Alabaster Suns free gig in London tomorrow!!!

Chrome Hoof confirmed to play Glastonbury...oh yeah!!!

Raise your hands in the air, wave them from side to side, do a little shimmy and repeat after me...HOOF HOOF HOOF...HOOF HOOF HOOF...HOOF HOOF HOOF!!!

The colossal CHROME HOOF continue to dazzle and impress and this week support has come from some mighty high places. Firstly, on Monday Rob Da Bank spun "Tonyte" on the Steve Lamacq show. It took little persuasion and we are proud to announce that the Hoof have now been added to the Glastonbury line up and will be rocking the Dragstrip stage, Trash City 1am. Whoop and holler!!!

Following this, co-organiser of Glastonbury, Emily Eavis has rated them in her "top ten non-headliner musical tips" which you can read about on the Glastonbury website.

Here they are again proving that there is no stopping them!!!
Come on party people, don't bail on us now!!!

Thou are on tour!!!

Thou recently released their long out of print record Tyrant on Southern Lord (which might I add is available now from our webshop on deluxe 180g vinyl) They have crafted a perfect amalgamation of sludge, doom and hardcore which certainly ticks all the boxes for me!

Check them out on tour in the UK starting tonight in London town:

Jun 23, 2009 Grosvenor London Moloch and Pombagira
Jun 24, 2009 Korova Liverpool Moloch, Lazarus Blackstar, Dragged
into Sunlight, and Hammer Attack
Jun 25, 2009 Henry's Cellar Bar Edinburgh Moloch and Haar
Jun 26, 2009 Arc Rehearsal Studios Glasgow Moloch and Jackie Onassis
Jun 27, 2009 Cremorne Hotel Sheffield Moloch and Jewdis
Jun 28, 2009 Eamonn Dorans Dublin Altar of Plagues, Female Orphan Asylum,
This Weary Hour
Jun 29, 2009 Laverys Bunker Belfast Altar of Plagues, Wretch, and War Iron
Jun 30, 2009 The Cellar Galway Altar of Plagues, Neifenbach, and On
Pain of Death
Jul 1, 2009 Cypress Avenue Cork Altar of Plagues and This Weary Hour

For more info, visit the Southern website.

TOURTUFI!!! Tartufi announce UK dates supporting Marnie Stern

Since announcing the signing of Tartufi to Southern Records, I have made no secret of the fact that I love that band and I genuinely believe that with their Southern debut Nests Of Waves And Wire, we have a real gem on our hands.

One drum kit, one guitar and razor sharp vocals are looped and bound together with great precision to create dense songs drenched with abstract abrasion - littered with lush harmonies. Their music is progressive, complex and highly innovative...and they have a very unique sense of humour. Many have compared them to Animal Collective (and if they sell anywhere near as many records then we will be laughing all the way to the bank!) But seriously, we feel that they have great potential and want to share them with everyone.

Needless to say I am very delighted to announce that they are coming over this July to support Marnie Stern on tour and to play Supersonic festival in Birmingham. Here are the dates:

MONDAY 20 JULY - CARDIFF | BUFFALO BAR
TUESDAY 21 JULY - LEEDS | BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB
WEDNESDAY 22 JULY - BRISTOL | THE CROFT
THURSDAY 23 JULY - LONDON | LUMINAIRE
FRIDAY 24 JULY - MANCHESTER | ISLINGTON MILL
SATURDAY 25 JULY - BIRMINGHAM | SUPERSONIC FESTIVAL

As well as the tour dates, we are also promoting a music video for the song “Fleet Week” from the new album which you can view on youtube.


We at Southern are not the only ones singing their praises, here are some kind words from the popular press:

"An expansive lattice of twinkling loops, math-rock crunch and none-more-giddy harmonies. Animal Collective fans in search of further post-psych rapture should bend an ear to these compulsive, crisply produced workouts." 4/5 stars MOJO

"Tartufi build intricate loops of organic alt rock and lay freak folk riffs over clattering campfire rhythms. The effect is rapturous, strident." PLAN B

"This is huge. Imagine Animal Collective boxing their way out of rock's paper bag without putting down their guitars first and you have it, crudely. The San-Franciscans charge from played-with-shards-of-broken-glass guitar to crescendos that manage somehow, to sound both jubilant and doomed." NME

"A dizzying construct of lunatic prettiness. It all flows together, like a fantastical alien river." 8/10 ROCKSOUND

"NOWAW is beautiful, unassuming, indulgent, horrific, a lightning strike joyride...the new album from the San Francisco duo sees them experiment further than ever before, as they twist in every track between aggressive pounding rock and charming intricate melodies which have seen their live shows receive so much attention." 4/5 ROCKFEEDBACK

"As dramatic as the changing of seasons, NOWAW is a vital celebration of the power and immensity of sound and the human voice. Perfect springtime listening." WEARS THE TROUSERS

Action Beat UK dates are approaching

When we said that these Bletchley boys like to tour, we were not exaggerating. Action Beat have been on the road pretty much none stop since last year playing out their highly commended album The Noise Band From Bletchley (Truth Cult).

