Atlas Genius Announce First Ever US Tour Dates * Debut Video For "Back Seat"

Atlas Genius - the Adelaide, Australia-based indie band that had sold more than 50,000 downloads of its breakout hit "Trojans" before signing to Warner Bros. Records earlier this year - will kick off its first-ever U.S. tour on August 11 with a performance at CD101 Summerfest at LC Pavilion in Columbus, OH. The run will include several West Coast dates with Animal Kingdom and radio shows in Seattle and Portland. See below for initial tour dates; additional shows will be announced shortly. 

"Back Seat," the new video from Atlas Genius, premieres today on Paper Magazine's website. The song is one of three tracks on the band's debut EP, Through The Glass, which was produced, engineered and mixed by Atlas Genius in their home studio. The collection also includes "Trojans,"which spent four consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the listener-generated Alt-18 countdown of SiriusXM's Alt-Nation. 

"Trojans" has also been added by Music Choice, KNDD/Seattle, KNRK/Portland, WWCD/Columbus, XTRA/San Diego, KITS/San Francisco and numerous other modern rock stations. An acoustic video of "Trojans"premiered on MTV2 and the home pages of MTV, MTV2, mtvU, MTV Hive and MTV Buzzworthy.

NYLON praised Atlas Genius' "double whammy of high-flying pop melodies and instantly catchy lyrics" and Billboard tipped the band as part of "The Next Wave" of up-and-coming alternative bands. The band members are currently at work in their home studio on their full-length debut, which is due out this fall.

Atlas Genius - U.S. Tour Dates

August

11 - Columbus, OH @ The LC Pavilion, CD101 Summerfest Radio Show

12 - Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe
13 - St. Louis, MO @ Blueberry Hill

17 - Santa Barbara, CA @ Soho Restaurant & Music Club w/Animal Kingdom
22 - Sacramento, CA @ Harlow's Night Club w/Animal Kingdom
23 - San Francisco, CA @ Popscene @ Rickshaw Stop w/Animal Kingdom
25 - Seattle, WA @ Marymoor Park, KNDD The End Summercamp '12 Radio Show
28 - Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom, KNRK Radio Show

Additional dates will be announced soon.

http://www.atlasgenius.com/ 

http://www.facebook.com/AtlasGenius 

http://twitter.com/atlasgenius 

http://soundcloud.com/atlas-genius 

Alt Press Premieres PK's Cover of Eddie Money's "Take Me Home Tonight"

"Amped-up pop in the mold of the Killers, with vocals that sound like a Prozac'ed Robert Smith." - Rolling Stone

"Triumphant, synth rocking goodness." - Baeble Music 

A classic rock throwback sensibility that should appeal to fans of The Gaslight Anthem or Hot Water Music." - RCRDLBL

High-energy, scrappy indie-pop quintet, PK, have premiered a cover of Eddie Money's classic "Take Me Home Tonight" with AltPress. The band released their sophomore studio project, The Lost Boy Sessions on May 29^th. Sonically described as "The Killers meet Vampire Weekend," PK has been compared to such acts The Cure, U2 and The Gaslight Anthem.

When asked about covering the song, singer Travis Hawley, says, "It was actually the music video that inspired us to cover this song. Ladder hits, an empty stadium, a mullet and a howling sax solo. All the main ingredients for the best music video of  all time. We attempted to take the 'be my little baby' part out of the song, but every time we'd mention which song we were covering to our friends, they would immediately break into falsetto and squeal that part. No one seems to remember the rest of the song. We decided it had to stay."

Hailing from San Luis Obispo, California, PK is made up of Travis Hawley (Vocals), Matt DePauw (Guitar), Mikel Van Kranenburg (Bass), Nick Fotinakes (Guitar) and Rico Rodriguez (Drums).  While the members initially met in high school, vocalist Hawley was born in the United Arab Emirates and lived in England for five years before moving to the U.S.  His brief stint in the UK deeply affected his vocal style and he has often been compared with emotive British artists such as Robert Smith, Bono, and Danny Elfman.

