Category: News

It’s been over a year since musicians everywhere had to cancel their 2020 tour plans. But with the vaccination efforts ramping up across the country, some artists are confident they’ll be able to start touring again this year. Julien Baker is among the optimists, and she’s just shared the dates for her extensive 2021 and 2022 world tour.

Baker released her third studio album Little Oblivions back in February and she’s kicking off a North American tour in early September. After making her way from the east coast to the west coast, Baker will head to Europe in 2022 for two months, where she’ll perform in a handful of countries from the Netherlands to Spain.

Check out Baker’s Little Oblivions tour dates below.

09/03/2021 — Birmingham, AL #
09/04/2021 — Atlanta, GA #
09/05/2021 — Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Festival
09/07/2021 — Asheville, NC #
09/08/2021 — Saxapahaw, NC #
09/13/2021 — Washington, DC #
09/14/2021 — New York, NY #
09/15/2021 — Philadelphia, PA #
09/17/2021 — Boston, MA #
09/08/2021 — Northampton, MA #
09/20/2021 — Toronto, ON #
09/22/2021 — Chicago, IL #
09/23/2021 — Chicago, IL #
09/24/2021 — Minneapolis, MN #
09/25/2021 — Madison, WI #
09/27/2021 — Detroit, MI #
09/28/2021 — Columbus, OH #
09/29/2021 — Pittsburgh, PA #
10/27/2021 — Austin, TX +
10/28/2021 — Dallas, TX +
10/29/2021 — Houston, TX +
10/30/2021 — San Antonio, TX +
11/01/2021 — Phoenix, AZ +
11/02/2021 — San Diego, CA +
11/04/2021 — Los Angeles, CA +
11/06/2021 — Oakland, CA +
11/08/2021 — Portland, OR +
11/09/2021 — Vancouver, BC +
11/10/2021 — Seattle, WA +
11/12/2021 — Salt Lake City, UT +
11/15/2021 — Lawrence, KS +
11/16/2021 — St. Louis, MO +
04/15/2022 — Utrecht, NL *
04/16/2022 — Groningen, NL *
04/17/2022 — Hamburg, DE *
04/19/2022 — Copenhagen, DK *
04/20/2022 — Gothenburg, SE *
04/21/2022 — Oslo, NO *
04/23/2022 — Stockholm, SE *
04/25/2022 — Lund, SE *
04/28/2022 — Berlin, DE *
04/29/2022 — Prague, CZ *
04/30/2022 — Vienna, AT *
05/01/2022 — Salzburg, AT *
05/04/2022 — Padova, IT *
05/06/2022 — Schorndorf, DE *
05/07/2022 — Munich, DE *
05/08/2022 — Cologne, DE *
05/10/2022 — Paris, FR *
05/13/2022 — Brussels, BE *
05/14/2022 — London, UK *
05/18/2022 — London, UK *
05/19/2022 — Leeds, UK *
05/21/2022 — Dublin, IE *
05/22/2022 — Dublin, IE *
05/24/2022 — Glasgow, UK *
05/25/2022 — Manchester, UK *
05/29/2022 — Madrid, ES *
05/30/2022 — Valencia, ES *
05/31/2022 — Barcelona, ES *

# with Thao
+ with Dehd
* with Ratboys

Tickets to Baker’s Little Oblivions tour go on sale 4/9. Get them here.

Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.

Every week, Uproxx is rounding up the best new indie music from the past seven days. This week we got the excellent new album from Ryley Walker, another taste of St. Vincent’s forthcoming LP, and a collaborative Sharon Van Etten cover from Courtney Barnett and Vagabon. Check out the rest of the best new indie music below.

While we’re at it, sign up for our newsletter to get the best new indie music delivered directly to your inbox, every Monday.

Ryley Walker – Course In Fable

Two years removed from a very dark period that resulted in checking himself into treatment for drug and alcohol dependency, Ryley Walker has returned with what Steven Hyden calls for Uproxx “one of 2021’s most unabashedly gorgeous and grand indie records.” At just seven tracks, Course In Fable is without a doubt Walker’s best album to date.

Flock Of Dimes – Head Of Roses

Jenn Wasner is a very busy person – aside from fronting Wye Oak and touring as part of Bon Iver, she also has a solo project called Flock Of Dimes. Wasner’s latest solo release, Head Of Roses is what Steven Hyden called in a recent Indie Mixtape newsletter “her most bruisingly personal work to date.”

