In the years since we last heard from Graham Brouder, he’s returned to Virginia, this time situating in Richmond, and the music that he previously wrote solo has turned into a new band, Hearts In Exile. With a self-titled album in the works, the band introduce themselves over the jangly crawl of the record’s lead single, “Language Is The House”.
Ten tracks of tangled, anxious but melodic punk, Material is the latest from Smirk, the solo project of Los Angeles guitarist Nick Vicario (Public Eye, Crisis Man). The followup to two 2021 releases, the album typifies the punchy, lo-fi aesthetic of the Feel It roster, while embracing both ‘70s-flavored rock guitar jams and jittery new wave of the ‘80s.
Melbourne’s Delivery evolve their sound and vibe with debut album Forever Giving Handshakes. Channeling wiry post-punk as much as psyched-out garage and hooky power-pop, Handshakes rides a wavering line between tightly-wound momentum and raucous partying, the result a collection of nervy, shout-along earworms.
The Melbourne post-punk outfit creates flashing art pop and whip-smart dance grooves, pulling influence from its members’ backgrounds in jazz, punk, and rave culture. Electric Party’s sub-three minute tracks cut to the chase, sticking to a superb, hip-shaking formula while taking subversive, non-adhesive notes from no wave.
Hearing new Tony Molina albums, such as his latest, In the Fade, brings me back to being a teenager, fully immersed in Weezer's Blue Album, the Beatles, and pumped to hear and learn more, setting off exploratory paths to underground bands. His music is a modern day starting point of “the good shit”.
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.
With brevity always at the forefront, EIEIEIO create tangled music that never feels grandiose or overthought. Everything seems off the cuff, potentially combustible from one moment to the next. Following a split with Gorgeous, EIEIEIO return with “Gentleman Stop!”, a new cassette due out December 2nd via Sad Cactus Records.
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.
On the heels of two solid 7” releases, Melbourne five-piece Delivery evolve their sound and vibe with debut album Forever Giving Handshakes. Channeling wiry post-punk as much as psyched-out garage and hooky power-pop, Handshakes rides a wavering line between tightly-wound momentum and raucous partying.
Philly’s Labrador make alt-country music to lift you up. It’s not always bubbling with positivity, but they’re here to remind you you’re not alone, and that good times are just around the bend. They take those sentiments to heart on Hold The Door For Strangers, the follow-up to 2020’s A Car That Works EP.
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.
Plan Pony, a solo project turned duo built on caterwauling saxophone and harsh electronics, skews closer to noise music than noise “rock” music. With several releases over the past couple years, they’re set to share their latest, the Flocking EP, out today via Nim Brut. The pair obliterate senses with “Can’t Say, Won’t Say,” the album’s centerpiece.
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.
Lipsticism is Chicago-based electronic musician Alana Schachtel. The project has a new record via Earth Libraries on 12/2 called Two Mirrors Facing Each Other, and today we’ve got a sneak preview of the accompanying visuals to “Worth.” The video follows a digital humanoid and their stuffed rabbit reanimated by a spectral mirror hand.
