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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
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While in lockdown in Milan (one of the hardest hit countries in Europe), Nic Cester has been writing songs for his second solo album, and creating a unique global fan video for ‘Hard Times’.
Last month, Nic put the call out on Instagram for fans to play along to ‘Hard Times’ with any type of instrument they could get their hands on. He received an overwhelming response, with contributions from Italy, Malaysia, USA, England, France, Germany, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Scotland, Austria, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Belgium, and Australia. He has now compiled the clips to create global collaboration video for ‘Hard Times’.
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Following their latest single ‘Never Give Up’ via B1 Recordings/Ministry Of Sound which was awarded ‘The Essential New Tune’ accolade by BBC Radio 1’s Pete Tong, Mathame now launch their new multiplatform cinematic project, PHOENIX. The interdisciplinary brothers Amadeo and Matteo Giovanelli have innovated PHOENIX as an online stage and interactive space for both artists and music lovers.
PHOENIX is an enigmatic planet in orbit around the Earth. Using the latest 3D real-time technologies, it has hundreds of different settings where DJ’s and musicians can perform in outlandish scenarios and backgrounds. The groundbreaking project took two months to develop and, in future, will also be a web community akin to computer game and virtual universe, Second Life, where people can meet with their own avatar.
The virtual-reality world of PHOENIX recreates a kind of magic and emotion that listeners can immerse themselves into. Mathame’s reimagining of what the landscape of live streaming is capable of, gives the medium a uniquely innovative dimension. The project isn’t only a visual experience; PHOENIX is also raising funds for CESVI (Bergamo’s Hospital & Old Persons Assistance) via streaming platforms.
Credits:
Soundtrack: Mathame
Director: Matteo Giovanelli
Executive producer: Amedeo Giovanelli
3d VFX Artist: Pierpaolo Mantuano
Art Assistant: Pedro Barbosa
Management: Enrico Mutti, Guillaume Thollet
Special thanks to:
Cesvi Bergamo
Unreal Epic Games
Ghisleri Antica Casa Musicale
Blackmagic
Encode talent
Ultra Music Publishing
H Intelligence
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We could all use some uplifting news right now, and the upcoming release of the first compilation from Tiësto’s Musical Freedom label since its inception in 2009 is definitely going to be making a lot of people happy this month. Due on May 29, the album features 20 hot new tracks that show off the breadth of the label’s styles.
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After dropping their latest record Internal Atomics at the back end of 2019, hardcore heavyweights, Stray From The Path are revealing the new music video for album highlight ‘Beneath The Surface‘ today.
The band’s 10th studio album, Internal Atomics garnered praise from the likes of Billboard, Kerrang, Exclaim!, New Noise, and more. In true Stray From The Path style the release is a biting, socially-conscious album full of groove-laden riffs and pummeling drums, but it also contains a message of empathy and a desire for understanding.
‘Beneath The Surface’ is one of the album’s most direct explorations of these universal themes, and also highlights Stray From The Path’s ability to blend musical aggression with memorable hooks. The song’s music video was directed by the band’s bassist, Anthony Altamura.
Stray From The Path have been bringing their charged-up punk fury and politically outspoken voice to the masses for the better part of two decades and Internal Atomics is proof that they aren’t slowing down any time soon. The album finds the four-piece more ferocious and vocal than ever, a vital voice for reason, empathy, and change in challenging times.
Internal Atomics pushes Stray From The Path’s distinctive rhythmic aggression to breakneck levels while lyrically the record rails against apathy towards the suffering of others, toxic dog-eat-dog culture, myopic worldviews, institutional corruption, and more. Seeking to plant seeds of positive change, Internal Atomics provides both a release for frustration and a path to action.
STRAY FROM THE PATH // INTERNAL ATOMICS
OUT NOW ON VIA UNFD
Surprise! Australia’s momentous punk-rock heavyweights The Meanies have today lifted the lid on details of their forthcoming record, Desperate Measures, while also sharing ‘Cruel To Be Caned’, the lead single from the new album.
Desperate Measures, slated for release in July 2020 via Cheersquad Records and Tapes, marks the first studio album from the band since their victorious 2015 comeback record It’s Not Me, It’s You amassed a slew of standout album reviews across the country and reignited Australia’s longstanding love affair with the influential punk-rock outfit.
According to frontman Link Meanie, the album title Desperate Measures reflects the drastic strides we take to stomach the current state of the world.
“Desperate Measures is an album title for the times, whether it be applicable to the rise of right wing anti-intellectualism, the associated denial of impending environmentally apocalyptic disaster or the cultural lobotomy of today’s popular media,” says Link.
It’s hard to see a way through this miasma of illogical negativity without… (drum roll)… desperate measures.”
The charging lead single ‘Cruel To Be Caned’ depicts a tale of anxiety, depression and inevitable isolation, and the struggle knowing that such forced expulsion is at once entirely necessary, yet resented. The single also marks as the first time Meanies’ bassist Wally Meanie has taken lead vocal on a track.
Arriving with the new single is the video for ‘Cruel To Be Caned’, a kooky horror collage clip produced by Link Meanie himself.
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Seasoned Aussie outfit Immigrant Union are gearing up to release their forthcoming third album Judas and have locked down the album’s release date for Friday 19 June. Ahead of the LP’s release which will be made available via Cheersquad Records & Tapes, the band are celebrating with a brand new video for their latest lifted single ‘Soldier Field’.
A poignant track that ebbs and flows through the outfit’s distinct alt/folk/country tropes with a strong psychedelic footing, ‘Soldier Field’ follows in the wake of Judas’s previous lifted singles ‘New Win’ and ‘Jewels In The Sky’ in a trifecta of easy listening tracks that emphasise the depth of Immigrant Union’s songwriting and seasoned musicianship.
The new video out today, features the band’s latest lineup of Brent DeBoer (The Dandy Warhols), Bob Harrow, Peter Lubulwa, Ben Street and Paddy McGrath-Lester at Victoria’s stunning Pink Salt Lake in Dimboola. Presented through a defiant grayscale lens, the minimalist self-directed clip perfectly embodies the track’s soft, melancholic undertones, enveloping DeBoer’s deep rumination in one smooth, slick trip.
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