May 2020

Wellington, New Zealand based Giantess create dark indie pop with alluring vocals, pounding rhythms, and surprisingly heavy riffs bubbling underneath the surface.  Heart-songs that are steeped in floods and fires, rendered out of the bones of witch-rock outfit HEX.  Giantess released their debut album ‘Big Woman’ on the 14^th of May 2020.

Following up the singles “The News”  and “Gone, Gone Golden” the new full-length “Big Woman” features the third single “Good Looking Girls”^.

Kiki explains the record

“Big Woman’ is a breakup album, an endeavour into deep feeling, and a paean to growing up in a world that only wants you to shrink. Written and recorded over two gruelling years, ‘Big Woman’ charts the course of grief through to vision, braiding together feminine rage, ecology, ethics, and hope.

History

From 2015 – 2018 HEX toured throughout New Zealand, Australia, and the USA, opening for major acts including Dinosaur Jr, Shonen Knife and The Kills. 

The ep ‘Calling to the Universe’ (May 2016) and recent album ‘The Hill Temple’ (February 2018) were both critically well received, garnering extensive support from College Radio across Australasia and the U.S. The band was featured on NPR, Billboard Magazine. in the Chicago Tribune and Noisey.

“Huck Hastings makes pop music with a purpose, he just knows how to dig down at those inner emotions and still create a toe tapping ear-worm at the same time” – FBI RADIO

“This Australian artist has a handle on words that I’ve come to envy, and while I’m not oft to immerse myself into idolatry, we’re coming close.” – INDIE HAPPY HOUR

Arriving with an appropriately ominous title ‘Anthem for the End of the World’ is the third release from Sydney melancholic strummer Huck Hastings and his forthcoming EP.

In a bid to make the apocalypse that bit more cinematic ‘Anthem for the End of the World’ explores the bushfire dystopia and questions of existence through delicate and honest lyrics. Paired with jangly guitar and a sombre bassline the track somehow seems both melancholic and uplifting. Of the track Hastings describes “I like the idea of it being kind of Apocalypse prom music.” Produced by Tim Carr (Matt Corby, Julia Stone) and featuring backing vocals from Ainsley Farrel the production is only the bed upon which Hastings shares candid musings through vulnerable lyrics that resonate further after every listen.

This knack for thoughtfully penning his observations and wrapping them in an infectious folk-pop tune echoes throughout his recent releases. Signalling his recent artistic growth ‘Hey Babe’ arrived in October 2019 alongside a Wes Anderson-esque clip and was swiftly added to rotation on FBi Radio and was named in their Independent Artist of the Week series. Follow up ‘Soft – An Epilogue’ enjoyed further airplay and was added to Woolworths radio.

Honing his direction in underground corners and brightly lit stages around Sydney, Huck Hastings has crafted out a distinctive sound in an crowded genre. Also fronting Sydney trio Hollow States, he’s opened for the likes of Olympia and graced the TedXYouth stage.

HUCK HASTINGS
‘Anthem for the End of the World’
OUT NOW

Facebook Website YouTube Instagram Spotify

New Jersey punk legends, The Bouncing Souls, have announced that they’ve joined the Pure Noise Records roster, and to mark the occasion the band have shared a brand new song World On Fire. Produced by Will Yip (The Menzingers, Tigers Jaw, Turnstile) World On Fire offers a taste of what’s to come for the long-running band. The Bouncing Souls have always excelled at bringing classic power pop and rock & roll influences to their energetic punk foundation, and the new single effortlessly nods to stripped down, timeless songwriting while providing the kind of soaring chorus that fans of the band have come to know and love.

SUPPORT FOR ‘MR ZIL’

“With relentless drums, scorching guitars and thumping bass, the angsty track leaves nothing up to the imagination”.
Hysteria Magazine (AUS)

After a successful first release of “Tongue tied” with her latest producer Brandon Jonak just last month – Sophie Castriota is once again hitting the scene with a new follow up song “Not my Vibe” which was released on the 20th of May and is just as catchy, dynamic and unique.

The two have mastered their own sound which sits somewhere between R&B/Hip Hop but is distinctly recognisable.

Sophie also artfully creates the videos that are released with her music and “Not My Vibe” shows a graceful and content young woman safely keeping herself from a non-descript unsuitable male in pursuance of her.

The theme of the song being about having the strength to walk away from toxic or potential toxic relationships.

Watch out for these two rising stars with more of their songs to be released in the coming months!

