Cat Daiquiri: Kill The Password

Chicago indie trio Cat Daiquiri are back with a new EP filled with left field indie rock songs. On Kill The Password they tell stories about tattooed ladies, the numbing effects of sugar and dropping the tools that were essential for building a house. The best bits happen during the slow Please Don't Save Us. Starting as a friendly vocals duel the song builds up to shared crescendo of distorted guitar, bass and drums.

With this release Sarah Sterling (Videotape, Astrobrite, In Miniature, Nervous Cloud), Steve Rajewski (Canada, Little Midnight) and Graham Bauerle (Carbon Dioxide) have evolved into a proper band and not just an side project outlet. Recommended if you like Ryan Adams, Pavement and The Replacements.

Lee Ranaldo: new album "Electric Trim" 09/15, "New Thing" video

photo: Alex Rrademakers

Lee Ranaldo will release his new album Electric Trim on September 15 on Mute. Naomi Yang directed the video for New Thing.

Ranaldo was followed by film crew during the recording sessions. The year long process was turned into a documentary directed by Fred Riedel and Jerry Fried. The Thrill of the Creative Process in HELLO HELLO HELLO will be shown at selected film festivals later this year. Confirmed festivals: the New Jersey Film Festival, Fonomo Music & Film Festival in Poland, Gig Harbor Film Festival in Seattle, and London Doc ‘n Roll festival. Odds that it will be part of CD/DVD combo too.

Phish 2017 Baker's Dozen SBD + torrents: 2017/07/30 New York

Phish
2017/07/30
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

Set 1:

1. The Curtain With >
2. Runaway Jim
3. Waking Up Dead
4. Esther
5. Home
6. Brian and Robert
7. Nellie Kane
8. Colonel Forbin's Ascent >
9. Fly Famous Mockingbird >
10. David Bowie

Azure Hiptronics: tour dates

Italian-Dutch jazz band Azure Hiptronics have a couple of gigs lined up to promote their latest album Ignacio. They are accessible and adventurous - and that's what jazz is supposed to be.

Live dates:

• 09/01 The Hague, Netherlands @ Jazz in de Regentes 2017
• 10/21 Den Helder, Netherlands @ Boerenverdriet
• 10/25 Eindhoven, Netherlands @ Dutch Design Week
• 12/03 Eindhoven, Netherlands @ Kraaij en Balder

Phish 2017 Baker's Dozen SBD + torrents: 2017/07/29 New York

Phish
2017/07/29
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

Set 1:

1. Llama
2. Wilson >
3. Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan >
4. Ya Mar
5. Tela
6. The Birds >
7. The Line
8. Water in the Sky
9. Vultures
10. Train Song >
11. Horn
12. I Am the Walrus

Johnny KIlls: My Shirt Guy Is High

UK trio Johnny Kills are quick to release a follow-up for their rather splendid debut single Let's Talk About Me. Driven by a vintage sounding keyboards part My Shirt Guy Is High is a tongue-in-cheek slacker rock song about ennui and the long standing fascination of English musicians with fashion. Once again mastered by Pete Maher and produced by Alex Greaves the trio pushed all the right buttons for their own brand of garage Britpop.

Johnny Kills:
Tim Lloyd-Kinnings: guitars, vocals
Lewis Lloyd-Kinnings: bass, keys, vocals
Cameron Gipp: guitars, vocals

Live date:

• 09/15 London, UK @ The Old Blue Last (free show)

» Johnny Kills on Facebook

HCTF review of Let's Talk About Me.

Van Dammes: Vild Days

Finnish punk rock band Van Dammes continue their quest to keep loud abrasive music alive. Their third EP Vild Days opens with the self-explanatory statement Punk Rock Drummer, before going off in all directions with songs about the Thunderbirds and whales.

They can write a song about nearly anything, provide they can cram in it into a fast-paced back to basics rocker. Their sound has tightened up a bit over the years, but their style hasn't. Why should they? They honour "This is an A, this an E, this is a G. Now start a band" adage. Good time music about popular culture doesn't needs smart chord progressions.

Phish 2017 Summer tour SBD + torrents: 2017/07/14 Chicago

Phish
2017/07/14
Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, IL

Set 1:

1. What's the Use? >
2. Breath and Burning
3. Wolfman's Brother
4. In The Good Old Summer Time[1]
5. Everything's Right[1] >
6. Limb By Limb
7. Nellie Kane
8. Theme From the Bottom >
9. Blaze On

Horse Horse Tiger Tiger: Horse Horse Tiger Tiger

Dutch brothers Gijs van Osch and Joep van Osch have been making together since they were kids. In their teens they went through hard rock covers phase. started band called Apes in the Orange Grove before getting back to basics as a duo. Naming themselves Horse Horse Tiger Tiger their self-titled debut album is a jazzy pop record with forays into indie rock.

The keyword is intimacy with the brothers vocals as the main ingredient. They write old-fashioned songs of the Paul and Brian Wilson variety. The latter come to the fore in the bouncy Down to the South Sea, when surf music meets vaudeville. Bygones is a a serious contender for 2017's saddest song. Citroën is a friendly quarrel during a roadtrip (no bonus points for guessing the make of the car they are driving).

Phish: Baker's Dozen webcasts

All thirteen Phish Baker's Dozen shows @ Madison Square Garden in New York (July 21–23, 25, 26, 28–30 and August 1–2, 4-6) are offered as pay-per-view webcasts.

» livephish.com

Words about music (448): Jonny Greenwood

I sometimes feel a bit embarrassed to play guitar. There's something - I don't want to sound ungrateful - but there's something very old-fashioned and traditional about it. You meet kids today whose grandparents were in punk bands. It's very old and traditional, but then, so is an orchestra and so is a string section.

Jonny Greenwood

Phish: Live Bait Vol. 13 Baker's Dozen Edition

Another episode has been added to the Phish Live Bait series. Vol. 13 covers a time span of 24 years. The oldest track, Run Like An Antelope was recorded at I.C. Light Amphitheater, Pittsburgh, PA on July 18, 1993, while the most recent one, Light > Party Time, went down at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY on December 30, 2016. The bulk of the tracks were recorded at MSG to tie in with upcoming Baker's Dozen run at the venue.

Live Bait Vol. 13 is a free download compiled by the band's archivist Kevin Shapiro.

Tracks:

1. The Wedge
   (7/20/14 FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, IL)
2. Run Like An Antelope
   (7/18/93 I.C. Light Amphitheater, Pittsburgh, PA)
3. Tube
   (12/29/97 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
4. It’s Ice > Kung > It’s Ice
   (12/30/95 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
5. Piper
   (12/30/11 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
6. Icculus
   (12/31/13 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
7. Mike’s Song > Swept Away > Steep > Weekapaug Groove
   (10/22/96 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
8. Light > Party Time
   (12/30/16 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
9. Carini > Wolfman’s Brother
   (12/28/98 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
10. Ghost
    (12/31/10 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
11. Tweezer
    (12/30/94 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
12. You Enjoy Myself
    (12/4/09 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
13. No Men In No Man’s Land > Auld Lang Syne > Blaze On
    (12/31/15 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)

John Cale: New York 2017/07/11 setlist "Grammy Salute to Music Legends"

John Cale performed at the Beacon Theatre, New York, USA - July 11, 2017. Two songs at the Grammy Salute to Music Legends show. The Velvet Underground were among the recipients of The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award this year. With Maureen Tucker on percussion.

Lou, Sterling, Andy, wherever you are. Look at us. The establishment caught up with us at last.

The band:
John Cale: vocals, keyboards
Dustin Boyer: lead guitar, samples
Joey Maramba: bass
Deantoni Parks: drums

Setlist:

1. Sunday Morning
2. I'm Waiting For The Man

» John Cale on Facebook
» John Cale setlists

Low Society: Kortrijk added to European Fall tour

Screaming blues band Low Society have added a show in Kortrijk, Belgium @ Café Den Trap (12/02) to their European Fall tour. Husband and wife Sturgis Nikides (guitar) and Mandy Lemons Nikides (vocals) will once again be joined by their Belgian rhythm section Jacky Verstraeten (bass) and Bart De Bruecker (drums), who also feature prominently on their latest album Sanctified.

Live dates:

• 11/12 Goor, Belgium @ Goor Blues
• 11/18 Roeselaere, Belgium @ De Mooie Molen
• 11/19 Wageningen, The Netherlands @ Bluesclub XXL
• 11/23 Verviers, Belgium @ Spirit Of 66
• 11/24 Luxembourg City, Luxembourg @ Sang A Klang Concert Hall
• 12/02 Kortrijk, Belgium @ Café Den Trap

» screaminblues.com
» Low Society on Facebook

HCTF review of Sanctified.

Cover Me: Seven Nation Army

Watch Belgian singer and guitarist Lente reinventing the White Stripes classic Seven Nation Army as a jazzy acoustic blues standard. Recorded live @ Boogiewoogie in Geraardsbergen.

Contact info for Lente: Mail Danny DE Man

Fairchild: High As A Kite

Eighties synths and production values are a dime a donzen on the new Fairchild single High As A Kite. The Aussie sextet paint with broad strokes and producer and mixer Catherine Marks made sure it sounds just as smooth as had it been released in 1981. It will be included on their debut album So Long and Thank You.

Wednesday Call: Distance

The new Wednesday Call single Distance is written from the perspective of a child refugee. The Iranian prog band invited singer Geghani Galustanian to handle the vocals. Her silky delivery is a nice contrast with the dry beats of the drum computer. The track will be included on their new album. The video was directed by Sevan Shahmirian.

» wednesdaycall.com

HCTF review of The Line.

Mike Gordon: new album "OGOGO" 09/15, stream "Steps"

photo: Rene Huemer

Mike Gordon will release his fifth solo album OGOGO on September 15th. He will be on the road in September and October.

We’re excited to announce Mike’s new studio album, OGOGO, arriving September 15 via Megaplum/ATO Records. You can listen to “Steps,” a track from the record, now at YouTube. It’s also streaming via Spotify and Apple Music. Pre-order details are coming soon.

Johnny Dowd: Neon Baptist "Wages of Sin" live MP3

photo: Kat Dalton

Americana outsider Johnny Dowd has http://werksman.blogspot.nl/2017/07/johnny-dowd-neon-baptist-wages-of-sin.html a live recording of Wages of Sin, recorded with his band Neon Baptist @ The Rongovian Embassy in Trumansburg, NY - December 1, 1990. It can be found on the handmade live 2CD featuring songs recorded their concerts in 1990 and 1991.

Free download from his website.

Fit and the Conniptions: Old Blue Witch

BEST OF 2017
17
HCTF

Few people in the UK were more hated than Margaret Thatcher, the conservative Prime Minister from Hell. When she died in 2013 those sentiments came to the fore in an unprecedented show of jubilation: the witch was dead. Folk singer Wayne Myers found the inspiration for a new album with his band Fit and the Conniptions. about the havoc she wrecked and connect it the current state of affairs. Thatcher may be long gone, but her ideology of divide and conquer is very much alive. The economy is in flux, the Brexit has split the nation in two halves shouting at each other.

Myers has a case for being pessimistic and angry, but as an artist he couldn't be happier. Short of being in some kind of relationship trouble nothing beats an arrogant adversary to get the songwriting juices flowing. He dons the guise of an outsider during a party who (Festival Of Fools), brings fabled union leader Bob Crow back to life and sums up all the cuts on health care and the rampant unemployment in Valentine's Day. He tries to escape from it all, travels to an unfashionable German city (Stuttgart In October) and dreams about potential female companions named Carolina and Brenda Finn, and fantasizes about befriending a mythical creature in Mermaid Song.

DAWA: Put It Away

Austrian folk quartet DAWA are serving their new single Put It Way in two distinctive flavours on Soundcloud. The original is a bittersweet acoustic song and the remix by Stefan Seelenwald manages to kill all subtleties with an obnoxious backbeat and elongated vocals - to make it more radio-friendly. They have three more tepid remixes Spotify. Get the original and spend the rest of a poison of choice to get rid of any lingering remix residue.

The World Of Dust: "Pharaoh" video, "Bhava" digital release

In 2013 Dutch musician Stefan Breuer released Bhava, the debut album of his one-man lo-fi project The World Of Dust, as a very limited (100 hand-numbered copies) CD + book on Snowstar Records. Back then it was announced that there wouldn't be a digital or regular CD release, but now it's happening after all on Breuer's own label Tiny Room Records.

