When I first encountered the much-maligned ‘Witchhouse’ genre it was met with much derision and skepticism. Pieced together video clips of the dramatic opening of Kubrick’s Lolita posted online with glitchy downbeats and warbly synth-lines replacing the audio track. As the protagonist guns down his love’s kidnapper on the staircase a dancey breakbeat gives way to hip-hop drumming and while my surrounding friends and viewers find much humor in the situation I mask a quiet curiosity as to this juxtaposition.

Indeed, the association of violence, of horror, of witchcraft in electronic music crawls back to the days of burgeoning industrial, Goblin’s Suspiria-era film scores, and even the slinky, seductive, other-worldly guitar of experimental Cramps tracks. To say that electronic music doesn’t have a place in a punk rock subculture would be absurd at best in this regard, even with the addition of house music elements and dance-punk rhythms. Bands with unpronounceable names as symbols and ASCII characters have proclaimed as much right to the punk moniker as bands with the anarchy ‘circle A’ in place of the proper letter. The most prominent ‘witchhouse’ or ’spookycore’ symbol thus far has been the triangle, the ‘▲’, which resembles the high-topped roofs of gothic-era, haunted house architecture.

Enter SPIDER▲WEBS, a band hailing from Chicago and clouded in mystery. In the cult classic indie-punk sense the group has garnished praise from a rabid word of mouth ‘tumblr-core’ fanbase for its haunting rhythms and sinister flourishes of crackling, melodic static which together form what may constitute a lost Crystal Castles instrumental b-side. In essence SPIDER▲WEBS and much of the ‘witchhouse’ genre seem highly indebted to the work of Alice Glass and E. Kath, whose penchant for bloody ragers wrapped in the blips and whirls of a computer have bred a genre of glitch-punk provocateurs.

Tracks such as “ΞΔΞΔΞ” and “[sinking]” feature unsettling vibes, whispered vocals, and carefully warped samples from the likes of Cocteau Twins, New Order, and Kraftwerk. On the Dusk House EP the group crafts a fifteen minute ode to eerie electronica, spindly disco, and haunting house, leaving the listener wanting more not only in terms of song-length but songcraft, as the musical ideas presented in the tracks deserve a fleshing out and room to breathe. However, despite the ‘coffin-esque’ length of the tracks SPIDER▲WEBS has clearly stumbled into an attractive genre niche – here’s hoping they can deliver on the promise of this release.

SPIDER▲WEBS – “[sinking]“

The Big Pink – “Crystal Visions”
The Big Pink – “At War With The Sun”

Comments?

1. “My Propeller”
2. “Crying Lightning”
3. “Dangerous Animals”
4. “Secret Door”
5. “Potion Approaching”
6. “Fire and the Thud”
7. “Cornerstone”
8. “Dance Little Liar”
9. “Pretty Visitors”
10. “The Jeweller’s Hands”

We here at Cannibal Cheerleader have been Arctic Monkeys fans since the beginning, ever since they let loose with their punkish snarls and street-wise rhymes on their debut LP. When Favourite Worst Nightmare dropped we were stunned at the art-rock direction the band had chosen for their sophomore release, which featured the fearsome foursome flowering into rock monstrosities, artful tunesters whose lyrical chops and wicked instrumentation were forces to be reckoned with. And now, all signs point to an even more ‘Cannibal Cheerleader’ approach to their third album – stoner jams, Black Sabbath influences, hell even Josh Homme is aboard. Sludge city.
Check out this recent press photo featuring all the boys with classic slacker hair. Note the ‘molest-aches’ and Sabbath shirt. Now squirm on over to the news that Josh Homme of stoner-metal gods Queens of the Stone Age helped co-produce Humbug. Even track titles like “Fire and Thud” absolutely seethe with sludge-jam mentality. And frankly, that’s quite alright with us. Not only are we big stoner-jam fans to begin with, and Arctic Monkeys aficionados to boot, but we have an affinity for bands trying new things, broadening their horizons, and venturing outside their comfort zone. Here’s to Humbug coming through in spades.

