Unlike their main canon, documents of Can’s live performances offer a glimpse of the group pre-edit. They give no sign of a set list - songs pick up gradually, often one musician at a time, and dissipate just as organically. The set is entirely instrumental, as were most of their performances following the departure of vocalist Damo Suzuki.
Century Egg know how to write songs that stick like a greasy cowlick in the morning, and their latest EP is a capillaceous pillar of joy-struck guitar rock that refuses to be combed back down. The Halifax quartet’s cross between punk, garage and Mandopop makes for some deliriously exuberant “rock and roll” music.
With Drool, the South London band seems to make the case that their early years were just a lead-up to the earth-shaking post-hardcore they’d produce in their second coming. The looser songs of the past have all but entirely been supplanted by the thunder-heeled, mid-tempo thumpers that always were Part Chimp’s real speciality.
Philly’s thriving underground scene has had as much of an impact on Steven Perez’s productions as salsa and merengue. On his latest effort, Dun Dun, he swaps colorful confidence for shy neurosis. Written over the course of 2020’s social upheaval, Pedazo De Carne Con Ojo’s newfound fixation with anxiety feels fitting for our times.
Philary's LP Uh-Oh It's Me is a range of emotions, both complex/simple, as well as individually personal/broadly relatable. As such, the compositions reflect in a way that is plethoric, luxuriant, and colorful. Guitars weep and wail, drums thunder and lightning, and unwavering-yet-omnifarious vocals guide the ship across the terra incognita.
On their rambunctious and irreverent third LP Came Down Different, San Francisco punks Pardoner bring their noisy sound into focus. Hidden under their layers of feedback and distorted guitars are some damn fine pop songs. This time around, the trio allow the melodies to peak through their signature wall of sound a bit more.
Present Tense doesn’t have time for a meet and greet. It opens in media res; percussion bomb blasts, a gristling base, and snaring garage riffs and bloodshot vocals. If you know FACS, then you’re already home. Over the past few years, the Chicago trio’s annual dispatches have seen significant augmentation.
Sweep It Into Space was recorded at the end of 2019, featuring co-production by Philadelphia singer-songwriter Kurt Vile. Much like the four albums released on Jagjaguwar as part of their reunion, the band have dialed back the noise and chaos, without sacrificing the energy or the consistency in the quality of the music that’s been released.
Sometimes a record comes along that is felt, rather than heard. Chicago multi-instrumentalist Mia Joy’s debut album, Spirit Tamer, gently wraps around you, enveloping with its whispered invitations and ethereal ambience. The intimacy feels a purposeful creation on Mia’s part, not just as a result of the tranquil sonic template.
Whereas her previous two albums dealt with the grief and dissociation caused by the death of her mother, Jubilee processes all of Zauner’s emotion into an expression of joyous, utter feeling. It’s an affirmation of her life, of our lives, through collective experiences of triumph we share together. Simply put, it’s stunning.
It might be facetious to call Mesh a post-punk band. Much of this record sounds like classic scuzzy and snotty garage rock, particularly of the kind that grew in popularity at the start of this century. The whole thing is supremely infectious, filled with catchy choruses and thirstful energy; these songs are made to be danced to furiously.
The Power of Rocks shows a band that is willing to create whatever they want regardless of whatever is popular. All the pop sensibilities are there, and they are there in spades, but the band decides to take these sensibilities to create music with a bounce in their step, and it infects the listener to have the same sort of bounce.
More Than Anything, the trio’s latest EP, is in line with their previous releases, but this time around, they keep the songs shorter, sweeter, and embedded with a tried-and-true, upbeat indie energy. Theo Hartlett’s vocals and songwriting may be what’s most remarkable here, as there’s a natural progression in his approach that entices.
Their much-anticipated return overcomes impossible standards by doubling down on a new sound. Dream Weapon, Genghis Tron’s third LP, exceeds any expectations set by the furious strength of their 2008 release.. Much of this is due to the introduction of drummer Nick Yacyshyn and new vocalist Tony Wolski.
Casual Use is brimming with musical references to soft-rock antiheroes, which sounds like a hilarious oxymoron—Montague is obviously in thrall to artists like Andrew Gold, Randy Newman, and, of course, his personal idol, Harry Nilsson. Casual Use also proves that, in the right hands, ornate, hi-fi pop rock can still sound novel
Drawing you in is the little moments, where ambient music shines. Maybe it’s the way one note is sustained and lingers in the air; maybe it could be the hint of cello and viola that is interdependent through the record. All that matters is that the music maintains a spell over you, rendering the outside world nonexistent for a little while.
The howl of an air-raid siren introduces Stockholm’s Spelljammer on their fourth release, Abyssal Trip, as guitars land like paratroopers and the album’s lumbering first riff begins to take shape. When the drums finally fall into place, we’re off into the sludge on a path well trodden by bands like Sleep and Windhand.
