[Review] FIDLAR: "Too"
The L.A. dwelling skate punks of FIDLAR are known for their bad habits and goofy lyrics, but they’ve added raw emotion to the mix with their newest release. Their sophomore album, Too, shows more depth, sentiment and humility than anything the band have put out. I mean, it’s hard to think much of a band whose name is an acronym for “Fuck It, Dog, Life’s a Risk.” But, the explanation of their antics works tenfold with this coming-of-age album. The powerhouse, garage ruffians take fans on a thrashy journey through the group’s (or select members) diary of sobriety and high speed travels from being the local, opening band to headlining their own tour. The age old story of young musicians trying to get a grip on their fast paced lives is something bands pass over when they’re in the thick of it, but FIDLAR make the notion apparent; and they’re cool with the struggle.
Starting the record off on a high note with their single “40 oz. On Repeat,” which brings adolescent anxiety and partying at the forefront of the band’s persona, it’s a familiar track to add to the catalog of songs of the same nature. Brash and booming guitar notes coupled with singer Zac Carper’s raspy voice, the setup for the rest of the record is showcased as the second track, “Punks,” trails off the single. The song “West Coast,” an apparent bittersweet ode to their California roots, adds an indie flair to the record. The lyrics, “and all my friends they just stay the same/I’m growing up, but nothing’s changing” bring in the personal struggle as the group grow up into their own as musicians.
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The best track, “Sober,” sounds like a reference to The Suicidal Tendencies “Institutionalized” with it’s speedy intro of banter. The song is noisy, heavy and full of rebellion classic to FIDLAR. The lyrics “I figured out as I got sober that life just sucks when you get older” becomes flipped back and forth throughout the track.
The record ends on a high note (noticing a pattern here?) with “Bad Habits” bringing the story to a close with a youthful attitude towards adolescence. The lyrics “I’m getting older and I’m freaking out because I got nothing to show and I’m still fucking broke, but I got bad habits/They’re my bad habits” explains the songwriter’s struggle with addiction. Just as you think the group are getting sentimental, the group make light of things by Carper comparing himself to his dad.
One thing holds true to the young punks in FIDLAR aside from the cycle of getting high and getting sober and that’s that there isn’t anything better than punk rock. The record is a definitely a choice pick for fans of Wavves, METZ, Best Coast, Desaparecidos and Black Lips. Gathering praise from practically every music blog in the scene to kudos from Rolling Stone and Time, it’s a wonderful thing to know that punks will be punks and the dudes in FIDLAR don’t look like they’re going to sell out (yet).
[Video Playlist of the Week] Girl Power
The first quarter of the year is coming to a close and the women of the music industry have been slaying the competition. With new releases from some of your favorite artists and some artists you should know, this week’s playlist is packed full of the latest jams. Girl power!
- Madonna - Living For Love
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The queen of pop has been doing massive PR work for her new album Rebel Heart. Just this week she wrapped up “Madonna Week” on Ellen and just released tickets for her upcoming tour (35 cities in the U.S.). While her album may have dropped this week, it’s worth the listen for fans to hear the queen of pop coming back to the top.
- Ellie Goulding - Love Me Like You Do
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Ellie Goulding gained some major publicity for this song, which appeared on the 50 Shades Of Grey soundtrack. While the movie was a total flop amongst critics, the song went straight to #1 in most countries and snagged the #3 spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
- Phoebe Ryan - Ignition / Do You… (R.Kelly / Miguel Cover)
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Browsing through Spotify’s “Top Hits” playlist, I discovered Phoebe Ryan’s mashup of R.Kelly’s “Ignition” and Miguel’s “Do You…” which is adorable (if you can call a song adorable) as well as catchy. While she doesn’t have many other songs yet, I’m guessing she’ll be in the “Top Hits” playlist with another song soon.
- Charli XCX - Famous
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Charli XCX just released her music video for “Famous” this week, which is directed by Eric Wareheim of Tim And Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! As a Tim & Eric fan myself, I was pretty pleased with the outcome. The video and song are “#LMFAO tite.”
- Marina And The Diamonds - Forget
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Marina And The Diamonds recently released her third album, FROOT, which has many critics fawning over her matured sound. A definite spring tune.
