No Age - "Head Sport Full Face"

LA noise-punks No Age are set to release their new record on June 5 via Drag City and have shared the fourth single leading up to the album's release.

No Age - "Turned to String"

Noise-punks No Age are back with a new album, the follow-up to 2018's Snares Like a Haircut. The new record, Goons Be Gone, is out June 5 via Drag City. Listen to the first single, "Turned to String," below.

No Age played Music Hall of Williamsburg

"Wash away what we create" Dean Spunt shouts on No Age's "Teen Creeps", a stunning (and already classic) track from the duo's first true full-length, Nouns. And with walls of noise crashing like waves over the crowd, that is exactly what the band accomplished. No Age powered through a high energy set and unleashed an absolute audio assault on Brooklyn. Featuring a medley of songs ranging from their early compilation Weirdo Rippers to the recently released An Object, Spunt and guitarist Randy Randall tore through heavy feedback and blistering riffs that rattled Music Hall of Williamsburg. Thunderous drums and shrieking guitars were enough to make anyone's ears bleed. Their unique blend of harsh noise rooted in hardcore punk was captivating. While An Object may fall flat on recording, the songs burst at the seams and soared to new heights in a live setting and added great textures to the setlist. The new songs freed Dean from behind the drum kit and added a great dynamic of dissonant and pulsating drones that allowed the two men to stand side-by-side and really enforce the power of their anthems. Even though the new tunes held their own, it was fan favorites like "Every Artist Needs a Tragedy", "Sleeper Hold" and "Fever Dreaming" that sent the night over the top. "I won't end up, like them at all" Spunt continues and, again, he is correct. While the band might have surprised some with the direction and lack of force behind their latest record, they're still far and away unlike any other duo blending noise and melody. Everyone else can just keep on dreaming.

No Age / HEALTH / Cults / Ceremony played Vans House Parties

Vans kicked off their free summer concert series here in Brooklyn last week with a jam packed line-up of noisey fun. California hardcore act Ceremony kicked off the evening with their energy infused set of classic punk inciting circle pits and flying fists among other things. The aggressive growls and yells were met with pounding drums and thundering bass.

Cults were the odd band on the bill as they definitely did not fit in with the noise factor of the rest of the acts, however they were still able to fully engage their crowd even though their hopes of a circle pit of their own, never came to fruition. The expanded line-up of Cults, Manson family hair and all, brushed through their sugary pop jams meant for summer parties. New tracks such as "Abducted" and "Yeah You Know What I Mean" sounded fantastic and old tunes "Go Outside" and "Oh My God" really got people moving. While Madeline's voice is utterly amazing, the mix did not allow for their great sound to really penetrate the crowd. Some key elements were lost along the way holding back the band from making a great performance amazing.

Trance/dance/noise/punk band HEALTH served as the bridge between the pop dance-ability of Cults and the hardcore grind of No Age. The great energy brought forth by the band was equally matched by enthusiastic fans as synth undertones were upstaged by frantic drumming and swirling guitar. The rich sound provided perpetual grooves as the band powered through jam after jam culminating in their epic "USA BOYS" which proved to be the ultimate moment of their set as the crowd totally let loose showing a true blend of crowd surfing, moshing, and dancing ensuring that these guys can really draw a diverse crowd and still are able to make the most out of their truly unique sound.

It has already felt like a long night by the time No Age took the stage, however as soon as these two plugged in a second wind filled the crowd. The hard hitting Dean Spunt tore up his drum kit as he belted away each song while Randy Randall shredded away just a few steps over. The raw energy of these two really showcased their ability to rip through their oldest jams "Everybody's Down" with the same intensity as new classic "Fever Dreaming" and showed that these two are not afraid to mix old and new tracks for a set list full of punk classics in the making. The ear splitting guitar of Randall and exuberant drumming of Spunt showed a duo in prime form on the verge of being as big as they ever could have thought. The two display such a presence onstage that is hard to find amongst their peers. They blur the line of their DIY punk roots with their Pitchfork adorned present and are still able to hold true to their sound making them one of few bands that have been making consistently better albums over time.

omgnyc's albums 2010

2010 seems to have been one of the best years for music in recent memory. This year I had a particularly tough time choosing which albums would make my top ten and I easily could have extended the list to top twenty, but I figure it defeats the purpose if I just talk about everyone album I loved this year. These are my favorite albums of 2010.

