Motion City Soundtrack – Justin Pierre, Josh Cain, Matt Taylor, Tony Thaxton and Jesse Johnson – are gearing up for their major label debut – My Dinosaur Life – due out January 19th on Columbia Records. In anticipation of the new album, the band released their first new song “Disappear” from the album on October 20th and today they are premiering the video for “Disappear” on MySpace!
In addition, if you haven’t already heard about the “Dino Trail” yet go to www.mydinosaurlife.com and follow the one and only Justin Pierre as he continues his adventures across the US – busking, hanging with fans, playing in dorm rooms, visiting radio stations, jamming with bands, etc. There are some great photos and video clips, so once you’ve checked out the new music video – check out the Dino Trail clips!
And if you want to see the band live, catch them in December when they join up with Weezer for a handful of dates or check them out on one of the 2010 headlining dates just announced earlier this week!
Sherwood enlisted the help of the multi-talented Matt Wignall best known for his work with the Cold War Kids (mattwignall.com) to direct the video for the first single off their latest release, Qu – out now on MySpace Records.
The result is a beautiful and creative visual companion to the California-pop sounds of Sherwood – complete with tongue-in-cheek cameo appearance by the album’s producer Brad Wood (Liz Phair, Pete Yorn, Smashing Pumpkins).
One of the most celebrated and Beloved forces in modern music, Canadian pop-rock icons Tegan and Sara release their eagerly awaited sixth studio album, entitled SAINTHOOD, out now on Sire/Vapor Records.
SAINTHOOD was produced by Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla (who also produced 2007’s critically applauded THE CON) and Howard Redekopp (who produced 2004’s groundbreaking effort SO JEALOUS) and mixed by Grammy Award winner Dave Sardy (Oasis, Primal Scream, Marilyn Manson).
The follow-up to 2007’s THE CON, SAINTHOOD addresses secular themes of devotion, delusion, and exemplary behavior in the pursuit of love and relationships. The songs, Tegan and Sara say, were “inspired by emotional longing and the quiet actions we hope may be noticed by the objects of our affection. SAINTHOOD is about obsession with romantic ideals. In the service of relationships we practice being perfect. We practice our sainthood in the hope that we will be rewarded with adora tion. As we are driven to become anything for someone else, we sometimes become martyrs for our cause.
Love, like faith, can never be held in an individual’s hands. But the story of a great love affair – especially one that is unrequited or has ended too soon – can be woven like scripture or a bedtime story. And so the themes of SAINTHOOD are tied together by this simple title, borrowed, with great respect, from the lyrics of the Leonard Cohen song ‘Came So Far For Beauty’: ‘I practiced all my sainthood / I gave to one and all / But the rumors of my virtue / They moved her not at all.’”
Tegan and Sara began recording SAINTHOOD in May at the legendary Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA, where Tom Petty, Nirvana, and Fleetwood Mac have all recorded. They finished laying down tracks at Seattle’s Two Sticks Audio, owned by Death Cab drummer Jason McGerr.
Tegan and Sara have also recently completed their first ever set of books, titled ON, IN, AT. The three-book set chronicles different time periods in writing and photographs from the past year of Tegan and Sara's lives: their 2008 US national tour, their 2009 Australian tour, and a joint writing session in New Orleans for the new album. Also be sure to check out Tegan and Sara performing live on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien on Nov 2. Check local listings for details.
The "Circuits of Fever" video was directed by Thursday guitarist and film enthusiast Steve Pedulla who also directed the band's video for "For the Workforce, Drowning" and the Kill The House Lights DVD, and co-edited Thursday's videos for "Ladies And Gentlemen: My Brother, The Failure" and "Resuscitation of a Dead Man." Pedulla studied cinematography at North Carolina School of the Arts before picking up the guitar in the influential post-hardcore band.
Thursday is currently on tour till the end of the year in support of Common Existence.
Pop-punk heroes New Found Glory battle flesh-starved zombie vixens in their new video for "Don't Let Her Pull You Down," debuting today.
Directed by Meiert Avis (U2, Bruce Springsteen), the extended music video is a hilariously frightening tale of a young couple who watch a movie about New Found Glory narrowly escaping the clutches of scantily clad zombies, only to realize it's more realistic than they thought.
