popwreckoning

The oh so love-able band Lovedrug is self releasing a new album, Wild Blood, this upcoming March. In light of the upcoming release, the band put out a two-single split in September which you can get on iTunes. Lead vocals, Michael Shepard also has a love for film and with his film background, he wrote and directed their video for “Dinosaur” off the split.

Videos:
Pink Champagne 
Dinosaur

Lovedrug | website

X is for Love is the first vinyl release for Golden Sound Records and Baby Teardrops. To celebrate, Baby Teardrops played a show at the Brick on November 25. Below are photos from the event:

Missed the show and want to grab a record? Head over to Golden Sound Records to buy one.

Photos: 2011 Todd Zimmer

It was announced on November 21, 2011 that members of Thrice would be taking some time off after their upcoming tour. Front man, Dustin Kensrue, stated that the band is not breaking up, however after thirteen years of relentless touring and recording, it’s time for a bit of repose:

“Thrice is not breaking up.  If nothing has broken us up by now, I doubt anything ever could.

However, we will be taking a break from being a full-time band, and the upcoming tour in the Spring will be the last one for the foreseeable future.

Playing music for the past 13 years with Riley, Ed, and Teppei has been such a gift.  We have been able to see the world, share music with thousands and thousands of people, and make records with a variety of talented and inspiring people.  The four of us have been through many highs and lows and overcome them together…”

Click here for the full statement

Watch the video for “Promises” here.

Be sure to purchase Major/Minor in stores and on iTunes now, and catch Thrice on their upcoming tour. Check out their Official Site for more info on dates, releases, and details on their hiatus.

Written by Stephanie Castor

Some of the nations favorite frontmen embark on a national tour together starting January 19. After three years of short regional tours, this will be the first time WTB? sets out nationally.

Matt Pryor (of The Get Up Kids), Chris Conley (of Saves The Day), Anthony Raneri (of Bayside) and for the first time, Ace Enders (The Early November, I Can Make A Mess Like Nobody’s Business) and Evan Weiss (of Into It. Over It.) will be joining them.  Dustin Kensrue (of Thrice) will also be joining for three dates in Southern California. The tour features each of these frontmen performing solo acts and possible collaborative sets for 20 dates together across the country.

Pre-sale tickets are on sale now at wherestheband.ducatking.com and general public onsale will be available Wednesday, November 30 at noon local time.

This is definitely a tour you don’t want to miss.

Tour Dates:

Jan 19 — Stroudsburg PA — Sherman Theater
Jan 20 — Philadelphia PA — Theatre of Living Arts
Jan 21 — Brooklyn NY — Music Hall of Williamsburg
Jan 22 — Baltimore MD — Ottobar
Jan 24 — Carrboro NC — Cat’s Cradle
Jan 25 — West Columbia SC — New Brookland Tavern
Jan 26 — St. Augustine FL — Cafe 11
Jan 27 — Gainesville FL — Double Down
Jan 28 — Orlando FL — The Social
Jan 29 — Atlanta GA — The Masquerade – Hell Stage
Jan 31 — Dallas TX — Club Dada
Feb 1 — Austin TX — Antone’s
Feb 3 — Phoenix AZ — The Crescent Ballroom
Feb 4 — San Diego CA — House of Blues *
Feb 5 — West Hollywood CA — The Troubadour *
Feb 7 — Santa Ana CA — Yost Theater *
Feb 8 — San Luis Obispo CA — Downtown Brew
Feb 9 — San Francisco CA — Bottom of the Hill
Feb 10 — Portland OR — Doug Fir Lounge
Feb 11 — Seattle WA — Tractor Tavern

* includes Dustin Kensrue

Where’s The Band? | Facebook

The biggest surprise of my Tuesday night was showing up to recordBar to watch Mates Of State and being greeted by a “Sold Out” sign. On the other hand it was no surprise that Mates Of State killed it. A group of hopeful fans were being turned away as I made my way into the dark bar. They most likely thought the same thing I did, “It’s just our old, local band, Mates Of State. There is no way it will sell out.” Well, we were both wrong.

I wandered into the overly stuffed recordBar right at the beginning of a set from Generationals. This dancey pop group hailing from New Orleans brought a bright, happy atmosphere to the eager crowd. It was made apparent that the enthusiasm for the set was shared by the band itself when the frontman commented that he was “impressed by the crowd” and expressed his relief that it wasn’t a repeat of “two years ago at Riot Room.” Generationals’ set was brief and pleasant. It was music you would listen to if you had a happy childhood (or just a bad memory of your unhappy one.) Cute, retro, keyboard driven pop with plenty of “Ooos” and “Aaahs” to go around.

