Ralph Graef, a German photographer, has presented a superb surreal-like series in which explores an abandoned motel.
Writing about the series Graef stated: “Just by chance I recently discovered an abandoned motel. According to its condition the area has been unused for many years, but the houses are still in a decent condition. For the most part they are all the same ground-level duplex houses with two rooms and a bathroom each. There are also two large houses with many single rooms and common washrooms. The complex was built in the early seventies during the GDR era as a holiday camp and training centre. After the reunification it served as an accommodation for harvest workers for a while. After that it was supposed to become a cheap accommodation for backpackers, but this never happened. It seems that the area won’t awake from a deep sleep soon…”
Galen Tipton has had quite a busy year. In addition to dropping a number of one-off collaborations and remixes, the Ohio-based producer also released an EP under the recovery girl moniker back in January, which was then reissued by Orange Milk into a full-length record featuring songs from February’s gross/scratch as well as a handful of remixes. It was, to quote one of the songs’ title, ‘big loud & violent’; a dynamically abrasive collection of glitched-out hyperpop bangers that stitched together elements of experimental pop, hardcore, and electronic music. And with her latest EP, goddexx, Tipton shows no signs of stopping, expanding her already diverse musical palette to deliver her most focused and refined effort yet.
Goddexx is nowhere near as raucous or rough around the edges as recovery girl, nor is it purposefully disjointed like 2019’s fake meat. But while it features some of her most polished production yet, the new release certainly doesn’t compromise on Tipton’s bold artistic vision – it’s still as hyperactive as anything she’s ever produced, stacked with one insanely wonky beat after another and plenty of inventive ideas to get your blood pumping. Though it’s mostly an instrumental album, lacking the hooks and in-your-face vocals that made recovery girl so memorable, it more than makes up for it with its colourful sound design and meticulously crafted song structures.
It also marks Tipton’s most grandly cinematic effort to date, which makes sense when you consider it was intended as “battle music to crush oppressors and dance on their graves” (closer ‘That Was for Luck’ delivers just that, starting off like the soundtrack to a fighting game before morphing into a full-on rave). There’s definitely a sense of empowerment running through Goddexx, which stems from the fact that Tipton wrote it after emerging out of an abusive relationship while also coming into her own identity as a nonbinary trans girl. But where recovery girl had more of a subversive and at times aggressive edge to it, Goddexx feels even more triumphant and rapturous in its display of inner strength, like on the vibrant opener ‘Courageous Grieving’ or the infectiously raunchy ‘Girl Dick’, which has to be the fiercest highlight on the EP.
If you had to pin it down to one genre, Goddexx can probably be best described as deconstructed club music; but Tipton isn’t just taking on that approach simply because it’s becoming more popular, but because its propulsive and vibrant sounds perfectly encapsulate the themes that she’s trying to put forward. For anyone who’s never heard Tipton’s music before, comparisons to Iglooghost and the XYZcollective are inevitable – but as the artist acknowledged in a tweet, Goddexx pulls from a wide range of artists in the electronic music scene, including producers like Dasychira from the Unseelie collective, through which the EP was released. Those influences come through most prominently in the ominous textures that underlie tracks like the unrelenting ‘Butterfly Drinking Blood’ or the first half of ‘Cry Gold’, steering them towards uncanny valley territory.
But Tipton puts her own spin on whatever style she takes on, infusing it with elements you wouldn’t normally expect in a way that’s both surprisingly coherent and exciting. In the past, a lot of that genre-blending would come in the form of a collaboration, and that synergy was part of what gave Tipton’s previous output its appeal. But Goddexx benefits from being solely written, produced, mixed, and mastered by Tipton herself, thus setting out a singular vision more clearly than any of her other projects. It rightfully claims its own place in today’s flourishing experimental music scene, while also affording her the space to celebrate her own personal victories by showcasing her unique and versatile approach. This might be battle music, but if the abrupt ending of ‘That Was for Luck’ is any indication, the war is far from over – and if the soundtrack to the rest of it is as consistently exalting, that might not be such a bad thing.
