[News] Mumford & Sons Detail Sophomore LP: 'Babel'

Mumford & Sons will return with their sophomore effort on September 25th, three years after the London outfit dropped their highly praised debut album Sigh No More. The album, now officially titled Babel, spans a total of twelve tracks, and was recorded over the span of a year and a half with the help of Sigh No More producer Markus Dravs. When speaking to Rolling Stone about the album, bassist Ted Dwane said "[t]he ingredients are very much the same: the four core instruments and a lack of a drummer, which can give it that strange, simple, unique sort of sound. I don’t think we were looking to be too crazy and experimental."

After the jump, you can take a look at the tracklisting for Babel, along with compiled live footage of eight of the album's ten tracks. Also included after the jump are the band's upcoming tour dates, including their planned Gentleman of the Road Stopovers, which kicks off on August 1st in Hoboken, NJ.

Babel Tracklist:
01. Babel
02. Whispers in the Dark
03. I Will Wait
04. Holland Road
05. Ghosts That We Knew
06. Lover of the Light
07. Lovers’ Eyes
08. Reminder
09. Hopeless Wanderer
10. Broken Crown
11. Below My Feet
12. Not With Haste

Mumford and Sons 2012 Tour Dates:
08/01 – Hoboken, NJ @ Pier A *
08/04 – Portland, ME @ Gentlemen of the Road Stopover
08/06 – Providence, RI @ Providence Performing Arts Center *
08/07 – Canandaigua, NY @ Marvin Sands Performing Arts *
08/09 – Portsmouth, VA @ nTelos Wireless Pavilion *
08/11 – Bristol, VA @ Gentlemen of the Road Stopover
08/13 – Louisville, KY @ Louisville Waterfront Park *
08/14 – Columbus, OH @ LC Pavilion *
08/18 – Dixon, IL @ Gentlemen of the Road Stopover
08/20 – Lincoln, NE @ Pinewood Bowl Theatre *
08/21 – Laramie, WY @ Gryphon Theatre
08/22 – Magna, UT @ The Saltair
08/25 – Monterey, CA @ Gentlemen of the Road Stopover
08/28 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Ampitheatre *
09/01 – Snowmass Village, CO @ Jazz Aspen Snowmass Festival
10/12 – Perth, AU @ Belvoir Ampitheatre
10/13 – Perth, AU @ Belvoir Ampitheatre
10/15 – Adelaide, AU @ Entertainment Centre
10/17 – Brisbane, AU @ Riverstage
10/18 – Sydney, AU @ Entertainment Centre
10/23 – Hobart, AU @ Derwent Entertainment Centre
10/25 – Melbourne, AU @ Rod Laver Arena
10/26 – Canberra, AU @ Royal Theatre
10/28 – Cairns, AU @ Kuranda Ampitheatre
10/29 – Townsville, AU @ Convention Centre
10/31 – Gold Coast, AU @ Convention Centre
11/02 – Auckland, NZ @ Vector Arena
11/04 – Welllington, NZ @ Town Hall
11/05 – Welllington, NZ @ Town Hall
11/06 – Christchurch, NZ @ CBS Arena

* = w/ Dawes

[Listen] Stream New Albums from Passion Pit and Purity Ring

NPR's First Listen series is offering up some awesome goodies to start off the week, namely full album streams for two notable July 24th releases. Streams of both Passion Pit's sophomore LP Gossamer and Purity Ring's debut album Shrines are starting the week off right.

Passion Pit's Gossamer is the long awaited follow-up to the band's standout debut LP Manners, which was released back in 2009. Their sophomore effort saw the band once again teaming up with producer Chris Zane, and the result is a fantastic 12-song album. Gossamer will be released on July 24th via Columbia Records. Stream it here.

Purity Ring have a lot more to prove than Passion Pit, though, and given the fact that they are easily one of the most hyped bands of 2012, there is a lot riding on their debut album Shrines. I have no doubt that the LP will be great, though, but head here to stream it in full and judge for yourself. Shrines drops on July 24th via 4AD.

