Mass Gothic have shared an official video for “Every Night You’ve Got To Save Me”, the iridescent new single from their forthcoming, self-titled debut. The exuberant visual, directed by Addison Post (Colleen Green, Solvey), follows group members Noel Heroux and Jessica Zambri on a wild night out in Manhattan.
 
Stereogum says of “Every Night You’ve Got To Save Me”: “A jaunty pop track with shades of Dexy’s Midnight Runners, the New Pornographers, and the Shins. The song is incredibly winsome on its own, and the effect is only amplified by director Addison Post’s video, which features Heroux and Zambri chilling in NYC locales ranging from bar to sidewalk to bathtub (see video premiere January 11th).”
 
Mass Gothic will be available on CD / LP / CASS / DL worldwide February 5th through Sub Pop, and is now available for preorder from Sub Pop MegaMart, iTunes, Amazon, Bandcamp, and Google Play. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on banana yellow vinyl (while supplies last).

Mass Gothic’s previously announced 2016 headlining tour begins February 4th in Philadelphia at Johnny Brenda’s and currently ends March 19th in Austin at SXSW.  A complete list of tour dates might be found below. (spoiler: it’s down there.)

More about Mass Gothic:
This year marks the release of Mass Gothic, the Massachusetts-bred, New York-based singer/songwriter’s self-titled Sub Pop debut. Written and recorded at home over four months during the winter of 2014-2015, it’s a stunning reminder of not just Heroux’s own remarkable talents as singer and songwriter, but how unbridled creativity can both sound and feel as well: Before Hooray For Earth had quickly become a fully-functioning band, it began as a solo project. No pressure or compromises—just Heroux, a four-track, and an irrepressible urge to “jot down all of the noise and music floating around in my head” and make it available to other people. “All I wanted to do was whatever I do when I’m alone and I’m unconcerned with what anyone else wants or expects,” he says. “I did my best to let go, and what came out was pure, uncut. It reminded me of the first few times I made music, when I was a young kid. I didn’t set any rules and I had zero expectations.”
 
The result is an expansive, often exhilarating set of guitar-driven pop that required very little editing when it was done (read more at Sub Pop).


[Photo Credit: Shawn Brackbill]

Tour Dates
Feb. 04 - Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda’s*
Feb. 05 - Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop*
Feb. 06 - Chicago, IL - Schuba’s Tavern*
Feb. 08 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry*
Feb. 11 - Boise, ID – Neurolux*
Feb. 12 - Seattle, WA - Columbia City Theatre*
Feb. 13 - Portland, OR - Bunk Bar*
Feb. 14- San Francisco, CA - Rickshaw Stop*
Feb. 16 - Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg*
Feb. 18 - Denver, CO - Lost Lake*
Feb. 19 - Kansas City, MO - Riot Room*
Feb. 21 - Louisville, KY – Zanzabar*
Feb. 22 - Cincinnati, OH - MOTR Pub*
Feb. 23 - Pittsburgh, PA - Club Café*
Feb. 25 - Allston, MA - Great Scott*
Feb. 26 - Providence, RI - Columbus Theatre*
Feb. 27 - Brooklyn, NY – Palisades*
Mar. 10 - Washington, DC - Black Cat
Mar. 12 - Savannah, GA - Savannah Stopover
Mar. 16 - Austin, TX - SXSW
Mar. 17 - Austin, TX - SXSW
Mar. 18 - Austin, TX - SXSW
Mar. 19 - Austin, TX – SXSW
*w/ Mazed

Ticket links can be found here.

You can now listen to Shearwater’s “Only Child”, the newest track from forthcoming album, Jet Plane and Oxbow, out January 22nd worldwide on Sub Pop.

DIY had this to say about the song, “Latest track Only Child is a vast escape. Every last note is thrown into the skies, every giant declaration worthy adventure. More than anything, this is loud. Tone it down if you want, but the song and the record sound best when they’re pushed to the limit.” (see track premiere January 11th).”  Note: German fans can listen via VISIONS Magazin.

Shearwater’s 2016 North American and European tour in support of Jet Plane and Oxbow begins February 3rd in Austin, TX at North Door and currently ends March 26th in Portland, OR at Mississippi Studios. Main support will come from Barsuk recording artist Laura Gibson (March 16th - 19th). See the full tour listing below.

Jet Plane and Oxbow is now available for pre-order through Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, and Amazon. LP preorders though megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on blue colored vinyl while supplies last.

Oh and hey, pre ordering Jet Plane and Oxbow earns you immediate access (as of Jan. 8th) to stream the album before its street date, and provides access to an exclusive Shearwater podcast, “Headwaters,” which features demos and outtakes from the new record and a conversation between Meiburg and WNYC’s John Schaefer (host of New Sounds and the Soundcheck podcast). An edited version compiled and broadcast by Schaefer is available for streaming on the WNYC site.

