ME REX have shared a new single, ‘Giant Giant Giant’, lifted from their forthcoming debut album Giant Elk. Due out October 20 via Big Scary Monsters, the LP includes the previously released track ‘Eutherians (Ultramarine)’. ‘Giant Giant Giant’ comes with an accompanying video made by the band’s Myles McCabe, and you can check it out below.
“When it came to making a video for ‘Giant Giant Giant’ I knew we didn’t have a lot to spend but I wanted to create something that was visually engaging that could help expand the world surrounding ME REX,” McCabe explained in a press release. “I love all things fantasy so there was never really any question that the visual aesthetics would take cues from the Lord of the Rings, The Dark Crystal, Adventure Time and Dungeons and Dragons. I also wanted to shoot for the balance of creepiness, deep lore and fun you find in Steven Universe, The Midnight Gospel and Over the Garden Wall.”
“I developed stories for Phoebe [Cross] and Rich [Mandell] that each used simple imagery to tell familiar stories. Phoebe comes across a vicious snake, is presented with a sword and slays the monster. Rich sees a meteor crash to earth and goes on a journey to find it, he is knocked off course by a wave but ends up reaching his destination and finds the meteorite is a crown. Eventually I decided that it was enough for my character to sit on a mushroom, read a book and sing the song.”
Molly Burch has shared ‘Tattoo’, the latest single from her upcoming album Daydreamer. The track is dedicated to her late best friend, Lena, and features harp and backup vocals from Hannah Kim (aka Luna Li). Check out the video for it below.
“I wrote this song for my best friend Lena who passed away when we were 19,” Burch explained in a statement. “She was truly the most special person I’ve ever known. It’s hard to describe her. She was the most fearless, daring person who did anything for a laugh. For example, on our senior year scavenger hunt she got a teacher’s name tattoo’d on her ass. That isn’t the tattoo I’m referring to on this song, though. Before she passed she got a symbol on her breast bone that meant ‘no fear.’ After she passed I decided to get the same tattoo in the same place so I would always have her close to my heart and remember to not be afraid. I wrote this song for her because Daydreamer is about my relationship to music and she was the first person I played music with. I hope it does her justice.”
“For the music video, I collaborated with Lena’s sister Mia – who I am deeply close with,” Burch added. “We wanted to show footage of Lena and paint a picture of what she was like. We added in public domain footage of nature and visuals that reminded us of her. The line in the song ‘I wanna tell you it’s okay, even though it’s crazy, you wouldn’t believe it, I think you would hate it’ refers to how much she’s missed since she’s passed. Social media, climate disasters — as much as I wish she was here today, I think she would have had a really hard time with modern life. She had a severely sensitive soul. I added footage of wildfires, earthquakes, and water pollution to represent what I was saying with this line. I hope this song reaches people who have experienced great loss and can be a comfort to them. I share this with love.”
Tudor Black Bay 36 might be one of the best entry-luxury watches on the market. No, I’m not kidding. It ticks all the boxes regarding value for money, with a charming bracelet, an elegant dial, and a decent movement. So, before we steer away, let’s dive into why I adore this piece by Tudor and why it deserves a spot on Watch Spotlight.
Design
This specific version of the Black Bay comes in a steel case with a polished and satin finish for that smooth look that whispers class. The watch size, 36mm, suits the modern-day watch collector and certainly blends into the fashionista’s wardrobe with its all-around style. It fits lovely and certainly does well to be noticed while being smaller than alternative brand “normalised” timepieces. *cough cough* Rolex Datejust 41.
The dial itself is anthracite and has a lovely vintage feel, which, in all likelihood, can be an acquired taste. However, this look genuinely hits the mark when it comes to the versatility of the watch. The smooth bezel is also likeable and aids in elevating the bracelet, adding grace to the watch and making it suitable for classier events such as a black-tie soirée or a gala fundraiser.
Lastly, the crystal of the piece is a flat sapphire crystal, making it durable and suitable for daily wear. Yes, the Tudor suits everyday wear (as most watches should). Nevertheless, it all depends on how you see a £3,260 watch fitting in your wardrobe.
Movement
The movement for the Black Bay 36 is an in-house movement by Tudor named MT5400, which is used among the Black Bay and Pelagos ranges. It is a self-winding mechanical movement with a bidirectional rotor system and is COSC-certified. For those in the dark, COSC is a Swiss organisation responsible for keeping Swiss watches certified in accuracy and precision. Thus, if you’re buying a COSC-approved watch, you’re getting true Swiss quality.
Conclusion
Although Tudor will always be compared to Rolex and will be seen as the “baby brother” of the prevailing brand, it will always have a place in the world of horology. This is evident by the Tudor Black Bay 36, a seriously good-for-value timepiece that hits the mark regarding design, weight, and accuracy. It’s a delightful watch that does not boast but shines with unpretentiousness and dignity.
Lilts, the project of Wild Pink’s John Ross and singer-songwriter Laura Wolf, have released a new track, ‘Waiting Around’. It’s the title track from their upcoming debut EP, which includes the previously shared song ‘Dodge Street’. Check it out below.
