‘Lithium Zion’ will be available worldwide from Sub Pop on Friday, July 27th, with the exception of the UK on Friday, August 3rd
Melbourne’s Deaf Wish have returned with an official video for “FFS”, the propulsive and excellent lead single from Lithium Zion, their forthcoming album. “FFS” was directed by band members Jensen Tjhung and Daniel Twomey, is shot in glorious black and white, and stars guitarist/vocalist Sarah Hardiman delivering an intense and engaging performance of the song.
The music on Lithium Zion was collaboratively written by Deaf Wish, with each member taking turns on lyrical and vocal duties throughout the album. The album was recorded and mixed in Melbourne in April of 2017 with Nao Anzai, with additional mixing from Mikey Young of Total Control (who also mixed the group’s “St. Vincent’s” 7” single and Pain album, both released on Sub Pop).
Lithium Zion will be available on CD/LP/DL/CS worldwide on Friday, July 27th, except for the UK on Friday, August 3rd, through Sub Pop [pre-order here]. LP preorders of the album through megamart.subpop.com and select independent retailers will receive the limited Loser edition on hot pink vinyl (while supplies last).
Lithium Zion Tracklisting
1. Easy 2. FFS 3. Metal Carnage 4. The Rat is Back 5. Ox 6. Hitachi Jackhammer 7. Lithium Zion 8. Deep Blue Cheated 9. Birthday 10. Afraid For You 11. Smoke
[Photo Credit: Ela Stiles]
More on Deaf Wish’s Lithium Zion by Matt Korvette: There’s an inherent flaw in the perennially alternating “rock is back” and “rock is dead” arguments: they are based on the idea that rock music is a logic-based choice a person consciously chooses to make. Contrary to the critics who are looking to suss out cultural trends and movements (but have never actually lifted a greasy bass cab onto a stage in order to entertain a couple dozen people), the decision to play loud, distorted, unabashed guitar-rock isn’t a strategic move but a higher calling (or curse, depending on one’s point of view). Some might say the pursuit of rocking out via deafening amplifiers, crusty drums and a beer-battered PA is a spiritual one, an affliction that either strikes or doesn’t. Few groups today embody this sentiment like Melbourne’s aptly-named Deaf Wish.
They’re more likely to ask a fellow musician what they do for their “real” job (for one, guitarist Jensen Tjhung works as a builder) than talk shop about publicists, ticket counts and online promotions. They’re a grisly rock group and they’ve already signed to Sub Pop, which is to say they’ve already succeeded beyond their wildest dreams, so anything that comes after (performing in strange new cities, meeting like-minded souls, maybe even selling a t-shirt or two) is a bonus. And if they come to your town, you would be wise to clear your calendar: “I’ve started pouring a can of beer on my head every show. If that ain’t worth five bucks then I’m quitting show biz for good,” promises Tjhung.
Lithium Zion is their fifth full-length album (and second for Sub Pop following 2015’s Pain), and while it’s a rare case that a group’s fifth album is their best, particularly any band operating under a “loud fast rules” ethos, Deaf Wish make a strong case as the exception. Their previous albums were all recorded in makeshift studios (Is that a basement with some quilts stapled to the ceiling? Now it’s a “studio”!), which of course is a wise aesthetic choice for capturing the hazardous riffing, chemically-stained vocals and fiery rhythms conjured by a group such as this, but this step toward a slightly more professional sound only enhances their power - think of the difference between a tangled pile of firecrackers and a red stick of TNT lodged in a hornets nest. The record opens with “Easy”, a languid rocker in the rich Australian tradition of groups like X and The Scientists. From there it’s onto “FFS”, a moody downhill rocker sung by guitarist Sarah Hardiman (“I feel like a fool / out playing pool / hitting on you”) that confirms Deaf Wish’s relation to fellow Sub Pop employees like feedtime and Hot Snakes. “The Rat Is Back” is tense and epic; “Hitachi Jackhammer” pays a brief and noisy tribute to Hitachi’s second most notable device (you’d be forgiven for assuming this song is about vibrators). Lithium Zion is a veritable buffet of garage-punk energy, post-punk pathos, sardonic wit and the fearlessness that comes with Aussie rock, a natural consequence for anyone living on a continent teeming with grapefruit-sized spiders and man-eating mosquito swarms.
