HATTIE COOKE – ” Bliss Land “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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“It’s about the in-between moments.” says Hattie Cooke.
“Bliss Land” is the new LP from Brighton born artist Hattie Cooke. Her third album and debut release for Castles In Space opens up her sound by managing to find a balance between the introspective and the communal. It is an album that looks forward whilst acknowledging the creators past creating a work full of a nostalgia that also feels vitally current. Initially conceived as a soundtrack album, during its creation, “Bliss Land” morphed into a beautiful set of personal songs born out of anticipation, excitement and anxiety.

Speaking about the themes of the albums, Hattie says: “It wasn’t until the album was finished that I realised what it was about. I had recently graduated from university and people were beginning to take more notice of my music. I was excited about the possibilities of the future, but at the same time the immediate future had been put on hold due to the pandemic, so I was frustrated and anxious. And then whenever I think about the future, I can’t help but think about the past and where I’ve come from and what I’ve been through to get to that point. So in some ways it’s a reflective record and in other ways it’s a record full of anticipation. “One Foot Out The Door” is a track that really resonates with me – it’s about that liminal space between the past and the future when you’re on the threshold of something. I think that’s what the album is about, it’s about the in-between moments. “I grew up on a small council estate on the outskirts of Brighton in a house that was full of music. Both my parents played guitar and my dad also bought and sold records for a living. I taught myself the guitar when I was twelve and made plenty of music throughout my teens. At 17, I won a scholarship to study at the British Institute Of Modern Music and continued writing and playing local shows. I also started to learn how to record and produce my own music on GarageBand as a necessary alternative to going into an expensive recording studio. GarageBand has some fantastic synth and electronic drum sounds and that’s when I became more interested in electronic music and music production. In 2015, Third Kind Records approached me after hearing my songs on a homemade demo CD that a friend had passed on. We released my debut album in 2016 and I’ve been making and releasing music ever since.”

Hattie writes, records and produces all her own albums, however she is keen to express how others have helped shaped parts of “Bliss Land”:“The record isn’t a completely solo effort, I had people along the way to help shape this album into what it became, although I had complete artistic freedom to let the album grow into what it wanted to be. I had invaluable help from Dom Keen who helped me mix the album. We spent a good number of nights in his studio drinking gin and trying to get everything just right. He did things to the music that I would never have even considered doing. I had no idea what compression really was until the making of this record, which probably sounds mad considering I’ve produced three records but when you’re self-taught you can miss out learning about so much! Antony Ryan’s mastering added a whole new dimension to the record as well.”

“Bliss Land” is an album soaked in the outer edges of pop music making it a cohesive and beautiful album full of dense textures held together by Hattie’s unique voice. It’s an album that will undoubtedly chime with a cross section of audiences. So where does Hattie see her music in the landscape of the current UK electronic scene? “There’s a lot of instrumental/soundtrack music coming out of the scene, a lot of synthwave music which seems to be a real throwback to the 70s and early 80s. I think that’s because so much of the music coming out of the scene is made by those who grew up during those decades. So I think I’m a bit of an outlier when it comes to the UK electronic scene for two reasons. Firstly, I’m at the lower end of the age range and secondly, I’m a woman in an extremely male dominated scene. “Bliss Land” is intentionally quite poppy, which seems to be less in fashion at the moment whereas my other instrumental stuff is more inspired by classical music than by IDM or ambient music, so I think I’m coming at writing and producing from a slightly different angle. However, I still definitely feel part of the scene. There’s a particularly strong sense of community within the UK electronic scene on Twitter and I’ve been nothing but welcomed and supported by the artists, fans and labels. It’s like being part of a strange and wonderful family.”

