Montreal’s Rebecca Foon Sees in Sound
Montreal cellist and local band contemporary Rebecca Foon, performing under the moniker Saltland, rises above obscure and nebulous song titles and band names to deliver a moving symphony of strings and voices. Newly released on Constellation, this solo debut from the ex-Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-la-la Band member, titled I Thought It Was Us But It Was All Of Us, is a moody art-film soundtrack waiting to happen. In fact, Foon has several soundtrack credits to her name.
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By Stephan Hayes Posted in Reviews Rebecca Foon, saltland
Same Guitar, Different Sound
The sound of Los Angeles local band TORCHES is the sound that the world has agreed to refer to as “indie.” Jangling and chiming guitars dominate every song, accompanied by swooping low key male/female vocal harmonies and fuzzy bass lines. All throughout If the People Stare, the band’s latest EP, that new-world indie feeling is hard to ignore. In spite of the fact that this is a band covering familiar ground in well-traveled lands, TORCHES has somehow managed to avoid becoming boring. It would be easy to get lost in the sea of indie-rock bands that ebb and flow all over LA every weekend, but a few always find ways to stand out. TORCHES sets itself apart by being a band that offers something more than the expected guitar hooks and the sweet harmonies.
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By Sean Taras Posted in High Fidelity, Reviews TORCHES
Nelsonville Music Festival has announced their lineup for the Memorial Day fest. The headliners include Wilco, Cat Power, John Prine, and Gogol Bordello.
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By Elizabeth Hecker Posted in News Calexico, Cat Power, Gogol Bordello, John Prine, Mavis Staples, Nelsonville Music Festival, Sharon Van Etten, Wilco
Montreal’s Osheaga Music Festival has added some big names to its already phenomenal lineup. Nineteen artists, including Beck, Frank Ocean, and The Breeders, will be joining the bill which already featured The Cure and Mumford & Sons. Read more…
By Kelly Dalbeck Posted in News Beck, Mumford & Sons, Osheaga Festival, The Breeders, The Cure
North Carolina’s Hopscotch Music Festival has just announced their lineup for their fourth year.
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By Aria Davis Posted in News Action Bronson, Big Boi, Earl Sweatshirt, Future Islands, Hopscotch Festival, Local Natives, XXYYXX
Here’s a real test of how long you’ve been reading mxdwn. If you’ve been with us the whole decade we’ve been in operation you’ll know that we’ve avidly covered Secret Chiefs 3 since the beginning of this magazine. What’s interesting to note, is that it’s been almost ten years since the band released the first piece in a three-part mega album (the Book of Truth), entitled Book of Horizons. That was quite literally one of the best albums of the last decade. Band mastermind Trey Spruance had long indicated that Book of Horizons‘ follow-up would be called Book of Souls and it would be an extension of the new splintering of the band into 7 sub-identities. Read more…
By Raymond Flotat Posted in News Secret Chiefs 3
Lou Reed fans who were planning on seeing him at Coachella will have to continue “waiting for the man” after he cancels his appearances there as well as three other shows.
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By Jose Maldonado Posted in News Coachella, Lou Reed
Bona Fide Folk
Muchacho, the sixth album from Alabaman virtuoso Phosphorescent (also known as Matthew Houck), is filled to the brim with candid, heartfelt songs about love, sadness and redemption, permeated by a youthful, hopeful energy appropriate to its name. Houck composed the album after a meditative stint in Mexico, recording highly textured, almost orchestral arrangements that range from quirky, synthetic folk to rambling country blues. And even though it was recorded in the urban jungles of Brooklyn, Muchacho evokes the sun-soaked deserts of Mexico, tumbleweed towns and big western skies.
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By Charlee Redman Posted in High Fidelity, Reviews Matthew Houck, Muchacho, Phosphorescent
Punk music powerhouse Hatebreed is set to cover the country in a heavy metal, crossover thrash moxie while on tour this spring beginning April 9th. The Divinity of Purpose 2 tour is Hatebreeds’ second headliner and it will support the release of their new album The Divinity of Purpose. Read more…
By Robert Trice Posted in News
For a young festival, The Buku Music + Arts Project sure cleans up well. Now entering just it’s second year of production, the New Orleans festival is making a name for itself as a generally slick experience: clear (loud) music that doesn’t badly bleed from one stage to the next, surprisingly clean facilities, and a gentle balance of “only in New Orleans” pluckiness with global appeal. Aesthetics are highly valued and it shows: entering Blain Kern’s Mardi Gras World for a festival is like walking through a float-themed art gallery interspersed with graffiti and neon; think Madame Tussauds meets a rooftop party in the CBD.
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By April Siese Posted in Reviews, Show Reviews Action Bronson, Alt-J, Best Coast, brassft punk, buku, chris trew, Earl Sweatshirt, flux pavilion, Flying Lotus, Icona Pop, Kendrick Lamar, Kid Cudi, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Primus
