Perfume Genius’Mike Hadreas is one of modern pop’s true boundary-pushing juggernauts. Each of his four albums—but particularly the last two: 2014’s Too Bright and 2017’s No Shape—rattled with sonic magnificence and lyrics of deep trauma, the fierce reclamation of space and the transcendence of love and intimacy. Hadreas is fresh off a collaborative dance piece with choreographer Kate Wallich and The YC dance company, and he’s now poised to bring that vulnerable physicality to his first Perfume Genius album in three years: Set My Heart on Fire Immediately. While No Shape saw him lean into bold, adventurous art-pop, Set My Heart sees him embrace American rock ‘n’ roll glory. It still preserves his enthralling tenderness and idiosyncratic pop palette, but it adds torched guitars and classic rock melodies. Songs like “Describe” are led by a dreamy, prevailing calm while still shaking the ground with guitar distortion. It’s Hadreas at his most abstract and carefree.
While I haven’t previously delved into the albums of Perfume Genius (Mike Hadreas), I read his profile/interview in The New Yorker and was immediately intrigued, so I went straight to listen to Set My Heart on Fire Immediately, his new record; the song that grabbed me the most was “On the Floor.” It has a steady, side-to-side groove, the kind that might bring you to the nearest dancefloor on a cool evening.
The lyrics however drip with longing, and a touch of fear. Hadreas sings of big feelings for someone, presumably big love, and begs, “take this wildness away,” as the instruments pare down for a moment, leaving only the desperation in his voice before the groove picks back up.
From Perfume Genius‘ new album ‘Set My Heart On Fire Immediately” released on May 15th, 2020 on Matador Records.
Alternative pop band Yumi Zouma revel their third album, “Truth or Consequences”, released Friday, March 13th on Polyvinyl Records.
Originating from Christchurch, New Zealand, the four-piece band consists of Christie Simpson (vocals, keyboards), Josh Burgess (guitar, bass guitar, vocals, keyboards), Charlie Ryder (guitar, bass guitar, keyboards), and Olivia Campion (drums). Yumi Zouma’s first two records, Yoncalla (2016) and Willowbank (2017), received great reception from a growing fanbase, with tours following both albums. Constantly working and wanting to produce new material, the group have also released plenty of EPs and singles in between full-lengths, including the single, “Bruises” (2019). Truth or Consequences greatly emphasizes the growth Yumi Zouma have had as a band over the past few years.
Christie Simpson’s ethereal vocals, the band’s dreamy pop melodies, and honest lyrics blend perfectly together and capture the Yumi Zouma sound. Songs like “Truer Than Ever” and “Lie Like You Want Me Back” dive into the complexities of life and this idea that answers may not be as clear as you want them to be. Each song questions the relationships we have and keep with others, and even the relationship we have with ourselves.
The writing process for this album in particular was quite different from the band’s previous works. All living in different locations, the band members became immune to writing songs individually and coming together later on to complete the process. When writing Truth or Consequences, all four bandmates rented out studios in various locations and started writing from scratch. As a result, the record revolves around a solid, central theme, and presents an easy, beautiful flow between each track.
As a young teen fan watching “Top Of The Pops”, getting into The Move was natural, It was rewarded with an intense admiration of albums such as “Shazam” and then later Roy Wood’s“Message From The Country”. Back then, affordable compilations covering the career of The Move were few and far between save for the rather good “Greatest Hits Vol. 1” released on budget label Pickwick (SHM952), partly in “electronically created stereo”.
The advent of the CD and the release of several anthologies and expanded album reissues has kept admirers of The Move pretty content over the last decade but, for me, there hasn’t been a single disc compilation that ticked all the boxes in covering their career from “Night Of Fear” up to “California Man”. That is until now. “Magnetic Waves Of Sound: The Best Of TheMove” (ECLEC22554) is a remarkable release in that the 21 tracks on the CD are twinned with another 21 audio-visual treats on the accompanying DVD including the bands full infamous “Colour Me Pop” performance and a pristine promotional film for “I Can Hear The Grass Grow”. The folks at Esoteric Recordings (an imprint of Cherry Red Records) have done an admirable job in not only including every single issued by The Move on the CD, but also in selecting wisely album track nuggets such as “Kilroy Was Here”, “What?” and the classic “Cherry Blossom Clinic Revisited”. An observation (but not a criticism) is that I’d have loved to see “Beautiful Daughter” included within the CD too,
All the hits are there and then some. The attractiveness and value of “Magnetic Waves Of Sound: The Best Of The Move” has been rewarded with impressive pre-orders and, at the time of writing, an entry into the Official Album Chart Update at a healthy #54, The Move and their role in the sparking creativity of The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) is a well known fact but this superb double disc collection gives both the avid fan and the casual music buyer a wonderful journey through the hit laden career of not only one of THE best bands of their time. This collection is also an appreciation of the stellar songwriting output of the one and only Roy Wood as well as those immovable contributions of Bev Bevan, Carl Wayne, Chris ‘Ace’ Kefford, Trevor Burton, Rick Price and, of course, Jeff Lynne.
Continuing its series of reissues dedicated to the Birmingham rockers The Move, Cherry Red’s Esoteric Recordings imprint has just issued a CD/DVD collection that chronicles the band’s many facets and iterations between 1966 and 1972. Magnetic Waves of Sound: The Best of The Move, featuring 21 tracks on CD and a further 21 live performances and promotional films on DVD, is certainly not the group’s first anthology, but it’s doubtless among the finest.
Over the course of just four studio albums – all but one of which, 1971’s Message from the Country, has been reissued and expanded by Esoteric – the band made a dizzying number of transformations. Pop-psychedelia, mod soul, hard riff-rock, country, cabaret, folk, and rockabilly were all part of The Move’s repertoire. The band went through five line-ups, with singer/songwriter/guitarist Roy Wood and drummer/vocalist Bev Bevan the two constants; Wood and Bevan would, of course, go on to form the original Electric Light Orchestra with Jeff Lynne, the Idle Race leader who joined The Move in 1970. Lead singer Carl Wayne’s 1966-1970 yielded the lion’s share of the group’s hits, while the seemingly rotating bass chair went from Chris “Ace” Kefford to Trevor Burton to Rick Price before the Wood/Lynne/Bevan triumvirate abandoned a permanent bass slot for The Move’s final incarnation.
All ten of the band’s U.K. charting singles are here, from 1966’s Tchaikovsky-quoting “Night of Fear” through 1972’s fifties retro-style “California Man,” as well as “Do Ya,” The Move’s only U.S. hit. (It was famously re-recorded by Electric Light Orchestra for 1976’s A New World Record.) A healthy selection of B-sides and album tracks are peppered throughout the set, as well. All of the tracks showcase not only the band’s great stylistic diversity but the strength of Roy Wood’s melodic pop sensibility. Though The Move could rock (the harsher sound of “Hello Susie” is still jarring in this chronological context), their singles were more often than not compact pop creations, including the controversial “Flowers in the Rain” (subject of a High Court lawsuit that forced Wood to forfeit all of his royalties, then and now, from the composition), the urgent “Fire Brigade,” shimmering “(Here We Go Round) The Lemon Tree” and baroque “Blackberry Way.” Move records were reliably filled with lush harmonies and unusual, dramatic instrumentation, sometimes courtesy of then-assistant producer Tony Visconti. Indeed, The Move were progressive before the word had entered the rock lexicon.
The final tracks on the CD portion of Magnetic Waves of Sound, culled from the Message from the Country era, were recorded as Lynne, Wood, and Bevan created Electric Light Orchestra. As such, they complement the debut of ELO (the band’s only album with Wood (though he played, uncredited, on a couple of tracks from ELO 2). “Ella James” was selected as the first single from Message, though it was quickly withdrawn and replaced with the jauntier “Tonight,” which was more redolent of the “classic” Move sound. The brisk, breezy “China Town” has Wood and Lynne trading vocals, with the latter already bringing a Beatles influence into the band and Wood bringing his best George Harrison-esque slide lines.
