Month: July 2024

When Shaboozey inked a deal six months ago to perform at this year’s Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco (August 9-11), festival organizers could never have imagined that by the time the festival came around, the Virginia-born country singer would have the No. 1 song in the nation on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Heck, “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” was nearly two months away from being released when the Outside Lands Festival Lineup dropped in late April, and Shaboozey’s name appeared on the bottom third of the lineup poster.

For Another Planet Entertainment (APE) President of Concerts and Festivals Allen Scott, it was more about booking up-and-coming country music talent to surround a lineup that features Sturgill Simpson and Post Malone’s country sets among its headlining acts. Charley Crockett and Paul Cauthen are also on the weekend bill, but Shaboozey presented a bit of a chance, one that really paid off for APE in yielding a powerhouse crop of country stars.

“Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good,” Scott says with a laugh on a call from APE offices in Berkeley. “When we booked Shaboozey, he had never really toured yet. We’re close with Empire in San Francisco [his label] and they had talked to us about a number of their artists but he really jumped out at us. We hadn’t even heard of this song, but we liked the whole vibe. And the further down the lineup poster you go, you can take more chances. Every once in a while you have something like Shaboozey.”

A lineup this top-heavy on country music is an anomaly for the 16-year-old festival, widely-regarded as one of the biggest and best in the country. If Coachella is 1A in California, then Outside Lands is easily 1B, a similarly-sized tone-setter for the festival industry. Going this all-in on country says something about the current music industry landscape.

Besides “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” atop the Hot 100 chart, Post Malone and Morgan Wallen’s pop country duet, “I Had Some Help,” sits at No. 2 on the chart dated July 27, after its own run at the top for a period. To have the artists behind the top two songs in the nation at your festival is a fortunate position to be in, yet Scott says the real challenge is in striking a balance between capitalizing on “unique opportunities that aren’t the same as other festivals,” while still capturing chart success.

Enter Sturgill Simpson, who hasn’t played a live show in nearly three years and will be closing out Outside Lands on the main stage. The performance (along with a festival night show underplay at the APE-operated The Independent; also in SF) comes a month before he embarks on a tour in support of his latest album, Passage Du Desir. Simpson has been enigmatic to say the least, spending most of this dark period based in France, only to emerge with a new alter ego, Johnny Blue Skies. It’s par for the course for arguably the one true psychedelic outlaw country act — and definitely the only one to win a Grammy.

“That’ll be the first time I’ve stepped on stage in years,” Simpson told GQ. “And I’m headlining closing night. It’s perfect. I’m Tyson with the towel, man, I like the pressure, I’m like the underdog. I’m gonna go punch everybody in the teeth. I’m pumped, bro. I’m jacked.”

A unique experience? Check. One can’t help but think APE has exercised a degree of foresight with Simpson as well. Because while he experienced success early in his career, it wasn’t on a mainstream scale. Now with country topping the charts, he seems poised for an even bigger breakout than before.

Outside Lands has made a habit of banking on these breakouts. In 2022, it was the first major US festival of its size to book SZA as a headliner, well before SOS came out. Even Lizzo’s 2021 headlining set might’ve felt a bit premature, but definitely proved to be a worthy choice. And while Post Malone has been an established name in hip-hop, he was tabbed to play a country set at this year’s Outside Lands well before he ever announced his country-focused F-1 Trillion Tour. He was booked even months before his transcendent Stagecoach Festival performance effectively set this current career arc in motion.

Yet while Coachella has a property in Stagecoach that it has historically funneled all of its country-leaning acts to, Outside Lands is taking a leap in doing it at a major summer festival that caters to fans of all musical styles. Whether fans will respond to it and whether other festivals will follow suit remains to be seen. But Scott has witnessed this changing of the tide before and is ready to confidently navigate these waters.

“It’s like when Glastonbury put Jay-Z on headlining for the first time [2008] and there were people scratching their heads saying things like, ‘Why do we have a hip-hop artist when this has been a rock festival and blah blah blah?’” Scott says. “So you have those naysayers who ask ‘Why? We didn’t ask for this!’ But look, we’re thinking about what people are asking for or want, but we’re also trying to lead people, too.”

