——————————————————————————————————

* Mountain Smashers vinyl out this week on Topshelf Records
* Download tracks exclusively at RCRD LBL and Rock Sound
* Y Rock Studio Session on WXPN’s The Key in Philly
* Full Album Stream on Punknews.org

——————————————————————————————————

Topshelf Records (Grown Ups, My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth) is excited to announce the debut 12″ from By Surprise (Haddon Heights, NJ), Mountain Smashers, is now available. First pressing of the vinyl will be limited to 500 (400 Black and 100 Smoke). Friend Of Mine in Japan will be releasing a CD version in early Summer.

To celebrate this week’s release, you can download two tracks from Mountain Smashers. Check out “Realometer on RCRD LBL and “$600 Exorcism” on Rock Sound. You can also stream the album in its entirety on Punknews.org.

Also, the band recently did a Y Rock Studio Session where they performed six songs. You can listen/download those songs at WXPN’s local music blog The Key.

Safely guarded behind four pairs of glasses and an arsenal of awkward tendencies, the members of By Surprise have spent an equal amount of time combing through the forgotten dust-filled grooves of 7-inch records released during the 90s indie label boom, as they have with the off-beat and inspirational works of Henry David Thoreau, Jack Kerouac, and Douglas Adams. Mountain Smashers, the band’s first full-length album, romanticizes with the feelings of reluctance we’ve all felt towards growing up, slowing down, losing touch, and selling out. Clocking in at thirty minutes, it combines both the influence of those dusty 7” records, often overlooked, with the lessons learned from the aforementioned authors. It admits defeat, while exuding reassurance. It questions the norms, while embracing the inevitable. The guitars are loud and the feedback bleeds, the vocals clash in uniformed motion, and the lyrics are kind of weird. It’s by far the band’s most focused effort to date, and in some ways, it’s their most adventurous.

Mountain Smashers was recorded in the band’s hometown of Haddon Heights, NJ at The Gradwell House with Dave Downham of Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start, and was mastered by Bob Weston at Chicago Mastering Service. Weston, bassist of Shellac and an also elder statesman of the independent music scene, has also worked on records with such bands as Archers of Loaf, Boys Life, Polvo, The Get Up Kids, Vitreous Humor, Sebadoh, and LCD Soundsystem.

• Download via iTunes, Bandcamp
• Pre-Order 12″ vinyl (out 04/19/11)
• Band featured on The Switchboard Sessions
• Recording new song for COMPassion Project

——————————————————————————————————

Tiny Engines (Tigers Jaw, CSTVT, Look Mexico) is excited to announce that Restorations‘ highly anticipated Self-Titled debut full-length is now out digitally via iTunes and Bandcamp, where it is also available for full streaming and can be purchased for a special price of $6 for the remainder of March.

Additionally, the 12″ vinyl version of the record – which will see an April 19th release from the label – is now available for pre-order. Recorded by Algernon Cadwallader‘s Joe Reinhart (My Heart To Joy, Monument, Snowing) and mixed by Jonathan Low (Dr. Dog, Danielson, mewithoutYou), the LP will be limited to a pressing of 500 and feature gatefold jackets with art and design by Bruno Guerreiro.

Plenty of other exciting news on the Restorations front as well, particularly the Philadelphia band’s recent feature with The Switchboard Sessions. This terrific website has taken a simple concept – providing a forum for great independent bands to perform two songs live over the telephone – and paired it with some of the most thoughtful, well-written interviews this side of the interwebs. The result is charming, intimate and wholly unique. Restorations’ session is no different. Check out (and download) the band’s telephone renditions of “Nonlocality” and “Canadian Club” and read about the quintet’s evolution, its “ah-ha!” moment during the writing process and how these eight exceptional songs pretty much fell into the unbelievably lucky lap of Tiny Engines.

And don’t forget that you can still download free mp3s for “Broken Vacuum” and “Neighborhood Song” courtesy of RCRD LBL and Epitonic.com, respectively.

