take a look / listen
Check out the new offering from The Cinematics called Love and Terror
The Prairie Cartel unleash their debut full lengthDouble Wax package Released Novermber 17th
For 10.5 months of the year there is little else to do in Chicago besides drink heavily. The Prairie Cartel started as an excuse for Scott Lucas (Local H), Blake Smith and Mike Willison (both ex-Caviar) to do this in Mike's basement while playing their favorite records. Albums on DFA, Matador, Wax Trax, Modular and Creation were all in heavy rotation during those dark months except when the whisky came out and it went all Ummagumma on them.
THE GRATES TO RELEASE TEETH LOST, HEARTS WON SEPTEMBER 8TH (DIGITAL), SEPTEMBER 15TH IN STORES
DOWNLOAD “BURN BRIDGES”
Australia's The Grates are set to release their anticipated sophomore album Teeth Lost, Hearts Won on September 15"' via Thirty Tigers/Dew Process. The 13-song album was produced by Peter Katis (Interpol, The National) at Tarquin Studios in Connecticut and features guest appearances by Kori Gardner of Mates of State (vocals on "Milk Eyes") and Tim Fite (vocals on "Not Today"). On this album, the follow up to their 2006 Interscope Records debut, Gravity Won't Get You High, The Grates have brought a depth and density to the songwriting - the lyrics are raw and poignant and the sonics more biting and aggressive.
"If Teeth Lost, Hearts Won was a beast, I imagine it'd be like something from Where The Wild Things Are," lead singer and front woman Patience says. "They're big and scary, but they've also got this sensitivity, and pick up the little kid and protect him." Drummer Alana adds, "Or maybe like the griffin In Alice In Wonderland. He's like a lion and eagle together, but a really gentle creature."
In Australia, The Grates have played numerous sold out headline tours, played major festivals such as Big Day Out, Homebake, Falls Festival, Southbound and stole the show at Splendour In The Grass. Gravity Won't Get You High has gone Gold in Australia while Teeth Lost, Hearts Won is well on its way to Gold status as well.
The American record release follows a highly successful trip to the U.S. for the SXSW Music Festival in March. While in Austin, the band played five buzzed about shows in four days and gained a massive amount of recognition for their highly energetic performances. USA Today named the band one of ten favorite performances of the festival, stating "Lead singer Patience Hodgson blew me away with her enthusiasm ... a hardcore fan suddenly appeared, dressed in a leotard, and joined her for a spontaneous dance ... these are the SXSW moments you dream of." The Los Angeles Times added, "The Grates are a group that are impossible not to smile with… (they) will no doubt soon be laughing their way to the bank, for if the world embraced the
Ting Tings last year, Patience & Co. are sure to be everyone's new darlings any day now." The Austin Chronicle said of the album, "Full marks go to Aussie trio The Grates for not over thinking things and executing them almost flawlessly on new LP Teeth Lost, Hearts Won. When you rock with that kind of abandon, wearing a batgirl costume onstage works." The highly successful trip was capped off with multiple sold out shows in New York and Los Angeles.
The band has relocated to Brooklyn, NY in order to make American touring easier and has since played a residency at Piano's on the Lower East Side in July. They also made an appearance at the Hillside Festival in Guelph, ON July 24-26th and will play the 2009 Monolith Music Festival, held at Red Rocks on September 13th (with the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs, Phoenix, Girl Talk, M Ward, Of Montreal and many more). In addition, they have also confirmed club dates through September and October.
http://www.thegrates.com/
www.myspace.com/thegrates
RUBIES 
RUBBLEBUCKET Announces Fall Tour
& Self-titled Album, Out October 13th
Boston and Brooklyn-based band Rubblebucket is excited to announce 15 Eastern US shows on their upcoming fall tour in support of their latest album, Rubblebucket set to release October 13th. The highly anticipated album is a follow-up to the band’s debut Rose’s Dream, released last year.
With its unique, afro-beat inspired sound, some exciting recent achievements - including being named Best New Band of 2008 (Seven Days Vermont, a title previously held by Phish and Grace Potter & The Nocturnals) and winning Relix Magazine’s Jam-Off Competition - and comparisons having been drawn to Talking Heads, Bjork and Fela Kuti, Rubblebucket is clearly poised for big things on their upcoming tour, into 2010 and beyond!
Led by Alex Toth on trumpet and the inspiring vocals of Kalmia Traver, the nine-piece band produces a sound that defies classification. Its one-of-a-kind style contains hints of dance, rock and funk, resulting in catchy rhythms and soulful melodies that are certain to appeal to fans of countless varied genres of music.