The second disc of this set – The Move on the Air: TV Broadcasts 1967-1970 – is an essential part of this package but could easily stand on its own, with 21 clips on DVD. Note that this disc is region-free/NTSC, playable everywhere. Quality is variable, particularly because the original aspect ratios have been converted to widescreen, leading to some “stretching” of the image. The images are otherwise sharp and detailed, and the audio equally fine. The centerpiece is a ten-song set from The BBC’s Colour Me Pop (in color, naturally) recorded on January 4th, 1969 featuring not only hits like “I Can Hear the Grass Grow,” “Flowers in the Rain,” and “Blackberry Way” but also covers such as Tom Paxton’s “The Last Thing on My Mind,” Carole King and Gerry Goffin’s“Goin’ Back,” and the Louvin Brothers’ “Christian Life.” Three songs from this set are lip-synched, while the remainder showcases the four-piece band after Chris “Ace” Kefford’s departure in its potent live prime. Other strong, primal performances have been culled from broadcasts of Top of the Pops and Germany’s Beat Beat Beat and Beat Club.
Magnetic Waves of Sound is housed in a digipak containing both a fold-out poster and a 20-page booklet featuring a new essay by Mark Paytress as well as credits, a chart of the band line-ups, and discography. Ben Wiseman has remastered, and sound quality is identical to the remasters, and comparable for the tracks new to this series. The first eleven tracks on the CD are happily all presented in their original mono mixes. This set is a fine addition to Esoteric’s stellar program dedicated to the underrated Brumbeat band.
CD
Night of Fear (Deram DM 109-A, 1966) (*)
I Can Hear the Grass Grow (Deram DM 117-A, 1967) (*)
Wave the Flag and Stop the Train (Deram DM 117-B, 1967) (*)
Kilroy Was Here (from Move, Regal Zonophone LRZ 1002, 1968) (*)
(Here We Go Round) The Lemon Tree (from Move, Regal Zonophone LRZ 1002, 1968) (*)
Walk Upon the Water (from Move, Regal Zonophone LRZ 1002, 1968) (*)
Flowers in the Rain (Regal Zonophone RZ 3001-A, 1967) (*)
Fire Brigade (Regal Zonophone RZ 3005-A, 1968) (*)
The Move was probably the biggest British group of the late 60s/early 70s who utterly failed to make any sort of impression on the American market. Nearly every biography written about them begins that way as if it’s the most important thing about the Move. It’s not, although it does provide a bit of (perhaps necessary) context. In England the Move had nine top 20 hits and was arguably ranked just below the Who (and just above the Pretty Things) in terms of pop group popularity. In the US however the Move never really made a dent in the charts, and are recalledif they are recalled much at all more as the predecessor to the Electric Light Orchestra, or merely a footnote in that band’s story, than for their own merits. It’s rare to find a Move album when you are crate digging.
It’s true, in America still to this day the Move would be considered downright obscure, but on (very, very rare) occasion (as in almost never), one does meet a total Roy Wood fanatic.
The Move‘s original five-piece line-up formed in 1965 when teenaged guitarist Roy Wood (the band’s principle songwriter), drummer Bev Bevan, bassist Ace Kefford, vocalist Carl Wayne (older than the rest of them) and guitarist Trevor Burton “moved” from the ranks of several other semi-successful Birmingham-based bands to play together in a new Brummie “supergroup.” Like a heavier Hollies, four of the quintet were capable of handling vocals and although golden-throated Carl Wayne tended to take the lead, they also switched off that everyone got a turn in the spotlight. They were managed, first by Moody Blues manager Tony Secunda—who dressed the Move in Mod gangster suits, hired strippers for their stage act and got the band a residency at the Marquee club in London—and then later by a proper gangster, the notorious Don Arden, father of Sharon Osbourne, the former manager of Small Faces.
