Archive for category Music
new music: Boudoir Noir; Esquela; Slow Coyote
Posted by Amy Steele in Music, Uncategorized on April 1, 2016
Boudoir Noir, “Endless Dawn”
–dark cabaret-style which combines electronica, a bit of hip-hop/ world music beats, lush compositions and varied instrumentation. become engulfed in the haunting aspect of this single. nearly anything dark as long as it’s not metal, I’ll probably be into it. based in Flint, Michigan, Boudoir Noir is: Maria Fournier- vocals, guitar, production Beni Schlatter- drums, production Graham Rockwood- bass. Fournier’s impressive range complements the intriguing arrangements. Boudoir Noir’s Endless Dawn EP– which I’ve listened to many times over– comes out June 3. These are talented musicians. All three members of Boudoir Noir have formally studied music formally–Maria Fournier at Berklee College of Music, Graham Rockwood at Eastern Michigan and Beni Schlatter at U of Michigan– Flint. Boudoir Noir is a band to watch for 2016.
Esquela, “Gold Digger”
— rootsy, funky with twangy, rousing rhythms and grooving melodies. There’s a jovial vibe that must translate to a fun show. I’d definitely see Esquela live with beer in hand. From the band’s third album third release Canis Majoris. Esquela is: John “Chico” Finn [bass/vocals]; Becca Frame [vocals]; Brian Shafer: [guitar]; Todd Russell [drums/vocals]; Matt Woodin [guitar].
Slow Coyote, “American Cream”
–subdued, stripped down folk/acoustic with a longing and aching I find appealing. Portsmouth, NH’s Slow Coyote –aka Lucas Perry– notes that he’s played over 100 shows. He also performs spoken word poetry at his gigs. This single is off his new album, End of the Highway.
new music: The Raveonettes; Chris Robley; L.A. Witch
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 30, 2016
The Raveonettes, “EXCUSES”
Haunting melody and moody vocals kick off this song which bumps into a revved up chorus and then moves back to the subdued. The background imagery looks like planes and bombs and fire. This new track is RAVE-SOUND-OF-THE-MONTH PLAYLIST from The Raveonettes.
Sune Rose Wagner said of “EXCUSES”, “I love piecing things together, It’s so inspiring working on bits and pieces and make them happen together in a beautiful way. EXCUSES is a great example of that, helps my ADD. Furthermore, being surrounded by creative, inspiring, mad people is so crucial to anything in life really but when you encounter the opposite it’s so sad and a major drag to say the least, EXCUSES is kinda about that.”
Chris Robley, “Anonymous”
A tender, folky pop song by Maine-based singer/songwriter Chris Robley off his 5th solo album, THE GREAT MAKE BELIEVER. Directed by Craig Saddlemire, the video was shot at a YWCA of Central Maine and the video footage has been reversed. Robley recorded the album in Portland, Oregon with friends Arthur Parker (bass), Rob Stroup (engineer/producer), Naomi Hooley (vocals), Anders Bergstrom (drums), Bob Dunham (electric guitar), and Paul Brainard (pedal steel) – went to their friend Nick Peets’ beach house on the coast of Seaside, Oregon. Robley recently went through a divorce and sold his house. His new album serves as a catharsis as music often does.
L.A. Witch, “Drive Your Car”
Churning guitar and guttural rhythms propel this cool song from a cool band. It’s raw, it’s powerful, it’s hovering in the danger zone. Impressive composition and musical talent from this all-female rock trio. On its Facebook page the band describes its genre fittingly as reverb-soaked punked out rock. I’d love to see L.A. Witch live. L.A. Witch is: Sade Sanchez [guitar/vocals]; bassist Irita Pai [bass]; Ellie English [drums]
TOUR DATES:
04.18 – Mayan – Los Angeles, CA *
04.27 – Urban Lounge – Salt Lake City (w/ Dressy Bessy)
04.28 – Downtown Artery – Ft. Collins, CO (w/ Serpentfoot)
04.29 – Larimer Lounge – Denver, CO (w/ Dragon Deer)
05.01 – Levitation After Party – Austin, TX
05.02 – Walters – Houston, TX (w/ Sugar Candy Mountain)
05.03 – RBC – Dallas, TX (w/ Dirty Fences)
05.04 – Middle Map Fest – Kansas City (w/ Cold War Kids)
05.05 – Vega – Lincoln, NE
05.06 – Frequency – Madison, WI (w/ Levitation Room)
05.07 – Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids, MI (w/ Heaters)
05.08 – Empty Bottle, Chicago (w/ Sugar Candy Mountain)
05.09 – UFO – Detroit, MI (w/ Sugar Candy Mountain)
05.10 – Thompson House – Newport, KY (w/ Leggy)
05.12 – 529 – Atlanta, GA – (w/ Death Valley Girls)
05.13 – Hardywood – Richmond, VA *
05.14 – 930 Club – Washington, DC *
05.15 – 930 Club – Washington, DC *
05.17 – Music Hall of Williamsburg – Brooklyn, NY *
05.18 – Shea Stadium – Brooklyn, NY (w/ High Wasted)
05.19 – Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA *
05.20 – L’Esco – Montreal *
05.21 – Danforth Music Hall – Toronto *
05.22 – St. Andrews Hall – Detroit, MI *
05.23 – Riviera Theatre – Chicago, IL *
05.25 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN *
05.26 – Midland Theatre – Kansas City, MO *
05.27 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO *
05.28 – The Depot – Salt Lake City, Utah *
05.31 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC *
06.01 – Showbox SoDo – Seattle, WA *
06.02 – Roseland Theater – Portland, OR *
* dates with The Kills
show preview: HAELOS at Middle East Club in Cambridge on Friday April 1, 2016
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 30, 2016

“It’s the music you put on after the club,” Lotti Benardout states. “You can still feel that energy and euphoria, but it might bring you back to reflect on certain moments or memories.”
The impressive London-based electronic indie trio HAELOS recently released its debut album Full Circle [Matador Records]. Pounding bass beats combine with shimmery atmospheric arrangements. There’s intense sorrow, regret, beauty, moodiness, darkness and strength in the lyrics and melodies. Benardout’s vocals range from dreamy [“Ethyr”] to whispery to sweetly gentle [“Dust”] to plaintive [“Earth Not Above”]. She shares vocals on some songs with principle songwriter Arthur Delaney and Dom Goldsmith. It’s impossible not to become completely engulfed and drawn in by this striking music. Imagine the magic of full immersion in this music during a show. The band’s on tour now.
HAELOS plays The Middle East Club in Cambridge on Friday, April 1, 2016.
purchase at Amazon: Full Circle
TOUR DATES:
Wed. March 30 – New York @ Baby’s All Right
Fri. April 1 — Cambridge, MA @ Middle East – Upstairs
Sat. April 2 — Montreal, QC @ O Patro Vys
Tue. April 5 — Toronto, ON @ The Drake
Thu. April 7 — Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Fri. April 8 — Milwaukee, WI @ Collective Coffee-Prospect Café
Sat. April 9 — Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Tue. April 12 — Seattle, WA @ Barboza
Wed. April 13 — Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Fri. April 15 — Indio, CA @ Coachella
Tue. April 19 — San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar
Wed. April 20 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
Fri. April 22 – Indio, CA @ Coachella
Fri. April 29 – Manchester, UK @ Night And Day
Mon. May 2 – Nottingham, UK @ The Bodega Social Club
Wed. May 4 – London, UK @ The Bussey Building
Thu. May 5 – Bristol, UK @ The Louisiana
Fri. May 6 – Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin
Fri. July 29 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
Fri. July 29 – Sun. July 31 – Montréal, QC @ Osheaga Festival
music review: Full Circle Commonwealth Women Up Front
Posted by Amy Steele in Music, Women/ feminism on March 23, 2016

Full Circle Commonwealth Women Up Front
Static Motor Recordings
–review by Amy Steele
Do you feel that you aren’t that familiar with new bands and artists around Boston? I know that I’ve lost touch with the local music scene. Not that I was ever “in” the scene but I knew lots of bands in the 90s. So oldster that I am now, this GenXer gets excited to discover local artists like Petty Morals, Will Dailey, Telectrix and Freezepop. This 10-track compilation Full Circle Commonwealth Women Up Front developed through a SoundCloud group for indie music in Boston. There’s another site I don’t spend enough time on. Everyone’s on Facebook and I just don’t spend enough time there. Yes, I listen to links that publicists send me but I don’t spend the time browsing the site as I should. Spotify is my go-to and I’ve discovered lots of cool music there.
If you read my website you know that I support women in music and women in the arts and women all around. Women to the front! These days I mostly listen to female solo artists and female-fronted bands. This compilation features Massachusetts women– an eclectic mix of solo artists and female-fronted bands. If, like me, you want to support women in music and women in the arts then check out this collection. Discover some new artists. All these singers and bands excel in writing cool, gorgeous songs. They showcase vocal range and musical prowess. Impossible not to listen to it from start to finish again and again and again. Every song impresses with its songwriting, composition and ability to move, soothe or groove.