[Photo Credit: Sarah Cass]

More about Shearwater:

This is definitely Shearwater’s biggest and loudest record—it’s easy to imagine these songs roaring from the stage—but it’s also their most detailed and intricate one. Front man Jonathan Meiburg and producer/engineer Reisch (who also recorded 2012’s Animal Joy and the off-the-cuff collaborations of 2014’s Fellow Travelers) spent two years crafting Jet Plane and Oxbow with help from drummer Cully Symington, longtime Shearwater associates Howard Draper and Lucas Oswald, and tourmates Jesca Hoop, Abram Shook, and Jenn Wasner.

But their secret weapon this time is film composer and percussionist Brian Reitzell, whose soundtracks include The Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, The Bling Ring, and 30 Days of Night. Reitzell’s arsenal of strange instruments emphasizes Jet Plane and Oxbow’s cinematic depth and scope, and reflects the band’s choice to anchor the record in the era when digital technology was just beginning to transform the world of recorded music. In Shearwater’s hands this doesn’t feel like nostalgia; the racing synths and hammered dulcimers of heart-pounding opener “Prime” or the addled motorik of “Radio Silence” sound more like a metaphor for our own bewildering moment (read more at Sub Pop).

Tour Dates

Feb. 03 - Austin, TX - North Door (w/ Marmalakes)    
Feb. 04 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada (w/ Marmalakes)
Feb. 06 - New York, NY - Mercury Lounge (w/ Jib Kidder)
Feb. 10 - Berlin, DE - Frannz Club
Feb. 11 - Copenhagen, DK - Loppen
Feb. 12 - Hamburg, DE -  Molotow
Feb. 13 - Amsterdam, NL - Paradiso Noord
Feb. 14 - Brussels. BE - Botanique
Feb. 16 - Lille, FR - L’Aeronef
Feb. 17 - London, UK - Islington Assembly Hall
Feb. 18 - Bristol, UK -  The Fleece
Feb. 19 - Leeds, UK - The Brudenell Social Club
Feb. 20 - Glasgow, UK - King Tuts
Feb. 21 - Newcastle, UK - The Cluny
Feb. 23 - Dublin, IE -  Button Factory
Feb. 24 -Manchester , UK - Night & Day
Feb. 25 - Brighton, UK - The Haunt
Feb. 26 - Paris, FR -  Point Ephémère
Feb. 27 - Zurich, CH - Bogen F
Feb. 28 - Fribourg, CH - Nouveau Monde
Mar. 04 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent
Mar. 05 - Los Angeles, CA - Roxy
Mar. 10 - Washington, DC  - Rock and Roll Hotel
Mar. 12 - Brooklyn, NY - Bell House 
Mar. 16 - Pittsburgh, PA - Club Cafe**
Mar. 17 - Toronto, ON - Horseshoe Tavern**
Mar. 18 - Ferndale, MI - The Loving Touch**
Mar. 19 - Chicago, IL - Schubas**
Mar. 22 - Minneapolis, MN - Turf Club
Mar. 25 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile
Mar. 26 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
** w/ Laura Gibson

For ticket info head over here.

On March 18th, former Smith Western frontman Cullen Omori will release his debut LP, New Misery, worldwide on CD / LP / DL via Sub Pop Records. The album, which features the highlights “Cinnamon” and “Sour Silk” was recorded by Shane Stoneback (Sleigh Bells, Fucked Up, and Vampire Weekend) at the now defunct Treefort Studios, and was mastered by Emily Lazar (Sia, HAIM, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, and Bjork) at The Lodge. 

The debut video for “Cinnamon” - directed by Abigail Briley Bean - premiered today (see January 7th Pitchfork News Story).

Omori began working on solo material in early 2014 which has now fully materialized as New Misery, a collection of 11 songs building upon his own musical past while reaching towards the future of what guitar rock could be. His songs marry dark yet blissful pop with vocal melodies and hooks that are at once immediate yet demand to be heard again and again.
 
Cullen and his band have scheduled a 4-week spring tour in support of New Misery, which begins March 24th in Chicago, IL at Lincoln Hall and currently ends April 24th in Toronto, ON at the Horseshoe. Preceding the tour is a string of midwestern dates that run from February 3rd in Indianapolis at The Hi Fi through February 5th in Champaign, IL at The Accord. Additionally, Cullen will appear at the 2016 edition of SXSW in Austin, Texas. (tour details below)

 
You can now pre-order New Misery through Sub Pop Mega Mart,iTunes, Google Play, Amazon and Bandcamp. LP pre-orders though megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on clear vinyl with black, white and gold swirls (while supplies last).

