Outside Lands 2017: Our 10th anniversary awards

Outside Lands 2017Photos by Marc Fong & James Pawlish // Written by Kevin Quandt & Molly Kish //

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival //
Golden Gate Park – San Francisco
August 11th-13th, 2017 //

Outside Lands celebrated its 10th anniversary this August, and it was a weekend that we can definitively say had its share of ups, downs and unexpected twists. While many found plenty to gripe about, some took away a more positive experience, proving that music festivals and live music events are truly unpredictable even when you have some of the best in business at the helm. That said, the increasingly over-inflated market of music festivals right now can be volatile and may not be a cakewalk for concert promoters as more and more folks are drawn to large-scale events such as Lollapalooza, Coachella and Outside Lands.

Some stated that the 2017 edition of OSL lacked fireworks when the lineup dropped. Others said the lineup catered closer to the 25-35 demographic. There was no lack of opinions with regard to the acts that Another Planet Entertainment and Superfly booked, but it was clear they did have a vision and a bill that stood apart from the pack with a rare group of festival legends in The Who, Gorillaz and Metallica. Below those names led to further intrigue with the return of Queens of the Stone Age, Fleet Foxes and A Tribe Called Quest after a multiyear absence from the live arena.

But many now know that two out of those three sub-headliners were unable to perform for one reason or another, and while these sorts of things are generally out of anyone’s hands, they still take a toll on everyone involved in the days, hours and even minutes leading up to those highly anticipated sets. Alas, when you have such festival production pros who were backed by three insanely spot-on headliners, these bumps in the road can create something different than initially intended, yet equally satisfying.

So, without further ado, here are our awards from the 2017 edition of Outside Lands.


Outside Lands 2017 - Gorillaz


Gorillaz

Best three-time OSL performer: Hamilton Leithauser
One highlight this year was the debut of Hamilton Leithauser’s solo act on the Sutro Stage. Having played the festival in 2008 and 2012 with his primary outfit, The Walkmen, his set marked the rare occasion of an artist performing at Outside Lands for the third time, and while Leithauser did have to battle some minor sound issues, he rallied past them like the consummate professional that he is. Short of “Alexandra”, Leithauser exclusively dug into tracks from his collaborative album with fellow New Yorker Rostam Batmanglij (formerly of Vampire Weekend) by the name of I Had a Dream That You Were Mine. The spirited crooner still remains at the top of his game, and his vocal performance can’t be rivaled by even the best. One can only hope that this will not be Leithauser’s final time onstage at OSL as fans clamor to know what’s next from this crooning, indie god. -KQ

Best cameo’d performance of the weekend: Gorillaz
Easily one of the most anticipated acts of the weekend, Gorillaz’s Humanz tour made its West Coast debut on Day 1 at OSL. After a six-year hiatus, expectations ran extremely high for this headlining performance. On previous tours, the band’s members had played second fiddle to the cartoon projections of their alter egos onstage, but everyone was visible this time around. Several collaborators from Gorillaz’s previous albums, including Kali Uchis, Yukimi Nagano and Del the Funky Homosapien, came out to join them, and the Damon Albarn-led group still pulled some even bigger surprises with cameos appearances from De la Soul and Pusha T. The two-hour set also saw Little Simz deliver a blistering performance of “Garage Palace” as well as a string of radio hits that included “Feel Good Inc.”, Clint Eastwood” and “Demon Daze”. With longtime fans and a new generation of contemporaries on hand, there was something truly special about seeing a packed crowd sing along with some cartoon legends. -MK

Best reason to sit in Golden Gate Park with your friends and listen to music: Real Estate
Real Estate continue to tour off this year’s stellar LP release, In Mind, and they demonstrated their live prowess at OSL with a sphincter-tight set of jangle pop. “Stained Glass” got the show started for the rather sizable crowd, which only grew over their allotted time. The Sutro Stage has become an ideal locale for mellower acts to play for slightly-more-seated audiences, and this set felt more loungey than others even though fan favorites “It’s Real” and “Green Aisles” punctuated a strong, breezy performance from Martin Courtney, Alex Bleeker and crew. -KQ

Most in need of performance pointers: KAYTRANADA
KAYTRANADA’s debut LP 99.9% was a highlight from 2016, and the Canadian producer has been continuing his victory lap with banner festival sets all around the world. While there’s no denying the infectious nature of his tracks like “Glowed Up” and “Got It Good” in a large-group setting, we yearn to get a little more out KAYTRA when he’s onstage. To be fair, he has loosened up a little and will toss a quick little dance move or hand gesture, but he still really doesn’t engage his audience much, whether it’s in the intimate confines of Mezzanine or in front of 25,000 strong at Outside Lands’ Twin Peaks Stage. Kay, like many others, was pretty stoked for A Tribe Called Quest to follow, but we all know how that ended. -KQ

Outside Lands 2017 - Cage the Elephant


Cage the Elephant

Next “big” rock headliner (TIE): Cage the Elephant and Royal Blood
While the cancellation of Queens of the Stone Age was a blow a week prior to the event, the replacement that was lined up more than delivered a blistering set of rock ‘n’ roll. Cage the Elephant are now being widely considered festival-headliner material, and frontman Matt Shultz is making a strong claim for that accolade as he continues to elevate his stage act to near-Mick Jagger levels of pomp and energy. “Come a Little Closer” and “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked” received hearty sing-alongs from a decidedly youthful crowd as Cage have become a favorite of Generation Z.

But Cage did have some competition at OSL, and these guys are moving at a helluva pace for the crown. Royal Blood have been one of the hottest rock acts over the past few years. I mean, their first single wasn’t even released four years ago. Royal Blood quickly rose to fame in the UK, then set their sights on Europe and lately have become the new darlings of alt-rock radio here in the U.S. with one of their newest singles, “Lights Out”. The bass-and-drums duo make a serious racket for only two blokes onstage, but they put on a show that rivals any full-band act with four or five members. Similar to Cage, the kiddos were swirling up a decent little pit in front of the stage while Mike Kerr belted out an impressive setlist with minimal effort and contributed to the low end in a serious manner. -KQ

Best use of Thai funk in a group setting: Khruangbin
Sure, many think K-bin (short for “Khruangbin”) have Thai origins with their Thai name (which means “airplane”) and their Thai funk-infused groove rock. But this rising trio that met and formed in Texas have steadily built a following based around an infectious sound that feels home both on the dance floor and at the lounge. Mark Speer on guitar is a phenom to behold; his playing style, coupled with his tone, has a true lyrical quality that’s perfect for the trio, which opted to not have a lead vocalist. It was clear that the band, like many fans in attendance, were bummed about ATCQ’s sudden cancellation, so they decided to bring one of their classics, “Electric Relaxation”, to life as drummer Donald Johnson delivered the chorus. Many chuckled and grooved to the track before the band jumped back into a set that featured “Mr. White” and “The Infamous Bill”. We can only hope a sophomore LP is not too far off. -KQ

Best use of a festival billing for a greater purpose: Solange
After a weekend marred with schedule changes and cancellations, Solange was the festival’s saving grace on Day 3. Despite starting 15-20 minutes late, she descended upon the glowing stage in a choreographed flight pattern, followed by her backing band and team of dancers, and segued directly into a soulful montage of hits from 2016’s A Seat at the Table, extending each breakdown with some interpretive dance routines. An outstanding cover of Thundercat’s “Heartbreaks + Setbacks” was seamlessly woven midway into her set before leading into an all-out dance party with deep cuts from her 2012 LP True. Solange then took a minute to touch upon the events that were happening concurrently in Charlottesville. As the only artist on the OSL bill to do so, she addressed the tragedy and utilized the stage as a final public platform before deleting her Twitter account the next day. The evening ended in dramatic fashion with the power getting shut off and the performance concluding with the crowd singing the lyrics to “Rise” in the dark. -MK

Outside Lands 2017: Top 5 things to see, eat & drink

Outside LandsPhoto by James Pawlish // Written by Kevin Quandt //

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival //
Golden Gate Park – San Francisco
August 11th-13th, 2017 //

Outside Lands returns this weekend for its 10th anniversary, and to get you ready for three fun-filled days in Golden Gate Park, we’ve outlined our top sets that you won’t want to miss, this year’s biggest scheduling conflicts, some potential guest appearances and the very best beverages to drink.

Also, don’t forget to create your own schedule here, and enter for a chance to GO4FREE to XXYYXX’s show this Saturday, August 12th at a secret location here.


Outside Lands 2017 - A Tribe Called Quest

TOP SETS NOT TO MISS

A Tribe Called Quest: While we see how this may be a controversial choice to top this list with the untimely passing of founding member Phife Dawg, it appears this may be the final time the Bay, or even the U.S., get to see the legendary hip-hop group perform. The group’s FYF Fest and Panorama performances featured multiple references to being the final ATCQ shows in those cities, so all the chatter about how extensive this “farewell tour” will be has reached a fevered pitch. Pro (Q)tip: Wanna hear Tribe’s popular hits? They’ll be featured at the end of their set.

Lorde: Sure, she has found herself toward the top of many festival lineups this year, and for good reason, as Lorde is one of the most popular artists out there right now, and her latest release Melodrama will surely be in top contention for Album of the Year. At only the age of 20, the singer’s recent sophomore success has also translated to the stage in impressive ways and will surely satiate the 18-25 demographic before The Who close out the event on Sunday.