Here’s the track listing with my thoughts:
1. Imani Sherley – “I Will Go In Waves”
–gentle. emotive folk from this Smith College student
2. Marriage Material – “Fresh Air”
–60s-inspired electro-pop, extremely catchy and high-energy. female-fronted band composed of: Chelsey Reynolds [vocals]; Beck Goguen [vocals]; John Lieneck [keyboard/synth]; Matt McCarthy [drums];
Facebook:
3. Electric Wave Inspection Bureau (feat. Kate O’Connor) – “Packets”
–serious EDM. deep beat, quirky and spirited. reminds me of Stereolab.
4. Rachel Thomasin – “Laurels”
–achingly, heartbreakingly gorgeous. lovely vocal range. this singer/songwrier uses a variety of sampling and instrumentation in her mesmerizing arrangements.
5. Aüva – “Into Place”
–shimmery retro-dream pop with sweet female-male vox harmonizing.
members: Miette Hope [keys/vocals]; Jack Markwordt [guitar/vocals]; Jake Levine [guitar/vocals]; Michael Piccoli [drums]; Andy Metzger [bass]; Austin Birdy [percussion]
6. Satellite Sound – “Sunday”
— grungy guitar rock, muffled sounds, strong vocals. reminiscent of 90s bands That Dog or Velocity Girl. members: Danielle Mishkin [vocals/keys]; Michael Miller [guitar]; Jamie Martini [bass]; Levi Ali [drums]
7. Pleasure Garden – “In Death”
–dark, ethereal, dreampop. in the vein of Chelsea Wolfe or Bats for Lashes. duo of Anne Bennett and Ryan Lord.
8. A/J\E (feat. Ada Obieshi) – “Unknown”
–complex arrangements. heartfelt and powerful in its instrumentation and range. Vocals remind me of Valerie Forgione of Mistle Thrush [my forever-favorite Boston band].
9. And Then There Was One – “Dawn”
–pretty, lilting vocals. Melody effectively moves from lulling guitar to churning guitar. solo project of Stevie Caldwell.
10. Six Times Seven – “One of These Days”
–Stevie Caldwell possesses an absolutely gorgeous voice and can shred on guitar. impressive. upbeat pop with this band composed of: Stevie Caldwell [singer/guitar]; Ron Levine [bass] and Dave Zimmerman [drums]
Full Circle Commonwealth Women Up Front is currently available as digital stream or download. Support local music!
music review: James
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 21, 2016

In 1994, James catapulted into the U.S. spotlight with the cheeky, yet layered single “Laid” from the album of the same name. The band formed in the 80s in Manchester, England. Part of the 90s Britpop wave along with The Stone Roses, Charlatans UK, Blur, Oasis, Happy Monday, Pulp and The Wonder Stuff. I adored Britpop back in the 90s. It was my heart. In 1997 the band released its seventh album Whiplash with the wonderful songs “She’s a Star” and “Tomorrow.” I giddily interviewed bassist James Glennie in 1997 as contributing editor/writer for the Boston zine Instant Magazine.
In the 90s James was one of my favorite bands. When one of my favorite bands returns with new music, I become nostalgic and also apprehensive. I analyzed the words to every song. Cerebral lyrics ranged from self-improvement to politics [google “Sit Down”] . Heartbreaking, comforting, making me feel less a one-off weirdo. If you could wear out a CD I did. Several times over. Seven remains my favorite James album. Favorite songs [many of them!] include: “Sometimes”/ “Say Something”/ “Born of Frustration”/ “Sit Down”/ “You Can’t Tell How Much Suffering (On A Face That’s Always Smiling)” / “How Was It For You?”/ ”Out to Get You”/ She’s a Star.”
Many bands will remain synonymous with the 90s alternative/ indiepop/indierock/Britpop days, many popular 90s-era bands and artists are touring [Smashing Pumpkins, Liz Phair, Belly, Jesus Jones, Radiohead] and some never stopped. Some put out new material sporadically. Is it a comeback or a continuation after a brief hiatus? That’s difficult to say. Musicians generally keep writing, keep recording, keep performing. I thought that James hadn’t released anything since 1997. But that’s not true. The band took a break in 2001 and reformed in 2007. Somehow I missed some of those other James albums such as Millionaires [1999] and The Night Before [2010]. My relationships with music publicists vacillate. Also we know how fickle music consumers can be. Marketing and music sales have dramatically. I still like [or appreciate] many bands I liked in the 90s but it was a different time, a different decade and will always remind me of my 20s when I was insecure and figuring out a path. I’m still questioning myself and my choices.
