Last Week’s Jams (3.18 – 3.22)

After a week where I felt we left our visitors down, due to some musical gather in Austin, we came back with a vengeance this week. We repped some hometown heroes, announcing that Eastside Suicides would be reissuing their debut, along with a new tune from our friends in Blushing. Perennial site favorites Rural France and Red, Pinks and Purples made their usual appearance with fresh tunes for you. I loved new stuff from Winged Wheel and Yea-Ming and the Rumours. Honestly, I don’t think there’s a bad song in this playlist, which duh, we get to hand-pick what we cover. Press play and enjoy.

Rural France Share Tag Along Single

Having fallen in love with the first track from Exactamondo, it only makes sense that we reinforce our love for Rural France by covering their new single today. While “Packhorse” felt clean and brimming with pop sensibility, “Tag Along” seems to be a little bit of a sonic shift, playing with noise in the background, layered to juxtapose the sugary center. Don’t get me wrong, the vocals are still offering up their usual sweetness, so you can still be enchanted, but the edges feel rougher and maybe, dare I say, “lo-fi.” I like that we’re getting a peek at the variation we can expect when the LP finally hits; it’s scheduled for an April 26th release courtesy of Meritorio Records.

Last Week’s Jams (2.19 – 2.23)

With a holiday squeezed in, and some craziness on my own end, we maybe didn’t cover as much as I ideally would have liked to cover. Nonetheless, there was tons of great tunes running on the site, including a premiere from 40th Parallel, plus brand spanking new music from Apollo Ghosts…which I’m still listening to right now. Rural France is back too, so we included that in our coverage, not to mention the fact that we got a hot new Daniel Romano tune included. You can never go wrong either with new Reds, Pinks and Purples or En Attendant Ana…and those are included. It’s a 45 minute collection of solid rock n’ roll, so turn it on and turn it up.

Rural France Announce Exactamondo

I was a really big fan of Rural France‘s debut, RF, which in turn led to my fandom of Teenage Tom Petties…and now it seems that Tom Brown and Rob Fawkes have put aside time to lay down another delightful batch of tunes. At first listen, it seems like the jangles, while still present, have been turned down a bit in the mix, building more of a broad pop approach to the duo’s songwriting; it sort of feels like they’ve branched into Teenage Fanclub territory with these big riffs rocking throughout, though I’ll admit, their adherence to the melody is constantly delighting on this tune. Look for Exactamondo to drop April 26th via Meritorio Records.

Teenage Tom Petties Share Boatyard Winch

We spent a lot of time last year supporting Rural France, the London duo of Tom Brown and Rob Fawkes; they dropped RF via Meritorio Records. But, Tom now has his own new project, Teenage Tom Petties that should definitely pop up on your radar today. This project isn’t a far stretch from RF, though there’s definitely a grittier feel to both the recording and the style itself…perhaps connecting the dots via a Boyracer or the like would work, in 7 degrees of Indie Pop. On the vocals, Tom definitely has a big Bob Pollard feel here, so the whole thing is built around this huge lo-fidelity guitar pop feel that very much feels like something GBV would have influenced. It’s a jam, and you like jams. The band will have a full album coming this summer via Safe Suburban Homes.

Last Week’s Jams Today (10.18 – 10.22)

We were back on our game last week, for the most part. We had tons of great tunes, so we’re hoping you caught wind of at least a few of these on the site. But, if you didn’t, Monday’s a great day to just sit back in your chair and relax. I also threw in a few tunes from the likes of Spirit Was, Keg, Power Supply, Belaver and Dummy who all released most excellent albums last week. You get 20 songs to ease you into this week. Might I still suggest listening to Japan Review. That Rural France tune isn’t half bad either!

Rural France Share Hosepipe Ban

We’ve been pretty supportive of Rural France in regards to their forthcoming RF LP, and today they’re sharing another single to tease us along before next week’s official release. According to the band’s Tom Brown, the riff had been bouncing around in his head for years, until one day he hit upon just the right line to tie it all together, leaving us with ‘one of those nostalgic, sad summer songs.’ Brown alludes to the Beach Boys, but in looking at more modern iterations, you can faintly hear the Wrens in this; things sound like they’re jumbled, stacking layer and layer, then all of a sudden your ear locks into the melody and you’re swept away. If ever a song encapsulated the dictionary definition of sunny wistfulness, this has to be the one! Look for RF next Friday via Meritorio Records.

Last Week’s Jams, Today (September 27 – October 1)

Mondays, am I right? Honestly, been struggling for energy and motivation of late, but last week had some really great tunes hit, accompanied by great albums from the likes of Semihelix, Cindy and Ducks Ltd. I chose to open with this Semihelix on the mix because I’d love to take the opening 30 seconds and put it in my pocket to carry it around with me all day. Also, unfortunately, the Humdrum track isn’t on the streaming platforms just yet, so be sure you click HERE to check that great tune out!

 

Rural France Share Sling Yr Hook

Fresh off the release of the killer “Stolen Beer,” Rural France return with the second single from their forthcoming RF record, and to no one’s surprise, it’s another fuzzy pop banger. Despite these heavy riffs, this song is pure pop through and through; it’s just bleeding melody all over your floor as it pours through your speakers. Honestly, this is some of the best no frills, solid pop rock n’ roll you’re going to hear this year. The chords ring in your ears in just the right spot, guitar solos cascade in quickly then fade away to reveal sneak peaks at the melodic underbelly, and every time you press play you’re going to wear a grin. RF will be released on October 29th via Meritorio Records.

Last Week’s Jams, Today (August 30 – September 3)

Well, today might be the beginning of a little decline for the next few weeks, as you’re likely going to be pressing play on this just as I’m bringing Nathan Jr. Jr. into the world. But, like him, you are blessed with these incredible tunes that graced our site last week, all of which will enable you to recover from your Labor Day doldrums. Hopefully this week brings you a great many things!

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