Alexander Laurence's Blog, page 106
April 29, 2025
Pyramids share genre-defying single, “Bones and Eggshells”
Pyramids share genre-defying single “Bones and Eggshells”
New LP Pythagoras out this Friday on The Flenser
Photo credit: Vivian Bartell | Hi-res here
Out this Friday on The Flenser, the new album from Pyramids is a daring study in genre synthesis. The band continues to push boundaries in both sound and aesthetic, blending jagged fragments of black metal and shoegaze as they have done since their influential 2008 debut.
With Pythagoras, Pyramids add unconventional layers of reggaeton and neoperreo to both voice and rhythm. Named after the ancient Greek philosopher, Pythagoras represents the band’s ongoing commitment to innovation, and the perpetual juxtaposition of the delicate and the devastating, embracing complex musical structures and rhythms that both challenge and captivate the listener. At the heart of the album lies an intricate balance between aggressive blast beats and the syncopated pulse of reggaeton’s signature dembow rhythm—a concept born from founder Rich Loren Balling’s own immersion in both extreme music and pop genres.
The album's third single "Bones and Eggshells" arrives today. Rich Loren Balling says the song, "...plays on the edge of fate and forged reality — the inescapable reality of freedom of the will locking fingers with a world that overpowers, overrides, and overwrites our selves. The burden of freedom. The heart of moral experience. Bones and Eggshells captures most precisely the vision that we set out to achieve with Pythagoras. When I envisioned the organic relationship between the rhythmic pattern of reggaeton and the blast beat of black metal and its inherent ability to be a natural habitat for tremolo guitars and any gauzy extraneous washes of sound that might envelope the track, this is what I heard. This song also best presents the cadence of the Spanish vocals and their interplay with our existing vocal sound. Despite its strong representation of our end goal, we didn't drop this song first, since the song gives no time at all to anticipate the amalgam of genres and can be a jarring first impression. But now that the cat is out of the bag with what we are doing on Pythagoras, I am proud to put this one on full display."
Watch / share "Bones and Eggshells" music video
The journey to Pythagoras began after the release of Pyramids' 2015 album A Northern Meadow (Profound Lore), a work that earned critical acclaim for taking what Pitchfork deemed “a beautiful mess” of its debut to a more focused, yet equally genre-defying, sound. The following nine years, Balling, along with original members Matthew Kelly, Matt Embree, and David Embree, ventured further into harsh noise before finding a link between the evolution of extreme music (think Black Sabbath to Darkthrone) where the intensity of genre keeps mounting until eventually it becomes blissful and harrowing, and in a move akin to palette cleansing, adopted an unexpected reverence for the innovation happening in pop music, specifically female Neoperreo and reggaeton artists such as Emjay, La Zowi, Six Sex, Bea Pelea, Karol G, and Rosalia. His newfound appreciation for the rhythm and intensity of reggaeton, particularly its organic ability to interplay with metal’s blast beats, laid the foundation for the distinctive sound of Pythagoras. Through this album, Pyramids introduces a dynamic fusion where global rhythms meet atmospheric shoegaze textures, all with the aggression of a black metal sensibility at its core.
Pythagoras is not just a sonic evolution—it is an exploration of the cycles of musical extremes. Balling believes that genres, like metal, evolve towards greater intensity until they reach a point of such sonic density and noise that they return to something beautifully melodic and transcendent. This concept is reflected in the album’s dense, layered compositions and its ability to both overwhelm and soothe the listener. The album’s rhythm is a complex mathematical interplay, where the familiar blast beat and pounding dembow rhythm intersect, creating a sound that is both chaotic and hypnotic.
To bring the album’s vision to life, Pyramids enlisted vocalist Emy Smith, whose neoperreo-influenced vocals add a haunting, ethereal layer to the dense soundscape. The album's cover art, created by Miami-based nail artist Kro Vargas (aka Krocaine), further captures the ominous yet captivating essence of the music, hinting at the fusion of genres and cultures that defines Pythagoras.
With Pythagoras, Pyramids are once again poised to redefine the future of extreme music. As one of the most forward-thinking forces in contemporary music, the band continues to forge a path that transcends genre and time. Their unique blend of delicate beauty and devastating intensity invites listeners to explore a world of sound that is both expansive and claustrophobic, suspended between warmth and emptiness. Pythagoras is not just an album; it is a statement—a daring, innovative work that challenges convention and leads the listener through the unknown into new realms of sonic possibility.
Pre-order Pythagoras here.
