New Music: David Bowie- The Next Day + Music Video

Okay, the Catholic church is pissed at David Bowie because his music video for "The Next Day" doesn't depict their church in the right light. Bowie is an artist and he is not doing it right if he isn't creating controversy. He brings along the beautiful Marion Cotillard and Sid Vicious portrayer Gary Oldman for the ride. Bowie being awesome again!!! Watch below:

The Next Day is out now. Go get it, because it is good!!

New Music: Little Boots- Motorway + Other Recent Releases and Music News

British dance artist Little Boots, aka Victoria Hesketh, released her first new music in almost four years earlier this week and what a great track it is. "Motorway" is the name of the song and Hesketh actually played it a couple years ago in a Turntable.fm session but is only getting around to releasing it now.

Little Boots worked with a trio of nu disco heavy hitters for her new album, Nocturnes, including DFA Records' Tim Goldsworthy, Simian Mobile Disco's James Ford, and Andy Butler of Hercules and Love Affair. The LP will be out May 6th via On Repeat.

Watch the video below and/or head over to Little Boots website to get a free download of the song.

Little Boots- Motorway

Wrapping up the week in a good way with a lot a really great new tunes and videos plus a little bit of music news.......

Last we heard from English trip hop star Tricky was when he was stranded on an Ontario highway during a freak blizzard back in 2010. Apparently he has recovered from having to stay overnight at a rural farm and being forced to take part in sing-alongs with other stranded motorists because the singer has announced a new album, False Idols, slated is for release May 28th via !k7. Download the first single, "Nothing's Changed"





Here is the new track from Austin psych rock band Black Angels. "Evil Things" is taken from the album Phosphene Dream, set for release April 2nd via Blue Horizon.




Our favourite French psychedelic dream pop band Melody's Echo Chamber have put out a video for their track "Crystallized" from their self titled LP. Watch:

Melody's Echo Chamber- Crystallized

El Perro Del Mar also released a video for her song " I Was A Boy" from her Pale Fire album. Watch:

El Perro Del Mar- I Was A Boy

Watch Ra Ra Riot's new video for "Dance With Me" from their excellent Beta Love record.

Ra Ra Riot- Dance With Me

Toronto shoegaze outfit Beliefs have released another great track from their forthcoming self titled new album . Watch the music video for "Lilly" below:

Beliefs- Lilly

Back in January we helped introduce crazy good new Portland synth pop band Wampire to the world. The group have just dropped a second great track from their upcoming new album Curiosity. Listen to "Spirit Forest" below:




Small Black have progressed from their chillwave roots with their new song. Listen to "Free At Dawn" which is taken from Limits of Desire which will be out May 14th via Jagjaguwar.




In case you were stranded on a desert island and didn't hear, David Bowie is streaming his entire new album two weeks early in the iTunes store. If you can't wait until March 12th check out The Next Day  here.


News came this week that the seminal shoegaze album Psychocandy from The Jesus & Mary Chain will be reissued in limited release on Record Store Day. The LP will come out on April 20th and will feature paint splatter vinyl. The release is limited to a 1000 records and there is no word if they will be available in North America.

The Jesus & Mary Chain- Some Candy Talking

Congratulations to Japandroids, who's song "The House That Heaven Built" beat out Nickelback and Guns 'n Roses for the coveted entrance music to the Vancouver Canucks NHL hockey team home games. The people of British Columbia have good music taste.

Japandroids- The House That Heaven Built


Last but not least is another "awesome of the week"....In London this week, The Rolling Stones Ronnie Wood joined former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr for a rendition of "How Soon Is Now". Marr was being celebrated as a "God Like Genius" by NME at their annual awards show. Watch below:

Meanwhile Morrissey continues his boring feud with late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel. I'll spare you the details.

New Music: Cold Cave- Oceans With No End + Other New Music and News

This is a little bit ill timed because of the death of former member Justin Benoit, but Cold Cave has shared the title track from his new Oceans With No End EP. Life goes on......

Cold Cave front man Wesley Eisold played all of the instruments on the mini album which results in his now familiar sound of sparkling synth and distorted guitars. Listen below:

Oceans With No End will be out very, very soon via Deathwish.