01. Beach House | Teen Dream
This may seem like an odd choice for album of the year, however the more I listened to this album the more it just made sense. More than any other album this year, I was constantly finding myself coming back to this one. When it came out last winter, it's sultry sound made for the perfect winter jam. Then again in the spring I saw the band and the album was on constant rotation. By summertime, many of the tracks were staples on roof top party play lists, and finally by the fall there was no escape. More then anything, this album was a great comfort album for the entire year. While at first it seemed like another great Beach House record, it didn't take long for it to sink in as their best work to date. Everything really came together on this album. Victoria's vocals sound rich and powerful. Alex's guitar is the biggest I have heard and finally the percussion added the extra layer missing from their previous work. This is the only album from this year that I listen to as much now as I did the second the download finished.

02. LCD Soundsystem | This Is Happening
The one in which James Murphy writes the best record never made by Bowie and Eno. For what he claims to be the last LCD album, James Murphy left nothing to chance. The opening "Dance Yrself Clean" lingers briefly before kicking into a jam that last throughout the entire album. From the disco drum beats, to the funky bass lines, to the fuzzy guitars, this album takes the flashy sounds of Sounds of Silver and turns them into sparkling dance-punk jams that sound just as solid as any krautrock jam that came out of Berlin. Despite the fact that "Drunk Girls" might have been the funnest song of the year, "All I Want" may be the finest tribute to Bowie that has ever been recorded as that obnoxiously loud sliding guitar wails away for nearly seven minutes. Murphy has done a perfect job of recreating 70s nostalgia and bringing it to modern music without losing an ounce of freshness.

03. Deerhunter | Halcyon Digest
To call a Deerhunter album light would just simply be wrong. However when I first listened to Halycon Digest, I thought my speakers were broken. There was no punching song like "Nothing Ever Happened" and that shoegaze tag no longer seemed appropriate. After repeated listens it became clear that this album was still drowned in noise, however this band has grown up. The harshness has been refined to elegance and where previous albums were covered in noise collages, Halcyon Digest is powered by stunning production. It may even be the case that Deerhunter has tricked an audience into believing this is their most accessible work to date, however tracks like "Desire Lines" and the epic closer "He Would've Laughed" just go to show that this band still have plenty of tricks up their sleeves and they can never be taken for granted.

04. Kanye West | My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
At the end of 2009, Kanye was celebrity enemy number 1. His ego seemed to have finally got the best of him. Then in June the legend returned. "Power" was a statement that Kanye was back ready to regain his place at the top. No more auto-tunned bullshit, just the rap attack over heavy samples that gave him a name in the first place. Over the course of the summer, his GOOD Friday singles built the anticipation to what would become My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Nicki Manaj stole the show with her verse on "Monster" and when "Runaway" was debuted at the VMAs it was clear; Kanye was unstoppable. It is the kind of comeback that doesn't seem possible, then again that appears to be the way Kanye does everything. When people think it's too much he pushed it the extra step. This time everything paid off.

05. Joanna Newsom | Have One On Me
This was the record that gave me the most trouble at the beginning, yet had the biggest payoff. The daunting 18-tracks and over two hours were so intimidating that it took me almost two weeks to figure out how to approach this album. However when I finally dove in, I never wanted this record to end. After presenting the flawless Ys I wondered what Joanna would be able to produce next. Have One On Me was the perfect response. Epicly long tracks have become a Newsom staple and they do not disappoint here as proven by the title track, "Go Long" and the stunning "Good Intentions Paving Company". The glorious sounds that only Newsom can create come to life on this album in perhaps the most grandiose forms she has ever displayed.

06. Arcade Fire | The Suburbs
This was the album I listened to more than anything else all year. It was also the album that hit closest to home. Arcade Fire have continued to release amazing albums that have yet to disappoint. After headling two nights at Madison Square Garden, it really seems as if these Canadians have the indie world at the palm of their hands and it is only a matter of time before everyone else figures out. This is surely their longest album to date and the first to include tracks that I would consider skipping, however the grand statements made on "Rococo" "Half Light II" "We Used to Wait" and "Sprawl II" it makes me reconsider any reason I have for not liking something on this album. I can't recall an album before this one that I have been able to relate to in so many ways and I really hope it takes a while before this begins to fade.


