The Lost Sandal

Passion Pit at The Hangout Music Festival

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:24:26 -0500

Passion Pit at The Hangout Music Festival

Michael Angelakos and company provided an energized set that...

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:20:36 -0500

Michael Angelakos and company provided an energized set that seemed to whip the Hangout Music Fest Crowd into shape. Passion Pit took the stage at that moment when the sun started to creep below the palms and we were blessed with steady, cooling, ocean breeze. Definitely provided some unforgettable moments for the crowd. Setlist included :

I’ll Be Alright

The Reeling

Carried Away

Love Is Greed

It’s Not My Fault I’m Happy

American Blood

To Kingdom Come

Constant Conversations

Take a Walk

Cry Like a Ghost

Eyes as Candles

Sleepyhead

Little Secrets

Did you get a chance to see Lissie this weekend on the...

Mon, 20 May 2013 21:42:08 -0500

Did you get a chance to see Lissie this weekend on the beach?

Talk about a dream come true! Seeing Lissie on the beach with the wind blowin in her hair and definitely one of the highlights of my The Hangout Beach, Music and Arts Festival. Thank goodness she decided to pursue a career in music!

Were you at the Hangout Beach, Music and Art Festival this...

Mon, 20 May 2013 21:24:34 -0500

Were you at the Hangout Beach, Music and Art Festival this weekend?

We met some partying people at Hangout this past weekend. One thing that was everywhere all weekend were smiling faces. Sometimes taking pictures of the fans was more fun than the artists! We promise to keep adding to these over the next few days.

Thanks to Kelly Burnham Brown and Kerry McCallister Reid for...

Mon, 13 May 2013 21:09:07 -0500

Thanks to Kelly Burnham Brown and Kerry McCallister Reid for providing us with some pics from the Gulfport Music Festival this past weekend. The weather was a bit of a mess but many turned out for some great performances by The Smashing Pumpkins, Wiz Khalifa, The Offspring, and more.

Great band! Great fans! — at Vinyl Music Hall.

Fri, 03 May 2013 19:10:33 -0500

Great band! Great fans! — at Vinyl Music Hall.

Great band! I have been wanting to see them for awhile now and...

Fri, 03 May 2013 19:07:47 -0500

Great band! I have been wanting to see them for awhile now and Wednesday night in Pensacola, I was finally given the chance.Deerhunter is touring in promotion of their upcoming sixth studio album “Monomania” which is due to be released on May 7th. Note to self: Bring earplugs for next Deerhunter show. — at Vinyl Music Hall.

Great band! I have been wanting to see them for awhile now and...

Fri, 03 May 2013 19:05:03 -0500

Surfer Blood @ Vinyl Music Hall in Pensacola. Great show!

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 21:09:55 -0500

Surfer Blood @ Vinyl Music Hall in Pensacola. Great show!

A great set last night at the Vinyl Music Hall in Pensacola...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 19:42:52 -0500

A great set last night at the Vinyl Music Hall in Pensacola Florida by hometown boys Pioneers! O Pioneers. You need to check them out and while your at it, support a great cause, new music from them! Go here.

Pensacola’s Indie music scene is coming into it’s...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 19:28:20 -0500

Pensacola’s Indie music scene is coming into it’s own. Last night at the Vinyl Music Hall we checked out imaginary air show as they were one of two local bands who opened for Surfer Blood and they were fantastic. Just a great groove.

The Lost Sandal Interviews Surfer Blood

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:03:09 -0500

By Kerry Reid

When Surfer Blood brings its Pixies-influenced, surf-inspired rock to Pensacola’s Vinyl Music Hall Monday, bassist Kevin Williams says fans can expect an energetic show due in part to the band’s unpredictable front man John Paul Pitts.

“We’ve been on tour for going on two years, and he still catches me off guard,” Williams said. “He’s jumping into the crowd or going behind the bar pouring people drinks. You just never know,” he said laughing.

The band is touring to promote its sophomore effort, “Pythons,” the soon-to-be-released follow up to the critically-acclaimed 2009 debut “Astro Coast.” Speaking by phone from Los Angeles where Surfer Blood is now based, Williams acknowledged that three years is a long time between albums for an up-and-coming indie band, but said the time span was not intentional.

“It was a learning experience,” Williams said. “We’d never been in a touring band before, and we’d never been posed with the situation of trying to balance writing and touring. When ‘Astro Coast’ took off, there were all these offers coming in, and it was one of those things where we never learned how to say ‘no.’ It’s hard to write an album when everyone’s in a hotel room. It’s not a proper place to flesh out record.”

