Massachusetts post-rock band Caspian have been picking up steam this year. With a fall tour on the horizon, opening for Minus The Bear and Cursive, they’re sure to be making a strong impact across the country to a vast audience of potential new fans. Now Spin magazine is saying that their new album Waking Season is “the best post-rock album of 2012,” which is certainly high praise. You can listen to it streaming here on their website. The album will be released next week, Tuesday, September 25th on Triple Crown Records.

More Like This:

• Metal Monday: Last Night On Earth
• Album Review: Minus The Bear – “Infinity Overhead”

Infinity Overhead, the fifth LP from Seattle-based indie math-rock band Minus The Bear might be the group’s most mature and eclectic record yet.

Right away, the first sound you hear as track 1, “Steal And Blood,” starts is distorted guitar. Much to the dismay of those who may be yearning for some more Omni-ous synth power, that first sound proudly marks the return of the guitar as MTB’s primary instrumental focus and sets the tone for the rest of the album. However, that doesn’t mean the record is completely void of synths and electronic effects (Oh don’t you worry, there are plenty of those). In fact, the mixture of tones on Infinity Overhead is more eclectic yet balanced as a whole than ever before. It’s clear that over the past decade, the guys in Minus The Bear have truly mastered dynamics and flow within an album. This new product seems to be an accumulation of everything they have learned in that time. The sound is still unequivocally “them,” but in a way that is re-inspired and more “mature.” Continue reading ‘Album Review: Minus The Bear – “Infinity Overhead”’

The reveal of the Coachella music festival lineup rocked the Internet early last week. As has been the case in years past, a few narratives have emerged from the announcement; which indie darlings would be in attendance, the bands (and this year, DJs) representing whatever flavor of the moment genre that was blowing up the year prior, the handful of rappers mixed in with all of the rockers and, of course, the band reunions. Last year saw the return of noise pop rockers Death From Above 1979, 2010 had the likes of Faith No More and Pavement taking the stage and other heavies like Rage Against The Machine and The Pixies have also come together at the Indio, CA based music festival.

But this year’s big reunions had something special in store for punk fans. The first hints that something special was afoot came from the Twitter of post-hardcore four piece At The Drive-In. On January 9th, the group tweeted that they would be “will be breaking their eleven year silence” and visitors to the group’s band page were greeted with the same message before the Coachella announcement confirmed ATDI’s reunion.

This news might be enough for most post-hardcore enthuiasts, but there was one more bit of news featured prominently in Coachella’s lineup that didn’t receive the same social media fanfare. Sandwiched between the likes of Swedish House Mafia, Arctic Monkeys and fellow reunitees Pulp were none other than ’90s hardcore outfit Refused. The incendiary group broke up right after the release of their seminal album The Shape of Punk to Come and have remained inactive as a group until now.

While word of these two reunions is not completely unheralded, Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, both members of At The Drive-In and prog outfit The Mars Volta, have been hinting at a possible reunion since 2009 and Refused reunion rumors have been swirling since the deluxe reissue of The Shape of Punk to Come in March of 2010. However, to have both reunions announced on the same day was enough to make the punk blogosphere explode.

So, yeah, even though punk is dead it doesn’t change that it is having a big moment in early 2012. Bands like The Promise Ring, Gatsby’s American Dream, The Receiving End of Sirens and Cursive are either preparing for releases, touring or hinting at some combination of the two for 2012.

Very little is known about what ATDI and Refused have in store after Coachella. American tour dates haven’t been established (though if you’re itching to see Refused and you’re in Belgium or Germany, then you’re in luck) and future releases (if there will be any from either group) haven’t been announced yet. All that is know for now is that At The Drive-In’s station is now operational and that Refused aren’t dead anymore.

The Good

Kanye provides pithy content for New Yorker cartoons

We’ve entered the New Yorker cartoon caption contest just under a bazillion times, and have never won. Then Kanye West joins Twitter, says something trite, and all of a sudden his inane observations are New Yorker captions. Rage! OK, in all of our defenses, it’s not real. Comedy writers Paul Sabourin and Josh Cagen have taken West’s tweets and turned them into ersatz New Yorker cartoons. It’s funny stuff. Follow @KanyeWest for fresh tweets, check out BuzzFeed to see them put to art, and chat about them with the hashtag #kanyenewyorkertweets.

