Culture Greyhound

The UK’s first single (ours was “Oh Love”) is also now available in the US on iTunes and Spotify.

Dwight Yoakam – 3 Pears (September 18)

Listen to “Heart Like Mine,” co-produced by Beck.

Ben Folds Five – The Sound of the Life of the Mind (September 18)

Ringo Deathstarr – Mauve (September 24)

Green Day Trilogy

Uno! (September 25)
Dos! (November 13)
Tre! (January 15)

Tame Impala – Lonerism (October 9)

Pinback – Information Retrieved (October 16)

Kendrick Lamar – good kid m.A.A.d. city (October 22)

Major Lazer – Free the Universe (November 6)

Deftones – Koi No Yokan (November 13)

Big Boi – Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors (November 13)

November 13th is already earmarked for the release date of Dos!, the second Green Day album in the upcoming trilogy, as well as releases from Big Boi and Soundgarden, but you can add another high-profile album to that list. Sacramento metal crooners Deftones have announced the official release date and title for their first long-player of new material since 2010’s best album Diamond Eyes. Koi No Yokan is guaranteed to be “very dynamic,” according to frontman Chino Moreno in a recent Billboard interview. No other info just yet, but you can listen to two new tracks premiered live, “Roller Derby” and “Rosemary.”

As can be plainly seen, school and life in general has interfered with my already-stifling creativity, and that goes double for this blog. And still, we press on. Here is yet another thrown-together blog post with some live videos of awesome rock and roll performances so I can catch up on The Daily Show and Colbert and go to bed and do it all over again tomorrow.

Here’s a new track from one of my favorite bands at last year’s Fun Fun Fun Fest, the abrasive, yet hook-laden Joy Formidable. The track is called “Wolf’s Law,” and the corresponding video has….you guessed it….a wolf in it. The band’s playing some festival dates in lands far far away but no word on a new album just yet.

Apparently this was uploaded to YouTube a year ago, so why am I just now seeing it? According to the description, which I’m not 100% sure is correct, this is Rage Against the Machine’s first ever public concert, which took place October 23, 1991 at the Quad on the Cal State Northridge campus. If it’s not accurate, it’s certainly close: Zach de la Rocha’s former band Inside Out broke up around this time. Rage formed shortly thereafter; according to Wikipedia, their first show was actually at a friend’s house party, but whether that’s even true, I’m not really sure.

This is the entire concert in full, minus about ten seconds of the beginning of “Township Rebellion.” Though it seems there were no lyrics yet written for “Killing In the Name,” and some of Zach’s raps weren’t fully-formed, I’m surprised at how little the group’s onstage demeanor and their sound changed between this time and the release of their major label debut just one year later. It seems from the onset, the band’s ultimate musical and political mission was put in place. Zach is more enthusiastic with the crowd, though just as political, and Tom Morello sounds like…..well, Tom Morello, a legendary beast on the guitar that forever changed the face of rap and metal.

There are some rare gems here, including “Autologic,” “Hit the Deck,” and a cover of The Clash’s “Clampdown.” And of course there are the classics: “Take the Power Back,” “Freedom,” and “Bullet In the Head,” the latter of which the small crowd appears to enjoy quite a bit. About 3/4 of the way through, in between songs, you can hear one guy ask his friend, “So are these guys any good?” Now it seems like a hilarious question, but truly we can only imagine sitting in on the first ever Rage show, hearing what was to be a catalyst for the entire genres of rock and rap. If you are a Rage fan at all, especially of the first album, I think you’ll really enjoy watching this forty-minute, history-making set.

Last night Green Day performed a surprise show at the Echoplex in LA. I’ve seen the Go! Team there, and I can tell you firsthand it’s a very very small place, probably only able to hold about 300 people. Anyway, as is the case, the group performed a ton of new material from the upcoming trilogies. Take a listen to fan-made videos of the upcoming single “Kill the DJ,” as well as new tracks “Nuclear Family” and “Wild One.”