2013 is already looking like a stellar year for album releases – what with new records from Queens Of The Stone Age, Daft Punk, and Empire of the Sun, just to name a few – and now we can add three names to that list with news that the ethereal Sigur Rós, Aussie hip-hop outfit Bliss N Eso, and rock hedonists Primal Scream all revealing new details about their forthcoming LPs
On Friday 14th June, Sigur Rós will release their new album Kveikur in Australia via XL Recordings / Remote Control.
The first track to be released from Kveikur is ‘Brennisteinn’, which was self-produced by the three members of Sigur Rós: Jón Þór Birgisson, Georg Holm and Orri Páll Dýrason. Kveikur is the group’s first album as a trio, having farewelled keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson in 2012.
The album, and this first single particularly, sound bolder and more aggressive than Sigur Rós’ past, predominantly ambient tracks, perhaps an attempt by the trio to fill the void left by the absent keyboardist in a turn towards a darker, earthier sound – as evidenced by ‘Brennisteinn’s crunching undertones and cinematic video (which you can view below).
Kveikur is the Icelandic group’s seventh album, and follows 2012’s Valtari, which was toured for the Harvest Festival circuit last year. Sigur Rós performed only two sideshows in addition to the festivals, playing in Adelaide and Perth, despite the common east coast track undertaken by many touring international acts.
Sigur Rós also premiered the title track from Kveikur on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, last Friday 22nd March.
Come May, Sydney hip-hop trio Bliss N Eso will release their fifth album Circus In The Sky, the follow-up to 2010’s Running On Air which was widely played and eventually went Platinum. In addition to a hotly anticipated album release, the boys have also been added to the 2013 Mackay River Sessions Festival lineup.
Continuing a theme of fifths, this festival is also celebrating 5 successful years, and other acts appearing at the Mackay Showgrounds in June include Karnivool, Ball Park Music, Illy and Boy & Bear.
Bliss N Eso have played a plethora of local festivals including Splendour in the Grass, Homebake, and Big Day Out, and also presented showcases at SXSW in 2012. They have also been the recipients of significant music industry awards, notably an ARIA for Best Urban Release in 2008, and a 2010 EG Award for Best Band.
You can view the cinematically ambitious trailer for Circus In The Sky below:
Speaking of music in 2013, last month Scottish alternative-rock band Primal Scream released the first single from their forthcoming tenth studio album, conveniently titled “2013.”
In the wake of this release, the cast of Bobby Gillespie, Andrew Innes, Martin Duffy, Darrin Mooney, Barrie Cadogan and Simone Butler, – a lineup that has undergone multiple changes over the years – will release their tenth album More Light, in early May through the band’s own label First International, via Ignition Records/Inertia.
The latest album from Primal Scream was recorded at Das Bunker, London and Vox Studios in Los Angeles, and features guest appearances from Robert Plant, Kevin Shields, The Pop Group’s Mark Stewart and Jason Faulkner.
Primal Scream then dropped a second taste of their latest in new track ‘It’s Alright, It’s Ok’, which puts them closer to their swaggering Stones mimicry of their earlier days and away from the gnarly garage rock of ‘2013’.
Lead singer Gillespie says of the new album, “I wanted to convey coming out of a dark time and into a good one… We always knew it wasn’t going to be a straight ahead, balls to the wall, high energy rock ‘n’ roll, two guitars, bass and drum record. It’s sophisticated, layered, cinematic and orchestral; obviously working with Holmes we were hoping to make a record more in keeping with that vision.”
Primal Scream played as headliners for the 22nd Meredith Music Festival in December 2012, as well as a series of sideshows around Australia, celebrating what has been a 30-year long legacy of rock music.
You can view the video for ‘2013’ below, along with the tracklisting for More Light and the album art and tracklisting for Sigur Ros’ latest below:
More Light tracklisting:
01. ‘2013’
02. ‘River of Pain’
03. ‘Culturecide’
04. ‘Hit Void’
05. ‘Tenement Kid’
06. ‘Invisible City’
07. ‘Goodbye Johnny’
08. ‘Sideman’
09. ‘Elimination Blues’
10. ‘Turn Each Other Inside Out’
11. ‘Relativity’
12. ‘Walking With the Beast’
13. ‘It’s Alright, It’s OK’
Kveikur Tracklisting:
1. Brennisteinn
2. Hrafntinna
3. Isjaki
4. Yfirbord
5. Stormur
6. Kveikur
7. Rafstraumur
8. Bláprádur
9. Var
