Liars - "No. 1 Against The Rush"

We've got crazy levels of affection for Liars around these parts, so when studio videos started surfacing of the band working on their latest WIXIW, we were totally stoked. But nothing, to be honest, could have prepared us for just how awesome the product of those studio sessions would be. "No. 1 Against The Rush" is an awesome dose of synthy goodness wrapped around the band's signature ethereal songwriting style. The beat may be the most dance-influenced thing we've ever heard from the band, but the track manages to balance the poppy vibe just perfectly with eerie textures that save it from becoming repetitive in the least. We're sure you'll agree that it deserves multiple repeat listens on this sunny Monday morning. While an mp3 has yet to surface, you can stream the new awesomeness via the link below.

Stream: Liars - No. 1 Against The Rush

Liars To Play Bowery In April

It's been a while since we heard from Liars, but that's all about to change: the band has an (awesome, more on that later) new record on the way, and will be touring in support of the album. While the full tour schedule hasn't been announced yet, we were excited to see that a date in New York at the Bowery Ballroom has already made it's way out into the open. The last time we saw the band Angus was rather injured, and yet still kicked complete ass. We're guessing this one will only be better.

Tickets are on sale tomorrow at noon.

mp3: Liars - Scissor
pictures: Liars in the HAD Archive

Concert In The Rain: Liars and No Age at Slim's

Last night at Slim's, despite torrential rain and Liars' frontman Angus Andrew's obvious back injury, No Age and Liars managed to put on a killer rock show. Both bands benefited from a huge amount of crowd enthusiasm, and delivered in turn.

After waiting in two (!) lines in the rain, we managed to get inside for the second half of No Age's set, which was fantastic. We here at H.A.D. had never listened to the band before, but they delivered a solid set of noise/post punk tunes. Probably the only downside was that the songs were so short: quite a few felt like they ended before they even started! The crowd was really into the band, and there was even a request for them to come back after Liars. In some ways, the show seemed to almost be a double bill. We have no doubt that No Age will be back in their own headliner capacity in short order.

When Liars did make it on stage, it was clear from the outset that Angus Andrew's recent injury news flash is definitely a reality. The usually active singer was slow in walking, and slumped a bit to one side. After standing for the first song, he proceeded to sit down next to the drum kit for the duration of the set.

Even seated, however, Andrew managed to deliver as much as possible on his usual antics. He was thrashing about, moving, waving and twitching through the entire set. The rest of the band was in fine form as well, with the addition of a fourth (Jeremy...?) to fill out the line up. Many of the albums' more complex sonic experiments were reproduced surprisingly successfully on stage. The band delivered killer versions of songs both new and old, including "We Fenced Other Houses With Bones Of Our Own", "Broken Witch", and "Plaster Casts Of Everything".

When Angus got up again for the last song it was clear that he really absolutely had needed to be seated for the show. There was such an obvious level of pain and immobility. Still, when the band closed the set with an amazing version of "The Other Side Of Mt. Heart Attack", it was quite nice to see the singer standing and making his way to the crowd.

Speaking of Mt. Heart Attack, probably one of the strangest aspects of the show was hearing the Drums Not Dead songs (of which there were many) out of order. We here at H.A.D. have largely consumed that record via the DVD surround mix, and listened to it as a single entity. Hearing the songs out of order gave them new individuality, and perhaps changed our consideration of some completely. We're still digesting.

So, there you have it. The Liars and No Age, in the face of adversity, are out on tour and kicking ass.

Many more photos available on the h.a.d. flickr feed.

Liar's At Slim's In January, On-Sale This Sunday

Much as we had hoped back when they played Bill Graham with Interpol, Liars are returning to San Francisco for a headlining gig. On Friday, January 25th the band will be playing Slim's to an all-ages crowd. The show goes on-sale this Sunday, December 16th, so get 'em while they're hot!

While You Were Out: Liars

So in being out of the good ol' city by the Bay for three weeks, we here at h.a.d. also managed to miss the Liars/Interpol show at the Bill Graham Civic Center. Sadness. However, all is not despair: All Shook Down has a nice review (sadly lacking any mention of Liars) and video of the show here, and Liars leaked four demo mp3s for free on the web last week! The demos can be found via a mailing list signup here.

Liars: New Album, Bill Graham in October

I have yet to make mention of the new Liars eponymous album that is coming out on Tuesday (It was supposed to be out last Tuesday, got pushed forward). It's exciting to have a new disc from a band that really seems to be at the forefront of breaking new ground with every record they release.

I first heard of Liars in the 2001 days of the "new-garage" onslaught from New York City: lead singer Angus Andrew was dating Yeah Yeah Yeahs front-woman Karen O, and mentions of the two bands usually went hand in hand. I have to admit that they didn't actually catch my interest that much at the time, and I let the second album slide by me upon its release.

That all changed, however, with last year's Drum's Not Dead. The album is a challenging sonic masterpiece, and its appeal was increased by the inclusion of a full-length film to accompany the album, as well as a 5.1 surround mix of the audio (a personal sound-fetish, but that's for another post). The sound is difficult to explain without hearing it, but it's at once dischordant and melodic, experimental and straightforward, aggressive yet subtle. Needless to say, a follow-up from such a dynamic disc is eagerly awaited. A few hype machine assisted listens in, and I'm still absorbing it. However, at first listen it seems to be a tad more straight-ahead rock than the last album. You can find almost all the tracks on the net at this point (it leaked in June), but I encourage you to pick up the disc and support the band.

In the other half of this news-bite, I'm wrestling with disappointment with the band's upcoming San Francisco appearance. The show is at Bill Graham Civic Center on Saturday October 20th, providing support for Interpol. I'm disappointed by this development for so many reasons. For one, the Bill Graham is probably my least favorite venue in the city: It's a vacuous, gigantic space with poor sound, and very little to offer concert goers besides $6 gummy bears. It's sad that this is Bill Graham's legacy.

On top of the venue, there's the tour support for Interpol. Granted, the bands came out of New York at the same time, and maybe it's just buddies doing one another a favor. Unfortunately, I think it reads more like Interpol countering their recent major label release with a dose of "indie cred" in the opener slot. I've seen Interpol a number of times, and while they're a solid live band, I'm disappointed that their icy (and to me, boring) set is going to cut into what could be a Liars headline gig at a smaller venue. Here's hoping that Liars will swing through town to take another shot at a smaller headlining gig. In the meantime, I'll probably try to jump on board at Bill Graham - if I can find a cheap ticket.

mp3: Liars - Plaster Casts Of Everything
Stream: Liars @ Myspace - Entire album