Pythagoras, track list:
Fools Gold (Mi Vida Ha Ido Pa Atras)Pretty PigsBones and EggshellsMira Mirame BrillarBrineCracksGod of Light
Pachyman shares "Calor Ahora"
PACHYMAN SHARES "CALOR AHORA"
RIPPLING MINIMAL DUB & SCI-FI SYNTHS FOR SPRING
WATCH THE "CALOR AHORA" VIDEO HERE,
A GOOFY, DIRECT-TO-VHS LA NOIR
THE LATEST FROM NEW ALBUM
ANOTHER PLACE
OUT MAY 23 VIA ATO RECORDS
ADDS FIRST-EVER MEXICO HEADLINE DATES FOR FALL 2025
Photo by Alex BulliToday, Pachyman — the musical project of Puerto Rican-born, Los Angeles-based musician Pachy Garcia — shares "Calor Ahora," the latest preview of his new album Another Place (May 23 / ATO Records). Listen to "Calor Ahora" here and preorder/save Another Place here.
"Calor Ahora" — which Pachy describes as "the backbone of the record" and the moment when he "achieved a new sound that I had never encountered in my music before" — is rippling, minimal dub that incorporates sparkling, alien synthesizers and a koan-like vocal.
“I journal a lot,” Pachy explains, “so I’m starting to realize that I get into cycles. Every December or January, at the turn of the year, I get back on trying to recreate the Channel One studio sound. Once the cold weather comes in, it’s always Reggae Christmas.”
“Calor Ahora,” which opens Another Place, is the bountiful fruit of this yearly tradition. “The words were taken from a journal entry I made when I was on the verge of an anxiety attack and felt this oppressive cold,” he shares. "I finally felt a sense of relief and started feeling more like myself."
He clarifies: “I know LA isn’t cold, but I’m from the Caribbean.”
Watch the video for "Calor Ahora" — a goofy, direct-to-VHS-style send-up of LA noir mysteries — here.
Another Place is Pachyman’s most daring project to-date, one that builds upon its forebears by leaning into the idiosyncratic elements lurking beneath previous projects. In doing so, it synthesizes the myriad scenes that have recontextualized the methods and aesthetics of dub — from pioneering synth-pop weirdos like William Onyeabor and Yellow Magic Orchestra to Basic Channel’s amniotic dub techno — into a sound that, while still anchored in dub reggae’s glorious walls of sound, is undeniably Pachyman’s own.
The video for Pachyman's previous single "In Love" — a track that imbues Pachy's signature dub sound with a joyful, egg-melting-on-the-sidewalk haze in the vein of Washed Out or Neon Indian — introduces a new quartet lineup that will debut on the upcoming Europe / UK tour dates: Pachy on drums and vocals, Javier Perez on guitar, Jordan Brooks on bass, and Diego Gaeta on keys. Watch the "In Love" video here.
Meanwhile, lead single "Hard To Part" is a skeletal drone workout that doubles as "a funky dub reggae love letter to Los Angeles" (Remezcla). KCRW called it "funky-spooky-cool" and put it at #2 on their Top 30 chart, adding: "ESG fans, take note." Watch the video for “Hard To Part” here.
Pachyman continues to take the alchemical, indelible sound of Another Place global. He just wrapped shows in New Zealand and Australia, as well as some North American dates with Darkside and an NYC festival performance at Indieplaza, a Record Store Day featuring The Hives, Scowl, Clipping., and Lifeguard.
However, following his imminent Europe and UK tour, Pachyman has also just announced his first-ever Mexican headlining shows. Full dates below — keep an eye out for more to be announced later this year.
"Calor Ahora" is out now, listen to it here.
Another Place is out May 23, preorder/save it here.
