MP3: Loney Dear - “Airport Surroundings”

The Polyvinyl Record Co. recently announced the signing of Sweden’s Loney Dear, who will release its new album, Dear John, on the label this past Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2009. The band launches its biggest U.S. tour to date tonight in Northampton, they’ll meet up with Andrew Bird for the first time the following night in Boston. The majority of the tour finds the band opening up for recent Billboard Top 200 heavy-hitter Bird, with a few headlining shows of their own along the way, including NYC, Baton Rouge, Houston, Denton, Visalia and Chicago — they’ll also be hitting SXSW. The first music video from Dear John, for the song “Airport Surroundings” was unveiled recently - it was directed by Marcus Söderlund who has also done videos for Jens Lekman and The Tough Alliance.

Hailing from the small city of Jonkoping, Sweden, Loney Dear’s primary member Emil Svanängen first began making homemade recordings of delicate, folkish indie pop in the early 2000s. As Loney, Dear (the band has since deleted the comma from its name), Svanängen self-released three homemade CD-Rs through his website: River Fontana Redux, Citadel Band, and Sologne. As buzz developed through MP3 blogs and other new media manifestations, Sub Pop offered Svanängen a contract in 2006. The first proper Loney Dear album, Loney, Noir, was released in early 2007.

Svanängen describes Dear John as a “marvelous album in dark shades with a lava-like glow from underneath.”

Praise for Loney Dear:

“Despair has never sounded so sweet.”–SPIN

“Svanangen’s captivating ruminations sound as if he’s trying to capture the purest essence of joy, albeit with a melancholy underbelly. It’s that bittersweet warmth that makes Loney, Dear’s hushed, pastoral folk songs seep into the heart.”–NPR

“He wraps the ups and downs of a whirlwind romance into tiny packages. You’re left hungry, fully certain that 34 minutes– let alone five– will never be enough of this very, very good thing.”–Pitchfork

“Through soft layers of acoustic instrumentation and vocal harmonies, Svanangen creates a sustained and lasting representation of the classic emotions of regret, peace, and loneliness.” –PopMatters

“Svanängen’s bright falsetto holds his miniature musical tapestries together.” –Austin Chronicle

LONEY DEAR

01/29 Northampton, MA Iron Horse
01/30 Boston, MA The Orpheum*
02/02 Richmond, VA The National*
02/03 Washington, DC The 930 Club*
02/04 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse*
02/06 Orlando, FL The Plaza*
02/07 New Orleans, LA House of Blues*
02/09 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon
02/10 Houston, TX Rudyard’s British Pub
02/11 Denton, TX Hailey’s
02/12 Austin, TX The Paramount Theater*
02/13 Albuquerque, NM The El Rey*
02/14 Tucson, AZ The Rialto*
02/15 San Diego, CA Soma San Diego*
02/17 Visalia, CA Howie and Son’s Pizza
02/18 Los Angeles, CA The Orpheum*
02/19 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore*
02/20 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore*
02/21 Portland, OR Roseland*
02/23 Seattle, WA The Moore*
02/24 Boise, ID The Knitting Factory*
02/25 Murray, UT The Murray*
02/26 Denver, CO The Ogden*
02/27 Omaha, NE Slowdown*
03/01 Chicago, IL Schubas
03/18 - 03/21 Austin, TX SXSW

* = w/ Andrew Bird

Loney Dear
Dear John
(Polyvinyl)
Street date: Jan. 27, 2009

1. Airport Surroundings
2. Everything Turns to You
3. I Was Only Going Out
4. Harsh Words
5. Under a Silent Sea
6. I Got Lost
7. Summers
8. Distant
9. Harm
10. Violent
11. Dear John

LONEY DEAR LINKS:

MySpace: www.myspace.com/loneydear

Press Materials: www.polyvinylrecords.com/press

STREAM: Dan Deacon - “Get Older”

Dan Deacon has announced a massive US Spring tour in support of his new album, Bromst (out March 24 on Carpark). He has a one-off solo show in NYC this week on Jan. 30 and then on April 3 he’ll launch the official Bromst tour in Philly. This tour will feature a full live ensemble similar to the one that performed with him at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple back in Dec. but will have different members. Baltimore bands Future Islands and Teeth Mountain are set to open the entire tour.

