Audiotree | Heartbreaking Bravery

September 21, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 45

As mentioned in the previous post, this has been a tremendous week for new music- and the same can be said for new live footage as well. When Watch This started, Heartbreaking Bravery was already in its third week of operation. To help create a greater consistency, today will feature two installments of Watch This instead of the usual standalone entry. Everything in Volume 45 surfaced during the earliest part of the week but have more than held up to repeat viewings. From site favorites to living legends to new discoveries, this installment covers a spread that encompasses next to everything that this series was designed to celebrate. So, sit back, switch off the lights, warm up, wind down, and Watch This.

1. Tweens – Bored In the City (Faits Divers)

That Tweens wound up being as great as it was shouldn’t have surprised anyone familiar with the band’s early demos or tapes. What was somewhat unexpected was how readily they were embraced by the public. They’re a band that built a lot of their reputation by having consistently impressive live shows so it’s a joy to finally be able to feature one here. Faits Divers recently took them in for a session while the band was touring Europe and “Bored In the City” wound up being an easy highlight.

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2. The Rocketboys – Time Is A Devil (Audiotree)

As far as first introductions go, it’s hard to beat something like The Rocketboys’ Audiotree session for “Time Is A Devil”. While there are an abundance of polished pop/rock elements that are fighting their way to the forefront, the whole song’s underpinned by a brooding anxiety that’s completely antagonistic for most stadium-ready bands. If music like this winds up being the future of the radio, we’ll likely all be better off for it.

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3. The Dream Syndicate (KEXP)

It’s a little disheartening that The Dream Syndicate’s comeback didn’t get as much press as it deserved. The seminal 80’s band has been massively influential for a number of great bands that emerged since the band’s initial departure in 1989. After reforming in 2012, the band’s never paused to look back. Here, they tear through an assortment of classics for KEXP at the Bumbershoot Music Lounge, sounding as vital as ever.

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4. Alice Boman – Lead Me (Allston Pudding)

On rare occasion there are extraordinarily intimate performances that wind up earning features on here by virtue of their impact. Swedish songwriter Alice Boman falls into this category with ease. Performing “Lead Me” for Allston Pudding, Boman carries a stunning solo performance with an easy grace, undoubtedly rendering it an unforgettable moment for anyone that was fortunate enough to be in attendance. All Boman needs is a keyboard and her voice to create something completely ethereal.

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5. Little Big League – Year of the Sunhouse (Little Elephant)

There haven’t been very many bands on Little Elephant that have been as easy to fall in love with as Little Big League. “Year of the Sunhouse” is punk-leaning outsider pop at its absolute finest. Unsurprisingly, they’ve been running with the Exploding in Sound family (“Year of the Sunhouse” originally appeared on a split with Ovlov) and making some waves as a result. Of course, that never would have happened if they hadn’t been conjuring up some of the most likable music being released today. Watch their Little Elephant session below and get converted (or have everything reaffirmed).

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July 29, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 35

Today’s Watch This posting spree is far from over. Months worth of neglect need to- and will- be made up for. Luckily, this has been made relatively easy thanks to a goldmine of live videos that surfaced over the festival-induced hiatus. In this 35th installment, there are full sets, standout performances, and an even spread among the outlets featuring them. Once again, this will be left at that because the 36th and 37th installments, respectively, are just around the corner, waiting to be posted. It might run the risk of over-saturation but great music is great music and great performances always deserve to be recognized. So lean back, turn up the volume, and Watch This.

1. Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires (KEXP)

Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires have built themselves one hell of a reputation and they’ve mostly got their shit-kicking live shows to thank for that. Playing a Southern-fried variation of the rock n’ soul genre, the band injects their sets with as much frantic energy as they can muster, sweating through their clothes and leaving everything on the floor. Impossibly, they pour that amount of dedication into this in-studio KEXP performance without a large audience to feed off of, solidifying their spot in this series.

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2. Field Mouse (BreakThruRadioTV)

Serious Business continues to be featured in Watch This thanks to their dedication to actively pursue exactly the type of band this site was built to celebrate. Additionally, their audio/visual presentation is among the best out there while the irreverent interviews offer some insight to the bands that they choose to feature. Their recent Field Mouse session encapsulates all of it, thanks in no small part to Field Mouse’s on-point performance of their excellent featured shoegaze-leaning post-punk song: “A Place You Return To When You Dream”.

