The Hold Steady, The New Pornographers, Fretblanket & Depeche Mode in the 90s
The Week in New Music & Dig Me Out Podcast
1 Minute Reviews
New Releases
The Hold Steady - The Price of Progress
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The Hold Steady, an acclaimed rock band, has released their ninth studio album, The Price of Progress. This 10-track album follows their 2021 release, Open Door Policy. The Price of Progress was recorded with Bonny Light Horseman bandleader and Taylor Swift collaborator Josh Kaufman, who also contributed to the production of their previous album. Coinciding with the band's 20th anniversary in 2023, The Price of Progress promises an exciting new chapter in The Hold Steady's musical journey. Bandleader Craig Finn describes "Sideways Skull" as a rocking song about rock and rollers reflecting on past glories while keeping their dreams alive. The band plans to celebrate the album release with a series of live performances throughout the year.
The New Pornographers - Continue As A Guest
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The New Pornographers, a Canadian indie rock collective, is set to release their ninth studio album, Continue As a Guest, on March 31. This album marks their first release via Merge Records and follows their 2019 album, In the Morse Code of Brake Lights. The first single from Continue As a Guest is "Really Really Light." Band leader A.C. Newman explains that the album's title reflects the feeling of being out of place in culture and society, embracing a sense of separation and living a simple life. The album features contributions from Neko Case, Kathryn Calder, John Collins, Todd Fancey, Joe Seiders, and saxophonist Zach Djanikian. In support of the album, The New Pornographers have announced a series of tour dates, with Wild Pink as their supporting act.
The No Ones - My Best Evil Friend
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The No Ones, a jangle-rock supergroup featuring members from I Was A King, the Minus 5, and R.E.M., have released their third album, My Best Evil Friend, following their 2020 record The Great Lost No Ones Album. Comprised of Peter Buck, Arne Kjelsrud Mathisen, Scott McCaughey, and Frode Strømstad, the band has created over 30 songs by overcoming geographical distances and busy schedules. My Best Evil Friend was recorded by bouncing tracks between studios in Norway and Portland, Oregon. The album pays tribute to the artists that inspired them and features contributions from Debbi Peterson (Bangles), Norman Blake (Teenage Fan Club), Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie), Victor Krummenacher (Camper Van Beethoven), and Marin Ballemo Bakke. The No Ones hope to perform live for their fans in the future, with their previous tours being canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Certain Ratio - 1982
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A Certain Ratio, the Manchester avant-funk post-punk band formed in 1977, has announced their 11th studio album, titled 1982, set to be released on March 31 via Mute. The first track shared from the album is "Waiting on a Train," featuring vocals from Manchester rapper Chunky and neo-soul singer Ellen Beth Abdi. According to the band's Martin Moscrop, the collaboration has the right balance of pop, surrealism, and moodiness. The album follows their previous release, ACR Loco. The tracklist for 1982 includes songs like "Samo," "A Trip in Hulme," "Constant Curve," and "Ballad of ACR."
Samiam - Stowaway
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Oakland, CA punk band Samiam, formed in 1988, released their first album in 12 years, Stowaway, on March 31 via Pure Noise. The band's current lineup includes longtime members Jason Beebout, Sean Kennerly, and Sergie Loobkoff, as well as newer additions Colin Brooks and Chad Darby. The album was written over a decade and recorded in multiple studios, including Billie Joe Armstrong's Otis Studio in Oakland and Savaria Studios in Brooklyn. Stowaway features their 2021 single "Lights Out Little Hustler" with Hot Water Music's Chris Wollard and the recently released track "Crystallized." Samiam has also announced upcoming tour dates, including a performance at Brooklyn Made on April 19 with Walter Schreifels and a run with Pure Noise labelmates The Bouncing Souls.
Fretblanket - The Distance In Between
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Fretblanket, a British rock band that gained popularity in the 90s, is reuniting for two live concerts and a new album release after a 20-year hiatus. Led by Armstrong Bell Managing Director William Copley, the band signed a worldwide major label record deal with Polydor in 1992. They are now set to perform in London and Kidderminster and release their third album, "The Distance In Between," which features songs originally recorded between 1998 and 2000. Produced and mixed by Tim Patalan and Fretblanket at The Loft in Saline, MI, the album includes drums on track 4 by Vinnie Dombroski of Sponge.
New 90s Podcast
Depeche Mode in the 90s
Artistic highs and personal lows define Depeche Mode in the 90s, who balanced commercial success without sacrificing their mystique.
Few bands have stayed artistically and commercially relevant over forty years into their career. Still, with the release of their new album Memento Mori in March 2023, Depeche Mode continues to defy the odds. In the 80s, the band built a fanbase in Europe over their first few releases before entering the global stage with "People Are People" in 1984. By the end of the decade, they were regularly a top ten album charting band in the UK, making serious inroads in North America. They entered the 90s with an album primed by the infectious single "Personal Jesus" that would launch them into the stratosphere. With Violator and its many singles, like R.E.M. and other alternative acts, mainstream radio, and MTV, formerly dominated by pop and hair metal, were beginning to shift direction before the dam burst in 1991. But lurking beneath the surface were inter-band tensions and various addictions threatening to derail the band at the height of their global success. Special guests: Matt Shiverdecker, Ian McIvor
Fretblanket Interview
Celebrating 30 years since signing a record deal, Fretblanket’s Will Copley and Dave Allsopp reminiscence about the band’s early days
A perfect pick for a Dig Me Out episode, Fretblanket never seemed to get the mainstream attention the way their peers did. Formed in Stourbridge, England when the members were still in high school, the band caught the attention of Polygram Records in ‘93 and signed a deal before singer/guitarist Will Copley had graduated. A year later, Junkfuel was released with the single “Twisted” gaining a modest amount of airplay on U.S. alternative and college rock stations. Guitarist Clive Powell wrote most of the guitar-rich songs which fit in alongside artists like Sugar, The Doughboys, The Wedding Present and Ride while Copley’s grungy vocals earned comparisons to Kurt Cobain. Though they were very much of the time, the biggest touring exposure they had was opening for Oingo Boingo, a sad mismatch that likely didn’t earn the band any new fans. In 1997, they released Home Truths From Abroad which leaned more into the Brit rock side of things than the grungier side and caused a minor MTV buzz with their video for “Into the Ocean.” Songs for a third album were recorded in Michigan with Tim Patalan (Sponge, Watershed) but shelved after it was apparent there was no longer label interest and the members went their separate ways. On March 30, 2023, that long lost album, The Distance In Between, was released as a way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Fretblanket signing a record deal. Special Guests: Will Copley - Vocals And Guitar, Dave Allsopp - Bass
Coming Soon
April Album Review Tournament - Group 1 of 3
Which of these albums deserves a spot on a future episode of Dig Me Out for an in-depth review? Will it be Candlebox's heavier "Happy Pills," The Godfathers' alternative rock-infused "Unreal World," or the indie rock roots of The Shins in Flake Music's "When You Land Here, It's Time To Return"? Perhaps Transister's techno-pop-rock, Urusei Yatsura's Scottish indie slacker rock, Cycomotogoat's punk and noise-driven "Braille," or UNKLE's boundary-pushing electronic/rock project with "Psyence Fiction" will capture your interest. Or maybe The Brian Jonestown Massacre's psychedelic shoegaze in "Methodrone," or the punk/jazz blend of My Name's "Megacrush" will prove most deserving of a review. Cast your vote and help decide which album we should dig into!
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