After releasing their first full length Into the Roaring, PK was immediately hand selected and published by Rolling Stone Magazine as 1 of 16 top unsigned artists in the United States. In the past year, the band has opened for such acts as Angels and Airwaves, Twin Atlantic, Aerosmith, Shiny Toy Guns and Youngblood Hawk and has garnered attention from the likes of Nylon Guys, Alternative Press, Pac Sun Music, RCRDLBL, Filter Magazine andDianna Agron of GLEE's blog, "You Me & Charlie."  PK recorded their new EP The Lost Boys Sessions at the famed Red Bull Studio in Los Angeles.

PK released The Lost Boy Sessionson May 29^th. For more information, keep up with the band on their social networks:

www.wearepk.com

www.facebook.com/WeArePk

www.twitter.com/WeArePk

www.youtube.com/WeArePk

Santigold Premieres “The Keepers” Video on Noisey

NY, NY…Today Santigold premiered the new video for her anthemic track “The Keepers” from her album Master of My Make-Believe (Downtown/Atlantic). In the video, Santigold is a member of the idyllic 1950s American family sitting down to dinner and smiling as the world falls apart around them and the present reality of the United States comes rushing in. The video was directed by Nabil and features cameos by GZA, Kick Kennedy, and Trevor Andrew.

Santigold just wrapped up her Spring US tour in support of Master of My Make-Believe. She will be appearing at festivals internationally throughout the summer including Lollapalooza, Reading and Leeds. Armed with her hybrid anthems, misfit band, and unstoppable dancers, the SG1s, her singular live shows are always monumental.

Noisey.com is the music channel from the makers of VICE. So you know its going to be good. And fun. The shows are about anything and everything concerning music—the best live jams, geeky record stores clerks, smarmy critics, boob-flashing fans, destroyed hotel rooms, and roadies. Never underestimate the roadies. The Noisey Youtube channel made its debut in February with M.I.A.'s "Bad Girls," and VICE-produced A$AP Rocky video, "Wassup." Since then the channel has racked up loads of online content with everyone from David Lynch to Odd Future. On YouTube, Noisey offers music fans the most extensive slate of original online music programming to date, covering not only the artists that matter most, but the trends and opinions that make up today's music culture. See for yourself: youtube.com/noisey

www.santigold.com
www.facebook.com/santigold
www.twitter.com/santigold
  

Fang Island premiere new song via SPIN.com, kick off US headlining tour this month

