Tuesday 9/17
Revocation and Voivod with Conjurer at the Fine Line – TICKETS
Revocation
Pushing both the death metal and progressive elements of their signature sound harder than ever, The Outer Ones (2018) represents Revocation at their boldest, most aggressive and most complex. “I knew that I wanted to go in a darker direction, and this is our most death metal album to date,” states vocalist/guitarist Dave Davidson. “Sometimes when death metal bands go down the prog route they lose some of that edge, but we wanted to keep the aggression at the forefront of what we do while still pushing our boundaries.”
Voivod
The only predictable thing about Canadian cosmic-metal warriors Voivod is that they will forever be unpredictable. On the warpath for more than 35 years, Voivod have pushed their sound relentlessly forward, constructing imaginative musical realms with each endeavor. They literally changed the face of thrash metal in the ‘80s, forged new prog-metal ground in the ‘90s, and kept up with changing times and lineups in the 2000s with fresh, inspired music.
Conjurer
The future of British extreme progressive metal lies in safe hands with the debut LP from Conjurer – Mire (2018). A stunning listen, combining Opeth at their heaviest and most dynamic, Mastodon at their earliest, Gojira at their most venomous, Mire is a step up from a young band who are already being championed as ones to watch.
Wednesday 9/18
Leslie Stevens at the Icehouse – TICKETS
Awarded “Best Country Singer” in the LA Weekly’s 2018 Best Of, you can feel Leslie Stevens’ voice reach the nails in the doorframe. She spins a high craft, with songs about donkeys and drinking and driving in heaven — and just when you thought she might light your living room on fire with a giggle, she’ll blast you through the skylight into outer space. The LA Times calls her “one of the city’s best” and Chris Ziegler (LA Record) explains that Leslie has “the kind of voice you’ll realize you’ve been waiting to hear since forever.” She’s sung on records by Jim James, Father John Misty, Jonathan Wilson, and live with Joe Walsh, Jackson Browne, and John Fogerty, as well as other musicians not beginning with the letter “J.” Brave lyrically and vulnerable in spirit: Leslie never shies away from laying down what’s what, if only to leave a mark on the most golden part of your soul.
Elizabeth Moen at the Entry – TICKETS
With a sultry and intoxicating voice, Elizabeth Moen lures you in. Paired with introspective lyrics that echo both bitter and sweet, her music will captivate you then stay with you. “Moen is one of those rare artists whose voice, from the first moment you hear it, consumes your entire being, doing away with all previous thoughts and concerns, and leaving you short of breath (The Culture Trip).”
On her sophomore LP A Million Miles Away, Moen tackles the complexities that coincide with the basic need for growth. At points lighthearted and somber, and even wry, her lyrics mirror what it’s like to be alive: to wake up each day and attempt to balance the myriad of emotions that go along with being human. In “Triple Scoop” this all perfectly comes together in relation to the age-old problem of sweet, melting ice cream meeting concrete (“Triple scoop sorbet splattered on the sidewalk / Bit of cherry pie hanging off your lip / Why wipe it away, it’s just you and me talking? You’re the cherry on top of my double chocolate chip”). Throughout the album’s eight songs, you are reminded that it’s possible (and ok!) to feel broken and carefree, nostalgic and hopeful, to be utterly content but still have an incredible sense of longing.
dodie at the Varsity Theater – TICKETS
dodie is a 22 year old singer songwriter from Epping, who has built her growing fanbase independently and organically since she was 16. Originally uploading music on YouTube, dodie has now released 2 EPs which have both charted in the UK, US Billboard, and Australian album charts. dodie is very open and engaging with her audience and has shared her personal life in the most deep manner possible. Sharing her experiences with mental health issues, discussing her sexuality as a bisexual, and growing up being bullied are some of the topics that she opens up about to everyone.
Thursday 9/19
Joe Pug & Dead Horses at the Fine Line – TICKETS
Joe Pug’s new record The Flood In Color is nearly four years in the making. But that betrays the fact that the making of the album was one of the most natural and rewarding processes of his career. Produced by Kenneth Pattengale of the Milk Carton Kids and engineered by Matt Ross-Spang the album started with the goal of focusing on the simplicity of musicians playing together, live, in the same room. Recently relocating back to his childhood home in Prince Georges County, Maryland after many years spent in Chicago and Austin, Pug wanted take a new approach.