The original “Something Else” was a live EP, intended to catch the Move’s considerable live prowess on one of those heady Marquee nights of 1967. But it didn’t quote work out the way it was intended. “Live” would have to be in inverted commas here because when the record finally saw release, because of problems in the recording process with the vocals, it would have to be heavily doctored in the studio. The sleeve-notes here make it clear that two live dates were recorded for the EP and in between they managed to lose bass player Ace Kefford, with Trevor Burton switching over to guitar for the second session to cover.
The first part presented here are 12 tracks from these two gigs that were remastered in stereo about ten years ago and though obviously more studio creations than bona fide live recordings they certainly hit the spot. Bev Bevan’s drumming is so powerful throughout, whilst the flash bombs went off and singer Carl Wayne axed in TV sets the mighty back-beat he supplied went on no matter what. It is inevitable given the problems with the original recording that the live chatter appears a little incongruous sound-wise with the cleanness of the music on offer. But if you can suspend disbelief and imagine that this was all laid down on tape at the same time, what you have is a choice offering of the Move in their element playing a lot of spirited covers interspersed with two of the big hits (“Flowers In The Rain” and “Fire Brigade”) and this provides a decent facsimile of what their live show would have been like at the time (sonically at least). Their version of Eddie Cochran’s “Something Else” could have even been the template for Sid’s later effort, such is the spirit of abandon.
During one of their Marquee dates the group caused a fire after they’d smashed some television sets onstage with an ax. Three fire engines showed up to fight the blaze, inspiring front page headlines and the subject matter for a future hit single. Then Secunda, without consulting with the group, devised a controversial marketing campaign for the “Flowers in the Rain” single—the first record to be played on BBC Radio 1 and their third consecutive top five hit of 1967—consisting of a postcard depicting Prime Minister Harold Wilson in bed with his secretary. Wilson brought litigation against the Move for Secunda’s actions, which he won costing them—specifically Roy Wood who wrote the number and had nothing to do with the publicity stunt—their royalties for the hit, which were donated to charity. This led to Secunda’s firing and Arden’s hiring. In fall of 1967, the group took part in a two-week-long concert package tour around the UK, playing twice a night with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd and the Nice.
One major reason the Move never broke the American market is that they never toured here. They tried to—opening two shows for the Stooges before things fell apart—but it was a demoralizing disaster. Another reason might be their overt “Englishness” which would have been a turn off to many American rock fans at the time.
And don’t try to tell me that KISS didn’t base their entire sound on the stomp-all-over-yer-face “Brontosaurus,” because they so obviously did. (And just where do you think Paul Stanley got his “starchild” look from?,
Stu Larsen has no fixed residence…all he owns is a suitcase. You can find him in his native Australia, in Spain, Japan or South America before he picks up and leaves for his next destination. The Queensland, Australia-born singer-songwriter, and narrator packed up his life in a suitcase and has circled the globe on a near twelve-year and five-continent international trip. He has chronicled this journey through his music, including his newest full-length album “Marigold”.
On April 3rd, singer-songwriter Stu Larsen will release his most intimate album-to-date, “Marigold” (via Nettwerk Records). The eleven tracks on Marigold speak to Larsen’s external and internal progression, bookended by first single “Whisky & Blankets (A Tu Lado)” and the final cut on the album, “Phone Call From My Lover.” In between Marigold and his earlier LP Resolute,Larsen fell in love only to fall into heartbreak and, ultimately, find the inspiration to write straight from the heart. The latest single, “Hurricane” is about the emotional force of love which swept – quickly and unexpectedly – in (and out) of his life.
“I came into her life so unexpectedly and turned everything upside down, she felt things she hadn’t felt before and maybe didn’t know how to respond, which turned the relationship into such a rollercoaster. ‘Hurricane’ is a short and punchy song that starts and finishes before you have a chance to settle into it,” says Larsen.
