PIERRE KWENDERS SHARES NEW SINGLE/VIDEO, “KILIMANJARO”

WATCH / SHARE “KILIMANJARO” HERE
BUY / STREAM “KILIMANJARO” HERE

NEW ALBUM, JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE, OUT APRIL 29, 2022 ON ARTS & CRAFTS 

PRE-ORDER JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE HERE

“On José Louis and the Paradox of Love, the sounds go beyond electronic to include Congolese rumba, pop, R&B and spectacular moments of jazz that completely overwhelm the senses. … a wonderland of rich textures.” - CBC Music

“ 'Papa Wemba' adds electronic clout to the soukous beat — it sounds like it’s being punched out on a Teletype — and stirs up a rhythmic vortex with echoing guitars, gruffly sung and chanted vocals and a twin-saxophone riff that approximates the horns saying 'Papa Wemba.’” - The New York Times

"Since his 2014 debut LP Le Dernier Empereur Bantou, Pierre Kwenders has been an invaluable force in Canadian music with his experimental and playful approach to Congolese rumba.” - The FADER

Photo Credit: Kim Yang // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Pierre Kwenders, the Congolese-born, Montreal-based musician, songwriter, and DJ, shares new single / video, “Kilimanjaro”, from his forthcoming album José Louis and the Paradox of Love, out April 29 via Arts & Crafts. Following recent singles, “Heartbeat” (feat. anaiis) and “Papa Wemba”, the latter praised by The New York Times as “a rhythmic vortex with echoing guitars, gruffly sung and chanted vocals,” “Kilimanjaro” finds Kwenders pairing up with ESQO (Chile), Carlomarco (Chile) and PEDRO (Portugal), three producers and composers who complement each other perfectly.

While Kilimanjaro represents a journey to the roof of Africa for many, it could also be compared to a journey of self-discovery and exploration for others. For Kwenders’ “Kilimanjaro” it depicts a pursuit of sexual fantasies, an exploration of bodies intertwined and bonded by sexual intensity. The higher the desire, the closer the Kilimanjaro. The song feels like a throwback to another era with its unique mix of smooth jazz, Congolese rumba, contemporary electronic pop, 1980s retro, and '70s funk, emanating from Pierre's reverence of African greats like Fela Kuti, Tshala Muana, and more.

“Whilst it is the highest peak of Africa, paying homage to some of the greatest that have come out of the continent is always dear to me,” says Kwenders. “Sometimes I dream of being from the glorious time of Fela or dancing like Tshala Muana, or being the handsome Orfeu Negro, the one that every girl dreams of. In this video, I believe dreams have no limit even if that means to climb the Kilimanjaro over and over again.”

The video for "Kilimanjaro" is an auspicious deep fake daydream in which we see Kwenders' face superimposed onto the bodies and actions of numerous famous Black and African figures and films of history, from James Brown live at Teatro 10 in 1971 to Prince in Purple Rain and several starlit points in between. Produced and directed by Epher Heilland, the video casts the ever-striking image of Pierre Kwenders himself onto the towering face of Mount Kilimanjaro.

WATCH / SHARE “KILIMANJARO” HERE
BUY / STREAM “KILIMANJARO” HERE

WATCH / SHARE “HEARTBEAT” (FEAT. ANAIIS) HERE
BUY / STREAM “HEARTBEAT” (FEAT. ANAIIS) HERE

Following MAKANDA at The End of Space, the Beginning of Time, Kwenders’s 2017 sophomore album, and Le Dernier Empereur Bantou, his 2014 debut – both of which earned Kwenders nominations for Canada’s prestigious Polaris Music Prize – José Louis and the Paradox of Love finds the artist arriving at a new juncture: a moment of resonance, carefully wrapped in freewheeling tapestry, hinged in reverence to its diverse heritage, yet reveling in the inventive combination of its elements. Seamlessly working across Congolese rumba, contemporary electronic music, pop-R&B, and jazz-infused progressions with a range of global collaborators including Tendai Maraire (Shabazz Palaces), Branko (M.I.A., Buraka som Sistema), Win Butler (Arcade Fire), Michael Brun (J Balvin), and Uproot Andy (Poirier), José Louis and the Paradox of Love is both an embrace of African musical tradition and an evolution of it. Singing and rapping in Lingala, French, English, Tshiluba, and Kikongo, Kwenders similarly weaves his stories across the boundaries of language and geography. Written and recorded while traversing the globe with his Moonshine Collective — holding nearly 100 lunar-based events including a Boiler Room party in his native Kinshasa or performing for COLORS in Berlin — Kwenders has taken his Afro-electronic soirées from Los Angeles to Santiago to Paris and beyond, building a truly international grassroots community of fans and peers.

