New Music Round-Up 9/6/19: The Avett Brothers, Prophets of Rage, The Highwomen, Rustic Overtones, John Mayer and more

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Welcome to the BroBible New Music Round-Up, where we’re spending today fending off the rain by listening to the new Lana Del Rey album. For more follow me on Twitter:  @ryanoconnell79

This Week’s Playlist

How are things looking with our Best of 2019 playlist?

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Prophets of Rage “Pop Goes The Weapon”

It’s about damn time that Prophets of Rage came out with something new. The supergroup consisting of members of Rage Against the Machine, Cypress Hill and Public Enemy seemed primed to lead the charge of musician’s dropping protest music during the Trump presidency, but for the most part they’ve been M.I.A..

Not cool dudes.

But whatever, they’re back with “Pop Goes The Weapon” and are directing their rage (pun intended) at gun violence in America, which I’m sure you’ve noticed, is kind of a big deal. The video for the track features a running tally of mass shootings so far in 2019 and ends with the names of victims.

In a statement, the band’s guitarist Tom Morrello said “Guns are both the subject of religious worship AND huge profits in the United States. Combined with emboldened white nationalism the recent epidemic of massacres is little surprise. ‘Pop Goes the Weapon’ channels our ‘thoughts & prayers’ through Marshall stacks and microphones.”

Prophets of Rage are reportedly working on a new album, their first since their self-titled debut, which came out in 2017. They dropped another new song, “Made With Hate,” earlier this summer.

How these guys haven’t performed some kind of massive free concert in D.C. in the past year or so is beyond me. I can submit the permits, guys. Just let me know.

The Avett Brothers “Bang Bang”

If you’re tired of gun violence in America, but perhaps that Prophet of Rage tune is a little too heavy for your liking, then allow me to point you in the direction of this new tune from The Avett Brothers. The message is similar, but the vibe is significantly different.

Driven by a piano, some strings and harmonies, the song is sparse, haunting and beautiful. In it, the brothers share a message about what they feel is part of the cause of gun violence: the TV shows and movies people are watching.

“A song like ”Bang Bang,” Seth and I will talk for hours about … the TV will be playing, and we’ll see these movies that are just ludicrous,” Scott Avett recently told Billboard. “You know? They’re nuts. And we’re going… we’ll flip from one channel and see some terrible shooting that’s happened, and then we flip to whatever and there’s a movie going, and you’re like — it’s real life here, and then I go over here and it’s two-fold. I just think all these things have accumulated enough to talk about.”

But the group also makes the song personal, talking about their own backgrounds and what life is like “in the country” where they live.

“I live in the country/because I love peace and quiet/but all of my neighbors/have closets full of machine guns/and every Sunday they’re out there, pretending to be Rambo/and I’m out there pretending/that Sunday is still sacred.”

In a note the band released earlier this summer, they addressed the political vibe of their newer songs, saying that “We didn’t make a record that was meant to comment on the sociopolitical landscape that we live in,” the note reads. “We did, however, make an album that is obviously informed by what is happening now on a grander scale all around us…The Avett Brothers will probably never make a sociopolitical record. But if we did, it might sound something like this.”

Their new record, Closer Than Together, comes out on October 4th.

The Highwomen The Highwomen

The debut album from the country music supergroup, The Highwomen, finally came out today and there was much celebration. The album is full of powerful messages and equally powerful harmonies.

Country music has long been dominated by dudes, but this crew of super talented women are looking to level the playing field. The group has even gone so far as to donate a portion of album sales to  She Is the Music, a nonprofit seeking to transform the music industry by pushing for equality for women.

The group doesn’t have any tour dates posted yet, but the band’s members will be on solo tours throughout the fall. In the meantime, check out our tiers of supergroups, a project that was inspired by The Highwomen.

Rustic Overtones “Black Shirt”

Rustic Overtones, a funk/rock band from Maine, have been around for over twenty years and continue to keep plugging along.

