It would be intriguing to know what goes on in the mind of Dave Scanlon, an experimental composer/musician perhaps best known for his work with JOBS. His newest effort, Pink in each, bright blue, bright green, steps away from the instrumentally cluttered music of his band, venturing to a more minimalistic, spacey side of production.
“The Stax, not the Motown” was the way Mike Sniper described the 28 cuts showcased on Strum n’ Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983-1987 in an interview. His label, Captured Tracks, has quietly cultivated several reissues, big and small, dedicated to overlooked gems. The promise of this new series, Excavations, is intriguing.
When he’s not producing efforts for other artists, Henry Terepka been putting his focus forward a new solo project under the name Henry Grant. Following his full length debut, City Mouse, witch features from Jamell NYT and Alejandro Salazar-Dyer among others, Henry Grant returns with a new EP, Sensations, due out February 5th.
Learn to be Alone is a document of a band that is starting to grow and blossom into a powerful force of nature lyrically and musically, and one that is developing its own voice with each outing. Squitch have a connection that is clearly evident, allowing them to anticipate and move with each other seamlessly through tricky transitions.
Located out of Brussels, Zach Phillips teams up with the amazing Ma Clément, who handles all the vocals with an undeniable radiance. Together the pair worked with five large ensembles (over 30 musicians both familiar and new) to create the world of God’s Trashmen Sent To Right The Mess, the year’s first essential album.
All Feels is the solo project of Candace Clement (Bunny’s A Swine, Footings, Psychic Energy). Her debut EP, Why Are You Like This?, is a departure from her other bands, instead opting for bedroom pop sound, one that’s built on meditative soundscapes and electronic rhythms. It’s futuristic pop with a minimal touch.
All That Has Come Apart/Once Did Not Exist is by no means a quarantine record, but rather a brilliant reflection of the present; as it was, is, and will continue to be. Sonny Falls’ latest puts our time-specific realities into perspective; what happened then happens now and will happen forever, everything all of the time.
Mamalarky is the self-titled debut of the Georgia via California quartet, filled with slinking grooves mixed with bright and flowing melodies that announce themselves loudly. Livvy Bennett’s vocals are a driving force in the pop concoction that pours forth, proving itself to be a surprising powerhouse collection of songs.
When Spectral Voice’s debut was released in 2017, they had five demos and two splits out in the world. By the album’s release they had perfected their concoction of death-doom metal. This strategy has not changed in the following years, part of what makes the Necrotic Demos compilation more compelling than it ought to be.
On Soft Blue Shimmer’s debut album, Heaven Inches Away, the band crank up the fuzz, becoming less coltish and more stoic. Where their early work felt like a forgotten cut from the soundtrack to 10 Things I Hate About You, their latest plays more like a diegetic sound drifting in the background of a Greg Araki-directed scene.
Catalonia band Mourn have been making a name for themselves within the indie rock scene from quite a young age. The band members were in their teens when they released their self-titled debut album in 2015 on Captured Tracks. Mourn has continued to expand their post-punk sound and their evolution truly shows on Self Worth.