Royal Blood: The unfortunate cancellation of Queens of the Stone Age has put a dampening on fans of all things rock, especially since Saturday was stacked in said department. Though some will be pleased with Cage the Elephant as the replacement, it does leave a glaring gap for many hoping to get another hour-plus of fist-banging rock and f’in roll. So, let’s longingly look to the upstart UK hard-rock duo that continues to make waves across the global festival circuit and delivers some amalgamation of Muse and The Black Keys. Expect to hear a solid smattering of tracks from their most excellent recent release How Did We Get So Dark?

Fleet Foxes: Has it really been six years since Robin Pecknold and band last played the Bay Area? Yup! A lot has changed in those years, but thankfully they are still producing their own unique brand of cool-kid folk and should fit in nicely for their premier performance in Golden Gate Park. We’ll be hearing many tracks for the first time live to go along with a different band lineup onstage. While no one who attends the event ever wishes for Karl the Fog, he could fit semi-decently into this set like during Sigur Rós in 2012.

The Who: The legendary rock bands of our parents’ generation are quickly folding up shop and The Who may be the next to wave a fond farewell. While many attendees have griped in various online forums about this closing headline slot, it seems only fitting considering that Sunday has become the fest’s more legacy-leaning day. Roger Daltery and Pete Townsend are backed by a killer band and have been churning out enigmatic setlists the past few years, so expect to hear all your favorites with a few rare gems.


Outside Lands 2017 - Gorillaz

SCHEDULING CONFLICTS, THOUGHTS & QUERIES

Friday

• Sub-headliner jumble: End of ATCQ vs. Future Islands vs. beginning of Fleet Foxes.

• alt-J vs. Gorillaz: There’s likely a fair amount of fan crossover between these two acts.

• “Bouncin’ for Beignets” moves to Friday afternoon from its previous weekend mid-day slot.

Saturday

• Royal Blood vs S U R V I V E: Seems like an odd conflict, but these artists are playing their first OSL this year and are some of 2017’s most buzzy acts.

• Anyone else notice that two-hour-and-35-minute gap after Kaytranada and Empire of the Sun? We did, too. Our bet is we’ll be getting either an EDM or hip-hop late addition. Does Afrojack fly up from Vegas for the day?

Sunday

• Solange will now be closing the Sutro stage. We surmise her set was on Saturday after Kaytranada before the shift.

• The Heineken Dome has a mystery set scheduled from 5:10-5:40 p.m. that’s billed as a “Pop-Up Guest Performance.” Our bet is DJ Qbert gets this slot as he’ll be onsite for his GastroMagic set earlier in the day.

• This will be the first time Another Planet has put three acts against each other in the form of The Who, Solange and Above & Beyond.


Outside Lands 2017 - Metallica

POTENTIAL GUEST APPEARANCES

• Little Dragon vocalist Yukimi Nagano comes out with Kaytranada to perform “BULLETS”.

• Lady Gaga with Metallica … remember this year’s Grammys?

• Del the Funky Homosapien joining Gorillaz for “Clint Eastwood”. He’ll be at the GastroMagic stage the next day for Kimchi 3030.

• Kali Uchis and Rag’n’Bone Man joining Gorillaz for their Humanz tracks.


Outside Lands 2017 - Cocktail Magic

BEST BEVERAGES TO DRINK

Fort Point Beer Company: Fort Point has been making waves from their Presidio location over the past few years but has recently started to see the brand grow out from the Bay. Their flagships Villager, a West Coast IPA, and KSA, a Kölsch style ale, will surely please the palate whether we get a typical foggy summer day or are blessed with clear skies.

Whitechapel (Cocktail Magic): You like gin? Yeah, us too. Well, all us are in for a treat as SF’s hottest gin bar will be serving up a few of their signature cocktails in the Mclaren Pass section of the fest. While it’s unlikely they’ll schlep over all 400 varieties of gin they offer at their Tenderloin brick-and-mortar, they’ll certainly offer some of the most complex cocktails offered at any major U.S. music festival.

Bushido’s “Way of the Warrior”: OSL wine curator Peter Eastlake knows his stuff, and while winos will find many of their favorites, it’s this sake debut that makes us a little excited. The can graphics feature some rad little samurai fox character while the contents display notes of raspberry and watermelon rind with a spicy finish. I mean, sake in a can? Yeah, I’ll take two … and arigatou.

Outside Lands - 2017 lineup

Outside Lands reveals its 2017 schedule

Outside Lands - 2017 schedule

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival //
Golden Gate Park – San Francisco
August 11th-13th, 2017 //

One day after Outside Lands announced some stunning news that Saturday sub-headliner Queens of the Stone Age will not be performing this year “due to injury” (and then quickly replaced them with Cage the Elephant), the three-day festival has unveiled what every live music fan clamors for … set times!

Take a peek at the festival’s 2017 schedule for its 10th anniversary here and start making your plans for which artists you’ll be seeing at Golden Gate Park this August.

Of course, when it comes to scheduling conflicts, this year — just like every year at Outside Lands — isn’t void of them. For starters, festivalgoers on Friday will have to choose between Electric Guest/Tove Lo, Fleet Foxes/Future Islands and Gorillaz/alt-J, and that’s just Day 1.

Meanwhile, Saturday sees Warpaint and The Lemon Twigs pitted up against one another, along with Dawes vs. Thundercat, Royal Blood vs. S U R V I V E, Vance Joy vs. Kaytranada, Cage the Elephant vs. Foxygen, and Metallica vs. Empire of the Sun. Plus, there’s this …

Outside Lands 2017 - Saturday TBD

The question is, who will it be? Our money is on an EDM act (i.e. Afrojack, A-Trak, Tiësto), considering the festival has barely any superstar DJs performing this year besides English progressive-trance trio Above & Beyond, but anything’s still possible with a little less than two weeks to go.

And finally, Sunday offers its own set of difficult choices, with Bleachers and Maggie Rogers scheduled only 20 minutes apart (as well as James Vincent McMorrow and Sofi Tukker) and The Who, Solange and Above & Beyond all performing at the same time as they close down the fest.

But with so many quality options from top to bottom, you really can’t go wrong. So, keep that in mind when you’re stressing over who you should see. Whatever you do though, make sure to pick up a comfortable pair of running shoes before heading to the park and download the mobile app here.

Pumped for Outside Lands? Go back in time and check out our coverage from 2016 here.

Outside Lands - 2017 lineup

Outside Lands reveals 2017 lineup, headlined by Metallica, The Who & Gorillaz

Outside Lands - 2017 lineup

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival //
Golden Gate Park – San Francisco
August 11th-13th, 2017 //

Outside Lands is going BIG for its 10th anniversary.

The three-day music festival returns to Golden Gate Park this August with a lineup for the ages, headlined by Metallica, The Who and Gorillaz. All three headliners were mentioned among our OSL predictions this year, with Metallica pretty much becoming a sure bet last week after Ranger Dave’s not-so-subtle tweet.

Natives of the Bay, Metallica have been on the road in support of their 10th LP Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, and their headlining set at Outside Lands will come toward the tail end of their North American tour during a string of West Coast shows. The Who, on the other hand, have only a limited number of 2017 gigs planned right now, culminating with a six-night residency in Las Vegas that concludes on Friday, August 11th. With that said, we know then that Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend and company will perform at OSL on Saturday or Sunday, with the latter being all the more likely. The festival, after all, has been known to schedule its “older” headliners for the Sunday night slot a la Lionel Ritchie (2016), Elton John (2015), Tom Petty (2014), Paul McCartney (2013) and Stevie Wonder (2012), and we expect The Who to get the same kind of treatment in 2017.

But for Gorillaz fans in the U.S., Outside Lands could be the one place to see the band perform this summer. The festival is one of two North American dates for the Damon Albarn-led group, which headlines its own Demon Dayz Festival in June before making a stop at Festival d’été de Québec in Quebec City a month later. The same could even be said for sub-headliner Queens of the Stone Age, considering that OSL is their first scheduled North American show this year. The same, however, definitely can’t be said for Lorde, who is making the festival rounds with Coachella, JazzFest, Governor’s Ball, FPSF, Bonnaroo, Glastonbury, Rock Werchter, OpenAir St. Gallen, Fuji Rock, Lollapalooza, Osheaga and now OSL all on her current tour schedule.

Other standout acts lined up for OSL this year include A Tribe Called Quest, alt-J, Above & Beyond, Fleet Foxes, Empire of the Sun, The Avett Brothers, Belle and Sebastian, Solange, Future Islands, ScHoolboy Q, Young the Giant, Rebelution, Vance Joy, Tove Lo, Bleachers, Little Dragon, Kaytranada, Action Bronson, Sleigh Bells, Royal Blood, Shovels & Rope, Dr. Octagon, Louis the Child, Thundercat, Dawes, Warpaint, Rag’n’Bone Man, Bomba Estéreo, Temples, Real Estate, RAC, James Vincent McMorrow, K.Flay, MUNA, Hamilton Leithauser, Sofi Tukker, Maggie Rogers, Foxygen, Goldroom, SOHN, Electric Guest, How to Dress Well, Hundred Waters, Noname and many more. Check out the poster above for the rest of this year’s bill.