Details about the cast of the "Don't Let Her Pull You Down" music video can be found on the movie's IMDB page and a poster can be downloaded here. A limited 7" vinyl single (666 on aqua blue/1334 on orange) featuring "Don't Let Her Pull You Down" and Japanese B-side "I'm The Fool" will be available soon through KingsRoad and on the band's upcoming tour.
New Found Glory declare that "Pop-punk is not dead" in the new video and are hitting the road this fall with Dashboard Confessional to prove it. Don't be a zombie and miss out!!
You Me At Six are an English rock band from Weybridge, Surrey who formed in 2005. The current line up consists of Josh Franceschi (lead vocals), Chris Miller (lead guitar), Max Helyer (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), Matt Barnes (bass guitar) and is completed by Dan Flint (drums and percussion).
They have released five singles (and a re-release of "Save It for the Bedroom"), of which "Finders Keepers" peaked at #33 in the official UK Singles Chart, and " Kiss and Tell" reached #42.
They were nominated for "Best British Band" at the 2008 and 2009 Kerrang! Awards, losing both times to metal band, Bullet for My Valentine.
Las Vegas rockers, Adelitas Way will hit the road with Breaking Benjamin this winter in support of their self-titled debut, which released July 14th on Virgin/EMI Music and debuted at #16 on Billboard's Top New Artist Chart. The tour will kick off in San Antonio, TX on Sunday, November 29 and will include a number of radio holiday shows through of Midwest.
The album's kick off single, the power-rock anthem "Invincible," has earned #1 Regional Heatseekers in this week's Billboard and has climbed to top 10 on the Active Rock radio chart. "Invincible" has already been tagged as WWE Superstars theme song, been used for spots promoting the 2009 season of Monday Night Countdown on ESPN and will be used in the new WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2010 Video Game, which hits stores October 20. Since then, the single has been streamed nearly 300,000 times on Adelitas Way's MySpace page.
Three Days Grace has returned with "Life Starts Now," continuing their blend of radio-friendly alt-rock through twelve tracks.
Twelve tracks that are probably some of the best produced and mixed tracks in the entire genre, thanks to Howard Benson. In fact, the sound quality on this album should be a lesson to everyone else (except maybe fans of Venom).
Jonny Craig (www.myspace.com/jonnycraig) has released his new video for the song, "I Still Feel Her Part III."
The front man of Emarosa has had an amazing month with his new solo record charting in the indie top 50 its first week.
"A Dream Is A Question You Don't Know How To Answer" has generated lots of buzz from fans and critics. Check out the video that was directed by Robby Starbuck (Dance Gavin Dance, A Skylit Drive, Head Automatica, Silverstein)
Rise against just finished the fourth video from their latest record, Appeal To Reason.
"Savior" was filmed in downtown L.A. in the middle of the night with some furry friends, road flares, and musical equipment that didn't survive the night. Enjoy!
Relentless Energy filmed the punk rock band Gallows on Warped Tour for a 3-part film they've put together called Lives Of The Artists.
The video features live performances, interviews with the band and behind the scenes footage from one of the year's most talked about rising stars.
Check out the trailer below and prepare for the full length version to be released this October. In the meantime, head over to the bands MySpace for the latest Gallows news and non-stop tour schedule.
Bracingly crunchy and soaringly melodic, vibrating with all-out rocking ensemble work and emotional urgency, the second album release In Search of Higher Ground by Orange County, CA-based rock quintet SAOSIN is out now, following a barnstorming summer playing this year's Vans Warped Tour.
Maintaining a hair-raising energy level throughout, the album, IN SEARCH OF SOLID GROUND, is the much-awaited end product of writing, tracking and mix sessions that Saosin fans have witnessed online in real time since last summer, with songs written and tracks demoed in the Costa Mesa, CA studio of global youth brand Hurley, where they self-produced several final album tracks. In early 2009, Saosin worked with producer Butch Walker (Sevendust, Fall Out Boy, P!nk) which resulted in 5 songs on In Search Of Higher Ground.
They also worked with John Feldman (The Used, Good Charlotte, Story Of The Year) who produced 2 tracks and with Lucas Banker/Logan Mader (Five Finger Death Punch, Soulfly, Machine Head) on 1 album track. Band guitarist Beau Burchell mixed all songs on In Search of Higher Ground.
Since Skillet last hit the studio for 2006’s breakthrough project Comatose, the group’s toured with the likes of Breaking Benjamin, Three Days Grace, Seether and Flyleaf, followed by a solo headlining ranking within Pollstar’s Concert Pulse Top 50 Tours for 2008. Along the way, the Grammy-nominated alternative outfit also scored three top 40 singles on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock charts, earned a pair of BMI Songwriting Awards and released its first ever concert CD/DVD combo pack in support of the season called Comatose Comes Alive.
Aside from the commercial accolades, the Grammy-nominated modern rockers are rapidly approaching gold sales status, backed by both public adoration and critical praise, making the brand new Awake (Atlantic) the band’s most anticipated album to date. Not only does Skillet continue in the tradition of bone crunching rockers and melodic power ballads that comprised the last trip to the studio, but there’s a noticeable evolution sure to connect with longtime listeners and open the floodgates of its fan base even further than ever before.
“We found Comatose scoring the most acceptance in terms of album sales, ticket sales and radio airplay out of any of our albums so far, so there’s certainly a continuation of that direction,” unveils singer/songwriter/bassist John Cooper of the current collection. “But we never want to make the same record twice and that’s why Awake keeps it fresh and surprising. We’ve built off several of the epic elements, orchestration, piano parts and male/female vocal trade offs on several songs, but there’s also a balance of straight up rock stuff and tunes that are a little bit stripped down in comparison.”
In addition to the increasingly cohesive chemistry by the famed front man, keyboardist/vocalist Korey Cooper, guitarist Ben Kasica and drummer/vocalist Jen Ledger, having all-star producer Howard Benson (Daughtry, My Chemical Romance, P.O.D., The All American Rejects, Hoobastank) behind the boards helped the band reach its most compelling conclusion to date.
“He’s been a favorite producer of ours for quite a long time and we’ve talked about working with him in the past, but this time all the pieces finally fell into place,” affirms Cooper. “Howard is a broad stroke painter where he casts a vision, but then incorporates that into what a band is already all about. He really has a knack for the elements an audience enjoys the most, which often times are the vocals and the lyrics, and then he gives the band a chance to be themselves and be proud of the artistic output.”
And that’s the exact result on all accounts, as the foursome’s overwhelmingly satisfied with the entire sonic and thematic palette throughout Awake, which is loaded with plenty of anthems in the making destined to be smash singles and concert sing-a-longs. Even though Skillet possesses undeniable accessibility to this latest batch of tunes, there are still plenty of sophisticated arrangements, unpredictable chord arrangements and mounds of musical integrity all across the board.
“It’s a turning of the page for us because this album is even more immediate than Comatose, but there’s also a noticeable maturity,” contends Cooper. “Some of the songs are complex, others are just really intense rockers and overall there’s a real sense that we’re opening a new chapter. There are definitely some classic rock elements on the record, traces of glam rock and a lot of today’s heavy rock influences as well. Depending on the song, you can hear traces of AC/DC, Metallica or Breaking Benjamin, with lots of big guitars and streamlined drum beats.”
Take for instance the searing lead single “Monster,” which is just as ominous as its moniker implies, loaded with towering riffs and unbridled rock n’ roll abandon. Other aggressive outpourings include the hook heavy “Hero” and the militant “It’s Not Me,” while several fist pumpers possess dramatic orchestration, such as the unshakably infectious “You Should Have” and the carpe diem ode “One Day Too Late.” Of course, no well rounded alternative album would be complete without a handful of gripping ballads, like the loss-centered “Lucy” and the melodic masterpiece “Don’t Wake Me.”
Skillet’s massive fan base (who affectionately refer to themselves as “Panheads”) are sure to agree, though they’ll likely be even more impressed with the lyrical outpouring, which remains a top priority for the players. Mixing socially conscious topics with deeply personal narratives and unabashedly hopeful expressions, Awake is just as emotional as it is provocative.
“We’re living in crazy times right now between the news that seems to get crazier every day and all the uncertainly throughout society in general,” concludes Cooper. “Sometimes it doesn’t seem like there’s hope, and sure you can choose to give up, but why not face it ‘Awake and Alive’? Why let what’s going on around you keep you down when there’s so much hope that a new day can bring? Everything we sing about on this album is something someone can relate to, and if anything, the songs will let you know you’re not alone.”
