Last Week’s Jams (11.11 – 11.15)

After a fairly slow week, we hit it hard this week, bringing you a nice collection of great tunes, as we’re focused on that side while everyone else is scrambling to wrap up their year end lists. There was a heavy Austin contingent, particularly as we announced we’ll be dropping the new EP from Fantastic Purple Spots; Austin also brought us new stuff from Variety, Burgess Meredith, David Israel, and Being Dead. The Laughing Chimes made us realize that there’s still time left in 2024 for brilliant pop music, while Feeling Figures popped in with a video to remind us how great their last LP was. And, all of it kicks off with a great introduction to Lone Striker. Little bit of this, little bit of that, little bit of Dwight Yoakam.

 

Products Band Share Steady/Sugarless

We spent a lot of time spreading the world on Some Sudden Weather, the last LP from Products Band, so we were excited to hear there was a fresh tune from the Minneapolis outfit. Trickling in with a quieted vocal, the song erupts with a crash of distortion that rip right through your speakers. As the tune pushes forward, the song pushes this bit of urgency, driving the vocals into higher pitches as the song builds and builds, only to halt suddenly. Then its over. You’ll have to go back and press play again and again to fully digest the littlest nuances that make this a solid Friday jam session.

Casual Technicians Offer This Emotion + Release New LP

Perhaps one album a year isn’t enough, or so say Casual Technicians, who release their brand new LP today (I’ll have it in a streams post later), but wanted to shout out this single. It’s the closing track, and in a sense, reminds me of early works from Peter and the Wolf, sort of operating that bedroom jam lo-fi folk vibe. Guitars are light and the production feels minimal, but the songwriting and emotion gets its hooks in you, even offering up some slight little oddball moments. This is the sort of wistful folk you deserve on a Friday, so be sure to check out all of Deeply Unworthy, out today via Repeating Cloud.

Icarus Phoenix Shares Old Sleep Singer

Just a few months ago Icarus Phoenix released I Should Have Known the Things You Never Said, and Drew Danburry has shown no signs of slowing down after that LP, releasing a slew of singles and plans for a Children’s Book/Album on the horizon. This track is a response to Josaleigh Pollett’s “Sad Old Sleep Singers,” but it seems more of a celebration of the people that lift you up when shit hit the fan. No need to dive too far into details, as the lyrical content puts it on the table, but we’ve got to find our own support system, our own way to crawl out of the hole. What? You thought I wouldn’t get you in your feelings on a Friday?

 

David Israel Releases Diane Video

If you go way back, like six years back, our friend David Israel let us help him get The Year That Felt Like Two out into the world, and we were more than happy to be part of it! David has popped up today with a new single, and as devoted fans/friends, we had to send your way. If you’ve never heard David’s work, you’ll find yourself engrossed in the power of his voice, dark and stormy, yet shaded by his eternal kindness. His wordplay is also a rarity, working between pure poetry and the idiosyncrasies of outsider pop. Enjoy this new song, and if you’re in the Austin neck of the woods…there’s a show tonight at Hole in the Wall to celebrate the single!

The Laughing Chimes Announces Whispers in the Speech Machine

Everyone’s been raving about the return of the Cure this year, and sure, that record is pretty solid, if not because I’m constantly drenched in nostalgia, but, have you heard the Laughing Chimes? The band, while fairly new as an act, have consistently been reinventing the best of indie rock sounds from the 1980s and churning it into some of the best indiepop coming out today. On their album announcement, I’ve seen folks throw in shades of JaMC, but I kind of feel like the vocals have this underlying devotion to Grant McLennan, particularly in the way some of the notes hang in the air on single…and maybe even a slight nod in the video too. Regardless, put your nostalgia aside because Whispers in the Speech Machine is going to be the record you won’t forget; it’s out on January 31st via Slumberland Records.

Feeling Figures Celebrate East Coast Jaunt with New Video!!!

Nearly two months ago, Canadian outfit Feeling Figures dropped the super Everything Around You LP into our laps; it was filled with a refreshing brand of indie rock that managed to incorporate old and new sounds all simultaneously. This week, the band are coming from the Great North to play some shows in Philly (11.14), NYC (11.15), Boston (11.16), and New Haven (11.17). Despite being bummed they’re New York trip was a week after my own, I love that they’ve got a great video from the title track. When you press play, the song sort of noodles; it’s playing in a familiar sort of post-Sonic Youth territory, indicating it’s just the band locking into their own internal sound. Just before the minute mark hits, the pop rolls in, coming across like a slight more dissonant Broadcast; I absolutely adore this track! If you haven’t picked up a copy, it’s available now through K/Perennial.

Jaeger Shares Brainiac Single

Jaeger is the artist’s name, and not the brand, thus they are not releasing new Brainiac stuff…just to be clear. That said, I was instantly thrown into this song, as it weaves this sort of Elephant 6 left-of-pop sound into a grungier bit of bedroom pop. It toys with your senses, plugs into the distortion, then bounces back into the hook-laden section you can’t get out of your way. I can also hear bits of Unicorns or anything with Nick Thorburn associated in the sound, kind of just left of the dial, but definitely with a twist of classic pop vibes. Look for this song to appear on the upcoming 300 Worms EP.

Sassyhiya Say Thank You and Goodbye

Don’t mind us, as we’re sitting on the sidelines watching the new LP from Sassyhiya blow up over here. Luckily, they’ve just recently his us with another spritely video ditty, which, of course, we’re going to cover. For me, this song is all about its movement from within, as the track shifts between poignant and playful, all dependent on the musical element constantly mixing it up. The bouncing chorus is so joyous, it almost makes it hard to realize that this is sort of an indiepop diss track. If you like your pop music playful, then don’t be shy, go grab Take You Somewhere from Skep Wax Records now!

Fantastic Purple Spots Announce Spotsylvania Lullabies EP

Things have slowed down a little bit at ATH Records, as dad life is in full bloom, but we were fortunate to begin this year by offering up Fantastic Purple Spots Vibrations Now EP; we decided there’s no better way to end the year than to introduce you to Spotsylvanian Lullabies, the group’s new EP. Opening track “Flowerland” has them jumping into the pastoral version of traditional psychedelia, weaving a marauding bit of guitar sounds around a steadily locked in groove; you have to settle right and just let those fiery riffs echo in your speakers. The second vocal go round has some quieted backing vocals, building in this beautiful texture, letting this groove take on a slight hint at melody as it broods. We’re stoked the band has let us work with them yet again, and we’ll be happy to point you towards Spotsylvanian Lullabies when it drops on December 6th.

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