Arctic Monkeys – “Take It Or Leave It (Strokes Cover)”
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JENNY LEWIS LIVE REVIEW
Sweltering heat accompanies any Austin, Texas summer night, and June 22nd was no different just because the cooling breeze that is the voice of Miss Jenny Lewis was in town. Still, as the sun set on the Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheatre here in downtown Austin, any audience member there could have told you there was no other place worth being than bathed in the glow of the sonorous tunes by the fiery redhead.
The evening started with Ohio-to-Austin transplants the Heartless Bastards churning away at their soulful rock-renditions, leaning heavily on the formidable strength of lead crooner Erika Wennerstrom’s inimitable voice.
Burning through tracks from their newest LP The Mountain as well as old crowd favorites, the band felt tight and pulverizing, Wennerstrom’s rhythm section choreographing their movements in tune with the songs like consummate rock professionals. The sound was mixed at a very bass-high level, allowing for a bombastic volume level that rumbled out over the enthusiastic crowd. After an all-too-short set the band wrapped up to make way for the main course.
Then, just as the sun set off in the distance Jenny Lewis trailed by boyfriend and co-writer of Acid Tongue Jonathan Rice and the rest of her ragtag traveling troupe took to the stage with force, leaping immediately into crowd favorite “See Fernando” before assaulting a bevy of old classics from her already formidable solo library. Whipping their way through track after track of instantaneously infectious indie-rock nuggets with equal parts country and rock twang, Jenny Lewis and company sounded wholly loose and carefree. While a Rilo Kiley performance, as awe-inspiring as they might be, come with at times an overabundance of gravitas, it became clear to the audience at Stubb’s that a Lewis solo performance was the exact opposite – an opportunity for the singer to delight in rock classicism and groove effortlessly without self-referencing.
Still, perhaps the most achingly gorgeous performance of the night was the solo-acoustic rendition of Rilo Kiley classic “Silver Lining” that saw Lewis alone on the stage, strumming away through the basic chords of the love-lorn tune, made all the more powerful by the absence of Blake Sennett. The band wrapped up the night with a cavalier and ramshackle take on “The Next Messiah” followed by an encore that featured a brand new song (”Big Wave”, one of two new songs of the night, the other being “Just Like Zeus”, both being infectious and sounding more Rilo Kiley-esque than most of Lewis’ current repertoire), “Acid Tongue”, and the hot-and-sweaty closer “Born Secular”. Overall a fantastic display of confident musicianship that once again reasserts Miss Lewis reign as the queen of indie-rock. Check out this wonderful video below found on YouTube – recorded maybe with a digital camera but the vertical lines make me think I’m watching an old home movie and the sound quality is pretty spot-on. Enjoy!

Jenny Lewis – “Acid Tongue”
Heartless Bastards – “Out At Sea”
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CRYSTAL CASTLES TUSSLE WITH SECURITY
Word on the street is Cannibal Cheerleader favorite Crystal Castles are some troublesome youngsters. Always gallivanting about, canceling shows (to great dismay), and generally acting like good ol’ fashioned rockstars. Now it seems they’ve gotten into yet another scrape, this time with security at the Sonar Festival in Barcelona. Sources say that after an entire set of battling with agonizing sound issues, Alice Glass decided to trash the band’s drum kit after the set was finished. Apparently, festival security didn’t enjoy her rowdy behavior and in the video below one can see a security guard scooping her up and away from the drums. However, in the last few seconds of the vid one can see E. Kath dashing to his singer’s aid and just as it looks like he’s about to throw a haymaker the video cuts out. Reports are a small tussle took place but the only punches thrown were by the tiny fists of Glass to undoubtedly little damage. Check it out below.

We here at Cannibal Cheerleader, Crystal Castles historians we are, have long since known about Glass’ penchant for causing a ruckus. Check out some of the videos our friends from the Lymbyc Systym sent us (their drummer pulls double duties in both bands) showcasing some onstage destruction. Obviously skip to the last part of both the videos for the real action.


Yep, seems as if Glass and Kath are quite the rapscallions. We’re not one to pass judgment on such things really – we’re just huge fans of the music. Still, all the ruckus and holier-than-thou arguments about how dastardly the Crystal Castles duo behave remind us of how the Brits hemmed and hawed over the Sex Pistols’ Bill Grundy interview – and how twenty years later they all realized how silly they all were for caring so much. And hell, we appreciate it when rock stars act as such. Here’s to a few destroyed hotel rooms at the Crystal Castles suite.

