‘We spray our hair into submission, upright to attention. Marching to no orders, imagination has no borders. Well lucky that.’
On July 13th, Luluc will release Sculptor, their gorgeous third album worldwide on Sub Pop, with the exception of New Zealand and Australia through Mistletone. The new longplayer featuring highlights “Heist” [hear here], “Spring,” and “Kids”, was produced and recorded by Luluc. The album also includes guest appearances from J. Mascis, Aaron Dessner of the National, Jim White of the Dirty Three, Dave Nelson and Matt Ecles.
Sculptor will be available on CD/LP/DL through Sub Pop and Misteltone. Preoders from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited Loser edition on magenta vinyl. There will also be a new T-shirt design available.
Luluc Sculptor Tracklisting
1. Spring 2. Heist 3. Kids 4. Controversy 5. Cambridge 6. Me and Jasper 7. Genius 8. Moon Girl 9. Need’t Be 10. Sculptor
More on Luluc’s ‘Sculptor’:
“Me and Jasper,” from Luluc’s third album Sculptor, is a confident challenge to small-town insularity, lilting yet vigilant, and championed by a defiant guitar solo from the band’s friend J Mascis. It’s a reflection on a common pitfall of adolescence; limitless possibility battling constant obstruction. “My own experiences as a teen were often fraught” says songwriter and vocalist Zoe Randell. “The small town I grew up in provided a great study in gossip, scandal, character assignation and the willingness of people to go along with it.” It’s a song about fighting for agency on an album that is in many ways about volition and potential; how people can navigate difficulties and opportunities to create different paths.
Sculptor can be consumed loud; because while Luluc’s music is at times masterful in it’s minimalism, it is anything but quiet in impact. There’s a before you hear Luluc’s music, and an after—a turning point that affects people with rare force. Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney says “it’s music that once you hear it, you can’t live without it”. The National’s Matt Berninger said that for months, Passerbywas “the only album I wanted to listen to”. “What first hits is that voice,” writes Peter Blackstock (No Depression),“a peaceful serenity that reaches deep into the heart.” When NPR’s Bob Boilen named 2014’s Passerby his album of the year, he wrote: “I’ve listened to this record by Australia’s Luluc more than any other this year. These songs feel like they’ve always been.”
That gripping, imperative quality pulses through Sculptor, perhaps to an even greater extent than on Passerby or Dear Hamlyn (2008). Randell writes with more experimentation and possibility. From the contemplative scene of “Cambridge”, to the churning disaster chronicled in the title track, the songs on Sculptor are there for the taking. “Broadly speaking, with these new songs I was interested in the difficulties that life can throw at us - what we can do with them, how they can shape us, and what say we have,” Randell explains. “That potential that is there for everyone, the different lives that are open to us. That’s what I love in Ise’s poem ‘Spring Days and Blossom’ - which form the lyrics to “Spring” - the brimming sense of spring and it’s cycle, the enormity of what’s possible and the beauty.”
Sonically, the band have broadened their tonal palette following on from the successful collaboration on Passerby, co-produced with The National’s Aaron Dessner. Multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer Steve Hassett mastered a wider spectrum of instruments to fully realize the album’s expansive and daring vision. Randell and Hassett do nearly all of the writing, recording, and producing themselves, but their vision is far from insular. In addition to Mascis, Sculptor features contributions from several friends including Dessner (shreds on “Kids” and programmed drums on “Heist”) and Jim White of Dirty Three (drums on “Genius”) as well as musicians Matt Eccles on drums and Dave Nelson on horns. Recording took place in Luluc’s new Brooklyn studio, which they built themselves. The new studio is volition and potential in action and even incorporates reclaimed cedar from Dessner’s iconic former Ditmas Park studio, where The National and Luluc had both lived and recorded.
That everyone has control of their own story is at the core ofSculptor. For Hassett, it’s illuminated by the last line of the title track, which is the last line of the record itself: ”‘The most beautiful, serene sculpture my hands could make, could trace, could break’. All of the songs are playing with those ideas,” he says. “Life is something you get, and you can get sidetracked for years and even destroy it, or you can remember that you’ve got some control over your life.” But listeners of Sculptor may yield some of that control, even if for a short time, to the mastery of the music itself.
“The band inhabits a space that can feel bigger than the sprawling tree-lined streets and byzantine freeways of their local inspiration. Instead, the place Trilling and her bandmates create is more personal, messier, and chaotic. They give musical cues to the growing pains of young adulthood that are relatable but never trite—their songs, like any you might’ve been obsessed with in high school, feel like a mirror held up to the all-consuming triumphs and heartbreaks of your own youth.” [album review] - Pitchfork
Forth Wanderers’ official video for “Not For Me” - a standout from their just released, self-titled Sub Pop debut - stars the band and was directed by Loroto Productions (Frankie Cosmos, Speedy Ortiz, Mass Gothic).”
The band have also scheduled U.S. summer tour dates in support of the album, available now worldwide on Sub Pop. The trek begins June 27th in Richmond, VA at Strange Matter and ends July 18th in Cleveland at Mahall’s Lockeroom.
