Just in time for the iTunes Festival segment of SXSW this weekend, headliner Coldplay has released new music for their upcoming album via YouTube. Ghost Stories, the follow-up to 2011's Mylo Xyloto, is set to premier May 19th and the first two singles barely push the envelope die-hard Coldplay fans come to love from albums past. Newest track "Magic" is a bit too pop-infused, nearly butchering Chris Martin's signature croon with lyrics so basic we pray they weren't influenced by Gwyneth Paltrow. "Midnight" is echo-y and reminiscent of Bon Iver, drifting from their typical guitar/drum driven sound. With these two tracks Ghost Stories may have Parachutes fans hoping it's all a dark fable, with mild EDM a figment of Coldplay's imagination.
What do you think? Should fans of pre-Mylo Zyloto Coldplay be afraid of their change?
Grunge-pop band Kitten is known for their electric live performances and youthful energy in their musicality. The band has yet to pull together a full LP, but that will all be a thing in the past when their self-titled album drops in a few months. Loose cannon and frontman Chloe Chaidez talks about their side project used to preoccupy Kitten's (and their fans) time before the album releases:
In the process of recording the Kitten album we kept coming up with really cool ideas/beats that didn't quite fit but were really where I was at the moment. Old Missy Elliot, Arca, Drake, Future, Yeezus, etc...I thought it might be a cool idea to release a few of the tracks. Just a way let loose and have a good time making music with different friends while waiting for the album to come out. Ariel stopped by for the video and we just shot us hanging out together. This video was directed by Kaitlin Christy. She's a student at NYU and a close friend. It was a shot at an old Hollywood motel for about $300 and we had a great time making it.
"Money," the newest track below, is one of their more risky and peculiar divergences. Spontaneously shot and overwhelmingly low budget--Chaidez and Ariel Pink (Girls) are filmed in a motel seemingly under the influence as Chaidez's barely audible lyrics whisper through the late night swims and chain smoking. Is this what is to come of Kitten's fast approaching LP?
Foster the People
Alternative-melodic rock band Foster the People have been teasing their new album for months and in January the unveiling of the title, Supermodel, was finally dropped. After the whirl-wind success of their debut album and a nearly three year wait, audiences around the world have been anxiously anticipating the March 18th sophomore LP date. Single number one (posted below) from Supermodel is upbeat "Coming of Age". It's chalk-full of all the pop and pizzaz fans of Foster adore and the rest of the album shares that infectious, positive vibe, according to a Rolling Stone interview with the band. Currently they are on a tour around North America with St. Lucia:
Psychedelic pop duo Painted Palms turns winter upside-down with summer-punched tracks (minus misplaced, jingle-belled "Here It Comes") from their latest album Forever. The group creates their unique sounds by utilizing nearly every abstract instrument in their grasp. They've been compared to acts like Panda Bear and Animal Collective with vocal inspiration from the Beach Boys. It's hard to imagine, but somehow all the mixed sounds seem to come together. If you're heading to Austin for SXSW be sure to catch them in their festival debut.
Swedish singer Lykke Li reveals the title of her upcoming, dream-pop album I Never Learn via YouTube. The trailer hued and slightly faded, shows a displaced Li clad in all white pensive on a hilltop overlooking a distant city. It's disheartening and stark with dying flowers and tears shed over lost love, a low banter (an unnamed single) soundtracking the clip. Li told NME, "It's always about me and the guilt and the shame and the hurt and the pride and the confusion of being a woman." The singer also mentioned that this is the last installment in the trilogy of her past three albums. I Never Learn is set to drop May 6th.
Sprouted in 2007, the electronic rock duo
Phantogram has turned heads and sparked the interests of music lovers from all
spectrums.
The natives of New York, Sarah (lead vocals
and keyboards) and Josh (vocals and guitar) have an impressive touring track record:
acts include supporting The xx, Beach House, School of Seven Bells, and Metric
plus appearances at a few of the world’s greatest music festivals. Everyone
wants a piece of what Phantogram has to offer and the other half of Outkast,
Big Boi, is no exception. In February the rapper collaborated with Phantogram
to create three remixes as part of a #MashupMonday segment—to eventually be
made into an EP. Phantogram’s schedule proves to be tightly packed with working
on a song for the Catching Fire soundtrack and their second LP Voices, which
debuted February 18th.
ghostly.com
The lead single off Voices is choppy,
grunge tune Nothing But Trouble. The track opens up the album—powerful and
dangerous, it stacks many digitized elements creating the dark foundation for
the rest of the coming songs. Immediately proceeding Nothing But Trouble is
catchy Black Out Days. Jingling and drumming, the synth-dripped track blends
subtle piano trills into a complicated mixture: a producer’s paradise and
musical labyrinth. Lest we forget the ever-haunting vocals of Josh in Never
Going Home. He croons a heart-breaking ballad over hollow bass, amidst Sarah’s
inaudible mutters and stitched echoes.
Headed down a caliginous road, Phantogram
pours liquid melancholy into their icon-inspired track “Bill Murray”. Sarah’s
vocals are beautifully, smooth and distant. They flow simultaneously with
somber guitar strums and texturized synth—moaning “We’ll be tall.” A Lost in
Translation vibe coated thick throughout its verses.