WATCH / SHARE “PAPA WEMBA” HERE
BUY / STREAM “PAPA WEMBA” HERE

PRE-ORDER JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE HERE

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JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE TRACKLIST
1. L.E.S (Liberté Égalité Sagacité) (Feat. Win Butler, King Britt)
2. Your Dream (Feat. Ngabo)
3. No No No
4. Imparfait (Feat. Sônge)
5. Papa Wemba
6. Religion désir
7. Makambo Ya Gaga (skit)
8. Heartbeat (feat. anaiis)
9. Kilimanjaro
10. Coupé
11. Sahara
12. Radio trottoir (interlude) (Feat. Babel Bukasa)
13. Church (Likambo) (Feat. Africa Intshiyetu Choir)

PIERRE KWENDERS LIVE
Mar 26 - Knoxville, TN @ Big Ears Festival (DJ set)
May 4 - Toronto, ON - The Music Gallery | Tickets
May 6 - Montreal, QC - Phi Centre | Tickets
July 30 - Montreal, QC - Osheaga Festival 

PIERRE KWENDERS ONLINE
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PUP SHARES NEW SINGLE “TOTALLY FINE”

Photo Credit: Vanessa Heins // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Toronto punk heroes PUP—comprised of Stefan Babcock, Nestor Chumak, Zack Mykula, and Steve Sladkowski—will release their incredible, ambitious and aptly titled fourth album, THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND, next week on April 1. Following the previously released “Waiting”, “Robot Writes A Love Song”, and “Matilda”, PUP shares one last single before the entire album drops next week. Accompanied by one of the Greatest Music Videos Of All Time™, “Totally Fine” is a hilariously self-lacerating track with an undeniable chorus that offers plenty of opportunities to open up the pit. The track features Mel from Casper Skulls on vocals, with Sarah from Illuminati Hotties, Kathryn from NOBRO and Erik from Remo Drive on the gang vocals. Watch PUPTHEBAND Inc. get away with their criminal business dealings in the Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux directed video for “Totally Fine”.

“We wrote ‘Totally Fine’ after a long creative drought,” the band says. “We all agreed to take a break from PUP during lockdown, to take some time to deal with our mental health and get some space from each other. After 3 months of not writing any songs, ‘Totally Fine’ was the first thing to pop out. It broke this creative dam wide open, just months worth of pent up frustration all smashed into this one song. After that, we ended up going on a bit of a tear and wrote the rest of the record really quickly. The drumming on this song still blows our minds. It’s so manic and wild and makes the song feel like it’s about to fall apart at any moment, which is kinda like how it feels to be in PUP.”

WATCH / SHARE “TOTALLY FINE” HERE
BUY / STREAM “TOTALLY FINE” HERE

PUP will unravel right before your very eyes on tour, starting in the U.S. next week. See below to find a show, including festivals such as Coachella and Shaky Knees, below. Tickets are on-sale now HERE.

THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND was recorded and mixed over the course of five weeks in the summer of 2021, in GRAMMY Award-winning producer Peter Katis’ bat-filled mansion in Connecticut. Full of typically furious, ridiculous and anthemic songs, the recording process allowed PUP to push themselves further than ever before. With more time in the studio, they were able to craft their songs sonically in a way they were unable to in the past, and allowed themselves to incorporate new instruments like piano, synths, horns, and more for the first time. Though made in madness-inducing isolation (aside from Peter and the bats, of course), PUP were remotely joined on the album by Sarah from Illuminati Hotties, Kathryn from NOBRO, Mel from Casper Skulls, and Erik from Remo Drive. The result is not just the next PUP record, but the *most* PUP record.