You’ve made a video for the track “Youth” with Chris Standley from Rogue Robot which is both funny and shot through with real melancholy. “Youth” is about reflecting on the past. I turned thirty this year and sometimes (more than I’d like to admit) I worry that I’ve gotten more boring as I’ve gotten older. I was pretty wild and unhinged when I was younger and sometimes I miss those mad nights out where it felt like absolutely anything could happen – although saying that I just don’t have the energy to stay up for three days or the stomach to cope with the hangovers anymore. Still, there are days when I miss the way that everything feels new and exciting when you’re in your late teens/early twenties – everything is more intense when you’re younger and the world around you seems bright and buzzing with life. I’ve been thinking about it a lot this past year. I’ve not had much to do for the last twelve months besides walk around on my own and reflect on the past, since the future has basically been put on indefinite hold, so that has almost certainly fed into some of the lyrics and maybe even the feel of the music.”

The album is already garnering a lot of attention and praise. What’s next for Hattie after the album is released? “Who knows what’s next! I have plans to tour the album when the world opens up again. I’d also love to have the chance to score a film or to work with some other artists doing guest vocals or some remixes. And I’d like to get back to doing some music-related charity work again as my family were supported by a number of charities when I was growing up and think it’s important to give back when you can.

VARIOUS ARTISTS – ” Bills & Aches & Blues “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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In 2020, 4AD Records turned 40 years old. Never one to be on time for a party, the label is commemorating that landmark this year with the release of “Bills & Aches & Blues”.

The compilation features 18 of its current artists covering a song of their choosing from 4AD’s past: a creative experiment rooted in the spirit of collaboration and a snapshot of 4AD, 41 years after its inception.

“Bills & Aches & Blues” will be released on double LP and double CD on 23rd July. The first 12 months’ profits from Bills & Aches & Blues will be donated to The Harmony Project, a Los Angeles-based after-school programme for children from communities and schools that lack equitable access to studying the arts or music.

Bills & Aches & Blues’ 18 recordings contain fascinating connections between artist and track. The earliest song chosen (by U.S. Girls) is The Birthday Party’s ‘Junkyard’, from 1981; the most recent are the two Grimes covers (‘Genesis’ and ‘Oblivion’, respectively by Spencer. and Dry Cleaning) from 2012. Suitably, for the one band that bridges 4AD past and present, The Breeders are all over Bills And Aches And Blues. They’re covered three times – ‘Cannonball’ by Tune-Yards, ‘Mountain Battles’ by Bradford Cox of Deerhunter and ‘Off You’ by Big Thief, whilst The Breeders cover ‘The Dirt Eaters’ by their ‘90s contemporaries His Name Is Alive.

Landmark songs such as ‘Cannonball’, ‘Song To The Siren’ and Pixies’ ‘Where is My Mind?’, will feel comfortable to casual fans, however by contrast, much joy can be found in the album’s surprise choices, such as Air Miami’s ‘Seabird’ and the Lush B-side ‘Sunbathing’, covered respectively by new signings Maria Somerville and Jenny Hval. Bills & Aches & Blues is named, arguably (as Elizabeth Fraser never published the lyrics) after the opening line of Cocteau Twins ‘Cherry-Coloured Funk’. Perhaps too unique and uncoverable in their own right, their legendary take on Tim Buckley’s ‘Song To The Siren’, under the name This Mortal Coil (along with Buckley’s pre-Starsailor acoustic version) informs SOHN’s cover.

Some tracks unearth hitherto hidden shared DNA, such as Future Islands’ and Colourbox’s ‘The Moon Is Blue’; other tracks are more akin to reinvention. Aldous Harding distils the melodic essence of Deerhunter’s ‘Revival’ and recasts it in her own uncanny image. U.S. Girls’ future-disco ‘Junkyard’ and Bing & Ruth’s neo-classical instrumental ‘Gigantic’ are even more radical interpretations. Leading off the album, Tkay Maidza brings both her Art Rap and R&B game, but also an unexpected ‘80s synth pop template, to Pixies’ ‘Where Is My Mind?’, a perfect title for these chaotic times.

