It's been just about a year since the critically acclaimed debut Candy Bar Creep Show EP from the Brooklyn based girl/boy duo MS MR has been out yet I still haven't been able to pin-point the familiarity of their sound, have you? Kimbra? Florence and The Machine? The Joy Formidable? Grimes?
Wherever the vague resemblance lays I for one am excited to hear more on May 14th when Second Hand Rapture, the debut LP from MS MR is released!
Coinciding with their record release announcement "MS" Lizzy Plapinger and "MR" Max Hershenow are streaming “Fantasy,” a new track on their upcoming album. Candy Bar Creep Show is also streaming on the MS MR soundcloud along with bonus remixes from Twin Shadow, Charli XCX and Chet Faker.
Produced by "MR" Hershenow, with additional production/mix by Tom Elmhirst, Second Hand Raptureis comprised of 12 tracks including the band’s breakthrough single Hurricane, which was named “Best New Track” by Pitchfork and it's video has skyrocketed to over 1 million views!
In 2012 MS MR hit the road with Marina and the Diamonds and Grouplove and this summer this “refreshingly sincere new-wave style mood pop" band plan to tour through the release of their new album.
Hopefully we'll get treated to some more streaming new tracks before then!
A new year means new music!Here's a quick list of some albums on the 2013 horizon.
In 2011 The Joy Formidable debuted with their indie-pop/rock album The Big Roar and this year on January 22nd, the Welsh alternative indie-rock band will release their second full length album, Wolf's Law!
1) Closer
2) Goodbye Good Bye
3) I Was A Fool
4) I'm Not Your Hero
5) Drove Me Wild
6) How Come You Don't Want Me
7) I Couldn't Be Your Friend
8) Love They Say
9) Now I'm All Messed Up
10) Shock To Your System
+ 2 Bonus tracks
Some other January releases:
- Bad Religion January 21st
- Ra Ra Riot January 21st
Electronic music legend Fatboy Slim releases his latest album/DVD: Big Beach
Bootique 5, February 19th, featuring a full mix and live footage
from Fatboy Slim's performance at Brighton's Big Beach Bootique festival
last Summer.
Some other February releases:
- Unknown Mortal Orchestra February 5th
- Bullet For My Valentine February 12th
March
- David Bowie March 12th
- Smashing Pumpkins
The influential Swedish brother and sister duoThe Knifehave announced a new albumShaking The Habitual, to be released on April 9th, 2013! Shaking The Habitual will be their first album in seven years, sinceSilent Shoutin 2006!
M.I.A claims that the release of her new album Matangi slated
for release in December 2012 was shelved by her US record label for
being "too positive". M.I.A describes her next album, now slated for an April 15th release, as sounding like Paul Simon 'on acid' stating, "It's not 'I want to be trendy'. I
just want to make music that makes sense."
Yeah Yeah Yeahs have announced that Mosquito, their follow-up to their 2009 record It's Blitz! will be released this spring! TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek and Nick Launay helped to produce the seemingly diverse new album while LCD Sound System's James Murphy took the helm for one tune on Mosquito due out April 16th!
"I think this
record has more moodier and tripped-out songs than you've ever heard
from us." - Karen O
Phoenix has been hard at work on the album since 2011 which is believed to hopefully be released sometime in April 2013. Though the name of the next Phoenix album is still unclear TPC has been rumored as the title after some artwork on their website surfaced.
Rumored 2013 Releases
- The Black Keys
- Lady Gaga
- The Strokes
- The Airborne Toxic Event
- The Vines
- The Kills
- Daft Punk
- Sleigh Bells
- Justin Timberlake
My Dad introduced me to the vast variety of music from a very early age so it's really special to be able to see one of his favorites with him. I may not know the words to all of his songs but seeing Willie Nelson live leaves me speechless every time and March 15th, 2012 at The Fox Theater was no exception!
The Annual Oracle Open World Conference brought thousands of techies to San Francisco September 30th - October 4th and last year featured the first Oracle Open World Music Fest which was free for attendees! Suited in top hats, suspenders and coat tails The Hives' highly energetic and entertaining performance made for some awesome pictures and a great way to wrap up the week long conference.