TRACKLIST
Calor Ahora
In Love
Berlin
SJU
Take Me To Dance
False Moves
Strikes Back
Hard to Part
Another Place
ADSH
TOUR DATES
May 21: Hamburg, DE @ Knust
May 23: Stockholm, SE @ Hosoi
May 24: Gothenburg, SE @ Nefertiti
May 25: Copenhagen, DN @ Ideal Bar
May 28: Berlin, DE @ LARK
May 29: Munich, DE @ Import Export
May 30: Zurich, CH @ Moods
May 31: Antwerp, BE @ De Roma
June 1: Utrecht, NL @ De Nijverheid
June 3: Paris, FR @ Le Point Ephémère
June 4: Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin
June 5: London, UK @ Jazz Cafe
June 6: Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade
June 7: Nottingham, UK @ Rough Trade
June 20 - 22: Nelsonville, OH @ Nelsonville Music Festival
June 26 - July 5: Montreal, QC @ Montreal Jazz Festival
Sept 18: Mexico City, MX @ Foro IR (Sala B)
Sept 19: Guadalajara, MX @ C3 Rooftop
Sept 20: Querétaro @ Salón Salvaje
Stay connected with Pachyman:
23 Profile | Facebook | Instagram | Soundcloud | Tiktok | Twitter | Youtube
AIR announces North American tour dates + Continues Moon Safari 2025 world tour
AIR RESUME THEIR MOON SAFARI WORLD TOUR
& ANNOUNCE THEY’LL RETURN TO NORTH AMERICA NEXT FALL FOLLOWING LAST YEAR’S TRIUMPHANT RUN
Including shows at LA’s Hollywood Bowl (with orchestra), Red Rocks and multi-nights in New York
Official US tour artwork
“Moon Safari proves that the French really do it better”
Rolling Stone, 100 Best Albums of The 1990’s
“a wild, jaw dropping widescreen extravaganza”
The Guardian, 5 stars
“a joy from start to finish. See this show at all costs”
NME, 5 stars
“beautiful….otherworldly and transporting”
The Sunday Times, 5 stars
(April 29th, 2025) - Air announces the North American leg of their acclaimed 2025 Moon Safari Tour. Following a 30-date EU/UK tour run starting late May, the legendary French band will kick off the 12-date North American tour with a night to remember at the Hollywood Bowl alongside the Bowl’s Orchestra. They will then take their lauded show across the US and Canada with dates in San Diego, San Francisco, and Chicago, among others, before concluding with a multi-night residency at the Brooklyn Paramount in New York. Tickets will be available for presale this Thursday at 10 AM local time HERE. All tickets will be available for purchase on May 2nd at 10 AM local time HERE. Produced by Live Nation in association with CAA – Corida NCLS – Prototyp, the tour will also offer a VIP package and experience for fans to take their concert experience to the next level. The package includes reserved tickets, official tour poster, first drink on us, exclusive merchandise & more. For more information, visit vipnation.com.
At the end of the 20th century, Moon Safari catapulted Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel to the uppermost rung of electronic music’s ladder and left an indelible mark on pop culture with over 3 million albums sold. In 2024, Air celebrated the 25th anniversary of Moon Safari by reissuing the record in a Deluxe audio-video package and playing their legendary opus live in its entirety for the first time – 77 shows across the most prestigious venues of Europe, North America, Latin America, Australia, and Asia sold out in record time.
More recently, Air’s Nicolas Godin and British producer and electronic artist Joe Thornalley, also known as Vegyn, sat down with veteran music producer Nigel Godrich for a rich hour-long conversation about life, creativity, influences, and production, published to the band’s YouTube channel. The shared verve was translated to Vegyn's rework of Air's Moon Safari from beginning to end on Blue Moon Safari released for Record Store Day a couple of weeks ago. In a daring crossover of genres and eras, Vegyn reimagined Air's Moon Safari entirely. Vegyn came to prominence thanks to his work with the likes of Frank Ocean and Travis Scott and has made a name for himself as a forward-thinking producer who blends lush, atmospheric soundscapes with experimental beats and a sense of unpredictability.
Praise for Blue Moon Safari
The Best New Albums out this week - NPR
Best New Music - KCRW
"It’s a full-circle, genre warping reinvention that introduces Air’s legacy to a new generation." The 10 best remix albums of All Time - DAZED
Air’s boundary-pushing album has long been praised for its innovative sonics that have inspired countless musicians to think outside the box, so much so that their influence even transcended their own medium. The band's unique brand of downtempo electronic music not only sculpted the sound for the next generation of electronic-influenced pop music but was also able to withstand the test of time in its own right. Moon Safari is a mood you want to live inside of forever.