WATCH / SHARE “ROBOT WRITES A LOVE SONG” HERE
BUY / STREAM “ROBOT WRITES A LOVE SONG” HERE


MORE ABOUT THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND
PUP released Morbid Stuff in 2019 to critical acclaim, earning countless year-end nods from the likes of Pitchfork and NPR, their late-night debut on Late Night With Seth Meyers, the JUNO award for Alternative Album of The Year, the short list for the Polaris Music Prize, and sold-out shows across the globe. Two years later, they spent a few weeks in the Summer of 2021 in a mansion in Connecticut with Peter Katis (Interpol, Kurt Vile, The National) to record and mix their new record, THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND.

The band—Babcock, bassist Nestor Chumak, drummer Zack Mykula, and guitarist Steve Sladkowski—more or less never left. When the band got comfortable in its strange new home, the (figurative) walls came down. “As the weeks passed, we seemed less and less rational, objective, and sane,” Babcock says. “You can hear the band start to fall off the cliff, and because of that, I think this record is our truest and most genuine to date. There is nothing more PUP than a slow and inevitable descent into self-destruction.” 

LISTEN AND SHARE “WAITING” HERE

Every PUP record arrives with an implied “contents under pressure” warning; the tension between the band’s instinct for the melodic and its gift for chaos propels the songs forward while making them also seem close to flying apart in a horrifying spray of tears and gore. THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND is the sound of a band that is not just comfortable with but in command of that chaos. “There’s only so many times you can write a song about how much you hate yourself before you write a song about how fucking good you are at hating yourself,” Babcock says. “It’s funny that we’ve provided for ourselves by being fuck-ups and writing songs about being fuck-ups. We’ve been fuck-ups forever, and now we’ve got a responsibility, to others and to ourselves, to fuck up in a productive manner.”

WATCH / SHARE “MATILDA” HERE
BUY / STREAM “MATILDA” HERE

Babcock says. ““I wanted to write about the horrible state of the world, but through a very specific and personal lens. It’s a lot of me trying to articulate my own coping with existential dread, hopelessness, and what I’ve called ‘Grim Reaping’—which is to me, the idea that we are all reaping what we sow, and right now we’re sowing some pretty fucked up shit.”

THE UNRAVELING is not a departure from what got PUP here, really; for all the new breadth, this is still very much the fourth album by the band that has spun songs about The Bad Decisions Lifestyle into scrappy art. The hooks are as bright and barbed as always; the poison threaded through every song is no less potent. But a fourth album should be different from the first, or even the third, and THE UNRAVELING is. “I don’t know that we set out to do new stuff,” Mykula says, of a record on which the band does a great deal of new stuff. “It’s just a band trying to sound as much like themselves as possible. Every record you make, you get closer to that.” 

WATCH / SHARE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND ALBUM TRAILER

THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND is that next step—not towards perfection, or even towards some more perfect version of writing songs about fucking up, but just in the direction of its choice. It’s a product of this endless awful broader moment, but also very much a step forward into that uncertainty. “The whole album process really brought us closer together, even as things unraveled,” Babcock says. “It’s hands down my favorite PUP record, and I don’t think it could’ve been made under any other circumstances.” 

THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHE BAND DIGITAL PRE-ORDER

THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND PHYSICAL PRE-ORDER
+ PUPTHEBAND INC. MERCH

Album Artwork Credit: Jordan Speer // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

THE UNRAVELLING OF PUPTHEBAND TRACKLIST
01 Four Chords 
02 Totally Fine
03 Robot Writes A Love Song
04 Matilda
05 Relentless
06 Four Chords Pt. II: Five Chords
07 Waiting
08 Habits
09 Cutting Off The Corners
10 Grim Reaping
11 Four Chords Pt. III: Diminishing Returns|12 PUPTHEBAND Inc. Is Filing For Bankruptcy