2009 sees Rubblebucket busy as songwriting machines, gearing up for another album to be released in 2010.
**RUBBLEBUCKET ON TOUR**
Sept 17 – The Note, West Chester, PA
Sept 18 – Last Daze of Summer Festival, Sterling, NY
Sept 19 – Wormtown Music Festival, Greenfield, MA
Sept 19 – Iron Horse Music Hall, Northampton, MA
Sept 20 – Great Bay Music Festival, Dover, NH
Sept 23 – Public Assembly, Brooklyn, NY
Sept 24 – Putnam Den w/Railbird, Saratoga Springs, NY
Sept 25 – Lovin’ Cup – Rochester, NY Sept 26 – Nelson Ledges (Sublime Weekend IV), Garrettsville, OH
Oct 3 – Castaways, Ithaca, NY
Oct 23 – Westcott Theatre w/Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, Syracuse, NY
Oct 31 – Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge, MA
Nov 5 – Founders Brewing Company, Grand Rapids, MI
Dec 3 – Pearl Street Ballroom, Northampton, MA
Dec 4 – Higher Ground, Burlington, VT
Check out a preview of Rubblebucket’s notorious live show here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhUp8JT3Ge0
http://www.rubblebucket.com/
http://www.myspace.com/rubblebucket
WALLPAPER.This summer has been the hottest on record for Oakland's club destroyers, Wallpaper. Following the remix of Das Racist's "Combination Pizza Hut & Taco Bell" (which Pitchfork and Village Voice both proclaimed the "Summer Jam of '09"), and a wildly controversial mashup of Jay-Z's "99 Problems" and "Death of Autotune" that RCRDLBL heralded "dadaist genius" and MTV News declared "an instant favorite," its safe to say there are no signs of cooling down.
With the days growing long and the nights even longer, Wallpaper. has found themselves at the heart of another summer track, this time a collaboration with Jacob Safari of The Mae Shi and Kid Static from Chicago. "Me and Jacob from The Mae Shi had been playing grab ass for a few months about collaborating on some music. So he finally sent me this freaky glitch reggaeton thing. I was in the studio late on a Saturday night chalk full of Red Bull and self loathing, wishing I was on top of the Standard Hotel LA gettin’ my ugly dude on.
Wallpaper.'s debut LP Doodoo Face
After their wildly successful performance at Lollapalooza 2009, Chicago-based DJ/electro duo Moneypenny will take their music to the masses with the release of a free 2-song digital single and string of upcoming high profile buzz gigs in Chicago, LA and San Francisco. The duo, which began strictly as a DJ project in 2008, quickly blossomed into a full-fledged live act as Jessica Gonyea (A-Cup) and Chess Hubbard (Mother Hubbard)’s shared passion for new wave, pop, indie, electro and house music led them to write and record original material. Kept under lock and key until their debut live performance at Lollapalooza, Moneypenny’s original tracks quickly became must have material for industry types on both sides of the pond as word spread about these two incredibly talented young ladies. More than just two pretty faces, Moneypenny come stacked with a slew of great songs – one of which has already been licensed to ABC TV’s “Make It Or Break It” – a charismatic live show incorporating custom video projections and DJ skills to keep the after party going all night long. Moneypenny’s trend of playing “all the right gigs” continues into October with live sets at Dim Mak Tuesdays @ Cinespace in Los Angeles and the legendary Popscene! party in San Francisco acting as their debut performances in each market.
Moneypenny are working on their debut full length release for 2010 (working with Simon Perry/Echo and The Bunnymen), however in the meantime, they'd like to share a free gift for you to post and check out.
First single “Say No” was recorded in Chicago earlier this year and comes packaged with an insanely dance floor ready remix courtesy of good friends and fellow Chicagoans, Hey Champ.
"Say No" - DOWNLOAD HERE
"Say No" (Hey Champ Remix) - DOWNLOAD HERE
The ladies infamous MUST GO TO monthly party in Chicago Spandexx has been receiving international recognition having hosted performances and DJ sets by the likes of everyone from The Golden Filter, The Lady Tigra, Designer Drugs and American Dream Team....
