New Selections — Torche, Lingua Ignota, Zig Zags, Oh Sees, Chastity Belt
A tad overdue on this one.
Via Speakeasy PR:
MIAMI, July 2, 2019 – Torche has unveiled a video for “Admission”, with the clip for the album’s title track created by the band’s own Rick Smith and Jonathan Nuñez.“'Admission,' the title track off of our new album, is an extremely important song to us on many levels. Steve has opened the doors to a deep and personal place, lyrically shedding light on his personal life, and I worked hard and diligently to capture the feeling of a song I wrote during trying times,” explains guitar player Nuñez, who also produced the album which is slated for a July 12 release via Relapse Records. “Through the use of effects and various pedals, including a couple of my own line, Nuñez Amps, the feeling of the track took the shape it was destined for. The delays and heavy overdrive are essential to the song and we wanted a video to visually capture what the delays and driven sounds provided sonically. With 15 hours, a minimal setup, help from a couple good friends, and our cellphones, the band was able to create a video we are excited about and feel is the perfect visual companion to a song, and record, that has us excited in our sixteenth year as a band as we were when we first started.”
Billboard debuted the song last week, saying, “Torche once again constructs layers of guitar riffs that are somehow as airy as they are dense.” MetalSucks added, “Torche have not made a secret of the influence ’80s New Wave had on their new album, Admission — they’ve previously cited ‘the first three Gary Numan records as inspiration’ — but it really comes through on that record’s newly-released title track. Built around disco cymbals and a simple, starry-eyed guitar line, “Admission” has the same bittersweet-pop vibe of that movement’s high points.”
The video arrives both as Torche is on the eve of kicking off their first North American tour dates in support of the 11-song album, launching the first leg on July 8 in Tampa, and also announcing an additional two-plus-weeks run on the western side of the continent later this summer. Tickets for the newly announced shows are on-sale this Friday at 10 am pacific.
The band has given two previous previews of music from the 11-song album with streams of the songs “Slide” (https://youtu.be/-vsj1Hcy0k4) and “Times Missing” (https://youtu.be/WeY-4KtqEAE). The trio of tracks are available as instant downloads with digital pre-orders. Admission is available in various formats (CD/LP/CS/Digital) with several limited edition vinyl versions already sold out. More information can be found via Relapse’s webstore (http://relapse.com/torche-admission/). Admission’s cover art was created by Richard Vergez, a Cuban-American visual artist, whose work has been shown at No Romance Galleries (TriBeCa), Urban Arts Society (Chicago) and Kids of Dada (London).
Newly announced tour dates:
September 3 Tallahassee, FL The Wilbury
September 4 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
September 5 Little Rock, AR Rev Room
September 6 Oklahoma City, OK 89th Street
September 7 Albuquerque, NM Sister
September 8 Phoenix, AZ 191 Toole
September 10 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
September 11 Oakland, CA Starline Social Club
September 12 Sacramento, CA Harlows
September 13 Portland, OR Mississippi Studios
September 14 Vancouver, BC Venue
September 15 Seattle, WA Highline
September 16 Boise, ID The Olympic
September 17 Salt Lake City, UT Diabolical Records
September 18 Denver, CO Larimer Lounge
September 20 Louisville, KY Zanzabar
Full slate of tour dates:
July 8 Tampa, FL Crowbar
July 9 Jacksonville, FL The Justice Pub
July 10 Chapel Hill, NC Local 506
July 11 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon *
July 12 Poughkeepsie, NY The Chance *
July 13 Huntington, NY The Paramount *
July 14 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre *
July 15 Winooski, VT Monkey House *
July 16 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom *
July 17 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls *
July 18 Cleveland, OH Now That’s Class
July 19 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall *
July 20 Detroit, MI The Majestic *
July 21 Indianapolis, IN Deluxe *
July 22 Grand Rapids, MI Pyramid Scheme
July 23 Palatine, IL Durty Nellies *
July 24 Des Moines, IA Wooly’s *
July 25 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line
July 26 Omaha, NE The Waiting Room *
July 27 Lawrence, KS Granada Theater *
July 28 St. Louis, MO The Ready Room *
July 31 Washington, DC Black Cat ^
August 1 Philadelphia, PA Underground Arts ^
August 2 Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn Bazaar ^
August 3 Allston, MA Great Scott ^
August 4 Providence, RI The Met ^
August 5 Asbury Park, NJ Asbury Lane ^
August 6 Harrisonburg, VA Golden Pony #
August 7 Wilmington, NC Reggie’s 42nd Street Tavern #
August 8 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade #
August 9 Orlando, FL The Plaza &
August 10 Miami, FL Las Rosa’s (FREE SHOW) #
September 3 Tallahassee, FL The Wilbury
September 4 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
September 5 Little Rock, AR Rev Room
September 6 Oklahoma City, OK 89th Street
September 7 Albuquerque, NM Sister
September 8 Phoenix, AZ 191 Toole
September 10 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
September 11 Oakland, CA Starline Social Club
September 12 Sacramento, CA Harlows
September 13 Portland, OR Mississippi Studios
September 14 Vancouver, BC Venue
September 15 Seattle, WA Highline
September 16 Boise, ID The Olympic
September 17 Salt Lake City, UT Diabolical Records
September 18 Denver, CO Larimer Lounge
September 20 Louisville, KY Zanzabar
September 21 Asheville, NC Heavy Mountain
November 1-3 Gainesville, FL The Fest
November 9 Austin, TX Levitation
^ (w/ Wear Your Wounds)