Boasting six consecutive sellouts to date, Outside Lands is sure to do the same in 2017 and will once again include a full lineup of comedy performances in addition to its famed Beer Lands, Wine Lands and Choco Lands + Cheese Lands. Of course, you’d have a tough time finding much better food and drink at a music festival than what Outside Lands offers.

If you missed out on Eager Beaver tickets last Thursday, you can buy Outside Lands tickets starting this Thursday, April 6th at 10 a.m. It’s worth mentioning, though, that with the new lineup also comes increased ticket prices. Three-day GA passes are up to $375 and three-day VIP passes have climbed to $795. Shuttle passes and parking passes, meanwhile, will be sold for $48 and $255, respectively. And though the festival makes no mention of it yet, single-day tickets are usually sold at a later time.

UPDATE (June 6th): Outside Lands has unveiled its daily lineups for 2017, and not to pat ourselves on the back, but our predictions for which days the festival’s headliners would perform were right on point, with Gorillaz performing Friday, Metallica storming the stage Saturday and The Who closing things down Sunday. Check out the daily schedules below before single-day tickets go on sale this Thursday, June 8th at 10 a.m. PT.

Outside Lands 2017 - daily lineups

UPDATE (July 31st): Outside Lands has announced that Queens of the Stone Age, after all, will not perform this year “due to injury” and have been replaced by Cage the Elephant. No details on the “injury” have been released at this time.

UPDATE (August 1st): The festival has revealed the schedule for its 10th edition. Take a peek here and start mapping out who you’ll be seeing at Golden Gate Park.

Can’t wait for Outside Lands’ 10th edition? Check out our coverage from 2016 here.

Outside Lands 2016 - Beach House

Goldenvoice reveals 2017 Coachella sideshows

Goldenvoice Presents: April 2017

We’re already six weeks into 2017, and for many music fans residing in California, that means Coachella isn’t all that far away. But while much of the talk around this year’s lineup has been centered on Beyoncé’s debut and more recently her pregnant-with-twins news (the jury is still out on whether it will put a wrench in her plans to perform both weekends), Goldenvoice has turned a good portion of April into a long stretch of top-notch shows, similar to what Red Bull Sound Select has done in November with its month-long “30 Days in LA” series that last year included artists like Nick Murphy (formerly Chet Faker), YG, Jhené Aiko, AlunaGeorge, Pusha T and Isaiah Rashad (look back at our coverage here).

Much like in 2016, Goldenvoice has once again released a list of sideshows that will take place at venues in the greater Los Angeles area, with a select few extending into Orange County (at The Observatory and Constellation Room), Santa Barbara County (at the Santa Barbara Bowl) and the desert (at Pappy & Harriet’s).

Florida emcee Denzel Curry will kick off the festivities on Friday, April 7th at The Glass House before LA outfit Chicano Batman close things out at the same venue on Saturday, April 29th. In between those gigs, Sampha, Banks, Jack Garratt, Crystal Castles, Francis and the Lights, Bishop Briggs, SOHN, Oh Wonder, Future Islands, Little Dragon (with Sophie Tukker), The Head and the Heart, Joseph, Kaytranada, Banks & Steelz, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Nicolas Jaar, Car Seat Headrest (with Preoccupations), Bonobo, Mura Masa (with Kamaiyah), DJ Shadow, Breakbot, Blossoms, New Order (with Poliça), Hinds (with Twin Peaks), Bonobo, Galantis, Local Natives (with Tennis), S U R V I V E, The Avalanches, Glass Animals (with Little Dragon and/or Jagwar Ma), Empire of the Sun (with Broods), Tacocat, Bastille, Roisin Murphy, Whitney, Lil Uzi Vert, Mitski, Röyksopp, Future Islands, Pond (with Ezra Furman), Moderat, Swet Shop Boyz, Floating Points (Live), HONNE (with Arkells), Daphini, Jai Wolf, Guided by Voices and Phantogram will all perform — some even more than once — inside and/or outside of LA’s city limits.

Furthermore, British independent record label Young Turks will host a special showcase for its roster of artists with performances by Ben UFO, Four Tet, Francis and the Lights, Jamie xx, Kamaiyah, Sampha and special guest PNL in Palm Springs on Thursday, April 13th. Check out the full list of sideshows in the poster above.

It’s hard to believe that Goldenvoice has found a way to top their efforts from a year ago, but the renowned concert promoter has managed to do just that. This year’s Coachella sideshows are jam-packed with alternative-electronic and indie-rock acts, with Nicolas Jaar’s headlining performance at Pappy & Harriet’s alongside Floating Points (Live) and Pond as well as Future Islands’ date at The Glass House featuring support from Car Seat Headrest as two of the bigger highlights — and no doubt there are plenty on this bill. Yet, one of the most enticing pairings has to be the Glass Animals-Little Dragon-Jagwar Ma one that’s slated to take over the Santa Barbara Bowl, arguably our favorite venue in Southern California, on Saturday, April 23rd.

Tickets for most of the sideshows go on sale here this Friday, February 17th at Noon PT with the rest of them available Friday, February 24th at Noon PT or Friday, March 3rd at Noon PT.

Goldenvoice

Albums you’ll want to hear in 2017

2017 albumsWritten by Josh Herwitt //

For as bad as 2016 might have been, there’s no question it yielded some excellent albums. So, what’s in store for 2017? It’s still early, but from what we know right now, there’s plenty of new music on the horizon — and a lot of it we can’t wait to get our hands on.

Here are 10 upcoming albums (in chronological order by release date) that you’ll want to hear and could very well end up being on some “Best of 2017” lists in another 12 months.


Bonobo – Migration

Bonobo - Migration

Release date: January 13th
Record label: Ninja Tune

British musician, producer and DJ Simon Green has organically built a loyal following among electronic music fans for almost two decades with a unique sound that combines downtempo electronica with trip-hop and world-music influences. Since 2013’s The North Borders, he has moved to Los Angeles and recorded his sixth LP Migration, which boasts a few notable guest appearances from Nick Murphy (fka Chet Faker), Rhye and Hundred Waters.


The Flaming Lips – Oczy Mlody

The Flaming Lips - Oczy Mlody

Release date: January 13th
Record label: Warner Bros.

Wayne Coyne and his psychedelic sidekicks have been busy over the last few years, recording Beatles cover album With a Little Help From My Fwends in 2014 and releasing a collaborative LP with Miley Cyrus the following year. On their 15th studio effort, the difficult-to-pronounce Oczy Mlody that drops on Coyne’s birthday, the Lips return to the days of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and get a little help from their pop-star “fwend” on closing track “We a Famly”.


SOHN – Rennen

SOHN - Rennen

Release date: January 13th
Record label: 4AD

London native Christopher Taylor has been known for working extensively with such artists as BANKS, Lana Del Rey and Rhye, but his transition in becoming a legitimate solo act was cemented with the release of his 2014 debut LP Tremors, which peaked at No. 31 on the UK charts. Now calling LA his home, he has spent the last three years constructing Rennen, his second record as SOHN that’s led by “Signal” and its frighteningly beautiful music video.


The xx – I See You

The xx - I See You

Release date: January 13th
Record label: Young Turks

No impending album in the first quarter of 2017 may have as much hype around it as The xx’s I See You, their long-awaited follow-up to 2012’s Coexist. The build-up to its release in the last few months has seen the London trio perform on SNL, where they showcased lead single “On Hold” and debuted “I Dare You”, and play shows in Eastern Europe to go along with the news of guitarist/vocalist Romy Madley Croft’s recent engagement.


Cloud Nothings – Life Without Sound

Cloud Nothings - Life Without Sound

Release date: January 27th
Record label: Carpark Records

Lo-fi noise rockers Cloud Nothings have come a long way since Dylan Baldi started recording songs in his parents’ basement. With their last two LPs — 2012’s Attack on Memory and 2014’s Here and Nowhere Else — garnering critical acclaim from the music media, the four-piece will release Life Without Sound, its fifth studio album and first with lead guitarist Chris Brown now officially a member of the band, later this month.


Japandroids – Near to the Wild Heart of Life

Japandroids - Near to the Wild Heart of Life

Release date: January 27th
Record label: ANTI-

Known for their DIY approach and high-energy performances, Brian King and David Prowse are back after what some may have considered a brief hiatus since touring in support of their 2012 studio album Celebration Rock. This time, the Canadian garage-punk duo is signed to a new label, with its third LP Near to the Wild Heart of Life set to drop on ANTI- in a couple of weeks before embarking on a 20-date North American tour this winter.


Elbow – Little Fictions

Elbow - Little Fictions

Release date: February 3rd
Record label: Polydor

2017 marks a big year for Elbow. The Mercury Prize winners have been going at it for 20 years, and to celebrate the occasion, frontman Guy Garvey and company are unveiling their seventh studio album Little Fictions, which features collaborations with The Hallé Orchestra and their choir after longtime drummer Richard Jupp announced in 2016 that he was leaving the group to pursue other creative projects, from expanding his drum school to various charity work.