After a quick stage dressing it was time for Mates Of State. They had adorned the stage with elaborate, homemade decorations. A wall of flowers hung behind them, fall leaves were draped all over the keyboards and drums, even the ceiling was decorated with two puffy clouds. As the band took the stage I overheard a group of girls behind me begin to get rather excited about the prospect of dancing. Apparently this is what most of the crowd had been planning for, because the moment the music started the bar erupted into a dance off. Accompanied, most fittingly, by a girly singalong. This is what Mates Of State are made for.

I noticed a bit of a change in the lineup since the last time I had seen the band play (Bleeding Kansas 2006, I believe.) To the classic piano and drum duo they had added an electric guitar player and another keyboardist who occasionally chimed in with athematic trumpet parts.

The first thing that shines through when you listen to Mates Of State are their driving, catchy choruses. The melodies, though simple and poppy, will stick with you for days. This band is also very well seasoned. For over a decade they have been playing crowded venues and have the experience of shows. Mates really know how to entertain a crowd and keep the show flowing. Just a few songs into the set they played the fan favorite “Shake It Off” then jumped straight into a new song. The new track was even more dancey and upbeat than the rest of the set, showing that with age the couple hasn’t soured at all.

On this night Mates Of State seemed larger than life, with a giant tour bus and a sold out show. At one point I had forgotten that they were the same band that I had known and listened to for so many years. I had to be reminded of their Lawrence heritage when, mid-set, they yelled out to their fans, “It is great to be back in town.”

I left recordBar encouraged by the show. Though the crowd consisted of mostly fans in their mid 30’s (possibly old faithfuls from back in the Lawrence days.) There were small pockets of younger fans who will hopefully carry on the success of the band. I am assured that as long as Mates Of State continue to play they will have an eager audience to play to.

Review written by Mat Shoare

Sunday evening I witnessed short sets from two great bands, Active Child, and M83. It was a sold out show, the first of two the bands would play that night.

Up first were Active Child.  The lights went down, and three men came out, one sitting before a harp. I remember thinking: “OK,  a goddamn harp. This should be interesting.”  Then the guy opened his mouth, and the essence of pure beauty poured out.

Active Child is primarily the solo project of Los Angles’ Pat Grossi.  To a guy who has seen entirely too many god-awful opening acts in the last few months they might seem horrifying on paper: inspired by days as a choir boy, synths, drums, harps and… oh shit, another guy with a laptop.  Live it’s an entirely different story.

Active Child plays otherworldly music that dredges up the old cliché of being almost indescribable. Grossi knows what he’s doing, and he’s picked his sidemen well. The crowd around me seemed as impressed as I was. It was synth pop, in a way, but it was influenced by natural instruments as well, a lush, almost hallucination inducing blend of strings and machines.

If you get a chance to see Active Child, do so. They sound great on record, but to truly do them  justice they must be experienced in person.

Up next was the headliner, M83. I was a bit late to the party with this band, as I only came on board with their new album, Hurry Up We’re Dreaming. I was impressed however, because how many bands sell out two shows in one night?

The band opened  (not surprisingly) with “Intro” off the recent album.  They then tore through a set that was designed to get the crowd pumped. The highlight was “Midnight City,” which immediately turned the room into a dance floor.

The set was vibrant, exciting, and occasionally brilliant. It did seem like a bit of a cheat, though. It seemed more like a warm-up for the later gig, than an actual performance.  Though I enjoyed the set, I probably wouldn’t go see M83 again. Active Child, however… you’d have to fight to keep me away.

On November 16, 2011 it was announced that Every Avenue would be canceling their tour for the remainder of the year. The band stated:

“fans, promoters, and other bands that we’re on tour with. For those of you that have followed us for a while you know that we love to tour and play shows and the last thing we ever want to do is cancel a show so having to miss these shows makes us feel awful. We will be flying to LA with our guitars and playing the 11/18 show at the House of Blues while our van, trailer, and gear remain in Texas. Our apologies to Yellowcard who were so gracious to put us on their tour, the promoters that booked us, and most importantly you the fans that have bought tickets to the shows. We promise to make it up to you soon.

Love,
Every Avenue”

To honor their fans and ticket holders, the band will be scheduling the make-up dates in February 2012. To find out more info regarding the tour and reschedule, visit their Facebook.