Crystal Castles – “Death (White Lies Remix)”
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SPINNERETTE RELEASE SELF-TITLED DEBUT
Coming off the heated anticipation following their Ghetto Love EP, Brody Dalle’s self-titled Spinnerette LP emerges, rising like some Garbage-influenced phoenix from the ashes of the Distillers. Never one to people please and not follow her own ambitions, Dalle here experiments with churning electronic loops and danceable rhythms recalling a solo-era Courtney Love with bigger chops and a greater sense of genuineness. And while the songs may at times seem cookie-cutter and over-produced, Dalle is nothing if not self-referential, taking an inherently shallow music medium and infusing it with hot sweat and malice, her trademark drawl and impassioned wails adding an air of desperation to the forlorn tracks and creating an undertone of experimentalism and depth that begs for multiple spins. The album has been receiving some flack from all sides, but the ultimate criticism that anyone can come up with is that Dalle is not delivering on the promise of Coral Fang Pt. 2. I’m sure she would say the album is her big middle finger to an industry that wishes to pigeonhole female artists into easily definable roles. This is Dalle’s Eagles of Death Metal and it kills.

Spinnerette – “All Babes Are Wolves”
Spinnerette – “The Walking Dead”
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JIM JAMES IS EVERYWHERE
The fact that My Morning Jacket has no release planned for this year hasn’t stopped lead crooner Jim James from remaining as prolific as ever. On top of releasing the excellent Celebración de la Ciudad Natal Record Store Day release featuring the Jacket performing live, James has also revealed that he will be releasing an EP of George Harrison covers under the pseudonym ‘Yim Yames‘ in tribute to the late Beatles guitarist. The release features recordings from Harrison’s days with the Beatles and his storied solo career.

In other Jim James related news, the Monsters of Folk album has been officially confirmed, and it combines the MMJ frontman with none other than M. Ward and Conor Oberst. The self-titled debut album is due out on Sept. 22nd and will feature fifteen barn-burning country-rockers. Tracklist below:

1. “Dear God (sincerely M.O.F.)”
2. “Say Please”
3. “Whole Lotta Losin’”
4. “Temazcal”
5. “The Right Place”
6. “Baby Boomer”
7. “Man Named Truth”
8. “Goodway”
9. “Ahead of the Curve”
10. “Slow Down Jo”
11. “Losin Yo Head”
12. “Magic Marker”
13. “Map of the World”
14. “The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me”
15. “His Master’s Voice”

Yim Yames – “Behind That Locked Door”
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NEW BAND CHEER: COMPLETE COLLAPSE
Sometimes record store crawling can pay off in spades, as was the case when the Cannibal Cheerleader crew wandered into Trailer Space Records in East Austin to find female-fronted Atx hardcore group Complete Collapse spreading ruiniation between the indie and classic rock aisles. Despite having only been around since January the band is already gaining steam locally, and will be playing club shows and recording demos as the summer drags on. For our money however, the band, with their rip-snarl guitar attack and the guttural howl of lead singer Carrie, is one of the best hardcore punk groups representing Austin right now. Be sure and check their July 14th show at Red 7 and head over to their Myspace. Hail to the hardcore.
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JOIN JOY FORMIDABLE MAILING LIST
Seems as if our pals in The Joy Formidable have been busy – crafting a stunning debut LP, releasing three singles and three respective videos already from said 9-song album, and all the while keeping up with their fans on a very intimate level. It seems the band would like everyone to know they should sign up for their email list at their new official website so we here at Cannibal Cheerleader are definitely obliging. Won’t you? Be sure and keep track of this trio over at their Myspace – word on the street is they’ll soon be huge.

Joy Formidable – “The Greatest Light Is the Greatest Shade”
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NEW BAND CHEER: LA ROUX
Riding an electric storm across the Atlantic, fueled by infectious synth-beats and danceable harmonies, UK act La Roux are poised to storm the US and turn the Little Boots hysteria into ‘LaRoux-lite’. Sounding decidedly icy and unconcerned while maintaining enough crystalline tenderness and depth to really illuminate the fact that a great dance record when made well is also a great indie-rock record, the duo’s (producer Ben Langmaid and singer Emmy Jackson) self-titled debut swaggers with the confidence of a record deep into an artist’s career. With a tidal wave of British press behind the band and a Flock of Seagulls haircut that’s sure to be the focus of a million other articles on the highly coifed singer, La Roux are nonetheless the kind of understated dance act that’s sure to make a huge splash.

