Echo and the Bunnymen hop to on latest album "The Fountain"!

Echo and the Bunnymen, a band known for their soulful and chilling post punk/neo psychedelic rock are set to release their 11^th studio album entitled “The Fountain” on Tuesday, November 10^th. The album is the 12^th studio album collaboration between the two remaining original members, singer Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Seargent if you count their 1995 grunge collaboration, Electrafixion’s “Burned”. The album is a soaring return to form for the band, which has endured through band tensions, critical acclaim, commercial success, the replacement of their lead singer, complete disbandment, death, their reformation and a newfound renaissance. The band’s own history seems to echo, a pun very intended, singer Ian McCulloch’s fascination with the deaths and resurrections of the Bible that he so often references in his songs.

The band formed in Liverpool in 1978 with singer Ian McCulloch, Guitarist Will Sergeant, Bassist Les Pattinson and their drum machine Echo. By 1980, Peter DeFreitas had joined the group as the band’s permanent drummer. The Bunnymen released their aggressive debut “Crocodiles” in 1980 that was striking but showed their debt to bands like Joy Division. It wasn’t until their third album, 1983’s “Porcupine” that the group began to evolve past their post punk influence. A striking example of this was the use of a strange eastern sounding string instrument for the lead melody on their song “The Cutter” which reached the top 10 in the UK charts. The band’s next album, the critically acclaimed “Ocean Rain”, was bathed in lush string arrangements and imagination that gave way to their most recognized single “The Killing Moon.” Following this release, the band once again claimed the limelight with the track “Bring on the Dancing Horses” which was featured on the soundtrack to the John Hughes film “Pretty in Pink”. The band claimed one more hit single, “Lips Like Sugar” off of their self titled 1987 album which hit the #4 spot on UK charts and became a modest hit in America, before singer McCulloch departed for a solo career and was replaced by vocalist Noel Burke.

This new incarnation of Echo and the Bunnymen released one ill-fated album “Reverberation” before disbanding completely. To make matters worse, their former drummer Defrietas died in 1989 as a result of a motorcycle accident. Hopes for a reunited Echo and The Bunnymen sprang from the ashes when McCulloch began to work with Seargent again in 1994 under the name “Electrafixion”. In 1997 original bassist Pattinson joined the group again and they officially revived the mantle of Echo and the Bunnymen with the album “Evergreen” which featured another top 10 UK hit “Nothing Lasts Forever”. Since then, bassist Pattinson left, but the group has soldiered on and cut four new albums.

There must have been something in the water while The Bunnymen were writing their newest album because “The Fountain” is their most spirited and raw release since their original reformation in 1997. Their efforts on previous reformation albums, while well written and performed, seem sedate when played next to the frenetic energy of “The Fountain”. From the opening single “Think I Need it Too”, it’s clear we’re about to be overtaken by a tour de force of classic Echo and the Bunnymen sound. Seargent’s guitar soars, McCulloch’s vocals, while weathered by age, return with a force and fervor that we haven’t heard since their 80’s heyday, and strings and piano are peppered throughout to recall various eras of The Bunnymen’s sound. A criticism that can be made of the album is that the lyrics written by McCulloch often but not always build strongly in each song before giving way to an ambiguous repetitive chorus. Either way, it’s no accident that Echo and The Bunnymen’s latest album has been named “The Fountain”, McCulloch and company have found the essence of their sound once more and distilled it into their most exciting release in more than a decade. It’s no wonder McCulloch has claimed the album is “The best one we’ve made, aside from Ocean Rain.”

Echo & The Bunnymen - Life of 1,000 Crimes

Echo & The Bunnymen Myspace

Tahiti 80 is abuzz with Activity!

The eclectic stylings of French band Tahiti 80 are back! With their new album "Activity Center", due out November 24th. Their lead single "Unpredictable" is a sunny romp through ample beats and cute keyboards, accented perfectly by their illustrated cut and paste video. The track is also available below, so if you want to banish those awful songs from your head and replace them with some slick sublime pop, please do so!

Tahiti 80 - Unpredictable

Tahiti 80 Myspace

Speaking in Tongues with Dave Davison of Cast Spells & Maps and Atlases!

Cast Spells is the side project of Maps & Atlases singer/songwriter Dave Davison. His meticulous and playful songwriting has earned a lot of critical acclaim as well as a coveted spot on itune's "What's Hot" list. I spoke with Dave about the inspiration and process for his new EP "Bright Works and Baton." Cast Spells are set to play a show with Good Old War December 7th at the Westcott theatre in Syracuse, NY.