# (w/ Whores.)
* (w/ Baroness)
& (w/ Baroness & War On Women)
Torche released their fourth album, and Relapse Records’ debut, Restarter in 2015. The collection found the band on most year-end best of lists with Entertainment Weekly describing the album as “gloriously fuzzy, sludgy, hard-hitting” and calling the band members “four of loud rock’s most adroit genre-benders.” The Washington Post called Restarter “otherworldly” and the Chicago Tribune saying “Torche’s music connects muscle, songcraft and drive in a way that few bands of recent vintage can match."
Lingua Ignota: "Do You Doubt Me Traitor"
Via Rarely Unable:
LINGUA IGNOTA SHARES A NEW SINGLE, AND REVEALS HEADLINE EUROPEAN TOUR DATES
Zig Zags: "Killer Of Killers"
Via Us/Them Group:
__________________________________________________________
August
9 Pioneertown, CA Pappy and Harriet's
Torche: "Admission"
(via Speakeasy PR / Relapse Records / YouTube)
Via Speakeasy PR:
MIAMI, July 2, 2019 – Torche has unveiled a video for “Admission”, with the clip for the album’s title track created by the band’s own Rick Smith and Jonathan Nuñez.“'Admission,' the title track off of our new album, is an extremely important song to us on many levels. Steve has opened the doors to a deep and personal place, lyrically shedding light on his personal life, and I worked hard and diligently to capture the feeling of a song I wrote during trying times,” explains guitar player Nuñez, who also produced the album which is slated for a July 12 release via Relapse Records. “Through the use of effects and various pedals, including a couple of my own line, Nuñez Amps, the feeling of the track took the shape it was destined for. The delays and heavy overdrive are essential to the song and we wanted a video to visually capture what the delays and driven sounds provided sonically. With 15 hours, a minimal setup, help from a couple good friends, and our cellphones, the band was able to create a video we are excited about and feel is the perfect visual companion to a song, and record, that has us excited in our sixteenth year as a band as we were when we first started.”
Billboard debuted the song last week, saying, “Torche once again constructs layers of guitar riffs that are somehow as airy as they are dense.” MetalSucks added, “Torche have not made a secret of the influence ’80s New Wave had on their new album, Admission — they’ve previously cited ‘the first three Gary Numan records as inspiration’ — but it really comes through on that record’s newly-released title track. Built around disco cymbals and a simple, starry-eyed guitar line, “Admission” has the same bittersweet-pop vibe of that movement’s high points.”
The video arrives both as Torche is on the eve of kicking off their first North American tour dates in support of the 11-song album, launching the first leg on July 8 in Tampa, and also announcing an additional two-plus-weeks run on the western side of the continent later this summer. Tickets for the newly announced shows are on-sale this Friday at 10 am pacific.
The band has given two previous previews of music from the 11-song album with streams of the songs “Slide” (https://youtu.be/-vsj1Hcy0k4) and “Times Missing” (https://youtu.be/WeY-4KtqEAE). The trio of tracks are available as instant downloads with digital pre-orders. Admission is available in various formats (CD/LP/CS/Digital) with several limited edition vinyl versions already sold out. More information can be found via Relapse’s webstore (http://relapse.com/torche-admission/). Admission’s cover art was created by Richard Vergez, a Cuban-American visual artist, whose work has been shown at No Romance Galleries (TriBeCa), Urban Arts Society (Chicago) and Kids of Dada (London).
