NEW VIDEO The Hague Video "Everyone" w/ free MP3

 

Download this tune for free.
They are saying about The Hague, well their stellar publicist said:
(THINK: Minus the Bear, Mogwai, The Smiths, Explosions in the Sky, Maps and Atlases, At The Drive-In, The Sea and Cake, The Lemonheads, Look Mexico!, Arcade Fire)
And then there’s their bio:
The Hague creates music that ebbs and flows with its own singular logic, abandoning easy categories in favor of a wide-open approach that moves in all directions at the same time. The sound of Travis Chapman’s lead violin may be the first thing you notice, but you’re soon drawn in by the clash of industrial noise and delicate melodies; guitars that dance between acoustic finger picking and thick power chords; soaring vocal harmonies that shift from melancholy to jubilant and arrangements full of dynamic shifts of volume and tempo. The music is rock, but the band’s epic sound tips its hat to country, pop, jazz, post rock, punk, early R&B, classical and 90′s underground sounds. “Our songs are all over the place,” says Charlie Fisher, the band’s bass player. “We have grungy post rock, up tempo dance songs, pop punk and alt. country songs. We’re likely to include anything that comes to mind when we’re playing.”

http://oregonmusicnews.com/2012/06/21/new-video-of-the-day-the-hague-everyone/

Rags & Ribbons heads out on tour

Friday, July 7th- San Francisco @ Bottom Of the Hill

Saturday, July 8th- Los Angeles @ The Satellite

Saturday, July 14th- Dallas Fort Worth @ 2826 Arnetic

Tuesday, July 17th- Kansas City, MO @ the Riot Room

Thursday, July 19th- Denver @ the Underground Music Festival

Saturday, July 21st- Boise @ The Shredder

Wednesday, July 25th- Coeur d'Alene @ The Grail Rock Venue

Thursday, July 26th- Olympia, WA@ 1230 Room

Music: The Hague's "Everyone" — Song of the Day

Via Alyssa Coluccio 

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Portland, OR quartet The Hague are churning out smart, indie-rock that pays tribute to the classics while remaining true to their own agenda. Take "Everyone," the first single off their forthcoming new album Black Rabbit, which fuses jangling indie instrumentation with orchestral flair, creating an incredible blend of crashing guitars and violins. Continuing the momentum of contrasts is singer/guitarist Shawn Stevens' heartsick vocals mingling with bright melodies, and heavy lyrics masked by a dominantly heart-surging sound. It's not unlike these guys to play with sounds, though.

As bass player Charlie Fisher said, "Our songs are all over the place... We have grungy post rock, up tempo dance songs, pop punk and alt. country songs. We're likely to include anything that comes to mind when we're playing."

Give "Everyone" a spin, grab it as a free download for a limited time, and be ready for Black Rabbit's release on August 7.

http://www.purevolume.com/news/The-Hague-New-Single-Everyone-Free-Download

Greetings from San Francisco! ~ GRAYCEON

Please accept our many apologies for not sending any recent updates. We have been super busy working on some exciting things, but if you are ever anxious to find out what we are up to, please visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/grayceon

First off, we have an exciting show coming up with friends, Hammers of Misfortune! We are pleased to share the stage with this awesome band especially because they don't play locally very often. Details are at the end of this email.

Secondly, we are happy to announce that we will be releasing a two song vinyl EP at the end of this year on a newish SF/Bay Area label, Flenser Records (http://theflenser.com/). A full-length is still on the projected horizon, but these two new songs (that track close to 30 minutes) stand on their own and we are so excited to finally be able to offer a vinyl release to our fans! The writing is almost complete and recording dates are scheduled for mid-August. More release information and details at the end of the summer, so stay posted!

And lastly, thank you all for your continued support. We are so blessed to have such great friends and fans. :-)

~ Grayceon (Jackie + Max + Zack)


***
Saturday, June 23rd
HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE
GRAYCEON
WILD HUNT
Elbo Room, San Francisco CA
9pm, $8 advance, $10 at the door
***

horn-punching Bar-Keys style R&B (THE SATIN CHAPS)

 

 

