TRK Best of 2k11

As 2011 draws to a close, the Trekky crew looks back on what made 2011 such a great year! Here are some highlights!


Jesse Ainslie (Barghest, Virgin Forest, Phosphorescent)

Top Ten Albums of "2011":

Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (1991) - reissue 2011
Radiohead - King Of Limbs
Tyler, The Creator - Goblin
Curren$y - Pilot Talk (2010)
Bobby Charles - Bobby Charles (1972) - reissue 2011
Destroyer - Kaputt
Grinderman - Grinderman II (2010)
Deertick - Divine Providence
Tom Waits - Bad As Me
Ulver - Wars of The Roses (2011)

and two things I still just can't get over:
Charles Mingus - Mingus Plays Piano (1963)
and
Ulver - Lyckantropen Themes (2002)

In my opinion, these are, at least, contenders for the greatest instrumental records of all time - do yourselves the favor.

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Martin Anderson (Trekky Records)

**sorry in advance that my list is so long...2011 has been a big one!**

TOP 30 ALBUMS OF 2011
1. Bon Iver- "Bon Iver, Bon Iver"
2. The War on Drugs- "Slave Ambient"
3. James Blake- "s/t"
4. Future Islands- "On the Water"
5. Akron/Family- "The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT"
6. High Places- "Original Colors"
7. Wye Oak- "Civilian"
8. The Dodos- "No Color"
9. Gillian Welch- "The Harrow & The Harvest
10. The Rosebuds- "Loud Planes Fly Low"
11. Wilco- "The Whole Love"
12. Mount Moriah- "s/t"
13. All Tiny Creatures- "Harbors"
14. James Blake- "Enough Thunder"
15. Grouper- "A/A : Alien Observer / Dream Loss"
16. Vetiver- "The Errant Charm"
17. Panda Bear- "Tomboy"
18. Beirut- "The Rip Tide"
19. Whatever Brains- "s/t"
20. Hammer No More The Fingers- "Black Shark"
21. Kurt Vile- "Smoke Ring for My Halo"
22. Des Ark- "Don't Rock The Boat, Sink the Fucker"
23. Gil-Scott Heron & Jamie xx- "We're New Here"
24. Colin Stetson- "New history Warfare, Vol 2: Judges"
25. Atlas Sound- "Parallax"
26. Collections of Colonies of Bees- "GIVING"
27. Tinariwen- "Tassili"
28. Drive-By Truckers- "Go-Go Boots"
29. Tom Waits- "Bad As Me"
30. Stephen Malkmus- "Mirror Traffic"

***I intentionally excluded the handful of AMAZING albums that I worked very closely on (Megafaun, Lost in the Trees, Phil Cook, Brice Randall Bickford, etc)***

Shows:
--TRKfest 2011 @ Haw River Ballroom in Saxapahaw, NC (highlights: Butterflies, Bowerbirds, Lonnie Walker, Vibrant Green)
--Megafaun + Doug Paisley @ Schuba's in Chicago, IL
--Future Islands @ The Echoplex in Los Angeles, CA
--Phil Cook & His Feat album release @ Motorco in Durham, NC
--Bon Iver & The Rosebuds @ Downtown Amphitheater in Raleigh, NC
--High Places @ The Smell in Los Angeles, CA
--Westfalia @ Johnny's in Carrboro, NC
--Hopscotch Music Festival in Raleigh, NC (highlights: Superchunk, Brice Randall Bickford, Lost in the Trees, Mount Moriah, Wooden Wand, The Dodos)
--Sharon Van Etten & Megafaun @ Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, NY
--All Tiny Creatures @ Hometapes SXSW Friend Island in Austin, TX
--The Mountain Goats & Megafaun @ The Ottobar in Baltimore, MD
--The War on Drugs @ The Satellite in Los Angeles, CA
--Gayngs @ Stubb's in Austin, TX
--Menomena & Megafaun @ The Republic in New Orleans, LA
--Avi Buffalo @ The Winona house in Los Angeles, CA

Other rad highlights of 2011:
Trekky House...2011-2012 Tar Heels...Pie Pushers...Day off at an indoor water park with the Megafaun gang...hiking in the Redwoods...TRKfest...BJ "Crow" Burton...new Westfalia songs entering my life...bloody marys and ceviche in Mexico with Katie...welcoming Ellis Bradley Cook into this world...Greg Davis' Grateful Dead mixes...Adam Wills: hangmaster...Hi Ho Silver Oh Silverlake Lounge residency night 4 with Grandma Sparrow and Wil Donegan...The final days of Brome...Joan Didion...MusicNOW festival in Cinci w Fauns, FBB, Sharon, Vern, Doug, JagJag fam, National fam, et al...cabbage salad at Carousel in Los Angeles...Lee Waters...Punjab Deli in NYC...Adam & Sara Heathcott...re-reading the Merge book...Doug "Drugs" Paisley & Jordan Long...Boiling Crab & Beverly Soon Tofu in Ktown LA...Thomas and Amanda's dining room table...tamale birthday party...finally getting thorough with Yo La Tengo's catalog...Carolina Brewery Anniversary Lager..Dave Godowsky's apartment...Listening to Patterson Hood and James Toth speak at a Hopscotch panel

Knowing how hard the new Midtown Dickens, Lost in the Trees, Bowerbirds, Sharon Van Etten, Bear in Heaven, Dana Buoy and Matt White records are going to rule next year!!!

