Today, King Tuff has shared ”Thru The Cracks,” the latest single from his forthcoming (and highly anticipated) new album, The Other. “Thru the Cracks” is a powerful reflection on losing a friend to suicide and finding their spirit throughout the beautiful moments of life. The song features guest vocals by Jenny Lewis, backing vocals by Greta Morgan (Springtime Carnivore), and drums by Charles Moothart (Mikal Cronin, Ty Segall, Fuzz). A more soulful offering than the groove-based singles that have come before it, “Thru the Cracks” is another shining example of the multi-faceted artistic direction that Kyle Thomas has taken as King Tuff.
[Photo Credit: Olivia Bee]
Of the song, Thomas says: “About two years ago I lost a good friend to suicide. He loved the Beatles, Nirvana, Burroughs, bumming smokes, stealing his parents records and selling em to me… he was a complex character, a sweetheart with poor social skills, a musical genius with no outlet. He was pretty damn misunderstood in this world and struggled for a long, long time.
I had this song laying around for 7 years or so, but sadly it wasn’t until he was gone that it came into focus and I realized what it was all about. It’s one of my favorites I’ve ever written, and one of the truest. And it all comes back again to this thing, the Other. Maybe death is just a passageway to something else. Maybe in death we finally, once and for all, join the Other. I dunno, but I think Jeremiah is probably hanging out on the metaphysical stoop right now with none other than the Other itself.
Wherever you are bud, I’m singing to you”
The Other is available for pre-order now and is due out April 13th.
Thomas self-produced The Other and brought in Shawn Everett (War On Drugs, Alabama Shakes) to assist with the mixing process.No less hooky than previous records, the new songs ditch the goofy rock-and-roll bacchanalia narratives of earlier records in favor of expansive arrangements, a diversity of instrumentation, and lyrics that straddle the fence between painful ruminations and reconnecting with that part of yourself that feels childlike and creative and not corroded by cynicism. The record features contributions from Ty Segall (drums), Jenny Lewis (vocals), Greta Morgan (vocals), and Mikal Cronin (saxophone).
Thomas views the entire experience of the record as a kind of psychic reset. “I let the songs lead me where they wanted to go, instead of trying to push them into a certain zone. King Tuff was always just supposed to be me. When I started doing this as a teenager, it was whatever I wanted it to be. King Tuff was never supposed to be just one thing. It was supposed to be everything.”
King Tuff Tour Dates + Ticket Links
King Tuff has also announced a North American tour beginning May 3rd in San Diego. Cut Worms will open the shows, and all tickets on now. Visit www.kingtuff.life for more updates.
5/3 - San Diego, CA @ The Casbah *
5/4 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar *
5/5 - Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf *
5/7 - Houston, TX @ Rockefeller Hall *
5/8 - Austin, TX 2 Barracuda (outside) *
5/9 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada *
5/11 - New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks *
5/12 - Atlanta, GA @ The Earl *
5/13 - Nashville TN @ The Basement East *
5/14 - Lexington, KY @ The Burl *
5/16 - Washington DC @ Rock & Roll Hotel *
5/18 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg *
5/19 - Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church *
Hot Snakes’ previously announced tour dates for 2018 continue with an in-store performance today at Down in the Valley (Golden Valley store, 6pm CT/All Ages), followed by a headlining show later tonight in St. Paul at the Turf Club.
Mar. 16 - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club
May 09 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory
May 10 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
May 11 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park
May 12 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
May 14 - San Jose, CA - The Ritz
May 15 - San Francisco, CA - August Hall
May 16 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
May 18 - Denver, CO - The Oriental Theater
Jun. 04 - New York City, NY - The Bowery Ballroom
Jun. 05 - Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere Hall
Jun. 07 - Toronto, ON - The Phoenix Concert Theatre
Jun. 08 - Allston, MA - Brighton Music Hall
Jun. 09 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
Jun. 10 - Washington, DC - Union Stage
Jericho Sirens is now available from Sub Pop, select independent retailers near you and all DSPs. And the band’s recently reissued catalog - Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice and Audit in Progress - is also available now on Sub Pop.