Long-running and influential indie label 4AD have never been ones to care about the usual milestones, instead preferring to commemorate milestones like The 13-Year Itch in 1993. Last year was the label’s 40th anniversary, but they’re celebrating this year with a new compilation titled Bills & Aches & Blues, 

The compilation title is taken from Cocteau Twins’ “Cherry Coloured Funk” but no artist dared take on one of their songs for this. The closest anyone comes is SOHN‘s cover of Tim Buckley‘s “Song to the Siren,” which was famously covered by This Mortal Coil featuring Elizabeth Fraser and Robin Guthrie. Elsewhere on the record, there are three Breeders covers (performed by Tune-Yards, Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox and Big Thief), two Pixies covers (Bing & Ruth and Tkay Maidza), two Deerhunter covers (Aldous Harding and Helado Negro) and two Grimes covers (by Spencer and Dry Cleaning), plus Future Islands delivering a soulful rendition of Colourbox‘s “The Moon Is Blue,” Jenny Hval covering Lush‘s “Sunbathing,” and more.

4AD has just shared the first side of the compilation: Tkay Maidza turns Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind?” into a glitchy, stadium-sized anthem; U.S. Girls clean up The Birthday Party’s “Junkyard” with bongos, acoustic guitars and swooning strings; Aldous Harding delivers a tender, bewitching take on Deerhunter’s “Revival”; The Breeders delicately cover His Name is Alive‘s “The Dirt Eaters”; and new signing Maria Somerville transforms Air Miami’s “Seabird” into an even more ethereal creature.

You can listen to those covers, along with the originals, and check out the full “Bills & Aches & Blues” 

tracklist below.

Bills & Aches & Blues:
1. Tkay Maidza – Where Is My Mind? (Pixies cover) 02:57
2. U.S. Girls – Junkyard (The Birthday Party cover) 03:00
3. Aldous Harding – Revival (Deerhunter cover) 02:17
4. The Breeders – The Dirt Eaters (His Name Is Alive cover) 03:35
5. Maria Somerville – Seabird (Air Miami cover) 04:37
6. Tune-Yards – Cannonball (The Breeders cover) 03:11
7. Spencer – Genesis (Grimes cover) 04:30
8. Helado Negro – Futurism (Deerhunter cover) 03:10
9. Efterklang – Postal (Piano Magic cover) 04:00
10. Bing & Ruth – Gigantic (Pixies cover) 05:30
11. Future Islands – The Moon Is Blue (Colourbox cover) 04:39
12. Jenny Hval – Sunbathing (Lush cover) 02:46
13. Dry Cleaning – Oblivion (Grimes cover) 03:50
14. Bradford Cox – Mountain Battles (The Breeders cover) 06:25
15. SOHN – Song To The Siren (This Mortal Coil / Tim Buckley cover) 04:46
16. Becky and the Birds – The Wolves (Act I and II) (Bon Iver cover) 04:31
17. Ex:Re – Misery Is a Butterfly (Blonde Redhead cover) 05:09
18. Big Thief – Off You (The Breeders cover)

BLEACH LAB – ” Flood “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in MUSIC
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With their debut EP ‘A Calm Sense Of Surrounding’ arriving on 19th March, Bleach Lab are giving us the final taste of what to expect with a new track ‘Flood’.

“’Flood’ is one long metaphor for being completely overwhelmed and overcome by someone and losing all sense of control within them,” singer Jenna Kyle explains. “I sing ‘I’m in his words, I’m in his mouth, I’m in his mind’ to get across how absorbed I was by them, much like how the sand soaks up a wave.”

The recurring metaphor of the sea, and what lies beneath, is found throughout the upcoming record, used by Jenna and bassist Josh Longman to explore their traumatic experiences of grief, and mirrored in guitarist Frank Wates’ sound. “When you think about it, water has so many different characteristics,” he notes. “It can resemble calm, tranquillity and slowness. Yet it can also be utterly terrifying – waves that dwarf you, ships desperate to stay afloat, dangerous predators unknowingly swimming under your feet. We felt this was similar to the whole mess of emotions which grief exposes you to and it subconsciously seeped into our lyrics and soundscapes.”

