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Thursday, March 22, 2012

Spiritualized, Tennis, El-P, 2:54 - Fat Possum Newsletter



Spiritualized "Hey Jane" Music Video - click the image to watch

Last week Spiritualized unveiled a trailer of their new video to fans via social media. It was a tantalizing glimpse of what felt like a calm before a storm moment,directed by rising talent AG Rojas.

Rojas who has previously shot for Jamie XX & Gil Scott, Earl Sweatshirt & Emeli Sandé, sets our protagonist Frida amidst a shady, seedy backdrop in which she’s desperately trying to uphold normality for her son. Frida, played by Tyra Sanchez, is perfectly cast as a visual accompaniment to the song’s energy and impact.

Hey Janeis first the single and indication that new album Sweet Heart Sweet Light is another epic body of work from the anthemic master. It’s been three years in the making for renowned perfectionist Jason Spaceman and the resulting music captured in this first single, showcases them at their most vibrant and sublime.

Clocking in at 8:55 in true J Spaceman style, meticulously produced and arranged, “Hey Jane” is in itself an epic ride.

Click here to pre-order Sweet Heart Sweet Light from the FP Store

Click here to pre-order Sweet Heart Sweet Light from iTunes

Spiritualized North American Tour Dates:

05/02/12 Wed - Minneapolis MN @ First Avenue
05/03/12 Thu – Chicago, IL @ Metro
05/04/12 Fri – Detroit, MI @ The Majestic Theatre
05/05/12 Sat – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix
05/07/12 Mon - New York, NY @ Terminal 5
05/09/12 Wed – Boston, MA @ Paradise
05/10/12 Thu – Washington, DC @ The 9:30 Club
05/11/12 Fri – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre Of Living Arts
05/12/12 Sat – Carrboro, NC @ Cat's Cradle
05/13/12 Sun – Atlanta, GA @ The Variety Playhouse
05/15/12 Tue – Dallas, TX @ The Granada Theatre
05/16/12 Wed – Austin, TX @ Emo's East
05/18/12 Fri - Tucson AZ @ The Rialto Theatre
05/19/12 Sat - Phoenix AZ @ The Crescent Ballroom
05/20/12 Sun - San Diego CA @ Belly Up Tavern
05/22/12 Tue - Los Angeles CA @ The Wiltern
05/23/12 Wed - San Francisco CA @ The Fillmore
05/25/12 Fri - Portland OR @ The Wonder Ballroom
05/26/12 Sat - Vancouver BC @ The Rickshaw Theatre





Tennis Set To Perform On Tonight Show With Jay Leno Tonight - 3/21/12

Fresh off their winter tour, Denver-based Tennis will perform on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” tonight. “Last Call with Carson Daly” recently aired coverage of their live show at SXSW. The band will soon begin a spring tour of the U.S., performing songs from their second album Young and Old which is out now on Fat Possum Records. The album debuted on at #1 on Billboard’s Heatseeker Chart and #1 at CMJ for the third week in a row.

TENNIS TOUR

03/23/12 - Las Vegas, NV @ The Royal House Hotel
03/25/12 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Festival
03/31/12 - Golden, CO @ Steinhauer Field House
04/10/12 - Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bowl
04/24/12 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
04/26/12 - Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
04/27/12 - Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore Cabaret
04/28/12 - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
04/30/12 - San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
05/01/12 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room
05/02/12 - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
05/03/12 - San Diego, CA @ The Casbah
05/04/12 - Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
05/05/12 - Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
05/08/12 - Austin, TX @ The Parish
05/09/12 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
05/10/12 - Norman, OK @ Opolis
05/11/12 - St. Louis, MO @ Plush
05/12/12 - Kansas City, MO @ Record Bar





El-P Announces "Cancer For Cure" Release on May 22

LISTEN TO THE TRACK "THE FULL RETARD"

Independent rap icon El-P is set to release his long awaited new solo album Cancer For Cure, at his new home Fat Possum on May 22, 2012. The new album marks his first full length rap album since 2007’s critically acclaimed I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead, though El-P’s rap trajectory has been on a steady ascent following a prolific year that saw high profile appearances on Das Racist’s mixtape and debut album, a hugely buzzed Adult Swim single “Drones Over BKLYN”, a verse (which made Stereogum’s top 10 guest verses of the year) on one of the year’s biggest online hits, Mr Muthafuckin’ eXquire’s “Huzzah”, among several other honors. The record is arriving hot on the heels of the new Killer Mike album R.A.P. Music, which El-P produced in full and is already making huge noise with its first single “BIG BEAST (featuring BUN B, T.I. and TROUBLE)”, which was awarded Pitchfork's rare Best New Track designation.

