In the Summer of ’18, Twisted Pine [praised by NPR for “upbeat, poppy vibe; energetic, driving rhythms; virtuosic solos … and tight harmonies”] released Dreams, a deft reimagining of the band’s pop, rock, and disco favorites, from Joni Mitchell to Vulfpeck, Scissor Sisters to The Cranberries. Pop Matters raved: “Four musicians from various parts of the country found a common bond in Boston as Twisted Pine, and take on some heavy hitters as they release a seven-song EP full of spark, light, and irresistible force… wildly innovative covers.”
The vinyl pressing, with a bonus track covering the pop duo Hall & Oates, is now available for pre-order.
Just before the dust settles from a run of sold-out dates that stretched from coast-to-coast with his co-founding band Camper Van Beethoven, Victor Krummenacher will be hitting the road again. Only this time he’ll be doing double-duty as both the opening and headlining acts. In support of his forthcoming solo album, Blue Pacific (out March 1st), Victor Krummenacher & His Flying Circus will open these shows, followed by his other revered art/psych/prog band, Monks of Doom, who just recently released The Bronte Pin, their first album of new studio material in 25 years. Music critic Nick Spacek writing for the music site Modern Vinyl, called it “a welcome return for the band” and that it “sees them exploring folk-inflected progressive rock that manages to be serene and pastoral one moment, and thunderous the next. It makes The Bronte Pin quite an involving listen, and one you’re likely to dissect for weeks after first listening.”
Blue Pacific marks Victor’s ninth solo effort. The inception of this emotionally-charged project started nearly a year after his divorce, and, as it turns out, it’s one-part exorcism and one-part an effort to heal and put it all behind him.
“It was a really difficult album to make, some of the basics were recorded three times,” Krummenacher admits. “I went through two other drummers before settling on Michael Urbano. There was a lot of tension this time, and [co-producer] Bruce Kaphan seriously went all out to help make the best album we think we could do.”
Despite the fact this record was a direct result of so much pain, heartache and hurdles, musically it turns out to be one of Krummenacher’s most rewarding efforts of his lengthy career – be it solo, or with his other bands. “There was a LOT of time put into this one,” the musician reveals, “and I don’t know if I can really do much better in as far as writing or recording. Between the emotional context and the difficulty in getting all the aspects of the recording taken care of, it was one of the hardest projects I’ve worked on.”
(By Emily Zemler)…Longevity in music comes through pushing yourself and expanding the possibilities of your sound. This has never been more true for Copeland on their latest effort Blushing, a collection of 11 new tracks that advance and evolve everything the trio of musicians has done up until now. The band, which originally formed in Lakeland, Florida in 2001, has unveiled six albums, spanning from their 2003’s debut Beneath Medicine Tree to 2016’s Ixora. While they began as a rock band, Copeland’s music has explored multiple genres and pulled in various stylistic influences like electronic and symphonic. In the past the musicians have aptly melded these styles, creating a unique amalgam of sounds. This time they wanted to take each sound and style and push it to its logical extreme.
This pummeling offering of Midwestern sludge slabs is released as an FR&T Record Store Day Exclusive! Made available on April 16 2016 this is a must have for any fans of all that is riff worshipping, thick and nasty grooves. Only 4 songs but still weighs in at around 30 minutes! Available from Failure Records & Tapes!
New album by Tom Freund — Double Vinyl (Mastered by Bakery Mastering with audiophile precision) featuring 2 unreleased tracks and duet with Ben Harper on “Let My Love Open The Door”. First 50 ordered signed by Tom – upon request!
Daptone Records is overjoyed to present All My Relations – the debut solo album from long-time Dap-Kings saxophonist, Cochemea Gastelum. Cochemea’s electro-sax leads an ensemble of percussive giants (members of Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Antibalas) on a psychedelic, spiritual journey, exploring his ancestral roots through melody and rhythm. As a body of work, it is an acknowledgement of oneness and harmony with all forms of life: people, animals, insects, plants, trees, and even rocks, rivers, mountains and valleys. It celebrates the sublime beauty of existence and beginnings of such. Some of the tunes were drawn from memory, imagined from a time and place Cochemea has never been, such as “Sonora” (the home of his Yaqui ancestors), and “Mescalero” (an Apache tribe from the South Central region of Mexico – ancestors of his great-grandmother). Others were born from the Musical impression of ritual, like “Mitote” (an ancient, secular round dance of the Aztecs and other tribes of the Sierra Madre Occidental – which in certain cultures can be associated with Peyote ritual). The track “Asatoma” is an ancient prayer from India. In Sanskrit, it prays for guidance to grow from darkness to light, to distinguish the real from the unreal, and to be guided from death of the physical to the immortality of the Spirit. It is a celebration of life. The musicians on the record also bring a piece of themselves and their heritage, creating a cultural cornucopia of sonic expression that allows Cochemea’s vision and spirituality to flourish. All My Relations, in a sense, is a musical prayer to the world to help recognize our one true source, our shared identity. We are one.
