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Crystal Castles - AMNESTY (I) - August 19th

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wenis

Registered for GAF on September 11, 2001.
IxlFa7Zl.jpg


Track list:
01 Femen
02 Fleece
03 Char
04 Enth
05 Sadist
06 Teach Her How to Hunt
07 Chloroform
08 Frail
09 Concrete
10 Ornament
11 Kept
12 Their Kindness Is Charade

New singer Edith Frances
yk7ChYWl.jpg


Pre-Order:
Amazon

Singles:
Concrete
Char
Fleece

Media:
Official Site
FB
Twitter
Instagram

Tour:
07-15-16 Vienna, Austria - Out of the Woods

07-21 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom

07-22 Seattle, WA - Capitol Hill Block Party

07-23 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom

07-29-31 Płock, Poland - Audioriver Festival

08-05 Castellón, Spain - Arenal Sound Festival

08-06 Palermo, Italy - Ypsigrock Festival

08-12 Piestany, Slovakia - Grape Festival

08-16 Budapest, Hungary - Sziget Festival

08-19 Hasselt, Belgium - Pukkelpop Festival

08-21 Lviv, Ukraine- Zaxidfest

08-26 Reading, England - Reading Festival

08-27 Leeds, England - Leeds Festival

09-06 Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle

09-08 Atlanta, GA - The Loft, US

09-09 New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks

09-10 Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall Downstairs

09-13 Dallas, TX - Trees

09-14 Austin, TX - Empire Garage

09-16 Phoenix, AZ - The Pressroom

09-17 San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park

09-21 San Francisco, CA - Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

09-22 Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory

09-23 Los Angeles, CA - The Fonda Theatre

09-23-25 Las Vegas, NV - Life Is Beautiful Festival

09-27 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge

09-28 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater

09-30 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater

10-01 Chicago, IL - Metro

10-02 Detroit, MI - Majestic Theatre

10-06 Brooklyn, NY - Warsaw

10-07 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts

10-08 Washington, DC - Black Cat

10-09 Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair

10-11 Montreal, Quebec - Theatre Fairmount

10-12 Toronto, Ontario - The Hoxton

10-20 Frankfurt, Germany - Zoom

10-22 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg

10-24 Copenhagen, Denmark - Vega

10-25 Malmo, Sweden - Kulturbolaget

10-26 Oslo, Norway - Sentrum Scene

10-28 Stockholm, Sweden - Debaserstrand

10-29 Aarhus, Denmark - Voxhall

10-31 Berlin, Germany - Columbia Theatre

11-01 Hamburg, Germany - Uebel & Gefaehrlich

11-02 Cologne, Germany - Essigfabrik

11-05 Dublin, Ireland - Metropolis Festival

11-26 Singapore - Neon Lights Festival

11-27 Hong Kong - Clockenflap Festival

12-02 Paris, France - Elysee Montmartre

12-03 Bordeaux, France - Krakatoa

12-05 Bilbao, Spain - Kafe Antrokia

12-07 Oporto, Portugal - Hard Club

12-08 Lisbon, Portugal - Paradise Garage

12-09 Madrid, Spain - Teatro Barcelo

12-10 Barcelona, Spain - Apolo

12-12 Bologna, Italy - Zona Roveri

12-13 Milan, Italy - Fabrirque

12-14 Zurich, Switzerland - X-tra Limmithaus

12-15 Luxembourg - Den Atelier

That's all. The album is pretty great. Edith Frances brings in a bright voice to the foray and the album pops along at a quick pace, but has some great brooding moments.
 
This leaked earlier today. Only a couple of days early but still. It's officially out there now. Looking forward to giving this a listen.

If Wenis says it's pretty great then we're in for a damn fine record. The guy has impeccable taste.
 

LaneDS

Member
Absolutely love all the new stuff that has been released over the past year or so, so I have high hopes for this album.
 
So far only Kept, Ornament and Their Kindness is Charade are striking me as the signature Crystal Castles great tracks. The rest including the singles have this white noise vibe to them with harder instruments and too much static. It's a different sound and a harder one that differs from their earlier work - I vastly prefer their more haunting and melodic stuff like Celestica and Empathy from II. It's still a good album but there aren't as many great tracks as I thought there would be. Still worth the listen!
 

wenis

Registered for GAF on September 11, 2001.
So far only Kept, Ornament and Their Kindness is Charade are striking me as the signature Crystal Castles great tracks. The rest including the singles have this white noise vibe to them with harder instruments and too much static. It's a different sound and a harder one that differs from their earlier work - I vastly prefer their more haunting and melodic stuff like Celestica and Empathy from II. It's still a good album but there aren't as many great tracks as I thought there would be. Still worth the listen!

