Melbourne’s Deaf Wish will release Pain, their first full-length album for Sub Pop, on CD/LP/DL worldwide August 7th.
The album, featuring the highlights “Eyes Closed,” “On,” “Calypso,” and
the title track, was recorded & produced by the band at Reservoir,
Victoria, mixed by Mikey Young and mastered by April Golden at Golden
Mastering. Pain is the follow up to their label debut, the 4-song St. Vincent’s 7” single, released last October.
You can now listen to “Eyes Closed” via Stereogum, who say the track: ““Eyes
Closed” initiates with the sound of off-white noise, a fragile rumble
that opens the track’s seams and makes room for it to grow into
something much more sinister. The song is an exploration of various
tiers of dreaming consciousness: “I’m not awake, I’ve got my eyes
closed/ I’m sleepwalking, with my eyes closed.”…There’s a certain sense
of spontaneity to this debut single, suggesting that Deaf Wish formulate
their songs in short, sharp moments of inspiration (see song premiere May 12th).”
Pain is now available for preorder from Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, Amazon, and Bandcamp. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com
will receive the limited Loser edition on clear, black marbled vinyl
(while supplies last). There will also be a new T-shirt design,
available individually and as part of a bundle with purchase of the new
record.
About Deaf Wish:
When Deaf Wish found themselves in a room together for the very first
time, they agreed on a guiding philosophy: “Let’s not make anything
that’s going to last. If we’re together for just two shows, then that’s
what it is.”
They’ve deviated some.
Over the course of eight years, the Melbourne foursome—bassist Nick
Pratt, drummer Daniel Twomey and guitarists Sarah Hardiman and Jensen
Tjhung, with each member contributing vocals—have instead amassed one of
rock’s most exhilarating bodies of work, a concise run of wooly
seven-inches and white-knuckle LPs whose legendary live translation has
been most accurately described as “unhinged.” All this despite their
being scattered across multiple continents, with no way of getting to
know one another outside of intermittent touring. “We didn’t really know
what this band was,” Tjhung says. “We had something, but it wasn’t
clear—we had to figure out what that was.”
This year marks the arrival of Pain, the first they’ve written
since coming together again semi-permanently in Melbourne, and their
appropriately titled first full-length for Sub Pop. (Last October’s St. Vincent
EP was their proper Sub Pop debut.) It is a miraculously dissonant,
wonderfully immediate display of Deaf Wish at their mightiest, alive
with the same wild chemistry and sense of possibility that made their
first recordings so vital. With more time together than they’ve ever had
before, they’re found themselves confronted with ideal (yet foreign)
conditions. Two-minute freakouts like “Eyes Closed” share airspace with
the meditate squall of “On” and the guitar-born majesty of “Calypso.”
Everything was captured in three takes or less, in a bleak, nondescript
studio on the lifeless outskirts of Melbourne.
“It’s a simple thing,” Tjhung says of their approach. “Simple takes the
worry out of it. If we try to step it up and go sideways, it just
doesn’t seem to work. But we’ve grown up and been through some shit. To
get to this point you have to bust through a few walls. It’s easy to be
new, and I think, in the end, this is what it is. When you put these
people in the room, it’s Deaf Wish (read bio at Sub Pop).”
Daughn Gibson’s Carnation
is available now on CD / LP / DL in North America from your friends in the music business, Sub Pop Records. Conveniently enough for fans and newcomers alike, a brand-new Daughn Gibson official video for “Daddy I Cut My Hair” is also available as of today and was directed by the talented Matt
Amato.
Carnation, featuring the highlights “Shatter You Through,”
“Bled to Death,” “It Wants Everything,” and “Daddy I Cut My Hair,” was
co-produced by Gibson and Randall Dunn (Earth, Sunn O))), Tim Hecker),
recorded at Avast Studios in Seattle, Washington and mastered by Jason
Ward at Chicago Mastering.
The new albumalso features guest appearances from
composer/violinist to Eyvind Kang (string arrangements), renowned studio
drummer Matt Chamberlain, as well as Gibson’s long-standing musical
conspirator, Jim Elkington. Additional contributions include: Steve
Moore (Piano, Trombone, Keyboards and Synths); Milky Burgess, Paul
Wegman, and Jer Rouse (Guitars); Skerik (Saxophone); and Jay Kardong
(Pedal Steel). Carnation is the follow up to Me Moan, Daughn Gibson’s Sub Pop debut.
North American purchases of Carnation are available through Sub
Pop Mega Mart,iTunes, Amazon and Bandcamp. Fans who purchase the album
from us at our MegaMart store will receive the Loser Edition on white, black
and blue swirl colored vinyl (while supplies last only).