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Phil Cook (Phil Cook & His Feat, Megafaun)

Doug Paisley - Constant Companion (i don't care that it's 2010. still listened to it the most!)
William Tyler - Behold the Spirit
The Alabama Shakes - S/T EP
Gillian Welch - The Harrow and The Harvest
Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong
Drive By Truckers - Go Go Boots
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Mount Moriah - S/T
The War On Drugs - Slave Ambient
The Dodos - No Color

====================================

Thomas Costello (Embarrassing Fruits)

Cass Mccombs "Wit's End"
Yuck "Yuck"
Colin Stetson "New History Of Warfare Vol.2"
Kurt Vile "Smoke Ring For My Halo"
Gillian Welch "The Harrow & The Harvest"
Trouble Books & Mark McGuire "Trouble Books & Mark McGuire"
Bill Orcutt "A New Way To Pay Old Debts"
Iceage "New Brigade"
The War On Drugs "Slave Ambient"
Whatever Brains "Whatever Brains"
Megafaun "Megafaun"
Glenn Jones "The Wanting"
Eddy Current Suppression Ring "So Many Things"

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Wil Donegan (Auxiliary House)

Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Belong
Destroyer - Kaputt
Mickey Newbury - An American Trilogy (reissue)
Josh T. Pearson - The Last of the Country Gentlemen

====================================

Catherine Edgerton (Midtown Dickens)

Best Record: Mount Moriah by Mount Moriah

Best Short Film: Mr. Percy's Run by DL Anderson

Most Epic Sunset: Baucum Road (Monroe Manor) November, 2011

New Favorite Bands: The Gift Machine, Cal Folger Day, Sonny and the Sunsets, The Water Bears

Best Date: 11/11/11

Best Taco: Taqueria Cancun, the Mission, SF
****(There is an important lesson in this one: Things that don't need qualifiers are always done well; the guest check just said: Taco. Kinda like how the new Megafaun record just says: Megafaun)

Best Hair: Will Hackney by FAR

Best Place to Sleep Alone: Strawberry Rock, Petrolia CA

Best Show: Wild Flag and Yellow Fever, Local 506, March 11, 2011

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Will Hackney (Trekky Records, Midtown Dickens)

Favorite 10 Albums of 2011

1 Gillian Welch - The Harrow and The Harvest
2. Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
3. Terius Nash - 1977
4. Beyonce - 4
5. Yardwork - Brotherer
6. Kate Bush - Director's Cut
7. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
8. Kanye West & Jay-Z - Watch The Throne
9. James Blake - s/t
10. Des Ark - Don't Rock The Boat, Sink The Fucker

Favorite Reissues

Talk Talk - Laughing Stock
Fred McDowell - The Alan Lomax Recordings

Can't believe I still haven't listened to it, what's wrong with me?

Bjork - Biophilia

====================================

Daniel Hart (The Physics of Meaning)

Best Albums:

Tamer Animals -- Other Lives
King of Limbs -- Radiohead
Underneath the Pine -- Toro Y Moi
English Riviera -- Metronomy
Loud Planes Fly Low -- The Rosebuds
James Blake -- James Blake
Metals -- Feist
w h o k i l l -- tUnE-yArDs
New History Warfare Vol. 2 - Judges -- Colin Stetson
bon iver, bon iver -- Bon Iver
No Time For Dreaming -- Charles Bradley
Burst Apart -- Antlers
Unknown Mortal Orchestra -- Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Best Videos:

Metronomy - She Wants, dir. Jul & Mat
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntVV3dTo-qw

+ every other Metronomy video (look it up and feel cleverer)

Battles - My Machines, dir. Daniels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkgQ88G8Hj8

Battles - Ice Cream, dir. Canada
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CXtJA34QGQ&feature=related

Best Shows:

Feist @ the Majestic, Dallas, November
Toro Y Moi @ some shitty club, Austin, SXSW
Man Man/Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers @ Sons of Hermann Hall, Dallas, April
Bon Iver @ Grand Ole Opry, Nashville, July
Other Lives @ Spanish Moon, Baton Rouge, June
Broken Social Scene @ House of Fucking Blues, Dallas, March

Best Movies:

Midnight in Paris
HP8

Best things that happened to me this year:

1. Rachel and I celebrated four years together in August

2. Charlyne Yi made this amazing video for one of my songs, with no help from me, because she is truly amazing:

http://vimeo.com/24804326

3. Playing in Other Lives supporting Bon Iver's West Coast run, September

Best People:

Gerard Smith (1975 - 2011). Rest in peace

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Seamus Kenney (Trepak, Auxiliary House, Lost in the Trees)

My top ten consists mostly of artists/songs I was listening to via Pandora in the past year. I have noted the year of release so as to not confuse or confound the reader.

Band/Album/Single/Year

1 - Peter, Bjorn and John/Gimme Some/Dig a Little Deeper/2011
2 - Fleet Foxes/Helplessness Blues/The Shrine - An Argument/2011
3 - Blitzen Trapper/The Destroyer of The Void/The Man Who Would Speak True/2010
4 - Dirty Projectors/Bitte Orca/Stillness Is The Move/2009
5 - Grizzly Bear/Veckatimest/Two Weeks/2009
6 - Band of Horses/Cease To Begin/No One's Gonna Love You/2007
7 - The Bird and The Bee/Please Clap Your Hands/Polite Dance Song/2007
8 - Phoenix/It's Never Been Like That/Sometime in The Fall/2006
9 - Ben Kweller/Out Come The Wolves/ Hospital Bed/2004
10- The Wedding Present/Watusi/Yeah,Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah/1994
====================================

Josh Kimbrough (Butterflies, Westfalia)

Faves in order:

1. Kurt Vile - "Smoke Ring For My Halo"

2. Deleted Scenes - "Young People's Church of the Air"

3. Mark Hollis - "Mark Hollis" (reissue)

4. Casual Curious - "Lungs"

5. Let's Wrestle - "Nursing Home"

6. All Tiny Creatures - "Harbors"

7. Phil Cook & His Feat - "Hungry Mother Blues"

8. Tyler, the Creator - "Goblin"

9. Toro Y Moi - "Freaking Out"

10. Bon Iver - "Bon Iver"

So confused about:

1. Lou Reed & Metallica - "Lulu"

2. Limp Bizkit - "Gold Cobra"

====================================

Jon Mackey (Hi Ho Silver Oh, Auxiliary House)

1. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
2. David Bazan - Strange Negotiations
3. Megafaun - Megafaun
4. Mount Moriah - Mount Moriah
5. Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
5. (tie) Tim Hecker - Dropped Pianos
6. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
7. Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage
8. Low - C'mon
9. Toro Y Moi - Underneath the Pine
10. Washed Out - Within and Without

====================================

Joe Norkus (Embarrassing Fruits, Westfalia)

National:
The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient
Swearing At Motorists - Postcards From a Drinking Town
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
Richard Buckner - Our Blood
John Maus - We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves
Atlas Sound - Parallax
Toro Y Moi - Underneath The Pine
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Local:
Wesley Wolfe - Cynics Need Love Too
Secret Message Machine - Trashface
Gross Ghost - Wicked Game
Mount Moriah - s/t

Other Stuff:
Jim Beam Rye Whiskey w/ Blenheim's and Lime (thanks John)
Sriracha + Anything
The Taco Truck next to Cat's Cradle
Breaking Bad
My "new" Squire Strat
Seeing Archers of Loaf, Guided By Voices (twice), and Dinosaur Jr. all in the same year!