As has always been the case, the whole group shares vocal duties, even drummer Daniel Twomey (you know the band is slightly unhinged if they’re letting the drummer sing). Hardiman and Tjhung are as ragged and hairy as ever, chugging along as though krautrock was trying to speed past the late ‘70s but got caught in the sticky grasp of punk. Such is the way of Deaf Wish, a group destined to write songs that are simultaneously stupid and sublime, vulnerable and ferocious, and play them with the unbridled intensity they demand. Anyone serving a life sentence to rock will surely concur.
SPF30: Sub Pop’s 30th Anniversary Festival with Beach House, Clipping, Kyle Craft, Fastbacks, Jo Passed, Loma, LVL UP, METZ, Moaning, Mudhoney, Shabazz Palaces, Wolf Parade, plus Caspar Babypants, The Not-Its and The School of Rock West Seattle House Band along Alki Beach in West Seattle.
We are delighted to announce lineup details for SPF30 and Sub Pop’s 30th Anniversary weekend, happening Friday, August 10th and Saturday, August 11th, 2018 in beautiful Seattle, Washington.
The festivities kick-off the evening of Friday, August 10th at 5pm, with The Afghan Whigs, Mass Gothic and Yuno playing a free, all-ages outdoor concert at the Mural Amphitheatre, presented by KEXP and Seattle Center.
Later that same evening, we are presenting A Night of Comedy From the Cast of Bob’s Burgers at The Moore Theatre, featuring H. Jon Benjamin, Eugene Mirman, Kristen Schaal, Larry Murphy and John Roberts. This is a ticketed event with proceeds to benefit Seattle’s YouthCare.
YouthCare works to end youth homelessness and to ensure that young people are valued for who they are and empowered to achieve their potential. Founded in 1974, YouthCare was one of the first programs to serve runaway and homeless youth on the West Coast. The goal was to help young people find safety today and build a future for tomorrow. Over the past four decades, YouthCare has defined best practices and developed programs that are a national standard for excellence. Using a youth-centered approach, they ensure that young people experiencing homelessness ages 12-24 have the hope, skills, and confidence to gain long-term stability.
Tickets for A Night of Comedy From the Cast of Bob’s Burgers will be $30 (plus fees). A special presale begins Wednesday, May 30th at 10am PT (presale code LOSER30), with tickets on sale to the general public Friday, June 1st at 10am PT. Tickets are available here. Doors are at 7pm, and the show is all-ages.
Then on Saturday, August 11th from noon-10pm, the Southwest Seattle Historical Society welcomes Sub Pop for SPF30, our 30th anniversary festival at West Seattle’s Alki Beach. SPF30 is an entirely free event featuring Beach House, Clipping, Kyle Craft, Fastbacks, Jo Passed, Loma, LVL UP, METZ, Moaning, Mudhoney, Shabazz Palaces, Wolf Parade, and a family stage featuring Caspar Babypants, The Not-Its and The School of Rock West Seattle House Band. The festival will feature four stages along incredibly scenic Alki Ave. in the Alki Beach neighborhood of West Seattle.
Seattle’s Alki Beach boasts some of the most awesome territorial (city/water/mountain) views the city has to offer, along with the occasional whale sighting, a somewhat diminutive replica of the Statue of Liberty, and some of the best local businesses to boot. We are stoked (and not a little surprised) that the city cleared the permits.
SPF30 will also have…A record fair-type event! A host of local nonprofit organizations! Food trucks! Beer gardens! (The food and beer and wine and soda or whatever, you will have to pay for! These parts are not free!) Good times and opportunities to embarrass yourself and those who’d always hoped for better for you! Plus, bands!
And closing out the weekend is a late show celebrating the unbelievably “coincidental” 15th anniversary of Pissed Jeans held at the Crocodile in Seattle. This show is 21 +, and doors are at 8pm. Tickets are $16 and available here.
