Post punk is typically a fast and aggressive genre of music, but Porridge Radio change that on their latest single. "End of Last Year" is filled with synths and is a more gentle take on their style. It's a lovely song, even as the intensity gets ramped up. And this is a song that's intense, despite how laid back it starts out. Dana Margolin's vocals propel this song and completely drive the emotion, with backing vocals and instruments merely following Margolin's lead. This one reminds me of a current version of Yeah Yeah Yeah's now immortal "Maps." Plus, with a title like "End of Last Year," this is perfect to suggest to the graduating seniors in your life.
Dana Margolin says of the new song:
"'End Of Last Year' is a love song for my bandmates and for myself. It’s about not trusting my intuition, not trusting my body to heal itself, not trusting the people closest to me, but it is also an ode to all those people, and to difficult platonic love. It came out of a particularly painful period of communication breakdown and high pressure that hurt a lot, but ended in reconciliation and understanding."
You can watch the video for "End of Last Year" below. Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder to the Sky is due out May 20 on Secretly Canadian, and can be pre-ordered here. For more on Porridge Radio, check out the band's Facebook and Twitter. Upcoming tour dates are below the video, and let's hope they squeeze in a Boston date between Chicago and New York.
Fri. May 20 - Manchester, UK @ Piccadilly Records Sat. May 21 - Edinburgh, UK @ The Great Eastern Sun. May 22 - Leeds, UK @ Crash Records Tue. May 24 - London, UK @ Rough Trade East Wed. May 25 - Brighton, UK @ Resident Music Thu. May 26 - Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Records Thu. May 26 - Sun. May 29 - Walton-on-trent, UK @ Bearded Theory’s Spring Gathering Fri. May 27 - Totnes, UK @ Sea Change Festival Sat. Jun. 4 - Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Weekend 1 Wed. Jun. 8 - London, UK @ O2 Academy Brixton Sat. Jun. 11 - Hilvarenbeek, NE @ Best Kept Secret Festival Wed. Jun. 29 - Sat. Jul. 2 - Ydynia, PL @ Open’er Festival Fri. Jul. 8 - Soliera, IT @ Arti Vive Sat. Jul. 9 - Siena, IT @ LARS ROCK FEST Thu. Jul. 14 - Sat. Jul. 16 - Budapest, HU @ Reflektor Festival Fri. Jul. 15 - Stirling, UK @ Doune the Rabbit Hole Festival Fri. Jul. 22 - Southwold, UK @ Latitude Festival Sat. Jul. 23 - Macclesfield, UK @ Bluedot Festival Tue. Aug. 9 - Stockholm, SE @ Hus 7 Thu. Aug. 11 - Oslo, NO @ Øyaestivalen Sun. Aug. 14 - Kiewit-Hasselt, BE @ HEAR HEARI Mon. Aug. 15 - Wubterthur, CH @ 47. Winterthurer Musikfestwochen Tue. Aug. 16 - Sat. Aug. 20 - Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival Thu. Sep. 1 - Sun. Sep. 4 - Sixpenny Handley, UK @ End of the Road Festival Tue. Sept. 6 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah Wed. Sept. 7 - Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room Fri. Sept. 9 - San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop Mon. Sept. 12 - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Tue. Sept. 13 - Seattle, WA @ Barboza Thu. Sept. 15 - Boise, ID @ Neurolux Fri. Sept. 16 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court Sat. Sept. 17 - Denver, CO @ Lost Lake Mon. Sept. 19 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry Tue. Sept. 20 - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle Fri. Sept. 23 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom Sat. Sept. 24 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s Sun. Sept. 25 - Washington, DC @ DC9 Tue. Sept. 27 - Atlanta, GA @ Earl Wed. Sept. 28 - Nashville, TN @ Basement East Fri. Sept. 30 - Dallas, TX @ Three Links Sat. Oct. 1 - Austin, TX @ Parish Sat. Oct. 15 - Digbeth, UK @ The Crossing Digbeth Thu. Oct. 20 - Sheffield, UK @ Southampton 1865 Sat. Oct. 22 - Exeter, UK @ Exeter Phoenix Arts Centre Mon. Oct. 24 - Nottingham, UK @ Metronome Tue. Oct. 25 - Bristol, UK @ Trinity Centre Wed. Oct. 26 - Cambridge, UK @ Cambridge Junction Fri. Oct. 28 - Glasgow, UK @ Saint Luke’s Sat. Oct. 29 - Manchester, UL @ Manchester Academy 2 Sun. Oct. 30 - Leeds, UK @ Leeds Irish Centre Tue. Nov. 1 - Hove, UK @ The Old Market Wed. Nov. 2 - Hove, UK @ The Old Market Thu. Nov. 3 - London, UL @ 02 Shepherds Bush Empire Fri. Nov. 11 - Amsterdam, NE @ Melkweg OZ Sat. Nov. 12 - Maastricht, NE @ Muziekgieterij Sun. Nov. 13 - Cologne, DE @ Club Volta Wed. Nov. 16 - Lyon, FR @ Le Sonic Thu. Nov. 17 - Milan, IT @ Biko Sat. Nov. 19 - Bologna, IT @ Covo Club Sun. Nov. 20 - Annecy, FR @ Le Brise Glace Tue. Nov. 22 - Barcelona, ES @ La 2 de Apolo Thu. Nov. 24 - Vigo, ES @ Radar Estudios Fri. Nov. 25 - Guimaraes, PT @ Centro Cultural Vila Flor (CCVF) Mon. Nov. 28 - Madrid, ES @ Independance Club Tue. Nov. 29 - San Sebastián, ES @ Dabadaba Thu. Dec. 1 - Bordeaux, FR @ Rock School Barbey Fri. Dec. 2 - La Rochelle, FR @ La Siréne Sun. Dec. 4 - Bruges, BE @ Cactus Club Mon. Dec. 5 - Luxembourg, LU @ Rotondes Wed. Dec. 7 - Zürich, CH @ Bogen F Thu. Dec. 8 - Munich, DE @ Kranhalle, Feierwerk Sat. Dec. 10 - Vienna, AT @ Flex Sun. Dec. 11 - Prague, CZ @ Café V Lese Mon. Dec. 12 - Berlin, DE @ Festsaal Kreuzberg Fri. Dec. 16 - Hamburg, DE @ Hafenklang Sat. Dec. 17 - Copenhagen, DK @ Lille Vega, VEGA
Photo by Heather DeFoggi Gerard For his upcoming album, Sean Thomas Gerard recorded in the corner of his garage which is also a playroom for his two daughters. Somehow, you can hear that vibe in his latest single, "Bright Side." The song just feels like home. It's a laid back indie folk/singer-songwriter track that is overflowing with warmth. The sing is on the mainstream side of its genres, but when you nail a sound like Gerard has, there's certainly nothing wrong with that. This is the type of song that is pleasant and enjoyable when you first start it, and then you end up liking it more and more as it goes. By the time it's over, you're going to want to listen again. By the third or fourth listen, "Bright Side" is going to end up one of your favorite songs of this young year. Sean Thomas Gerard says of his music: “I think about some day when I'm gone, my kids will be able to put on my records and feel like they can spend time with me again....
Photo by Sultana Garritano Brooklyn's DJ Haram has a new single out that shows off her trademark boom bap sprinkled with Middle Eastern instrumentation sound. "Fishnets" features verses from Bbymutha, SHA RAY, and August Fanon, and has an intense and almost menacing vibe, despite being an absolute banger of a track. It's hypnotic and immediately grabs your attention, and if you're unfamiliar with the trio of rappers on the song, you're sure to start pulling up their bodies of work. "Fishnets" is one of those songs that just feels cool and makes you need to hear more from all of the artists involved. DJ Haram says of her latest single: "‘Fishnets’ is for the eclectic bad bitches. The people united will never be defeated." You can listen to "Fishnets" below. Beside Myself is due out July 18 on Hyperdub, and is available for pre-order here . For more on DJ Haram, check out the artist on Instagram and Twitter . Upcoming tour dates a...
Photo by Joanna Chattman I've been referring to Northampton, MA based Izzy Heltai's music as mainstream modern folk with just enough of a unique spin to keep it appealing to music snobs, too. His latest single, "Father," might be the perfect example of that. It's a quiet, deeply personal song that starts off painfully sparse but ever so slowly builds and builds as it goes on. It walks that line between accessible/mainstream and indie expertly. You can watch the video for "Father" below. Father , the upcoming debut album from Izzy Heltai, will be out October 9. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on Izzy Heltai, check out the artist's website .
