PopMatters

 NATALIE SCHLABS PREMIERES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO  “THAT EARLY LOVE”  VIA POPMATTERS

NATALIE SCHLABS PREMIERES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO  

“THAT EARLY LOVE”  VIA POPMATTERS 

NEW LP DON’T LOOK TOO CLOSE  SET FOR RELEASE   

ON OCTOBER 16TH  

Photo: Fairlight Hubbard

Photo: Fairlight Hubbard

Schlabs’ voice possesses an audible kindness to it that allows her to carry her performance with the calmness and sincerity necessary to portray a song crafted on the kind of love that overreaches any one type of relationship. - American Songwriter    

Stirring songs...defined by the seamless convergence of her crystalline vocals, introspective lyricism and soaring melodies  - Albumism 

Delicate harmonies and swaying effects feel like a fresh breeze blowing through a field of flowers - Ones To Watch  

 Lyrical sincerity with gorgeous melodies...Natalie Schlabs delivers gilded, Americana-infused sweetness in a song that feels immediately timeless" - Atwood Magazine  

If your life feels like an endless struggle right now...Natalie Schlabs has a message of hope for you. - Audiofemme 

Brings to mind the timeless and melodic pop of the ’70s (plus some crisp Rilo Kiley-esque guitar hooks) with sweet lyrics about someone coming into your life” - Spectral Nights   

Mellow, yet upbeat, and it fills the heart and mind with thoughts and feelings about those that you hold dear. - The Indy Review 

WATCH: “THAT EARLY LOVE” 

LISTEN: “THAT EARLY LOVE” 

Today, Natalie Schlabs released her latest single “That Early Love,” a track from her forthcoming album Don’t Look Too Close, due out October 16th. “Nashville-based artist Natalie Schlabs not only writes what she knows but conveys the meaning of an emotionally charged experience with such tender-hearted expression that it's so easy to fall in love with her songs,” says PopMatters’ Michael Bialas in the premiere. “Just listen to the gorgeous tone to her voice on 'That Early Love' and follow the steady but merciful pull of a singer-songwriter with a solid grasp of the significant details worth contemplating in life…If there was a song made for these desperate times, ‘That Early Love’ on repeat should start to ease the pain. Heal thyself, then let the good feelings linger.” 

The song’s accompanying video, filmed and directed by Joshua Britt and Neilson Hubbard, features an older couple in daily life, interspersed with images of a little boy and girl wearing the same clothes as the grown-ups in the video. The visual is a metaphor for how the older couple feels - that their hearts are still young, their love is enduring and doesn't grow old. 

“That Early Love” follows “Go Outside,” which Ones To Watch said is “the perfect indie soundtrack to a summer afternoon,” encouragement anthem “See What I See,” and lead single “Home Is You,” the accompanying video of which features fellow artists and friends like Robby Hecht, the members of Oliver the Crow, Betsy Phillips, and gospel/soul powerhouse Liz Vice. 

LISTEN: “GO OUTSIDE”  

LISTEN: “SEE WHAT I SEE”     

LISTEN // WATCH: “HOME IS YOU” 

The nine tracks that comprise Don’t Look Too Close, the second full-length effort from the Texas-bred Nashville-based artist, live in the tension between the beauty and heartbreak surrounding our closest relationships. The songs were written when Schlabs was pregnant with her first child, which caused a lot of reflection on her own upbringing and how she wanted to raise him. The album’s title came from the idea that "he’s going to see all the worst of me, be hurt by the worst of me, as much as I don’t want him to, and, as much as I want to be the best for him. I was thinking about how to raise a child, how to pass down values. There’s a dismantling of what I thought I knew,” she explains. “What do I value in my life and where did those things come from? What do I want to share with my children and what do I want to spare them from?”   

natalie schlabs that early love digitalcover.jpg

Don’t Look Too Close steps into indie territory with a compelling mix of instrumentation laced with solo vocals that bloom into easy, delicate harmonies. Co-produced by Juan Solorzano and Zachary Dyke, with Caleb Hickman on saxophone and Joshua Rogers on bass, the album swells and ebbs with elegant, absorbing shapes. The songs are moody, candid, and tender, each featuring Schlabs’ characteristically sleek vocals front-and-center, backed by charming instrumental moments that add form and depth to the melodies.  

CONNECT WITH NATALIE SCHLABS:  

Website || Facebook || Twitter || Instagram || Spotify || YouTube || Bandcamp  

KILLER WHALE SHARES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO “PLENTY OF TIME” VIA POPMATTERS

Art: Lizzie Bilbrey

Art: Lizzie Bilbrey

KILLER WHALE SHARES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO “PLENTY OF TIME” VIA POPMATTERS 

NEW LP TASTES LIKE YESTERDAY OUT SEPTEMBER 18TH VIA DEVIL IN THE WOODS

WATCH: “PLENTY OF TIME" 

LISTEN: “PLENTY OF TIME” 

New Orleans-based band Killer Whale has unveiled “Plenty Of Time,” the latest single and video from their forthcoming album Tastes Like Yesterday, out September 18th via Devil In The Woods. “At once deeply in tune with contemporary sensibilities, dream pop keyboards and harmonies, it also taps into classic '70s soul sounds, culminating in a piece of pop that moves the heart as often as it moves the feet,” says PopMatters in its premiere. "This song is about struggling with your lover on how to move on or move away, and trying to remind yourself there's plenty of time to work it out,” frontman Thomas Johnson explains. “Plenty Of Time” follows the release of lead single and its hypnotic accompanying video “Comfortable,” which V13 called “truly a gratifying audio-visual experience.” 

WATCH: “COMFORTABLE”  

LISTEN: “COMFORTABLE”  

Somewhere between the rustic Louisiana bayou and dreamy California shores lies Killer Whale. With their colorful rhythms and rock n’ roll daydreams, they create a space that invites you in, tells you to make yourself at home, and hugs you as you walk in the door. Killer Whale, much like its creator, wanders between New Orleans, Austin, and San Francisco, bearing the melodic scars all that travel brings him. A mixture of genres, Killer Whale doesn’t subscribe to any one camp. Instead, it exudes them all.  

This kaleidoscope of sound oozes from every dreamy groove of the album’s 10 psychedelic, surf-infused, funk n' soul-tinged gems. With that kind of concoction, it doesn’t seem too far-fetched to think that the songs would be a melee, an atonal mishmash that harkens back to the days of being different for different’s sake. Under the leadership of another musician, such might be the case, but Killer Whale melds everything together in the name of freaky good fun.  

“I’m not a perfectionist,” admits Johnson. “Yet I do want each new record to demonstrate some progression from what came before. I don’t necessarily want it to sound radically different, and I think Tastes Like Yesterday accomplishes that. I like the idea of each album hinting at what’s coming next without really being specific about that direction.” Though one can hear echoes of the band’s previous release Casual Crush, this album finds Johnson’s muse immersing him in a very seductive, mellow soul. “I’m from Louisiana, and New Orleans culture and music have always been an influence on me, whether consciously or not,” Johnson says. When asked how he describes his music, Johnson laughs and suggests it’s “Pontoon Soul.” Lead single “Comfortable” offers an example of this new genre; it’s swampy and murky, yet Johnson’s heavenly voice transcends, resulting in a song best described as drop-dead gorgeous.  

 Be sure to tune in HERE on Saturday, August 1st at 4pm PDT/7pm EDT to see Killer Whale’s Jam In YOUR Van session benefiting the Equal Justice Initiative. 

CONNECT WITH KILLER WHALE: 

Website || Facebook || Instagram || Spotify || Bandcamp || YouTube