It is our hope that SPF30 and Sub Pop’s 30th Anniversary Weekend will serve as a super fun and sincere “thank you” to our local and global music community for supporting Sub Pop and our artists for the past 30 years (and the next 30!).
In addition to celebrating a dynamic, inspirational roster spanning three decades, we also wish to create a sense of uplifting togetherness where we not only listen to great music but we become better at listening to each other as well.
JULY 26 / AUGUST 2ND / AUGUST 9TH SUB POP TURNTABLE SESSIONS KEXP Gathering Space • FREE • 6-8pm • ALL-AGES The Sub Pop Turntable Sessions are three distinct panel discussions highlighting multiple facets of Sub Pop’s history in celebration of the label’s 30th anniversary. Each session will review snippets of past label happenings and works while discussing how they relate to the label and our society’s future. The first session will be on July 26th, featuring Sub Pop LOSER Scholarship winners. The next will be on August 2nd and will feature Seattle-based collective Black Constellation. And for the third session we’ll be bringing in the Sub Pop’s own Mudhoney, as they also celebrate their 30th anniversary this year as well. Session 1: Sub Pop Loser Scholarship Winners. Session 2: Black Constellation. Session 3: Mudhoney’s 30th.
AUGUST 10TH SUB POP’S BIG 30TH ANNIVERSARY KICK-OFF SHOWCASE THE MURAL AMPHITHEATRE • FREE!!! • 5PM • ALL-AGES A special concert at the Mural presented by KEXP and Seattle Center with The Afghan Whigs, Mass Gothic, Yuno
A NIGHT OF COMEDY FROM THE CAST OF BOB’S BURGERS THE MOORE THEATRE • $30 • 7PM DOOR • ALL-AGES Featuring H. Jon Benjamin, Eugene Mirman, Kristen Schaal, Larry Murphy, John Roberts
AUGUST 11TH SPF30: SUB POP’S 30TH ANNIVERSARY FESTIVAL• ALKI BEACH, WEST SEATTLE • FREE!!! • NOON - 10PM • ALL-AGES On four stages… with Mudhoney, Shabazz Palaces, Wolf Parade, Kyle Craft, Moaning, Beach House, Clipping, Fastbacks, METZ, LVL UP, Loma, Jo Passed, Caspar Babypants, The Not-Its, The School of Rock West Seattle House Band, and Special Guests.
THE CROCODILE • $16 • 8PM DOOR • 21 AND OVER The Unbelievably “Coincidental” 15th anniversary of Pissed Jeans
To celebrate their European tour next week, Downtown Boys have shared their rendition of “Fotos Y Recuerdos”. Originally recorded by The Pretenders as “Back in the Chain Gang,” the song was later covered - with Spanish lyrics - and further popularized by the late Tejano queen, Selena.
Downtown Boys, in a group statement, say of the track: “Fotos y recuerdos translates to photos and memories. The original singer of this version of song, Selena Quintanilla, reminds us that, while it often feels like history repeats itself, our mystic chords of memories - even memories of thoughts - become part our protection. Our most gracious fotos and recuerdos break history repeating itself by being endless. And yours can be for you and no one else.”
“Fotos Y Recuerdos” was recorded during the Cost of Livingrecording sessions with Guy Picciotto and Greg Norman at Electrical Audio in Chicago.
Downtown Boys will resume their European tour schedule in support of Cost of Living next week. The dates span June 1st in Düdingen, Switzerland at Bad Bonn Kilbi Festival through June 9th at Hilavrenbeek, Netherlands’ Best Kept Secret Festival.
Jun. 01 - Düdingen, CH - Bad Bonn Kilbi Festival Jun. 02 - Trento, IT - Urma Festival Jun. 03 - Milan, IT - Zuma Festival Jun. 04 - Brescia, IT - Latteria Molly Jun. 05 - Torino, Italy - Blah Blah Jun. 06 - Ravenna, IT - Beaches Brew Festival Jun. 07 - Genova, IT - Teatro Al Trove Jun. 09 - Hilvarenbeek, NL - Best Kept Secret Festival
Produced by Fugazi’s Guy Picciotto, Downtown Boys recently released their highly anticipated and critically acclaimed third album, Cost of Living, on Sub Pop. Listen here, and buy it here.
