DAVEY HAVOK and JADE PUGET have announced a string of live shows for their electronic alter ego, BLAQK AUDIO. The dates will begin May 4th at the House of Blues in San Diego, CA, in support of Blaqk Audio’s new album MATERIAL, which is set for an April 15th release through Blaqknoise/Kobalt. They’ll be joined on the tour by indie band Night Riots.

The duo recently gave fans a preview of the record with lead track “Anointed,” which can be streamed HERE. Fans can get “Anointed” as an instant download by clicking HERE to pre-orderMATERIAL on iTunes.

Produced and recorded by Puget, MATERIAL is Blaqk Audio’s third release following 2012’s Bright Black Heaven and 2007’s Cexcells.

Though best known for their work with multi-platinum rock band AFI, Havok and Puget’s shared love of electronic music runs deep. Havok, who counts Devo’s Freedom of Choice and Duran Duran’s self-titled debut among the first albums he owned, saw his tastes evolve over the years from the synth pop of Erasure and Pet Shop Boys to Depeche Mode and ultimately to the heavier, darker Skinny Puppy, Ministry, Front 242 and Lords of Acid. Later, Havok immersed himself in the “futurepop” genre, which combined dark dance-y electronica with melodic vocals. From roughly 1999 to 2003, his contemporary musical diet consisted almost exclusively of artists falling under the industrial/ebm/futurepop/bigbeat/trance umbrella.

In an interview with influential Los Angeles radio station KROQ, Havok talked about the differences between Blaqk Audio and AFI: “Blaqk Audio is pure electronica whereas AFI uses organic instruments,” says Havok. AFI has drums and bass and guitar and there’s none of that in Blaqk Audio.”

Puget shared his bandmate’s long-standing love of electronic music, beginning with a passion for Daft Punk, Depeche Mode, Ministry, Squarepusher, Nitzer Ebb, and Front 242, spending a great deal of time programming electronic music, which in turn led to a plan to start an entirely electronic side project: no organic instruments, just synths, keyboards, drum machines, and software.

“Being huge music fans and fundamentally driven by music in a creative sense, BA is a wonderful outlet for our long-standing love of electronic music,” says Havok. “Were it not for BA, I’d still be writing this type of music, even if it never saw the light of day.”

The tour will see them playing music from all three Blaqk Audio releases.

Date Venue City
May 4 House of Blues San Diego, CA
May 5 Observatory Santa Ana, CA
May 6 Troubadour Los Angeles, CA
May 7 Ace of Spades Sacramento, CA
May 10 Doug Fir Lounge Portland, OR
May 11 Croc Seattle, WA
May 13 In The Venue Salt Lake City, UT
May 14 Bluebird Denver, CO
May 16 Turf Club Saint Paul, MN
May 17 Bottom Lounge Chicago, IL
May 18 Mod Club Toronto, ON
May 20 Sinclair Cambridge, MA
May 21 U Street Music Hall Washington, DC
May 22 Bowery Ballroom New York, NY

Coloradans got the chance to take in two days of music, carnival rides, delicious food and overpriced beer last weekend as the city of Byers, Colorado played host to Chicago-based Riot Fest. Although the music festival scene in Colorado has yet to reach the level of other states (no offense Vail, Telluride or Aspen), the fans were plentiful and came out in droves to celebrate the festivals inaugural Mile High year.

Crowds braved dust storms all for the love of punk rock (Photo Credit: Matt Smith)

Flavor Flav of Public Enemy (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)

The legendary Iggy Pop (Photo Credit: Maddie Casey)

The festival itself certainly had some hiccups: the dirt, the undisclosed-until-arrival $15 parking fees, continual miscommunication between staff, the somewhat confusing layout, and the complete lack of WiFi and cell service. Despite all the issues, a lineup as heavily stacked as it was almost made these issues forgivable. A majority of the bands on the lineup seemed to cater to one of two very specific generations: while I was enjoying music by Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, and Pearl Jam, there was another generation growing up on bands like Brand New, AFI, and Blink 182. Opening to a blistering hot Saturday full of dust and dirt, Mother Nature took a turn for the worst on Sunday evening, with lightning and intense winds forcing a complete grounds evacuation that many fans were told was permanent by misled staff. Those who chose to brave the weather and stick around were rewarded by delayed sets from AWOLNATION, Rancid, Bad Religion, and Blink-182. Stand-out performances of the weekend came from Brand New and AFI on Saturday night, who had both not played Colorado in over 3 years (4 for AFI). The festival also gave us a dose of some legendary bands like Public Enemy, Iggy and The Stooges, as well as the triumphant return of infamous 80's legends The Replacements.

Davey Havok of AFI who put on one of the weekends best sets (Photo Credit: Matt Smith)

The city of Byers certainly may never be the same - or see that many Mowhawks - ever again, but Riot Fest Denver gave them a good reason to love the change. It certainly felt like the festival's inaugural year due to it's lack of solid infrastructure, but the lineup was impeccable, and at the end of the day was still fun for all. Colorado may be considered only a cow town by some, but the love for punk rock this city has is certainly underestimated. It remains to be seen if Riot Fest will return next year, but based on the turnout, not to mention fans resiliency this past weekend, I would hope they can see the potential Denver brings to the table. I'm curious and excited to see what comes in 2014...let's hope Denver gets another chance to showcase our punk pride.

Check out our photos below.