A four-piece dream-pop band fronted by the talented Rebecca Scott, Panda Riot first formed in Philly, but has been a staple of the local Chigcago clubs for several years now. 2012 saw the band release a 7" singled called "Serious Radical Girls" while they worked hard to complete their forthcoming full-length album Northern Automatic Music which is due out in February 2013. The band scored an impressive rating average of 8.16 out of 10.
NYC
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Chicago Open Submissions results: The Vliets are 2nd best
Formed in Austin, TX a few years back The Vliets became part of the Chicago scene in the summer of 2012, when founding member Daniel Gonzalez moved to our fine city. This year also saw the band release their latest EP "God’s Drug." Despite the distance between Gonzalez and his songwriting partner Ty Bohrnstedt, The Vliets managed to release two outstanding and physedelic videos this fall, and continue to work on upcoming releases. The band is also planning a cross country tour in 2013. Our jurors assigned them a rating average of 8 out of 10.
NYC
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Chicago Open Submissions results: Tied on 3rd are The Congregation and Shuteye
With a modern and vibrant take on soul music and the powerful vocals of Gina Bloom, The Congregation released a new instant classic in 2012 in the form of their full-length debut "Right Now Everything." The eight-piece band sports its own horn section in addition to keyboards, piano, guitar, drums (lots of drums). This is original gospel soul mix in an indie rock form, i.e. what critics love about Alabama Shakes, but so much more authentic.
Shuteye is a fine example of what has been bubbling in Chicago clubs for the last few years. This duo’s take on electro-pop is the product of singer/songwriter Elysia Hang-fu and DJ/Producer Alena Ratner. The pair met in 2010 and have been creating and playing music together ever since. Each had their own successful career prior to joining forces and since joining forces have released an EP and several mixtapes. 2012 has been an important year for the duo, thanks to the release of their full-length debut "Hush Hush."
Both bands scored a rating average of 7.66
NYC
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Chicago Open Submissions results: Glittermouse lands on 5th place
Glittermouse is one of those bands with that added element required for taking things to the next level, i.e.: the determined will to make it happen! The band had a fairly quiet 2012 having released their latest EP back in December 2011, but have big plans for 2013. The band is currently working on a full length album and will be launching a kickstarter page to raise funds for the project shortly. Their rating average was 7.5 out of 10.
Philadelphia
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Modern Inventors Album Release Show w/Hezekiah Jones & Shark Tape at JB’s Dec. 28
The tandem of Josh Benus and Matt Kass unite to form Modern Inventors. Celebrating the release of their debut album Trains & Aeroplanes, whose physical release date is actually January 15, 2013, at Johnny Brenda’s this evening. The sound is folky, but strays somewhat from the traditional landscape developing texture/mood through the use of their instrumentation. The single “Hello” is built on guitar and percussion giving it a sense of fluidity with a touch of organ providing another layer. “Goodbye Northbrook Drive” begins with a strong spiraling acoustic guitar pattern that fits the lyrics (“Round and round and round I go”). Both songs make a nice use of their natural vocal harmonies, smoothing out the rough edges while also demonstrating a united soulful side. Joining the party will be the always entertaining folk ensemble of Hezekiah Jones, and the night will kickoff with indie rockers Shark Tape. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 9:15pm, $10, 21+ – Michael Colavita
Austin
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Review – “diodes&diatribes” from ritchUAL
ritchUAL, aka, ritchN (or, as it’s written on more official documents, Ritchard Napierkowski), has been a virtual fixture in the Austin music department for years, filling a variety of roles for a buncha different bands, sharing song-writing credits with tons of folks – A lot of the details, though not all, are worth the once-over, so check it out here.
He’s a prolific artist, with another collection of instrumentals coming in just a few more days (1/1/13, "iamanotheryou"). But let’s push the Pause button and enjoy the just-out "diodes&diatribes", which is described thusly:
17 collected works from 2003-2009 (i think)
some of these have “grown up” into songs for other bands i’ve worked with (like subNatural, carbon theory and panjoma to name a few) while others remained in the neutral zone of my hard drive for years.
These 17 tracks weight in at over an hour’s-worth of industrial-strength electronica, glitchy 8-bit aberrations, haunting ambient compositions, and pulsed through with delay-lined arpish electrocrunk, among other experimental efforts. For a collected work composed over 6+ years, these numbers bear the consistent stamp of a battle-hardened electronica composer worth listening to. Maybe to the artist this is just a loose collection of old songs, but we’re calling "diodes&diatribes" one of the better electronica releases of 2012.
Chicago
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Deli Chicago Top 10 Tracks of The Year (#6)
Willis Earl Beal "Evening Kiss" from Acousmatic Sorcery (XL Records) released in April of 2012.
NYC
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Album review: Six Percent – The Years (EP)
(Photo by Todd Zimmer)
In case it slipped under your oh-so-rad hipster radar, Six Percent’s story is worth mentioning. For starters, they’ve been making music since I was taking sex education in the 8th grade. They had embraced the ways of the ‘90s, rap-rocking in venues with the likes of The Urge, 2 Skinnee J’s and Kottonmouth Kings. Following a couple released, and changing lineups, as many times as Taylor Swift changes boyfriends, Six Percent officially disbanded in 2001.