Realizing this, in January, 2012, the quartet, which also consists of drummer Tyler Schwartz and guitarist Thomas Fekete, rented rehearsal space in Chicago and recorded demos from songs that were written the previous summer. Soon after, the band found itself in East West Recording Studios in Los Angeles, the same studio complex where the Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds” was recorded — a far cry from Pitts’ West Palm Beach, Florida college dorm room that served as Surfer Blood’s first studio.

While the band wasn’t necessarily concerned about the “sophomore slump” that plagues artists following rookie success, Williams said that there were definitely expectations going into recording the new album, particularly once they transitioned from an independent label to major label Warner Brothers. “All these people were going to be able to hear it. A lot more than our first record,” he said. “Our goal was to try and not let that influence the songs.”

While Williams called the new album Surfer Blood’s “most collaborative” work, “Pythons” also benefits from big name producer Gil Norton (Pixies, Foo Fighters), who traded in the band’s fuzzy, low-fi sound on self-produced “Astro Coast” and the 2011 EP “Tarot Classics,” for a crisper, edgier one. “He really helped shape a lot of the songs,” Williams said, adding that after long days in the studio, Norton’s objectivity was an asset. “That’s something he’s really good at, giving an objective perspective, and he’s done some our favorite albums…the Pixies, Echo and the Bunnymen.”

Coming off a 2011 supporting tour with indie icons the Pixies, an opportunity that Williams describes as “life-fulfilling,” “Pythons” clearly has Surfer Blood channeling its idols. In the two songs released off the album, “Demon Dance” and “Weird Shapes,” Pitts’ screams are reminiscent of Pixies lead singer Black Francis and the guitar stylings echo those of Joey Santiago who even loaned the band his gold-top Les Paul guitar and Marshall amps for use in the studio.

While not a significant departure, the songs are a natural progression for a band that is stretching its legs and adjusting to success. Perhaps this is due to the band signing with a major label, an action Williams said the band was naturally apprehensive about. “We all grew up listening to indie rock, and there’s skepticism about major labels. They [Warner Brothers] have never tried to mold us or anything. They just wanted to give us the money to do exactly what we do. They never tried to turn us into anything we’re not.”

“Pythons” is set for release June 11, and Williams said the band will be playing songs from the new album at their Pensacola show. Local bands Imaginary Air Show and Pioneers! O Pioneers! will open. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at www.vinylmusichall.com.

I know there are some people out there that are getting amped...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:42:50 -0500

I know there are some people out there that are getting amped for this!

fuckyeahthejoyformidable: Ritzy Bryan 9:30 Club -...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:41:21 -0500

fuckyeahthejoyformidable:

Ritzy Bryan

9:30 Club - D.C.

4-21-13

Ritzy is hot even as a redneck……just kidding. Sorry

under-radar-mag: Shout Out Louds, recently releasing their...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:39:45 -0500

under-radar-mag:

Shout Out Louds, recently releasing their latest album Optica, have premiered a brand new music video for their single “Illusions.”

Great tune, love the video too!

My date has arrived…….I wish

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:33:42 -0500

My date has arrived…….I wish

"Unlike many of their peers who helped summon the innovative and influential New York rock scene of..."

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 10:57:09 -0500

“Unlike many of their peers who helped summon the innovative and influential New York rock scene of the 2000s, Yeah Yeah Yeahs have viewed every new album as a challenge to break down and rebuild their music afresh. CARYN GANZ divines the intense dynamic behind the band’s boldest bug-out to date.”

- Yeah Yeah Yeahs Get Free

under-radar-mag: Trip-hop pioneer Tricky will soon release his...

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 10:14:14 -0500

under-radar-mag:

Trip-hop pioneer Tricky will soon release his tenth studio album False Idols on May 28.

Very good news

Tribal Seeds Bringing the Reggae Vibe to Pensacola

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 20:52:50 -0500

By Kerry Reid

“Energetic, hard-hitting reggae music,” says Tribal Seeds co-founder Tony Ray Jacobo, describing what Pensacola fans will be treated to when the San Diego, Ca-based band makes a tour stop at Vinyl Music Hall April 3.

The six-member roots reggae band is currently working on its third full-length album, a follow up to 2011’s “Soundwaves” EP. “We’re hoping to release it by the end of the summer. I think it will be our best recordings yet…roots with an energetic feel,” Jacobo says, adding that the band is working especially hard on the production quality.