Jun. 27 - Richmond, VA - Strange Matter Jun. 28 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle Backroom Jun. 29 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade Jun. 30 - New Orleans, LA - TBC Jul. 02 - Dallas, TX - Regal Room Jul. 03 - Austin, TX - Barracuda Jul. 05 - Phoenix, AZ - Rebel Lounge Jul. 06 - San Diego, CA - TBC Jul. 07 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo Jul. 08 - San Francisco, CA - Rickshaw Stop Jul. 10 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir Jul. 11 - Seattle, WA - Ver Project Jul. 13 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court Jul. 14 - Denver, CO - Lost Lake Jul. 17 - Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen Jul. 18 - Cleveland, OH - Mahall’s Lockeroom
Forth Wanderers was produced and recorded by Cameron Konner in Philadelphia over 5 days in the summer of 2017.
Iron & Wine continue to tour the world in support of their Grammy-nominated album, Beast Epic adding a new batch of North American dates to an already full slate. Besides making the inaugural journey to Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea and China this month along with returning to Australia for the first time in five years, the band will hit Europe in June and embark on three weeks of North American dates in September and November. (see dates below.)
In anticipation of these dates, Iron & Wine are sharing a new video for “Last Night,” from their latest record Beast Epic. The stop motion video was created by filmmaker Rachel Blumberg who has done videos for Gillian Welch and Nada Surf among others.
In July, Iron & Wine will celebrate the 10th Anniversary of their Benefit for Midwives at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas. The annual event raises money for a variety of organizations under the midwifery umbrella. In conjunction with the show is also the annual Iron & Wine movie night. Hosted by Sam Beam, movie night is a great opportunity to rub shoulders and share popcorn with Sam as you watch a movie that’s had a lasting impact on him and his music. This year he’ll be screening the William Friedkin classic, Sorcerer.
Beast Epic, the deeply personal sixth proper full-length release from Iron & Wine, received universal praise upon its release last fall. Rolling Stone said it was “Beam’s most dynamic and convincing record in years”, while Pitchfork noted that it was reminiscent of “the warm acoustic instrumentation of his early work”. The A/V Club perhaps summed it up best with its A grade when they wrote “Beam has written his most affecting, impressive set of songs in a long time—maybe ever…scaling back the lavish orchestration while maintaining a sense of brightness and verve.”
IRON & WINE BEAST EPIC 2018 TOUR May. 11 - Honolulu, HI – The Republik May. 14 - Singapore, Singapore – Capitol Theater May. 15 – Bangkok, Thailand – BAMM at Moonstar Studio May. 17 – Taipei, Taiwan – Legacy May. 19 – Seoul, South Korea – Seoul Jazz Festival May. 20 – Shanghai, China – MAO Livehouse May. 23 – Melbourne, Australia – Recital Hall (early show) May. 23 – Melbourne, Australia – Recital Hall (late show) May. 25 – Sydney, Australia – VividLIVE at Sydney Opera House May. 26 – Sydney, Australia – VividLIVE at Sydney Opera House May. 29 – Adelaide, Australia – The Gov May. 30 – Brisbane, Australia – QPAC Jun. 01 – Canberra, Australia – Canberra Theater Jun. 02 – Perth, Australia – Astor Theater Jun. 23 – Eridge Park, UK – Black Deer Festival Jun. 24 – Westmeath, Ireland – Body & Soul Festival Jun. 25 – Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy Jun. 27 – Leipzig, Germany – Parkbuhne GeyserHaus Jun. 28 – Utrecht, Netherlands – TivoliVredenburg Jun. 30 – Barcelona, Spain – Vida Festival Jul. 14 – Austin, TX – Paramount | Midwives Benefit Jul. 16 – Austin, TX – Paramount | Iron & Wine Movie Night screening of Sorcerer Sep. 21 – Kansas City, MO – Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland Sep. 22 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre Sep. 23 – Salt Lake City, UT – Capitol Theatre Sep. 24 – Boise, ID – Revolution Center Sep. 26 – Eureka, CA – Arkley Center for the Performing Arts Sep. 27 – Sacramento, CA – Crest Theatre Sep. 28 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues Sep. 29 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre Sep. 30 – Sante Fe, NM – Lensic Performing Arts Center Oct. 2 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s Ballroom Oct. 3 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant Oct. 4 – Milwaukee, WI – The Pabst Theater Oct. 5 – Bloomington, IL – Castle Theatre Oct. 6 – Columbus, OH – Southern Theatre Nov. 2 - Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theater Nov. 3 - Toronto, ON - Queen Elizabeth Theatre Nov. 4 - Montreal, QC - Corona Theatre Nov. 6 - Portland, ME - State Theatre Nov. 7 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount Nov. 8 - Glenside, PA - Keswick Theatre Nov. 9 - Norfolk, VA - NorVa Nov. 10 - Raleigh, NC - Meymandi Concert Hall Nov. 12 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium Nov. 14 - Augusta, GA - Miller Theater Nov. 15 - Tampa, FL - Tampa Theatre Nov. 16 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre Nov. 17 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre
Watch Swami John Reis’ Tour Video over here - Dates Run May 9th through June 10th
“Liberation through encroachment. Hot Snakes and @lebutcherettes West Coast “meet and greet” the hot slaves. Kissing hands and shaking babies since 2000. Stock footage courtesy of @howie_brdk.”
