A Storm Of Light Announce Debut Album on Neurot!

A Storm of Light
Announces Debut Album, And We Wept the Black Ocean Within, out June 10th on Neurot * US Dates w/ Harvey Milk * Europe w/ Neurosis!



Graham first burst on the scene as the newest member of Bay Area titans Neurosis, handling the visual element which included live pieces and graphic design, eventually leading into the legendary "A Sun That Never Sets" companion DVD. On the heels of that well received DVD, Josh went on to direct music videos and design artwork for Dillinger Escape Plan, Enon, Jesu, Khann, Underoath, Saves The Day, and many others. Meanwhile, Josh wielded a heavy (like the music) axe (like the guitar) in Red Sparowes featuring members of the like-minded Isis, Battle Of Mice with members of local metallers Made Out Of Babies, and Tribes of Neurot (a Neurosis related experimental project). His tenure with Red Sparowes has recently come to an end, but that hasn't stopped Mr. No-Sleep from starting another band... A Storm Of Light. - BrooklynVegan (read the entire interview here!)

The voice that leads And We Wept the Black Ocean Within is now dead.

No, tragedy hasn't struck since the album was recorded. The debut release from Brooklyn, NY trio A Storm of Light is anything but posthumous. However, within its murky, suffocating depths there lies little certainty about the origin and veracity of the words bellowed by guitarist Josh Graham (also Neurosis visual director, Blood and Time, Battle of Mice and formerly of Red Sparowes) as mouthpiece of the album's protagonist.

The unreliable narrator as a literary device -- familiar to the works of authors like Edgar Allan Poe and William Faulkner -- places readers within an intractable mind in a severely compromised state. Interestingly, this notion rarely explored in rock music is the essence of And We Wept the Black Ocean Within. The first-person lyrics are unclear exactly who might be delivering them as they appear to move through varying stages of grief (i.e. denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance) through - out the course of the album. It could be something inanimate, could be something animal, or it could be the words of someone long deceased. Graham isn't forthcoming with details, however. The closest he comes is a vague hint to the cover artwork and something to do with so-called "bog bodies" -- phenomenally well-preserved human remains dating back to the Celtic Iron Age of persons violently dispensed by being submerged in acidic peat bogs.

Whichever the case may be, these dark themes of drowning, destruction and despair are perfectly suited to A Storm of Light's impressively pressurized sound. Graham is joined on the album by bassist/vocalist Domenic Seita (ex-Tombs, ex-Asea) and drummer Pete Angevine of Satanized. Since this recording, rhythmic pugilist extraordinaire Vincent Signorelli (Unsane, ex-Swans) has signed on as second drummer. As you'd guess by the pedigree, A Storm of Light is brutally hard-hitting. However, the group's haunting harmonic drone meshing guitar, vocals and subtle keyboard layers gives listeners a sense of slow suffocation in waves of noise rather than straightforward pummeling.

While the immediate heavy rock referents of the band's antecedents make sense, the album has just as much in common with narrative-based groups like Crime & The City Solution than conceptual metal. As an early influence on Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (and later to share members), Crime & The City Solution's Simon Bonney penned dark tales of desperation and punctuated them with precise song structures that flowed with the prose, rarely adhering to traditional verse-chorus-verse formula. Likewise, And We Wept the Black Ocean Within moves in versicle form between the voice and instruments. The result is an album densely packed with suspense, tension and eruptive release.

Aided by master engineer Joel Hamilton (Book of Knots, Battle of Mice), Graham's slack-tuned guitar rumbles and groans while subtle keyboard lines and Seita's bass slither throughout the lowest ranges of the musical scale. Angevine's lunging rhythms add crashing and propulsive heft. The vocals sound as intricately layered as the other instruments, often sounding unclear how many voices are adding to the harmony... guitar notes, voices, synth chords all blur into a wash that quite suitably evokes a sense of deep sea water pressure. We wouldn't go so far to suggest that it could give listeners a case of the bends, but And We Wept the Black Ocean Within is not the type of album that one can easily escape and switch into something else.

Throughout, there are many jutting sonic surprises that we'd be reticent to reveal herein. Suffice to say, the debut of A Storm of Light is a truly suspenseful and captivating work that bears nearly as much to do with masterful cinema and literature as it does with the type of monolithic and epic sounds of its musical progenitors.



Tracklist for And We Wept The Black Ocean Within
01. Adrift
02. Vast & Endless
03. Black Ocean
04. Thunderhead
05. Undertow
06. Mass
07. Leaden Tide
08. Breach
09. Descent
10. Iron Heart

A Storm of Light Live!
Jun 14 2008 The 4th Annual Shaun Luu Horror Fest at The Palace Theater Syracuse, New York w/ The Red Chord

w/ Harvey Milk
Jun 21 Great Scott Boston, MA
Jun 23 Europa Bar Brooklyn, NY
Jun 24 Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia, PA
Jun 25 Ottobar Baltimore, MD

Europe w/ Neurosis!
Aug 14 2008 Klub Stodoła Warsaw, Poland, Masovia
Aug 15 2008 Brutal Assault Fesitval at Army Fortress JOSEFOV Jaromer, Czech Republic
Aug 18 2008 UT Connewitz Leipzig
Aug 19 2008 UT Connewitz Leipzig
Aug 20 2008 TBA Duisburg
Aug 21 2008 Metropolis München
Aug 22 2008 VNV Rock Altitude Festival Le Locle
Aug 23 2008 Mamamia Club Senigallia
Sep 3 2008 013 Tilburg



For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/astormoflight
www.neurotrecordings.com

Cancer Bats Announce US Tour w/ Bullet For My Valentine!

so sick:



Cancer Bats Live!

