New Pixies Song/Video: 'Bagboy'

Great new to kick off the weekend as the Pixies have released their first new music in almost 10 years. The single 'Bagboy' sounds great and despite the recent news that Kim Deal has left the band it still appears to feature her (Edit: Frank Black has said that the female vocalist is NOT Kim Deal).

You can download/stream the album below and check out the video for 'Bagboy'.

New Music: The Jinxed

More and more fantastic local releases are continuously coming out in 2013. This one is essentially a collaboration between members of local favorites Antennas Up and Bad Wheels (it also feature trumpet from the drummer of Ha Ha Tonka).

They've released a digital 7" single for now, that you can check out HERE. The first track, 'The Loon', is catchy pop brilliance. The b-side 'Say To Me', is more on the mellow, ballad-y side of things, but is still a fantastic song.

Hopefully there is more to come from The Jinxed, we'll keep you up to date on any news from them.

Concert Announcement: The National & Tame Impala

Two of the better indie rock bands around right now will be pairing up for a couple of dates around Austin City Limits festival and one of those dates is in Kansas City. The National and Tame Impala will be together at Starlight in KC on Friday, October 11th. I've written about The National extensively, but if you aren't yet familiar with Tame Impala, I can't recommend them highly enough. Their last album, Lonerism, was one of the best of 2012 (in fact, if I redid my list today, it would be in the top 5 or 10).

The National - 'Demons'
Tame Impala - 'Elephant'

Recommended Shows This Week (6/24 - 6/30)

Monday: Cayucus @ The Riot Room

California indie pop band Cayucus will be making their way through Kansas City tonight with an appearance at the Riot Room. Their new album, Bigfoot, is a lot of fun and was produced by fellow Secretly Canadian label-mate Richard Swift.

Tuesday: Jonathan Richman @ The Record Bar

I can't say I know too much about Jonathan Richman's solo stuff, but he was the man behind The Modern Lovers, who could be credited for being pioneers of Punk and New Wave music. He'll be performing at The Record Bar.

Tuesday: Lady Lamb the Beekeeper @ Czar Bar

Lady Lamb the Beekeeper (the alias of Aly Spaltro) grew up in Maine, but now resides in Brooklyn. She's touring behind her fabulous new album Ripely Pine and is opening for Torres at the Czar Bar. We're pretty sure she won't be opening for other artists for too much longer so don't miss her show Tuesday night.

Friday: Yeasayer @ The Granada

One of my favorite live bands is one of the few bands to reschedule a local show after the demise of Kanrocksas. Yeasayer will be at The Granada in Lawrence on Friday night for what will surely be one of the better shows of the month. I've seen them a half dozen times and they never disappoint.

Saturday: Hospital Ships @ Frank's North Star Tavern

I've mentioned Hospital Ships three times in the past month and a half, so this might be the last for a little while. Just to reiterate, their new album is brilliant, this is the last show of their tour, you should see them immediately before they move to Austin.

Saturday: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros @ Crossroads

The other concert that rose from the ashes of Kanrocksas that I'm excited about is Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. They'll be at CrossroadsKC on Saturday with ZZ Ward opening. I haven't given their second album enough of a chance, but the first is a lot of fun and I've heard their shows are as well.

Recommended Shows This Week (6/17 - 6/23)

Tuesday: Mount Moriah @ The Replay

With the press this band has been getting, I'm a little surprised they're aren't playing somewhere a little bigger. If you're into the whole Americana/Alt-Country thing, you'll really enjoy Mount Moriah.

Wednesday: The Mountain Goats @ The Record Bar

If you've waited until now to decide you want to see the legendary Mountain Goats at The Record Bar on Friday night, I'm sorry to inform you that it's already sold out. If you got on this early and already have tickets, I certainly don't have to tell you what a great show this will be.

Thursday: Jason Isbell @ Crossroads KC

Touring on the back of one of the best albums of 2013 so far, Southeastern, Jason Isbell will be making a stop in KC this week. He's co-headlining with Turnpike Troubadours with American Aquarium opening. Don't miss this show!

Friday: Snowden @ The Granada

I'd imagine the inadvertent web hits for the band Snowden have skyrocketed over the past few weeks. I saw them open up for Kings Of Leon years ago and they were fantastic live. They're touring in support of their new album, No One In Control.

Saturday: Evangelicals @ The Replay

Honestly, I had no idea Oklahoman s Evangelicals were even still around. I hadn't heard anything from them since their 2008 album The Evening Descends until I heard they were playing a show at The Replay in Lawrence. They're weird and awesome so go check them out!

New Album: Hospital Ships - Destruction In Yr Soul

Lawrence band Hospital Ships are continuing the streak of fantastic Lawrence/KC albums coming out in 2013. Their third full length album, Destruction In Yr Soul, is set to be released by Graveface Records on June 18th. 

The album really expands on the previous output which leaned towards minimalist bedroom recordings. Destruction In Yr Soul takes the great melodies that Jordan Geiger has been coming up with for multiple bands for the past years and really fleshes them out with a full band. I hear comparisons made between Hospital Ships and Built To Spill, but the only similarity I see is the singers high pitched vocals. 

Hospital Ships have a couple of shows coming up this month that you should check out. This Thursday, June 13th they'll kick off their tour at Replay Lounge in Lawrence with Cowboy Indian Bear. They'll also end their tour in Lawrence on Saturday, June 29th at Frank's North Star Tavern.

Finally, you can stream the entire new album over at Pitchfork Advance.

