Around the Tubes: May 1, 2021

         

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting:

- Based on The New York Times bestselling book by author Liane Moriarty, Nine Perfect Strangers takes place at a boutique health-and-wellness resort that promises healing and transformation as nine stressed city dwellers try to get on a path to a better way of living. Watching over them during this ten-day retreat is the resort's director Masha (Nicole Kidman), a woman on a mission to reinvigorate their tired minds and bodies. However, these nine “perfect” strangers have no idea what is about to hit them.  The series stars Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Michael Shannon, Luke Evans, Bobby Cannavale, Regina Hall, Samara Weaving, Melvin Gregg, Asher Keddie, Grace Van Patten, Tiffany Boone and Manny Jacinto.

- New Zealand’s platinum sensation BENEE drops the music video for her song “Happen To Me”—watch it HERE. “Happen To Me” stands out as the fan-favorite track from her critically adored full-length debut album, Hey u x.  The gothic visual finds BENEE at the center of the table during a surreal The Last Supper-style royal feast. She sits on a throne alone as guests enjoy medieval delicacies. As she flips through tarot cards, she turns over the death card only to be greeted by a man on a pale horse before finally disappearing from the table. As the song grapples with her own fear of death, the video personifies this existential struggle. Over a soundtrack of hummable guitar and lithe synths, she confesses, “I think about these things too much. My mind likes to wind itself up. And I don’t get a lot of sleep. ‘Cause what if they happen to me?” Ultimately, BENEE upholds what has become a tradition of captivating and cinematic videos with “Happen To Me.”
- Welcoming friends into the mysterious embrace of Whispering Pines Studios today, Lord Huron uncover a new single entitled “I Lied” [feat. Allison Ponthier]. It’s the latest tune to be shared from their anxiously awaited fourth full-length album, LONG LOST, out May 21^st via Whispering Pines Studios Inc./Republic Records.  Pre-order Long Lost HERE, listen to “I Lied” HERE, and watch the official music video HERE.
- 19 year old Molly Burman made a striking first impression with her debut single proper, "Fool Me With Flattery", arriving as she did a fully formed prospect last month. Today, she follows up that significant promise with a further slice of empowering, woozy slacker-pop in "everytime". Listen and watch its accompanying video HERE.
- Unconventional pop star Ali Barter has released her new EP Chocolate Cake. Following on from singles "Twisted Up" and "You Get In My Way", the 4-track EP is out now on Inertia Music / [PIAS]. Alongside its release is a lyric video for the title track, made with the same creative team for her previous singles, We Made That. Watch and listen HERE.  The Chocolate Cake EP was written across both hemispheres. Barter engaged in writing sessions in Los Angeles and Nashville before the crushing reality of COVID-19 jeopardized her first US tour and forced her back home to isolate in Melbourne. The EP was rounded out remotely with the help of creative minds Harlan Silverman, Lost Boy, K-Flay, who co-wrote the EP title track, Brandon James and lockdown buddy/ husband Oscar Dawson.
- SERGIO MENDES & FRIENDS: A CELEBRATION, a joyfully tuneful salute to the pioneering Brazilian musical artist – producer, composer, keyboardist, vocalist – and Oscar®-nominated songwriter will make its world premiere as part of special programming on PBS stations in June 2021 (check local listings). This program, presented by WNED PBS, was created especially for PBS and is derived from the forthcoming feature documentary Sergio Mendes: In The Key of Joy by acclaimed filmmaker John Scheinfeld (The U.S. vs John Lennon, Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary, and The Happy Days of Garry Marshall). The deal was negotiated by WNED PBS and the film's distributor Brainstorm Media.