[Watch] Sigur Rós - "Ég anda" (Official Video)

Sigur Rós continue their "Valtari Mystery Video Experiment" with another video for their track "Ég anda". Whereas the first video saw director Ragnar Kjartansson opting to show us how to save someone if they happen to start choking, Ramin Bahrani decided to show us instead how humans are affecting nature and the environment. Watch it above.

Other videos released as part of the "Valtari Mystery Video Experiment" include "Varúð", "Fjögur píanó", and "Rembihnútur".

[Listen] The xx - "Angels"

It's been a long time coming but we finally have some new studio quality material from The xx. The track is called "Angels" and is set to appear on their second album, Coexist, which has been penned for a September the 10th (11th US) release via Young Turks. The band have come a long way since their debut back in 2009 and fans are very eager to hear more from the Mercury Prize winning band. 

The single however will be released tomorrow (July 17th)! You can pre-order the album over here, and after the jump you can take a look at the tracklisting for Coexist as well as the band's upcoming North American tour dates.

Coexisit Tracklist:
01. Angels
02. Chained
03. Fiction
04. Try
05. Reunion
06. Sunset
07. Missing
08. Tides
09. Unfold
10. Swept Away
11. Our Song

The xx 2012 Tour Dates:
07/23 – Los Angeles, CA @ Fonda
07/25 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox at the Market
07/28 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix
07/29 – Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
07/31 – Boston, MA @ Wilbur Theatre
08/02 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
08/09 – Sibinek, CR @ Terraneo Festival
08/10 – Budapest, HR @ Sziget Festival
08/11 – St Pere, FR @ La Route du Rock
08/18 – St. Polten, AT @ Frequency Festival
08/19 – Biddinhuizen, NL @ Lowlands Festival
08/31 – Laois, IE @ Electric Picnic
09/07 – Isle of Wight, UK @ Bestival
10/05 – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre
10/06 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theater
10/07 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
10/10 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Pool at the Cosmopolitan
10/11 – San Diego, CA @ Soma
10/12 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
10/13 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Forever Cemetery
10/14 – San Francisco, CA @ Treasure Island Music Festival
10/16 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
10/17 – Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater
10/19 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
10/20 – Chicago, IL @ Congress Theater
10/21 – Milwaukee, WI @ Pabst Theatre
10/24 – Quebec City, Quebec @ Imperial De Quebec
10/25 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
10/28 – Bronx, NY @ Paradise Theater
10/29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
10/30 – Baltimore, MD @ Ram’s Head Live

[Watch] Jack White - "Freedom At 21" (Official Video)

Jack White has dropped his grind house looking video for "Freedom At 21" which featured on his fantastic solo record, Blunderbuss. Directed by Hype Williams, the video sees Jack racing around in a fast sports car getting run down by the cops. Right at the end of the video a certain QOTSA frontman also makes an appearance. Check out the cinematic goodness at the top of the page.

[Listen] Kendrick Lamar - "Swimming Pools (Drank)"

Kendrick Lamar offered up another taste of his forthcoming debut studio LP good kid m.A.A.d city, a sinister, dark track titled "Swimming Pools (Drank)." The song, produced by T-Minus, sees Lamar deliver rhymes about alcoholism within his family and how strong this addiction can be amongst numerous dark, gothic synths and frantic percussion. Listen to it below, along with two other good kid m.A.A.d city tracks, "Cartoons & Cereal" and the lead single "The Recipe."

good kid m.A.A.d city is out on October 2nd via Aftermath Entertainment/Interscope Records.

[Listen] Future Unlimited - "Lightweight Eyes"

Future Unlimited have a little gift "for your summer." On their official website, the Nashville synthpop duo released a  new single titled "Lightweight Eyes." The song is pure synthpop bliss, with sweeping synths drifting you along an array reverbed vocals, pulsating synthesizers, and weighty, pounding bass drums and snares. Highly recommended listen "for your summer." Grab the song for the cost of a tweet over at the band's website.

[Watch] Purity Ring - "Fineshrine" (Official Video)

Purity Ring's "Fineshrine" is a masterpiece, brilliantly paced and encapsulating your senses with driving percussion, chiming synths, and spine-tingling vocals. The video for the song was released by the duo a couple of days ago, and it contains as much depth and captivating beauty as the song itself. Watch it above.

Purity Ring's debut album Shrines is out on July 24th via 4AD.