Dry Cleaning – New Long Leg

It seems there is an impending renaissance of British post-punk bands that employ aggressive talk-vocals over a spastic rhythm section. Dry Cleaning is the latest group catching attention, but their edge comes from lead single Florence’s Shaw’s “strikingly unique presence,” wrote Steven Hyden in the latest Indie Mixtape newsletter.

Ratboys – Happy Birthday, Ratboy

Ten years to the day after releasing their first EP, Ratboy, Ratboys surprise-released a brand new collection of re-recordings from that EP and other rarities, fittingly titled Happy Birthday, Ratboy. It’s a stark reminder of how far this band has come since their inception in 2011 to become one of the most exciting bands in indie rock after last year’s excellent Printer’s Devil.

Hit Like A Girl – Heart Racer

Three years after their sophomore album What Makes Love Last, Hit Like A Girl is back with Heart Racer, the band’s most polished and enthralling release to date. Featuring guest spots from Bartees Strange and Petal’s Kiley Lotz, Heart Racer shows why Hit Like A Girl has gathered such a cult following over the last few years and will hopefully set the stage for continued growth.

Pinkshift – Saccharine

It takes only a few seconds of Pinkshift’s new EP Saccharine to understand fully why we included the Maryland punks on our list of indie artists to look out for this year. The EP’s five tracks are chock-full of pop punk nostalgia, while also serving up a uniquely modern twist. Ashrita Kumar’s vocals are insanely catchy throughout, and the band certainly isn’t shying away from My Chemical Romance-esque grandeur.

St. Vincent – “The Melting Of The Sun”

St. Vincent’s new album Daddy’s Home is said to evoke “the sound of being down and out downtown in New York, 1973.” This aesthetic is on full display with the album’s latest offering, “The Melting Of The Sun,” a sparse and psychedelic affair that has Annie Clark paying tribute to Joni Mitchell and Marilyn Monroe.

Courtney Barnett & Vagabon – “Don’t Do It” (Sharon Van Etten cover)

The latest installment in the full-album covers series celebrating a decade of Sharon Van Etten’s Epic comes from Van Etten’s longtime friend Courtney Barnett, with help from Vagabon. “Don’t Do It” is a slow-burning number that keeps building toward a culminating distorted guitar lead.

Dinosaur Jr. – “Garden”

Dinosaur Jr. are prepping a new album produced by Kurt Vile. Sweep It Into Space is due later this month, and “Garden” is the latest taste of what we can expect. It’s a dynamic track that shows off the polished 2021 version of Dinosaur Jr., finding the group getting “back to basics, back home, back to the garden,” an attempt to dissociate from the order of everyday American lift.

Chloe Moriondo – “I Eat Boys”

After a string of singles over the last few years, 18-year-old songwriter Chloe Moriondo has announced Blood Bunny, her major-label debut. Despite its title, lead single “I Eat Boys” is a deceptively breezy and shimmering track that was inspired by the film Jennifer’s Body. “I hope the rock chicks and lesbians will love them!!!!!” Moriondo wrote in a statement.

Wavves – “Sinking Feeling”

Somehow, it’s been nearly four years since we last heard from Wavves. Nathan Williams is ready to get back into the driver’s seat with the new track “Sinking Feeling,” a buzzing surf-rock track that serves as a first taste of a forthcoming release and reminds us what we loved about Wavves in the first place.

Squirrel Flower – “Hurt A Fly”

Only a few months removed from the release of their 2020 debut, I Was Born Swimming, Squirrel Flower is already back with its follow-up. Planet (i) is set for a June release, and the first single “Hurt A Fly” is what Derrick Rossignol calls for Uproxx a “mid-tempo alt-rocker.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

While the internet continues to buzz around rumors that he’ll be donning his Spider-Man tights again, Andrew Garfield will tackle another universe that’s arguably even larger than Marvel’s: YouTube. In Gia Coppola’s Mainstream, Garfield plays Link, a Logan Paul-esque vlogger with a massive audience of young, impressionable followers that he’s eager to parlay into television success after teaming up with a greasy executive played by Jason Schwartzman. Along for the ride is Maya Hawke’s Frankie, who seems to be enthralled with Link and eager to help him reach new levels of superstar success while falling in love with him, but Link hasn’t exactly been telling the truth about, well, anything.

