SXSW 2015 is taking place March 17–22, 2015. We love this time of the year, as many bands heading down to Austin will likely stop in Minneapolis before or after the event. Keep up with more SXSW coverage at sxsw.weheartmusic.com. ....
Lio from Kanine Records, Michael & Orly from Music for Listeners, and Vu & Brody from W♥M discuss SXSW 2018.
Topics:
Not many “big acts” at SXSW 2018
More focused on smaller local and international bands
Mumford & Sons booked at the very first Music for Listeners show
Downtown Sixth Street has moved to East Sixth Street
Lyft & Uber were kicked out of Austin in 2016, but they are now back
Music for Listeners’ SXSW shows moved to Lazarus Brewing
Brody’s top five: Durand Jones & The Indications, Girl Ray, Shopping, Lucy Dacus, and Kraus
Lio: Pearl Charles, Hatchie, Girl Ray, Our Girl, and Starcrawler
Orly: The Melenas, Girl Ray, Pearl Charles
Colossus, a Pre-SXSW Showcase at Pianos in New York
Differences between SXSW and CMJ (College Music Journal)
Bands who moved on from Kanine Records to bigger labels
Band on everyone’s list: Girl Ray
Song of the show: Pearl Charles’ “Night Tides”. The song is taken from her debut Sleepless Dreamer (Kanine Records). Her songs are often compared to Lana Del Rey.
Bonus:
How Hockey Dad was discovered in Australia
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Buzz band Catfish and the Bottlemen just sold out their entire UK Tour (which isn't until October 2015!) In some of these cases, I've met some UK fans that will fly into the US to see …
Catfish and the Bottlemen and Circa Waves team up for an official Lollapalooza after show at the Subterranean Saturday August 1st. These fellow UK bands will also be playing Lollapalooza at Grant Park in Chicago. The after show and all single day and 3 day passes to Lollapalooza are sold out. Only VIP tickets, StubHub/Ebay, and of course scalping if you want to go that route.
Catfish and the Bottlemen is a mix between Jet and King of Leon but with a little more kick and flare. They already have that arena sound and it amazes me they haven't exploded yet even in the states. Circa Waves has that jangling pop sound with a little less garage sound as Catfish and brings loads of energy. I got a chance to see both these bands in Austin at this year's SXSW and they blew me away.
If you want to see a band that's going to swing guitars and jump off walls i recommend seeing both these bands at Lollapalooza or in a city near you.
Both bands are playing festivals all over Europe this summer!
Catfish and the Bottlemen tour dates:
07/12/15 T In The Park
07/17/15 Longitude
07/18/15 Latitude Festival
07/19/15 Melt! Festival
07/22/15 Richmond, Australia Corner Hotel
07/23/15 Sydney, Oxford Art Factory
07/24/15 Splendour In The Grass
07/26/15 Fuji Rock Festival
07/31/15 Osheaga Festival
08/01/15 Chicago, IL Subterranean
08/01/15 Lollapalooza
Hot on the heels of her acclaimed Room 93 EP, Halsey will release her full-length debut album called Badlands (Astralwerks), on August 28, 2015.
Based on digital pre-orders alone, the record landed Halsey at #1 on the alternative iTunes chart and #2 on iTunes Overall Albums Chart - and the album is not even out yet! Pre-ordering now will grant you three tracks - “New Americana,” “Ghost” and “Hold Me Down”.
Tour dates:
Jul 13
Memphis, TN
FedEx Forum
Jul 14
Atlanta, GA
Philips Arena
Jul 16
Houston, TX
Toyota Center
Jul 17
Dallas, TX
American Airlines Center
Jul 20
Anaheim , CA
Honda Center
Jul 21
San Diego, CA
Viejas Arena
Jul 24
Los Angeles, CA
The Forum
Jul 25
Phoenix, AZ
US Airways Center
Jul 27
Denver, CO
Pepsi Center
Jul 28
Salt Lake City, UT
Energy Solutions Arena
Jul 30
Vancouver, British Columbia
Rogers Arena
Jul 31
Tacoma, WA
Tacoma Dome
Aug 01
Boise, ID
Taco Bell Arena
Aug 02
Chicago, IL
Lollapalooza
Aug 15
Sacramento, CA
City of Tress Festival
Sept 05
Philadelphia Made in America Festival
Sept 06 Philadelphia Made in America Festival
Oct 02-04
Austin, TX
Austin City Limits
Oct 09-11
Austin, TX
Austin City Limits
Chicago based DJ duo Light.Em.Up (featuring DJs Zebo and PHNM) recently announced that they will be playing at Lollapalooza on Saturday, August 1st from 8:00 - 8:45 P.M. at the Palladia stage, opening for headliner Sam Smith.