Upcoming Live Dates
5/6 - Crans, SWI @ Caribana Festival
5/24 - Sao Paulo, BRA @ C6 Festival
5/28 - Lima, PERU @ Arena 1
5/30 - Bogota, COL @ Coliseo Midplus
6/6 - London, UK @ Lido Festival
6/7 - Paris, FRA @ We Love Green Festival
6/17 - Dublin, IR @ Fairview Park
6/21 - Lido De Camaiore, ITA @ La Primera Estate Festival
6/23 - Zagreb, CRO @ InMusic Festival
6/24 - Sofia, BUL @ Arena Sofia Kolodruma
6/26 - Madrid, SPA @ Noches Del Botanico
6/28 - Istanbul, TUR @ Gezgin Salon Festival
6/29 - Athens, GRE @ Herodes Atticus Theater
7/3 - Herouville, FRA @ Beauregard Festival
7/5 - Eindhoven, NL @ Klokgebouw
7/6 - Luxembourg, LUX @ Rockhal
7/9 - Aix Les Bains, FRA @ Musilac
7/10 - Juan Les Pins, FRA @ Jazz A Juan
7/11 - La Rochelle, FRA @ Francos
7/16 - Munich, GER @ Tollwood Tent Festival
7/18 - Hamburg, GER @ Stadtpark Open Air Festival
7/24 - Arles, FRA @ Les Escales @ Theatre Antique
7/25 - Toulouse, FRA @ Poney Club
7/26 - St Nazaire, FRA @ Escales De St Nazaire
7/27 - Suffolk, UK @ Latitude Festival
8/1 - Oxfordshire, UK @ Wilderness Festival
8/2 - North Berwick, Scotland (UK) @ The Lighthouse Festival
8/6 - Bonn, GER @ Kunstrasen Open Air Festival
8/7 - Lokeren, BEL @ Lokerse Feesten
8/8 - Helsinki, FI @ Flow Festival
8/16 - Paredes De Coura, POR @ Paredes De Coura Festival
9/21 - Los Angeles, CA, USA @ Hollywood Bowl w/ The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
[with support from Bonobo (dj set)]
9/24 - San Diego, CA @ Cal Coast Credit Union Amphitheater
9/26 - Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Financial Theater
9/28 - San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic
9/30 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Sandy Amphitheatre
10/2 - Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
10/5 - Chicago, IL @ The Auditorium
10/6 - Cleveland, OH @ MGM Northfield Park
10/7 - Washington, D.C. @ The Theater at MGM National Harbor
10/9 - Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
10/10 - Brooklyn, NY @ Brookly Paramount
10/11 - Brooklyn, NY @ Brookly Paramount
Blue Moon Safari album artwork
VEGYN x AIR - Blue Moon Safari
Parlophone / Warner Music France
Out now
Air by Mathieu Rainaud
Follow AIR:
Maxo announces 'Mars Is Electric' album + shares single
MAXO ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM
RELEASES NEW SINGLE
“HUMAN ?”
MARS IS ELECTRIC OUT JUNE 20TH
Maxo by Vincent Haycock
“Human ?”
Listen: https://ffm.to/human_
Watch: https://youtu.be/_seKGn4vzbw
Mars Is Electric
Pre-Order: https://ffm.to/marsiselectric
(April 29, 2025) - Maxo announces his new album, Mars Is Electric, and releases the first single from the project with “Human ?” now available on all platforms. Mars Is Electric is Maxo’s first official release since he dropped two critically acclaimed albums in 2023 with Even God Has A Sense of Humor and Debbie’s Son. “Human ?” was produced by Maxo’s longtime collaborator lastnamedavid along with Jacob Rochester and arrives with a music video directed by Vincent Haycock.
His fifth full-length album, Mars Is Electric, finds the Southern Californian artist self-aware and mature. Having lived the last decade of his musical life intentionally creating specific bodies of work rooted in imagery, observation, and capturing moments, Maxo spent this previous year freely creating without a specific plan, relieved from all obligations and restrictions. “This is the first time that I really didn’t care, I didn’t approach things so seriously,” the artist shrugs off, meaning that without expectations or specific goals, his creativity flourished. This opening finds the artist having conversations he’s been avoiding, having lived silently in the pain of those topics for the past few years. Exploring uncomfortable themes about personal life, relationships, and family fractures, life before and after the loss of innocence, and an abundance of existential spirals.
Not only was the exploration thematic, but musically as well. During the creation process, Maxo was immersed in a wide array of music from past to present - France Joli, $amaad, Steve Spacek, Cherelle, DJ Quik, Lisha G - influences that seeped their way into these songs. The album opens in a loose, dreamlike state—experimental and searching, mirroring the emotional fog of someone looking for something real to hold onto. But as it progresses, so does Maxo’s energy as he fiercely rides and weaves on songs with a contagious confidence, producing some of his most kinetic and lyrically impressive music to date.
As the work and vision started to coalesce into a body of work, Maxo found that he was unlocking a creative language with his collaborators that felt wholly new - a new understanding of why and how he was making art for this world. What emerged from this year-long process was a new musical journey and a future where Maxo refuses to be another bad example of what could be, refusing to mind the blueprint set down.
Listen to “Human ?” above, see full album details below, and stay tuned for more from Maxo very soon.
Maxo
Mars Is Electric
June 20th, 2025
SMILEFORME
1. All Of Everything
2. Saturday Love (Cherry)
3. Sweet N Sour
4. Donahoo’s Chicken
5. Human ?
6. Idk
7. Matt’s Studio
8. Ludacris
9. Mars Is Electric
10. Anything
Connect with Maxo:
LA's Swimming Bell shares new single, "95 At Night," announces EP release show
LA's Swimming Bell shares new single, "95 At Night," announces EP release show
Reference points: Rosali / Meg Baird / Marina Allen
STREAM: "95 At Night" -
Bandcamp
Swimming Bell, the project of Katie Schottland, returns with Somnia, a mesmerizing five-song EP produced by Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, Kurt Vile, Cat Power). Set for release on May 16 via Perpetual Doom, Somnia invites listeners into an ethereal sonic realm - an underwater dreamworld where melodies drift effortlessly and rhythms pulse like ocean currents.