Hailing from the fertile land of Wisconsin, Sarah Vos and Daniel Wolff met as youths who shared a similar sense of disenchantment after dropping out of college (and finding footing outside of their family’s evangelical rhetoric). Forging ahead on their own, acoustic instruments in hand, they haven’t looked back since meeting nearly a decade ago, and have traveled most of North American in the process.
Walker Lukens at the Entry – TICKETS
“For better or worse, I tried to make a record about how absurd it has felt to be alive over the past few years, that sounds like how its feels to build a life while the world you were promised changes,” says Walker Lukens, describing the premise behind his new album ADULT, out now via Modern Outsider Records. “I also wanted to make a record that made people dance…so, here ya go.”
Now on his third full-length release, the Austin, TX-based songwriter has become well known for embracing contradiction, “blending genres and techniques” (Billboard) into a sound that’s hard to pin down. American Songwriter called the new album “an exercise in making politically charged music that is also listenable.” World Cafe called his songs “wonderfully inventive,” while NPR Music featured him as an “Artist You Should Know,” saying “Lukens is loyal to only one category: excellence.”
“I’ve never wanted to be one of those songwriters who compartmentalizes what part of their lives comes out in their songs,” he says. “I wanted to deal with Trump, and Charlottesville, and the ‘Me Too’ movement alongside things like breaking up and falling in love.”
Friday 9/20
Hermitude at the Loft – TICKETS
Hermitude announce a massive World Tour, and aim for the stars with a daring new single, ‘Northern Lights feat. Soaky Siren and Vory’, which feels completely new and irresistibly familiar all at the same time.
’Northern Lights’ will lure you in with its light beginnings, and pull you under with it’s earth shattering drops, proving the trust their fans have put in them to deliver new music is well worth the wait. Sonically reminiscent of their mammoth single, ‘The Buzz’, which saw the Blue Mountains duo rise to International success, this fresh track signifies their most bright and brash release thus far. Flexing new sounds on previous singles ‘Stupid World’ and ‘Every Day’ allowed them to introduce more intimate and chillaxified aesthetics in their work, paving the way for this glorious, calamitous, momentous release… we have arrived and tbqh the track bangs hard.
Joining Hermitude on this track is co-writer Soaky Siren (US) and rapper Vory (US), courting each other in an old school lovers duet. Reaching new heights with each release, the duo have found inspiration from working with a myriad of vocalists on their new music.
Saturday 9/21
Cuco at First Avenue – TICKETS
Los Angeles artist Cuco (Omar Banos) is a 21-year-old self-taught, self-produced DIY solo indie pop producer, singer, songwriter and musician who first exploded on the scene in 2016 and has since become an international star in the making.
Cuco first broke out in summer 2016 via his self-released debut mixtape Wannabewithu (+72MM/Spotify), which features breakout singles “Lover Is a Day” and “Amor de Siempre.” Cuco released his follow-up mixtape Songs4u (+53MM/Spotify) in January 2017. In May 2017, Cuco released his breakthrough bilingual single “Lo Que Siento” (+44MM/Spotify), which catapulted him to internet stardom. Cuco’s discography also includes the self-released Chiquito EP (May 2018), which features the viral single “CR-V” and “Sunnyside,” the latter of which was named one of the best songs of 2018 by ‘The New Yorker.’
Why? at the Fine Line – TICKETS
Yoni Wolf has spent the last two decades traveling the remote sonic terrain where underground hip hop, avant-pop, and psych-rock meet. Some of Yoni’s most compelling and critically-praised musical experiments have been issued under the moniker WHY? and his latest entry is no exception. On AOKOHIO Yoni condenses the essential elements of WHY? into a stunningly potent musical vision.
Co-produced by Yoni and his brother Josiah, AOKOHIO presents a rich palette of musical voices that emerge and disappear into a constantly shifting kaleidoscope of sound. “I wanted a wide variety of sounds. I didn’t want this album to sit in one sonic zone. I’ve always felt like too jagged of a person to be smooth in that way,” Yoni says. While the album features many notable guest contributors, from Lala Lala’s Lillie West, to Nick Sanborn and Amelia Meath of Sylvan Esso, the listener’s attention remains squarely directed on Yoni’s voice and vision.
