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A horse is a horse, of course, of course

For more horsing around: Runaway Horses and When Animals Attack!.

FOALS
foals.co.uk

Just to give you a horse lesson, a foal is a horse that is under one year old. When a horse has its first birthday, it is then a yearling. With that out of the way, Foals are an Oxford band that seems popular with the NME youth. Their third album, Holy Fire is coming out February 11th, 2013 (February 12th for USA). Internet fans will be happy to know that Foals are streaming their new album in its entirety on their website. Warner Bros Records told me that "Holy Fire will stream three times before disappearing."

The only US dates that Foals are confirmed to play are Coachella (04/13 and 4/20), but expect the band to do a number of smaller shows of and around the West Coast (if not a national tour).

In the meantime, the band will be doing some UK dates.

02/28/13 Dublin, Ireland Academy 03/01/13 Dublin, Ireland Academy 03/02/13 Manchester Ritz 03/04/13 Liverpool O2 Academy Liverpool 03/05/13 Glasgow ABC1 03/06/13 Birmingham The Institute 03/08/13 Norwich Univ. Of East Anglia

03/09/13 Leeds Metropolitan University 03/11/13 Bristol O2 Academy Bristol 03/12/13 Nottingham Rock City 03/13/13 Portsmouth Pyramid Centre 03/16/13 Amsterdam, Netherlands Paradiso 03/20/13 Cologne, Germany Live Music Hall 03/28/13 London Royal Albert Hall

PONY TIME
facebook.com/ponytime

Seattle's Pony Time has a new LP called Go Find Your Own coming out February 19th, 2013, on Per Se Records. You can download their new single "Because I Care" on SPIN (hear it on Soundcloud).

The two-piece garage rock band will be heading out on tour in support of the album:

02.22.13 - Seattle, WA @ The Black Lodge
03.06.13 - Portland, OR @ East End
03.07.13 - Eureka, CA @ The Shanty
03.08.13 - San Francisco, CA @ Hemlock Tavern
03.09.13 - Reno, NV @ Holland Project
03.10.13 - Los Angeles, CA @ TBA
03.11.13 - San Diego, CA @ The Shakedown
03.12.13 - Phoenix, AZ @ Select.Stateside Presents
03.13.13 - TX @ TBA
03.14.13-03.16.13 - Austin, TX @ SXSW
03.19.13 - Wichita, KS @ Rock Island Live
03.19.13 - Denver, CO @ Mouth House
03.20.13 - Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA
03.21.13 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Festival
03.22.13 - Portland, OR @ The Know

BRIEFLY:

DARK HORSES darkhorsesmusic.com Brighton's Dark Horses will be releasing a debut album, Black Music, on April 2nd, 2013, on Last Gang Records. The album was produced by Death in Vegas' producer, Richard Fearless, and features guest vocals from Kasabian's Tom Meighan. You can preview "Boxing Day" over at Soundcloud.

JONNY DEBT bandcamp.com Jonny Debt's new album, Prince of the Golden Horseshoe is available now (released January 1st, 2013). Not a whole to information given, I think they are based out of Toronto Hamilton. I did confirm with them that the title "Your Mine" is not a misspelling. "Bonze" is a free download, you can watch the video over at youtube.com.

HORSEHANDS holdyourhorsehands.com Not a lot of information given on Horsehands. I think they are from Boston. Their album, Sirs was just released February 1st, 2013. Playing around in support of the album: 02/17/13 - Brooklyn, NY - Cameo Gallery 03/30/13 - Allston, MA - O'brien's 04/11/13 - Somerville, MA - PA's Lounge 04/12/13 - Brooklyn, NY - Party Expo

WHITEHORSE whitehorsemusic.ca I've previously mentioned them here and here. Sure, I'm a fan. The husband and wife duo will be arriving in Minneapolis next week. 2.13 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry 2.14 Milwaukee, WI @ Shank Hall 2.16 Chicago, IL @ Schubas 2.17 East Lansing, MI @ Lakehouse Music 2.22 Portland, ME @ Empire 2.24 Albany, NY @ Valentine's 2.25 Buffalo, NY @ Ninth Ward

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

Touring around SXSW: Carrie Rodriguez, Darwin Deez, Kosha Dillz, and Whitehorse

Read More Carrie Rodriguez Chip Taylor has been writing and releasing music since 1970, so he's no stranger to country folk music fans. In 2001, after meeting a then-new musician Carrie Rodriguez .....