So now, over 32 years after signing to Factory Records in 1982, James released its fourteenth album Girl at the End of The World on March 18, 2016. This electronica/ indie-rock album soars on the opener “Bitch” with its wah-wah guitar and the slow-burning “Attention” — a call to arms with its bold urgency—as well as the optimistic “Nothing But Love.” Then “To My Surprise” rouses and burns. Gentleness and Tim Booth’s subtler vocals blend with a funkadelic keyboard-based beat on “Dear John.” The best song “Catapult” features an upbeat attitude, deep riffs and a vaudeville arrangement. The current single “Girl at the End of the World” is a good one with its distinctive James-y wave. Another stand-out is “Move Down South” with its haunting beats and thoughtful lyrics about our relationship to the environment—“too late we’re all responsible/ too late to hold a wake/ we’re all drilled out..” Ah James. Be still my heart. Shatter my soul.
–review by Amy Steele
Girl at the End of the World
BMG
release date: March 18, 2016
purchase at Amazon: Girl At The End Of The World
James Discography:
• Stutter (1986)
• Strip-mine (1988)
• Gold Mother (1990) (re-released in 1991 as James)
• Seven (1992)
• Laid (1993)
• Wah Wah (1994)
• Whiplash (1997)
• Millionaires (1999)
• Pleased to Meet You (2001)
• Hey Ma (2008)
• The Night Before (2010)
• The Morning After (2010)
• La Petite Mort (2014)
• Girl at the End of the World (2016)
tour preview: Your Friend
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 21, 2016

Dorothy isn’t the only cool thing from Kansas. Your Friend, aka Taryn Miller, resides there. Her deviant folk must be inspired by the sparseness and flatness of the state. When I drove cross-country with a friend after college, driving through that state truly creeped me out. You could go so far without seeing another car. Just flat openness. Not pleasing to an agoraphobic. Fortunately that setting generates some superb music, art and writing.
Your Friend released its debut album Gumption [Domino Recording Co.] on January 28, 2016. Your Friend’s intriguing compositions lean toward celestial, escapist and magical. Her melodic vocals remain grounded with wisdom and lucidity. Miller likes utilizing loops and found sounds in her music. She said: “I paid attention to textures. I was trying to remove myself from an approach that I had followed before, but to be able to bring in that melodic element that is most inherent to me, and marry it with a more sonically meditative landscape.” If you like Warpaint, Perfume Genius and Chelsea Wolfe, you’ll definitely like Your Friend.
Ps. when did it become a thing to be a solo artist but utilize a band name?
Your Friend is currently on tour with porches and will play in Seattle, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Detroit and in Cambridge at the Middle East Downstairs on April 12. For more information check out The Middle East website.
TOUR DATES:
Mon. Mar. 21 – Denver, CO @ Lost Lake *
Tue. Mar. 22 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
Wed. Mar. 23 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest *
Thu. Mar. 24 – Portland, OR @ Analog Café *
Fri. Mar. 25 – Seattle, WA @ Vera Project *
Sat. Mar. 26 – Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt *
Mon. Mar. 28 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop *
Tue. Mar. 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo *
Thu. Mar. 31 – Santa Ana, CA @ Observatory – Constellation Room *
Fri. Apr. 1 – San Diego, CA @ Che Café *
Sat. Apr. 2 – Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge *
Sun. Apr. 3 – Albuquerque, NM @ The Co-Op *
Tue. Apr. 5 – Omaha, NE @ Slowdown *
Wed. Apr. 6 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St Entry *
Thu. Apr. 7 – Madison, WI @ UW Student Union *
Fri. Apr. 8 – Grinnell, IA @ Grinnell College – Gardner Lounge *
Sat. Apr. 9 – Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge *
Sun. Apr. 10 – Detroit, MI @ Majestic Café *
Mon. Apr. 11 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern *
Tue. Apr. 12 – Boston, MA @ Middle East Downstairs *
Wed. Apr. 13 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg *
Thu. Apr. 14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer *
Fri. Apr. 15 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom *
Thu. May 5 – Kansas City, MO @ Middle of the Map Festival
* with Alex G & Porches
new music: Sophie and the Bom Boms; Victoria Canal
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 15, 2016
Sophie and the Bom Boms, “Crème de la Crème”
Each month in 2016, Sophie and the Bom Boms will release a new single. With deep beats and Sophie’s sugary vocals, it’s a shimmery and uber-catchy song. What a fantastic feminist/women power anthem. Very cool electro-pop [self-described as “geek pop”] with an important message: accept your inner and outer beauty. It includes this awesome chorus: “Put our heads and hearts and hands together, it’s time we loved our strange.” Sophie and the Boms Boms is Los Angeles singer/songwriter Sophie Stern and her longtime collaborator: multi-instrumentalist/ producer David “Elevator” Greenbaum. After being discovered by Dr. Luke, Sophie wrote songs for Britney Spears and Keisha.
