This Friday is in need of some instantly cheering retro indie pop from Copenhagen’s Kindsight. “Who Are You” is out today on Rama Lama Records, and it’s a warm hug between The Darling Buds and Dream Wife. Kindsight is a new Copenhagen based band and the first act outside of Sweden to sign with Rama Lama Records (Melby, Chez Ali, Steve Buscemi’s Dreamy Eyes etc.). The young quartet are set to release their debut single “Who Are You” – a warm, nostalgic and atmospheric indie pop song – on August 28th via the Stockholm based label.
The Danish quartet makes retro-tinged indie pop that is instantly appealing and addictive. Nina’s vocals crowns the atmospheric soundscape perfectly and makes Kindsight something that’s been missing in Scandinavia for a long time. Debut single Who Are You is the first taste of their melancholic beauty which we will hear a lot more of the upcoming year as the band are ready to finally share their music. “Who Are You” is a summer song written in January – lush, light and forward-driven.
Kindsight are Nina, Søren, Anders and Johannes, and formed out of Nina and Sørens shared love for The Sugarcubes. The band claim that drummer Johannes was recruited to “drag him out of an unsettling obsession with jazz-music” and bass player Anders was chosen “only because of his looks and his ability to fit into small bags.” We are feeling warm things for this band and would like to hear more please!
Originally the solo project of Elise Cook, Soot Sprite have evolved into a three piece shoegaze/ dream pop outfit for theirsophomore EP ‘Sharp Tongue’ with drummer Matt Tiller and bass player Ross Becker (now joined live with bass player Sean Mariner). The Exeter based trio SootSprite. New single “It’s Summer and I Don’t Feel Like Smiling‘ is out today and it’s a case of ‘hard relate but we may as well dance’. Singer Elise Cook has an instantly likeable voice – we could listen to her sing all day. The jangly guitars have a tantalising whiff of summer festivals. Oh please let us hear this band playing somewhere sunny next Summer! Elise says:
“I wrote this song about a really bad bout of depression I had last summer, and it was like all the usual alienation that comes with depression doubled with the juxtaposition of everyone seemingly feeling more joyful than usual because of summertime. Going into this year the content felt very relevant again but as more of a collective struggle and an almost numbness to the endless stream of awful events.”
Modesto, CA’s influential indie-rock group Grandaddy celebrates the 20th-anniversary of their classic second LP, 2000’s “The Sophtware Slump” with a brand-new solo piano recording of the album by principal songwriter Jason Lytle. The candid arrangements reveal new layers of meaning embedded in The Sophtware Slump’s melancholy and touching vision of the future. With a meticulous yet scruffy sound that continues to draw comparisons to a post-millennial OK Computer – and which Pitchfork called a “sad, quaint, low-key Y2K-era classic” – The Sophtware Slump, now heard as a solo piano album, is a chance to let the song writing shine.
This is not a record made up of demos or rough sketches; it is a shadow sibling to a record that inspired a generation in the earliest days of the 21st century.
“Snake Oil” and “Child’s Romance” are the first new tracks from Nap Eyes since releasing the album “Snapshot of a Beginner” in April. Both songs arrive with visuals directed by Michael Bigham.
Vocalist Nigel Chapman says of “Snake Oil”, “”Snake oil” is a well-known idiom of course, for which everyone will have their own associations, and no doubt anyone listening today will be able to find some apropos uses for it. At the same time, the song is kind of a contradiction or riddle, because whatever this ‘snake oil’ literally represents, the singer is apparently brewing and stewing it as some kind of sustenance. Who knows what that might mean…it’s a riddle even to me, but I wonder could it have something to do with the dangers at the opposite extreme of the gullibility spectrum.
Chapman adds of “Child’s Romance”, “To me, it’s child-like in that it’s expressing admiration and affection for another person, but without any romantic-relationship-oriented ulterior motives. After writing it I was thinking it’s maybe a bit like the ‘courtly love’ attitude expressed in medieval literature (the early/original ‘Romances’), which is a slightly outlandish combination of aesthetics, idealism, and passion. On another level, I think the song is about learning, as we grow up, to differentiate between feelings of romantic love and more friendly admiration and warmth that we feel towards others. The following should go without saying of course, but it’s definitely necessary to make room for both kinds of feelings in our psychology – rather than expecting ourselves to feel only one or the other.”