Fame is a scary thing. Being known around the country or world might seem like a glamorous concept, but it also invites strangers into your life, which is always risky. Josh Hartnett was an early 2000s HartThrob(ha!) and starred in blockbusters like Pearl Harbor and 30 Days of Night before taking a lengthy acting hiatus.

While he has opened up about retreating from Hollywood in the past, Hartnett recently told The Guardian that it was for his own safety and wellbeing. “People’s attention to me at the time was borderline unhealthy,” he said.

Hartnett, who stars in the upcoming thriller Trap, admitted that he had his own harrowing experiences. “There were incidents,” he explained. “People showed up at my house. People that were stalking me. A guy showed up at one of my premieres with a gun, claiming to be my father. He ended up in prison.”

While these scary encounters would be enough for anyone to quit their job, Hartnett said it wasn’t the only reason. “I just didn’t want my life to be swallowed up by my work. And there was a notion at that time you just kind of give it all up. And you saw what happened to some people back then. They got obliterated by it,” he admitted. “I didn’t want that for myself.” The incidents mostly occurred during Hartnett’s late twenties.

So, he took some time off and decided to return to Hollywood to portray a dangerous serial killer. The only thing scarier than that role is appearing in the high stakes world of The Bear, which he also did. The HartThrob effect is catching on!!!! Just look at this guy!

You have to love him (sorry, Glen, we still love you too).

M. Night Shyamalan’s Traphits theaters on August 2.

(Via The Guardian)

We nearly got our first huge upset of the 2024 Paris Olympics in the men’s basketball tournament on Tuesday afternoon, as Japan had host nation France on the ropes in the final minute.

Despite star Rui Hachimura getting ejected for his second unsportsmanlike foul of the night on Rudy Gobert with over 8 minutes to play in the game, Japan was able to chip away at France’s fourth quarter lead and move in front thanks to an incredible effort from 5’4 guard Yuki Kawamura. Kawamura finished the game with 29 points to lead all scorers — Hachimura had 24 before getting tossed — and did an incredible job of leading Japan to a 4-point lead with 16 seconds to play.

It seemed, at that point, all Japan would need to do is play smart defense and hit some free throws, and they’d pull off a massive upset. Unfortunately, Kawamura got called for a (very questionable) foul on a three by Matthew Strazel with 10 seconds to play that allowed France to tie the game in one possession.

Replays (and the picture above) showed little to no contact by Kawamura, who appeared to be straight up and down while Strazel kicked his legs out, but by being up that tight on a shooter, he ran the risk of getting called for a foul in a spot where they just couldn’t afford one. After a three to win went begging, Japan and France went to overtime where it became a Victor Wembanyama takeover, as he scored eight of his 18 points in the extra frame to make sure France stayed undefeated in group play.

It was not France’s best night, particularly on offense as they sputtered for much of the second half on that end, as guard play continues to be a concern for the host country. However, they managed to get a win — perhaps with some home cooking — and remain on track to win the group.

Jamie xx continues the rollout for his upcoming second studio album In Waves with new single “All You Children” featuring The Avalanches. A hypnotic, uptempo dance track, “All You Children” opens with a directive: “All you children, gather round. We will dance, and we will whirl.” The propulsive instrumental ensures it’s a command that’s easy to follow, with a vocal chant sample looping around and alongside a slithering, four-on-the-floor drum beat with a synthy, ’80s-esque balline driving the whole production forward.

“The Avalanches have always been an inspiration for me,” Jamie said of his collaborators on the song. “Their sample technique and how they piece together different sounds is incredible, and collaborating on a track with them has showed me new ways of making music.”

“All You Children” is the fourth single from the upcoming album, following “Baddy On The Floor,” “Treat Each Other Right,” and the recently released “Life” featuring Robyn. Other previously released singles, “It’s So Good,” “Let’s Do It Again,” and “Kill Dem,” will appear on the deluxe version of the album.

While it would seem working on his second album would keep Jamie busy enough, he’s also reunited with his old band, The xx, to work on their first new album in seven years.

Listen to Jamie xx’s “All You Children” featuring The Avalanches above.

