Oxbow Streams Avant-Rock Triumph Thin Black Duke - Out Tomorrow On Hydra Head

Oxbow is streaming its first album in ten years, Thin Black Duke, today via Noisey. As demonstrates a remarkable balance of beauty and power throughout the album, fusing dissonant riffs with baroque arrangements. It is a remarkable work from a band that has continued to reinvent itself, pushing the limits not only of their sound but the genre of rock music as a whole. Thin Black Duke is out tomorrow on Hydra Head.

Oxbow – Thin Black Duke

(May 5th, 2017 – Hydra Head Records)

Pre-order Thin Black Duke from Hydra Head HERE.

1.    Cold & Well Lit Place

2.    Ecce Homo

3.    A Gentleman’s Gentleman

4.    Letter Of Note

5.    Host

6.    The Upper

7.    Other People

8.    The Finished Line

Oxbow also recently shared a video for “Cold & Well-Lit Place,” which is available HERE, and “Other People,” available HERE.

Nick Murphy (Chet Faker) Reveals First Taste Of New Music via Short Video

Nick Murphy just released a mysterious new short video clip for his upcoming Missing Link project. The video features a taste of the first new music from Murphy since last fall’s single "Stop Me (Stop You)." Watch the Missing Link clip co-directed by Murphy and Johann Rashad below.

The New York-based Australian producer & musician formerly known as Chet Faker announced last fall that, moving forward, he will write, produce, record and perform under his given name, Nick Murphy. He also recently released a short video interview with collaborator Dave Harrington where he discusses the name change, creating his new music and more. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/KWNTwX5bfTA.

NICK MURPHY TOUR DATES

May 12 Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre (w. Bonobo)

May 12-14 Atlanta, GA - Shaky Knees Festival

Jun 01 Sydney, Australia - Sydney Opera House

Jun 02 Sydney, Australia - Sydney Opera House

Jun 03 Sydney, Australia - Sydney Opera House

Jun 13 Ibiza, Spain - Pacha

Jun 17 Barcelona, Spain - Plaza Mayor de El Poble Espanyol

Jun 23 Salt Lake City, UT - Bonanza Campout Festival

Jul 28-30 New York, NY - Panorama Festival

Aug 16 Paredes De Coura, Portugal - Praia do Taboã

Chuck Johnson Shares "Riga Black" Video - New Album Of Ambient Pedal-Steel Explorations Balsams Out 6/2 on VDSQ

Balsams, Bay Area guitarist Chuck Johnson’s first album dedicated solely to the pedal steel guitar, is an immersive collection of meditations that highlights the instrument’s underutilized capacity for subtlety and beauty. The music is at once ambient and dramatic, swelling with unexpected melodies that emerge from the tonal ether. Earlier today Aquarium Drunkard premiered a new video for “Riga Black,” directed by Zeina Nasr and starring Johnson and Danishta Rivero. Balsams is out June 2nd on VDSQ.

“Although I have almost exclusively released instrumental music, to my ears Balsams is the most filmic music I have ever released. Musician/artist Zeina Nasr came to an early performance of this new pedal steel material, and she approached me after the show with an idea for a short film that came to her when she was listening to my set. Story and narrative are always central to Zeina’s work, and I thought it would be interesting and unexpected to have a narrative video for this music instead of something abstract. Although the sound palette is pretty consistent across all the tracks on the record, “Riga Black” is unique in that the melody is very exposed and fragile, so it seemed like a natural fit for Zeina’s idea.”
— Chuck Johnson

Chuck Johnson – Balsams

(June 2nd – VDSQ)

 

Pre-order Balsams from VDSQ: http://www.vdsqrecords.com/

1.    Calamus

2.    Riga Black

3.    Moonstone

4.    Eye On The Sparrow

5.    Labradorite Eye

6.    Brahmi

Sam O.B. (fka Obey City) Shares New Single, Announce North American Tour

Late last year Brooklyn producer, DJ and multi-instrumentalist Sam Obey, introduced us to the newest iteration of his musical self; Sam O.B., a project described by the artist as “a truer reflection of [him]self musically and artistically than ever before.” Obey, who has gained notoriety as cofounder of beloved Brooklyn label Astro Nautico and acclaim for his production collaborations with a long list of New York musical talent (from Kelela to Flatbush Zombies, Zebra Katz to Olga Bell), showcases a side of him most are not familiar with: the band frontman.

