Home Blog Page 1095

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Sign to Secretly Canadian, Returning With New Music This Fall

After announcing some UK shows back in March, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have signed to Secretly Canadian and added a string of tour dates in North America. They’ve also promised there will be new music coming out this fall. Check out an announcement video along with the list of dates below.

“It’s with true life affirming pleasure to announce our two headline shows in our two hometowns NYC AND LA supported by two wildly gifted bands Japanese Breakfast and The Linda Lindas at the Hollywood Bowl, with The Linda Lindas supporting in Forest Hills and our other support TBA soon!” Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O said in a statement. “Representin’ a few generations yo! Cannot wait to see you there! New music! New Era! And New Home with Secretly Canadian ! Much to celebrate!”

Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ last album was 2013’s Mosquito.

Yeah Yeah Yeah Tour Dates:

Jun 5 – Manchester, UK – O2 Apollo (with English Teacher)
Jun 7 – London, UK – O2 Academy Brixton (with Dry Cleaning, Anika)
Jun 8 – London, UK – O2 Academy Brixton (with Porridge Radio, Anika)
Jun 11 – Barcelona, ES – Primavera Sound 2022
Jul 20 – Melbourne, Australia – Margaret Court Arena (with Wet Leg)
Jul 24 – Sydney, Australia – Hordern Pavilion (with Wet Leg)
Jul 29 – Montreal, QC – Osheaga Music And Arts Festival
Oct 1 – New York, NY – Forest Hills Stadium (with Special Guest TBA, The Linda Lindas)
Oct 6 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl (with Japanese Breakfast, The Linda Lindas)

Album Review: Girlpool, ‘Forgiveness’

For years, Girlpool have been morphing their sound beyond its humble beginnings. The playfulness and romanticism of the LA duo’s 2015 debut Before the World Was Big belied the messy and terrifying realities of growing up; with each subsequent release, Avery Tucker and Harmony Tividad have found new and intriguing ways to bring that chaos to the surface. 2017’s Powerplant saw them incorporating percussion as well as plenty of feedback and distortion without shaking the group’s core foundations, while 2019’s What Chaos Is Imaginary experimented with more synths and layered production to document the changes in the group’s personal lives. They quickly proved that the push-and-pull dynamic of their music wasn’t limited to indie rock’s loud-quiet-loud formula and that their writing could slip into the abstract as much as it relied on heartfelt honesty. If What Chaos Is Imaginary drifted between straightforward indie rock and hypnotic dream pop, Girlpool’s latest twists both ends of the spectrum, straddling the line between delicate alt-folk and industrial pop with help from producer Yves Rothman.

Forgiveness introduces us to this fluid world by offering a jarring yet effective synthesis of its ideas. While most of the record weaves in and out of each mode, ‘Nothing Gives Me Pleasure’ takes a different, more volatile approach: it opens with thumping beats that are immediately smoothed over by a softer synth and Tividad’s sweet vocals, which in turn come into contrast with raw, lacerating lyrics about a hopeless relationship: “You’re so hot/ But still so cold,” she summarizes. But as she repeats the chorus about deriving pleasure from “the things I know you won’t say,” those industrial blips give way to a cinematic pop outro that’s less laden with friction and recalls Lorde’s ‘Hard Feelings/Loveless’, like fading the you out of the song’s hedonism. Its dynamism is later matched by Tucker’s ‘Violet’, a tender, Elliott Smith-esque ballad that expands unlike any other on the album, as if to affirm the quiet power of its biggest emotional revelation: “When you held me like a doll/ That’s when I felt so fucking strong.”

For the most part, the album transitions from one experiment to the next without much of a unifying thread tying it together. Some smart sequencing choices mostly make up for this, but it’s less a lack of cohesion that becomes a problem than a couple of missteps here and there: ‘Lie Love Lullaby’ follows seamlessly from ‘Nothing Gives Me Pleasure (both are co-produced by Ben Zelico), but remains too static by comparison, failing to fully convey the romantic frustration that Tucker sings about. ‘Junkie’, meanwhile, hinges on an awkward metaphor that doesn’t develop in the compelling and poetic ways that Tividad’s songs generally do, and the subtle instrumentation doesn’t do the song any favours. But sticking to a single style also leads to some of the album’s most affecting and memorable moments, like ‘Dragging My Life in a Dream’, a catchy and nostalgic cut that best evokes the group’s early days, or the magnificent ‘Faultline’, where lush melodies meet some of Tividad’s most potent lyrics to date.