In Waves is due 9/20 via Young. You can find more info here.

Three years after the release of one of the best albums of 2021, Pom Pom Squad are back with new music. The indie rock project led by Mia Berrin have announced a new album, Mirror Starts Moving Without Me, which comes out on October 25 on City Slang.

“I took a lot of inspiration from my younger self on this album,” Berrin said in a press release. “I wanted to get back in touch with my creative roots. After hitting a particularly rough bout of writer’s block, I challenged myself to make a playlist of my all-time favorite songs from childhood to adulthood. It was healing in a way I didn’t expect! Before we went into the studio, I made my bandmates and Cody do the same, then we all listened to each other’s and had a long conversation about them. Through the sessions for Mirror we were all pulling references from our collective playlists more than anything else.”

Pom Pom Squad also released a music video for “Spinning,” the album’s second single (after “Downhill”), which you can watch above.

Pom Pom Squad’s Mirror Starts Moving Without Me Album Cover Artwork

Pom Pom Squad’s Mirror Starts Moving Without Me Tracklist

1. “Downhill”
2. “Spinning”
3. “Street Fighter”
4. “Everybody’s Moving On”
5. “Villain”
6. “Running From Myself”
7. “Messages”
8. “Montauk”
9. “Doll Song”
10. “Tarot Interlude”
11. “The Tower”

Mirror Starts Moving Without Me is out 10/25 via City Slang. Find more information here.

Deadpool has officially taken over the summer thanks to some well-timed interviews and one particularly entertaining episode of Hot Ones, but it’s really Wolverine who can take the credit for the film’s success. Deadpool & Wolverine would not be doing nearly as well if it wasn’t for Hugh Jackman’s incredible charm… and that popcorn bucket.

If you haven’t been able to make a trip out to your local theater, you might get spoiled when it comes to the various cameos and surprises. On the other hand, you might not care about that stuff, so feel free to wait until you can stream all of Ryan’s R-rated antics from the comfort of your own home. Sometimes those theaters can be a bit much.

Just like the other Deadpool and Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, the flick will eventually land on Disney+, though that could be a while. These movies generally become available on Disney+ roughly 45 to 90 days after their theatrical debut. Since Deadpool & Wolverine landed in theaters on July 26, the earliest we can expect it to stream will be sometime in November. Of course, this depends on how well the movie does in theaters.

Considering that the movie has made a reported $235.7 million thus far, Disney/Marvel may choose to keep it in theaters for as long as they can. There’s a good chance that Deadpool & Wolverine will land on streaming sometime around the holidays, which will be some R-rated fun for the whole family!

The last time we had new music from Haley Heynderickx was 2018, when she released her well-received debut album I Need To Start A Garden and followed it with Among Horses III, a collaborative EP with Max García Conover.

At long last, she’s back with new music, as she released “Seed Of A Seed” today, July 30. Heynderickx says of the new song:

“I first sent a demo of ‘Seed Of A Seed’ to my friend Tré Burt and he loved it. For three years he kept asking me if I’d finished the ‘better better’ song. It felt like a throwaway song to me, at first. It’s so simple, but I didn’t realize how much angst I’d woven into it: a desire for simplicity, and how far away that felt. It seems I accidentally pressed my story — the last four years of my life — into a tiny little tune and I love it now, too.”

The new song follows a headlining US tour that Heynderickx announced last week, which runs from August to November.

Listen to “Seed Of A Seed” above and find Heynderickx’s upcoming tour dates below.