Raised on reggae artists Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Steel Pulse, Jacobo says he and his brother, guitarist and singer Steven, have “been roots reggae lovers since we were babies.” By the time they were in high school — Tony Ray, a senior, and Steven, a sophomore — the pair was jamming in the garage and already calling themselves Tribal Seeds, a name that originated from the idea that a tribe “works together as a whole. We like that mentality and lifestyle so we’re seeds of that.”

It wasn’t long afterward that the brothers decided to seriously consider music as a profession. “I think when we put out our first demos and had people respond really well to it [that] is when we wanted to pursue [music] as a career.” The brothers then began recruiting band members, and the current lineup now consists of Tony Navarro, lead guitar; Carlos Verdugo, drums, Jose Rodriguez, percussion; and Victor Navarro, bass.

The band has garnered considerable attention since their self-titled debut in 2008. A follow-up album, 2009’s “The Harvest,” debuted at number five on the Billboard reggae charts, and “Soundwaves” peaked at number two. Both albums were named “Best of” in the reggae category by Itunes.

Later in April, they begin a tour with fellow Californian and reggae-fusion act Slightly Stoopid. “So stoked to be on the road with them,” Jacobo says. “They are a band we’ve looked up to for years and getting to tour with them and getting to know them and hangout has been unreal.”

Jacobo promises a great live show for the Pensacola fans and says the vibe of the crowd is what keeps them going out night after night to play their songs. “When the energy is high, it’s real easy to put on a good show.”

Tickets are still available for the Tribal Seeds’ show. Tickets are $13 and are on sale at www.vinylmusichall.com.

Depeche Mode’s Delta Machine : A Review By Kerry Reid

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 19:33:10 -0500

From the very first dark pulsing beats of Depeche Mode’s latest album, “Delta Machine,” lead singer David Gahan is a demon who wants to possess you. “Welcome to my world,” he sings, his voice smooth and sinister, enticing and sultry with a hint of menacing madman. “Step right through the door,” he beckons. “Leave your tranquilizers at home. You don’t need them anymore.” What follows is an hour-long journey through the seedy underbelly of the postmodern world immersed in sex, rejection, sin and redemption.

In the opening track, you sense a grandness about “Delta Machine” that has been lacking on their last few albums. Whereas synth revival bands like Muse achieve this to good effect, Depeche Mode is the veritable master at sweeping tracks that are simultaneously understated and minimalistic, yet lush and grand. It is a rare combination that shows why Depeche Mode is the standard to which all bands in the genre are compared.

While its latest effort, the band’s thirteenth studio album, does not contain enough hooks or pop sensibility to be played on mainstream radio, chief songwriter and guitarist Martin Gore has clearly stepped things up a notch since 2009’s “Sounds of the Universe.” You get the sense that “Delta Machine” is not merely a collection of songs, but that the album is a cohesive unit intended to be heard in one sitting from beginning to end.

Balancing Gore’s gothic blues with Andy Fletcher’s industrial beats, “Delta Machine” proves that while the band is not necessarily pushing the boundaries, its sound can still expand and grow. The result is a sound that’s mature but not old, deliberate but not calculated, dark but not depressing.

Despite the evolution, there are nods to Depeche Mode’s past catalogue. “Welcome to My World” has the same opening track effect as “World in My Eyes” did for “Violator,” and the riff in the second track, “Angel,” is distinctly reminiscent to “I Feel You” from the 1993 album “Songs of Faith and Devotion.” That’s not to say they’re rehashing old material, but “Delta Machine,” for its all bluesy angst, still feels familiar.

There is an exciting edge to this album, a sleazy, carnal undercurrent led by Gahan as the devilish, seductive lounge singer drawing the listener in —- the musical equivalent of a smooth-talking drug pusher enticing a wary but curious child. This is most evident on “Slow” a grinding, slow-burning, strip tease of a blues song which seems to be the heart of the album, not only due to its placement at the half-way point, but because “Delta Machine” is an obvious homage to the delta blues sensibility that “Slow” epitomizes.

Delta Machine is a dark, cathartic journey, and upon reaching the album closer, the snaky, blues-drenched “Goodbye,” you get the sense when you hear Gahan sing, “Now I’m pure, now I’m clean,” that the demons have been exorcised. But one wonders, for a band that captures torment so well, why they would want to?