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Ari Picker (Lost in the Trees)

I'm always asked the same question this time of year: "What are you top 10 favorite albums of the year"....and every year it seems like there are less and less albums that really change me as a music lover. Perhaps it is just an age thing (not being young and wide eyed to the word), or perhaps I'm too self absorbed. Or am I looking for other types of inspiration? But...when a record does fight its way into my head, it gives me the same thrill that it did 10 years ago. So for this year, here are my top 10 (or so) albums that changed my life. There are so many wonderful albums, but these are the ones that really changed me as a music listener (at least the ones that I can remember at the moment).

1. Kid A/OK Computer - Radiohead
2. Atom Heart Mother/Meddle - Pink Floyd
3. Airplane Over the Sea/Live at Jittery Joe's - Neutral Milk Hotel
4. Orchestral Music - Beethoven's late string quartets, Berlioz Symphony Fantastique, Saint-Sean's tone poems, Chopin's Nocturnes, Shostakovich's symphonies, Stravinsky's ballets, Bach fugues, Mozart's 40th-41st symphony, Sibelius' Violin Concerto, and On and On and On....
5. Ziggy Stardus/Aladin Sane - David Bowie
6. Edward Scissor Hands - Danny Elfman
7. Smily Smile/Smile - The Beach Boys
8. The Royal Tenembaums - Various Artists
9. Anti-Christ Super Star - Marilyn Manson
10. Pinkerton/Blue Album - Weezer

Honorable Mentions: The Misfits - Static Age, Queen - Sheer Heart Attack, Blonde Redhead - Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons/Fake Can be Just as Good, Outkast - Aquimini/Stankonia, Joni Mitchell - Blue, The Beatles, Funeral/Neon Bible - Arcade Fire, The 'Burbs Sound Track - Jerry Goldsmith, and on and on...

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Kym Register (Midtown Dickens)

Records:
Bon Iver - Bon Iver
Wild Flag - Wild Flag
Javelin - Canyon Candy
The Mountain Goats - All Eternals Deck
Megafaun - Megafaun
Pink Flag - King of Scene
Harvey Sue - Harvey Sue Gets Down
Destroyer - Kaputt
Phil Cook and his Feat - Hungry Mother Blues
Future Islands - On the Water
Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
Frank Fairfield - Out on the Open West
Gillian Welch - The Harrow and the Harvest
Kendl Winter - At the Same Time
Clyde Peterson (Your Heart Breaks), Theo Hilton (Nana Grizol / Defiance Ohio), Toby Foster, Ryan Woods (Defiance Ohio) - THEO CLYDE TOBY RYAN "SELF TITLED SPLIT"
Des Ark - Don't Rock the Boat, Sink the Fucker

Shows:
Diamond Center - Hopscotch
The Mountain Goats - The Fillmore, yeow!!
Des Ark / Bellafea / Pygmy Lush - The Nightlight
The War on Drugs / Carter Tanton - Kings
Javelin - Pinhook 3 year anniversary
Shonen Knife / Ghost of Rock - Pinhook
A Hawk and a Hacksaw / Dark Dark Dark / Pillars & Tongues - Pinhook
MEN ft. JD Sampson / Tayisha Bussay - Pinhook
Kairaba / Afica Unplugged - Pinhook
Gillian Welch - NC Museum of Art
Vibrant Green - TRKfest - Haw River Ballroom
Paper Hand Puppet Intervention - Forest Theatre
The Moaners / Mount Moriah - Cat's Cradle
Des Ark - Hopscotch
Hurray for the Riff Raff - the Pinhook w. Sam Doores and the Tumbleweeds
O'Death / Why are we Building Such a Big Ship /Lonnie Walker - Pinhook

Best new find of 2011, hopefully to acquire in 2012:
*Moog Taurus*

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Hunter Simpson (Daytona, Participation Award)

here's my favorite song from this year:

====================================

Rusty Sutton (Lost in the Trees live sound engineer)

TOP RECORDS

1. Gillian Welch - The Harrow and the Harvest

2. Fucked Up - David Comes to Life

3. Generationals - Actor-Castor

4. Mount Moriah - s/t

5. Braids - Native Speaker

6. Brice Randall Bickford - s/t

7. Telekinesis - 12 Desperate Straight Lines

8. War on Drugs - Slave Ambient

9. Battles - Gloss Drop

10. Foo Fighters - Wasting Life

Honorable mentions: Yuck - s/t, Jessica Leah Mayfield - Tell Me, Decemberists - The King is Dead


TOP SHOWS/TOURS/FESTIVALS (In chronological order)

Jan. 13-23 - Lost in the Trees/Butterflies South East Tour
Feb. 11 - Pipe @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Mar. 18 - Versus and Lost in the Trees acoustic sets @ Homeslice Pizza, Austin, TX
Mar. 23 - OFF! @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Apr. 11 - Joe Pug and Strand of Oaks @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Apr. 12 - Wanda Jackson @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
May 14-15 - Flaming Lips, Yo La Tengo, Mucca Pazza, Lost in the Trees, and Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, Nelsonville Music Festival, Nelsonville, OH
June 25 - David Bazan, Centro-Matic and Sarah Jaffe @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
July 23-24 - Hillside Music Festival, Guelph, ON
August 19-20 - Archers of Loaf @ Cat's Cradle, Carrboro, NC
Sept. 6 - Active Child @ Local 506, Chapel Hill NC
Sept. 8-11 - Hopscotch Music Festival
Sept. 17 Neon Indian @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Sept. 18 The Low Anthem and William Elliott Whitmore @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Sept. 27 - Fucked Up and Wavves @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Oct. 31 - Zen Frisbee and Shit Horse @ Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC

====================================

Stephen Tunnell (Vibrant Green)

Shoes: Clarks
Looking forward to: YanDrew releasing somethin recorded
Kinda old but newly discovered music: PJ Harvey's "Uh-Huh Her", Aloe Blacc's "Good things".
Food: Rediscovered Crab Cakes!
New music: St. Vincent's Strange Mercy

Midtown Dickens announce new album, Home

Trekky Records is proud to announce the release of Midtown Dickens' third album, Home, the band's most stunning and accomplished work to date. Durham, North Carolina's Midtown Dickens have never sounded more bold or graceful than they do across these 11 gorgeous meditations on the themes of home (both literal and abstract), family (blood and chosen) and space (within us and about us). Home is the sound of journey and motion; the pulling apart and coming together we experience as we search for our place in the world.

Home is also Midtown Dickens' most collaborative release, expanding the core duo of songwriters/vocalists Kym Register and Catherine Edgerton to include multi-instrumentalists Will Hackney and Jonathan Henderson. Recorded between tours in a near-constant year of traveling (including jaunts with kindred-spirits The Mountain Goats, Megafaun, and Lost in the Trees) the album reveals a band moving effortlessly as one. This unity brings focus and warmth to Edgerton and Register's dark folk compositions.

Home was recorded by long-time collaborator Scott Solter (Spoon, St. Vincent, The Mountain Goats) at his studio in Monroe, North Carolina. The remote location afforded Midtown Dickens the time and space to delve into the most adventurous, experimental, and focused sessions of the band's career. At first listen, it is clear that Home marks a dramatic shift in Midtown Dickens' sonic world. While still anchored by acoustic, folk instrumentation (banjo, mandolin, acoustic guitar, upright bass), the album also wields layers of overdriven bowed cymbals, musical saws drowning in reverb and walls-of-sound that push acoustic instruments to places they've never been before. Yet the band never allows the noise to obscure the soul of the song, and without out a doubt these are the most realized and lucid songs Register and Edgerton have ever written, modern standards. Home evokes the stunning colors of Carolina tobacco fields and Appalachian mountain ranges, re-imagined and re-contextualized in a way that is undeniably Midtown Dickens.

Trekky will release Home, in our signature LP+CD+MP3 format on February 28, 2012.

Tracklist:
1. Home All Ways
2. Elephant
3. No More Reason (To Pine)
4. Only Brother
5. Apple Tree
6. Resting
7. Crocodile Mile
8. Walk, Don't You Run
9. Volcanoes (Covered In Snow)
10. Cross My Heart
11. This Is My Home

Midtown Dickens | Home from Trekky Records on Vimeo.

When You Awake premieres Brice Randall Bickford music video + MP3

The good folks over at When You Awake are premiering the new Brice Randall Bickford music video, a visual interpretation of "On The Caesura Of Paying Attention", the second single from Bickford's dense and rewarding self-titled album. The video is directed by visual artist Leon Godwin, and places a particular focus on Bickford's greatest strength: his lyrics. Click here to see the video, as well as download a free MP3 of "On The Caesura Of Paying Attention".

Brice Randall Bickford's self-titled album is out now in our signature 3-part package, complete with LP, CD and MP3 download. Order here.

MP3: The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra - "In The Bleak Midwinter"

As the temperature drops and holiday spirits rise, you may find yourself in the mood for some seasonal music. Not to worry, The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra has you covered! Composed of members of Lost in the Trees, Midtown Dickens, Butterflies and Embarrassing Fruits, the collective orchestra has been bringing holiday cheer to the masses for 5 years. As our early gift to you, please enjoy this free MP3 of The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra's "In The Bleak Midwinter". Probably the most somber cut from the Orchestra's A New Old Fashioned Christmas, the classic hymn will get you in that nostalgic, wintery mood that comes each snowy season. A New Old Fashioned Christmas is on sale now for only $8 in the Trekky Records Online Store, as a part of our Winter Sale. Right click below to download "In The Bleak Midwinter" for free!

MP3: The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra - In The Bleak Midwinter [from the A New Old Fashioned Christmas LP]

Weekly deals in Trekky Records' Winter Sale!

Over in the Trekky Records Online Store, we'll be offering a very special deal every week for the next month. Check back often for huge price cuts, free limited edition items and package deals. To kick us off, we're offering The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra's A New Old Fashioned Christmas for just $8, 25% off the regular price. Recorded in one whirlwind week in 2006, the album is full of classic Christmas songs, hymns and modern holiday anthems from members of Lost In The Trees, Midtown Dickens, Butterflies, Embarrassing Fruits and Vibrant Green. Its the perfect soundtrack for your winter season, and now its super-affordable! Click here to order!

Trekky Records Collective joins together for TRK @ ArtsCenter

In September of 2009, members of the Trekky Records Collective joined together to perform various sets at Milltown in Carrboro, NC. A mix of rare solo performances, cross-band collaborations and spontaneous sing-a-longs, the evening went down in Trekky History as a night to remember. As the label moves into its 10th year, now with more family members than ever, the collective will once again join together to share songs, perform ill-advised covers and celebrate music in the Triangle.

Cat's Cradle presents

TRK @ The ArtsCenter
An Evening with the Trekky Records Collective

Featuring members of:
Butterflies
Embarrassing Fruits
Hammer No More The Fingers
Lost in the Trees
Megafaun
Midtown Dickens
Mount Moriah
Vibrant Green

Doors 7:30. Show 8:00
$6/$8

Get advance tickets and get $2 off!

Daniel Hart Tours the Southwest and California in December

Daniel Hart, mastermind behind The Physics of Meaning, spent his summer and fall on the road with The Rosebuds and Other Lives, supporting Bon Iver. In December, Daniel will be heading out on tour across the Southwest and California, performing songs from his latest album, "The Orientalist"! Don't miss this one folks! Full dates below.

Watch Daniel perform "O Sangheeta" at SXSW:


Order The Physics of Meaning's "Snake Charmer and Destiny at the Stroke of Midnight" here.

