DANISH SUPERSTAR TRENTEMOLLER RETURNS!

Danish musician Anders Trentemøller is to release his eagerly awaited second artist album in May 2010.

Entitled “Into The Great Wide Yonder” the second full length by the remarkably talented Copenhagen based musician will drop on Trentemøller’s own label “In My Room”.

Having started his career in the electronic scene with an array of groundbreaking yet classic singles in the early 2000’s his music always broke genre-barriers. Alongside his single-hits Trentemøller became famous for his remixes and the “Trentemøller twist” he added to songs by Depeche Mode, Franz Ferdinand, Röyksopp, The Knife and many more.

The multi-award-winning debut album “The Last Resort” (Poker Flat Recordings, 2006) remains one of the most loved independent albums and is highly appreciated for its abundance of musical ideas and its outstanding song writing.

Followed by “The Trentemøller Chronicles”-album (Audiomatique 2008) Trentemøller’s most recent release is his first ever Mix-CD “Harbour Boat Trips 01: Copenhagen”(hfn music, 2009) which takes the listener on a roundtrip through Trentemøller’s own secret music box and melts Electronica, Neo-Folk, Indie-Rock, Psychedelia and beyond.

We are not going to spoil the surprise, but the new album is far more than a logical progression from Anders Trentemøller’s past work. It opens yet another overwhelming new “sound cosmos” in the artist’s very own song writing and production and is too good to be forced into one single genre alone. It offers a wealth of brilliant melodies and musical ideas and uses many different instruments including electronic and acoustic guitars, strings, Theremin, a bass mandolin and many electronics with a playful easiness that is seldom heard. The new album also features four vocal tracks which seamlessly fall into a simply brilliant and beautiful album that needs to be listened as a whole.

Many fellow musicians and friends contributed their skills not only to the music, but also for the artwork which has been done by design artists Henrik Vibskov and Andreas Emenius or the first video which has been directed by Jesper Just.

While the album is going to be released at the end of May, the first single “Sycamore Feeling” drops in early April.

Posted: Thursday, 25 February 2010

LINDSTROM & CHRISTABELLE NEW ALBUM!

"A remarkable dance record" (8,1 Pitchfork)
"Real Life is simply stellar" (9,5 / 10 XLR8R)
"A masterful 10-song pop album" (5/5 URB Magazine)
"You may not hear a better dance-pop album before the year peters out" (4/5 Resident Advisor)
"Will instantly make your jaw drop" (Anthem Magazine)

After the release of Lindstrøm’s critically acclaimed solo album Where You Go I Go Too in 2008 and 2009`s collaborative album with Prins Thomas entitled II, Norway’s maestro of disco with something really special. This time he teams up with sultry vocalist Christabelle, to bring us Real Life Is No Cool, an edgy pop album of structured chaos and hypnotic beats.

Hans-Peter Lindstrøm actually began work on Real Life Is No Cool before Where You Go I Go Too, as it happened though WYGIGT was finished first. It was his work on this new
album, containing 10 short pop songs with vocals, which became the impetus behind creating the epic and colossal masterpiece, WYGIGT (with only 3 long tracks and a opening track clocking in at 28 minutes). Essentially, WYGIGT was a kind of reaction to his work on Real Life Is No Cool. When WYGIGT began making waves around the world, Lindstrøm went back into his studio to complete Real Life Is No Cool.

Christabelle (also known as Solale to Lindstrøm followers) has been working on and off with Lindstrøm since 2001. They never planned on making an album together, but the collaboration slowly evolved into a collection of songs that ended up becoming Real Life Is No Cool. (The title is a line taken from the album track ‘Keep It Up’ -- a track about violent relationships.)
 
Lindstrøm calls their collaboration “structured chaos”, him being the structure and Christabelle the chaos.

Real Life Is No Cool is a meeting of these two different personalities.

Lindstrøm & Christabelle ‘Real Life is Not Cool’ will be released 12 March through Smalltown Supersound/Stomp.

Posted: Tuesday, 23 February 2010

GIRL GANG DUM DUM GIRLS NEW ALBUM ON SUB POP!

When Dum Dum Girls leading lady Dee Dee needed a band to take her songs out of the bedroom, she looked to her friends: Jules, a San Diego-based furniture designer; Bambi, a non-profit worker in Austin; and Brooklynite Frankie Rose, a former Vivian Girl and Crystal Stilt, currently starting her own project as well. When the other three met for the first time a week before CMJ 2009, it was an instant girl gang.Dee Dee formed DDG in late 2008 as a solo project—the name a nod to both The Vaselines’ album, Dum-Dum, and the Iggy Pop song “Dum Dum Boys”

Dee Dee wrote and recorded the songs that became I Will Be over the first eight months of 2009, and she asked a few others to contribute. Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner plays on “Yours Alone.” Crocodiles’ Brandon Welchez sings and plays guitar on the duet “Blank Girl.” Los Angeles musician Andrew Miller contributes guitars to a number of tracks.

When it came time to choose someone to gently finesse I Will Be, the name Richard Gottehrer came up on Dee Dee’s wish list. Responsible for writing such seminal songs as “My Boyfriend’s Back,” and “I Want Candy,” he also produced his own short-lived band The Strangeloves, as well as The Voidoids, Blondie, The Go-Gos, and more recently, The Raveonettes. Marvels Dee Dee, “I gave him all the rough tracks and he produced them, as I had a lot of digital effects acting as sort of placeholders. I’m not exactly sure what he did, but it’s a world of difference. The songs sound warm, and they kind of sparkle.”

I Will Be runs just under thirty minutes with eleven songs; a short tribute to love, loss, fear, fun, and the classic pop form of the ‘60s girl groups and early punk rockers. Explaining the album’s dark-and-sunny feel, Dee Dee says, “There’s an overdramatic tone, much like a teenager’s world, but applied to the experience of getting older.” No track better exemplifies that sentiment than the somnolent “Rest of Our Lives,” a lullaby about marriage that captures, she says, “that feeling when you’re 16 and you think you’re going to be with your boyfriend forever. And that you’d just die if you weren’t. Except it’s about my husband.”

On the other end of the spectrum, “Bhang Bhang, I’m a Burnout” (the curious spelling being slang for marijuana) spends roughly two-and-a-half minutes musing on the virtues of psychedelics. “Lines Her Eyes” touches on petty girl-on-girl competition, while “Jail La La” updates the Bobby Fuller Four’s “I Fought the Law” with a reverb-laden sing-along.What’s with the bipolar songs? “I tend to be an introvert. So there’s a lot of time for weird thoughts to develop in my head before I put them down on paper,” says Dee Dee. “And it’s really bizarre living in Southern California. It’s that total stereotype of being super-laidback, this ‘everything’s perfect’ vibe. But you’re miserable in the sun because you’re stuck. Like, it’s so perfect that it’s overwhelming and depressing. That’s sorta inspiring.”

