Atmosphere has just released another new music video for “Stopwatch”, directed by Ryen McPherson and produced by activist art collective, INDECLINE, best known for their poignantly satirical murals and installations.
It’s a different place than it was two years ago when Atmosphere released their last record, Fishing Blues. Their seventh album, Mi Vida Local, reflects the ways in which the world–and their place in it–has changed. The idyllic domesticity of the past few records has morphed into anxiety over keeping loved ones safe during turbulent times. The easygoing collaboration between Ant and Slug has started to feel more like the life-or-death intimacy of two men trapped together on a lifeboat. At times, Mi Vida Local is a heavy album, (“I might be the last generation of grandparents,” goes a key line from “Virgo”), but it’s far from grim.
As the name implies, Mi Vida Local is intensely focused on the place it was created–the south side of Minneapolis–where Slug and Ant work tirelessly in their “beautiful basements”, refining their sound without interruption, save for a handful of Minneapolis friends that showed up to contribute. The album pairs complex subject matter with equally deep beats–ones that show a clear lineage back to the psychedelic funk landmarks from an earlier era where America was going through a post-utopian hangover, and prove that there won’t ever be a time where boom-bap beats don’t sound perfectly of the moment.
Mi Vida Local might be the best album Atmosphere’s ever made. It’s definitely the one they needed to make right now, and one listener’s need to hear just as urgently. If it’s sometimes an album about how the fight to find happiness never really ends–even after you get the house and the kids and the artistic freedom to make dad-rap records–it’s also about discovering that there’s happiness to be found just in fighting.
SOURCE: Official Bio
LINKS:
https://rse.lnk.to/MiVidaLocal
https://rhymesayers.com/artists/atmosphere
https://www.facebook.com/Atmosphere
https://twitter.com/atmosphere
https://www.instagram.com/atmosphere
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The Vex – Education Kills
‘Education Kills’, the new video for the track of the same name by the U.K. juggernaut know as The Vex, contains three of my personal guilty pleasures. A gnarly, gritty, dirty bass, buzzsaw attacking guitars, and a penchant for rebellion. The Vex not only combines these very guilty pleasures in such a sublime and cheeky way as to make an anthem for the angst but conveys the musical attitude that they live that angst. By doing that, they show that they are at the heart of indie music.
Whether these guys get signed or not, they will be huge. You heard it here first. As a matter of fact, I put that in here so we show up first on Google when it happens. No shame in my game. And no shame in the future of The Vex. Education kills, but take the risk in learning that.
About ‘Education Kills’
An electrifying injection of no-holds-barred punk rock, ‘Education Kills’ is a tribute to the extraordinary bravery of Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Pakistan Taliban while campaigning for women’s rights to education. With this now Nobel Laureate in mind, The Vex’s treatise on the evil that men do is set to overdriven punky-reggae riffage and a fiercely anthemic chorus.About The Vex
Though hailing from London’s outer fringes, where the capital unceremoniously bleeds into Kent, The Vex actually came into being some 1,500 miles away, with an Eighties pop superstar playing his part. While on tour in Moscow with a previous band, the schisms in the group were made apparent by an offer of management from one Adam Ant. The faction that opposed the deal broke away to form The Vex, playing their debut gig at Moscow’s BlastFest, where the only thing that wasn’t ice-cold was, typically, the band’s beer rider.Back in the UK, Josh (guitar/vox), Jacko (guitar/vox), Andrew (bass) and Joshua (drums) soon honed a sound inspired by the classic roots and rock of both Kingston, Jamaica, and London, England. Dealing in dirty guitars and big beats, played with passion and precision, the quartet’s heavy rocksteady sonics became a draw on both sides of the Thames, their ferocious shows earning them a rep as one of the best live bands on the circuit. The Vex hit hard and they cut deep. Spin this EP and hear for yourself.
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/thevexofficial
https://soundcloud.com/thevexofficial
https://www.instagram.com/the.vex
https://twitter.com/thevexofficial -
Lucas – Anne Marie
Manchester, UK’s Lucas have released a new music video for their single “Anne Marie.” Produced and co-written by Cage The Elephant’s Lincoln Parish, the swaggering indie rock track will appear on the band’s upcoming EP High Wire.
“Anne Marie was a turning point for us in the studio where Parish and I suddenly hit upon that brit-pop psychedelia which definitely sums up a lot of the band’s influences,” says frontman Johnny Lucas. “It was such a fun song to write and record but playing it live is the best and I love watching people get into it!”