He made a video for Pharaoh, using toys and a castle to illustrate the story.

Eilen Jewell: European Fall tour dates

photo: Stuart Berg

Alt-country singer Eilen Jewell will be on tour in Europe this Fall. She has recorded a blues covers album, Down Hearted Blues. It will be released on September 22nd thru Signature Sounds Recordings.

Live dates:

• 11/01 Arnhem, Netherlands @ Luxor Live
• 11/02 Haarlem Netherlands @ Patronaat
• 11/06 London, UK @ Bush Hall
• 11/15 Bilbao, Spain @ Kafe Antzokia
• 11/16 Gijon, Spain @ Sala Acapulco
• 11/17 Ferrol, Spain @ TBA
• 11/18 Irun, Spain @ Sala Tunk
• 11/19 Madrid, Spain @ El Sol

» eilenjewell.com

Can: "Vitamin C" video

Watch the new Can video for Vitamin C, a track from their new compilation album The Singles. The Maschinenmensch Fritz Lang's masterpiece Metropolis has come to life, connecting two greats of the German avant-garde. The video was made by Josh Graham (Suspended In Light).

» Can on Wikipedia

John Cale: Grammy Salute to Music Legends show in NYC

John Cale will perform Grammy Salute to Music Legends at the Beacon Theatree in New York on July 11. The Velvet Underground are among the recipients of The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award this year.

» John Cale on Facebook
» John Cale tour dates

Gunned Down Horses: Summer Song

Theatrical-indie-pop band Gunned Down Horses have a new single. Summer Song goes through a few mood swings - lazy jazz, rock, vaudeville, Mexican brass. It's a total package that other band would need a full album for. Lead singer Davidavi Dolev keeps all together with his vocal antics and guitarist Adam Uriel Burstein is the uncredited conductor leading the band through the hills and valleys. Progressive rock? Maybe. Whatever label is attached to them, it won't stick. They honour traditions, but are not afraid to mix things up in order to get an even better result.

The Thin Cherries: The Thin Cherries

photo: Joe Nagle Photography

Chicago band The Thin Cherries is the brainchild of Steven Delisi and Mark Lofgren. Starting out a project as an outlet for their love of Britpop and college rock - plus a healthy dose of psychedelic pop brought to the table by Lofgren by way of his membership of The Luck of Eden Hall - it didn't take long before it evolved into a full-fledged band.

Their self-titled debut album, to which they both contributed five songs, is a cohesive unit of well-crafted tunes, wrapped in Eighties keys playing Sixties fills. Sharing vocal duties the band builds multi-layered harmonies. Never rushing things they take time to use a wide variety of textures, weaving an intricate tapestry that appears to be changing colours when observed closely.

The Dirty Denims: "Back With A Bang" video

Dutch hardrockers The Dirty Denims have made a video for Back With A Bang, the title track from their latest EP. The clip was directed by Joost Nevels and flimed at Fidan Gym in Eindhoven.

Live dates:

• 07/16 Walhalla Zomerfeesten, Deurne
• 08/14 Café Ramones, Grashoek
• 08/19 De Bunker, Gemert
• 08/27 Oderkerkpark, Etten-Leur
• 09/01 Vroomshoop
• 09/08 Bärenstübbsche Königstädten, Rüsselsheim am Main (Germany)
• 09/22 Mezz, Breda
• 09/23 Muziekcafé Helmond, Helmond
• 10/14 OJC Comeet, Someren
• 10/28 Rockcafé De Engel, Den Helder
• 11/23 Burgerweeshuis, Deventer
• 11/25 Taverne, Bergen

» thedirtydenims.nl

HCTF review of Back With A Bang - part 1.

Sven Agaath: End Of Latin

photo: Stefan Breuer

Dutch duo Sven Agaath have done it again. Gino Miniutti (vocals, guitar, keys) and Arno Breuer (drums, keys, percussion) mixed up shoegaze and grunge for their debut album Simple Field Calculator and they follow the same blueprint for most of the songs on their new one. End Of Latin is a little weirder at times - check the short instrumentals Leaving Ghost Town and the title track, and especially the superb sonic assault (and musical somersaults) during Razors.