Photo credit: Mike Garten

"Honest, life-affirming and infectious, and it's that rare concentration of directness and simplicity that makes Fang Island so uniquely and wonderfully inclusive." Best New Music -- Pitchfork "Fang Island are simply killer fun, a proper gang who sing collectively and pummel their guitars without recourse to errant soloing." Four Stars -- MOJO Brooklyn's beloved guitar-anthem optimists Fang Island premiere a new track today via SPIN.comfrom their forthcoming sophomore album, Major. Fang Island recently released a digital single for album track "Sisterly" paired with a remix version by Anamanaguchi. Fang Island has also added new dates to their upcoming summer headlining tour, with support on partially overlapping stretches from Irish genre-benders Adebisi Shank and The Mars Volta sibling heavy groove outfit Zechs Marquise. Please see complete dates below. Like the painstakingly chiseled marble of the album artwork, Major is hefty, solid, monolithic and regal. Whereas Fang Island described their celebrated 2010 self-titled Sargent House debut as, "everyone high-fiving everyone," Major is evermore confident, triumphant and brimming with infectious enthusiasm. Its warm harmonies are given proper berth with more expansive dynamics and focused pop song craft.  "One of our core ideas has always been that our songs would be all of your favorite parts of the song that other bands make you wait 8 minutes to get to," explains guitarist/vocalist Jason Bartell. "We wanted to be the band that's nothing but your favorite hooks back to back." Major shows Fang Island deftly achieving that aim.  Throughout, Major highlights the band's endeavor to elevate positivity as an art form. "It's kind of similar to writing songs about being sad," Bartell says. "It can come across as simplistic, or easy. Positive songs often run the risk of sounding shallow, but we feel there are a lot of shades and depths to positivity that can be explored." That exploration becomes clear from the first notes of Major.  However, Georges sums up the album's bold steps best in this short sampling of the band's nearly 1,000 bullet point explanation of the album title: "Some reasons we called the album Major:  - Major key (the first song is minor though!) - Valley girl colloquialism  - Because we are on an independent label - Because the rank under Sargent (House) is major - It sounds like a constellation - Steely Dan's "Any Major Dude" was in rotation a lot during the sessions - The record is packaged to look like stone because it's ROCK. I really wanted people to hold a piece of rock when they picked up the record." Major will be available everywhere on LP, CD and download via Sargent House on July 24th, 2012.  FANG ISLAND Summer 2012 Tour: 07/19 Hartford, CT @ Arch Street Tavern (w/ The Hold Steady) 07/20 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom 07/21 Philadelphia, PA @ Morgan's Pier  07/22 Washington DC @ U Street Music Hall  07/23 Columbus, OH @ The Basement  07/25 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop  07/26 Pontiac, MI @ The Crofoot - Pike Room  07/27 Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen 07/28 Chicago, IL @ Wicker Park Music Festival 07/29 St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway  07/30 Kansas City, MO @ Czar Bar * 08/01 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge * 08/02 Salt Lake City, UT @ Vertigo * 08/03 Boise, ID @ Neurolux * 08/04 Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre * 08/05 Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile * 08/07 San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall * 08/10 Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour *! 08/11 San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar ! 08/12 Phoenix, AZ @ The Rhythm Room *! 08/13 Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress *! 08/14 Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad *! 08/16 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada ! 08/17 Austin, TX @ Mohawk ! 08/18 Volente, TX @ Beachfront Boat Studios  08/19 Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live - Studio ! 08/20 New Orleans, LA @ Parish at House of Blues ! 08/21 Birmingham, AL @ Bottle Tree ! 08/22 Gainesville, FL @ Double Down Live ! 08/23 St. Petersburg, FL @ The Local 662 ! 08/24 Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbits ! 08/25 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade ! 08/26 Asheville, NC @ Asheville Music Hall ! 08/28 Raleigh, NC @ Kings ! 08/29 Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter ! 08/30 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg ! * w/ Zechs Marquise ! w/ Adebisi Shank

Artist: Fang Island  Album: Sisterly (digital single)  Label: Sargent House Release date: June 19th, 2012 01. Sisterly  02. Sisterly (Anamanaguchi remix)    Artist: Fang Island  Album: Major Label: Sargent House Release date: July 24th, 2012 Track list: 01. Kindergarten 02. Sisterly  03. Seek it Out  04. Make Me 05. Never Understand 06. Asunder  07. Dooney Rock 08. Regalia 09. Chompers 10. Chime Out 11. Victorinian On the Web: fangisland.com sargenthouse.com