The Satin Chaps, "Might I Suggest The Satin Chaps." The Satin Chaps is a Portland combo made up of members of The Dandy Warhols, The High Violets, Fast Computers and other bands that delivers 10 swinging instrumental dance numbers on its debut album.
The records kicks off with horn-punching Bar-Keys style R&B, shifts into organ-drenched rock ’n’ roll, slides through some Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass Latin sounds on “Funky Matador” and gets greasy and poppin’ on “Hot Chocolate.”
Whether tongue-in-cheek (which is a good possibility) or a sincere throwback, “Might I Suggest The Satin Chaps” should be the soundtrack for many a hipster summer dance party, and it’s great driving music. Grade: B

Read more: http://journalstar.com/entertainment/music/new-music-reviews-the-satin-chaps-shonen-knife-patti-smith/article_5c82a419-0429-5959-a005-49f1ce77ae02.html#ixzz1xh9fmj6Y

http://journalstar.com/entertainment/music/new-music-reviews-the-satin-chaps-shonen-knife-patti-smith/article_5c82a419-0429-5959-a005-49f1ce77ae02.html

High School Reunion w/ Joseph Demaree

I rolled into class with sparkling new skateboard exclusivity. Straight not forward. Hard and soft boiled. No need to give a fuck when you care so much. Somehow, I made sense of all that nonsense.

 

 The Dead Kennedys, Minor Threat (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1mBPjrBxxo), The Misfits, SNFU, The Dead Milkmen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53VTzocyVNc), Drunk Injuns, Screeching Weasel, The Faction (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjPiZ2oHOls), The Adolescents, Black Flag, The Circle Jerks, DRI, TSOL (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpZJLjrb4vU), DI(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3ZSxDdENPA&feature=related), MDC… and then there was FDS! Flying Dead Skin and I don't know why(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlcYzXcR_XI&feature=youtu.be). I skated and I did my homework. Soft hands and into all that shit. Awkward with the girls, awkward with myself. Totally in control! 

We cleaned out the swimming pool at school. We skated it all summer. It didn't matter that we might have to run from the cops. We put hairs in our burgers and made a scene to get new burgers. 

I had an art show in the library. Twisted, psychedelic, pop, madness in jarring bold colors and line. Fan of Dada. Fan of the Surreal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd6ahj6k4_4).  

While doing my homework in the library the principle swiped the hat off my head. instinctively I swiped it back. He swiped it, I swiped it, and then the pushing began. Outside he apologized. Inside I received a standing ovation. 

There were jocks and nerds and punks and geeks and dorks and twerps and skaters and art fags and fags and dykes and posers and losers and dicks and pussy's. Usually you were a mix. When the tag became too unbearable it was pointed out immediately by everyone. 

I was a brown kid in a suburban, northern californian, middle class. I read marvel comic books (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmUykVY1ZZk) and painted D&D figures(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31AU2treBQ4). My mom was the crossing guard for everyone I grew up with. 

While walking through the quad, after getting kicked out of my math class for helping students, I ran into the new bully. He was big. I'm still 5'7". He said "What do you think you're doing walking through the quad." I said "Ok, you want to do this, let's do this." I took my backpack off and looked at him. He looked at me, he looked at the leader of the football team. John said "I'd get out of his way." The new bully looked at me and stepped aside. 

 

I wasn't very tough. I didn't like to get messed with. I was goofy, silly mostly. My dad was a fireman. He taught me to swim by throwing me in a lake. I still love to swim. I still love my dad. Sure he didn't "Get IT". Sure he wanted me to join the "Military". I worked for the City of San Jose Parks and Recreation. It was fun! I was able to afford new skateboards, rent a practice space, and dye my hair(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5R_PXhCv3ws) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nYktHyMKEQ&feature=related).

So, you know… a lot like high school nowadays. 

- Joseph Demaree

http://josephdemaree.posterous.com/

http://soundcloud.com/idiomism/sets/joseph-demaree-mirrors-demo

http://www.idiomism.com

CD REVIEW: Ordinary Flowers "This Time Again"

Ordinary Flowers "This Time Again"
Record Label: Self Released
Hometown: Albuquerque, NM
Genres: Rock - Rock and Roll, Folk, Americana

They sound like a 10 more pack a day Eddie Vedder. After doing the research these 2 friends had plenty of time to smoke and drink. This is the first record for a ten year friendship between two musicians from the Michigan countryside, countless failed relationships, collaborations, empty beer cases, a cross country move, guitars that were sold to pay rent, hoping, dreaming, love of music, and a complete lack of success.

A rock n roll album is what you get with Ordinary Flowers. I love that they feel the need to share they recorded this in one weekend! Stand out track "Hard Road Blues" instead of more cowbell I say more cymbal!

