music
Julia Stone Returns With New Single “Break”, Produced By St. Vincent: Stream
Julia Stone (photo by Brooke Ashley Baron) and St. Vincent (photo by Lior Phillips) Julia Stone is back with her first solo single in eight years, “Break”. The track was produced by none other than St. Vincent and features additional contributions from Bryce Dessner of The National and Warpaint member Stella Mozgawa. On “Break”, Stone layers her folk stylings with more robust instrumentation like synthesizers and brass, citing David Byrne as inspiration. According to the Australian singer-songwriter, this exciting shift in musical direction is tied to the adrenaline rush of a new romance. “It’s when you first meet somebody, and you have that connection, and your chemicals go crazy,” Stone says of the single, which was also co-produced by Sufjan Stevens associate Thomas Bartlett. “It’s abou...
R.I.P. Emitt Rhodes, Power Pop Icon and Home Recording Pioneer Dies at 70
Emitt Rhodes, power pop icon and home recording pioneer, has died at the age of 70. News of Rhodes’ death was confirmed by Omnivore Recordings, which released his final album in 2016. He is said to have passed away in his sleep, but the cause of death was not immediately clear. Rhodes got his start as a drummer in garage rock band The Palace Guard (which also briefly featured My Three Sons actor Don Grady). However, he had his first breakthrough with his next band, The Merry-Go-Round, which had minor hits with the psychedelic “Live” and the melancholic ballad “You’re a Very Lovely Woman”. It is most likely for his 1970 self-titled solo album, though, that he will best be remembered. The album, released on Dunhill Records, was recorded on an Ampex 4-track recorder in his pare...
Beyoncé Reveals New Trailer for Visual Album Black Is King: Watch
Beyoncé has shared a new trailer and fresh details for her upcoming visual album, Black Is King. Announced in June, Black Is King is an intellectual property Turducken. It’s a reimagining of Disney’s live-action remake of The Lion King, which incorporates music from Beyoncé’s companion album, The Lion King: The Gift. The plot-to-music ratio isn’t clear at this time, but the new teaser is a star-studded affair, featuring appearances by JAY-Z, Kelly Rowland, Naomi Campbell, and Tina Knowles-Lawson. Nyong’o and Pharrell Williams will also appear in the film, according to a press release. The film was shot in Los Angeles, New York City, London, the country of South Africa, the region of Western Africa, and Belgium. Bey served as executive producer, working alongside directors Em...
Paul McCartney Thinks the Pettus Bridge Should Be Renamed After Rep. John Lewis
Paul McCartney (photo by MJ Kim), and Rep. John Lewis On Friday, July 17th, Civil Rights organizer and American hero Rep. John Lewis died of pancreatic cancer. Now Paul McCartney has called for the Edmund Pettus Bridge to be renamed the John Lewis Bridge, saying “Long may his memory remain in our hearts.” The Pettus Bridge wasn’t chosen at random. In 1965, it hosted one of the more shameful events in US history. A 25-year-old Lewis led a peaceful voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, when police trapped protestors on the bridge. One cop assaulted Lewis with his baton, fracturing his skull. Lewis went on to serve in Congress for over three decades, and as he often said, “I gave a little blood on that bridge in Selma… I’m not asking any of you to give any blood. I’m just ask...
Josh Homme on Possible Kyuss Reunion: “The Only Real Way to End It Correctly Now Would Be to Play”
Josh Homme is proud of his influential early ’90s stoner rock band Kyuss, but is sad about the ugly way things ended with his former bandmates. When asked about the possibility of a reunion in a new interview, the Queens of the Stone Age frontman surprisingly said he would consider playing Kyuss shows again in order to rewrite the band’s final chapter. Kyuss formed in the late ’80s in California as teenagers under the name Katzenjammer, changing their name to Sons of Kyuss, and eventually Kyuss. Homme (guitars), John Garcia (lead vocals), and Brant Bjork (drums) were the mainstays of the band, with Chris Cockrell, future QOTSA member Nick Oliveri, and Scott Reeder serving as the band’s different bassists over the years. From 1991 to 1995, Kyuss released four albums, with Alfredo Hernández ...
My Morning Jacket Perform “Spinning My Wheels” on Fallon: Watch
It’s been less than a week since My Morning Jacket dropped their excellent new album, The Waterfall II. On Wednesday night, the band celebrated the record’s release with a quarantine performance of “Spinning My Wheels” on The Tonight Show. Album opener “Spinning My Wheels” is sensual and introspective. It relies on piano and slide guitar flourishes to provide a backdrop of beauty for the ennui of the lyrics. For the first live performance behind the LP, frontman Jim James selected what seems to be a teal peacoat, and he arranged his flowing hair and beard into a lion’s mane around his head. Filming took place with a red curtain directly behind James, and blank walls on either side. This allowed the camera cuts to provide visual interest, without requiring the band to do anything other...
