Abduction Radiation Blog

The newest addition to Mexican Summer’s Looking Glass series is Montreal-based artist Helena Deland and Los Angeles-based artist claire rousay collaboration “Deceiver”. The intimate track spans just under 4 minutes long and the spaciousness of the instrumental lets claire and Helena’s vocals intertwine beautifully. From the gentle strums of the guitar to the atmospheric ambient layers that fill the spaces in between, “Deceiver” is a reflective track that’ll have you in a sonic embrace of yearning.

On the track, claire and Helena share: “‘Deceiver’ takes place in the span of an evening during which the shadows of a female friendship are brought to light. Drawing from the clear setting detailed in the lyrics, field recordings taken at a park during the late hours of the evening weave in and out of prominence throughout the song. It’s a plea for kindness in spite of there being no resolution or certainty.”

Deceiver by claire rousay & Helena Deland

Connect with Helena Deland:

Official Site | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Connect with claire rousay:

Vampire Weekend

I haven’t been blogging very much this year due to a ton of life stuff (moving to Austin, starting a new job, being the dad of a 2 year old), but I haven’t stopped seeking out good music and 2016 has provided plenty of it so, as usual, I’ve listed my best albums of the year so far chronologically below and you can listen to my favorite songs in this ongoing Spotify playlist. Enjoy!

BEST ALBUMS OF 2016 (SO FAR)

David Bowie - Blackstar (January 8)

Anderson .Paak - Malibu (January 15)

Chairlift - Moth (January 22)

Shearwater - Jet Plane and Oxbow (January 22)

DIIV - Is the Is Are (February 5)

Memoryhouse - Soft Hate (February 9)

Andrew Bird - Are You Serious (April 1)

M83 - Junk (April 8)

Frightened Rabbit - Painting of a Panic Attack (April 8)

Beyoncé - Lemonade (April 23)

Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool (May 8)

Chance the Rapper - Coloring Book (May 12)

Yumi Zouma - Yoncalla (May 27)

Whitney - Light Upon The Lake (June 3)

Blood Orange - Freetown Sound (June 28)

***

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Kaytranada - 99.9% Junior Boys - Big Black Coat Kanye West - The Life of Pablo Little Scream - Cult Following Sunflower Bean - Human Ceremony

***

BEST SONGS OF 2016 (SO FAR) MIX

Click here to listen to my ongoing Spotify Playlist.

***

MOST ANTICIPATED OF 2016 YET TO COME

Premiere: Yumi Zouma, Yoncalla

WEST COAST TOUR DATES:

Wed May 4 || Bozeman, MT || Eagles Club

Fri May 6 || Seattle, WA || Sunset Tavern

Sat May 7 || Portland, OR || Doug Fir

Tues May 10 || San Francisco, CA || Rickshaw Stop

Wed May 11 || Ventura, CA || The Garage

Thurs May 12 || Los Angeles, CA || The Echo

Fri May 13 || San Diego, CA || Casbah

Sat May 14 || Phoenix, AZ || Rebel Lounge

Wed May 18 || Austin, TX || Sidewinder

Thurs May 19 || Houston, TX || Rudyards British Pub

Fri May 20 || Dallas, TX || Double Wide

Sat May 21 || Kansas City, MO || Tank Room

Sun May 22 || Omaha, NE || Reverb Lounge

Thanks to KCRW for making our jam, entitled “Carl Sagan,” one of the featured tracks of the week!

Photos + Words By : Gabe Brenner, UCLA Radio Art & Design Manager (04/25/16)

You’re from Hamilton, Canada, correct?

I’m from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, yeah. That (Ontario) is the province.

Do you still live there?

I still live there, yes.

Did growing up there affect the way you make music now?

I don’t know if the city itself did. I think what maybe affected the way I make music for a little while was going to school for music, but the city itself, not so much.

Does Hamilton have a developed music scene?

Yeah, they do, but it’s not like… It’s not like Los Angeles (laughs). I mean, it’s cool, though. There’s a lot of local artists and it’s cool because it’s a city where there’s a lot of… Kind of weird people doing weird art where the goal isn’t to make money or to be recognized. I think it’s more because people are compelled to. They play music just for the sake of being creative, so you get a lot of weird stuff. That’s what I like about the city, though, because there’s no other prerogatives in mind.

Flight of the Conchords Announce “Flight of the Conchords sing Flight of the Conchords Tour”

Beloved New Zealand musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords (Bret McKenzie + Jemaine Clement) recently announced their first U.S. show in three years: they will be headlining the Newport Folk Festival. Now our favorite Kiwis have announced a full on U.S. tour, amusingly dubbed as the “Flight of the Conchords sing Flight of the Conchords Tour.” What’s more, a press release promises that, “Jemaine and Bret have new material in the works, which they’ll showcase exclusively at these shows.” The band has also teamed up with the charity Global Citizen for the tour.

Review By: Alison Chi, UCLA Radio DJ (02/15/16)

I used to obsessively wait for music festivals lineup to be released, only to realize that every major music festival recycles the same artists over and over again. At some point, I was completely numb to music festivals: they were all the same. Just copy and paste Coachella’s lineup to Lollapalooza, change Indio, CA to Chicago, IL.

Sure there would be a handful of music festivals that were somewhat different: Sasquatch and Lightning in a Bottle — but in the end, these music festivals were trying to make money. There was no real heart in curation.

I don’t think HONNE has disappointed me at all. They’ve but out so much great music last year and they’ve been keeping it rolling in 2016 with their Gone Are The Days (Shimokita Import). They’re pretty much killing it and for Valentine’s Day, they’ve released a fresh new track titled “Woman”. This song is the perfect example of their music: soulful synthpop, slow rhythm, and stellar lyrics. Grab your Valentine and tell them you love ‘em! 

Song is available for free download for a limited time! Snag it before you regret it.

Connect with HONNE: