Dearly Beloved is the first single revealed off Astari Nite's new album, Here Lies, arriving in the coming winter on the dark electronic label Negative Gain. The new song was produced by Astari Nite and mastered by Jacknife Sound (Jason Corbett, singer/songwriter for Actors).

Dearly Beloved follows the band's characteristic mixture of gothic rock and post punk, while taking a direction toward a more straightforward new wave sound, all enlivened and memorable. The song contemplates on strange occurrences that two people appear to have a common bond over, as it also touches on the afterlife.

Astari Nite's next full length comes highly anticipated, as the band keeps gaining momentum for their solid gothic rock sound, as well as their strong live presence, having previously shared stages with Peter Murphy, The Damned, Psychedelic Furs, She Wants Revenge, Cold Cave, Vowws, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Modern English, 3teeth and Bestial Mouths.




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Album art by Danny Ae



Astari Nite Facebook | Twitter | Instagram





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The second offering off Chelsea Wolfe's next album, Birth of Violence, bears the plain, yet, very much imposing title, American Darkness, and comes with an equally arresting, black and white video, directed by Karlos Rene Ayala. In Chelsea's own words, it is an "expression of freedom and beautiful humans being themselves."

Her statement continues: "It began as a sort of homage to a scene in the Paul Thomas Anderson film Magnolia, where the characters are singing along to the Aimee Mann song, Wise Up, but I wanted our version to be explored through the lens of The Tarot. I’ve been reading tarot cards for myself for many years, and researching the symbolic expressions of the cards for this video made me want to dive even deeper. To represent that, I played both The Fool and The High Priestess cards in the video, to embody both the beginning of the journey, and the realization that the sacred knowledge I was seeking was inside me all along. We cast friends to play a few other tarot archetypes, and Karlos’ idea was to bring the symbols and signifiers into the contemporary; deconstructed, and made everyday - 'the magical and the unexceptional.' I loved that. At the same time, we really wanted to challenge the binary of the traditional tarot cards, and give them more diversity, which is something important that many cool artists and witches are doing. I’m such a fan of Karlos Rene Ayala as a writer, director, documentarian and friend, and have looked forward to making a video with him for a long time."

American Darkness, together with the previously unveiled, The Mother Road, offer a deep understanding on how cleaner and barer Wolfe's direction is on her upcoming album, compared to the full metal and heavy sound of Hiss Spun, as the artist takes on her singer-songwriter origins for which she became known and loved in the earlier stages of her career.

Birth of Violence comes out September 13th, 2019 on Sargent House.









Video directed by Karlos Rene Ayala

Artist photo by Ben Chisholm

Cover Photo by Nona Limmen


Chelsea Wolfe Acoustic Tour:
31/08: Pasadena, CA - Pasadena Daydream Festival * (Non Acoustic Set)
18/10: San Diego, CA - Observatory North Park
19/10: Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
21/10: Salt Lake City, UT - Metro Music Hall
22/10: Estes Park, CO - Stanley Hotel
24/10: Chicago, IL - Metro
25/10: Detroit, MI - Senate Theater
26/10: Toronto, ONT - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
27/10: Montreal, QC - Le National
29/10: Boston, MA - Royale
31/10: Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
01/11: New York, NY - Brooklyn Steel
03/11: Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
04/11: Charlotte, NC - McGlohon Theater
05/11: Atlanta, GA - Terminal West
06/11: Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge
08/11: Dallas, TX - Texas Theatre
09/11: Austin, TX - Levitation
10/11: Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
12/11: Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf
13/11: Tucson, AZ - Club Congress
15/11: Los Angeles, CA - The Palace Theatre
16/11: San Francisco, CA - Regency Ballroom
18/11: Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
20/11: Seattle, WA - The Showbox
21/11: Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre

* All dates with special guest Ioanna Gika except 8/31


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Chelsea Wolfe Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram


sargenthouse.com





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After two EPs and a notable debut record that was 2016's Under The Spreading Chestnut Tree, Boston's HarborLights are joining the quality roster of Deathwish Inc. and announce their next album, Isolation Ritual, their first for the label, recorded by Mike Moschetto (NPR) at The Record Co. and Zach Weeks at God City Studios.

While the upcoming LP promises to be equally balancing between heaviness and melodiousness, the first sample off it is the melodically clear, From Virtue (Sacrament), which lives up to the commitment, and finds the quartet in excellent shape, coming through with something both emotive and alluring. The great looking, associated video was directed by Caleb Gowett, with cinematography by Bill Politis.

Having earned accolades for their live presence, HarborLights sound more than ready to reach a wider audience, and fit to deliver.

Isolation Ritual arrives September 13th, 2019. HarborLights are Matthew Wright, Christine Smith, Jordan Rodriguez and Andrew Diaz.