09/25 - Sonotheque
10/02 - AFTER DARK at the Art Institute Of Chicago - Chicago, IL
10/03 - Circuit (Traxx Records 25th Anniversary party) - Chicago, IL
10/06 - Cinespace (Dim Mak Tuesdays) - Los Angeles, CA
10/08 - Popscene! - San Francisco, CA
MCB's Good Girls Being Bad will be attending the Moneypenny show
celebrating 25 yrs for TRAX RECORDS on Sat Oct 3rd in Chicago
OCTOBER 27TH MARKS RELEASE OF DVD& LIMITED VINYL PACKAGES FOR ALL THE WAY FROM MICHIGAN NOT MARS AND YOU WEREN'T THERE: A HISTORY OF CHICAGO PUNK 1977-84 ON FACTORY 25All The Way From Michigan Not Mars Clip (Video Link)
You Weren't There Trailer (Video Link)
October 27th will see the DVD releases of All The Way From Michigan Not Mars and You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977-84 from Brooklyn, NY's Factory 25. Both titles will also be released in a limited edition bundle format that includes the DVD, an LP featuring music from the films and other collectors items.All The Way From Michigan Not Mars is a meditative exploration of Rosie Thomas’ work that uses intimate live performances with fellow songwriters Sufjan Stevens and Denison Witmer as a pathway. The film is a lyrical examination of Thomas’ quest for an expression of truth and her unique brand of performance, combining songs of plaintive melancholy with sharp-witted banter and Sheila, her bizarre stand-up comedian alter ego. The DVD features deleted scenes and performances with Rosie Tomas, Damien Jurado and Sufjan Stevens and the limited vinyl LP is the never-before released Apartment Sessions with Sufjan Stevens and Denison Witmer that evolved into Thomas' 2007 album, These Friends of Mine.
You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977-84 is a rare glimpse into a truly one-of-a-kind American underground music scene that documents the impact that the Punk movement has had on the Windy City. Though overlooked in the annals of rock history, Chicago served as an important early supporter of this burgeoning and controversial scene that could be violent and unsavory at times, but always tempered with large doses of humor, art, and intelligence. The limited LP/DVD bundle contains a 20 track vinyl LP of rarities from Chicago’s finest, poster and deleted scenes and rare performances.Factory 25 will be releasing five titles through the remainder of 2009. In addition to All The Way From Michigan Not Mars and You Weren't There, the independent film and music label will be releasing 1001 Nights featuring Damon and Naomi, Frownland directed by Ronald Bronstein and High School Record featuring members of Mika Miko, No Age, Lavender Diamond and Minutemen.
Lissie, a young songwriter from Rock Island, IL, will release a new EP, Why You Runnin', November 10th, 2009 on Fat Possum Records. Why You Runnin' is a five-song introduction to Lissie and pivots around her big, achingly raw and evocative voice. The songs range from the hand-clapping, foot-stomping spirited opener "Little Lovin'" to the poignant country cover "Wedding Bells" to the haunting, soulful '60s pop-esque ballads "Everywhere I Go" and "Here Before". These tracks were recorded at her current home in Ojai, CA, and at Echo Mountain Studio in Asheville, NC, with her friend Bill Reynolds (of Band of Horses, who also produced and plays bass on the songs alongside his bandmate Tyler Ramsey, who guests on guitar for some tracks). The hymn-like "Oh Mississippi" was recorded with Ed Harcourt last fall, when Lissie was far from home in London, England.
Greg Laswell is releasing his new EP, Covers, October 6 on Vanguard Records! Produced in a cabin in Mountainaire, Arizona, Laswell played most of the instruments on the five song record, which features covers of Echo & The Bunnymen, Morphine, Mazzy Star, Kate Bush and Kristin Hersh's "Your Ghost" which was recently a featured MP3 on KCRW's "Today's Top Tune".
Check out a video of Greg Laswell performing
his cover of Kate Bush's "This Woman's Work" live at his cabin studio in the woods.
Greg Laswell Live Dates
9/22: New York, NY @ Joe's Pub
10/14: Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater w/Fran Healy & Andy Dunlop of Travis
10/22: Detroit, MI @ Magic Bag Theater w/ Fran Healy & Andy Dunlop or Travis
Check out Katharine McPhee for a couple reasons
She has an amazing voice
She is totally hot
and she just friended the MCB on myspace
http://www.katharinemcphee.com/
JUPITER ONE Releases Astounding New “SUNSHOWER” Album Creating a Music-Induced Meteorological Phenomenon Everywhere on September 15th! **
Download Jupiter One’s “Flaming Arrow” mp3 here:
A Sunshower can be a rare occurrence, but when these opposing forces meet, magic and allure is in the air. This is exactly why the NYC-based rockers, Jupiter One, chose the title (inspired by the Japanese short film Dreams by Akira Kurosawa) for their upcoming Ryko album available September 15, 2009. Their far-out freshness mixed with timeless musical inspirations mesh together in a bittersweet indie-pop rock concoction—produced by the group and noted engineer Chris Ribando (Diamond Nights, The Black Crowes, The Fever).
This young quartet—all in their twenties—consisting of K Ishibashi (lead vocals), Zac Colwell (lead guitar), Dave Heilman (drums) and Pat Dougherty (bass), has a knack for unifying their contemporary style with a range of musical influences. Sunshower is the result of Jupiter One's experienced ear. For instance, the dancefloor-friendly “Simple Stones,” filled with handclaps and soulful riffs, boasts a bass line for all ages while blending ‘80s Rolling Stones and MGMT. The epic opener “Volcano” resurrects the youthful spirit of the Beach Boys with The Flaming Lips, while delivering one of the disc’s best choruses. And if Ishibashi conjures The Shins on “Find Me a Place,” then he drops vintage, finger-picking folk on “People in the Mountain”. Lastly but certainly not least, their current single “Flaming Arrow,” a shimmering acoustic folk tune, shoots through with a bumping bass line and New Orleans inspired drum groove. This genre-bending approach creates a hook-heavy opus well suited for our A.D.D. times.
The band’s chain of events since forming has been quite impressive, from selling out NYC’s hot bed of music venues, to releasing their self-titled EP in 2005, to hooking up with music industry legend Jac Holzman (yes, the man who signed The Doors) who ended up sequencing their 2007 debut full-length.
And considering that most of America has already heard their music in NBC’s hit show Heroes or in high profile TV ad campaigns for MLB’s Opening Day ‘09, NASCAR Talladega Race ’09, Madden NFL ’08, Payless and Mazda, it’s clear Jupiter One has come a long way from the traveling circus. Yes, Barnum Kaleidoscope is where Virginian-born K Ishibashi and Austin native Zac Colwell met as touring musicians, and where the two planted the seeds for Jupiter One. Having quit their day jobs, the new Jupiter One, with the addition of former STOMP member and New Jersey-born Dave Heilman and Delaware-raised Pat Dougherty, continue to rock stage shows Stateside and breathe new life into their ever-evolving sound.
http://www.jupiterone.com/
www.myspace.com/jupiterone
Video clip of Dreams by Akira Kurosawa:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGhqHZypds4
As one of the world’s only female Scotch whisky experts, Heather Greene has quite a life. After selling out venues throughout the U.S. and Europe and receiving exposure on major radio stations worldwide, Heather moved to Scotland to explore her heritage and work on her music. It was there that Heather discovered a zeal for whisky. Arriving in Scotland, she threw herself into the world of Scotch, and her voyage of discovery led her to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society in Edinburgh, where, as the first American woman to be invited to serve on the tasting panel and eventually joining the company as a U.S. Glenfiddich Ambassador.It was also in Scotland where her second album, Sweet Otherwise, was conceived. Recorded when she returned to New York in 2008, Sweet Otherwise evokes lush, pastoral landscapes as potently as it captures the urban pulse of a vibrant city, weaving a kaleidoscopic array of musical elements – from classic 1960s-era folk to twangy country to textural electronica to upbeat, hooky 80s pop – into one of year’s most poignant records. For a sneak peak of Sweet Otherwise, check out this free MP3,
Acclaimed Los Angeles trio The Happy Hollows have announced the release of their debut full length in October. The album, Spells is a culmination of their work with producer and former Mighty Lemon Drops guitarist David Newton (The Little Ones, The Blood Arm), who also produced the group’s 2008 EP Imaginary. The young group's infectious and irreverent noise-pop has earned considerable following up and down the west coast, with their energetic and charismatic performances. Vocalist/guitarist Sarah Negahdari wields ominous riffs and finger-tapped arpeggios while singing with a cherubic-yet-mischievous grin. Meanwhile, the agile rhythm section of Charles Mahoney (bass/vocals) and Chris Hernandez (drums/vocals) vault and lunge with precision.
Listen to MP3s for "Faces" (HERE) and "Monster Room" (HERE).
Hi DIETROIT!!
John Clinebell will release his second album, Make It Land, on October 25.
According to Stardum Entertainment Magazine,
John Clinebell can be found online:
http://www.johnclinebell.com/
www.youtube.com/johnclinebell
www.facebook.com/johnclinebell
“Leave Us And Forgive Us,” a track off Alberta Cross’ highly anticipated debut album Broken Side of Time, due out on September 22nd on ATO Records.