Typically an artist's best album is their first, or maybe they peak three albums into a career. Occasionally you'll get a Tom Petty who released Wildflowers almost twenty years after his debut album. But then you have TORRES, who seems to get better and better with each album. She's set to release her sixth in January, and judging by the first single, she might be continuing that streak. "Collect" is more of Mackenzie Scott's trademark version of indie rock. It's indie rock with some elements of pop, and almost impossibly intense. "Collect" is heavy on reverb, and has a very sinister vibe throughout. TORRES has crafted her own branch of indie rock, and with this one she's expended to an almost industrial sound. It might be the loudest song she's ever done without adding more rock guitar.
Mackenzie Scott says of her latest single:
“This song is about justice being served. The rage song I’ve been trying to write for years!"
You can watch the video for "Collect" below. What an enormous room is due out January 26 on Merge Records, and is available for pre-order here. For more on TORRES, check out the artist on Instagram and Facebook. Upcoming tour dates are below the video.
Wed, Jan 17 - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop * Thu, Jan 18 - Chicago, IL @ Venue TBA Fri, Jan 19 - Columbus, OH @ A&R Music Bar * Sat, Jan 20 - Nashville, TN @ The Basement * Mon, Jan 22 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (Purgatory) * Tue, Jan 23 - Durham, NC @ Motorco * Wed, Jan 24 - Washington, DC @ The Atlantis * Thu, Jan 25 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry * Fri, Jan 26 - Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere * Sat, Jan 27 - Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair Fri, Feb 2 - Paris, FR @ Le Hasard Ludique Sat, Feb 3 - Bruges, BE @ Cactus Club Mon, Feb 5 - Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Upstairs Tue, Feb 6 - Cologne, DE @ Bumann & SOHN Wed, Feb 7 - Berlin, DE @ Privatclub Thu, Feb 8 - Munich, DE @ Milla Sat, Feb 10 - Baden, CH @ One of a Million Festival Mon, Feb 12 - Manchester, UK @ YES Tue, Feb 13 - Bristol, UK @ Strange Brew Wed, Feb 14 - London, UK @ Oslo Wed, Mar 20 - Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge ^ Fri, Mar 22 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court ^ Sat, Mar 23 - Boise, ID @ Venue TBA Tue, Mar 26 - Seattle, WA @ Neumos ^ Wed, Mar 27 - Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios ^ Fri, Mar 29 - San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord ^ Sat, Mar 30 - Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room ^ Mon, Apr 1 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah ^ Tue, Apr 2 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar ^ Thu, Apr 4 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada ^ Fri, Apr 5 - Austin, TX @ The Parish ^ Sat, Apr 6 - Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall (Upstairs) ^ * w/ Aisha Burns ^ w/ Liza Anne
With this weekend's upcoming Newport Folk Festival, we thought we'd highlight some of this year's can't miss acts. We're focusing on the bands playing smaller stages and earlier in the day. I mean, you're obviously going to see Ryan Adams and Jack White. Instead, these are the acts worth getting there early for, and seeking out the smaller stages. Phox Friday, 1:50, Quad Stage Phox hails from Baraboo, WI, the winter home of the Ringling Brothers' Circus. I'm not sure if that is connected to their music or not, but Phox has an otherworldly charm and a magical feel. They come across as a more grounded St. Vincent or a less intense version of early Tori Amos. Their music is simply beautiful and uplifting. Reignwolf Friday, 2:55, Quad Stage Truly pushing the boundaries of what can be considered "folk" are Reignwolf. Reignwolf is Jordan Cook, who sounds like a mixture of The Black Keys and Queens of the Stone Age, mixed with just a lit...
Photo by Rachel Cassels The Cairo Gang is mostly Emmett Kelly, who recorded most of their upcoming album, Goes Missing, on his own while travelling. "Be What You Are" is pure pop gold, reminiscent of British invasion bands like The Kinks and The Zombies. It features jangly guitars and some of the most infectious layered vocals you've heard in years. Luckily the beauty of this style of music is that it never quite sounds dated. It might sound like it's from a certain era that happened 50 years ago, but everything you've ever listened to since then borrows so heavily from it that it always sounds current. It's the kind of music you wish you hadn't missed, only now you haven't. Goes Missing is due out June 23rd on God? Records. You can pre-order the album now, and be sure to check out The Cairo Gang's Facebook . Listen to "Be What You Are" below, and below that are tour dates, many opening for Mikal Cronin. Sat. Sept. 5 - Portlan...
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.