Cold Cave- Oceans With No End

Yeah Yeah Yeahs seem to shooting for the stars with "Sacrilege", the epic first track taken from their upcoming new album Mosquito. The blues rock number even makes use of a gospel choir. Listen below:

Mosquito will be available April 16th via Interscope.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Sacrilege

Psychic Twin have dropped the B Side to their great new 7" inch for "Strangers". And guess what? The flip side song " Dream State" is every bit as good as the A side. Listen below:




Diplo's crazy dancehall reggae project Major Lazer have finally announced a release date for their new LP. The group recently signed to Secretly Canadian and that afforded them to finally ready the album, Free The Universe,"for an April 15th release. Listen to the first track "Watch Out for This (Bumaye)" [ft. Busy Signal, the Flexican & FS Green]




Best Coast have released a teaser for their special Record Store release single "Fear Of My Identity". RSD is on 4/20 this year so light up a spliff and enjoy:

Best Coast- Fear Of My Identity

The Academy Awards got it right when they selected "Searching For Sugar Man" for best documentary. Rodriguez is a brilliant musician with a very interesting back story. The movie is out on DVD now. Go watch it!!!

Rodriguez- Sugar Man

Toronto music festival NXNE has announced an initial list of bands playing this year's instalment which takes place June 10th to the 16th. They always get one major band to play the Saturday free showcase at Yonge/Dundas Square and this year is no exception. Following in the footsteps of Iggy & The Stooges, Devo and The Flaming Lips, The National will do the honour of playing a free gig on Saturday June 15th.

Other cool artists that have been announced so far are Iceage, Milk Music, Mikal Cronin and Merchandise. Check out the list here and look for over 600+ more acts to be added.

The National- Conversation 16

And how could I forget about David Bowie. The Thin White Duke has come out with another track, with accompanying video, from his upcoming new album The Next Day. The clip for "The Stars (Are Out Tonight),” is directed by Toronto girl Floria Sigismondi, and features a perfectly cast Tilda Swinton who's thinness and ginger hair make her the perfect choice to play Bowie not only in this video but also in a biopic of the singer. Watch below:

Five Star Songs: David Bowie- Cat People (Putting Out Fire)

Still can't believe David Bowie released a brand new song this week. If you haven't heard his comeback track, Where Are We Now, where have you been??? Check it out here.

Once I digested the news of Bowie's surprise return, I reminisced over the last 25 years of his discography and realized he hasn't made any classic albums in that time span. The LP's he has made during the late eighties, nineties and the aughts have been just so so. My two favourite recent albums by Bowie are probably the industrial tinged Earthling with the great song I'm Afraid of Americans and his last album the art rock sounding Reality.

Before that, his last great album-and probably his best selling LP- was the 1983 pop masterpiece Let's Dance. The title track was a number 1 hit in both the U.S. and the U.K. and the album also produced the smash hits Modern Love and the re-worked China Girl which was first written for Iggy Pop. Also on the album was the song Cat People (Putting Out the Fire) which was released as a single, with the production of Giorgio Moroder, a couple of years earlier and re-recorded for the album.

The song might be more familiar nowadays for being featured in Quentin Tarantino's movie Inglorious Basterds. This is probably one of the best uses of a song in a movie. The track plays while the main female protagonist in the film, Shoshanna, is preparing to burn down a theatre which will trap all of the Nazi elite, including Hitler, in the fire. Some people criticize that the song is misplaced and that a pop song from the eighties should not be in a historical drama. Besides the similar theme of the song's lyrics to this part of the film, in a roundabout way the track fits perfectly with the scene in the movie. Bowie originally recorded the goth rock influenced Cat People for the movie with the same name in 1982-which was a re-make of the 1942 classic horror movie. In just so happens that Inglorious Basterds takes place in the same time period. Anyhow... watch the original music video for the song below:

New Music: David Bowie- Where Are We Now? + Music Video

Yes, I was one of those people that thought David Bowie had retired and that we would not hear any new music from him again. Surprise!! Surprise!!! the Thin White Duke has shocked us all by not only releasing a new song but announcing a whole new album. And it's Bowie's birthday. Fitting that his new track, Where are We Now? is him taking a retrospective look back at his Berlin years. Watch the freaky lyrics video for the song below:

There is no indication that Bowie will be touring this album or even doing press, which indicates that he will remain reclusive and semi retired.

Bowie's new album, The Next Day, is out March 11th via Columbia.