The band regrouped in 2010 for a one-night-only show. Nearly 600 people welcomed them back. For obvious reasons, this caught the attention of several promoters in the 816. They landed a spot opening for the Smashing Pumpkins at 96.5’s Buzz Beach Ball show. With the swell of attention and support, the band opted to stay active and record.
The Years EP is the result of that twisty and impressive road.
Opening with “Broadway Riot,” the band combines middle-finger guitar rock with pop-punk ska sounds. Kicking open the door with an impressive drum and feedback intro before slamming into the introductory lyrics, the band shows no sign of flinching passively or modestly returning to the Kansas City music scene. The collective slings references to the 816 like protesters throw rocks in riots. Discussions surround both Broadway and a midtown breakdown throughout the mix. With hints of pre-gothic My Chemical Romance, The Used, and Billy Talent, riffs fly and angst swells throughout the cut. Three minutes and fifty-two seconds into the release and the band has set the record straight that this isn’t a shallow reunion tour. Six Percent still has plenty to say.
“Old Routines” and “Dying World” shift into a more polished and radio-friendly Blink-182 (post-Box Car Racer) sound. The first of the two tracks features a fantastic horns-vs-guitars breakdown, incomparable to anything I have experienced before in music. Butting heads yet meshing together, the song takes a sort of sweet-and-sour approach to its sound. “Dying World” follows suit, fading out with a haunting outro and catching structure that reminds me of the releases of Drive-Thru and Vagrant Records during their prime. However the song also boasts the EP’s only (noticeable) error with a drum breakdown at the 1 minute and 20 second mark. The band cannot, however, singularly shoulder the blame for the stumble. The error should have been caught in both production and mixing. Sadly, it slipped under the radar and into reality.
Regardless, it is little more than a crack on a canvas of a local masterpiece.
Closing with two faster-paced numbers, “Not Today” and “Live Out Loud,” the band shows their chops with impressive guitar work and addicting hook creations. The album’s last track leaves the listener exposed to the band’s ability to apply elements of arena rock to its resume. Its often driven and energetic sound seems to swell around this worthwhile release, but don’t for a second question this album’s ability to kick in your teeth.
Therefore, my advice to anyone willing to give The Years EP a good, solid spin is to remember that quality taste in music is secondary to a quality dental plan. You’re going to need it, because this band isn’t fucking around.
–Joshua Hammond
| After stints drumming for both The Afternoons and Jenny Carr and the Waiting List in the Lawrence/Kansas City music scene, Joshua Hammond found his footing as a music journalist, launching the national publication Popwreckoning. After running the show as Editor in Chief for 6 years, Hammond stepped away from the reigns to freelance for other publications like Under The Gun Review and High Voltage Magazine. This shift allowed the adequate amount of time for him to write passionately, allow the Kansas City Royals to break his heart on a daily basis and spoon his cats just enough that they don’t shred his vinyl. |
Chicago
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Deanna Devore @ Schubas
Deanna Devore is releasing a new ep called X Number of Days in early 2013. The Toronto native moved to Chicago six years ago to record her self-titled debut album. This ep is the follow-up to that 2007 release and from the sound of the two tracks she has released it does not disappoint.
Devore will be celebrating the release of her EP on January 10th at Schubas with Leslie Hunt and The Loneliest Monk.
Philadelphia
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New Track: “Vision of the Future” – SandCastle
We love finding rad new music from acts that we never heard of and have no clue about their background info. Below is a track called "Vision of the Future" from SandCastle off his/their full-length album Wild Legend. There is something about the creepy vocals and melodic lo-fi production that definitely has us intrigued. You can take a listen to the rest of the LP HERE. Enjoy!
NYC
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Man Made Sun lands residency at Pianos + announces EP
Man Made Sun (headed by former Emok guitarist and long time Brooklyn resident Ofer Tiberin) take us back to the good old days when rock was as explosive as nitro – i.e. the late 90s. Sounding like a more psychedelic and less hip hop version of Rage Against the Machine, Man Made Sun’s upcoming EP "More a Devil than a God" (which can be streamed here) definitely doesn’t sound like a NYC record, which is probably a good thing. The genre’s implicit epic and mathy tendencies are kept in check through the right balance of energy, attitude and instrumental dexterity, while the quality of the material and production make this record sound like bedroom records will never sound – kind of refreshing at this stage of the home recording revolution. Check out the video for "Waiting for the Sun" below You can see them at Pianos on January 15th, 21st and 28th.
band : MAN MADE SUN song : WAITING FOR THE SUN director : ANTOINE PRAT from Antoine Prat on Vimeo.
Austin
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Free Week Cometh
Sure, you’re gearing up for New Years Eve. There’s a party or two to pick from (which we’ll go over, in detail, once The Day draws nigh).
But that’s just one night. After, comes FREE WEEK!
And actually, that’s a misnomer – It’s really TWO WHOLE WEEKS worth of free music to enjoy. Which means there are TWO WHOLE WEEKS of gigs to pick and choose from, at venues all over our fair city. That’s a lot of deciding to do.
But lucky us: There are two sites (that we know about) to make the decision-making process easier:
The Sonic Vault Austin has a great, band-centric page for your perusal.
And as always, Do512 has the 411, broken out by venue and date.
And if that’s not enough, there’s even a twitter feed devoted to Free Week. Check it!