Timothy Showalter recently moved to Austin and explained how good the change has been for him. Additionally, Tim has stopped drinking and detailed how he’s reaping the rewards of that decision. The pandemic hit just as Showalter was about to take time to work on new music. He discussed his song writing process as well as the ambient album, Ambient For Change that Strand Of Oaks released in June.
While Tim acknowledged all the strife and struggle going on in the world, Showalter spoke about the positive attitude he’s taken towards the future. Showalter called it his “survival mode” to talk about the future and projects in a hopeful way. Another topic hit upon by Showalter was Tim’s appreciation for the jam scene and the band Phish in particular. Tim explained how much Phish’s Dinner And A Movie weekly video broadcasts mean to him. He noted that Tuesday nights are his most social time of the week. Other subjects discussed are ways both artists and fans can help the live music infrastructure,
Its safe to say there that now is a good time for music to feel brutal, full-on and foundation-shaking, and one of the most anticipated debut albums of the year for this is without a doubt Girls In Synthesis’Now Here’s An Echo From Your Future, released later this month.
I won’t give away too many spoilers, but I can safely say that the album does not disappoint. (Previous EPs, projects and of course their well-noted live show make expectations high.) While you are waiting in anticipation, they’ve already given us a well-representative taste of what’s to come with the freshly-announced release of a dizzyingly brutal new track and video, They’re Not Listening.
They’re Not Listening is brimming with political charge and dissent. There is, of course, obviously no question of who the “they’re” of the title is – the trio reflect the anger of a nation. Lyrics about the games they play as a distraction burn with Situationist ideology; the band breaks through barriers through of spectacle both with their politics of their lyrics and the blunt straightforward drive and their sound and aesthetic. The pounding, absorbing sound and feel of the record is a short, sharp blast of ire. This is something enhanced by the pared-down monochrome and heady lighting of the accompanying video. But don’t just take my word for it. Go watch and listen now…
‘They’re Not Listening’ taken from the forthcoming debut album ‘Now Here’s An Echo From Your Future’ released 28/8/20. Harbinger Sound
[Prev. Blank Editions/Louder Than War]
October 16th – The Chameleon Arts Café, Nottingham
Working Men’s Club self-titled debut album was due to drop today, but for reasons obvious, it is now due in October. Looking at the blank space left by the postponement, 18 year old wonder-kid frontman Syd Minsky-Sargeant decided to utilise his free time, in lockdown, and capitalise on the creative momentum the band has garnered. The result is a 21-minute continuous ‘Megamix’ that simultaneously acts as a taster and a condensed electronic reworking of parts of the album. Due to the current global situation we unfortunately have to announce that we will be pushing the release of our album back to October 2nd. This wasn’t an easy decision but we want to be playing shows again the day the album is out (and fingers crossed now we will).
Syd would like to note that: “It doesn’t feel like a particularly apt time to be self promoting anything at all however we wanted to give something to the people who pre-ordered the album on what would of the original release date.“ The Megamix will be available to stream only via www.megamix.workingmensclub.net from 10am today, Friday 5th June 2020 and will be streaming on a continuous loop until midnight on 12th June.
“Initially it seemed a bit of a crazy idea to go and remix an album we’ve just made that isn’t even out yet. But once we got into it we were like, ‘let’s fucking go for it’. One could, of course, argue that crazy ideas are what’s needed in such crazy times but, in reality, what has been produced is less of a chaotic and scatterbrain idea and more a coherent artistic statement in line with the band’s perpetual forward momentum.”
Minsky-Sargeant teamed up with the band’s producer Ross Orton – under the moniker ‘Minsky Rock’, a recently started project under which they recently completed a Jarvis Cocker remix – and the pair worked remotely to create the unique reimagining. “Ross has a studio in Sheffield and I have a bit of one at home. So I would play a synth part and then send him the file over and he’d put it into his computer and then bring it up on a shared screen. I could see his interface and we’d mix it like that. It was like being in the same room.” The result is a “reinterpretation rather than a remix” says Minsky-Sargeant. Over its seamlessly flowing duration, as it unfurls in hypnotic and infectious grooves – teasing snippets of songs as they weave in and out – the mix plays out like a classic 12” extended mix. Albeit one that takes on different forms and explores new terrain altogether.
