Alexander Laurence's Blog, page 2198

Le Volume Courbe's "Rusty" Video Premieres via NPR Music, album out Friday

LE VOLUME COURBE’S “RUSTY” VIDEO PREMIERES TODAY VIA NPR I WISH DEE DEE RAMONE WAS HERE WITH ME  SET FOR OCTOBER 30 RELEASE ON
RING THE ALARMNPR Music is premiering the video for French singer, and producer Le Volume Courbe’s “Rusty” today. Watch the video here.Le Volume Courbe’s sophomore album  I Wish Dee Dee Ramone Was Here With Me  is set for release October 30 on Ring The Alarm/Pickpocket Records. The new album comes ten years after her debut, I Killed My Best Friend, was released on Astralwerks in the U.S. and Honest Jon’s in the U.K.Recorded by Le Volume Courbe frontwoman and creative force Charlotte Marionneau, the album is part solo effort and part collaborative project with Marionneau’s longtime band members Melanie Draisey, Chris Mackin, Lascelle Gordon, Theodore Hall, Wildcat Will and Barney Slater. I Wish Dee Dee Ramone Was Here With Me also features My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields on guitar on Roky Erickson cover “I Love The Living You” and the album’s title track as well as shooting a toy gun on “The House.” Martin Duffy of Primal Scream plays piano on “Monte Dans Mon Ambulance.” Marionneau also covers Nico’s “Le Petit Chevalier” alongside her own original compositions.“Now I understand why second albums are ‘difficult,’” Marionneau says of recording the new album. “Your first album is your ‘best of; the music you’ve made all your life; then you start again from scratch. I’m not prolific, but I need an album to be strong throughout. I have to build it like a collage; I feel more like a producer than a musician really. So I pick up ideas and create songs around them. It’s about trying things, experimenting.”Marionneau grew up in a small town in Pays de la Loire in northwest France before moving to London in 1995. Encouraged and inspired by friends including Shields, Duffy, Hope Sandoval, David Roback and Colm O’Ciosoig, she recorded I Killed My Best Friend. In 2007 Marionneau joined forces with her band and the Theodaurus Rex EP followed in 2011. I Wish Dee Dee Ramone Was Here With Me is the culmination of that EP featuring those four songs plus seven new tracks. Le Volume Courbe has toured widely, including dates in Europe with My Bloody Valentine, and has been featured in TV and film soundtracks the world over. Marionneau’s cover of Nina Simone’s “Ain’t Got No…I Got Life” is played regularly on French radio. Ten years have passed since the first Le Volume Courbe release, but Marionneau's songs, once heard, are not easily forgotten.

Lyla Foy Premieres 'Tiger' Video On My Old Kentucky Blog

Lyla Foy Premieres 'Tiger' Video On My Old Kentucky Blog
New EP UMi Out Now
Photo Credit: Rob Blackman
"Foy's songs are both lush and low-key, intimate and surprisingly intricate. She layers beats generously but carefully, alternating between buoyant and bittersweet" Pitchfork
" it's gentle, delicate stuff somewhere between folk and dream pop."—Brooklyn Vegan
Lyla Foy has premiered her ethereal new video for 'Tiger' exclusively on My Old Kentucky Blog.  The video, according to My Old Kentucky Blog "pulls from the trance-like feel of the song creating a animated hallucination of imagery relating to the lyrics."

The new EP UMi spans between the atmospheric He Is Lost  and River to the rousing musical arrangements and expectant melodies of Glow In The Dark and Tiger to create a detailed insight into Lyla's new material.
UMi is an abbreviation of Ursa Minor, a constellation in the northern sky also known as Smaller She-Bear or Little Bear. The collection of songs reflects night time and is a direct contrast to Lyla's Sub-Pop debutMirrors The Sky, released in March 2014, whose image is daytime and daylight.
UMi Track Listing1.     Beginning It All Again2.     Glow In The Dark3.     River4.     Right To Be5.     Tiger6.     He Is Lost
Lyla Foy has spent much of the last year touring throughout Europe and America with the last six months spent working on her new recordings. Originally under the moniker WALL, Lyla Foy released her self-produced debut album Mirrors The Sky under her own name, receiving glowing praise across radio, print and online media, including the likes of Pitchfork and 6Music's Steve Lamacq. Her new EP will be the first new material released since Spring 2014 and she is also currently working on her second album.
Having toured with the likes of The National, Sharon Van Etten, Midlake and Phosphorescent, along with playing festivals including Glastonbury and End Of The Road, Lyla has just finished a run of west coast dates and a CMJ appearance.