8) The Hives @ The Fox Theater - September 10th, 2012
First of all I gotta say that Fidlar did a great job warming up the stage! The Hives filled their show with hits off of all 5 of their albums and their crazy stage antics, of course! I was entertained by the stage hands donning Ninja costumes, helped Pelle stay balanced as he teetered on the photo-pit barricades during one song (swoon) and just when I thought my night couldn't get any better I bumped into my Gotye mates who had played a show of their own at The Fox the night before! Surprise! Fun times!!
7) Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ Fort Mason - March 17th, 2012
When I heard Yeah Yeah Yeahs were going to be performing for the at The Creators Project in San Francisco I had to be there! The sound quality inside of the Festival Pavilion is not ideal for music but the Yeah Yeah Yeahs packed a full house cutting down the otherwise echoy acoustics. Screaming out: "I'd like to dedicate this song to motherfucking San Francisco," before starting their hit Maps Karen O dominated the stage in a red tasseled pant-suit and zebra-striped cape and captivated the audience throughout the short set.
I was beyond excited to score a ticket to day one of Outside Lands Music Festival this past summer and when Die Antwoord opened their set on the Twin Peaks Stage around 5:25pm with the very vulgar interlude to "Fok Julle Naaiers" on repeat: DJ Hi-Tek will f#ck you in the ass, DJ Hi-Tek will f#ck you in the ass, DJ Hi-Tek will f#ck you in the ass, f#ck you in the ass punk ass white boy...It. Was. Awesome.
Excited to see Poliça for months, I was lucky enough to make it into the sold out show at The Independent! Bands can sound great on an album but no so good live and visa versa or their live show may not do do their music justice, this was not the case with Poliça! Channy Leaneagh was a bombshell of beauty and power, the unblemished production found on Poliça's debut album was shockingly great on stage and Leaneagh's charming audience interaction was priceless.
The Regency Ballroom just about burst when Sleigh Bells stormed the stage and the sound system! Though "Regine of Terror" didn't live up to expectations Alexis Krauss, her "I don't give a flying f#ck" attitude and her male band mates had the place pulsating under nonstop strobe lights. After fifty minutes of loud, beat-heavy, metal-wrought anthems if you didn't spill out of this show deaf and glistening in sweat you weren't rocking out hard enough, bitch!
(Thank you for the tickets to this show Robin Rockwell)
3) Bloc Party @ The Fox Theater - December 6th, 2012
Bloc Party started their first tour in 3 years at The Fox Theater! The set included songs from each of their four albums and halfway trough it the boys transitioned from "Song for Clay" into their hit "Banquet" seemingly effortlessly and suddenly I was amongst a crowd savagely dancing and stomping it out, myself included. Kele had a lot of fan interaction through out the night which ended with not one en core but two!
It was the 2nd weekend of Coachella and the night started by watching The Black Keys on the main stage before Wally and his girlfriend asked if I wanted to watch M83 with them. Weaving through thousands of people across the polo fields in Indio hand in hand, we made it to the Mojave stage just as "Midnight City" started. Upon Wally's suggestion we moved closer to the front of the house in hopes of better sound quality and while meatheads and raver gals sang along to "Reunion" I closed my eyes to capture the moment; my first time at Coachella I watched M83 with the #1 artist in the states at the time, Gotye himself.
I have been a Madonna fan for as long as I can remember so when she announced the 2012 MDNA tour I didn't care how much I'd have to shell out for a ticket, I had to see her, it was a must. Honestly I am surprised I didn't cry when my Dad and I got to there; I felt like I was 6 years old all over again only this time I wasn't popping the Like a Virgin Tour VHS into my VCR, I was seeing Madonna LIVE! Finally after listening to a DJ remix Madonna tracks for over an hour she hit the stage around 10:30 and didn't stop for the next two hours! Chalk full of costume changes, convos with the crowd and gems from the past (Like a Prayer, Vogue, Like a Virgin) as well as the present (Give Me All You Luvin', Gang Bang) Madonna pointed out that it was the 30th anniversary of her first single Everybody, making the performance of that particular song a little more special! At one point Madonna whapped herself in the face with her guitar, stumbled around a bit after a bout of spinning and Roco her son joined the performance twice! Though the sound quality was unfortunately awful this was still my #1 show of 2012, I mean come on it was MADONNA. If it wasn't for my Dad I may not have grown up to be a Madonna fan and I am really grateful that I got to experience a Madonna show with him.
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