The Damned became the very first British punk band to release a single, “New Rose,” on October 22, 1976, which was followed by the release of the first British punk album, their classic debut long-player ‘Damned Damned Damned,’ originally released by Stiff Records on February 18, 1977.
Now, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the band’s dramatic breakthrough, BMG will release a very special Art Of The Album deluxe edition of that incredible debut album on February 17, almost exactly 40 years to the day since its original issue.
Formed in 1976, The Damned really need no introduction… As well as releasing the first ever British punk single and album, they also broke further new ground as the first UK punk act to tour America. The Damned still receive their dues in the US, where they are often cited as a major influence on many future rock acts, including bastions of the nascent US hardcore scene such as Black Flag and Bad Brains plus heavy metal heavyweights such as Green Day, The Offspring and Guns ’N’ Roses (the LA rockers acknowledged the debt when they covered “New Rose” on their 1993 album ‘The Spaghetti Incident’).
In the recording studio (Pathway Studios) alongside producer Nick Lowe in late 1976, the band – David Vanian (vocals), Captain Sensible (bass), Brian James (guitar) and Rat Scabies (drums) - produced an alchemic, heady new British rock sound; a menacing mix of tough New York punk rock (chief songwriter Brian James was an early-adopter with a passion for The Ramones that quickly fed through to his bandmates) and Detroit sleaze - the album ends with a cover of The Stooges’ “1970,” here renamed “I Feel Alright”.
These predominantly American influences were mixed with a subtle flourish of late-60s British psychedelia and a dash of gothic Hammer Horror for good measure (perhaps inspired by frontman David Vanian’s pre-punk career as a grave-digger?), already pointing to acclaimed future directions for the band. The album was neatly spearheaded by a brace of classic punk singles in the aforementioned “New Rose” and the blistering follow-up “Neat Neat Neat”. As the album’s sleeve famously (and correctly) states, this is music; “Made to be played loud at low volume”!
The influential classic debut is celebrated here in BMG’s new ‘Art of The Album’ series, featuring fully remastered audio and new sleevenotes within both the CD & LP formats recalling the story of the band’s conception and the album’s creation. Comprehensively researched and written by legendary punk writer John Ingham, these new sleevenotes cover in-depth the story of the album & the period in which it was written & recorded, the key players in its creation, the craft and instrumentation, the impact upon release and its legacy 40 years later.
Via exclusive interviews with original band members Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible, Brian James and Rat Scabies, John Ingham (best known for writing the first ever review of The Damned and the first ever interview with The Sex Pistols - both in UK music weekly ‘Sounds’ in 1976) is perfectly placed to recount the early hedonistic days of the band in this definitive release of one of the most influential albums of all time.
In the age of immediacy, accessibility, streaming and a la carte downloads, the concept of an album or long player has become somewhat lost. ‘The Art of The Album is a new series looking to refocus the attention on the album as a format. With a collection of seminal and classic LPs, the Art of The Album series will celebrate albums that broke new ground in concept, production, song writing and genre, leaving a lasting legacy as a complete album work of art.
Talking
today of the album’s recording, Captain Sensible reflects, “’Damned
Damned Damned’ was almost ‘un-produced’ by our Stiff stablemate Nick
Lowe, who managed to capture the energy of our live set spectacularly.
Nick was known as ‘Basher’ as there was no messing about. It’s fairly
manic, but also tuneful and, listened to now, still sounds pretty fresh
to my ears…. The guitars don’t sound nice – they’re a raw, fuzzed-out
thrash – that’s punk rock. Pathway was a rough and ready studio round
the back of an Islington garage. It was so dark and dingy in there –
you had to be careful or you’d knock your beer over. The sessions took
two days, after which the tape was recycled for an Elvis Costello album
so there’s no chance of a remix… Not that you’d want one – it’s
perfect!”
The Damned (David Vanian, Captain Sensible, Monty
Oxymoron, Andrew 'Pinch' Pinching, and Stu West) embark on an extensive
world tour this spring, including a two month North American run,
returning to play a series of UK festivals in the summer (check the
band's website
for details).
They also headed into the studio this winter to start
work on a brand new album, their first since 2008's 'So, Who's
Paranoid?' A pre-order link for the CD, colored vinyl, as well as
exclusive merch (and experiences) is available at PledgeMusic. Stay tuned for more info.