La Roux – “In For the Kill”
La Roux – “Colourless Colour”
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VOTE ROLO TOMASSI
One of our favorite acts of all time Rolo Tomassi is apparently in the running for the Kerrang! Magazine award for Best British Newcomer. To help the group claim this hefty title and wrestle it from those other poser bands you have to go to this website and vote immediately! Just put ‘ROLO TOMASSI’ in the text box and you’re all set. Let’s get Rolo Tomassi to the top where they belong!

As a quick aside it seems in all our Rolo Tomassi excitement we’ve somehow forgotten to introduce their excellent video for rawkus album opener “Oh, Hello Ghost”. Allow us to remedy that immediately and treat you to a string of hardcore infused Xmas lights and tiny wooden mannequin in a disturbing love triangle:

In other news it seems that Rolo Tomassi and one of our other favorite Holy Roar groups Throats will be releasing a special split 7″, with each band covering the other’s respective songs. Throats will be giving their own rendition of “I Love Turbulence” while the Spence’s and company will be delivering the goods on “Headclouds” and “Reign of Low”. Limited edition here folks, pre-order while you can. Here’s to these two awesome UK imports!

Rolo Tomassi – “Scabs”
Throats – “Deathnaps”
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NEW TINY VIPERS ALBUM
If any young artist this year were to deliver on the promise of their past work in the same way that Jesy Fortino of Tiny Vipers has done with her new incredible outing Life On Earth, a stunning achievement in minimalist acoustic-folk and a mind-altering journey that begs to explore deep, philosophical facets of one’s mind, then they can be said to have pull off the impossible. Tiny Vipers, perhaps best known for her silence-inducing, eye-opening live performances has crafted a stormy, flickering dark wave of an album, with a sound like a dark journey down the river Styx, casting away at a slow pitch towards a dark underworld of introspective thought where return is not guaranteed. Casting aside all traditional singer-songwriter structures and Cat Power-aping, Fortino here sounds completely unique and natural, alone in a cave with only her questions on life to comfort her. A truly masterful effort, Life On Earth may well have claimed the crown of the best acoustic record of the year only halfway through.

Tiny Vipers – “Life On Earth”
Tiny Vipers – “Tiger Mountain”
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NEW BLOC PARTY SINGLE
Never ones to rest on their laurels, Bloc Party are racing off again, this time with a new one-off single called “One More Chance”, released on BBC Radio last week. Featuring Kele Okereke’s trademark pained-croons about lost love and strained relationships, the single introduces a dancier rhythm and a disco-inflections that were only briefly explored on Intimacy. The song careens through several minutes of guitar-pedals and electronic washes before barreling to hushed close, altogether leaving us wanting more. Is this the new direction for another Bloc Party LP? Retro synths and lost love? Here’s hoping so! Enjoy at the Bloc Party site here!

Bloc Party – “Ion Square (Banjo Or Freakout Remix)”
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HALFWAY THERE: MID-YEAR BEST OF LIST
We here at Cannibal Cheerleader don’t count ourselves as big fans of ‘rock lists’, the male-oriented activity of putting quantitative values to qualitative artistic endeavors. We’ve always made a point to try and not even review bands we dislike – art is subjective and to create is inherently a valued activity. That said, while we like a lot of things, we, like most, tend to like some things more than others, and that’s what our mid-year best of list is all about. We figured since this is a halfway-point in the year list we wouldn’t go into too much detail; instead we numbered our favorite singles and albums thus far, creating a comprehensive list of what has impressed us thus far. Check it:

BEST SONGS OF ‘09 THUS FAR

10. “Oblivion” – Mastodon
9. “Come Monday Night” – God Help the Girl
8. “The Mountain” – Heartless Bastards
7. “All Babes Are Wolves” – Spinnerette
6. “Boy Boy” – Lissy Trullie
5. “Cotopaxi” – The Mars Volta
4. “Dull Life” – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3. “Planes” – Pull In Emergency
2. “Whirring” – The Joy Formidable

1. “Black Eyes” – Gallows
One listen to the terrifying wail that is Gallows‘ Frank Carter screaming “I know where you live!” instantly rockets this searing single up the list, and kudos to the crunching instrumentation and experimental aesthetic that pulls it out of the hardcore sameness muck and into first place. Perhaps the best thing Gallows have ever done – looking forward to checking them out on July 4th here in Austin!