Sampha – Process

Sampha - Process

Release date: February 3rd
Record label: Young Turks

Sampha Sisay, who performs under his mononymous stage name, has built much of his reputation on working with high-profile artists like Drake, Kanye West and Solange. But almost seven years after unveiling his debut EP Sundanza, the South London electronic musician, singer-songwriter and producer is finally dropping his own full-length effort, highlighted by previously released singles “Timmy’s Prayer” and “Blood on Me”.


Ryan Adams – Prisoner

Ryan Adams - Prisoner

Release date: February 17th
Record label: PAX AM/Blue Note

At the age of 42, Ryan Adams is as prolific as any musician out there right now, with Prisoner marking his 16th LP and the follow-up to his Taylor Swift cover album. And while he has been teasing the record for about six months, originally hinting at a possible November release, the alt-country songwriter gets ready for his next chapter, which he says was inspired by 80’s rock giants like Bruce Springsteen and AC/DC despite coping with a very public divorce at the time.


The Shins – Headworms

The Shins - Heartworms

Release date: March 10
Record label: Columbia

By the time The Shins unleash their fifth LP this March, it will be nearly five years between album releases for the Portland-based outfit. Of course, it’s no secret that bandleader James Mercer keeps a tight schedule between The Shins and Broken Bells, but on Heartworms, the Albuquerque native made sure to include “So Now What”, the song he wrote for the “Wish I Was Here” soundtrack that he later said was “one of the best things” he has ever done.


The following artists and bands are expected to release new albums in 2017 but have yet to confirm an official release date and/or an album title:

ANTEMASQUE
Arcade Fire
Broken Social Scene
Bruce Springsteen
Chic
Chromatics
Depeche Mode
Diddy
DJ Premier
Gorillaz
Grizzly Bear
GZA
Haim
Jesu/Sun Kil Moon
John Mayer
Kanye West
The Killers
LCD Soundsystem
Lupe Fiasco
Major Lazer
Mastodon
Modest Mouse
My Morning Jacket
The National
The Offspring
Pond
Ride
Sky Ferreira
Spiritualized
St. Vincent
T.I.
Troye Sivan
Vampire Weekend
Wyclef Jean
Zack de la Rocha


The 25 best live music acts of 2015

Best Live Acts of 2015

Around this time last year, we shared our 25 favorite live performers of 2014 after spending the past 12 months covering many excellent bands, musicians and DJs. So, with 2015 almost in the books, we thought we would give the same exercise another try, except this year, we made the call to exclude any artists we named in 2014. What fun would it really be to list them two years in a row anyway?

In the end, it wasn’t an easy task whittling down our list to 25, but some tough decisions had to be made. Those who didn’t make the cut but still deserve to be mentioned here include the following artists and bands (in alphabetical order) who we either covered at their own show and/or at a music festival this year:

AlunaGeorge, Ariel Pink, BADBADNOTGOOD, Bad Religion, Battles, Beirut, Belle and Sebastian, Big Grams, Billy Idol, Black Lips, The Black Keys, Blonde Redhead, BØRNS, BROODS, Built to Spill, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Chet Faker, Chromeo, City and Colour, Classixx, Cold War Kids, Dâm-Funk, Damien Rice, Death Cab for Cutie, Dengue Fever, Django Django, Dr. Dog, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Failure, The Flaming Lips, Flight Facilities, Goldroom, Glen Hansard, The Glitch Mob, Gorgon City, Holly Herndon, Interpol, Israel Nash, James Bay, Jeff Tweedy, Jenny Lewis, The Jesus and Mary Chain, JMSN, Jose Gonzalez, Jurassic 5, Kanye West, Kindness, King Tuff, Marina and the Diamonds, Miami Horror, Milky Chance, Modest Mouse, Morrissey, MS MR, Les Sins, Lotus, Natalie Prass, Neon Indian, ODESZA, Of Montreal, Oneohtrix Point Never, Panda Bear, Penguin Prison, Phantogram, Portugal. The Man, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Purity Ring, Ratatat, Royal Blood, San Fermin, Shlohmo, Slow Magic, SOHN, St. Paul and The Broken Bones, STRFKR, Surfer Blood, Talib Kweli, Tame Impala, Tennis, Toro y Moi, Tycho, Umphrey’s McGee, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Vintage Trouble, Vulfpeck, Widespread Panic, YACHT.

Now, without further ado, The Bam Team presents our 25 favorite live performers of 2015.

The Bam Team’s 5 Favorite Shows, Albums & Songs of 2015

Listen to The Bam Team’s favorite songs of 2015:


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #25 - Lord Huron

25. Lord Huron

The audience reacted with just as much enthusiasm during classic Lord Huron tunes as they did in hearing brand-new material, especially during fan favorites like “She Lit a Fire” and back-to-back rockabilly-tinged jams “The World Ender” and “Fool for Love”. At this point, the crowd had not only warmed up to Lord Huron’s infectious stage presence, but also gave into their buoyant vibes as mini dance parties broke out throughout the venue. -Molly Kish, photo by Steve Carlson


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #24 - Puscifer

24. Puscifer

Maynard James Keenan and friends have established themselves as not just a group of musicians who play songs on stage, but rather an assemblage of entertainers that provide their viewers and fans with something they may not have ever seen before — a true experience. Paying homage to the likes of Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd and the glory days of the rock opera, Puscifer have a very special way of combining their music with a stage show that offers so much more than just music. -Scotland Miller, photo by Mike Rosati


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #23 - Viet Cong

23. Viet Cong

Once the appetizer had been digested, Viet Cong were taking the stage and beginning a theme of quirky banter that eased the crowd into the blistering set as opposed to bombardment. Within the first few chords, it was evident that continued time on the road found the band at the peak of perfection. -Kevin Quandt, photo by Diana Cordero


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #22 - Kate Tempest

22. Kate Tempest

This decade will likely be known for the death of “genre,” the end of how groups have been contained into categories like R&B or rap since the birth of record labels. And with dance music on the rise, digitized conventions are creeping into pop, rap and indie music on the regular. With music more accessible than ever and for free, listeners are willing to experiment with their auditory material — and amalgamation is the natural result. Tempest represents this change as much or more than anyone as we enter the smack-dab middle of this decade. And that includes Kanye West, Sylvan Esso or Run the Jewels. -Mike Frash, photo by James Nagel


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #21 - Deerhunter

21. Deerhunter

Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox talked about how he decided on the way over to the island that he wouldn’t play many songs, how he took ayahuasca on Saturday night in LA and he was surprised at how reserved the TIMF audience was. He said we were “polite like the Japanese.” Bradford, that’s what we call “respect” — and you’ve earned it. -Mike Frash, photo by Marc Fong


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #20 - Faith No More

20. Faith No More

It can be hard to know what to expect from a crew like Faith No More and their eccentric, yet prolific members. The entire stage was dressed in white, from the curtains to the amplifiers to the mic stands. Lining the entire length of the stage and any flat surface that would support them were thousands of dollars worth of beautiful, fresh flowers. The abundance of purples and pinks, reds and yellows created a very comfortable and soothing, yet incredibly eerie feeling as to what was about to happen next. Once the setup was complete and the lights dropped, the crowd was let in to the stark contrast that is the weird world of Faith No More. -Scotland Miller, photo by Greg Ramar


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #19 - Sufjan Stevens

19. Sufjan Stevens

Stevens spoke of the need for community in the throes of grief, and the audience ably did their part to help him through this very public grieving process. At the end of the main set, a young woman crashed the stage to offer a bemused Sufjan something (a hug? words of love and encouragement?), and it seemed wholly appropriate, as if the audience needed in some small way to collectively reach out to the man after he bared his soul so openly. -Steve Carlson, photo by Steve Carlson


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #18 - Allen Stone

18. Allen Stone

In many ways, Stone’s ideological stance on technology shapes not only his set as a performer but also his fan base. Watching an Allen Stone show, one can feel certain that all pretenses will be left at the door and those surrounding you will be committing their full attention to the music. Midway through Stone’s set, the venue was completely under his charismatic spell. The audience actively followed the Seattle-born frontman’s lead as he prompted a group participation “2-step” and rolled through crowd favorites from his self-titled LP and latest album Radius. -Molly Kish, photo by Tom Dellinger


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #17 - The Kills

17. The Kills

Mosshart, tall and slender, strutted her way through just about all of it, displaying a bravado that exudes both sex and confidence, while Hince handled his axe like a bona fide rock star, eventually playing some slide guitar during the gritty, blues-infused track “Pots and Pans” that got the crowd roaring after it was over. After all, it’s that blues/garage-rock overlap, along with the chemistry exhibited between Mosshart and Hince onstage, that makes The Kills such a captivating rock ‘n’ roll act to see live these days. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #16 - The Chemical Brothers

16. The Chemical Brothers

Directly following their dramatic entrance to a recording of Junior Parker’s epic “Tomorrow Never Knows”, the duo kicked off their career-spanning set with crowd favorite “Hey Boy, Hey Girl” from 1999’s Surrender. They launched into a full-blown frenzy from that moment on, and the UK dance legends went hard (no pun intended) throughout the rest of their two-hour performance, debuting live remixes of new material from their 2015 release Born in the Echoes while interspersing nostalgia-inducing EDM classics off their seven previous albums. -Molly Kish, photo by Justin Yee