Track listing:
01. Neat Neat Neat
02. Fan Club
03. I Fall
04. Born To Kill
05. Stab Yor Back
06. Feel The Pain
07. New Rose
08. Fish
09. See Her Tonite
10. 1 of The 2
11. So Messed Up
12. I Feel Alright
Tour dates:
April 6 - Los Angeles, CA - Belasco Theater <<<
April 7 - San Diego, CA - House Of Blues ***
April 8 - Anaheim, CA - House Of Blues ***
April 9 - Las Vegas, NV - House Of Blues ***
April 11 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore ***
April 12 - Sacramento, CA - Ace Of Spades ***
April 14 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom ***
April 15 - Vancouver, BC - The Commodore ***
April 16 - Seattle, WA - The Showbox ***
April 18 - Salt Lake City, U - The Depot ***
April 19 - Denver, CO - Summit Music Hall ***
April 21 - St. Louis, MO - Delmar Hall ***
April 22 - Minneapolis, MN - Fine Line ***
April 23 - Chicago, IL - House Of Blues ***
April 24 - Louisville, KY - Mercury Ballroom ***
April 26 – Indianapolis, IN - Deluxe at Old National Ctr. ***
April 27 - Cincinnati, OH - Bogart’s ***
April 28 - Cleveland, OH - House Of Blues ***
April 29 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrews Hall ^^^
April 30 - Toronto, ON - Phoenix Theatre ^^^
May 2 - Montreal, QC - Club Soda ^^^
May 4 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club ^^^
May 5 - Brooklyn, NY - Warsaw ^^^
May 6 - Asbury Park, NJ - Stone Pony ^^^
May 7 - Philadelphia, PA - TLA ^^^
May 9 - Baltimore, MD - Sound Stage ^^^
May 11 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade/Heaven ^^^
May 12 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House Of Blues ^^^
May 13 - St, Petersburg, FL – State Theater ^^^
May 14 - Fort Lauderdale, FL - Revolution ^^^
May 16 - New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues ^^^
May 17 - Houston, TX - House Of Blues ^^^
May 18 - Dallas, TX - House Of Blues ^^^
May 19 - Austin, TX - Mohawk Outdoors ^^^
May 21- Phoenix, AZ - Marquee Theater ^^^
<<< w/ Alice Bag & The Sissy Bears
*** w/ Bleached
^^^ w/ The BellRays
This release sounds intriguing. Read more from the press release below...
Before touring with Dave Davies (the Kinks) and becoming bassist for the Bangles in 2008, Derrick Anderson (with the Andersons!) romped throughout Los Angeles from 1995-2004 flashing an energized, cheeky brand of pop/rock. But finally, it’s time for Derrick to arrive as a solo artist.
A World of My Own, out April 1 on Omnivore Recordings, draws inspiration from the Cavern Club, Brill Building and Laurel Canyon, and the album’s 13 songs feature guest performances from an array of kindred spirits. A World of My Own opens with the upbeat “Send Me Down a Sign” and heavy-hitting “Waiting for You,” which feature backing by the Smithereens (Pat Dinizio, Jim Babjak, Dennis Diken, and Severo Jornacion).
The sonic punch of “Waiting for You” is heightened by a panoramic mix from producer Ed Stasium. Renowned for his work with the Ramones, the Smithereens and Talking Heads, Stasium mixed two additional tracks on A World of My Own: the party-driven “Stop Messin’ About” and a wild-and-woolly cover of the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown).”
“Happiness” features stinging guitar lines by Matthew Sweet, while “A Mother’s Love” showcases incomparably lush vocals by Bob, John, and Susan Cowsill. “When I Was Your Man” combines the Bangles’ guitarist Vicki Peterson and drummer Debbi Peterson with Kim Shattuck (the Muffs, the Pandoras) on guitar and vocals. The Bangles’ Susanna Hoffs joins the Peterson sisters for backing vocals on two other songs: “Something New” and “Spring” — the latter also reuniting him with the Andersons!: guitarists Robby Rist-Anderson and Wil O’Brien-Anderson, and drummer Marc Joseph-Anderson.
According to Derrick Anderson, “I have to say, it's a beautiful thing to have such talented friends orbiting in my musical universe that I could call on once I started making this album. It was a long time coming, waiting for folks to 'turn in their homework' as it were, but I couldn't be more pleased with the results. Vicki Peterson (Bangles) listened to the record in its entirety and called it ‘timeless’ which was such a fantastic compliment, especially coming from her!”