With SXSW 2013 to be in March, we're already starting to see announcements for showcases. For those that can't afford to travel to SXSW every year, the good news is that really good bands are doing mini-tours of or around the SXSW dates. Chances are your favorite bands will be playing live near you.

CARRIE RODRIGUEZ
carrierodriguez.com

You should know-- we love Carrie Rodriguez here. She's a singer/songwriter, that's more in tuned with country music, than the typical folksy musician. I believe she's still based out of Austin, Texas, and since 2001, she's been performing showcases at SXSW. So, if you're in the Texas area, you should definitely try and make it out to a show.

It's been two years since her mostly covers album, Love and Circumstance, but she's back with a fifth solo release, Give Me All You Got to be out on January 22nd via Ninth Street Opus. In support of the album, she'll be heading out on tour this year.

Her final stop on the three-month long tour will be in Minneapolis at the Cedar Cultural Center. Expect her to perform "Lake Harriet", which I believe is about one of lakes in Minneapolis (great bike trail!). You can grab the song for free at her official website.

All current confirmed tour dates below:

01/23/13 - Dan’s Silverleaf - Denton, TX 01/24/13 - McGonigel’s Mucky Duck - Houston, TX 01/25/13 - Stateside at The Paramount - Austin, TX 01/26/13 - The Kessler Theater - Dallas, TX 01/27/13 - The Blue Door - Oklahoma City, OK 01/29/13 - Hi Tone Cafe - Memphis, TN 01/30/13 - 3rd & Lindsley - Nashville, TN 01/31/13 - Natasha’s Bistro - Lexington, KY 02/01/13 - Grey Eagle Music Hall - Asheville, NC 02/02/13 - The Evening Muse - Charlotte, NC 02/05/13 - Club Passim - Cambridge, MA 02/06/13 - Rockwood Music Hall - New York, NY 02/07/13 - Avalon Theatre - Easton, MD 02/08/13 - Artisphere/Dome Theatre - Arlington, VA 02/09/13 - World Cafe Live - Philadelphia, PA 02/10/13 - Club Cafe - Pittsburgh, PA 02/13/13 - Old Rock House - St. Louis, MO 02/14/13 - Knuckleheads - Kansas City, MO 02/16/13 - L2 Arts & Culture Center - Denver, CO 02/17/13 - Steve’s Guitars - Carbondale, CO 02/19/13 - The State Room - Salt Lake City, UT 02/21/13 - The Triple Door - Seattle, WA 02/23/13 - Green Frog Cafe - Bellingham, WA 02/24/13 - Mississippi Studios - Portland, OR 02/26/13 - Arcata Playhouse - Arcata, CA 02/28/13 - Freight & Salvage - Berkeley, CA

03/01/13 - Sebastopol Community - Sebastopol, CA 03/02/13 - SLO Brew - San Luis Obispo, CA 03/03/13 - Belly Up - Solana Beach, CA 03/05/13 - Largo @ The Coronet - Los Angeles, CA 03/07/13 - Historic Arts Theatre - Prescott, AZ 03/12/13 - SXSW 2013 - Austin, TX 03/13/13 - SXSW 2013 - Austin, TX 03/14/13 - SXSW 2013 - Austin, TX 03/15/13 - SXSW 2013 - Austin, TX 03/16/13 - SXSW 2013 - Austin, TX 03/27/13 - Uncle Slayton’s - Louisville, KY 03/28/13 - Southgate House Revival - Newport, KY 03/29/13 - Natalie’s - Columbus, OH 03/30/13 - Nighttown - Cleveland, OH 04/02/13 - The Ark - Ann Arbor, MI 04/04/13 - Severson Dells Nature Center - Rockford, IL 04/05/13 - SPACE - Evanston, IL 04/06/13 - Legion Arts - Cedar Rapids, IA 04/07/13 - Flying Mango - Des Moines, IA 04/08/13 - Flying Mango - Des Moines, IA 04/09/13 - Sunday Roadhouse - Omaha, NE 04/11/13 - Bloomington Center - Bloomington, IL 04/12/13 - Turner Hall Ballroom - Milwaukee, WI 04/13/13 - Shoulder to Shoulder - Wausau, WI 04/14/13 - Cedar Cultural Center - Minneapolis, MN

DARWIN DEEZ
darwindeez.com

Darwin Deez's forthcoming sophomore album, Songs For Imaginative People will be out February 12th, 2013, on Lucky Number.