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GRIMES NEW ALBUM 'ART ANGELS' NOV 6TH // WATCH VIDEO

GRIMES NEW ALBUM 'ART ANGELS' AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER (NOV 6, 4AD)WATCH SELF-DIRECTED VIDEO FOR "FLESH WITHOUT BLOOD"/"LIFE IN THE VIVID DREAM" WATCH HERE


NEW ALBUM FEATURES COLLABS WITH JANELLE MONÁE AND TAIWANESE RAPPER ARISTOPHANES
Today, Grimes released her self-directed video for "Flesh Without Blood"/"Life in the Vivid Dream", from her forthcoming album 'Art Angels,' out digitally Nov 6 on 4AD.  Spanning over 14 tracks, the new album features collaborations with Janelle Monáe and newcomer, Taiwanese rapper Aristophanes. It was recorded primarily in her home studio in Los Angeles, CA, where she relocated to in 2014. Like all of her previous albums, 'Art Angels' was written and recorded entirely as a solo endeavor. The new album features more live instrumentation than ever before on a Grimes record. She plays piano, guitar and violin, continuing her evolution as a musician and a producer for her most ambitious album to date.Grimes will be embarking on her much-anticipated AC!D Reign European headline tour in the coming Spring, which includes a landmark London date at Brixton's o2 Academy. She starts her US headline tour on October 24th, with dates in South Korea, Japan and the Laneway Festival in Singapore, New Zealand and Australia all confirmed for early 2016. For more ticket information, please got to www.grimesmusic.com.

'Art Angels' Track Listing
1. laughing and not being normal
2. California
3. SCREAM ft. Aristophanes
4. Flesh without Blood
5. Belly of the beat
6. Kill V. Maim
7. Artangels
8. Easily
9. Pin
10. Realiti
11. World Princess part II
12. Venus Fly ft. Janelle Monáe
13. Life in the Vivid Dream
14. Butterfly

Grimes on the web:

www.grimesmusic.comhttps://twitter.com/Grimezszhttps://www.actuallygrimes.tumblr.com/https://www.facebook.com/actuallygrimes

BLOOD ORANGE: New Song + Show at The Apollo Theatre

VIDEO FOR BRAND NEW SONG "SANDRA'S SMILE" RELEASED TODAY ONE NIGHT ONLY AT HARLEM'S WORLD FAMOUSAPOLLO THEATER IN NEW YORK CITY: BLOOD ORANGE AND FRIENDSDECEMBER 12, 2015  PRESS HERE  to Purchase TicketsAll Proceeds to Benefit  Opus 118 Harlem School of Music (Photo credit:  Michael Halsband)Blood Orange - aka Devonté Hynes - has released a video for a brilliant new track today entitled "Sandra's Smile."  The video, which was shot in new York City last weekend, was directed by Hynes and features Waffle Crew, Junglepussy, and Ian Isiah.  Peep the cover art below.  Watch "Sandra's Smile"  HERE Get "Sandra's Smile" via iTunes  HERE  Hynes will also be performing his first U.S. show of 2015 on December 12th, 2015when he returns to the stage at Harlem's World Famous Apollo Theater in NYC alongside a cast of friends and collaborators.   PRESS HERE  to pre-order tickets, merch, and more with all proceeds going to the Opus 118 Harlem School of Music .  Limited BloodOrange.NYC pre-sale startsWednesday October 28th, tickets on sale to general public on Friday October 30th at 12 pm EST.  The show at Harlem's World Famous Apollo Theater will feature not only music fromHynes' critically acclaimed first two albums under the Blood Orange moniker, but will also include the live debut of brand new material never before heard anywhere.   All proceeds from the show will benefit the  Opus 118 Harlem School of Music , a program that transforms the lives of their students and families through access to quality music education both in-school and after-school.  Says Hynes, "Playing music saved my life; if it wasn't for the chance to play cello or piano when I was a kid growing up in Essex, I shudder to think where I'd be right now. At this point in my life, all that matters to me is giving back to communities and making people happy, so I have decided to put on a fun night of performances at the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem that is hopefully affordable to all, with all proceeds going to the Opus 118 Harlem School of Music.  New York City, let's have some fun!"