With a chance to share the entire range of his talents in his debut, full-length album, and the help of the great friends in his extended musical “orbit,” Anderson invites you to extend your landing gear, scan the horizon and explore A World of My Own..
Track Listing:
1. Send Me Down a Sign
2. Waiting for You
3. You Don’t Have To Hurt No More
4. Something New
5. Phyllis & Sharon
6. Happiness
7. Checking Out
8. A Mother’s Love
9. My Prediction
10. Stop Messin’ About
11. When I Was Your Man
12. Spring
13. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)*
*bonus track
The debut album release from LA-based alt-rock band Dreamers, "This Album Does Not Exist" is out now from Fairfax Recordings/Hollywood Records. The singles “Sweet Disaster” and "Drugs" have already been unleashed.
Front man Nick Wold lived in a rehearsal studio for years, showering at a local gym and writing hundreds of songs. He recruited bassist Nelson and drummer, Jacob Wick, settled on the moniker Dreamers and began releasing tracks into the world with their independently released self-titled debut EP.
Breakout single "Wolves (You Got Me)", landed in rotation on Sirius XM's AltNation, and sat in the taste-making AltNation Top 18 Charts for months, all based on fan-votes. This sudden exposure in 2015 landed them not only a support slot on the Stone Temple Pilots run, but also a recording contract with Fairfax Recordings/ Hollywood Records.
The band has continued to see strong support from AltNation, with their current single, "Sweet Disaster," already receiving early spins from a host of other stations. It was top 10 most added at Alternative Radio in it's first week.
Co-produced by Kevin Augunas (Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Cold War Kids) and recorded at Fairfax Recordings Studios (formerly Sound City), "This Album Does Not Exists" marks the bands first full length effort and follows two EPs.
"This was a dream come true for us, as [Fairfax] is the studio where some of our favorite artists recorded: Tom Petty, Neil Young, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, and so many others," guitarist/vocalist Nick Wold tells Billboard. "The last year and a half has been a surreal journey, from a self induced houselessness, living in a practice space in Brooklyn for 2 years, to circling the US four times in a small van, seeing countless cities and meeting incredible people everywhere we went. It gave us a new perspective as a band, and we finally left our comfort zone to embrace movement and change. 'This Album Does Not Exist' is a blurred culmination of all our strange influences and varied experiences. I guess you could call it our dreams."
Their live show has seen them circle round the United States upwards of five times and open for the likes of Young Rising Sons, Atlas Genius, Zella Day and Brazilian Girls, as well as making their festival debut at Lollapalooza 2016 in Chicago. The band were on the road last fall with The Mowgli's and Colony House.
An upcoming tour supporting The Griswolds runs from Feb. 8 in Seattle to mid-March in Denver.
Depeche Mode has released much anticipated new single “Where’s The Revolution.”
Listen here: http://smarturl.it/WTRaudio.
First teased by Depeche Mode during their press conference in Milan this past fall, “Where’s The Revolution” is the first new music from the band in four years and the first offering from their upcoming album, Spirit.
Available now for pre-order, Spirit will be released digitally and physically worldwide as a standard 12 track album on March 17 on Columbia Records. The band will also release a 2-CD Deluxe version of the album featuring a special 28-page booklet of exclusive artwork and photos, along with 5 remixes created by Depeche Mode, Matrixxman and Kurt Uenala, collectively entitled the ‘Jungle Spirit Mixes’.
The vinyl version of Spirit will be released on two 180 gram LPs, featuring the standard album and a special SPIRIT etching on the 4th side. All artwork and photographs accompanying the album are by Depeche Mode’s longtime creative collaborator and renowned filmmaker Anton Corbijn.
Pre-order Spirit from digital retailers here: smarturl.it/Spirit
Spirit marks the legendary British band’s first collaboration with producer James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco (Foals, Florence & The Machine, Arctic Monkeys) and serves as the follow up to the band’s blockbuster 2013 album Delta Machine which debuted at #1 in 12 countries.
Singer Dave Gahan says of the release, "We are exceptionally proud of Spirit, and we look forward to sharing it with everyone. With James Ford and the rest of the production team, we've made an album that I believe is truly powerful, both in its sound and its message."
Depeche Mode will support the release of the LP with an extensive world tour, giving both new and lifelong fans alike a chance to experience the band’s stunning live shows. The first leg of the Global Spirit Tour, on sale now, will see the band play to over 1.5 million fans at 34 shows in 21 countries throughout Europe.
The tour kicks off May 5th in Stockholm, Sweden and will stop at stadiums across Europe before continuing beyond summer with shows in North and South America. For the full summer tour schedule and to sign up to receive announcements about upcoming tour dates, please visit www.depechemode.com.
Track list (standard):
Going Backwards
Where's the Revolution
The Worst Crime
Scum
You Move
Cover Me
Eternal
Poison Heart
So Much Love
Poorman
No More (This is the Last Time)
Fail
Track list (deluxe):
Disc 1
Going Backwards
Where's the Revolution
The Worst Crime
Scum
You Move
Cover Me
Eternal
Poison Heart
So Much Love
Poorman
No More (This is the Last Time)
Fail
Disc 2 – Jungle Spirit Mixes
1 Cover Me (Alt Out)
2 Scum (Frenetic Mix)
3 Poison Heart (Tripped Mix)
4 Fail (Cinematic Cut)
5 So Much Love (Machine Mix)
When The Replacements ended their 30+ show reunion tour in June 2015, founding bassist Tommy Stinson had a bunch of new songs.
So he holed up at his home studio in Hudson, NY and played solo tour dates with a group of notable players/friends backing him, including Luther Dickinson, Frank Ferrer, Cat Popper, Steve Selvidge, and Joe “The Kid” Sirois.
Over the next year and a half, they pieced together a new record. A band record. Never one to hog the spotlight, the only logical thing to do at this point was to reanimate Bash & Pop, the band Stinson started immediately following The Replacements first split in 1991.
Fat Possum Records quickly signed them up and just released their sophomore album. To commemorate the resurrection of Bash & Pop, Sire/Reprise also reissued the seminal 1993 debut album, Friday Night Is Killing Me, on vinyl for the first time.
“On The Rocks,” is the lead track from Anything Could Happen. The video, seen here (or below) features clips from the band’s last couple years, starting on Jan. 23, 2015 when Tommy first brought Luther Dickinson, Cat Popper and Frank Ferrer into the studio and culminating in their boisterous live experiences that the fans can expect to see over the coming months.
Says Stinson, “‘On The Rocks’ is one of the first songs that I penned for this record in the rock department. I’ve been writing a whole bunch of stuff over the last few years, and this is the one that I decided was going to be sort of the lead-in kind of song as far as how the record is going to sound.”
Track listing:
1. Not This Time
2. On The Rocks
3. Anything Could Happen
4. Breathing Room
5. Anybody Else
6. Can’t Be Bothered
7. Bad News
8. Never Wanted To Know
9. Anytime Soon
10. Unfuck You
11. Jesus Loves You
12. Shortcut
Upcoming tour dates:
2/28 – SEATTLE, WA – Chop Suey
3/1 – PORTLAND, OR – Doug Fir
3/3 – SACRAMENTO, CA – Harlow’s
3/4 – SAN JOSE, CA – The Ritz
3/5 – SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Swedish American Hall
3/7 – LOS ANGELES, CA – Troubadour
3/9 – SAN DIEGO, CA – Casbah
3/11 -- PHOENIX, AZ - Downtrown
3/13 – AUSTIN, TX – SXSW
Real Estate has confirmed details for their upcoming fourth LP – In Mind – out March 17 via Domino. Recorded in Los Angeles with Grammy-winning producer Cole M.G.N. (Beck, Snoop Dogg, Julia Holter), album opener “Darling” is available now along with accompanying music video, directed by Weird Days.
Listen/watch here and feel free to post: http://smarturl.it/DarlingVid
Since their last record – 2014’s Atlas – primary songwriter Martin Courtney became a father of two and moved to upstate New York, while bassist Alex Bleeker relocated to California. In addition, following the departure of co-founding member and lead guitarist Matt Mondanile in 2015, Courtney, Bleeker, drummer Jackson Pollis and keyboardist Matt Kallman welcomed longtime friend and New Jersey native Julian Lynch into the band as a full-time guitarist.