What people are saying about Downtown Boys: ”Cost of Living, Downtown Boys’ third full-length, was written before this year’s inauguration, but its battle cries over centuries of injustices for marginalized people who have been left out of historical (and musical) narrative feels timeless” [Cost of Living, 8.5/10] - Paste
“a fierce offering that takes aim at fascism, queerphobia, capitalism, and racism in a howl of cathartic energy.” [Cost of Living, 8.5/10] -Loud & Quiet
“Downtown Boys are an antidote to 2017, to Trump’s America, to oppression of all marginalized groups. The bi-lingual Chicana, queer and Latino outfit are also a punch to the larynx of tired, white-washed punk rock that’s turned so far towards its own privileged naval.” [Cost of Living] - Under The Radar
“Like a cross between X-Ray Spex and Rage Against The Machine as reinterpreted via US hardcore.” [Cost of Living] - Uncut
“Nobody writes like Ruiz and Joey DeFrancesco, who espouse strength in the face of oppression.”[Cost of Living, 4/5] -MOJO
”Cost of Living is refined, an example of a band who can still make an album sound angry and alive under its surface sheen.” [Cost of Living] - Stereogum
”Cost of Living, the band’s third full album, does more than just chronicle what it’s like to be a non-straight and/or non-white working class person in America. It’s a declaration of war against the status quo.” [Cost of Living] - Uproxx
“It’s a pure punk attack, with driving guitars, bulldozing drums, Victoria Ruiz’s uninhibited shouts of anger for the oppressed, and of course the sax.” [Cost of Living] - Brooklyn Vegan
“Downtown Boys are an antidote to 2017.” [Cost of Living] -Under the Radar
“They craft a punk record that finds perfection between raw energy, handfuls of talent and something to say.” [Cost of Living, 8.0/10] -Northern Transmissions
”The Cost of Living feels so vital because it’s not just a document of the times, or a surface level scanning of issues. Unlike so much modern ‘political’ music that falls into a sardonic appreciation of the world, Downtown Boys are on the streets, marching, rioting, singing. They want to be in the thick of it, because that’s the only way things will change.” [Cost of Living, 4/5] -Spectrum Culture
Cost of Living is a testament to our need for Downtown Boy’s spirit, and to the possibility of compassion in the quest for equality.” [Cost of Living] - The Fader
”Cost of Living will likely be remembered as a document of its time. However, Downtown Boys have done an admirable job of placing the specifics of their messages within the context of history, and infusing the record with a rich new musicality.” [Cost of Living] - SPIN
“A shot of pure adrenaline, Downtown Boys are an antidote to the carefully posed, cynical window of modern life. No time for frills, they’re true to their core. Start the riot.” [Cost of Living, 4/5] - Upset
7 is now available worldwide from Sub Pop, with the exception of Europe and Australia/New Zealand, where the album is available from Bella Union and Mistletone, respectively.
Beach House’s 7, the group’s incredible, acclaimed new album, is out worldwide today on CD/LP/DL/CS from Sub Pop, Bella Union (in Europe) and Mistletone (in Australia/New Zealand). All of the songs on 7began in Beach House’s home studio in Baltimore, and were finished at Carriage House in Stamford, CT and Palmetto Studio in Los Angeles. The album was produced by Beach House and Sonic Boom, and mixed by Alan Moulder.
Beach House has also scheduled a late-night TV performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Wednesday, May 16th. And the band will perform a live in-studio session on KCRW in Los Angeles on May 15th.
7 is available now from Sub Pop, Bella Union (Europe), and Mistletone (Australia / New Zealand). Purchases of the LP through megamart.subpop.com and select independent retailers in North America will receive the limited Loser Edition on opaque yellow vinyl (while supplies last). A new T-shirt design is also available now.
Beach House’s massive worldwide tour in support of 7 is underway, with a release show tonight, May 11th at Mexico City’s Auditorio Blackberry. The tour continues on through October 20th in Dublin, IE at Vicar Street.
