The Art of Forgetting is shaping up to be Caroline Rose's masterpiece. If last month's "Miami" didn't convince you of that, "The Doldrums" will. This new song is a synth heavy dreamlike meditation. The term hypnotic gets thrown a lot in regards to music, but "The Doldrums" encapsulates that term perfectly. Calling a song hypnotic usually implies a certain level of calm to describe the song, but Rose's latest is anything but calm. Quiet, yes, but there is an underlying sense of anxiety throughout this one. The song might be beautiful, but there is an unexpected anxiety in "The Doldrums."
Caroline Rose says of their new song:
“‘The Doldrums’ was the song I wrote when I was realizing I had basically no understanding of self-compassion. It’s about the voice inside my head that blames me for everything that’s ever gone wrong, mostly things out of my control. My idea of rebirth and reformation at the time was killing off my old self and finding a new one, rather than simply being kind to myself…Not because I didn’t want to be, but because I didn’t really know how.”
You can watch the video for "The Doldrums" below. The Art of Forgetting is due out March 24 on New West Records. You can pre-order the album here. For more on Caroline Rose, check out the artist's website. Upcoming tour dates are below the video.
Fri. March 31 - Saratoga Springs, NY @ Arthur Zankel Music Center Sat. April 1 - Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus Tue. April 4 - Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Wed. April 5 - Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Thu. April 6 - Boston, MA @ Royale Sat. April 8 - Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern - SOLD OUT Sun. April 9 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre Tue. April 11 - Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer Wed. April 12 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall Fri. April 14 - Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club Sat. April 15 - Richmond, VA @ Richmond Music Hall Sun. April 16 - Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle Tue. April 18 - Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel Wed. April 19 - Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl Fri. April 21 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall Sat. April 22 - Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom Sun. April 23 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue Tue. April 25 - Denver, CO @ The Gothic Theatre Fri. April 28 - Seattle, WA @ The Showbox Sat. April 29 - Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom Wed. May 3 - San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore Fri. May 5 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre Sat. May 6 - Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet's Sun. May 21 - Guadalajara, MX @ Corona Capital Sat. May 27 - Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher Mon. May 29 - Cologne, DE @ Stadtgarten Wed. 31 May - Manchester, UK @ Band on the Wall Thu. 1 June - Dublin, IE @ Whelan's Sat. 3 June - Glasgow, UK @ Stereo Sun. 4 June - Bristol, UK @ Exchange Mon, 5 June - London, UK @ HEAVEN Wed. June 7 - Brighton, UK @ Patterns Sat. June 10 - Zurich, Switzerland @ Bogen F Tue. June 13 - Brussels, BE @ AB Wed. June 14 - Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso (Upstairs) Fri. June 16 - Paris, FR @ La Hasard Ludique Sat. June 17 - Mannheim, DE @ Maifeld Derby Sun. June 18 - Duisburg, DE @ Traumzeit Festival
Somehow Peter Prescott of Mission of Burma and Volcano Suns has another band that I never knew about. Minibeast already released an album that I completely missed back in 2012, and they are currently at work on the follow up, Free Will. Based on a track from the upcoming album, "High Sea," Minibeast shares some common sonic ground with Mission of Burma, but with an added emphasis on the groovy side of things. It's basically the noise and dissonance of Burma but heard through a 60s surf groove, as if Frankie and Annette were punks. You can listen to "High Sea" below. Minibeast currently have a Kickstarter to help fund the final production of Free Will. You can get more information on that here . It should be out sometime in June.
Earlier this week I was expressing sympathy for Limp Bizkit. Limp Bizkit just don't seem to be riding that surge of 90s nostalgia that all sorts of other terrible bands from that era are. Sure, they're terrible. But are they really that much worse than Filter, Alien Ant Farm, and other bands on those 90s nostalgia packages. And then this video is released. The first lyrics to the song are literally "Go fuck yourself." It then features Fred Durst sitting on a toilet, bikini clad chicks pretending to fellate garden hoses and leaf blowers, and Fred Durst talking about fucking bitches, all while wearing a hoodie and a backwards red baseball hat. Then Lil Wayne comes out. Please keep in mind Fred Durst is a 42 year old man.
Photo by Annabel Kean For their latest single, New Zealand's The Beths have released "Mother, Pray for Me." This is a heartbreaking ballad consisting of Elizabeth Stokes' vocals and guitar with just the slightest hint of organ. It's a deeply personal song for Stokes, made obvious with how intimately the song comes across. It truly feels almost confessional, and it's quite simply beautiful. The Beths are most known for huge little indie rock gems perfect for bopping along to, but "Mother, Pray for Me" is quite the opposite. Stokes' vocals and lyrics are right up front on this one, and I can't imagine it any other way. Elizabeth Stokes says of her latest single: “I cried the whole time writing it. It's not really about my mother, it's about me — what I hope our relationship is, what I think it is, what it maybe actually is, and what I can or can't expect out of it. “My mother is a first gen Indonesian immigrant, and very Catholic....
