Filipino-British artist beabadoobee has announced her debut album, Fake it Flowers, due later this year via Dirty Hit, home to artists such as Rina Sawayama, 404 Guild, the 1975, and more . The 20-year-old singer-songwrtier – real name Bea Kristi – has also shared the first taste from the new project, a driving indie pop tune titled ‘Care’. Below, check out the music video for the song, as well as the single’s artwork.
“This song has end-of-a-’90s movie vibes, like you’re driving down a highway,” Kristi said in a press release. “It is pretty much me being angry at society, or people around me who I just don’t think know me and don’t care. I don’t want you to feel fucking sorry for me. I just want you to understand what I’ve been through. I never expected to be making the first video from my album during a pandemic! I was so lucky to be locked down with the bedroom guys, it feels like it turned out as one of the most personal, real videos I’ve made. I’m so excited to share it!”
The new album follows last year’s Space Cadet EP, which contained the song ‘I Wish I Was Stephen Malkmus’, a tribute to the titular Pavement frontman.
IDLES have returned with a new song titled ‘A Hymn’, taken from their upcoming album Ultra Mono. More of a slow-burner compared to the previously released ‘Mr. Motivator’ and ‘Grounds’, the new single arrives with a music video directed by Ryan Gander, in which the individual members of the band drive around their hometown with their parents. Check it out below.
“‘A Hymn’ is a hymn that rejoices in the sinister flesh-eating virus of the pedestrian,” frontman Joe Talbot explains in a statement. “It sings the tune of normal’s teeth sinking into your neck as you sleep stood up with your eyes open. Amen.”
The band’s last album was 2018’s acclaimed Joy As an Act of Resistance. The highly anticipated follow-up is set for release on September 25 via Partisan. Last month, Talbot launched a virtual talk show called BALLEY TV, featuring guest appearances from The Streets’ Mike Skinner, CHVRCHES’ Lauren Mayberry, and more.
Bikini Kill have announced the rescheduled dates for their 2020 tour, which was previously postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Check out the band’s schedule on their website, and view the official announcement below.
The riot grrrl pioneers were set to embark on their international tour this past March, kicking off with two shows in their hometown of Olympia, Washington. Four more dates have now been added to the 2021 tour in Europe and the UK, beginning in Brussels on May 27 and including a show at the Roundhouse in London. Tickets will go on sale this Thursday, July 16th, at 10 a.m. local time.
The band reunited in 2019 for a short tour, marking their first live performances since original members Kathleen Hanna, Tobi Vail, and Kathi Wilcox parted ways in 1997.
Petra Leary, a highly-gifted New Zealand born photographer, has released a magnificent series named Blunt Umbrellas. In this photo series, Leary explores various umbrellasthrough an aerial view.
With continually growing popularity, years after its finale screened, The Office (US) does not seem to leave our minds and hearts. The classic show which was based on Ricky Gervais’ The Office (British), has created some unforgettable moments with its highly-talented cast which includes Steve Carell, Mindy Kaling, John Krasinski and Angela Kinsey — to name a few.
Luckily for us, Brian Baumgartner, the actor behind the character of Kevin Malone, has started releasing his new podcast An Oral History of The Office. The podcast looks into the history and the success behind the show and stars the superb cast that made the show brilliant.
The podcast is available for listening on Spotify.