When the members of a duo like Girlpool start to grow and write separately, this change can result in a few uneven records. The way Tucker and Tividad’s songwriting is framed on Forgiveness highlights their distinct personalities as well as individual concerns, but their songs also have a strange way of calling back and relating to each other. Over and over, they’re bound by dreams, trying to bury or fall into them, make them real. On ‘Dragging My Life’, Tucker holds his breath hoping to run into someone; ‘Faultine’ then has Tividad “sinking further in” and wishing “you could reimburse my oxygen.” Like Girlpool’s music, she’s in a state of oscillation, “Between the edge of solitude and hope/ I’m shaking in a sentimental trope.” Then, she admits: “I wanted everything so much it grows.” Girlpool create a space where that kind of intense desire is permitted, and it doesn’t have to grow in one direction. But on the other side, beyond the constant haze, Forgiveness suggests, lies a life free from danger and delusion. Whether or not that’s where we find Girlpool next, what’s certain is that they won’t be the same.

Blood Release New Single ‘Luck’

Philadelphia-based sextet Blood have shared a new single called ‘Luck’. It’s lifted from their upcoming Bye Bye EP, which is out on July 8 (via Permanent Creeps) and includes lead offering ‘Money Worries’. Listen to it below.

Blood began in 2017 as the solo project of lead singer Tim O’Brien, expanding into a six-piece with the release of their debut EP, Why Wait Til’ 55, We Might Not Even Be Alive, in 2020.

This Week’s Best New Songs: Angel Olsen, Kelly Lee Owens, Arcade Fire, and More

Throughout the week, we update our Best New Songs playlist with the new releases that caught our attention the most, be it a single leading up to the release of an album or a newly unveiled deep cut. And each Monday, we round up the best new songs released over the past week (the eligibility period begins on Monday and ends Sunday night) in this best new music segment.

On this week’s list, we have the gorgeously elegant, slow-burning title track to Angel Olsen’s forthcoming album Big Time; Arcade Fire’s uplifting, acoustic-led ’Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)’, the latest single from their upcoming album WE; ’Mirrors’, the title track to Francis of Delirium’s new EP, which matches anxiety-ridden lyrics with dynamic instrumentation; Kelly Lee Owens’ lush yet foreboding ‘One’, taken from her new album LP.8; and ‘easy’, the striking, synth-infused opener from Tomberlin’s new full-length.

Best New Songs: May 2, 2022

Song of the Week: Angel Olsen, ‘Big Time’

Arcade Fire, ‘Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)’

Francis of Delirium, ‘Mirrors’

Kelly Lee Owens, ‘One’

Tomberlin, ‘easy’

Deerhoof, Empath, Water From Your Eyes, and More Contribute to ‘May Day Music’ Compilation

Deerhoof, Empath, Water From Your Eyes, Dan Deacon, Palberta, Molly Drag, and more have contributed to May Day Music: A Benefit Compilation For Strike Funds & Artists, a new compilation benefitting strike funds and artists. The 47-track collection arrives on International Worker’s Day via Gardenhead Records, with proceeds going towards ongoing strikes and unionization efforts as well as the contributing musicians. Check it out below.

Watch Fontaines D.C. Perform on ‘CBS This Morning’

Fontaines D.C. appeared on CBS Saturday Morning yesterday to perform three tracks, one from each of their three albums. Watch them play Dogrel’s ‘Liberty Belle’, A Hero’s Death’s ‘Oh Such A Spring’, and ‘Jackie Down The Line’ off their latest LP Skinty Fia below.

Fontaines D.C.’s third album was released in April via Partisan. The band recently performed the track ‘Nabokov’ on Seth Meyers.

Most Viewed and Popular Fashion Bloggers on YouTube: How to Start Your Own Channel About Style

Sometimes, you just have to take a leap for something you believe in. For some people, this might mean starting a new YouTube channel. For others, it might be opening a boutique or writing a book.

If you love fashion or style, a great option is to start a fashion or style channel of your own on YT. The top style channels out there made it happen through hard work and consistency. Check out these tips to help yourself find success.

Invest in Yourself

Everyone has to start somewhere, right? That’s why there are tons of tools out there to help you out. One tool that so many people just shrug off is the ability to purchase YT hits and other similar packages. Companies like videosgrow.com will give you an opportunity to buy 500 YouTube views for cheap, and they do it well.

You don’t have to spend a ton of money to find ways to succeed. A little bit of investment will go a long way. You can also invest in yourself in other ways. Time is a major investment. You need to take the time to create quality content and not just publish any random thing.

You can invest in yourself by having great equipment, boosting your social media postings, and implementing new ideas into your work as these bloggers.

Top Fashion Bloggers on YouTube

Let’s start with the bloggers that you might be able to take inspiration from. There are a lot of them out there. Take a look at these names to help you on the way.