‘Not My Vibe’ can be streamed on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube etc…

www.instagram.com/sophiecastriota

www.facebook.com/sophiecastriota

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmvmkZGel1I

‘Posh Chocolates

Dose’ is the latest offering from Mancunian trio Posh Chocolates, an effervescent single that masterfully merges indie pop with jazz elements. The band takes a sound reminiscent of The 1975, and brings it into their own realm. Lyricist and frontman Christian Ellery sings of addiction to love and substances; ironic, as the song itself is indeed addictive.

Reagan

‘Do U Notice Me?’ is the indie-pop debut from Reagan, who has been penning her sentiments from an early age. Driven by dynamic percussion, the track features delicate guitar and sporadic synth lines that all combine to create a throwback feel, with the vocal production evocative of The Cardigan’s Nina Persson. Listen to the record:

BLVFF

BLVFF, an authentic indie rock band hailing from Coventry, have released their powerful new single ‘Want For Nothing.’ Following the vivacious percussion and driving guitar lines, the song descends into a hushed chorus before bursting back into its anthemic energy. Emerging on the national scene as ones to watch, BLVFF are set for big things.

Candid

Candid have made a name for themselves on their local scene in Coventry with sold-out shows and impressive support slots, and now they’re taking their music to the next level. Their latest release is ‘Pulling Away’, an infectious indie rock groove that channels early Catfish and the Bottlemen, featuring unreserved lyrics and irresistible drum beats.

Punt Guns

Daring duo Punt Guns merge together rock, electronica and pop music to create a soundscape unlike anything else on the market. Their new single, ‘Who Am I’, juxtaposes a crushing odd time guitar riff in the verses with distorted vocals and hip hop beats in the chorus. The duo’s fearlessness is what makes their music so captivating.

Alex and the Wonderland 

Alex and the Wonderland have released the follow-up to their debut ‘Love’s Louder’, which received some impressive airplay. A collaboration with some high-profile guests, ‘Searching For Myself’ is an eclectic yet vulnerable second single, with roots in folk, pop, Americana and country. The lyrics are refreshingly candid about a yearning for self-discovery.

Paisley Park

Hailing from South Wales, emerging four-piece Paisley Park excel at combining classic rock with soulful songwriting. Their new release, ‘Never Played It Safe’, is driven by an infectious guitar hook and resolute drums, and complimented by a passionate vocal performance from Jack Mason. This song is destined for big stages, and is sure to uplift audiences.

Vellichor

The self-titled debut EP by London based quartet Vellichor includes 5 irresistible tracks of ambient yet experimental jazz. The four musicians, each with their own accolades from performances across the global jazz scene, seek to bring the genre back into pop culture by fusing elements of throwback hip-hop and 60’s modal with contemporary jazz. Listen here.

In a surprise release, Jeff Rosenstock shares his fourth full-length album NO DREAM today. The LP is out now on Polyvinyl Record Co. NO DREAM comes at a time of unparalleled chaos and confusion, division and despair, the depths of which would have been impossible to predict when much of it was being written over the course of the last few years. And yet the record feels prescient, unexpectedly and uniquely suited for this moment.

Newly settled in Los Angeles after a lifetime on the East Coast (namely Brooklyn by way of Long Island), Rosenstock recorded NO DREAM with Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Hard Girls, Joyce Manor) at Oakland’s Atomic Garden, and even took on mixing duties alongside Shirley for the first time. Opting to stay off the computer “even more than usual” and record to tape with outboard gear, the result is a lived-in sound that gives each song its own individual voice and organic energy.

Purchase, download and stream NO DREAM now HERE.
Pre-order on vinyl, out August 21st, HERE.

MORE ON NO DREAM:

“It was feeling like a very personal record for me,” says Rosenstock. “A lot of it was stemming from the anxiety I was feeling from the last two years, this existential crisis of wondering who I am.” Rosenstock has found himself in a surprising position. As he puts it simply: “I didn’t expect to be doing well, in my life, ever.”

After building a cult following with the acerbic ska-punk of the Arrogant Sons of Bitches and DIY heroics of Bomb the Music Industry!, Rosenstock’s first proper solo record, 2015’s We Cool?, was a step into uncharted territory, fully untethered from genre and expectation. Followed by 2016’s WORRY. and the surprise New Year’s Day launch of POST- in the early hours of 2018, Rosenstock was facing down that least punk of opportunities: a career playing music.