Finally, Restorations will be recording a brand new song for the COMPassion Project, a benefit compilation assembled by Parrot On A Porch Records. All proceeds will go directly to assist with tsunami relief efforts in Japan. Available exclusively at Bandcamp beginning on April 12th, the comp boasts an impressive lineup featuring the likes of Samiam, Jonah Matranga, Chamberlain, J. Robbins, Rival Schools, Codeseven, Frontier(s), Walter Schreifels, Kevin Devine, Joshua, Jamie Woolford, Gracer, Atlantic/Pacific and more.

On Restorations’ Self-Titled debut full-length, the Philly quintet creates songs that are layered, tension-building monsters which lean heavily on a rhythm section that could probably knock a hole in the side of a Sherman tank. Still, that never takes away from the band’s ability to craft warm, stirring melodies, enduring hooks and dynamic song structures. Cascading guitars, pulsing waves of reverb and spacey flourishes are held together by Jon Loudon’s raspy-yet-tuneful growl. His delivery transmits confidence, wisdom and a bit of wear and tear – perhaps from years fronting underground DIY heroes Jena Berlin – but he also sings with a soulful, youthful exuberance that feels like he genuinely loves the process of creating music. If you’ve been searching for a thoughtful, nuanced take on punk and indie rock – and all the sub-genres they entail – Restorations might just be your new favorite band.

• Self-Titled LP out April 19, 2011 on Tiny Engines
• Early digital release date (March 22, 2011)
• “Neighborhood Song” premiers on Epitonic.com site relaunch (free mp3)
• “West River” featured on new Burning Building Recordings comp (stream)

——————————————————————————————————

Tiny Engines (Tigers Jaw, CSTVT, Look Mexico) is excited to announce that the highly anticipated Self-Titled debut full-length from Philadelphia’s RESTORATIONS is now available for pre-order.

The upcoming eight-song LP is limited to a pressing of 500 (300 x black 180 gram, 150 x clear / yellow swirl, 50 x clear / black swirl) and features gatefold jackets with art and design by Bruno Guerreiro. The official street date for the vinyl is April 19th, 2011. However, pre-orders will ship several weeks in advance. Additionally, the record will get an early March 22nd digital release date via iTunes and Bandcamp. For more information, go here.

To celebrate the pre-order, Tiny Engines and Restorations have teamed up with Epitonic.com on the venerable site’s long-awaited relaunch event – which happens to be the 12th anniversary of the day it originally launched in 1999 – to premier a free mp3 for “Neighborhood Song.” Including Restorations, twelve bands are debuting new music exclusively at Epitonic, including The Wrens, Marissa Nadler, Bloodiest, STRFKR, Braids, Withered Hand and more.

In its heyday, Epitonic was one of the Web’s first and most beloved editorial music discovery sites, with over 500,000 unique monthly visitors, love from countless bands and labels, a Wired “Best Music Site” nomination and a Webby Award. Hard times forced it into dormancy in 2004, but after a successful Kickstarter campaign, the new Epitonic.com promises to recapture the spirit of the original by curating and filtering underground music while utilizes new technology and features that were unfathomable when the site was first built.

In addition to the free mp3 download at Epitonic.com, you can stream yet another new Restorations track (“West River”) at Burning Building Recordings. The Seattle label recently announced “We Love This Comp.” Vol. 1 (out March 29th) which features songs from the likes of Daniel G. Harmann & the Trouble Starts, You.May.Die.in.the.Desert, Post Harbor and more.

Of course, don’t forget to check out the stream for “When You’re Older” which premiered at Alternative Press last week, as well as an mp3 for “Broken Vacuum” at RCRD LBL.

Recorded by Algernon Cadwallader‘s Joe Reinhart (My Heart To Joy, Monument, Snowing) and mixed by Jonathan Low (Dr. Dog, Danielson, mewithoutYou), the Self-Titled LP is the follow up to Restorations’ 2010 EP Strange Behavior on Paper + Plastick, as well as the band’s recent 7″ split with Rosetta (Cavity Records) and debut 7″ Of Trees / Frankford on Evil Weevil Records.

