[News] Deerhunter Announces New Album, 'Monomania'

Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox spoke to Rolling Stone last month, confirming that the band was working on a new album. The follow-up to 2010's excellent Halcyon Digest now has an official title, Monomania, and a firm release date, May 7th, and is the result of lengthy recording sessions at Rare Book Room Studio in Brooklyn. The band "stockpiled upward of 250 potential songs for the new disc" but have wittled that down to twelve, which Cox describes as "a very avant-garde rock & roll record".

We've yet to hear anything from the new record but the band seems confident, citing The Ramones, Ricky Nelson, Pierre Schaeffer, Steve Reich, and Bo Diddley as major influences. For now, all we can mull over is the tracklist for Monomania, which you can check out below.

Monomania Tracklist:
01. Neon Junkyard
02. Leather Jacket II
03. The Missing
04. Pensacola
05. Dream Captain
06. Blue Agent
07. T.H.M.
08. Sleepwalking
09. Back To The Middle
10. Monomania
11. Nitebike
12. Punk (La Vie Antérieure)

[News] Record Store Day 2013 Reveals Full List of Releases

Record Store Day 2013 is nearly upon us, with less than a month until the vinyl-loving celebration commences. This year's crop already looks fantastic, with rarities, reissues and unreleased material from the likes of The White Stripes, The Flaming Lips, The Black Keys, MGMT, Tame Impala, At the Drive-In, Deftones, Ryan Adams, Dan Deacon, The Hold Steady, Built to Spill, Stephen Malkmus, and more. There's even a little treat for fans of South Park, with a 7" vinyl of "San Diego" / "Gay Fish" making the list. As for the rest of the releases, take a look at a few notable names below or head to the Record Store Day website for the full list.

- The Black Lips/Icky Blossoms
- Bob Dylan
- Brian Eno, Grizzly Bear, and Nicolas Jaar
- Daniel Johnston
- David Bowie
- Gil Scott Heron and Brian Jackson
- Grizzly Bear
- GZA
- Jamie xx
- John Coltrane
- The Notorious B.I.G.
- Phoenix
- Portugal. the Man
- Rhye
- The Rolling Stones
- Sigur Rós

Record Store Day 2013 takes place on April 20th.

[Watch] Sigur Rós - "Brennisteinn" (Official Video)

I have a seriously hard time believing of all the things you can do in 7 minutes and 40 seconds today that this will not be by far the best use of your time. From their just recently announced forthcoming album, Kveikur, we have the video for their first single from the record, "Brennisteinn". I have to admit, over the past few years my love for Sigur Ros had begun to mellow out quite a bit. I happily bought their albums and put them on from time to time, but if this song is an accurate indication of what's to come for this new album, I believe I just fell madly in love with them all over again. As you can see and hear from the video above, "Brennisteinn" is a much darker, more aggressive approach than what the band has done in the past, and they did it with such balance and poise that you're a little taken back for a second and then immediately so drawn to it that you keep asking yourself throughout the rest of the song why this hadn't already existed before. 

The countdown to June 17th (18th in the US) when Kveikur officially drops has begun. I need more of this and I need more of this NOW. 

[Watch] Cancer Bats - "Sonic Mind Assault"

Cancer Bats' Dead Set On Living got so much play from myself last year and it still does. It was a damn solid release from the Canadian noise makers. On the re-issue of the album there comes a delightful bonus. It's titled "Sonic Mind Assault" and for the video accompaniment their bassist, Jay R. Schwarzer, has thrown together some pop culture references that will have your mind going into overdrive while the riffs will have you throwing your head back an forth at the screen. Check out the "frantic, frantic noise" above.

[Watch] Muse - "Animals" (Official Video)

Being on the road pretty much constantly doesn't really leave you with much time to record new videos. Although we have seen a couple from Muse since the release of their latest album The 2nd Law. We've already had videos for "Madness", "Supremacy" and "Follow Me", although the latter was a live clip. So, for their latest release, "Animals", the band put on a competition and the winner has been picked and used as the official video. Funnily enough, this was the only entry I'd previously seen before they announced the winner and I thought it was pretty cool considering the concept of the song. This stood out as a highlight of the album for me, I don't know if it was the flicker of old Muse coming through or the side step from the rest of the curve ball album but I like it. 

Regarding the clip the band said:

Your votes have been cast, the band have deliberated and we all seem to be in agreement that the excellent version of Animals by Inês Freitas and Miguel Mendes from Portugal is the winner of our Animals video competition.

Check out the topical animated video at the top.

[Listen] The Family Rain - "Waterfall"

We've spoken about The Family Rain a few times in the past 6 months. Most recently we talked about the Walter Brothers' track "Carnival" which has now been released but with it comes a delightful B-Side titled "Waterfall". The track was actually recorded as a demo in the boys' basement which in fact where they rehearse together. Being a live recording of them playing it definitely has a blues tinged rawness from them. We're certainly going to be keeping a close eye on this band of brothers in the coming months and looking forward to some more new material.

"Carnival" is out now on Bigger Splash Recordings.

[Listen] Shlohmo feat. Jeremih - "Bo Peep (Do U Right)"

Yours Truly's "Songs From Scratch" series has resulted in some pretty amazing collaborations, with results like Danny Brown and AraabMuzik's "Molly Ringwald" or Angel Haze and Lunice's "Gimme That". This round of the series delivers some sexy production and soulful singing from Los Angeles' Shlohmo and Chicago's Jeremih. The two come together and created "Bo Peep (Do U Right)", a pulsating R&B cut with grimy production and emotional croons echoing throughout. It's dirty, but it's oh so good. Stream the song, along with a making-of video, below.

[Listen] The Postal Service - "Turn Around"

The Postal Service offered up their first new music in over a decade a few weeks back with the song "A Tattered Line of String", one of two new songs from the upcoming tenth-anniversary reissue of Give Up. Today, Seattle radio station 107.7 The End points us to the second new song, titled "Turn Around". Stream it below and let us know if Ben Gibbard and Dntel fit into the 2013 mould.

The Give Up Deluxe 10th Anniversary Edition reissue is set to drop on April 9th on double disc CD or Triple LP. Check here for the full details of the release, and head here to see The Postal Service's full 2013 tour schedule.