Category: News

Alternative pop band Podruga has released a socially distanced concert recording with nods to the 80s style – “PODRUGA on Tape”. The concert has been released not only online but also in a style-appropriate, long-unseen format – VHS tape.

In a colourful and visually captivating performance, the band performed not only new arrangements of fan favourite songs but also the band’s latest melancholic single “So Long”, which was at the top of LR6 Radio NABA’s Latvian music TOP10 for 8 weeks. The show also featured the premieres of compositions from the band’s upcoming new album.

The recording has been released in a very limited edition of atypical, but thematically appropriate format – VHS cassettes. The full-length recording of “PODRUGA on Tape” is also available on the band’s YouTube channel.

Podruga started in 2016 as a solo electronic music project of Alise Stefanovica. Over time, the project has developed artistic diversity, and its concept has grown to its current line-up of Alise Stefanovica (vocals, flute), Ricards Dauksts (guitar, keys), Jana Petkus (bass guitar) and Karlis Lazdovskis (drums). They have released four singles and EP “YPA!”, and have played many concerts, including at major Baltic festivals. The current line-up of Podruga creates intimate, sensual music with expressive show elements.

The international music and city festival Tallinn Music Week (TMW), scheduled to take place from 29 September to 3 October, has revealed the music programme line-up. The festival will showcase 155 artists from 19 countries, of them 100 from Estonia. A Place To Bury Strangers and DVS1 from the US, the Icelandic band Hatari featuring Palestinian artist Bashir Murad, and the Finnish accordionist Antti Paalanen are among the international names appearing at this year’s event.

The opening night of the festival will feature two premieres: a new work by Estonian composer Liisa Hõbepappel, and an international collaboration “Themes For Great Cities: Tallinn” TMW’s new programme partners are the Latvian festival Skaņu Mežs, the Lithuanian festival What’s Next In Music?,  Blow Up from Finland and Estonia’s own Võnge, as well as the Association of Global Independent Music Agents (AGIMA).Single tickets for the showcase nights are now on sale at Piletilevi. Until 30 June, festival passes are on sale for a special price at Piletilevi and the TMW web shop.TMW 2021 is presented by Telia. The music programme of the festival is organised in cooperation with Damn.Loud Agency.

From Thursday, 30 September to Saturday, 2 October, the TMW music programme will bring together musicians from 19 countries, from Estonia to Palestine and from Russia to the United States. 155 artists, including 96 great acts from Estonia, will perform across 26 showcase nights from the modern Telliskivi Creative City and Port Noblessner to the picturesque Old Town.

The TMW 2021 Opening Night at the House of the Brotherhood of Blackheads on 30 September will see the world premieres of two musical compositions. Young Estonian composer Liisa Hõbepappel will perform her new piece, written specially for the festival, with the group Trio ‘95. The night will also premiere a collaboration project “Themes For Great Cities: Tallinn” of Estonian musicians Jonas Kaarnamets and Erki Pärnoja, Danish artist Jonas Bjerre (Mew) and American musicologist Alex Maiolo. The novel concept involves ambient and industrial sounds to produce a piece that has its very foundation in the city where it’s being presented.

There will be more new sounds and presenters to explore in the 14th century House of the Blackheads where The Chamber Choir Encore and Duo Telluur will perform new works by Estonian composers Karl Tipp, Pärt Uusberg and Karin Kuulpak. The same venue will also be the meeting place of the Estonian multidisciplinary Üle Heli festival and TMW debutante Skaņu Mežs, Latvia’s most adventurous music and art festival. Together they will present a line-up that includes the Italian experimentalists L’impero della Luce, the acclaimed Estonian future pop artist Mart Avi and the Latvian sound synthesists +K+M+B.   Station Narva night at the Tallinn Creative Hub will feature well-known international names like  the celebrated US noiseniks A Place To Bury Strangers  and the Icelandic techno-punks Hatari, featuring the Palestinian musician and civil rights activist  Bashar Murad.  The Lithuanian talent festival and conference What’s Next In Music? is another new Baltic partner that will showcase the likes of Latvian experimentalist Evija Vebere along the the Lithuanian indie darlings Garbanotas and the Estonian electronica wizard Centre El Muusa at the fine-art photography centre Fotografiska Tallinn. The Finnish festival Blow Up will also make their first-ever appearance at TMW in the beloved alternative hangout Sveta Bar, introducing both their own cult names PH and Kaukolampi, as well as Deathsomnia – a brand new collective of the Estonian Kadri Sammel (Bedless Bones) and the British Richard Powley (Telepathy) and Bruno Russo.