Written by Stephanie Castor

It’s been nearly a decade since the Felix Culpa began their marriage of progressive indie and post-hardcore. In 2002, the conception of tFC was a milestone for DIY indie across the nation.

Humble and committed, the group avoided the detuning spotlight of labels for years to come—neglecting to capitalize on the band’s art was perhaps the most noble and influential act, one of which many artists would follow. Because great art takes time. And great music takes even longer, as any worthy musician would claim. Despite the passing on several offers from well-known record labels, the Felix Culpa still managed to make their name through publication and self-promotion. Appearing in popular print magazines such as Alternative Press in their early years, and later signing to the renowned No Sleep Records (La Dispute, The Wonder Years, etc.), tFC prove to be the essence of honest hard work.

With the release of two EP’s and two studio full-lengths, Sever Your Roots being their most recent including a bonus EP entitled Bury Your Axe, the Felix Culpa flirt with ideas of starting a new chapter, bidding a bittersweet farewell to their fans.

The group announced in early October that their farewell would take place at the Metro in Chicago on December 9, 2011. Supporting acts include close friends in Monday’s Hero, Sainthood Reps, and El Oso. Tickets for the farewell show can be found here.

Felix Culpa – Our Holy Ghosts

Visit the Felix Culpa’s Official Page to find updates, music, and information on future projects!

Written by Stephanie Castor

On November 18, 2011, Columbia, Mo’s favorite pop-rock outfit will be releasing their second EP Callin’ it Quits, supported by a cd release show at the Sideshow in Columbia.

Since 2009, The Victory Lap have been invading college campuses around the Midwest, beginning with Maryville, Mo. The boys met at the University of Northwest Missouri with mutual soft spots for pop-punk and the midwestern nightlife.  After the release of their debut EP in 2010, Don’t Let the Pop Stop achieved sales of over 2,000 copies and landed the group over ten supporting gigs with major label acts such as Forever the Sickest Kids, Secondhand Serenade, Badfish, and Tech N9ne.

In 2011, TVL made the crucial decision to relocate to Columbia, Missouri where they now reside and continue to churn out catchy and vigorous pop hits in the vein of New Found Glory and Pierce the Veil.

On July 31, 2011, TVL released their first single, “Count It,” off their forthcoming EP.

View “Count It” here. 

In October 2011, TVL unleashed their cover of LFO’s “Every Other Time” as well as a teaser track featuring 30-second clips of each song off Callin’ it Quits, produced by Kevin Gates at Engaged Audio (The Ready Set, Never Shout Never, etc.). Incorporating elements of jazz, classic rock, and their coined Top 40 charisma, Callin’ it Quitsis an honest representation of the band’s growth over the year and a half they have been writing together, not t0 mention a legitimate proposal to their loyal fans.

Up to this day, TVL has been entirely self-sustained with the support of their listeners all around the country. Mark Anderson, vocalist, stated in a recent conversation, “We superseded the music industry and went completely DIY,” which means the boys have not only organized and funded their own tours and albums throughout their career thus far, but they intend to keep it that way. o mention a legitimate proposal to their loyal fans.

Since their founding, TVL have appeared in Alternative Press, Smartpunk.com, PETA2.org, Absolutepunk.net, and have been featured at the PETA2 tent on the 2011 Vans Warped Tour.

Check out The Victory Lap’s Official Page for more info on new music, tour dates, videos, photos and more!

The Victory Lap is:
Mark Anderson- vocals
Matt Leimkuehler- bass
Austin Williams- guitar
Jimmy Rector- drums

Written by Stephanie Castor

November 11, 2011. A date that only happens every hundred years, and a date that is fall party central. Up To Eleven is having their party in celebration of their 10th Anniversary with over 30 bands in six venues. A few bands include Murder by Death, Lazer Sword, Matt Pryor, Ricky Fitts, Spirit is the Spirit, O Giant Man, Minden and of course many many others.

Wristbands for access to all venues are $20 and available at the Granada. All proceeds will go to benefit HealthCare Access and Music in Public Schools. Prices for individual venues on the night of are:

Granada – 18+ / $15 (Murder by Death)
Bottleneck 18+ / $12 (Lazer Sword)
Jackpot – 18+ / $5
Replay – 21+ / $3
Taproom – 21+ / $3
Love Garden – all ages / Free

For a downloadable schedule directly to your phone, scan this:

www.uptoeleven.com/111111
www.facebook.com/Eleven.Turns.Ten