Alicia Keys and producer Swizz Beatz get married

This is good news for everyone, except maybe Swizz Beatz’s ex wife Mashonda? Dunno, seems like it might bum her out a little, seeing as how the couple had a two-year affair on the sly while he was still married to her. OK, now we’re starting to sound judgmental. We’re happy for them, really, but mostly because of the whole “Keys and Beatz” thing. Make beautiful music together, guys! We’ll stop now.

The Bad

will.i.am not thrilled about Michael Jackson’s new album

When Michael Jackson’s posthumous album of unreleased material drops by the end of 2010, there will be one person who doesn’t immediately go stand in line at Best Buy or start downloading—Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am. The producer/MC collaborated with Jackson on the 2008 rerelease of Thriller, and discovered that the King of Pop was very particular about his music. “I don’t think that should ever come out. That’s bad,” he said, “He was a perfectionist and he wouldn’t have wanted it that way. How you gonna release Michael Jackson when Michael Jackson ain’t here to bless it?” The Black Eyed Pea went on to call the album project “disrespectful” and Jackson’s avid fans “parasites.” He seems displeased.

The Ugly

Aretha Franklin breaks two ribs

The iconic soul singer was scheduled to perform two concerts in Brooklyn, but had to cancel after falling at her home and breaking two ribs. This is the part where we don’t make a joke about that.

Get better soon, A-Frank!

Miscellany

Nicki Minaj announces debut album
M.I.A.’s “XXXO” video preview = WTF
Katy Perry gets uncovered for the cover of Rolling Stone
Nominees announced for VMAs
J-Lo and Steven Tyler to host American Idol?
Weird Al Yankovic to co-headline Fun Fun Fun Fest with Dirty Projectors and Devo
Kings of Leon announce fifth album, Come Sundown
Cursive’s Tim Kasher releases The Game of Monogamy

Home of: Saddle Creek Records, Fred Astaire, Marlon Brando, Azure Ray, Bright Eyes, Tilly and the Wall, Smashmouth, The Faint, 311, Cursive

Fun Facts: State flower; goldenrod, state song; “Beautiful Nebraska,” state beverage; milk

The Venues:

While you may not think of Omaha, Nebraska when you think of jazz and R&B, the city actually has quite the history. Home to Wynonie Harris, Preston Love and Buddy Miles, the city was a regular stop for many Kansas City jazz musicians. For the past 6 years, Omaha has celebrated its musical heritage with the Omaha Blues, Jazz & Gospel Festival. This year’s festival included Everette Harp, Kelly Hunt and Little Brian and the Zydeco Travelers.

The biggest new development in indie rock in Omaha is Slowdown, a new all ages venue owned by Robb Nansel and Jason Kulbel, the duo behind Saddle Creek Records. Opened in 2007, Slowdown is part of a building complex (also owned by Nansel and Kulbel) that houses Saddle Creek Records, a coffee shop, retail stores (including an Urban Outfitters) and a movie theater. The venue was named after Omaha band Slowdown Virginia, which later went on to become the much loved indie band Cursive.

The Music:

The Beat Seakers – The broad appeal of The Beat Seekers straight up powerpop will have both teenagers and parents tapping their feet. The rock radio nostalgia track “Dead Air Radio” sounds like it could be an outtake from an early Sugarcult album. If you like what you hear, the band is offering their full-length Dead Air Radio for free here.

Lucas Hitch – Growing up in a musical family, pop singer-songwriter Lucas Hitch started playing shows when he was ten year old. In the last ten years, he has played 1500 concerts to over a half a million people. This August, Lucas released his first full-length album Fade. Because of his musical background, Lucas played almost all of the instruments on the album. Check out standout track “Wander On.”

Bombs Blast- The Bombs Blast press kit describes the band’s music as “Spit in your face Punk Rock,” and it’s obvious from the first chords of “Treachery” that they mean business. The band has been spreading the punk gospel, playing shows everywhere from backyards to dive bars for the past two years.

Check out these acts and other great Nebraskan artists in the playlist below! Who are your favorite OurStage Nebraskans? Where do you like to see live music in Nebraska? Let us know in the comments!

Dead Air Radio

by:

The Beat Seekers

Wander On

by:

Lucas Hitch

Treachery

by:

Bombs Blast

Told You So

by:

Gorrilla Warfare

Walk Away

by:

Caplocks Friday