The project of Australian singer-songwriter Sophie Payten, Gordi’s music is powered by the kind of stark emotional honesty that lies at the center of any great ballad. ‘Aeroplane Bathroom’, the track that properly starts off her sophomore album, serves as a striking introduction to the rawness of her songwriting, one that sits comfortably near the top of the most soul-crushing piano ballads of the year. Written on a flight from Australia to Europe, Payten had a lot on her mind: “I can’t get my shit together in this aeroplane bathroom / I’m wondering why I haven’t seen myself before,” she sings. Stripping down a lot of the layers that made up her indie pop debut Reservoir in 2017, Our Two Skins manages to carry the sense of intimacy that’s implied in the album’s title throughout its runtime, aided by previous collaborators Chris Messina and Zach Hanson (both of whom have worked with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, whose influence can be heard throughout the album’s tender palette). The equally wrenching vulnerability of tracks like ‘Volcanic’ and ‘Radiator’ makes the album’s more hopeful moments feel all the more earned, like the heartfelt ‘Extraordinary Life’, where Payten proclaims “It’s like you’re in my chest/ It’s like you’re in my lungs”. The slow-burning ‘Free Association’ is the kind of cinematic closer an album like this deserves: Our Two Skins is not only a beautiful record, but one full of revelations.
We caught up with Sophie Payten for this edition of our Artist Spotlight series, where we showcase up-and-coming artists and give them a chance to talk a bit about their music.
What’s your earliest musical memory?
Sitting in the car with my grandmother. She would drive me into town and teach me old songs and I’d sit in the front seat and barely be able to see over the dashboard. I don’t really remember a time when I didn’t sing or hum. Before I discovered records I was really just learning catholic church hymns. But then I came across ‘Stranger’ by Billy Joel and it probably made me fall in love with music.
What are some of your influences?
Early on I was listening to Billy Joel, Carole King, James Taylor, Eva Cassidy, The Beatles – I think most of us grow up listening to our parents’ records. When I turned 12 I was given the debut record of an Australian artist named Missy Higgins; that was a real turning point for me. It was the first music that truly resonated with me on a lyrical level because of the personal, diary-entry style. A little while later, my aunty showed me ‘Alas, I Cannot Swim’ by Laura Marling, which continued me on that folk journey. My brothers got me listening to The Tallest Man on Earth, The Postal Service and Bloc Party. I discovered Bon Iver and Sigur Ros and Death Cab, then Asgeir, Sharon Van Etten, The National and Perfume Genius. I could literally go on forever.
What were some of the ideas that went into the making of Our Two Skins?
Essentially we wanted every aspect of the record – the sonics, the songs, the visuals – to all look and feel like the place in which the record was made. We made it on my family farm outside a small town called Canowindra. Throughout the album you can hear a lot of sounds that we recorded with a field recorder around the property; revving vehicles, swinging gates, clashing chains.
The name ‘Our Two Skins’ tries to capture a lot of the ideas in the songwriting; intimacy between two people, death and grief, and finding an identity in the world’s landscape. At the time I wrote this record, Australia was voting on same-sex marriage while I was falling in my love with my friend. There is a particular kind of isolation that comes with being told your rights are limited because of something you cannot change about yourself. It was a turbulent time of trying to maintain a sense of self-worth.
How was your approach different from your debut album, Reservoir?
‘Reservoir’ was my first album and I recorded it between Reyjakvik, New York, LA, Eau Claire and Sydney with a number of different people. I wrote the songs over a period of a few years and then looked back at them and thought – what is the story I’m trying to tell? I had a string quartet on the record, horns, thickly layered vocals; it was like a rich soup.
‘Our Two Skins’ is very different. I recorded it in a cottage on my parents’ farm with Chris Messina and Zach Hanson in 4 weeks. The story of the album is very linear, starting with ‘Aeroplane Bathroom’ and ending with ‘Sandwiches’. We purposely put limitations on the process – we had a small number of instruments, pedals and recording gear which we had to predetermine. The essence of the record was about what felt true to the songs and we were committed to this idea; what is the least amount of stuff we need to tell this story? Where ‘Reservoir’ was a rich soup, ‘Our Two Skins’ is bare bones; no bells and whistles.
What are your favorite tracks from the new album?
‘Volcanic’, ‘Radiator’ and ‘Free Association’.
What are your plans for the rest of the year?
