VIX 20 return to Goosewing Music with the punchy new single “Try Again”. Following in the wake of previous power pop outings “Digital Age” and “Hashtag Change”, “Try Again” harnesses the thrills of rough-edged seventies pub rock songwriting and turbocharges it with twenty-first-century punk energy.
A complete back to roots for Vix after the electronica of their last single ‘Tron Takes the Train’. This was the first song CJ and Mills wrote together which paved the way for Vix 20 incarnation. The track was originally due out in April but Keyworker commitments kept the boys away from music and now more than ever ‘Try Again’ takes on a deeper relevance although originally penned as an homage to ‘Dammed if you do, dammed if you don’t’ keep patient, and try again!
Vix20 is Gary Mills and CJ, two music industry veterans who grew so disillusioned with the state of every element of the music industry that they both walked away vowing not to return…fast forward a few years, now rejuvenated, though no less prickly about the Modern Age, they return, to quote the band themselves, “we’re hard rockers turned to the dark side of pop”
LINKS:
https://www.vix20.com
https://www.instagram.com/vixtwenty
https://www.facebook.com/vixtwentymusic
https://twitter.com/Vixtwenty
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuPABFfRP8fWPKkp6mA9Kkw
https://open.spotify.com/artist/01fEKKUsAN1pp9jguVrTQG?si=0cMw1OI6R6mM2iO_42M6sw
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Beauty In Chaos Ft. Al Jourgensen – 20th Century Boy
While Ministry is mid-way through their current North American tour, frontman Al Jourgensen, together with LA-based Beauty in Chaos, have unveiled their new video for ’20th Century Boy’. This is one of 14 brilliant tracks found on the debut album ‘Finding Beauty in Chaos’.
This album, which was released via the LA-based label 33.3 Music Collective on vinyl and CD on November 30, features nearly 80 minutes of music, curated by guitarist Michael Ciravolo on deluxe CD and limited-edition heavyweight, colored vinyl.
“The Beauty in Chaos project is a tribute to both community and family and what I think is lacking in the music industry these days. It’s an honor to be a part of this great line up! At 60, I never thought I’d be singing “I’m your Boy, I’m your fucking Toy”, but maybe all the AARP discounts are helping me stay young,” says Al Jourgensen.
Born of frustration and creativity, this project an audio assemblage curated by LA-based guitarist Michael Ciravolo and produced by Ministry’s Grammy-nominated producer Michael Rozon at Ciravolo’s own SAINTinLA Studio.
Originally from New Orleans and now based in LA, Michael Ciravolo has played guitar in Human Drama for the past 30 years, most recently on ‘Broken Songs for Broken People’ (2017). Perhaps best known as President of Schecter Guitar Research, he has also played live and recorded with Michael Aston’s Gene Loves Jezebel since 1998.
The debut album ‘Finding Beauty in Chaos’ also numerous other music luminaries, including Wayne Hussey (The Mission), Simon Gallup (The Cure), Robin Zander (Cheap Trick), Pete Parada (The Offspring), dUg Pinnick (Kings X), ICE-T (Body Count), Michael Aston (Gene Loves Jezebel), Michael Anthony (Van Halen), Dirk Doucette (Gene Loves Jezebel), Ashton Nyte (The Awakening), Pando (A Flock of Seagulls), Evi Vine, Betsy Martin (Caterwaul / Purr Machine), Marc Danzeisen (The Riverdogs), Kevin Kipnis (Purr Machine / Kommunity FK), Rudy Matchinga (Red Scare), Johnny Indovina (Human Drama), and Tish Ciravolo (StunGun/ Daisy Rock Guitars).
“I initially met Al while we were recording his vocals for this song, and our shared interest in Jaguar cars and old country music (and wine) sparked a wonderful friendship. He offered me the opportunity to engineer and mix the last Ministry record ‘Amerikkkant’. Quite an honor for me as I view Al as a true architect of sound. We are on track to record the new Ministry record in February 2019,” says Michael Rozon.
Earlier the band previewed the singles ‘Man of Faith’ feat. Wayne Hussey of The Mission and Simon Gallup of The Cure, as well as ‘Storm’ feat. Ashton Nyte (The Awakening, MGT) and ‘Look Up’ feat. Tish Ciravolo.
The video for ‘20th Century Boy’ was produced by Industrialism Films and directed by Vicente Cordero, who says, “Working again with Beauty In Chaos and Michael is always a pleasant adventure. Out of the 3 videos we have done, each has been a completely different visual approach specifically designed for each song. When we made the video we wanted to go with a raw feel so we decided to film in a seedy bar and have a high energy performance, and Al Jourgensen and BIC did deliver”.
