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I’ve been singing the praises of Northern newcomers White Belt Yellow Tag here at Toonwaves for months, but with the impending release of their debut album it finally looks like the rest of the world might start to take notice. Due to land via Distiller Records on April 5, the Chris Potter (Blur, The Verve) mixed Methods promises to be an absolute cracker.

Fusing the epic indie-drone of Doves with the contemporary prog of Radiohead, on-stage White Belt Yellow Tag are fucking brilliant. Don’t believe me? Catch them live at the O2 Academy in Newcastle on March 17 and find out for yourself. Here are their full tour dates:

March 16 Glasgow King Tuts
17 Newcastle Academy
18 Sheffield Academy
19 Manchester Academy 3
20 Leeds Brundenell Social Club
22 Norwich Arts Centre
23 Nottingham Rescue Rooms
24 York Fibbers
25 Birmingham Academy
27 Brighton Audio
28 Bristol Thekla
29 Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms
30 London Garage

Formed when ex-Yourcodenameis: Milo man Justin Lockey met Craig Pilbin in a Newcastle studio, White Belt Yellow Tag also feature the powerhouse drumming of Tom Bellamy, formerly of explosive indie-dance outfitThe Cooper Temple Clause.

Read my feature on White Belt Yellow Tag here:

http://toonwaves.co.uk/2009/06/10/introducing-white-belt-yellow-tag/

Methods will be preceded by new single “Always & Ecoes,” released on March 29. Watch the video for it here:

US alt-fuzz legends Dinosaur Jr have announced details of a full UK tour that includes a gig at the O2 Academy in Newcastle on May 14. Definitely not to be missed. Here are their full dates:

May 2010

Saturday 8th       02 Academy Oxford
Sunday 9th         02 Academy Liverpool
Monday 10th       Black Box, Galway, IRE
Tuesday 11th      Vicar Street, Dublin, IRE
Wednesday 13th 02 ABC Glasgow
Friday 14th         02 Academy Newcastle
Saturday 15th     02 Academy Leeds
Sunday 16th       02 Academy Birmingham
Monday 17th       Cambridge Junction
Tuesday 18th      02 Shepherds Bush Empire, London

Taking his cue from semi-legendary indie-synth outfit The Postal Service, Minnesota native Adam Young conceived Owl City in his parents’ basement while suffering a bout of insomnia. Inspired by disco and European electronica, his homemade emo-pop soon attracted widespread online attention before being snapped up by major stable Universal. Number one on both sides of the Atlantic, ubiquitous hit single “Fireflies” saw Owl City shortlisted for the BBC’s Sound of 2010 and cemented Young’s rapid rise to prominence. Augmented onstage by Breanne Duren (background vocals/keyboards), Matthew Decker (drums), Laura Musten (violin), and Hannah Schroeder (cello), the band are already shaping up to be one of the major success stories of the year.

Catch them live at the O2 Academy in Newcastle tonight.

Read DiS’s lengthy review of Owl City’s debut album Ocean Eyes.

Having released their fourth LP to widespread critical acclaim at the beginning of the month, Hot Chip continue their unstoppable rise to the top of the indie-electronica tree. Described by vocalist Alexis Taylor as “more mid-tempo and disco influenced,” One Life Stand is yet another creative leap forward for the London-based outfit. As Taylor explained to the NME, “I think naturally we must have been in a slightly more focused state of mind, because we weren’t touring. We just had this time to make the record where usually, we’ve never really taken a break from touring.” A bold, well-crafted album, it’s among the band’s finest work to date. Standout track “Hand Me Down Your Love” is a sublime fusion of Morrissey-esque melody and K-Klass keys that needed more than 160 individual tracks and instrument parts to put together.

Hear it live at the O2 Academy in Newcastle tonight.

Tyneside newcomers Matadors have been on pretty regular rotation on my whey-aye phone since a couple of their demos landed in my inbox a week or so ago. Rough around the edges they may be, but the Heaton-based four-piece display a genuine gift for melody that puts many of their more experienced contemporaries to shame.

Here’s the blurb about them from their MySpace page:

“Matadors are an English Alt rock band from Heaton, a suburb of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. They formed in late 2009 and the band currently consists of Alex Blamire (lead vocals, guitar), Joe Sowter (guitar), Liam Clarke (bass guitar) and Joss Elder (drums, backing vocals). The band currently attend Heaton Manor School, where they first got together to play at the local band night. In Late 2009 they wrote and recorded a demo CD. The band are now playing a few local gigs in the Newcastle and Gateshead area.”

Matadors play the O2 Academy 2 in Newcastle on February 27.

Listen to the rather impressive ‘Worst Thing’ here:

Matadors – Worst Thing (live) MP3

Download this awesome cover of the Rancid classic ‘Ruby Soho’ by New York indie outfit Vampire Weekend. The band play the O2 Academy in Newcastle on Friday (February 12).

Vampire Weekend – Ruby Soho MP3

Sunderland’s finest rock band The Futureheads have revealed the title of their forthcoming new LP. Released via their own Null Records label on April 26, The Chaos is the band’s fourth full-length album and the first since 2008’s This Is Not The Word.

The band are also touring the UK in April and May to support the record’s release. Here are the dates:

26th April – Norwich, Arts Centre
27th April – Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
28th April – Leeds, Cockpit

1st May – Middlesbrough, The Empire (Club night) **
2nd May – Manchester, Academy 2
3rd May – Sheffield, The Leadmill
4th May – Birmingham, Academy 2
6th May – London, Scala
7th May – Gloucester, Guildhall
8th May – Coventry, Kasbah (Club night) **
10th May – Bristol, Thekla
11th May – Exeter, The Cavern
12th May – Portsmouth, Wedgewood Rooms
13th May – Northampton, Roadmenders

The boys are also playing the O2 Academy in Newcastle on March 4 alongside Frankie & The Heartstrings, The Courteeners and Chapel Club as part of a series of live shows put together by Radio One.

“The urban rhythms of his hits seem surgically designed to get micro-skirted bottoms moving; when Stryder raises his arm, the audience do, too, and screams greet a T-shirt giveaway – not least because he carefully adds his own sweat before throwing them to the hordes.” (The Guardian)

Pint-sized rapper Tinchy Stryder brings his chart-topping grime-pop to the O2 Academy in Newcastle tonight fresh from the success of last year’s well-received Catch 22 LP.

This year’s Shockwaves NME Awards Tour kicks off at the O2 Academy in Newcastle tonight with live sets from The Maccabees, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Big Pink and The Drums. I managed to get my hands on a couple of complimentary tickets (thanks Matt) so can avoid the usual ‘am I/aren’t I’ guestlist shenanigans and bring you all the action as it happens. It’s my first attempt at liveblogging anything so there’s a pretty hefty chance that it’ll go tits up. Point your browser back here at around 7pm and see for yourself. Read the rest of this entry »

Having released their sophomore LP Nobody’s Coming To Save You yesterday on the awesome City Rockers label, Leeds-based outfit The Sunshine Underground bring their dancefloor-oriented indie-rock to Newcastle’s O2 Academy tonight.