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3. Nothing (unARTigNYC)

Nothing’s Guilty of Everything was one of 2014’s more formidable-sounding records, dark and dense in exactly the right way. Live, the band takes those two qualities to new extremes, as proven by this excellent full set from the band’s recent performance at the Brooklyn Night Bazaar. Turn up the volume then hold on to something- and hold onto it tightly. This is massive.

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4. Modern Hut – Moving On (TCGS)

Don Giovanni Records have built their success around making the right decisions- and their dedication to Modern Hut was one of them. Here, the band delivers a typically strong, wistful performance of “Moving On” during their recent appearance on the show of comedian Chris Gethard (also signed to Don Giovanni). It’s weird, it’s wonderful, and it’s more than a little worth watching.

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5. Young Man – Fate (Audiotree)

Colin Caulfield’s project Young Man released a criminally under-appreciated record in 2012 called Vol. 1 and the recent Audiotree videos that surfaced of a session to support that record only reaffirm that fact. It was one of the better pop records of the decade, heavily nuanced and delicately ornate, while being somewhat unassuming. Here, Caulfield & co. breeze through that record’s first single “Fate” with an easy confidence- finally giving people another chance to recognize a great record.

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July 29, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 34

The Watch This spree continues with the 34th installment of the series, which borrows heavily from BreakThruRadioTV who went on a fairly extraordinary run over the past month, even for their exceptionally high standards. Courtney Barnett gets featured yet again as well, thanks to a dazzling performance for KEXP, while Deleted Scenes pick up the only other non-BTRTV feature thanks to an engaging performance for the always-reliable Audiotree. It’s a lot to take in and it’s more variety than usual but all of the videos featured more than earned their respective spots. So sit back, unwind, and Watch This.

1. Deleted Scenes – Mortal Sin (Audiotree)

Deleted Scenes have quietly been making some of the more fascinating music of the past few years and have received very little fanfare for it. As usual, Audiotree was one of the few outlets to notice and brought them in for a feature spot, which included this rousing take on the brooding “Mortal Sin”.

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2. PT Walkley (BreakThruRadioTV)

A new name to this site, PT Walkley has found a comfortable spot somewhere between the camps of the Old 97’s and Reigning Sound. Well-informed American music played with a staggering amount of finesse and confidence isn’t something to overlook and the two performances given here more than establish Walkley as a talent to watch.

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3. Elaphant – Stacking Cards (BreakThruRadioTV)

Another new name to the site, Elaphant seem to excel in crafting acoustic songs that drift towards haunting. “Stacking Cards”, in particular, is an outstanding example of the band’s sensibility- and the performance they give for BTR’s Hear There is nothing short of entrancing. This is music to get lost in.

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4. Future Death (BreakThruRadioTV)

Rounding out the trio of BreakThruRadio entries in this installment of Watch This is a return to their Live Studio series for a fiery performance from Future Death. Armed with enough blast beats for a powerviolence song, guitar work worthy of the best turn-of-the-century post-hardcore records, and enough frantic energy to win over a host of skeptics, Future Death take their opportunity to make an impression and make the absolute most of it.

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5. Courtney Barnett – History Eraser (KEXP)

Courtney Barnett continues an impressive run of even more impressive appearances with this run through “History Eraser” for KEXP as part of their VIP Club concert series. It’s one of those instances where, at some point, the actions (and music) speak louder than words- and it’s best to just let the video do the talking.

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July 29, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 33

Today’s marathon of Watch This continues with the 33rd installment of the series, a unique spread that features full performances, solo acoustic takes outdoors, and one last video from NXNE. There’ll be several more of these features to run after this one’s posted so please forgive what will mostly likely be atypically brief introductions. There’s a lot of ground to cover and even more material to get to. So, for now, lean back, enjoy the ride, and Watch This.

1. Army Girls – Quarantine State (Chart Attack)

Army Girls’ appearance at Sonic Boom during NXNE was a very welcome surprise and, paired with Courtney Barnett, wound up being one of the best (and most under-attended) 1-2 punches of the festival. Chart Attack, who hosted the showcase, were also on hand to film the band run through an excellent new song called “Quarantine State”.

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2. Laura Stevenson – Journey to the Center of the Earth (Don Giovanni)

There are very few things more arresting than a great solo performance, which just happens to be one of Laura Stevenson’s specialties. Here, the mastermind behind Wheel (one of last year’s finest releases) is captured with unfaltering honesty by her label, Don Giovanni. It’s a quiet, mesmerizing performance by the side of the road- and it feels perfect.