Currently, Stu Larsen has no fixed residence…all he owns is a suitcase, a guitar and a couple of cameras. You can find him in his native Australia, in Spain, Japan or South America before he picks up and leaves for his new destination. The Queensland, Australia-born singer, songwriter, and narrator packed up his life in a suitcase and circled the globe on a near twelve-year and five-continent international trip, as chronicled in photography and music.
Stu has now toured the globe numerous times over, cultivating fans with sold-out concerts around the world. As a result, fan favorites like “San Francisco” and “Thirteen Sad Farewells” have earned 100 million+ combined streams across digital platforms. In addition to documenting his travels through photos, Stu has lived numerous adventures, including an emergency appendectomy in Indonesia and being surprised by a jaguar at a party in Mexico City. Last month, Larsen announced his latest globe-trotting adventure that would take him through 11 countries in 31 days. But, with that, he still plans to return to North American this Spring.
Deradoorian (full name Angel Deradoorian) is releasing a new album, “Find the Sun”, on September 18th via ANTI-Records. She shared another song from it, “It Was Me,” via an animated video for the track. Rebecca Hac directed and animated the video.
Find the Sun was originally due out May 22nd, but in April it was pushed back to September 18th due to COVID-19 Virus.
Previously Deradoorian shared Find the Sun’s first single, the seven-minute long Krautrock-inspired “Saturnine Night.” She also shared a video for “Saturine Night.” Then she shared another song from the album, “Monk’s Robes,” via a video for the track.
Deradoorian was formerly the bassist/vocalist for Dirty Projectors. Find the Sun is the follow-up to her debut solo album, 2015’s The Expanding Flower Planet, and 2017’s Eternal Recurrence EP.Find the Sun was recorded with Deradoorian’s friend and percussionist Samer Ghadry, along with Ghadry’s frequent collaborator Dave Harrington.
“Overall, a lot of these songs are about trying to reach yourself – how to be your most
brilliant self,” Deradoorian said in a previous press release about the album. “Because we come from a culture that doesn’t actually support this. We are so deeply programmed to obey societal boundaries that we don’t even know the power we contain within.”
The previous press release further describes the song of the album: “Inspired by the freedom of Can and the singing style of Damo Suzuki as well as the influence of Indian spirituality on free jazz masters like Pharoah Sanders and Sun Ra, Deradoorian gravitates to transportive, shamanic sounds on this record, wielding bells, flutes, and gongs in service of a rock record guided by the spirits.”
Summing up the album, Deradoorian said: “Find the Sun is a record to sit and listen to, and ask yourself about your Self.”
This is a 2 disc set (Calling Hard Part 1 and 2) that was authorized as an official release as part of the G-Men Bootleg series Volume 1 (Castle Music). The overall package included the 2 calling hard discs as well as the Bullfrog Interlude disc as well. The set was released in 1992 and since it was volume 1 it would imply there was to be more in the series. Sadly Rory’s death in 1994 probably put an end to that. I give these recordings all 5 stars. I’m a huge Rory fan and I’ve heard a lot of his music both officially released and bootlegs and these recordings really capture the live feel of a Rory concert.
The energy is high and his playing is fantastic. I was fortunate enough to see him 3 times before he passed and when I feel like listening to a live recording of his shows these are the ones I go to first. The sound quality is very impressive. I don’t know if they are soundboard recordings but they are of a very high quality. They’re not as slick as his live recording “Stage Struck” which was obviously done for commercial release but any flaws are part of the experience like going to one of his shows. I would compare these to his “Live in Europe” release from 1972, but there’s so much more music. I always love “Live in Europe” but when its done I feel like I want more.
