Sub Pop has signed Cartel Madras, a hip-hop duo who are spearheading a new genre of trap music, Goonda rap. Madras-born sisters Eboshi and Contra are known for their confrontational, high-energy and sexually commanding style of rap; this rising duo flaunts their South Indian identity with authority and expresses their gender and sexuality with a candor that is imperative to why and how Cartel Madras exists. We will release new music from the group in the near future, but for now check out the official video for “Pork and Leek”from TRAPISTAN, their debut mixtape from 2018.
Ishmael Butler, who signed the group had this to say, “The energy and passion they bring combined with their superior rapping skills makes the Cartel a must hear and see. Excitement is the main ingredient of their magic. On record and on stage they glow under the spotlight. They’re electric, totally tapped into the current. And c’mon two fly sisters spitting heat? Real rare…it’s too good.”
Cartel Madras has a few Canadian festival shows on the horizon, including Calgary’s Sled Island on June 21st, Hillside Festival in Guelph, Ontario on July 12th, Ottawa’s Bluesfest on July 13th, and Up Here Fest in Sudbury, Ontario on August 17th.
More on Cartel Madras: Owning sexuality, racial identity, and gender identity are recurring themes in Cartel Madras’ music. Though these themes are already present in hip hop, Cartel pushes them to even more subversive places by applying them to immigrant women. In this way, Eboshi and Contra created Cartel Madras as a mission to authentically represent the underrepresented.
Their live performances—which boldly combine elements of the underground trap, queer, and punk scenes—have been compared to full-blown riots. After just one year, word of mouth grew so profoundly that Cartel Madras had amassed a loyal organic following and media coverage.
Their debut mixtape, TRAPISTAN, captures this live energy. Contra and Eboshi enter the world of trap loudly, abrasively, unapologetically—signaling to their growing fan base that they intend to bring something entirely new to hip hop. Over booming beats, the sisters’ rap with ease through a new genre that brings together trap, house, and gangster rap with the narratives of being Tamil born, immigrant raised, and sexually empowered as women of color and women who are queer.
Cartel Madras TRAPISTAN
Tracklisting: 1. Red Notice 2. Housey (Thirsti Thots 2 Tha Front) 3. Eric Andre (Slick Rick James) 4. Pork and Leek 5. Kuthu Pattu
Today, Calexico and Iron & Wine released Years to Burn via City Slang in the UK/Europe and Sub Pop in the rest of the world. The work of Calexico’s Joey Burns and John Convertino and Sam Beam of Iron & Wine, the album is their first full-length release and follows the critically acclaimed 2005 In the Reins EP. Calexico and Iron & Wine will embark on an extensive North American, European, and UK tour, including a June 21st performance at Celebrate Brooklyn! festival at Prospect Park which will be live audio streamed by WFUV HERE. [Full list of tour dates is below.] In addition, the collective released Years to Burn Behind the Scenes featuring exclusive interviews with the band and their long friendship and spirit of collaboration as seen here and also HERE.
Years to Burn
1. What Heaven’s Left 2. Midnight Sun 3. Father Mountain 4. Outside El Paso 5. Follow The Water 6. The Bitter Suite (Pájaro / Evil Eye / Tennessee Train) 7. Years To Burn 8. In Your Own Time
For more information on Years to Burn, the full bio is available here.
Early praise forYears to Burn:
“In incorporating more voices and sources of ideas, Years to Burn feels most of all like the work of a complete, cohesive and individual band — a group of old friends who’ve gathered together to sing in a single voice…The new set finds Sam Beam, John Convertino, Joey Burns and members of the extended Calexico and Iron & Wine casts at their loose-limbed best… They all sound comfortable, collaborating deep in the pocket, but they’re still exploring.” - NPR
“The warm voice of singer-songwriter Sam Beam (who performs as Iron & Wine) guides the album’s lead track “Father Mountain,” which features an airy acoustic progression and uplifting harmonies from Calexico’s Joey Burns.” - Rolling Stone
“Years to Burn proves that the time spent waiting on a second collaboration was worth it, but more meaningfully the album feels like the product of a cohesive unit rather than a tag team…Years to Burn rings with Beam’s soulful sobriety and Calexico’s gusty American Southwestern aesthetic, but the songwriting—again, primary credit goes to Beam—is the maypole around which the two bands braid their influences and proclivities. Unraveling one from the other is impossible.” - Paste
“Years to Burn, recorded with producer Matt Ross-Spang again marries vocalist and acoustic guitarist Sam Beam’s nimble lyricism with the incredible chops of Calexico nucleus Joey Burns and John Convertino. Together they make gorgeously sensual music” -American Songwriter
“Years to Burn is a beautiful sounding recording and for fans of Calexico and Iron & Wine’s initial collaborative release, this is a nice treat after all these years.” - Exclaim!