I think their harsher tones and production on this record are much more attuned to play against Edith's softer vocals. Even when Alice toned it down for some tracks there was always this quietly building angst in her vocal tracks that would be near bubbling but never really popped. I'm excited to see what kind of life older CC songs take on with Edith on the tracks and how they'll play against that sort of abrasion from older songs. The album is definitely going to be something that will taken in over time and much less like "I" was just a straight up rocket launch into space from the get go.
 

jorgeton

Member
It's a pretty good album. You def. do feel Alice's loss though, especially since Edith's vocals are treated so similar to hers. I wish they would've let her do her own thing more, like on Char, which is just this great MBV-esque blast of synth pop. I also don't like the new version of Deicide that closes the album.

But the whole thing is really easy to listen to, nothing skippable, and will definitely grown on me the more I listen to it.

If I had to rank right now

III > II > Amnesty > I
 
I think their harsher tones and production on this record are much more attuned to play against Edith's softer vocals. Even when Alice toned it down for some tracks there was always this quietly building angst in her vocal tracks that would be near bubbling but never really popped. I'm excited to see what kind of life older CC songs take on with Edith on the tracks and how they'll play against that sort of abrasion from older songs. The album is definitely going to be something that will taken in over time and much less like "I" was just a straight up rocket launch into space from the get go.

Good post and good points. To me Edith sounds scarily similar to Alice but that could just be Ethan tweaking her vocals with effects to make her sound like Alice. She's a good replacement but it does sound like he chose someone who could effectively be an Alice II as opposed to choosing someone that would force him to change his production in to a more original sound. As for this album I'm not loving it as much as I thought I would. I only have Kept stuck on repeat where as with I, II and III and especially II there were multiple tracks that I kept spinning for months.

Might just need a bit more time to absorb this album and adjust to the sound. It's pretty good but I'm not sure I'm a fan of this new harsher direction.
 

LaneDS

Member
Love the new album.

This was posted earlier on their Facebook, and I thought it was worth sharing:

A lot of fucked up stuff is going on in 2016. Its been a year of glaring violations of human rights. As much as the world can seem scary, seeing how so many people are reacting is inspiring. It's vital for us to actually support the people taking direct action to make a difference.
The band's share of proceeds from our new album Amnesty (I) will be donated to Amnesty International. Physical copies (vinyl/cd) have a bonus track. We want our voices to call attention to issues that need to be illuminated. Amnesty International stand up for human rights by fighting injustice hands-on, and gives a voice to those who may feel voiceless. They fight for LGBTQ rights, women's rights, prisoner rights, and children's rights. They fight against discrimination, arbitrary detention and unfair trials, and civilian injustice. They are the people on the ground working to change these issues and they need our help. Not just our words, but also our resources. The world is at a critical tipping point. Human rights have no borders, no language, no religion and no race. This applies to you and affects you. I challenge more musicians to do the same with their albums. Donate your proceeds to a charity of your choice. No longer can we sit back and watch and talk; what we really need right now is action.
-Edith Frances

Buying the vinyl, as a result.
 

Dicktatorship

Junior Member
IxlFa7Zl.jpg


Track list:


New singer Edith Frances
yk7ChYWl.jpg


Pre-Order:
Amazon

Singles:
Concrete
Char
Fleece

Media:
Official Site
FB
Twitter
Instagram

Tour:


That's all. The album is pretty great. Edith Frances brings in a bright voice to the foray and the album pops along at a quick pace, but has some great brooding moments.

Goddamn that is one good fucking album cover. Also, Alice is shit. Sorry, but Edith has already proven to be the better vocalist. Do any of you remember Alice's debut single "stillborn"? That's a pretty accurate description of her solo career.
 
Goddamn that is one good fucking album cover. Also, Alice is shit. Sorry, but Edith has already proven to be the better vocalist. Do any of you remember Alice's debut single "stillborn"? That's a pretty accurate description of her solo career.
Savage. TBH I kinda agree though, I tried to like Stillbirth but it's booty. Jupiter's production + her yelping was too much.

Wonder if she felt some tepid fan reaction to it which is why she's taking so long to drop the other song she had/announce her solo. Could also just be waiting for this to be out of the way too.


Excited for this. I'll miss Alice for sure but I love CC and some of my favorite songs didn't even have her on them soooo. Gonna have to find a record store that has the physical tomorrow.
 

mortal

Banned
Yes!

I was worried if we would ever get a new Crystal Castles project after Alice's departure.

Personally, I really enjoyed III.
 

Jzero

Member
Can't wait, I've been skipping most of the singles so i can hear them in the full album.

Char is fuckin lit though.
 

hateradio

The Most Dangerous Yes Man
Didn't want to be so verbose.



I think Edith is a weaker vocalist, personally, since her voice just is just to soft for these songs. Alice would have shouted and burned down the house with some of these tracks. They just feel hollow without her.
 

injurai

Banned
Didn't want to be so verbose.