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3. Listener – There Are Wrecking Balls Inside Us (Audiotree)

“There Are Wrecking Balls Inside Us” proved to be a fascinating anomaly that shed light on a gray area; this is a video that recently resurfaced on a channel that promoted it as a new release, despite dating back to mid-2012. This caused some debate over whether or not it’d warrant inclusion but the performance itself spoke too strongly. Listener’s always been an engaging, unique presence and this is one of the most fully-realized examples of their intriguing eccentricity and immediately arresting manic delivery and, ultimately, it proved impossible to ignore.

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4. Lemuria – Oahu, Hawaii (TCGS)

Lemuria’s “Oahu, Hawaii” was given an entrancing and serene music video earlier this year that paid testament to The Distance Is So Big‘s longevity. That record’s lost very little of its staying power and their performances, as proven by this example from The Chris Gethard Show, continue to impress. Don’t miss them whenever they come around.

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5. White Lung (unARTigNYC)

At this point, White Lung have more than proven themselves to be a serious force in music. There have been very few records that felt as impassioned, or as necessary, as their rightfully-acclaimed Deep Fantasy. Fortunately, unARTigNYC was on hand to film the band’s set to celebrate the release of that record at Brooklyn’s famed St. Vitus, where the band delivered one hell of a performance that does more than a little justice to what’s easily one of this year’s strongest records. It won’t be long before this band’s even more widely recognized as an impressively intimidating powerhouse.

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May 19, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 27

It may have taken a bit of doing but, as of this posting, Watch This will officially be back on its regular schedule. To celebrate this, the 27th installment of the series played strictly by the rules- and somehow wound up being one of the strongest offerings of Watch This to date. All of these songs were live sessions that were posted online in the past seven days and virtually of them contain songs or artists that have previously earned feature articles on this site in the past. In short, there are plenty of familiar faces to be found in this 27th installment and a few of the year’s best records are well represented. Really, now that all the work’s been done and all the exposition’s out of the way, all that’s left to do is sit back, turn the volume up, and Watch This.

1. Ovlov – The Great Crocodile (Little Elephant)

What can be said? This Little Elephant session is just a gift that keeps on giving. It’s the third to earn a spot in Watch This and arguably the finest of those three. The song’s introduction is nearly two full minutes of surging basement punk that verges on post-hardcore territory. Everything after is just as exhilarating as what’s preceded it. All in all, it ends up being another incredible sampling from one of the most exciting young bands out there. Another thing worth noting: the bassist’s sick LVL UP sweatshirt (if that’s not a great representation of what this site’s all about, nothing is).

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2. Angel Olsen – High & Wild (Jagjaguwar)

There haven’t been very many artists who have earned as many Watch This inclusions as Angel Olsen. This is no accident; her last record, Burn Your Fire for No Witness, is a gorgeous work of art. As a performer, she radiates a quiet intensity that’s both transfixing and strangely devastating. “High & Wild” lives up to the precedent she’s set and, as such, was an easy selection for this installment. Burn Your Fire for No Witness has more than proven its staying power and Olsen’s capitalizing on that success by virtue of her live prowess. No complaints.

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3. Yellow Ostrich – Shades (KEXP)

Yellow Ostrich scored a major coup with the acquisition of drummer Michael Tapper, who joined up shortly after leaving We Are Scientists. As a member of We Are Scientists, he was instrumental to their early success (With Love and Squalor is a vastly underrated 2000’s masterpiece) and now one of the driving forces behind Yellow Ostrich. “Shades” is one of the finest songs the band’s ever recorded and their performance of it for KEXP is a committed take. It’s borderline unclassifiable and it’s definitely worth paying attention to.

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4. Cloud Nothings – I’m Not Part of Me (Radio K)

First thought: “Is that a Smooth Brain shirt?!” Second thought: “Oh, yeah, Cleveland.” Third thought? “Good lord, this band slays live.” All that said, Here and Nowhere Else is an easy 2014 highlight and is fully expected to appear in the year-end conversations. It’s the second straight effort from the band that’s earned that distinction after being released in the first half of the year. As immense as their studio output has been, as this adeptly shows, they might be even better live.

