Violens Drop New Single and Tour with Handsome Furs

The last time we checked in with Violens, the group had just played their first live show and made available an unmastered version of their psychedelic pop gem “Violent Sensation Descends.” The New York-based five-piece consisting of keyboardist Iddo Arad, bassist Ben Brantley, Jorge Elbrecht on vocals/lead guitar, Jay Israelson, and drummer Kris King has just dropped the mastered edition of the song and are kicking off a tour supporting Montreal’s Handsome Furs. The band also has a couple of new tracks up on their MySpace page including the ringing and melodic “Spectator and Pupil” along with “Circles Intertwine.” The Handsome Furs/Violens tour hits Philadelphia on April 4th at North Star Bar and New York on April 6th. Full dates below.

Here’s what we had to say about “Violent Sensation Descends”

“Violent Sensation Descends” begins with a dark, almost haunting psychedelic swirl before breaking into warm, jangly, sunny psych-pop. Warm harmonies and delectable melodies are book-ended by another delve into dark psych whirl. It’s like being tossed around in an ocean of dark waves before they spit you out onto a sunny beach. By the time you stand up to dust the sand off of yourself and let your eyes adjust to the bright sun (and begin to enjoy it), the waves reach out and drag you back into the swirling eddies and crashing waves.

[MP3]: Violens  ”Violent Sensation Descends”
Single, Static Recital; 2008

Violens Tour Dates supporting Handsome Furs
3/27/08 PS 14 – Miami, FL
3/28/08 Respectable Street – West Palm Beach, FL
3/29/08 Cafe Eleven – St Augustine, FL
3/30/08 The Social – Orlando, FL
3/31/08 Common Grounds – Gainesville, FL
4/1/08 Village Tavern – Mt Pleasant, SC
4/2/08 Local 506 – Chapel Hill, NC
4/3/08 Satellite Ballroom – Charlottesville, VA
4/4/08 North Star Bar – Philadelphia, PA
4/6/08 Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY

Trackback | Section 25 (First Ever Compilation)

LTM has announced the release of the first ever “Best Of” compilation from Section 25. The comp is titled Dirty Disco (1978-2008) and set to be released on March 31st. The cult group that was initially mentored by Joy Division went on to release four albums on the Factory Records imprint between 1980 and 1986. The albums received production from Factory alums like Martin Hannett and Bernard Sumner, along with Ian Curtis/Rob Gretton produced singles.

Much like labelmates the Durutti Column, A Certain Ratio, and New Order, Section 25 started as a post-punk group in the late 70s but by the mid 80s the group’s sound had become primarily electronic-based new wave, primed for the dance club explosion in the late 80s.

Taking their name from a provision of the Mental Health Act, Section 25 was formed by brothers Larry and Vincent Cassidy in Blackpool, Lancashire in 1978 and by the time they made their live debut they had added guitarist Paul Wiggin. The Ian Curtis and Rob Gretton produced debut single “Girls Don’t Count” was released via Factory in July 1980. The single also included the Curtins/Gretton produced songs “Knew Noise” and “Up to You.” The Martin Hannett produced debut full-length, Always Now, followed in 1981, much known for its packaging as its music. The LP was beautifully housed in a bright yellow heavy cover with stylish black type unfettered by punctuation and word spacing. Lifting the flap from the tabbed slot yielded swirling colorful marbled paper with printed with yellow boxes containing the band’s name and tracklisting.

After a few line-up changes in 1984, the group’s sound moved in a more electronic-dance direction as heard on the single “Looking From A Hilltop” that featured new additions Angela Flowers and Jenny Ross on vocals and keyboards. The single broke as a hit in the U.S. club scene along with reworked versions “Restructure” and “Megamix,” later appearing on the group’s third LP, From The Hip. The Bernard Sumner produced From The Hip was also the band’s first album that received an American release via Factory U.S. in 1984. After a North American tour in 1985, the band split in 1986, leaving then husband and wife Larry Cassidy and Jenny Ross to finish the fourth album, Love and Hate, which was eventually released in 1988.