As you know, Deez was one of our must-see acts on Australia's Groovin' the Moo 2011 Music Festival.

Are you anxious to check out songs from the new album? You can get a Unicorn Kid's remix of "Free" for, er, free at Pitchfork.



OR, you can watch the "Groundhog Day"-inspired music video for "Free (The Editorial Me)" on YouTube.

Anyway, check out Deez's "idiosyncratic pop" live when he heads out on tour (stopping in Minneapolis on March 20th, just days after his SXSW appearances):

2/28 – Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO 3/01 – Kilby Court, Salt Lake City, UT 3/03 – Doug Fir Lounge, Portland, OR 3/04 – Fortune Sound Club, Vancouver, BC 3/05 – The Vera Project, Seattle, WA 3/07 – Bottom of The Hill, San Francisco, CA 3/08 – Echo, Los Angeles, CA 3/09 – Casbah, San Diego, CA 3/13 – SXSW, TX 3/14 – SXSW, TX 3/15 – SXSW, TX 3/16 – Prophet Bar, Dallas, TX 3/18 – The Record Bar, Kansas City, MO 3/19 – Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines, IA

3/20 – 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis, MN 3/21 – High Noon Saloon, Madison, WI 3/22 – Schubas Tavern, Chicago, IL 3/23 – Russian Recording, Bloomington, IN 3/25 – Ace of Cups, Columbus, OH 3/26 – Stage AE, Pittsburgh, PA 3/27 – Beachland Tavern, Cleveland, OH 3/28 – Soundlab, Buffalo, NY 3/29 – Legendary Horeshoe Tavern, Toronto, ON 3/30 – Casa del Popolo, Montreal, Canada 4/01 – Pearl Street Nightclub, Northampton, MA 4/02 – Brighton Music Hall, Boston, MA 4/03 – Bowery Ballroom, NYC, NY 4/04 – First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia, PA 4/05 – Black Cat, Washington DC

KOSHA DILLZ
koshadillz.com

We love Kosha Dillz. Last year, Dillz played one million SXSW shows, and this year he promised to top it! If you want to help him finish his Kosha DIllz is Everywhere: The Hustle to Happiness documentary his Kickstarter just launched last night (January 3rd).

And uh-oh, looks like Dillz is coming to Minneapolis/St Paul! It is really far in advance, but I'm penciling those dates on my calendar. I think Dillz's music will go well with Minnesotans because there is a massive Atmosphere and Rhymesayers audience he can tap in.

Here are some dates that Dillz will appear at:

Jan 19-23 TBD Sundance Film Festival Park City, UT
Jan 24 TBD Los Angeles, CA
Feb 4 Kickstarter Close Off Celebration Street Performance
Feb 16-20 NACA National Convention Nashville, TN
Feb 21/22 Private Gig Atlanta, GA
March 1- 9 Booking midwest run
March 10- 17 SXSW Music Festival x OY VEY SXSW!
March 22-23 NACA Mid-Atlantic Festival
April 4-7 NACA Northwest Conference St. Paul, MN

WHITEHORSE
whitehorsemusic.ca

Just a reminder that Whitehorse's album The Fate Of The World Depends On This Kiss comes out January 15th, check out my review. At the time of that writing, they were mostly doing Canadian tour dates, but it looks like the band are finalizing on some USA dates. I am told that they "certainly will" be doing SXSW this year, so stay tune for more tour date announcements.

01/16/13 New York, NY: Hill Country Live
01/26/13 Vancouver, BC: Commodore Ballroom
01/27/13 Victoria, BC: Upstairs Cabaret
01/30/13 Lethbridge, AB: Geomatic Attic
01/31/13 Calgary, AB: Knox United Church
02/01/13 Edmonton, AB: Myer Horowitz Theatre
02/03/13 Red Deer, AB: The Hideout
02/06/13 Saskatoon, SK: Broadway Theatre
02/07/13 Regina, SK: The Exchange
02/08/13 Winnipeg, MB: Burton Cummings Theatre
02/13/13 Minneapolis, MN: 7th Street Entry
02/14/13 Milwaukee, WI: Shank Hall
02/16/13 Chicago, IL: Schuba's
02/17/13 East Lansing, MI: Lakehouse Music
02/23/13 South Burlington, VT: Higher Ground
02/24/13 Albany, NY: Valentine's
02/25/13 Buffalo, NY: Ninth Ward
02/27/13 London, ON: Aeolian Hall
02/28/13 Waterloo, ON: Starlight
03/02/13 Toronto, ON: Massey Hall
03/22/13 Montreal, PQ: La Sala Rosa
03/23/13 Ottawa, ON: Nac Theatre
03/24/13 Midland, ON: Midland Cultural Centre
03/26/13 Meaford, ON: Meaford Hall
03/27/13 St Catharine’s: Sean O Sullivan Theatre