“It takes a number of parts of the album but different versions [and edits] of the songs,” he says. “I’ve played new parts on more or less everything. Some tracks I’ve taken out the guitar parts and re-done them with synths or replaced bass lines with synths.” There’s something of a northern lineage that can be traced here too, in that the 12” band remixes were something of a mainstay of Manchester bands like New Order and A Certain Ratio, and in a similar spirit, WMC are a new young band pushing, and crossing, the boundaries of where guitar and electronic music can interlink and overlap. “It’s free flowing and electronic, rather than sounding like a band,” Minsky-Sargeant says of the mix. “It gives an insight into what the record is like, as well as the future of the band, but it’s also something totally exclusive. It’s very much its own thing.”
Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983-1987 is the first volume of Captured Tracks‘ new venture into compilations – Excavations.
Inspired by Pebbles, Killed By Death, Soul Jazz and Numero Group compilations, Excavations is a series dedicated to compiling forgotten music from the 1970s – 1990s that has a connection to Captured Tracks’ sound and aesthetic. Much like the Cleaners from Venus, the Wake, and Saäda Bonaire reissues we’ve put out, Excavations releases will bridge the past to our current roster and showcase the kinds of sounds that inspire us.
Record label Captured Tracks has announced a new compilation called Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983 – 1987. An orange vinyl edition of the new 28-track collection arrives on Record Store Day’s “Day Drop” on October 24th; standard black vinyl, as well as digital and CD editions will be out November 13th.
Strum & Thrum is the inaugural volume of Captured Tracks’ new Excavations compilation series. It chronicles the roots of melodic indie rock in the early-to-mid 1980s. Listen to theReverbs’ “Trusted Woods” from the compilation below, and scroll down to watch a trailer for the release.
Strum & Thrum includes music from the Strand, Salem 66, Vandykes, the Ferrets, and others. The release also features a booklet with an oral history of the ’80s indie scene, an introduction by Captured Tracks label head Mike Sniper, archival images, and more. Strum & Thrum will be available on vinyl, CD, and digitally
“Strum & Thrum seems like the right fit for the first reissue compilation for Captured Tracks,” Mike Sniper said in a press release. He continued:
I’m happy that the first compilation I’ve ever produced features overlooked records that are still affordable—anyone who enjoys this comp can dive deeper into this scene without having to take out a loan. People nowadays sometimes say that guitar music is dead. Strum & Thrum is certainly against that notion. Listening to it and reading the oral history sheds a light on a largely forgotten scene full of great bands with some really great songs. I’m glad to be able to help share this story and get the bands some of the recognition they’ve deserved all along.
Record Store Day founder Michael Kurtz added:
It’s ironic that Strum & Thrum is coming out on Record Store Day’s October Drop Date, as the reason Sheila and I started Three Hits is directly related to discovering R.E.M.’s Hib-Tone single “Radio Free Europe” in a Boone, NC record store in 1981. The look was handmade, the sound was raw and honest, and the 7″ record was limited and special—you could only find it in a record store.
Owning a copy of that single allowed us fans to have a connection to the band, and that personal experience directly influenced the creation of Record Store Day itself. At the time, hearing “Radio Free Europe” and it’s “Sitting Still” B-side changed a lot of people’s lives. Dozens of other southeastern US bands, including One Plus Two, set out to write and perform songs because of it. It was an incredibly exciting time and it’s fantastic to hear bands from around the US who all had similar epiphanies and made a lot of noise together on this compilation.
Formed in the aftermath of punk’s descent on Kansas in the late 70s, Start’s jangly melodies felt distinct from the local scene, with contemporaries only to be found across the Atlantic. Despite this sense of isolation, they went on to play alongside seminal midwest groups including Get Smart and the Embarrassment, recorded the protest song “Little Fish Big Fish” with Allen Ginsberg, and released a full-length album that included “Where I Want To Be”.
Spread across two LPs, Strum & Thrum includes an 80+ page booklet with an extensive oral history of the ‘80s indie scene, an introduction by Captured Tracks label head Mike Sniper, and tons of archival images and ephemera. Long live the jangle underground!
