CMJ

CMJ 2013 Badges On Sale Now! Huge Discounts Available Today

webmaster — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:41:42 +0000

Icona Pop @ Santos Party House, CMJ 2012 by Jessica Cullen

CMJ Music Marathon 2013 is just six months away, but badges are on sale now, with heavy discounts for early birds. This includes five full days of non-stop panels, seminars, exclusive parties, special events and, of course, thousands of shows from the best rising artists.

Full badges start at $300—a 45% discount off the walk-up price of $549. Students can snag their badge for just $90, and student group badges begin at only $75. These discounts will only be available until May 20—that’s this Monday—so pick up your badge now.

CMJ Music Marathon takes place in New York City on October 15-19, 2013.

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Watch: Le1f’s Video for “Spa Day”

Brooke Segarra — Fri, 17 May 2013 19:19:16 +0000

The lyrics for “Spa Day,” an exhilarating track off Le1f’s last mixtape Fly Zone, provide a panorama of clouting passive aggression at a gaudy party hosted at the spa. Over the course of four minutes the New York rapper takes you to a party where you don’t always know how far the hospitality extends. So it’s only fitting that the song now has an equally alluring and confounding video to go along with it.

Even though there’s lots of brazen background activity framing him, the primary appeal of the video is Le1f himself, acting cocky and spitting his lyrics in a bathrobe, at the shower, or in a smoggy steam room. Watch below as Le1f’s day at the spa becomes an invitation to have full attention paid to himself and his big soliloquy.

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Paramore @ Hammerstein Ballroom: May 16, 2013

Luis Paez-Pumar — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:45:45 +0000

About three-quarters of the way through their first set in New York since 2011, Paramore brought things back to the start. Lead singer Hayley Williams relayed to the sold out Hammerstein Ballroom a story about the early days of the band, when the then teenage group played in empty rooms to crowds who couldn’t care less. This led into a rendition of All We Know Is Falling cut “Whoa”, which is about as simple as the title would suggest. Rather than a celebration of the past, the song was more of an awestruck ode to how far they’ve come. “This is such a simple song, and we thought we were geniuses when we wrote it,” said Williams, stifling a laugh because, for their brand of intelligent pop-punk, they may as well be labeled geniuses now. The occasion behind the show was the tour behind their latest and greatest (by some margin) album, the self-titled Paramore.

“This new album…it’s our favorite thing that we’ve ever done.” That statement can read as a sales pitch, a “thanks for being here, so give us more money” pitch, in the hands of a lesser band. Yet when Williams says it, you take it as you do the band’s music: earnestly and graciously. There’s no irony in Paramore’s catalog; after all, the band’s third song on the night is named “For a Pessimist, I’m Pretty Optimistic”, less a wink and more of a mission statement. Believe or not, Paramore used to lean more towards the front half of that title, a severe band camouflaged by charisma and sheer force of personality. Now, after a tumultuous lineup change that caused two of the founding members to leave on not-so-great terms, it’s becoming obvious that optimism wins; the princess of spades has grown into a queen of hearts.

The old songs still gathered in some of that previous angst, but its now channeled through rose-colored shades; band unity manifesto “Looking Up” reads a bit condescending on record, but now that they really didn’t hang up, it sounds more like an exhale than teeth grating. Same goes for “Ignorance”, which may or may not be about departed Farro brother Josh, and sounded as hard as anything the band has ever done. Well, except maybe for the live outro to “Let The Flames Begin”, which continues to be a crowd-pleasing burst of passion, at God or each other or whatever you want to believe in.

The two most famous Paramore songs brought very different yet almost equally pleasurable moods to the venue: “Misery Business” led things off (after a short ukulele intro from the new album), immediately jacking things up to 11, while “The Only Exception” might as well have been the crowd’s open letter to each other (don’t think too hard about the fact that it’s about the dude who wrote “My Friends Over You”), all sways and hugs and some tears. It was a weird dissonance, hearing songs that were created under non-ideal circumstances, but via both the new energy and Williams’s traditional charisma, they were used not as nostalgic looks back, but rather as present adoration for what they’ve created.