On Restorations’ Self-Titled debut full-length, the Philly quintet creates songs that are layered, tension-building monsters which lean heavily on a rhythm section that could probably knock a hole in the side of a Sherman tank. Still, that never takes away from the band’s ability to craft warm, stirring melodies, enduring hooks and dynamic song structures. Cascading guitars, pulsing waves of reverb and spacey flourishes are held together by Jon Loudon’s raspy-yet-tuneful growl. His delivery transmits confidence, wisdom and a bit of wear and tear – perhaps from years fronting underground DIY heroes Jena Berlin – but he also sings with a soulful, youthful exuberance that feels like he genuinely loves the process of creating music. If you’ve been searching for a thoughtful, nuanced take on punk and indie rock – and all the sub-genres they entail – Restorations might just be your new favorite band.

- Occupying a niche firmly planted between the aggression of hardcore, the earnestness of mid-western roots rock, and the jangly, shoegazing intelligentsia of indie, Restorations sound unlike any other band I’ve heard in quite some time. – The Ripple Effect
- This type of restrained punk energy filtered through a dynamic spectrum of sounds yields an aural image of the Drive-By Truckers with Frankie Stubbs of Leatherface in the driver’s seat. – Beat The Indie Drum
- An indie-tinged punk act that is either a spacier Lucero / Gaslight Anthem-type or a punker Broken Social Scene. – Punknews.org
- Restorations’ delivery is perfectly unique and, once it starts, it will be absolutely impossible to ignore. – Ground Control
- Imagine if Wilco grew up on a steady diet of punk rock and Dischord Records. – The Byke Rack

* Self-Titled 12″ out April 19, 2011
* Vinyl Pre-Order coming soon
* Download “Broken Vacuum” from RCRD LBL
* Stream “When You’re Older” at Alternative Press

——————————————————————————————————

TINY ENGINES (Tigers Jaw, CSTVT, Look Mexico) is excited to announce that on April 19th, 2011, it will release the highly anticipated Self-Titled debut full-length from Philadelphia’s RESTORATIONS.

Recorded by Algernon Cadwallader‘s Joe Reinhart (My Heart To Joy, Monument, Snowing) and mixed by Jonathan Low (Dr. Dog, Danielson, mewithoutYou), the Self-Titled LP is the follow up to Restorations’ 2010 EP Strange Behavior on Paper + Plastick, as well as the band’s recent 7″ split with Rosetta on Cavity Records. The brand new eight-song effort will be limited to 500 vinyl LPs (300 x black 180 gram, 150 x clear w/ yellow swirl, 50 x clear w/ black swirl) and features gatefold jackets with art and design by Bruno Guerreiro.

Look for pre-orders to launch next week, as well as an early digital release date via iTunes and Bandcamp near the end of March.

To celebrate the good news, RCRD LBL is debuting the track “Broken Vacuum” today. You can go here for a free mp3 download of the song. Additionally, there is an exclusive stream for the track “When You’re Older” at Alternative Press.

On Restorations’ Self-Titled debut full-length, the Philly quintet creates songs that are layered, tension-building monsters which lean heavily on a rhythm section that could probably knock a hole in the side of a Sherman tank. Still, that never takes away from the band’s ability to craft warm, stirring melodies, enduring hooks and dynamic song structures. Cascading guitars, pulsing waves of reverb and spacey flourishes are held together by Jon Loudon’s raspy-yet-tuneful growl. His delivery transmits confidence, wisdom and a bit of wear and tear – perhaps from years fronting underground DIY heroes Jena Berlin – but he also sings with a soulful, youthful exuberance that feels like he genuinely loves the process of creating music.

Perhaps that is Restorations’ strength as a cohesive unit – that even though this record is a serious work of art with many subtle complexities, achingly intense moments of restraint and driving need to find a unique voice, it also resonates as if it were an absolute joy to write and perform. Even the pristine production allows the band to maintain a raw, loose aesthetic and foundation-shaking low end that owes a much to the members’ hardcore roots. If you’ve been searching for a thoughtful, nuanced take on punk and indie rock – and all the sub-genres they entail – Restorations might just be your new favorite band.

