Last Week’s Jams (10.9 – 10.13)

We’re getting to that point when everyone is scrambling to find their favorite tracks, find their favorite collection of songs to put into those fruitful lists that you’ll all look at, then claim to hate! We do it too! Still, covered a bunch of great new music last week. There were great new tunes from Red Pants and Teenage Tom Petties, plus we got to celebrate a really busy release week with stuff from Lightheaded and Upchuck, among others. Our friend Jared Leibowich had a new tune up, but it didn’t make it onto the DPSs yet, so be sure to circle back and check on that one. There’s a couple of long-burns too, from Native Cats, a Beacon School and the Uptights, all worthy of some deep listening. Stream on!

Friday Album Streams: Lightheaded, Blue Ocean, Mope City and More

There’s only a few more sleeps until all the music folks decided to hibernate for the year, so better be sure to listen to as much new music as possible, right? Well, on this Friday, we’ve got a couple of really delicious records for you to devour, if that’s your thing. No need to wax poetic here, just links so you can fall in love and spend some quality time with your new favorite LP.

LightheadedGood Good Great (Slumberland Records)

Mope CityPopulation 4 – (Tenth Court)

Blue OceanFertile State (Slumberland Records)

A Beacon Schoolyoyo (Grind Select)

Half DreamWill I Still Bloom (Self-Released)

UpchuckBite the Hand That Feeds (Famous Class)

Last Week’s Jams – (9.11 – 9.15)

It seems weird to say, but last week was the first time in a long time where I was able to find every song we covered on all the DSPs! Does this mean I’ve gone mainstream? Anyways, we had a few premieres running from the likes of Class and Alijca-Pop, so be sure to check those jams out.. And, as per usual, dipped our toes in the Austin pond, with new stuff from Holy Wire and the stream of Will Johnson‘s new LP. Oh, and we made sure we had as much Oceanic coverage as possible, throwing our weight behind Soft Covers, Native Cats, The Small Intestines and Exek! Give a listen to the singles below!

Blue Ocean Share Ode Video

There’s never a bad day to run a track from Blue Ocean, especially as the noise in my head could use some noisy accompaniment to clear it all out. On the latest single you get this disorienting wash of feedback and atmospheric warbling, seeping atop a quiet and steady little beat in the background. Murky vocals texture the song with faint melodies from the upside down, buried deep within the confines of the atmosphere. All of it gets the glorious video accompaniment, taking viewers on a fantastic ride that doubles-down on the stretched emotions presented in song. You’ll get this song on the group’s new LP, Fertile State, out October 13th via Slumberland.

Last Week’s Jams (8.14 – 8.18)

Okay, so I’m back in school and coaching women’s volleyball, which of course meant we couldn’t dare draw near the 40 or so tracks we covered the week prior. But, that being said, there were some really special tunes, and some of my favorites popping up in here. Blue Ocean and Seablite announced new LPs, while the Smashing Times dropped another stellar single to whet our appetites. Local favorites Single Lash and Sun June both announced new releases too, so it was a pretty solid week. Oh, and that Optic Sink jam was so good, we might have accidentally overlapped and posted it twice! Stream below!

Slumberland Records Sign Blue Ocean

I got turned onto Blue Ocean a few years ago when the group put a few of their EPs together for Paisley Shirt/Dandy Boy…and today they get a further stamp of ATH approavl with the announcement that the band have signed on with Slumberland for their first LP. It’s incredibly difficult to pigeonhole the project; they create these layered textures, all working in unison, yet seemingly fighting against one another. At times my ears get drawn towards the crashing wave of screaming distortion; the rhythm section seems to work against that angst, coming in more playfully, almost bouncing; it all swirls together like this Captain Planet of DIY indie rock! All of that’s accomplished before we get swept up in the indifferent cool of the vocals. Absolutely in love here. Fertile State will be out on October 13th.

Last Week’s Jam’s Today (2.28 – 3.4)

Last week was one of those weeks where I wanted to write about all the songs; Ryan crushed it with tons of SXSW interviews, letting you get to know the likes of Best Move, Coyle Girelli, No Swoon and more. So, we’ve got to go back and give you a quick list of all the jams, and there were tons! You had new stuff from Austinites Friday Boys, Bright Light Social Hour and Wiretree, then Neutrals and Mick Love made my weekend with hits at the end of the week. There’s tons to browse through here, so go check it out.

Blue Ocean Share Summer of Hands Video

If Blue Ocean isn’t on your radar, you haven’t been reading this site! But, we can fix that right now by sharing the band’s brand new video for “Summer of Hands.” This tune comes from the group’s new Blue Ocean LP, which compiles remastered tunes from their stellar EPs (via Paisley Shirt) and puts them on one great release courtesy of Dandy Boy Records. If you’re new to the project, this is a perfect introduction, as they are one of the best at combining genres, as they do here by taking a jangling line of indie rock then covering it with this atmospheric squall of beautiful noise. The accompanying video here seems to match that, taking imagery of scenes near the blue oceans and coating them in a nice little bit of haze. Don’t wait for Bandcamp Friday, buy the LP HERE.

Last Week in Music, Today

Everyone always be trying to wrap up the week with their “Week in Music,” but we’re a little lazier, plus we figured you wanted to slow start your Monday, so why not do it by checking out what we were jamming to last week. So, we’ve put all the singles, plus a few other things we were loving in the mix. That way, you can sit back and just enjoy a fun playlist…and if you weren’t in on it, jump back and see what we had to say. Or don’t. Either way, you can now start your day with this hip playlist. We kick it off with the latest from Los Esplifs, who drop their Estraik Back LP tomorrow for 4/20.

Blue Ocean Announce New Album for Paisley Shirt Records

I think most people who buy records and tapes tend to have their go-to labels, and it’s great to have a reliable source for good tunes. The last few years, Paisley Shirt Records has been bringing us a pretty solid catalog of great pop tunes, and now they’re adding Oakland’s Blue Ocean to that mix. For me, listening through to the album’s opener, it’s like listening to DJ Screw, only if you were into really heavy shoegaze and indiepop. The song’s core is this bouncing rhythmic pop pulse, but its been chopped and screwed by this thunderous wall of feedback and noise; I get that that analogy does not work for everyone out there…but the tune speaks for itself! The whole self-titled album is out on April 16th (though you can find some of the tunes elsewhere!).