Thursday Music News

03/10/2016

Janice Headley

Following a sold out show at The Moore Theatre last week, and a stunning benefit show for KEXP's New Home, José González shares a video for the single "With the Ink of a Ghost" off his most recent Mute Records release, Vestiges & Claws. The stunning clip, directed by Malin Ingrid Johansson, stars dancer Yared Cederlund performing freeform over González's meditative song. Via a press release, Johansson explains, "Using both the physical movement through Yared's body, and the movement between the two rooms, we wanted to do something as contradictory as visualizing the invisible. Us people are often strongly under the influence by forces we can't see. Forces inside and outside of us, sometimes created by events that took place long before us. In the same way, our actions today will affect those coming long after us. By then we will be what's invisible." Watch below:

From now on, I'm not even going to blink if a band says they're retiring. (Looking at you, LCD Soundsystem.) Robert Pollard has announced he's bringing back Guided By Voices, who "retired" in 2014, and, uh, again before that in 2004. This time, Pollard plays all the instruments himself on the full-length Please Be Honest, out April 22nd on his own GBV Inc. label. Stream the first single "My Zodiac Companion" below. [When he heads out on tour, he'll be joined by Bobby Bare Jr. (guitar), Kevin March (drums), Nick Mitchell (guitar), and Mark Shue (bass).] If that's not enough, Pollard released a solo album, Of Course You Are, just last week on Fire Records. [Consequence of Sound]

French house duo Cassius have been quiet since their last full-length, 2006's 15 Again. Co-founder Philippe Zdar has been keeping busy mixing and producing work for Phoenix, the Rapture, and, thankfully, Beastie Boys and Cat Power. Both the Beasties' Mike D and Cat Power's Chan Marshall return the favor by adding guest vocals to the duo's comeback track "Action," which you can stream below via Annie Mac's BBC Radio 1 show. Mike D. tells Pitchfork, "The song came with this world liberation theme and then I came with a modern-day relationship theme, and somehow the two went together. It's kind of like toast and Vegemite go together only in Australia." Listen below: [Pitchfork]

Similarly, Peter Bjorn & John have been laying low since 2011’s Gimme Some, but they return this summer with the full-length Breakin’ Point. Hear the album's first single "What You Talking About?" below. The Swedish threesome bring in some heavy-hitters to produce, including Paul Epworth (Paul McCartney, Florence and the Machine), Greg Kurstin (Adele, Beck), and Emile Haynie (FKA twigs). Breakin’ Point hits stores on June 10th via the band's own INGRID imprint. [Stereogum]

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