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #15 - Eagles of Death Metal

15. Eagles of Death Metal

EODM have the perfect style as a rock band, one that takes itself just seriously enough. As a whole, they are a hard, fast and tightly-wound production, with their silly lyrics and even sillier frontman bringing a perfect balance to what you want to see at a rock show. Closing with “Speaking in Tongues”, EODM walked off the stage at the Great American Music Hall knowing that they had accomplished what they came to do — to prove that rock ain’t dead. -Brett Ruffenach, photo by Mike Rosati


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #14 - Florence + the Machine

14. Florence + the Machine

Welch lapped around the inside ring of the bowl, stopping briefly at the sound stage. What a cool moment. -James Nagel, photo by James Nagel


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #13 - Sturgill Simpson

13. Sturgill Simpson

Simpson has stage presence, that is without a doubt. The conviction of his voice bolsters his words as he describes a life of highs and lows, trials and tribulations. This was evident on renditions of songs like “Turtles All the Way Down”. If there is a song to capture your attention and convince you of Simpson’s talents as a songwriter, this is one of them. Just like that of his predecessors, he writes music that goes against the grain of popular country music. It may be defined as “outlaw country,” but I personally feel it is music that resonates with a wider audience than that of its counterparts. -Kory Thibeault, photo by Kory Thibeault


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #12 - alt-j

12. alt-J

The 2012 Mercury Prize winners echoed a semblance to that of Sigur Rós or Volcano Choir, leaving audience members entranced in a near-altered state while observing the foursome. The biggest fan responses erupted during the band’s singalong favorites “Breezeblocks”, “Fitzpleasure” and their token cover of Bill Withers’ “Lovely Day”. -Molly Kish, photo by Mike Rosati


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #11 - Hot Chip

11. Hot Chip

In recent years, only ever getting the chance to see the outfit in stripped-down DJ sets or as part of side projects/collaborations, the afternoon crowd full of die-hard, nu-disco fans were not disappointed as the UK dance veterans set the polo fields ablaze. Refraining from any slow builders, Hot Chip performed an hour-long set of career-spanning bangers, keeping the crowd moving with hit after hit, that seamlessly blended into one another. The set procured one of the most viral dance party moments of the festival, with the audience spiraling into a collective bliss as it came to a close. -Molly Kish, photo by Josh Herwitt


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #10 - Dan Deacon

10. Dan Deacon

One of the toughest things to do in the world of electronic music is to sound organic, to imbue a sense of heart into the digitized nature of ones and zeroes. The Baltimore native accomplishes this through his hilarious and improvisational free-form, stand-up comedy, which thrives on wandering non sequiturs. And he mirrors this by adapting his insane-train of sound to meet and exceed the energy in the room. The “America” suite finished off the show with an extended doom metal quality that gave a sense that no aesthetic boundaries can contain Deacon’s sense of musical exploration. -Mike Frash, photo by Pedro Paredes


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #9 - FKA twigs

9. FKA twigs

British singer-songwriter Tahliah Debrett Barnett, better known as FKA twigs, has been all the rage lately after performing at Coachella in April, and she closed out FYF in style, donning an elaborate burgundy- and gold-colored robe for her Sunday night set. Just the week before, the 27-year-old fiancée of actor/musician Robert Pattinson released her brand-new EP M3LL155X, and with it receiving high marks from a number of music outlets, there were quite a few fans who stuck around after 11:30 p.m. on a “school night” to watch her perform some of them, including the opening track “Figure 8”, “In Time” and “Glass & Patron”. FKA twigs might be one of the most compelling live acts out there right now, and after scheduling Purity Ring to close out The Lawn the night before, FYF seemed to make a point of letting women rule that stage in the late-night hours this year. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #8 - Empire of the Sun

8. Empire of the Sun

As Steele belted out “Alive”, the hit single off the band’s sophomore studio album Ice on the Dune, to close things out, he brought the audience to a transcendent place of exhilaration. Crowd members embraced and danced amongst a like-minded family of people lost in the moment, even if it involved intergalactic creatures dancing in colored smoke and a crowned Emperor playing without his bandmate on stage. EOTS shows are a special kind of magic that regardless of the material’s absurd nature, translate into an experience unlike anything else. -Molly Kish, photo by Steve Carlson


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #7 - My Morning Jacket

7. My Morning Jacket

Though it was more than understandable to see the band play a large majority of The Waterfall for its first performance at the Santa Barbara Bowl in almost four years, there were plenty of other deep cuts mixed in over the next two hours, from “Bermuda Highway” to “Mahgeetah” to “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2”. After all, it’s no secret that My Morning Jacket have always been good to their most loyal and dedicated fans, and in once again taking song requests as part of their “Spontaneous Curation Series,” they made sure to dig up many of the classics from their seminal album Z, including “Wordless Chorus” and “Off the Record” one after the other in the middle of a loaded, four-song encore. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #6 - Jamie xx

6. Jamie xx

Throughout his tour, Smith has refused to compromise his individual style for the sake of appeasing either extreme of his now commercially hybrid audience. Whereas those familiar with his early XL Records mixtapes were satiated by his intermingling of Gil Scott-Heron and Idris Muhammad samples between hits, his newfound post-In Colour fans experienced equally breathtaking moments with the crowd hitting peak energy levels during the encore chorus of “Loud Places” amidst the glow of a warped-speed, neon-green strobe light. Other notable moments included the near-religious choral drop of “Gosh” that escalated the packed house to spiritual levels of enthusiasm, bathed in the glowing sparkle of Smith’s staggeringly iridescent ceiling to floor disco ball and stage lights. -Molly Kish, photo by James Nagel


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #5 - Elton John

5. Elton John

The star-spangled legend sat at his majestic piano as the sun went down on Sunday and moved the crowd with his brilliant playing. The adoring audience hung on every word and joined in singing his most popular hits. Walking off stage quickly after his last song, the audience demanded more and Elton happily obliged. With rumors of Lion King songs being played at past performances, some doting fans wanted a second encore to the tune of “Circle of Life”. While he didn’t indulge the Lion King fans, his stellar performance was a perfect ending to an amazing weekend at Outside Lands, leaving everyone’s festival tank full of love. -Nik Crossman, photo by James Nagel


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #4 - Father John Misty

4. Father John Misty

Father John (Sassypants) Misty has his festival game on point, and he has progressed his I Love You, Honeybear songs into epic plateaus since premiering them in the Santa Cruz mountains last February. He spewed banter like an Stephen Colbert-esque contrarian, saying, “Look at these suckers with their hair blowing all over the place.” And as he approached the mic for more improv-snark later on, Tillman paused to say, “Sorry, I have nothing to say. Ha.” FJM was speechless for once, but granted, it might have been set up for “Bored in the USA”, a song that should be considered an American classic at this point. -Mike Frash, photo by Pedro Paredes


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #3 - Kendrick Lamar

3. Kendrick Lamar

As Kendrick Lamar’s incredible performance began to wrap up with his newest single “Alright”, a group of fans in the crowd proceeded to lift someone up in a wheelchair, who, if I recall correctly, was the same guy who had his photo famously taken at Outside Lands in 2013. Kendrick took notice and called him out — his sense of sincere appreciation for a place like the Bay Area was written all over his face. -Brett Ruffenach, photo by Marc Fong


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 #2 - Caribou

2. Caribou

Described by fellow musician Dan Deacon as “one of the most brilliant acts touring right now” just before their set, Caribou lived up to the hype. Starting with “Our Love”, the four-piece band led by Dan Snaith perfectly set the stage for the next hour — a series of tightly wound compositions that, as the song progresses, expand in rhythmic complexity before reaching a climax that will get even the most tired Sunday afternoon crowd moving. Heavily augmenting its live performances from its studio recordings, the band’s live rendition of “Jamelia” in particular was a highlight of the set. Caribou is a band not to be missed. -Brett Ruffenach, photo by Justin Yee


Best Live Music Acts of 2015 - D'Angelo & The Vanguard #1

1. D’Angelo & The Vanguard

One of the most anticipated sets of the entire weekend was none other than D’Angelo’s — and for good reason. The R&B/neo-soul singer-songwriter hadn’t put out an album in 14 years until he suddenly dropped his 2014 masterpiece Black Messiah last December, so you knew that getting the rare opportunity to see Michael Eugene Archer work a crowd at FYF would be something special. Sounding more like a youthful James Brown than a wannabe Prince (we still don’t totally understand where those comparisons are coming from), D’Angelo and his eight-piece backing band The Vanguard took the audience for a ride as they doled out new and old hits. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

Outside Lands 2015 - Dan Deacon

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Is Lightning in a Bottle shedding its ‘boutique’ label to go mainstream?

Lightning in a BottleBy Josh Herwitt //

Lightning in a Bottle //
San Antonio Recreation Area – Bradley, CA
May 21st-25th, 2015 //

It has been more than 15 years since Jesse and Josh Flemming set out to throw a wild birthday bash for themselves in the Santa Ynez Mountains just north of Santa Barbara, Calif. The twin brothers, who had left their Pennsylvania roots behind for Los Angeles in the late 90’s in hopes of pursuing careers in the entertainment industry, enlisted the help of their younger brother Dede, who had his own aspirations of working in Hollywood, making the cross-country move to Southern California a few years after them.