Initially I just wanted to record a version of Brooklyn Gurls after it being requested a lot during my livestreams b/c a definitive version didn’t exist. So it’s a new version of the song, it’s called Brooklyn Gurls. though technically, it’s old. it was one of the first ‘Francis Lung’ songs – it’s debut was live on BBC Radio 1 during a somewhat infamous session WU LYF did for Huw Stephens in 2011. We were so rude and disrespectful to Huw during our interview and I still feel bad about it. We didn’t really mention that it was a Francis Lung song so this live version of it has existed on Youtube as a WU LYF song since then. During lockdown I played some streaming ‘concerts’ and people started requesting it, which inspired me to record a definitive version of it, which in turn inspired me to record some of the other songs played during the ‘concerts’ in this stripped back way. ‘Songs From A Living Room’ is a sort of memento of this bizarre, singular moment in our lifetime When I’d finished I asked fans on Instagram which other songs/versions they’d enjoyed and I half listened/half did what I wanted and thusly the track listing was born. I hadn’t recorded anything completely alone at home since my Vol I EP (2015) so I wanted to dust off my engineering chops. It was recorded on a Yamaha MT8X Cassette 8 track & Logic, and features vinyl samples of various classical records (which may or may not be in the public domain), and I also stole an intro from a punk compilation featuring my English teacher’s old band.
There are mellow versions of Up & Down & Unnecessary Love from A Dream Is U for sad people who hate drums, an electric cover of J Mascis’ acoustic guitar bummer ‘Several Shades of Why’, completely undanceable versions of Dance 4 Sorrow & A Selfish Man and a bluegrass cover of Paul Westerbergs ‘Androgynous’ dedicated to every non-binary kid out there struggling, growing up in a world that doesn’t want them to have rights. I guess that for better or worse, this is a pivotal time and I wanted to put out a record that was a snapshot of this moment, like a piece of wedding cake that sits in the freezer for 30 years and ends up lasting longer than your marriage.
Steve Wynn first gained fame as lead singer and songwriter for the legendary Paisley Underground outfit The Dream Syndicate. But his post-Dream Syndicate solo career is the equal of any indie-rock singer-songwriter you’d care to name. Now, Real Gone Music and Steve Wynn have joined forces to release “Decade” (yup, the Neil Young reference is deliberate), an 11-CD set that chronicles, with lavish deluxe editions, the guitar-driven albums Wynn recorded between 1995 and 2005, most of which have been long out-of-print.
The statistics on this box set are mind-blowing: 166 tracks, 57 of them totally unreleased, plus 31 other rarities! That’s right’over half of this 11-CD set consists of either hitherto unknown recordings or tracks that have been almost impossible to find! As for the other tracks, they hail from the following albums: the American releases Melting In The Dark, Sweetness and Light, My Midnight, Here Come The Miracles, Static Transmission, and ‘Tick’Tick’Tick, and the German-only compilation entitled The Emusic Singles Collection (rare tracks from another European-only release, a collection of rarities entitled Pick of the Litter, appear here as well).
So where do all the unreleased tracks come from? Well, during this 10-year period, Steve Wynn recorded dozens of songs ‘ sometimes at home and occasionally in a proper studio. Many of those songs got re-recorded and revamped and became key memorable parts of his catalogue. Other songs got tossed away and forgotten. For Decade, long-time Steve Wynn (and Dream Syndicate) archivist Pat Thomas in cooperation with Steve Wynn listened to about a hundred hours of unreleased tapes and compiled this amazing box set that not only includes remastered (by Mike Milchner of SonicVision) versions of some of Steve Wynn’s best albums but also the first American release of the two rare European only titles. And ‘ it bears saying again ‘ 57 previously unreleased recordings that not even hardcore tape traders have heard!
Several of these albums were recorded with Steve Wynn’s core band of Linda Pitmon on drums, Dream Syndicate guitarist Jason Victor, and long-time Miracle 3 bass player Dave DeCastro. Along the way, there are appearances from Green On Red keyboardist Chris Cacavas, Giant Sand’s Howe Gelb, indie chanteuse Barbara Manning, Chris Brokaw & Thalia Zedek of Come, Tony Maimone of Pere Ubu, John Convertino of Calexico, Rich Gilbert and many others. With so much material, you need a program’and so Steve Wynn himself has penned very detailed notes that tell the stories behind the origins of all 57 previously unreleased songs! Plus essays from box set producer Pat Thomas and several of Wynn’s long time bandmates. And a pile of previously unseen photos…all inside a mammoth, full-colour 48-page book!.