Atlas was a breakout release for the band. Apart from being one of the most lauded records of that year, it earned them performances on Letterman, Conan and CBS This Morning and their highest ever placement on the Billboard 200.
In addition to a spot at Coachella this Spring, Real Estate will tour extensively behind In Mind. See below.
In Mind will be available on CD, LP and digitally. An exclusive limited edition deluxe LP featuring heavyweight colored vinyl, gold foil imprinted packaging, and a slipmat, is available to pre-order from Domino Mart. iTunes pre-orders will come with an instant download of “Darling”.
Pre-order here: Dom Mart | iTunes
Track listing:
1. Darling
2. Serve The Song
3. Stained Glass
4. After The Moon
5. Two Arrows
6. White Light
7. Holding Pattern
8. Time
9. Diamond Eyes
10. Same Sun
11. Saturday
Tour dates:
April 5 – Saturn – Birmingham, AL +
April 6 – Republic – New Orleans, LA +
April 7 – Mohawk – Austin, TX +
April 8 – South Side Music Hall – Dallas, TX +
April 10 – recordBar – Kansas City, MO +
April 12 – Gothic Theater – Denver, CO +
April 13 – Urban Lounge – Salt Lake City, UT +
April 16 – Coachella – Indio, CA
April 18 – Rickshaw Theatre – Vancouver, BC
April 19 – Showbox – Seattle, WA
April 20 – Wonder Ballroom - Portland, OR
April 23 – Coachella – Indio, CA
May 5 – Royale – Boston, MA *
May 6 – Waking Windows – Winooski, VT
May 7 – Port City Music Hall – Portland, ME *
May 9 – Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ONT *
May 10 – Majestic Theatre – Detroit, MI *
May 12 – Vic Theatre – Chicago, IL *
May 13 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN *
May 15 – Lincoln Theatre – Raleigh, NC *
May 16 – 930 Club – Washington, DC *
May 17 – Brooklyn Steel – Brooklyn, NY *
May 19 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA *
June 13 - Roundhouse - London, UK
June 14 - Cafe de Le Danse - Paris, FR
June 15 - Orangerie - Brussels, BE
June 18 - Lido - Berlin, DE
June 19 - Molotov - Hamburg, DE
June 20 - Pumpehuset - Copenhagen, DK
June 21 - Debaser - Stockholm, SE
June 27 – The Junction 1 - Cambridge, UK
June 28 – O2 Ritz – Manchester, UK
June 30 – Vida Festival – Barcelona, ES
July 14-16 – Forecastle Festival – Louisville, KY
+ = with Mary Lattimore
* = with Frankie Cosmos
Now this sounds interesting: acts I've interviewed or reviewed live in the past hit the studio together...
BNQT, a band conceived and led by Eric Pulido of Midlake, have announced the release of their debut album 'Volume 1' on April 28 via Dualtone/Entertainment One.
The introductory set includes ten new, original songs and features five vocalists – Ben Bridwell of Band of Horses, Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, Fran Healy of Travis, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, and Pulido – who wrote and sing two tracks each, with backing from other Midlake members McKenzie Smith (drums), Joey McClellan (guitar) and Jesse Chandler (keys). ‘Volume 1’ was recorded and produced mostly at their studio in Denton, TX.
The concept of BNQT (pronounced “Banquet”) came to Pulido while touring for Midlake's 2013 release, 'Antiphon.' Gathering a number of contrasting yet complementary artists he’d befriended or shared the stage with, Pulido set out to establish a new creative environment untethered from other work – “Like a poor man’s version of the Traveling Wilburys!” he says.
"That's what art is about for me," Pulido continues, "creating with other people that you love and appreciate."
The idea for BNQT was enthusiastically embraced by all involved, but with the artists stretched across the globe, recordings were split both with travel to Denton and remotely over the net. Over a year and some change, songs grew from demos to fully realized recordings, with Pulido guiding the way, and encouraging the artists to stretch out into new, uncharted territory. The resulting work is full of surprises, a collection that feels oddly familiar and attractively alien.
For now, listen to album opener "Restart" and feel free to share: https://soundcloud.com/dualtone/restart-1
Track listing:
1. Restart
2. Unlikely Force
3. 100 Million Miles
4. Mind Of A Man
5. Hey Banana
6. Real Love
7. Failing at Feeling
8. L.A. On My Mind
9. Tara
10. Fighting The World
