Progressive indie rockers Coheed & Cambria return to Cleveland this week with special guests Porcupine Tree and The Dear Hunter. I really didn’t think I was going to make it to this show but a pair of tickets landed in my lap and there is no way I am going to miss seeing them. Having been to multiple Coheed shows over the years I know they never fail to impress. Looking forward to seeing Porcupine Tree finally as well as taking in The Dear Hunter.
Matt Freeman (sporting the hat in the pic to the left) is releasing a full length Devils Brigade album!!!!!! As a long time Rancid/Hellcat fan I am just thrilled to have heard this. The album will drop at the end of August and a tour will follow. With any luck he will be playing a show in Cleveland. One can only hope!
Matt Freeman is without a doubt one of my favorite bassists out there. Having played with Op Ivy as well as Auntie Christ his most known material is of course with Rancid. He and Tim Armstrong have actually been friends since they were little kids so it is no wonder that their musical careers have revolved around one another.
Devils Brigade was just a side project with a song released here and there but until now Matt Freemon never took the time to record his own album. See below on the following Epitaph press release about this exciting news!
RANCID’S MATT FREEMAN GOES UPRIGHT FOR NEW DEVILS BRIGADE ALBUM
Celebrated Bay Area punk legend Matt Freeman of Rancid and Operation Ivy fame will release the long awaited, self-titled debut album for his side project Devils Brigade on August 31 via Hellcat Records. The bass player has assimilated a touring band to join him this fall when they hit the road with labelmates Street Dogs on a US tour.
Devils Brigade was conceived in 2000, when bassist Matt Freeman began writing songs with Tim Armstrong between Rancid tours. This led to a few EPs and some songs on Hellcat’s Give Em The Boot compilation, but the project was put on the back burner when Rancid began touring and recording again. Years went by and after Rancid took a break from touring on the Let The Dominoes Fall record, Matt got the itch to reactivate the project with a new studio album.
“The original concept for this record was going to be a musical,” says Freeman. “Tim had been kicking around an idea of doing a musical about the building of the Golden Gate Bridge. He had the title “Half Way To Hell Club.” This was based on the name for the bridge workers who fell off the bridge while it was being built and fell into the safety net that was between them and the ocean. We grew up in the East Bay looking at that bridge and it has always been a part of our lives. Six of those songs ended up on the Devils Brigade record. The other songs were all original Devils Brigade songs from the first demo. We thought they were still good and we should record them again.”
In early 2010, Matt and Tim entered the studio with DJ Bonebrake from the influential punk group X and recorded twelve quick tempered songs featuring Matt’s signature, snarling vocals along with his snap, thumping upright bass, which shine through on roots driven punk tracks like “I’m Moving Through,” “Who’s Gonna Save Your Now” and “My Own Man Now.”
“It was a great vibe in the studio,” Matt adds. “The record has a real live and loose vibe. Loose in a good way. Tim’s guitar style blended really well with DJ and everything clicked very quickly. We had a lot of fun making this record. I am going to take it out on the road whenever I can when Rancid is not doing anything.”
Check out this powerful video from Set Your Goals revolving around the greed that is polluting our future…
SET YOUR GOALS CALLS FANS TO ACTION IN NEW VIDEO
Bay Area Pop-punk band Set Your Goals has partnered up with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) to release a timely new video for their latest single “Gaia Bleeds” from the band’s Epitaph debut album This Will Be The Death Of Us. Set Your Goals is calling fans to action suggesting they make a donation to SSCS at seashepherd.org to help support their “Operation Gulf Rescue,” which is currently training volunteers for hazmat operations and conducting reconnaissance surveys of the disastrous oil spill.
The video calls out American greed and destructive wastefulness and features an angsty, adrenaline fueled performance by the band with facts on the devastation to planet earth.
Set Your Goals is currently orchestrating the pit on this summer’s Vans Warped Tour. Don’t miss one of the tour’s hottest bands!
