Tim Easton: Paco & The Melodic Polaroids [Album Review]

Tim Easton Paco & The Melodic Polaroids Campfire Propaganda [2018] Who: Tim Easton is an Ohio-raised singer/songwriter, now firmly based out of Nashville, which has a solid catalog of alt-country/Americana/folk recordings that span over two decades to his rowdier days with the Haynes Boys in 1996. Sound: Tim Easton can give you all different sides … Read more

Jack White: Boarding House Reach [Album Review]

Jack White Boarding House Reach Third Man/Columbia Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Jack White’s most eclectic listen to date. Maybe rock is dead? Or is it?. Album Review: If anyone in the indie rock nation could help push the disappearing genre back into the spotlight you think Jack White would be the artist. After already … Read more

Premiere Friday Fire Track: Ricky Hell & The Voidboys – “Friday Eyes”

Ricky Hell & The Voidboys formed in 2017 on the streets of Cleveland, Ohio and if you follow TFN you already are well aware of the excellent noise rock frontman Ricky Hamilton creates as we have featured his solo work and bands Fascinating and Shagg. Needless to say, we are hyped to premiere this Friday … Read more

Track Premiere: Nathaniel Bellows – “How High”

For the past six years, published poet, novelist, visual artist, and musician, Nathaniel Bellows has been writing libretti for the composer Sarah Kirkland Snider. In fact, their last release, Unremembered (2015), was inspired by 13 of Bellows’ poems and illustrations. Now back out front for his sophomore album, Swan and Wolf, Nathaniel Bellows offers a … Read more

Ty Segall: Freedom’s Goblin [Album Review]

Ty Segall Freedom’s Goblin Drag City Records [2018] Fire Note Says: Ty Segall creates a very fluid classic double album in Freedom’s Goblin. Album Review: The grandiose opening blare of instruments on Ty Segall’s new 75-minute double record, Freedom’s Goblin, really tells you all you need to know in its first 22 seconds. This is … Read more

The Friday Fire Track: Charly Bliss – “The Way You Wear Your Head” (Nada Surf Cover)

TFN is always about the cover song. Give us a cover song and we will spin it till it won’t spin no more! Today’s Friday Fire Track is exactly that. Brooklyn-based punks Charly Bliss, which released an outstanding debut record last year in Guppy, take on Nada Surf’s “The Way You Wear Your Head.” The … Read more

Chiller: Chiller [Album Review]

Chiller Chiller Rockstar/Dirt Cult Records [2018] Who: This is the debut record from Moncton, Canada punks Chiller. The band is a continuation of Feral Trash which released Trashfiction in 2014 on Dirt Cult Records. Chiller is Ilisha and Eric of Feral Trash with local friends Erin (Black Tower) and Tim (Mother’s Children). Sound: Fresh melodic … Read more

The Friday Fire Track: Mind Spiders – “Outside”

Mind Spiders have just released their new album, Furies, today via Dirtnap Records. Today’s Friday Fire Track is the first track on the record and it’s a mover. “Outside” captures Mind Spiders aggressiveness as the track just builds and builds and builds into a phonetic frenzy. The group continues to morph into the Devo of … Read more

Track Premiere: The Captain Of Sorrow – “Siamese Scars”

Quiet can always be loud – it just matters how you tune in! That is the feeling that overtakes you in today’s premiere track from the Danish band The Captain Of Sorrow. “Siamese Scars” has an intense rhythm that is driven from the singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer of this record, Hans-Christian. His calm demeanor … Read more

The Friday Fire Track: Graham Repulski – “Negative Highlight Reel”

We love lo-fi around here at The Fire Note and today’s Friday Fire Track is from one of favorite underground indie heroes Graham Repulski. The Philadelphia artist releases a consistently good batch of songs every year and “Negative Highlight Reel” is one of the first in 2018. The track is from the cassette EP of … Read more

Unlikely Friends: Crooked Numbers [Album Review]

Unlikely Friends Crooked Numbers Swoon Records [2018] Who: Unlikely Friends (UF) is made up of veteran artists from the Northwest which includes D. Crane (of Seattle’s BOAT), Charles Bert (of Seattle quiet indie-pop band Math & Physics Club, Chris MacFarlane (owner of local indie-pop record store/label Jigsaw Records) on drums plus a rotating cast of … Read more

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard: Gumboot Soup [Album Review]

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Gumboot Soup ATO/Flightless Records [2017] Fire Note Says: Australia’s psych rock heroes make good on their promise! Album Review: Australia’s King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard made the crazy announcement back in November of 2016 that the band would release five albums in 2017. Releasing this much music in … Read more

Angel Olsen: Phases [Album Review]

Angel Olsen Phases Jagjaguwar [2017] Who: Indie singer/songwriter Angel Olsen began performing at a young age in St. Louis coffee shops and now after three full length albums she has progressed into one of the best female voices on the scene. Phases is a collection of B-sides, rarities, and demos from the past several years, … Read more

Curtis Harding: Face Your Fear [Album Review]