But what started as a private party of 150 people would eventually become better known as Lightning in a Bottle (LIB), the famed boutique festival that the Flemming brothers have curated for more than a decade with the help of their LA-based event production company The Do LaB. Tabbed as the “Greenest Festival in America” each of the last five years, LIB has continued to foster a community that values sustainability first and foremost, but also social cohesion, personal health and creative expression. Consequently, the Flemming brothers have created one of the most unique experiences on the entire U.S. festival circuit, with music, art, yoga and workshops all serving as essential elements in forming LIB’s identity. Whether all of that can be sustained while the festival maintains its “boutique” label though, remains to be seen.

Lightning in a Bottle


LIB sold out for the first time in its 15-year history with as many as 20,000 festivalgoers attending.

For the first time ever, LIB sold out in its 15-year history this month, with last weekend’s attendance peaking at 20,000 after hovering around 15,000 in previous years. Some of that surge can likely be attributed to the musical talent that LIB now shares with Coachella. SBTRKT, ODESZA, Tycho and Panda Bear, for instance, all performed in Indio this year while Flume, RL Grime and AlunaGeorge made appearances on the polo fields last April. But the festival has arguably welcomed no bigger up-and-coming artist than Flume, the 23-year-old Australian producer and DJ who won numerous awards in his home country back in 2013. Since then, he has been all the rage in today’s electronic dance music scene, with tickets to his three sold-out shows in LA last August reselling on both Craigslist and StubHub for upwards of $100.

So, it was no surprise that the largest crowd over the entire weekend congregated a little after midnight on Sunday to see Harley Streten take the stage as the festival’s top headliner and drop one wonky trap beat after another. With the crowd spilling over outside of the main stage’s premises, it was a quick reminder of what the Gobi Tent looked like during Flume’s set at Coachella just a year earlier. And by the following day, much of the camp grounds had already emptied out — a clear sign that those who made the trek to Bradley, Calif., had seen all that they needed to see, even if that meant simply watching Streten command the crowd with mainly a laptop. It’s at least in part why if The Do LaB continues to book headliners of Streten’s stature, LIB can likely kiss that “boutique” label goodbye — unless financial gain is of no interest or concern.

Lightning in a Bottle - Flume


Australian DJ/producer Flume packed the main stage at LIB for his Saturday night headlining set.

Yet, that’s not the only indication that LIB could soon be headed for the big time. The real icing on the cake didn’t come until Sunday night, when English synthpop/trip-hop duo AlunaGeorge, midway through their main-stage set, busted out a cover of “White Noise”, the Disclosure mega-hit on 2013’s Settle that they collaborated with brothers Howard and Guy Lawrence on. And as I watched those all around me mouth every word that vocalist Aluna Francis belted out, it was hard not to foresee the moment becoming somewhat of a trend at LIB. Because when I attended the festival for the first time in 2011, there was little chance of hearing a Top 40 song on the main stage. LIB, for better or worse, has certainly come a long way since then.

The musical offerings aren’t the only noticeable change at LIB when you take a closer look, however. While the festival has always catered to health-conscious individuals, offering a variety of vegetarian, raw, organic and non-GMO options, it’s only started to offer dishes featuring meat, whether it be chicken, beef or pork (bacon was served … yes, bacon!), in the last two years — even though the chicken supply ran dry by Day 3 this year. That small, yet significant transformation could simply be the product of a growing fan base, one that continues to swell as EDM heavyweights like John Digweed, Thomas Jack and Bakermat become more and more a part of the festival’s musical palette. And with more people comes more trash (something LIB has kept to a minimum more than any other festival in America to date), less space (something that has always been relatively easy to come by at LIB) and a harder time of finding your friends (something that was never an issue at LIB in the past but became much more of one this year).

The purists may already be claiming that LIB has sold out and there’s no turning back. But at this juncture, the “transformational” festival — as some like to call it — is still toeing a fine line between the underground and mainstream. It’s where it goes from here that will ultimately decide its fate.

Is the Lightning in a Bottle lineup becoming a mini version of Coachella’s?

Lightning in a BottlePhoto courtesy of Daniel Zetterstrom // Written by Josh Herwitt //

Lightning in a Bottle //
San Antonio Recreation Area – Bradley, CA
May 21st-25th, 2015 //

For those who made the trek to Indio, this week officially signals the return to reality after witnessing some of the best live music you’ll likely see all year.

Coachella withdrawals, after all, don’t take long to set in, and the thought of having to wait 12 more months to experience what you just went through in three days is probably really bumming you out right now.

But fear not, because while it may not have the same name recognition that Coachella has come to garner, Lightning in a Bottle has slowly but surely started to share more and more of the same artists that have recently graced the polo fields.

Take this year’s LIB lineup, for example. SBTRKT, ODESZA, Tycho and Panda Bear all played at Coachella the past two weekends while newly anointed headliner Flume, RL Grime and AlunaGeorge made appearances last April. Other acts like John Digweed and Poliça have also performed at Coachella not that long ago, making this year’s LIB lineup one of the most appealing in its decade-long history.

With its own stage at Coachella for some time now, the artists collective and event creations company known as The Do LaB has continued to expand its reach, and as a result, LIB has grown more and more popular each year. Though the musical overlap might be just one reason for the boutique festival’s growing attendance, there are a number of LIB acts this year that could very well be printed on Coachella’s lineup next year, much like what Chet Faker, Gramatik, What So Not, Cashmere Cat and Ryan Hemsworth experienced from 2014 to 2015.

2015 Lightning in a Bottle lineup

Active Child: Electronic music artist Pat Grossi will follow up his critically acclaimed 2011 debut You Are All I See in June with the release of his second full-length album Mercy. But before that, he’ll kick off his North America tour consisting of mostly seated shows with his first appearance at LIB this May, and it’s only natural to think that a stop at Coachella is on the horizon.

GRiZ: Grant Kwiecinski has become a household name in electronic music circles over the past three years after supporting electronic heavyweights like Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, Gramatik and Big Gigantic on tour. The Detroit native has kept his foot on the accelerator, having already released his fourth studio album Say It Loud in only a little more than four years on the scene, and will be back at LIB after hitting the festival for the first time two years ago.

Goldroom: Josh Legg’s project performed on the main stage at LIB in 2013, and he’s got the live band back together for another go-around this year. The LA-based act gave off a sexy vibe at CRSSD Festival in San Diego last month, and it could be ready to take on Coachella once a full-length album comes out.

Les Sins: Chaz Bundick is best known for his work as Toro y Moi, but his electronic-leaning side project Les Sins has kept him rather busy going back and forth between the two. After playing Coachella this year with Toro, Bundick could be back in 2016 with the way Les Sins has taken off over the past few months.

Little People: London downtempo electronic artist Laurent Clerc has been releasing music since 2006, starting with his debut album Mickey Mouse Operation. Now based in the States and more specifically Portland, Ore., Clerc dropped his Csay Csay EP in March and recently spent some time on the road supporting Seattle duo ODESZA, which makes a lot of sense after you listen to his track “Enola”.

Random Rab: Having played the festival the past four years, the San Francisco producer is a LIB veteran, and he’ll be making his fifth straight appearance this spring. While his last album came in 2011, Random Rab has continued to perfect his live sets after touring with such LIB favorites as Bassnectar, Shpongle and Beats Antique.

Thomas Jack: EDM rising star Thomas Jack hit it big in 2013 with his single “Final Speech”, and his stock only continued to grow with remixes of Adrian Lux and Of Monsters and Men. With the way the 20-year-old DJ and producer from Australia is igniting dance floors, it’s probably not long before he’s hitting the polo fields in Indio after taking another crack at the LIB audience this year.

Snakehips: Oliver Lee and James Carter quickly climbed the dance charts last year with their sample-heavy PBR&B grooves as they exhibited on popular remixes of Wild Belle and The Weeknd. The UK production duo continues to sell out venues, and it will be no surprise if it’s listed on the 2016 Coachella lineup.

SOHN: English musician, songwriter and producer Christopher Taylor unleashed his first full-length album (read our review here) a little more than a year ago, and he’s been known to collaborate with high-profile artists like Lana Del Rey and BANKS. While it was relatively surprising to not see SOHN on the Coachella lineup this year, it’s a safe bet that he’ll find his way to Indio pretty soon.

Zion I: Oakland hip-hop group Zion I haven’t performed at Coachella in surprisingly more than a decade, and this year will mark their first time ever at LIB. Rapper Baba Zumbi and producer Amp Live earned praise for their ninth and latest album Shadowboxing back in 2012, but the duo is long overdue for a return to the desert.

Showbams’ Top 50 albums of 2014

Best-albums-2014-coverBy Mike Frash, Josh Herwitt, Molly Kish, Steve Wandrey & Kevin Quandt //

Showbams presents the Top 50 albums released in 2014 (yes, all of 2014) that we just can’t stop listening to.

These are the albums that made us double-take upon first listen, while also being auditory art pieces that we continue to spin as we head into 2015. They are the bundles of songs that innovated and inspired us more than the rest, signifying musical progression, defining our time with a soundtrack that challenges traditional expectations, while boldly trekking into new frontiers of pop music.

Because as music continues to become more accessible, the bridge between independent and mainstream gets shorter each year.