Click here to listen to the first single 'Jail La La'

I Will Be is out on the 2^nd of April 2010 through Sub Pop / Stomp

Posted: Tuesday, 23 February 2010

DANIEL MARTIN MOORE AND BEN SOLLEE WITH NEW ALBUM ON SUB POP!

'Dear Companion' is a collaboration between three Kentucky musicians. The songs were written and performed by Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore, and was produced by and features the many talents of Yim Yames (Jim James) of My Morning Jacket and Monsters Of Folk.

Recorded in the first half of 2009 in their home state, 'Dear Companion' explores their ties to the place they love and aims to draw attention to the problem of Mountaintop Removal coal mining (MTR) and its impact on the people and heritage of central Appalachia. A portion of the proceeds from 'Dear Companion' will benefit Appalachian Voices, an organisation devoted to ending MTR and finding a better way forward.

Knowing the power of words and music, they set out to create an album that would raise awareness about the issue. The theme might be dark, the music is not. Every song is shot through with light – and hope.

www.danielmartinmoore.com   ||   www.bensollee.com   ||   www.ilovemountains.org

Daniel’s debut album Stray Age was released in October 2008 through Sub Pop / Stomp.

Posted: Tuesday, 16 February 2010

NEW FEAR FACTORY VIDEO FOR 'FEAR CAMPAIGN' TAKEN FROM 'MECHANIZE'!

Following their highly anticipated appearance at the Big Day Out festival last month, the first video from Fear Factory’s forthcoming album Mechanize can now be viewed online at Stomp TV http://www.stomp.com.au/videos.aspx.  “Fear Campaign” was directed by the team of Ian McFarland and Mike Pecci for Boston-based, Emmy nominated Killswitch Productions.  The clip was filmed in Los Angeles with additional photographic elements and all post production completed in Boston.
 
In a recent interview with Revolver Magazine McFarland and Pecci revealed details about the video’s themes and creation.  “Burton (C. Bell, vocalist) is an extremely creative person and he had some very specific visuals in mind,” says Pecci.  “He said that he wanted to bombard the audience with rapid images that supported his lyrics.  His direction was ‘fast and intense with loads of subliminal images and symbols.’  With that, Ian and I went to the drawing board and started our normal process of deconstructing an idea and rebuilding it from the ground up.”
 
“Our goal was to make a video that was inspired by all those really cool stock footage 90’s music videos, but rather than using stock footage of the atrocities of the world, we decided to shrink those things down to single images and objects that can be identified as the tools used to create those problems,” adds McFarland.
 
“Fear Campaign” is the second single from Mechanize.  The song follows the already successful path of “Powershifter,” the first single which has had over 400,000 online plays since its introduction in mid-November.
 
Mechanize features the highly reported reconciliation of vocalist Burton C. Bell with original guitarist Dino Cazares.  Along with bassist Byron Stroud (Strapping Young Lad) and journeyman drummer Gene Hoglan (Dethlok, Strapping Young Lad), the album also welcomes back the involvement of keyboardist/producer Rhys Fulber (Front Line Assembly).  BraveWords.com says, “combining just the right elements of their own past, present and future, with Mechanize, Fear Factory has achieved instant excitement and an immediate adrenaline boost. In a word: essential.”
 
Killswitch Productions is owned by director/producer Ian McFarland.  McFarland with partner Mike Pecci have directed videos for Meshuggah, Agnostic Front, Sick of It All, All That Remains, and God Forbid.  Prior to filming “Fear Campaign,” Killswitch Productions completed work on Meshuggah’s concert film, Alive.
 
The direct link to view “Fear Campaign” is http://www.stomp.com.au/videos.aspx.

Mechanize is out now via Stomp Entertainment.

Posted: Tuesday, 16 February 2010

AGORIA MIXES NEW BALANCE!

After raising the bar to unprecedented heights in 2009 with Joris Voorn and Will Saul’s stunning additions to the series, EQ Recordings’ Balance series returns for the new decade with yet another standard-setting mix from one of the most sophisticated and inspiring names in techno: Agoria.

The man otherwise known as Sebastien Devaud wasn’t bitten by the dance music bug until he was out of his teens, but once he began hunting imported 12”s from the US and Germany in his native France, there was no turning back. His production career began in 1999, with his debut album Blossom and first compilation following in 2003 – and it was clear even in those early days that a serious new talent was emerging. Blending the throb and groove of deeper, stripped-back techno with a keen sense of musicality, emotion and atmosphere, his is a sound that transcends beyond mere dancefloor disposability.

Agoria explains his intention for this intricate compilation: “The concept of both CDs is all about balance. Literally. In my mind a balance is not a middle position; it's a perfect equilibrium. I’m trying to be as close as possible to this idea. I have tried to find this fine line where the balance is just right.” To accomplish this perfectly-weighted contrast, he’s cherry-picked from a myriad of genres and subgenres in his “beat open-minded” fashion, combining a wealth of material from newcomers across the spectrum (including no less than 12 exclusives) with more established producers, classics and unknown gems from his broad musical past, and put it all together in an unconventional, challenging manner. “In the end, more than a DJ compilation, this is a manifesto of my passion for music and for mixing” he explains.

This superb compilation is as deep and rewarding as a well-woven novel, the dénouement of the story unfolding as the mix evolves through Agoria’s musical DNA. Yet another essential addition to the compilation series that is fast becoming the new benchmark for ambitious DJs and demanding listeners alike.

Balance 16 mixed by Agoria Out 5 March through EQ/Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

THE DEBUT SOLO ALBUM BY WHY?'S JOSIAH WOLF!

Jet Lag is the debut solo album by WHY? multi-instrumentalist Josiah Wolf. Wolf’s visual snapshots illustrate the wistfulness of a mundane moment and offer canny excavations of those poignancies that lie beneath the surface: tough triumphs, tougher truths, and outright failures. His lean poems are set to an autumnal mix of warm folk and easy psychedelia played out (by Wolf alone) on guitar, vibes, kalimba, Hammond organ, bells, bass, and drums, to name a few. Mixed by Josiah’s younger brother Yoni Wolf (WHY?, cLOUDEAD), the end result is a sort of chamber pop minus the showy sweeps — virtuosity without the virtuoso—makes Jet Lag as impressive in its subtle execution as it is a timeless, heartfelt listen.

“The Trailer and the Truck” opens the album like a lost thought on its way out of sleep. Notes freed by mallets bounce into the fuzzy foreground, bent chords stretch out from metal strings, then bundled bursts of drum - and strum clear the way for Wolf’s voice. On “Master Cleanse (California),” he mulls over region and religion atop spare acoustics and a kaleidoscopic chorus where shimmering sounds move to an elastic tempo. One of the album’s best follows, “The Opposite of Breathing,” with a shuffling beat, cool tones, and rich textures that evoke late-’60s Greenwich Village.

Throughout these songs, style and substance are treated with equal aplomb. The rolling bass and bright vocals of “The New Car” split the difference between The Zombies and Daniel Johnston. “The Apart Meant” rolls out a cloudy darkness, and after such heaviness, the quiet Paul Simon folk of “That Kind of Man” feels like fresh air, while “Ohioho” is genuinely sunny.