The band saw their entire catalog re-released by LTM in the 90s and like a lot of other post-punk acts, the band reunited in 2001 and began work on new material. Although it’s not the original line-up, they put out a record titled Post-Primitiv last year, but I haven’t heard it yet. The comp, Dirty Disco celebrates 30 years of Section 25, featuring eight of the band’s album tracks and the singles “Knew Noise,” “Dirty Disco,” “Haunted,” “Beating Heart,” “Looking From A Hilltop,” “Crazy Wistdom,” and “Bad News Week.” Keep an eye out for it in March.

The band has an extensive bio as does LTM along with their entire back catalog.

[MP3]: Section 25  ”Looking From A Hilltop”
From The Hip, Factory Records; 1984

Trackback | The Raincoats

A friend of mine mentioned to me yesterday that he had just watched “The Devil and Daniel Johnston” over the weekend. I personally haven’t seen the 2005 documentary, but it’s something that needs to be added to my Netflix queue after hearing him talk about it. One of the things that he took from the film (aside from Johnston’s manic-depressive genius) was not about Johnston specifically, but actually in relation to Kurt Cobain. He went on to say that through Cobain, he had discovered a variety of music that he might not have ever heard if it wasn’t for the Nirvana frontman. Bands including The Meat Puppets, The Vaselines, Lead Belly, and many others he owes Cobain for his discovery.

If you haven’t seen the documentary or heard anyone else talk about it, you might be wondering how this all relates. During Nirvana’s height in the early 90s, Kurt Cobain continuously wore a T-shirt advertising Johnston’s homemade cassette, Hi, How Are You?, which eventually led to a record company executive visiting Johnston in the mental hospital and trying to sign him to a record deal. My friend didn’t necessarily discover Johnston through Cobain, but you get the point. Not only did Cobain have great taste in music, he also used his celebrity status to champion the bands he loved and thought deserved more attention.

Cobain was also a big fan of post-punk outfit, The Raincoats, dropping their name in the liner notes of Incesticide and later urging DGC to reissue The Raincoats three studio albums (The Raincoats, Odyshape, and Moving) in 1993 and 1994. While the band was still together and recording from 1978 until their split in 1984, they had teetered on mere obscurity, gaining a cult following in their native UK and a small following over here in the States. After the reissues and name dropping by Cobain, the band reunited in 1994 and toured the UK with Nirvana which was followed by a solo U.S. tour and later released the reunion album Looking In The Shadows in 1996.

Like The Slits and Kleenex, the all-female Raincoats formed in the wake of The Sex Pistols and Clash madness. Their scratchy, jittery, and unconventionally melodic self-titled debut was groundbreaking. “Their eccentric sound has lost none of its unique appeal and power. With lyrics that intelligently critique consumerism and patriarchy, The Raincoats opened a door and created new possibilities in punk (Alan McGee for The Guardian).” Although they were short-lived, the band was highly influential on the post-punk scene and following generations proving that it wasn’t just a boys’ game.

The original lineup of the Raincoats consisted of Gina Birch on bass, Ana Da Silva on guitar, Vicky Aspinall on second guitar/violin, and Palmolive (Paloma Romero) formerly of The Slits on drums. After The Raincoats Palmolive left the band and was replaced by drummer Ingrid Weiss. The four-piece went onto record two more solid albums that included Odyshape in 1981, and 1984’s Moving prior to splitting up.

Check out “Fairytale In The Supermarket” from their debut and another favorite from that record, their cover of The Kinks “Lola” below.

[MP3]: The Raincoats  ”Fairytale In The Supermarket”
The Raincoats, Rough Trade; 1979
[MP3]: The Raincoats  ”Lola (Kinks cover)”
The Raincoats, Rough Trade; 1979