The 25 Best Live Music Acts of 2014
Showbams’ Top 50 Albums of 2014

Listen to The Bam Team’s favorite songs of 2014:


1. Run the JewelsRun the Jewels 2

run-the-jewelsSo often sequels don’t deliver, but ascending hip-hop stars Killer Mike and El-P have simply progressed their brilliance as Run The Jewels one year removed from their first official collaboration. From the top of RTJ2, Michael Render manages to set a higher bar for pumped-up aggression, there’s more social activism laced throughout, more special guests that only add to the fuck boy-crushing populist mentality. And compared to RTJ1, there are more stand-alone gems that are primed for remixing and cultural integration. The sequencing is superb, and El and Mike are having more fun than ever as they tour the world and snowball momentum with their brand of hardcore, yet intricate rap that contains shades of weird. Like a championship baseball team, the songs in the two hole through cleanup hitter offer the biggest impact, wreaking instant classics upon us with masterful experimental production from El-P that emits new, subtle surprises the more you listen. As the album unfolds, tales of police brutality (“Early”), introspection and personal improvement (“Crown”), along with over the top raunch (“Love Again”) prove RTJ2 shines in every moment in a variety of ways through multiple lanes of success. -Mike Frash


2. The War on DrugsLost in the Dream

war-on-drugs-lost-in-dream-album-coverWhen a truly inspired artist borrows from the past while looking to the future, the outcome can be something fully new and exciting, which is what we have here. The brilliance of Adam Granduciel lies in his delivery, both musically and lyrically, crooning about the sometimes-not-so-simple intricacies of existence. Life, love and everything else in between can be tricky, yet Granduciel calmly assures us that things can work out.

Granduciel knows how to structure albums with the best of them — this acutely demonstrated via the nine-minute, sprawling opener “Under the Pressure”. First single “Red Eyes” keeps on a similar path as we sink deeper in, bobbing along to the pounding drum machine that has been a constant over the years for the Philly-based band. “Disappearing” takes us soaring above the clouds as we hear new, thrilling piano instrumentation with warm bass lines, creating a sense of weightlessness and flight. An extremely strong finishing track, “In Reverse” perfectly captures the fleeting minutes on this release before jarring us back into a slightly crueler reality. The long play of this record is so rewarding, and it grows with hopes that more can be brought into the light. Oh, and that the state rock ‘n’ roll is just fine. -Kevin Quandt


3. D’Angelo and the VanguardBlack Messiah

dangelo-black-messiahThere’s an intentional off-kilter spontaneity and cohesive force at the center of D’Angelo’s first album in 15 years, Black Messiah. The percussive and vocal syncopation here makes the off-beat feel natural — layered vocals get treated with filters and are multi-tracked to lend an unfamiliar presence to the back-and-forth vocal pitch shifts D’Angelo employs from line to line.

The end product is a record that possesses its own musical language, telling stories that are incredibly meaningful, but achieve balance between serious and playful, while always being sexy. The confusing, driving funk of the first two cuts give way to “The Charade”, which manages to hit a rare aural sweat spot of ultra-pleasurability. But then “Sugah Daddy” follows as an unplanned Sunday in the park, with vocal scats skipping along to the breezy song’s pacing. D’Angelo arguably can now join the ranks of the all-time great R&B/soul artists with the delivery of his long-awaited third record. -MF


4. Future IslandsSingles

Future IslandSingles jumps right out of the gates, showing its cards early, presenting the listener with Future Island’s trademark new-school, new-wave sound. Samuel Herring’s vocals are stunning as he pitches and growls through tales of the tougher side of love. It’s pretty, gripping and powerful while also holding certain pop sentiments, lending to an overall lightness while being arresting. “Seasons (Waiting On You)” is a quintessential slice of the emotion this band has become well known for both onstage and in the studio. “Doves” balances all the elements nicely, shining a light on the top-notch production featured on Singles. -KQ


5. Aphex TwinSyro

FINAL MASTER SYRO DIGIPAK.inddRichard D. James has been practically an enigma for the last decade plus, hiding out in a small Scottish village of 300 and releasing no new music as Aphex Twin since 2006. But the long layoff hasn’t changed the fact that he remains one of the most unique and influential electronic producers in the game today. Some of James’ best material on Syro comes early on, from his club-oriented mixes like “minipops 67 [120.2]” to the techno funk ­he crafts on the ensuing “XMAS_EVET10 [120]” and “produk 29 [101].” These aren’t beats designed to make you sweat your ass off — if anything, the cerebral nature of James’ work makes him the ultimate antithesis of the current EDM scene. -Josh Herwitt


6. Flying LotusYou’re Dead!

Flylo_youre_deadOn Flying Lotus’s latest record You’re Dead!, the Los Angeles producer forgoes the acid kool-aide test for a cyanide kool-aide dive straight into a fourth dimensional confrontation with the afterlife. You’re Dead masterfully trips through the journey of the soul into the next episode with sun-scorched psychedelia, 8-bit snapshots of g-funk and gorgeously redemptive jazz. The cold transition between the frantic jazz freak out of Kendrick Lamar featuring “Never Catch Me” and the cooled-out West Coast bounce of Snoop Dogg and FlyLo alter-ego Captain Murphy’s “Dead Man’s Tetris” highlights the producer’s prolific ability to craft varying hip-hop textures. FlyLo fully buries his new album’s death aesthetic through ecstatic, free-form layers of acid jazz and sprawling EDM planes of sound. -John Venanzi, Community Review


7. St. VincentSt. Vincent

St. VincentAnnie Clark ups the electronic ante on her fourth studio album. Branching out of her experimental indie-pop compositions, she embraces more cohesive arrangements that ironically focus her creativity on deconstructed production and sound obstruction. Both equally impressive in sound quality and sass, the opening tracks “Rattlesnake” and “Birth in Reverse” set the tone for the rest of the records’ exciting stylistic shifts and the intriguing unveiling of Clark’s gritty rock goddess persona. “Digital Witness” is a spot-on snapshot of our brave new 21st century day-to-day reality. Unapologetic, raw and sonically genius, St. Vincent is Clark’s breakthrough moment, and she appears to be doing it all with ease. -Molly Kish


8. Mac DeMarcoSalad Days

Mac DemarcoMac DeMarco’s signature style is here. It’s still fresh and in ways stronger than ever; it’s more pointed, focused and accessible. DeMarco is able to write in a way that allows the listener to easily empathize with him, as he turns his issues into ones that most of us have dealt with at some point. In “Chamber of Reflection”, it’s easy to really feel a sense of solitude. “Goodbye Weekend” sounds like a stoney Sunday afternoon coming to a soothing end. Every track has a personality of its own while holding up the overall ethos of the album. This album is lighthearted enough for multiples listens in a row with its breezy beach vibe, but also easily induces deep thoughts with its many lyrical gems. -Steve Wandrey


9. CaribouOur Love

our-loveWhat we have here is one of the most addictive albums of 2014. Our Love keeps deep house in its front pocket with steady beats per minute and an introspective mantra-centric lyrical conceit, but it’s also exploratory in nature, finding success in consistently building toward intense, euphoric plateaus. A steady flow of pleasant sounds ascend into impacting transcendence with “Can’t Do Without You”, “Silver” and “Your Love Will Set You Free”, and you must give Snaith extra credit for the masterful pacing and song-to-song flow — there is never a “skip ahead” moment. Like many classic albums, it opens up if you give it more time to radiate around your head, and listening to it becomes more pleasurable over time, even though it is mostly presented in poetic simplicity. -MF


10. Sun Kil MoonBenji

Sun Kil MoonBenji must be interpreted as a concept album about death, but more importantly, it’s about the importance details related to memory. For example, the title is taken from what seems like a throw-away line toward the end of the breathtaking “Micheline”. It’s powerful, visceral storytelling that is self-reflexive and biographical, yet so relatable that it compels personal introspection from the listener’s own experiences. Mark Kozelek’s lyrics are the centerpiece of the listening experience — they are so deep and resonant that the instrumentals and production are absorbed secondarily, although the stripped-down approach is intentional and noteworthy. Built around obsessing about the state of human demise — and the randomness of it — it’s easy to join Kozelek’s dire state of mind hours or days after listening. -MF


11. Todd Terje – It’s Album Time
12. Ryan Adams – Ryan Adams
13. Sharon Van Etten – Are We There
14. Spoon – They Want My Soul
15. Ariel Pink – pom pom
16. Beck – Morning Phase
17. Jack White – Lazaretto
18. The Black Keys – Turn Blue
19. Tycho — Awake
20. TV on the Radio – Seeds

21. Sturgill Simpson – Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
22. Tweedy – Sukierae
23. Jungle – Jungle
24. Temples – Sun Structures
25. tUnE-yArDs – Nikki Nack
26. Death from Above 1979 – The Physical World
27. Ty Segall – Manipulator
28. The Antlers – Familiars
29. Real Estate – Atlas
30. Angel Olsen – Burn Your Fire For No Witness

31. Cold War Kids – Hold My Home
32. Interpol – El Pintor
33. Alt-J – This Is All Yours
34. Swans – To Be Kind
35. Strand of Oaks – HEAL
36. White Fence – For the Recently Found Innocent
37. Freddie Gibbs & Madlib – Piñata
38. Phantogram – Voices
39. Broken Bells – After the Disco
40. SOHN – Tremors

41. The New Pornographers – Brill Bruisers
42. Thom Yorke – Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes
43. Karen O — Crush Songs
44. Chet Faker – Built on Glass
45. Woods – With Light and with Love
46. Cloud Nothings – Here and Nowhere Else
47. Kishi Bashi – Lighght
48. Mark McGuire – Along The Way
49. Courtney Barnett – The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas
50. Adult Jazz – Gist Is

Run-the-Jewels4

The-War-on-Drugs5

10.future-islands

4.st-vincent

12.Ryan Adams

Sharon-Van-Etten_post

Spoon

Tycho

TVOTR

Temples

8.tune-yards

Real-Estate

Interpol

alt-J

New Music Tuesday: John Frusciante • The Faint • SOHN • EMA

John Frusciante - Enclosure

Every Tuesday, we focus on new music releases by naming our top tracks, album highlights, lowlights and important takeaways for select albums.