Kanye West Holds First Campaign Presidential Rally in South Carolina
Kanye West held his first presidential campaign rally at Exquis Event Center in North Charleston, South Carolina on Sunday. The event began at 5:00 p.m. ET. Kanye took the stage wearing a bulletproof vest and with his head shaved to say, “2020”. During the early portion of the rally, Kanye invited fans to the stage to speak about the issues that matter to them. In between these remarks, Kanye offered his own personal andecdotes. Notably, he accused social media and prescription drugs of brainwashing culture. Additionally, Kanye boasted about having a 132 IQ and how he went “to the hospital because my brain was too big for my skull.” He also said Harriet Tubman “didn’t free the slaves, she had them go work for other white people.” He explained his stance against Planned Parenthood, at one p...
Shamir Announces New Self-Titled Album, Premieres “I Wonder”: Stream
Despite the pandemic, Shamir is gearing up to release his second album of 2020. Following March’s Cataclysm, the indie artist is readying a self-titled record for October 2nd. According to a statement, Shamir finds the Philly-based musician swapping his R&B and pop palette for something with a little more grit. Shamir specifically looked “toward the post-hardcore ’90s for further inspiration — from Olympia, Washington cult heroes Unwound to bands of the Kill Rock Stars orbit.” The shift in musical direction may be a bit surprising to fans. But for Shamir, it’s a natural evolution and one that places him at his most centered. “I felt like it didn’t need a name [for the album], cuz it’s the record that’s most me,” Shamir says of the LP, which he also considers his most accessib...
Hayley Williams Covers Björk’s “Unison”: Watch
During the onset of the outbreak, Hayley Williams delivered her rendition of Phoebe Bridgers’ “Smoke Signals” from quarantine. The Paramore leader is back this week with another homemade cover, this time taking on the Icelandic queen herself, Björk. Performing from her own couch, Williams offered up an acoustic version of “Unison”, a track off Björk’s 2001 album Vespertine. “I’d actually hoped to cover a different song of hers live this year, but I guess that will have to wait until some other time,” Williams wrote on Twitter. “anyway, this one has to be in my top 5”. We’re curious to know what songs make up the rest of her Björk list, but we’ll settle for this magical cover in the meantime. Watch video footage below. Editors’ Picks This past spring saw Williams release Pet...
Consequence of Sound Announces AC/DC Back in Black 40th Anniversary Virtual Celebration
Rock’s biggest-selling album ever — AC/DC’s Back in Black — is turning 40 years old this month, and Consequence of Sound is celebrating in a big way. In a joint effort with Gibson Guitars, we’re presenting “Back in Black 40th Anniversary: A Virtual Celebration”. The online stream will take place Friday, July 24th, premiering at 5:00 p.m. ET across the CoS social channels, with an amazing giveaway launching today. Hosted by guitar virtuoso Jared James Nichols, the streaming event will include AC/DC testimonials or tutorial performances from Slash, Dee Snider, and members of Cage the Elephant, Anthrax, Lamb of God, Refused, Airbourne, GWAR, and more, as well as friends and fans of the band. We’ll also get an inside look at some of the gear that guitarist Angus Young used to get his signature...
The Once-Called “Herd Immunity Fest” Happened and Here’s What Went Down: Video + Photos
The once-named “Herd Immunity Fest” made national headlines when it was announced last month, and now the three-day rock gathering is in the books. The festival took place Thursday (July 16th) through Saturday (July 18th) outside the Q&Z Expo Center in Ringle, Wisconsin, and a smattering of social media posts and YouTube clips offer a glimpse of what it looked like. The “Herd Immunity Fest” faced backlash when it was first announced in late June, not only for its name but for the fact that it was going to be staged in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite organizers quickly renaming the event the “July Mini Fest”, a handful of bands dropped off the bill, including Nonpoint, Royal Bliss, Kaleido, and Blacktop Mojo. Things looked sketchy this past week when organizers reached out t...
Rare 1979 Version of Prince’s “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” Has Been Unearthed: Stream
This September brings a massive reissue of Prince’s 1987 tour de force, Sign O’ the Times. The expanded collection boasts 63 unreleased tracks, as well as a previously unseen concert film recorded at Paisley Park on New Year’s Eve that same year. Fans were already treated to one of the reissue’s many rarities, “Witness 4 The Prosecution (Version 1)”, back in June. Today, Warner Records and The Prince Estate are sharing a never-before-released 1979 version of “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man”. This iteration was recorded at Hollywood Sound Recorders, Studio A on May 23rd, 1979. According to a press statement, it’s “the oldest recording” found on the upcoming reissue.”The track was retrieved from the vault by Prince in June 1986 and re-recorded, with Prince adding a guitar solo...