Rory Gallagher – Calling Hard 1 & 2
Recorded Live At Golden Green , April 14th,1974 London
1-1 Messin’ With The kid
1-2 Craddle Rock
1-3 I Wonder Who
1-4 Tattoo Lady
1-5 Stampin’ Ground
1-6 Who’s That Coming
1-7 Bullfrog Blues
Recorded Live At Hammersmith Odeon , June 22nd,1977 London
1-8 Do You Read Me
1-9 Secret Agent
1-10 Calling Card
2-1 Bought And Sold
2-2 Too Much Alchool
2-3 Going To My Hometown
2-4 Country Mile
2-5 Bullfrog Blues
Recorded Live At Middlesex Polytechinic , May 15th,1979 In London
2-6 Shin Kicker
2-7 Mississippi Sheiks
2-8 Do You Read Me
2-9 Brute Force And Ignorance
2-10 Tattoo Lady
2-11 Shadow Play
2-12 Cruise On Out
These discs deliver. I highly recommend this and even though they are hard to find they are worth the effort and the money. If your a Rory fan you wont be disappointed.
Lauren Ruth Ward serves us major psychedelic angst with her sophomore album Vol. II, which dropped with a bang last Friday. After her debut album Well, Hell was consistently praised by the media and fans alike, Ward built high expectations for herself – and then double-downed on them with a killer 1970s inspired alt-rock record. Lauren Ruth Ward‘s Vol. II also differs from Well, Hell in that it was recorded analogue to tape, adding more sonic depth and colour to Ward’s timeless energy. The record’s opening track, “Vahalla”, embodies this tone, with its anthemic rock ‘n’ roll melody elevated by captivating vocals that explode with nostalgia.
Lauren Ruth Ward’s voice might shine most, though, on “Wise Gal”, another headbanger filled with howling female rage that channels the range and attitude of a contemporary Janis Joplin. Both tracks contain a controlled chaos and an immense poignancy that make me sentimental for my peak teenage angst, which apparently never fully dissipated.
That being said, “We Are Grown Ups” reflects Ward’s wide-reaching scope, the song epitomizing folk – but make it punk rock – featuring sweet acoustic harmonies contrasted with powerhouse drums that roll like thunder.
Lauren Ruth Ward fuses so many different styles that her sound is uniquely of the moment and also simultaneously nostalgic. It’s clear why fans and bands alike fell for Ward when she emerged in the Echo Park music scene. Ward was and continues to be a true member of the community, taking time to promote the shows of bands she likes – hailing a diverse group of artists from all walks of the east side. Echo Park folk powerhouse Alicia Blue even released a song about Lauren Ruth Ward titled “The Queen of Echo Park”.
Ward has played to sold-out crowds in the U.S. and overseas, sharing stages with artists ranging from the Yeah Yeah Yeahʼs, Shirley Manson, Eddie Vedder, LP, Shakey Graves, and Liz Phair to Keith Urban. When sheʼs not on the road, sheʼs either recording with her new side project, Aging Actress, formed with Chris Hess, singer of LA band SWIMM, or cutting and dyeing hair.
Lauren Ruth Ward has brought a new life to the alt-rock genre, providing a much yearned voice during a lawless time in which we’re all erupting with emotion. While Ward’s U.S. headline tour has been *cancelled* due to the current global health crisis,
Lyrics written by Lauren Ruth Ward, Guitar written by Eduardo Riviera
Since the announcement of her upcoming new album, ‘New Truth,’ musician Jenny O has released a new single every two weeks, dropping most recently “Even If I Tried,” a 60s pop adjacent banger that revels in its newfound confidence as the single captures the sentiment of a person whose finally said “F You” to all the nonsense and toxic people.
“I’m in mono now forever / It was there and now it’s gone” Jenny O. sings on the opening track to, and debut single from, New Truth, her first LP since losing hearing in her right ear. This shrugging happenstance tends to populate much of the rest of the album, which often touches on the recent memory of a soured relationship, as well as the performative and totally meaningless conversations we suffer through on a daily basis.
In spite of this state of resignation, though, New Truth has a much-needed calming tone to it, with O. delivering smooth layered vocals over chilled-out guitar solos. Even if the playful details were omitted from the final recordings—such as the “Muppet background harmonies” on “God Knows Why” detailed below—the songs all still feel breezy, especially with the help of the newly published “Old Habits” video.
Finding the perfect balance between an upbeat melody and more serious lyrics, “Even If I Tried” sounds at first like a tune that could have been pulled right from the feel good catalogue of a California coast band straight out of the 1960s. Dig deeper, and this psychedelic pop song unfolds as it follows one person’s realization that the people letting her down will never change.