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5. Screaming Females – It All Means Nothing (Audiotree)

As promised earlier today, here’s the second Screaming Females video to be featured from the band’s recent stop at Audiotree. Now touring behind their excellent Steve Albini-produced live album, Live at the Hideout, they’re proving time and time again the recordings that made the cut for that record weren’t a fluke. Truly one of the best live acts currently touring, “It All Means Nothing” has been a consistent set highlight and ranks among the best moments in the band’s entire discography. They don’t hold back anything here and the result is another monster of a performance that’s worth several subsequent watches. Make sure to bookmark this one.

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May 19, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 26

Well, it’s been a while but by the end of today Watch This will be back on track. This is, once again, thanks in no small part to an abundance of great material to have come out over the past week or so. With the influx of material being so strong, this will be the first of two Watch This posts to go live today. Both sections are going to be filled with bands that have never been featured and old favorites. In this installment, the newcomers get featured a little more heavily but there’s still enough room for a genre mainstay or two. All of it’s worth investing some time and, really, the best course of action? Lean into it- and Watch This.

1. Picastro – Mountain Relief (BreakThruRadio)

Kicking off the series this time around is Liz Hysen’s long-running Toronto-based project, Picastro. BreakThruRadio invited her in to film a performance and Hysen delivers an absolutely haunting rendition of “Mountain Relief”. There’s a short interview that follows the performance but the real takeaway from this is just how arresting “Mountain Relief” is. It’s on Picastro’s most recent record, You, which is more than worth anyone’s time.

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2. Constant Lovers – 14 Missed Calls (KEXP)

It’s been a while since there’s been a KEXP session quite as lively as the insane one Constant Lovers just turned in. Among their set’s most intense moments was this fiery as hell take on “14 Missed Calls”. All intense guitar jabs and one of the fiercest vocal takes imaginable, “14 Missed Calls” proved to be one of the best parts of the last week in music. It’s a must-watch.

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3. Menace Beach – Fortune Teller (3VOOR12)

One of the more intriguing acts of the last few years, Menace Beach have yet to release a record. This hasn’t stopped them from earning praise and coverage in a variety of major taste-making publications. The Leeds-based group has one hell of a pedigree between their two main members and rotating cast; nearly everyone involved has achieved some level of notoriety with at least one other project. From this video alone, it’s abundantly clear that this band knows what they’re doing.

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4. Black Lips – Smiling (KEXP)

There are some things that just don’t change- one of them is that Black Lips are a great live band. No matter how much the band varies their sound or how strong whatever record their touring behind is, their live shows consistently bring an incredible amount of energy to the table. While not all of that translates over to a taped session (a literal impossibility considering there’s no crowd interaction), it’s still fun enough to earn a spot here.

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5. Screaming Females – Baby Jesus (Audiotree)

As is the case with Black Lips, Screaming Females have one of the best live sets in the game. Having torched the basement circuit with a vengeance, the New Brunswick act has seemingly set their sights on world domination. Pity anyone that gets in their way. This will be the first of two videos from their Audiotree session to be featured today because there’s no way they don’t both deserve to be featured. This is a masterclass.

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May 16, 2014

5 to See at NXNE 2014: Vol. 6

It’s been said here before countless times already but the NXNE lineup for this year is absolutely ridiculous. Featuring an endless array of rising stars and premier acts from a wide selection of genres, Toronto’s set itself up quite nicely for an influx of incredible music, dedicated journalists, and devoted fans. Music wristbands are still available for an incredibly reasonable price and are well worth taking advantage of. It’s the best way to get access to the festival’s final leg and a shot at entrance to see the sets from the artists listed below, the volume 6 class of the 5 to See series.

1. Benjamin Booker

What to Know: Benjamin Booker just signed to ATO Records and will be releasing his self-titled effort in August. From the short previews of Benjamin Booker that have been available so far, it’s increasingly apparent that ATO made the right move. With a sound that incorporates equal amounts of blues, soul, punk, motown, and their evolutionary trajectories over the last handful of decades, it’s already positioned as a likely crossover hit. Live? It’s incendiary. Watch the fiery Letterman clip below for further proof.

What to Watch:

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2. Pusha T

What to Know: Pusha T rose to prominence as half of Clipse, who created an untouchable classic in 2006 with Hell Hath No Fury. Since the release of that reord both Pusha T and No Malice have chosen to go their separate ways and explore solo routes. This resulted in another modern classic with Pusha T’s 2013 stunner, My Name Is My Name. With a live set to back up why he’s become one of the most acclaimed and celebrated artists in rap/hip-hop, this will be a set that fills up capacity fast. Don’t miss it.

