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VM Staff Picks: Favorite Festivals, Tours, Concerts of 2016

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Festivals

Emily McBride:
1. Pickathon
2. Forecastle
3. Hangout Fest
4. FYF
5. SXSW

Jackie Citero:
1. Electric Forest
2. Hulaween
3. Hangout Fest
4. Bonnaroo
5. SXSW

Stephanie Alejandro:
1. Lollapalooza
2. Hangout Fest

Tours and Concerts

Emily McBride:

1. The Cure – North American Tour (This was such a ridiculously long-time coming for me. Highlight of my year.)
2. Jenny Lewis Rabbit Fur Coat Anniversary Tour at Beacon Theatre with M. Ward and The Watson Twins
3. Charles Bradley at Radio City Music Hall
4. Grimes at pretty much every festival ever
5. Nice As F*#k at Webster Hall

Jackie Citero:

1. The Floozies – Summer Fling, But Like In The Fall Tour
2. The String Cheese Incident – Summer Tour
3. Widespread Panic – Summer Tour

Darby McNally:
1. Beyoncé – The Formation World Tour
2. Rihanna – ANTI World Tour
3. Fifth Harmony – The 7/27 World Tour
4. The Weeknd – The Madness World Tour
5. Justin Bieber – Purpose World Tour
6. Britney Spears – Piece of Me (Vegas Residency)
7. One Direction – On the Road Again Tour
8. Drake and Future – Summer Sixteen Tour
9. Shawn Mendes – The Shawn Mendes World Tour
10. Alessia Cara – The Know-It-All Tour

Stephanie Alejandro:
1. Twenty One Pilots – Emotional Roadshow Tour

“Emotional Roadshow in Duluth was my favorite concert of 2016. I’ve seen the band eight times over the course of the last 3 ½ years though, so I may be biased…but the production was so good, and they were interactive with the crowd as always.  But what I loved most was that they had a B-stage at every show; it made the show feel a lot more intimate like old times, even though it was an arena show.”

2. Justin Bieber – Purpose Tour
3. Halsey – Badlands Tour
4. Kanye – Saint Pablo Tour
5. Adele – Adele Live Tour
6. Rihanna – ANTI World Tour
7. The 1975 -The North American Tour (I heard they had different variations of their setlist each night so that no show was the exact same, so that’s cool.)

Album Premiere: Billy The Kid & The Soulful Saints – ‘Pullin’ On My Heartstrings’

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Photo by Steve Garvin

 

New York-based vocalist/songwriter/producer Billy The Kid (Billy Aukstik) is dropping his dreamy new 7-inch, Pullin’ On My Heartstrings, available now on vinyl and digital download.

“I wrote and recorded the Heartstrings 7-inch after studying the early demos of Sly Stone and countless arrangements by Allen Toussaint and other soul legends,” says Aukstik of the track.  “Using the Maestro drum machine and an 8-track tape machine as my foundation enabled me to create simple yet honest arrangements and gives the record a very intimate feeling.  The backing band, The Soulful Saints, is an all-star squad hailing from the crews of Charles Bradley, The Shacks, Mark Ronson, and many others.”

Aukstik is the founder of indie label Dala Records and is also a member of the Daptone Records family, currently playing trumpet with Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires.

“Both ‘Pullin’ on My Heartstrings’ and ‘Love at Hello’ are inspired by the game of love and use many of my own experiences navigating that game as references,” Aukstik tells us.  “I came up with the chorus to ‘Heartstrings’ first and then continued to paint a picture around those lyrics. Even though that song begins on the darker side, I wanted to write about the journey of love and why people come back around even after the hard times. I wrote ‘Love at Hello’ from a much more idyllic perspective, speaking to that moment when you lay eyes on someone for the first time and get swept off your feet. It was largely inspired by one of my friends who met someone at a show and then became totally enamored from that point on.”

The third and final track, a smooth instrumental piece, showcases both Aukstik’s influences and production skills.

‘Hit and Run’ was not inspired by love, but by the early instrumental recordings of Allen Toussaint, specifically the song ‘Tampin’’ which features The Meters under the pseudonym of The Rhine Oaks. I went for that gritty New Orleans sound of the ’60s by writing a simple jazz-themed melody and filling out the arrangement with piano, organ, drum machine, and a big horn section. I even recorded a call to prayer from my local mosque and included it in the song’s intro, attempting to recreate those ‘sound on sound’ techniques that Toussaint and other producers of that era were known to utilize.

Listen to the exclusive premiere of Pullin’ On My Heartstrings right here.

Song Premiere: Sara Rachele: “Try Again”

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Sara Rachele’s single, ‘Try Again” is a stripped-down, heartbreakingly beautiful ballad that highlights the gorgeous purity of the young singer’s voice. Part of her forthcoming single, “Sweet Man of Mine,” out Oct. 23, the song features soft instrumentation on the acoustic guitar and layered vocals, with the main focus on the honest, unadorned lyrics and unique gritty quality of the track.