First off, why the name "Cast Spells"? Do you have an affinity for the dark arts?

I like the idea of a name being a vague, motivating command. I don’t have any knowledge of magic, or any particular interest in it, but I do have interest in the magical quality of doing things and thinking outside of the realm of the critical and logical world. Part of what is so inspiring about the works of great songwriters is their ability to make us see and feel in different ways and this is rarely based in them teaching us about scientific facts or the way that something objectively works.

Did you have extra songs hanging around that didn't fit the paradigm of Maps and Atlases or did you create all new songs for "Bright Works and Baton"?

I typically don't have a specific destination for songs during the early stages of the writing process. Maps and atlases spent a long time learning what we did well together and I try to think strategically about which songs would bring out the best of the band’s abilities rather than think about the most suitable finished products to bring into the recording process.

How exciting was it to be listed under "What's Hot" on the itunes homepage?

It was definitely a pleasant surprise! I didn’t know that it was happening beforehand at all and it seemed to have a very positive outcome. I think that a lot of people who may not have heard the EP otherwise stumbled upon it as a result, which is great.

What artists and groups did you look to for inspiration while recording "Bright Works and Baton"?

It was actually quite freeing to be able to do absolutely whatever we wanted song-by-song and part-by-part, so it’s difficult to nail down the specific influences of the EP. I think that the process became more intuitive and therefore more reflective of a history of influences than specific artists. That being said, Jason Cupp, the producer of Bright Works and Baton, and I share a love for some of the same artists which seems to have come out in many ways throughout the EP. I think that rhythmically there are parts that are reminiscent of the Talking Heads and Peter Gabriel. As for the overall pace and movement in songs such as A Badge, I think that there elements of Bill Callahan, whose work we both love.

You recorded the EP very quickly with producer Jason Cupp, using the first take more often than not. Was there a specific reason for the urgency of the recording?

The main reason for this was that it was fun and exciting to keep moving. We didn’t have any specific plan and weren’t even sure that we were making an album; we were just recording songs because we wanted to and it was exciting to keep going in the time that we had. It was also a process in which capturing the moment was more important than having a perfect-sounding take. A lot of the sounds on the record would be impossible to recreate in a different environment and all of the accidents or surprises become a part of what makes the work special.

I love all the xylophone and triangle use in your song "Potted Plant", was the song always so percussive or did it evolve that way?

We just started trying things and the songs started progressing that way. We didn’t really have a clear outline for most of the songs at the beginning. I recorded the vocals and guitar live and then we moved on to building them from there. Our friend Sandy was over the day that we were working on Potted Plant and she played the drums and vibraphone and it started developing into the percussive piece that it is.

The EP is like one of those tasty 100 calorie snacks, satisfying while you're eating it but after you finish, you're hungry for more. Are there any more releases for Cast Spells in the pipeline?

There are definitely some more releases at the ready. There are several songs that, for one reason or another, didn’t end up on Bright Works and Baton which will most likely be on smaller releases coming soon, and in the coming months I hope to begin finishing an LP

You recently had a tour with So Many Dynamos in July, how did it go? Did you and members of that dynamic group engage in any zany tomfoolery?

Those gentleman are chalk full of zany tomfoolery. Norm played the drums for Cast Spells during the entire tour and it was a real pleasure to perform with him every night. He’s a real lovable character in a band full of lovable characters and we always have a lot of fun together. I have seen So Many Dynamos perform live more than any other band in the world at this point, but the idea of watching them again isn’t repellent to me, which says a lot.

Following the release of "Bright Works and Baton" you toured extensively from July through September. Do you ever sleep? Or do you indulge in caffeinated beverages?

I do love coffee, but I feel that right now I am doing alright balancing activities and maintaining a decent sleep schedule. Although touring and recording can be time consuming, there is also a lot of down time either on the road or between tours and I often get restless during this time and have to find something productive to do. So keeping busy and taking things one day at a time is working well for me right now.

Cast Spells - Glamorous Glowing

Cast Spells Myspace

Exclusive Interview with Jerm Reynolds from Hockey!

Hockey is a band from Portland, Oregon who have been gaining attention due to their danceable tunes and enthusiastic live performaces. Their sound is an amalgam of LCD Soundsystem’s relentless beats and self awareness with The Strokes’ effortless cool. Hockey played Thursday Oct. 15 on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

You guys have admitted that the name "Hockey" comes from your sense of humor moreso than any interest in the sport. Since your album is called "Mind Chaos", do you hope to inspire chaos in people's minds when they listen to your music?