Jet Lag came together following the dissolution of an eleven-year relationship, and during a move from California back to the Midwest, where Wolf grew up. But its final two songs only look back long enough to prepare their author for newness. The stormy “Gravity Defied” conveys that knowing resignation that eventually comes, while on album-ender “The One Sign,” the breeze that Wolf was waiting on becomes a gale threatening to crash a loaded airplane. Rather than cower together or pray to God, however, the passengers stand to face fate head on. Wolf’s final lyric — "'Heaven help me' are just words that time will make you say” — echoes out before the shelter offered by the song dissolves into the outdoors.

www.myspace.com/josiahwolfjetlag

Jet Lag is out through Anticon / Stomp on the 5th of March, 2010

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

DYSCORD ANNOUNCES NATIONAL TOUR IN SUPPORT OF NEW RELEASE!

Crushing riffs, pit swaying groves and highly intelligent yet sometimes comical yet uncompromising lyrics...welcome to the world of Dyscord!!

Formed in 2005, this 5 piece metal band from Perth, Western Australia is without doubt THE metal band to watch out for in 2010.

With a new record deal in place courtesy of Stomp Entertainment here in Australia for the crushing new album “Tirades” and a list of national Australian and New Zealand tour dates ready to go through February and March, along with overseas touring plans in place, Dyscord are ready to step up and show the masses exactly what an intense metal record and live show is all about.

Mixed by Jason Suecof (Chimaira, Devil Driver, Job For A Cowboy, Black Dahlia Murder) and mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side in New York City “Tirades” is without doubt the album that is going to bring Dyscord worldwide recognition.

With a sound that is all their own, Dyscord fuse elements of Death Metal, Thrash, Grind and even Melodic metal into one brutal metal melting pot to pull out a sound that is uniquely “Dyscord”. Accompanied by a live show that has to be seen to be believed Dyscord are the complete metal package.

Dyscord are not some trend/fad “core” band...they are a straight up 100% unrelenting metal act doing things their way!! In a modern day metal world of clone bands Dyscord are leader setting the pace..not a follower...you have been warned...so get involved!!

Click here for tour dates!

Check out the first single ‘Behold’ at www.myspace.com/dyscord

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

THE FUTURE OF HOUSE IS HERE!

“Boogybytes - it is about score, about clubs and pubs, about personality and the things that define us...” This vocal introduces the next instalment of the Boogybytes mix CD series. Volume 5 is the first CD not to feature a star from the label but to give a surprise appearance to the extremely charismatic and not-so-secret insider tip Seth Troxler. His top-drawer DJ, remixing and production skills, as well as his highly praised releases on labels including the Ghostly International sub-label Spectral Sound, have helped him attract considerable interest and great bookings in his home city of Detroit and his current surroundings in Berlin. BPC aficionados may be familiar with Seth through his collaboration with Ryan Crosson and Sean Reves. The trio delivered an extremely successful remix for Kiki under the name “Visionquest” which has been licensed for numerous other releases.

After the success of their night at the Berlin club Watergate, the paths of Ellen Allien und Seth Troxler crossed once again. Seth was spontaneously given the honour of making a Boogybytes CD. After agreeing euphorically and without hesitation, Seth took the time to carefully reflect on his new environment in Berlin: “I wanted to do something which would set itself apart from all the trends, and yet paint a picture of this city and portray it the way I experience it.”

The track selection which came out of this process conveys this picture superbly. Its palpable deepness occasionally harbours a touch of melancholy, yet never becomes overwhelming, for at its peaks - which certainly include Seth's Fever Ray mix - the tension is released in the most explosive and unbridled manner. Seth already considers certain tracks as classics. For him, Nicolas Jaarís “Time For Us” and the epic “Birds And Souls” are works with a great future.

Seth's particular way of combining the most varied of musical elements is shown both in his fitting track selection and in his remarkable mixing technique. Not only are the individual remixes artfully arranged and intertwined, but single elements are also occasionally reemployed as material in a sound montage. Seth merges tracks into one another almost imperceptibly whilst constantly creating new angles in the way they overlap and retreat from one another. Other songs, on the other hand, follow one another abruptly and yet completely seamlessly. Sound elements are dispersed over the tracks, acting as recurring signals. In the case of the dance floor stormer “Stricher” by Roman Flügel (one half of the duo Alter Ego), a complete section of the song is remoulded as a transition between tracks. The 4/4 kick drum does not remain fundamentally in the foreground; in the funk-jazz-tinged pieces by Bakara and Dinky its presence is withdrawn, although the compulsion to dance is never lost. Seth Troxler pays homage both to his Detroit roots and to the minimal house style of his new home, and as a result he moves his hallmark sound beyond the limits of 12” releases for the first time.

Stay tuned for Seth Troxler tour dates!

Boogybytes Vol.5 mixed by Seth Troxler out 26 February 2010 through Bpitch Control/Stomp!

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

THE THERMALS ARE COMING TO AUSTRALIA!

Hi, we're The Thermals. 

We're a three-piece alternative/indie/punk band. 

We live in Portland, Oregon.  You know, the place all your friends are moving.  So they can paint/record/do gravity bong hits, when they're not slinging lattes at one of a thousand or so coffee shops.

Anyways we are very excited to be coming to Australia in March to play some East Coast dates!!

Our latest record is called Now We Can See and is out through Kill Rock Stars (Stomp in Australia). You may have heard our single 'Now We Can See' and the new one 'We Were Sick' on your local radio station. We think it's pretty good! Pret-ty, pret-ty, pret-ty good. Not only are the songs filled with some of our smartest lyrics and sweetest melodies, but the recording is, for us, another great leap in fidelity (you might even call it hi-fidelity), thanks to producer John Congleton (Explosions In The Sky, Polyphonic Spree), who brought massive amounts of sound and bombastic style to the project.

So come see us in March!!

An album that goes so far in proving that simplicity not only has its place, it’s also often the path to unmitigated greatness." - The Onion

"Lots of bands play speedball punk rock, but The Thermals' members manage to infuse theirs with monster hooks and a surprising abundance of ideas." - NPR

"Any band that starts a song with a whoah-e-oh and then kicks into a classic indie guitar riff has got my vote. Add that they're from musical wonderland, Portland Oregon, and it's a win all round." Zan Zowe, Triple J

Now We Can See, Body The Blood The Machine, F**Kin A and More Parts Per Million are out now through Stomp.

Click here for tour dates!

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

DANISH PRIZE EXPORT KASPER BJORK'S NEW ALBUM!

Danish prize export Kasper Bjørke comes from the heart of the thriving Copenhagen electronic scene. After more than a decade as a busy producer and DJ, Kasper has released his work on labels like Plant Music, Fine, Thugfucker and V2 Records and also received a Danish Music Award as Best Producer, for the well known project Filur, which he still runs with his old friend Tomas Barfod (Tartelet / Gomma / Get Physical).

