Incoming>>Cold War Kids - "Miracle Mile"

Long Beach inhabitants Cold War Kids, today revealed their first glimpse into their fourth studio album, Dear Miss Lonely Hearts, with the lead track "Miracle Mile"

It is the quartet's first new release, since 2011's Mine Is Yours, and sees former Modest Mouse guitarist Dann Gallucci joining the band, replacing founder member Jonnie Russell, who left in 2012. Singer Nathan Willett said of the album: "We were shaken up, ready to let certain songs go further than before by trying new styles and arrangements, while keeping others sparse and caring more about the finished product and less about how we got there." 

"Miracle Mile" will be released on March 25.

Reviews>> Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania (EMI/Martha's Music)

In the five years that have passed since The Smashing Pumpkins’ last studio album, Zeitgeist, was released, there have been numerous line-up changes. Most obvious of course, being the departure of original drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, who was replaced by 22-year-old Mike Byrne, a long-time Pumpkins fan. Unlike on Zeitgeist, rhythm guitar and bass duties weren’t supplied by band leader Billy Corgan, but by Jeff Schroeder, who’s a somewhat veteran in the band, having been there since live shows in 2007, and Nicole Fiorentino, formerly of Spinerette and Veruca Salt fame, respectively. This therefore makes Oceania the first full band release for the Pumpkins, since 1995’s colossal double album, Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness, which incidentally, Corgan had claimed that Oceania would be their finest effort since then.

Over their long career, the Pumpkins have always fused together an amalgam of different genres and this release is no different, taking a trip through different stages of their career, from arena rock to prog to dream pop and electronica. It isn’t a completely new sound for the Pumpkins, a couple of songs could be found at home on earlier releases, but it is an attempt to make its own mark in the Pumpkins vault, rather than rehashing past glories.  

Opener “Quasar” hits you early on, with its pounding drums and soaring arena-ready guitars, whilst the ensuing “Panopticon” continues where its predecessor left off. The new wave “Pinwheels” could well be the “1979” of the album, a beautiful dreamlike composition comprised of floaty guitars and atmospheric-synths. The title track is the Pumpkins at their grandest and most ambitious; an epic, evolving nine-minute journey through dreamy space rock, progressive rock, acoustic balladry and funky basslines.  Ballads “My Love is Winter” and “Violet Rays” are melodically beautiful, whilst “The Chimera” and “Inkless” revisit the early Pumpkins, with their fuzzy, heavy progressive riffs. “Pale Horse” is a futuristic space rock odyssey.  It does tail off towards the end with “Wildflower,” but with listening to the album all the way through, it is worth enduring.  

Overall, it’s a great return from The Smashing Pumpkins, but it’s also a great prologue for them to continue off on their next release.

8/10 

Incoming>>JEFF The Brotherhood - "Sixpack"

Tennessee's brotherly duo, JEFF The Brotherhood, have enlisted the help of The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach for their upcoming EP, Hypnotic Knights. The first track to be taken from it, "Sixpack", is a chilled-out departure from their usual wild, prog-punk rock; it's a Pinkerton-esque fuzzy guitar ode to getting hammered. Hypnotic Knights will be released on May 22.

Incoming>>Fang Island - "Asunder"

Brooklyn-based indie trio Fang Island have unveiled the first track to be taken from their sophomore album, Major, due out July 24 via Sargent House.  It continues from where they left off on their eponymous debut album in 2010, with more energetic power-pop metal riffs which come with accompanying headbanging and handclaps. They have previously described their sound as "everyone high-fiving everyone".

Reviews>>Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods (Dangerbird)

After the mass success of their sophomore album Swoon in 2009, which reached number 7 on the Billboard 200 chart, you wouldn’t be surprised if Silversun Pickups decided to stick with what they already had on their new release, Neck of the Woods. However, that couldn’t be more opposite of this album’s intention. Enlisting the help of U2 and R.E.M. producer Jacknife Lee, Silversun Pickups go for a louder and bolder sound on their third LP, which sees them dropping the distortion and fuzz-Pumpkin riffs, progressing onto a darker and brooding atmosphere, which frontman Brian Aubert previously described as sounding “like a horror movie.”