What’s the word on Hot Snakes’ Jericho Sirens? Well, since you asked:
“On its three previous records, the group was willing to toy with sustain and release, tension and construction — look at songs like “Suicide Invoice” or “Lovebirds.” Those days are gone. Jericho Sirens is a punched-in wall. Between the doom of the opening bars to “I Need a Doctor” and the homage the record closes on (“Death of a Sportsman” crash-ends with a direct lift from Suicide’s epochal, nihilistic “Ghost Rider” and that song’s four-note spine) lives the sound of not being able to itch your pox. Ever.” [Jericho Sirens, First Listen] - NPR Music
“This is yet another example of Hot Snakes at the top of their game, except this time they gave 14 years in exile for other, lesser bands to catch up with them only to reclaim the throne with ease.” [Jericho Sirens, 9/10] - Drowned in Sound
“The very definition of kickass” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - The Guardian
“Jericho Sirens sounds more unstable and aggressive…The palpable anxiety of “I Need A Doctor” opens the album, segueing into the dissonant dread of “Candid Cameras” and the ferocious 78 seconds of “Why Don’t It Sink In?” “Death Camp Fantasy” is a vintage Hot Snakes pounder, and Froberg howls like Brian Johnson in “Psychoactive.” It all works. Whenever Hot Snakes decide to get together, they will always be welcome.” [Jericho Sirens, A-] - AV Club
“This is a winner from start to finish.” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - Q
“It’s got all the traits that make Hot Snakes the unique band they always were: the fury of hardcore, the dissonant riffs of noise rock, the fuzz-drenched party of garage rock. They’ve got no fat on this thing — it’s over and done with in 30 minutes and reply value is very high — and the songs aren’t just rippers but catchy too.” [Jericho Sirens, “5 Notable Releases This Week”] - Brooklyn Vegan
“Hot Snakes are as dry, dented and slightly demented as ever.” [Jericho Sirens, 8/10, “Album of the Week”] - The Line of Best Fit
“At its core, Jericho Sirens bears all of the elements that made up Hot Snakes’ excellent first trio of albums: a sharp clash of guitars, pummeling punk-rock rhythms, and Froberg’s frantic, strained bark. Yet there’s even more tension and agitation than usual, even for a band whose discography is founded on that very agitation.” [Jericho Sirens, Album of the Day] - Bandcamp
“Their lengthy hiatus has clearly not dulled Hot Snakes’ razor-sharp edge, one bit, making Jericho Sirens a very welcome return.” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - Kerrang!
“It’s a suplex to your ears, a fire in your spirit, a get-up-and-go, absolutely run-wild affair. It’s what Hot Snakes has always been, and always will be: masters of primal, visceral aesthetics.” [Jericho Sirens, Album of the Week] - Treble
“Comebacks are complicated, for bands and fans too, but this is one for the ages. Hot Snakes have returned, reminding those of us who’ve paid attention that they are definitively one of the greatest rock bands we’ve ever known.” [9/10] - Exclaim!
“Jericho Sirens is an incredible turn, and proof to the other half-hearted post-hardcore comebacks of the last years (looking at you At the Drive-In, Refused and more) that it is possible to still be high-quality and relevant. In fact, in places Hot Snakes’ fourth album is so good, it even puts newer bands who have come up in the meantime to shame.” [Jericho Sirens, 5/5] - The Skinny
“A band that holds a timeless appeal to anyone who grew up on hardcore and garage rock, a promise of good times fused to a pummeling sense of aggression and resolve.” - Chicago Tribune
“This band will not change your life, probably. But it will make your life both more terrifying and way more bearable. It’s an honor, genuinely, to be pummelled and trampled by some of the best.” [Jericho Sirens] - The Ringer
“Jericho Sirens, the fourth Hot Snakes album, is a cathartic pileup of chunky guitar slashes and feverish yelps. It’s dense and physical and nasty and fun as hell. We’ve already posted the excellently-titled early tracks “Six Wave Hold-Down” and “Death Camp Fantasy,” and now the whole album is out there online, ready for your solo desk-chair moshing. (You do that too, right? It’s not just me?).” [Jericho Sirens]- Stereogum
“Hot Snakes’ caustic, erudite commentary is more welcome than ever” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - MOJO
“Hot Snakes throw one hell of a rock and roll party; let’s hope the invites to the next one don’t take another fourteen years to arrive” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - DIY
“It’s exactly what you want out of a Hot Snakes jam, with a riff that snarls and swaggers like a hot rod, its wild hair of a melody built into the stylish chrome.” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - NPR Music
“And after teasing a new song, they’ve now shared the slashing, propulsive “Six Wave Hold-Down,” a song that’s absolutely worthy of their old albums.” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Stereogum
“Charges forward with reckless abandon…” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Consequence of Sound
“A ripper which has Hot Snakes sounding as inspired as ever…” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Brooklyn Vegan
Yuno has just announced his first-ever U.S. live performances supporting Twin Shadow, beginning April 20th in San Francisco at Popscene and ending May 2nd in Brooklyn, NY at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Like so:
Apr. 20 - San Francisco, CA - Popscene Apr. 22 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios Apr. 23 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile Cafe Apr. 27 - Washington, DC - U Street Music Hall May 02 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
News of this support tour comes on the heels of Yuno’s Sub Pop signing and the release of his breakout single (and official video) for “No Going Back.” Yuno’s bittersweet vocals glide over a buoyant bass line and, fittingly, one of the song’s central themes is passing a point of no return. Yuno also both stars in and directs the “No Going Back” visual.