What to Watch:

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3. Future Islands

What to Know: Already hailed as one of 2014’s best live acts, Future Islands have been doing their best to earn that title. There was an explosion of interest in the band after their hypnotic Letterman performance drew national attention. While a lot of it seemed to be directly linked to vocalist Sam Herring’s unique dancing, it also came as an exclamation mark to a wave of buzz that had been steadily building around them. Reports of recent shows have made it abundantly clear that their shows have been constantly verging on getting out of hand thanks to frenzied audiences. Like Pusha T, this is going to be a priority set for a lot of people attending the festival- so get to wherever they are as early as possible, the crowd reaction alone should be a sight worth seeing.

What to Watch:

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4. Camera

What to Know: Camera’s Radiate was a little-discussed triumph. Emphasizing the more punk elements of krautrock, the trio’s staked their name on guerilla performances in public places. Don’t be surprised to see them set up just about anywhere during the course of their Toronto stay- and don’t be shocked if their playing stops a lot of people dead in their tracks. Great music’s universal.

What to Watch:

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5. White Mystery

What to Know: The Chicago duo have become mainstays of the DIY punk circuit, touring fiercely and building their reputation on frantic live shows. Four LP’s and two 7″s deep into their discography, the duo (composed of siblings Alex and Francis White) is still performing behind their most recent (and strongest) effort, Telepathic. A few late night show appearances have boosted their profile and they’re gearing up for what looks to be a major run towards bigger things. This is a set that won’t be worth missing.

What to Watch:

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March 20, 2014

Watch This: Vol. 17

After an unforeseen extended break due to some technical difficulties and exterior circumstances, the defibrillator has jumped this place’s pulse back into motion. Returning after a week’s silence means quite a bit of catch-up to do while also attempting to keep the up-to-date news in circulation. In the coming days and nights, there will be multiple posts a day until the day:post ratio of 1:1 is re-attained. This frenzied spree will kick off now, with what will hopefully be the last overdue Watch This for quite some time. This week’s edition is heavy on full KEXP sessions as an apology of sorts, a way to overcompensate for lost time. So sit back, relax, and watch this.

1. Coachwhips – You Gonna Get It (Sailor Jerry’s)

For whatever reason, Sailor Jerry’s has always been supportive of the DIY punk scene and hosted more than a few memorable live sessions. Most recently, they were on hand for SXSW to both assist and capture this insane middle-of-a-crowd Coachwhips performance. Coachwhips, a direct predecessor of Thee Oh Sees, were a band that generated a lot of support in the early days. Seeing them come back and met with an elevated level of adoration in this video is nothing short of bliss.

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2. La Luz (KEXP Session)

With a tumultuous 2013 behind them (one that saw them release one of the year’s best LP’s, EP’s, and survive a major traffic collision), La Luz have nowhere to look to but the future. They’ve earned the support of a very vocal community that’s constantly growing. With performances like this one, it’s hard to see that trend doing anything but continuing- after all, that’s probably the best way to pay tribute to the band themselves.

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3. Fruit Bats (KEXP Session)

Fruit Bats have maintained an enviable consistency over the past 17 years, releasing a body of work that deserves to be celebrated as legendary. Perpetually on the fringe of national attention, Eric D. Johnson watched as the roster around him constantly shifted. For this session, the songwriter came in on his lonesome and delivered a handful of tracks from Mouthfuls, along with the announcement that Fruit Bats was officially calling it quits. If this video can be viewed as a selection of Fruit Bats’ last stand, then it’s pretty clear Johnson is going out on top.

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4. Dinosaur Pile-Up – Arizona Waiting (Audiotree)

There has been no shortage of bands playing with 90’s influence as of late but it’s been quite some time since there was a band reminiscent of Sunny Day Real Estate, Superchunk, Archers of Loaf, and early Foo Fighters in equal measure. Dinosaur Pile-Up somehow manages to encapsulate the spirit of all of those bands while throwing in enough Audacity-style change-ups to keep things firmly rooted in the present. This video couldn’t be a more perfect introduction.

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5. Angel Olsen (KEXP Session)

What else can be said about Angel Olsen at this point? Since the release of this year’s first quarter highlight Burn Your Fire for No Witness, Olsen’s gained enough accolades to close a canyon and her performances have been revered in the most awestruck of words. Having already appeared numerous times in Watch This, the most that can be said without growing too repetitious is that this KEXP session may be her finest recorded live outing to date.

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Tag: Audiotree