Europe:
May 19 2008 ROCK CITY *venue change* Nottingham
May 20 2008 Corporation Sheffield
May 21 2008 Satan’s Hollow Manchester
May 22 2008 Camden Barfly London UK
May 24 2008 Spring and Airbrake Belfast, Northern Ireland
May 25 2008 The Hub Dublin Ireland, Dublin
May 28 2008 Magnet Berlin
May 30 2008 Underground Koln
May 31 2008 X Herford
Jun 1 2008 Treibhaus Luzern
Jun 2 2008 Rockhal Luxembourg
Jun 4 2008 Boule Noir Paris
Jun 5 2008 Helling Utrecht w/ The Black Dahlia Murder
Jun 6 2008 Melkweg Amsterdam
Jun 7 2008 Waterfront Rotterdam
Jun 9 2008 007 Prague
Jun 10 2008 Arena Vienna
Jun 11 2008 Cafe Schlachthaus Dornbrim
Jun 14 2008 Rock Planet Ravenna
Jun 15 2008 Traffic Rome
Jun 17 2008 Le Caravan Serail Toulouse
Jun 18 2008 AVV Arrebato Zaragoza
Jun 19 2008 Porto Rio Oporto
Jun 20 2008 Ritmos Y Compas Madrid
Jun 21 2008 Mas Guinada Barcelona
Jun 22 2008 Casino Royale Palma De Mallorca
Jun 29 2008 SCENE FEST St. Catharines, Ontario

US w/ Bullet For My Valentine!
Jul 14 2008 Milwaukee, WI The Rave
Jul 15 2008 Chicago, IL House Of Blues
Jul 16 2008 Minneapolis, MN The Myth
Jul 19 2008 Billings, MT The Shrine
Jul 21 2008 Spokane, WA The Big Easy
Jul 22 2008 Seattle The Sodo
Jul 23 2008 Portland The Roseland
Jul 24 2008 Sacramento, CA The Boardwalk (* NO BFMV)
Jul 25 2008 Los Angeles The Wiltern
Jul 26 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues
Jul 27 2008 San Diego House of Blues
Jul 29 2008 Phoenix, AZ The Marquee
Jul 31 2008 Dallas, TX House of Blues
Aug 1 2008 Houston Verizon Wireless Center
Aug 2 2008 Austin, TX Stubbs
Aug 5 2008 Baltimore TheRams Head
Aug 6 2008 Atlantic City, NJ House of Blues
Aug 7 2008 Lemoyne, PA The Championship (* NO BFMV)
Aug 8 2008 NYC Hammerstein Ballroom
Aug 9 2008 Hampton Beach Hampton Beach Casino
Aug 10 Holyoke Waterfront Tavern (* NO BFMV)
Aug 11 208 Montreal The Metropolis
Aug 12 Toronto The Kool Haus
Aug 13 Dayton, OH The Attic (* NO BFMV)
Aug 14 Cleveland, OH House of Blues
Aug 15 Grand Rapids, MI The Orbit Room
Aug 16 Detroit, MI State Theatre

UK Festivals
Aug 23 2008 READING FESTIVAL LOCK UP STAGE Reading
Aug 24 2008 LEEDS FESTIVAL LOCK UP STAGE LEEDS

Stereogum Premiers New SJ Esau "Depth Perception Lack!"

huge thanks to Amrit and the entire Stereogum staff!



New SJ Esau - "Depth Perception Lack"



We're giving a "yes" stamp to Sam Wisternoff's second non-Anticonny Anticon LP, Small Vessel, a nice step up from '06's Wrong Faced Cat Feed Collapse. "Depth Perception Lack" is the sample track, which comes late album but is actually a great intro point for the record, if only for the easy weaving of myriad ideas SJ stacks into the song's three-and-change minutes. "You know something I don't know" is the somehow cheery theme, chanted as the grooves shift, the instrumentation sprawls, voices joining in and dropping. It's a mini-epic of passages, swells, and climaxes, a lot like the record it belongs to. If you like this, you'll love Small Vessel. I think you'll like this.

SJ Esau - "Depth Perception Lack" (MP3)

The horn passage Sounds Familyre, and the quick cut as the going gets good is a nice "leave 'em wanting more." For those so wanting, Small Vessel is out 6/24 via Anticon. The Bristol man is keeping it relatively close to home, so this list is for our European readers:

05/23 - Madrid, Spain @ Café La Palma
05/28 - Barcelona, Spain (Primavera Festival)
06/05 - Leeds, UK @ Faversham* w/ WHY?
06/06 - Manchester, UK @ Roadhouse*
06/08 - Nottingham, UK @ Bodega*
06/24 - Oxford, UK @ TBA#
06/26 - Bristol, UK @ The Croft#
06/27 - Brighton, UK @ Freebutt Brighton#

* w/ WHY?
# w/ Sole

GDP vs Dirty Money US Tour!

GDP and Dirty Money
Kickoff US Tour in Support of Split 7"



Watch the video for GDP’s “Succumb” off the 7inch here!

“GDP is kicking rear-ends and taking names”- Urb Magazine

“Dirty Money could turn out to be a well needed dram of musical medicine”- Gainesville Sun

New Jersey’s hip hop powerhouse GDP and DJ Prime will be sharing a cut of wax with Florida punk rockers Dirty Money for a 4 song split concept available May 27th on Division East/Thunderstruck Records and a 5 week tour in support beginning May 23nd in Panama City, Florida that promises to be one of the most groundbreaking tours and releases of the summer.

Stream the entire 7inch @
Purevolume.com/gdpdirtymoney

Track Listing:

Dirty Money
1. Not Alone
2. Weary Nights

GDP
1. Succumb
2. Decades

At a time when subcultures are so intertwined and whatever gains some momentum below the radar is sold to the highest bidder, hip hop and punk rock have never been so tastefully represented together. Crossing audiences and genres, inspired by similar ethics in efforts to create a stronger, more versatile underground community. No nonsense, no gimmicks, just honest tunes. Check them out on the road!