THE COMPANY BAND Release Video EPK

Pros & Cons EP Available July 31st via Weathermaker Music

Since THE COMPANY BAND first got together in 2006, the group has solely existed through semi-annual corporate retreats. These meetings developed into an organization of odd fellows featuring vocalist Neil Fallon from Clutch, drummer Jess Margera from CKY, guitarist / vocalist Jim Rota from Fireball Ministry, bassist Brad Davis from Fu Manchu and guitarist Dave Bone. Since the beginning, the group has rarely surfaced to show their hand. In 2007 it was the Sign Here, Here and Here EP. In 2009 it was The Company Band album along with the It's A Confusing World / Not Fragile single. And after a recent retreat at a beach house in Venice, the group have a new five song EP ready entitled Pros & Cons.  Pros & Cons will be released in July 31st via Weathermaker Music. Today THE COMPANY BAND has released a video EPK, giving fans further insight into the band and the upcoming Pros & Cons EP. The first single from the EP entitled "House of Capricorn" received its exclusive premiere via Antiquiet.com.  Check out the song and read a little insight on the track from frontman Neil FallonHERE. Not many have known the origins of THE COMPANY BAND until Jess Margera finally opened up about its inception. "I crossed paths with Jim on tour and knew we should open up shop immediately. Do some instrumentals that could be valuable in the placement market. Then he suggested getting Bone involved. It's then when we laid down our original presentation that we took to Neil. We hoped he could be a guest speaker on one of the tracks but it fortunately turned out that he wanted a permanent seat. Brad Davis came seamlessly into the fold later as he was already a compatriot with several of the members, musically and socially." With everyone's bands creating such a difficult schedule, how do they make it all happen? "I don't want to say we pay great attention to astrology, but..." said Neil Fallon trailing off.  "On this one, I chose the spot for the retreat in Venice. A great location will not only bring the people out, but it will also bring the best out of the people." And when THE COMPANY BAND do get together, it's an occasion not to be missed. The group can be seen performing limited live demonstrations toward the end of July.  Dates are listed below. Pros & Cons EP Tracklisting: 1)    House of Capricorn 2)    Black Light Fever 3)    Kill Screen 4)    Loc Nar 5)    El Dorado THE COMPANY BAND Live: 7/26: Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts  7/27: Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus  7/28: Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall For More Info Visit: http://www.facebook.com/thecompanyband http://www.myspace.com/thecoband http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Company_Band http://thecompanyband.bandcamp.com/ http://weathermakermusic.com/

The Babies announces tour dates, new album due in Fall on Woodsist

The Babies formed in Brooklyn in 2009 and feature Kevin Morby, Cassie Ramone, Justin Sullivan and Brian Schleyer. Originally conceived as a side-project outlet for Kevin and Cassie to trade song ideas and play house parties, the band has slowly grown into a full time affair, having done several stateside and European tours. After releasing a slew of singles, their s/t debut on Shrimper in 2011 and a 12" collection of demos and rarities on New Images, the band is readying their follow-up album to be released on Woodsist in the Fall of 2012 with extensive touring to follow.

THE BABIES 

7/6 - Seattle, WA - Cairo

7/7 - Portland, OR - East End Block Party

7/9 - Reno, CA - Holland Project

7/10 - Sacramento, CA - Luigi's Fungarden

7/11 - San Francisco, CA - Hemlock Tavern

7/12 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo *

7/13 - San Diego, CA - Casbah +

7/14 - Pomona, CA - Viva Pomona Festival ^

7/21- Brooklyn, NY - Glasslands $

7/25 - Brooklyn, NY - Public Assembly (back room)

7/28 -  Brooklyn, NY - Union Pool #

  

* with Crazy Band

+ with Vivian Girls, Grass Widow

^ with La Sera, Grass Widow, The Urinals

$ with Dent May

# with The Soft Pack

  

THE BABIES LINKS:

http://thebabiesband.tumblr.com/  

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Babies/168795699876906 

http://www.woodsist.com/ 

DANCE MUSIC STAR ANNIE RISE BRINGS EASTERN EUROPEAN FLARE TO AMERICA WITH THE RELEASE OF NEW SINGLE “GET INTO MY CAR”

Cover girl looks and charismatic vocals come together in the form of Annie Rise, who is exploding onto the international music scene.  Her raw talent in the pop/dance genre has mesmerized audiences in Europe and the Ukraine, keeping feet moving on dance floors across the continent.  Unmistakably in control of her own musicality, 23-year-old Annie is known for unforgettable hooks in her original compositions and lyrics.  Her new single “Get into my Car” flirts with lust, luxury and the ecstasy of a night out on the town.  After taking her ho me turf by storm, Rise is destined to captivate U.S audiences from coast to coast.

Always the center of attention while growing up in a non-musical family, it was clear that the future singer was destined for greatness. Eventually Annie toured locally and in surrounding European cities for several years as part of a folk group.  Quickly learning to play the piano on her travels, the instrument became the catalyst for her present day musical compositions.  Having worked with internationally renowned dance group Kazaky in the past, Annie Rise officially launched her own solo career in cooperation with Firework Sound last year – and she has no plans for slowing down anytime soon.

