YOUTH LAGOON - “MUTE”

The Tyler T. Williams-directed “Mute” is the latest video from Youth Lagoon’s Wondrous Bughouse, out now on Fat Possum Records.

“Mute” is the latest single from Youth Lagoon’s sophomore album, Wondrous Bughouse, due out March 5 on Fat Possum.

Trevor Powers, whose stage name is Youth Lagoon, began writing his debut album The Year of Hibernation in 2010. Based around the idea of psychological dysphoria, Powers tried to document the trails of his mind through songs of minimalism and hypnotic ambience. Powers later described his writing process as “my mind communicating with me, not the other way around…it can take me to scary places but I’ve realized those bizarre thoughts I have don’t define me.” After signing with Mississippi-based label Fat Possum Records in 2011, he toured much of the following year before going back into solitude to write.

Wondrous Bughouse, Powers’ sophomore album, due March 5, was spawned from what he describes as “becoming more fascinated with the human psyche and where the spiritual meets the physical world.” During the time he wrote, Powers became intrigued with the metaphysical universe and blending those ideas with pop music.

“Youth Lagoon is something so personal to me because writing music is how I sort my thoughts, as well as where I transfer my fears,” explains Powers.  

“My mental state is usually pretty sporadic… a lot of this record was influenced by a fear of mortality but embracing it at the same time. Realizing that human life is only great because it is temporary. Experimenting with ideas about dimensions. I’m not a gifted speaker, so explaining things is difficult for me. But music always makes sense.”

Next week, former Girls frontman Christopher Owens releases his debut solo album Lysandre, a narrative concept LP about falling in love with a girl on the first Girls tour. Yesterday, the New York Times ran a profile of Owens. Two big takeaways: (1) Owens’s girlfriend Hannah Hunt is singing backup for him on his current tour, and I have to wonder if it’s weird for her to help him sing about a different girl. (2) It sounds like Owens might have a pretty serious Oxycontin problem, even though he says he’s “right now not taking it.” In any case, the article also comes with a stream of the whole album. To hear it, click here.

Lysandre is out 1/15 on Fat Possum.

Few musicians in any genre can summon the sound of the world crashing down as well as El-P. As co-leader of legendarily abrasive, indie hip-hop trio Company Flow and as producer for Cannibal Ox, he created a singular sound full of gritty textures, grinding metal shrieks, and beats that spew out in concussive fits. Then he did the same for his own solo releases, most notably 2002’s Fantastic Damage. In case his less-than-sunny disposition has eluded anyone, El-P’s first new album in five years cranks up the head-rankling crankiness — “The Full Retard,” his ire-strewn first single, comes across as both heavy and heaving in its sense of wordy purpose.

Fast Fact: After a couple of reunion shows last year, El-P and Company Flow will rage again at Coachella this month.

Spiritualized’s last album, 2008’s Songs in A&E, was relatively subdued, as the project’s godhead, Jason Pierce, ruminated on sickness and redemption on songs that rarely broke the four-minute-mark. It was a terrific record, but anyone who’s ever had their brain blown out by all 17 minutes of “Cop Shoot Cop” knows that Pierce does “epic” with aplomb. So a glance at the 8:55 running time of “Hey Jane”, our first taste from Spiritualized’s forthcoming album, Sweet Heart Sweet Light, is enough indicator that you’re in for a trip— and sure enough, this thing goes. “Hey Jane” a crunchy, sugary fun-house of a tune, complete with a switch-up midway through that flips the song’s melody upside down, throwing in some woodwinds at the end because, for this band, more is more.

via pitchfork

Unknown Mortal Orchestra premiered the “Strangers Are Strange” video today, directed by Sam Kristofski. The band has a few headlining shows starting this week in California, then they will hit the road in support of Girls for the majority of March.  They’ll also appear at this year’s SXSW. 

