Xiu Xiu’s new album Angel Guts: Red Classroom has just come out, and to coincide with its release, they’ve dropped a video for the first single ‘Stupid In the Dark’. The Amir Shoucri-directed video is quite bloody and violent as it portrays a murder taking place. You can watch it here.
Angel Guts: Red Classroom is out now in Europe via Bella Union and in North America via Polyvinyl.
We immediately fell for Oakland based quintet Waterstrider when they came under our radar a couple of weeks ago. We already knew their debut album was in the works, and the great news is they’ve shared the first single off it, ‘Redwood’. As Waterstrider put it, ‘Redwood’ “is an encapsulation of what’s to come: big guitars and an even bigger rhythm section thunder along, providing the perfect foil for singer Nate Salman’s elegant, lilting falsetto”. We love it and if this first single is any inclination of what’s to come, we are in for a treat. Here’s ‘Redwood’.
London based quartet Hugh, the new project from Benin City’s Joshua Idehen, also made up of Andy Highmore, Holly Bestic and Martin Kolarides, emerged last Autumn and teased us then with their debut track ‘Not Fair Too Far’. We’ve been waiting to hear its follow-up ever since. The wait is over and their second excellent cut ‘Look Back In Laughter’ has surfaced the web. Listen to it now.
Mouse on Mars have just released a video for ‘Creme Theme’, taken from their recently released five-track EP Spezmodia. The striking and ecstatic visuals go hand in hand with the track’s rave energy. Watch it below.
Spezmodia EP is out now on Monkeytown Records.
Ben Webster, Robert Tubb and Ewan Fisher, who make up Standard Planets, have aired their debut single ‘Telegraph’, ahead of its official release on March 24th. The single, an enticing cosmic affair, saw the London based trio enlist the help of German krautrock legend Harald Grosskopf. Standard Planets are on a roll, and a collaboration with Neu!’s Michael Rother is also in the works. Now listen to ‘Telegraph’ below.
Los Angeles born, New York based jazz pianist and composer Kris Bowers has announced the release of his debut full-length album, Heroes + Misfits. Bowers cites a number of influential elements, emphasizing the accelerated technological advancement of our era. Rooted in the jazz tradition, Heroes + Misfits also reflects Bowers’s extensive classical training.
Now in the bandleader seat for the first time, Bowers enlisted the help of alto saxophonist Casey Benjamin, tenor saxophonist Kenneth Whalum III, guitarist Adam Agati, bassist Burniss Earl Travis II, and drummer Jamire Williams to bring his album to the world.. Heroes + Misfits also features guest contributions from vocalists Julia Easterlin, Jose James and Chris Turner.
The album is slated for a March 4th release via Concord Jazz. Ahead of it, Bowers has shared the first marvellous single ‘Forget’er’ featuring Julia Easterlin. Listen to it now.
