Coachella Band Preview: Disclosure

January was a total blur for me being in Mexico. However it’s finally February and I’m home for just under two weeks! Can’t wait to ski for days and think of the hot afternoons and cool evenings on the polo fields. It warms my heart. I have another 2 1/2 weeks in Mexico next month into the beginning of March, but after that it’s full on Coachella prep. I’m crossing my fingers that I get to be there again this year, but after a few discussions over this past month I think I will be. However, we’re 2 1/2 months away from another spring in Indio after a 3 year hiatus and it’s time to preview more bands. This week it’s Disclosure.

In 2020, I anticipated seeing Disclosure at Coachella. I hadn’t yet previewed the band when the festival was first postponed so I figured I should dive into them early this year. Disclosure is a British electronic duo composed of siblings Howard and Guy Lawrence. The brothers first started recording music and posting it to Myspace in 2010, which earned them a record deal. After several hit singles in their first few years, they dropped their first album Settle in June 2013, which was a big year for the duo. They toured worldwide playing shows and festivals. Settle was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Dance Album.

Their second album, Caracal, came in 2015. This album also received a Grammy nomination along with a number one spot on the UK Albums Chart upon release. After a one year hiatus from 2017-2018 and a few other breaks along the way, the band released their third album Energy in August 2020. They likely booked Coachella 2020 in anticipation of this, but unfortunately the event didn’t get to happen. The album released as planned though and the group received a Grammy nomination for it.

Disclosure plays a house/deep house style of electronic music. I always feel like deep house music has such a vibey sound and Disclosure’s music is no different. Their tunes will likely take a late set time spot at the main stage or Outdoor Theatre or even a headlining spot at Sahara.

They last played Coachella in 2016 and played the main stage on Saturday night. They play Saturday this year too and will be bringing plenty of new material to the desert. I hope to be able to be at their set. I’m not a huge Disclosure fan, but I know this is one electronic set not to miss this year. Start prepping your looks and get ready for this non-stop vibe of a dance party by listening to:

1. Latch
2. You & Me (Flume remix)
3. Magnets
4. Know Your Worth
5. You’ve Got to Let Go if You Wanna Be Free
6. Talk
7. Omen
8. Ultimatum
9. Help Me Lose My Mind
10. In My Arms

Coachella Band Preview: BROODS

We are officially less than 2 months away from Weekend 1 of Coachella! The hype is increasing at this point and yesterday it increased for me too. I’m proud to say that I accepted a position to work at Coachella in its entirety (meaning both weekends)! I’m beyond stoked. However that being said, even though I’ll be out in the desert once again, I’m going to have some serious business to take care of. I have no idea if I’ll be able to see any music at all, but being in the Coachella atmosphere is a gift in and of itself. At least now you’ll know who I would be seeing if I get a chance out there. Anyway with this building anticipation, it’s time to ramp up that listening and preview another band playing the festival this year for their first time, BROODS.

BROODS is a brother-sister band duo who come from Nelson, New Zealand. Georgia Nott (lead vocals) and her brother Caleb (backing vocals, production, multi-instruments) grew up in a music-oriented family. They even performed in an ABBA tribute band growing up and were a part of an indie band while in college. Both ended up eventually dropping out of college to pursue BROODS. Their band name was suggested by their manager but has a relevant double meaning which they love. It relates to family but also deep upsetting thoughts that the siblings resolve through music. They formed the band in early 2013 and released their debut single “Bridges” by October of that year. The duo worked early on with music producer, Joel Little, who also worked with Lorde on her single “Royals”.

They released their debut self-titled EP in early January 2014 after signing a deal with Capitol Records/Polydor a month earlier and then toured the UK, North America, and Australia for the better part of 2014. Some of their tour gigs were in support of acts like Haim, Ellie Goulding, and Sam Smith. Their debut album, Evergreen, was released in August 2014. It debuted at No. 1 on the New Zealand Album Chart. In 2015 they returned to North America to tour making several stops on the festival circuit along the way. None of those included Coachella however, making this year their first Coachella appearance.

After the release of their debut album, they immediately began working on its successor. With a tour filled 2015 though, it wasn’t released until June of 2016. The album, Conscious, features collaborations with fellow 2017 Coachella performers Lorde (writing) and Tove Lo (singing) (surprise guest anyone?!). Both albums earned BROODS several New Zealand Music Awards. Since their debut on the music scene, the duo has racked up a total of 10 of the awards, along with 2 more nominations that didn’t result in wins. They were also nominated for the APRA Silver Scroll Award in 2014 but lost.

BROODS style of music is primarily indie pop with a mild electronic influence. Georgia Nott’s vocals are soft and hypnotizing to listen to. If I had to compare them to other artists, I would say their current sound is kind of like BANKS/Lorde/Tove Lo meets St. Lucia, but with a more BANKS/Lorde/Tove Lo sound than St. Lucia. It’s really just a few songs from their latest album that give off a St. Lucia style indie pop feel than their debut, especially the song “We Had Everything” (I mean come on…don’t you start hearing “Closer Than This” with that intro?).