Video & artist photo by Caleb Gowett


HarborLights - on tour:
July 18  Fayetteville, NC @ The Drunk Horse Pub
July 19  Decatur, GA @ East Arcanum Studio
July 20  Fort Payne, AL @ Lucky Sound Studio
July 21  Lafayette, LA @ The Freetown Boom Boom Room
July 22  Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
July 23  Austin, TX @ Barracuda
July 24  San Antonio, TX @ Limelight
July 25  Norman, OK @ The Deli
July 26  Grand Island, NE @ Hear Grand Island
July 27  St. Louis, MO @ The Sinkhole
July 28  Murfreesboro, TN @ Media Rerun
July 29  Louisville, KY @ The Mag Bar
July 30  Detroit, MI @ 510 Building
July 31  Chicago, IL @ Burlington Bar
August 1  Muncie, IN @ Be Here Now
August 2  Cleveland, OH @ Plymouth House
August 3  Rochester, NY @ Bug Jar

September 21  Revere, MA @ Sammy’s Patio **record release show**



Pre-order


HarborLights Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram


deathwishinc.com





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Danish punks, Halshug, will be releasing their anticipated third album, Drøm, through the great, Southern Lord on July 19th, 2019. From the first listen it emerges as their most accomplished and best constructed work to date, a great record based on the wider concept of dreams, and following a broader direction which finds the band combining more diverse styles than ever.

After Fantasi and Kæmper Imod, a third track off the coming LP streams for the first time ever right below. Tænk På Dig Selv is a ferocious fusion of post punk darkness, d-beat brutality and even no wave contemporaneity, characteristic of the more artful approach the band takes on the entirety of Drøm.

The song is followed by an interview with the band's own, Mathias Schønberg, who answers our questions about the forthcoming album and more.





What made you use the very interesting concept of dreams as a basis for the new album?

Nice that you find that interesting, thanks. I’m not sure we really know what made us do that. We ended up naming the album Drøm when it was all done and recorded because it just matched the contents of the lyrics and the sound. After the we heard the raw tapes, and later the first versions of the mix done by Will Killingsworth it all just had this strange yet familiar sound that seemed like something from a past, but like as it maybe was from a dream. Like a déjà vu or something it seemed haunted by itself, by analog methods of recording and by vintage sounds. It sort of blended in to different sounds punk and seemed like an anachronism, like we had created something new that was old in a way. Something half forgotten, half imagined.


Are there any particularly vivid dreams of yours which you can describe, and which have been implemented into your new work in any way?

There are quite a lot of songs that have lyrics based on dreams or strange memories from strange nights. Which also was determining for the album title. In one song (Et andet sted / Another Place) the lyric is: You held me tight, and I was free, as in a dream on ecstacy, of flesh and blood, a fantasy.
The song is about letting go of control. About surrendering to the moment and to another person. It’s about intimacy and trust, and in a way what punk and music are about. Detachment from the material world and surrendering to the forces of desire and urge. Throwing yourself into the ancient whirl of life and not caring where it takes you. Submitting to chance.


Your sound appears rather expanded on the new record. Where you inspired by any different kind of influences in comparison to Sort sind and Blodets bånd? How different is Drøm from your perspective?

With this record we took back a lot of control over the recording process and we made a record much more like we always wanted to do it. On Sort sind and Blodets bånd we worked with a producer who is a friend and a punk rock icon in Copenhagen, but as we worked together, he gradually became more oriented towards metal. And I think he always understood us as a dis-band. The outcome of that combination was the reason why the two earlier records sound the way they do. We always wanted to do a record like this one. We just couldn’t pace ourselves before, played way too fast and cranked the distortions much more. We were restless and insecure, I guess.

On this record we worked with another friend who is now just learning how to record, so the recording process was much more collaborative with the band, and we had a lot more experience in the studio. The mix was done by Will at Deadair Studios who seemed to understand our idea intuitively. All in short: the reason Drøm is quite different from the past albums is that we finally hit the nail on the head this time.


A lot of great music comes from Denmark these days. What do you think of the local underground scene?

It’s pretty good. A lot of the good music that comes out of the Copenhagen underground scenes at the moment comes from other things than punk / hardcore though. That scene has really been bleeding the last five odd years. There is a few new good bands that I can think of from the last long while, but from other genres of music and other social scenes – there is a lot of great stuff happening. I’m thinking mostly in the experimental / avant-garde scene around the venues Alice and Mayhem, and also in the by now famous CPH fast techno scene. And there are some very talented and interesting metal bands too. Ex. the guy who recorded Drøm, Simon Sonne Andersen’s band Orm is great.


You have expressed before how much you enjoy touring and playing live. What would an audience expect from your live presence?

A mix of new songs from Drøm and oldies mainly from Sort Sind. And as always, tight delivery. Angry boys doing their angry thing.


Are there any particularly memorable moments from your live shows?