Following the highly acclaimed 'Harbour Boat Trips 01: Copenhagen by Trentemøller' hfn music proudly presents it’s first artist release by Kasper Bjørke, with his brand new long player ‘Standing On Top Of Utopia‘.

The album is an exciting multi-genre journey through Kasper‘s mature, extravagant and richly musical mind. Lashings of glittering analogue synthesizer jams, warm throbbing post-disco trips, touching, heart-felt pop songs and dark electronic club tools are all present. Kasper really went to town on this album, and each track literally overflowing with top class studio and musical ability. Bursting with live instrumentation, tapedeck overdubs and an unmissable finger-on-the-pulse atmosphere, its a treat for the ears and in fact all the senses. 10 uplifting, melancholic, timeless and life-affirming songs lie in store.

A veritable Danish entourage of vocalists including Louise Foo (Giana Factory) and Tomas Höffding  (WhoMadeWho) are featured on the album alongside a wide selection of guest musicians. Jacob Bellens (I Got You On Tape / Murder) wrote the song and contributed the vocals and lyrics on “Young Again”, the first single to be lifted from the album, which comes complete with superb remixes from Whomadewho & Tomboy, Serge Santiago and Lopazz & Zarook - to be followed by the second single ‘Alcatraz’ including mixes by Jimpster, Zombie Disco Squad and Kenton Slash Demon.

Kasper Bjorke - Standing on Top of Utopia - Out 27 February through hfn Music/Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

KOMPAKT IS PROUD OF THEIR CHOICES!

Kompakt’s relationship with  Ewan Pearson began four years ago atthe labels annual Sonar beach party in Barcelona. Considered to be one of the most prolific remixers on the planet (see his !K7 released “Piece Work” collection) and his astonishing resume as a producer for Tracey Thorn (Everything But The Girl), Delphic, The Rapture and Lost Valentinos, Kompakt were immediately struck with the sincerity of the man and his genuine passion for music and life. A gentleman and a scholar in the truest meaning (he is a published academic), the bond was sealed and together with Al Usher Ewan approached Kompakt with new music under their Partial Arts moniker. Kompakt have gone on to release two truly remarkable Balearic kraut-disco workout singles, “Trauermusik” and “Telescope” plus a remix for Burger/Voigt.

Now, Kompakt proudly welcome Ewan Pearson to Kompakt’s esteemed mix CD series previously trail blazed by Michael Mayer, DJ Koze, Tobias Thomas, and Superpitcher. “We Are Proud Of Our Choices” is a delightful listen in every sensibility and truly brings his artistic talent as a DJ and producer together in a very personal mix.

“I spent a lot of time gathering music and at one point had nearly 100 tracks in the long list for inclusion - I think I could have happily made 2 or 3 CDs."

"There are some very new / unreleased gems on there - Ivan Smagghe and Roman Flügel collaborated for the first time on a new track called "Uno" which I've had for a while and I think will finally be getting a release on Kill The DJ around the time the CD comes out. Similarly there's brand new track from Jamie Jones and Lee Foss in their "Hot Natured" guise for Culprit - the Droog guys in LA were kind enough to send over a lot of their forthcoming stuff and that's just got such a great groove / bassline."

The title of the compis a reference to a line from an old Montreal socialist song which Pearson came across in a book by G.A. Cohen. It is meant to suggest that everyone, but especially DJs, had better be willing to stand behind the choices they make because often that is all they will have to show for themselves. Pearson—as he always does, be it producing for acts, DJing or working with Al Usher as half of Partial Arts—follows his own idiosyncratic muse on We Are Proud, with scant regard for the ever-changing trends of dance culture.

A true masterpiece from a true master.

Ewan Pearson - We are Proud of our Choices - Out 19 February 2010 through Kompakt /Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

ROCK N ROLL'S FIERCEST ANTI-HEROES RETURNS!

It’s hard to tell if The King Khan & BBQ Show is more infamous than famous. Since the 2004 release of their first self-titled debut, the pair has earned itself a place in rock ’n’ roll history by inspiring both critical reverence and insanity.

The King Khan & BBQ Show’s long-awaited third full-length album will not disappoint the band’s admirers or their devoted cult following. Invisible Girl marks a return to the trademark doo-wop-laced, anthemic garage rock that earned the band their fame and their infamy. The record exhibits their effortless fluency in rock ’n’ roll’s tenets and traditions, but as Mark Sultan (otherwise known as BBQ) notes, it also includes “a song so vile that it cannot even be mentioned.”

After releases in the interim on revered labels such as Crypt, Norton, and Fat Possum, King Khan and BBQ have returned to L.A.’s In The Red Records for Invisible Girl. The twosome may be rock ’n’ roll’s fiercest anti- heroes, but they are also its hardest-working ambassadors, touring from Europe to Brazil, Israel to America. In December 2009 King Khan managed to break away from BBQ long enough to make a whirlwind trip to Australia with 11 piece band The Shrines.

http://www.myspace.com/thekingkhanbbqshow

The King Khan and BBQ Show - Invisible Girl - Out 12th of February through In The Red / Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

NEW ZEALAND BASED THE RUBY SUNS FIGHTS BACK!

The prime mover of New Zealand based The Ruby Suns, Ryan McPhun has literally travelled around the world to arrive at Fight Softly, the band’s 2nd album for Sub Pop, and 3rd overall. McPhun possesses (or is possessed by…) a voracious musical mind and this new album is the kind of head-spinning combination of big-picture vision and sumptuous detail that only comes from an artist with an urgent need to express all the stuff he’s seen. And you can dance to it!

Fight Softly veers from the path set by its predecessor, the 2008 release Sea Lion. Thematically, it’s not as wide-eyed or light-hearted, picking apart the relationships faced as we pass through the world—-with our surroundings, each other and ourselves. Sonically, it remains as beat-centric, though these beats are deliciously artificial—-stretched and compacted and distorted beyond recognition. Melodies are scuzzy and digital, no guitars strummed or basses plucked. McPhun’s soulful upper-register croon, swallowed into the mix, replaces group chants and full-throated sing-along's. Rather than an album of clearly-drawn influences, Fight Softly is a unique, inscrutable synthesis, more itself than anything else.

nibbling at the edges of unfamiliar sounds but, ultimately, skillfully creating sunny psych-pop.”  Pitchfork

“A strange, lovely trip”  NME

Listen to the first focus track 'Cranberry' here

The Ruby Suns - Fight Softly - Out March 5th through Sub Pop / Stomp

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

BRITISH DANCE/ROCK HYBRID HADOUKEN! WITH NEW RELEASE!