02/24 San Francisco, CA Clift Hotel (Free w/ RSVP) 

02/26 Santa Monica, CA The Central*
02/27 San Luis Obispo, CA SLO Brew*
02/28 Visalia, CA Cellar Door*
03/01 Santa Cruz, CA Coconut Grove Ballroom#
03/02 San Diego, CA Birch North Park Theatre#
03/04 Vail, CO Snowball Music Festival
03/05 Albuquerque, NM Launchpad#
03/07 San Antonio, TX White Rabbit#
03/08 Austin, TX La Zona Rosa#
03/09 Dallas, TX Granada Theatre#

03/10 Monterrey, Mexico Festival NRMAL#
03/12 New Orleans, LA One Eyed Jack’s#
03/13 Houston, TX Fitzgerald’s#
03/14 Austin, TX SXSW
03/16 Denver, CO Gothic Theatre#
03/17 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue#
03/18 Reno, NV Cargo#
05/26 George, WA Sasquatch Festival

* = w/ White Arrows 

Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Thought Ballune

Unknown Mortal Orchestra premiered their best and most visually arresting video to date for “Thought Ballune” today at RollingStone.com, directed by the team of Jordan Blady and Ryan Knowles. The band has a few headlining shows in California in February, then they will hit the road in support of Girls for the majority of March before appearing at this year’s SXSW. 

Youth Lagoon - July

Twenty-two year old Trevor Powers, whose musical venture is called Youth Lagoon, has had a long year. Not because he’s been endlessly touring or pursuing some wild dream, but because of life - the life of a kid going to college, being in love, dealing with heartache, and just living.

“Youth Lagoon isn’t me.” says Powers. “It’s merely a part of me. I was in and out of different bands in high school and always tried to define myself by what music I played. I tried to find a sense of meaning by being in a band. But it wasn’t until this last year - when I realized I was more than just music - that I was able to create music that means something to me. And that is Youth Lagoon.”

Throughout the course of 2010, Powers began to write an album about things he had a hard time talking about. He claims that when he tries to talk about it to people, he doesn’t make sense. So he wrote an album about it titled The Year of Hibernation.  

“For my whole life I’ve dealt with extreme anxiety.” says Powers. “Not anxiety about passing a test or somewhat normal things, but weird.. bizarre things. Things that only I know. I sometimes feel like I’m literally being eaten up inside. So I started writing these songs. Not just songs about my anxiety, but about my past and my present. Songs about memories, and all those feelings that those bring. I know that if I can be honest about what is inside my mind, there will be others that will be able to relate to it.”

Although his music seems somewhat dreamy with the first listen, the lyrics show a different side to the matter. Hidden beneath the melodies is a voice that is eerie yet nostalgic. Powers claims his music is like letting people read his journal. “I don’t think I could ever write a completely happy album. It’s not that I’m not a happy person,” claims Powers, “but I just have too many things in my mind that haunt me.”

via force field

From the album The Year of Hibernation, due out September 27 on Fat Possum.

Montana by Youth Lagoon

Tour Dates
09/07 Austin, TX Emo’s
09/10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Festival
09/12 New York, NY Mercury Lounge
09/13 Pittsburgh, PA Stage AE
09/14 Columbus, OH The Basement
09/16 Columbia, MO The Blue Note
09/22 Urbana, IL Pygmalion Festival
09/24 Cincinnati, OH Midpoint Music Festival

Released by Def Jux / Fat Possum

The indie rap world lost one of its brightest young talents when Camu Tao succumbed to lung cancer in 2008. From his early days with the Columbus-based MHz crew to his work with Def Jux, Camu’s dynamic charisma and vocal range were undeniable. But after years of collective and group records (e.g. Nighthawks and S.A. Smash), the general public never got the chance to hear Camu Tao all by his lonesome over a full-length.

King of Hearts showcases the myriad manifestos of an artist equally prone to playful party anthems and heartfelt contemplations. Fans of his earlier work may be surprised to find Camu opted to eschew rap almost entirely on the record in favor of a funky, Cody Chesnuttesque delivery. On “Death,” a man facing his own mortality wails away, “Death, where have you been all my life?” over a rambling, circus fun house beat. It is a raw and powerful credo that stands in direct contrast to the infectious, upbeat swagger of “Plot A Little.” That and lo-fi tracks such as “Get At You” display the ease with which Camu could transition between singing and rapping, even mid-verse on occasion. It’s a tool more and more emcees are employing these days, but few this side of k-os and Dessa pull off successfully.

Continued…