BEST ALBUMS OF ‘09 THUS FAR

10. The Horrors – Primary Colours
9. Neko Case – Middle Cyclone
8. Peter Doherty – Grace/Wastelands
7. Tiny Vipers – Life On Earth
6. The Joy Formidable – A Balloon Called Moaning
5. Bat For Lashes – Two Suns
4. Fever Ray – Fever Ray
3. Kylesa – Static Tensions
2. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz!

1. Lissy Trullie – Self-Taught Learner
What can we say that we haven’t already about this blistering release? Lissy Trullie wraps up everything that’s cool about rock and roll into one six-song EP then dares us to find flaw. We here at Cannibal Cheerleader really can’t. Looking forward to some recording news in the near future and maybe another LT release by the end of the year.
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CANNIBAL CHEERLEADER LIVES
So where have we been for the past few weeks? Whatever happened to ‘never gonna let you down now’? Well Cannibal Cheerleader faithful, we’ve been saving up the good stuff for one big release of course. As opposed to aping the other blogs who release every worthless tidbit they can scrape together or copy/pasting from PitchGum, we plan on releasing a massive weekly post that really showcases what music we find really worthwhile. The blog has been repeated ad infinitum. We didn’t devise Cannibal Cheerleader to get the most hits, to join the blogosphere proper. From now on CC is an online zine, appearing once a week featuring all the outsider writing you’ve come to know and love.

So what do we have in store for you? Well as the year progresses the site layout will be updated, showing off a little bit more of our videowork. Check out the video below to see a reel of our Cannibal Cheerleader work over the years – seems like we’ve been around the block more than once! That said we encourage anyone who wants the CC crew to make a video for their band to please contact us at cannibalcheerleader@gmail.com. We’d be happy to do it and frankly we’re not bad at what we do. Check it:

Lastly stay tuned for the fall edition of the Cannibal Cheerleader zine – that’s right volume 4 people! What’s that? You don’t have issues 1-3? Well they’re going fast so email us quick and we’ll shoot you a copy in exchange for something cool (be creative and music related!). And just to plant the demon seed in all you faithful’s brains, this Halloween be prepared for the Cannibal Cheerleader Horrowshow, a showcase of metal acts from around the world right here in Austin, Texas on Oct. 31st. You’ve been warned. Hail to the horror.

Comments?

White Lies – Death (Crystal Castles Remix) from eeebee on Vimeo.

Crystal Castles – “Death (White Lies Remix)”
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WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM LIVE IN AUSTIN
A night of black metal mayhem and mind-blowing muscianship (check for Norwegian in-jokes there) last night at Emo’s here in Austin with Wolves in the Throne Room leading a killer lineup that also included Neurosis’ heir apparent A Storm of Light and Atx’s own the Roller.
The Roller kicked off the night with a banshee-screaming bang, pummeling through several barn-burning odes to blackened death metal with a Southern edge, screaming of equal parts Eyehategod and Venom, with drone-infusions bleeding into inflections of guitar-shredding classicism. Featuring a brand new bassist, the Roller seem poised to explode outside the Austin scene and onto the black metal market.
A Storm of Light followed, featuring a sound-mix loud enough to seep between one’s ribs and rip the air out of the lungs within. As visuals of a giant sea-creatures and wrecked vessels sinking into the black ocean projected behind the three-piece, the massive boom of the band, coupled with their extreme stage presence and fierce instrumentation, recalled images of noise-era Swans or early Neurosis, unrelenting in its massive, morose spectacle. Indeed, the band featured female vocal stylings (care of a laptop) from none other than Jarboe of Swans fame, and when the lead guitarist of Wolves in the Throne Room hopped onstage for a song, the collaborative nature of the band became even more apparent. Overall, an incredibly tough act to follow.
Wolves in the Throne Room took to the stage next very slowly, lighting candles around the drum kit and tinkering with their tuning all in full view of a near-capacity crowd. Not known for their low-register bass work, WITTR sounded unbelievably shrill and fierce in their mid-range pitch after the heavy doom inflections of ASOF. Nonetheless, after a few songs the band truly stepped into their own, allowing subtle melodies and shocking changeups to carry the churning swell of their music to their darkest heights. Halfway through their set the band, absolutely soaked with sweat, found a transcendant chord in their guitar-work, combining a shoegaze atmosphere with a deep and dreadful sense of horror, the acidic lead vocals slicing a bloody path through the middle of the cloud of thunderous sound. Collapsing in a literal heap as their set wound to a close, the band did not play an encore, their reign already cemented over the room full of adoring fans. These guys will be playing again in Austin in July – you can count on Cannibal Cheerleader being there with bells on.
Wolves in the Throne Room – “Vastness and Sorrow”
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NEW BAND CHEER: THE AXONS
Lots of great finds this week at Cannibal Cheerleader, beginning with the Axons, a Zombies-infused bedroom pop trio right here out of Austin, Texas who boast a signature sound that’s equal parts fresh cuts of psychedelia and classic-rock British invasion. Discovering this group at a recent art-gallery after party at a sleezy downtown bar, the band seemed poised to blow every other act out of the water with their simple template and pitch-perfect execution. What the Strokes did to the Velvet Underground and Vampire Weekend did to Graceland, the Axons, led by the inimitable Merritt Fields does to the Kinks. Check out the mp3 and a few videos from the show below!