An artist who got her start working for free, cleaning out cupboards at famed acoustic hotspot, Eddie’s Attic, Rachele gained experience as a backup vocalist and keyboard player for The Love Willows. When she left the group behind, she moved to New York City and began to fill her journals with ballad after ballad and fill the coffeehouses and nightclubs of the East Village with her sweet, unique sound. Since the release of her 2014 LP, Diamond Street, Rachele has released a steady stream of singles—including “Try Again.” The singer’s folk-centric upbringing and rock & roll adventures of the city combine to form a sound that is bold, honest and uncompromisingly creative.

Vinyl Mag chatted with Rachele about her inspiration for the exclusive single, ‘Try Again,” and her plans for the future:

“Try Again” sounds like a very personal narrative. What was the inspiration behind it?

I’ve had an intense life. I grew up with a mentally ill parent, and that’s caused me to have this raw openness with folks I think. “Try Again” is about an experience I had with someone I thought I had a lot in common with, who’d had a life like mine, but who in the end didn’t want anything to do with me. Didn’t want the best for me. Didn’t care. Hated me, not for our differences, but for the similarities, I think. It’s about learning that lesson. A couple times.

What do you like about this song?

The line, “I’m a sorry old Job in a wedding gown.” That lyric kinda came down from the sky. That’s how I envision Samantha sees me—this person covered in welts, all gussied in lace. A nasty contradiction. But the truth is that she’s like that. You have to see right through it. That’s what I’m saying here. We’re all like that.

What was the writing process like for this track?

“I started with the title—’Try Again.’ I do that a lot. I just didn’t know what to do. You ever have a door slammed in your face? I sat down and wrote that song. I just thought, all right. Tell her how you feel. Let it out.”

You’ve been consistently releasing your singles accompanied by more acoustic B-sides. What made you decide to take that approach? 

I consider myself a folk writer. All my songs start out on an acoustic instrument, and some never want to be electric. So they stay folk songs.

What is next for you?

Surviving.

Video Premiere: Diana DeMuth: “Beat”

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photo by Christopher Macken

 

Boston-based Diana DeMuth is premiering her music video for “Beat,” a track off of her March 17 release, Albuquerque.  At just 21 years old, the singer-songwriter is already drawing comparisons to the the likes of Norah Jones and Jewel, and for good reason.  Her crooning voice and youthful yet insightful lyrics are refreshing and downright beautiful.  Check out her brand new video for “Beat” below!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vur_YidR52A&app=desktop

LISTEN: Guantanamo Baywatch: “Do What You Want”

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gbOur friends in Guantanamo Baywatch have released a kickass new single, “Do What You Want,” via Noisey yesterday.  Another slam dunk.  Also be sure to check out “Too Late” here!

Tour Dates:

04.08.15 – Geelong, Australia @ Barwon Club
04.09.15 – Melbourne, Australia @ The Tote
04.10.15 – Ballarat, Australia @ The Eastern
04.16.15 – Canberra, Australia @ The Phoenix
04.17.15 – Sydney, Australia @ Oxford Art Factory
04.18.15 – Wollongong, Australia @ Rad Bar

05.01.15 – Eugene, OR @ KWVA Birthday Show at WOW Hall

06.17.15 – Ottawa, ON @ Ottawa Explosion
06.24 – 28 – Calgary, AB @ Sled Island

07.04.15 – Oakland, CA @ Burger Boogaloo

SXSW 2015 Tour Diary: North of Nine

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LA-based quintet North of Nine just released their debut (Randy Jackson-produced) EP Alive last month to rave reviews.  The band is made up of of 19-year-old singer/songwriter/frontman/keyboardist Jackson Guthy, as well as drummer Rob Ketchum, guitarist Michael O’Grady, bassist Edison Lo, and keyboardist Nolan Frank.

With their South by Southwest debut this year, we asked North of Nine to document their week in Austin in a tour diary so that we could share their first-time experience with all of you.  Check out their diary below (after you take a look at their newest video for “Can It Be You?” right here).

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Walking Around Austin
Rob leading us around Austin – was such a blast, so much good food and music.

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SXSW 2015 Tour Diary: Tribe Society

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NY-based five-piece Tribe Society survived the beast that is South by Southwest, and they have mixed feelings about it.  We asked them to document their journey for us, and they delivered.  We’ve got sword fights, a pic from their biggest show, and one sad flute player.  Check out their tour diary below.

Tribe Society also just dropped their debut mixtape, Delirium Sonata. Give it a listen.

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SXSW is an amazing yet horrible experience. On our first day out, we quickly found what makes SXSW incredible; anybody who has a passion for music can just set up on the street and rock the fuck out. Kinda like this dude making beats on tiny blown computer speakers that you can barely hear. His grooves were nasty but he might of been a little shy cause he was hiding quite a few streets away from 6th ave. Luckily our bass player, Rory found him and gave him two horns up.

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