Most musicians boast of exploding onto their local scene in a glittering blaze of media hype and spontaneous applause. The unassuming, unusual and enigmatic T.E. Yates, however, snuck in through an open window.
His name was not on the top line of event posters but rather a discreet artist signature in the bottom corner; his first gig flyers and album covers were ones he designed for other bands, not himself. He’s performed in front of huge crowds but always as a hired hand or supporting player, a multi-instrumentalist in the shadows – mandolin, banjo, harmonica, even musical saw – you may have heard him on the tracks of other artists without even knowing it. But now T.E. Yates has stepped out of the shadows, taking center-stage with a formidable backing band (both onstage and on record) comprising members of Victorian Dad, The Bedlam Six, Ottersgear, Gorilla Riot, and Honeyfeet.
Even when performing solo the man doesn’t travel light, his weird and wonderful drawings regularly making an appearance between songs, baffling and delighting audiences in equal measures.
His debut album “Silver Coins And White Feathers” is by turns moving, catchy and ambitious, brimming with influences from all across the genre spectrum, the subject matter ranging from astronomy to the Suffrage movement – a real treat for music lovers of all persuasions.
“Nick Drake’s ‘Hazy Jane’ with a touch of Roy Orbison”
– BBC Radio Manchester
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/T.E.Yates.Official
https://twitter.com/teyates
https://soundcloud.com/t-e-yates
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6vfksH96y3ZbDe6SLRX6mT
https://teyates.bandcamp.com
https://vimeo.com/user24745797
https://debtrecords.net
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrn1R2iL89k&index=1&list=PL–NzcS5ylP3JYe2k6gDEcqZQVsszD-Lp
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Lethal Injektion – Believer
Tucson, AZ based, West Coast Metal band Lethal Injektion has followed up on their highly praised sophomore LP, Judgment Night, with a stunning reinterpretation and music video of the Imagine Dragons hit single, “Believer.”
Lethal Injektion is the newest Rap/Metal sensation, based out of Tucson Arizona. The band was put together with Tucson’s hottest top-tier artists to make an undeniable sound & movement.
Jacob Ryan, is a successful independent rap artist under the rap name The Raskal, who most recently won West Coast Artist Of The Year @ The Under Ground Music Awards in New York in December 2015. The Raskal has also had major write-ups in The Source, allhiphop.com, World Star Hip Hop, along with other big features.
Jonathan Russell is most known for his amazing talents as the vocalist in his own band, Stands With Fists. Stands With Fists has had a lot of independent success as well doing several huge events such as Knot Fest & KFMA’s Fall Ball just to name a few. Jacob reached out to Jonathan back in July, with an idea and concept never before seen or done in Tucson. A fusion of hardcore passionate hip-hop lyrics, blended with high energy, aggressive metal tones, and rhythms. The one thing missing was a band to make it all come together.
Using his deep connections in the Tucson metal scene, Jonathan reached out to a young talented group of musicians to finalize this new super group. Guitarists Lawrence McIntyre & Jesse Espich team up with drummer James Ringstrom, and bassist Luis Rodriguez to provide a unique, yet marketable sound to accompany Jonathan’s wide vocal range and dynamic melodies, as well as Jacob’s gritty yet clever rhymes and distinct voice. Their debut single “Strength Through Struggle” has done amazing numbers, and is available on all major digital music outlets.
The band released their follow up single and very first music video “Voices” on their YouTube channel Friday January 15, 2016. The band then followed up with their first studio recorded EP “Sex Is Power”, which made an immediate impact charting as high as #8 on Itunes for new releases for the Rock Genre, and stayed at #1 on Amazon for new alternative metal release for the first 2 weeks. Be on the lookout for their second full-length album “Judgement Night” under the home umbrella RuffLife Recordz, released September 15, 2017.
LINKS:
http://www.lethalinjektionmusic.com
http://www.facebook.com/lethalinjektionmusic
http://www.twitter.com/LInjektion
http://www.instagram.com/lethalinjektion -
Your 33 Black Angels – Hott Funn
Your 33 Black Angels (a.k.a. Y33BA) has announced their new album ‘Eternities I’, which is their seventh long-play to date, to be released in early May. Ahead of that, they are previewing the lead track ‘Hott Funn’.
Recorded over three years and more than 60 studio days with endless mixes in the making, ‘Eternities I’ is 13 tracks that are built to stand as the culmination of Y33BA’s labors.
Based out of New York City, Y33BA is a long-running noise-pop freakshow. This genre-defying project has its own stamp of dark pop, electro-paisley new wave space rock, with a dose of crunk bass and rhythm. They produce elegant vibrant melodies with strange, novel sounds. This is the New Age underground for the End Times.
How do a group that has danced around sensibilities and sounds refresh the template? More cutting-edge instruments and riskier, avant-garde pop songs than ever. Imagine Madchester, and imagine dream pop meets Aphex Twin. Imagine the bastard child of Arthur Russell, Rain Parade and Rza and add original 21st century sound design and guitar webs.
This is a radical, angry, watermark record. Designed to embrace and rattle against the times. Combining haute popcraft with touches of the undercurrents of our lives–acid house, Paisley Underground, synth wave, field recordings, minimal electronica and epic RAWK.
As well, the Y33BA wordsmiths have always been equal part poetry fans as lyricists, so the Poesia Concreta of Augusto de Campos or Guillaume Apollonaire may have as much influence as wonderful lyricists like Neil Hannon, Bjork or Serge Gainsbourg. Breaking rhythms and broken meter match the polarized sounds from start to finish.
Formed in 2003, Y33BA debuted with the album ‘Lonely Street’ in 2007, which was a vinyl-only limited edition. Once the initial pressings sold out, Y33BA released the album on CD and digitally. They followed up with ‘Tales of my Pop-Rock Love Life’ (2008), ‘Pagan Princess’ (2009), ‘Songs from the Near Bleak Future’ (Optical Sounds, 2010), ‘Moon and Morning Star’ ( Optical Sounds, 2012) and ‘Glamour’ (2015).
In that time, they have played over 500 shows across Europe and North America, sharing the stage with some rather fine acts during recent tours. The Monochrome Set selected Y33BA as the direct support act for its first New York City show in 30 years. La Femme, The Veldt and Dyr Faser have toured or shared many nights with the group. The band has also played with King Tuff, Blitzen Trapper, Suuns, Six Organs of Admittance, Blonde Elvis, B-17 and We Melt Chocolate.
The video for ‘Hott Funn’ was made by Richie of Vinyl Villains. “Richie is a mysterious Bushwick programmer that doesn’t leave his loft til the light has disappeared and the day has turned to dark. He is part vampire, part design whiz. He has invented an automated animation program that turns songs into aliens, furry creatures, whatever the sound seems to suggest. Obviously, Your 33 Black Angels has a very alien sound, but he might have horses singing to Neil Young, vegan cupcakes singing Fiona Apple, dolphins singing Supergrass, etc. Richie is so ineffable and distant, we don’t even know his last name. All we know is he commands legions of aliens, faeries, and elves. Literally, that’s what he does!”
Y33BA ‘Eternities I’ is slated for release on May 7 and will be available across digital stores and streaming platforms. It can also be pre-ordered via Bandcamp. The band’s album release show will take place on May 10 at Alphaville in Brooklyn.
“A delight of jangling guitars, spacey-sweet vocals, and electronic squiggles, a psych record rooted in beat-pop and experimentalism”
– Village Voice (on ‘Glamour’)“One of this year’s treasures… is worth the hunt for its pop-wise rattle (Pavement with a case of the Strokes) and singer Josh Westfal’s resemblance, in dry, frank voice and cautious optimism, to another local institution: Lou Reed on the Velvet Underground’s fourth album, Loaded”
– Rolling Stone (On ‘Lonely Street’)“This is dark electric frenzied New Wave space-rock, blasting by like a fiery and unexpected sonic guest, clearly defying genres and interacting with cosmic messengers”
– Big Takeover Magazine“Retro-leaning, though hardly flower pop fetishists… pacey keyboard textures and groove-oriented arrangements, while their penchant for laid-back Daniel Johnston vocals and warbly lo-fi riffs more closely resembles the classic college rock of Pavement and Built to Spill”
– NOW Toronto (On ‘Songs from the Near Bleak Future’)“Your 33 Black Angels are known for frenetic, unpredictable shows. the interlocking guitars sometimes surged into what seemed like an eternal groove”
– Washington Post (live review)LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/your33blackangels
https://y33ba.bandcamp.com
https://twitter.com/y33ba
https://www.instagram.com/y33ba
https://soundcloud.com/y33ba
https://itunes.apple.com/bn/artist/your-33-black-angels/271047566 -
Berries – Wild Vow
Berries recent single sees the band further explore their unique take on riff-driven rock with even more grit and confidence. “Wild Vow” boasts big riffs and choruses and further highlights the clever musicianship, weaving guitar and bass lines and well thought out drum patterns that this exciting three-piece are becoming known for.
The band has had an infectious buzz around them ever since they dropped their first release “Lights” last year, followed by singles “Waiting” and “Siren”. Their tracks immediately caught the attention of BBC London Introducing and they were hastily invited into the studio for an interview with Gary Crowley who openly showed his support for the band urging listeners to “keep an ear and an eye out for them as they have a lot of promise!” The band’s tracks have also received regular airplay by Jim Gellatly and Shell Zenner on Amazing Radio, Tom Robinson on BBC 6 Music and John Kennedy on Radio X.
Following the release of their debut EP Those Funny Things the band was approached by a member of Fender’s A&R team who expressed his interest in their unique and energetic playing style. They were endorsed with new gear and included in a playlist of Fender’s ‘Top 10 favorite new acts’ alongside Bryde and featured on Richer Unsigned. Their song “Siren” was then added to nationwide playlists in Richer Sounds stores, Samsung and Barclays. The band’s EP has been championed by Fred Perry Subculture, Gigslutz, Even the Stars and The Revue along with several other influential tastemakers and blogs. “Wild Vow” is their anticipated follow-up single.
The band has regularly featured on the Gigslutz girls show called ‘Get In Her Ears’ on Hoxton Radio and have also received great support from It’s All Indie who have mentioned them in in a recent interview giving a shout out to female musicians.
LINKS:
https://Soundcloud.com/Berriesband
https://Facebook.com/Berriesband
https://Twitter.com/Berriesbanduk
https://instagram.com/berriesband
https://Youtube.com/BerriesBand