Friday Album Streams: Zack Rosen, RPPs, Connections + More

The Spring generally means you’re just going to have to throw down a lot of money and grab record after record after record, so let us throw a few suggestions, or just give you some great stuff to stream, as its Friday, and who really wants to work on a Friday.

Zack RosenSYZYGY (Chimera Music)

A struggling artist gone before his time; these songs remind us of the gifts he left behind.

The Reds, Pinks & PurplesThe Town That Cursed Your Name (Slumberland/Tough Love)

No one on this planet is writing songs as powerful as Glenn Donaldson.

ConnectionsCool Change (Trouble in Mind Records)

If you need a record without a throw-away tune, this is the one.

The SproutsEat Your Greens (Tenth Court)

Australia has a new supergroup, and you have a new favorite band.

Mary Anne’s Polar RigMakes You Wonder (Rama Lama Records)

A shapeshifting masterpiece of pop and rock, like if the YYYs, still had that risk factor.

The Mary Onettes Return with Easy Hands

The Mary Onettes have been part of this site for the better part of a decade; I even spent a good deal of this year hunting down a reasonably priced copy of their self-titled LP, so I’m happy they’re back with a fresh set of tunes. They open things up here with an infectious bounce immediately, letting the guitars drift distantly before the vocals decide they’d like to join up. Honestly, Philip’s lyrical writing isn’t too far off from Glenn Donaldson’s RPP track from last week, calling on artists to take care of themselves while being drawn to create…sadly a sentiment folks like me need to remember. Oh man, this melodic chorus too, is just something special. Stoked to have the Swedish outfit back in any form.

Dog Park Shares Sunny Decadence

After that brash morning ripper from Shake Chain it feels only apt that I should caress your ears with a little sweetness, this time from French outfit Dog Park, the newest pickup from Howlin Banana Records. Immediately, the guitars grab at you, wrapping you in this blanket that’s warm and dreamy, just hinting at a churning jangle to let you drip off into happiness. Ultimately, the warmth of the song resides in the voice coming through your speakers, allowing you to really immerse yourself in its own brand of decadence…the sweetness notes you might hear today. It’s a fairly new act, so hopefully we hear more real soon!

Neckbolt Announce Midwestern Drawl

I’ll be honest, sometimes the Austin scene gets a little stale; it tends to feed off of its own bravado, then implodes to champion what sells…but honestly, its felt mostly safe as of late, until I heard this new track from Neckbolt. The band is comprised of various local figures, and a few out-of-towners, but they’re building this deranged twang-core that feels like an unholy Texan amalgam. Those gritty blues guitar sounds are fuzzed beneath this heavy wash of atmosphere, dripping with tambourine presence. Honestly, it’s like taking acid house vibes from the UK, throwing in sort of the dark experimental side of Liars, then throwing it all on stage in Marfa; it pretty much rules. Midwestern Drawl is out November 5th via Spider Dispatch Unit.

Last Week’s Jams, Today (September 13 – 17)

Last week I might have gotten a little carried away; my wife and newborn son were spending a lot of time resting, so I was just hanging out writing about songs all week…something a teacher, soccer coach, dad and label owner typically can’t do. So, this week’s playlist of last week’s hits might be a little longer than usual, but you’re going to be all the better for it. I hope you have a wonderful Monday my friends, and enjoy the jams here!

Finnish Shoegaze from The Here Todays

If you follow our site, or pop in a time or two, you might be aware of my affinity for Finnish tunes, mostly due to my friend Nick over at Soliti. Keeping an eye on that scene, I came across The Here Todays, who’ve just released this stellar new single for you fans of the modern shoegaze. Everything about this song just feels heavy, like the weight of the world crushing you, or in my case, a 3 year old sitting on your chest; the drums are pounding, smashing the sonic walls while your hit with wave after wave of heavy distortion from the guitars. It’s meant to disorient you, until the hauntingly soft vocal notes come and tie you to this Earth, tethering you to wade through the perfect balance of noisy ambiance and cool melody. Enjoy.

New Music from Austin ft. TC Superstar + Nolan Potter

Well, things in Austin seem to be progressing along nicely, despite the fact that the city’s kind of a walking shit-show. But, a couple of rad jams popped up over we thought you might be into.

TC Superstar released their latest single from the forthcoming As Seen on TV. This jam has a little less pop and burst, and more of a subtle dance vibe. It kind of reminds me of the later LCD stuff, where you were grooving, but you were most likely watering the plants around your apartment. Their new LP drops on September 17th.

We’ve also got the latest from Nolan Potter, who will be releasing his band’s latest opus, Music is Dead, via Castle Face Records at the end of September. This song operates much as I expect the album to, moving in and out of incredible guitar freakouts and thunderous percussion, only to jettison off into the wizarding world of Harry Potter for a moment or two.

Silver Firs Return!

Our Bern, Switzerland based friends in Silver Firs were really lighting up our pages with stellar music way back in 2013/2014. Since that time, the band was on an lengthy hiatus so it was a bit shocking, and exciting, to hear new music from the band after 7+ years away from the scene. Their first new single after the hiatus, “Now We Start to See the Beauty”, was well worth the long wait and leaves me wanting to immediately hear more. The track starts as a slow burning, melodic tune but eventually builds into this dreamy and lovely pop tune. Can’t wait to hear more!

Silver Firs will release this track on a new EP entitled Lake Hypoxia out on June 18th.

Why Bonnie Share New Tune

I think one of my favorite things of this whole pandemic has been the way many artists have reacted, releasing demos and rare tunes and the sometimes just recording a tune for the joy of playing. Late last night, Why Bonnie just upped a track with little information other than the tune itself, the first since the band released their Voice Box EP. This one feels like a mostly Blair tune, with quieted chords bending around her voice; it seems like an ode to taking a chance and saying goodbye, but perhaps I’m reading too far into the title. Regardless, glad to always have this lot putting something out.

Have Another New Holy Wave Tune

Looks like Nathan has you all set up for some nice streams over the weekend, but I’d also encourage you to check out this new tune from our Austin friends in Holy Wave. “Interloper” is the title track of the bands brand new album and features a lot of the dreamy and psych oriented sounds we’ve grown to love about the band over the years. This one certainly has a Pink Floyd influence behind it, but a more pop orientation. Chalk it up as another hit for the Austin legends.

Holy Wave will release new album Interloped on July 3rd via Reverberation Appreciation Society.

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