Skylar Gudasz: Debut LP, Consequence Of Sound & Big Star Third Collective

SKYLAR GUDASZ ANNOUNCES DEBUT ALBUM WITH CONSEQUENCE OF SOUND  COS PREMIERES FIRST TRACK I'M SO HAPPY I CAN DIE  BIG STAR THIRD COLLECTIVE MEMBER STEPS OUT WITH NEW RECORD OLEANDER OUT FEBRUARY 5th Oleander is a splendidly intimate window into the enchanting work of a singer- songwriter whose balance of musical talent and artistic visioncomes along only once in a very blue moon. Skylar Gudasz is excited to announce the release of her debut album Oleander with the premiere of her new song "I'm So Happy I Can Die." Visit Consequence Of Sound to hear the immediate impact Skylar has with this sardonically humorous track that sets her naturally sweet vocals against stinging, bitter electric guitar textures. CoS calls "I'm So Happy I Can Die" "a sharp and clever introduction to Gudasz's style" and you can listen here http://bit.ly/1Lx31zd Oleander will be released on February 5th via Daniel 13. Skylar studied theater and creative writing at the University of North Carolina, and stuck around in Chapel Hill and Durham post-college after connecting with some of the area's most promising young musicians. It didn't take long for renowned Chapel Hill producer Chris Stamey to be drawn to Skylar's distinctiveness as a songwriter. "She's a triple threat - a skilled singer, composer, and lyricist - with a background in both classical and pop music," says Chris. Shortly after his ambitious Big Star Third collective began playing, Chris brought Skylar aboard, introducing her to a cast that included Big Star drummer Jody Stephens, R.E.M.'s Mike Mills and the Posies' Ken Stringfellow. From Barcelona to Sydney to London, audiences flocked to hear marquee cameos from the likes of Jeff Tweedy, Cat Power and Ray Davies, but they often came away wowed by Skylar's turns in the spotlight. Back home in North Carolina, Skylar - a multi-instrumentalist from a very young age - began recording new material that would become Oleander. The demos were written mostly on piano, and Skylar and Chris gradually added strings, horns, winds, guitars and percussion tailoring the arrangements to the material while taking great care to leave the emotional core intact. They also sought to capture her performances as directly as possible. "She took a deep breath, then played and sang her heart out." Oleander is an honest portrayal of an artist with tender songs that lean on minimal piano-and-vocal passages that ebb and flow between full-band crescendos, and others that are full of grand orchestral swirls. Chris Stamey adds, "This record doesn't shout at you, like those radio divas; it reveals itself best in the wee small hours of the morning. If you make a space for it, it will reach out to you." Stay tuned for tour dates, new music and more! www.skylargudasz.comwww.facebook.com/SkylarGudaszhttps://instagram.com/skylargudasz/https://twitter.com/SkylarGudasz

The Lonely Wild to play the Knitting Factory on November 17; Sophomore Album Chasing White Light Out Now

The Lonely Wild Announce Fall Tour Dates  
Sophomore Album Chasing White Light Out Now

photo credit:  Jonathan Weiner
“Indie folk rockers turn in perhaps their strongest song yet from their new album,
Chasing White Light” - Consequence of Sound
"An anthemic sound - equal parts western, southern and something not quite defined by
geographic adjectives." - American Songwriter