For the past five years, Baltimore’s Dan Deacon has been traveling around the world performing in just about any space imaginable from alleyways, basements and abandoned buildings to institutions like the Whitney, the Getty and the Smithsonian. Much has changed since Dan started his travels. While his music still has the same uplifting spirit as before, it now has a maturity. The piece “Get Older” is about realizing that aging, growth and change should be embraced, not feared. The music is more about a celebration than a party. The party’s not over, it’s just not a drunken rager anymore. It is a music to celebrate with, to get excited with. You can still trash around and dance until you’re soaked in sweat, but it’s not a distraction or escape. It’s music written to help motivate and get pumped in both joyous and difficult times.

Adventure’s side starts with an oldie and ends with a newbie. The first song “Poison Diamonds” is like an 8 bit Lego masterpiece built by a 10 year old living on another planet. The second song, “Lifeguard,” is the most recent from Baltimore’s Adventure. The lyrics were inspired by Dan Deacon after Benny (aka Adventure) played him the instrumental track. It is the first Adventure song to feature Benny’s voice, and is slower and poppier than his previous video-game sounding work.

DAN DEACON
all shows with full live ensemble, and with Future Islands and Teeth Mountain opening, except where noted

01/30 Brooklyn, NY Danbro Studios (solo set)
04/03 Philadelphia, PA First Unitarian Church
04/05 Williamsburg, VA The Little Theater
04/06 Asheville, NC Orange Peel
04/07 Knoxville, TN Catalyst
04/08 Birmingham, AL Bottletree
04/09 Athens, GA 88/cp
04/10 Atlanta, GA Eyedrum
04/11 Tallahassee, FL FSU / Club Downunder
04/13 New Orleans, LA The Candle Factory / The Heavy
04/15 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon
04/16 Houston, TX Orange Show
04/18 Ft. Worth, TX The Ft. Worth Modern Museum
04/20 Tempe, AZ The Clubhouse
04/21 San Diego, CA Che Cafe
04/22 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour
04/23 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
04/24 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom
04/25 Seattle, WA The Vera Project
04/26 Vancouver, BC Richards on Richards
04/29 Salt Lake City, UT Kilby Court
04/30 Denver, CO Bluebird Theater
05/01 Kansas City, MO Pistol S.C.
05/02 Minneapolis, MN Triple Rock (2 shows, early and late)
05/04 Madison, WI Majestic Theatre
05/05 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall Ballroom
05/06 Urbana, IL Canopy Club / Club Void
05/07 Chicago, IL The Metro
05/08 Mt. Pleasant, MI CMU / The Wesley Foundation
05/09 Detroit, MI Scrummage
05/10 Toronto, ONT The Deleon White Gallery
05/11 Montreal, QC La Sala Rossa
05/12 South Burlington, VT HG Showcase Lounge
05/13 Cambridge, MA Middle East Downstairs
05/15 Brooklyn, NY Danbro Studios
05/16 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
05/17 Washington, DC 9:30 Club

Dan Deacon
Bromst
(Carpark)
Street Date: March 24, 2009

Track List:

1. Build Voice
2. Red F
3. Paddling Ghost
4. Snookered
5. Of The Mountains
6. Surprise Stefani
7. Wet Wings
8. Woof Woof
9. Slow With Horns / Run For Your Life
10. Baltihorse
11. Get Older

Dan Deacon / Adventure
Split 12″
(Carpark)
Street Date: Jan. 27, 2009

Track List:

Dan Deacon -

1. Get Older
2. Cave Birth

Adventure -

1. Poison Diamonds
2. Lifeguard

DAN DEACON

Jan. 30 Brooklyn, NY Danbro Studios Warehouse

DAN DEACON LINKS:
MySpace - www.myspace.com/dandeacon

Press Materials - www.carparkrecords.com/bromstpresspage.html

MP3: Broken Spindles - “Introvert”

Kiss/Kick is the latest album from Broken Spindles, and the second release from The Faint’s blank.wav record label. Although Broken Spindles’ sole member Joel Petersen has done remixes for Of Montreal and AFI and is also a member of The Faint, Kiss/Kick is a strictly “No Eyeliner” record. It is more No Wave than New Wave.

The new album was made in Omaha’s Enamel, the studio owned by The Faint. With the entire studio at his disposal, Petersen used a live drummer more than on his previous Spindles records. Petersen says, “I knew that finding the balance of opposites was key to making sense of it all, to get the right mix of human and machine, acoustic and electronic, analog and digital, spontaneous and premeditated.” This combination is heard clearly on the song “Introvert” which features programmed live drums, keyboards that hold down the rhythmic center and a guitar sound that careens out of control.

Lyrically, the album explores human fragility, both in body and mind. Songs like “I’ve Never Been This Afraid” and “We All Want to Fit in” show Petersen observing others and himself — a constant theme in all of the Spindles records. Kiss/Kick is a record that takes the place of that late night journal writing session where the writer reveals more than what he knew was inside. As Petersen says, “For me, there has always been truth somewhere in the midst of extremes, and lyrically, this is where I wanted to be — open, honest, and truthful. ”

Kiss/Kick is Petersen’s strongest work to date. With four Broken Spindles albums and five Faint albums under his belt, he has found his voice, as well as comfort in being the observer of our inherent discomfort with ourselves and our relationships. He has learned how to reduce songs to their basic parts without losing the power and excitement of great production.

BROKEN SPINDLES

Fri-Feb-13 Grinnell, IA Grinnell College - Gardner Lounge*
Mon-Feb-16 Austin, TX Mohawk
Wed-Feb-18 Phoenix, AZ Phix Gallery
Thu-Feb-19 Las Vegas, NV Beauty Bar
Fri-Feb-20 Los Angeles, CA The Echo
Sat-Feb-21 San Francisco, CA Parkside Lounge
Sun-Feb-22 Portland, OR Rotture
Mon-Feb-23 Seattle, WA Vera Project
Tue-Feb-24 Moscow, ID American Legion
Wed-Feb-25 Salt Lake City, UT Kilby Court
Thu-Feb-26 Denver, CO High Dive
Fri-Feb-27 Lincoln, NE Box Awesome
Sun-Mar-01 Omaha, NE Waiting Room

* = w/ F***ed Up

Broken Spindles
Kiss/Kick
(blank.wav)
Street date: Feb. 17, 2009

1. I’ve Never Been This Afraid
2. Introvert
3. No Mind Knows Mine
4. The Moist Red Mess
5. Beat Down Break Up
6. We All Want To Fit In
7. In The Dark
8. Figure Face Pretty Boy
9. You’re Happy But Not For Long
10. The Talk

BROKEN SPINDLES LINKS:
MySpace - www.myspace.com/brokenspindles

Band Page - www.brokenspindles.com

Label Page - www.blankwav.com

MP3: Or, The Whale - “Rope Don’t Break”

Or, the Whale is a collective of members who prove power in numbers. With a strong DIY ethic, and a Carter Family chemistry, they’ve continued to warm hearts and move feet throughout the Country. They deliver honesty and energy every time, weaving driving indie-rock epics, sweet folk lullabies, boot-stompin’ country rockers, and gritty blues porch anthems into a seamless and powerful performance.

The band’s debut album Light Poles and Pines can be omnipotent and epic (”Life and Death at Sea”), painfully reflective (“Rope Don’t Break”), or both (”Fight Song”). On “Life and Death at Sea,” defeated, raspy lead vocals sink under a whining pedal steel until pulled up by rousing harmonies. In contrast, “Call and Response”, the CD’s lead single, is a whiskey-soaked energetic anthem with a raucous and contagious rhythm that belies a reflective commentary. And really, that’s the secret behind Or, the Whale’s draw: their songs are honest, intelligent, and offer a refreshing modern connection to traditional American music.

OR, THE WHALE

02-11 San Francisco, CA - Hotel Utah Saloon
02-19 Eureka, CA - The Pearl Lounge
02-20 Portland, OR - Berbati’s Pan
02-21 Seattle, WA - The Sunset Tavern
03-12 Los Angeles, CA - Silverlake Lounge*
03-16 El Paso, TX - Zeppelin’s
03-18 Austin, TX - SXSW
03-19 Denton, TX - The Boilerroom
03-21 Ft. Worth, TX - The Chat Room Pub
03-24 Denver, CO - Meadowlark
03-25 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
03-27 Sacramento, CA - Luigi’s Fun Garden
03-28 Berkeley, CA - Starry Plough

* = w/ Willoughby, a FORCE FIELD PR Presents Show!

Or, The Whale
Light Poles and Pines
(Seany)
Street date: Jan. 20, 2009

01. Call and Response
02. Saint Bernard
03. Threads
04. Isn’t She Awful
05. Death of Me
06. Crack a Smile
07. Fixin’ to Leave
08. Rope Don’t Break
09. Life and Death at Sea
10. Gonna Have To
11. Bound to Go Home
12. Prayer for the Road
13. Fight Song

OR, THE WHALE LINKS:
MySpace - www.myspace.com/orthewhale

Band Page - www.orthewhale.com

Label Page - www.seanyrecords.com