The Axons – “A Falconer’s Lament”
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UME KICK OFF MASSIVE TOUR
Cannibal Cheerleader local-faves Ume are beginning a trek across the the Northeast, winding back down to the Southern states all this June. Check out the rad poster above for this completely rad and underappreicated fuzz-rock trio. Definitely pick up their Sunshowers EP if you haven’t already, it’s one of our favorites of the year so far!

Ume – “Sunshower”
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NEW JEMINA PEARL TRACKS
Seems as if all that posting on Puke Til You Punk wasn’t just blowing (puking) steam – Jemina Pearl of the inimitable and sadly departed Be Your Own Pet has been busy and she’s got a trio of new tracks that’re just begging to be eaten alive. Featuring the same tried and true vocal stylings that propelled BYOP through today’s punk rock muck and mire, the new solo material seems cleaner and more headphone-oriented, with sing-songy lyrics and a summery, care-free vibe. A different approach to the solo career than we expected Pearl to take (less blood and guts, more dance parties and bedroom casettes) but we can’t help but be excited for a Jemina pop album. Anyone got the mp3s? We ask because for now the tracks are only streaming over at the JP Myspace. Check it out!

Jemina Pearl – “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker (feat. Thurston Moore)”
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NEW BAND CHEER: DIAL
Another awesome find, this time care of the cats of Brooklyn Vegan – DIAL, a trio from New Zealand, pack a wallop of a grindcore-influenced, experimentally edged, female vocalizing hardcore with a nod towards the more math-rock side of the metal music scene. With the recent announcement of personal favorite Robotic Empire rereleasing the band’s self-titled EP, interest has skyrocketed in a band whose main hook include a woman screaming ‘THE MASS GRAVE!’ at the top of her lungs. More power to this completely wicked, shrill, and venomous rock act. Makes us want to revisit our grindcore days in force.

DIAL – “Always at the Border”
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MARS VOLTA REVEAL OCTAHEDRON
When Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, lead guitarist of prog-rock powerhouse and wildly imaginative musical extravaganza the Mars Volta, stated that the band’s new album Octahedron would be their “acoustic” album, one must’ve realized the news had to be taken with a grain of salt. Sure the album contains some slower, more ‘Pink Floyd/Yes’-influenced sweeps of grandeur, though from the band who crafted “Televators” and “The Widow” this shouldn’t come as a surprise. The novelty instead exists in the undercurrent of serenity to the album, a psychedelic dip into a sensory-deprivation chamber rather than a furiously frightening acid trip gone wonderfully wrong like in the Bedlam in Goliath. Which isn’t to say the album doesn’t have its rockers – tracks like “Cotopaxi” would give even the likes of “Drunkship of Lanterns” a run for their money as a soon-to-be fan favorite and even “Luciforms” has a level of monstrous energy that propels its melody along. On the whole however, the flow of the songs from one into the next create an air of purpose and message, not the disparateness of past works by the Volta, and in doing so the band has created without a doubt their most accessible, and in some ways one of their most enjoyable works yet. Awesome stuff, check it below.