After touring around the UK and Europe as a one-man show replete with beatbox and looping magic, Johnny decided to make the move to Nashville and form a full band. It was there that they honed their distinct blend of British and American flavors at Parish’s Talkboxrodeo studio. Johnny’s solo run received heavy rotation on BBC, major appearances at Glastonbury and Isle of Wight Festivals, and even a nod from the almighty Jimmy Page who told Johnny “I loved what you did with the loop pedal. There was so much going on it was like a 5-D experience.”
Fraught with complications and lengthy delays, his journey to the US would become fodder for much of the EP’s inspiration. Lucas explains: “After being delayed for 5 months and nearly flat broke, it took a lot to hang in there and trust that things would work out.”
The struggle proved worth it, armed with raucous guitars and anthemic choruses, High Wire is a rousing rock and roll record that weaves together sticky melodies and sly lyrics. With its strong Brit Pop influence and undertones of 60’s idols like McCartney and Jeff Lynne, High Wire is sure to resonate with fans of across the globe.
SOURCE: Official Bio
“hook-laden, soaring melodies and pop-accessible instrumentation, blurs the line between pop and alternative, feeling both timeless and fresh, and primed to get stuck in your head all day.”
– No Country for New Nashville“A rock and roll anthem that allows you to feel deeply.”
– Imperfect FifthLINKS:
http://www.facebook.com/thatLucasband
http://www.instagram.com/thatLucasband
http://www.twitter.com/thatLucasband -
John Adams – Flames
John Adams is a Singer/Songwriter/Busker hailing from Aberdare in the South Wales Valleys. With a reach in his tone to match Sam Smith and James Blunt he draws influences from the likes of honest songwriters such as James Morrison, Damien Rice, and David Gray. John’s acoustic approach and atmospheric piano accompaniment compliment his unique and impressive vocal ability as he earns the undivided attention of the listener by addressing them directly with emotive and heartfelt narratives.
This faithfulness to a personal story is mirrored in how John came into the musical world and continues to progress as a musician. A truly homegrown talent, he began his career busking on the streets, using the money to pay for his first release, fittingly entitled “The Pavement is My Stage”. After the album reached No.7 in the iTunes Singer/Songwriter charts in 2016 he took a leap of faith and left his job as a Mathematics Teacher. That gamble paid off and John has gone on to support household names such as Take That, Lemar, T’Pau and Katherine Jenkins. His hard work and impressive live performance have built a strong following of 50,000 online followers, over 6 million views on YouTube and a steady 300,000 monthly listeners on Spotify.
Eager to show his progression John released his album “You Never Know Who’s Listening” in 2018 which combined his live organic sound with a minimal electronic production to make a sound that is satisfyingly different from the usual guitar wielding Singer/Songwriter. The album was very well received by fans and the music industry alike and has already accrued over 6 million plays on Spotify. All 4 singles were playlist by the BBC and Spotify editorials with “See You Again” and “Dandelion Wishes” becoming Radio 2 favorites. He spent the year up and down the country performing at the UK’s largest festivals such as The Isle of Wight Festival, Great Escape, and Victorious Festival, and his headline tour sold out in just two days from release. To end the year on a high his festive hit “Lost In Christmas” became the soundtrack for “La Feltrinelli” Christmas campaign all across Europe.
Not showing any signs of writer’s block, John is excited to reveal ‘Flames’, the first single off his new EP “No White Lies”, was released on February 8th. Directed by John himself and Rhys Davies of Furball films, the stirring music video was imagined after a house fire occurred outside the studio. He explains: “All the usual questions flooded my mind as I strummed my guitar. How did they feel? What did they grab? Who was to blame? I eventually came to the conclusion that they’d be so concerned with survival that these questions were never answered. As dramatic as it seems I felt exactly the same about a relationship at the time and after writing the song I decided to take the same approach to the situation and leave. I centered the song around the lyric “It’s too late to argue who’s to blame, this house will burn down anyway” and pulled on a few semantics to compare the feelings of a house fire to the trapping of a relationship. I tried to mirror this concept in the video with the use of wool. In the beginning, a couple proudly exchanges thread to connect each other and enjoy the unity it brings, but over time the tangled web becomes frustrating and controlling just like a bad partnership.”
LINKS:
https://www.johnadamsmusic.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/JohnAdamsMusic1
http://www.twitter.com/johnadamsmusic1
https://www.instagram.com/johnadamsmusic
http://www.youtube.com/johnanthonyadams1