What people are saying about Daughn Gibson:
“Singular and unsettlingly sophisticated.” [8/10] - Uncut
“Carnation,
with hindsight in its favor, gives Gibson the ability to keep on
stretching his narratives, but it also wisely pomades some of his
wildest hairs. The country urges are tamped down to the occasional
guitar line and qualities of Gibson’s singing voice, giving the music a
chance to open up to breezier vistas. These are mostly pitched between
Tangerine Dream’s ’80s material and soundtracks, Sylvian/Japan, Danny
Elfman and ’80s radio pop groups like a-ha, a mixture of influences and
ideas that’s remarkably compelling when set against such visceral
tales…Across all three records, and on this one in particular, there’s
a reach of ambition that never gets mired in artifice or
inconsistencies; this is surprising, complex music that deals with
stories difficult to tell outside the printed page. Gibson leads
listeners through them on the rumble seat, without so much as a lap belt
or handhold to keep us steady.” [“First Listen”] - NPR Music
“Another weirdly fitting edition to Gibson’s sonic smorgasboard.” - Time Out London
“Carnation hears Gibson veering away from his earlier country
influences and embracing “ambient textures,” creating an elegant, dark,
and cinematic collection of songs…In addition to delivering brooding
beats and eerie soundscapes, Gibson uses his deep, theatrical style of
singing to explore serious themes like mental health (“Daddy I Cut My
Hair”) and masculinity (“A Rope Ain’t Enough”), as well as the simpler
things in life, like the moment an alarm clock wakes you from the peace
of sleep on lead single “Shatter You Through” - Exclaim!
“Gibson finally sounds the part.” [4/5] - MOJO
“Its brisk metropolitan midnight pop accented by eerie violin and
honky-tonk guitar and topped off with Gibson’s death bellow. He spins a
story about being jarred from peaceful sleep into dreadful waking life;
it’s as odd as anything he’s committed to tape, but it’s also his most
instantly appealing single yet.” [“Shatter You Through”, Carnation] - Stereogum
“Quite possibly his catchiest work to date, the titillating track is
marked by groovy bass, twangy guitar, and Gibson’s rich baritone.”
[“Shatter You Through”, Carnation] - Consequence of Sound
“A brisk, impressive new track with swift strings, tinkling piano keys,
and a quick-paced Gibson demonstrating a keen grasp on pop’s best
offerings…The future is here and now, and it’s on repeat.”
[“Shatter You Through”, Carnation] - FLOOD
No Fly List: Notes from Sub Pop’s Airport Store, May 2015
What I Haven’t Learned After One Year at the Airport Store
After reading the general manager’s write-up of the airport store on our 1 year anniversary, I was naturally revolted by all of the praise and felt compelled to undercut any inflated expectations about our humble retail operation. Despite the label’s best efforts to indoctrinate me in all-things Sub Pop, and foster excellent customer-service skills amongst the retail staff, I still feel like I’m mostly fumbling my way around. So, without further ado, here are some things I still haven’t mastered after working for a year at the Sub Pop Airport store*:
Snappy comebacks to any of the following FAQs:
I. What is SUB POP?
II. What does SUB POP stand for?
III. Is that VINYL back there?
My best answers:
I. Sub Pop is a record label that started in 1988, in Seattle, Washington. Fast forward 26 years, and many illicit ingested substances later, they got the harebrained idea to open a store in the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
II. Sub Pop is an initialism for Superior Unique Bro-fessionals Pursuing Overwhelming Profits.
III. No, those are wall calendars. All for the year 2015, but reusable in 2026!
Coherent music recommendations: Working at a record store in an airport means interacting with people from all over the world, with all different kinds of music tastes. On occasion, I am asked to help someone find music in our store that sounds like “viola-fusion,” “cabaret,” or “Dire Straits.” My answer for any and all requests is usually Goat. All roads in music lead to Goat.
Playing along when a customer decides to “stump the millennial sales clerk”: No, I don’t know the location of the Sub Pop recording studio, nor do I know the name of your best friend’s cousin’s neighbor who totally played bass in Soundgarden back in the day. Take your Mudhoney shirt and leave me alone!
Knowing what size t-shirt your child/spouse/sibling wears: It’s probably for the best that I don’t know intimate details about your family members who I’ve never met before. Just sayin’.
Reacting to all the enthusiasm in the store: The majority of people who visit the store (and are at least somewhat familiar with Sub Pop) are usually blown away and ecstatic to find our outpost at the airport. It is super gratifying/humbling/inspiring to see this response, and it often makes my face hurt.
*Let me reiterate that I’m speaking entirely about myself here. The rest of my colleagues are professionals who routinely show their expertise in the store, and I hope you interact with any one of them during your next visit.
The Helio Sequence is out now on CD/LP/DL worldwide and can be purcahsed in fine record stores near you as well as online retailers such as Sub Pop Mega Mart,
iTunes, Amazon and Bandcamp. Worth noting, however, is that while supplies last, customers who purchase the LP version
of the album from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser Edition” on yellow-colored vinyl.
Additionally, The Helio Sequence’s US tour will resume on June 3rd in Boise, ID at Neurolux and will run through October 1st in Spokane, WA at INB Performing Arts Center. The Helio Sequence will be direct support for Death Cab For Cutie on Sep. 30th & Oct. 1st . Get the complete list of tour dates below.