Lead off single “Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)” may carry the name of a teenage horror movie urban legend, but its melodic synths and cinematic dream pop gives it that scary and unsettling feel, whilst the industrial “Make Believe” shows a different side to their sound. “Here We Are (Chancer)” carries Aubert’s mysterious, ghostly vocals over a mellow drum-machine beat. “Simmer“ is the album’s seven minute prog epic, “The Pit” has 80s synth-pop in the style of Depeche Mode and haunting basslines from Nikki Monninger, “Gun Shy Sunshine” generates jangly riffs and reverb, whilst “Busy Bees” is Ok Computer territory Radiohead. The gothic “Mean Spirits” is their most Pumpkin-esque track on the album, an amalgam of arena-heavy wall of sound guitars and powerful drumming courtesy of Christopher Guanlao. Final track “Out of Breath” is pretty much usual Pickups territory with its driving atmospheric guitars and robotic drum work.

If Silversun Pickups have long been compared to 90s alt-rock legends My Bloody Valentine and Smashing Pumpkins, then Neck of the Woods shows that they have moved into a new direction, following M83 into incorporating electronica into their sound. It is a beautiful flow of trancelike electronica, that shows the quartet are unafraid of trying something new with their sound and are able to tackle a variety of styles successfully.

8/10

Incoming>>The Gaslight Anthem - "45"

The Gaslight Anthem return with “45″, the first insight into their forthcoming fourth album, Handwritten, which is due out on July 24 via Mercury Records. The track, which got its first play worldwide on Zane Lowe’s Radio One show at 19.30, sees a return to the energetic punk Americana of their second album, The ’59 Sound. 

Handwritten was produced in Nashville, Tennessee with Brendan O’Brien, whose previous credits include Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Aerosmith, Neil Young and Red Hot Chili Peppers. You can definitely get a feel of stadium rock-style anthems that will no doubt dominate Handwritten, through “45″.

Incoming>>Silversun Pickups - Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)

Los Angeles' Alternative rockers, Silversun Pickups, return with "Bloody Mary", the first song to be released from their third album, Neck of the Woods. It continues their usual 90s-style floaty, dream pop sounds, but also sees the inclusion of synths and reverb.

Neck of the Woods will be released May, 8 on Dangerbird Records.

Incoming>>Titus Andronicus - Upon Viewing Oregon's Landscape with the Flood of Detritus

Patrick Stickles from New Jersey band, Titus Andronicus, debuted a new song on a Jersey City radio station last night.

Going by the name, "Upon Viewing Oregon's Landscape With The Flood of Detritus", it is a first glimpse into new material prior to the release of the band's third album, due around November.

The rockabilly number continues from where they left off on last album, The Monitor, a drunken gibberish of words, mixed with two repetitive fist-pump chants, "built to last" and "thrown away", and a melodic lo-fi guitar sound, that sounds like it was recorded back in an old-timey saloon.

You can check it out here at 2:37:00 http://www.wfmu.org/flashplayer.php?version=2&show=44104&archive=76138.