John FruscianteEnclosure

3.5-BamsTop Tracks:
“Crowded”
“Clinch”
“Run”

There’s no better way to put into words just how “out there” former Chili Peppers savior John Frusciante is other than to tell you the way in which he launched (quite literally) his latest album Enclosure.

Frusciante is known for his peculiarity, but took things to another level by sending his album into space on March 29 attached to a satellite called Sat-JF14. Fans could then download a tracking app that would tell them when the album was in their region, when it would then be unlocked.

Album Highlights: Lyrically, Frusciante is as out of control as ever. In the context of his music, it doesn’t manage to matter. His excellent guitar work and the production he tasks himself carries Enclosure along as one of Frusciante’s finest solo masterpieces. His strength as a vocalist is missed by the Chili Peppers, who Frusciante carried a lot of songs behind lead man Anthony Kiedis with his beautiful harmonies. Frusciante’s vocals aren’t as understated on his solo albums and he takes some chances, most of which pay off. Frusciante gives off a bit of an 80’s vibe on this album due to the heavy synth that is featured throughout. The way Frusciante builds up to his guitar solos is pretty brilliant and he does it as good as anyone out there. Check out the song “Stage” to get an idea.

Album Lowlight: A lot of the songs are rather heavy on guitar solos, so you have to be in the right frame of mind for it. Sometimes, they can feel like they drag on a bit too long, as well. As mentioned above, this album features a fair amount of synths. Most times, it sounds pretty good and gels with the rest of the arrangement, but at times it can sound like music that belongs in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the original Nintendo.

Takeaway: As with all of Frusciante’s solo work, if you came to it from being a Chili Peppers fan first before anything else, it might not suit your needs or expectations. If you are a big appreciator of Frusciante’s multi-faceted chops, Enclosure is something you can enjoy, especially if you recognize it for what it is. The release isn’t as far out there as some of these previous projects, nor is it as close to mainstream.

~Mark E. Ortega


The FaintDoom Abuse

2.5 BamsTop Tracks:
“Help in the Head”
“Dress Code”
“Lesson from the Darkness”

Album Highlights: Not that long ago, there was a point in time when fans of The Faint didn’t know if their beloved band would ever make another record. Yet, the Nebraska quartet reunited in late 2012 following a two-year hiatus not just to start touring again, but also to create new music. As frontman Todd Fink explained to me, The Faint needed to take a different approach for its sixth full-length album after overthinking the writing process when it came to 2008’s Fasciinatiion. But for an outfit that put Omaha’s growing indie scene on the map with electro-punk hits like “Agenda Suicide” in the early 2000s, Doom Abuse doesn’t even come close to touching 2001 paradigm Danse Macabre. Other than the album’s opening single “Help in the Head,” there aren’t many standout tracks for Fink and his bandmates to hang their hat on, unfortunately. While they make a concerted effort to strip things down from start to finish, that only works some of the time on Doom Abuse. The frenetic dance vibe that we get on instrumental cut “Dress Code,” for example, is one of just a few shining moments, even though The Faint save some of its best work — “Lesson from the Darkness” and the ensuing “Unseen Hand” — for last.

Album Lowlight: The Faint have never been known to write albums that extend past the 40-minute mark, so it should be no surprise to see Doom Abuse follow suit on that front. But at just over 39 minutes in length, the 12-track LP undeniably lacks depth — after all, half of its songs span less than three minutes. That’s only part of the problem with The Faint’s latest studio effort, however. Fink, keyboardist Jacob Thiele, guitarist Dapose and drummer Clark Baechle also don’t come off sounding all that imaginative on “Evil Voices,” “Animal Needs” and “Scapegoat,” failing to create distance between most of their songs.

Takeaway: It’s hard to tell what has changed for The Faint from its last release to this one. Longtime followers of the band may not take issue with what they hear on Doom Abuse, but it’s far from the four-piece’s best work. At the same time, it’s sad to see a band come out of hibernation to assemble an album that doesn’t strike the same chord as its previous offerings — because that’s ultimately the reality here. The Faint, though, still know how to put on one hell of a show, so it may just take a live setting for certain tracks on Doom Abuse to come to life.

~Josh Herwitt


SOHNTremors

4-BamsTop Tracks:
“Artifice”
“Paralysed”
“Lights”

Album Highlights: SOHN is a London-born songwriter, producer and musician. He has made some noise in the electronic scene by remixing Disclosure and Lana Del Rey, as well as producing Banks’ “Waiting Game.” His debut album, Tremors, was recorded at night in Vienna. As SOHN states, “Every night I worked finished with a cold sunrise and a walk home … and to me that’s what Tremors sounds like.” And that late-night vibe is definitely captured on this album. The minimalist and intricate production make this a great album for a night drive; this album is a beautifully depressing soundscape. While single “Artifice” is the most radio friendly track, SOHN has created some very interesting and moody songs with “Paralysed” and “Lessons” and “Lights,” which all build slowly and ever so gently from a mellow track to a track with some edge, before coming to an alluring close. In fact, that somewhat describes the way the album itself progresses. The second half contains much of the moodiness and depth, it is almost flawless.

Album Lowlight: This album is a bit much to listen to in one sitting from start to finish. And maybe not many people listen to a record in that way anymore. While there are some surprises along the way, much of the first half blends together. The opener, “Tempest,” takes awhile to build and then is over too quickly. “The Wheel” is too repetitive and jerky for me, but the production is still good. I prefer the depth of SOHN on his subtler songs.

Takeaway: If you listen to this album from start to finish, there is a chance you will begin to wallow in your own misery and forget where you are going or what you were doing before you played the album. But hey, sometimes that’s necessary. And if walking home alone at 4 a.m., Tremors is a great soundtrack to have for that walk. The production of Tremors is so beautifully done. After the opening tracks, it’s easy to find yourself getting lost in some of these songs. This is a promising debut, and it will be interesting to see where SOHN will go from here.

~Krystal Beasley


EMAThe Future’s Void

3.5-BamsTop Tracks:
“Satellites”
“Cthulu”
“Smoulder”

Album Highlights: Future’s Void is the third full-length album from South Dakota native Erika M. Anderson, more commonly known as EMA. This release brings to the table a risky mixture of genre crossing sounds that combine with a spellbinding voice to create a vast, audio experience. This is one of those recordings best heard through a pair of good brain clamps.

“Satellites” begins this journey with radio static and a bass rattle that becomes a recurring theme in some of the thicker sounding tracks featured later in the album. Released as a single, “Satellites” has a very enticing opening beat and a vocal melody that is built to last. Heavy use of distorted synths creates the feeling of a dark, industrial soundscape full of digital noises and electrical sounds that almost suck the listener down the digital rabbit hole. Tracks like “Smoulder” and “Neuromancer” use loads of vocal effects and fuzzed-out screams to further Anderson’s already haunting qualities, serving to pull us further and further into this album. She has one of those voices that is equally comforting as it is frightening which she uses brilliantly in “100 Years.”

Album Lowlight: Future’s Void album is an enjoyable listen but it lacks a consistent amount of energy and overall feel from the beginning to the end. Immediately after a great opening song (“Satellites”), “So Blonde” and “3Jane” shift gears to a more traditional guitar and drums-type track. The same thing happens in the middle of Future’s Void when the best string of tracks is halted by the slow tempoed, and folky “When She Comes.” The rest of the album kind of fizzles out after “Neuromancer,” much like when the air gets sucked out of a balloon and all that is left is a wrinkled piece of rubber. There was a lot of promise to this album, and there are many redeeming qualities that if were focused on, could really make for a more appealing sounding project.

Takeaway: I feel like I might hear this album while catching an Uber ride in cyberspace. During some songs I wanted to smash an acoustic guitar against the wall like Bluto from Animal House. But during others I couldn’t help but hear Nine Inch Nails-influenced space-beats with a wormhole-like rip of industrial fuzz that took hold of me and didn’t let go until it spit me out on the other end of the galaxy. Anderson’s guttural screams and growls are continually distorted and twisted into glitchy echos that had me wanting for more. EMA has a surprisingly fresh sound in a musical world of shifting talents, where music can be more about pushing buttons than plucking strings. If only they could decide between being a folk-based band or a synth-rock band.

~Scotland Miller