Bleach Lab are establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with, conjuring spaced-out melodies alongside jangly guitars. Taking inspiration from the likes of Mazzy Star and The Smiths, Bleach Lab have fused their own introspective yet emotionally frenetic soundscape. 

Bucks born, South London based indie/dream-pop band, formed in late 2018 ‘A Calm Sense of Surrounding’ EP

X – ” Los Angeles “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in MUSIC
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Happy Anniversary to X’s debut studio album “Los Angeles”, originally released April 26th, 1980. Since its release in 1980, X’s debut album “Los Angeles” has rightfully gone on to be widely heralded as one of punk rock’s true classics.

The album announced to the rest of the world the arrival of the west coast punk explosion (which included such other acts as Black Flag, the Germs, Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, Fear, etc.). But X was more than just your average, ordinary punk band, as they weren’t afraid to inject rockabilly riffs and poetic lyrics into the punk rock stew, as exemplified throughout “Los Angeles”. 

It’s is complex and dazzling in its brutality. “Los Angeles” is one of those albums that will remain with me for the rest of my life. X Founded by bassist John Doe and guitar player Billy Zoom (two incredible punk names eclipsed only by drummer D.J. Bonebrake), the band quickly rose to prominence on the LA punk scene and attracted the attention of ex-Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek, who produced their debut album. Think of Exene Cervenka as a haunted doll. She is beautiful, in a fragile, sort of shabby way, but inside of her something other-worldly howls. She is the antithesis of what we think of when we think of an LA girl; a maiden and crone both, a debutante in a Stepford dress who rambles nonsense on street corners. She is innocence and madness all. 

In my head, I always forget that the album opens with “Your Phone’s Off The Hook, But You’re Not” because Songs For a Future Film Noir opened instead with “Los Angeles.” But “Phone” takes place on the East Coast; all New York is a tow-away zone. You get all of the band’s sound, the surf-rock influence, Exene’s shattered-sidewalk vocals, Zoom’s relentless guitar work. From that moment on, the album will rattle and thrash with that same unmistakable sound. 

It makes sense, of course, that they would cover The Doors’ “Soul Kitchen” with Manzarek at the helm; “Soul Kitchen” feels as though it was written with X in a future-mind.

Los Angeles is more Raymond Chandler than any knock-off pulp novel could be on its best day. The album is populated wall-to-wall with junkies and movie stars, rapists and punks and brutal hangovers. It is as gritty as an unswept floor and yet unapologetically poetic. Who else could write a line like “swallowing one light bulb after another / in the city of electric light?” It’s stunning prose made accessible by the scene it exists in; a guttural beauty howled out into the night. The album spawned some of the quartet’s best-known tracks, including Johnny Hit and Run Pauline, Nausea and The Unheard Music. Produced by Ray Mazarek (the Doors) in an attempt to capture the spirit of their infamous live performances, this ground-breaking studio debut is considered my many to be one of the most influential punk albums of all time.

And what is “Sex and Dying in High Society” but a long-lost noir about the bored and ugly lives of the wealthy? It’s The Long Goodbye set to a blistering guitar. It’s so noir, in fact, that the title track was used in the finale of The Shield—the show that helped kick the modern crime television revival into gear—playing over Vic Mackey’s radio in opening shots of the immortal “Family Meeting.”

And then there’s “Los Angeles.” “Los Angeles” is too raw to be the album opener. The fifth line has a racial epithet; a more earnest listener might have turned it off right there. But by the B-side, you’re already too deep inside to escape.  

The narrator of the song was supposedly inspired by Exene’s roommate Fay Hart, who, according to Marc Spitz and Brendan Mullen in their oral history of L.A. punk We Got The Neutron Bomb, made legendary punk photographer Jenny Lens cry by ranting about how Hitler was right. She later dated Steve Nieve of The Attractions. This is the opposite of a Fun Fact.