“Everyone knows somebody who is always a critic and just won’t listen. Often those with the strongest opinions have the most uninspired lives,” O says. “People exist this way for years, decades, generations. Fortunately, you can ditch them for supportive friends and a life of curiosity and fun.”
Jenny O’s latest string of singles and subsequent upcoming album come after a label change — O is now with Mama Bird Recording Co. — and since the loss of hearing in one ear. Personal and uninhibited, O notes she is back doing what she loves as she continues to push her music to new places.
1. “God Knows Why”
Well, I lost most of the hearing in my right ear so I wrote this after that happened. Each verse is about a different inexplicable event. Originally it had really funny Muppet background harmonies, but they were fighting with the guitar so in the end I took them out. They still make me laugh in their absence and I can’t wait to do them live sometime.
2. “I Don’t Want to Live Alone Anymore”
I had been living alone for a few years when I wrote this. I’m amused by the effects of solitude and obsessed with the arrangement of my few possessions.
3. “Color Love”
I want this song to feel like getting in a small boat with a partner and rowing all night through a dimly lit, rainforest-river kind of Disney ride, with creatures and plants and thousands of stars. I imagine we both have to work in the morning, but we’ve managed to have this night for ourselves. It’s about growing-old-together love, and how lucky that is, and how important it is to always be maintaining it and not take it for granted.
4. “Old Habits”
This is the crux of it all, the journey. Trying to improve or connect, missing, trying again with insight, missing differently, and on and on. We can transform, and decades later we can still mess up. The key is to enjoy and be in awe of the unending process. Also, what’s funny to me is while I was first writing it, it felt like a distraction. I was trying to finish all the songs for New Truth and I kept hearing this one and playing it, just chords and melody, searching for lyrics, but felt like I should be working on another one that was closer to being finished. It was weeks before I realized it was important for the record and, in fact, a favourite. How stupid it is to feel guilty when working on one song over another.
5. “What About That Day”
This is about looking back at a romantic day after a relationship has soured. It’s over—the actual day-to-day has been wrought with conflict. The only reason it went on so long was because of the magic of that one day. We’ve repeated its memory over and over again.
6. “Not My Guy”
I gave this one a long guitar solo in elegy to the twentieth century (RIP). I can’t wait to play it live with my band.
7. “Even If I Tried”
I wrote this chorus for my last album, Peace & Information, but I couldn’t figure out the verse lyrics until I was writing New Truth. I was excited about achieving my second song ever to start with the chorus. This was, for me, an accomplishment, as I love a pop song that starts with the chorus, but it just never comes together that way. I was crying over a breakup while I recorded the guitar solo, but had to finish the final session—that’s funny to me now.
8. “Small Talk”
I’m awful at small talk. If I don’t simply excuse myself and walk away because I’m overcome with nerves and have a flight response, I try to find something I really do want to discuss, which takes a second, so sometimes I’ll say nothing. I don’t want to just fill space. I find many typical entry questions problematic, so I’ll try to keep some good questions at hand. Everybody is suffering, and I heard that a truly uniting question could be, “In which ways do you suffer?”
I actually tried it a few times with near-strangers. I tried mentioning suffering a couple times on stage, it didn’t work, so I stopped doing it. I still don’t know what to say to an audience. It’s just so absurd to say to a group of people at a concert, “How is everybody doing?” And then everyone goes “Wooo!” Because it’s like, man, someone in here just lost somebody. Someone in here is fighting cancer. Definitely. But we all go “Wooo!” and that’s the same as the cashier asking how you are and you say, “Good how are you?” because what are you going to tell them, “I’m depressed, actually”? I’ve tried that too. It’s all completely fascinating to me. So that’s what this song is about. I want to deepen the conversation. Let’s get into it. I mean, with friends and family. I actually just prefer not to talk to strangers.