Listen to Yuno’s first single on Sub Pop, “No Going Back” - currently climbing the charts on Spotify + Apple Music + YouTube.
NPR Music calls “No Going Back” “an early entry into the race for song of the summer.” And Pitchfork gave the song “Best New Track’ status, and had this to say: “‘No Going Back” insists what we’re all thinking for the new pop wunderkind: Only forward.”
What people are saying about Yuno’s “No Going Back”: “Yuno’s lithe voice floats amidst the cheerful soundscape, bouncing off the plucky piano keys… the brand of sunny pop displayed on ‘No Going Back’ should earn him his own cult fanbase.” - Impose
“It’s light and breezy indie-pop, with warm and bouncy synth-lines softly coloured over with warm piano melodies and guitar solos. His vocals – fitting beautifully into the current psychedelic renaissance spearheaded by the likes of Tame Impala and Washed Out – pour out an infectious melody that’s simultaneously great fun and inflected with melancholy.” - Indie Shuffle
“Bouncy and bright…” - Gorilla Vs. Bear.
“Charming us all with its buoyant pop flair and instrumentals that sound as if they were seemingly dipped in sunshine, “No Going Back” signals Yuno’s return in a way that’s almost impossible to shake. “No Going Back” is as promising as it is optimistic.” - The Grey Estates
“Drifting digital pop casting a bittersweet spell.” - CLASH
Our friends at KEXP came up with a pretty epic 30th birthday gift… and it starts today! KEXP will be honoring every Sub Pop catalog release, in chronological order, over the coming months.
Read on for details…
[Photo Credit: David Ryder/Getty Images, via Pitchfork]
via KEXP: SEATTLE, March 8, 2018 – Legendary independent record label Sub Pop will turn 30 years old this year, and Seattle-based public broadcaster and arts organization KEXP will pay tribute to the label with a four-month retrospective. With over 1,200 releases, the station is planning to honor every single catalog number in the history of the Seattle based label. The tribute will wrap up in time for Sub Pop’s 30th anniversary concert at Alki Beach in West Seattle this August.
“Sub Pop and KEXP go back a long way,” said KEXP Chief Content Officer Kevin Cole. “Our histories are intimately connected - we certainly wouldn’t be who we are without the amazing music and incredible community that Sub Pop has helped to create here in Seattle. Sub Pop is family to KEXP.”
Sub Pop co-founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman each had a show on KEXP’s predecessor, KCMU, prior to the formation of the label. Pavitt’s show - Sub Pop USA - focused on celebrating artists and releases on independent regional labels, while Poneman was one of the first hosts of Audioasis, the local music program that still airs weekly on KEXP. Mark Arm of Sub Pop bands Mudhoney and Green River, and Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil had shows on KCMU, as did Charles Peterson, well-known for capturing iconic photographs of the nascent Seattle grunge scene on behalf of the label.
“Bruce Pavitt and I both had air shifts at the former KCMU. KEXP is sort of KCMU unchained, except that the present KEXP air staff have been trained, get paid and drink fancier coffee,” said Jonathan Poneman. “KCMU and Sub Pop Records both began as a pastime for music hobbyists who liked to stay indoors and play records. It’s been our good fortune to have successfully nurtured a reciprocal relationship with our hometown, Seattle: by providing great music to our community, people support it and listen.”
According to an account on HistoryLink, Poneman and Pavitt were first introduced to Nirvana as KCMU DJs, through a demo tape they received from producer Jack Endino. The tape was enough to get the band its first-ever radio airplay for demo versions of ‘Floyd the Barber’ and ‘Paper Cuts,’ songs which would show up over a year later on Bleach. After Sub Pop released Nirvana’s first official single, ‘Love Buzz’, in 1988, Kurt Cobain personally gave a copy to KCMU, and then sat in his car with the radio tuned to the station. When the DJ didn’t put the record on immediately, Cobain found a pay phone and called the station to request it himself.