I first heard of BROODS in late 2014 when a person I follow on twitter tweeted about how good the band was. I, of course, checked them out and loved their sound. I downloaded the songs “Bridges”, “Four Walls”, and “Mother & Father” and listened to them periodically. Over the last year I added two songs from their new album to my iTunes and again listened to them as they played on my “Most Recently Added” rotation.

I’ve never been a super fan of BROODS, only a casual listener, but I’ve always liked what I’ve listened to. If I have the opportunity to see BROODS live in a festival setting, I’ll definitely see them. As I said before, this is their first time playing Coachella. They play Friday. I’m not sure what kind of crowd they’ll attract in their first appearance at the festival, but I don’t think it will be overwhelming. So if you’re up to listen to some indie pop from the siblings Nott then check them out. You won’t be disappointed. Here’s a few songs to get you ready for their set:

1. Bridges
2. Heartlines
3. Mother & Father
4. Four Walls
5. Free
6. We Had Everything
7. Freak of Nature (ft. Tove Lo)
8. Never Gonna Change
9. Couldn’t Believe
10. Everytime

Bonus: Ease by Troye Sivan ft. BROODS

The Biggest Night in Music…or Something Like That

If you watched the Grammy Awards last night, I’m sure the one question running through your mind is “Was there anything Sam Smith didn’t win?” The answer is surprisingly “Yes!” no matter how you look at it. Sure you can say he didn’t win a Grammy for every category, but he wasn’t nominated for every category. However, he also did not win in every category he was nominated for (Pharrell won with “Happy” for Best Pop Performance), although it sure seemed like he did.

Anyway, I originally had planned to do a Grammy Awards recap today but then right before the show started last night I realized I really didn’t care to watch it. Prior to this I saw three of the categories I cared about were already awarded. Best Rock Performance went to Jack White for “Lazaretto”, Best Rock Song went to Paramore for “Ain’t It Fun” and Best Alternative Album went to St. Vincent for her self-titled album (see you at Coachella Jack and Annie!). After that I only cared if The Black Keys won Best Rock Album or if Haim won Best New Artist. Neither did. So there wasn’t much else for me to see. The performances weren’t my cup of tea nor were the other categories. I might have been mildly interested to see if Taylor Swift won anything for “Shake It Off”. That song may be a guilty pleasure of mine but I will not confirm or deny that (she didn’t win at all). Still, that was something I could wait to find out later without watching the show.

So I barely watched the Grammys. Instead it got me thinking, “Why do people watch the Grammys? Why are they so special? Heck, why do people watch any award shows and what makes some more important or better than others?” So I did some research and decided to answer those questions here.

First “Why do people watch the Grammys?” and “Why are they so special?” Well to give an answer to both of these questions at once (sorta) is because the Grammys are the oldest and most prestigious awards in music. The show started in the late 50’s and has continued until this point. So that’s why they’re special and I think part of why people watch. Another reason I think people watch is because they want to see if their favorite artists receive a major achievement. I’m sure some people watch to see the performances and drama that occurs with a live award show. There’s probably people that watch just so they can feel included to talk about the show the next day at work or school. Then there’s the people who watch for the fashion. There’s probably other reasons too, but I think those are some of the big ones.

I guess the same can be said for why people watch any awards shows. They care about what the show celebrates whether it’s music, tv, movies, etc., or they care about fashion and pop culture, or they just watch it for pure entertainment. What makes some award shows better than others? Well I think like I said before is how old they are and how prestigious they are deemed by society.

That’s the thing though. The Grammy Awards (probably other award shows too) were criticized plenty of times for just being some big spectacle that celebrates the music industry, caters to people for entertainment, and is less about the actual music than they want you to believe. Like many things in our culture, award shows get blown out of proportion. It’s society that makes us believe that awards are important and certain awards are more important than others. That goes for anything. I guess it’s the case that people need to feel validated sometimes and awards help with that. But I think it’s important for those receiving awards to feel validated no matter what, like the people who make music purely to make music by expressing themselves and creating a beautiful compilation of sound. There’s validation in just being able to make music. One of my favorite Grammy moments of all time happened when Justin Vernon of Bon Iver won two Grammys in 2012 for Bon Iver, Bon Iver and Best New Artist (he wasn’t new at the time but we’ll let that slide). Through his acceptance speech he basically indicated that the awards meant so little compared to the music which was so much more important. I’ve always respected musicians like that who put the music first. It is what’s most important. Awards are just an added bonus.

So I think it’s important for those of us that actually care about what the awards are for to remember what is really important about them. Hell, even if you care about the fashion or the water cooler discussion the next day it’s important to know the real reason for having an award show. Music, television, movies, etc. are all forms of art. They’re beautiful creations of tremendous amounts of work that have been shared with us. That is what is so incredible about them. That is what is most important.