May 11 - Mexico City, MX - Auditorio Blackberry (ALBUM RELEASE SHOW) May 13 - Mayer, AZ - Form Arcosanti Jun. 02 - Barcelona, ES - Primavera Sound Jul. 26 - Philadelphia, PA - Tower Theatre Jul. 27 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz Jul. 28 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre [Sold Out] Jul. 30 - Dallas, TX - Bomb Factory Jul. 31 - Austin, TX - ACL Live at the Moody Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 02 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre Aug. 03 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fairbanks Lawn at Hollywood Forever Cemetery [Sold Out] Aug. 04 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fairbanks Lawn at Hollywood Forever Cemetery [Sold Out] Aug. 05 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory at North Park [Sold Out] Aug. 07 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 08 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 10 - Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium Aug. 12 - Vancouver, BC - Orpheum Theatre Aug. 14 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot Aug. 15 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre Aug. 17 - St. Paul, MN - The Palace Theatre Aug. 18 - Chicago, Il - Chicago Theatre Aug. 19 - Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre Aug. 20 - Toronto, ON - Sony Centre Aug. 22 - New York, NY - United Palace Theatre Aug. 23 - Brooklyn, NY - Kings Theatre [Sold Out] Aug. 24 - Boston, MA - House of Blues [Sold Out] Aug. 25 - Washington, DC - The Anthem Sep. 25 - Lisbon, Portugal - Coliseu dos Recreios Sep. 26 - Porto, Portugal - Teatro sa da Bandeira Sep. 27 - Madrid, ES - La Riviera Sep. 28 - Barcelona, ES - Razzmatazz Sep. 30 - Lyon, France - Epicerie Moderne Oct. 01 - Köln, DE - Gloria Oct. 02 - Berlin, DE - Huxleys Oct. 04 - Lund, SE - Mejeriet Oct. 05 - Gothenburg, SE - Trädgar’n Oct. 07 - Oslo, NO - Rockefeller Music Hall Oct. 08 - Stockholm, SE- Münchenbryggeriet Oct. 09 - Copenhagen, DK - Forum Black Box Oct. 11 - Hamburg, DE - Kampnagel Oct. 12 - Utrecht, NL - TivoliVredenburg Oct. 13 - Brussels, BE - AB Oct. 15 - Paris, FR - Olympia Oct. 17 - London, UK - Troxy Oct. 18 - London, UK - Troxy [Sold Out] Oct. 19 - Manchester, UK - Albert Hall [Sold Out] Oct. 20 - Dublin, IE - Vicar Street
What “The People” are saying about Beach House 7:
“A beguiling new pop gloss…The effect is as transcendent as ever.” - NY Times
“Beach House remain masters of the indefinable and their seventh album is their heaviest and most immersive-sounding of their career.” [Best New Music, 8.9/10] - Pitchfork
“These are big songs, full of wonder, and Beach House know it. Seven albums in, they’re at the start of something new.” [****] - Rolling Stone
“…The sounds are glorious” [****] - The Guardian
“One of the year’s best…” - The FADER
“Their boldest album to date…” - Stereogum
“Beach House’s consistent brilliance is truly remarkable…” [8/10] - Exclaim!
“…Their most adventurous record yet.” [Grade: B+] - Consequence of Sound
“Even tracks enveloped in Beach House’s signature pink haze are injected with a palpable jolt. This is uncharted territory, from the trap-like chain that rattles through lead single “Lemon Glow” or the grandiose swagger of acid rock anthem “Drunk In L.A…” - Billboard
“A stunning effort in a career full of them.” - Uproxx
“7 is massive and intimate, dense yet understandable, fresh yet classic.” [Grade: A] - Pretty Much Amazing
“It’s a nuanced progression and, in some ways, a diversion from Beach House’s already magnificent oeuvre, brilliant in how much farther it finds Beach House willing to go.” [Album of the Week] - Treble
‘We spray our hair into submission, upright to attention. Marching to no orders, imagination has no borders. Well lucky that.’