TOUR DATES
3/23/22 - Toronto, ON @ El Mocambo [SOLD OUT]
3/26/22 - Ottawa, ON @ Bronson Centre Music Theatre !   
3/27/22 - Hamilton, ON @ Bridgeworks ! [SOLD OUT] 
3/28/22 - Kingston, ON @ The Ale House  !
3/29/22 - Peterborough, ON @ The Venue !
4/1/22 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Roxian Theatre *^
4/2/22 - Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall *^
4/3/22 - Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre *^
4/5/22 - Minneapolis, MN @ The Fillmore *^
4/8/22 - Victoria, BC @ Capital Ballroom ^ 
4/9/22 - Victoria, BC @ Capital Ballroom ^ [SOLD OUT]  
4/10/22 - Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo ^ ‡
4/11/22 - Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom +^ 
4/13/22 - Sacramento, CA @ Ace of Spades +^ 
4/15/22 - Indio, CA @ Coachella Music and Arts Festival
4/16/22 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren +^ 
4/17/22 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah + [SOLD OUT]  
4/18/22 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah ^ [SOLD OUT]  
4/20/22 - San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield+^
4/21/22 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda #^
4/22/22 - Indio, CA @ Coachella Music and Arts Festival
4/24/22 - Denver, CO @ The Ogden Theatre +^ 
4/25/22 - Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater +^ 
4/27/22 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater +^ 
4/28/22 - Houston, TX @ House of Blues +^ 
4/29/22 - Austin, TX @ Stubb's Waller Creek Amphitheater +^ 
5/1/22 - Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Music Festival
5/3/22 - Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel +^ 
5/4/22 - Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz +^ 
5/5/22 - Richmond, VA @ The National +^ 
5/6/22 - Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall +^ 
5/7/22 - Washington, DC @ The Fillmore Silver Spring +^ 
5/9/22 - Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom +^ 
5/10/22 - Boston, MA @ House of Blues +^ 
5/11/22 - New York, NY @ Terminal 5 +^ 
5/13/22 - Montreal, QC @ MTelus +^
5/14/22 - Toronto, ON @ History +^  [SOLD OUT]  
5/15/22 - Toronto, ON @ History +^
6/3/22 - Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues $
6/4/22 - Royal Oak, MI @ The Royal Oak $
6/5/22 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s $
6/6/22 - Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom $
6/8/22 - Indianapolis, IN @ Hi-Fi Annex $ 
6/9/22 - Lawrence, KS @ The Granada $
6/10/22 - St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant $
6/11/22 - Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl $
6/13/22 - Charleston, SC @ Charleston Music Hall $
6/14/22 - Columbia, SC @ The Senate $
6/15/22 - Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa $
6/17/22 - Holyoke, MA @ Race Street Block Party $
6/18/22 - Buffalo, NY @ Asbury Hall $
7/3/22 - St. Catharines, ON @ Born & Raised Concert Series
7/8/22 - Cheltenham, UK @ 2000trees Festival
7/23/22 - Byron Bay, Australia @ Splendour in the Grass
8/26/22 - Málaga, Spain @ Canela Party Festival
10/12/22 - Leeds, UK @ Leeds Beckett Students Union
10/13/22 - Manchester, UK @ O2 Ritz
10/14/22 - London, UK @ The Roundhouse
10/16/22 - Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 Galvanizers
10/17/22 - Dublin, IE @ Academy 2
10/19/22 - Brighton, UK @ Chalk
10/20/22 - Bristol, UK @ SWX
10/21/22 - Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute
10/23/22 - Paris, FR @ Backstage
10/24/22 - Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
10/25/22 - Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
10/26/22 - Köln, DE @ Bürgerhaus Stollwerck
10/28/22 - Berlin, DE @ So36
10/29/22 - Warsaw, PL @ Hybrydy
10/30/22 - Prague, CZ @ Rock Cafe
11/1/22 - Milan, IT @ Bloom
11/2/22 - Munich, DE @ Strom
11/3/22 - Hamburg, DE @ Gruenspan
11/5/22 - Copenhagen, DK @ Pumpehuset


! with support from Casper Skulls  
‡ with support from Beverly Crusher
# with support from Skegss
^ with support from Pinkshift
$ with support from Oceanator
* with support from Cloud Nothings
+ with support from Sheer Mag

PUP ONLINE
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GHOST WOMAN REVEALS UPCOMING SELF-TITLED LP, SHARES FIRST TRACK

WATCH / SHARE “BEHIND YOUR EYES” HERE
BUY / STREAM “BEHIND YOUR EYES” HERE

NEW SELF-TITLED LP OUT JULY 6, 2022 VIA VICTORY POOL

Photo Credit : Jacqueline Badeaux // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Ghost Woman’s upcoming self-titled LP, out in Canada via Victory Pool and via Full Time Hobby everywhere else brims with self-produced and self-performed Anatolian sounds and lo-fi hooks. Subscribing to the school of authenticity songwriter Evan John Uschenko seemingly shares with rebellious new-psych classmates Kurt Vile or The Black Angels, Ghost Woman takes its inspiration largely from groups like Can, Beak, Jefferson Airplane, The Byrds, and The Firesign Theatre. So it’s no wonder the albums sometimes  krautrock groove is often thwarted by the unapologetic exploration of heartbreak and misplaced expectations; But heartbreak ain’t the only unsuccessful temptress at the bands doorstep,

“Not only did we have a rehearsal space catch fire and ruin some of our gear but this last year my van got broken into and ripped off some of my favourite guitars and amps. I try not to let that bug me too much, and luckily they were cheap-o Sears-Roebuck / Stencil amps / Japanese knock-offs,” he rambles with a morning coffee and cigarette in hand. “A few road bumps can’t stop us. It's only gonna make us come back stronger.”