Curtis Harding Face Your Fear ANTI- [2017] Fire Note Says: Curtis Harding can hold a groove with the best! Album Review: With the recent passing of the “Screaming Eagle of Soul,” Charles Bradley in September, Sonny Knight in June and Sharon Jones last year, the retro soul movement has taken a serious blow. Their talents … Read more

Buffalo Killers: Alive And Well In Ohio [Album Review]

Buffalo Killers Alive And Well In Ohio Alive Naturalsound Records [2017] Who: Alive And Well In Ohio marks the eighth album from Cincinnati’s Buffalo Killers. This album was recorded at their Howler Hills Farm analog studio and mixed and mastered by Mike Montgomery (R. Ring, Ampline). Sound: Buffalo Killers offer up a laid back muscular … Read more

Racquet Club: Racquet Club [Album Review]

Racquet Club Racquet Club Rise Records [2017] Who: Racquet Club is a new veteran indie group that features members of Knapsack, The Jealous Sound, and Samiam. Sound: If you were fans of Knapsack and The Jealous Sound, Racquet Club follows suit with their style of indie emo rock lead by vocalist/guitarist Blair Shehan. TFN Final … Read more

The Friday Fire Track: The Breeders – “Wait In The Car” [Video]

Anytime a band comes back together it is news. The quartet of Kim and Kelley Deal, Josephine Wiggs and Jim Macpherson, better known as The Breeders, made that happen in 2013 for the 20th anniversary of their 1993 classic Last Splash. Now, the Dayton band has a killer new two-minute track in “Wait In The Car” which proves they still have it. All we really need to say is “Meow, Meow, Meow, Meow.” The track is fun, energetic and ultra-catchy.

No news on an album yet but this single is part of a series of 7″ releases via 4AD. One will be available at the band’s upcoming tour dates, (pressed on orange vinyl, featuring a cover of Amon Düül II’s 1970 track “Archangel’s Thunderbird”, recorded with Steve Albini in Chicago). Another will be available exclusively at select independent record stores from October 27th (pressed on yellow vinyl and including a cover of Devo’s “Gates of Steel”). Details of a third version (featuring Kim’s reimagining of Mike Nesmith’s ‘Joanne’ and pressed on red vinyl) will be announced later in the year. Each version is limited to 1500 copies worldwide.

The Breeders will begin their previously announced 21 dates in Europe and North American starting later this month. They’ll also play a warm-up show for the tour in Newport, KY on October 10th and support Arcade Fire on two dates in St. Paul, MN and Chicago, IL at the end of the month, just before their US tour starts. All the dates are below and Enjoy your Friday!

October
10th – The Southgate House Revival, Newport, KY, US
15th – ABC, Glasgow, UK
16th – Vicar Street, Dublin, Ireland
17th – Academy 2, Manchester, UK **SOLD OUT**
18th – Electric Ballroom, London, UK **SOLD OUT**
22nd – Melkweg Max, Amsterdam, Netherlands
23rd – Trix, Antwerp, Belgium
24th – Heimathafen, Berlin, Germany
25th – Vega, Copenhagen, Denmark
27th – La Gaité Lyrique, Paris France **SOLD OUT**
29th – XCEL Energy Centre, St-Paul, MN, US #
30th – United Center, Chicago, IL, US #
November
1st – Magic Stick, Detroit, MI, US
3rd – The Sinclair, Boston, MA, US **SOLD OUT**
4th – Lincoln Theatre, Washington, DC
5th – Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY, US **SOLD OUT**
6th – Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA
8th – Wonder Ballroom, Portland, OR, US **SOLD OUT**
9th – Showbox at Market, Seattle, WA, US **SOLD OUT**
11th – The Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, CA **SOLD OUT**
12th – The Independent, San Francisco, CA **SOLD OUT**
13th – El Rey Theatre, Los Angeles, CA **SOLD OUT**
# = with Arcade Fire

ORB: Naturality [Album Review]

ORB Naturality Castle Face/Flightless Records [2017] Who: ORB hail from Australia and run around with label mates King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard which are both on Flightless and Castle Face Records. Naturality is their sophomore record. Sound: The band is known for their thunderous heavy sludge riffs. Naturality continues this muscle but now finds … Read more

Shagg: Shagg [Album Review]

Shagg Shagg Quality Time/Greenway Records [2017] Shagg should be on your radar. This Cleveland band will rock the crap out of you for this entire just over 14-minute record. Their arrangements are chaotic, the music is messy and they can blow your speakers out but all of those things are what I like about this … Read more

Ty Segall: Fried Shallots EP [Album Review]

Ty Segall Fried Shallots EP Drag City Records [2017] Fried Shallots, Ty Segall’s latest EP, was pulled together from his past recordings and all the profits from its sales were donated to the American Civil Liberties Union. This gives the EP a lack of cohesion but it is still Ty and some tracks stand out … Read more

Hoops: Routines [Album Review]

Hoops Routines Fat Possum Records [2017] Who: Hoops is a Bloomington, Indiana four-piece and Routines is their debut full length. Hoops was born in frontman Drew Auscherman’s teenage bedroom as a solo ambient and beat-driven project but with growth Hoops gained memomentum after releasing three cassette tapes and last year’s self-titled debut EP. Sound: Hoops … Read more