"Chasing White Light is the sort of album like last year's criminally under-rated Into the Wide by Delta Spirit that makes you feel alive by virtue of hearing the plaintive cries of its vocals and the uplifting swells of its strings." - Baeble Music 
"The songs collectively become a majestic masterpiece." - Free Bike Valet
 "This band is raw and reaching a sound that many have tried but have yet to execute so well." -Best New Bands
Stream: Chasing White Light at Baeble Music
Stream: "Hunted" via Free Bike Valet or SoundCloud 
Stream: "Scar" via Consequence Of Sound or SoundCloud
Stream: "Snow" via  Buzzbands LA  or SoundCloud
The Lonely Wild has announced fall tour dates with Young Buffalo. The tour will make stops in Phoenix, Austin, Nashville, Brooklyn, Minneapolis and more. All upcoming shows are listed below. The Lonely Wild is touring in support of their sophomore album Chasing White Light out now on eOne Music / Fast Plastic. Fans can order the album now via iTunes and check out an album cocktail companion atTales Of A Cocktail.  Baeble Musi c  says, "From opening track "Snow" to closing track "Echo," Chasing White Light refuses to slow down or slip into a sonic rut. Whether it's the Lone Bellow-esque opening number to the more ragged and rock-fused "Hunted," the record switches back and forth between more deliberately paced and high energy tracks without sacrificing the general larger than life feel of the record." 
The Lonely Wild recently emerged from John Vanderslice's Tiny Telephone Studios in San Francisco with a new record and a new lease on life. "We walked into the studio with an album about death," says Carroll, "and John taught us to let go." The album, which follows the group's 2013 effortThe Sun As it Comes, was born last year as Carroll was faced with the death of his wife's grandmother. "When that happens to people you know and love, you often pause and reflect on people you've known who passed away," he notes. "And then the topic started coming out in songs naturally. "Scar," a folksy indie rock tune, was one of the first songs to emerge during that process.The reflective track recounts the passing of Andrew's childhood friend who died after they'd grown apart. "That was a moment of pause for me," he says. "You wonder what could have happened if you were still part of that person's life." The rest of the album followed easily. Chasing White Light TheLonely Wild's self-proclaimed "death album" reflects on death in a way that is both accepting and uplifting. 
Vanderslice, known for his signature "sloppy hi-fi" approach to recording, worked with the band to create an album unlike anything they had done before. "In the past, we've always labored over every detail of our recordings, picking apart each performance." Carroll continues, "But with John, you can't do that. He's always on the move, whipping up this infectious, magical energy. The first thing we did was throw out all of our demos and approach each song like it was the first time we ever played it." In the studio, the musicians used antique instruments like harpsichord and cello, as well as analog synthesizers and electric organs, and recorded the entire album to tape. Instead of recreating the band's demo, Vanderslice forced them out of their comfort zone, encouraging each song to evolve into its best incarnation. It was a deeply liberating experience for the band.
The Lonely Wild's touring experience also impacted the album. Over the past few years the group, which formed in 2010, has performed with Damien Rice, Apache Relay, The Lone Bellow, Laura Marling, Phosphorescent, Dwight Yoakam and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and at festivals likeFirst City Festival, Echo Park Rising, Cask and Drum Festival and Jubilee. The band has sold out nearly a dozen shows in their hometown of Los Angeles, and expanded their live show to feel as dynamic and exciting as possible. On Chasing White Light, the musicians wanted to bring that sense of exhilaration to the recording.
In the end, Chasing White Light comes to some sort of acceptance. You will die, but that doesn't have to be mournful or disheartening. It encourages you to stay in the moment and follow your own bliss, rather than live for some future promise of an afterlife. It's a musical journey that leaves you uplifted and encouraged, even as it considers one of the life's darkest subjects. "This album doesn't dwell on the despair of it all," Carroll confirms. "It's about looking at death for what it is - something we all go through at some point. It's that great mystery and no one really knows what happens. You're never going to know until you get there. And you have to come to terms with that. Through writing these songs I've come to accept it and not totally fear it. And I hope our fans can too." 
  The Lonely Wild Tour Dates
 11.08 - Phoenix, AZ @ Last Exit11.10 - Austin, TX @ Mohawk11.11 - Denton, TX @ Dan's Silverleaf11.12 - Springfield, MO @ Lindbergs11.13 - St. Louis, MO @ The Bootleg at Atomic Cowboy11.14 -Nashville, TN @ The High Watt11.15 - Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar11.17 - Brooklyn, NY @ Knitting Factory11.18 - New Haven, CT @ BAR11.21 - Rock Island, IL @Rozz Tox11.23 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St. Entry             For more info, please visit:    http://www.thelonelywild.com https://www.facebook.com/thelonelywild https://twitter.com/thelonelywild ; http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/thelonelywild

Questlove Announces New Book via Clarkson Potter "Somethingtofoodabout"

QuestloveAnnounces New Book set for release on April 12th, 2016Via Clarkson Potter"Somethingtofoodabout"The Chefs: Daniel Humm, Dominique Crenn, Dave Beran, Nathan Myrhvold, Jesse Griffiths, Donald Link, Michael Solomonov, Ludo Lefebvre, Daniel Patterson, Ryan RoadhouseNEW YORK, NY, OCT 27, 2015-- Questlove is proud to announce his new book,  somethingtofoodabout . Following the success of his first book in 2013,  Mo' Meta Blues: The World According to Questlove , which hit # 1 on the  New York Times  bestsellers list. The book is a food book, but not a traditional food book-it unlocks the creative process behind food and explores the way that chefs operate as innovative artists. Questlove investigates this issue through conversations with 10 innovative chefs in America.
Written with his "Mo Meta" collaborator Ben Greenman, accompanied by the photographs ofKyoko Hamada, which were inspired in part by the immaculately composed still lives of Old Masters, and a foreword by Anthony Bourdain, the book treats readers to an insightful, lighthearted, witty, and-above all-enthusiastic tour through the current state of creativity in American cuisine. Questlove's talents as a cultural commentator and curator are on full display throughout. The book,somethingtofoodabout, takes readers around the country: not only to New York City, where Questlove is currently based, but to places like Philadelphia (the city of his birth and an up-and-coming center of innovative restaurants). Questlove also goes west to Los Angeles, north to Portland, and south to New Orleans, letting chefs speak about their personal histories, their creative process, and their insights into innovation in food.