Hadouken! return with their hugely-anticipated second album, ‘For The Masses’, on January 25 2010. The follow-up to 2008’s ‘Music For An Accelerated Culture’, their 100,000 selling debut album, ‘For The Masses’ was recorded in Groningen, Holland with gilded Dutch electronic producers Noisia and is released on Hadouken!’s own Surface Noise Recordings. ‘For The Masses’ is a landmark modern dance-rock album that cements Hadouken!’s reputation as Britain’s most forward-thinking and dynamic young band. “We know what our fans want,” says singer James Smith. “They want it hard and they want it fast. I want this record to sound good over a 1000 kilowatt sounds system or on a Nokia phone on the back of a bus. We don’t want to discriminate. We just want to make immediate contact.”

‘For The Masses’ evolves the edge of your seat meld of twenty ton club rhythms, furious guitars and keen-witted 21st century lyrical journals located on ‘Music For An Accelerated Culture’ by delivering ten tracks that are even harder, even louder, even more rhythmic and even more tightly focused than anything they’ve attempted before, or than anything else on offer by their contemporaries. If an historic comparison was to be attempted, cast your mind back to the earliest, comparatively sketchy works by the likes of the Prodigy or Chemical Brothers. Then recall the impact when each delivered ‘Fat Of The Land’ and ‘Dig Your Own Hole’. That’s the kind of leap forward successfully manoeuvred here. Britain’s next great dance-rock band have arrived.

“I feel like the stars have been aligning for us,” says James. “The Prodigy have come back with a massive hit record. I’ve seen Chase N Status and Pendulum rise to the fore-front. We’re cut from the same cloth as all that but I think we’re doing something really new and exciting with this album. It’s a big, big progression. The time is right for us.”

Contact has been made. This is a bold statement of intent, the perfect mix of state of the art rhythm, edge of your seat guitars and bright-eyed, keen-witted howling at the moon. James is right, the stars really are aligning for Hadouken!’s return. Their time is ­once ­now.

Listen here for the new single 'Turn the Lights Out'

Hadouken! 'For the Masses' will be released 26 February 2010 through ADA/Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

PORTLAND'S QUASI BACK WITH NEW ALBUM!

Formed in Portland, 1993, Quasi flings words and notes relentlessly, hurling music across the stage like grenades. Their songs teeter between optimism and despair, fantastical journeys and harsh realism, this is a pop band for people who like their pop throttled. Sam Coomes, Janet Weiss (Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, ex Sleater-Kinney) and Joanna Bolme (Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks) are consummate players who let go of the reins to let the wildness accumulate; who space out and make the music disintegrate, blur and tumble before it falls back into the groove. Their playing is proficiently, seamlessly ragged.

Quasiʼs new album, American Gong, lurches and veers; it reels, resets, crawls and moans. But the album also professes beauty; it surfaces from the murkiness and soars. In the midst of this awesome sonic storm are expertly crafted compositions and arrangements, gravel and grime-coated rock, psych and pop tunes that never lose their shine.

Throughout their time together the trio have also toured and / or recorded either individually or collectively with Sleater-Kinney, Elliott Smith, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks (of which Janet and Joanna are still members), Built to Spill, Bright Eyes, Heatmiser, The Go Betweens, Pink Mountain, Blues Goblins, The Takeovers and Jandek.

"Weiss is a remarkable, unpredictable drummer, and the pair play perfectly together, having reached the point at which improvisation becomes the result of an intuitive locking of creative minds." - PITCHFORK

"Whatʼs ultimately refreshing about Quasi is that theyʼre a quality indie band that doesnʼt really fit into any scene or agenda, but happily exists anyway" - STYLUS MAGAZINE

"With over ten years of playing together, numerous side projects (including Sleater-Kinney for Weiss), and the very dissolution of their marriage, Quasi have proven themselves able to endure, while constantly eking up the stakes with each new release." - TINY MIX TAPES

www.myspace.com/theequasi

Quasi - American Gong - Out 26th of February through Kill Rock Stars / Stomp.

Posted: Thursday, 4 February 2010

ROBERT BABICZ RELEASES SOPHOMORE ALBUM!

Polish born Robert Babicz (Producer/Live Act) releases his second artist album on Marc Romboy’s Systematic Recordings. Following from ‘A Cheerful Temper’, released in 2007, ‘Immortal Changes’ shows a warmer side to Babicz’s production skills. Bringing in warm melodies, deep grooves, blissed out atmospheres, live strings, live sax and analogue bass, Robert keeps proceedings sometimes jacking but always trippy; his journey takes you wherever you choose to let your mind go. 

'Immortal Changes’ is about the only thing that never changes: everything will change throughout your life.

Babicz: “My idea behind the album was that I wanted a representation of my inner feelings, things that happened last year, and overall a very personal view on electronic music. Through all the travelling around the world as a Live Act, I meet great people, I see so many fantastic places, and so on. So my music reflects that a lot: I am building rooms, and sometimes galaxies, were your mind can go and look around, sit down, listen and enjoy…… Also I asked some friends to play some real instruments on my album, as wanted an even more handmade and soulful sound. On most of the tracks there are real atmosphere recordings, which I recorded on my travels... So it’s like a world tour when you listen to the album.”

Click here to listen to the single 'Astor' taken from the album.

Robert Babicz 'Immortal Changes' Out 26 March 2010 through Systematic/Stomp.

Posted: Monday, 18 January 2010

NEW WORLD MUSIC ALBUM ON SUB POP!

Malian maestro Bassekou Kouyate is a virtuoso picker and musical visionary whose work blurs the lines between West African and American roots music. Bassekou’s instrument, the ngoni, is a “spike lute” and an ancestor of the banjo, sharing its taut-skinned drum body, percussive attack, and varied picking techniques. Since 2005, Bassekou has led Ngoni Ba, the first-ever group built around not one but four ngonis—all played by members of his family.

Bassekou’s long time friend and booster Lucy Duran (a BBC radio host, record producer, and Mande music scholar) produced the band’s debut, Segu Blue. Before long, Bassekou and Ngoni Ba were touring Europe and in high demand. I Speak Fula builds on the success of Segu Blue. It’s 11 tracks provide a star-studded tour of pan-Malian music, including collaborations with Toumani Diabaté, griot vocal legend Kasse Mady Diabaté, master of the horse-hair soku fiddle Zoumana Tereta, and guitar phenomenon Vieux Farka Toure, Ali’s precociously talented son. The release of I Speak Fula and Ngoni Ba’s first U.S. tour mark the latest leg of an extraordinary musical journey.

Bassekou was born in 1966 in Garana, a village on the banks of the Niger River. He descends from a long line of griots, traditional historians and praise musicians. His father Moustapha Kouyate played the ngoniba, or “large lute,” and his mother Yakare Damba is a singer. Bassekou has jammed with Bonnie Raitt and Bono and won praise from Eric Clapton. He’s also dug into blues and country music with Taj Mahal and created freewheeling improvisations with banjo maverick Bela Fleck.

I Speak Fula is the first release on Next Ambiance, a new label founded by Jon Kertzer host of KEXP’s Best Ambiance Radio show and Sub Pop co-founder Jon Poneman, and the newest addition to the Sub Pop family. Next Ambiance continues the musical exploration of Best Ambiance, with an emphasis on mind-blowing and life-changing artists with no particular regional or cultural bias.