GDP vs. Dirty Money Live!
May 23 - Panama City FL - Beamers (The Showcase)
May 24 - Birmingham, AL - Cave 9 w/Benard & Young Hearts
May 25 - Oklahoma City, OK - Warehouse
May 26 - Santa Fe, NM - Chainbreaker Bike Collective
May 28 - Denver, CO - The Climax Lounge w/The Allergies
May 29 - Ft. Collins - Surfside 7
May 30 - Chicago, IL - Ronnyís Bar
May 31 - Grand Ledge, MI - GL Scout Center w/ Hell Or Highwater
Jun 2 - Louisville, KY - The Brickhouse
Jun 3 - Lexington, KY - Interview & Acoustic Performance on WRFL
Jun 3 - Lexington, KY - Brooklyn Pizza w/The Infected
Jun 4 - Lakewood, OH - Soggy Dog House w/Lost Hands Found Fingers
Jun 5 - Pittsburgh, PA - The Rock Room w/American Armada
Jun 6 - Western MA
Jun 7 - Boston, MA - Fort Fuck Awesome! w/Kill Conrad
Jun 9 - Providence, RI - Megís House w/North Lincoln & You Me & The Atom Bomb, Bread & Roses
Jun 10 - Danbury, CT - Cousin Larryís w/Vietnam Werewolf
Jun 11 - Clifton, NJ - Clash Bar
Jun 12 - Brooklyn, NY - Rock Star Bar w/Spanish Bombs
Jun 13 - New Brunzwick, NJ - The Court Tavern w/Static Radio
Jun 14 - New Brunzwick The Junkyard Palace w/Vowels
Jun 15 - Asbury Park, NJ - Asbury Lanes w/Let Me Run
Jun 16 - Doylestown, PA - The Mooselodge w/The Riot Before
Jun 17 - Philadelphia, PA - The Party Mansion!
Jun 18 - Baltimore, MD - Charm City Art Space w/Lonely Are The Brave
Jun 19 - Charles Town, WV - Jumpin Java
Jun 21 - Richmond, VA - Nara Sushi w/The Riot Before & No Brass
Jun 22 - Virginia Beach, VA - Volume Records w/The Riot Before & Landmines
Jun 24 - Charlotte, NC - Lunchbox Records
Jun 25 - Knoxville, TN - Long Branch Saloon
Jun 27 - Gainesville, FL - 1982 Bar w/Anchor Arms & The Shaking Hands
Jun 28 - Tampa, FL - Transitions Art Gallery w/Gatorface

Dirty Money recently toured the US for 55 days in support of their debut EP “Far From Home” on Thunderstruck Records and distributed by No Idea. Meanwhile, GDP has been performing nationwide nonstop since his August 2007 release “Involvement” on Division East Records.

For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/dirtymoneyfl
www.myspace.com/g6d6p6
www.divisioneastrecords.com

Stereogum Premiers New Takka Takka Song "The Takers!"

huge thanks to Amrit and the entire Stereogum staff!



New Takka Takka - "The Takers"



We liked the Takkas right out of the gates -- early demo track "We Feel Safer At Night" (still available here) wedded Gabe's Lou Reedy vocal to a Brooklyn-circa-Clap Your Hands feel (at a time when that wasn't pejorative) making them an eminently bloggable band about town. And while we entirely sold on the full length, the group certainly showed of an ability to continue crafting worthy singles on subsequent mini-releases, including the excellently egg nog-buzzed holiday track "Stars And Subway Cars" and the comely callbacks of "Draw A Map." But Brooklyn's indie landscape has shifted over the past two years -- including faraway sounds and pulses -- and given that the band hadn't made its breakthrough, whatever that means these days, Brooklyn's Takka Takka has clearly shifted with it. Migration isn't just a migration. It's Takka Takka post metamorphosis.

There's been some lineup shifting, and sure that's probably at play here, but more fundamentally the band's aiming for new rhythmic structures entirely. It's not to say their native Brooklyn's not still on their mind -- just see the LP's credits: produced by CYHSY's Sean Greenhalgh and featuring that band's Lee Sargent, along with Olga Bell, Charles Burst, and the National's drumkit ace card Bryan Devendorf. And while clearly they're still hearing their neighbors play (if the Clap influence is played down this album, it's only been substituted with a newfound -- and timely -- fondness for the National's stately swagger), they're drawing far outside their zip code, too. Let the Broken Social Scenester element play out in "The Takers," and know that it's a very new look.

DOWNLOAD: Takka Takka - "The Takers" (MP3)

You can sample another, the more National-istic "Silence," at MySpace. Now in fairness we've based all this on just one quick spin through the new album, but the changes are everywhere (e.g. later on the album, "Homebreaker" hits with a Talking Heads thing, "Lion In The Waves" with a "You And Whose Army"-esque progression, parenthetically titled tracks about "optimists" being right/wrong hit with synthy Eno-isms, etc.). And again, just a one spin verdict ... but the shifts and ambition are a welcome turn indeed. Nice one, Takkas.

Migration is out 7/29 via Ernest Jenning.

Takka tour:
06/06 - Williamsburg, Brooklyn @ Monkeytown
06/06 - Williamsburg, Brooklyn @ Monkeytown
06/22 - Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Life (Popped! Music Festival)
07/15 - New York, NY @ Pianos (Record Release Residency)
07/22 - New York, NY @ Pianos
07/25 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas
07/26 - Madison, WI @ The Frequency
07/29 - New York, NY @ Pianos

The Roller Announces Debut Album June 17th * US Dates w/ Saviours Coming Soon!

Announces Debut Self-Titled Album Out June 17th on Monofonus Press * Upcoming Dates w/ Saviours!



The Roller is the preferred soundtrack of dragons or trolls under bridges, a doom metal roar stretched into a dropped-D gnarr that rumbles and pitches like a barely chained beast. - The Onion

“Massively distorted guitar, plodding bass and drums and a singer who sounds like all 20 feet of his small intestine are being slowly removed from his body with a fork.” – Joe Gross, Austin American Statesman

Formed in the psychotropic bowels of Austin, TX, The Roller emerged in late 2005 with a sound as annihilating as it is heavy. Vacillating between the drone of classic doom and the faster, unpredictable tempos of sludge-metal, the foursome provide the ideal soundtrack for a hesh sesh or all night fuck-fest of mind-bending and calamitous proportions.

The Roller freed some of their first recordings in 2006 on a limited-release, 250-press demo, before permanently recruiting Axes to the Sky alumnus Theron "Groady" Rhoten on guitar. With the current lineup complete, Rhoten, along with drummer Jeremy Jenkins, bassist Ed Davis and vocalist Mike Morowitz launched into a US tour in support of Austin brethren The Sword and San Francisco sludge-bags Black Cobra. They have also already shared the stage with fellow darksiders such as Pelican, Skeleton Witch, Saviours, Middian, Daughters, Kylesa, and Mammatus.