Haley Heynderickx’s 2024 Tour Dates

08/02 — Ninilchik, AK @ Salmonfest
09/05 — South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
09/06 — Exeter, NH @ The Word Barn
09/07 — Easthampton, MA @ River Roads Festival
09/22 — Sisters, OR @ The Belfry
09/23 — Boise, ID @ Shrine Social Club
09/24 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room
09/25 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room
09/27 — Fort Collins, CO @ Washington’s
09/28 — Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
09/29 — Boulder, CO @ eTown Music Hall
10/01 — Albuquerque, NM @ KiMo Theatre
10/03 — San Diego, CA @ Lou Lou’s
10/04 — Los Angeles, CA @ Aratani Theatre
10/05 — San Francisco,CA @ Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
10/06 — Menlo Park, CA @ The Guild Theatre
10/08 — Sacramento, CA @ Sofia Theatre
10/11 — Seattle, WA @ St. Mark’s Cathedral
10/18 — Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
10/19 — Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
11/08 — St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
11/09 — Milwaukee, WI @ Vivarium
11/10 — Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
11/11 — Lakewood, OH @ The Roxy
11/13 — Albany, NY @ The Egg
11/14 — Somerville, MA @ Somerville Theatre
11/15 — Philadelphia, PA @ Music Hall at World Cafe Live
11/16 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
11/17 — Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Sometimes the best new R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm-and-blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the best new R&B songs that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.

Since the last update of this weekly R&B column, we’ve received plenty of music and news from the genre’s artists.

Ravyn Lenae took a step closer to her Bird’s Eye album with her “One Wish” single featuring Childish Gambino, while Anderson .Paak and Gwen Stefani teamed up for their “Hello World (Song Of The Olympics)” track. Khalid unveiled the tracklist for his upcoming album Sincere, and Kehlani announced the Crash World Tour with Anycia and FLO. Elsewhere, Leo Waters returned with his new single “Cuerpo” and Halle Bailey breezed through a cover of Sabrina Carpenter’s “Please Please Please.”

Here are the new releases you need to have your eye on this week:

Jorja Smith — “High”

Jorja Smith is in an upbeat mood and her new single “High” is proof. The new single is a slick, house-inspired record that’s perfect for the carefree moment the summer months can present. “’High’ is a song I wrote about finding a friend within myself, even through the lows, you have to find the highs,” Jorja said about the song in a press release.

Muni Long — “Ruined Me”

Muni Long wears her heart on her sleeve on her latest single, “Ruined Me.” The singer pours her feelings on wax as she reflects on a now-concluded relationship and how heartbreak will affect her in the future. “Ruined Me” is the third single from her upcoming sophomore album Revenge, out August 30.

Mahalia & TakeADayTrip — “Life Size”

For the upcoming third season of Sprite Limelight, British singer Mahalia and producer TakeADayTrip team up for a fun and positive new collaboration. “Life Size” is birthed from a “hook” that TakeADayTrip created and left for Mahalia to reinterpret in line with her own “unique artistic vision.” What came out is a body positive anthem.

Ravyn Lenae — “One Wish” Feat. Childish Gambino

With Bird’s Eye out in a couple of weeks, Ravyn Lenae is back with another song from the project. Childish Gambino joins her for “One Wish,” a vulnerable record that Lenae uses to examine her relationship with her father, who was absent from her childhood. “‘One Wish’ is one of the most important songs on the album b/c it highlights the complex relationship I’ve had with my Dad,” Lenae said about the song. “Something valuable I’ve learned is being able to really humanize my loved ones and understand the context around people more deeply.”

Kyle Dion — “BRB”

Kyle Dion kicked off 2024 with his If My Jeans Could Talk EP, and now he’s back with new music for his fans. He returns with “BRB” which captures the fun of summer flings and the excitement of a fleeting romance. It pairs perfectly with Dion’s playful and carefree spirit.

Jaz Karis — “Sunset Blvd.”

At long last, London singer Jaz Karis is finally ready to release her debut album Safe Flight. The project is due September 20 and the latest offering from it is “Sunset Blvd.” The track centers on feelings of euphoria, blissfulness, and contentment using the idea of “driving down Sunset Boulevard with the love of your life,” as revealed in a press release.

Dylan Sinclair — “I Love My Ex”

After sharing “Lemon Trees” last month, Toronto singer Dylan Sinclair is back with another single. “I Love My Ex” finds Sinclair fresh off a breakup with a million questions swarming in his mind. “The early days after a breakup are not easy,” he said about the track. “It’s hard fighting the urge to call or text, and you can’t help but think of how they’re dealing with the new world without you.”