Click here to see a performance of lead track ‘Musow’ on The Jools Holland Show

“Contender for African album of the year.” * Uncut
“This is a cracker.” **** Mojo
“Spectacular.” BBC online
“Truly irresistible.” Music Week
“Fizzes with energy.” **** Observer Music Monthly
“There’s unlikely to be a better African album this year.” Evening Standard
“Ferociously powerful album … Superb.” The Independent (Album of the Week)
“Soon the world will speak Fula.” Metro

I Speak Fula is out on the the 5^th of February through Sub Pop / Next Ambiance / Stomp

Posted: Monday, 18 January 2010

NEW ALBUM FROM XUI XUI THROUGH KILL ROCK STARS!

The two biggest constants throughout Xiu Xiu's catalogue are honesty and evolution. This remains true with Dear God, I Hate Myself as it delivers a look at responsibility, fear, healing, and societal roles wrapped in rich gothic pop music. The sound is still distinctly Xiu Xiu, but Jamie Stewart's vocals are finally effortless paired with vibrant melodies full of subtlety and the distinct sonic accents expected of this anticipated Xiu Xiu release. The result is a record that proves that art can be pop and pop can challenge you to look inside yourself.

Stewart is joined by new full-time band member Angela Seo on piano, synths and drum programming; with production handled by Jamie and Deerhoof's Greg Saunier. Together they've crafted a fully-grown sound for Dear God, I Hate Myself with elements from goth and pop that are expertly performed by a crop of brilliant musicians. Saunier himself plays on much of the record as does Ches Smith (John Zorn, Terry Riley, Marc Ribot). Ches supplies timpani, conga and moog along with a broad range of other instrumentation. Deerhoof's John Dieterich is all over a rendition of the traditional folk song 'Cumberland Gap' and Xiu Xiu is even joined by the Immaculata Catholic School Orchestra in Stewart's ode to heartbreak and healing, 'This Too Shall Pass Away (for Freddy).' The title track, one of four songs done primarily on a Nintendo DS, explores the relationship between faith and despair with a layer of commentary provided by the bizarre sounds of the music itself.

See the inner workings of Jamie’s studio (and mind) in this video

“Over the last five years, Xiu Xiu has come to make an utterly original mixture of homestudio goth-pop, confessional singer-songwriter outpourings and chamber music.” - New York Times

“Cult favorites...love them or hate them, Xiu Xiu traverse so far off the middle-of-the roadthat they ride over the guard rails and into the deepest, dankest bog down below.” - Tiny Mix Tapes

"They may be creating a genre that I don't have the audacity to name" - Prefix Magazine

www.myspace.com/xiuxiuforlife

Xui Xui - Dear God I Hate Myself out 26 February through Kill Rock Stars/Stomp.

Posted: Monday, 18 January 2010

WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM ANNOUNCE AUSTRALIA TOUR!

Heathen Skulls is proud to present from Olympia, USA, atmospheric black metal titans and Southern Lord recording artists Wolves in the Throne Room. Drawing comparisons to the eerie atmosphere bleakness of Burzum and the fierce blackened blast attack of Darkthrone; Wolves in the Thorne Room have set a new standard in American Black Metal by combining classic era Norwegian black metal with a devastating modern sound that’s entirety of their own. Together with feedback drenched, French funeral doom lords Monarch (now featuring Robert MacManus of Grey Daturas on drums), both bands will touring Australia Nationally this February.  

"The album's (Black Cascade) combination of hypnotic, spiralling riffs, insidious melodies and unholy vocals make it almost certainly the best black metal album to come out of America since Weakling's Dead Of Dreams" - Blunt - 9 Stars!

Black Cascade and Two Hunters are out now through Southern Lord / Stomp.

Posted: Monday, 18 January 2010

GUI BORATTO MIXES NEW RENAISSANCE COMP!

Brazil’s most exciting house export makes his eagerly anticipated compilation debut as he joins the ranks of the Renaissance Mix Collection series…

2009 has been a great year for Gui Boratto; he released his second artist album; brilliantly remixed the likes of Moby, Simian Mobile Disco, Sam Taylor-Wood & The Pet Shop Boys and Bomb The Bass; created one of the years best Essential Mixes, then perfectly capped it all by entering the DJmag Top 100.And it’s with his fast-rising DJ status he continues to focus as he kick-starts 2010 with his first mix album for Renaissance. Gui’s diverse, melodic style is a natural fit with the compilation genre, which he perfectly presents across 2 discs, highlighting some of the scenes most exciting producers such as Tricky, Josh Wink, Martin Buttrich, Lusine, John Tejada, Mathew Jonson, Christian Smith and many more… Dance fans will take further delight in the fact Gui’s also featured 8 of his own tracks and remixes; 4 of these are brand new productions, including an exciting co-production with Bomb The Bass called 'The Infinites' and a forthcoming Renaissance single, ‘Trills’.

"I really enjoyed mixing my Renaissance Mix Collection,” he says, “I tried to find the perfect blend of my favourite producers and tracks; exclusives from friends and peers, plus my own material, be it original or remixes.”

 And Gui hasn’t actually stopped there as he’s provided further production and edits throughout both mixes, ensuring the stage is well and truly set for one of the most exciting comps of 2010…

Check the dates for Gui's 2010 tour in February!

RENAISSANCE: THE MIX COLLECTION MIXED BY GUI BORATTO OUT 12 FEBRUARY THROUGH RENAISSANCE/STOMP.

Posted: Monday, 11 January 2010

PLATINUM FUNK SOUL BROTHERS FUN LOVING CRIMINALS BACK WITH NEW ALBUM!

It’s only when you hear them again, you realise how much you missed them.!

 

With 4 Top 10 albums to their name, the multi platinum funk soul brothers return for the first time in five years with the first classic, fantastic party album of the year featuring collaborations with Roots Manuva and Paul Kaye.

Formed in New York in 1993, Fun Lovin’ Criminals gate-crashed the euphoric Britpop party in 1996 and brought along some unexpectedly unique swag including their smash single ‘Scooby Snacks’. The mid-to late 90s was a twirling martini cocktail of world travel, acclaim and phenomenal album sales. During their five-year hiatus, the three brothers Crim found other creative outlets, most notably Huey Morgan, who is fast becoming one of the UK’s most charismatic TV and radio personalities. He hosts award-winning ‘The Huey Show’ on BBC6 Radio in London, whilst on MTV he presents a boy racer series called ‘Slips’.