It was therefore not surprising that the most joyful parts of the set were those that pulled from Paramore, such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs-aping “Now” (hearing that “na-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ow” chorus live is something that needs to be experienced at least once), or the pop-punk power trip “Anklebiters”, which on this night featured gang backup vocals in the form of Hayley-chosen audience members. Pre-encore set ender and current single “Still Into You” featured hand claps, that sticky guitar riff, and streamers blasted into the audience. However, it was current song of the year candidate “Ain’t It Fun” that shone as the best of the bunch here, as its Jackson 5-inspired groove brought a nice bit of dance to a night of generally rocking numbers. Bonus points for how much, well, fun the band seems to have when they play these new songs, with Williams running around in a sugar rush, while guitarist/other-songwriter Taylor York and bassist Jeremy Davies bounced off each other, both metaphorically and literally. This is a band that almost broke up, but the fact that they persevered and regrouped in order to make their (as of now) masterpiece…that’s nothing to scoff at. Joy is infectious, and under the rule of Paramore, it’s hard to believe that anyone left Hammerstein Ballroom with anything less than a jaw pain-inducing smile.

Openers Kitten are made of a similar mold as Paramore, following an energetic front woman to the gates of hell and back. That front woman is 18 year old Chloe Chaidez, who comes off as more of an atmospheric presence at times yet can grab your attention by the throat when needed. Towards the end of the band’s set, she jumped on one of the mountains of amps, both to scream her lungs out and to sit and let her band fill the air around her. Even from halfway back on the floor, the smile on her face was evident. Their brand of post-punk-tinged pop demanded center-stage, and whether by design or not, they were the perfect entree for a night that proved, among other things, that few bad things can happen from letting a young band explode with intensity.

Paramore Setlist:
Interlude: Moving On
Misery Business
For a Pessimist, I’m Pretty Optimistic
Decode
Now
Renegade
Pressure
Ain’t It Fun
The Only Exception
Let The Flames Begin (w/ live outro)
Fast In My Car
Ignorance
Looking Up
Whoa
Anklebiters
That’s What You Get
Still Into You

Encore
Proof
Brick By Boring Brick

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Vår – No One Dances Quite Like My Brothers

Christopher Powell — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:45:03 +0000

On the surface, it’s somewhat counter-intuitive that Copenhagen group Vår’s name translates to the Danish word for “spring”. While spring is a season that evokes ideas of new, bright beginnings, Vår’s tense and gloomy electronic music often encapsulates a feeling of dark isolation better associated with winter. In that regard, War, their original name, may have been the more appropriate selection. Prompted by copyright concerns (The “Cisco Kid” likely ain’t no friend of theirs), the change in moniker was made. On No One Dances Quite Like My Brothers, Vår challenges the initial doomed impression it creates with a sincere foundation of hope. Its moments of expressive, melancholic beauty inspire but ultimately the album falls short of telling a complete story.

Following in the footsteps of contemporaries Cold Cave and Lust For Youth, the project of childhood friends Elias Bender Rønnefelt (Iceage) and Loke Rahbek (Sexdrome) deconstructs layers of punk aggression and filters them through the lens of synthesized, darkwave music. For its Sacred Bones debut, the original duo employed new members Kristian Emdal (of Lower) and Lukas Højland to record in a studio located behind Brooklyn’s Heaven Street record store, owned by Sean Ragon of labelmates Cult Of Youth.

Over a haunting drone, Rønnefelt’s yearning, desolate vocals enter “Begin To Remember” in a tense state of confinement. While these traits aren’t dissimilar from his Iceage demeanor, here he appears vulnerable and hopeful that there may be a way out rather than being cornered into the visceral anger that detachment can inspire. With Rahbek singing, “The World Fell” fully ignites that glimmer of hope into uplifting synth-pop. The lyrics may be grounded in apocalyptic notions but somehow Earth’s demise has never felt quite so inviting. Likewise, “Picture Of Today/Victorial” confidently marches along, combining the noise experiments throughout the album with an ability to craft an inspiring anthem.

