BE YOUR OWN PET! NEW ALBUM! WEST COAST TOUR DATES! NEW SONG! FUUUUUUN!

The Be Your Own Pet comeback remains the least expected return of 2023, but I’m ALL IN! We’ve got a second single that isn’t quite the JoltColaCore of their first two records, but we all have to grow up sometime? And if growing up for BYOP means embracing your darkest and most controversial desires and expressing them in the form of rock n roll, that’s not a bad way to channel maturity. “Worship The Whip” is that very song, and it’s off their third album (15 years after their genius sophomore record Get Awkward), Mother, which is headed your way on August 25th. Prepare for this date the way you see most fit by clicking here! I’m a tad overwhelmed by my preorder options, TBH. We will see what I end up buying! 

Oh- and I promised tour dates that go on sale this Friday. Looks like a sweaty good time for all: 

9/16 – Third Man Records Blue Room – Nashville, TN

10/18 – Local 506 – Chapel Hill, NC 

10/19 – Union Stage – Washington, DC  

10/21 – Elsewhere Hall – Brooklyn, NY  

10/22 – Underground Arts – Philadelphia, PA

10/23 – Beachland Ballroom – Cleveland, OH

10/24 – Third Man Records – Detroit, MI

10/25 – Lincoln Hall – Chicago, IL

10/27 – The Back Room at Colectivo – Milwaukee, WI

10/29 – Headliners Music Hall – Louisville, KY

11/8 – Soda Bar – San Diego, CA

11/9 – Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA

11/11 – Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA

11/12 – Moe’s Alley – Santa Cruz, CA

11/14- Harlow’s – Sacramento, CA

11/16 – Star Theater – Portland, OR

11/17- Neumos – Seattle, WA

11/18 – The Pearl – Vancouver, BC

Single of the Week: “Connection” by Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog

I’m loosely familiar with the work of Marc Ribot, primarily his time as Tom Waits’ guitarist. What I’ve heard of his work has pretty much entirely been in the greater jazz vein. I’ve never heard him sing before. Even with Ceramic Dog, is work is closer to jazz fusion than anything else. But “Connection”? This song is heavy as fuck. Well, in that Sonic Youth / Wilco / The Replacements way… A ferocious, noisy cacophony with a sweet melody making you feel simultaneously comforted and uncomfortable. And there are even VOCALS! 

This surprising track is the first single off Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog’s upcoming record, also named Connection. You can preorder that here

Single of the Week: “Fitness” by Snõõper

Looking for a nice, relaxing 20 minutes song played at a breakneck pace, so the whole song is played in under 2 minutes? Well, “Fitness” by Snõõper is the track for you! I wouldn’t actually try working out to this song because, well, you would definitely die. That being said, I think this song makes me want to ACTUALLY train hard enough to compete in a natural bodybuilding competition. So, yeah, gonna go buy some eggs and asparagus and get ripped in 1:45 chunks. (Also, this video is fantastic)

“Fitness” can be enjoyed in all the usual places RIGHT NOW. Their debut album, Super Snõõper, is coming your way on July 14th from Third Man Records. This means Jack White is a fan of breakneck perky punk rock, too! You can fully prepare for July 14th both virtually and physically here, and Snõõper is playing Mosswood Meltdown AND a Mosswood Meltdown After Party, both July 2nd in Oakland, CA,  if you are the type that doesn’t like experiencing the sun and music at the same time. Tickets for both are available here

New Music Videos from Blondshell and Dream Wife

Remember when Tuesdays were the “New Release Day” for music? Those days were special. Although I think moving it to Friday is a little more fun. That being said, two videos dropped today from two of my favorite finds of the year! 

Going in alphabetical order out of fairness… 

Continue reading “New Music Videos from Blondshell and Dream Wife”

Single of the Week: “Estranged Fruit” by Fishbone featuring El Hefe & Fat Mike of NoFX

Fishbone has been around for 40 years! Crazy, right? And after 40 years, one would expect that they would at least lose their fire a little, right? Well, maybe that would’ve happened if we hadn’t seen a sharp rise in the whole Neo-Nazi/Fascist movement in recent years that the band has been fighting tooth and nail to destroy their entire career… “Estranged Fruit” is the band at their fiery, angry, exasperated best. This song is a bit of a modern update of Billie Holiday’s signature song, “Strange Fruit,” calling back to some of the original lyrics. (I doubt anyone reading this has never heard Strange Fruit before, but if you haven’t, it might be the most chilling song ever recorded)

“Estranged Fruit” is available in all of the usual places. A new EP will be coming soon on Bottles To The Ground records, and they will be hitting the road with Les Claypool’s Flying Frog Brigade later this month! 

Single of the Week: “Sugar Coating” by Salami Rose Joe Louis

Is it jazz? Is it experimental pop? Is it psych? Is it even from Earth? I’m not sure how to classify “Sugar Coating” by Salami Rose Joe Louis, but this song is just plain great. Another great trippy artist from the Bay Area, in the same school as tUnE-yArDs, Toro y Moi, or Spacemoth.. I haven’t been so entranced by a blend of Science Fiction and song since the first Deltron 3030 record. 

“Sugar Coating” is the latest single of their upcoming full-length record, Akousmatikous, coming your way May 19th. Do all the preorder/presaving and such here

Bad News and Good News from Bethany Cosentino!

First, the bad news… Best Coast is on “Indefinite Hiatus.” So those of us that caught them on tour last year were, well, the last folks to see them for a bit. The good news? Bethany Cosentino is going solo and gifted us with her first single, “It’s Fine.” The track starts out with a scream that gets deep under your skin before taking us through an excellent country-rock track. The pop-punk and surf elements of Best Coast have been replaced by Jenny Lewis-style emotive and vibrant delivery and lyricism. This track is solid. 

“It’s Fine” is the first single of Cosentino’s debut solo record, Natural Disaster, coming for your heart and eardrums on July 28th. Preorders and Presaves are currently active. 

Single of the Week: “A Child’s Question, August” by PJ Harvey

I mean, new PJ Harvey is generally cause for celebration in almost any situation. “A Child’s Question, August” is not quite what I was expecting, but it was a happy surprise. The song opens not with her deep, powerful, blues-inflected alto that we’ve known to expect from her but a tender, quiet, almost fragile soprano. The song builds like a classic shoegaze anthem- raising in emotional intensity and volume slowly. There’s an Elvis-referencing chorus that flips “Love Me Tender” on its side and a chilling, baritone harmony from the modern voice of Paddington Bear, Ben Wishaw. 

“A Child’s Question, August” is the first single from I Inside The Old Year Dying, Harvey’s first album of new material in seven years, coming your way July 7th. I will also note our honorable mention for Single Of The Week- a surprisingly spare and dissonant track from Kesha, “Eat The Acid.” 

Single Of The Week: “Too Many Things” by The Linda Lindas

The Linda Lindas are too good for how young they are. We have been trumpeting the brilliance of this formerly tween, now mostly teen rock band since 2019. Their debut record, 2022’s Growing Up, is possibly the most exciting and diverse debut of the pop-punk canon. However, my first listen to “Too Many Things” still surprised me. The pulsating, anxious bassline. The lyrics? A deep, introspective look at the feeling of being overwhelmed that wouldn’t have been out of place on a Sleater-Kinney or Go-Go’s record. (The two bands that, IMHO, have best conveyed “anxiety” on record) 

“Too Many Things” is out now in all the usual places. They are spending the Summer opening for Paramore everywhere (except the SF SHOW!!!!), and the press release teases that more is to come this year from The Linda Lindas, so keep an eye out! 

I will also note that this has been the hardest week for Single of the Week, and there are a TON of great new releases this week to give your ears a nice little treat! Veruca Salt’s Louise Post graces us with her debut solo single, “Guilty.” The triumphant return of Speedy Ortiz, “Scabs.” NYC’s soul group 79.5 has a genuine Summer anthem ready for you with “B.D.F.Q.” Pinkshift returns with a burner of a track, “to me.” And if you are looking for evidence of how blessed and lucky you are, the first Natalie Merchant album in nearly 10 years, Keep Your Courage, is out today! 

Single of the Week: “Salad” by Blondshell

I usually don’t like picking multiple tracks from the same album as “Single Of The Week.” But each track off Blondshell’s self-titled debut record has been better than the last. “Salad” is a brilliant piece of work. Like, it’s positively chilling. This is the kind of storytelling in song that I thought was perfected by Nick Cave and Kristin Hersh. Vocalist Sabrina Teitelbaum sings with a haunting quiver, bending her voice around the vulnerable ferocity of her backing band. This song is simply amazing. 

You can find Blondshell’s debut everywhere TODAY! This record is fantastic. Do your ears and your heart a favor and pop it on today!