Breez Kennedy — “Wishing It Was Easy”

Riding the momentum of his previous single, “Who’s Been On Your Mind,” Florida and New Jersey-bred singer Breez Kennedy checks back in with “Wishing It Was Easy.” The upbeat single balances raw emotion and introspective lyrics over a pulsating single as Kennedy slowly accepts a relationship’s end — a feeling too many of us can relate to.

Nippa & Odeal — “Take Me”

UK singer Nippa calls on fellow singer Odeal, whose roots are tied to Germany, Nigeria, Spain, and the UK in his life, for their vibrant single “Take Me.” Together, Nippa and Odeal capture the intimate moments they have with a lover, and their desires to be whisked away by their respective partners.

Tempest & Amindi — “The Ranch”

Long Beach alternative R&B singer Tempest and Jamaican American singer Amindi join forces for “The Ranch.” The duo takes listeners on a fun ride with a playful and tongue-in-cheek record that present Tempest and Amindi as indulgent crushes who act as temporary pain relievers.

France is one of the top contenders for a medal in men’s basketball at the Paris Olympics, and as the home nation their games are a top draw. On Tuesday, the French side went up against Japan in their second game of group play, and found themselves in a surprising dog fight with a Japanese side led by Rui Hachimura.

The game was back-and-forth throughout, with Hachimura leading the way for Japan with 24 points early in the fourth quarter, when the Japanese star and Lakers wing picked up his second unsportsmanlike foul of the game and was ejected for pulling down Rudy Gobert’s arm and sending him tumbling to the floor. After review, the referees deemed it an unsportsmanlike foul and Hachimura had already picked one up in the third quarter for knocking Bilal Coulibaly to the floor, meaning his night was over.

The FIBA definition of an unsportsmanlike foul is a little bit different than an NBA Flagrant, but even so this felt like a pretty soft foul to lead to an ejection. Gobert falling to the floor didn’t help Hachimura’s case, but that felt more like the big man stumbling and losing his balance than getting forcefully thrown to the ground.

Every month, Uproxx cultural critic Steven Hyden makes an unranked list of his favorite music-related items released during this period — songs, albums, books, films, you name it.

1. Johnny Blue Skies, Passage Du Desir

Sturgill Simpson’s first music under a different name is the closest he’s come to making a “classic” sounding Sturgill Simpson LP in quite some time. In true paradoxical Sturgill Simpson fashion, being someone else has given him permission to be more like himself. Frankly, it sounds like the record that his label would have killed for in 2019 rather than cage-rattling provocation that was Sound & Fury. The album-opening “Swamp Of Sadness” immediately sets the tone, nodding to A Sailor’s Guide To Earth lyrically (he sings about being “a drunken sailor lost and lonely”) and musically, with warm organ fills and a lightly choogling rhythm section playing off of Sturgill’s bluesy guitar licks. It’s an inviting and amiable sound that unmistakably evokes the record that garnered Sturgill’s first and only Album Of The Year Grammy nomination, before he was sent down an opposing path of contrarianism and rebellion.

2. Jack White, “No Name”

“No Name” — the album Jack White release for free via a 12-inch vinyl distributed at Third Man Records stores — isn’t exactly Jack White’s best solo record. (I still ride for Blunderbuss, his solo debut from 2012, a quasi-Blood On The Tracks about the end of The White Stripes and White’s conflicted emotions about his prodigal partner Meg White.) But it’s the record that people who still check out new Jack White albums in 2024 have been waiting for. And it might even by the album that brings estranged listeners back into the fold. Simply put: It’s Jack White in a room with his crackerjack band, playing extremely loud, on a collection of riff-y rock songs that sound like they were written five minutes before they were recorded. It’s raw, it’s direct, and — this is a compliment — it’s not all that thought out. But the adjective that most applies hasn’t appeared in a Jack White album review since possibly the mid-aughts: Great. “No Name” is actually pretty damn great.