Those experiments, however, are what tends to put the album in its own way. For example, “Boy” is a bleak 3-minute track of expansive synth drone that achieves its intended mood but feels more like an obstruction in the flow of the record. Similarly, “Hair Like Feathers” implements interesting sounds and uses of rhythm all on its own but doesn’t serve the record as a whole. Once they get there, “Into Distance” is yet another powerful and accessible offering with a pagan-folk temperament that’s not dissimilar from Ragon’s work in Cult Of Youth.

Barely over a half-hour long, the album’s end comes as a surprise with each and every listen. Although the dark, pulsing beauty of “Katla” feels like an appropriate close, somehow No One Dances Quite Like My Brothers feels too brief in relation to the depth of its emotions. Combined with the lulls of the noise tracks and its brevity, the undeniable strength of its best songs does not receive a formidable enough supporting cast. With youth on its side, there are plenty of encouraging signs here that indicate the same optimistic kind of potential for Vår that’s intrinsic to the season with which it shares a name.

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No Joy, Weekend, Grand Resort @ Glasslands: May 17, 2013

webmaster — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:02:02 +0000

Weekend @ Glasslands Gallery by Chris Becker

Last night Glasslands, the beloved Kent Avenue venue that’s no longer up in the clouds, hosted Montreal shoegazers No Joy, CMJ 2011 band Weekend and Brooklyn’s own Grand Resort. Photos by Chris Becker.

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Listen: New Liars’ Tracks, “I Saw You From The Lifeboat” And “Perfume Tear”

Brooke Segarra — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:25:15 +0000

At just the cost of an email address you can download two all new tracks from Liars, “I Saw You From The Lifeboat” and “Perfume Tear”—in other words, they’re freebies! All you’ve gotta do is hop over to this site and download the tracks.

Both songs are reminiscent of the type of dread-soaked synth-pop the group explored on 2012′s excellent WIXIW and they pack a big ominous punch. You can get a taste of the offer by watching the tour video for “I Saw You From The Lifeboat” below.

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Fuck Buttons Announce Details For New Album, Slow Focus

Brooke Segarra — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:07:29 +0000

The illustrious electro-bedlam duo Fuck Buttons will release a new album, Slow Focus, on July 23 via ATP, as the follow-up to 2009’s well-received Tarot Sport. This will be Fuck Buttons’ first self-produced record recorded at their very own Space Mountain Studio. It’s a terse seven song track list but, unless Fuck Buttons has mellowed out over these four years then the short track list is hardly indicative that you won’t get your fill with the new record.

In addition to the new record there will also be plenty of chances to catch all the kaleidoscopic tumult live this summer as Fuck Buttons will be making plenty of festival appearances around the globe. Check out the tracklist, live dates and Tarot Sport‘s epic “Olympians” below.

Tracklist For Slow Focus:
01. Brainfreeze
02. Year Of The Dog
03. The Red Wing
04. Sentients
05. Prince’s Prize
06. Stalker
07. Hidden XS

Fuck Buttons On The Festival Circuit:
05/23 – Barcelona, Spain – Primavera Sound
 05/31 – Porto, Portugal – Optimus Primavera Sound
 06/21 – Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands – Best Kept Secret Festival
 06/22 – Westmeath, Ireland – Body And Soul Festival
 06/28 – Pilton, England – Glastonbury Festival
 08/15-18 – Black Maintains, Wales – Greenman Festival
 08/31 – Bristol, England – ArcTangent Festival
 10/26 – Melbourne, Australia – Release The Bats

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pacificUV On Athens, GA

webmaster — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:07:19 +0000

Photo by Brittainy Lauback

In Scene Report, musicians from all over the globe fill us in on what’s going on sonically in their hometowns. This week, Clay Jordan of pacificUV gives us the scoop on Athens, GA. pacificUV’s latest album, After the Dream You Are Awake, is out now.

Athens is Athens: I’ve run across very few scenes like it. It’s diverse, very DIY oriented, and fairly small in comparison to much larger cities. The city of Athens isn’t much over 100k people, so to have such an active, healthy music community is fairly surprising. There are a number of scenes happening in Athens, some larger than others, but a lot of musical genres are represented.

Next page: Bands Worth Watching

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Vampire Weekend – Modern Vampires Of The City

Lisa Hresko — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:20:22 +0000

If you’ve done something right the first time, where is the need to recreate it? Looking back on what has worked so well for Vampire Weekend in the past—wistful Afro-pop, earthy Caribbean instrumentation and lyrics about punctuation—it becomes clear that recreating past glories simply wasn’t an option for the band’s third album, Modern Vampires Of The City. In a jarringly beautiful manner, Vampire Weekend has grown. Working with production svengali Ariel Rechtshaid (Charli XCX, Usher), the group has employed every tool at its disposal: sampling, the subtle wah-wah of pitch-shifting, Rostam Batmanglij’s expressive ingenuity on the keys and an overarching melancholia. Vampires Of The Modern City stands to become the group’s Paul’s Boutique, raising the bar from being a fun but safe band to breaking ground ahead of their peers. Like the skyscrapers on the album’s cover, a photo of the smoggiest day in New York City’s history, hope pokes out through a cloud of angst.

And how do they do it? By slowing down. Many tracks here, like opener “Obvious Bicycle,” which samples reggae maestro Ras Michael, are “the slow tracks.” At first listen, “Step,” has more than just a tinge of the insufferable ’90s prom sob-fest “Graduation (Friends Forever),” but, thankfully, the band doesn’t show even a hint of the schmaltzy feel-good attitude of Vitamin C. They focus not on a falsely satisfying group hug, but instead on an internal nostalgia: the confusion of coming of age into a era of internet-explosion music nerdom. Released earlier this year as a double A-side with “Step,” “Diane Young” and “Worship You” are Vampire Weekend at its most fun. Harried, peppy and reminiscent of the early single that launched the band’s career, “A-Punk,” both songs still give the album a swift burst of energy.

Some things don’t change—Ezra Keonig still delivers metaphor-laden non sequiturs in a naturally calculated cadence, occasionally breaking into a stirring falsetto as Batmanglij steers the melody unpredictably—nor should they. This is still a Vampire Weekend album and to expect something aside from outre Americana would be foolish. The deceptively simplistic “Hannah Hunt,” a minimalist ballad of a couple on the road, is a perfect storm of Keonig’s taste for escapism both then—it could be a follow-up to Contra‘s “Run”—and now.

Modern Vampires Of The City is big. Not big in stature or structure, but the band has finally mastered the art of the crescendo—taking the listener to the brink and holding them there, wobbling, just long enough to lose their footing before tumbling down the rabbit hole. This is most evident on single “Ya Hey,” which builds on a Handel-like choral and a spoken-word Rolling Stones nod. Sample-heavy funeral dirge “Hudson” is the stone thrown furthest from the band’s earlier work, and, therefore is one of the standout songs on an album packed with stars. The ghostly lament is thick with the weighty themes running throughout the album: the heaviness of being and the incessant tick-tocking of time. And, true to form as a beautiful breakdown, innovation is gorgeous.

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Franz Ferdinand Announce New Album, Release Teaser

Brooke Segarra — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:40:59 +0000

After a four year respite since the release of Tonight, Franz Ferdinand is busy recording what will be its fourth studio album, Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action, due out on August 26 in the U.S. via Domino. Self-producing and recording in their own studio the band seems to be taking a very holistic approach to this record.

There are some rumors and murmurs on what the new album will have in store—just listen to the quick clip in the teaser video below—but the likelihood of hearing it from the source is next to nil. Kapranos is keeping this record on the DL for now as he feels the last record was tainted by a lot of pre-release “bullshit.”