The Pixies and Dinosaur Jr loom large when they find a monolithic backbeat and allow the other instruments to roam free. Sven Agaath are adamant to try pretty much anything to get a listener on the wrong foot. Tension is king, with a bit of release trying to fight its way in. Recommended for fans of disturbing, distorted noise rock and feedback.

Jeffrey Halford & The Healers: on tour in The Netherlands & Germany

Alt-country band Jeffrey Halford & The Healers will be on tour in The Netherlands and Germany in September and October, promoting their latest album Lo-Fi Dreams. More dates tba.

Live dates:

• 09/22 Leeuwarden, Netherlands @ Noardewyn Omroep Friesland
• 09/22 Veendam, Netherlands @ BluePrint Radio Live show
• 09/22 Amen, Netherlands @ Cultuur Café De Amer
• 09/26 Leiden, Netherlands @ Q-Bus
• 09/28 Venlo, Netherlands @ De Speelplaats
• 10/01 Son en Breugel, Netherlands @ Lazy Sonnie Afternoon
• 10/02 Homburg, Germany @ Mandy’s Lounch
• 10/05 Arnhem, Netherlands @ Luxor Live
• 10/06 Dordrecht, Netherlands @ Jazz Podium DJ
• 10/08 Vlissingen, Netherlands @ Spoednik

» jeffreyhalford.com

HCTF review of Lo-Fi Dreams.

Cover Me: Astronomy Domine

Watch the orginal Voivoid promo clip for teir cover of the Pink Floyd classic Astronomy Domine. it was released on their Nothingface album in 1989.

» voivod.com

HCTF premiere - John Elderkin & ¡Moonbeams No Mas!: The Fall & Rise of John Elderkin and ¡Moonbeams No Mas!

It took John Elderkin & ¡Moonbeams No Mas! two years to put together a sequel to David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars John Elderkin was the driving force behind the realisation of The Fall & Rise of John Elderkin and ¡Moonbeams No Mas!, with singer Danielle Howle riding shotgun. Tapping into the Notch Carolina indie musicians pool they enlisted members of The Old Ceremony, Pressure Boys, Sex Police, Dillon Fence, What Peggy Wants’, The Temperance League, Hobex, and National Symphony Orchestra, Popes to help them out.

The Fall & Rise of John Elderkin and ¡Moonbeams No Mas! supposedly continues where Bowie album ended. So, the world did not end after the predicted five years, which is all very nice, but also gets humanity into a flux. A small band crew decides to find what the Hell happened and travels to the Moon, enjoying a brief meeting with vintage satellite Telstar, a perfect excuse to include a cover of the Tornadoes classic.

Trip to Dover: "Fade Into Gold" video

Dutch electronic rock duo Trip to Dover have made a lyric video for the title track from their latest album Fade Into Gold.

Drinker: Fake It

Brooklyn electronic downtempo psych duo Drinker do something out of the ordinary on their new single Fake It. Singer-songwriter Aaron Mendelsohn and producer-composer Ariel Loh took a relaxed triphop beat, added some dreamy keyboards and whispered vocals. As a final touch they added a few old school ambient house beats to create tension and release. Loh wrote the score for horror movie The Eyes Of My Mother and while Fake It isn't scary, the cinematic flow could be used for animated short.

Words about music (447): Johnny Marr

I can show bands how to produce themselves. In the same way, many bands think you can't make it without some fat cat in London or New York to manage you. That's just crap. All you need is someone a bit older than you with a bit of business nous whom you trust.

Johnny Marr

The Mynabirds: new album "Be Here Now" 08/25, stream "Cocoon"

photo: Alysse Gafkjen

Singer Laura Burhenn of indie pop project The Mynabirds is back with a new single. Cocoon is the front runner for the new Be Here Now album. While she took on the world on her previous album Lovers Know she now looks inward, wrapping herself multi-layered in synths.

Be Here Now is being released as 3 digital EPs over 3 months. Full album (red vinyl) release on Saddle Creek on August 25, 2017.