[Photo credit: Piper Ferguson]
Calexico and Iron & Wine Tour Dates + Ticket Links
Jun. 18 - Saxapahaw, NC - River Ballroom % [SOLD OUT] Jul. 19 - Lisbon, PT - Super Bock Super Rock # Jul. 20 - Arlesheim, CH - Stimmen Festival Jul. 22 - Milan, IT - La Triennale di Milano Jul. 23 - Gardone Riviera, IT - Anfiteatro del Vittoriale Jul. 24 - Rome, IT - Villa Ada Jul. 25 - Florence, IT - Cavea del Nuovo Teatro dell’opera Jul. 26 - Monforte D’ Alba, IT - Auditorium Horszowski Jul. 28 - Vienna, AT - Konzerthaus Jul. 29 - Palma, ES - Auditorium de Palma de Mallorca Jul. 31 - Hamburg, DE - Stadtpark Aug. 02 - Cambridge, UK - Cambridge Folk Festival Aug. 03 - Leuven, BE - M-idzommer Festival Aug. 04 - Crozon, FR - Festival Du Bout Du Monde Aug. 16 - Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum Theatre ~ Aug. 17 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre ~ Aug. 19 - Denver, CO - Denver Botanic Gardens ~ [SOLD OUT] Aug. 21 - Ogden, UT - Twilight Series at Ogden Amphitheater ^ Aug. 22 - Boise, ID - Knitting Factory Concert House ^ Aug. 23 - Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium ^ Aug. 24 - Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre Aug. 25 - Port Townsend, WA - The Thing Sep. 18 - Grand Rapids, MI - Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park “Meijer Gardens” \ Sep. 19 - Pittsburgh, PA - Roxian Theatre \ Sep. 20 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer \ Sep. 21 - Boston, MA - Rockland Trust Bank Pavillion + Sep. 22 - North Adams, MA - FreshGrass Festival Sep. 24 - Richmond, VA - The National \ Sep. 26 - Birmingham, AL - Iron City \ Sep. 27 - New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues \ Sep. 28 - Austin, TX - Stubb’s Waller Creek \ Sep. 29 - Dallas, TX - Majestic Theater \ Sep. 30 - Oklahoma City, OK - Tower Theatre \ Oct. 02 - Las Vegas, NV - House Of Blues \ Oct. 03 - Los Angeles, CA - Orpheum Theatre \ Oct. 04 - San Diego, CA - Humphrey’s Concerts by The Bay\ Oct. 06 - Saratoga, CA - Mountain Winery \ Nov. 05 - Utrecht, NL - TrivoliVrendenburg - Ronda # Nov. 06 -Luxemborg, LU - Den Atelier # Nov. 07 - Antwerp, BE - De Roma # Nov. 09 - Berlin, DE - Tempodrom # Nov. 10 - Linz, AT - Posthof # Nov. 11 - Munich, DE - Muffathalle # Nov. 12 - Budapest, HU - Müpa Nov. 14 - Mannheim, DE - Musensaal Rosengarten # Nov. 15 - Cologne, DE - Palladium # Nov. 16 - Paris, FR - La Cigale # Nov. 18 - Edinburgh, UK - Usher Hall * Nov. 19 - Liverpool, UK - Philharmonic Hall * Nov. 20 - Manchester, UK - Bridgewater Hall * Nov. 21 - Conventry, UK - Warwick Arts Centre * Nov. 23 - London, UK - Royal Festival Hall * Nov. 24 - Bexhill-On-Sea, UK – De La Warr Pavillion *
% with special guest Daughter of Swords ~ with special guest Madison Cunningham ^ with special guest Orville Peck \ with special guest Natalie Prass + with Andrew Bird # with special guest Adia Victoria * with special guest Lisa O’Neill
Yeehaw! Orville Peck’s epic new video for ‘Hope To Die’ (from Pony, his acclaimed debut) shows us a side to the enigmatic country star we haven’t seen before. A starlit collection of dusty memory’s. Fractures of Orville’s past, present, and future. Tender moments, dark endings and a barnyard dance-break. The video was directed by Blake Mawson. Watch it today via Vogue Magazine.
Orville Peck has also extended his late summer/fall tour schedule in support of Pony, which spans August 3rd in London, UK at Visions Festival, and currently ends on November 22nd in Milan, IT at the Linecheck Festival. The newly added dates in North America, Europe, and the UK include 2 nights in Los Angeles (sold out) and Brooklyn (Night one sold out; second show just added), San Diego, San Francisco (sold out), Vancouver, Victoria, Montreal, Washington, D.C., Atlanta (sold out), Ybor City, Orlando, New Orleans, Houston, Dallas, Kansas City, St Louis, Chicago, Philadelphia, Columbus (sold out), Cleveland, Dublin, Leeds, Manchester, Brighton, Glasgow, Berlin, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Munich, Zurich, Bologna, Madrid, Barcelona, and Turin.