12-03 San Antonio, TX - The Limelight
12-04 Lubbock, TX - Skooner's
12-05 Las Cruces, NM - LB's Late Night Lunchbox
12-06 Phoenix, AZ - Trunk Space
12-08 San Diego, CA - The Soda Bar*^
12-09 Los Angeles, CA - Pehrspace^
12-10 Merced, CA - The Partisan
12-11 San Francisco, CA - Hemlock Tavern
12-15 Amarillo, TX - The 806
12-16 Denton, TX - J&J's Pizza on the Square#
12-17 Dallas, TX - City Tavern#
12-18 Austin, TX - Hole in the Wall#

*with Jeffrey Lewis
^with Martin Starr and Common Rotation
#with Matthew and the Arrogant Sea

Butterflies perform underneath a giant military parachute

In May of 2011, Josh Kimbrough, Joe Norkus and Bobby Britt were set to move out of their house and on to greater things. But before they left, they wanted to have one last house show in their communal space. Somehow they agreed upon buying a giant military parachute, and having the bands play beneath. What resulted was a strange and special night, promoted online with the hashtag "#justchuteme".

Butterflies, Embarrassing Fruits and Rainbow Nerd all performed. Here's Butterflies performing "Tired Pose".

Butterflies will open for The Sea and Cake this Friday at Local 506 in Chapel Hill. You can get tickets here.

New songs from Midtown Dickens, Butterflies, Daniel Hart on compilation

Our friends over at Special Passenger Records have put together a very special compilation featuring new music from Midtown Dickens, Butterflies and Daniel Hart, among many others. Each band was asked to compose and record a new song relating to their hometowns for a compilation called Feels Like Coming Home. The comp is out now, and can be ordered, downloaded and listened to here. Now the team behind the comp is traveling the country, creating a documentary about those very hometowns featured in the songs. We're very happy to have so many of our artists involved in the project.

TRK @ Hopscotch 2011

The Hopscotch Music Festival has, in just two years, become the most important music event in North Carolina. Hundreds of musicians will soon descend upon Raleigh to share their art, and attendees will be treated to more live music in 72 hours than anyone really deserves. Its a real treat for us locals, and we're honored to be involved in the festival again this year. Here's a guide to seeing Trekky artists play at Hopscotch, as well as some recommendations of friends and allies that you won't want to miss. Get out yr calendars!

FRIDAY


Brice Randall Bickford
9:00PM at Berkeley Cafe

SATURDAY


The Blount Street Block Party
11:00AM-5:30PM at The Pour House & Tir Na Nog

Our joint day party with our friends from Hometapes Records. Come out and enjoy free treats from Crumb, coffee from Joe Van Gogh and the premiere of canned Fat Tire Beer, on sale all day. Bounce back and forth between the two venues and see almost a dozen amazing bands. For our party we're happy to have a spread of old and new Trekky artists, including NC expatriate Daniel Hart (of The Physics of Meaning, St. Vincent, John Vanderslice, The Rosebuds). We'll also have a special non-Trekky guest, our friend Cat Martino (of Sufjan Stevens, Sharon Van Etten). This is all FREE! Schedules below:

Trekky's DAY-DREAM @ The Pour House:
4:30 | Butterflies
3:40 | Embarrassing Fruits
2:50 | Daniel Hart
2:00 | Midtown Dickens
1:10 | Brice Randall Bickford
12:30 | Cat Martino
 
Hometapes' Friend Island @ Tir Na Nog:
4:00 | All Tiny Creatures
3:00 | The Caribbean
2:00 | Family Dynamics
1:00 | Matthew White
12:00 | Sunless


Embarrassing Fruits
9:30PM at The Union


Lost in the Trees
12:00AM at Fletcher Opera Hall


EXTRAS
Trekky Records' own Will Hackney will also be playing with Cassis Orange (Thursday, 9:30PM at The Union) and Mount Moriah (Friday, 12:00AM at Berkeley Cafe) as well as participating in Hoopscotch, the charity basketball game at 1:30PM on Friday.

Sony DADC and PIAS Warehouse Fire

Our thoughts are with all those affected by the Sony DADC/PIAS warehouse fire in London this past Tuesday. Not only is it a tragedy for the workers and the families of the warehouse (thankfully no deaths or injuries), but also our fellow independent record labels like Jagjaguwar, Dead Oceans, Secretly Canadian, Asthmatic Kitty, Thrill Jockey, Sub Pop, Matador, 4AD, Drag City, Rough Trade, Soul Jazz, many more, and their artists who lost thousands and thousands of dollars worth of stock in the incident.

This is a hard hit, especially in the current shakey climate of physical media. Follow the links below for more info and how you can help out. The simplest way- go out and buy some records! Show your support for these amazing labels that work tirelessly to bring inspiring music to the world.

• Association of Independent Music and PIAS relief fund

• Pitchfork Article with more information, list of affected labels, reactions etc.

TRKfest schedule announced!

3:00 | Midtown Dickens
3:40 | Vibrant Green
4:10 | Mount Moriah
4:50 | Tour of Piedmont Biofuels
5:00 | Lonnie Walker
5:40 | Brice Randall Bickford
6:20 | Musical Chairs Cake Walk
6:30 | Yardwork
7:10 | Embarrassing Fruits
7:50 | Tour of Piedmont Biofuels
8:00 | Butterflies
8:40 | Bowerbirds
9:20 | Pants Off Dance Off
9:40 | Ryan Gustafson
10:35 | Hammer No More The Fingers

Butterflies Take Georgia By Storm

Butterflies will be taking their ever-evolving art-pop ensemble south for a string of shows in Georgia this week. Kimbrough and co. have been hard at work on various recording projects this summer. They recorded not one, but two songs for compilations, and have a third on the way. Stay tuned for more news soon from Butterflies, and don't forget to check out their latest album Residual Child.

