Since we are still coming off the buzz from Outside Lands last weekend, this week’s Single Of The Week comes from The Marias, possibly the best set we caught while we were in the park. This is the latest single to drop off their 2018 release, Superclean Vol II.
“Ruthless” is a groovy, sexy song that falls somewhere between the pop hooks of The Cardigans and the lounge psychedelia of Stereolab. It’s the perfect song to help chill through the current heat wave that’s melting everything in sight.
It’s been a tough couple of weeks as a nation. Mass shootings in Gilroy, Dayton, and El Paso were not particularly well timed with Outside Lands. In the days leading up to the festival, many people were debating whether or not it was safe to go. Maybe we were next? I had a long talk with my partner about going this year, which included a plan for alerting each other to our safety, and talking about all of the steps that I’ve observed in my years attending this festival that have made me feel safe. In fact, I think I feel safer in Golden Gate Park during Outside Lands than pretty much anywhere else on Earth.
I’m also a firm believer in “not letting terrorists win.” We can’t let these folks scare us off from living. And, seriously, if you don’t have communing with friends and strangers to appreciate live music, is life really worth living? I’m going to keep going to shows and supporting life music because, well, I really think my life depends on it. Continue reading “Outside Lands 2019: Instant Gig Reviews”
The bottom half of the 2019 Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival poster is rich with amazing acts. This might be the strongest “undercard” assortment Outside Lands has ever had, with a little something for pretty much everyone. One could probably wander aimlessly during the early part of the day and not be disappointed. However, since you are reading this, I suspect you are like me and tend to plan out every moment of your day when you head out to a music festival. So here’s the early stuff I’d jump on!
For this week’s Single Of The Week, I decided to remind you that Tool have finally put their back catalog on streaming services. You may ask why I mentioned this… Well, the answer is SEO reasons. Because my favorite Bay Area band has new material out TODAY! And they are called Bam!Bam!, which is definitely something you can do with a tool. Usually a hammer.
Oakland’s Bam! Bam! have been putting out great punk singles for years. They’ve put out so many excellent 7″‘s that I find it hard to believe they have yet to release a full length record. Well, today changes that, as their debut record, Nails, was released TODAY and can be enjoyed here. The single off this record is “Literary Hoax,” an infectious earworm of a track. The accompanying video may not be entirely suitable for work, is an excellent piece of filmmaking that provides an uncomfortable visual to such an upbeat piece of music.
Enjoy Nailsas your soundtrack to the first weekend of the last month of Summer!
This week’s single of the week comes from Oakland based duo Parentz. This song feels like a groovy, chillwave-inspired bit of modern R&B. The lyrics, however, run from full on hysterical to a deep analysis of the current state of the economy. The song is also hooky as hell, and is the perfect soundtrack for spending time with abandon storefronts.
Dead Mall can be streamed in all the usual places! Including right after the jump!
This year has shaped up to be one of the strongest years on record for pop music, with brilliant records coming out from the likes of Lizzo, Billie Eilish, and Carly Rae Jepsen to name a few. The singles that have drifted out from Charli XCX’s upcoming Charli have showed that pop music is going to keep getting better as the year goes on. This track is propulsive and intense, and is destined to be a classic. It will help make both Charli XCX and Christine & The Queens the household names they deserve to be.
Charli is due out September 13th and can be preordered here. She’s also hitting the road soon, and tickets & tour dates can be found here. Christine & The Queens put on an amazing live show themselves, and if you make your way to Europe, you can catch the tale end of their tour.
So, officially the single off the new compilation of songs Prince wrote for other performers, Originals, is his original demo “Manic Monday.” I admit it was kind of a trip to hear Prince sing about “kissing Valentino by a crystal blue Italian stream,” but the song that I was most fascinated with on this record was “Jungle Love.” For those who don’t know the context, “Jungle Love” was both written for Morris Day & The Time, and was making fun of Morris Day. Prince always thought that Day was a little bit vain, so who wrote a song poking fun of that, and now we get to hear the original snark on full display!
The rest of Originals is streaming everywhere, and is coming out in the physical world on July 19th. You can preorder this here!
I woke up this morning to the saddest music news… Sleater-Kinney‘s powerhouse drummer, Janet Weiss, has officially left the band, citing that “the band has moved in a different direction, and it’s time for me to move on.” The news makes her recent performance with Sleater-Kinney on The Tonight Show the final public performance of the classic line-up of this band, which feels as good a time as any to look back on 22 years of some of the most impressive drumming in rock ‘n’ roll music. I’m sad to see her go, but excited to see what both Weiss and the rest of the greatest power trio in rock do from here on out.
This is the second single off Sleater-Kinney’s highly anticipated 9th studio album, The Center Won’t Hold. For those who felt the first single, “Hurry On Home” was a departure, it was merely the gateway to “The Future Is Here.” Kicking off with a simple, analog synth riff before some of the most subtle drumming of Janet Weiss’ career kicks in. Corin Tucker then comes in, singing in the lowest register I’ve ever heard her sing in. What this becomes is a beautiful, kind of gothy song that feels more like Siouxsie and The Banshees or The Cure than the driving psych rock or classic punk that we’ve grown used to from Sleater-Kinney.
It’s been 25 years since Sleater-Kinney first entered the world as a functioning unit. Since then they’ve continuously challenged themselves with every record, proving to have the most consistent and exciting discography in rock n roll. The Center Won’t Hold will be available in all of the usual places on August 16th, or you can preorder from the band here!
Tickets for their Fall US Tour went on sale this morning, and tickets to those shows can be found here! Presale begins on Monday for their Winter EU Tour, so don’t forget to join their mailing list at sleater-kinney.com for presale info!
It seems that all of the Riot Grrl comeback story headlines this year have focused on the return of Bikini Kill, which, I do agree is very big news. However, the return of Queercore originators and fellow Riot Grrl originators Team Dresch deserves to not be overlooked. Their infectious hooks and blunt lyrics helped open up the pit to people that aren’t just straight white guys, and also helped those straight white guys understand a little better about what it’s like to not be the demographic that holds power.
In addition to reissuing their excellent back catalog as well as releasing a compilation of singles that don’t appear on any record, Team Dresch have also released their first single in 19 years! Surprisingly, it’s infectious, bouncy love song called “Your Hands, My Pockets” that could end up being a bonafide hit! I keep repeating it!
Team Dresch are about to embark on a nearly sold out US Tour. Dates are here, but don’t delay in buying tickets!https://teamdresch.bandcamp.com/album/choices-chances-changes-singles-comptracks-1994-2000