“I got so used to putting out records that only a few people in the punk underground liked,” he says. “And a lot of people in the punk underground also didn’t like them, either.” Except things have changed, and NO DREAM arrives with an entirely new set of expectations in an entirely new era. The greatest surprise is that Rosenstock’s deeply personal self doubt is expressed in a way that captures a universal feeling of shock and uncertainty, his own growing anxieties about his place in the world holding space for our own. “I was trying to not be afraid of using phrases that weren’t immediately clear to me, aside from how they sounded and felt, then allowing them to reveal themselves over time.”

“Music is all vocabulary – you learn new words but you don’t forget the old ones,” he says. Having taken some time away from his work as a solo artist to recalibrate and reset over the last year, Rosenstock stayed busy playing alongside Mikey Erg, recording and touring with the Bruce Lee Band, releasing a Neil Young covers record with frequent collaborator Laura Stevenson, reissuing two of his own out-of-print early albums, compiling a live album which was recorded during a run of four sold-out shows at Bowery Ballroom, making a 76 page photo book, and scoring over 80 episodes of the Cartoon Network series Craig of the Creek. In fully returning to his own voice, it’s no surprise that Rosenstock’s output has never been more eclectic, reflected across NO DREAM’s 13 songs.

“Scram!” pulls from the overdriven guitar sound of Kerplunk in its mash-up of chugging palm mutes and Weezer melodies, while “Old Crap” mines the pop-punk of Rosenstock’s youth and dares to drop a classic “pick it up!” rallying cry.  Ultimately, it’s the title track, with its breakneck pivot from dreamy Mazzy Star to careening Minor Threat, that gives the album its aching heart. “You can’t help it. You can’t stop it. You see these atrocities and want it to end. But it’s not going to stop, and when that feeling sets in it’s a full-on panic freak-out.”  It may not be a hopeful message, but it’s one that ties together the sense of impending doom and gives it direction, voicing a rage that many struggle to articulate.

“I thought I had just made a record for no one,” he says. “What’s the point of feeling this way? Does it help to vocalise it?” Rosenstock’s rhetorical question is answered by NO DREAM, an accidentally universal record for a damaged, difficult time.

Previous praise for Jeff Rosenstock: 

“[POST-] is filled with ‘angry confusion,’ but Rosenstock also reveals himself as a singer-songwriter with a gift for delicate melodies.” – NPR Fresh Air (Ken Tucker)

“one of punk rock’s greatest, most effusive living songwriters.” – Pitchfork on POST- (8.2)

“[POST- has] bouncy riffs and braying hooks careening off of each other with joyous urgency…in using this straight-ahead, anachronistic bash-it-out music to reflect layered and complicated right-now fears and anxieties, Rosenstock pulls off some kind of magic trick…[a] triumph.” – Stereogum (Album of the Week for POST-)

“[Jeff Rosenstock blows] angst out into punk operettas.” – The FADER

“Rosenstock reminds us that few things sound more rebellious and feel more cathartic than a rock band blowing the windows out of a garage” – Consequence of Sound (#32 Top Albums of 2018)

“Using pop-punk accessibility but at prog-rock scale, with his voice all shredded and twitchy, Rosenstock rages at rage, mourns mourning, and frets that all the street protests of late might just be a fad.” – The Atlantic (Best Albums of 2018)

“Rosenstock, like the rest of us, is learning to balance rage with relief.” – Brooklyn Vegan (#24 Top Album of 2018)

“Worry’s fears and anxieties have metastasized, giving birth to an angrier, more frustrated, but also more ambitious collection of song [on POST-]s, teeming with boundary-testing moments for the band, but always ready with a complicated, cathartic sing-along to provide some hope in dark times. “ – The AV Club (Best Indie and Rock Albums of 2018)

“When this punk-rock hero dropped his third solo album on New Year’s Day, it felt like a blessing for 2018. Now, almost a full year later, it feels like prophecy…In a year in which the deluge of bad news continued abated, hearing an indefatigable optimist like Rosenstock wail that “we’re not gonna let them win” felt like tonic.” – Uproxx (#3 Best Rock Album of 2018)

“He is a rambunctious bard of late capitalism, perceptive as he is blunt, hooky as he is wordy.” – The Ringer

“Rosenstock’s manic gospel — cathartic indie-punk injected with the gleeful abandon of basement hardcore” – MTV

JEFF ROSENSTOCK – NO DREAM OUT NOW TRACKLISTING 1. NO TIME 2. Nikes (Alt) 3. Scram! 4. N O   D R E A M 5. State Line 6. f a m e 7. Leave It In The Sun 8. The Beauty Of Breathing 9. Old Crap 10. ***BNB 11. Monday At The Beach 12. Honeymoon Ashtray 13. Ohio Tpke