Alabama-based rockers Brother Cane are celebrating 30 years with special guests Jared James Nichols and Cage Willis – and four shows with Orianthi! This will surely be one for the books: Brother Cane is phenomenal live! I took my dad to see them for his birthday last year. So be sure to get your tickets at brothercane.com!
10/26 – Woodstock, GA – MadLife Stage & Studios*
10/27 – Huntsville, AL – Mars Music Hall*
11/1 – Richmond, VA – The Tin Pan
11/2 – Annapolis, MD – Rams Head On Stage
11/3 – Leesburg, VA – Tally Ho Theater
11/4 – Lititz, PA – Mickey’s Black Box
11/5 – New York, NY – Sony Hall
11/7 – Lakewood, OH – The Winchester
11/8 – Covington, KY – Madison Live!
11/9 – Edwardsville, IL –Wildey Theatre
11/10 – Columbus, OH – The KING of CLUBS**
11/11 – Warrendale, PA – Jergel’s Rhythm Grille**
11/12 – Dunellen, NJ – Dunellen Theatre
11/15 – Milwaukee, WI – Miramar Theatre
11/16 – Bloomington, IL – The Castle Theatre
11/17 – Westland, MI – The Token Lounge**
11/18 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theatre**
11/29 – Knoxville, TN – The Concourse
11/30 – Chattanooga, TN – The BarrelHouse Ballroom
The advances – and dangers – of AI have been a hot topic for years, but with the introduction of Snapchat’s My AI and all the AI-generated images on social media lately, this is a subject that now hits close to home for all of us. Indie grunge rockers The Space Turtles are no exception.
In their most recent single, “Unplug,” this Long Island based band writes about the extremes of our AI fascination and how it’s going off the rails. Reality has become twisted. In fact, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to discern between what’s real and what’s not. What do The Space Turtles recommend? Unplug, and live the simple life.
“We are living a lie/Dear God/Zeroes and ones, what have we done?/I need to unplug…”
“Unplug” is a warning wrapped in a funky, grungy melody and delivered with the frustration of our endless obsession with the digital world. Check it out on your favorite streaming service, or listen on YouTube below!
Escape The Fate is kicking off their Out of the Shadows Tour on August 31st in Salt Lake City. With them will be D.R.U.G.S., Point North, Stitched Up Heart, and Garzi. You can get your tickets and VIP at escapethefate.com. (VIP is also available for Stitched Up Heart.)
8/31 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
9/1 – Denver, CO – Summit Music Hall
9/2 – Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre
9/3 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave/Eagles Club
9/5 – Chicago, IL – Concord Music Hall
9/7 – Alton, VA – Blue Ridge Rock Festival 2023 (Escape The Fate and Stitched Up Heart only)
9/8 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
9/9 – Providence, RI – The Strand Ballroom & Theatre
9/10 – Philadelphia, PA – Brooklyn Bowl
9/12 – Warrendale, PA – Jergel’s Rhythm Grille
9/13 – Columbus, OH – The KING of CLUBS
9/15 – Pontiac, MI – The Crofoot Ballroom
9/16 – Covington, KY – Madison Theater
9/17 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl
9/19 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade (Heaven)
9/20 – Birmingham, AL – Iron City
9/22 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
9/23 – Dallas, TX – The Factory in Deep Ellum
9/24 – San Antonio, TX – Vibes Event Center
9/26 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
9/27 – Los Angeles, CA – The Belasco Theater
9/29 – Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
9/30 – Las Vegas, NV – Brooklyn Bowl
10/1 – San Francisco, CA – DNA Lounge
10/3 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox
10/5 – Portland, OR – Bossanova Ballroom
10/7 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock Festival 2023 (Escape The Fate only)
The Smashing Pumpkins are bringing their The World is a Vampire Tour to North America this summer. Support comes in the form of Interpol, Stone Temple Pilots, and/or Rival Sons, depending on the date. Tickets available at smashingpumpkins.com.
7/28 – Las Vegas, NV – The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
7/30 – Las Vegas, NV – The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
8/1 – West Valley City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre*^
8/3 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre*^
8/5 – Auburn, WA – White River Amphitheatre*^
8/6 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater*^
8/7 – Wheatland, CA – Toyota Amphitheatre*^
8/9 – Irvine, CA – FivePoint Amphitheatre*^
8/10 – Chula Vista, CA – North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre*^
8/11 – Highland, CA – Yaamava’ Theater*
8/13 – Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Resort & Casino^+
8/15 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion^+
8/16 – Rogers, AR – Walmart AMP^+
8/17 – Huntsville, AL – Orion Amphitheater^+
8/19 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre^+
8/20 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre^+
8/22 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion^+
8/24 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center^+
8/25 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion^+
8/30 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater^+
Clay Soldiers hail from the UK and blend elements of alternative, grunge, and stoner rock in their music. Formed in 2020, the band consists of vocalist/guitarist Leon, bassist Stu, and drummer Pablo. They have already seen a few notable achievements, including 16,000+ all-time streams across the various services and listeners in forty different countries.