Mind chaos is more about the way that we see the world in 2009, which is this beautifully, fractured hyper-individualized insanity we think that might be a result of the internet or technology in general. We live in a world where it’s more and more about the individual and the individual’s opinion. When you have a world like that it makes interaction between people a lot sillier and a lot crazier. So making a record for a world of people who are all standing mightily on their own unique opinion is kind of an interesting process so why not make it totally insane and then say ”Ha! Chew on that!”

You make all the artwork for Hockey’s releases, can you describe that process?

I work mostly with singer Ben Grubin. He executive produced the art work. I’m the one physically doing the artwork He works with me on the concepts. It was his idea to do the four covers. We kept doing the proofs and not being satisfied with them. He came into my room one day and just said put them all down. Then he said “Yeah that’s it! That’s “Mind Chaos”, four separate covers for insanity. The other guys put their opinions in as well, but I’m the guy who’s physically doing the cutting and the gluing and all the childish coloring with crayons and stuff like that but we all work together on it conceptually

Hockey has been doing a lot of touring at festivals in Europe and The United States and people have noticed. This has garnered you spots playing on Jools Holland, and press from Filter, Spin, NME, Q and even Marie Claire. How does it feel to see your hard work paying off?

It’s pretty fantastic, Ben and I have been playing in Hockey for almost 7 years. We’ve spent a lot of time toiling in obscurity which was fine, but to finally see it come around at this point is really great. I tell people that most of the time that we’re just so concerned with keeping everything going; getting the record out, getting the right mixing done, being a really great live band and all the other things that we do on a day to day basis, that we don’t even get a chance to sit down and be like “Whoa, things are happening for us. We’ve been touring the world for six months it’s just unreal and at the same time it’s really great, if I stop to think about it.

What is your favorite thing to do in downtime when touring?

I like to go out with my sketchbook and just draw things that I see and write captions for them. It’s my way of internalizing where I am. Whether it be someplace weird in France, Germany, or Belgium. It can be restful when you’re so far away from your culture and what’s normal to you. So I like to go out and sit someplace by myself and just color. Just like a little kid with a box of crayons!­­

With your videos, do you guys come up with all the ideas or do you collaborate with a director?

We come up with some kind of an idea. It’s an interesting process for the videos because none of us are movie makers so we’re kind of delving into other people’s artwork which is interesting. You’re kind of giving up your creative control a little bit because we’re not in the editing room. So we’re not putting proofs together or scripts. We have basic ideas but it’s a totally different way of thinking artistically than performing or songwriting. We see what different directors have done, and say, “I really like this person’s style the most” then we email them and have a conversation. We say “Here’s what we’re thinking” and then bounce ideas back and forth and eventually you get an interesting hybrid of your vision and their vision.

You have done a lot of touring with bands like Friendly Fires and Passion Pit. Do you have any outrageous stories of hanging out with bands that you’re touring with?

We got trapped in Seattle, Washington in a big blizzard last winter with the band The Virgins. It was the last night of our tour and we had all just managed to reach Seattle just as 2 feet of snow fell on the ground. We were all hanging out together after the show because not that many people made it out to the show due to the snow. So after the show we all trudged out into the roads where cars were skidding everywhere. We had this hilarious adventure yelling at cars and laying in the street and just appreciating the anarchy of Seattle being totally shut down by a huge blizzard.

You're doing a tour with Portugal the Man, who are also a band from Portland, Oregon. Had you met them before the tour?

Our guitar player and drummers’ old band played a show with them four or five years ago in Spokane, Washington. I’ve never met them I’ve heard their music. I really like it; I’m really looking forward to meeting them on Thursday when our tour starts in Wisconsin of all places. I dig their Bob Dylan band style, that 60’s organ psychedelic rock sound.

You guys are playing your US network debut on The Jimmy Fallon Show Oct. 15th; do you have any superstitious rituals that you perform before important gigs?

I’m going to wear my lucky tour shoes. My dancing shoes if you will. I’ve had these shoes since our first real tour last December and the bottoms are all out and I had to duct tape them together. Also I’m going to try to keep a lid on it for TV, try to not do anything crazy, I tend to get a little excitable and if I feel like a lot of people are looking at me I might go crazy. I’ll have to be cool. Wear the tour shoes and play the song.

The songs “Too Fake” and “3AM Spanish” have a very drum machine and bass sound. I know that when Hockey started out you had that kind of set up. Did those songs begin in that era of your band or did they develop later?