Newly announced tour dates:
September 3 Tallahassee, FL The Wilbury
September 4 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
September 5 Little Rock, AR Rev Room
September 6 Oklahoma City, OK 89th Street
September 7 Albuquerque, NM Sister
September 8 Phoenix, AZ 191 Toole
September 10 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
September 11 Oakland, CA Starline Social Club
September 12 Sacramento, CA Harlows
September 13 Portland, OR Mississippi Studios
September 14 Vancouver, BC Venue
September 15 Seattle, WA Highline
September 16 Boise, ID The Olympic
September 17 Salt Lake City, UT Diabolical Records
September 18 Denver, CO Larimer Lounge
September 20 Louisville, KY Zanzabar
Full slate of tour dates:
July 8 Tampa, FL Crowbar
July 9 Jacksonville, FL The Justice Pub
July 10 Chapel Hill, NC Local 506
July 11 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon *
July 12 Poughkeepsie, NY The Chance *
July 13 Huntington, NY The Paramount *
July 14 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre *
July 15 Winooski, VT Monkey House *
July 16 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom *
July 17 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls *
July 18 Cleveland, OH Now That’s Class
July 19 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall *
July 20 Detroit, MI The Majestic *
July 21 Indianapolis, IN Deluxe *
July 22 Grand Rapids, MI Pyramid Scheme
July 23 Palatine, IL Durty Nellies *
July 24 Des Moines, IA Wooly’s *
July 25 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line
July 26 Omaha, NE The Waiting Room *
July 27 Lawrence, KS Granada Theater *
July 28 St. Louis, MO The Ready Room *
July 31 Washington, DC Black Cat ^
August 1 Philadelphia, PA Underground Arts ^
August 2 Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn Bazaar ^
August 3 Allston, MA Great Scott ^
August 4 Providence, RI The Met ^
August 5 Asbury Park, NJ Asbury Lane ^
August 6 Harrisonburg, VA Golden Pony #
August 7 Wilmington, NC Reggie’s 42nd Street Tavern #
August 8 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade #
August 9 Orlando, FL The Plaza &
August 10 Miami, FL Las Rosa’s (FREE SHOW) #
September 3 Tallahassee, FL The Wilbury
September 4 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
September 5 Little Rock, AR Rev Room
September 6 Oklahoma City, OK 89th Street
September 7 Albuquerque, NM Sister
September 8 Phoenix, AZ 191 Toole
September 10 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
September 11 Oakland, CA Starline Social Club
September 12 Sacramento, CA Harlows
September 13 Portland, OR Mississippi Studios
September 14 Vancouver, BC Venue
September 15 Seattle, WA Highline
September 16 Boise, ID The Olympic
September 17 Salt Lake City, UT Diabolical Records
September 18 Denver, CO Larimer Lounge
September 20 Louisville, KY Zanzabar
September 21 Asheville, NC Heavy Mountain
November 1-3 Gainesville, FL The Fest
November 9 Austin, TX Levitation
^ (w/ Wear Your Wounds)
# (w/ Whores.)
* (w/ Baroness)
& (w/ Baroness & War On Women)
Torche released their fourth album, and Relapse Records’ debut, Restarter in 2015. The collection found the band on most year-end best of lists with Entertainment Weekly describing the album as “gloriously fuzzy, sludgy, hard-hitting” and calling the band members “four of loud rock’s most adroit genre-benders.” The Washington Post called Restarter “otherworldly” and the Chicago Tribune saying “Torche’s music connects muscle, songcraft and drive in a way that few bands of recent vintage can match."
__________________________________________________________
Lingua Ignota: "Do You Doubt Me Traitor"
(via Rarely Unable / Profound Lore / YouTube)
Via Rarely Unable:
LINGUA IGNOTA SHARES A NEW SINGLE, AND REVEALS HEADLINE EUROPEAN TOUR DATES
Her visceral new track “Do You Doubt Me Traitor” appears on her latest album, CALIGULA, out July 19 on Profound Lore
As the utterly arresting new LINGUA IGNOTA album CALIGULA approaches this July on Profound Lore, we are delighted to reveal headline live dates incoming this September/October including three shows with AMENRA - full itinerary below.