“I had this scene in my head of being a wallflower at a party,” Wolf explained in a statement. “Dizzy with relief of being on the outskirts but also craving and being disappointed by the lack of connection. As the lyrics grew, the story became much more about self-worth in the face of setbacks and feeling small.”
In a statement about ‘Engine’, the band’s Jake Ewald explained:
This song keeps changing for me. First, I didn’t think it was about anything. Then I thought it was about the van. Then I thought it was about [Slaughter Beach, Dog bassist] Ian [Farmer], and I couldn’t figure out why the guitar solo kept making me cry. Outside the Sinclair in January, I saw a flyer for a house show and remembered how long we’ve been doing this. Then my heart was in my shoes. Ten years of thinking a different life was right around the corner, selling off all this heavy machinery and making spreadsheets for somebody, futzing with chickenwire, everything more simple.
Lately this song feels like. a eulogy for the change that never came. Ten years gone and I’m still squirming under freedom’s thumb, too easily forgetting rock’n’roll, my great hulking vessel, a framework to swing from, a history to make home inside of. Forms to learn, rules to break, comrades to find, mysteries turned over ad infinitum, inexplicable monsoons of the heart. I’m still finding myself inside this song, still learning to accept that I lived it. Some of it spooks me. I can hear it in the pain of belonging – standing in one place long enough to not take leaving lightly. Staying put when the outlaws arrive at night. Saying very quietly to no one, this is where I live.
Another Michael have unveiled a new single, ‘Common Ground’, which will appear on their upcoming LP Wishes to Fulfill. It follows previous cuts ‘Angel’ and ‘Candle’. Listen to it below.
“’Common Ground’ sorta paints a vintage picture of America and that ‘dream’ that is promised to be served alongside it,” vocalist/guitarist Michael Doherty explained in a statement. “The tune itself was organically born out of free time in the studio, with it being initially worked out live as band during some downtime. We demoed it as a distorted rock song, but sat on it for a bit before re-recording the track at a later date to imbue the tune with the easy breezy, lighter energy we felt it called for. It’s a critical adventure across the land, observing oneself and others as everyone tries to get along and make it through the day, week, month, and year.”
Wishes to Fulfill arrives September 22 via Run For Cover. Its sibling record, Pick Me Up,Turn Me Upside Down, is scheduled for release in early 2024.
Forest Swords has announced his first new album since 2017. Out October 20 via Ninja Tune, Bolted will include the recently released tracks ‘Butterfly Effect’ and ‘Tar’. Along with the announcement, the British electronic producer has shared another pair of songs, ‘The Low’ and ‘Caged’. Check out the video for ‘The Low’ and listen to ‘Caged’ below.
“‘The Low’ was based on a beat I’d originally intended for Yoko Ono, and features elements I made both at the start and end of the album, so ties together a lot of the sounds and emotions I was exploring during the writing process,” Matthew Barnes explained in a press release. “The accompanying video directed with Sam Wiehl expands on some of my artwork and visual world that accompanies the record”.
Forest Swords follows Forest Swords’ 2017 LP Compassion. It was recorded over the past year in a warehouse factory space in Barnes’ Liverpool hometown.
Bolted Cover Artwork:
Bolted Tracklist:
1. Munitions
2. Butterfly Effect
3. Rubble
4. Night Sculpture
5. Caged
6. Tar
7. The Low
8. Chain Link
9. Hjope
10. End
11. Line Gone Cold
“I was absolutely fascinated by the song,” Friðriksdóttir said in a press statement. “I couldn’t forget it, I had some dreams about it too. It was a deep connection from the first time I heard it. The song deals with things that I often think about, it’s about self-pity and how ridiculous you were or how funny you were in a situation, or in a strange place where you had hard times, and then you see yourself. Instead of pointing at somebody else all the time, it’s so nice to rediscover yourself. To break through the concrete mask of a certain feeling at a certain time. I think in the lyrics themselves, there’s this poetry about a human situation that’s really welcoming for everyone, I think everyone can understand it.”
Björk added: “I sort of have this illusion idea of myself as being this kind of optimist. But you have to be truthful. It’s trickier to catch the tail of the self-pity for an optimist. Sometimes it becomes the role of the women, in difficult situations to take on the catharsis and emotional work, and if there’s some dark shadows or forces in a situation, we’ll convert it into sort of good energy, for other family members, so they don’t have to, we will take care of it. That’s a strange kind of victim hat too, you choose to do that, nobody asked you to. That’s maybe where the humour comes in. It’s very interesting. I just love this painting so much. These characters are so magical, they just have such deep, deep meaning for me.”