Drawing from the deep vibrations of vintage doom and heavy stoner rock such as Black Sabbath and Blue Cheer, The Roller began work on their first full-length album, recorded at Austin's Sweat Box studio. Set to release on June 17, the band will head out on a west coast tour this summer in support of the album.

For their first full-length, The Roller has teamed up with Austin label Monofonus Press for the 2nd installment of the IF Series, a collection of multimedia box sets that bring together musicians, writers, and visual artists. The Roller establishes the mood with their vicious volume and undeniable presence while author Rebecca Bengal provides the story, Captioning for the Blind, a lonely, lost Hill Country tale full of absence and animal carcasses. Both are accompanied by painter Virginia Yount’s fluorescent visions of surreal and mysteriously abandoned landscapes. Inspired by this collaboration, Morowitz wrote the opening track, “Zugunruhe,” based on Bengal’s story. The title describes an anxious behavior in birds, or as his sickening vocal sermon eerily declares, a “restless migration.”

PLAYERS:
Ed Davis (bass)
Jeremy Jenkins (drums)
Mike Morowitz (vocals)
Theron Rhoten (guitar)



Tracklist for The Roller:
1. Zugunruhe
2. Under the Beneath
3. Cremation of Care
4. Spirit of the Sun
5. Rattle of the Shaman

US Dates w/ Saviours Coming Soon!



For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/gloomaxe
www.monofonuspress.com

Clouds Announce "We Are Above You" out June 17th on Hydra Head * US Dates w/ Boris and Torche!

Announce New Album We Are Above You out June 17th on Hydra Head * US Dates w/ Torche & Boris!



A dangerous sounding and nostalgic record. - Scene Point Blank

An adventure in hard rock. - Alarm Press

These dudes can seriously shred. - Absolutepunk.net

And they said it couldn’t be done. Then again, “they” say a lot of things, don’t they? And in this case, when they implied, insinuated or outright insisted that Boston rock freewheelers Clouds couldn’t possibly get any more awesome, they—in the sadly timeless words of our soon-to-be ex-president—severely misunderestimated our immensely talented and totally gregarious homeboys. And so it follows that Clouds have followed up last year’s Legendary Demo with an even bigger, better, and more brilliant slab of Hott Rock Action.

Featuring Adam McGrath, who brings his impeccable musical pedigree (see: fellow Hydra Head all-stars Cave In), alongside Q, Jimmy, and Johnny, the quartet we call Clouds deliver all the anthemic choruses, white-hot licks and psychedelic grandeur that anyone could ever possibly hope to cram into a single album made by mere mortals. Not that we’re bragging or anything.



Tracklist for We Are Above You
1. Empires In Basements
2. Feed The Horse
3. The Bad Seat
4. Heisenberg Says...
5. Motion of the Ocean
6. Slow Day
7. Horrorfication
8. Year Zero
9. Glass House Rocks
10. Playing Dark
11. Garbage In, Garbage Out

Clouds Live!
May 8 2008 Middle East Downstairs Cambridge, Massachusetts w/ XO Skeletons
May 16 2008 Jerky’s Providence, Rhode Island w/ Thrones, Ocrilim, and Howl
May 17 2008 the Church Boston, Massachusetts w/ White Horses and We’re All Gonna Die
May 25 2008 Great Scott Allston, Massachusetts w/ DISFEAR and bloodhorse
Jun 19 2008 Canal Club Downstairs Richmond, Virginia w/ HARVEY MILK

w/ Torche and Boris!
Jun 24 2008 Casbah San Diego, California
Jun 25 2008 Clubhouse Tempe, Arizona
Jun 27 2008 Rubbergloves Denton, Texas
Jun 28 2008 the Mohawk Austin, Texas
Jun 29 2008 White Rabbit San Antonio, Texas
Jul 1 2008 Spanish Moon Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Jul 2 2008 Common Grounds Gainesville, Florida
Jul 3 2008 the Social Orlando, Florida
Jul 5 2008 the Earl Atlanta, Georgia
Jul 6 2008 Cat’s Cradle Carrboro, North Carolina
Jul 8 2008 Black Cat Washington DC, Washington DC
Jul 9 2008 First Unitarian Church Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jul 10 2008 Webster Hall New York, New York
Jul 11 2008 Middle East Downstairs Cambridge, Massachusetts





For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/cloudsrock
www.hydrahead.com

Trash Talk Announces Debut Album * US Tour w/ Cold World and Iron Age!

Trash Talk
Announce Self-Titled, Self-Released Debut Full Length out July 8th * US Tour w/ Cold World and Iron Age * European Tour w/ The Mongoloids!



The perfect unison of Cryptic Slaughter-ish full-speed pre-thrash agitated by the fury and rhythmic tumult of D.R.I. and Discharge. - Exclaim!

If last year was the breakout year for Trash Talk then that means that 2008 will be the year that things go ballistic. - Scene Point Blank

Good stuff. That's all there is to it... - Aversion Online

Picking up where Plagues left off, Trash Talk's debut LP (set for release on the band's own Trash Talk Collective imprint) delves deeper into the abyss surrounding their last chaotic release. Recorded in just under 2 days at Chicago's Electrical Audio and employing the genius of Steve Albini (Nirvana, The Pixies, Neurosis), Trash Talk has continued to push the envelope of extreme music. Grinding guitars paired with heavy yet somber bass lines provide the battlefield for harsh dueling vocals to wage war over 12 instant classics.

Formed in the fall of 2005, Trash Talk hit the ground running. Three years of relentless touring, five releases and four vans later, they are still running at the same frantic pace that has established them as one of the hardest working bands today.

With live performances deeply rooted in chaos and a track record to match, Trash Talk is a band to be seen as well as heard. Nomadic, outcast and poised to release their 6th musical attack, and first LP, Trash Talk is hungry for more.

Trash Talk is coming to your city soon.

Bear witness..



Trash Talk Tracklist:
The Hand That Feeds
Well of Souls
Birth Plague Die
Incarnate
I Block
Dig
Onward and Upward
Shame
Immaculate Infection
All the Kings Men
The Mistake
Revelation

Trash Talk Live!