The Mars Volta – “Desperate Graves”
The Mars Volta – “Teflon”
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NEW BAND CHEER: IWRESTLEDABEARONCE
Our grindcore itch has been getting out of hand recently, and seeing as this group was recently reviewed in our favorite magazine ever – we’re of course talking about Fangoria – we had to check Iwrestledabearonce out (if only for their completely awesome name). With a blazingly original sound that combines electronic-experimentation, guitar-shredding breakdowns, and equal-part shriek/sing female vocals, IWABO meets all the prerequisites for being one of Cannibal Cheerleader’s favorite new bands. To hear it is to understand it so we recommend you click the video below and download some of the following tracks with great haste – warning, may melt face. PS. Avoid the hipster accusations; nobody likes a scenester and frankly, if you’re a grindcore scenester I think that means we can legally kill you.

Iwrestledabearonce – “Danger in the Manger”
Iwrestledabearonce – “See You In Shell”
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NEW AGENT RIBBONS INTERVIEW VIDEO
Here’s a wonderful little interview video from the ladies in Agent Ribbons that we had to plug if only for their adorable red hair color. The ladies are reveal their upcoming work on their second album and what the future holds for the band. Oh ladies, steal me away…

Agent Ribbons – “Obituary”
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(OLD) BAND CHEER: AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED
Sometimes we here at Cannibal Cheerleader get to the party late, and that’s certainly the case when it comes to one of our favorite new (i.e. new to us) acts, the monolithic, infamous grindcore band Agoraphobic Nosebleed. This fearsome foursome has been around for quite some time apparently in different forms though the band’s newest release Agorapocalypse includes Kat from personal favorite Salome, which is how we stumbled across this band to begin with. If you haven’t heard of this absolutely pummeling grindcore act you owe it to yourself to check it out – and if you’re a longtime fan, the new LP deserves a re-listen immediately. This band kills indiscriminately, employing three different vocalists and a blazing cavalcade of guitars and drum machines behind the haunting wails and spitfire vocal assault. Seriously, get on this n-o-w.

Agoraphobic Nosebleed – “First National Stem Cell and Clone”
Agoraphobic Nosebleed – “Trauma Queen”
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BUSDRIVER REVEALS JHELLI BEAM
We here at Cannibal Cheerleader fondly remember our halcyon days of underground rap obsession, backpacker allegiance and Cannibal Ox worship, and one of our top acts of yesteryear Busdriver has just burst back onto the scene with his latest opus, Jhelli Beam, a return to form for an artist whose Roadkill Overcoat, while containing superior wordplay sacrificed his more abstract tendencies for pop listenability. The fourteen tracks that make up the motor-mouth rapper’s newest LP not only delight in experimentation but embrace it with force, with bizarre feed-back loops darting behind the fever-dream lyricism Busdriver has become known for. One of our favorite releases of the year so far, bar none. Definitely check out a few of the mp3s below and let us know what you think!

Busdriver – “Handfuls of Sky”
Busdriver – “Least Favorite Rapper (feat. Nocando)”
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STREAM NOUVELLE VAGUE’S NV3
To wrap up this massive update head on over to Nouvelle Vague’s Myspace page and give a listen to their excellent third collection of French-noir-film inspired covers. This time the list of covered artists seems even more far-reaching, including Depeche Mode, the Sex Pistols, and even the Violent Femmes. Definitely shoot on over.

Nouvelle Vague – “The Killing Moon”

Comments? Have a great week!

TV on the Radio – “Stork & Owl (Gang Gang Dance Remix)”
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UPDATE FROM JEMINA PEARL CAMP
It’s been a while since we’ve heard any new songs from Jemina Pearl and the whole ex-Be Your Own Pet camp, but if you’ve been keeping up with her personal blog Puke Till You Punk you’d be more than up to date with the recording of her new solo LP, already in full swing and featuring guitar parts from none other than the likes of Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore. If you haven’t been keeping up, now’s the time to start some backreading – this album is going to slaughter the innocent.

Jemina Pearl – “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker”

We here at Cannibal Cheerleader make a point of not talking about things we dislike – what’s the point really? However, we can’t hold our tongue when we say that Austin club La Zona Rosa left a supremely bad taste in our mouth last night at the Crystal Castles show, so much so we had to say something. From the inept and rude security, to the slow as snails bar staff, to their policy of rifling through every bag, we haven’t had such a bad Austin club experience in quite some time. We’re thinking a lot of the negative connotation of the Crystal Castles show stems from the La Zona Rosa crew. Still, maybe it’s just a personal problem and didn’t affect anyone else. Either way, don’t think we’ll be scheduling any Cannibal Cheerleader shows there soon!

Comments? Anyone at the Crystal Castles show?