3. Zach Bryan, “Oak Island”

I am a Zach Bryan fan. But my admiration for his talent and prodigious output comes with some serious reservations. His ability to zero in on precise specifics with his words typically isn’t matched by an ability to create equally arresting melodies. For all his flair as a lyrical stylist, his music can be monotonous and flat sounding. So, while Bryan impressively composes a lot of songs, a lot of those songs are hard to distinguish from one another. At some point, his albums always get bogged down in a series of downbeat, mid-tempo dirges in which Zach pines after long-lost girls that he had to leave but can’t ever forget. I wish his latest record, The Great American Bar Scene, had more songs like “Oak Island,” the best song on the record and one of the better tunes in Bryan’s entire catalog. It’s his purest Springsteen homage on an album filled with them, in whch the song’s main character gets tied up with “some boys out in Jersey” who have him on the wrong end of a shady deal.

4. Zach Top, Cold Beer & Country Music

Of all the country albums released by dudes named Zach so far in 2024, this one is my favorite. It actually dropped back in April, though Top received a wave of publicity this month after sitting in with Billy Strings at a festival in Montana. On his own, he favors a Fender Telecaster over an acoustic guitar, and he’s adept at ripping out twangy lines that recall the greats of golden-era Bakersfield country. In that respect, Cold Beer & Country Music reminds me of my favorite ’80s country records, like Dwight Yoakam’s Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc. or Steve Earle’s Guitar Town. Also: The man has an impressive mustache, which is a rarity these days.

5. Ben Seratan, Allora

I raved about the lead single from this album, “New Air,” when it came out back in April (https://uproxx.com/indie/steven-hydens-favorite-music-of-april-2024/ ) for how it condensed everything I love about Wilco’s A Ghost Is Born into one eight-minute track. I’m happy to report that the rest of the album also hits all of my aughts-era indie-loving pleasure centers. Similar to Friko’s Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here — one of 2024’s best indie rock records — Allora draws on the maximalism of that bygone era’s most sprawling masterworks, Seratan certainly doesn’t shy from extended instrumental passages in which long guitar solos take center stage. (My other favorite song from the other record is another eight-minute epic, “Free.”)

6. Wand, Vertigo

This adventurous L.A. band has operated under the radar for more than a decade, probably because they mostly eschew easy pop accessibility. At a time when Tame Impala drifted from psychedelic rock to hooky Off The Wall homages that currently soundtrack trendy hotel lobbies, Wand has moved even deeper into the experimental ether. For Vertigo, Wand moved through 50 hours of studio jams to construct eight songs. The miracle of the record is that you can detect that improvisational ethos and also marvel at how well the tracks fall into place. Vertigo constantly knocks you off-balance, but it also operates on an unerring interior logic that always lands in exactly the right place.

7. American Aquarium, The Fear Of Standing Still

This long-running Americana act operates in the Jason Isbell/Drive-By Truckers zone, in which back-porch country-rock is paired with sensitive lyrics about southern identity and the meaning of masculinity. I have appreciated their output in the past, but their latest record hit a deeper nerve with me, perhaps because of the involvement of producer Shooter Jennings, who teases out a harder rocking side than previous releases have presented. At times, there’s almost a Gaslight Anthem vibe to the songs, which provides some extra crunch to all of the thoughtful introspection going down in the words.

8. The Red Clay Strays, Made By These Moments

If you haven’t already noticed the running theme of this column: A lot of the music I enjoyed this month could have appeared in an episode of Justified. And The Red Clay Strays are the most Justified-sounding band of the bunch. The influence of Chris Stapleton is obvious on the brawny vocals of frontman Brandon Coleman, though his old-world greaser guy looks are the opposite of Stapleton’s mountain man figure. On Made By These Moments, The Red Clay Strays stay on the southern rock side of Americana, with riff-y songs that often reach solo-heavy peaks, .38 Special style.

9. Charley Crockett, Visions Of Dallas

I’ve seen Crockett described as “country GBV” due to his prolific output. Visions Of Dallas is his second album of 2024, after $10 Cowboy released in spring, and his 13th LP overall since 2015. The downside of putting out so much music for any artist is that each record can blur into the next over time, and with Crockett, his retro revivalist tendencies don’t vary dramatically from one album to the next. But the man has a tremendous voice for this sort of throwback twang, and his taste in production and album covers is second to none. Plus, on Visions Of Dallas, he wrote a song based on Killers Of The Flower Moon called “Killers Of The Flower Moon” that runs down the story in a succinct three minutes and 14 seconds.