US w/ The Carrier
05/21: Hutchinson, KS @ McGraws
05/22: Denver, CO @ Underground
05/23: Boise, ID @ Myrtle Morgue
05/24: Tacoma, WA @ Rain Fest
05/25: Tacoma, WA @ Rain Fest

Europe w/ The Mongoloids
06/19: Steenwijk,HOL @ Trash Fest
06/20: Newcastle,UK @ TBA
06/21: Hull,UK @ Ringside
06/22: Birmingham,UK @ TBA
06/23: Newport,UK @ Le Pub
06/24: London,UK @ TBA
06/25: Paris,FR @Le Klub
06/26: Saarbrucken,GER @ TBA
06/27: Sint-Niklaas,BEL @ T Verschil
06/28: Rosswein,GER @ Juha Rosswein
06/29: Essen,GER @ Pressure Fest
06/30: Vienna,AU @ Shelter
07/01: Florence,IT @ Ulisse
07/02: Madrid,SP @ Sala Baracuddas
07/03: Nice,FR @ TBA
07/04: Raesfeld / Rurhr,GER @ Jugendhaus Raesfeld
07/05: Eindhoven,HOL @ Bar 51
07/06: Tessenderlo,BEL @ JH Tessloo

US w/ Cold World and Iron Age
07/11: Boston, MA @ TBA
07/12: New York, NY @ Knitting Factory
07/13: Pittsburgh, PA @ Subculture
07/14: Baltimore, MD @ Talking Head
07/15: Harrisonburg, VA @ VFW Hall
07/16: Mauldin, SC @ Ximenos Skatepark
07/17: Orlando, FL @ Backbooth
07/18: Atlanta, GA @ Treehouse
07/19: Birmingham, AL @ Cave 9
07/20: Nashville, TN @ Muse
07/21: Dallas, TX @ Red Blood Club
07/22: San Antonio, TX @ Crossing
07/23: Tucson, AZ @ Living Room
07/25: Santa Barbara, CA @ Earl Warren Showgrounds @ Sound and Fury Festival



For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/trashtalkfu
www.trashtalkhc.com

David Karsten Daniels Live on KEXP!

huge thanks to the KEXP staff!



Click to listen to David Karsten Daniels Live on KEXP!

Stove Bredsky (Steve Brodsky) Releases and Streams "The Black Ribbon Award" Today on Hydra Head!

Releases and Streams New Album, The Black Ribbon Award, Today on Hydra Head!



For most successful musicians, making music is an obsession. Something they think about around the clock, something they live for, something that's an essential part of their being. For Stephen Brodsky, it's more of a compulsion: The onetime Cave In front man churns out tunes for side projects, solo efforts and band as if he'll croak if he stops the stream of music coming out of his brain. - Aversion

Call me unhinged, call me obsessive, call me depressive, call me discomforting, call me any negative adjective you want—even if one of my seven therapists beat you to the punch—but nothing will deter me from creaming my jeans most euphorically and most heinously whenever I hear word that Stephen Brodsky is putting his fingers to a guitar and pressing `record.' - Treble

Whether it was cranking out killer riffs with CAVE IN or his other recently disbanded project THE OCTAVE MUSEUM, Brodsky has been putting others to shame for years with his constant musical output. - Pastepunk

We’re not exactly sure how he does it, but he’s done it again. Our man Stove Bredsky (a.k.a. Stovetop Bredsky, a.k.a. Steev Brawdski, a.k.a. Steve Brodsky) cranks out the sweet tunes like one of those Play-Doh confetti makers cranks out multicolored string-turds. Luckily, Bredsky’s shit won’t get stuck under your fingernails—it’ll just ping-pong around in your skull for a coupla years, during which time our man will have sawed off another 15 albums’ worth of infectious pop-rock delights.

This time, Brodsky has awarded himself The Black Ribbon Award for various questionable behaviors, the nature of which should remain unspoken—at least here, and by us. Fast on the shit-hot heels of last year’s catchy-as-fuck Pet Genius long-player, Brodsky has returned to his signature one-man band format, recording 18 tracks of melancholy melodiousness at Club Awesome in Somerville, MA.

The songs within were all originally written back in the ’90s, when Brodsky was piloting the almighty, ever-morphing Cave In through the thankless stream of commerce. Seriously, the vocal harmonies on this one are enough to make a grown man (read: us) weep.



Stream All of The Black Ribbon Award here!

Tracklist for The Black Ribbon Award:
Blue Seclusion
Dead of Winter
Mayfly
Dead Battery
Blood Red Blues
Spacegirl Saturn
Failure
Fall Days
Rainbow No More
Trout
Orange Sunshine Medicine
Splatterbrain
The Coattail Rider
Chine
Return to Rain
Untitled
Prospect Hill
A Swelling Hope

Stephen Brodsky Live!
May 24 2008 Relapse Records Philly, Pennsylvania
May 25 2008 Generation Records New York City, New York




For more information, visit:
www.hydrahead.com

The Fader Profiles Russian Circles!

huge thanks to Eric Ducker, Chris Richards, and the entire Fader staff! Look out for the new issue of The Fader on news-stands now!



Metal Murals: RUSSIAN CIRCLES

E For Explosion Releases "Reinventing The Heartbeat" Today on Eyeball!

Releases Reinventing The Heartbeat Today on Eyeball!



Click here to watch the video for I Explode!

Dave Trumfio (OK Go, Wilco, My Morning Jacket) did an outstanding job producing this album and giving an organic and spacious feel to the tracks on this stellar debut. Reinventing The Heartbeat is a lushly composed album that should not only appeal to fans of Covington’s previous work, but maybe even win over some of his critics. Many of the songs on this album such as “I Explode”, “Reinventing The Heartbeat”, and “See You Soon” are built for late night listening in the warm summer air. - Absolutepunk.net

From the pit of your stomach, you can feel the small semblance of a rebirth. A reinvention. For Jamison Covington, the dark eyes and sharp mind behind E For Explosion, this collection of shoe gaze and new wave inspired songs, is a rebirth in almost every way. In another life, Jamison Covington was the unwilling hero of the warped tour set, signing a major label deal at the age of 18, as one half of JamisonParker. Now years later, free from major label entanglements, Jamison has begun making the music that speaks to him with a crystalline certainty. "From writing the songs and fine tuning tones to engineering and production, there's not a part of the writing or recording process that I don't completely immerse myself in....honestly, I'm completely at ease with being a control freak."

Immediately after signing with NJ indie label Eyeball Records, Jamison made his way to Silver Lake, California and recorded his independent debut, Reinventing The Heartbeat with Dave Trumfio (Earlimart, Grandaddy, Billy Bragg & Wilco, My Morning Jacket, etc). At times quiet and subtle and at others tumultuous and brooding, Heartbeat is filled with plaintive requests for understanding and reconciliation. Building his towering soundscapes upon the likes of My Bloody Valentine and The Jesus & Mary Chain, E for Explosion aims to cast a new shadow that reaches far beyond that of his previous successes.

Having toured with everyone from Plain White T's, to Motion City Soundtrack, to Coheed & Cambria and others, Jamison has traveled the country and made more friends and fans than one could ever hope to in a lifetime. He's sold over 30,000 records throughout the US and been featured on countless press and television outlets. But with E For Explosion, a rebirth means bringing his friends and fans to a new life with him as years of songwriting, recording and performing has finally come to fruition.

Players:

Jamison Covington - (vocals, guitar, piano, percussion, bass)
Josh Elmore - (bass)
Christian Hayden - (drums)
Dai Britain - (keys)

Produced by Dave Trumfio & Jamison Covington



Stream all of Reinventing the Heartbeat @ Spinner!

Tracklisting for Reinventing The Heartbeat

01. Sunday
02. Reinventing The Heartbeat
03. Behind Every Breath
04. Echoes
05. Lies Lies Lies
06. Paper Flowers Never Die
07. See You Soon
08. You Know Who You Are
09. Unit 402
10. Antarctica
11. I Explode
12. Saving Lives
13. I Ain't Lost If I'm With You



For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/eforexplosion
www.eyeballrecords.com

Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till Release New Solo Albums Today on Neurot!

Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till
Release New Solo Albums Today on Neurot!



Scott Kelly
The Wake

The Wake proceeds at it’s own pace, each strum of the guitar is almost wrenched out of Kelly’s soul. The chords are slow and precise, ringing through the hollow production in a way that lets each note hang in the air before vanishing. This is a kind of honesty that almost nobody attempts anymore. - Iann Robinson / NoneLouder.com

In James Joyce's Dublin the streets inhale and exhale an Irishness that is so fundamentally elemental that it's more a part of the landscape than the actual landscape which is to say: his books are more real than the real space they describe. And so it is with SCOTT KELLY, great guitar griot and founder of Neurosis, and his Wake. Or THE WAKE, to be precise. Its reality supersedes the place, the space and the particulars that gave birth to it. Mixing imagery that borders on a bold and stark contemplation of the limits of our earthly existence via our failed loves, efforts, conceits and even our less than noble other failures [blissfully unspecified and probably unnecessary to HAVE them specified: if you're ALIVE the blanks are easy enough to fill in], THE WAKE with its lion-in-the-winter woe wrenches the almost inexpressibly sad into seven songs that sound like what you hear when you're just about to not hear anything anymore.

"The weather never changes in my world." – Kelly

Goddamned right.

With an acoustic guitar and a croon that crams the lilt, lift and longing of several lives well lived into 5-some-odd minutes of every song this record would not only not have been possible at any other point in either his life, or ours for that matter, than now, it also seems to suggest the shape of beyond-now: thin and on fire.

Enjoy it. Time is short.
--Eugene S. Robinson/www.eugenesrobinson.com



Tracklist for The Wake:
1. The Ladder In My Blood
2. Figures
3. Saturn's Eye
4. The Searcher
5. Catholic Blood
6. In My World
7. Remember Me




Steve Von Till
A Grave Is A Grim Horse

A Grave Is a Grim Horse ruminates quietly on the fleeting nature of human life. Von Till reaffirms his commitment to theme by including some eclectic covers. His choices underscore his attention to detail, particularly “Clothes of Sand” by Nick Drake and “The Spider Song” by Townes Van Zandt. These songs work on two levels; in addition to being thematically related, the songwriters’ fates marry perfectly with Von Till’s brooding depiction of life and death. - Prefixmag.com

Perhaps the history of the song is innate within us. At least that's what we might glean from STEVE VON TILL's third Neurot Recordings solo outing A GRAVE IS A GRIM HORSE. Intertwined with interpretations of songs by Nick Drake, Townes van Zandt, Mickey Newberry and Lyle Lovitt, Von Till's powerful yet subtly graceful originals merge with a lexicon that manifests as something beyond the concept of persona that popular culture has repeatedly old us over the past 50 years. Where his previous releases showed reverence for folks music forms of the past, A GRAVE IS A GRIM HORSE peers directly inward, drawing from this history of song and earnestly embracing the need we all share to etch our mark upon the artifacts that will ultimately survive us.

Listening to the album, there's a troubling theme that reveals itself only when we're not seeking it. It tells us that we are nothing more than the part of the sum of an elusive whole, but sometimes the patterns that define us can be harnessed, as they are here. And what's most striking about the album is that Von Till's originals are so immediately captivating and threadbare that they seem more familiar on first listen than the works of the time-honored songwriters to whom he pays tribute.



Tracklist for A Grave Is A Grim Horse:
1. A Grave Is A Grim Horse
2. Clothes of Sand
3. The Acre
4. Willow Tree
5. Valley Of The Moon
6. The Spider Song
7. Looking For Dry Land
8. Western Son
9. Brigit's Cross
10. Promises
11. Gravity

Scott Kelly is currently working on the new Blood & Time record, as well as Shrinebuilder with Wino (St. Vitus, Hidden Hand, etc), Dale Crover (Melvins), and Al Cisneros (who has a new drummer in Om) which is due in 2009 on Neurot. Combat Music Radio is also still going strong. Steve Von Till is working on a Limited Edition release of his Harvestman soundtrack to the film "Hate2O." Both are writing new music for Neurosis and Tribes of Neurot.



For more information, visit:
www.neurotrecordings.com

Punknews Talks to Russian Circles' Mike Sullivan!

huge thanks to Ben Conoley and the entire Punknews staff!



Interviews: Mike Sullivan of Russian Circles



Russian Circles have been having a busy 2008. They released their second album, Station, and have been hitting the road quite a bit in support of it and will embark on a US tour with Daughters in June.