What set Light.Em.Up apart is that they have their own app on iPhone or Android and fans can help participate with them on their set. How it work is you pick a color (representing a music genre) and you hold up your phone. The DJs will see the dominate color and play accordingly, making for a very unique experience.
Tour dates:
July 17th - Underground, Chicago, IL
July 18th - Cube at Rivers Casino, Rosemont, IL
July 31st - The Mid, Chicago
Aug 1st - Lollapalooza, Chicago
Sept 12th - Segredo, Madison, Wisconsin
Sept 24th - Blu, Indianapolis, IN
Brody caught up with London's Childhood, who is currently in Brighton to play some shows at the Great Escape.
The new group started off as a duo (Leo Dobsen and Ben Romans-Hopcraft)
....
Brody caught up with Only Real at British Music Embassy, Austin (20 Mar 2015) for SXSW 2015.
Niles almost didn't make it to SXSW, having lost (but eventually found) his passport.
Brody: "They sound like the Beastie Boys, Jamie T. Believe the hype."
Only Real: "Sound like the House that Jack Built. Y'know, if you like it, you love it. If you love it... then I like you."
Originally debut "Days In The City" on LuvLuvLuv Records, Only Real's major label LP Jerk At The End of The Line will be available on March 30th, 2015, via Harvest Records... however, the US will have to wait until late Summer 2015. The record was produced by Ben H Allen in Atlanta and Dan Carey (Franz Ferdinand, Childhood) in London.
Only Real's tour dates:
16 Apr 2015 I.BOAT Bordeaux, France
18 Apr 2015 Unknown venue Rezé, France
20 Apr 2015 Hospice D'havré Tourcoing, France
21 Apr 2015 Badaboum Paris, France
22 Apr 2015 La Lune Des Pirates, France
26 Apr 2015 Broadcast Glasgow, UK
29 Apr 2015 The Jericho Oxford, UK
30 Apr 2015 100 Club London, UK
03 May 2015 The Ruby Lounge Manchester, UK
06 May 2015 The Hope & Ruin Brighton, UK
07 May 2015 The Louisiana Bristol, UK
08 May 2015 Southampton - Joiners
09 May 2015 Birmingham - The Rainbow
Only Real at British Music Embassy, Austin (20 Mar 2015)
Russian/American Nika Roza Danilova, or otherwise known as Zola Jesus, stopped by the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis, as part of her Taiga tour. …
Ex-Dirty Projectors' Angel Deradoorian opened up the show. We previously saw Deradoorian with another Russian/American artist Olga Bell and noted that she had more modern
…
After watching the Superbowl with some friends at Manning's, I strolled over to the Republic New Orleans to catch Zola Jesus with openers Deradoorian.
Deradoorian
One of the opening members, Angel Deradoorian was the former bassist and co-vocalist of Dirty Projectors. Only caught a few tracks, but what I heard, it was solid. Two female dueling vocals playing keys and xylophone/drums. Favorite track was "Carry the Deed". Everybody needs to check this video out, it's very unique and Angel is absolutely gorgeous!
A darker version of Florence and the Machine is the typical quick to judge label on Zola Jesus. There is so much variety and dynamic to her songs no one should be quick to make comparisons because she is so unique. Her voice carries strong to an almost London Grammar-type level but has this obscure electronic trance that hits out of nowhere along with and incredible brass sound from the trombone. The strongest comparison to Zola is Karen Marie Ørsted (otherwise know as MØ) out of Denmark. Similar to Florence Welch, both singers are constantly flying around the stage waving their arms and giving an eye-grabbing stage performance.
Setlist
Nika Roza Danilova (aka Zola Jesus) started the night with three songs from her 2014 release entitled Taiga. Three of my favorite tracks, I might add, "Taiga", "Dangerous Days", and "Dust". After those songs, the crowd was quickly drawn in a trance. I was simply in awe and couldn't stop dancing after my favorite track "Dangerous Days", that song has been on repeat for a week now as I'm clearly a hardcore fan.