New festival appearances include: Oya in Oslo, NO (August 7th), Way Out West in Gothenburg, SE (August 8th), Hopscotch in Raleigh, NC (September 6th), Austin City Limits (October 12th), and Filter Festival in Antwerp, BE (October 31st).
The late summer and fall run is preceded by a series of Canadian festivals in July 5th-27th (select dates).
For information regarding on-sale dates, please visit OrvillePeck.com.
Jul. 05 - Calgary, AB - Calgary Stampede* Jul. 14 - Guelph, ON - Hillside Festival Jul. 18 - Field, ON - River & Sky Festival Jul. 27 - West Grey, ON - Crystal Lake Music Festival Aug. 03 - London, UK - Visions Festival Aug. 07 - Oslo, NO - Oya Festival Aug. 08 - Gothenburg, SE - Way Out West Festival Aug. 10 - Venlo, NL - Zomerparkfeest Aug. 14 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory Aug. 15 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah Aug. 17 - Los Angeles, CA - The Troubadour (SOLD OUT) Aug. 18 - Los Angeles, CA - The Troubadour (SOLD OUT) Aug. 19 - San Francisco, CA - Swedish American Music Hall (SOLD OUT) Aug. 21 - Ogden, UT - Ogden Amphitheater** Aug. 22 - Boise, ID - Knitting Factory** Aug. 23 - Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium** Aug. 24 - Fort Worden, WA - The Thing Aug. 26 - Victoria, BC - Capital Ballroom Aug. 27 - Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom Sep. 06 - Raleigh, NC - Hopscotch Music Festival Sep. 12 - Lansdowne Park, OT - City Folk Festival Sep. 18 - Montreal, QC - La Sala Rossa Sep. 19 - Somerville, MA - ONCE Ballroom Sep. 20 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg (SOLD OUT) Sep. 21 - Washington, DC - Union Stage Sep. 24 - Atlanta, GA - The Purgatory Room at The Masquerade (SOLD OUT) Sep. 25 - Ybor City, FL - Crowbar Sep. 26 - Orlando, FL - The Social Sep. 28 - New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa Sep. 30 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall Oct. 01 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada Oct. 03 - Kansas City, MO - The Record Bar Oct. 04 - St. Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill Oct. 05 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall Oct. 06 - Grand Rapids, MI - The Pyramid Scheme Oct. 08 - Columbus, OH - Ace of Cups (SOLD OUT) Oct. 09 - Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop Oct. 10 - Philadelphia, PA - The Foundry Oct. 12 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Festival Oct. 15 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg Oct. 18 - Toronto, ON - Lee’s Palace (SOLD OUT) Oct. 22 - Dublin, IE - The Grand Social Oct. 23 - Glasgow, UK - Mono Oct. 24 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club Oct. 27 - Brighton, UK - Green Door Store Oct. 28 - London, UK - Scala Oct. 30 - Manchester, UK - YES (Pink Room) Oct. 31 - Antwerp, BE - Filter Festival Nov. 04 - Copenhagen, DK - Loppen Nov. 08 - Hamburg, DE - Nochtwache Nov. 09 - Berlin, DE - Maze Nov. 10 - Munich, DE - Folks! Club Nov. 12 - Zurich, CH - Rote Fabrik Nov. 13 - Turin, IT - Maison Musique Nov. 14 - Bologna, IT - TPO ^ Nov. 19 - Madrid, ES - Wurlitzer Nov. 20 - Barcelona, ES - Sidecar Nov. 22 - Milan, IT - Linecheck Festival
* w/ Feist ** w/ Calexico and Iron & Wine ^ w/ Deerhunter
Any Human Friend is out August 9th in North and South America from Sub Pop (and the rest of the world through AMF Records)
[Single Art Photography by Joost Vandebrug]
Marika Hackman is back with “the one,” the second single from her forthcoming album Any Human Friend, out August 9th via Sub Pop in North and South America and AMF Records for the rest of the world.
Displaying an unapologetic attitude and a more liberated sound than ever before, “the one” was co-produced by David Wrench (Frank Ocean, The xx, Let’s Eat Grandma) and Marika herself. Layered synthesizers make this the album’s most unexpected musical turn, alongside Marika’s signature new wave guitar fretwork and Blondie style delivery, she’s never sounded as widescreen.
The first song written for Any Human Friend, “the one” is “probably the poppiest song I’ve ever written” she says. “ I loved the idea of inhabiting this ridiculous arrogant rock star character who has totally fucked their career by writing too many sad songs.” To that end, it features a riot grrrl Greek chorus hurling such insults at her as “You’re such an attention whore!”