Features//A-Z of 2012

A is for Azealia Banks//The Harlem rapper topped the NME’s “cool list” for 2011 and is on the BBC’s “Sound of 2012” poll, she’s still unsigned but it won’t be long till she’s signed up. A real buzz artist for 2012.
B is for Bestival//It keeps on getting better and better. In 2011 they had The Cure and Bjork, so if they can improve on that, then it will be incredible.
C is for CDs//A scary internet rumour suggested that CDs could soon be discontinued by major labels. It has been rubbished in reports, but unless they start selling, they could join cassette tapes in being lost forever.
D is for Dry the River//As the “new folk” bandwagon continues to grow, Dry the River are the latest band to sign to a major label. After hyped sets at The Great Escape and Reading and Leeds, they will no doubt be regulars on the festival circuit this coming summer.
E is for Emeli Sande//The Scottish soul singer is tipped to have a big year in 2012. She has already written for the likes of Tinie Tempah, Cheryl Cole, Leona Lewis and Susan Boyle and has been voted as the “Critics’ Choice” for the 2012 Brit Awards.
F is for Friends//Not an ode to the TV sitcom, these New Yorkers have been described as the “new Warpaint.” A more poppier affair than Warpaint’s shoegaze style, they have used R’NB influences to harness their sound.
G is for Greg Dulli//The Twilight Singers man returns to his day job in 2012, as The Afghan Whigs play their first shows in 13 years at ATP concerts in London and New Jersey. Their excellent soul-influenced rock produced classic albums such as Gentlemen and Black Love in the nineties, so make sure you don’t miss this.
H is for Howler//Poster boys for the NME in 2012 no doubt, the Minneapolis quintet have been compared to a hybrid of The Strokes, The Drums and The Vaccines. Their debut album America Give Up is released this month.
I is for Isle of Wight//With no Glasto in 2012, IOW are clearly keen to fill in for them, taking their weekend spot and also by booking Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and Pearl Jam in as headliners, they have surely already produced the best UK headliners of any festival this year.
J is for Justice//They make their big return in 2012 and have already been booked for some European festivals, so expect to see them on the UK festival circuit.
K is for Killers//The Las Vegas band also return with a new album in tow in 2012. Except more synth anthems and indie dancefloor fillers.
L is for Lana Del Rey//The biggest star of the last few months of 2011, Elizabeth Grant will be even bigger in 2012. After the success of “Video Games”, debut album Born to Die, released at the end of January, will be one of the biggest and hotly-anticipated releases of the year. So unless you unplug your internet for a whole year, it will be hard to avoid her. That may still not be enough though.
M is for Maccabees//They look set to release the so-called ‘album of their careers’ on 9 January. They have taken their inspiration from the likes of The Stone Roses, Kate Bush and David Bowie on this album, and it sounds like a big change from the jangly indie pop of previous work.
N is for No Doubt//Set to return after a 10 year absence in 2012, the Orange County band will release a as yet untitled new album and are heavily rumoured to be at Coachella festival.
O is for Oceania//Billy Corgan has been calling Oceania, Smashing Pumpkins’ “best release for 16 years.” Following the positive reactions to new songs on their recent autumn tour, it’s fair to say that this could indeed be the real deal. There is definitely a big hole for a huge rock band to release a quality album at the moment, so hopefully the Chicago band will be the ones to do it.
P is for Phoenix Festival//Living up to its name and rising from the ashes, the Phoenix Festival will be returning in 2012 after it had disbanded in 1998. There is certainly a hole in the UK for a major alternative music festival, so fingers crossed it can deliver.
Q is for Queen//If you will believe rumours circulating around the internet, then Brian May and Roger Taylor are set to tour with Queen this year. American Idol singer Adam Lambert is rumoured to be the singer for this tour.
R is for Reunions//Has their been a better year for reunions than 2012? Stone Roses and Black Sabbath top the list of excited music fans’ list.
S is for Spector//Bespectacled indie five piece have been compared to The Killers and The Strokes and are on the BBC’s “sound of 2012” poll. Expect them at loads of festivals this year.
T is for Tribes//The Camden quartet release their debut album Baby in January. Hotly tipped at the start of 2011, this year should see them on an even higher pedestal.
U is for Universal//After buying EMI, the label will be even bigger in 2012, so except a dominance from them and their artists in coming years.
V is for Van Halen//The Hard Rock legends are returning with a new album and a new world tour. Rumoured for Sonisphere festival too.
W is for Wolf//Tyler, the creator was one of the biggest names in music and most out-spoken people in 2011 and his 2012 album, Wolf, should see him continue to make headlines for the right, and probably wrong, reasons again.
X is for XX//They seemed to have disappeared after their Mercury Award-winning self-titled debut in 2009, but the London band are back in 2012. Their second release will be highly anticipated and expected to follow on from their critically-acclaimed debut. No pressure then!
Y is for Y-Not//The Derbyshire festival continues to grow, being named “best grassroots festival” and “best festival toilets” in 2011. Of course if you’ve ever been to a festival, then you’d appreciate how important the latter award is.
Z is for ZZ Top//The veterans are back, with another album on the way in 2012, the first release in nine years. They are sure to also claim their “best beards in music” title back too.