But like the city itself, there is no denying the song’s pull, the bone-splintering guitar—but because all dreams have a daybreak waiting on the other side. Some daybreaks are harder than others. Sometimes you wake up confused. Sometimes the clock you bought rings too loud or not at all.

In 1989, John Doe appeared in “Road House” as bartender Pat McGurn. This has nothing to do with Los Angeles. It’s just my favourite fun fact about X. Haunted dolls rarely do anything nice. They cause chaos. They start fires, they maim and kill.

Exene, like Morrissey, has given herself over to conspiracy theories and racist politics, an Isla Vista truther. Suddenly those epithets in the title track make sense, it was not a crazy woman singing them in character, they were coming from a ticking time bomb inside Exene herself, who painted a swastika on her bedroom wall, according to Spitz and Mullen, in their aforementioned We Got the Neutron Bomb.  

“Los Angeles” at 40 stills sounds as raw and untethered as it ever has. It remains fresh and vibrant, at no time do you ever feel as though a carefully constructed front has been put up. They still tour, their new album “Alphabetland” was just released, with Zoom and Bonebrake returning. They’ve dabbled in Americana and alternative, they’ve fronted other bands, they’ve divorced and reunited. But nothing will ever have the same hunger and drive as “Los Angeles”.

The ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND – ” Live At Great Woods ” 6th September 1991

Posted: March 10, 2021 in MUSIC
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Allman Brothers Band Live At Great Woods

The Allman Brothers Band will re-issue Live At Great Woods September 6, 1991 via their own Allman Brothers Band Recording Company imprint on March 26, the anniversary of the first ABB show. The out-of-print Live At Great Woods is due on DVD as well as digitally with both individual audio and video tracks available.

Recorded at the famed Mansfield, Massachusetts venue on September 6th, 1991; Live At Great Woods features a lineup consisting of co-founding members Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Jai Johanny “Jaimoe” Johanson and Butch Trucks joined by Warren Haynes, Allen Woody and Marc Quinones. The concert film was originally filmed for a Japanese TV special and was released on DVD in 2014.

While the initial DVD version featured interview segments interspersed into song performances, the reissue will present the songs without interruption. Highlights include extended versions of ABB classics “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed,” “Blue Sky,” “Jessica” and “Whipping Post.”

PINK FLOYD – ” Live At Knebworth 1990 “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Pink Floyd have announced the release of Pink Floyd Live At Knebworth 1990 for the first time on CD, double vinyl and digital platforms on April 30th. The concert was part of the star-studded 1990 Silver Clef Winners performance at Knebworth House, which Pink Floyd headlined. The concert, on a wet and windy June 30th, included performances from Paul McCartney, Dire Straits, Genesis, Phil Collins, Mark Knopfler, Robert Plant (with Jimmy Page), Cliff Richard, Eric Clapton and Tears For Fears in front of a crowd of 120,000. all in aid of the Nordoff Robbins charity, profits from which went towards setting up the BRIT School. The concert was broadcast globally on MTV.

On the day Pink Floyd – David Gilmour, Nick Mason and Richard Wright  were joined by guest musicians including sax player Candy Dulfer and keyboard player and composer Michael Kamen, backing vocalists Clare Torry (the original “The Great Gig In The Sky” vocalist), Sam Brown and her mother Vicki, and Durga McBroom, and touring band  including Guy Pratt, Jon Carin, Tim Renwick and Gary Wallis.

“There is something special about Knebworth,” recalls drummer Nick Mason. “We all still have fond memories of playing there in the 70’s, and this show was no different. As a North London boy this was almost a home game, but with the added delight of being the re-assembly of the band after a fairly mega tour that had lasted for well over a year. It was also an opportunity to get  the wonderful Candy Dulfer to play –  I had been a fan of hers for quite a while, and it was just a shame we didn’t have an opportunity to utilise her for more. We also had our dear friend Michael Kamen guesting. Michael had contributed so much to PF over the previous ten years, it’s great to have something of his playing on the recording.” David Gilmour and Andy Jackson have remixed the audio and the album features new artwork shot by Floyd collaborator Aubrey ‘Po’ Powell of Hipgnosis and designed by Peter Curzon of Storm Studios.