Marika is a ‘Rid of Me’-era PJ Harvey for the inclusive generation: unbounded by musical genre, a preternatural lyricist and tunesmith who isn’t afraid to go there. Hackman’s 2015 debut, We Slept at Last, was heralded for being nuanced and atmospheric. She really found her footing with her last release, I’m Not Your Man, and its exceptional, swaggering International hit “Boyfriend”, which boasts of seducing away a straight guy’s girlfriend.
Marika Hackman’s fall international headlining tour in support of Any Human Friend begins September 21st in Bristol, UK at Thekla and ends November 6th in West Hollywood, CA at The Roxy Theatre. The fall shows are preceded by an appearance at the UK’s Green Man Festival.
Aug.15 - Beacon Breacons, UK - Green Man Festival Sep. 21 - Bristol, UK - Thekla Sep. 23 - Glasgow, UK - Oran Mor Sep. 24 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club Sep. 25 - Manchester, UK - Band On The Wall Sep. 26 - London, UK - Islington Assembly Hall Oct. 11 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl Oct. 12 - Durham, NC - The Pinhook Oct. 13 - Washington, DC - U Street Music Hall Oct. 14 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle Oct. 15 - Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere Oct. 18 - Allston, MA - Great Scott Oct. 19 - Portland, ME - Port City Music Hall Oct. 20 - Montréal, QC - Bar Le ‘Ritz’ P.D.B. Oct. 21 - Toronto, ON- The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern Oct. 23 - Columbus, OH - Ace of Cups Oct. 24 - Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig Oct. 25 - Chicago, IL- Sleeping Village Oct. 26 - Milwaukee, WI - Back Room at Colectivo Coffee Oct. 28 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry Nov. 01 - Seattle, WA - Neumos Nov. 04 - Oakland, CA - Starline Social Club Nov. 06 - West Hollywood, CA - The Roxy Theatre
On July 12th, Sub Pop will release a chronological trip through the lesser known material of METZ. Automat is a collection of non-album singles, B-sides, and rarities dating back to 2009, from the widely-adored and delightfully noisy 3-piece punk band. This will be the first time that this 12-song collection will be available on LP.
The band has shared a new video for their song “ Dry Up.” “METZ have been making music together for over 10 years,” says the band’s frontman Alex Edkins. “It’s been a blur. We’ve very rarely allowed ourselves to look backward. We’ve been hyper-focused on always moving forward at breakneck speed, perpetually fixated on what’s next. The video for ‘Dry Up,’ as well as the Automatalbum, is an attempt to pause, take a breath, look backward and take stock of our past. It’s intended to express how grateful we are to be able to do what we do. It’s a love letter to the incredible places we’ve traveled, the beautiful people we’ve met, to community, music, and friendship.”
Consumers of the vinyl format of Automat will be rewarded with a bonus single that includes three additional tracks: a cover of Sparklehorse’s “Pig,” from a very limited 2012 Record Store Day split single originally released by Toronto’s Sonic Boom record shop; “I’m a Bug,” a cover of The Urinals’ art-punk classic, originally released on YouTube (not an actual record label) in 2014; and METZ’s previously unreleased rendition of Gary Numan’s “M.E.”
All tracks on Automat have been lovingly remastered by Matthew Barnhart at Chicago Mastering Service.
METZ are currently hard at work on their 4th full-length LP which will be released on Sub Pop when we are all damn good and ready.
METZ are heading overseas on June 23rd, to begin a 14-date EU run with performances at Loose Ends Festival in Amsterdam, Lars Rock Festival in Chiusi Scalo, IT, Pointu Festival in Island Gaou, FR, and wrapping up July 14th in Montmartin-sur-Mer, FR. See below for a full list of shows.
Jun. 23 - Amsterdam, NL- Loose Ends Festival Jun. 25 - Bristol, UK - Fleece Jun. 26 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Jun. 27 - Manchester, UK - YES Jun. 28 - London, UK - Studio 9294 Jun. 29 - Eindhoven, NL - Effenaar Jul. 02 - Zurich, CH - Bogen F Jul. 03 - Lyon, FR - Ninkasi Gerland / Kao Jul. 05 - Chiusi Scalo, IT - Lars Rock Festival Jul. 06 - Milan, IT - Santeria Social Club Jul. 07 - Ile du Gaou, FR - Pointu Festival Jul. 09 - Düdingen, CH - Bad Bonn Jul. 10 - Luxembourg-Bonnevoie, LU - Rotondes Jul. 11 - Bremen, DE - TOWER Musikclub Jul. 12 - Herk-De-Stad, Belgium - Rock Herk Festival Jul. 13 - Paris, France - La Station, Gare Des Mines for Garage MU Festival Jul. 14 - Montmartin-sur-Mer, FR - Chauffer Dans La Noirceur