As a hat tip to its source material, actual YouTube stars like Paul can be seen in the trailer, which also includes Johnny Knoxville playing another TV exec. It’s an interesting nod when one considers that Knoxville and his Jackass cohorts paved the way for this next generation of internet stars who are willing to to any lengths for viral fame. But what Mainstream seems to ask is this: what kind of damage is the age of constant clout-chasing doing to young minds, and is any of it even real?

Here’s the official synopsis:

A young woman (Maya Hawke) thinks she’s found a path to internet stardom when she starts making YouTube videos with a charismatic stranger (Andrew Garfield) – until the dark side of viral celebrity threatens to ruin them both. Starring Maya Hawke, Andrew Garfield, Kalena Yiaueki, Nat Wolff, Johnny Knoxville, and Jason Schwartzman.

Mainstream hits theaters and VOD on May 7.

According to President Joe Biden, by April 19th all American adults will be eligible to receive the Covid-19 vaccine. CDC travel restrictions are already loosening. If all goes well, it’s looking like things will be relatively back to normal by summer 2021. (DON’T JINX IT!)

While this news doesn’t give us a clear indication of when we’ll be able to attend large gatherings like concerts and festivals, we’re getting pretty psyched around these parts. Especially after seeing photos of events being held across the Pacific Ocean in Australia, where outdoor gatherings and concerts began in November of 2020. After only 909 deaths from Covid throughout the pandemic and a low case count overall, Australia has had an increasingly dense calendar of live events running since the new year. In late March, Melbourne (Victoria) played host to a five-day music and surfing festival at the city’s surf park URBNSURF, with headlining performances from electronic artists like Fisher, Flight Facilities, and house selector Hayden James.

“This was one of the first shows back since Covid hit and it was just an incredible feeling to be on stage in front of so many people again and to feel that energy and that rush,” James says. “We had an epic sunset and to share the stage again with Nat Dunn and GRAAACE… unforgettable. Hugh vibe, amazing crowd, I can’t wait to do it again.”

We snagged some photos from the event taken by photographer David Ni and it looks like… pretty much what you’d expect a pre-covid festival to look like. Which, admittedly, fills us un-vaccinated folks with all kinds of anxiety. You mean to tell us that somewhere, a bunch of people are wearing actual outfits, without masks, and drinking with strangers in public? Is it safe? Are they going to screw it up somehow before the rest of us can get un-housebound?

For what it’s worth, For the Love works directly with state health departments to create Covid protocols for their events and there haven’t been outbreaks of Covid post-public parties in any Australian state. Though American movie stars have come under fire for partying in Australia during the pandemic, the fact is that the country’s current case count is close to zero and has been minimal since a small spike in November 2020.

Check out photos from For the Love below to get hyped for the return of public events. If you’re suffering from too much FOMO to endure such mayhem, chill out with James’ latest track “Foolproof,” below.

Phoebe Bridgers dropped her Copycat Killer EP — which features alternate, more string-focused arrangements of some Punisher songs — back in November. Save for some limited physical editions, the album was only available digitally, but now Bridgers is giving it a proper vinyl release, available starting May 14 via Dead Oceans.

Bridgers previously told Uproxx about the process making Punisher, saying, “So fun. I’ve been getting a pretty regular question of, were you afraid to put out your second record because there’s more pressure? I’m like, ‘F*ck no.’ I made the whole record knowing that people were going to hear it. And I made the first record being like, ‘I wonder if I’m going to have to get a day job after this.’ Mostly I just wanted it to be better than the first record, which I think it is. […] Lyrically better. I didn’t really want to be as dirge-y anymore. There are some dark songs, for sure, but I tried to get creative a little bit with the production. I just had more fun. I wanted to sound like an adult wrote it. I wrote a lot of Stranger In The Alps when I was still in my teens.”

Pre-order the vinyl edition of Copycat Killer here and stream the EP below.

Despite — or is it because of? — not traveling further than 30 miles away from my apartment since March 2020, I feel like I’ve aged 10 years in the past year. I look it, too. Meanwhile, Paul Rudd continues to look as youthful as he did 20 years ago. What a jerk.