MUSICIANS:

David Gilmour Guitar, Vocals
Nick Mason Drums, Percussion
Richard Wright Keyboards, Backing Vocals

Guy Pratt Bass Guitar, Vocals
Jon Carin Keyboards, Vocals
Tim Renwick Guitar
Gary Wallis Percussion
Durga McBroom Backing Vocals
Sam Brown Backing Vocals
Vicki Brown Backing Vocals
Clare Torry Backing Vocals (Lead Vocals on The Great Gig In The Sky)

Special Guests
Michael Kamen Keyboards on Comfortably Numb, Run Like Hell
Candy Dulfer Sax on Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Money

The concert, previously unreleased until it appeared on 2019’s “Later Years” box set, is now available as CD or double vinyl set for the first time as a stand-alone album.

Pink Floyd: Live At Knebworth 1990,

Tracklist:

1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Parts 1-5
2. The Great Gig In The Sky
3. Wish You Were Here
4. Sorrow
5. Money
6. Comfortably Numb
7. Run Like Hell

PACKS – ” Silvertongue “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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We’re thrilled to announce the debut album from Packs an increasingly visible presence in Toronto in the first part of 2020. With a string of intriguing lo-fi singles, appearing once every month or so on Bandcamp through 2019 had begun to persuade people to take notice in their hometown, where the band were sharing stages with people like Squirrel Flower and Odetta Hartman, and outside of it. Despite having rarely ventured outside of the city, and having never crossed the border into the US as a band, these early tracks caught our attention.

The band are formally announcing their debut LP “Take the Cake”, which will be released by Fire Talk in partnership with the Toronto indie Royal Mountain Records (Alvvays, Wild Pink, Mac Demarco) on May 21st digitally and July 9th on Vinyl.

To mark the announce the band are sharing the album’s first single “Silvertongue,” a track that captures Packs at their fuzzed-out best.

“It’s easy to be lured into the comforts of past relationships,” says Packs leader Madeline Link. “What’s harder is dealing with years of exhaustion, mistrust, and always hoping. Ditch the whiplash of manipulation and decide what YOU want out of love! “

Toronto’s PACKS make music that’s like leafing through a diary entry of a time without visible movement, a subtle beauty that appears only when paying close attention. The band’s debut is a collection of songs that marry the loose but incisive jangle of early Pavement with the barbed sweetness of Sebadoh and the wide-eyed wonder of the first Shins LP. Written in two different settings, between the city limits of Toronto where Link was living in 2019, and the Ottawa suburbs where she was quarantined with her parents in the spring 2020, both remain complementary emblems of self-reflection and wry observation of the mundanity of daily life. 

From “Take The Cake” out 5/14 on Fire Talk / Royal Mountain. Packs’ Debut Album Out May 21st Digitally & on Vinyl this Summer,

COURTNEY BARNETT – ” Archive Site “

Posted: March 10, 2021 in MUSIC
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Hello friends, hope you’re doing okay. while tour life has been quiet, i started digging around for old gig videos to share with you. this of course turned into a nostalgic deep-dive with my wonderfully creative team helping me search for as many videos, photos, audio, posters, setlists, etc as we could find.

Inspired mostly by my mum’s meticulous and inquisitive archival skills (she has been keeping a list of my shows since 2007), we have made a website at courtneybarnett.live/  where you can scroll through my gig history and find things that have never been shared before, including backstage photos & live recordings.