VIDEO: Hospital Ships - 'Servants'

Concert Announcements: Phoenix, Neko Case, Yeasayer and more

There have been more than enough concert announcements over the past week to warrant a separate post for them all. Top of the list is the announcement that Phoenix will be headlining 96.5's Buzz Beach Ball show on September 27th at Berkeley Riverfront Park in KC. Also joining them are a handful of decent smaller acts and a bunch of really average bigger acts including Alt-J, Awolnation, Cage The Elephant, Atlas Genius, Daughter, Coheed and Cambria, Courtney Love, MS MR, Kitten, Wavves, Hanni El Khatib and Little Green Cars.

Also exciting new that my favorite female vocalst, Neko Case, will be in Lawrence at Liberty Hall on Tuesday, October 15th.

Finally, the bands that were suppose to play Kanrocksas are beginning to announce shows at other venues around town. On Friday, June 28th Yeasayer will be at the Granada in Lawrence and on Saturday, June 29th Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros and ZZ Ward will be at the Crossroads in KC.

Here is the full list of recently announced shows:

Fri 06/28 Yeasayer @ The Granada, Lawrence
Sat 06/29 Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros @ Crossroads, KC
Mon 07/15 Night Beds @ The Record Bar, KC
Sun 08/11 Mobb Deep @ The Riot Room, KC
Sat 09/21 Rancid @ The Granada, Lawrence
Fri 09/27 Phoenix/Alt-J/Awolnation/Cage The Elephant/Atlas Genius/Daughter/Coheed and Cambria/Courtney Love/MSMR/Kitten/Waaves/Hanni El Khattib/Little Green Cars @ Berkeley Riverfront Park, KC
Mon 09/30 Nine Inch Nails/Explosions In The Sky @ The Sprint Center, KC
Mon 09/30 Why?/Astronautalis @ The Granada, Lawrence
Tue 10/15 Neko Case @ Liberty Hall, Lawrence
Sun 10/20 King Khan & The Shrines @ The Record Bar, KC

Recommended Shows This Week (6/10 - 6/16)

Monday: Lord Huron @ The Riot Room

I was able to catch Lord Huron with a very intimate performance at the Replay in Lawrence a few years ago and I'm excited to see them now come through KC to the Riot Room. They're very Fleet Foxes-eque if you've never heard them and they're great live, so this show is highly recommended.

Thursday: Hospital Ships/Cowboy Indian Bear @ The Replay

Two of Lawrence's best bands have put out really, really great albums this year and will be playing a show together on Thursday to kick of Hospital Ships June tour. Shows like this make me curse my 9-5 job. Get to Lawrence, watch a great show and pick up both bands albums.

Friday: Reverend Horton Heat/Ha Ha Tonka @ CrossroadsKC

The band that tours more than the Grateful Dead ever did are making their annual appearance at CrossroadsKC. Always a really fun show, The Reverend will be joined by Springfield, Missouri band Ha Ha Tonka who seem to get more and more national attention as time goes by. On a Friday night this show will be one heck of a party!

Saturday: Shakey Graves @ The Bottleneck
Sunday: Shakey Graves @ The Riot Room

You'll have two chances to see the antifolk phenomenon Shakey Graves. He'll be at The Bottleneck in Lawrence on Saturday and The Riot Room in KC on Sunday, so you won't have to drive very far either day to see him. Here's just a taste of what you can expect!

Sunday: Father John Misty/Pure Bathing Culture @ The Granada

The show of the week (for the third week in a row) is another show at The Granada. Father John Misty put on one of my favorite shows of 2012 at the Bottleneck, so I expect this show to be fantastic as well. If you aren't familiar, you can expect sweet melodies and seductive dance moves.

Neko Case Announces New Album

Neko Case has a solid argument to being the greatest living female singer around. She's certainly my favorite vocalist since Patsy Cline. She recently announced a new album, her first since 2009's Middle Cyclone, via a video trailer. The album is titled The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight, the Harder I Fight, the More I Love You and there isn't a release date quite yet. Watch the trailer for the album below and be on the lookout for a release date and (hopefully) a KC tour date.

Recommended Shows This Week (6/3 - 6/9)

Tuesday: The xx @ The Uptown

If I wasn't already planning on attending the Baroness show at the Granada in Lawrence, I'd be at The xx show in KC. After not really digging the hype of their debut album, I feel in love with their most recent effort. I have no idea what to expect from their live shows, but the venue should be full of awkward hipsters.

Tuesday: Baroness/Coliseum @ The Granada

What I think will be the show of the week will be Tuesday at The Granada in Lawrence. Baroness are returning to the stage after a vicious bus wreck that caused half the band to quit. This will be my third time seeing Baroness and they are a behemoth of a live band, so don't miss this one!

Wednesday: Vandaveer @ Czar Bar

With all of the lame neo-folk bands like The Lumineers and Of Monsters & Men and the like, it's refreshing to hear something that actually sounds authentic. Vandaveer are touring behind the fantastic album of murder ballads Oh, Willie, Please... and if there is a just deity up there, they should be huge soon so check them out on Wednesday in KC.

Friday: CHVRCHES @ The Granada

I'm hesitant about bands that become huge before putting out a full length album, but the latest buzz band CHVRCHES do have some great songs out already, so give them a chance. This could be a show sells out before Friday, so if you're wanting to go I suggest grabbing tickets soon!

Sunday: The Psychedelic Furs @ The Midland

I don't hide my un-ironic love for all of the classic 80's bands and included in that list are The Psychedelic Furs. I saw them a few years back in KC and they put on a great show. Tickets for this are available for less than ten bucks so you have no excuses not to go.