Cancer For Cure takes another huge leap forward from the production work of his 2010 instrumental album weareallgoingtoburninhellmeggamixxx with a bombastic collision of synths, bottomless bass tones, live instrumentation, ear-worming melody, and tightly coiled drum patterns, setting the standard for hip hop production higher than ever. The obvious diversion from the previous album is the presence of El-P’s ever-developing vocal style, continuing to raise the bar on his already highly verbose flow that swiftly and muscularly navigates a rapidfire explosion of syllabic conundrums and quick-witted elocutions full of heart, purpose, style and grit. Rounded out by feature appearances by a host of high profile guests including Killer Mike, Danny Brown, Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire, Paul Banks (Interpol), and more this will easily be one of the year’s most talked about albums.





2:54 Set To Release Debut Self-Titled Album May 29

LISTEN TO THE TRACK "YOU'RE EARLY"

Over the past year 2:54 -sister duo Colette and Hannah Thurlow – have established themselves as one of 2012's most important breakthrough UK bands. Following their signing to Fat Possum in the US last week, with the announcement of their eponymous debut album they're preparing to unveil the writing and recording work that's occupied much of their time since the band's inception, and fans of their unique and enveloping sound should prepare to have their expectations obliterated.

The Thurlow sisters taught themselves to play guitar as teenagers, but it wasn't until the closing moments of 2010 that the very first lo-fi 2:54 home demos leaked onto the web, prompting a flurry of critical acclaim that's only ever grown with the band. They became the act that all the best bands around wanted on the road with them, touring with everyone from Warpaint and Wild Beasts to Melissa Auf De Maur, Yuck, The Maccabees and most recently, The Big Pink. Their debut limited seven-inch 'On A Wire' whetted critics appetites, consolidating plaudits that have now reached everywhere from revered US critics like Pitchfork, SPIN, Fader, Gorilla Versus Bear and Stereogum, to UK bibles like NME, Q magazine, Kerrang, and onto the radars of broadsheet press like The Guardian, The Times and The Independent. Signing to Fiction (The Cure, Crystal Castles etc) mid last year, the 'Scarlet' EP gave the world the first taste of the forthcoming long-player with its title track, plus three hard-hitting B-sides. Its hazy, leviathan sound was hypnotically hooky, feeling both alien and familiar at the same time. The Pitchfork premiere of their latest single 'You're Early' last week saw 10 thousand hits in 24 hours - simultaneously announcing a US signing to Fat Possum (Spiritualized, Wavves, Yuck etc)- and displaying a more groove-focused side to the band, a brazenly infectious stormer of a song.

Recorded mostly by Mercury-winning producer Rob Ellis (PJ Harvey etc), and all mixed by the legendary Alan Moulder (Smashing Pumpkins, Nine In Nails etc), their debut album collects together a cohesive and captivating selection of highlights from their already burgeoning catalogue. The 10 songs that together make up '2:54' are ripe with danger and beauty. This is a record that thrums with life, signalled immediately with the gale-force opener, 'Revolving',a real bittersweet blizzard. From then on the sisters Thurlow proceed to mine their own distinctive brand of haunted, freaked grooves and cloud-bursting melody, channelling love, loss and longing to spellbinding effect. This is an album with truly no filler. First spin will leave the propulsive, woozy thrust of 'Easy Undercover's refrains ringing in heads, as will the duelling guitars and surging, urgent cry of 'Sugar's' dance floor rhythms. The smouldering solemnity of 'Circuitry' neighbours the delicate, scorched beauty of 'Watcher' with album closer 'Creeping', realised here in magnificent and malevolent new form that few will be prepared for.

Over the course of its 10 tracks it becomes clear that this is a rarefied, captivating affair, a beautifully sustained exercise in mood and tension that almost feels in a league and scene of its own. It’s a bewitching snapshot of 2:54 thus far and also a glimpse of the heady future that awaits them.

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