I think Edith is a weaker vocalist, personally, since her voice just is just to soft for these songs. Alice would have shouted and burned down the house with some of these tracks. They just feel hollow without her.

I'm actually more interested in Alice's solo career than more CC. I think Ethan's production is really hit and miss. But Alice is always fun. I think she's going more industrial with her sound, but we only have 2 songs so far.
 
I think Edith is a decent replacement but I do miss Alice. I wonder if we'll ever find out why she wanted to leave the band? There was an interview with her a while back that hinted and implied she had a bust-up with Ethan and that's what caused her departure.

I am looking forward to her solo work. She's very talented. Miss her quite a lot on this album.
 

Galang

Banned
Album is great! There are no real standout tracks for me like the previous albums, but I would still rank it over the debut and (III) just for how it feels together as a whole piece.
 

PillarEN

Member
Aw man. It's not uploaded on the CC site yet. I'm away from my computer and mooching wifi. Oh well, I'll have to wait a few days before listening.
 

see5harp

Member
To be honest, I prefer the new vocals and more pop centric vocals. The songs that feature so much distortion that you can't even understand lyrics, any female would have been suitable.
 
Anyone got an idea where to cop the physical?

Kinda salty right now practically all record stores here are vinyl only or slow as shit to get new cd inventory.

I even looked online at UO and Hot Topic lmao.

Seems like of the big box stores only Best Buy would carry it as it's on their site but not available to search for in stores.

Looking like imma have to be patient and just Amazon it if it's not at my bumass Best Buy tonight (went through the same shit for III).
 

Jzero

Member
Yay it's on spotify, Femen gave me a boner. Good choice for a first song.

Do they perform their old songs with the new singer? I think I'd pay to see them if so.

Yes, and they sound pretty much the same without the shitty drunkness of Alice.
I actually liked them so much a couple of months ago that i might see them again in September.
 

Jzero

Member
I just realized they renamed "Deicide" to "Their Kindness is Charade"

Anyway I love the album. The only songs i'm not really feeling are "Enth", "Concrete", and "Teach Her How To Hunt"
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Just finished listening to it. Needs more time to sink but so far my ranking is

II > Amnesty > I > III

Kept sounds straight out of the second album. You could put it in there and people wouldn't be able to tell it's from a different set of songs. Enth, Frail, and Concrete go for that high energy dark synth that III merely only touched upon with Kerosene. Fleece is very videogamey and sounds almost like a song from the first album.

I dunno wtf they were going for with Teach Her How To Hunt. That's the only one I outright dislike.
 
Haven't kept up with the news since Alice left, but excited to check this out. Going by Concrete, Edith definitely sounds like Alice. At leas, that seems like the intention.
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Without counting one.

II >>>> III >> Amnesty International

The title actually does probably, literally refer to Amnesty International though. Proceeds from the physical album go to that charity.

I am not making this up.
 

decaf

Member
The album doesn't flow as well as (III), which is my favourite album even if my favourite Crystal Castles tracks are on (II), but it's much better than I was hoping for.

Ornament and Femen are my favourite tracks so far. I'm sure I'll get into the noisier, angrier tracks further down the line.

So cool they've decided to give all the album profits to Amnesty International. I hope this also means they tour more often, and will be releasing another album next year.

Has anyone seen them live since Edith joined? What's the energy like? Really wanted to see them in London on Tuesday, but it looks like there's no way to get tickets any more.
 
So far only Kept, Ornament and Their Kindness is Charade are striking me as the signature Crystal Castles great tracks. The rest including the singles have this white noise vibe to them with harder instruments and too much static. It's a different sound and a harder one that differs from their earlier work - I vastly prefer their more haunting and melodic stuff like Celestica and Empathy from II. It's still a good album but there aren't as many great tracks as I thought there would be. Still worth the listen!
I'm more into the noise. I like Fleece a lot cause it reminds me of Doe Deer, my favourite Crystal Castles song.
 
At first I was disappointed in the vocals as the music in some of their songs here, is up there with their best ever, in my opinion.

Vocals have grown on me but still a bit lightweight, I'd love an instrumental version of it though.
 

Atrophis

Member
I slept on these guys because I didn't much care for their first album. The new singles sold me though and I've gone through Amnesty and their previous two records. Fucking love them. The darker sound is much more my jam.

Favourite tune from the new album is Char. Can't stop listening to it.
 

Galang

Banned
I slept on these guys because I didn't much care for their first album. The new singles sold me though and I've gone through Amnesty and their previous two records. Fucking love them. The darker sound is much more my jam.

Favourite tune from the new album is Char. Can't stop listening to it.

Yeah their sound reaaally stepped up after the first album. It's the only one I don't return to
 
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