“Bands were very aware of the role KCMU was playing in helping them out,” said Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil in an oral history of KCMU/KEXP published in CityArts Magazine in 2015. “KCMU was a networking hub for that seminal Seattle scene, Sub Pop and what came to be known as grunge, though I hate that word. It pivoted around KCMU.”
To this day, a strong connection remains. In 2013, KEXP helped celebrate Sub Pop’s 25th Anniversary with a live broadcast of Sub Pop artists performing on top of the Space Needle.
“We probably play more artists from Sub Pop than any other label,” said KEXP’s John Richards, host of The Morning Show on KEXP. “And that’s not necessarily on purpose, or because we feel like we need to play their music - it’s just that good, and their catalog is that deep. Every DJ on KEXP picks their own music, and with Sub Pop, there’s an amazing breadth and variety of killer releases to choose from.”
“Over the past 30 years Sub Pop has been home to the era-defining rock of Nirvana, Soundgarden and Mudhoney and the label has also had the privilege of releasing music from artists like Shabazz Palaces, whose art is endlessly expansive and whose creativity is unparalleled,” said Sub Pop CEO Megan Jasper. “We are so proud to work with so many musicians whose songs have changed our moods, our culture and us as individuals. And we can’t wait to learn what the next 30 years will bring!”
The Sub Pop Count-Up will begin on the first full weekday of KEXP’s 2018 Spring Fundraising Drive, on Monday March 12th. Throughout the following months, KEXP DJs will honor each Sub Pop catalog item in chronological order, including full albums, singles, EPs, compilations, early Sub Pop fan zines, and even a wedding soundtrack. KEXP.ORG will also feature online-exclusive content, interviews and more throughout the four-month tribute.
KEXP is a music-focused nonprofit arts organization serving music lovers and artists through in-person, broadcast, and online music programming. KEXP operates one of the most influential listener-supported music radio stations in the country, KEXP-FM, Seattle. More than 200,000 listeners from around the world tune in to the station each week over the air and online. On KEXP’s YouTube channel, videos of exclusive in-studio performances garner more than 2.4 million views per week. KEXP produces hundreds of live performances and music events each year, many of which are open to public audiences at no charge. More information at kexp.org.
Release Week Happenings Include A Live “Juan’s Basement” performance via Pitchfork TV on Thursday, March 29th and a Reddit Indieheads AMA on Friday, March 30th.
Rejoice! Frankie Cosmos’ Sub Pop debut, Vesselis out this very Friday, March 30th. To celebrate the album’s release, they’ve shared a new video for song “Jesse” directed by Loroto Productions and the band. As described by Greta Kline, “for the video for “Jesse,” we were inspired by ASMR and slime culture. We wanted the song to be paired with mesmerizing and satisfying imagery. It turned into a marathon of playing with toys and goo.”
Frankie Cosmos will also be performing live on the newly returned Pitchfork TV show “Juan’s Basement,” on Thursday, March 29th at 1:00 PM EST/10:00 PST. For info on where to livestream the band’s performance, read here.
They’ll also be partaking in a Reddit Indieheads“AMA” [aka Ask Me Anything] on Friday, March 30th from 12:00 PM EST -1:00 PM EST/9:00 AM -10:00 AM PST. Access this message board right right over here.
The band will embark on a world tour in support of Vesselbeginning on April 5th in Boulder, CO with stops in Santa Fe, Los Angeles, Seattle, with newly added US and European dates in May and June.