Recorded in Santa Fe, NM by Bill Palmer at Frogville Studios.
Available for download at http://ordinaryflowers.bandcamp.com/

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you'll be absorbed by the beauty and you'll forget about time travel - THE HAGUE

The Hague's Black Rabbit on CD

Back when I was in college thirty years ago, much of what we called punk or New Wave took a sudden left turn and became more ambitious, earnest and civilized. It might have started with the enormous support REM started receiving on college radio stations across the country, as well as the dozens of bands subsequently inspired by the boys from Athens. Or it might have been prompted like bands such as The Jam and The Psychedelic Furs who started smoothing out the edges and putting out more pop-oriented fare. Frankly, it could have happened all at once, in a thousand different places. But while this softening eventually bottomed out with the likes of Culture Club, Haircut 100 and lot of other faux-easy-listening backsliders, there was a brief moment when all of these genres sounded so new and old and different, and anything was possible. (This shift would be replicated a decade later when grunge started blending genres together once more.)

I'm bringing this up because The Hague, a Portland-based quintet, reminds me of the period from 1980 to 1982 in the way they insert an undercurrent of decency in their music. I'm not talking about the overstated and anthemic heraldry we used to hear in bands such as Big Country or even pre-Breakfast Club Simple Minds, but a modern interpretation that eschews rough edges for a certain lanky beauty. Or, as the band likes to say about their new album Black Rabbit, it's "quiet music played loud."

Opening with an instrumental ironically titled "An Open Book Conversationalist," Black Rabbit immediately draws you in with genuinely pretty string arrangements that run slightly counter to the rest of the band's sonic attack. Indeed, this is a fairly conventional band which includes band founders and Coeur D'Alene ID residents Shawn Steven (guitars) and Jesse Tranfo (drums) on guitar, Charlie Fisher on bass, James Logan (rhythm guitar), but adds a novelty in "lead violinist" Travis Chapman. This adds a slightly Celtic undertone to the music--perhaps that's why you'll start thinking of Simple Minds, or maybe The Waterboys. Only Steven's weary and modest vocals, less theatrical than the ones of his musical influences, will remind you it's 2012. By the time you get to the second instrumental track, "Passing Cars," you'll be absorbed by the beauty and you'll forget about time travel.



One caveat about this CD, however: the overall sound quality is smooth and round and lopped off at the ends. I don't want to pick on Toadhouse Studios or Vita Mastering, but this recording could use a little more sparkle. When the band really starts rocking, playing that quiet music loudly, this sound quality robs the music of any sort of visceral impact unless you really crank the volume. I suppose that's better than the bright, artificially shiny surfaces that now curse most pop music recordings of the '80s, but I wouldn't have minded if this time machine had been polished a bit more and maybe given a new set of tires.

http://thevinylanachronist.blogspot.com/2012/06/hagues-black-rabbit-on-cd.html

phenomenal talent on display (THE MEMORIALS)

The Memorials
Delirium
Self-Released; 2012

In my review of the self-titled debut record from The Memorials, I made specific mention of the phenomenal talent on display, but I was also confused by the attempts to water down the prog rock with some generic ‘60s-‘70s hard rock tropes. Not to take any real credit here, but it does seem that the band took my constructive criticism to heart when recording Delirium, since it’s difficult to detect a false step or wrong paths taken. Simply put, there’s less fluff and much more focus to the direction of the music, all of which leads to a stellar sophomore release.

From beginning to end, Viveca Hawkins reaches out through the speakers and shakes the listener around, using both the strength of her soulful voice and the weight of her sociopolitical lyrics. Criticism of the drug war and the prison-industrial complex are pared with heartfelt pleas for increased cultural awareness – admittedly, it’s nice to hear someone not within the punk and folk spheres actually sing about something specific that’s not related to tales of sex, love, or romantic longing. More importantly, Hawkins displays a very unique sort of power and intensity that I find most compelling, in that I’m not sure I’d find these songs quite as interesting if the singer was a typically histrionic male rock star type.

Musically, the songs combine hip-hop, post-prog, and arena rock with style – imagine Lauren Hill fronting At The Drive In or M.I.A. collaborating with Muse. And I would be remiss to not mention the rich fusion of funk, soul, and jazz textures, which call to mind thick slices of Parliament Funkadelic, Sly & The Family Stone, Robert Randolph, and Ben Harper. Nick Brewer’s guitar aptitude is off the charts, and Thomas Pridgen wails on the drums with a fury, purpose, and appreciation for time signature fluctuations reminiscent of Mike Portnoy. In fact, my Dream Theater-loving brothers would probably enjoy wide swathes of this record, especially in how the lengthy, embellished arrangements give all the instruments a chance to shine.