- Matt And Kim - Can You Blame Me
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Matt And Kim are about to drop their fifth studio album, New Glow, on April 7, 2015, but their newest single “Can You Blame Me” is already out for your listening pleasure. Perk: in this version of the song (Kim version), you can put your device (mobile, tablet, iPad) up to your face so it’s like Kim is singing through you.
- Florence + The Machine - St. Jude
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The English songstress has released her first single this week from her upcoming album, How Big How Blue How Beautiful, which will be released June 1, 2015.
- Best Coast - Heaven Sent
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FINALLY, Best Coast are putting together their new album, which is going to be released May 5, 2015. Thus far, if “Heaven Sent” and “California Nights” are indicators of how the album will sound, fans should get pumped (even Bill Murray is a fan). It seems Bethany Cosentino has been hard at work at something other than trying to get Drake to become her BFF.
- Oh Honey - Sugar, You
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The two New York singers came together a couple of years ago to create Oh Honey, an alternative-pop band with acoustic flare. Their newest EP, Wish You Were Here, dropped this week via Fueled By Ramen. The band is still under the radar, but have been featured on Glee, Red Band Society and various commercials.
- Courtney Barnett - Pedestrian At Best
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This Aussie has been getting quite the hype lately with the release of her debut album this week, Sometimes I Think And Sit And Sometimes I Just Sit, which is exceptional.
[Video] Best Coast: "This Lonely Morning"
Sunny Indie-rock pop duo Best Coast, revealed the lyric video they made with comedy video website, Funny Or Die, for "This Lonely Morning," a song off of their latest album Fade Away. The video shows bandmates Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno dueling it out on the tennis court, with lyrics written in sharpie on tennis balls and sweet air tennis racket guitar solos.
Fade Away received high praise from critics and fans, said to be their best work to date, and was named one of Rolling Stone's top albums of 2o13. Best Coast is in the studio working on their next record with producer Butch Walker, and will be showing off some new tunes while on tour with The Pixies in February.
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Tour Dates with The Pixies
2/21/14 - Fox Theater - Oakland, CA
2/22/14 - San Jose Civic Auditorium - San Jose, CA
2/23/14 - The Joint - Las Vegas, NV
2/24/14 - Kiva Auditorium - Albuquerque, NM
2/27/14 - Bayou Music Center - Houston, TX
2/18/14 - South Side Ballroom - Dallas, TX
3/01/14 - Austin Music Hall - Austin, TX
[Video] Best Coast: "I Don't Know How"
Last week we posted the new album from Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno, Fade Away, which has been getting solid reviews as it seeps into listener's collective consciousness and moves around the blogosphere. Today the pair drop the video for their song "I Don't Know How" off of the project. Check it out here below.
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[Album] Best Coast: "Fade Away"
California soul rockers Best Coast are back with their latest release, Fade Away, which hit Soundcloud today as a full album stream. The seemingly always happy duo of Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno keep the upbeat pace on their latest release. Earlier this Fall they put out the lead single from the project,"I Don't Know How". Check out the full album, available below here:
Best Coast: "I Don't Know How"
California indie rock duo Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno are back with a new track, "I Don't Know How" debuted on NPR. The single is a preview of their forthcoming mini-album, Fade Away, due out October 22. The pair have already released two other tracks from the project, "Who Have I Become" and "Fear of My Identity" as the release date nears. For now, check out the song below and hit the links above for the previous releases.
http://youtu.be/3-c8WOprJjE
Best Coast to Release Mini-Album "Fade Away"
Best Coast, the sunny surfer-pop duo out of Los Angeles, CA, is due to release their new mini-album Fade Away on Oct. 22 via Jewel City label. Singer Bethany Cosentino has been keeping busy with partner and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno since the release of their 2011 freshman album Crazy For You. Since then the duo has been touring the world playing shows with personal idols like Green Day, No Doubt, and Iggy Pop.
The new record is faster-paced and energetic, inspired by artists such as Patsy Cline, My Bloody Valentine, and Ambien. "Everything in this band has worked out so organically that sometimes it scares me that something bad is going to happen... I made some songs, I put them up on the internet, and here I am. I feel like the luckiest person in the world..."