Hadouken! return with a brand new EP on September 15 that cements their reputation as Britain’s most dynamic and forward-thinking young band. Recorded in Holland with gilded Dutch electronic dance producers Noisia, the M.A.D EP is proof of further massive progression for the quintet who met in Leeds at university just three years ago. The EP evolves the cutting edge dance-rock sound unveiled on their UK number 12 debut album, 2008’s Music For An Accelerated Culture, by delivering tracks that are harder, louder, more rhythmic and tightly focused than anything they’ve attempted before, or than anything else on offer by their contemporaries. If an historic comparison was to be attempted, cast your mind far back to the earliest, comparatively sketchy works by the likes of the Prodigy or the Chemical Brothers. Then recall the impact when each delivered in turn Voodoo People and Block Rockin’ Beats. That’s the kind of leap forward successfully maneuvered here. Britain’s next great dance-rock band have arrived.
Lead track "M.A.D" (an acronym for Mutually Assured Destruction) is a booming, bass-heavy explosion that ponders the psychology of violence in the broadest sense. Musically, it’s a bold statement of intent, the perfect mix of state of the art rhythm, edge of your seat guitars, and bright-eyed, keen-witted howling at the moon. M.A.D will sound as powerful booming out in a rammed concert hall with 5000 of their rabidly loyal fans going bananas or rattling out from a Nokia phone on the back of a bus. Hadouken! don’t discriminate. They just want to invade ear and head-space.
Anarbor has lent its track “You And I” from its Hopeless Records debut EP Free Your Mind to the upcoming Cartoon Network movie, Scooby Doo: The Mystery Begins.
The film will premiere on Cartoon Network on Sunday, September 13 and will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on September 22. The home video version will include the music video for Anarbor’s “You And I” which premiered on Cartoon Network on August 2 following the weekend-long Scooby Doo marathon, and has been airing in between shows all month long.
The exposure has helped to propel the video to the #12 spot on iTunes Alternative Music Videos chart and the song to #33 on the Top Alternative Songs chart (where it peaked at #25.)
Anarbor also recorded the theme song, “What’s New Scooby Doo” (originally done by Simple Plan). The song will appear during the end credits of the movie, and is featured in promos and commercials on Cartoon Network and Cartoonnetwork.com.
Meanwhile The Phoenix, area 4-piece is preparing to head back to the studio to begin work on its first full length release with producer Mike Green (Paramore, Good Charlotte, The Matches). In addition, the band will hit the road this fall on select tours.
Due to the underground success of the mighty vocal floor-rocket “My Love”, Blackhole Recordings artist JES, has released three brand new remixes and a music video through her own Planetjes Digital label. Composed and Recorded by Airscape & JES, "My Love" is an enchanting summer anthem that dance music fans find irresistible.
With original production by Johan Gielen, JES tapped the remixing duties of Dave Silcox, Joe Bermudez and Benjamin Bove for the new remix pack. These productions join the original remixes by Daniel Wanrooy, Mark Green, Josh Millstone, Niklas Harding, and Johan himself, that have been tearing up the dance floor all summer long.
The music video, produced and directed by Katheryne KTEE Thomas and JES, effortlessly captures the enduring notion of a timeless innocence. “My Love” has truly become this summers official love song.
Originally released by Dutch Label Black Hole Recordings, “My Love” acts as the advanced buzz for the new Airscape album. Also, expect a new solo album from JES, "High Glow", out soon.
You could say Kate Voegele is an overachiever. At 22 years old, the Cleveland, Ohio native has spent the better part of the last two years juggling life as a full-time singer-songwriter, part-time actress and a college student, rarely pausing to take a breath. "Multi-tasking has always been my thing," she says. "For my first album, I somehow scheduled my classes around recording sessions, and still got a 4.0 grade point average. Then I took a break from school and went on the road, but halfway through, I got offered One Tree Hill completely unexpectedly. That was when life got ridiculous."
Ridiculous in the sense that Voegele went from being a complete unknown to a TV star, and from a girl writing songs in her dorm room to a bonafide recording artist with legions of loyal fans, all in less than a year. Voegele is still pinching herself just to make sure it's really happening. "Sometimes I look around and wonder what I’ve done to deserve all this," she says with a laugh.
Motion City Soundtrack – Justin Pierre, Josh Cain, Matt Taylor, Tony Thaxton and Jesse Johnson – are gearing up for their major label debut – My Dinosaur Life – due out January 19th on Columbia Records. In anticipation of the new album, the band released their first new song “Disappear” from the album on October 20th and today they are premiering the video for “Disappear” on MySpace!