9. “Psychedelic Love”
I didn’t really want to put this one on the record, but other people liked it. I was seeking a major love, and at this point I was able to be very specific about what I wanted in a partner. Everybody has different dynamics and desires, but this was a personal spell for me and it worked.
10. “A Different Kind of Life”
Sometimes we spend too long in a situation trying to figure it out—exactly why it doesn’t work, trying to solve some riddle or move mountains, and I am here to say stop doing so much math. Some things line up and others don’t. Things can just flow, and you can expend energy more efficiently. An easier, more peaceful life is around the corner.
11. “Hard to Say”
This is written about finding oneself around someone new while still hurting over something else that just ended. Trying to describe that—not quite heartbroken, I wouldn’t really call it “love” because it never really got there, it was something else. And now it’s over, and I’m hurt, but there’s this new person (that’s who I’m singing to). And I’m struggling to be present but I don’t want them to leave. It’s sort of an emotional purgatory. Moving on can heal us, but if we haven’t sorted out or learned from what just happened, we might destroy the new thing.
12. “Seek Peace”
This is a meditation for trying to do right in the world while trying to survive. Asking some questions I have to keep asking. I was pretty blissed out after recording all the vocal parts. New Truth is coming to terms with my deaf ear,” shares Jenny O. “It’s any new accepted reality. It’s the hilarious way I wore my hair for a week before cutting it away from my face,” says O. The songs are as personal as ever–continued misadventures of an introvert in Hollywood. I think it’s relatable – heartache and epiphany – I hope people like it?”
The official music video for Jenny O.’s“I Don’t Want to Live Alone Anymore”, the second single off her forthcoming album ‘New Truth’, out June 19th on Mama Bird Recording Co.
No Age have shared a new driving, blissfully energetic punk anthem in their new single “Head Sport Full Face.” The song is accompanied by a video that uses archival footage shot by Aaron Rose (director of 2008’s Beautiful Losers) of the band from a decade ago—stitched together into a nostalgic ode to the blistering, anxious sentiments that still pulsate in their music.
“Head Sport Full Face” finds some cathartic escape in its virulent riffs and raw percussiveness, while singer Dean Spunt’s fading cries dip in and out of a pining dreaminess.
Based in Los Angeles, No Age is the noise rock creation of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Spunt, the former being the one who first pieces together the video when Rose emailed them out of the blue the archived video clips. The result is a poignant blending of the band’s past antics and the current uncertainty of pretty much everything around them—and yet the shots of them blasting through punk tracks under dim venue lights to equally voracious crowds is exactly the kind of tonic for such a mess.
“Head Sport Full Face” is already delirious with grimy-meets-melodic soundscapes, but the newly “discovered” video attached to the song pieces together an appropriate reminder of the kind of energy now missing from the world—of crashing together against the heady weight of that wall of sound with a crowd of people around you.
“He said he was going through old hard drives and he found a folder labeled “No Age”. He opened it and found all this footage from 10 years ago. Maybe he was thinking of making a video for us but never did? He sent us a a link to a whole bunch of footage and he had shot on a small hand held digital video camera. I edited it together for the video. After a few round of notes from Dean and Aaron, this is the video.”
How “Head Sport Full Face” music video was made:
Dean and I have known Aaron Rose for years, we played the wedding procession at his wedding.
A few weeks into the Covid 19 quarantine we got email out of the blue from Aaron. He said he was going through old hard drives and he found a folder labeled “No Age”. He opened it and found all this footage from 10 years ago. Maybe he was thinking of making a video for us but never did? He sent us a a link to a whole bunch of footage and he had shot on a small hand held digital video camera. I edited it together for the video. After a few round of notes from Dean and Aaron this is the video.
Los Angeles noisepunk duo No Age will release their new album, “Goons Be Gone”, on June 5th via Drag City and here’s the Fall-esque “War Dance” that may leave your ears ringing till the record’s actually out.
Drag City Inc. Track from “Goons Be Gone,” available on LP/CS/CD/Digital from Drag City on June 5th, 2020.