Delirium aims for the highest of heights, and achieves them easily, especially on “Fluorescent’s Unforgiving,” “Gone,” “Daisies,” and “Mr. Entitled.” On the whole, I’m really pleased to hear how much The Memorials have grown as a band in the last two years – political prog rock might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I truly enjoyed this record.

http://dryvetyme.tumblr.com/post/24604544498/the-memorials-delirium

The Hague - Black Rabbit

A recently aired episode of the British comedy show “Outnumbered” had the youngest child wanting to stay home from school due to believing turning up at school would be too risky because it was Friday the Thirteenth. A number of other suspicions the little girl had learned from the next door were also run through during the course of the show although giving money to Albanians was correctly pointed out by her oldest brother as racism. An unmentioned old superstition suggests black rabbits crossing your path are a bad omen and even today it still is since the black rabbit is most likely a young child’s pet running away from home. However this Portland band The Hague’s “Black Rabbit” album found its way to my home. The band describes the music that they create as quiet songs played loud and it’s hard to disagree.


“Black Rabbit” opens with an instrumental ironically titled “An Open Book Conversationalist”. Despite its lack of words the song sets the tone of the album well with a poppy folk sound reminiscent of The Go-Betweens. A group harmony opens “Everyone in This Town” and the slick pop mixed with violin makes it next to impossible not to think once again of The Go-Betweens and the same goes for the occassional feminine vocals. Lyrically “I’m Sorry I Thought This Was a City” is a drunken reflection and a solitary profanity in the tune jars with jangly guitar. An assurredness rings loud in “Valkrie” due to The Hague’s collectively strong songwriting. Due to its sweet melancholy “Hour Glass” would fit comfortably on a Red House Painters or any other Mark Kozelek project with attention grabbing gentleness.

While the Hague do carry features of bands from last century, the band is definitely a product of this present age. Somewhere in the information I received along with this album, it is mentioned that all members of the Hague are bearded so make of that what you will. The music is really what counts and there’s not a bad song on this album although the folky group harmonies are the album’s weaker moments. Speaking loudly for the band is an unpretentious combination of shimmering guitar and violin with often unpredictable rhythmic structures. The The Hague’s songs are here to do the talking and there’s enough variation between songs which gives no reason to hit the skip button as this.

The Hague had a successful kickstarter project going to raise funds for a vinyl for a version of the album.

4/5

http://smalltakeover.blogspot.com/2012/06/hague-black-rabbit.html

THE MEMORIALS CD REVIEW

"Delirium"

By Dr. Abner Mality

The Memorials are one of the most unpredictable outfits in rock n' roll right now. They've labelled themselves "Afro-punk" but that doesn't even really begin to cover the swirling cauldron that their music has become. Their debut album was also pretty off the hook, but "Delirium", in fitting with its title, is more so. Yet it is also more refined in some ways.

Now basically down to a duo accompanied by talented session musicians, the band restricts itself from NOTHING on "Delirium". The odd beginning track "Dreams" is off putting with its heavy reliance on synth breakbeats, spacy sounds and rapped vocals from singer Viveca Hawkins. Suffice to say, it's not my cup of tea at all, yet it has a big, almost ethereal sound. One thing's for sure...Viveca Hawkins can SING. She has a soulful, multi-faceted voice that avoids the blatant "oversouling" that so many nightmare American Idol karaoke contestants beat into the ground. She is never less than compelling. With second track "Fluorescents", the heaviness of The Memorials' kicks in. Ex Mars Volta man Thomas Pridgen is a whiz on the guitar and cuts loose with both brutal riffs and screaming leads throughout the course of this song, which also includes saxophone and gospel-like female vocals.