The Ant-Man star was born 52 years today, on April 6, 1969, in Passaic, New Jersey. (The number one song in the country: “Dizzy” by Tommy Roe. The number one movie: Goodbye, Columbus. The number one Oscar winner also born in April 1969: Renée Zellweger.) To celebrate, Mark Ruffalo wished his Marvel Cinematic Universe co-star a happy birthday — and revealed the secret to Rudd’s Holy Grail-like magic.

“Happy birthday, Paul Rudd! Did I find the secret behind your eternal youth?” Ruffalo wrote on Instagram, along with a photo of Rudd wearing his Ant-Man costume and Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet from Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. I don’t know about you, but I’m fine with Rudd using the Infinity Stones to mess with the fabric of time, as long as he keeps showing the Mac and Me clip on Conan (he’s running out of time).

Breckin Meyer previously gave another explanation for the Clueless actor’s lack of noticeable aging. “On the set of Clueless, they would come and they would get us like 20 minutes before set,” he said. “On Paul’s trailer, they would knock like an hour beforehand because he had to finish sucking the lifeblood out of the babies he takes in order to maintain [his youth], and then he was camera-ready.” It’s either that, or moisturizer.

(Via Mark Ruffalo/Instagram)

NBA players find ways to keep us entertained, regardless of whether they’re taking to the hardwood and doing what they do best or leaning into their electric personalities and either captivating audiences or getting a laugh on both the big and small screen. But who’s the best? There have been plenty of performances by NBA players that qualify for consideration. That’s why we pulled in some help to decide, asking both the DIME editorial team and a collection of other Uproxx editors and film and TV critics to vote and pick the best. Which led to a lot of interesting takes.

For instance, Dime editorial director Martin Rickman had this to say about Ray Allen in Spike Lee’s He Got Game: “Ray’s ability to let the role come to him instead of overacting or trying to do too much is hard for A-listers much less legendary three-point gunners.” Uproxx editor at large Brian Grubb added that respect has to be paid to Allen for carrying a significant portion of that film while most others on this list are more like cameos. And that’s true, but what cameos they are. As features editor Jason Tabrys said, Kevin Garnett’s performance in Uncut Gems might be “the coolest and calmest part of a movie that is filled with anxiety over Adam Sandler’s character’s actions and everyone’s responses to him.” Hip-hop editor and TV/Film critic Aaron Williams had nothing but praise for the memorable way Blake Griffin showed his self-deprecating sense of humor on Broad City with features writer Jess Toomer remarking on how Griffin showed he was down for anything.

All told, more than 25 performances got a vote with a fierce competition breaking out for the top spot. Take a look at the above video to see where we landed on the true on-screen MVPs and then let us know which ballers we missed on.

Morgan Freeman has played God in multiple movies, including 2003’s Bruce Almighty (starring Jim Carrey) and 2007’s Evan Almighty (with Steve Carell), although it feels like many more. He also hosted a National Geographic special called “The Story Of God,” and that authoritative voice only contributes to the vibe. Freeman even poked fun at how “people seem to confuse me with Him” during a commercial for an Israeli air-conditioner manufacturer where he’s all happy to exert god-like control the weather in his home. So yeah, people think of him as the trusted voice of God, and that’s likely the gist of why Freeman made a pro-COVID vaccination commercial for the Creative Coalition advocacy group.

“I’m not a doctor, but I trust science. And I’m told that, for some reason, people trust me,” he tells the camera. “So, here I am to say I trust science and I got the vaccine” And the bottom line? “If you trust me, you’ll get the vaccine.” Well, Freeman’s still got a sense of humor about this whole God thing, and in response to The Hill posting about this PSA, there’s a whole lot of “voice of God” remarks going on out there. It’s the running joke that shall never die.

FYI as well, Freeman-God is advising everyone to keep masking and social distancing after vaccine time, too. So, listen up, people.

On Friday, Lil Tjay released his new album Destined 2 Win, following up his well-received debut True 2 Myself and his 2020 mixtape State Of Emergency. Over the weekend, he shared the latest video from the new project, “Oh Well,” which finds Tjay and his friends posted up at a gas station for a jaunty parking lot party. The New York native shows off his footwork over a beefy beat while Tjay reflects on his newly luxurious circumstances.

“Oh Well” arrives on the heels of singles “Run It Up,” “Born 2 Be Great,” “Headshot,” and “Calling My Phone,” the first four singles from Destined 2 Win. The album itself features 21 tracks and includes guest appearances from 6lack, Fivio Foreign, Moneybagg Yo, Offset, Polo G, Saweetie, Toosii, and Tyga, while running the gamut from celebratory anthems to introspective ballads.