Half of her set was from the new record, and one of the best moments of the show was when she came out into the crowd gave me a double high five then continued to the bar counter and showed us her moves. Her two-song encore were both tracks from her 2011 release, song titles ("Vessel" and "Skin").
I've been of fan of Zola the past four years and have missed two of her shows because I was out of town or sick. Her fourth release Conatus came out in 2011 was when I first started listing to her and instantly became a fan. That material was extremely dark with the drum and bass build up. She seems to have really grown the last three years into a more well-rounded artist, mixing more melodic sounds, horns, even just a true dance type vibe to her music.
This artist clearly deserves more attention and should be just as big as soon to be rival Florence and the Machine.
Fun fact: Zola Jesus has the one of the best-looking concert T-Shirts you can buy. My other favorites include Bombay Bicycle Club and The Maccabees.
10/30/14 Macon, GA Macon City Auditorium
10/31/14 Chattanooga, TN Tivoli Theatre
11/01/14 Charlotte, NC Ovens Auditorium
11/02/14 Richmond, VA Altria Theater
11/04/14 Greenville, SC Peace Center
11/05/14 Virginia Beach, VA Sandler Center
11/07/14 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre
11/08/14 Syracuse, NY Landmark Theatre
11/09/14 Albany, NY Palace Theatre
11/12/14-11/14/14 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
Singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne has always had the look of someone panning for gold.
His stoic face, full beard, large brown hat, and somewhat frumpy
…
The Belle Brigade is currently supporting Ray LaMontagne on a full US tour.
Their latest release Just Because (ATO Records) has been a huge success
…
On a beautiful Monday evening in New Orleans, I made my way to the newly renovated Saenger Theatre to see Mr. Ray LaMontagne with The Belle Brigade.
The Saenger Theatre was built all the way back in 1927. The Saenger had been closed since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and reopened in 2013. Recently, the Saenger has hosted some major musician acts such as Dave Matthews and David Gray and still screens films and hosts Broadway Theater shows.
Opening the night was a band called The Belle Brigade. Dueling female vocals on the drums and male vocals on lead guitar from siblings Barbara and Ethan Gruska, compliment this awesome four piece folk rock band.
I loved the drummer's final track, "When Everything Was What It Was" from their new album Just Because (ATO Records), watching her bang the drums with her hair flying all over the a classic rock band like it was from the 80s.
Headliner Ray LaMontagne performed an elegant two hour set. Ray has a distinct look with his top gay and mountain man beard. His confidence on stage was mesmerizing along with the psychedelic animation video in the backdrop during the set.
His recently released album Supernova (RCA) got plenty of playback, as expected. "Julia", "Supernova", "Airwaves", "She's the One" were all highlights of the night, and are some of the many hits off the new record. Ray of course also played monster hits "Jolene" and "You are the Best Thing". I was having too much fun!
LaMontagne is a true talent and I put him in the elite group of the likes of Dave Mathews, Jack Johnson, John legend, you name it it, the man can do it all. He's got soul, country, blues, and one if the best voices in the world. Ray is complimented by a phenomenal band with two other guitarists and a cello/bassist that was rocking out hard! Seeing him with the full band was quite the treat and I would also love to see him perform an acoustic set.
Be sure to catch this man on tour if you have the opportunity.
See that photo of Stuart Murdoch? That is a photo that you can only get if you happen to be Robin ... dancing on stage with Belle and Sebastian at the sold out Theatre at Ace Hotel show in Los Angeles. …
We've been very excited about news of the new Belle & Sebastian 2015 album for a while now, but the band recently made things official: It is called Girls in Peacetime Want To Dance and will be arriving January 20, 2015, via Matador Records.
With the recent "It Could Have Been A Brilliant Career" vinyl re-issues, it made sense that the band will also offer Girls in Peacetime Want To Dance as a double LP vinyl (and also available as a 4x LP vinyl boxset). Wealthy fans will love the deluxe package, poor fans will surely be jealous.
I own all the B&S albums on CD and will likely just pick up the Compact Disc for my collection.
