EMPAC Happenings this Thursday, September 1st (FREE!)

So EMPAC is kicking off the Fall season with a bang, and better yet, both events are 100% free...so you have no excuse to miss out. Getting straight to the chase, here are the details for what's on tap for this Thursday, September 1st:

Kònic thtr: Before the beep
6 PM | Studio 1 - Goodman

"Rosa Sánchez and Alain Baumann of Kònic thtr present excerpts of past works and share the status of their current work in progress, Before the beep—a dance performance piece inside an interactive and distributed installation, activated by viewers via cell phones, online, and in person."

Guy Maddin: Tales from the Gimli Hospital: Reframed
7:30 PM | Studio 2

"Commissioned by Performa 11 with the National Arts Centre of Canada, this unique work in progress event pairs the acclaimed filmmaker's classic first feature film with a new live score performed by a remarkable all female Icelandic cast including musicians formerly of the band múm as well as Sigur Rós collaborators Amiina."

Seating is limited for both, so arrive early!

To check out the full Fall calendar for EMPAC, click here.

EMPAC Fall Schedule

I know, I know...I'm really late to EMPAC schedule release party, but I spent the last two weeks in the Carribean surviving Irene. So without me making any more excuses, here are some highlights from EMPAC's schedule for the fall:

Cymbals Eat Guitars full album stream

In 2009, Cymbals Eat guitars released their debut album, Why There Are Mountains to rave reviews. Now, 2 years later, their back with their sophomore effort Lenses Alien which is due out on September 13th. SPIN magazine has the entire album streaming over at their website so instead of waiting another 3 weeks, listen to it now and know what you're buying come September. Enjoy!

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Lenses Alien

Wise Blood - These Wings EP Stream

Wise Blood is a Pittsburgh based artist who's music is comprised of samples, but no, not like Girl Talk. The samples are thick and looped throughout the songs to create a hazy, somewhat trippy backdrop for Chris Laufman's soulful vocal style. His first EP, "+", was enough to give him the title of "rising artist" on Pitchfork, and judging by these new tracks, he's only just getting started. Check out his new EP These Wings at the site below. It is available for mp3 download August 30.

These Wings EP Stream

Curren$y - Verde Terrace

I know what you're thinking. "Man... it's been like 2 months since I've had anything new by Curren$y. I need more!" Well, just in time to ease those withdrawl symptoms, Spitta released his new mixtape Verde Terrace. I haven't listened to it yet, but I'm sure its more of the same from the young wordsmith, with effortless rhymes about Jets (drink every time he says Jets... you'd die), cars, chillin', and women. Can't complain about that! Download it at the link below.

Curren$y - Verde Terrace

La Dispute Album Release Date/New Song!

La Dispute has set a release date of October 4, 2011 for their new album Wildlife, the follow-up to their phenomenal 2008 release Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair. If that doesn't make you excited enough, theres more! Click the link below to go to their brand new website, where you can pre-order the album and hear a new song entitled "Harder Harmonies." Finally, check out their tour dates (also at the link below) for upcoming shows with Thrice and Moving Mountains.

La Dispute Site

Two Great New Mixtapes released

Big K.R.I.T. and The Weeknd both released excellent mixtapes earlier this year and they're back at it with Last King 2 (God's Machine) and Thursday, respectively. Download links are after the jump.

New Hip Hop Songs

A couple of great new hip hop songs were released yesterday! The first is The Game's collaboration with Tyler, the Creator and Lil' Wayne for The R.E.D. Album. The LA rappers go back and forth sounding off on everyone they hate, which considering how angry these fellas are, is quite a few people. The hitlist includes an unnamed vampire, Rihanna, Lil' B, Harry Potter books, Bruno Mars, Tyler Perry, Erykah Badu, Lebron's Mom and probably a few more.

Listen to "Martians vs. Goblins" over at LilWayneHQ. Enjoy!

Curren$y also released a new song entitled "Pininfarina" via his twitter, which features his silky smooth rhyming over a guitar-heavy, upbeat rock n' roll beat. Perhaps this is what we can look forward to when Spitta finally releases his live-band album Muscle Car Chronicles.

Click here for download.

"Pumped Up Kicks" is a Fraud

Photo Courtesy of South Brooklyn Post

The first time I listened to "Pumped Up Kicks" I heard a distinct similarity to Peter Bjorn & John's 2006 song "Young Folks". At first, I ignored the blatant borrowing Foster the People had done because I didn't think much of the song and figured it would just go away; I was dead wrong. The song has absolutely blown up and Foster the People's popularity has grown right along with it. After seeing Foster the People open for Cut Copy at Prospect Park this past Thursday and witnessing all the tweens dancing and singing along to "Pumped Up Kicks", I realize this song is here to stay and feel compelled to speak on the subject.

Mister Heavenly - Out Of Love

Mister Heavenly, the indie rock supergroup featuring members of Man Man, Modest Mouse and The Unicorns, are set to release their debut album, Out Of Love, on August 16th. Now you can stream the album before you buy it over at Paste Magazine. Enjoy!

Delta Spirit Talk about new album!

Delta Spirit played Lollapalooza in Chicago this past weekend and on their travels they stopped by Rolling Stone to play an excellent rendition of "Trashcan" off their debut album Ode To Sunshine.

They also talked a little bit about their new album. Matt Vasquez and co. will be heading back to upstate New York to finish the album and could be released in early 2012. Start getting excited!

Beirut - The Rip Tide

Beirut's new album, The Rip Tide, which was released digitally on August 2nd and will be released physically on August 30th is available for streaming over at NPR. So before you splash any cash for the album, head over to NPR's First Listen to preview the album.

After the first few listens, I get the feeling that Zach Condon and Co. have gone and done it again!

Live Review: Bon Iver - Mountain Park, Holyoke, MA 8/6/2011

Wow, I'm such a slacker. I've been absent from the blog for a while...my last post was mid-July! But, I'm happy to say that my return is a live review of none other than Bon Iver.

Over the last year, Bon Iver has blown up. Between rolling with Kanye, having "Skinny Love" covered for a CW show, and being featured on the soundtrack for one of the Twilight movies, their music is everywhere. Oh, and their sophomore album reached #2 on the US charts. Naturally, when we heard they were performing in nearby Holyoke, MA, we jumped on the chance to get tickets for the performance. Here's what I've got to say about it...

Weekly Artist Profile: Cold Cave

Wes Eisold, the former singer of Boston hardcore band Give Up the Ghost, has completely changed his musical identity with this newest project. With Cold Cave, he mixes his roots in hardcore with dark 80s industrial music and his singing voice is like listening to Ian Curtis reincarnated.

On their debut album, Love Comes Close, Eisold explores this new sound and it feels almost as though he was just testing the waters. As with any type of experimentation, this first trial shows unbelievable promise but it doesn't all come together. With more experience and confidence, Eisold's newest album, Cherish the Light Years, fulfills all the potential of the first album and exceeds it. The sound on this album is an aggressive attack on the ears as Eisold builds dense soundscapes and cranks the volume knob to 15.

Check out some music and tour dates for Cold Cave after the jump!