On July 13th, Luluc will release Sculptor, their gorgeous third album worldwide on Sub Pop, with the exception of New Zealand and Australia through Mistletone. The new longplayer featuring highlights “Heist” [hear here], “Spring,” and “Kids”, was produced and recorded by Luluc. The album also includes guest appearances from J. Mascis, Aaron Dessner of the National, Jim White of the Dirty Three, Dave Nelson and Matt Ecles.
Sculptor will be available on CD/LP/DL through Sub Pop and Misteltone. Preoders from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited Loser edition on magenta vinyl. There will also be a new T-shirt design available.
Luluc Sculptor Tracklisting
1. Spring 2. Heist 3. Kids 4. Controversy 5. Cambridge 6. Me and Jasper 7. Genius 8. Moon Girl 9. Need’t Be 10. Sculptor
More on Luluc’s ‘Sculptor’:
“Me and Jasper,” from Luluc’s third album Sculptor, is a confident challenge to small-town insularity, lilting yet vigilant, and championed by a defiant guitar solo from the band’s friend J Mascis. It’s a reflection on a common pitfall of adolescence; limitless possibility battling constant obstruction. “My own experiences as a teen were often fraught” says songwriter and vocalist Zoe Randell. “The small town I grew up in provided a great study in gossip, scandal, character assignation and the willingness of people to go along with it.” It’s a song about fighting for agency on an album that is in many ways about volition and potential; how people can navigate difficulties and opportunities to create different paths.
Sculptor can be consumed loud; because while Luluc’s music is at times masterful in it’s minimalism, it is anything but quiet in impact. There’s a before you hear Luluc’s music, and an after—a turning point that affects people with rare force. Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney says “it’s music that once you hear it, you can’t live without it”. The National’s Matt Berninger said that for months, Passerbywas “the only album I wanted to listen to”. “What first hits is that voice,” writes Peter Blackstock (No Depression),“a peaceful serenity that reaches deep into the heart.” When NPR’s Bob Boilen named 2014’s Passerby his album of the year, he wrote: “I’ve listened to this record by Australia’s Luluc more than any other this year. These songs feel like they’ve always been.”
That gripping, imperative quality pulses through Sculptor, perhaps to an even greater extent than on Passerby or Dear Hamlyn (2008). Randell writes with more experimentation and possibility. From the contemplative scene of “Cambridge”, to the churning disaster chronicled in the title track, the songs on Sculptor are there for the taking. “Broadly speaking, with these new songs I was interested in the difficulties that life can throw at us - what we can do with them, how they can shape us, and what say we have,” Randell explains. “That potential that is there for everyone, the different lives that are open to us. That’s what I love in Ise’s poem ‘Spring Days and Blossom’ - which form the lyrics to “Spring” - the brimming sense of spring and it’s cycle, the enormity of what’s possible and the beauty.”
Sonically, the band have broadened their tonal palette following on from the successful collaboration on Passerby, co-produced with The National’s Aaron Dessner. Multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer Steve Hassett mastered a wider spectrum of instruments to fully realize the album’s expansive and daring vision. Randell and Hassett do nearly all of the writing, recording, and producing themselves, but their vision is far from insular. In addition to Mascis, Sculptor features contributions from several friends including Dessner (shreds on “Kids” and programmed drums on “Heist”) and Jim White of Dirty Three (drums on “Genius”) as well as musicians Matt Eccles on drums and Dave Nelson on horns. Recording took place in Luluc’s new Brooklyn studio, which they built themselves. The new studio is volition and potential in action and even incorporates reclaimed cedar from Dessner’s iconic former Ditmas Park studio, where The National and Luluc had both lived and recorded.
That everyone has control of their own story is at the core ofSculptor. For Hassett, it’s illuminated by the last line of the title track, which is the last line of the record itself: ”‘The most beautiful, serene sculpture my hands could make, could trace, could break’. All of the songs are playing with those ideas,” he says. “Life is something you get, and you can get sidetracked for years and even destroy it, or you can remember that you’ve got some control over your life.” But listeners of Sculptor may yield some of that control, even if for a short time, to the mastery of the music itself.
