Indie Rock
My Morning Jacket Release New Album The Waterfall II: Stream
After a half decade wait, My Morning Jacket have finally unveiled The Waterfall II. Stream it below via Spotify and Apple Music. For a high-definition listening experience, you can sign up for a 60-day free trial of TIDAL HiFi. The Waterfall II arrives five years after the band’s last album, The Waterfall. Both collections were recorded during what have become known as the Panoramic House Sessions, which MMJ laid down between 2013 and 2014. Similarly, both were produced by frontman Jim James alongside Tucker Martine. James decided to revisit the 10 tracks that make up The Waterfall II when he stumbled upon opener “Spinning My Wheels” while listening to music on a walk early in the pandemic lockdown. The lyrics about being “hypnotized from doing the same old thing” felt very relev...
Jim James Says My Morning Jacket Have a “Completely New Record” Ready For Release
Today marks the return of My Morning Jacket, who have just released their new album, The Waterfall II. The album isn’t entirely “new,” though, as it was recorded at the same time as 2015’s The Waterfall. As it turns out, fans hoping for the rockers’ true return from hiatus are in luck, as frontman Jim James has revealed MMJ do in fact have a fresh full-length all ready to go. After touring behind The Waterfall, MMJ took a break, only playing a handful of shows in 2018 and 2019. It was during those “reunion” gigs last year that the band found themselves “re-energized,” as James told Kyle Meredith with… on the latest episode. “So we went in the studio, and we have a whole new record that we’re finishing,” James revealed. “A completely new record.” My Morning Jacket h...
Liza Anne Shares the Origins of New Song “Change My Mind”: Stream
Our new music feature Origins gives listeners a chance to get the inside scoop on an artist’s latest single. Today, Liza Anne explains what made her “Change My Mind”. Digging your heels in can be a sign of conviction, but also intractability. We all throw up walls when we’re challenged, which leaves very little room for growth (seriously, have you ever been in a Twitter debate?). On her new single “Change My Mind”, Nashville musician Liza Anne tries to keep a level head as she comes to grip with that sort of irked stubbornness. “This song holds hope of wanting the person on the other side to be there while you soften up, someone to challenge you to a place of connection, someone who is safe to grow in front of and with,” she explains in a press statement. “I am so sad that I ever learned c...
The Office’s Creed Bratton Shares New Song “The Ride”: Stream
Creed Bratton, the musician and actor made famous by The Office, has shared his new song “The Ride”. It’s off his eighth solo album, Slightly Altered, which hits shelves and streamers on July 17th. Within The Office, Bratton’s role was that of a spicy pepper, deployed sparingly but delivering potent flavor. But while he is best known for that iconic sitcom, he was first known as the lead singer and guitarist of The Grass Roots. Bratton fronted this American rock band from 1967 to 1969, and even had a pair of top ten Billboard hits. He spent the next three decades landing small film and television roles. But even before The Office made him a household name (literally — the character is named after him) Bratton had returned to his first love of music. Slightly Altere...
Illuminati Hotties Announce New Mixtape, Share First Single: Stream
Los Angeles “tenderpunks” Illuminati Hotties will release a new mixtape on July 17th. It’s titled Free I.H.: This Is Not The One You’ve Been Waiting For and follows their acclaimed 2018 debut album, Kiss Yr Frenemies. This forthcoming effort was written after a major fallout with their indie label, Tiny Engines, which was allegedly involved in shady royalty payment practices. As a result, the new material sees lead songwriter Sarah Tudzin & co. working through the aggression and hurt that came with their ensuing contract-related legal battles. (Hence, the Free: I.H. title.) That assertive bite bares its teeth on the mixtape’s latest single, the lengthily and bluntly named “will i get cancelled if i write a song called, ‘if you were a man, you’d probably be cancelled’”. It’s ...
Rising Rockers Advertisement Unleash Debut Album American Advertisement: Stream
Advertisement, the buzzworthy rock band band out of Seattle, have shared their debut album American Advertisement. Stream it below via Bandcamp. American Advertisement was recorded and mixed by Trevor Spencer and mastered by Jack Shirley. Musically, it’s both nostalgic and of-the-moment; nostalgic for the delight in guitar-driven rock and roll, but with modern lyrical concerns that recall Seattle as it exists today. The new LP also sounds post-legal weed, chilled out and occasionally psychedelic, but there’s an anger, too; a social awareness shaped by the tech-bro invasion and having witnessed the slick gentrification and dull luxury condos crowding out the waterfronts. While the overall vibe is sunny, life-affirming fun, American Advertisement is interrupted by flashes of p...
My Morning Jacket’s The Waterfall II Offers a Slice of Thoughtful Summer Escapism: Review
The Lowdown: In our diseased and never-ending present, 2015 feels like a hell of a lot longer ago than just five years. That April, My Morning Jacket released The Waterfall, a record that our Sheldon Pearce praised for its “stunning sonic scenery” and “perceptive, generation-bending kind of songwriting about lost love and nostalgia.” In addition to producing their best-received record since 2005’s breakthrough, Z, the sessions at Panoramic House in Stinson, CA, also produced a second album’s worth of material that Jim James and company decided to save until they needed them most. At the time, James told critic Steven Hyden in an interview for Grantland that “the two records aren’t related or anything” and that he “[didn’t] want to put it out as, like, The Waterfall 2 or anything like that....
Pinegrove Release Expanded Edition of Marigold: Stream
Pinegrove have released a (slightly) expanded edition of their latest album, Marigold. Stream the now-13-track effort below via Spotify and Apple Music. It’s also available via TIDAL, which is currently offering a 60-day free trial. Released in January, Marigold served as a follow-up to 2018’s Skylight, which was recorded prior to allegations of misconduct raised against Pinegrove’s leader, Evan Stephens Hall. That made the newer release the first effort the band had recorded following an extended hiatus, during which Hall and his accuser reached a resolution via a private mediator. Here, the LP has seen the addition of two new songs: an acoustic version of “Phase” and a take on “No Drugs” recorded during the Skylight sessions. Alongside the new tracks comes a video for the single “Endless...
Future Islands Share “For Sure”, First New Song in Three Years: Stream
Synthpop heroes Future Islands are back with their first new song in three years. The track is called “For Sure” and it sees the Baltimore band teaming up with Jenn Wasner of Wye Oak, a pairing that sounds seamless in practice. A press release states this is Future Island’s first new music since releasing their 2017 album The Far Field. Technically, though, the band released a standalone single called “Calliope” back in 2018 for Adult Swim’s Singles Series. Regardless, “For Sure” marks a welcome return for the band, especially because there could potentially be more new music on the way. “For Sure” is a soaring number that feels like you’re being filled with hope — something we could certainly use a little more of this year. Armed with their usual blend of synthpop, nonstop drums, and big ...
My Morning Jacket Announce New Album The Waterfall II, Out This Friday
Five years ago, My Morning Jacket released their most recent album, The Waterfall. At the time, the word was that the alternative rockers had actually recorded enough songs for two full-length albums, but the second collection of tracks never materialized — until now. Today, MMJ have announced The Waterfall II, and it’s coming this Friday, July 10th via ATO Records. The Waterfall and The Waterfall II were recorded during inspiring sessions at what became affectionately known as Panoramic House in Stinson Beach, California. While My Morning Jacket considered putting out all of the music as a triple album, they instead decided to split the two dozen tracks into distinct projects. It was during a walk in the early days of the pandemic lockdown that frontman Jim James rediscovered on...
Guided by Voices Announce New Album Mirrored Aztec, Share “Haircut Sphinx”: Stream
If you had to guess the most frequently-used phrase in music writing, you might guess it’s this: Guided by Voices have announced a new album. The prolific rockers will release Mirrored Aztec on August 21st, and they’re promoting it with the single “Haircut Sphinx”. Additionally, GBV have revealed the tongue-in-cheek “World Tour 2020”, a one-night streaming event that takes place July 17th. Frontman Robert Pollard has 107 albums (and counting!) to his credit. Mirrored Aztec will be his fifth effort in 18 months, following 2019’s Zeppelin Over China, Warp and Woof, Sweating the Plague, and 2020’s Surrender Your Poppy Field. Like the bus in Speed or Donald Trump on Twitter, Pollard seems incapable of taking a break. A press release describes Mirrored Aztec as ful...
Anjimile Announces Debut Album Giver Taker, Shares “Maker”: Stream
Trans indie songwriter Anjimile has signed on with Father/Daughter Records for the release of her debut album. Titled Giver Taker, it’s due for arrival September 18th. Inspired by “faith, addiction, and Anjimile’s own transition,” the upcoming nine-track project tells a larger story about self-discovery. A statement adds, “Giver Taker captures his ability to not only survive hardships, but grow into the person he was always meant to be.” Born in Dallas, but now based out of Boston, Anjimile infuses his style of indie rock and folk with musical bits of his past and present. Evident are the influences of the African pop passed on by his parents, his time spent in youth choir, and his love of both ’80s classics and recent works from Sufjan Stevens. Most of the recording was done thanks in par...