Tour Dates:
10/28/14 - Manchester Cathedral, Manchester, UK
10/29/14 - De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-On-Sea, UK
10/31/14 - Pitchfork Festival, Paris, France
01/26/15 - Laneway Festival, New Zealand
01/28/15 - The Tivoli, Brisbane, Australia
01/29/15 - Enmore Theatre, Sydney, Australia
02/01/15 - Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia
02/03/15 - Astor Theatre, Perth, Australia
02/12/15 - AX Club, Seoul, Korea
02/16/15 - Hostess Club Taipei @ Taiwan
02/21/15 - Hostess Club Weekender Japan
05/22/15 - Hydro Arena , Glasgow, UK
06/10/15 - Radio City Music Hall, New York NY
07/02/15-07/04/15 - ATP Iceland, Keflavik, Iceland
Laid back indie-rock sibling duo, The Belle Brigade, opened the night with a brief set, mostly culled from their new album, Just Because (ATO Records) and 2011 self-titled debut. …
Singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne has always had the look of someone panning for gold.
His stoic face, full beard, large brown hat, and somewhat frumpy earth-toned slacks and jacket
…
The Belle Brigade is currently supporting Ray LaMontagne on a full US tour.
Their latest release Just Because (ATO Records) has been a huge success and has plenty of hits to egg everyone hooked this year! Very reminiscent of Family of the Year; Belle Brigade is a family band with male and female vocals dueling for a sound of perfection.
Can't wait to see them at the newly revamped Saenger Theatre, the most prestigious place to play in New Orleans. Love the guitar riffs leading up to Elliot Smith-like jams.
On tour with Ray LaMontagne:
Oct-26 / Shreveport, LA - Municipal Auditorium
Oct-27 / New Orleans, LA - Saenger Theatre
Oct-28 / Mobile, AL - Saenger Theatre
Oct-30 / Macon, GA - Macon City Auditorium
Oct-31 / Chatanooga, TN - Tivoli Theatre
Nov-01 / Charlotte, NC - Ovens Auditorium
Nov-02 / Richmond, VA - Altria Theatre
Nov-04 / Greenville, SC - Peace Center
Nov-05 / Virginia Beach, VA - Sandler Center
Nov-07 / Hershey, PA - Hershey Theatre
Nov-08 / Syracuse, NY - Landmark Theatre
Nov-09 / Albany, NY - Palace Theatre
Nov-12 / New York, NY - Beacon Theatre
Nov-13 / New York, NY - Beacon Theatre
Nov-14 / New York, NY - Beacon Theatre
A Friend Too Long is the new album from Michigan indie roots band Lac La Belle (translate to "Beautiful Lake").
The album came out in early October 9th, via Double Lot Records.
The duo, songwriters Jennie Knaggs & Nick Schillace, set the album in a contemporary context framed by life in Detroit. “Detroit represents our modern time in all its beautiful, ugly, and naked realities,” says Schillace. “There is a spectrum of struggles here…and an equal opportunity to find material that is both universal and personal with a timelessness that helps connect us to a continuity of human experience.”
Lollapalooza is an annual music festival founded by Perry Farrel for his last hurrah with his band, Jane's Addiction. Lollapalooza stopped being a traveling festival and is now stationary …
Brody reports on Lollapalooza 2014.
New this year at Lollapalooza are:
"Leopallooza" in Cornwall, UK, featured Radiohead's Thom Yorke as a guest DJ, except no one showed up and knew who he was!
Lollapalooza Argentina is new this year, in addition to Lollapalooza Chile and Lollapalooza Brazil
Colorful Lollapalooza wristbands have RFID (radio frequency identification) chips that you can use to buy things, and .... also to keep track of where you go.
Some bands Brody saw: Temples, Lorde, Arctic Monkeys, Calvin Harris,
Cage the Elephant, Kings of Leon, Lykke Li, Typhoon, London Grammar, etc.
Missed band: Flume, Glen Hansard
BONUS: City Pages 10 Thousand Sounds Festival, Camera Obscura, Laura Cantrell, and God Help the Girl Soundtrack.