  • Tess Christine: just wanted to share some ideas she had and now has more than 200 million views and 2 million followers. She only makes 2-3 videos per month.
  • Zoella: is probably one of the most successful. She was even recognized in Forbes for her success. She has had more than 1 billion total views since 2009.
  • Samantha Maria: sets herself apart by being a travel enthusiast. She has a versatile and unique style and always adapts to trends wherever she may be.
  • Vanessa Zilleti: she actually shares a journey. It’s almost as if she has a reality show with a series of episodes. She shares shopping tips as well as various guides and tutorials.
  • Jenn Im: focuses on lifestyle as a whole with a ton of style advice in the mix. It’s very personable and sharing but also creative and inspiring.

These are just a few of the most popular examples. You will find there are a ton more successful people out there.

Now, check out other tips to create your own success.

Turn Viewing into Following

You want to get plenty of views on your channel. It’s the views that get you success in the end. But it’s about more than just views too. Your views will add up, and you will see people like the names we shared above that get more than 1 billion total views.

That’s pretty amazing! 

It’s also amazing to build a following. In fact, having a consistent following will likely go a long way to help you be more successful. One way to do this is to create video content where you implore those watching to then subscribe.

Some of them will, and some of them won’t. However, you should still keep asking. The more that you can turn into subscribers, the better off you will be in the long run. It’s a simple concept. The subscribers are the ones who will keep coming back.

They are your returners and your repeaters. They also are likely to share you at some point with others they know.

Create Something Uniquely You

It’s totally acceptable to use other people for inspiration. But if you read through that quick list of popular names above, you will see they all do something unique. Some of them heavily focus on style. Others also include makeup, travel, or just tips for shopping.

As you determine what type of style channel you want to have, think about making it unique. And don’t just make it something different from every other channel. Make it something insanely different but totally YOU.

The key point here is you don’t want to just copy what everyone else is doing. You also don’t want to come up with some unique concept that really doesn’t fit you. You want to make something of your own. It needs to really reflect you and reflect the style you’re trying to create.

When you can bring both of those concepts together, people notice. They don’t want you to pretend to be something you’re not. They can tell when it’s fake. They want the real you, and they want it to be useful and interesting while they watch.

Faking it rarely helps you make it in this scenario.

Use Great Equipment

 

Have you seen those pictures of shoes or dresses floating around? They look like a different color to certain people. That change in color is sometimes related to the person, but it could also be their lighting or equipment.

While you can’t do anything about their visual equipment, you can do something about yours.

As you’re creating stuff for others to see, use high-quality goods. Use technology that will make a stunning creation. Use really great lighting. You also should master a skilled technique. You want those who watch to truly be able to SEE what you’re sharing.

If you’re showing different styles or fashion wear, make sure it’s visible. This comes from learning how to use the camera angles as well as phenomenal lighting choices.

If you don’t have a ton of money to spend on nice equipment, just buy things here and there. Maybe one month, you purchase studio lighting. The next month, a great camera. The cycle can continue like this until you have great equipment to make stunning content.

Interaction

One great way to connect with people is to interact. This will be an important concept when you get started. It’s also important as you become successful.

The people who choose to watch your stuff are taking valuable time to do so. Let them know they are valued. When they comment or interact with you, return the favor. More interaction will usually give you more visibility.

Commenting and responding is great. Asking questions in your video and telling people to post the answers is great. You can even host giveaways for comments, likes, or subscribers if you want to.

It’s all about engaging. You make those people feel seen, even if it is through a computer screen.

Use Analysis to Improve

Finally, take the time to analyze. YouTube provides several different reports and tools that you can use. Study them and see what is working. You can also see maybe what isn’t working for you.

These tools let you know who is watching and when they are watching. What kind of demographic are you appealing to? What video went over amazingly while another one totally bombed?

You can then use this data to help you improve going forward. Your improvements might be changing up your style or sticking to a different approach. You might even decide to post only on certain days based on your audience.

Conclusion

How to start your own channel is simple. You need to create it. But then you need to work on it and build it. There are a myriad of valuable tools and solutions. You need to take the time to get to know what’s there. Also, take the time to get to know yourself and how you can be unique and different from every other fashion vlogger out there.

There are plenty of ideas. You simply need to learn what works for you. Don’t forget to take advantage of the tools and learn to invest in yourself.