Our own Jason Gardner recently sat down with Russian Circles' Mike Sullivan to discuss what's been going on with the band. You can click Read More for the interview.

For starters, could you tell me a little bit about how Russian Circles formed? At what point did you decide to be an instrumental band?

We started out in 2004. At that time Colin [DeKuiper] and I had been part of Dakota/Dakota, which was also instrumental, and Dave [Turncrantz] had just finished up with Riddle of Steel. We wanted to do something new from what we had been doing before. We weren’t initially instrumental, but we weren’t opposed to it. We all can’t sing to save our lives either. There would be so much down time for a vocalist in our music, and in the end we were comfortable with instrumental music and not having a singer. It was not really a conscious decision. We also had a keyboardist initially, but there was a lot going on musically so we decided against that.

With your second full-length now released, how would you compare the recording and writing of this record, your first with Suicide Squeeze, to the process of Enter?

Not all that different. Just got together and wrote stuff for Enter. For Station, it was a slower writing process. We didn’t play shows and just wrote for awhile. It was also different because [ex-Botch/These Arms Are Snakes bassist] Brian [Cook] played bass instead of Colin. We would demo stuff and send it to Brian and then we’d be back and forth via email. The three of us got together for a bit of rehearsing before we went in to record. Recording was different. Matt Bayles was a little more forceful and deliberate. He would worry about how accurate the take was and I worried about the music side of it. I learned a lot from recording with him as far as things I needed to work on. It was great to work with him and the sound of the record is great because of him.

How would you compare the accessibility and appeal of instrumental bands today to when Russian Circles first started out?

I think it’s growing. Instrumental bands have been around for years and certain bands have helped out the genre. People talk about it getting bigger now, but there are bands from Chicago like Tortoise that have been around for years. There are definitely more kinds of instrumental bands now. People are more willing to accept more types of music. They are sick of the same angle-haircut, cookie cutter bullshit. Things are starting to change around.

Would you say that it is easier for someone who is seeing you in concert for the first time without having heard you before to get into your music since you don’t have a lyrical aspect for draw them in?

With the heavier bands, like hardcore and metal, a lot of people are turned off by the vocals. Some people are drawn to that though. Old people don’t want to hear that. If that element is not there, you have a little more accessibility, especially the heavier stuff. With the mellower stuff, you get the music, but there’s no wussy vocalist on top of it. With being an instrumental band, we can convey different genre styles without the lyrics.

Have you guys decided on who will fill in on bass for shows?

Brian will be around for awhile, and he wants to be a part of recording for the next album. I can’t say for sure what will happen, but we love playing with him and he’s a great addition to the writing process. He’ll be busy too with his work in These Arms Are Snakes.

Tell me a little bit about your relationship with Suicide Squeeze Records - how has this differed from your time with Flameshovel Records?

We did a 7-inch with SSR in 2006. They weren’t aggressive about getting us signed up. The label expressed interest in liking us and wanted to put out some of our music. We also have friends on that label like Chin Up Chin Up and Minus The Bear, and the people running the label, Dave and Bekah, are two of the nicest people I’ve ever met. They care about their artists and if we want to do something they are always all for it. it didn’t seem like a huge step - it was a natural move. Flameshovel was great too - they were kind enough to help us out when other labels were trying to give us miserable deals. There were no contracts at the beginning, just kind of like a handshake deal.

Of all the touring you’ve done, what is one show or tour that stands out from the rest and why?

I hate to state the obvious, but the Tool shows in London were the coolest shows we’ve ever played -- at least for me. The crowd was very receptive and diverse, but I respect them. They were a great crowd. It was also terrifying because we expecting to be booed off the stage and have everything we could think of thrown at us. The venues were great too - venues made for playing music with nice balconies and vaulted ceilings. Definitely not like the big arenas here. Plus I’m a big Tool fan. It was a short set, I hate playing long sets. The only thing it lacked was the intimacy of a small show. We like when people are right there and we can feel the connection between us and the crowd. It wasn’t quite there, but we realized there were plenty of people there to make up for that.

What do you guys have planned for the future?

In June, we start an almost full-US tour with Daughters and Widows. After that, we’ll probably take some time and write for some of the summer. Though nothing is set in stone, we’re also hoping to head back to Europe in the fall.

www.myspace.com/russiancircles

Pitchfork Reviews Silje Nes' "Ames Room!"

huge thanks to Stephen Deusner and the entire Pitchfork staff!



Silje Nes
Ames Room
(Fat Cat Records)



The first sound you hear on Silje Nes' debut album, Ames Room, is an ascending cascade of gulps, like water pouring out of a jug. In proper pitch, they could be a factory setting on a keyboard, but Nes (first name pronounced seel-YAH) modifies them slightly to sound more percussive and completely otherworldly. Those gulps appear throughout Ames Room, one of several repeating sounds-- like her shimmery guitar tone and soft vocals, reminiscent of múm's Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir -- that could be one instrument in a more traditional band lineup. But Nes recorded the album by herself in her Bergen apartment (well, almost by herself: Ungdomskulen's Kristian Stockhaus appears on one song), using an array of instruments and equipment, some of which she either found or constructed herself. Creating the album was a solitary pursuit, but unlike many bedroom auteurs who try to make one musician sound like many, Nes crafts music that actually reflects that isolation: Ames Room sounds like it's emanating from deep within her imagination.

Even so, her aesthetic isn't stripped down or lo-fi. Her complexly layered compositions are dense with loops, synths, cello, drums, guitar, and a cacophony of unidentifiable sounds. "Magnetic Moments of Spinning Objects" builds a music-box lullaby against the high, abrasive whir of a rewinding tape. The two elements don't match up, but that may be the point: As muted as Ames Room often is, Nes seems less interested in making pretty sounds than in setting up experiments in conceptual dissonance. Most of the instrumental tracks are shapelessly ambient. "Shapes, Electric" establishes a lulled rhythm from the molten sounds of flute, wordless vocals, acoustic guitars, and what sound like sheep, all coalescing into a percussive time-keeping device that usually sounds like it's perpetually winding down. Similarly, "No Bird Can" closes the album with the sound of Nes blowing simple notes on bottles (presumably), backed by a typewriter clacking away in the next room.