- Occupying a niche firmly planted between the aggression of hardcore, the earnestness of mid-western roots rock, and the jangly, shoegazing intelligentsia of indie, Restorations sound unlike any other band I’ve heard in quite some time. – The Ripple Effect
- This type of restrained punk energy filtered through a dynamic spectrum of sounds yields an aural image of the Drive-By Truckers with Frankie Stubbs of Leatherface in the driver’s seat. – Beat The Indie Drum
- An indie-tinged punk act that is either a spacier Lucero / Gaslight Anthem-type or a punker Broken Social Scene. – Punknews.org
- Restorations’ delivery is perfectly unique and, once it starts, it will be absolutely impossible to ignore. – Ground Control
- Imagine if Wilco grew up on a steady diet of punk rock and Dischord Records. – The Byke Rack

* Pre-Orders from Topshelf Records begin today (February 15th)
* Mountain Smashers vinyl out 4/5/11
* Download “Realometer” from RCRD LBL

——————————————————————————————————

Beginning today, Topshelf Records (Grown Ups, My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth) will host Pre-Orders for the debut 12″ from By Surprise (Haddon Heights, NJ). Entitled Mountain Smashers, the vinyl will see an official release on April 5, 2011 via Topshelf. First pressing of the vinyl will be limited to 500 (400 Black and 100 Smoke). Friend Of Mine in Japan will be releasing a CD version in early Summer.

To celebrate today’s pre-order, RCRD LBL is premiering the track “Realometer.” You can download a free mp3 of the song here.

Safely guarded behind four pairs of glasses and an arsenal of awkward tendencies, the members of By Surprise have spent an equal amount of time combing through the forgotten dust-filled grooves of 7-inch records released during the 90s indie label boom, as they have with the off-beat and inspirational works of Henry David Thoreau, Jack Kerouac, and Douglas Adams. Mountain Smashers, the band’s first full-length album, romanticizes with the feelings of reluctance we’ve all felt towards growing up, slowing down, losing touch, and selling out. Clocking in at thirty minutes, it combines both the influence of those dusty 7” records, often overlooked, with the lessons learned from the aforementioned authors. It admits defeat, while exuding reassurance. It questions the norms, while embracing the inevitable. The guitars are loud and the feedback bleeds, the vocals clash in uniformed motion, and the lyrics are kind of weird. It’s by far the band’s most focused effort to date, and in some ways, it’s their most adventurous.

Mountain Smashers was recorded in the band’s hometown of Haddon Heights, NJ at The Gradwell House with Dave Downham of Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start, and was mastered by Bob Weston at Chicago Mastering Service. Weston, bassist of Shellac and an also elder statesman of the independent music scene, has also worked on records with such bands as Archers of Loaf, Boys Life, Polvo, The Get Up Kids, Vitreous Humor, Sebadoh, and LCD Soundsystem.

* Mountain Smashers vinyl available mid-March
* Pre-order coming in February
——————————————————————————————————

Topshelf Records (Grown Ups, My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth) is proud to announce the addition of By Surprise (Haddon Heights, NJ ) to the label’s growing roster. Topshelf will be releasing the band’s debut full-length on vinyl. Entitled Mountain Smashers, the LP will see an official release in mid-March with pre-orders beginning in February. The first pressing will be limited to 500 copies. Friend Of Mine in Japan will be releasing a CD version in early Summer.

Safely guarded behind four pairs of glasses and an arsenal of awkward tendencies, the members of By Surprise have spent an equal amount of time combing through the forgotten dust-filled grooves of 7-inch records released during the 90s indie label boom, as they have with the off-beat and inspirational works of Henry David Thoreau, Jack Kerouac, and Douglas Adams. Mountain Smashers, the band’s first full-length album, romanticizes with the feelings of reluctance we’ve all felt towards growing up, slowing down, losing touch, and selling out. Clocking in at thirty minutes, it combines both the influence of those dusty 7” records, often overlooked, with the lessons learned from the aforementioned authors. It admits defeat, while exuding reassurance. It questions the norms, while embracing the inevitable. The guitars are loud and the feedback bleeds, the vocals clash in uniformed motion, and the lyrics are kind of weird. It’s by far the band’s most focused effort to date, and in some ways, it’s their most adventurous.

