OK Computer is 16!

Still feeling alienated by ubiquitous corporate greed?

Go listen to it here!

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Live Stream: QOTSA to play new album in full tomorrow in LA

Queens of the Stone Age will reveal their new album at a show at the Wiltern, LA, tomorrow. The show kicks off at 8pm, EST, which means 4am the following morning for the UK, and the full concert will be live-streaming at NPR.

Watch the awesome 15-minute preview to ...Like Clockwork below:

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Cass McCombs and Michael Hurley split 7"

Both enjoying a relatively similar level of recognition a few decades apart, and both holding a special place in followers' hearts, Cass McCombs and Michael Hurley are a match made in folk heaven.

Neither one appearing to be working on any new material, 'Mabel Green/Three Men on a Hollow Log' seems to be a joint venture, put out for the hell of it. Despite a signature Hurley cover, there's no sign of his track yet, but you can listen to Cass McCombs' contribution below:


The 7" will be released in July on Secret Seven.

Update: Listen to previews of both tracks here. Hurley's is a previously unreleased solo recording of a past track.

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Baths' Obsidian now advance streaming on Pitchfork

Will Wiesenfeld's Baths stepped modestly onto the scene in 2010 with twelve tracks of gorgeous, disjointed chillwave. He's been at it for years, under the previous monikers [Post-foetus] and Geotic, but Cerulean was where the recipe hit home, perfectly falling somewhere between a breezy halcyon wash and stuttering, glitchy electro.

On May 28, Baths will release Obsidian, his hotly anticipated sophomore, but Pitchfork has the full album streaming now. It's darker than he's gone before, but still as fragile and downright powerful as his debut. Listen now via Pitchfork.

Listen to Cerulean here.

Download Geotic's full back catalogue from Wiesenfeld's own vaults here.

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Get Involved Charabang - Rich Mix (8th May)

Arriving at Shoreditch’s Rich Mix for Get Involved’s Charabang Launch party, I was met with the unfortunate news that the breakdancing magician had to pull out.

That should give you an impression of the eclectic mix of new talent on show at the first Get Involved Charabang last Wednesday night. Magical Bones’ exclusion was a shame, and judging from his YouTube channel it’s a sight to behold, but the night showcased some of the best rising London acts around.

First to the stage was Arthur Lea, who channels the rootsy upbeat New Orleans Jazz of Dr. John with remarkable Jazz piano chops. 

Lea’s got that Delta spirit running through him, rooted in offbeat, bouncy riffs – but his lyrics tell his own story, covering topics from dealing with loneliness to wanting to be a superhero; the latter with audience-participatory zoom! and pow! sound effects. Check out 'Make Do' below.

Next up was the frankly unbelievable beatbox wizard ReepsOne. Reeps is a force of nature, and is able to exploit his vocal chords into producing an unstoppable frenzy of electronic music. He mentions onstage that occasionally he’s hired to play two-hour DJ sets armed with nothing but a mic and PA system, and you can believe it. Close your eyes, and you could be listening to some actually quite brilliant Dubstep, Electro and Drum & Bass.

That’s the most impressive thing – Reeps doesn’t just produce impressive sound effects and sit back for the applause, but moulds and layers them into music you would actually listen to. As he puts it, it’s not replication – it’s creation.

And in true variety show style, we go from the basements of 2010s London to the glamorous Boogie Woogie of 1940s Hollywood with self-proclaimed ‘vintage girl band’ the Tootsie Rollers. The Tootsies stormed through a dazzling setlist of contemporary classics, authentic 40s numbers and an original track that shows they’re past imitation – these girls are the real deal.

Rounding off the night were The Royal Organ Duo. The South East London natives play like Booker T & The MGs and banter like Chas n’ Dave; and use instantly recognisable pop classics as a platform to launch into all kinds of knockout jazz improv. Respective masters of organ and drums, the Royal Organ Duo don’t play covers as such – they take just enough elements of those songs we all know, from Jessie J to Led Zeppelin, and spin off into inspired and unexpected places. If you’ve never heard a lounge jazz play on Stairway to Heaven – now’s your chance.

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Mixtape #8

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Animal Collective - Centipede Hz

Over the last decade, Animal Collective’s journey has been characteristically bizarre, feeling their way through various shades of psychedelic noise pop. Though what they do is pretty hard to pin down, from the gorgeous psych-folk of Feels and Campfire Songs to the whacked-out madness of Strawberry Jam and 2009’s critics’ choice Merriweather Post Pavillion, psychedelia seems a pretty strong place to start when trying to make sense of it all.

That said, making sense of it all is absolutely the last thing you should do with an Animal Collective album. On Merriweather opener ‘In The Flowers’, the line ‘if I could just leave my body for the night’ turns an uncertain, washy picture of a chance meeting with a dancer in a field into a bursting, intense dreamscape that shoots off into the sky and, for an hour’s sensory onslaught, never really comes down.

And here, three years later, after a year and a half of doing whatever the hell it is they do when working on an album, is Centipede Hz. When asked how he would describe the sound of the new album, multi-instrumentalist Deakin helpfully went for “Centipede Hz”. Also, here’s a still from the video for single Today’s Supernatural:

So, there’s that.

Gratifyingly, Centipede Hz winds on in much the same vein as Merriweather. The familiar sonic blitz and sense of curious exploration are intact, but Centipede Hz is its own beast. It’s frantic and noisy, and a lot grander than anything that’s come before. Opener and possible album best ‘Moonjock’ kicks straight into an apocalyptic 7/8 sprawl with Avey Tare and Panda Bear sharing vocals. With Deakin back in the line up and after varied solo efforts, the band is more collected and resolute than ever.

There’s frequent spots of magic through the album – Deakin’s first songwriting credit and lead vocal ‘Wide Eyed’ bounces to its own irresistible groove, and ‘Tomorrow’s Supernatural’ is an organised mess of organ bursts and Avey Tare’s trademark snarls and shouts.

After becoming established in their own special way, every release seems to be hailed as Animal Collective’s most coherent effort to date, or the album that could finally break them into the mainstream. Though Centipede Hz does feel that little bit more like a more lucid and focused collection of songs, replete with catchy hooks and radio-friendly structures (see ‘Wide Eyed’ and ‘Amanita’), it’s as dense and mystifying as ever. Despite having their feet more firmly on the ground, their heads are still up in the clouds.

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