing chord progressions and incisive rhythmic precision.  Frantic jangling guitar hooks fall away to one-chord motorik chug, hypnotic drone and looming fuzz, giving the tracks a hounded, runaway feel.

Finding strength in brevity, the band explores and experiments with what can be expressed in a 3 minute post-punk song; controlled, complex melodies interweaving in amongst simple (but not simplistic) repetitive structures, interrupted only by stomping middle-eights. Artistic allegiances nod towards an Antipodean influence: the output of 80s New Zealand labels such as Flying Nun & Xpressway, as well as the current Australian punk scene. 

OMI PALONE – Shallow Divide

The Moons - Heart and Soul
Out: 31 March
Schnitzel Records

http://www.themoons.co.uk
www.facebook.com/themoonsofficial
www.twitter.com/moonsofficial

The Moons - Heart and Soul

"Glory", from new Wye Oak album 'Shriek', out 28 April 2014 on City Slang!

Pre-order the album here from iTunes: http://glnk.it/2i6
Here from Amazon: http://glnk.it/2i5
Or direct from the label: http://glnk.it/2i3

Wye Oak Tourdates:

20.03. London UK – Lexington (SOLD OUT)
21.03. Brussels BE – Witloof Bar 
23.03. Amsterdam NL – MC Theatre
25.03. Berlin DE – Privatclub (SOLD OUT) 
28.03. Zurich CH – M4Music Festival
29.03. Istanbul TR – IKSV

28.05. Vienna AT  - Chelsea
29.05. Prague CZ - Meet Factory
31.05. Mannheim DE – Maifeld Derby Festival
02.06. Cologne DE – Studio 672
03.06. Hamburg DE – Prinzenbar
04.06. Berlin DE – Lido
05.06. Munich DE – Strom
07.06. Kleinreifling AT - Seewiesen Festival
09.06. Paris FR – Le Point Ephemere 
10.06. London UK – Islington Assembly Hall
11.06. Manchester UK – Soup Kitchen
12.06. Leeds UK – The Brudenell Social Club
13.06. Glasgow SCT – King Tuts
14.06. Dublin IRL – The Sugar Club
15.06. Belfast IRL – McHughs Basement

Buy the album

Wye Oak - Glory

Michael Forrest - Super Singular (That Girl)

Website: michaelforrestmusic.com/ 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/michael.forrest.music
Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/michaelforrest


Michael Forrest - Super Singular (This Girl)

Mixed by Brian Batz
Produced by Brian Batz, Mikael Johnston & Jeff Saltzman
All instruments played by Brian Batz except the violin by Lisa Light
Label:
Blood and Biscuits (UK/EU)
A:larm Music / Universal Music (DK)
Riot Factory (NO/SE)
White Wabbit Records and White Noise Records (ASIA)

℗ & © 2014 Sleep Party People under the exclusive license to A:larm Music, Universal Music (Denmark), Blood and Biscuits, Riot Factory, White Wabbit Records and White Noise Records. All rights reserved.

SLEEP PARTY PEOPLE - In Another World

Edinburgh based five piece, Universal Thee today release the free download of 'Million Voices', taken from their debut album, Back To Earth, available from 31st March 2014 via Eventual Heirs Records.

The album is a daydream of upbeat guitars and vocals, created by the band's free and easy, non-restrictive approach to songwriting that sees them explore every aspect of their own creativity, with more than a healthy nod to influences such as Weezer and Pavement. As a result, the band's sound is hard to define, with tracks such as "Wolves Of The Netherworld" and "Bone Collector" very much channelling the sense of fun that was inherent in a lot of late 90s college rock, while tracks like "Feeling Fragile" and "Down" tell a more personal story. There is no concrete template for Universal Thee - they play what they feel, which is something that some might say is missing in today's ultra-media savvy musical landscape.

James Russell (guitar & vocals), Lisa Russell (vocals), Robin Spivey (guitar) Andrew Perrie (bass) and Kevin Haddow (drums) formed the band in Edinburgh following on from time served in the imaginatively named Lunch with Stevie's Monkey, 19 Folds, The David Icke Experience, and The Mink Stoles. Determined to settle on a name that the entire band could live with, they democratically chose Universal Thee, originally a placeholder, but after a series of establishing gigs at Cabaret Voltaire and Haddowfest, the moniker stuck.

With a fun, refreshing, genre-defying sound that gives every member of the band the opportunity to showcase their unique tastes, Universal Thee are yet another shining example of the delights Scotland's music scene has to offer.

Back To Earth is released March 31st 2014 via Eventual Heirs Records.

Universal Thee - Million Voices

Hailing from Pity Me near Durham, vegan straight-edge pop group MARTHA have just signed to Fortuna POP! and will be releasing their new album ‘Courting Strong’ at the end of May. Providing energetic, impassioned pop punk, Martha are informed by 90s indie rock and Scandinavian anarcho noir. The album, produced by MJ from Hookworms, is laden with harmonies and interchangeable vocals whilst still retaining the energy and excitement of the band’s live shows. 

Formed in 2011 by siblings Naomi (bass, vocals) and Nathan Griffin (drums, vocals) with J. Cairns (guitar, vocals) and Daniel Ellis (guitar, vocals), Martha have fast become a staple of the UK DIY pop scene. There are many competing stories as to the origin of their band name but it’s a fact that the very last passenger pigeon on earth was called Martha. When she died, the whole species became extinct.

Decamping from the North East to record the album at Suburban Home Studios, Leeds, the band enjoyed the freedom of being in the studio and experimenting with MJ’s equipment to produce unexpected sounds. The process saw them opening up to new ideas and, feeling more confident in their own abilities, allowing a wider range of dynamics.

Taken from a line in the song Gin and Listerine, the album title “Courting Strong” is an expression that was used to describe couples who were getting really serious. There’s the old cliché that when you’re young you think you’re invincible and that everything will last forever - the album is about looking back and reflecting on past moments in your life, past friendships and relationships, accepting the uncertainty and fragility of those things and moving forward positively.

The overarching theme of the album is ‘growing up weird’. It’s a semi-autobiographical story about growing up in a small town, with a sense of not fitting in but on the way finding people who share that feeling and forming really strong bonds. It’s about clinging to a sense of belonging and about being proud of who you are and where you are from, as well as the community of which you are a part. It’s an album for the people who stayed in their hometown, and for the people who still go back and visit.

Martha’s melodic punk pop celebrates being an outsider whilst being part of a community. The album touches on uncertainty, fear and loneliness whilst exuding an effervescent sense of excitement and joy. There’s darkness beneath the pop surface - but there are also songs about teenage antics, drinking, courting and having your heart broken – everything a good indie record should have.

 “Martha have mastered that neat Buzzcocks trick of riding those gloriously glowing guitars with sweet, comfortingly-fey voices singing in irresistible harmony. In short, they’re pretty darn great” Clash Magazine 

“Top notch buzzsaw indiepop with enough melodic punk in their DNA to make them stand out. Definitely worth keeping an eye on” Narc Magazine

Martha - 1997, Passing In The Hallway

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Muso's Guide Underexposed 20140321

Musos' Guide