HELLMODE might be the first Jeff Rosenstock album to get a proper promotional cycle, but you don’t need a press quote to figure out it’s all about battling existential dread. First off: HELLMODE. Secondly, it’s a Jeff Rosenstock record, which means it serves as an attempt to take honest stock of his life and channel the kind of anxiety that never sticks to a single form; “the constant chaos keeps a brain a-rattlin’,” as he puts it on ‘GRAVEYARD SONG’. Reuniting with producer Jack Shirley to record the album at Hollywood’s EastWest Studios, where System of a Down laid down Toxicity, HELLMODE is as raw, furious, and anthemic as you might expect, but it’s also one of the loveliest and most affecting efforts Rosenstock has put out under his name. He’s still intent on releasing pent-up frustration in ways that urge you to sing along, but leaves more space for tender intimacy before each burst of catharsis.
Without tempering his anger toward destructive social systems, Rosenstock’s perpetual self-awareness turns an otherwise polished and straightforward record into a compelling one. While albums like 2018’s POST- and 2020’s NO DREAM balanced heartfelt moments with catchy songwriting and radical politics, HELLMODE finds him more conflicted, addressing his own participation in the systems he criticizes with a mix of real vulnerability and uncertainty. ‘HEAD’ rips through a tangle of neuroses as if 90 seconds is all any of us have left: “I am just an avatar of someone I’ve invented/ A messenger of certainties I’m trying to decode,” he begins before delivering a performance that’s both unhinged and impeccably controlled in tempo. Elsewhere, he lets things breathe, unburdening himself and allowing listeners to latch onto his words. “Speak/ Even if it feels weird/ Even if it feels weird to be yourself,” he sings to those convinced of “the redundancy of your POV” on ‘DOUBT’. The song is slow and repetitive to dreamy effect, but instead of drifting off that way, Rosenstock opts for another communal release: “You gotta chill out with the doubt!”
Self-doubt rattles through some of HELLMODE‘s most infectious power-pop moments, including early highlights ‘WILL U STILL U’ (“Will you still love me after I’ve fucked up?”) and ‘LIKED U BETTER’. “Creepin’ out the fog/ I start to sense that something’s wrong,” he sings on the latter, and that creeping dread takes on different dimensions as it spreads throughout the album. On ‘FUTURE IS DUMB’, the weight of it turns into numbness, an overwhelming sensation that the world doesn’t care or owe us shit. It returns on the upbeat ‘I WANNA BE WRONG’, where not even a gleaming synth solo can offset Rosenstock’s doomful concerns, and again on the ‘GRAVEYARD’, which starts out sparser before handing us another rousing chorus. It’s being in this contemplative mode – “Watching the world burst into flames for no reason/ Other than the fear that you were wrong about something – that then amplifies his command to “To get unstuck and let the sun/ Pull the flowers out of the mud.”
HELLMODE ends with a seven-minute epic called ‘3 SUMMERS’, but the album’s most poignant songs – the ones that really burn off any excess energy – aren’t necessarily the ones that sweep you away or rile you up. They can be calm and simple, like ‘HEALMODE’, an acoustic cut that finds Rosenstock taking a closer look around his LA neighbourhood before zeroing in on the romance that really makes it feel like home. Rosenstock spends much of HELLMODE sifting through solutions for those in distress (“Maybe listen to a Slaughter Beach, Dog record”), yet it excels not as a collection leveraging his role as a DIY punk hero, but one that embraces his invariably earnest, growing perspective. The world may be spiraling out of control, but the human need for togetherness and comfort remains constant, and nothing satisfies it better than directing it outward. HELLMODE achieves this as well as any previous Jeff Rosenstock album, but it also revels quietly in ways that make a little warmth seem bigger than the darkest chaos.
Last Tuesday, Tirzah announced a run of tour dates and promised she would be sharing a new record sometime this week. That album, titled trip9love…???, is out digitally today (September 5), with a physical release set for November 17 via Domino. Stream it below, and scroll down to see Tirzah’s tour schedule.
Produced by longtime collaborator Mica Levi, Tirzah’s third album was written and recorded at both their homes as well as “various corners” of South East London and Kent. It follows 2021’s Colourgrade and its remix version, Highgrade.
Earlier this year, Tirzah collaborated with the London collective Speakers Corner Quartet for the song ‘Fix’.
trip9love…??? Cover Artwork:
trip9love…??? Tracklist:
1. F22
2. Promises
3. u all the time
4. their Love
5. No Limit
6. today
7. Stars
8. he made
9. 2 D I C U V
10. 6 Phrazes
11. nightmare
Tirzah 2023 Tour Dates:
Sep 13 – Strange Brew, Bristol
Sep 14 – Colour Factory, London
Sep 16 – Yes, Manchester
Sep 17 – Stereo, Glasgow
Sep 20 – OT31, Amsterdam
Sep 21 – Trauma Bar, Berlin
Sep 22 – Badaboum, Paris
Sep 23 – Reeperbahn Festival @ Uebel & Gefährlich, Hamburg
Oct 7 – Unsound festival, Krakow
Oct 12 – The Echo, Los Angeles
Oct 14 – The Echo, Los Angeles
Oct 15 – Cobalt, Vancouver
Oct 16 – Substation, Seattle
Oct 18 – Metro, Chicago
Oct 20 – iii Points, Miami
Oct 22 – Knockdown Centre, Brooklyn, NY
