On their fourth record, they continue to do things nobody else's way but their own, continuing to refine their unique style of oddball shoegaze with an uncompromising vision of noisiness and weirdness. Through its all too brief runtime, Lucky Styles ranges from the crushingly loud to the stunningly serene, never settling on the easy choice.
Music should be impactful, wide and universally relatable. For almost twenty years, The Black Angels have done this through six long players and four extended plays. Five years since the profound Death Song, the Austin legends blast back onto Mother Earth with fierce textures driven by drummer Stephanie Bailey, who has never sounded larger.
Nashville’s Snooper gives us everything we could ever want from an egg punk EP: ripping-hot riffs, shrieking guitar, pummelling drums, half-sung vocals about modern malaise. Their latest five track EP, Town Topic, clocking in at less than eight minutes, sounds like a Devo record mistakenly played at 45 RPM, but this is no trite rehash.
We'll Become the Flowers is New York based Eliza Edens’ second album of indie folk songs. The record is full of aching sadness contrasted with a whimsical hopefulness and acknowledgement of beauty all around, if we're open to seeing it. Eden's vocals have a way of cutting to your deepest feelings with their husky intonation and warmth.
The anger that persists on Malign Hex is never so cliched to be grounded by the confines of its creators; it's tapping into the ether to explode unseen parts of reality and give listeners the spark to indulge these nameless feelings of fear, disgust, outrage, etc. To support this larger effort, the band emphasize their cohesion as a unit.
Incredibly idiosyncratic - albeit not to one another, the Atlanta-based quartet Mamalarky communicates amongst themselves in a tongue all their own. Their most recent release, Pocket Fantasy, is not an invitation into their world, but an overheard discussion felt so intensely that it is carried home by casual passerby.
It turns out that a slowed-down, remote, process gave Mushfoot ample time to think these songs thoroughly through, giving them the recording touches these detailed, layered songs require. They pick up on strands laid before them by the likes of My Bloody Valentine, Broadcast, Deerhoof, Stephen Merritt, and more.
In keeping with the promise of their 12”, Blush is an exciting addition within that catalog. An album length statement that stands rather asynchronous from the momentum of this New British Alternative moment; more akin to a dark horse alternative nudging towards the dancefloor catharsis of hundreds or even just one.
Enter Hit With The Most, the band’s latest. Intended as a love letter to its obvious early ‘80s pop influences, the album is mostly distorted guitars over mid-tempo slacker rock. Ribbon Stage is big on subtlety, vocals back in the mix and nary a cymbal on the record – the result is an almost unwavering focus on simplicity and melody.
Considering the band delivered their new album, Blue Rev, after multiple all-night sessions, just barely hitting their vinyl production deadline, and that it’s been five years since their last album, one might expect Alvvays’ third album to feel overthought. On the contrary, Alvvays have created their most surprising and rewarding album yet.
Schwartz Provides is the third in the series of Schwartz releases from NY via FL artist Winded. The record is powered by a stark and often solemn beauty provided by Thrin Vianale's higher registered vocals and entertaining songwriting. Vianale manages to balance full throated emotion with a concealed intensity that pushes to be unleashed.
Brooklyn band Jobber’s love for wrestling coming through in their name, artwork, song titles, and lyrics. On their debut EP Hell in a Cell, Jobber adopt wrestling’s insider language to explore workplace discontent and the struggle to be a good person in a shitty world. It’s a gimmick, sure, but it works.
On Lemons, the third full length from Fake Palms, the band strips away a little of the density of their previous albums and sprinkle in a bit more cheer and brightness. Their songs still carry a bit of anger and anxiety within their clattering guitars and slower tempos, but the melodies just hit with more force and clarity than previously displayed.
DIY/riot grrrl veterans Christina Billotte, Kathi Wilcox, and Steve Dore—released The Casual Dots in 2004, apparently with little press or self-promotion, but still establishing a fan base through blog-era word-of-mouth. After an 18-year hiatus, last month the band re-released their debut at the same time as their surprise second full-length, Sanguine Truth.
