[News] The Radio Dept. Cancel Upcoming North American Tour

Sad day for fans of The Radio Dept. in the US. The band has decided to cancel their fall North American tour. In a statement to the press, the band said, “The Radio Dept. regretfully inform that they are forced to cancel the upcoming North American tour due to family related matters. Hope to see you in 2012.”

The band will remain in Sweden this fall and winter where they’ll be working on new music and we hope to have more to announce in 2012.

[News] The Radio Dept Announce US Fall Headlining Tour

After absolutely killing it on their last tour which included appearances at Pitchfork Music Fest, Seaport Music Festival, Sasquatch and Coachella, The Radio Dept. have announced that they will be hitting the road in the fall in the US for a headlining tour. The tour kicks off in Houston, TX at Fitgerald's in early November and wraps up just before Thanksgiving in Washington, DC at Black Cat.

If you haven't picked up Passive Agressive: Singles 2002-2010 from the band yet, now would be the time to do so if you need a refresher course.
 
Have a look at the tour dates after the jump!

Nov.     3rd        Fitzgerald’s (Upstairs Room)                                      Houston, TX                                         4th            Club Dada                                                                   Dallas, TX

            5th        Fun Fun Fun Fest                                                         Austin, TX

            7th        Club Congress                                                             Tucson, AZ

            8th        El Rey Theatre                                                            Los Angeles, CA

            9th        Great American Music Hall                                        San Francisco, CA

            11th      Doug Fir Lounge                                                          Portland, OR

            12th      Neumos                                                                       Seattle, WA

            15th      Varsity Theatre                                                           Minneapolis, MN

            16th      Lincoln Hall                                                                 Chicago, IL

            17th      The Mod Club                                                             Toronto, ONT

            18th      Corona Theatre                                                           Montreal, QC

            19th      Paradise                                                                      Boston, MA

            20th      Bowery Ballroom                                                        New York, NY

            21st      First Unitarian Church                                                Philadelphia, PA

            22nd      Black Cat                                                                     Washington, DC

The Radio Dept. announce 2011 tour dates

It seems The Radio Dept. is flying a lot higher than their usual low-key, indie, place in the world of music. After having won "Album of the Year" and "Band of the Year" from Sweden's Grammy equivalent, not to mention nabbing the 25th spot on our Top Albums of 2010 list, the trio decided to celebrate their success with a bit of a tour! They will hitting up locales across North America, starting in Washington, D.C. on February 1st, continuing up the east coast to New York and Boston, and from there they'll be showing Canada some love with concerts in Toronto and Montreal. After that, they'll be hittin' up the midwest, and then it's on to the west coast where the trio will go from Seattle all the way down to Mexico City. Check out the tour dates below!

The Radio Dept. 2011 Tour Dates:
02/01 – Washington, D.C. @ Rock N Roll Hotel
02/03 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
02/04 – Boston, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
02/05 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
02/07 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
02/08 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
02/09 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
02/12 – Seattle, WA @ Crocodile Café
02/13 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
02/14 – Sacramento, CA @ Luigis
02/15 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
02/16 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre
02/19 – Mexico City, MX @ Teatro de la Ciudad

[SKOA Presents] The Top 25 Albums of 2010: 25-21

 

It's that time of year. With only a few short days left in 2010, we here at SKOA wanted to recap with you all of the albums that the SKOA staff enjoyed the most this year. To give you time to absorb all of these (in case for some unknown reason you missed a few), we're going to be giving you a handful each day this week along with little tidbits as to why we chose the albums we did. 

It has been our honor to share all the things we love with you guys and we hope you enjoy all of these albums as much as we do! 

On to 25-21! 

25. The Radio Dept - Clinging To A Scheme [Buy CD]

Swedish indie pop band The Radio Dept. has had a fairly low-key profile over the course of their twelve year existence. With a devote following and a dreamy sound that is on par if not better than any indie pop out there, it is hard to believe they’ve never really broken into the mainstream. That low key image seems to work for the band, though, and it becomes apparent when listening to the music they’ve created. Since 1998, the trio has amassed tons and tons of EPs and albums, and their third official studio album, Clinging to a Scheme, shows how well the band has perfected their sound. Each song on the album is masterfully crafted, with each and every sound coming together to create an almost ethereal musical atmosphere; Clinging to a Scheme is easily The Radio Dept.’s most polished work to date. - Adrian

24. Hot Chip - One Life Stand [Buy CD | Vinyl]

With three previous studio albums under their belt, Hot Chip’s latest, titled One Life Stand, comes together to be the cleanest, and best, record the band has ever put out. Every track perfectly blends the unique vocals of Alexis Taylor with greatly refined electropop beats. The band clearly knows what they’re doing and One Life Stand is the perfect representation of the energy and care that these Londoners put into their music. - Adrian

23. Tokyo Police Club - Champ [Buy CD | Vinyl] 

Despite a lot of buzz surrounding Canadian indie rockers Tokyo Police Club’s A Lesson in Crime EP back in ‘06, their debut album Elephant Shell felt fairly underwhelming. This year, though, they stepped up their game significantly with their sophomore LP, Champ. The energy that the quartet brought this time around far outshines their previous releases, producing a record that feels polished and more enjoyable. With greatly improved instrumentation, the band seems much more comfortable with the music they are making, and that shows throughout the entire album. The name of the album makes it clear enough that these guys are on top of their game. - Adrian

22. Beach House - Teen Dream [Buy CD | Vinyl]

It seems fitting that when Beach House stepped outside the boundaries of their usual melancholic, dreamscape world with the release of Teen Dream, they finally showed how much more potential they have as a band. The incredible voice of Victoria Legrand was, in the past, the focus of Beach House’s music, and still is. This time around, though, the elements that were previously background noise are now in the forefront alongside Legrand’s stunning vocals. Guitarist Alex Scally brings his skills to a more prominent level, adding a much needed depth to the beautifully mysterious sound that Beach House has become known for. With each new album, Beach House’s lo-fi, minimalist sound is becoming more and more solid, and Teen Dream represents a huge step forward for the duo. - Adrian

21. The National - High Violet [Buy CD | Vinyl]

When a band releases it’s third, it’s fourth or in this case their fifth album the bar can be set quite high by previous material. The National and their album High Violet leaped over that bar and dusted it off on their way over! The album is as introspective and dark as you’d of come to with Matt Berninger’s brooding voice dominating both guitar chugging tracks such as “Little Faith”, along with crowd favourites like “Terrible Love”. This album is the bands most ambitious, tantalising, gripping release to date, wearing their hearts on their sleeve and delivering a captivating album from cover to cover. If their progression from album to album is anything to go by, album 6 would have to be near on perfect to conquer High Violet. - Shey