07. Big Boi | Sir Lucious Left Foot The Son of Chico Dusty
Above anything else, this album wins best album name of the year (and possibly ever). It has often been said that Andre 3000 is the core member of the duo Outkast, however I challenge anyone to listen to this album and keep that opinion. After years of delay and record label disputes, Sir Lucious Left Foot... finally saw the light of day this summer. The funky southern sounds and dirty basslines are met with aggressive flow that only Big Boi can deliver and sound as fresh as any hip hop actually written in the past twelve months. The guest list can sometimes be questionable (Vonnegut?) but at other times almost majestic (Janelle Monae). This is southern hip hop at its finest. 1990s sounding tough R&B is paired with ferocious beats that leave only one thing to mind: What will Andre 3000 do next?

08. No Age | Everything In Between
2010's biggest sleeper album. After much anticipation to the follow-up of 2008's raucous Nouns, it seemed that after Everything In Between was released people simply forgot to talk about it. This album saw No Age make the progression to more straightforward rock songs and less of the tonal sounds of Nouns. There are less peaks and valleys on this album as the duo blended the sporadic looping drones and aggressive guitars into more of one distinguished sound. Randall's guitar shreds just as harshly on this record as anything he has done before, with the obvious nods to J Mascis and Thurston Moore, and established No Age as the supreme noise rock band of our time.

09. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti | Before Today
Ariel Pink made the biggest shift in musical direction this year, as he left behind his avant guard noise jams for a stab at a psych-pop gem. While "Round and Round" seems to be the clear focus on the album, each track seems just as poppy as the last and any of them could fit in perfectly on a New Year's playlist. The vocal range on many of the tracks is impressive to say the least and the melodies suggest that Ariel could become a pop visionary if he ever desired to make anything inspired by soft rock songs of the 70s. Every time I go back to listen to this album I forget how much of it I remember and how much of it seems like I'm hearing for the first time. A true sign of perfection; instantly recognizable and forgetful the second it is over.

10. Sleigh Bells | Treats
I think of all the albums on this list, this may be the one that made it at the last second. It barely beat out others that I gave some serious consideration, but in the end just missed the cut. From the beginning blasts of "Tell 'Em" this album screams fun. It became my summer jam as I listened to it on what seemed like endless subway rides through the city all summer. Yet no matter how hot it felt, this album was hotter. Every song is an instant party with the exception of stand alone slow jam "Rill Rill" and the album never lets up. As soon as the acoustic guitar loop fades, it goes right back to the high energy ballistic audio assault. And it never seems to end.

No Age on Daytrotter

No Age dropped some new and unreleased tracks on Daytrotter today. The four previously unheard songs keep in check with the noise rockers classic stylings, the best the genre has served up in my opinion. Not too many of these noise bands have been able to keep my attention, but these guys keep in tradition with DYI customs and generally prefer the basement all-ages show atmosphere in opposition to the typical rock venue. Plus, along with Japandroids, they play the best guitar/drum punk around. They describe the track below as "very Husker to me, which is never a bad thing, this version shreds." Check out more over at Daytrotter.

mp3: No Age - "Depletion"

Top Ten Albums of 2008

Thins got busy in December including school, work, finals, seeing Neil Young, Wilco, and CSS and then the holidays and of course the start of 2009. So in order to kick this year off I'm listing my top 10 albums of 2008.

1. Portishead | Third
Portishead made one of the most daring moves of the year. They could either: return and reclaim their greatness with just replaying all of their old classics or they could attempt to put out their first album in over a decade and hope it matched the brilliance of their previous records. They took the chance and killed all odds. This album touched upon all the greatness that Portishead had left on over a decade ago and went even further. They touched everything from trip-hop on “The Rip” to industrial on “Machine Gun” and finally folkie on “Deep Water”. They took tremendous risks and never looked back, but then again how could you with a voice like that.

2. Fleet Foxes | Fleet Foxes
From the opening harmonies it was hard to deny that this was going to be one of my most listened to records of the year. Everything on it just seemed to flow together so well. The voices are pristine, the rhythms are simple, and the lyrics are touching. It’s folk rock with a southern tinge at it’s finest.

3. TV on the Radio | Dear Science
For the follow up to my favorite album of 2006, TV on the Radio left nothing to chance. Dear Science is everything I love about this band. It’s chopping, crunchy, funky, dissonant and smooth all at the same time. It’s all over the place, but in a concentrated way. They challenge you to listen closely at all they do and they pay the closest attention to detail so why doesn’t the listener?

4. No Age | Nouns
5. Deerhunter | Microcastle
6. M83 | Saturdays = Youth
7. Sigur Rós | Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
8. Beach House | Devotion
9. Vampire Weekend | Vampire Weekend
10. Santogold | Santogold