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04/16/14 Whelan's Dublin, Ireland
04/18/14 Theatre Les Atelier Lyon, France
04/19/14 Le Ciel Grenoble, France
04/20/14 La Vapeur Dijon, France
04/21/14 Le Grand Mix Lille, France
04/23/14 Botanique Sint Joost Ten Node
04/24/14 Zoom Frankfurt, Germany
04/25/14 Flux Friday Melt Special @ Fluxblau
04/26/14 Rust Copenhagen, Denmark
04/28/14 strom Munich, Germany
04/29/14 Ziegel Oh Lac @ Rote Fabrik Zurich
04/30/14 La Maroquinerie Paris
05/02/14 Liverpool Sound City
05/03/14 Live At Leeds Leeds
05/04/14 Deaf Institute Manchester
05/06/14 Think Tank Newcastle
05/07/14 Village Underground London
05/08/14 Portland Arms Cambridge
05/09/14 London Calling Amsterdam
05/11/14 Shaky Knees Music Festival
06/19/14 Firefly Music Festival Dover
06/25/14 Summerfest Milwaukee, WI
07/15/14 Valkhof Festival Nijmegen
07/18/14 Latitude Festival Henham Park
07/25/14 Hillside Festival
07/26/14 Hillside Festival
07/27/14 Hillside Festival
08/01/14 Lollapalooza
08/03/14 Meyer Theatre Green Bay, WI
As far as Twitter names go, the one that Brooklyn five-piece buzz band Lucius uses is more than appropriate for the hundreds that braved the elements and their own personal safety …
San Fermin is an American baroque pop band lead by Brooklyn-based composer and songwriter Ellis Ludwig-Leone.
San Fermin @ Latitude 30
The British Music Embassy/SXSW
Austin, Texas - Saturday March 15th
San Fermin played a killer set at SXSW mixed with a crew of stellar UK artists: Splashh, Temples, and Drenge. Nearly everyone was there to see the debut of UK psych rockers Temples, but San Fermin was a great balance of female vocals and a beautiful arrangement of brass instruments.
The band has a whopping 22 artists that play on their self-titled debut album. Only 9 are on tour with them at the moment, as two of the female vocalists are in the band Lucius. Their set was only about 30 minutes just like every other performance at SXSW 2014 based on time restraints, and the fact that they only have one record.
San Fermin at SXSW
Keyboardist and former graduate of Yale, Ellis Ludwig Leone wrote all the tracks on the debut album and has been a perfect fit for the star lead vocalists in the band. Allen Tate is the male lead and has a very deep voice reminiscent of the band The National, and Rae Cassidy has the complete opposite range of a Whitney Houston/Mariah Carey caliber tone. It makes for a very unique combination and very intriguing sound. If I had to pick one though, it would clearly be Ms. Rae Cassidy. I think this girl will explode with a solo career and hope she ventures out into that path.
San Fermin is none the less a great live band and all the blogs are raving about this band as one of the best new bands of 2013 for good reason. Tons of energy on stage with a great selection of instrumentation and male/female vocal changes.
San Fermin @ Gasa Gasa
New Orleans, Louisiana - Tuesday March 18th
Still recovering from SXSW I mustered enough energy to make it to their New Orleans show where I was only able to stay for about half the set. A great turnout for Brooklyn-based band, thanks to a few local openers who had a popular following. New Orleans is starting to pay attention to emerging bands like San Fermin and I think most of the crowd was there to catch the headliners.
After Rae Cassidy played her main vocal led tracks I was out like Flash Gordon. During my favorite track "Songsick" the trumpet player dashed out to the middle of the audience and got his jam on.
Highasakite is listed as headliner. The quintet will head out on tour after SXSW with UK-based indie pop trio London Grammar (see dates below). Highasakite is supporting …
Highasakite is a Norwegian indie pop band consisting of Ingrid Helene Håvik (on vocals), Trond Bersu (drums), Øystein Skar (synths), Marte Eberson (synths) and Kristoffer Lo (guitar, percussion and flugabone).
They are currently touring for their sophomore album Silent Treatment, which is coming out April 8 in the U.S.
This was Highasakite's SXSW appearances:
Mar 15 Øya & Filter Showcase
Mar 14 Red Eye Transit Showcase
Mar 14 International Day Stage
Mar 14 Norway Night
Mar 11 Audiofemme Party
London Grammar + Highasakite Tour:
3/21. Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ
3/22. Vinyl – Las Vegas, NV
3/23. House of Blues – San Diego, CA
3/25. El Rey Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
3/27. The Independent – San Francisco, CA
3/28. Wonder Ballroom – Portland, OR
3/29. Neumos Crystal Ball Reading Room, Seattle
Watch Brody with Highasakite at SXSW, Austin, Texas. Please note that the source video file I have is only about two minutes long.
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