Today, Ghost Woman shares the first track from the upcoming LP, “Behind Your Eyes”, a song for which he made up a word : ‘transformating’. “I was probably on mushrooms when it was written,” he says.

The track arrives with a video from director Laura La France who says, “It's been really exciting to collaborate with Evan on these videos; he shares my love of film format and makes some of my favourite local music.The filming process has been very spontaneous and off-the-cuff, which is my favourite way to work. I've learned a lot about 16mm and I hope he's picked up a thing or two about Super 8!”

WATCH / SHARE “BEHIND YOUR EYES” HERE
BUY / STREAM “BEHIND YOUR EYES” HERE

MORE ABOUT GHOST WOMAN
Ghost Woman’s blissfully hypnotic world is the creation of melodic maniac, Evan John Uschenko. Beating the odds of life as a busy touring musician, salvaging and replacing his instruments from burned down rehearsal spaces, van break-ins and far too many relocations to list, Uschenko has transformed his lifelong habit of homespun sonic exploration into a sensory ‘mix and match’ experience destined for the main stage.

“When I record songs I tend not to approach them with any preconceived idea,” He says, staring at the ceiling. “I take a seat, tune the guitar and enjoy myself. It’s always been like that for me. If it don’t turn you on, what’s the point?”

Evan’s sonic and literal adventures as a touring multi-instrumentalist with songwriter / producer / guitarist Michael Rault saw him share international stages with the likes of Jacco Gardner, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, and The Mild High Club who unwittingly paved the way for Ghost Woman’s inevitable incarnation.

“Having the opportunity to witness those groups perform was inspiring to say the least. Especially Gizz and Jacco. The attention to detail, professionalism as a touring act and the extra effort put into creating a killer live show doesn’t go unnoticed. It’s a calibre I’m just not used to where I’m from,” Uschenko laughs. “When the tours were wrapped, I got home and immediately started writing music. And music with a live show in mind”

DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
GHOST WOMAN TRACKLIST
01 All The Time
02 Do You
03 Dead & Gone
04 Along
05 Clockwork
06 Behind Your Eyes
07 All Your Love
08 Jreaming
09 Good
10 Comes On
CANADIAN TOUR DATES
March 27 - Edmonton, AB - Starlight Room - Edmonton
April 1 - Lethbridge, AB - The Owl 
April 2 - Calgary, AB - Big Winter Classic
April 23 - Edmonton, AB - The Aviary

EUROPEAN TOUR DATES
2-5-2022 NL       Paradiso, Amsterdam
3-5-2022 BE       TRIX, Antwerp
5-5-2022 UK      FOCUS Wales, Wrexham            
6-5-2022 UK      FOCUS Wales, Wrexham            
7-5-2022 UK      FOCUS Wales, Wrexham
9-5-2022 UK      Shacklewell Arms, London
10-5-2022 UK    Dareshack, Bristol
14-5-2022 UK    YES, Manchester
16-5-2022 UK    The Hug and Pint, Glasgow
17-5-2022 UK    Shipping Forecast, Liverpool
22-5-2022 ES     La Salvaje, Oviedo
23-5-2022 ES     Fun House, Madrid
24-5-2022 ES     Sala Stereo, Alicante
25-5-2022 ES     Sala Upload, Barcelona
26-5-2022 ES     Dabadaba, San Sebastian
28-5-2022 CH    La Parenthèse, Nyon
29-5-2022 DE    Kranhalle, Munich  - w/ Mattiel
1-6-2022 DE      Haldern Pop Bar, Haldern
5-6-2022 FR       Levitation France, Angers
8-6-2022 IT        Beaches Brew, Ravenna 

GHOST WOMAN ONLINE
WEBSITE
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