“This was a song I always wanted to cover and finding out Al was also a T. Rex fan turned on the light for me to do this,” explains Michael Ciravolo. “Ironically, my now wife Tish and I’s first real date was seeing MINISTRY at Lollapalooza in ’92. They were simply brutal and what a sonic assault! We both became big fans. Fast-forward 25 years and Al is sitting in my studio singing and blowing harp on this song! Tish and I share the stage with him in this video were pretty special and it shows that you never know where life will take you”.
‘Finding Beauty in Chaos’ is available on CD and digitally, including on iTunes, Spotify, and Bandcamp. CDs and vinyl can be ordered from the Beauty in Chaos website at https://www.beautyinchaosmusic.com/music-store.
SINGLE CREDITS
Al Jourgensen – vocals
Michael Ciravolo – guitars
Michael Rozon – live drums and bass guitar
Written by Michael Ciravolo and Tish Ciravolo
Recorded, mixed and produced by Michael Rozon
Album artwork by Sarah SheriffLINKS:
https://www.beautyinchaosmusic.com
https://www.beautyinchaosmusic.com/bic-blog
https://www.facebook.com/beautyinchaosmusic
https://www.instagram.com/beauty.inchaos
https://twitter.com/MichaelCiravolo
https://soundcloud.com/33-3-music-collective
https://beautyinchaos.bandcamp.com -
Dragon Welding – The Builders
Andrew Golding, the founding member of C86 pioneers The Wolfhounds, presents his debut solo album under the moniker (a.k.a. anagram) Dragon Welding. Ahead of this, he previewed the lead track ‘The Builders’. The timing for this release is perfect, with The Wolfhounds set to return to record new material somewhat soon.
‘Dragon Welding’ is Golding’s first solo album and a remarkable effort, covering different genres, including alternative pop rock and indie-folk. As guitarist, writer, and multi-instrumentalist, Andrew Golding has been a part of Wolfhounds since 1984 and has written, played and sung on every Wolfhounds album.
‘The Builders’ is an epic six-minute hypnotic journey à la Moonshake. It is about the gentrification of our cities. Andrew Golding himself also animated the accompanying video for this song.
Musically, Dragon Welding features a rich blend of influences, the most obvious being The Wolfhounds and Moonshake, with nods to Neu! and Stereolab drone, particularly on ‘The Builders’. Other tracks like ‘The Dumb’ or the driving ‘These Are Dangerous Times’ offer an eclectic mix of acoustic guitars and analog synths, reminiscent of German cult band The Notwist.
The ‘Dragon Welding’ LP was largely written, recorded, mixed and edited on mobile devices whilst commuting between Essex, Hammersmith, and Los Angeles. Final mastering was supervised by Ant Chapman (Collapsed Lung and Arndales).
This debut LP features contributions from Alice Golding (The Othyrs and Wolfhounds backing vocals) and son James Golding. The album’s cover artwork was conceived and painted by his wife Helen.
As of March 15, this album can be found everywhere digitally via A Turntable Friend Records with distribution worldwide by SRD (London, UK). The download comes with a digital booklet including lyrics. It will also be available as a limited-edition 11-track gatefold CD via Bandcamp and Limited Run.
LINKS:
http://aturntablefriendrecords.limitedrun.com/products/635026-dragon-welding-dragon-welding
https://www.facebook.com/dragonweldingmusic
https://dragonwelding.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/TheWolfhounds
https://twitter.com/TheWolfhounds -
Julian Shah-Tayler – Secret
Julian Shah-Tayler has just released the video for his single titled ‘Secret’. Already a solid song in its own right, the video perfectly compliments the song with brisk and styled imagery that visually keeps the beat and punctuates the rhythm and perfectly compliments the song properly.
I have to be honest, while this song and video really makes me want to break my quarantine and go out and have a good time, it also gives me the energy that I needed to keep me strong because now I feel like I am out or, at least, having a good time. Thank you Julian.
ABOUT JULIAN SHAH-TAYLER
Julian Shah-Tayler, aka The Singularity, from Leeds, England currently living in LA, is back with the video for his latest single “Secret” released July 17, 2020. Shah-Tayler explained, “This is a song about heading out into the night of clubs and celebration. Forgetting all of our troubles and tripping the light fantastic as nightlife starts to flourish again…I’ve got this feeling in my bones that we are never going home.”
“Secret” was filmed by Alex Tovar in Barstow haunted railway stop. It was written, produced, and performed by Shah-Tayler and recorded in Los Angeles, CA. Additional production by Robert Margouleff (Depeche Mode, Devo, Stevie Wonder).
LINKS:
https://www.julianshahtayler.com
https://www.instagram.com/the_singularity_music
https://www.facebook.com/thesingularitymusic
https://www.youtube.com/user/thesingularityband