Following its announcement of the Sod in the Seed EP — out August 14 on Anticon — indie-hop trio Why? (seemingly now a quartet?) has confirmed plans to release its next full-length.
Lulu Gainsbourg — son of Serge and half-brother to Charlotte — pays tribute to his famous father via this duet with Scarlett Johansson.
The Raveonettes: Observator (Vice, 9/11/12)
In light of its forthcoming sixth studio album, Observator, Danish indie-rock duo The Raveonettes has released a video for the album’s first single, “She Owns the Streets.”
Watch the inspiration for this song — a street dancer named Loan — as she makes her own fun on the streets (and subways) of New York.
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– Location: Montréal, QC
– Year founded: 1997
– Employees: 6
– Genres served: Many, all hyphenated
– Current # of recording artists: 27
– Lifetime total of recording artists: 36
– Best-selling album: Yanqui UXO by Godspeed You! Black Emperor (by a long mile)
– Website: cstrecords.com
In the late 1990s, Montréal was a dismal scene for emerging artists, providing mostly pay-to-play venues that made it difficult for underground acts to perform. Recognizing the need for sustainable, artist-friendly music infrastructure, friends and music lovers Don Wilkie and Ian Ilavsky started Musique Fragile — a monthly concert series run out of an inner-city loft — and launched Constellation, issuing handmade records by local bands.
The label’s third release was Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s F#A#∞, which granted both the band and label an instant cult following. Constellation would quickly (but begrudgingly) become synonymous with the post-rock movement, and it has since been home to artists such as Vic Chesnutt, Do Make Say Think, and Thee Silver Mt. Zion. Here Ilavsky shares the label’s impetus and mission.
Om: Advaitic Songs (Drag City, 7/24/12)
“Gethsemane”
Borne from the rhythm section of stoner-metal trio Sleep, Om has spent nearly 10 years combining drone and sludge with chant cadences and Eastern motifs and philosophy. Advaitic Songs is the duo’s fifth full-length and second with new drummer and coconspirator Emil Amos of Grails, whose work with bassist/singer Al Cisneros has pushed the material to even greater heights.
Fang Island: Major (Sargent House, 7/24/12)
“Seek it Out”
Anthemic rock quintet Fang Island described its self-titled debut as “the sound of everyone high-fiving everyone” — a statement that’s both accurate and destined to lead profiles for the duration on the band’s existence. Its sophomore effort, Major, builds on the theme. The release features more singing than the first album, which relied heavily on riffs, riffs, and more riffs. But the DNA here is similar: free and fun, with enough hooks to hang the audience’s denim jackets.