VOWWS Announce New LP The Great Sun

VOWWS Announce New LP The Great SunOut October 30th via Cleopatra Records

Tracklisting01. The Great Sun
02. Against The Gates
03. Holy Youth
04. Stranger
05. Councillor
06. The Only One
07. It's You
08. Losing Myself In You (Feat. Gary Numan)
09. Crying
10. The Season
11. Waiting For Me

Media Watch "The Great Sun" (Lyric Video) on Culture Collide Watch "Losing Myself In You" (ft. Gary Numan) Lyric Video On Consequence Of Sound

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Australian/Iranian Industrial-Pop duo VOWWS met while studying music in Sydney, Australia. They played in multiple experimental rock bands in Sydney together before moving to NYC in 2011 and creating VOWWS.Gradually their tension, conflict and chemistry began to define their world, and their sound. The result is as bipolar as it is harmonized, with drama and extremity facing off against diligence and measured observation. Friend, producer (and sometimes mediator) Kevin McMahon (SWANS, The Walkmen) helped capture this dichotomy on tape, disguising a collection of dense pop songs with layers of distortion; grinding and swaying and pushing all the while.In 2014 VOWWS moved to LA and signed with Cleopatra Records, and were able to finalize the album, which features appearances by Gary Numan, Thor Harris (SWANS) and Beki Aldridge (The Mavis's). It is entitled 'The Great Sun' and is due for release October 30th.Tour Dates10.24 @ LOVECRAFT // PORTLAND, OR
10.30 @ “EXCESS FLESH” HALLOWEEN PARTY // SANTA MONICA, CA
11.07 @ ORIGAMI VINYL INSTORE // ECHO PARK, CA
11.07 @ LETHAL AMOUNTS SADO MASO DISCO // DTLA (DJ SET)
12.03 @ SODA BAR // SAN DIEGO , CA   W/ JENNIE VEE
12.05 @ BLACK FOREST // EUGENE, OR   W/ JENNIE VEE
12.06 @ HIGH DIVE // SEATTLE, WA   W/ JENNIE VEE
12.09 @ THE PRESS CLUB // SACRAMENTO, CA  W/JENNIE VEE
12.10 @ COMPLEX // LOS ANGELES, CA  W/ JENNIE VEE
12.16 @  RIVERSIDE, CA
12.17 @  SAN DIEGO, CA
12.18 @  COSTA MESA, CA

'Art Angels' by Grimes

Art Angels by Grimes
New Album Released 6th November
Watch 'Flesh without Blood' / 'Life in the Vivid Dream' Video
 Today, Grimes releases her self-directed video for 'Flesh without Blood' / 'Life in the Vivid Dream', from her forthcoming album Art Angels, out digitally on 6th November 2015.Spanning fourteen tracks, the new album features collaborations with Janelle Monáe and newcomer, Taiwanese rapper Aristophanes.  It was recorded primarily in her home studio in Los Angeles, CA, where she relocated to in 2014.  Like all of her previous albums, Art Angels was written and recorded entirely as a solo endeavour.  The new album features more live instrumentation than ever before on a Grimes record.  She plays piano, guitar and violin, continuing her evolution as a musician and a producer for her most ambitious album to date.You can find more details of Art Angels, including tracklisting, and all forthcoming tour dates here.Stream 'Flesh without Blood' on Spotify here.
Pre-order Art Angels on iTunes (w/ instant download of 'Flesh without Blood') here.
Pre-order Art Angels on Amazon here.
Pre-order Art Angels on Google Play here.
Pre-order Art Angels on LP/CD here. Watch 'Flesh without Blood'/'Life in the Vivid Dream' below:
Learn more about Grimes:4AD.com
grimesmusic.com
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Taffy @ Beach Goth 4

Taffy @ Beach Goth 4  photo by Gerard Kent