Well, yes. Many. We’ve played hundreds of shows by now, so they kind of blur together. But just last month we played Pitfest in Holland and that was fucking cool. People went crazy in front of the stage and kept kicking the cables out of the pedal board as they stage-dived. Even though I had tried to secure them to the monitor. At one point somebody fully stomped like every single pedal in the board as he leapt off stage and this huge security guard was suddenly on stage shaking some guy around. Our friend Joe quickly let him know that it was cool and that we don’t mind that kind of stuff and the security guy was like “oh, cool”, and just backed away. He didn’t even do anything about some person who scaled all the way to top of the center beam holding the entire circus tent the show was in. That looked way sketchy.


Drøm sounds incredibly sharp from end to end. Any comments on its production and engineering?

While, thank you. Everything was recorded live by Simon Sonne Andersen from Orm in a basement in Copenhagen. Microphone placements were essential to make the room on the record. We had a mic taped to the glass window next to the drumkit and stuff like that. It was really fun.

Will Killingsworth from DeadAir in Massachusetts mixed it, and Peter Peter from The Sods, Sort Sol and Bleeder Group mastered it.


What are you currently listening to mostly?

Mathias: Nikki Istrefi, Blush Response, Liturgy, Wiliam Basinski, Scott Walker.
Jakob: Drab Majesty, Swans, Metz, Fatamorgana, Angels Of Light
Mads: Tomb Mold, Sumac, Idles, Taphos


What comes for the band after the album's release?

We’re doing a run of Scandinavian shows in September in support of the album and then we’re in the process of booking a USA tour in November. So 2019 will be pretty packed.

We just signed with Doomstar Bookings, so by 2020 they should be taking over our European affairs and hopefully landing us a shitload of great shows.



Band photo by Michael José

Five years after Psychic 9-5 Club, Melbourne's HTRK return with their anticipated next full length. Their fourth album in total, Venus In Leo, arrives August 30th, 2019 via Ghostly International.

The duo comprised of Jonnine Standish and Nigel Yang released a couple of singles last year which now have a place in the forthcoming album, alongside the brand new, You Know How to Make Me Happy, which was just unveiled together with a video directed by Antuong Nguyen. The song's gorgeously minimal style of production, as well as its peculiar form and structure, mark HTRK's return to their earlier days, or as they put it, their "underground rock past with the stylistic playfulness and variety of a modern mixtape."

Having gone through the deaths of both close friend and collaborator, Rowland S. Howard, and the band's co-founder, Sean Stewart, HTRK are still keeping up with their intelligent creativity, delivering another excellent piece of mesmeric and immersive art.






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HTRK Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram






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Texan shoegazers, Blushing, have been very much solid and consistent with their releases, having already brought on a couple of excellent EPs and a few strong singles. The quartet's anticipated debut full length is long overdue, but it's finally underway, coming out September 6th, 2019 on vinyl through Wallflower Records (US) and on CD with Hands and Moment Records (Japan).

After the previously revealed, The Truth, Sunshine and Dream Merchants, all of which have a place in the band's upcoming self-titled record, the freshly unveiled, So Many, is the album's opening number, and also the fourth piece we get to sample off it.

Inspired by guitarist and vocalist, Michelle Soto, and her son, and the paralleled obstacles they both witnessed going through life, having to deal with problems such as anxiety, indifference and attention issues, the new song is a gripping presentation of a venturous emotional journey, juxtaposing Blushing's strengths on both the quieter and the more explosive moments of their gazey dreampop sound.

So Many comes with a creative video, starring the band's own, Christina Carmona.

Just like the previous singles and the rest of the upcoming LP, So Many was recorded, mixed and produced by Elliott Frazier of Ringo Deathstarr with whom Blushing are soon embarking on a joint summer tour.










Blushing (w/Ringo Deathstarr) Tour Dates:
Thu, July 11 - Austin TX - Hotel Vegas
Sun, July 14 - Ft Worth TX - Main at South Side
Mon, July 15 - Kansas City MO - Riot Room
Tue, July 16 - Denver CO - Streets
Wed, July 17 - Salt Lake City UT - Urban Lounge
Thu, July 18 - Seattle WA - El Corazon
Fri, July 19 - Portland OR - The Waypost
Sat, July 20 - San Francisco CA - The Knockout
Sun, July 21 - Los Angeles CA - The Echo/Part Time Punks
Mon, July 22 - San Diego CA - The Whistle Stop Bar
Wed, July 24 - Phoenix AZ - Rebel Lounge
Thu, July 25 - El Paso TX - Love Buzz
Fri, August 30 - Chicago IL - Burlington Bar*
Sat, August 31 - Kalamazoo MI - Bell's Eccentric Cafe*

*Without Ringo Deathstarr



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Blushing Website | Spotify | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram




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