Beyond Creation at Whiskey Junction – TICKETS
Feel the onrush of sweeping arpeggios, crushing waves of fretless bass, complex rhythmical patterns and erupting scales peppered with jazzy feeling and masterful execution under the mark of ‘Algorythm’, which names the third full-length of BEYOND CREATION.
The French part of Canada is home to a vibrant culture of technical Death Metal fostered by outstanding acts such as GORGUTS, CRYPTOPSY, MARTYR, and NEURAXIS. This illustrious family tree has produced many sprouts in the past, yet none of them are as brilliant as Quebec’s amazing scion: BEYOND CREATION!
In 2018, BEYOND CREATION recorded their highly-anticipated third album ‘Algorythm’ at The Grid Studio in home land Canada, which is set for release on October 12th, 2018. With the new album, BEYOND CREATION delivers a ferocious blend of technicality, melody, and brutality aided by fang-filled growls, which is interwoven with beautiful progressive interludes. Prepare for the lightning evolution of the progressive technical death metal revolution!
Rebel Queens at Music Under The Stars – EVENT INFO
Rebel Queens is out to have a good time and they want to take you along for the ride. Established in 2011, Rebel Queens is a high-energy all female rock ‘n’ roll band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The band was formed by Tiffany Beamer (Lead Vocals) after delving into the musical catalog and inspirations of the 70’s all-girl band, The Runaways.
The latest Rebel Queens EP, Wild Ride, was released on CD (available at Know Name Records Mpls) and all digital platforms on August 30th, 2019. The tracks on this sophomore release weave more intricate melodies along with lyrics that speak to the significance of music and finding your place in the universe with the poetic thoughts of an off-beat late-night bar-dwelling musician that thrives on cynically discussing the meaning of life. It’s a Wild Ride to the other side, but music soothes the soul.
The EP’s single, “Hey Yeah” is a bad-ass classic rock influenced summer jam that calls upon nature to “Save my soul.” The “Hey Yeah” music video was filmed on the street and childhood home of Tiffany (lead vox). The video features a variety of characters and their chosen wild rides, mostly classic cars & motorcycles.
Sunday 9/22
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets at the Turf Club – TICKETS
Take the trail out of Perth via Leederville and keep on driving, and you might just stumble across an old horse shed – one where weirdness roams free. Across the bridge from said shed, house parties rage until the early hours and beyond, while around the corner there’s a sky-high pile of trash that acts as a makeshift home for the local rat population. It’s here, amongst jam sessions that would last six-hours plus, that the wacky, sprawling sound of Psychedelic Porn Crumpets was born.
“It had a tin roof, so it was really nice when it rained,” reveals the band’s frontman and ringleader Jack McEwan – an idyllic image that’s quickly scrawled over when he recounts a tale of said roof tearing off in the wind one night. “I used to have to wake up at 3am and spray myself with bug spray,” he adds with a shrug. Composing songs on an old, out-of-tune piano, and hooking up projectors to their amps to beam warped imagery around the clapped-out barn, their wonky approach to music-making took root amongst the hay. “We got too many noise complaints,” he admits, revealing that they’ve since decamped to a seaside home where they can make as much racket as they please. “It got into fine territory, but I don’t think we ever paid one, so it’s fine.”
Ziggy Alberts at the Cedar – TICKETS
Ziggy Alberts is a singer-songwriter who gives new meaning to the term independent artist. At only 24 years old he has released five records, started his own label Commonfolk Records, played sold out tours across the world, and his music has effortlessly amassed millions of listeners, worldwide.
Musically Ziggy’s folk hewn sound has raised comparisons to the likes of early Ben Howard or Jack Johnson. Like these contemporaries, Ziggy creates honest and personal music that explore his relationships both with others and the planet – a subject close to Ziggy’s heart as a surfer and environmental enthusiast.
In 2018, Ziggy released his fifth record Laps Around The Sun which was premiered on Billboard Magazine and was ‘Feature Album of the Week’ on triple j. In the first week after its release, the album charted to #2 on the ARIA Australian Artist Album Charts.