11 Best Stills from tick, tick…BOOM!

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s tribute to the late musical composer Jonathan Larson premiered on Netflix in late 2021. The film, starring Andrew Garfield, received positive reviews from critics and fans alike, rounding out what has become known as the Andrew Garfield renaissance of 2021. After appearing in The Eyes of Tammy Faye and (spoiler alert) Spider-Man: No Way Hometick, tick…BOOM! finally allowed the actor to take center stage in his role as Larson, a struggling artist. At this time in his life, Larson is finding it difficult to write material, an experience he isn’t used to. Simultaneously, he’s losing friends to the AIDS epidemic, and his girlfriend (Alexandra Shipp) both admires and is frustrated by his overwhelming commitment to his craft.

Just like Larson’s constantly ticking creative mind, the film is always dynamic, thanks partially to its Oscar-nominated editing. Cinematographer Alice Brooks captures Larson’s heart with warmth and compassion, and also makes musical moments exciting and memorable. Here are some of the best stills from tick, tick…BOOM!

Watch Avril Lavigne Join Olivia Rodrigo to Perform ‘Complicated’

Avril Lavigne joined Olivia Rodrigo onstage during the Toronto leg of her SOUR tour last night (April 29) of Lavigne’s 2002 hit ‘Complicated’. Check out footage from the performance below.

“Jumped up to sing ‘Complicated’ on stage with @oliviarodrigo in Toronto tonight,” Lavigne wrote on Instagram after the performance. “It was very sweet to perform with you tonight on your SOUR tour!! Have an incredible tour gurl. Keep killing it. Sending you so much love.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Avril Lavigne (@avrillavigne)

Bonuses at Online Casinos: Worth It or Not?

Online casino bonuses serve the purpose of giving players the opportunity to get the most out of their game. However, that’s what it seems at first glance. In fact, any bonus is essentially a marketing tool that is needed in order to attract as many players as possible by offering them incredible bonuses. However, winning with bonuses is not such a difficult task if you approach it responsibly.

You can take a brief look at the bonuses offered by online casinos. At the moment, the most common ones you can come across are:

  • Deposit Bonus. Players are asked to deposit a fixed amount into their account and receive a 50%, 75%, or 100% bonus on top in the form of bonus funds. As a rule, such bonuses apply to several deposits at once. For example, a bonus on the first four deposits
  • Cashback Bonus. Typically, a player receives a cashback bonus for losing money at a casino. Such bonuses may be available every weekend or every day. The amount of cashback usually depends on the status in the casino or the amount lost
  • Free Spins Bonus. This type of bonus also applies to deposits. Most often, players are asked to deposit a specific amount of money and receive a fixed number of Free Spins. These Free Spins look like sets or packages of offers. For example, make a deposit of 20 USD and get 30 Free Spins or make a deposit of 40 USD and get 60 Free Spins
  • No Deposit Bonus. This is an incentive bonus for signing up to the casino. This can be Free Spins, which are added to the balance in any particular game, or bonus money. If it’s bonus money, you usually get either 5, 10, or 20 USD, which you need to wager in special games. Or it could be 10, 20 or 30 Free Spins in a particular slot.

These bonuses are the most common in online casinos. Of course, some establishments still have offers like the One Hour Bonus, but they are not very popular.

Moreover, you can remove the bonus if you think that you are better without any bonuses taken.

Wager is what matters most

It is one thing to get a bonus, whether it is a no deposit bonus or a cashback bonus. They all have one condition that must be met. This condition is called a wager. In essence, the wager is a measure of how much a player needs to wager with the bonus funds before he can withdraw them. Let’s take an example, you got a 20 USD no deposit bonus with wager x50. In order to be able to withdraw this bonus, you would need 20*50 which would bring you a total of 1,000 USD to wager. However, there are times when such bonuses can be wagered on all games. But, in most cases, every bonus must be wagered only in slots where 100% of all bets count. But, for example, in table games, the offset may go only 5% of all bets. Therefore, be sure to read the terms and conditions for earning and wagering all bonuses.

In order to ensure that you follow all of the rules regarding wagering bonuses, you can go to the terms and conditions of the casino where you play and study all aspects of bonuses. It can happen that an online casino has a Bonus Terms and Conditions section, so players can read all the bonuses without any problems.

Wagering weight is another important parameter

In addition, you need to pay attention to the wager. Today, online casinos are very strict in regulating this area of bonuses. The fact is that the lower the wager, the higher the probability that the bonus will be won back and the player will get the money. Bonus hunters have begun to take advantage of this. In order to prevent options for dishonest receipt of funds, the wager has grown to astronomical values. Today you can find wager x60, x80, or x99. Yes, you are not imagining it. The thing is that by introducing such conditions it has become very difficult or even impossible to wager bonuses. However, such large wager figures are not always found. The most common are x25-x50. These are more or less bearable options, which you can choose and try to win back.