Summer shows:
07-21 Atlanta, GA - The Music Room
07-22 Macon, GA - The Rookery*
07-23 Athens, GA - Flicker Theater
08-13 Pittsboro, NC - TRKFest%
09-10 Raleigh, NC - The Pour House^

*with The Bronzed Chorus
%with Bowerbirds, Mount Moriah, Midtown Dickens, more
^Trekky Records Day-Dream Party at Hopscotch Festival with Midtown Dickens, Embarrassing Fruits, Brice Randall Bickford

Lost in the Trees Announce Summer Shows

Lost in the Trees have been quiet, but busy. Ari and company have spent the last six months recording and crafting their breath-taking follow-up to All Alone in an Empty House...but more on that soon! Lost in the Trees are stretching their legs and taking their ever-evolving live show on the road this summer. The band's travels kick off with a hometown performance tonight at Duke Gardens in Durham, NC, then off to Ontario for the Hillside Festival, followed by a detour at LouFest in St. Louis, and wrapping up with a concert at the Fletcher Opera Theater in Raleigh, NC as part of the second-annual Hopscotch Festival. It's totally acceptable if you want to wear your bathing suit to any of these:

07-13 Durham, NC - Duke Gardens
07-21 Philadelphia, PA - Danger Danger Gallery
07-22 Oneonta, NY - The Oneonta Theatre
07-23 Guelph, ON - Hillside Festival*
07-24 Guelph, ON - Hillside Festival*
07-25 Toronto, ON - The Drake Hotel
08-26 Carbondale, IL - The Hangar 9
08-27 Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall
08-28 St. Louis, MO - Loufest#
09-10 Raleigh, NC - Fletcher Opera Theater (Hopscotch Festival)%

*with Kevin Drew & The Beauties, Little Scream, Doug Paisley, These United States
#with The Roots, TV on the Radio, Cat Power, Deerhunter, The Hold Steady
%with The Flaming Lips, Guided By Voices, Superchunk, Drive-by Truckers, The Dodos, The Love Language, Brice Randall Bickford, Embarrassing Fruits, Butterflies

New Butterflies song on Cicada Summer compilation

Butterflies were recently asked by Special Passenger Records to write and record a song during the Great Cicada Infestation of 2011, which struck the South this Spring with an incessant whirring and a clutter of discarded exoskeletons. What came out was a stripped down, hyper literal account of a conversation with Special Passenger Records owner Amanda Rainey, and lead Butterfly Josh Kimbrough's subsequent internet search on the Cicada flavored ice cream of Columbia, Missouri. Listen below and download for free:

Midtown Dickens tours with The Mountain Goats, joins Trekky Records

We're excited to officially announce that we'll be joining forces with Durham folk group Midtown Dickens, releasing their upcoming third album and continuing a musical journey that began three years ago. We admired Midtown Dickens from afar for a while before Trekky Records' Will Hackney spontaneously joined the band for a benefit show in Durham, NC. That inviting and communal nature is why we love working with the band, and why we're excited to be a part of their next chapter. The untitled new album, a follow-up to the band's 2009 self-released Lanterns, is currently being recorded by acclaimed producer Scott Solter (The Mountain Goats, Superchunk, Spoon) and will be released in early 2012. In the meantime, fellow Durhamite John Darnielle has invited Midtown Dickens to join The Mountain Goats on a string of West Coast dates. Parties below:

06-16 Seattle, WA - The Showbox
06-17 Vancouver, BC - The Biltmore
06-18 Portland, OR - Aladdin
06-20 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
06-21 Costa Mesa, CA - Detroit Bar
06-23 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey
06-24 Santa Barbara, CA - Soho

TRKfest 2011 lineup and details announced!

Trekky Records is proud to announce the return of TRKfest, our annual Summertime blissfest, on Saturday, August 13th at Piedmont Biofuels in Pittsboro, NC. This year's festival will build upon the framework of the last three years, growing from a fledgling annual event to an essential expression of the North Carolina music scene, as well as the broader underground community.

This will be the fourth annual TRKfest. The event began as a one-off fundraiser for the Trekky Records Collective in 2008, but has transformed into an annual event, returning each year by popular demand. As always, the festival will take place at Piedmont Biofuels, a charming industrial biodiesel plant and organic farm nestled into the beautiful Pittsboro countryside. With the help of Piedmont Biofuels and The Abundance Foundation, we will attempt to minimize the ecological impact of the festival, reducing waste and emphasizing local and sustainable foods and drinks.

In addition to the music, the day will be bursting with other activities. Attendees will be able to play games, cool off under the sprinklers, vibe out in the Bliss Tent, purchase local clothing and crafts, tour the biodiesel facility and dance til they collapse, all while listening to some of the finest music North Carolina has to offer.

Admission will be a $10 suggested donation. No person will be turned away. This is a family friendly event! The rain date is Sunday, August 14th, but, c'mon, its not going to rain on TRKfest!

Performers:
Bowerbirds
Mount Moriah
Midtown Dickens
Hammer No More The Fingers
Embarrassing Fruits
Ryan Gustafson
Yardwork
Brice Randall Bickford
Butterflies
Vibrant Green
and more to be announced!

Other Attractions:
Local art, crafts and clothing for sale
Pants-off Dance-off
Coffee Sack Race
Musical Chairs Cake Walk
Make Yr Own Tie-Dye TRKfest Shirt
Sprinklers and Water Things
Tour of Piedmont Biofuels
Free Haircuts
Shadow Puppets
Bliss Tent
...and probably more!

Video: LIVE! from Trekky House II: Brice Randall Bickford

We continue our LIVE! From Trekky House video series today with a performance by Brice Randall Bickford. Bickford chose to play in the garden at Trekky House, strumming his electric guitar amidst the burgeoning tomoto plants and kale sprouts. Bickford's powerful voice pierces through the hypnotic wave of highway noise and the busy chatter of chirping birds as he plays "Songstress", the first single from his upcoming self titled album. The album will be out June 14, but if you're in NC, you can join us for the album release show this Saturday, and get your copy early!

MP3: Brice Randall Bickford - Songstress [from the Brice Randall Bickford LP]

Lost in the Trees selected for Jeff Mangum's All Tomorrow's Parties Festival

We're very excited to finally announce that our resident folk orchestra, Lost in the Trees, has been selected to play this year's All Tomorrow's Parties Festival, curated by Neutral Milk Hotel legend Jeff Mangum. The UK music festival was able to pry Mangum from his well-known reclusion to personally curate 3 days of music this December, and we're honored that he deemed Lost in the Trees worthy. The band will be sharing the stage with Fleet Foxes, Low, Superchunk and Jeff Mangum himself, in a rare solo performance. Tickets are on sale now, and you can go ahead and wish the band luck on their first trip across the pond!