Throughout their career they’ve been road warriors, were signed to Arista by legendary label man Clive Davis, were unceremoniously dropped when Davis left the label, were briefly signed to Tommy Boy Records with that not working out either, recorded tracks with David Bowie, Funkmaster Flex and Imogen Heap, broke up, got back together, and lost members either tragically or to other bands.

But they just keep on going. “Black Shirt” is their latest release and is the debut single off of their next album, which is slated to be released later this fall.

To learn more about Rustic Overtones, check this out.

John Mayer “Carry Me Away”

This John Mayer fella continues to have one hell of a weird career. Yet despite the odd directions it has taken, one thing has remained a constant and that’s Mayer’s ability to put together a delightful, catchy little tune.

The latest example of this is “Carry Me Away,” which he debuted during a concert Thursday night in Dallas. It’s strange because you’d think that with all of this time Mayer has spent entertaining Deadheads as part of Dead and Company, that the music of the Dead would show in his own music. Not so much though. He still sounds like John Mayer.

Mayer hasn’t released an album since 2017, but this is the second song he’s released this year so maybe he has something in the works.

North Mississippi Allstars “Mean Old World”

“Mean Old World” is the third song that the band has released off of their upcoming album, Up and Rolling, which is due to come out on October 4th. Yet unlike one of the previous tracks they released, “Up and Rolling,” which was mellow and laid back, “Mean Old World” came to play.

The band gets help from Jason Isbell and Duane Betts on the track, with each helping out on guitar and vocals.

“Our father recorded ‘Mean Old World’ with Duane Allman and Eric Clapton during the Layla sessions,” NMA guitarist Luther Dickinson said in a statement. “Jason [Isbell] invited me to record an acoustic, slide guitar duo version. Cody [Dickinson] came up with the new arrangement and wanted to record an electric version with Jason and Duane Betts, using ‘Mean Old World’ as a vehicle to lay down an epic statement about modern-day roots rock guitar.”

Statement made, received and noted.

Elsewhere in Music…

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What the Hell, Dudes?

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Earlier this week, Cardi B confused fans when she took to Instagram took go after…uh, little kids.

“Not gonna let no little f —ing white boys come at me all motherf —ing day long,” she fumed. “Motherf —ing shut the f — up and stay in your motherf—ing place. Go drink your motherf—ing milk, bitch. F—.”

So like, what’s going on Cardi?

It turns out Cardi was responding to a diss track released by, wait for it, a group of 10 year olds from Westchester, New York. Yes, 10 year olds.

We really do live in weird, effin’ times.

Anyway, the youngsters, who go by ZN8tion, had posted a video on their Instagram page, in which they attacked the Grammy-award winning rapper, saying that Cardi was “washed up,” “belongs in a zoo,” and smells like a “turd.”

Classy guys. Real classy.

The group, who again, are four 10 year old boys, responded by sharing a clip of Cardi’s Instagram attack interspersed with clips of their song.

Do you ever think that we’re truly screwed as a country because sometimes I do.

Yo, What’s Up Lizzo?

Nicki Minaj Is or Maybe Is Retiring…

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Earlier this week, Nicki Minaj took to Twitter to announce that she was retiring, saying she was stepping aside to have a family. Good for her. She’s had a great career. If she wants to walk away, then she’s more than earned it.

But wait…plot twist!

Maybe a day or two later, Minaj reversed course, telling a fan on Twitter that “I’m still right here. Still madly in love with you guys & you know that,” she wrote. “In hindsight, this should’ve been a Queen Radio discussion & it will be. I promise u guys will be happy. No guests, just us talking about everything. The tweet was abrupt & insensitive, I apologize babe.”

So like, not retired then.

While we figure this out, I think it’s important to remember that Minaj’s verse on Kanye’s “Monster” is an effin’ wrecking ball.

Whatever she decides to do, she has our support, which I’m sure matters a lot to her.

This Week in Thanks YouTube!

 

And We’ll End Here

See you next week!

 

 

 

 

Ryan harbors a constant fear of losing his keys, prefers flip flops, and will always choose cereal if it's an option. He maintains his own blog, Giddy Up America, and has previously contributed work to UPROXX & Heavy. Ryan is on Twitter: @ryanoconnell79