At the new D3 venue right next to the Baltic Station Market, Estonian label Funk Embassy will present their homegrown funk and soul talent Rita Ray as well as the Italian-British-Moroccan trio Savana Funk. The TIKS rekords label night at D3 will feature local neo soul and R’n’B acts such as YASMYN and Maris Pihlap, and the Warner Music/Smuuv Records night will present their roster of  talented Estonians from the rapper Gameboy Tetris to the multi-instrumentalist Raul Ojamaa.

Presented by the Estonian Jazz Union and Jazzkaar festival, the jazz line-up at Fotografiska includes the vocal virtuosos Estonian Voices and the conceptual supergroup The Free Musketeers from Estonia. The future folk unit OOPUS hosts the folktronica night, presenting both the Russian ethno-futurists Oligarkh and the Sami musician Ánnámáret.

The variations of folk and ethno from the Finnish madman-accordinist Antti Paalanen to the  Estonian bluegrass-tinged folk stylists Curly Stings, will also form the core of the night curated by AGIMA, the Association of Global Independent Music Agents at the Club of Different Rooms’ (ETK). Estonia’s Intsikurmu Festival will bring a wide variety of acts from  the Romanian YouTube sensation Lucia to the Estonian indie act Taavi-Peeter Liiv to ETK. Local Võnge Festival will present the selection of acts from the Swedish pop diamond Bluephox to the Estonian new school rapper KiROT at F-hoone where the  Russian Sounds showcase will present hypno-rock band Lucidvox who kickstarted their international career at TMW 2018 as well as Gromyka, the deconstructors of Soviet Estrada.

The Kivi Paber Käärid locale will feature the dark pop duo SYLK from Ireland and the Estonian  rock‘n’roll kings Dead Furies. KinoMaja will offer Estonian vintage rock sounds by the likes of  Dramamama, and a pop night with hot young homegrown talents from the rapper-singer manna to the electronic pop duo Púr Múdd.

The Von Krahl metal stage showcases the premier Estonian alternative metal groups like Kannabinõid and the Finnish post-metallers Besra. GROM Festival line-up at the Tallinn’s oldest alternative culture institution Von Krahl will include the Estonian dream country luminaries Holy Motors whilst the Void Valley night at Sveta Bar will present the Danish ROXY JULES along the Estonian-Australian psychedelic combo dreamkrusher!. Sveta Bar’s BÄM Night will present the sounds of the queer rave and the legends of the local underground nightlife like Florian Wahl and Köster. The Estonian Heaven’s Trumpet label will showcase the unique cross-genre electronica

selection from Eesti Elektroonilise Seltsi Ansambel to the audiovisual duo Vera Vice. Bass and smoke-laden beats will fill the Smoke Break night at Kauplus Aasia by the likes of the event’s main mover & shaker Modern Disease and the Norwegian DJ-producer Charlotte Bendiks. At Noblessner’s techno club HALL, which will also serve as one of the hosts of the TMW music industry conference,  relentless ravers will be greeted by the club’s residents such as Artur Lääts and Kaspar Kivilo and one of techno’s most prominent global voices DVS1 from Minneapolis, US.