More on Cullen Omori:
Cullen Omori knows it’s a false cliche to say there are no second acts in American lives, but after the 2014 breakup of his acclaimed band the Smith Westerns, living that cliche was his greatest fear. His solo debut New Misery, out March 18 on Sub Pop Records, is a direct challenge to that anxiety: an album that goes beyond the glam punch of the Smith Westerns to new sounds, new sources of inspiration, and greater self-awareness.

Photo credit: Alexa Lopez

“I had this overwhelming feeling that perhaps the apex of my life both as a musician and as an individual would be relegated to five years in my late teens/early 20s,” says Omori, who was launched into the music industry when the Smith Westerns, who started in high school in Chicago, became fast-rising indie stars. “This fear really forced me to work hard as to not see the Smith Westerns as an end but as a point along a bigger trajectory.”
 
While New Misery grew out of a difficult personal and professional time for Omori, he says the title reflects “not so much the distress that comes with failure, but the troubles and complexities that come with any type of success. No matter what you get you’re going to want more, you’re going to want something different. That’s the catch.”
 
The title track is a dreamy, resonant reflection on these feelings, but is also a guidepost for Omori’s musical evolution. “The song starts slow and then builds with two solos,” he says. “There’s the guitar solo which is very much a Smith Westerns thing. The next solo is on the keyboard, which is a shift to a lot of what I’m trying to do.” Synths play a much larger role in Omori’s new music than in the Smith Westerns’ guitar-fueled rock, as do a wide range of influences including Roxy Music, INXS, Spiritualized, Wilco, Garbage, Hall & Oates, Kate Bush, U2, and Sparks. There’s also a more deliberate pop streak, inspired by the top-40 radio that would play while Omori worked at a medical supply company cleaning stretchers and wheelchairs.
 
“There is so much dirt in hospitals and fuzz and lint and dried blood on these things. We’d clean them down, which in a way is kind of therapeutic, and listen to the radio. Then we’d go back to Adam’s (Adam Gil, current live band member) house and record demos for what was to become the skeleton of New Misery. I can’t  sit down and say I’m going to write a Sam Smith or an Adele song or whatever. The closest I can get to that is making like this weird hybrid of what I think is a pop song.” The strongest example of this is the new wave-tinged single “Cinnamon,” which Omori describes as “dark pop–it’s poppy, it’s fast, but it also has all the colors and tones that are kind of dark. It’s self-deprecating, which was kind of where I was at emotionally. That, you know, I could have this poppy song or whatever but I don’t think I’m a pop star. I’m closer to thinking I’m a piece of shit than I am a pop star.”
 
Along with Omori, New Misery features additional bass and keyboards from Ryan Mattos, drums from Loren Humphrey, and James Richardson on guitar. But unlike with the more distributed roles within the Smith Westerns, Omori wrote, played, and oversaw nearly every part of the new album, beginning a true new chapter of his long-term creative growth.
 
“People would be like, ‘Oh man, your band is doing really well. I saw you on the internet.’ But seeing you on the internet isn’t equivalent with making hundreds let alone thousands of dollars or being really successful. When I was younger I believed that happiness came from success and now that I’m older, more seasoned I find myself believing that stability over a long time is also its own type of success. I came out of Smith Westerns at 25 with no real job experience, I only knew how to play music. Writing and recording these songs for myself was cathartic, and I didn’t know my destination or future, but picking up my guitar and playing was the only way I knew I’d get close to figuring it out.
 
Tour Dates
Feb. 03 - Indianapolis, IN - The Hi-Fi
Feb. 04 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club
Feb. 05 - Champaign, IL - The Accord
Mar. 24 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall
Mar. 25 - Madison, WI - High Noon
Mar. 26 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry
Mar. 28 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge
Mar. 29 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
Mar. 30 - Boise, ID - Neurolux
Apr. 01 - Seattle, WA - Barboza
Apr. 02 - Vancouver, BC - Fortune Sound Club
Apr. 03 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir
Apr. 05 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent
Apr. 07 - Los Angeles, CA - Telegram Ballroom
Apr. 08 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
Apr. 09 - Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar
Apr. 11 - Austin, TX - Stubb’s Jr
Apr. 12 - Dallas, TX - Prophet Bar
Apr. 13 - Houston, TX - Raven Tower
Apr. 15 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl
Apr. 16 - Nashville, TN - High Watt
Apr. 17 - Columbus, OH - The Basement
Apr. 18 - DC, Washington - DC9
Apr. 19 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle
Apr. 21 - Boston, MA - Great Scott
Apr. 22 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
Apr. 24 - Toronto, ON - Horseshoe Tavern