LISTEN TO LINGUA IGNOTA'S HARROWING NEW SINGLE, “DO YOU DOUBT ME TRAITOR”
On her new album CALIGULA, LINGUA IGNOTA takes Kristin Hayter’s vision to a new level of grandeur, purging her and vengeful audial vision going beyond anything preceding it and reaching a new unparalleled sonic plane. Eschewing and disavowing genre altogether, Hayter builds her own world. She fully embodies the moniker Lingua Ignota, from the German mystic Hildegard of Bingen, meaning “unknown language” — this music has no home, any precedent or comparison could only be uneasily given, and there is nothing else like it in our contemporary realm.
Due out July 19th, CALIGULA finds Hayter at the peak of her powers as a vocalist, composer, and storyteller. The album refuses to settle in any known lane, instead opting to tackle massive scopes and influences spanning across time and place. One thing remains unchanged, though: Hayter continues to explore themes of violence and vengeance through a survivalist narrative that is equal parts chilling and empowering.
Working closely with Seth Manchester at Machines With Magnets studio in Rhode Island, Hayter strips away much of the industrial and electronic elements of her previous work. Channeling the menacing intensity of her live performances, Hayter utilised unconventional recording techniques and live instrumentation to bring a frenetic energy to CALIGULA.
Pooling talent from Sam McKinlay (THE RITA), visceral drummer Lee Buford (The Body) and frenetic percussionist Ted Byrnes (Cackle Car, Wood & Metal), with guest vocals from Dylan Walker (Full of Hell), Mike Berdan (Uniform), and Noraa Kaplan (Visibilities), CALIGULA is a massive work, a multi-layered epic that gives voice and space to that which has been silenced and cut out.
LINGUA IGNOTA TOUR DATES:
26/09 BE Brussells Centre Tour à Plomb
27/09 NL Amsterdam de de Brakke Grond *
28/09 NL Amsterdam Paradiso *
30/09 UK London Oslo
01/10 UK Manchester Pink Room
02/10 UK Bristol Rough Trade
04/10 FRA Lille La Malterie
05/10 NL Nijemegen Soulcrusher
06/10 DE Berlin Urban Spree
07/10 PL Krakow Unsound
08/10 CZ Prague Klub 007
10/10 SK Kosice Collosseum
11/10 HUN Budapest LARM
12/10 AT Wien Rhiz
13/10 DE Liepzig Mörtelwerk
14/10 DE Mannheim Forum Mannheim
16/10 ITA Milano Macao
18/10 FRA Clermont Ferrand Raymond Bar
19/10 FRA Paris Espace B
20/10 BE Menen cc de steiger/ stadsmuseum *
* with AMENRA
PRE ORDERS NOW LIVE
REVISIT "BUTCHER OF THE WORLD"
As the utterly arresting new LINGUA IGNOTA album CALIGULA approaches this July on Profound Lore, we are delighted to reveal headline live dates incoming this September/October including three shows with AMENRA - full itinerary below.
LISTEN TO LINGUA IGNOTA'S HARROWING NEW SINGLE, “DO YOU DOUBT ME TRAITOR”
On her new album CALIGULA, LINGUA IGNOTA takes Kristin Hayter’s vision to a new level of grandeur, purging her and vengeful audial vision going beyond anything preceding it and reaching a new unparalleled sonic plane. Eschewing and disavowing genre altogether, Hayter builds her own world. She fully embodies the moniker Lingua Ignota, from the German mystic Hildegard of Bingen, meaning “unknown language” — this music has no home, any precedent or comparison could only be uneasily given, and there is nothing else like it in our contemporary realm.
Due out July 19th, CALIGULA finds Hayter at the peak of her powers as a vocalist, composer, and storyteller. The album refuses to settle in any known lane, instead opting to tackle massive scopes and influences spanning across time and place. One thing remains unchanged, though: Hayter continues to explore themes of violence and vengeance through a survivalist narrative that is equal parts chilling and empowering.
Working closely with Seth Manchester at Machines With Magnets studio in Rhode Island, Hayter strips away much of the industrial and electronic elements of her previous work. Channeling the menacing intensity of her live performances, Hayter utilised unconventional recording techniques and live instrumentation to bring a frenetic energy to CALIGULA.
Pooling talent from Sam McKinlay (THE RITA), visceral drummer Lee Buford (The Body) and frenetic percussionist Ted Byrnes (Cackle Car, Wood & Metal), with guest vocals from Dylan Walker (Full of Hell), Mike Berdan (Uniform), and Noraa Kaplan (Visibilities), CALIGULA is a massive work, a multi-layered epic that gives voice and space to that which has been silenced and cut out.