The trio, now all relocated to the UK, have left the cartoon New York netherworld behind for a colossal outdoors party, creating a self-produced summertime classic recorded in their London studio and featuring life-long “fourth member”, the Grammy-award winning hip-hop engineer Tim Latham (A Tribe Called Quest, De le Soul, KRS-One – and Britney Spears). The songs tell stories, notes Huey, “about the human condition”; from the bonkers psychedelic party-rock of ‘Mars’ (like OutKast never went away), to the sumptuous, summertime, trumpeting soul of lead track ‘Classic Fantastic’.  Summer shimmers on via the irresistible, piano-led, De la Soul-goes-Latino-carnival of ‘She Sings At The Sun’, there’s the comedy skit ‘Conversations With Our Attorney’ featuring “Mike Strutter”, Paul Kaye’s outrageous MTV character. More bedlam-rock meltdown follows with ‘The Originals’ before ‘Keep On Yellin’, featuring Roots Manuva.

A party album built in a psychological bunker; it’s a phenomenal testament to the power of unbound optimism. “There’s this thing called Noetics,” announces Huey.  “Which says if everybody thinks the same good thoughts, good things will happen.  Likewise, negative thoughts - it’s not rocket science.  And we all want the same thing, to be a Fun Lovin’ Criminal.  You have to go through hell to get to heaven and now we’re finally out from under a lot of our problems, it’s a brand new day.  So let’s go out and do what we love to do.”

Click here to listen to the lead title track 'Classic Fantasic'

Classic Fantastic is out 5th of March through Kilohertz Records/Stomp.

Posted: Tuesday, 5 January 2010

BALANCE 014 NUMBER ONE ON END OF YEAR LISTS FOR INTHEMIX AND DATATRANSMISSION!

Now we knew this was a peach of a mix but we could never have predicted how well Joris Voorns Balance effort would get received! Balance 014 now finds itself on the number one spot on 2009's best compilations list for Australian dance bible Inthemix and online music authority Datatransmission .

Here is what Inthemix have had to say:'What’s even more amazing than the 100+ tracks that were digitally crammed onto this double CD, is the fact it all sounds so coherent. Truly groundbreaking, the bar has been raised and ‘Balance 014’ slides in as one of the greatest mix CDs of all time. Let’s hear a round of applause for Mr Voorn!'
The Inthemix list is truly full of great releases with B-Pitch Control's Moderat taking out the second place honours. Other Stomp artists on the list include Way Out West, Markus Shulz and Tydi.

Datatransmission's list is even more varied and features everyone from Drum n Bass crew Metalheadz to hip hop protagonist Peanut Butter Wolf and features no less than 12 Stomp artists. Ultimately though it's Joris beating label of the moment Hyperdub (with its 5 year comp) to the finishing line,'Putting together a load of tracks on a couple of CDs and mixing them together is all very well and good, but for someone as talented and forward-thinking as Holland’s inspirational Joris Voorn, that was never going to quite cut the mustard. Taking well over 100 tracks and cutting, splicing, editing, shrinking, expanding and mashing their various parts together in an intricate, heady tapestry of sound, he’s created something that feels more like a work of art than a compendium of other people’s work. He’s made their work his own in this. That might sound wanky, but hearing the sinister, cold judder of Dubfire’s Ribcage pulsing underneath the triumphant tones of Silicone Soul’s 3AM is just one example of the incredible contrast and selection on this double CD. Spanning all the way back from original Detroit techno through beatless chill-out masterpieces, dub, disco, balladry, ‘90s jungle and all the way through up to modern deep house and tech, it’s testament to what can be done when an artist really puts some effort into a mix CD.

Also on Datatransmission's list is another Balance comp with local Melbourne lad Agent 86 coming in at number 17 with his funk infected and summer washed groove mix that he turned in for the Balance Electric series at the start of 2009. If you still haven't wrapped your ears around this Agent 86's Balance Electric 04 compilation do yourself a favour and buy now!

Posted: Tuesday, 5 January 2010

RETRIBUTION GOSPEL CHOIR MAKES THEIR SUB POP DEBUT!

Sometimes, it just needs to be loud. For the members of Retribution Gospel Choir, that time is now. The rock trio came together in 2007, featuring Alan Sparhawk on guitar and vocals, Steve Garrington on bass and Eric Pollard on drums and vocals. Alan also fronts the band Low with his wife, Mimi Parker, and Steve also plays bass in Low. 2 is the bands second full-length and Sub Pop debut!

This new record comes on the heels of the band’s 2008 self-titled debut that was released on Caldo Verde, a label run by Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters, Sun Kil Moon). Since then, Retribution Gospel Choir has toured extensively, including US stints with Wilco and the Meat Puppets. The band was invited early on to play festivals in Spain (Primavera Sound) and the UK (All Tomorrow’s Parties), and were met with hugely positive reactions and invitations to return.

However, the most important thing to know about Retribution Gospel Choir is that they are likely the most physically fit band on Earth. Eric is a distance swimmer, and Ultimate Frisbee champion with state basketball credentials. Steve also dazzles on the court, but it’s his long-distance running skills that mark him a champion. Alan has extensive experience in American football, has been scouted for coaching work and stays fit as a distance trail runner. Certainly, this trio would destroy any other band in a 10k race, and then still do the gig.

Tracked in their hometown of Duluth, Minnesota, 2 was then mixed by Matt Beckley, an up-and-comingproducer from Los Angeles with credits that include Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. What seems like a strange pairing actually resulted in an album that is raw and technologically perverse, visceral and shiny—a true statement of what can be done with a great rock band in the 21st century. Short, inventive pop songs collide with heavy guitar chaos and psychedelia as the record climbs and dives like a twin-engine bomber, all accompanied by a vocal sophistication that’s rare in new music.

Click here to listen to the focus track 'Hide It Away'

Retribution Gospel Choir - 2 will be out 29th January through Sub Pop/Stomp.

Posted: Monday, 4 January 2010

CARL COX MIXES LATEST GLOBAL UNDERGROUND!

The legendary Carl Cox has been announced to mix the latest edition in the acclaimed Global Underground city series. When Carl came on board with GU, there was only one location he had in mind for the mix: Black Rock Desert in Nevada, USA. Carl chose Black Rock Desert because he wanted everybody to know about it. “There’s loads of people out there who have no idea. It’s been going on for 20 years. And I do think there are like-minded people who would like to share my experience. It justifies the release for GU. I hope people see it as genuine.”

Once a year, 48,000 converts make the pilgrimage to build and participate in this unique festival, worship at the dance altar of the Opulent Temple, and then leave a week later without a trace. All of which makes it a perfect place for techno. The music most associated with Carl Cox has always existed outside of the norm, has always had something that is both timeless and emotional, a sense of the classic, along with a relentless, almost scientific desire to innovate.

Both CDs feature hot new tracks, remixes and exclusives from Tiefschwarz feat Seth Troxler, Skylark, Joey Beltram, Christian Smith, Guy J, Bushwacka, Onionz, Joachim Garraud, Robbie Rivera, Adam Beyer, Umek, Politeca, Steve Mulder, John Rundell and Wilson Smallwood & Ingram to name just a few.

GU38: Black Rock Desert mixed by Carl Cox will be released 29 January through Global Underground/Stomp.

Posted: Monday, 4 January 2010

SPACE IBIZA DEBUTS IN AUSTRALIA!

