Spiritual Mafia features members of EXEK, Spray Paint, Ausmuteants, etc which should give you a hint at Al Fresco, their debut album (out March 12th via Ever/Never and Anti Fade). While their pedigree precedes them, this is something a bit different, trading in the brainy agitation for something blunt and bludgeoning, a haze of proto punk sleaze and drugged out garage psych.
Aggressive and full of whiskey soaked punk disdain, the four songs that comprise Rides Again… are among Spodee Boy’s best, not just in concept but in execution. Make no mistake, these songs rip with an outlaw intensity. The feeling of cowboy culture, in the most unhinged of ways, is captured on “Dress The Part.”
Having spent over a decade playing together as a duo, the Bay Area’s Street Eaters have gone and done the unthinkable, they’ve added a guitarist to the mix. While sometimes less is more, in the case of Street Eaters’ upcoming EP, Simple Distractions, the guitars are a welcome addition, bringing new sonic heights to their sound.
Lifeguard’s debut album, Dive, caught the attention of noisy music fans with an ear to the ground including the fine folks at Chunklet Industries (Shark Toys, Honey Radar, The Apples In Stereo). The Atlanta based label is set to release a limited hand-cut 7” single with two new Lifeguard tracks, Receiver b/w Sun Ra Jane.
The Nashville trio Styrofoam Winos have no lead songwriter, no “front” person. The band’s voice, styles, and inspirations are collective, with each member pulling equal weight, from songwriting and vocals to their own personal styles of reflection. It all comes together wonderfully on their well conceived self-titled debut album.
Baltimore duo Caution are getting ready to release their self-titled sophomore EP. Due out this coming Friday, February 19th, via the great Born Yesterday Records (Moontype, Dummy, Stuck), the pair have created an album that is pop at its core, but buzzing with fuzz, noise, and psychedelic shoegaze swells.
With over fifteen years spent playing together, three EPs, and a handful of singles and splits, the trio is set to release their debut full length, They Birds, via Controlled Burn Records. The album could only have been recorded at Electrical Audio and mastered by Bob Weston, because after all we are talking Chicago post-hardcore here.
It took a global pandemic to get Blessed to stop touring. The road heavy experimental quartet may not be playing shows, but they’re still busy sharpening their ever changing craft. Set to release III on February 19th via Flemish Eye, the band’s latest continues to prove why they are one of Canada’s most exciting bands.
“Me Or The Party #165” is the second single off Yukon artist Whitney K's debut record Two Years, out February 19th on Maple Death. The first single was a strolling AM radio groove reminiscent of the best of Smog. This is a sing-along ballad, with liquified country western slide guitar and a vocal delivery reminiscent of 70's Waylon Jennings.
Since Maxshh’s debut (a gorgeous split with Lrrr) and last year’s essential Half A Loaf, the project has been pushing the envelope of avant-garde pop and mutant post-hardcore. With Feedback & PB, due out January 29th via Sad Cactus, Maxshh has thoroughly blown “the envelope” to bits and the freaky results are utterly compelling.
David Settle is set to release The Fragiles’ latest On and On via Living Lost Records on February 12th. While most of the recordings so far have been exceptionally lo-fi, Settle teamed up with Justin Pizzoferrato to mix and master the album. It’s still recorded to cassette, but the boost in fidelity can’t be understated on The Fragiles’ best record yet.
Post-Trash is premiering a new track from the brainchild of K Nkaza. The song is called “Set Up A Camera” and it’s pretty wild. Not a lot of people are making the kind of music Nkaza is making right now. Her self-described queer metal/they/them-core/post-emo tunes shuffle prog, nu metal and “alternative rock” with taste and grace.
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.
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.