LINGUA IGNOTA TOUR DATES:
26/09 BE Brussells Centre Tour à Plomb
27/09 NL Amsterdam de de Brakke Grond *
28/09 NL Amsterdam Paradiso *
30/09 UK London Oslo
01/10 UK Manchester Pink Room
02/10 UK Bristol Rough Trade
04/10 FRA Lille La Malterie
05/10 NL Nijemegen Soulcrusher
06/10 DE Berlin Urban Spree
07/10 PL Krakow Unsound
08/10 CZ Prague Klub 007
10/10 SK Kosice Collosseum
11/10 HUN Budapest LARM
12/10 AT Wien Rhiz
13/10 DE Liepzig Mörtelwerk
14/10 DE Mannheim Forum Mannheim
16/10 ITA Milano Macao
18/10 FRA Clermont Ferrand Raymond Bar
19/10 FRA Paris Espace B
20/10 BE Menen cc de steiger/ stadsmuseum *
* with AMENRA
PRE ORDERS NOW LIVE
REVISIT "BUTCHER OF THE WORLD"
__________________________________________________________
Zig Zags: "Killer Of Killers"
(via Us-Them Group / RidingEasy Records / CVLT Nation / YouTube)
Via Us/Them Group:
Zig-Zags premiere video for "Killer of Killers"
L.A. trio w/ fury of Kill 'Em All era Metallica, and wit of a metal Mudhoney
Watch & share "Killer of Killers" video (YouTube) (CvltNation)
L.A. punk-metal trio Zig-Zags premiere a new video from their recently released fourth album, and debut on RidingEasy Records, They'll Never Take Us Alive today via CvltNation. Watch and share the low budget horror spoofing "Killer of Killers" HERE. (Direct YouTube.)
Metal Injection also recently shared the wildly intense video for anthemic album opener "Punk Fucking Metal" HERE. (Direct YouTube.)
Kerrang! Magazine also recently streamed the full album alongside an in-depth interview HERE. LA Weekly recently named Zig-Zags "Best Metal Band" in their annual Best of L.A. Music issue.
Zig-Zags are in the midst of a busy year of non-stop touring throughout the EU, UK and US. The next leg kicks off in Europe next week. Please see complete dates below.
They'll Never Take Us Alive is available on LP, CD and download, released on May 10th, 2019 via RidingEasy Records. Purchase it HERE.
ZIG-ZAGS LIVE 2019:
07/06 Nikolsdorf, AT @ Sticks & Stone Festival
07/07 Wien, AT @ Venster99
07/09 Bratislava, SK @ Kulturak Klub
07/10 Berlin, DE @ Toast Hawaii
07/11 Hamburg, DE @ Komet
07/12 Erfurt, DE @ Stoned from The Underground
07/13 Ludwighsafen, DE @ Ein Schoner Tag im Freien
07/15 Tolosa, ES @ Bonberenea
07/16 Madrid, ES @ Wurlitzer Ballroom
07/17 Barcelona, ES @ Rocksound
07/19 Helsinki, FI @ Hori Smoku Summer Boogaloo 2019
07/20 Den Haag, NL @ Grauzone Summer Special
07/21 Bristol, UK @ The Old England
07/23 Liverpool, UK @ Drop The Dumbulls
07/24 London, UK @ The Black Heart
07/25 Le Havre, FR @ Fort de Tourneville
07/26 Lille, FR @ La Gare Saint Sauveur
07/28 Rokycany, CZ @ Fluff Fest
07/30 Wiesbaden, DE @ Schlachthof
07/31 Koln, DE @ MTC
08/01 Kassel, DE @ Goldgrube
08/02 Waldbad Stolzenhain, DE @ Elite Culture Festival
08/03 Schierling, DE @ Labertal Festival
08/04 Slavonice, CZ @ Barak
08/08 Santarem, PT @ InStr
08/09 Moldeno, PT @ Sonic Blast Moldeno
08/10 Sinzendorf, DE @ Void Fest
09/21 Portland, OR @ Dante's - Northwest Hesh Fest
11/09 Austin, TX @ Levitation Festival
|
__________________________________________________________
Oh Sees: "Poisoned Stones"
(via Tell All Your Friends PR / Castle Face Records / Stereogum / YouTube)
Via Tell All Your Friends PR:
OH SEES SHARE "POISONED STONES" VIDEO ON STEREOGUM
NEW DOUBLE LP FACE STABBER OUT 8/16 ON CASTLE FACE
WATCH/LISTEN & SHARE: OH SEES - "POISONED STONES"
LISTEN & SHARE: OH SEES - "HENCHLOCK"
Oh Sees have shared the video for their new track "Poisoned Stones" on Stereogum. Last month the band announced a new double LP titled Face Stabber. Along with the LP announcement, the band shared the 20+ minute track "Henchlock". Face Stabber is out 8/16 via Castle Face Records. The band will also go on a lengthy North American tour this fall. Dates are below.