Space Ibiza the worlds most revered club celebrated its 20th anniversary with its best season yet… To end the year on a high, Space has moved down under for the first ever Space Ibiza Event down under with well known Aussie promoter Paul Strange, at an amazing outdoor venue never used for this kind of event! We kick of 2010 with a spectacular gig at the Show Ring, Entertainment Quarter, Sydney, celebrating Space Ibizas 20th Anniversary in style!

Space Ibiza is renowned for its forward ­thinking, experimental ideas and constantly evolving ­vision. In 1989, Space brought to Ibiza, acid house, the new sound that was being championed at that time in London, and with that sound came DJs such as Alex P and Brandon Block, who started the legendary Sundays @ Space. The phenomenon had begun Space Ibiza!

Attitude, vision, creativity, and most importantly music are what have guided the development of the club, which today is one of the most cutting edge venues in the world. It covers all aspects of electronic music, provided by the most prominent DJs on the planet. It’s unmistakable symbol of identity, as well as its sheer wow factor, are what makes Space Ibiza the best club in the world!

To celebrate their 20th anniversary Space Ibiza has released a very special double CD filled with the greatest hits from its founding in 1989 up to the present day. 

SPACE IBIZA BIRTHDAY IS OUT NOW THROUGH DEFECTED/STOMP!

Posted: Friday, 18 December 2009

BAND OF SKULLS TRIPLE JJJ ALBUM OF THE WEEK!

Southampton’s coolest three piece Band Of Skulls have left it until the very last minute to release one of the best album’s of theyear. Baby Darling Dollface Honey is the band’s debut offering and it was recorded at Radiohead’s Courtyard studios

The band scored an iTunes ‘Single Of The Week’ earlier this year with the track 'I Know What I Am', an unprecedented success for a previously unknown band. In late 2009 the band were chosen to record an exclusive track for the soundtrack to the second film in The Twilight Saga – New Moon.  The band are featured alongside Death Cab For Cutie, Muse, Thom Yorke, Grizzly Bear, Lykke Li and The Editors.  The soundtrack shipped over 2 million copies worldwide on week of release.

BAND OF SKULLS - BABY DARLING DOLLFACE HONEY IS OUT NOW THROUGH RYKODISC/STOMP.

Posted: Friday, 18 December 2009

FEAR FACTORY NEW ALBUM ANOUNCEMENT!

In the early ‘90s, many years before Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall started combining strangled growls with catchy vocal melodies, and Static-X and Rammstein began blended pounding staccato riffs and jackhammer beats with electronic samples, Los Angeles future-thinkers Fear Factory were reinventing both death metal and industrial rock with an arsenal of sonic styles.   After releasing four critically acclaimed albums and two industrial remix EPs, they have amassed sales of over a million albums. Following a gruelling tour with Machine Head in 2002, the creative core of Fear Factory imploded due to personal differences and sheer over-exertion. Guitarist and songwriter Dino Cazares went on to play with Brujeria and Asesino and vocalist Burton C. Bell took a few months off before eventually reforming the band and releasing two more records over the next few years.  Without Cazares in the mix, however, Fear Factory was missing a key element of its sound and wound up feeling like a shadow of their former selves.

As time passed, the chance of a reunion between Bell and Cazares seemed less and less likely.  Then in April 2008, a full six years after they had last spoken, Bell, then touring with Ministry, ran into Cazares at the band’s Los Angeles show and reopened the lines of communication.  “I just said ‘hey, how you doing?’ and it started from there,” Bell says.  Not long thereafter Bell and Cazares were jamming again. With bassist Byron Stroud and drummer Gene Hoglan (Dethklok, Strapping Young Lad), Fear Factory was back and ready for action.
 
The result of their union, Mechanize, is a full-fisted blast of passion and innovation that sounds like the missing link between’s 1995’s caustic, groundbreaking Demanufacture and 1998’s more texturally nuanced Obsolete.  Songs like “Industrial Discipline” and “Powershifter” are crushing and colossal, melding rhythms as fast and precise as Uzi blasts with vocals that pinwheel from raw and scathing to hauntingly melodic.  While "Fear Campaign" which features harrowing spoken word passages, quickly segues into a showcase of punishing beats, rapid-fire riffs and ghostly keyboards.  And for the first time in years, the band’s industrial roots glimmer through its street-lethal metal, thanks in part to the co-production efforts and keyboard programming of Rhys Fulber, who worked on Fear Factory’s industrial remix albums Fear is the Mindkiller and Remanufacture.

Fear Factory Mechanize will be released February 2010!

Posted: Monday, 14 December 2009

THE CRYSTAL METHOD RECEIVES GRAMMY® NOMINATION!

The Crystal Method, America’s top electronic act, is closing an impressive 2009 with a Grammy® nomination in the "Best Electronic/Dance Album" category for Divided By Night, the fourth studio album from the duo of Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland. This year's nomination marks The Crystal Method's second running in this category; their release Legion of Boom was nominated in 2004. Easily its most inventive and accomplished to date, Divided By Night is The Crystal Method's masterwork.  It features a vast array of guests including vocalists Emily Haines of Metric, Justin Warfield of She Wants Revenge and his wife Stefanie King Warfield, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, rappers LMFAO plus players like bassist Peter Hook (New Order) and drummer extraordinaire Samantha Maloney (Peaches, Hole, Chelsea Girls).

Up against several major label offerings, including David Guetta's One Love (Astralwerks/EMI), Lady Gaga's The Fame (Interscope), LMFAO's Party Rock (Interscope) and Pet Shop Boys' Yes. Divided By Night marks the only independent release nominated in the "Best Electronic/Dance Album" category.

The recent Grammy® announcement serves as the icing on the cake for what has been one of the busiest years for The Crystal Method to date. In addition to several music video premieres and cross-promotional campaigns, including a remix contest for the most recent single "Come Back Clean" in conjunction with the music-based social network Indaba Music, The Crystal Method also launched their first-ever customized iPhone/iPod app to help fans interact with the duo and one another. Additionally, The Crystal Method recently provided the score for the ESPN film X Games 3D: The Movie, where the duo's various works were featured throughout the film including original tracks and reworked versions of material from Divided By Night, as well as from their earlier records. The DVD version of the film will be released in the first week of January 2010.

Posted: Monday, 14 December 2009

SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE ANOUNCES SIDESHOWS!

When Sunny Day Real Estate collapsed in early 1995, few would have predicted the impact the Seattle band's music would still be having over a decade later. Now, more than 15 years later the band's original line-up is reuniting to deliver its emotionally charged epics for live audiences once again. Sub Pop have re-released both Diary and the band’s second full-length album, commonly known as LP2 (or “The Pink Album” for its entirely pink cover). Both re-mastered albums include rare bonus tracks as well as newly written liner notes and was released on both CD and LP in September, and are available locally through Stomp.

To complement their Soundwave performance, Sunny Day Real Estate has also just announced some sideshows, check Stomp Touring for more info.

Posted: Monday, 14 December 2009