Tracklist For Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action:
01. Right Action
02. Evil Eye
03. Love Illumination
04. Stand On The Horizon
05. Fresh Strawberries
06. Bullet
07. Treason! Animals.
08. The Universe Expanded
09. Brief Encounters
10. Goodbye Lovers And Friends

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Listen: Mount Kimbie Team Up With King Krule For “You Took Your Time”

Trevor Smith — Wed, 15 May 2013 21:36:19 +0000

Photo by Chris Rhodes

The long wait for the new Mount Kimbie album is nearly over. The duo will be releasing their new album Cold Spring Fault Less Youth on May 28 through Warp and though they’ve already given us a taste of the album with the murky, atmospheric songs “Made To Stray” and “Blood And Form,” today they’ve released yet another new track.

The new song, “You Took Your Time,” features British singer-songwriter King Krule spitting gnarled, obtuse lyrics over a shuffling beat in a manner that sounds sorta like El-P slowed down to a knuckle-dragging crawl. It’s emphatic, arresting and calming all at the same time. Have a listen for yourself below.

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Ty Segall Announces New Record, Sleeper

Trevor Smith — Wed, 15 May 2013 20:34:15 +0000

Ty Segall is addicted to making records. The Cali native released three different albums in 2012—Ty Segall And White Fence’s sprawling Hair, the Ty Segall Band’s feral Slaughterhouse and plain old Ty Segall’s reflective Twins—and today he announced that he will be releasing a new piece of work dubbed Sleeper on August 20 via Drag City. He also has an album due out with his side project Fuzz later this year. Jeeze, only two albums? Segall must be going through writer’s block.

Judging from goofy trailer Segall released today, Sleeper promises to be a quirky one. The video features a sedated Segall sleeping in various uncomfy places, including a tree, his van and his front yard. Wake up dude! Gotta get back to putting out three albums in a year! Check it out below.

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Watch: !!!’s Video For “One Girl/One Boy”

Trevor Smith — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:50:38 +0000

Californian dance-punks !!! (or chk chk chk) released their fifth studio album, Thri!!er, back in April and it has been shimming its way up the CMJ charts ever since. Now the band is gearing up to hit the road for a North American tour, but sadly guest vocalist Sonia Moore, who’s featured on the track “One Girl/One Boy,” will not be touring with the band. So the band has decided that they will choose one fan per city to join them on stage and sing along.

If you’re brave enough to accept the challenge, then you can upload a YouTube video of yourself singing along to one of the bands songs. They are however asking for “no flakes, no egos, no drug problems.” Find more info here. And maybe watch the psychedelic, color-filled video for “One Girl/One Boy” below for some inspiration.

Tour Dates For !!!:
05/16 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair *
05/17 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom *
05/18 – Washington, DC – Black Cat *
05/19 – Durham, NC – Motorco *
05/20 – Asheville, NC – Orange Peel *
05/22 – Atlanta, GA – Earl %
05/23 – Birmingham, AL – Bottle Tree %
05/24 – New Orleans, LA – Tipitina’s %
05/25 – Austin, TX – Mohawk (Outdoor Stage) %
05/26 – El Paso, TX – The Lowbrow Palace %
05/27 – Tucson, AZ – Club Congress ^
05/28 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom ^
05/29 – San Diego, CA – Casbah ^
05/30 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw
05/31 – Sacramento, CA – Cesar Chavez Park
06/1 – Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre ^
06/3 – Portland, OR – Bunk Bar ^
06/4 – Vancouver, BC – Fortune Sound Club ^
06/7 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Café *
06/8 – Chicago, IL – The Bottom Lounge *
06/9 – Detroit, MI – Magic Stick *
06/10 – Toronto, ON – Horseshoe Tavern *
06/11 – Montreal, QC – Le Belmont *
06/12 – Burlington, VT – Signal Kitchen *
06/13 – Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall *
06/14 – Hamden, CT – Spaceland Ballroom
06/15 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer *
08/25 – Los Angeles, CA – FYF Fest
08/31 – Seattle, WA @- Bumbershoot