What people are saying about The Helio Sequence:
“The Helio Sequence has created a euphoric, career-defining album.” [9.2 / 10] - PASTE
“…The duo’s latest is an ambitious, smart, and memorable collection of crisply produced clean-channel rock that shows all the newcomers how it’s done.” [8/10] - FLOOD
“”Stoic Resemblance” matches harmonious psychedelic chorus with a brisk krautrock pulse.” - Stereogum
“”Stoic Resemblance” is among the most pop-friendly things the duo have put to tape. Of course, “pop-friendly” to The Helio Sequence takes the shape of more direct song structures and vocal hooks. Naturally, it’s all filtered through their signature kaleidoscopic filter, hitting a chord somewhere between gauzy and taut. At a tight three minutes, “Stoic Resemblance” shows The Helio Sequence at their most spontaneous and their most playful, which is not only a surprise turn from the studio-intense direction that’s long defined them with surprisingly fun results.” [Song of the Day] - KEXP
“It’s a hit of catchy goodness with a funky bassline with a chorus of “oh na na nas.” It’s a bonafide jam.” [“Stoic Resemblance”] - KCRW
“A rager by comparison, rhythmically reminiscent of Beck…It’s great to find the Helio Sequence upping their game, and being a little less stoic.” [“Stoic Resemblance”] - Buzzbands
Tour Dates Jun. 03 - Boise, ID - Neurolux Jun. 04 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge Jun. 05 - Denver, CO- Larimer Lounge Jun. 06 - Kansas City, MO - The Record Bar Jun. 08 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada Jun 09 - Austin, TX - RED 7 Jun. 10 - Houston, TX - Fitzgerald’s Jun. 11 - New Orleans, LA - Gassa Gassa Jun. 12 - Birmingham, AL - The Saturn Jun. 13 - Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn Jun. 14 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle Jun. 16 - Washington DC - Black Cat Jun. 17 - Brooklyn, NY - Rough Trade Jun. 18 - New York, NY - Mercury Lounge Jun. 19 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle Jun. 20 - Allston, MA - Brighton Music Hall Jun. 21 - Hamden, CT - Outerspace Ballroom Jun. 23 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Tavern Jun. 24 - Columbus, OH - The Basement Jun. 25 - Chicago, IL - The Empty Bottle Jun. 26 - Madison, WI - The Frequency Jun. 27- St. Paul, MN - Turf Club Jun. 28th - Omaha, NE - Slowdown Jul. 09 - Vancouver, BC - Venue July 11 - Seattle, WA - The Neptune Jul. 14 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent Jul. 15 - Los Angeles, CA - The Roxy Jul. 16 - Phoenix, AZ - The Crescent Jul. 17 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah Jul. 18 - Visalia, CA - Cellar Door Aug. 23 - Portland, OR- MusicFestNW Sep. 30 - Missoula, MT - Adams Event Center* Oct. 01 - Spokane, WA - INB Performing Arts Center* * w/ Death Cab For Cutie
The wise and kind folks at the AV Club are now streaming the full album by Northwest rippers Strange Wilds here. Enrich your life by giving the album a listen, then preorder it at the Sub Pop Megamart. And, for those of you lucky enough to be in the great Northwest this Friday, go see them play a free, all-ages in-store at Seattle’s Everyday Music, then catch them again at Capitol Hill Block Party. Trust us, it will be worth both your time and your money.
Now available for your eyes and ears: The Helio Sequence’s official video for “Battle Lines”, from their self-titled 6th effort, directed by Robin Washburn and featuring animation from Emanuelle Kabu (“Upward Mobility”).
Robin had this to say about the new video: “Exciting to work with The Helio Sequence again, and felt very lucky to have collaborated with Emanuele Kabu. My particular contribution to the look of the “live” portion of this video involved running the motion vector information through a small set of looping “electric” colors, then blacking out the static background, creating a kind of Tron-like world. Once that was in place we sent it off to Emanuele to dream up whatever he wanted… and I think it all turned out fantastic. A really fun project to be involved in.”
The Helio Sequence is out now on CD/LP/DL worldwide from Sub Pop, and you can spend your hard earned dollars (or your allowance) on it via Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, Amazon and Bandcamp. Everyone who purchases the LP from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser Edition” on yellow-colored vinyl.
New to The Helio Sequence? Want to hear more?There’s a playlist for that: http://bit.ly/1cvBRve
The band’s U.S. west coast tour resumes Saturday, July 11th in Seattle, WA at The Neptune and currently ends October 1st in Spokane, WA at INB Performing Arts Center. Additionally the band have added an appearance at Victoria, BC’s Rifflandia Festival on September 19th.
Tour Dates July 11 - Seattle, WA - The Neptune Jul. 14 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent Jul. 15 - Los Angeles, CA - The Roxy Jul. 16 - Phoenix, AZ - The Crescent Jul. 17 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah Jul. 18 - Visalia, CA - Cellar Door Aug. 23 - Portland, OR- MusicFestNW Sep. 19 - Victoria, BC - Rifflandia Festival Sep. 30 - Missoula, MT - Adams Event Center* Oct. 01 - Spokane, WA - INB Performing Arts Center* * w/ Death Cab For Cutie