Video: LIVE! from Trekky House II: Phil Cook & His Feat

We continue our LIVE! From Trekky House video series today with a performance by Phil Cook & His Feat. Phil chose to take advantage of his one-man-band size and play in the upstairs bathroom of Trekky House. The magic, reflective reverb of the washroom was a perfect setting for Phil's tender rendition of "Ballad of a Hungry Mother", a song from his new album Hungry Mother Blues. You can order the album now from the Trekky Records Online Store.

MP3: Phil Cook & His Feat - Ballad Of A Hungry Mother [from the Hungry Mother Blues LP]

Butterflies Announce June NC Dates

Butterflies have announced a string of dates next month across the fair state of North Carolina! Make sure to stay tuned for some really exciting Butterflies developments, including more Summer dates!

Butterflies' latest album Residual Child is available now in the Online Store. Also make sure to check out the new Westfalia cassette, featuring new music by Josh, Joe Norkus (Embarrassing Fruits), and Robert Britt.

06-03 Winston Salem, NC - The Garage*
06-04 Chapel Hill, NC - The Cave*
06-17 Charlotte, NC - Visulite Theater*
06-24 Carrboro, NC - Jesse's#

*with Jon Lindsay
#with Birds and Arrows

Phil Cook performs with Bon Iver on Jimmy Fallon

Last night, Phil Cook accompanied his dear friend and former bandmate Justin Vernon for Bon Iver's performance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Phil played piano for a medley of covers, including Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" and "Nick of Time", as well as Donny Hathaway's "A Song For You". You can watch the video above. Phil Cook & His Feat's new album is out now and you can order it right here.

Trekky Records welcomes Brice Randall Bickford!

We are thrilled to officially welcome Brice Randall Bickford to the Trekky Records family! Bickfords's new self-titled record will be released on June 14, 2011 in our signature 3-part package, featuring a vinyl record, CD and MP3 download, plus a beautiful hand-numbered jacket adorned with gold foil.

We've been friends and fans of Brice Randall Bickford for years, hanging on every word of every song on every album he's released as The Strugglers. We couldn't be more excited to release this gorgeous album and welcome BRB to the fold.

It’s been a decade since Brice Randall Bickford began performing under the name “The Strugglers”. In this time, he has released five albums, toured the world, and earned a reputation as a master of subtle, narrative songwriting. Bickford's dense, poetic lyrics imbue his compositions with an enduring vitality, rewarding the listener with additional layers of meaning upon each successive listen. Now 32, he has cast off “The Strugglers” moniker and recorded his most focused and nuanced full length to date. Collaborating closely with acclaimed producer Scott Solter (The Mountain Goats, Spoon, John Vanderslice), Bickford created a lush and detailed sonic landscape for his painstakingly crafted lines to inhabit. The bare-bones Americana sound of The Strugglers is traded for the crisp, studio driven production style of late 70’s pop-folk, heightening the emotion and coloring the mood of each composition.



1. Kindling
2. Working Woman/Lazy Demons
3. The Lamberth Annex
4. Danville
5. Clay Divorcée
6. Into Our Covers
7. Songstress
8. Every Time They Tagged You
9. Up Against The Hem
10. On The Caesura Of Paying Attention

MP3: Brice Randall Bickford - Songstress [from the Brice Randall Bickford LP]

Phil Cook & His Feat's Hungry Mother Blues out today!

Phil Cook & His Feat's new album, Hungry Mother Blues, is out today! You can order your copy from the Trekky Records Online Store, or if you live in the Triangle, you can pick it up at CD Alley, Bull City Records, All Day Records or Schoolkids. Only $12 for our signature 3-part package, which includes an LP, CD and MP3 download.


Order now!

MP3: Phil Cook & His Feat - Ballad Of A Hungry Mother [from the Hungry Mother Blues LP]

Video: Phil Cook & His Feat - "Alberta" @ All Day Records

Phil Cook & His Feat played an intimate in-store performance yesterday at All Day Records in Carrboro, NC, in celebration of his new Hungry Mother Blues LP, which comes out tomorrow on Trekky Records. Here he plays a beautiful dobro rendition of "Alberta" a traditional song popularized by Bob Dylan. Stay tuned for more exciting Phil Cook & His Feat news!

Lost in the Trees tour West Coast

Lost in the Trees are hitting the Left Coast this Spring, with fresh copies of the newly reissued Time Taunts Me LP packed neatly in the van. You can order the 3-part package (Red LP, CD & MP3) now from us, or pick it up at one of the West Coast shows below:

04-19 Los Angeles, CA - The Echo
04-20 San Diego, CA - The Loft at UCSD
04-22 San Francisco, CA - Hemlock Tavern
04-24 Portland, OR - Music Millennium
04-24 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
04-26 Seattle, WA - Tractor Tavern
04-27 Vancouver, BC - Media Club
05-13 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle

MP3: Lost in the Trees - Tall Trees [from the Time Taunts Me LP]

Video: Lost in the Trees - "This Dead Bird Is Beautiful" (New Song)

Lost in the Trees recently did a Violitionist Session in Denton, TX, sharing a new, unreleased song called "This Dead Bird Is Beautiful", a haunting composition from Lost in the Trees new album, currently being recorded in North Carolina. Watch above.

The Return Of Westfalia

Before Butterflies and Embarrassing Fruits, there was Westfalia. Started as a side project from their other high school band, Westfalia was a beautiful mess of clever lyrics and guileless experimentation that in some ways may only be possible when you are a teenager, growing up and learning what music can be. Westfalia was one of the chief reasons the Trekky Records was created, when we saw the raw genius of our high school mates and wanted to make sure it was documented and distributed. Now, nearly 10 years later, members Josh Kimbrough, Joe Norkus and Bobby Britt are reforming, playing a reunion show and releasing a 2 song cassette tape. We were surprised to hear the news, but then again, its part of the reputation of Westfalia to expect the unexpected.

