Latest news with #Bandcamp
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Leave Spotify
All products featured on Pitchfork are independently selected by Pitchfork editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, Condé Nast may earn an affiliate commission. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Stu Mackenzie, May 2025 (Pedro Gomes/Redferns) King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard release a ton of music, but you won't be able to hear it if you're exclusively a Spotify listener. The prolific Australian rock band has pulled nearly its entire catalog off the streaming platform without much warning or fanfare. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard first signaled their departure by saying 'fuck Spotify' while promoting a new demo collection that's exclusive to Bandcamp. They later explained, in an Instagram story, that they oppose military investments made by Spotify co-founder and chief executive Daniel Ek's investment fund Prima Materia. See their full statement below. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's departure comes after Deerhoof and Xiu Xiu also signaled intent to leave Spotify, with both acts also citing their opposition to the Prima Materia investments. When announcing their Spotify departures, Deerhoof and Xiu Xiu cautioned that it would take time to get their music off the platform, mostly due to label deals and other contractual complications. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are not tasked with the same issues, however, as they've always shared music through their own labels, Flightless, KGLW, and (P)Doom. The only project King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard have ever released exclusively through an outside label is 2022's Satanic Slumber Party, a collaborative EP with fellow Australian rockers Tropical Fuck Storm that was issued via Joyful Noise Recordings. As of publication, it's the lone project left on King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Spotify page. When reached by Pitchfork, Joyful Noise's label manager, Jake Saunders, explained that the Satanic Slumber Party EP was part of a deal with Tropical Fuck Storm, and the label will proceed however both bands would like. 'If they ask us to take it down, we will,' he wrote via email. 'We serve the artist, and it's their right to decide what platforms to sell their music on.' Saunders continued, 'We are grateful for artists like King Gizz, Thor Harris, Xiu Xiu, Adam Harding/Dumb Numbers, and Deerhoof for putting their foot down. We are living among giants.' He also wrote: 'Labels and artists that are still developing their live show and don't fit the algorithmic mold are essentially being held hostage by Spotify. No disrespect to King Gizz, but they are a successful touring band with the ability to take a stand. Their Spotify royalties are likely a drop in the bucket compared to what they can make on the road. Joyful Noise has a healthy webstore and a Bernie Sanders–esque subscription model that allows us to release not-so-Spotify-friendly bands. Yet, for developing artists and labels, Spotify is held as a priority across several sectors of the industry. Our only hope is that Spotify becomes so uncool that people start to discover music elsewhere, hopefully on a platform that isn't run by someone giving millions to the military industrial complex.' Spotify has faced increased scrutiny in recent months due to investments made by Ek's Prima Materia. The investment fund is heavily involved with Helsing, a defense company that sells software that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to inform military decisions. Prima Materia has been investing in Helsing since 2021, and the firm recently led a new round of funding that put another 600 million euros ($693.6 million) toward the defense company. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard: Hello friends A PSA to those unaware: Spotify CEO Daniel Ek invests millions in AI military drone technology We just removed our music from the platform Can we put pressure on these Dr. Evil tech bros to do better? Join us on another platform 🕊️ Originally Appeared on Pitchfork Solve the daily Crossword
Boston Globe
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Heading to the Newport Folk Festival? Check out a mini map of the lineup.