Mountain Smashers was recorded in the band’s hometown of Haddon Heights, NJ at The Gradwell House with Dave Downham of Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start, and was mastered by Bob Weston at Chicago Mastering Service. Weston, bassist of Shellac and an also elder statesman of the independent music scene, has also worked on records with such bands as Archers of Loaf, Boys Life, Polvo, The Get Up Kids, Vitreous Humor, Sebadoh, and LCD Soundsystem.

* Chicago band changes name to CSTVT
* Touring w/ Stay Ahead Of The Weather
* Upcoming 7″ / LP on Run For Cover Records
* 1st pressing of The Echo & The Light almost done

——————————————————————————————————

As Chicago’s Castevet prepares for a short holiday tour across the Midwest and East Coast with Stay Ahead Of The Weather, the emo-punk quartet has announced that it will be changing its name to CSTVT.

While the transition will be gradual, the band’s upcoming full-length on new label home Run For Cover Records – as well as its 7″ label debut due out next month – will reflect the name change. On tour, CSTVT will actually have an extremely limited number of 50 test pressings of the 2-song 7″ for sale. Each will feature exclusive tour-only screen-printed jackets.

Previous releases such as Summer Fences and the outfit’s most recent LP on Tiny Engines, the critically acclaimed The Echo & The Light, will continue to reflect the old name. That is, until all existing copies have been sold and the records need to be repressed.

On that note, Tiny Engines has six copies of The Echo & The Light 12″ remaining. Grab one of these first pressings here before they’re gone!

As always, if you’d like to speak with CSTVT or attend a show, drop me a line here. It should be noted that the band is playing with some pretty stellar lineups each night on tour, featuring the likes of My Heart To Joy, Balance and Composure, Everyone Everywhere, Snowing, Agent, Koji, The Felix Culpa, The World Is A Beautiful Place… and of course, Street Smart Cyclist at the band’s reunion show.

TOUR w/ Stay Ahead Of The Weather
——————————————————————————————————

DEC 26 – Howell, MI @ Howell Opera House W/ Koji, The Felix Culpa
DEC 27 – Bethlehem, PA @ Fountain Hill American Legion w/ Street Smart Cyclist, My Heart To Joy
DEC 28 – Harrisburg, PA @ Midtown Scholar w/ Koji, Balance and Composure
DEC 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ Emerald City w/ Agent, Daytrader
DEC 30 – New Haven, CT @ Cookie Jar w/ Snowing, The World Is A Beautiful Place …
DEC 31 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire w/ Snowing, Everyone Everywhere
JAN 01 – Akron, OH @ It’s A Kling Thing
JAN 02 – Chicago, IL @ Subterranean w/ Bongripper, Coping

- Echo & The Light culls inspiration from Chicago’s punk past and present to create a sincere, visceral album. – AV Club
- Herky-jerky rhythms to swirling guitar lines that wend around each other like threads in a sweater. – Alternative Press
- The Echo & The Light is full of life and passion, and is another important mark on Castevet’s map. – Exclaim
- Mature, invigorating and a step up from what we’ve previously heard from Castevet. – Absolutepunk.net
- Echo is anthemic, it’s airy, it’s awesome. It makes me want to go steady with Castevet. – Punknews.org

* North American re-release of debut LP in stores on November 9th
* Enter test pressing contest @ Absolutepunk.net

——————————————————————————–

The North American re-release of More Songs, the critically-acclaimed full-length from Chicago’s Grown Ups, is now available for pre-order from Topshelf Records (My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth, Defeater).