Voices boasts versatility through its
eleven tracks. The album may be brooding with darker tones, but Phantogram
artfully constructs each song by building its insensity with multiple
instrumentals and layered synth. The album is a vessel taking its audiences on
an abstruse journey of tenebrously enticing feats. Not only has innovative
Phantogram managed to enrapture fans and critics, but their work will continue
to forefront generations of musicians to come.
Phantogram is currently on a North American
tour with a few stops in Europe during the late spring.
When one finds a
new artist they really start to dig, the first step is to look them up--scope
out their Facebook and Twitter, sample their discography, watch some videos or
read their interviews. All of this was grueling to obtain when it came to
getting to know a bit more about Farewell Dear Ghost.
After
a couple of days searching the web for background on the band I stumbled across
a few interviews of the surfacing act. The
up-and-coming Austrian band, which is lead by Philip Szalay, was originally a
solo act until he chose to take his musical career in a different direction and
experiment with his sound alongside a band. In November 2013,Farewell Dear
Ghost's debut album We Colour the Night dropped in Europe. The album muses
trailblazers The National and English rockers Bloc Party with Philip’s vocals
providing a cue to the lyrics he calls “optimistic melancholy” which can be
adequately said of his musical inspirations. His writing stems from every bit
of emotion and experience, he tells an interviewer for the Redbull music site
in response to comments made about his “sad” lines.
The first single “Fire”
starts off buttery, with lightly distorted vocals—smooth as water. Then the
track flips 180° and transforms into a pounding, energetic rock anthem. Other
tracks like “Words” and “Cool Blood” slow burn all the alternative elements
reminiscent of The Boxer Rebellion with heavy drums and contemporary guitar
solos. The sound is understated, simple and refreshing in this day and age of
genre smashing and risky experiments with synth and bass. It could be called
“safe”, but for the listener indifferent about the fluff We Colour the Night
hones in on all the qualities giving heavy hitting indie-alternative bands like
The National and Bloc Party their musical longevity. Farewell Dear Ghost’s
album digitally debuted in North America this past January and, unfortunately,
the group hasn’t made any plans to tour in the US for the Spring. In regards to
the group being so recent to the music scene it may have been difficult to find
information on them, but there is nothing lost in translation when it comes to
FDG’s promising musical path.
New Zealand might end up taking over the world with breakout artists like Lorde and The Naked and Famous. Accompanying the kiwis are newcomers Broods. Hailing from Lorde's native Auckland the brother and sister collaboration (Caleb Nott providing the instrumentals and backup vocals and Georgia Nott taking the lead) capitalize on whispers echoed over pop-filled house beats worthy of nods from hardcore fans of Ellie Goulding and CHVRCHES. Formed in 2013, the very new band has already been signed to Capitol Records and have received recognition from the producer, Joel Little, of Lorde's chart-topping debut album Pure Heroine. "Bridges", the first single off the EP, rippled through social media in 2013. The track features vocals from both Caleb and Georgia, layered thick over distorted bass and subtle taps of piano keys. Then the EP composes itself with slower tracks "Sleep Baby Sleep" and "Taking You There" hauntingly Crystal Castles-esque with less grit. It only takes Broods six songs to whirl through a complete metamorphosis of multifaceted sounds and the band can hardly be labeled as "novice".
Their full LP is expected to be released sometime this August and they have announced a few US dates for the Spring. Broods is sophisticated and beautifully complex and this is just a taste of what we can expect in the near future. Lorde has already expressed her excitement. August can't come soon enough.
Back in 2011, alternative rock band Young the Giant literally crowd-surfed into the spotlight and became a modern twist on the typical alternative band and a force to be reckoned with when they took to the MTV stage for their explosive VMA performance. Since then their musical journey has sky rocketed, putting them at the forefront of mainstream rock (I mean, come on, they were covered by Glee). The quintet, opting to drop out of university to pursue music, deliver eclectic sound and their many ethnic backgrounds (Indian-American, French-Canadian, British, Persian-American, and Italian) contribute to the diversified takes on every track in both their self-titled 2010 album and January's Mind Over Matter. Just like their debut album, Mind Over Matter infuses new-wave alternative with experimental, gritty rock. Yet, demonstrating chameleon-like talents Young the Giant takes a risk with almost disco inspired "Eros" and psychedelic guitar saturations in single "Crystalized". Lead vocalist, Sameer Gadhia's abstract lyrics nearly rival the many dynamics of the instrumentals, but never clashing. With the constant shift of tones on every track, you would think that Mind Over Matter would jerk and pull its listeners to the point of overwhelmed confusion. However, the tracks seamlessly blend and flow providing a cultured sound that can be applied to nearly any setting.
When the band isn't on the stage they're collaborating with cinematographers from In the Open to perform stripped-down versions of their energetic songs. Young the Giant has proved over the years that their art can stand out in any medium--whether it be live, acoustic and intimate, or covered in popular shows. Mind Over Matter makes a positive name for itself and steps from behind the shadow of their highly successful debut album. Just like their beautiful, scenic photos on the band Instagram every creative outlet put in Young the Giant's grasp turn out to be a captivating work and it only seems to be getting better from here.
In the past they've supported heavy-hitting acts like Marina and the Diamonds and Kings of Leon, but perfectly able to hold their own--this Spring they embark on another lengthy North American tour. Stream their sophomore album in its entirety on the band's Soundcloud.
Born and raised in Colorado. A deep love for British Alternative and Indie Rock and a blossoming romance for dream pop. Aspiring to get into music management and festival and event coordination. Writes reviews and artist profiles during downtime.