He previously shared the lively, funk and soul inspired cut “Common Ground,” and he returns today with another new track, “Midnight Blue.” NYLON premiered the track this morning, saying it “feels groovy to the core,  as Obey warmly whispers into your ear while the distorted synthesizers and chines bounce around the “cowboy shuffle” of live drums.”

“‘Midnight Blue’ is a song I starting writing years ago before finally coming back to it. Everything is slightly detuned and pitched to give it this stoned, viscous feeling, which ended up translating into the lyrics. The live drums during the verses breaking into the “cowboy shuffle”, as my engineer Benjamin likes to call it, really helped inject energy and create a stark contrast from the choruses which are drawing you under the surface....sort of like a warped cassette tape fluctuating with speed. Every good song needs a bit of ying & yang after all.”
— Sam Obey on the track

Obey also announced today, his first full North American tour as Sam O.B. See dates below.

Tour Dates

6.21 - Club Café - Pittburgh, PA

6.22 - Pyramid Scheme - Grand Rapids, MI

6.23 - Empty Bottle - Chicago, IL

6.24 – Daytrotter - Davenport, IA

6.25 - 7th St Entry - Minneapolis, MN

6.26 - Handsome Daughter - Winnipeg, MB

6.29 - Biltmore Cabaret - Vancouver, BC

6.30 – Barboza - Seattle, WA

7.01 - Hawthorne Theatre - Portland, OR

7.03 - The New Parish - Oakland, CA

7.06 - The Echo - Los Angeles, CA

07.07 - Valley Bar - Phoenix, AZ

07.08 - Lowbrow Palace - El Paso, TX

07.11 – Masquerade - Atlanta, GA

07.12 – Neptunes - Raleigh, NC

07.13 – Songbyrd  - Washington, DC

07.14 - Johnny Brenda's - Philadelphia, PA

07.15 – Sunnyvale - Brooklyn, NY

Nick Hakim Shares Psychedelic Animated New Video From Album 'Green Twins' Out May 19 via ATO

Nick Hakim will release his debut full length album Green Twins on May 19 via ATO Records, and is set to head out on tour this month, including an album release show at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom on May 17. The New York-based musician just premiered a psychedelic new animated video on Pitchfork—directed by Micah Buzan—for the latest single from the album, “Roller Skates.” Watch it here. Hakim also recently released a live performance video of the album’s title track via Remezcla that can be seen here.

“This song’s first verse is about a night when I got really stoned at my friend’s house and forgot to meet up with my partner. It was pouring rain outside and when I realized I was late, I biked through Bedstuy as fast as I could through the rain to find her but she was gone... the second verse is about patching it up, not leaving her house for a couple days. It’s a love song.”
— Nick Hakim on "Roller Skates"
“I wanted to tell a simple story about lonely characters who all desire something they can’t seem to get - be it love, a stuffed animal, or the ability to skate well. I also tried to make it kind of funny how their expectations don’t live up to reality. In the end, rollerskating unites all the characters as they join together in the roller rink. We might feel alone, but we’re all in this life experiment together.”
— Director Micah Buzan on "Roller Skates" Video

TOUR DATES

May 11 Toronto, ON - The Drake Hotel

May 12 Montréal, QC - Bar Le Ritz PBD

May 13 Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall

May 14 Northampton, MA - Iron Horse Music Hall

May 17 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom

May 20 Washington, DC - Rock & Roll Hotel

Nov 7 Bristol, UK - The Lantern

Nov 8 London, UK - KOKO

Nov 9 Manchester, UK - The Deaf Institute

Nov 10 Glasgow, UK - King Tut's

Nov 11 Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club