Tweeting about the album a week before its release, Tjay explained the album’s title, writing,” I named the album Destined 2 Win cause I always felt like something in me was meant to be great. Even when sh*t tried stop me it never did and I kept getting up!!” A day before its release, Tjay also shared the first episode of a documentary detailing the album’s creation.

Watch Lil Tjay’s “Oh Well” video above.

This week in pop music saw some exciting returns. Olivia Rodrigo followed up her chart-topping single “Drivers License” with another lovelorn track, Demi Lovato shared an exciting collaboration with Ariana Grande, and BTS returned to debut a new soulful single.

Each week, Uproxx rounds up the best new pop releases. Listen up.

Olivia Rodrigo — “Deja Vu”

After Olivia Rodrigo’s debut single “Drivers License” had an eight-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the singer is venturing into more playful territory with “Deja Vu.” About the follow-up single, Rodrigo said she wants to shy away from being labeled in a certain genre: “It’s definitely not like ‘Drivers License’ at all, which I’m really happy about. I didn’t want to pigeonhole myself into this category of ‘sad ballad girl’ thing. It’s definitely a little different and sort of weird.”

Demi Lovato — “Met Him Last Night” Feat. Ariana Grande

This week, Demi Lovato followed up her LP Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over with a deluxe version of the record. It saw a handful of extra tracks, including synth-forward groove “Met Him Last Night” with Ariana Grande, a tune where Lovato sings about coming face-to-face with her demons.

BTS — “Film Out”

After a wildly successful 2020 where BTS had major performances, smashed chart records, and earned a Grammy nomination, the K-pop supergroup are gearing up for the release of their upcoming Japanese-language compilation album, BTS, The Best. Sharing a first look at the project, the group debuted the soulful song “Film Out,” which marks a pivot from their recent jovial releases.

Dove Cameron — “LazyBaby”

Dove Cameron may have gotten her start as a Disney Channel star, but she’s been focusing on her music career for the past year through her 2020 singles “We Belong” and “Remember Me.” Now, Cameron returns to share the groove-driven track “LazyBaby,” a bass-heavy number inspired by the recent revival of ’80s disco.

Chiiild — “Awake” feat. Mahalia

Psychadelic soul singer Chiiild returns with another atmospheric jam off his upcoming project Hope For Sale. Describing his aim for the single, Chiiild compares the song’s feeling to “when the week’s finally over and you need to take the weight off.”

Audrey Nuna — “Space”

Celebrating her 22nd birthday, R&B singer/rapper Audrey Nuna shared the chilling track “Space,” marking her first release of 2021. The song offers a way for Nuna to showcase both her moving vocals and quick-witted lyricism over a subdued beat.

Tiberius B — “No Smoke”

Celebrating the fact that they’re the newest signee of Mark Ronson’s Zelig Records label, producer Tiberius B announced their upcoming EP Stains with the shuffling track “No Smoke.” The single’s soothing video is inspired by an accident they had as a teenager, which ended up being a blessing in disguise.

Chloe Moriondo — “I Eat Boys”

After a handful of her relatable singles attracted a sizeable fanbase, Chloe Moriondo announces her debut album Blood Bunny as the newest signee of Fueled By Ramen Records. The 18-year-old singer announced the impending project with “I Eat Boys,” a charming and tongue-in-cheek tune about pushing back against cat callers.

Dayglow — “Woah Man”

Texan songwriter Dayglow issued the shimmering track “Woah Man,” the third single from his sophomore LP Harmony House. About the song, Dayglow, the moniker of Sloan Struble, said: “I initially wrote it for a friend who was going through a hard time, but then later realized that I was really writing about myself. In the middle of so much change, growth, and responsibility, I found myself feeling a lot of pressure.”

Bailey Bryan — “Temporary”

Rising pop singer Bailey Bryan announced her anticipated upcoming project Fresh Start, with the earnest track “Temporary.” For Bryan, her impending album is a reminder that constantly reinventing yourself is possible. “My life over the last year has felt like a constant, rapid cycle of shedding my skin, and it still is,” she said. “I hope it always will be. I now believe that there’s no limit to the amount of ‘fresh starts’ you can have in a lifetime, a year, or even a day.”

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.