Having just returned from a mammoth tour on the continent, they are showing no signs of slowing down and are booking UK dates left, right and centre (they of course popping back across to Belgium to play a gig in Gent too!)

Here is the hitlist so far:

Fri Jun 19 2009		STEREO	GLASGOW
Sat Jun 27 2009		WINDMILL	LONDON
Sat Jul 11 2009		SPEAKER SHOW	GENT
Fri Jul 17 2009		SILVER ROCKET, BUFFALO BAR	LONDON
Thu Jul 23 2009		BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB	LEEDS, WY

You can check out live footage of their killer shows on the Southern Youtube channel and you can keep track of their other activities on the Southern Records website

Neurosis European tour dates announced!!!

Neurosis has fought hard to maintain its sovereignty, not just in the music business but as a boundlessly creative entity. The band brought keyboards to heavy punk and experimental noise to metal, they merged antique droning folk with Black Flag's desperation, and all the while forging onward toward new means to explore the infinite realms of catharsis and self-transformation, while myriad bands simply follow in their wake.

They ripped through a ferocious set of old favourites and songs from the most recent album Given To The Rising (as well as curating a day of fantastic music) back in April at Roadburn Festival (Holland) and now they are coming back for more...here are the tour dates in full:

26-Jun Helsinki, Finland Tuska Festival
27-Jun Riga, Latvia
29-Jun Malmo, Sweden Debaser
1-Jul Stockholm, Sweden Debaser Medis
3-Jul Turku, Finland Ruisrock
5-Jul Copenhagen, Denmark Roskilde Arena Stage
6-Jul Berlin, Germany Astra Kulturhaus
7-Jul Prague, Czech Republic Palac Akropolis
8-Jul Haarlem, Holland Patronaat

...with a band of this caliber there are seldom disappointed faces in the crowd.

I sure wish I could see them again!

If you want to learn more about them and keep up to speed with their current projects and solo ventures then please visit the Southern website.

Boduf Songs live in London

After knocking me (and many others) sideways with his first two releases on Kranky (the self titled record Boduf Songs and The Lion Devours The Sun) Mathew Sweet aka Boduf Songs has continued to release records of such immense quality. His most recent full length How Shadows Chase The Balance is in my opinion utterly astounding. On this album he uses a similar formula to what he has employed previously; one microphone, one acoustic guitar, selected field recordings, and a deft, understated touch with the mixing process. He locked himself away in his home studio and no one heard a single note until he was finished. This album is a further step away from the "folk" label, which never seemed all that appropriate to Mathew's work in any case. Boduf Songs might more rightly be construed as "acoustic death metal" considering Sweet's favoured themes of death, alienation, fear, hatred and isolation, as well as his affinity for gothic imagery.



More recently Boduf Songs released CD and vinyl versions of the Latitudes Session which was recorded at Southern Studios entitled The Strait Gait (limited to 1000 copies and with exclusive artwork from Mat Sweet himself). The result of this recording is two outstanding tracks, the first one "Please Extract My Teeth With Your Rustiest Pliers (For Redemptive)" sounds like it could have been used as the soundtrack to a 1970s horror film, with timely splashing cymbals, scratchy guitar sounds and deep thunderous drones. The second track "That Angel Was Fucking Piss" is quintessential Boduf, with brooding vocals, the crisp plucking of the acoustic guitar and every detail of every chord transition captured. Both songs are rich in timbre, creating an intense atmosphere for the listener to be well and truly absorbed.

There is no doubt that Mathew Sweet is an utterly distinctive artist, having developed an alchemical power to transform a minimal palette of common musical elements.

If you are based in London then I would urge you to watch Boduf Songs at the Flea Pit (49 Columbia Road, London, E2 7RG) tomorrow night. Doors are at 7pm and it costs £5 in advance or more on the door.

For further information about the ever-expanding Boduf Songs catalogue please visit the Southern website.