For more information, please visit http://www.annierise.com/

The War On Drugs Play Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Treasure Island & More!

Philadelphia's The War On Drugs continue on in full force in support of Slave Ambient! It's been almost a year since Slave Ambient's release on Secretly Canadian and the band has hardly stopped for a minute of rest. After nearly nine months of endless touring, in the last two months alone they've already played Sasquatch, NonComm, Bonnaroo, Primavera, and toured Europe. And this summer and fall, the 'Drugs will carry on and play more of the world's biggest music festivals - Lollapalooza, Latitude, Melt!, Øya, Austin City Limits,Treasure Island, amongst many others. Still to come in 2012 is a performance at CBGB Fest at Central Park Summerstage, a run of dates with The Walkmen, the band's first tour of Australia, and a slew of other select shows and fests. If you've seen The War On Drugs live throughout the last year, or perhaps caught their performances on the Late Show with David Letterman or Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, it's certain - all of this hard work and endless touring is supremely paying off!

THE WAR ON DRUGS' TOUR DATES

Sat. July 7 - New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage - CBGB Fest [buy tix]

Fri. July 13 - Henham Park, Suffolk, UK @ Latitude Festival [buy tix]

Sat. July 14 - Dour, BE @ Dour Festival [buy tix]

Sun. July 15 - Graifenhaichen, DE @ Melt! Festival [buy tix]

Fri. July 20 - Camden, NJ @ XPoNential Music Festival [buy tix]

Sat. July 21 - Wantagh, NY @ Shine A Light Music Festival @ Mulcahy's w/ Dean & Britta [buy tix]

Fri. Aug. 3 - Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza [buy tix]

Fri. Aug. 3 - Chicago, IL @ Schuba's [SOLD OUT]

Sun. Aug. 5 - Happy Valley, OR @ Pickathon Music Festival [buy tix]

Thu. Aug. 9 - Haldern, DE @ Haldern Pop

Fri. Aug. 10 - Goteborg, SE @ Way Out West Festival [buy tix]

Sat. Aug. 11 - Oslo, NO @ Øya Festival [buy tix]

Sun. Aug. 12 - Helsinki, FL @ Flow Festival [buy tix]

Tue. Aug. 14 - Aarhus, DK @ Voxhall [buy tix]

Sat. Sep. 14 - Chicago, IL @ The A.V. Club & Hideout Block Party [buy tix]

Thu. Oct. 4 - Washington, DC @ 930 Club w/ The Walkmen [buy tix]

Sat. Oct. 6 - Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory w/ The Walkmen [buy tix]

Fri. Oct. 12 - Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival [buy tix]

Sun. Oct. 14 - San Francisco, CA @ Treasure Island Festival [buy tix]

Sat. Nov. 10 - Melbourne, AU @ Harvest Festival

Sun. Nov. 11 - Melbourne, AU @ Harvest Festival

Tue. Nov. 13 - Melbourne, AU @ Northcote Social Club

Thu. Nov. 15 - Sydney, AU @ Oxford Art Factory

Sat. Nov. 17 - Sydney, AU @ Harvest Festival

Sun. Nov. 18 - Brisbane, AU @ Harvest Festival

The War on Drugs "Baby Missiles" from Secretly Jag on Vimeo.

The War On Drugs Online:

http://www.thewarondrugs.net/ 

http://www.secretlycanadian.com/artist.php?name=warondrugs 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-War-on-Drugs/112110662139708 

http://twitter.com/#!/warondrugsjams 

AFROPUNK FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES THE ‘BATTLE OF THE BANDS’

Organizers of the 8th annual Afropunk Festival are pleased to announce that the ‘Battle of the Bands’ competition is now open. The ‘Battle of the Bands’ contest uses both a social media (online) and a live performance component. The top two bands will perform at the Afropunk Festival on August 25 and August 26, 2012. In addition to the performance, the 1st place winner receives a prize package that includes a music video directed by filmmaker Terence Nance.