Sleep Talking / Worth The Wait will be released tomorrow, April 19. The cassette tapes are hand-numbered and feature two new Westfalia songs, one composed by Josh Kimbrough of Butterflies and one by Joe Norkus of Embarrassing Fruits. You can order one now from the Trekky Records Online Store, or pick one up in NC record stores tomorrow. The songs will also be available for download.



The band will be playing a single reunion show tonight in Carrboro, NC, at Johnny's, where the new tapes will also be available. For a intimate look into the process of the reformation and the creation of the new songs, scope this Trekky Records produced video experience:



And you can stream the songs here:

New Butterflies Song On Blue Indian Complilation

The Blue Indian, a Georgia Music Blog that periodically releases exclusive online compilations, recently asked Butterflies to contribute an unreleased song for their next comp, and the boys obliged. The compilations have featured artists like Karl Blau and LAKE and are completely free to download. "Bleak Was The Breeze" is Butterflies' retelling of the myth of Deadalus and Icarus and it was recorded in The Owl Room, Trekky Records' in-house recording studio. You can stream and download the song right now for free. Enjoy!

Trekky Records welcomes Phil Cook & His Feat!

We are thrilled to officially welcome Phil Cook & His Feat to the Trekky Records family! Phil's new record Hungry Mother Blues will be released on May 10, 2011 in our signature 3-part package, featuring a vinyl record, CD and MP3 download.

We met Phil Cook five years ago, when our house band Auxiliary House played a show with Phil's band Megafaun. We became fast friends from the very beginning, sharing an ecstatic love for the experience of music. Over the years, we've collaborated in many ways, but since Megafaun already has an amazing home at Hometapes, we never were able to work together directly. When Phil started recording and performing as Phil Cook & His Feat, both parties saw the opportunity to collaborate. Phil asked us to release his new record, Hungry Mother Blues and we replied with a breathless "yes".

Hungry Mother Blues was recorded in a single day, during a rare North Carolina ice storm, in the back room of Phil's house. Its a beautiful, completly intrumental album that showcases what Phil does best: playing unbelievably complex songs with so much soul that they sound effortless. The vinyl record will be pressed at 45RPM for maximum sound quality, and the record jacket features original art from Catherine Edgerton of Midtown Dickens. We're offering a free download of "Ballad Of A Hungry Mother" to tide you over until the May 10 release date. Album cover and tracklisting below!



1. Frazee, Minnesota
2. Waiting 'Round The Oven Buns
3. Juniper
4. Lament and Lullaby (For The Sloane Sisters)
5. Sparrowander
6. Ballad Of A Hungry Mother
7. The Last Steam Engine Train
8. The Jensens

MP3: Phil Cook & His Feat - Ballad Of A Hungry Mother [from the Hungry Mother Blues LP]

Carolina Jubilee returns for SXSW 2011!

Trekky Records is headed to Austin! That's right, its the annual South By Southwest Music Festival, an overstimulating Summer Camp fever-dream that we music types look forward to all year. This year we'll be reprising our very special SXSW day party, a celebration of the music of North Carolina called Carolina Jubilee. The party is also presented by The Independent's Hopscotch Music Festival, which many are already affectionately calling "South By Southeast". Hopscotch will return this September to Raleigh, NC to showcase more great music from The Old North State.

The lineup for this year's Carolina Jubilee is a mix of some of the most exciting bands from NC, as well as some of our comrades who have strong roots to the area. The event will be free to everyone, no SXSW cred needed. And for those who can't make the journey to Austin, we've partnered with the good folks at Lapcast TV to broadcast the event live on the internet, as well as most smartphones, so you can join us from anywhere in the world!

Also, just to sweeten the deal, we'll have some free beer for folks to wet their whistles while they watch. The party is co-sponsored by an amazing alliance of NC record labels, including Holidays For Quince, 307 Knox and Churchkey. Details below:

Trekky Records and Hopscotch present
CAROLINA JUBILEE
Friday, March 18. 1PM-6PM.
Gallery Black Lagoon. 4301 Guadalupe St. Austin, TX.
Free to all!

Lost in the Trees
Phil Cook and His Feat
Midtown Dickens
Daniel Hart
Hi Ho Silver Oh

Stay tuned for SXSW schedules for all Trekky Records artists, and see you in Austin!

Lost in the Trees Announce West Coast Dates

Lost in the Trees have been quite the road warriors over the past year in support of their acclaimed album, All Alone in an Empty House. Our favorite folk orchestra is headed back out on the road to support Empty House, as well as the brand new Time Taunts Me LP+CD+MP3. You can order both albums now from the Trekky Online Store, or pick them up from the band on their upcoming West Coast tour. Also, stay tuned for SXSW appearances and more! Dates below:

03-11 Denton, TX - 35 Conferette Music Festival
03-21 Hot Springs, AR - Low Key
04-02 Lynchburg, VA - The Dell
04-19 Los Angeles, CA - The Echo
04-20 La Jolla, CA - The Loft at UCSD
04-22 San Francisco, CA - Hemlock Tavern
04-24 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
04-26 Seattle, WA - Tractor Tavern
04-27 Vancouver, BC - Media Club

Embarrassing Fruits announce East Coast tour + stream entire new album!

Embarrassing Fruits are excited to embark on an East Coast journey this Spring, bringing Frontier Justice to every town they pass through. In celebration, we're now offerring a full stream of Fruits' latest album, for a limited time. Take a listen to the whole document, and if you like it, you can order the LP+CD+MP3 package straight from us.

In other Fruits news, the band has a brand new song, "Come Home", featured on DiggUp Tapes' new Cassingles Vol. 1 compilation. You can stream the song here and order the split cassingle from DiggUp Tapes.

Tour dates:

02-11 Raleigh, NC - Kings Barcade
03-09 Charlottesville, VA - Tea Bazaar
03-10 Richmond, VA - Gallery5
03-11 Baltimore, MD - The Windup
03-19 Greensboro, NC - Legitimate Business
03-23 Chapel Hill, NC - Nightlight