Starting Wednesday, May 9th at The Observatory in Santa Ana, Hot Snakes will begin a 15-date North American odyssey that has the band on the road through June 10th in Washington, DC. The tour will include stops in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, New York, Boston, Toronto & Philadelphia. Hot Snakes are touring in support of their latest long-player, Jericho Sirens, which is available now worldwide via Sub Pop Records.
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. 02 - Seattle, WA - Upstream Music Fest
Jun. 04 - New York City, NY - The Bowery Ballroom
Jun. 05 - Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere Hall
Jun. 07 - Toronto, ON - The Phoenix Concert Theatre
The band will perform on Jimmy Kimmel Live May 16th.
Beach House have shared “Black Car,” a captivating new song from 7 their highly anticipated new album. The dark, atmospheric track rides an undulating bass line along a building, arrhythmic pulse of a drum beat.
7 is already earning Beach House some of the best reviews of the band’s career. Stereogum says of the album, “There are great bands that reinvent themselves with each new album, others that hit a sweet spot and stick with what works, and then there’s Beach House. Over their decade-plus career, some might argue that the Baltimore-based band has largely adhered to a formula, but with 7 — their excellent seventh album— it’s clear that the duo has been playing the long game.” Pitchfork offers this, “The record is one of rebirth, and easily the Baltimore duo’s most apparent sonic departure since 2012’s Bloom.” And The FADER raves, “The result is a weird and thrilling record that not only stands as one of the year’s best, but suggests that when it comes to pushing the limits of what the “Beach House sound” can be, Scally and Legrand are just getting started.”
Beach House has also scheduled a late night TV performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday, May 16th. And the band will perform a live in-studio session on KCRW in Los Angeles on May 15th.
Beach House’s massive worldwide tour in support of 7 is underway, with a show tonight, May 2nd in Little Rock at Metroplex Live. The tour continues on through October 20th in Dublin, IE at Vicar Street.
May 02 - Little Rock, AR - Metroplex Live May 04 - Oxford, MS - The Lyric May 05 - Tulsa, OK - Cain’s Ballroom May 07 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theatre May 08 - El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls May 11 - Mexico City, MX - Auditorio Blackberry (ALBUM RELEASE SHOW) May 13 - Mayer, AZ - Form Arcosanti Jun. 02 - Barcelona, ES - Primavera Sound Jul. 26 - Philadelphia, PA - Tower Theatre Jul. 27 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz Jul. 28 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre [Sold Out] Jul. 30 - Dallas, TX - Bomb Factory Jul. 31 - Austin, TX - ACL Live at the Moody Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 02 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre Aug. 03 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fairbanks Lawn at Hollywood Forever Cemetery [Sold Out] Aug. 04 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fairbanks Lawn at Hollywood Forever Cemetery [Sold Out] Aug. 05 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory at North Park [Sold Out] Aug. 07 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 08 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 10 - Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium Aug. 12 - Vancouver, BC - Orpheum Theatre Aug. 14 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot Aug. 15 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre Aug. 17 - St. Paul, MN - The Palace Theatre Aug. 18 - Chicago, Il - Chicago Theatre Aug. 19 - Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre Aug. 20 - Toronto, ON - Sony Centre Aug. 22 - New York, NY - United Palace Theatre Aug. 23 - Brooklyn, NY - Kings Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 24 - Boston, MA - House of Blues [Sold Out] Aug. 25 - Washington, DC - The Anthem Sep. 25 - Lisbon, Portugal - Coliseu dos Recreios Sep. 26 - Porto, Portugal - Teatro sa da Bandeira Sep. 27 - Madrid, ES - La Riviera Sep. 28 - Barcelona, ES - Razzmatazz Sep. 30 - Lyon, France - Epicerie Moderne Oct. 01 - Köln, DE - Gloria Oct. 02 - Berlin, DE - Huxleys Oct. 04 - Lund, SE - Mejeriet Oct. 05 - Gothenburg, SE - Trädgar’n Oct. 07 - Oslo, NO - Rockefeller Music Hall Oct. 08 - Stockholm, SE- Münchenbryggeriet Oct. 09 - Copenhagen, DK - Forum Black Box Oct. 11 - Hamburg, DE - Kampnagel Oct. 12 - Utrecht, NL - TivoliVredenburg Oct. 13 - Brussels, BE - AB Oct. 15 - Paris, FR - Olympia Oct. 17 - London, UK - Troxy Oct. 18 - London, UK - Troxy [Sold Out] Oct. 19 - Manchester, UK - Albert Hall Oct. 20 - Dublin, IE - Vicar Street
7, the group’s 7th full-length record, is available for preorder now on CD/LP/CS/DL from Sub Pop, (out May 11th, 2018) worldwide, except in Europe from Bella Union, and Australia /New Zealand from Mistletone.
Pre-orders of the LP through megamart.subpop.com and select independent retailers in North America will receive the limited Loser Edition on opaque yellow vinyl. A new T-shirt design is also available for your bundling pleasure.