Other tracks on Ames Room are more structured, featuring Nes' ghostly vocals half-submerged in the music and her similarly piecemeal approach to lyrics. "Drown" consists mainly of one line-- "We'll bring the water to the sea once more"-- repeated against spectral guitars, as if she made a tape of turning the phrase over in her head. She crafts an elegant, catchy melody on "Ames Room", the most direct and fully realized song on the album, and "Giant Disguise" grafts her vocals to a snappy guitar line that sounds like a pop riff on cough syrup. With its bouncing momentum and crisp guitars, "Dizzy Street" could be a Clientele song, at least until she starts singing in her strange whisper. Ames Room may be an essay on the possibilities of home recording, but these songs, simultaneously succinct and discursive, portray her more as a pop musician than as a sound tinkerer.

www.myspace.com/siljenes

Cancer Bats Announce US Release of "Hail Destroyer," June 24th on Black Market Activities!

Announce US Release of Hail Destroyer out June 24th on Black Market!



Cancer Bats are one of the few bands that can successfully satisfy all tastes. - Exclaim!

A very solid album with a cohesive sound and direction that will satisfy the metal fan in a punk kid and the punk kid in a metal fan. - Subba-Cultcha.com

An explosive metal-inspired post-hardcore collection of songs. - Punknews.org

The Great White North gives us a blast of pummeling riffs and jagged tempos as Toronto's own Cancer Bats gear up for the release of their much awaited sophomore full length Hail Destroyer on Black Market Activities. Hail Destroyer sees Cancer Bats mature sonically and evolving as they incorporate the past, present of hardcore while they pave out its future.

From the fury of proto punk acts like Black Flag and Minor Threat as they tip their hats to the indie-core legends of the late 80's and early 90's such as Fugazi, Drive Like Jehu and Jawbox and remain cut from a somewhat similarly coarse cloth of today's movers and shakers in the realm of post-hardcore such as Young Widows, Pissed Jeans and Fucked Up to name a few. Make no mistake as Cancer Bats aren't here to be lumped into a pigeonhole as their charging riffs and blaring anthem-like hooks ample for fist pumping and whirlpool circle pits perches them on a wholly unique level.

Swooping like a rabid bat out of, uh, Canada, Cancer Bats give a rowdy and defiant clobbering to the eardrums all the way down to the bone. Consider yourself warned as we aren't responsible for anything broken or destroyed within earshot of whatever stereo this album is playing from.



Hail Destroyer Tracklist
1. Hail Destroyer
2. Harem Of Scorpions
3. Deathsmarch
4. Regret
5. Bastard's Waltz
6. Sorceress
7. Lucifer's Rocking Chair
8. Let It Pour
9. Smiling Politely
10. Pray For Darkness
11. PMA 'Til I'm DOA
12. Zed's Dead Baby



Cancer Bats Live!
May 19 2008 ROCK CITY *venue change* Nottingham
May 20 2008 Corporation Sheffield
May 21 2008 Satan’s Hollow Manchester
May 22 2008 Camden Barfly London UK
May 24 2008 Spring and Airbrake Belfast, Northern Ireland
May 25 2008 The Hub Dublin Ireland, Dublin
May 28 2008 Magnet Berlin
May 30 2008 Underground Koln
May 31 2008 X Herford
Jun 1 2008 Treibhaus Luzern
Jun 2 2008 Rockhal Luxembourg
Jun 4 2008 Boule Noir Paris
Jun 5 2008 Helling Utrecht w/ The Black Dahlia Murder
Jun 6 2008 Melkweg Amsterdam
Jun 7 2008 Waterfront Rotterdam
Jun 9 2008 007 Prague
Jun 10 2008 Arena Vienna
Jun 11 2008 Cafe Schlachthaus Dornbrim
Jun 14 2008 Rock Planet Ravenna
Jun 15 2008 Traffic Rome
Jun 17 2008 Le Caravan Serail Toulouse
Jun 18 2008 AVV Arrebato Zaragoza
Jun 19 2008 Porto Rio Oporto
Jun 20 2008 Ritmos Y Compas Madrid
Jun 21 2008 Mas Guinada Barcelona
Jun 22 2008 Casino Royale Palma De Mallorca
Jun 29 2008 SCENE FEST St. Catharines, Ontario
Aug 23 2008 READING FESTIVAL LOCK UP STAGE Reading
Aug 24 2008 LEEDS FESTIVAL LOCK UP STAGE LEEDS

US Summer Tourdates Coming Soon!



For more information, visit:
www.mysapce.com/cancerbats
www.blackmarketactivities.com

Pitchfork Exclusive: Takka Takka Announces New Album!

huge thanks to Paul Thompson, Amy Phillips, and the entire Pitchfork staff!



National, CYHSY Members Guest on Takka Takka LP



Recorded in Brooklyn with help from producer/Clap Your Hands Say Yeah drummer Sean Greenhalgh, Takka Takka's sophomore LP, Migration, is due July 29 on Ernest Jenning Record Co. Despite its title, Migration was conceived in rather close quarters, with the Brooklyn band and the Brooklyn producer joined by Bryan Devendorf of Brooklyn's the National, Lee Sargent of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Olga Bell of Bell, and Charles Burst. You know, I suppose it is a little hike from Greenpoint to Canarsie.

And wouldn't you know it? Citizens of Brooklyn will get the next crack at Takka Takka when they take the stage at Monkeytown twice in the same evening early next month. The combo has dates aplenty elsewhere as well, plus a Tuesday night residency through the last half of July at Manhattan's Pianos.



Migration:

01 Monkey Forest Road
02 Silence
03 The Takers
04 Everybody Say
05 (The Optimists Were Right)
06 Homebreaker
07 Fall Down Where You Stand
08 Lion in the Waves
09 One Foot in a Well
10 (The Optimists Were Wrong)
11 Change, No Change
12 You and Universe

Takka Takka Live:

06-06 Brooklyn, NY - Monkeytown (two shows)
06-22 Philadelphia, PA - POPPED! Festival
07-15 New York, NY - Pianos
07-22 New York, NY - Pianos
07-25 Chicago, IL - Schubas
07-26 Madison, WI - The Frequency
07-29 New York, NY - Pianos



For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/takkatakka
www.ernestjenning.com