Advertisement Between Friday and Sunday, that fully fleshed-out lineup will help Fort Adams State Park brim with a musical selection that's both worldly and surprisingly close to home. In addition to many need-no-introduction acts — Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Leading the familiar faces are Boston alt-rock staple Advertisement Repping Connecticut is soulful rock swingers A handful of other acts are familiar because they graced the stages at Boston Calling barely two months ago. Hip-hop legends Public Enemy will return to New England, as well as alt-pop peacock And while Mon Rovîa lives in Chattanooga these days, the singer-songwriter is one example of the breadth of global talent coming to Newport this weekend. Born in Liberia 'into a civil war, escaping the life of a child soldier, rescued by the hands of missionaries,' as he explains on his Bandcamp page, the artist's Afro-Appalachian folk is a bridge between cultures and continents. Beyond the straight-ahead Americana of acts like Advertisement GIG GUIDE At the Xfinity Center, 2010s teen heartthrobs There's no shortage of R&B and soul at City Winery this week, where guests can catch singers Kevin Ross ( It's been a few years since 'Africa' went viral, which means you're overdue to hear it again when and Advertisement — son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti — brings his band The Positive Force to the Sinclair on Also on Fronted by new vocalist Emily Armstrong, Linkin Park perform two nights at TD Garden. Jimmy Fontaine Fitz and the Tantrums release "Man on the Moon," an easy-on-the-ears pop party, on Friday. Matty Vogel NOW SPINNING Fitz and the Tantrums , Madonna , Advertisement Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist , BONUS TRACK Victoria Wasylak can be reached at . Follow her on Bluesky @
Sydney Morning Herald
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Indie rock's favourite songwriter keeps it real on his major label debut
Alex G, Headlights Contradictions? Alex G, full name Alex Giannascoli, has a bunch of them. The Philadelphia musician-producer shuns social media, but The Fader once called him 'the internet's secret best songwriter' as he made his name online via word-of-mouth blogs and message boards, self-releasing albums and EPs on Bandcamp. He's got a lot to say on record – he's only 32, and Headlights is his 10th album – but many interviewers have found that trying to get him to talk about himself or his music is like pulling teeth, and his stage presence was once described in a live review as 'almost shockingly dull', with that summation coming from a critic who declared Alex G was his favourite musician of the last decade. Although he's often compared to '90s indie acts, including Elliott Smith, Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, he's possibly better known to general pop audiences for contributing to eight tracks on Halsey's The Great Impersonator and for writing and singing on Frank Ocean's Blonde and Endless, and also playing in his touring band. Headlights marks a shift from indie label Domino to major label RCA, not that you'll notice a huge difference in Giannascoli's approach. June Guitar opens proceedings, not with any fanfare but with a feather-light touch, on a gauzy, meditative song that hugs a lane close to Tracy Chapman's Fast Car. First single Afterlife wears its country-folk influences on its sleeve, from the sparkling mandolins and acoustic guitar to the video set at a square dance, as Giannascoli recounts a revelation of some sort, singing 'when the light came, big and bright, I began another life'. A couple of tracks push the meter into the red – Louisiana offsets dreamy Auto-Tuned vocals with sledgehammer drums; Bounce Boy has octave-leaping bass, fuzzy synth and an electro-clap beat.
The Age
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Indie rock's favourite songwriter keeps it real on his major label debut
Alex G, Headlights Contradictions? Alex G, full name Alex Giannascoli, has a bunch of them. The Philadelphia musician-producer shuns social media, but The Fader once called him 'the internet's secret best songwriter' as he made his name online via word-of-mouth blogs and message boards, self-releasing albums and EPs on Bandcamp. He's got a lot to say on record – he's only 32, and Headlights is his 10th album – but many interviewers have found that trying to get him to talk about himself or his music is like pulling teeth, and his stage presence was once described in a live review as 'almost shockingly dull', with that summation coming from a critic who declared Alex G was his favourite musician of the last decade. Although he's often compared to '90s indie acts, including Elliott Smith, Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, he's possibly better known to general pop audiences for contributing to eight tracks on Halsey's The Great Impersonator and for writing and singing on Frank Ocean's Blonde and Endless, and also playing in his touring band. Headlights marks a shift from indie label Domino to major label RCA, not that you'll notice a huge difference in Giannascoli's approach. June Guitar opens proceedings, not with any fanfare but with a feather-light touch, on a gauzy, meditative song that hugs a lane close to Tracy Chapman's Fast Car. First single Afterlife wears its country-folk influences on its sleeve, from the sparkling mandolins and acoustic guitar to the video set at a square dance, as Giannascoli recounts a revelation of some sort, singing 'when the light came, big and bright, I began another life'. A couple of tracks push the meter into the red – Louisiana offsets dreamy Auto-Tuned vocals with sledgehammer drums; Bounce Boy has octave-leaping bass, fuzzy synth and an electro-clap beat.
RNZ News
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Folk artist Frances Grass is back home & happy about it!
This audio is not downloadable due to copyright restrictions. After spending eight years seeing the world Wellington folk singer-songwriter Frances Grass is finally back home. Before jetting off Frances was already a known performer, noted for her simple but expressive lyrics, and intricate finger-picking guitar playing. She's just release her debut EP 'Thirlestane Road', which you can find on Bandcamp along with the usual streaming services. Pōneke-based artist Frances Grass releases debut EP 'Thirlestane Road'. Photo: Home Alone Records