BRIEFLY:

HEYERDAHL facebook.com Heyerdahl is a new Norwegian band, which MTV is calling "ambitious experimental electro-tinged pop", while The Line of Best Fit is comparing them to my favorite Japanese director, Takashi Miike. Obviously, they are getting a lot of attention, particularly when Øya Festival booked the band on the strength of their single "Mirage" (even before the band even played live). Their upcoming album, ØEN will be out 28th January 2013 - look for them to play at SXSW 2013.

WEST OF ALDINE facebook.com Minneapolis' groove/pop band West of Aldine will be performing songs from their debut album, Undivided, this February 1st at the Fine Line Café. Also on the bill: American Revival, Bigtree Bonsai, and Lake Avenue. West of Aldine are also quite excited to play SXSW this year - so excited that they'll be doing a warmup/sendoff show at The Kitty Kat Club just prior to Austin. I don't see a definite date on the KKC's calendar, but expect it to be free or marginally priced. If you want to support the band, know that they donate 20% of their merchandise to high school music departments through their "Keep The Music" program.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

Whitehorse: The Fate Of The World Depends On This Kiss

Tour Dates 01/26/13 Vancouver, BC: Commodore Ballroom 01/27/13 Victoria, BC: Upstairs Cabaret 01/30/13 Lethbridge, AB: Geomatic Attic 01/31/13 Calgary, AB: Knox United Church 02/01/13 Edmonton, AB: Myer Horowitz Theatre 02/03/13 Red Deer, AB: The Hideout 02/06/13 Saskatoon, SKk: Broadway Theatre 02/07/13 Regina, SKk: The Exchange 02/08/13 Winnipeg, MBb: Burton Cummings Theatre 02/27/13 London, ON: Aeolian Hall 02/28/13 Waterloo, ON: Starlight 03/02/13 Toronto, ON: Massey Hall 03/22/13 Montreal, PQ: La Sala Rosa 03/23/13 Ottawa, ON: Nac Theatre 03/24/13 Midland, ON: Midland Cultural Centre 03/26/13 Meaford, ON: Meaford Hall 03/27/13 St Catharine’s: Sean O Sullivan Theatre Read More Melissa McClelland The title track and name of the album, "Victoria Day" is worth listening to. The song comes in two parts: April and May Showers. The song is also cut into two distinct section, as the song shifts to a different tone on May Showers... I really like Melissa McClelland's Victoria Day album, which I reviewed a few years ago. To this day, her title song(s) still makes it on compilation mixtapes. The good news is that since 2011, she and her husband, Luke Doucet, have been releasing music under the name Whitehorse. Their latest album is called The Fate Of The World Depends On This Kiss, the album came out in their native Canada last August, but a U.S. release is pending for January 15th. I did get a chance to listen to it, it's a little more country and blues rock than my normal cup of tea. Most of the tracks have strong lead vocals by Doucet, with McClelland complimenting his songs. If you say that this is a duet/duo effort, and certainly that's true, but I felt like the album was mostly under Luke Doucet's direction. Songs like "Jane" and "Annie Lu" seems like they were written from Doucet's perspective. The few songs that McClelland takes lead (like "Out Like A Lion" and "No Glamour In The Hammer") was a nice counter-balance to Doucet. My favorite track is "Peterbilt Coalmine", which has a great melody with even better lyrics: Has the record stopped spinning? Has the other boot dropped Is my punk flame burning out? And has the band moved on and left me on the farm? Is my rock'n'roll nerve all spent, just a flaming heart on an old man's arm? When it comes down to it, there's enough variety in song styles and genres that you won't get bored listening to the album from start to finish. It is a well-crafted solid album, which is always nice considering there's a lot of bad pop autotuned singles out in the world. The Fate of This World Depends on This Kiss will be out domestically on January 15, 2013 via Six Shooter Records.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ whitehorsemusic.ca