You can hear just about anything at any time during the course of this album. There's way-out power electronics on "I'm So Anti-Me", jazz fusion improvisation on the title track, thrash on "Daiseys" and hardcore soul/funk on "Heavyweight". But never are those sounds just by themselves...they're coupled with other musical styles that come out of nowhere. The result is loose, unpredictable, progressive and sometimes jarring. Last cut "Mr. Entitled" is way, way too long at over eleven minutes and just seems like an unfocused mess. But excepting that and "Dreams", the album never fails to be exciting and mercurial and featuring some outstanding talent.

http://www.wormwoodchronicles.com/torture-chamber/memorials-the-2

San Francisco, California-based modern rock band The Illness

San Francisco, California-based modern rock band The Illness are premiering a brand new music video for their track “Lengua de la Muerte.” The song is the first track on the band’s upcoming full-length album, A Monument To Our Gilded Age, that releases this Tuesday, June 5. The album can be pre-ordered on the band’s official website. You can also check out a humorous “biographical” comic strip about the band here

http://thesoundalarm.com/?p=14947

THE MEMORIALS / Delirium (ind. - merci à/thanks to XO Publicity)

 

THE MEMORIALS / Delirium (ind. - merci à/thanks to XO Publicity)

Une collaboration entre la chanteuse Viveca Hawkins (qui a fait du chemin dans la soul) et le batteur Thomas Pridgen (The Mars Volta). Plusieurs musiciens les entourent. Un rock alternatif torché, aux influences diverses - hip-hop, métal, punk, afrofunk. Les chansons song longues (entre sept et neuf minutes pour la majorité) mais portées par des mélodies efficaces et, surtout, une attitude qui fait plaisir. Puissant et divertissant.

 

A collaboration between singer Viveca Hawkins (she has a track record in soul music) and drummer Thomas Pridgen (of The Mars Volta). Several musicians surround them. Edgy alt rock with a mixed bag of influences: hip-hop, metal, punk, afrofunk. Songs are long (7 to 9 minutes for most) but caried by successful melodies and, most of all, an attitude that won’t quit. Fun powerful stuff.

 

http://blog.monsieurdelire.com/2012/06/2012-05-31-nick-vasallo-1000-thinking.html

Sophie Barker Performs ‘Say Goodbye,’ Covers the Cure’s ‘A Forest’ in Asbury Park – Exclusive Videos

by: Joe Robinson 

YouTube

“I’ve managed to gather all the people around me that are right for all the different elements and influences I’ve had all of these years,“ Sophie Barker reflects as she winds down a brief afternoon acoustic set at Asbury Lanes, a punk rock-themed bowling alley and music venue one block from the Atlantic Ocean in the New Jersey town of Asbury Park. The British singer-songwriter recently stopped by Asbury for a performance to be featured exclusively on Diffuser.fm that included ‘Say Goodbye’ and a cover of the Cure’s ‘A Forest,’ both tunes from a recently released, eponymously titled split single.

Barker, who later that day launched an eight-date Stateside trek, is referring to her entire music career, but her words could best describe the synchronicity of her current situation as a solo artist. Barker was grateful to recruit violinist Chloe Lander and guitarist Yul Desai to back her in time to record her latest solo album, last year’s warmly received ‘Seagull,’ and the duo is still around a year later supporting her on the road.
Barker may best be known for her work with Zero 7, the British downtempo duo that scored its biggest hit to date with the sultry, slow-burning jam ‘Destiny.’ Barker co-wrote and sang alongside Sia Fuller on that tune and several others from ‘Simple Things,’ the group’s breakthrough 2001 debut. She continued recording with Zero 7 on 2004’s ‘When It Falls’ and branched out for collaborations with a host of other artists in the intervening years before issuing her solo debut, ‘Earthbound,’ in 2006.
“I think there’s similarities and obviously there are differences in that I’ve now been able to write a whole album that I’ve been in control of in terms of emotions and the energy of it,” Barker tells Diffuser.fm when comparing her past collaborative work with the freedom of continuing solo with ‘Seagull,’ which mixes the eclectic influences of folk, trip-hop and even Motown into one coherent whole. “The things I’ve done with Zero 7 — the writing [process] is the same but the production is slightly different, and then of course we’ve all got quite a lot of ’70s influences.”
So, what inspired a band steeped in the sounds of the ’70s to cover one of the definitive bands of the ’80s in the form of the Cure’s ‘A Forest?’ “The sounds are amazing, the band is amazing, Robert Smith’s got an incredible voice [and] they write amazing songs,” says Barker. “I love singing it because it just reflects a different part of me.”

Watch Sophie Barker Perform ‘Say Goodbye’

Watch Sophie Barker Perform the Cure’s ‘A Forest’

 

http://diffuser.fm/sophie-barker-performs-say-goodbye-covers-the-cures-a-forest-in-asbury-park-exclusive-videos/