The Midwestern quartet’s debut will see an official Stateside street date of November 9th on both CD and LP formats. Originally issued in May of 2010 by Big Scary Monsters, the British imprint will continue to carry the record as part of its catalog in the UK and Europe

Limited to 500 12-inches on four colorways (100 Coke Bottle Clear / 100 Off White / 100 Clear Gold / 200 Black), Topshelf has several special package deals available and the label will be giving away a test pressing to one random pre-order. Moreover, anyone who ordered the first pressing of the BSM-released More Songs is eligible for a free, exclusive screen-printed poster. Go here for additional info.

To celebrate the pre-order launch and upcoming release, Grown Ups and Topshelf have partnered with Absolutepunk.net for a test pressing contest. To enter, go here.

A U.S. tour in support of the rerelease is currently being booked and Grown Ups will be playing this year’s Fest in Gainesville, FL as well. Stay tuned for show info in the coming weeks.

You can stream three tracks from More Songs at Grown Ups’ myspace page.

- One of the most tightest and most consistent records this year. 4/5 – Alter The Press
- Do not sleep on Grown Ups … an early contender for best release of 2010. – Exclaim
- A gloriously upbeat mix of throaty punk rock melodies and taut, complex riffs. – Rock Sound
- Grown Ups take Castevet’s post-hardcore noodling and wed it to Lifetime’s sweet hardcore jams. – Punknews.org
- More Songs delivers more jams, sing-a-longs, emotions, and creativity than some labels’ entire catalogs. – National Underground

* More Songs in stores on November 9th
* Pre-Order / Tour Dates coming soon
* Record still available in UK / Europe from Big Scary Monsters

——————————————————————————–

More Songs, the critically-acclaimed debut full-length from Grown Ups (Chicago, IL / Furnessville, IN) will see an official North American re-release on November 9th from Topshelf Records ( My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth, Defeater ).

Originally released worldwide on May 17, 2010 by British imprint Big Scary Monsters, More Songs saw limited distribution Stateside via the label’s web store, as well as from the band at shows. Topshelf’s re-issue of the album will ensure its inclusion in most major distribution channels in the U.S. and Canada, while the record will continue to be a part of BSM’s impressive, ever-growing catalog in the UK and Europe.

Topshelf will launch pre-orders for both CD and 12″ versions of More Songs in early October. The latter will be limited to 500 on four colorways. A U.S. tour in support of the rerelease is currently being booked and Grown Ups will be playing this year’s Fest in Gainesville, FL as well. Stay tuned for more info in the coming weeks.

You can stream three tracks from the full-length at Grown Ups’ myspace page.

- One of the most tightest and most consistent records this year. 4/5 – Alter The Press
- Do not sleep on Grown Ups … an early contender for best release of 2010. – Exclaim
- A gloriously upbeat mix of throaty punk rock melodies and taut, complex riffs. – Rock Sound
- Grown Ups take Castevet’s post-hardcore noodling and wed it to Lifetime’s sweet hardcore jams. – Punknews.org
- More Songs delivers more jams, sing-a-longs, emotions, and creativity than some labels’ entire catalogs. – National Underground

* Pre-orders from Topshelf Records begin tomorrow (May 6th)
* Self-Titled full-Length album out June 29th
* Band leaks two new songs

——————————————————————————–

Beginning tomorrow, Topshelf Records (Defeater, My Heart To Joy, Pianos Become The Teeth) will host the Pre-Order for the brand new Self-Titled full-length from We Were Skeletons (Lancaster, PA). The album is due out June 29th on LP and CD from the label. First pressing of the vinyl is 500 (100 black and 400 random color mix).

We Were Skeletons has leaked two songs from the album for your listening pleasure. “Exposure To Heavy Metal Causes Whatever” is available exclusively on the band’s Myspace page and “Kids” can be downloaded below.

Listen to Kids (free mp3)

We Were Skeleton’s brand of screamy, chaotic hardcore should appeal to long-time fans of the genre. The album was recorded with Will Killingsworth (Orchid, Ampere) at Dead Air Studios and is the band’s greatest accomplishment to date. Imagine City of Caterpillar, Kidcrash, Off Minor and Hot Cross, all rolled into one breathtaking statement. This is an record that must be heard!