Victoria Canal, “City Shoes”
Here’s a new single from Victoria Canal’s debut EP Into the Pull. “City Shoes” is a stark and melancholy song which showcases the 17-year-old’s emotive, impressive vocal range. 17! All the songs on the EP convey a soulfulness, intensity and maturity that comes from one who overcomes adversity– she was born without her right forearm due to amniotic band syndrome– as well as cultural experiences– she’s lived in Munich, Shanghai, Tokyo, Barcelona and Dubai.
The video features Victoria on piano while ballet dancers practice in a studio. She’s drawn into the dance by a male dancer. She’s broken up with a guy and his shoes left behind keep reminding her of him. We’ve all been there. After her 20s she’ll learn not to keep things. It makes breaking up that much easier.
An activist as well as a singer/songwriter, Victoria Canal organizes benefit concerts for the causes she believes in such as SERV, AIS and t-oigo. She is also an active supporter of the LGBTQ community as well as representing victims of oppression and abuse. One song on her EP, “Little Girl” is about human trafficking and domestic abuse.
new music: Bur Gur; DCTV
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 13, 2016
Bur Gur “If I Was a Child”
Funky beat, existential messaging and video. Stand By Me-esque with a boy finding a dead body. Then it moves into hypnotic beats and psychedelic imagery. Waves, floating, atmospheric. Bür Gür is the Los Angeles-based tropical noise pop duo made up of Corbin Clarke and Makan Negahban. A new album– Have You Lost Your Faith In God [New Los Angeles]?—will be released on April 1, 2016.
DCTV, “Capital Ennui”
sounds like a melange of Charlotte Gainsbourg, Autour de Lucie, Stereolab and Shonen Knife. cranking post-punk guitar pop mixes with airy vocals. You will feel like you’re in a Godard or Michel Gondry film. Je parle francais mais il y avait longtemps. J’aime musique en francaise. edgy and cool. Shimmering fuzz with multi-instrumentation and enticing arrangements. although the vocals are in French the emotion bores through to your insides and melts you. The name DCTV comes from a Godard film Detective. DCTV is: French musician Lola G. and screenwriter/ guitarist James Greer. The duo’s new album, Confusione Moderne, comes out in April via Xemu and Lolipop Records.
US TOUR DATES
04.08 – Quencher’s Saloon – Chicago, IL
04.09 – Foam – St. Louis, MO
04.10 – Vaudeville Mews – Des Moines, IA
04.11 – TBA – Springfield, IL
04.12 – TBA – Bloomington, IN
04.13 – MOTR Pub – Cincinnati, OH
04.14 – Suzie’s – Youngstown, OH
04.15 – TBA – New York, NY
04.16 – TBA – New Haven, CT
04.17 – O’Briens – Boston, MA
04.18 – TBA – Philadelphia, PA
04.19 – TBA – Cleveland, OH
04.20 – Lager House – Detroit, MI
04.21 – TBA – Grand Rapids, MI
04.22 – TBA – Indianapolis, IN
04.23 – Tree Bar – Columbus, OH
new music: Nate Leavitt & The Elevation; Southerly
Posted by Amy Steele in Music on March 9, 2016
Nate Leavitt & The Elevation, “Take Me Back”
–blusesy folk. heartfelt and honest. a bit retro, sounding a bit like Buffalo Springfield or Neil Young.Boston’s Nate Leavitt & The Elevation will release its upcoming EP, Someone Send a Signal, on April 22. Fans can support the recording efforts via Pledge Music. Nate Leavitt played lead guitar in groups such as Delta Clutch, The Blizzard of 78, Oldjack and Parlour Bells for a little over twenty years. Magen Tracy (piano and backing vocals), Dan Nicklin (harmonica, omnichord, guitar and backing vocals) Brendan Boogie (bass) and Paul Myers (drums) round out the band.
Southerly, “Meeting Marie” and “Moon Sets the Sun”
–darkly beautiful, lulling. atmospheric and cinematic in its emotion and varied elements. seemingly simple with underlying intricate arrangements. The Portland, Ore. will release its fourth album, Broadcast Live From So, So, So out this spring. Southerly is: Krist Krueger, Eli Savage, Jason Oppat and Robert Bartleson.
https://soundcloud.com/selfgroup/sets/southerly-meeting-marie-moon-sets-the-sun







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