Seen It>>The Great Escape Festival//12-14 May (Various - Brighton)

No, not a homage to the classic Steve MacQueen movie, The Great Escape is, to quote themselves, "Europe's leading festival for new music". Quintessentially, the British answer to Austin's SXSW festival, it is the perfect way to start the ever-earlier festival season.

In case you've been living on the moon or in a cave for the past five years, then you would've heard about the festival, as it is the best place to catch the up-and-coming stars of the future. Chances are, your favourite artists of the past five years have played here, with Hall of Famers including Vampire Weekend, Kasabian, Ellie Goulding, Klaxons and current lady-of-the-moment Adele. Whilst it is a festival for discovering new bands, you can also catch artists who have broken through, with Friendly Fires, Sufjan Stevens, Katy B, Example and Warpaint, just a few names who played over the weekend.

Thursday's discoveries were:
Dry the River (Above Audio) - The five piece from London, brought their folk-infused indie rock, which also embraces Americana and gospel sounds. Their energetic and euphoric set was watched by a full crowd in the venue, and they left as one of the bands of the weekend.
The Smokin' Barrels (Komedia Downstairs) - The Geordie trio, heavily influenced by the Mod and Britpop eras. Their sound borrows heavily from their influences. They even had time to cover The Who's "My Generation" too. Ooh, get them.
In-Flight Safety (Jam) - Part of the Canadian invasion to hit Brighton, the Halifax, Nova Scotia quintet played melodic indie anthems to dramatic sounds. Like a cross between the synths and vocals of The Killers and the alternative sounds of Death Cab for Cutie, it won't be long till they're big.
Fight Like Apes (Coalition) - The Irish quartet from Dublin, brought their synth-electro punk anthems to the festival, giving a thrashing performance to supplement their attitude-fuelled songs.
Brasstronaut (Komedia Studio) - The Canadian quintet from Vancouver compress jazz, indie rock and electro, to harness their own impressive sound. Similar to compatriots Arcade Fire, their multi-instrumentals combining together really shouldn't work, but it does and to fantastic achievement, creating an original and highly enjoyable sound.

Friday's discoveries were:
Trails (Komedia Downstairs) - The quartet from Guildford tore apart the venue, with their impressive and raucous live shows. Their heavyweight riffs where supplemented by a collison of relentless energy and melodic vocals. With a summer EP due to be produced by James Kenosha, responsible for Pulled Apart By Horses and Dinosaur Pile-Up, they will soon by joining them as live favourites.
Brother & Bones (Komedia Downstairs)- The five piece managed to upstage Trails, with the bluesy-western folk and loud racket threatening to tear apart the venue. Quite how combining blues guitar solos and bongo drums works is suprising, but it does to great effect.
Gallops (Prince Albert)- Jagged guitars and electronics combine to produce dancefloor anthems, that more than make up for the lack of vocals from this North Wales quartet.
Funeral Suits (Hector's House)- Multi-instrumental Irish alternative band, combining guitars, with synths and keyboards. Their sound incorporates distorted guitars, art rock, electronica and harminous pop. Not bad for a band looking of a combined age of about 16.
Tripwires (Hector's House)- With influences including Sonic Youth and The Smashing Pumpkins, the Reading quartet are intent on bringing back the 90s grunge/alternative sound of the latter. With floppy hair and flannel shirts, it's as if Kurt Cobain has never been away! Their energetic live show includes distorted guitars and compulsory accompanying headbanging from the crowd.
Dinosaur Pile-Up (Jam)- The Leeds trio further enhanced their growing live reputation, with another incredible set that threaten to erupt the venue. A surging mosh that nearly broke the barrier, resulted in the band asking crowd members to join on stage, resulting in some poorly attempts at singing along with anthem "Traynor" and some terrible stagediving. The best band of the weekend, showing the newcomers how to do it.

That concludes the first two days of The Great Escape festival. Sadly, being unable to attend on Saturday, meant missing out on some quality bands, the beach and arcade games. Damn!