* = with Sinkane
% = with Shockwave Riderz
^ = with White Arrows

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The Orwells Plot Massive Fall Tour With FIDLAR

Lisa Hresko — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:15:54 +0000

The Orwells @ CMJ 2012 by Clayton Carr

Just in case you din’t get to see them rip it up at CMJ 2012, young Chicago upstarts the Orwells will hit the road this autumn with FIDLAR. Expect to hear some new tunes, too, as their EP, Other Voices, will be released June 25 on East End/Canvasback. You can watch the probably very sweaty video for the Dave Sitek-produced love song/not-really-a-love song Other Cities, below. And don’t forget to check out the tour dates: there are 26 of them.

Tour Dates For The Orwells:
06/06 – Madison, WI – Memorial Union Terrace
0 6/07- Detroit, MI – Majestic Theater
06/08 – Detroit, MI – Orion Music Festival
08/04 – Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza
09/20 – Santa Barbara, CA – Velvet Jones*
09/23 – Tucson, AZ – Club Congress*
09/24 – Phoenix, AZ – The Crescent Club*
09/26 – Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge*
09/27 – Kansas City, MO – Czar Bar*
09/28 – St. Louis, MO – Firebird*
09/30 – Columbia, MO – Mojo’s*
10/02 – Atlanta, GA – Drunken Unicorn*
10/07 – New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jacks*
10/14 – Nashville, TN – Exit/In*
10/16 – Columbus, OH – The Basement*
10/18 – Toronto ON – Hard Luck*
10/19 – Montreal QB – Il Motore*
10/23 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair*
10/24 – NYC – Bowery Ballroom*
10/25 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church*
10/26 – Washington DC – Rock and Roll Hotel*
10/28 – Pittsburgh, PA – The Smiling Moose*
10/29 – Cleveland Heights, OH – Grog Shop*
10/31 – Chicago, IL – Subterranean*
11/01 – Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon*
11/02 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry*

* with FIDLAR

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Wampire – Curiosity

Trevor Smith — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:47:57 +0000

Rocky Tinder and Eric Phipps’ journey commenced about 11 years ago when the two were still in middle school, and since then there’s been no looking back. After honing their synth-pop sound for years in Portland’s underground party scene, the duo, dubbed Wampire, has finally released its debut full length, Curiosity, which finds Tinder and Phipps maturing in surprising and charming ways.

Ditching their grungy tone and opting for a more airy, upbeat sound, Curiosity does exactly what it’s supposed to do: it keeps you on your toes. Placing a greater emphasis on psychedelic guitar tones, the album sees the band teaming up with producer and Unknown Mortal Orchestra bassist Jacob Portrait, whose presence is immediately felt on the opening track “The Hearse.” The song starts off with heavy droning synths, before switching the beat up all of a sudden and switching to a full-fledged guitar freak-out. The band finds a way to find cohesion within the chaos.

As the title implies, Wampire isn’t afraid to make some curious digressions. If the band was aiming to be as unpredictable as possible, well, mission accomplished. While “The Hearse” is sunny, buoyant and poppy, the following song, “Orchards,” is steady and placid. “It’s so fun to be so goddamn young,” Tinder sings as guitars blare and what sound like maracas shake in the background. “Spirit Forest” combines the band’s fondness of heavy bass and spacey synths, coming off sounding a bit like Ariel Pink at his most playful.

That sense of fun and exploration doesn’t let up as the album heads into its second half. “Trains,” one of the clear highlights, is a delightfully easy-going love letter of a pop song. The steady drums create the perfect beat for the band to croon over and majestic guitar strums provide the perfect mood for softly swaying in place. “You’re driving me insane/I was waiting for your train,” sings Tinder as the song sputters off into nothingness, the drum falling off beat and the guitars slinking out of tune. It’s almost as if the band got bored with the song, which fits with the group’s ADHD tendencies. The album jumps all over the place, showing little interest in staying true to a single genre or style, but even in the darker, heavier moments these songs are unified by an urge to please and the untamable desire to move onto the next thing as soon as possible.

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