The site will be constantly evolving as more old and new stuff gets added. people can even send in any photos, videos & memories they’ve got from shows in the past (hit the “contribute” button). i look forward to more shows with you one day soon but for now happy scrolling x

The only show i played with my band in 2020 was an Australian bushfire fundraiser with Camp Cope and Alice Skye in January at the Corner Hotel, Melbourne. it was a super hot day and the sky was full of bushfire smoke. Natalie van den Dungen filmed and edited the whole show, Lara Soulio engineered and mixed the audio, and it’s now up on the live archive site.

Check it out here: https://courtneybarnett.live/highlights ❣

Performed by Courtney Barnett, Dave Mudie and Bones Sloane with special guest Georgia Mac

The full set from Courtney Barnett and her band (Dave Mudie and Bones Sloane) at the Corner Hotel in January 2020 for an Australian bushfire relief fundraiser.

Tracklist: Hopefulessness City Looks Pretty Avant Gardener Need A Little Time Nameless, Faceless I’m Not Your Mother, I’m Not Your Bitch Small Poppies Depreston Kim’s Caravan Pedestrian At Best Encore: Play It On Repeat Not Only I Sunday Roast Everybody Here Hates You

Watch it in full and other content on the Courtney Barnett live music archive site: https://courtneybarnett.live/highlights​

KALI MASI – ” Freer “

Posted: March 9, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Kali Masi is an American punk rock band from the Chicago. They’ve been heavily touring and self-promoting for the last 6 years; steadily evolving the heavy, emotive, and urgent sound found on their 2017 LP ‘Wind Instrument’ and the much anticipated 2021 follow-up Kali Masi is gearing up to release their new album, [laughs], on March 26th via Take This to Heart Records, and based on what we’ve heard so far, it’s gonna be a good one. “Freer” is the most recently single to be released from the album, and it starts slow before the climax hits and the rest of the band come in full force — not unlike a classic Taking Back Sunday song. “Freer” is a reflection on young suburban friendship, soured beneath the heat lamp of a city’s setting sun. “So much of the album is carved out by the pursuit of inner-freedom, inner-peace, how to escape, and what it is we’re escaping from,” guitarist/vocalist Sam Porter explains. “‘Freer’ is about holding ourselves accountable for our own states, regardless of how damaged, tired, or free we are.”’

Kali Masi – “Freer” (Official Music Video) From their upcoming LP “[laughs]” Out March 26th via Take This To Heart Records / Homebound (EU)

CITIZEN – ” Life In Your Glass World “

Posted: March 9, 2021 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Citizen have always eluded definition. The Toledo, Ohio-based four-piece have been making dynamic, wide-ranging guitar music for over ten years, challenging expectations with each new album and refusing to fit neatly in a box. On their fourth full-length, “Life In Your Glass World”, Citizen have crafted their most singular work to date completely on their own terms—proving that only the band themselves can define their identity.

This definition meant taking the entire process home to Toledo, Ohio – the Glass City – and creating everything in-house. Recorded in vocalist Mat Kerekes’ home studio in his garage, Citizen’s need to continue moving forward creatively went hand in hand with their desire to be fully in control of their creative destiny. The new process afforded the band time to focus on each song’s individual mood, making their sig-nature blend of aggression and melody all the more pronounced, and even capturing appealing imperfections. The result is an album that represents the members’ vision in its purest form, something that feels distinctly Citizen while also marking the start of a fresh chapter.

One of the most immediately striking elements of the direction on Life In Your Glass World is the band’s attention to rhythm. Many of the songs feature undeniably danceable beats and sharp, groove-laden guitar lines, which give both the barnburners and the brooding atmospheric tracks a pulsating heart. The band’s desire to assert themselves is palpable both in the music and Kerekes’ lyrics, mirroring not only their creative frustrations but also a long year of personal upheavals. It’s fitting for Life In Your Glass World, a record that proves Citizen’s true identity is rooted in the raw energy of constant evolution.

“I Want to Kill You” by Citizen from the upcoming album ‘Life in Your Glass World’ out March 26th 2021 via Run For Cover Records

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