Apr. 05 - Boulder, CO - Fox Theater * Apr. 06 - Colorado Springs, CO - Black Sheep * Apr. 07 - Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf * Apr. 09 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom * Apr. 10 - San Diego, CA - Quartyard % Apr. 11 - Los Angeles, CA - Regent Theatre % Apr. 12 - Santa Ana, CA - The Constellation Room % Apr. 13 - Fresno, CA - Strummers Apr. 14 - Berkeley, CA - UC Theatre % Apr. 17 - Seattle, WA - Neumos % Apr. 18 - Olympia, WA - Capitol Theater % Apr. 20 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom % Apr. 30 - Pawtucket, RI - The Met May 01 - New Haven, CT - Toad’s Place May 02 - Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair @ May 03 - Burlington, VT - ArtsRiot @ May 04 - Montreal, QC - Theatre Fairmount @ May 05 - Toronto, ON - The Rec Room @ May 06 - Grand Rapids, MI - The Pyramid Scheme May 07 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall May 09 - Nashville, TN - The Basement East May 10 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle (Back Room) May 11 - Richmond, VA - Capital Ale House May 12 - Washington, DC - Black Cat May 13 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer May 22 - Berlin, DE - Kantine am Berghain May 23 - Hamburg, DE - Aalhaus May 24 - Ghent, BE - DOKbox May 25 - Amsterdam, NL - London Calling at Paradiso May 26 - Paris, France - Petit Bain May 28 - Manchester, UK - Gorilla May 29 - Glasgow, UK - The Art School May 30 - Bristol, UK - The Fleece May 31 - London, UK - Scala Jun. 01 - Lille, France - Aeronef Jun. 08 - Queens, NY - Forest Hills Stadium # Jul. 14 - Madrid, ES - Mad Cool Festival
* w/ Lomelda @ Florist & Lala Lala % w/ Ian Sweet and SOAR # w/ Belle & Sebastian, Perfume Genius
Preorders for Vessel are available now through Sub Pop here. LP pre-orders through megamart.subpop.comand select independent retailers will receive the limited Loser edition on blue vinyl (while supplies last - we are nearly sold out!).
Jo Passed and director Justin Gradin have delivered a surreal new visual for Their Prime standout “Millennial Trash Blues”. Director Gradin offers this of the video: “A nightmare on the tip of an eyelash. An astrological garbage dump with burning snowflakes and a trap door. A wild teen awake in someone else’s dream.”
The Grey Estates premiered the video, and said, “The dream world created in Jo Passed’s video for “Millennial Trash Blues” is as dynamic, colorful and unsettled as its single counterpart. The visuals…are unusual and outlandish, the costumed characters and eye-popping imagery inspired by the act of stepping into someone’s dream. And while the brightly painted faces and monster under the bed that appear in the video are memorable, it’s the single that holds it all together; a perfect soundtrack for the nearly four minutes of unexpected and delightful terrors (see premiere March 28th).”
Jo Passed just announced headlining dates in support of Their Prime beginning May 25th in Vancouver, BC at Red Gate Arts Society and ending June 29th in Seattle at Barboza. Highlights include: Canadian Music Week in Toronto on May 12th; co-headline dates with Hardly Art’s Dick Stusso (June 6th-10th; June 14th-18th); and Calgary’s Sled Island Festival (June 21-23).
Apr. 14 - Victoria, BC - Lucky Bar May 12 - Toronto, ON - The Garrison May 25 - Vancouver, BC - Red Gate Arts Society May 27 - Oakland, CA - Starline Social Club May 28 - Los Angeles, CA - Moroccan Lounge May 30 - Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar May 31 - El Paso, TX - Lowbrow Palace Jun. 01 - Austin, TX - The Sidewinder Jun. 02 - Fort Worth, TX - MASS Jun. 04 - Nashville, TN - The End Jun. 05 - Durham, NC - The Pinhook Jun. 06 - Washington, DC - DC9* Jun. 07 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle* Jun. 09 - Allston, MA - Great Scott* Jun. 10 - Providence, RI - Fete Music Hall* Jun. 11 - Montreal, QC - Bar Le Ritz Jun. 12 - Ottawa, ON - Makerspace North Jun. 13 - Detroit, MI - Marble Bar* Jun. 14 - Columbus, OH - Ace of Cups* Jun. 15 - Cincinnati, OH - TBC* Jun. 16 - Chicago, IL - Sleeping Village* Jun. 17 - Milwaukee, WI - The Cactus Club* Jun. 18 - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club* Jun. 19 - Winnipeg, MB - The Good Will Social Club Jun. 20 - Saskatoon, SK - Amigos Jun. 21-23 - Calgary, AB - Sled Island Festival Jun. 27 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios Jun. 29 - Seattle, WA - Barboza *w/ Dick Stusso
Jo Passed will release Their Prime on CD/LP/CS/DL worldwide through Sub Pop Records, with the exception of Canada through Royal Mountain Records on May 25th. The album, which features the aforementioned “Millennial Trash Blues” along with “ MDM,” and “Glass,” was recorded during the fall / winter of 2016/17 at Thor’s Palace & KW Studios, both in the band’s hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia. LP purchases through megamart.subpop.com and select independent retailers will receive the limited Loser edition on clear vinyl (while supplies last).