Set Your Goals Tour Dates: July 13 – Mansfield, MA – Comcast Center (Warped Tour)
July 14 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake P.A.C. (Warped Tour)
July 15 – Scranton, PA – Toyota Pavilion (Warped Tour)
July 16 – Camden, NJ – Susquehanna Bank Center (Warped Tour)
July 17 – Uniondale, NY – Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (Warped Tour)
July 18 – Oceanport, NJ – Monmouth Park Racetrack (Warped Tour)
July 20 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion (Warped Tour)
July 21 – Virginia Beach, VA – Virginia Beach Amphitheatre (Warped Tour)
July 22 – Charlotte, NC – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater Charlotte (Warped Tour)
July 23 – St. Petersburg, FL – Vinoy Park (Warped Tour)
July 24 – West Palm Beach, FL – Cruzan Amphitheater (Warped Tour)
July 25 – Orlando, FL – Central Florida Fairgrounds (Warped Tour)
July 26 – Atlanta, GA – Lakewood Amphitheater (Warped Tour)
July 28 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center (Warped Tour)
July 29 – Milwaukee, WI – Marcus Amphitheater (Warped Tour)
July 30 – Detroit, MI – Comerica Park (Warped Tour)
July 31 – Tinley Park, IL – First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre (Warped Tour)
Aug 1 – Shakopee, MI – Canterbury Park (Warped Tour)
Aug 2 – Bonner Springs, KS – Sandstone Amphitheatre (Warped Tour)
Aug 5 – Calgary, AB – Race City Speedway (Warped Tour)
Aug 7 – Salt Lake City, UT – Utah State Fairgrounds (Warped Tour)
Aug 8 – Denver, CO – Invesco Field (Warped Tour)
Aug 11 – Pomona, CA – Pomona Fairplex (Warped Tour)
Aug 12 – Marysville, CA – Sleep Train Amphitheatre (Warped Tour)
Aug 13 – Nampa, ID – Idaho Center Amphitheatre (Warped Tour)
Aug 14 – George, WA – Gorge Amphitheater (Warped Tour)
Aug 15 – Hillsboro, OR – Washington County Fairgrounds (Warped Tour)
Brooklyn drum and bass (no, not techno) duo Hank & Cupcakes just dropped an impressive video for their cover of Joy Division‘s “She’s Lost Control”. The band recently dropped a 4 song self-titled EP showcasing their impressive style. It may sound like a whole lot more but it is only drum, bass, and vocals.
Yeah I know, another male female duo. Don’t be too quick to judge though.
Their take on the Joy Division track is worth checking out. I especially got a kick when the bassist Hank took the song into his own hands and added his own funk bass lines while Cupcakes mimicked Ian Curtis in a positive way. Good stuff. I’ll be looking into this rock act a little more…
I cannot believe it is June 22nd already. Summer is officially here and what better way to bring in the warm fun season than to jam out to some amazing music – but what exactly is out there to listen to? Luckily Atlanta act The Constellations have decided to drop their debut release titled Southern Gothic just in time to provide a great soundtrack for your summertime fun.
After two years in the making with assistance from producer Ben H. Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective), the eight piece act has released an album that mixes all the fun of bands like Outkast, MGMT, and the Gorillaz with almost a 90’s grunge / soul combination all while adding their own flair.
Honestly there really is no way to define a genre for this band as their songs range from rock to hip hop to pop – that is not necessarily a bad thing. Lacking consistency never sounded so good. Add in love for Tom Waits and guest appearances by Cee-Lo Green and Asher Roth, it is quite apparent this band is not a gimmick you are listening to.
“Setback” opened the release with a funky electronic jam heavy on the bass with lead vocalist Elijah Woods almost rapping over music that easily could be thought on something the Chemical Brothers might have created or even Fatboy Slim. This was the song that was brought to my attention to earlier in the year and needless to say it sparked my attention tremendously.
Not giving the idea that Southern Gothic might be only an electronic album came “Perfect Day” a relaxed and very cool sounding track reminiscent of good ol’ Gnarls Barkley. It’s only fair to mention Gnarls Barkley seeing as “Love Is A Murder” featured ½ of the act otherwise known as Cee-Lo Green who provided a monologue throughout the track. This was one of those songs that easily will stick to the minds of many and be broadcast all over the radio.
“December” was another track that just screamed to be played on the radio and sounded like a unreleased Broken Bells track. I could not help but think of how perfect the song would be for a going out on the town mix. “Take A Ride” proved to be another inebriated party track with the message to just raise hell starting at the barstool.
“We’re Here To Save The Day” sounded like a strange alliance between Beck and Eminem. Listening to Asher Roth supply a flow of heavy heard rhymes throughout it was apparent song clearly was out of place with the rest of the tracks yet was amusing to listen to. I also could not help but wonder why Asher Roth was almost blatantly shown the spotlight on the song while earlier Cee-Lo barely crept through his spoken word of sorts.
“Step Right Up” was by far my favorite track on the album as it was a clear tribute to Mr. Tom Waits. The song was a completely off the beaten path revolving around one of my favorite artists of the 70’s. Keeping with the iconic storytelling individual this song also keeps the funk moving around for almost ten minutes. I can not see everyone getting a kick out of this song but something tells me this is one of those songs best seen live.
“Remurder Is A Lovemix” was a soulful piece with the commonly heard advice “if you really wanna live, you gotta be ready to die”. I enjoyed this song with Elijah Woods changing up his singing style as well as the random distorted guitar solo that jumped in the middle of the track.
Southern Gothic is a gallant release by a group of musicians who seemingly refused to keep their material contained. Usually the result of something of this nature could be disastrous but The Constellations manage to pull it off in a great way. Already turning heads at SXSW and Bonnaroo the band continues to tour and will be making a stop at Lollapalooza. Do yourself a favor and make sure that Southern Gothic is part of your playlist one way or another this summer. This band will be going places, I know it.