Iron & Wine continue to tour the world in support of their Grammy-nominated album, Beast Epic adding a new batch of North American dates to an already full slate. Besides making the inaugural journey to Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea and China this month along with returning to Australia for the first time in five years, the band will hit Europe in June and embark on three weeks of North American dates in September and November. (see dates below.)
In anticipation of these dates, Iron & Wine are sharing a new video for “Last Night,” from their latest record Beast Epic. The stop motion video was created by filmmaker Rachel Blumberg who has done videos for Gillian Welch and Nada Surf among others.
In July, Iron & Wine will celebrate the 10th Anniversary of their Benefit for Midwives at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas. The annual event raises money for a variety of organizations under the midwifery umbrella. In conjunction with the show is also the annual Iron & Wine movie night. Hosted by Sam Beam, movie night is a great opportunity to rub shoulders and share popcorn with Sam as you watch a movie that’s had a lasting impact on him and his music. This year he’ll be screening the William Friedkin classic, Sorcerer.
Beast Epic, the deeply personal sixth proper full-length release from Iron & Wine, received universal praise upon its release last fall. Rolling Stone said it was “Beam’s most dynamic and convincing record in years”, while Pitchfork noted that it was reminiscent of “the warm acoustic instrumentation of his early work”. The A/V Club perhaps summed it up best with its A grade when they wrote “Beam has written his most affecting, impressive set of songs in a long time—maybe ever…scaling back the lavish orchestration while maintaining a sense of brightness and verve.”
IRON & WINE BEAST EPIC 2018 TOUR May. 11 - Honolulu, HI – The Republik May. 14 - Singapore, Singapore – Capitol Theater May. 15 – Bangkok, Thailand – BAMM at Moonstar Studio May. 17 – Taipei, Taiwan – Legacy May. 19 – Seoul, South Korea – Seoul Jazz Festival May. 20 – Shanghai, China – MAO Livehouse May. 23 – Melbourne, Australia – Recital Hall (early show) May. 23 – Melbourne, Australia – Recital Hall (late show) May. 25 – Sydney, Australia – VividLIVE at Sydney Opera House May. 26 – Sydney, Australia – VividLIVE at Sydney Opera House May. 29 – Adelaide, Australia – The Gov May. 30 – Brisbane, Australia – QPAC Jun. 01 – Canberra, Australia – Canberra Theater Jun. 02 – Perth, Australia – Astor Theater Jun. 23 – Eridge Park, UK – Black Deer Festival Jun. 24 – Westmeath, Ireland – Body & Soul Festival Jun. 25 – Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy Jun. 27 – Leipzig, Germany – Parkbuhne GeyserHaus Jun. 28 – Utrecht, Netherlands – TivoliVredenburg Jun. 30 – Barcelona, Spain – Vida Festival Jul. 14 – Austin, TX – Paramount | Midwives Benefit Jul. 16 – Austin, TX – Paramount | Iron & Wine Movie Night screening of Sorcerer Sep. 21 – Kansas City, MO – Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland Sep. 22 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre Sep. 23 – Salt Lake City, UT – Capitol Theatre Sep. 24 – Boise, ID – Revolution Center Sep. 26 – Eureka, CA – Arkley Center for the Performing Arts Sep. 27 – Sacramento, CA – Crest Theatre Sep. 28 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues Sep. 29 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre Sep. 30 – Sante Fe, NM – Lensic Performing Arts Center Oct. 2 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s Ballroom Oct. 3 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant Oct. 4 – Milwaukee, WI – The Pabst Theater Oct. 5 – Bloomington, IL – Castle Theatre Oct. 6 – Columbus, OH – Southern Theatre Nov. 2 - Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theater Nov. 3 - Toronto, ON - Queen Elizabeth Theatre Nov. 4 - Montreal, QC - Corona Theatre Nov. 6 - Portland, ME - State Theatre Nov. 7 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount Nov. 8 - Glenside, PA - Keswick Theatre Nov. 9 - Norfolk, VA - NorVa Nov. 10 - Raleigh, NC - Meymandi Concert Hall Nov. 12 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium Nov. 14 - Augusta, GA - Miller Theater Nov. 15 - Tampa, FL - Tampa Theatre Nov. 16 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre Nov. 17 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre
