Monday Music News

09/18/2017

Jasmine Albertson

Björk has shared the enchantingly vivid video for recently-released single "The Gate" off her forthcoming full-length Utopia. Directed by frequent artistic collaborator Andrew Thomas Huang, the clip features the Icelandic songstress in a custom Gucci gown by by Alessandro Michele (who also collaborated in creative direction for the video) that took approximately 550 hours to make, and an additional 320 hours for the embroidery. Huang explained that the clip is, "the first glimpse into Björk's utopia. The doorway lies within the wound from Vulnicura, which now appears transformed into a prismatic portal channeled between the chests of two lovers. Not lovers in the quotidian romantic sense, but in a broader cosmological way. ‘The Gate’ is a declaration of hope sung by a woman refracted and re-formed into a luminous whole.” [ FACT ]

Last week, Tegan and Sara announced that they would be celebrating the 10th anniversary of their beloved album The Con by releasing The Con X: Covers, with a stacked list of artists covering the entire album. Today they've shared CHVRCHES' take on album closer "Call It Off." Tegan Quin elaborated on the song, “Lauren [Mayberry of CHVRCHES] was one of the first artists we approached for The Con X: Covers project. We are massive fans of CHVRCHES and the music they make. Lauren is an ally to the LGBTQ community and has been outspoken and political, so she fit the ethos of the project perfectly.” The Con X: Covers drops October 20 with all proceeds going to The Tegan And Sara Foundation which benefits LGBTQ girls and women. Tegan and Sara will play The Moore Theatre on Friday, October 27. [ SPIN ]

Elbow recently shared an updated version of "Kindling," off their seventh album Little Fictions, released earlier this year. The new version, renamed "Kindling (Fickle Flame)," strips things down to their bare bones and adds John Grant on vocals. The song also came with an announcement of 2018 European tour dates with Grant. Today a straightforward, black and white video for the song has been shared, which features Garvey and Grant in separate studios, recording the song. Elbow will play The Showbox on Friday, November 10. [ Under the Radar ]

This Friday, Brian Wilson will release Playback: The Brian Wilson Anthology, a compilation of studio tracks and live recordings from the past 30 years. It also features two unreleased songs, "Some Sweet Day," which was recorded in the '90s and "Run James Run," a brand-new track written and recorded in 2017. "Run James Run" has been shared today and features the signature '60s-style harmonization Wilson perfected with the Beach Boys. Listen to the track exclusively on Pitchfork. Playback: The Brian Wilson Anthology is out September 22 via Rhino Records. [ Pitchfork ]

Mirah releases her new solo EP, Sundial, next month. The EP takes previous Mirah songs and reimagines them around a string quartet provided by Jherek Bischoff, plus one new song called "Sundial," which was shared in late July. Today, she's unveiled "Little Cup," from 2011's collaborative album with Thao Nguyen of Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, Thao & Mirah. The song is just as delicate as the original, with the strings adding some warmth to it. Sundial is out October 6 via Absolute Magnitude, Mirah's K Records imprint. Watch Thao & Mirah's original version of "Little Cup" from their live in-studio performance at KEXP in 2011 below. [ Stereogum ]

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Björk's new "Tinder album" is on its way and we finally have a taste of what it might sound like with lead single "The Gate." The storyline of the song picks up where Vulnicura left off, with Björk healing from the heartbreak of the dissolution of her 13-year relationship. “My healed chest wound/Tr…