Hey there, human kids,
Lift your face out of the feed trough and pluck that feculence from your ears. Hark! A sonar blip from beneath the pile of bodies. Boop, blip ughhh….
People churning like a boiling swamp. Man, this din is nauseating.
The screen flickers for the first time this year with a transmission from two months in the future:
“the internet has deemed guitar music dead and you are free to do whatever the fuck you like ….long live the new flesh!”
This album is Soundcloud hip-hop reversed, a far flung nemesis of contemporary country and flaccid algorithmic pop-barf.
No songs about money or love are floating in the ether.
Just memories, echoes, foggy blurs
Blip-blop goes the scope
Heavy funk
Dystopia-punk canons
Lonnnnng jams
Bloated solos dribbling down your caved-in chest.
Human cattle like a beef avalanche, right on your burned out face hole.
Spider legs fuzz crawling in your brain.
Lots of curse words for your mom.
You’ve gotten the over-population blues, so let’s have some art for art’s sake.
What else are you gonna do?
Stare at the sky? Please…
50 carbon copies of you look back at you as you walk the streets.
Take a breath, you’re going to need it.
Take drugs, you’re going to need those just to stand in line at the air and water reclamation center soon enough.
There’s no fruit, buddy.
You’re at the bleak-peak.
They will squeeze you till you’re all squeezed out.
For fans of fried prog burn out, squished old-school drool, double drums, lead weight bass, wizard keys (now with poison), old-ass guitar and horrible words with daft meanings.
If you don’t like it then don’t listen, bub.
Back to the comments section with you!
Easy
Over and out
It’s out on Castle-Face Records August 16th
Tour Dates:
July
11-13 Carnation WA Timber! Festival
11-13 Carnation WA Timber! Festival
August
9 Pioneertown, CA Pappy and Harriet's
23 Charleville Cabaret Vert festival
24 Guéret Check-in Festival
27 Ravenna Hana-Bi (Free)
29 Vienna Arena
30 Munich Strom
31 Berlin Kreuzberg Festsaal
September
1 Brussels Les Botaniquesen
3 Bordeaux BT 59
4 Toulouse Le Bikini
5 Paris Le Bataclan
6 London Troxy
7 Amsterdam Paradiso
30 San Francisco, CA The Chapel
October
1 San Francisco, CA The Chapel
2 San Francisco, CA The Chapel
4 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom
7 Vancouver, BC Rickshaw Theatre
10 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue Ballroom
11 Chicago, IL Thalia Hall
12 Chicago, IL Thalia Hall
14 Toronto, ON Danforth Music Hall
15 Montreal, QC Le National
16 Cambridge, MA The Sinclair
18 Brooklyn, NY Warsaw
19 Brooklyn, NY Warsaw
20 Brooklyn, NY Warsaw
22 Philadelphia, PA Union Transfer
23 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle
24 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
25 New Orleans, LA One Eyed Jacks
26 Austin TX Hotel Vegas
27 Austin, TX Hotel Vegas
29 Albuquerque, NM Sister Bar
31 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
__________________________________________________________
Chastity Belt: "Ann's Jam"
(via Stereo Sanctity PR / Hardly Art / YouTube)
Via Stereo Sanctity:
Acclaimed Seattle band Chastity Belt have returned with their first new music since 2017's I Used to Spend So Much Time Alone. This heartfelt new record, simply titled Chastity Belt, is due out on Friday, September 20th on LP, CD, digital, and cassette from Hardly Art records, and from Milk! records in Australia and New Zealand. Chastity Belt will be touring extensively in support of the record - see below for a full list of European dates.
Chastity Belt was co-produced by the band and Melina Duterte aka Jay Som. Today the band have shared a self-made music video for the album’s nostalgic opening track, "Ann's Jam”.
Chastity Belt’s energy is like a circuit, circling around the silly and the sincere. Theirs is a long-term relationship, and that loop sustains them. Tongue-in-cheek witticisms and existential rumination feed into each other infinitely, as long as they’re together. That’s a creative thesis in and of itself, but isn’t that also just the mark of a true-blue friendship?
The band talks a lot about intention these days—how to be more present with each other. The four piece—Julia Shapiro (vocals, guitar, drums), Lydia Lund (vocals, guitar), Gretchen Grimm (drums, vocals, guitar) and Annie Truscott (bass)—are nine years deep in this, after all. It seems now, more than ever, that circuit is a movement of intentionality, one that creates a space inside which they can be themselves, among themselves. It’s a space where the euphoria of making music with your best friends is protected from the outside world’s churning expectations. It’s a kind of safe zone for the band to occupy: a group of friends who love each other.
Their fourth record, Chastity Belt, embodies that. The decision to eponymously title it is as strong a statement as any on where they are in their career. “I feel like this record is a really good representation of who we all are, and I feel like we're at a point where we've really come into our own” says Julia. “We're more us than ever.”
After touring Chastity Belt’s last record I Used To Spend So Much Time Alone (2017, Hardly Art), the band took a restorative few months in 2018, each member worked on solo material or toured with other bands. “So much of the break was reminding ourselves to stay present, and giving ourselves permission to stop without saying when we’re gonna meet up again,” says guitarist Lydia Lund. “It was so important to have that—not saying, ‘we’re gonna get back together at this point,’ but really just open it up so we could get back to our present connection.” Drummer Gretchen Grimm explains it as “trying to weed out the parts of being in a band that feel like obligation and sticking to things that feel like a true expression of us”
So when they reunited ready to record Chastity Belt, things had changed – Annie had moved to LA, they’d all been in and out of relationships and their perspectives had shifted. They came together with more intention and assertion than ever before.
With the luxury of spending several weeks in the studio with Jay Som’s Melina Duterte, Chastity Belt were able to take time and experiment. The new self-titled album sees them adding more dynamic vocal harmonies, sharing lead vocals on different tracks, and working with different instruments such as violin (played by Annie), cello, trumpet and keyboards. It makes for an intricate yet uncluttered record that is not only a product of, but a series of reflections on what it means to take what you need, and to understand yourself better. It is some of their most mature, most introspective and nuanced material to date – unhurried, thoughtful and poignant.
Many of Chastity Belt’s signature dynamics, from the silly to the sincere, have read as feminist gestures: the Cool Slut DGAF-iness, the shrugging off of the “women in rock” press gargle, the fundamentally punk act of creating music on your own as a woman, and being lyrically forthright. What the making of Chastity Belt reveals is that the band has tapped into a deeper tradition of women making art on their terms: the act of self-preservation in favour of the long game. In favour of each other. In this cultural moment, taking space like this to prioritise the love over the product seems progressive. Chastity Belt’s intentions have resulted in an album deeply expressive of four people’s commitment to what they love most: making music with each other.
Chastity Belt will be released on September 20th via Hardly Art. Pre-order here: http://smarturl.it/chastitybelt
European tour dates:
Sep 28 - Vienna, AT - Waves Vienna Festival
Sep 29 - Munich, DE @ Kranhalle *
Oct 01 - Milan, IT @ Serraglio *
Oct 02 - Zurich, CH @ Bogen F *
Oct 04 - Schorndorf, DE @ Manufaktur *
Oct 05 - Jena, DE @ Trafo *
Oct 06 - Berlin, DE @ Franzz Club *
Oct 08 - Cologne, DE @ Bumann & Sohn *
Oct 09 - Utrecht, NL @ Ekko *
Oct 11 - Paris, FR @ La Boule Noire *
Oct 12 - Antwerp, BE @ Kavka *
Oct 13 - Bristol, UK @ Thekla *
Oct 15 - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club *
Oct 16 - Manchester, UK @ YES *
Oct 17 - Glasgow, UK @ Stereo *
Oct 19 - Oxford, UK @ Ritual Union
Oct 20 – Cardiff, UK @ SWN Festival
Oct 21 - Brighton, UK @ Patterns *
Oct 23 - Southampton, UK @ The Joiners *
Oct 24 - London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall *
* - w/ GANG
Sincerely,
Letters From A Tapehead
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