Doom metal outfit Pallbearer have announced their follow-up to 2017’s Heartless. It’s called Forgotten Days and it’s set for release on October 23 via Nuclear Blast. The band have also shared a new video for the title track, directed by Ben Meredith. Watch ‘Forgotten Days’ below, and check out the album’s cover art and tracklist.
Speaking about the new track, singer/guitarist Brett Campbell said in a statement: “The video for ‘Forgotten Days’ tells the story of an unfortunate traveler who journeys too far, and becomes lost in the depths of both inner, and outer, space. What is real when you cannot trust your own mind?”
Discussing the themes of the new album, bassist Joseph Rowland added: “Forgotten Days is us exploring what is natural to us. The songs tell me where I need to go when I write. We wanted to focus on songs that were visceral and enjoyable to play live—that our audiences would enjoy experiencing. We’re also getting back to more of the groovier and heavier elements of Pallbearer. Heartless is fairly uptempo and technical. This one is a little more open, it hammers you.”
He continued by saying that the record is thematically connected to the band’s previous material. “When we were writing Sorrow and Extinction, my mother was terminally ill,” he said. “It’s been 10 years since she passed. It’s taken me all of this time to take a really good look at myself. While we were writing Forgotten Days, I knew, “Now is the time to sit down and begin to understand who I have become.”
Forgotten Days Tracklist:
1. Forgotten Days
2. Riverbed
3. Stasis
4. Silver Wings
5. The Quicksand of Existing
6. Vengeance & Ruination
7. Rite of Passage
8. Caledonia
Dua Lipa has shared a trippy animated video for her song ‘Hallucinate’, the latest single from her most recent studio album, Future Nostalgia. Check it out below.
Directed by the Mill’s Lisha Tan and inspired by 20th century cartoons, the visual sees the pop star turn into an animated character as she sings to a crowd of adoring fans. As is fitting for a song called ‘Hallucinate’, the clip quickly turns psychedelic, with Lipa riding a giant pink unicorn through colourful dreamscapes.
Released back in March, Future Nostalgia landed on our Best Albums of the Year So Far list. The album also includes the hit singles ‘Don’t Start Now’, ‘Physical’, and ‘Break My Heart’.
Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, and Elton John are among the celebrities who have signed an open letter to the UK government calling for a ban on “conversion therapy”. The letter was written by London-based advocacy group Ban Conversion Therapy and addressed to the Minister for Women And Equalities, urging her to “introduce a truly effective ban on ‘conversion therapy’” in the UK.
“The government has said recently that conversion therapy is complex, which it undoubtedly is, and although we acknowledge the issue is nuanced we strongly believe that effective legislation, supported by a programme of work to help tackle these practices in all their forms, is possible,” the letter read.
It continued: “Any form of counselling or persuading someone to change their sexual orientation or behaviour so as to conform with a heteronormative lifestyle, or their gender identity should be illegal, no matter the reason, religious or otherwise – whatever the person’s age.”
“Let’s end it now. Let’s finish what was pledged two years ago and ban ‘conversion therapy’ for all lesbian, gay, bi, trans, and gender diverse people, of all ages. Until you do, torture will continue to take place on British soil.”
In addition to Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, and Elton John, other signees included Rina Sawayama, Clairo, Jade Thirlwall of Little Mix, Sam Fender, Years & Years’ Olly Alexander, Katherine Ryan, Stephen Fry, Russell T. Davies, and more.
The Flaming Lips have shared a new song called ‘Dinosaurs on the Mountain’. It arrives with a music video shot in Oklahoma during lockdown and directed by George Salisbury and Wayne Coyne for delo creative. The visual shows the band performing inside giant bubbles, much like they did on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert back in June. Check it out below.
‘Dinosaurs on the Mountain’ marks the third single from the band’s upcoming album, American Head, following the Kacey Musgraves-featuring ‘Flowers of Neptune 6′ and ‘My Religion Is You’. The new record is scheduled for release on September 11 via Warner. Back in March, the band released Deap Lips, a collaborative effort with Deap Vally. Their last full-length album was 2019’s King’s Mouth.