As a partner festival of the global initiative Keychange, TMW aims at gender-balanced representation throughout the festival’s line-up as well as in tackling the structural inequality in the music industry.  Keychange talent in the TMW 2021 lineup is represented by L’impero della Luce from Italy, Charlotte Bendiks from Norway and SYLK from Ireland.The full lineup of the TMW music festival as well as the free city stage programme will be revealed during the upcoming summer. The other festival elements are a music industry conference at Nordic Hotel Forum and HALL, public talks, an art programme, music workshops for children and special events in the district of Lasnamäe.  Single tickets for TMW 2021 showcase nights are now on sale at Piletilevi.

The TMW 2021 festival passes which grant access to all showcase nights of the festival, are on sale until June 30 at a discounted price of 55 euros (from 1 July 59 euros, from 1 September 65 euros) both at Piletilevi and at shop.tmw.ee.

PRO Pass (on-site and online conference and festival pass) at 150 euros (from 1 July 175 euros, from 27 September 200 euros) and DigiPRO Pass (online participation at the conference at 50 euros (from 1 September 75 euros) are on sale at shop.tmw.ee . Additional information: https://tmw.ee/passes-and-tickets

Telia Estonia customers receive 20% off the regular price of TMW passes and tickets purchased ahead of the events.

TMW 2021 is organised by Shiftworks with various partners and co-organisers. The music programme is organised in collaboration with Damn.Loud AgencyThe festival is presented by Telia Estonia.

The festival’s strategic partner in the field of music is Music Estonia, the main supporters are Nordic Hotel Forum and Visit Estonia. The partners of the festival are Telliskivi Creative City and Viru Center, media partners are Postimees Grupp and Raadio 2.

The festival is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the city of Tallinn, the Tallinn City Enterprise Department and the Cultural Endowment.

TMW’s international activities introducing Tallinn and Estonia as an attractive tourism destination of music and culture are supported by The European Regional Development Fund.

Virtuoso guitarist Mārcis Auziņš releases his third studio album “Lielā Plūsma that includes compositions composed during the last three years.

“The creation of the album “Lielā Plūsma” has been inspired by the contemplation of time, space, and existence. The musical material is based on the deeply resonating feelings of the ever-changing nature of the universe, the unstoppable rhythm of time and events, and me in both my roles of a musician and a human being as a part of this process – “Lielā Plūsma” (The Big Flow). I believe that my input and my role in the cutout of infinite time is musicianship, composing, and performing in concerts. The source for my strengths, imagination, and inspiration is in the interaction with the listeners; as long as I have the connection with the audience, the creative process will not abide and will allow me to stay in the vortex of my personal musical growth,” reveals Mārcis.

The concept of the first two albums (“Viens” 2016 and “Aizrautība” 2019) remains untouched with all compositions recorded using a single instrument – the guitar, the same way as Mārcis performs during his live solo shows, thus creating the unique feeling of being in the same space as the musician while listening to the recording.

The teaser of the album is available here:
The new album by Mārcis Auzinņš is available for purchase on eKase.lv, in Jāņa Rozes book stores, in departments of Latvian Post, music stores, and in concert venues. The album is also available on major music streaming platforms, such as Apple Music, Spotify, etc.

The concert program will present the listeners with both – compositions from the album and the arrangements of tunes by such legendary ensembles and artists as “The Beatles”, John Lennon, Bobby McFerrin, and others.

Listen to the “Lielā Plūsma” concert program live on these dates:

June 19 in Mālpils manor
July 2 in Kalnmuižas castle
July 17 in “Zeit”, Līgatne
July 24 Mazmežotnes manor
August 4 Saldus culture pavilion

To find out more information on upcoming concerts, follow Mārcis Auziņš’s social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and his web page www.marcisauzins.com

Local Latvian rock band Cacophonics presents their newest song We Did Not Use It All and an accompanying video.