That will largely be determined by the pandemic. I’m hoping I’ll be able to play some shows in at least Australia and New Zealand. This month I am playing a live streamed show with a band from the Sydney Opera House. At the moment I’m also taking time away from my other career, which is working as a doctor. I’m going to start a Masters in Public Health this semester while the world is somewhat on pause. And of course; I will write.
Gordi will play a livestreamed launch gig for Our Two Skins on Saturday, July 25 at 9pm, from the Sydney Opera House. Find more info here.
Dublin rapper Rejjie Snow has shared a new song featuring MF DOOM and Cam O’bi called ‘Cookie Chips’. Accompanied by a quirky video directed by Machine Operated in which Rejjie walks around a park with a bunch of balloons, ‘Cookie Chips’ is a hazy, sun-drenched tune that’s perfect for the summer. Check it out below.
“I love making music & creating moments,” Rejjie said in a statement. “It feels good to bring out this song in such an unaccustomed time & begin this new chapter in a solid & happy place.”
The track marks the first taste of new music from Rejjie since he released his debut album, Dear Annie, back in 2018.
FKA twigs has unveiled a new short film called We Are The Womxn in collaboration with WeTransfer. Highlighting “the dynamic healing of womxn of colour”, the Ivar Wigan-directed video was filmed during the artist’s 2019 tour in support of her most recent album, MAGDALENE. Check it out below.
The film revolves around a trip to Atlanta’s Afropunk festival last year, where twigs performed a sacred moon dance coordinated by spiritual leader Queen Afua. It also includes clips of twigs visiting Blue Flame, Atlanta’s first Black strip club.
Speaking of shooting the film, twigs said: “I’m actually pretty shy, but I felt so encouraged to dance and enjoy my body by all the amazing womxn who came together. I particularly bonded with one dancer at Blue Flame [named] Kharisma. She had such vibrant energy, and at the beginning of the night she called the other girls on to the stage to be admired and supported in their expression.”
She added: “My experience at the Blue Flame solidified that, although historically womxn are often pitched against each other for their looks or their assets by the patriarchy, when left to our own devices we are incredibly nurturing and healing for each other.”
Yo La Tengo have launched a Bandcamp page and shared a new 5-minute ambient piece titled ‘James And Ira Demonstrate Mysticism And Some Confusion Holds (Monday)’. Listen to it below.
Speaking about the new track, Yo La Tengo’s Ira Kaplan explained: “If you’ve spent any time hanging out with us at our rehearsal space in Hoboken — that pretty much covers none of you — you’ve heard us playing formlessly (he said, trying to sidestep the word ‘improvising’). Most of the songs we’ve written in the last 25 years have begun that way, but often we do it for no other reason than to push away the outside world.”
He added: “In late April, with the outside world weighing on everybody, we determined that the three of us could assemble in Hoboken without disobeying the rules laid out by Governor Murphy, and resumed… ‘practicing’ hardly describes it, because we’ve done no practicing per se, and anyway what would we be practicing for… playing. James set up one microphone in the middle of the room in case we stumbled on something useful for the future. Instead we decided to release something we did right now.”
The track marks the first taste of new music from the band since their 2018 album There’s A Riot Going On. Recently, Yo La Tengo announced a 25th anniversary reissue of their 1995 album Eclectr-o-pura, out in September via Matador’s Revisionist History series.
Just months after releasing his sophomore album, græ, Moses Sumney has returned with a new track called ‘Monumental’. Released as part of a collaboration with designer Thom Browne’s SS21 collection, the song finds Sumney reimagining the Olympic Hymn, originally composed by Spyridon Samaras and with lyrics by Greek poet Kostis Palamas. Check it out below.
“What does it mean to pose statuesque on top of a marble podium, at a time when statues across the world—long-standing symbols of white supremacy—are literally being toppled?” Sumney said in a statement. “What does it mean to appropriate the Greco-Roman statue, a long-standing placeholder of white male virility and beauty, and replace it with my Black body? A body that has historically been disregarded as far less beautiful and in more recent years, objectified? What does it mean to objectify myself?”