Those songs developed later, but that original core sound is still with us. It’s about drum beats and bass lines and everything else musically and melodically is built around those very basic components because we did play like that for over four years, longer than we’ve had a four piece band. Most of the songs on the record were written after putting the band together, with a couple of exceptions. “Four Holy Photos” is a folk song. It’s the oldest song on record. Ben and I wrote that when we were still at school together in 2004. It’s an oldie but goodie that hung on and made it onto the record.

As much as you guys do that bass and beat centered music, there’s a classic rock-like component to your sound. What classic bands do you draw influences from?

We have a pretty heavy Beatles influence, as well as Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty Neil Young, Crosby Stills and Nash. All that really classic rock and roll found its way into our sound somehow even though a lot of our influences are more modern.

Who are your more modern influences?

I really like MIA quite a bit. I like The Virgins, Passion Pit, Ladyhawke, Yacht, and Little Comets. There’s so much great music right now. Sometimes I think about if it was 1999. Everyone would be all bummed out listening to Limp Bizkit and Marilyn Manson. What a drag that was! 2009 is so much better. It’s so much cooler, so much more expressive, so much more interesting and so much more positive.


Hockey will be performing Saturday October 17th at the Westcott Theatre in Syracuse.

Hockey - Too Fake

Hockey Myspace

Portland Bands Invade Syracuse! Portugal the Man! Hockey!

Portugal the Man, contrary to the name, is a band, not a man. They were formed in Wasilla, Alaska (The home of everyone’s favorite former governor!) by singer/guitarist John Baldwin Gourey from the ashes of his previous project “Anatomy of a Ghost”. The current line-up of the band includes Gourey, Jason Sechrist on drums, Ryan Neighbors on Keys and Zachary Scott Carothers on bass. Their mysterious name comes from inspiration from David Bowie’s larger than life characters like Ziggy Stardust and the title of a novel Gourey had planned to write about his fathers’ travels which he intended to call “Portugal. The Man”.

Their mysterious origins aside, Portugal the Man is one of the hardest working bands in the business. Hot on the heels of picking up a mention on the Alternative Press’ ‘10 essential albums of 2008’and an award for best vocalist for their third album “Censored Colors”, Portugal the Man entered the studio in Boston to begin work on their fourth album, “The Satanic Satanist”. The album was released on July 21st to much critical acclaim.

The album is a bit of a departure for the band, which started out as a live outlet for Gourey’s experiments with tape loops and drum machines. “The Satanic Satanist” reigns in those experimental tendencies and focuses more on pop song structure. “I was really trying to go for the more Motown structure than anything,” Gourey Says, adding “It really took stripping things down to even get that sound.” The Result is a collection of songs that have an old school vibe, but by no means feel old. The high point of the album is the one two punch of the quiet/loud rock out jam “Do You” followed by the hazy sun-soaked psychedelic anthem “Everyone is Golden”. From the moment the organ sounds emerge and the first blues riff kicks in you’ll be swept away into intelligent, well crafted rock & roll.

Supporting Portugal the Man is another up and coming band called “Hockey” who, confusingly, have no interest in the sport but every intention of rocking your socks off. The band was formed five years ago in Los Angeles, California by singer Ben Grubin and bassist Jeremy “Jerm” Reynolds. Since then they’ve added guitarist Brian White, drummer Anthony Stassi, touring keyboardist Ryan Dolliver and risen from playing local venues in Portland to touring with other up and coming bands Passion Pit and Friendly Fires internationally as well as adding several important festival performances to their portfolios. The band has wowed crowds at festivals like South by Southwest, Sasquatch, Bonnaroo, Glastonbury and many more. All of their hard work has garnered them exposure in magazines like Spin, Filter, Q, NME, Marie Claire, a spot on the popular UK talk show “Live with Jools Holland” and their American network debut on the Jimmy Fallon show on Oct. 15.

The media frenzy surrounding the group has enabled them to pick and choose from a variety of major labels for the re-release of their debut album “Mind Chaos” eventually settling on Capitol records. Hockey’s “Mind Chaos” will be released Oct. 6th and deserves all of its positive comparisons to bands like LCD Soundsystem and the Strokes. To say that their influences and tricks end with that comparison however is like saying gourmet soups are made with rocks. Hockey’s galloping beats and occasional high pitched backing vocals evoke Blondie, while their cacophonic pop euphoria channels old school R&B acts like the Isley Brothers. Songs like “3am Spanish” and “Too Fake” highlight the band’s talent for igniting dancefloor mayhem while songs like “Song Away” and “Learn to Lose” show that the band has the heart to make it in this business. Tickets are on sale now for $15 at www.thewestcotttheater.com, that’s not much at all to say you “saw them before they were big”. See you October 17th.

Portugal the Man - Do You