The song’s author Ingus Sala comments: “Just like for many other bands, last year has been a big challenge for us. We greatly missed spending time together, rehearsing, also gigging and visiting shows of other musicians. At the same time, it has been a good opportunity to slow down and evaluate past events and decisions so as to more effectively use the chances that live presents and appreciate things that seemed self-evident in the past”.

The song was recorded at No Fuss Audio studio in Tukums, it was mixed by the drummer of Cacophonics Valērijs Černejs. The song’s music and lyrics were written by the band’s singer and guitar player Ingus Sala. The video for the song was filmed at Tukums city Culture Center, it was shot and edited by Gints Sprēdis in collaboration with the band’s bass player Aivars Daugavietis.

Cacophonics was formed in 2002 in Cēsis, up until now the band had released 1 full-length LP, 2 Eps and 7 singles, has played shows in all Baltic states, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Russia.

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Press release photo by Laura Grūbe.

Electronic music producers MICKEEN (Miks Pinzulis), and DESTRO (Voldemārs Pauls Dzenis), in collaboration with Jasmine Green Tea (Jasmīne Zavele)  on march 26, release the single “We Lost Us”.

Jasmine Green Tea about the song: It’s hard to put the idea of the song to words, and just as hard to understand what the people around are dealing with emotionally. The words “We Lost Us” resemble a lot of things. Everyone has their own demons to deal with. They can be stored deep within, they can appear in the form of another person. We can’t grasp how simple it is to bestrange ourselves, while fighting mazes placed by others. That’s what the lyrics are all about – not losing yourself trying not to lose someone else.

MICKEEN about the song: I’ve been working together with DESTRO for over a year now, but just now are we actually showing the results to the listeners. As the first original collaboration we decided to release “We Lost Us”, because that’s one of the first songs we worked together on. There were many versions. At the end we decided to go with this one.

Latvian indie rock band Carnival Youth have released another remix from their upcoming “Good Luck” remix EP – this time it’s Kasetes remake of “Boys Do Cry”. This follows the “Only the Moon Can See the Sun” remix by Bel Tempo released in February.

Kasetes, who’s latest album “Dialogue” was named Best Electronic Music Album at the 2021 Latvian Music Awards “Zelta Mikrofons”, have given “Boys Do Cry” a fresh 80s synthpop vibe. The remix comes with a reconstructed original music video, that emphasises the new ambience of the track.

Since Kasetes have already done a dazzling remix of Carnival Youth’s “Underneath the Water” a few years ago, they were one of the first ones Carnival Youth thought of when deciding which creators to give “Good Luck” songs to remix. “Cool people and a cool band with a distinct style and their own signature sound within the local music scene,” describes Emils Kaupers from Carnival Youth. “I sent Rudolfs the song tracks almost a year ago and he replied very quickly with an almost finished version of the remix. It’s essentially a Kasetes song with a “Boys Do Cry” vocal tracks since it feels like almost all instruments are added from scratch. And that’s the beauty of this project – each artist can do whatever they want with the song. We love to be surprised!”

Rudolfs Zagorskis of Kasetes explains that it was difficult to choose which song to remix: “After experimenting with three songs, that I thought would work well as remixes, “Boys Do Cry” vocal track brought the most interesting vibe. I began with putting together interesting synth chords that further created the mood of the track and from there it was pretty easy to amplify it with different elements. Since 80s music is close to my heart, I chose to make the whole song with the mood of that time – electric drums and analogue synthesizers. When the remix was almost done, bass player Jurgis Prieditis joined and played bass in the “slap” technique, which added a good atmosphere to the remix.”

The Latvian indie band Carnival Youth is one of the most successful new generation bands from the Baltic region. Carnival Youth fuse neat melodic lines with the energy of alternative rock and indie music, while their emotion range varies from youthful melancholia to pure, bright joy. Since the formation of the band, Carnival Youth have released five records, from which the latest one – “Good Luck” came out in August 2019.