Schottland, now based in LA, envisioned Somnia as an escape from the weight of reality. Against the backdrop of an increasingly tense world, she sought to create a space where listeners could feel suspended - floating between wakefulness and dreams. Collaborating with Schnapf, she embraced a more percussive approach, allowing textures and rhythms to guide the listener through shimmering soundscapes. Each track unfolds like a dream - buoyant, weightless, yet deeply immersive.
"I wanted this EP to feel like sinking into water, where everything is softened and suspended," says Schottland. "Given all the stress and tension in the world, I wanted to make a feeling of escape - something hypnotic and transportive. Rob and I explored percussive layers in a way that felt both grounding and dreamy, creating movement within."
With its captivating blend of organic instrumentation and airy production, Somnia marks a new chapter for Swimming Bell, further establishing Schottland as a singular voice in modern indie-folk.
Schottland offers some additional context for the EP's second single, "95 At Night":
"‘'95 at Night' ’is a memory of life before I moved to California—a song that carries the people and places from that time with me, even as my world has changed."
TOUR DATES
May 23 - Los Angeles, CA - Oblivion (EP Release Show)
Swimming Bell
Somnia EP
(Perpetual Doom)
Street Date: May 16, 2025
Pre-save it HERE
Track List:
Meet My Shadow
95 at Night
I'm Always Down
Found it at the Bottom of the Ocean
Mushrooms in July
RELATED LINKS:
BOB DYLAN CENTER ANNOUNCES “GOING ELECTRIC: BOB DYLAN ’65”
“GOING ELECTRIC: BOB DYLAN ’65”EXHIBITION EXPLORES CULTURAL IMPACT OF REVOLUTIONARY ARTIST’S ROCK ‘N’ ROLL BREAKTHROUGH OPENS JULY 24 AND RUNS THROUGH SPRING 2026LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE EXHIBIT IN CENTER HISTORY FEATURES DOZENS OF NEVER-BEFORE-DISPLAYED ARTIFACTS AND INTERVIEWS
(Images L-R) Courtesy of American Song Archives. Photo by Diana Jo Davies. Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.; Film still
from the 1965 Newport Folk Festival footage, filmed by Murray LernerApril 29, 2025— The Bob Dylan Center will present “Going Electric: Bob Dylan ’65,” a groundbreaking exhibition opening July 24, 2025, and closing in the spring of 2026.Presented by Bob Dylan Center founding members Bob and Debbie Russell, the exhibit offers an immersive, multimedia exploration of one of the most transformative years in Dylan’s career and the cultural upheaval that followed.The exhibit traces the lead-up to Dylan’s infamous “going electric” set at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival — one of the most controversial and influential moments in the history of popular music. Through never-before-seen original manuscripts, film footage and rare artifacts from the Bob Dylan Archive as well as numerous loans from private collectors, “Going Electric” places visitors at the heart of Dylan’s evolution from acoustic folk hero to trailblazing rock ’n’ roll icon.“Dylan’s Newport moment is widely regarded as one of the most pivotal moments in the history of 20th-century popular music,” said Mark Davidson, curator of the exhibit and senior director of archives and exhibitions at American Song Archives. “But there’s much more to the story. Drawing upon our considerable archival collections, this exhibit cuts through the myths to present a dynamic, kaleidoscopic portrait of an artist in a way that only the Bob Dylan Center can.”Key highlights include:Never-before-displayed manuscripts from “Bringing It All Back Home” and “Highway 61 Revisited”A recently discovered series of typescript drafts with handwritten edits of Dylan’s landmark song “Mr. Tambourine Man”Photographs, artifacts and ephemera from Dylan’s final all-acoustic concerts, including his spring 1965 outings with Joan Baez and his UK tour, as immortalized in D. A. Pennebaker’s essential documentary “Dont Look Back”Mike Bloomfield’s 1963 Telecaster, played at the Newport Folk Festival, courtesy of Family GuitarsSally Grossman’s red jumpsuit from the cover of “Bringing It All Back Home”The exhibit culminates with Dylan’s controversial July 25, 1965, performance at the Newport Folk Festival. The center’s Darby Family Screening Room will be transformed into an immersive multimedia experience that will transport visitors to the center of the storm, as Dylan shocked the thousands of folk-music devotees in attendance by moving from acoustic to electric performances. Never-before-seen interview footage with key attendees, including Joan Baez, Joe Boyd, John Cohen, Al Kooper, Bruce Langhorne, Maria Muldaur and Pete Seeger, will reveal the truths behind the myths of that cataclysmic day.
Mike Bloomfield 1963 Fender Telecaster, photos courtesyof Family GuitarsThe exhibit also explores Dylan’s musical roots in ’50s rock ’n’ roll and R&B, and the ways in which early influences such as Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley and Little Richard shaped the artist’s sonic experimentation long before Newport. In addition, the exhibit examines the ripple effect that Dylan’s plugged-in set had on legions of contemporary artists — including The Beatles and The Byrds and their folk-rock peers — and those who followed in his wake.“Going Electric: Bob Dylan ’65” challenges decades of mythmaking and celebrates Dylan’s enduring legacy as a visionary who redefined the possibilities of popular music.The Bob Dylan Center will host a members-only reception on Wednesday, July 23, providing members with a first look at “Going Electric” prior to its public opening.In addition, a public concert will be presented by the Bob Dylan Center at Cain’s Ballroom on Saturday, July 26 to celebrate the launch of the exhibit. Further details and ticketing information will be announced at a later date. For the most up-to-date information visit bobdlyancenter.com.About the Bob Dylan CenterThe Bob Dylan Center inspires and celebrates fearless creativity by exploring the music and artistry of the Nobel Prize–winning singer-songwriter as a catalyst for personal expression and cultural change.As the primary public venue for the Bob Dylan Archive® collection, the center curates and exhibits a priceless collection of more than 100,000 items spanning Dylan’s career, including handwritten manuscripts, notebooks and correspondence; films, videos, photographs and artwork; memorabilia and ephemera; personal documents and effects; unreleased studio and concert recordings; musical instruments and many other elements. The center presents a full roster of public programs including concerts, film screenings and author talks. Since opening in May 2022, the Bob Dylan Center has welcomed visitors from all 50 states and nearly 40 countries. The center has garnered numerous design awards and accolades from publications including the New York Times, Vanity Fair, Variety, Uncut and Mojo. bobdylancenter.com
DEADGUY returns… ‘Near-Death Travel Services’ out 6/27
Deadguy return after 30 years with their sophomore LP Near-Death Travel Services
Out June 27th on Relapse [pre-order]
Watch + share music video for album opener "Kill Fee"
Photo by: Nathaniel Shannon
After Deadguy pulled a Lazarus, the infamous metalcore pioneers reunited on stage to prove that a few decades of dust couldn’t keep them from tearing into audiences like old times. But there’s a big difference between playing the classics for nostalgic fans and risking your legacy with a new album. The band innately understood how heavy and deranged a follow-up would need to be – and that’s exactly what they bring with their new LP— Near-Death Travel Services— incoming June 27th via Relapse Records [pre-order].
First, a brief history of Deadguy: the New Jersey quartet of Crispy, Dave Rosenberg, Tim “Pops” Naumann and Tim Singer released an odd, sardonic, absolutely singular 7” called White Meat in 1994. That same year they enlisted guitar player Keith Huckins of groundbreaking NJ band Rorschach and unleashed a refined, even more vicious sound with their 7” Work Ethic. With only these six songs the band was already understood to be a menacing force in the emerging metalcore scene, both live and recorded, but it couldn’t have prepared anyone for what came next.
Their 1995 debut LP Fixation on a Coworker inspired a generation of bands and was inducted into Decibel’s Hall of Fame in 2006. Of course, something this destructive can’t last long. After an ill-fated tour of the U.S. the band fractured in half with Singer and Huckins off to Seattle to form Kiss it Goodbye while Dave, Pops and Crispy enlisted Jim Baglino and Tom Yak, released one more EP and called it a day, making their entire storied existence only three years long.
A 2021 documentary, Killing Music, led to the reconciliation and live shows, but there was more that needed to be done. Geographical hurdles, families and adult life are enough to stifle anyone’s creative output, but over the next few years the band was able to create something, according to drummer Dave Rosenberg, “out of sheer force of will.”
Rosenberg led the charge, learning guitar and writing a mountain of riffs in that time. While he cites influences that range from King Crimson to Testament, Rosenberg admits that there is something that happens when these riffs reach the rest of the band. “What Crispy (guitar) has always said is that this is just what it sounds like when we play together.”
Even though the band’s high standards led to a culling that left them with only the best tracks, they decided to get the opinion of a former co-conspirator. Enter Steve Evetts, the man behind the board during Fixation. Evetts knows what Deadguy should sound like, and by asking him to produce this new one they felt confident he’d keep the band from softening up or veering too far from what makes them so distinct.
Recorded in fits and starts over a matter of months, 11 songs made the cut to be mixed, mastered and aimed indiscriminately at an unsuspecting public under the banner of Near-Death Travel Services. Members, at once skeptical, were finally able to take in the whole thing and had the same opinion after digesting their creation: “We made a fucking Deadguy record.”
From the first enraged scream that ignites first single / album opener “Kill Fee,” this is the kind of merciless chaos that’s been gone far too long. The record is overflowing with angular riffs, clashing guitars, fractured rhythms and gutter bass that no one does better, but with even more red meat and gristle. Instead of moving away from their sound they’ve dug in deeper, expanding their songs and giving Tim Singer more room to again show why he’s been one of the best vocalists in extreme music since the first Bush administration.
Watch / share "Kill Fee" music video
Near-Death Travel Services is an inside joke, the band reflecting on touring and playing this music when they’re ostensibly past their prime. But there are no signs of this being a swansong; no winding down, no taking it easy or resting on their laurels. The band Deadguy was 30 years ago went into hibernation and came back as if no time had passed. How did it happen? How were they able to pull it off? Maybe some egghead professor of musicology can figure that out, but for the rest of us it’s best to just gratefully sit back and enjoy the massacre.
See Deadguy live in June and July, and look for more news soon...
Jun. 14 Brooklyn, NY — Brooklyn Monarch (Rich Hall Memorial Show - tix)
Jul. 12 Garwood, NJ — Crossroads (Record Release Show - tix)
Near-Death Travel Services cover art:
Near-Death Travel Services, track list:
Kill FeeBarn BurnerNew Best FriendCheap TrickThe Forever PeopleWar With StrangersKnife SharpenerThe AlarmistThe Long Search for Perfect TimingAll Stick & No CarrotWax Princess
FULL BODY 2 REISSUES DEBUT EP AND COMP OF EARLY MUSIC
FULL BODY 2 REISSUES UPDATED INFINITY SIGNATURE AND 2020INITIALSEQUENCE2022
Photo Credit: Fredrik Andersson Andersson
Philadelphia trio Full Body 2 (Cassidy Rose Hammond, Dylan Vaisey and Jack Chaffer) are releasing remastered versions of their early works: a compilation of formative standalone singles titled 2020initialsequence2022, along with a remixed and remastered version of their 2023 EP, infinity signature. Both will be released on April 29, 2025, via YEAR0001.
Physicals of both releases are available now. Purchase at fullbody2.com
Full Body 2 have carved out a distinct space with their maximalist fusion of shoegaze and electronic music. Emerging as one of the most exciting new bands in the genreless DIY vanguard, FB2 stand out for their heady balance of overwhelming emotion and technical control. It’s heavy and beautiful, dissonant and euphoric, with a rawness that positions them between peers such as They Are Gutting a Body of Water and George Clanton.
On infinity signature, hopeful melodies soar on the aptly named “enix wake” and “wonder limit,” while the group locks into momentous, groove-heavy interplay. “nokia login” floats ethereal vocals over a skipping breakbeat and dreamy pads, as darker, more unsettling synths twist through the haunted terrain of “blue trio.” It all culminates in “moonworld,” a track that dissolves into a celestial blur of digital feedback, gently drifting toward infinity.
The 2025 reissues give listeners a fresh entry point into the band’s sonic world where the digital and the visceral melt into something massive and completely singular. Growing rapidly in popularity over the past year, touring relentlessly across North America and Europe alongside an ambitious production, Full Body 2 has sold out every headline performance since 2023, selling thousands of self-designed merchandise, all ahead of a debut full length album. Full Body 2 are residents of influential internet radio station NTS Radio, hosting a monthly show ‘Blue Trio Radio’.
For More on Full Body 2
PARTY DOZEN @ Zebulon MONDAY 04.28.25 // THE PORTABLE INFINITE
All photos taken by Alexander Laurence
April 28, 2025
Peter Hook & The Light Performing New Order's 'Get Ready' Album 13-Date North American Tour Launches May 22 In Montreal
PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT
2025 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
PERFORMING THE GET READY ALBUM
FROM NEW ORDER
13-DATE SPRING TOUR LAUNCHES
MAY 22 IN MONTREAL
OTHER STOPS INCLUDE BUFFALO, COLUMBUS, PITTSBURGH, NASHVILLE, CARRBORO, ASHEVILLE, ST. LOUIS, ATLANTA, NEW ORLEANS, TAMPA, ORLANDO AND MIAMI
TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE
LISTEN TO GET READY HERE
PUNK ROCK BOWLING & MUSIC FESTIVAL
APPEARANCE MAY 25
Peter Hook photographed by Jason Mooney
PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT are returning to North America this May and June 2025 where they will perform the New Order album Get Ready in its entirety alongside a selection of the most seminal tracks from the rich back catalogs of both Joy Division and New Order. The 13-date tour launches May 22 in Montreal and will have the band passing through markets on the eastern half of the continent including Buffalo (*limited tickets remain), Columbus, Pittsburgh, Nashville, Carrboro, Asheville, St. Louis, Atlanta, New Orleans, Tampa, Orlando and Miami. The band will also be making an appearance at Punk Rock Bowling in Las Vegas.
Tickets available here: https://peterhookandthelight.live
At each show, fans will get to experience live all of the Get Ready album cuts including “Crystal,” “60 Miles An Hour” and "Someone Like You.” Get Ready was released in 2001 and reached #2 on the US Billboard Electronic album chart and #6 in the UK album chart. It was the seventh studio album from New Order and was dedicated by the band to Rob Gretton, the manager of both Joy Division and New Order who had died in 1999.
“Get Ready was a honeymoon record. Looking back now it was very enjoyable to make, and I think is massively underrated. It did sort the wheat from the chaff and led to a New Order mk2 which played better but had lost a naivety whilst gaining a maturity. Barney and I became a ‘power couple’ in Manchester during the making of the record but, sadly, the old problems recurred when we came to play live.,” shares Peter Hook. “The writing was on the wall from then on. The two of us worked very hard to make this a great record and I think we succeeded. I am looking forward to playing all the tracks, many of which have never been played live before. The Light will shine through … Get Ready!”
Peter Hook first revisited the seminal Joy Division album Unknown Pleasures back in May 2010 for a commemorative charity concert and has followed it each year by performing subsequent albums from the repertoire of his bands, Joy Division and New Order. His dedication to his back catalogue has now seen him move through Unknown Pleasures, Closer, Still, Movement, Power Corruption & Lies, Low Life, Brotherhood, Technique and Republic to arrive at the Substance albums this year and now Get Ready. Having toured the albums extensively, the band have now amassed over 800 concerts.
Among the many highlights since he reintroduced his early repertoire to a legion of audiences across the world, both new and old, have been appearances at Benicassim, Primavera Sound, Kendal Calling, Bestival, Victorious and Rebellion, alongside extensive touring in Europe, North and South America, China, Japan, Australia and New Zealand to great acclaim from both fans and critics alike.
The upcoming North American dates follow a mammoth run of live shows in 2024, taking in tours of Australia, New Zealand, South America, North America and the UK and Ireland which have seen the band play the Substance albums by Joy Division and New Order in full. This past April Peter Hook & The Light performed Get Ready shows in Manchester, London and Bristol to high critical acclaim:
"Peter Hook & The Light don't just perform songs; they channel decades of heartbreak, ecstasy, loss and triumph. They remind us that music doesn't just exist in the past; it lives, breathes and evolves with us. At Victoria Warehouse tonight, they didn't just play a show; they created a moment. And what a moment it was." – All Music UK - Manchester - April 2025
"These songs are still relevant and have a role to play in shaping our music landscape of today, as much as they did back then. They still stand up and feel as moving and powerful as they did 40 years ago." – Musomuso UK - Bristol - April 2025
"The second half involved all the hits. You can imagine how this went - mosh pits, ravenous singalongs and some of the finest live music you'll ever experience."
– Northern Exposure UK - London - April 2025
"The evening closes with Love Will Tear Us Apart, with every audience member singing the anthemic line at the top of their voice. Everyone singing, everyone dancing. This is Manchester reliving its finest musical moment" - RGM UK - Manchester - April 2025
"As the marathon set steamed into the final stretch, the crowd's energy reached fever pitch. With fans of all ages revelling in a swirling pit in the centre, reliving memories and making new ones, there was an emotional weight palpable in the air. Peter Hook & The Light breathed new life into the songs, weaving together music which spanned genres and decades into an unforgettable experience." - The Modern Record UK - London - April 2025
North American 2025 Get Ready Dates:
MAY 22 – Montreal, QC – Mtelus
MAY 25 - Las Vegas, NV - Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival (**non-Get Ready tour date)
MAY 23 – Buffalo, NY – Electric City (*limited tickets remain)
MAY 28 – Columbus, OH – The Bluestone
MAY 30 – Pittsburgh, PA – Roxian Theatre
MAY 31 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl
JUNE 02 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
JUNE 03 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
JUNE 06 – St Louis, MO – The Pageant
JUNE 07 – Atlanta, GA – The Eastern
JUNE 09 – New Orleans, LA – The Joy Theater
JUNE 11 – Tampa, FL – Jannus Live
JUNE 13 – Orlando, FL – The Plaza Live
JUNE 14 – Miami, FL – Miami Beach Bandshell
GET READY Track List:
Crystal60 Miles an HourTurn My WayVicious StreetPrimitive NotionSlow JamRock the ShackSomeone Like YouClose RangeRun Wild
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