Limón Limón, an exciting LA-based duo, have presented their newest single Frozen Lemonade, several days ago. The song follows on their memory-filled song Barcelona Night, this time taking a different approach to their production. Frozen Lemonade stands out with its rhythmic dance-like energy while still holding the quality we have come to love from Limón Limón in terms of structure and overall production. Yet, while Frozen Lemonade is very much a summer track, its overall mood is shaded with a feeling of melancholy, it’s a heartbreak song, in some ways reflecting the climate we are in at this moment.
The song features a superb visual video.
Big Black Delta Vessel
Entering with Vessel we have Big Black Delta, a solo project of Jonathan Bates who first came to notice as the frontman of Mellowdrone before entering M83’s live band. Bates has also notably remixed M83’s Midnight City and has respectively released three albums under the Big Black Delta moniker over the years. With his most current song which is part of his fourth album named 4, Big Black Delta dives into a reminiscent mood; it’s a marvellous song birthing the magnificent production that we know Big Black Delta has pocketed over the years through experimentation and growth. Compared to some of his earlier work, Vessel is more comfortable to absorb for the casual listener while remaining appealing and exciting for his hardcore fans.
Vessel also features an arthouse-like music video which was directed by Warren Kommers who has also worked with Twenty One Pilots and The Neighbourhood.
Juliet July, an Amsterdam-based singer-songwriter, today released her six-track EP Palm Trees in the Mist. The EP came after the releases of her two singles Blue Paradise and Easy which respectively feature on the EP.
Palm Trees in the Mist takes the listener on a reminiscent and reflective trip through various emotions and themes including love, longing, lust and heartbreak. It finally resolves with a positive note bringing a silver lining to the memory-filled journey.
Talking about the EP July stated “Palm trees represent happiness, joy, warmth, The Mist represents more heavy, sad and dark emotions. ‘Palm trees in the mist’ combined, creates a symbolism for me to keep seeing the ‘Silver Livings’ in whatever situation life throws at us.”
Massiave Attack have shared a new audiovisual EP called Eutopia. Co-written and produced by 3D (Massive Attack’s Robert del Naja) and Mark Donne, the trip-hop pioneers’ latest was recorded in three different cities during lockdown and features collaborations with Algiers, Saul Williams, and Young Fathers. Check it out below.
Drawing from Thomas More’s 16th century book Utopia, the EP also tackles issues such as climate change and tax haven extraction, featuring contributions from Christiana Figueres, who wrote the UN Paris Climate Agreement, Professor Guy Standing, founder of the Universal Basic Income Principle, and Professor Gabriel Zucman, who invented the US “Wealth Tax” policy.
Speaking of the project, Massive Attack said in a statement: “Lockdown exposed the best aspects and worst flaws of humanity. That period of uncertainty and anxiety forced us to meditate on the obvious need to change the damaging systems we live by. By working with three experts, we’ve created a sonic and visual dialogue around these global, structural issues; taking the form of climate emergency, tax haven extraction and Universal Basic Income.”
They added: “The spirit of this EP, its elements and ideas have nothing to do with naïve notions of an ideal, perfect world, and everything to do with the urgent & practical need to build something better. In this sense, Eutopia is the opposite of spelling mistake.”
Eutopia marks the group’s first new material since 2016’s Ritual Spirit. Last year, Massive Attack went on a Mezzanine anniversary tour alongside Liz Fraser.
Alanis Morissette has shared a new single called ‘Reckoning’, from her upcoming album Such Pretty Forks In The Road. Check it out below.
‘Recoking’ was co-written by Morissette and Michael Farrell and produced by Catherine Marks. It follows the previously released singles ‘Reasons I Drink’, ‘Smiling’, and ‘Diagnosis’.
Such Pretty Forks In The Road, the singer’s highly anticipated follow-up to 2012’s Havoc and Bright Lights, will be released on July 31st via Epiphany/ Thirty Tigers/ RCA. Morissette was set to embark on a world tour for the 25th anniversary of 1995’s Jagged Little Pill this summer, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In December of last year, a stage musical production of Jagged Little Pill, which included the new song ‘Smiling’, made its Broadway debut at the Broadhurst Theatre in New York City.