The competition’s online component begins Monday, June 25, culminating with live performances from July 23 through July 26 (semi-finals), with the final battle scheduled for August 3. All performances take place at the Candy Factory in Brooklyn, New York.

Bands wishing to compete are first required to register at Afropunk.com and create a band profile. From July 1 to July 14, bands must go to the ‘Battle of the Bands’ Facebook page to enter the contest. The top 16 bands with the most online votes via Facebook will face-off at the semi-finals held between July 23 and July 26, 2012. After a series of live performances, the top four bands will be chosen by audience applause and a panel of judges to compete in the finals on August 3, where the top two bands will be selected. All battle performances take place at the Candy Factory in Brooklyn, NY as well.

Described by the New York Times as putting “rock and rebellion squarely in the category of African-American music,” the Afropunk Festival has become an influential Brooklyn-based focal point for the burgeoning Afropunk movement.

Over the past seven years, the Afropunk Festival has established its position as a platform for musical artists on-the-verge of hitting it big, such as Grammy-nominated Santigold, The Noisettes and Janelle Monae. Afropunk mainstays like Saul Williams, The Dirtbombs, Mos Def, and Bad Brains have also graced Afropunk’s stages.

This year, the Afropunk Festival is returning to Brooklyn’s Commodore Barry Park for the8th Annual Afropunk Festival on August 25-26. The 2012 festival brings together its most stellar line-up yet, featuring a diverse mix of performers including  Erykah Badu featuring the Cannibanoids, Gym Class Heroes, Janelle Monae, Das Racist, Skindred, Toro Y Moi, Reggie Watts, Spank Rock, Ninjasonik, Toshi Reagon, Straight Line Stitch, The Memorials, Bad Rabbits, Gordon Voidwell, Cerebral Ballzy, Phony Ppl, Body Language, and more to be added!  

In addition, the largest Street Skate and BMX showcase returns with the Nike Battle For the Streets Skate and BMX Competition. The event will feature the nation's best amateur skaters and BMX riders in a competition to be judged by top professionals in both sports.

www.afropunkfest.com

NEW BEARD PREMIERE "DOOM" VIDEO, PERFORM ALBUM IN NYC

NEW BEARD is a real band from Brooklyn.  A really rockin’ creative band, with beards and a tuba and an incredible brand new album called ‘New Beard City.’  They also have a brand new video for lead single “Doom” featuring death by tomato and real rockin out.  See it here.  Led by former Arizona frontman Ben Wigler who co-produced New Beard's LP with Gustav Ejstes of Dungen, 'New Beard City' was recorded by the bearded weirdos in a cellar in Brooklyn and out now on Shoulder Tap Records (Wigmaker's Son).  ObscureSounds calls 'New Beard City' "One of the year's best debuts” and PopMatters hails it is “wonderfully unique, original, and strangely accessible.”

A live show that should not be missed, catch New Beard at NYC’s Mercury Lounge this Tues July 3 as they perform ‘New Beard City in its entirety at their Record Release Show.  Doors 7:30, Set time 8pm, 21+, tix $10   http://bit.ly/LgqmVb

There is no band like New Beard.  With influences from Elliot Smith to Megadeth and Japanese folk, these bearded weirdos are:  a hobbit with the voice of an angel (Ben Wigler), a virtuousic electric tuba player (Tuba Joe Exley),  a singly named lefty guitar wizard (Yazan), a Japanese singing uber-hyper drummer whose percussive performances on a custom-made glow in the dark drumkit are genuine religious experiences (Tony Waldman), and a sax blasting girl (Maria Christina Eisen).  August tour tba.

“stylish, fun and rocking” - Sloucher

"a group of a new genus: disarming" - PauseMusicale

“righteous garage-style prog-psych, with snaky riff moves cribbed from Zeppelin and the odd moment of folky repose” – Time Out NY

http://newbeardcity.com/

https://twitter.com/NewBeard

http://www.facebook.com/newbeard