I recently chatted with Clay Soldiers about their backgrounds in music, influences, playing live, and their debut EP, Life After Death.
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First and foremost, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule for this interview. Let’s start with the story behind the band’s name. I always find those interesting.
Stu: Initially, we were talking about Greek mythology and we were looking for names along the lines of mythological beasts and history. However, Leon states that “Clay Soldiers” came from the idea that people are molded in terms of their way of thinking, their resilience – they are not as strong as they think they are and are made to believe they are invincible.
Clay Soldiers’ sound encompasses multiple styles. Who are the band’s influences?
Stu: Our biggest influences are the bands and sounds of the 90s, such as Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Queens of the Stone Age, and Faith No More. We also take inspiration from classic rock, like Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, and lately we’ve drawn from some newer bands on the scene, particularly our friends in Dunes, The Grudge, and High Desert Queen, in terms of their performance and style.
So, if you don’t mind, can you tell me how you got started in music? What made you decide this is what you wanted to do?
Stu: We have always been interested in music in a big way. However, truly thinking about it, we lived through the 80s and 90s, where the music was an inspirational element in our lives. So, seeing bands that had grown considerably from the late 80s to the mid-90s and beyond, it was something that we had always felt that it wasn’t out of reach to do. It was a case of finding the instrument that we could share the rocking vibes with and over time, learning what it means to write songs, what it means to write from the heart through our own lived experiences that listeners can relate to.
And now, y’all have released your debut EP, Life After Death, and have garnered some well-deserved attention with it. Can you tell me a little about the writing and recording process? From where did y’all draw inspiration?
Stu: We tried to make music to reflect life experiences and take to heart how the lyrics can resonate to a wider audience. We wanted to write in a more thoughtful way and build connections with people as they find they can relate to it.
In terms of the recording, we often lay down all our demo stems on an app called Bandlab. It is a piece of software that really helped us to lay out and structure our ideas for the EP. The artwork was an awesome piece hand-painted by UK tattoo artist Jeep Bluezone (who is originally from Thailand). Initially, it was painted on canvas, then she offered to let us use it for the EP cover. We felt the image reflected every song on the EP, which is all about death and recovery – hence the name ‘Life After Death’. In other words, the day the world halts and then we start again.
On a personal level, what’s your favorite song on the EP?
Leon: All songs are very meaningful. If there was one overall song, I would choose “Ghost,” as that is the most epic sounding song.
Stu: I would choose “Ghost,” as it was one of the first tracks we actually wrote by accident and became one of our most evolved tracks. It has quite a cinematic, epic sound to it.
Pablo: “Ghost” for me.
I saw that you guys just played a show with Elkapath, Doomicidal, and At War With the Sun.What is your favorite thing about playing live?
Stu: That was a great show. Our favourite thing about playing live is seeing people enjoying and sharing the moments with us where the music is creating a positive atmosphere like no other. In that moment, we are family!
And on the topic of playing live, how is playing live and writing music in the studio connected? When you write, do you think about how it will translate in a live performance?
Stu: Everything we do in the studio is connected to live shows because everything we work for in the studio, it all comes to a conclusion in live shows. We want everyone to get a first glance of our music. For new fans who are seeing us for the first time, it is about how we can connect to those people and make new friends. For existing fans, it is showing how our music evolves and the fans grow with us.
What is next for Clay Soldiers? I saw y’all hinting at new music on Facebook (I say hopefully).
Stu: Social media is a massive tool, definitely, and it is helping us to reach more people and all around the world. New music is constantly coming, new songs and new forms of composition are there, and we are taking all different styles to create our own way to make music.
What do you feel is the ultimate goal for the band?
Stu: The goal is to keep growing, musically and as a band. To be able to perform regularly. It is not about being famous but is about being original and offering something to people where they can identify. We are now at a stage where we are building a brand and we invite everyone to the opportunity to get involved and be a part of that process.
Is there any message you’d like to give your fans, old and new?
Stu: We would wholeheartedly like to say a massive thanks with much love and respect for all the love and support everyone has shown us. Absolutely everyone is welcome to come and see us, no-one should be left out, regardless of pronoun, gender, sex, where you are from, etc. We just want everyone to be united in the moment, take care of each other and enjoy good times again! All we ask is just come and support local artists, local music! Keep the dream alive!
And a fun question I always ask, just to wrap this up: what would your dream concert lineup be? Clay Soldiers and…?
Stu: Dream lineup… to play an international open air festival, with bands who would love to play with Clay Soldiers! We would also absolutely love to be on the same lineup as the bands which have inspired us from the start of our musical inception, such as Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, Pixies, Smashing Pumpkins, Queens Of The Stone Age, Foo Fighters. Would be nice!
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Clay Soldiers are on a steady upward trajectory, earning new fans and followers with every released single and live show. They bring the best of rock in everything they do. From what I’ve seen, the band will be giving us a taste of their darker, heavier side with their new music. Be sure to find them on Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, etc., and check them out! Here is the track that the trio voted as their favorite from Life After Death.
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