Just a year and a half after Static Tensions, psych-sludge quintet Kylesa will release Spiral Shadow, its fifth full-length album, on October 26 via Season of Mist. With the album, Kylesa’s cross-genre sound jumps from Prosthetic Records, which put out its last three discs.
The new album was produced again by Kylesa’s guitarist/vocalist Phillip Cope, who has manned the boards for Baroness and Withered.
Singer Greg Graffin of punk stalwarts Bad Religion has co-authored a new book called Anarchy Evolution: Faith, Science and Bad Religion in a World Without God with National Academy of Sciences journalist Steve Olson. You may be familiar with Graffin’s thoughts on evolution and other matters via Bad Religion lyrics, but many are unaware that he teaches the subject at UCLA and holds a PhD.
The book and Bad Religion’s new album, The Dissent of Man, will be released on September 28. Get to know him on a personal and intellectual level with his new offerings.
The beloved, yearly music festival known as Moogfest is back. Usually held in New York City, Moogfest 2010 will be in Asheville, North Carolina, Robert Moog’s former home, to honor the late legend’s contributions to modern music. AC Entertainment has released its ever-expanding lineup, featuring artists carving out their own places in history as creative pioneers.
Taking place over Halloween weekend, from October 29-31, Moogfest 2010 will host performances in venues all over the historical city. Our favorites include El-P, Matmos, Jon Hopkins, Dan Deacon, DJ Spooky, Massive Attack, Four Tet, Jónsi, and RJD2.
ALARM 39 featured artist Judgment Day has announced a three-week West Coast and Midwest tour, starting on September 1. Coming off the April release of Peacocks / Pink Monsters, its second studio album, the trio proves that hardcore shredding is just as heavy and intense with a violin and cello as it is on guitar and bass.
Watch the band’s “Violin Hero” video for “Cobra Strike” below and click ahead for tour dates.
Mexicans with Guns and Ðueý FṀ have released their creative short film as the video for the club hit “Dame Lo.”
Wu Fei‘s work is a marriage between the East and West. Using traditional Chinese instruments such as the guzheng and erhu in unconventional ways, Fei strays from the strict, painterly elegance of the instrument’s usual genre, instead introducing improvised and experimental elements.
[UPDATE (8/18/10): Flying Lotus has been added]
Seattle’s Decibel Festival is back for its eighth year, this time boasting talent from 14 countries. The festival brings together technology and creativity through visual art, workshops, panel discussions, and electronic-music performances.
The musical lineup this year is long and impressive; Fennesz, Ben Frost, Eskmo, Alex B, Ctrl_Alt_Dlt, Mount Kimbie, and Starkey are among the nearly 100 performers, speakers, and visual artists scheduled for appearance. With a world-class conference included (details have yet to be released), this event is an oasis of underground electronic music and art with plenty to offer.
German artist Ewerdt Hilgemann has been recognized in the States for some time now, his work reflective of America’s current post-industrial state: a gleaming façade collapsing from within. Comparable to Los Angeles’ industrial damage in the past years, Hilgemann’s volumes express the remnants of a bruised economy and the resultant collective mindset.
Anto McFly, who produces the eclectic DIY punk-rock zine Loserdom with his brother Eugene, is not the only zine writer in Dublin, Ireland, but it can feel that way. “I think that zine publishing is still alive, though not as well as its been in the past,” he says. “I would love to see more Irish zines being produced.”
Maybe the problem isn’t the availability of zines but what the future of Irish zines looks like. “Those being produced are mostly by people who have been around for a while,” Anto adds. “I fear that younger people aren’t inclined to venture into producing something on paper, or if they do, they spend so much time trying to perfect their first issue that it never sees the light of day.”
Masters of Reality has been creating art and music for nearly 20 years, with plenty of musical accomplishments collected along the way. The duo has worked with Rick Rubin, Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, and collaborated with Stone Temple Pilots, Twiggy Ramirez, SOULWAX, and many others.
Straying from the emphasized improvisation and rhythm of its previous albums, Masters of Reality’s new full-length album, Pine/Cross Dover (out September 14 on Cool Green Recordings), combines elements similar to the punk-rock playfulness of Public Image Limited and the technical mastery of Mahavishnu Orchestra.