This is fine.
SXSW officially opens today, though the music doesn’t roll out until the weekend. With that in mind, we’d like to re-introduce you to Snacktime, who’ve taken the time to fill out our little mini-survey in regards to their adventure to our town. I love how they claim to be channeling Prince, Parliament and Sly/Family Stone in their sound, which bodes well for audiences looking to have a great time. Meet the group below!
It’s all about guitars and sunny riffs over here with Jangus Kangus; this song opens up like a fresh blossom on your favorite tree, which I’m hoping coincides with Spring time! The guitar notes on this song danced brightly from the get-go, magically spinning listeners before the vocals join in the party. While there’s some immediacy in this track, I appreciate the way they pull you back and forth, spring you forward with brightness, then pulling you back into a more contemplative realms of dreamy pop goodness. This is just another offering from their forthcoming debut LP, which is shaping up to be a nice ray of sunshine…look for it this April!
There’s not too much information floating about in regards to Strange Lounge, but I’ve been really enjoying their latest single. For some reason, it feels like a David Lynch film, like driving along that lost highway towards an unknown end. As much as that leaks through into the sound, they pull back the curtains on a countering vocal, offering a more ethereal female voice to work against the heavy darkness that operates on the surface. Musically, it’s all about the combination of that stabbing guitar note dancing along with the breakbeat that brings about the song’s lifeblood.
One of the most exciting acts I caught last year at SXSW was Perennial; they were perhaps the single best live performance I caught of the whole festival…following that up with the excellent Art History. They’ve quietly returned to the masses today with a brand new single and a new EP on the horizon, with the promise of a British invasion nod in their stylings. Listening through this first track, it kind of sounds like an early International Noise Conspiracy tune, working with a bluesy verse then erupting with an emphatic punch in the chorus. This is the rock n’ roll you’re here for! Perennial 65′ drops on April 4th.
We may as well stay in Oakland at this early hour, and since I missed the original announcement, it’s time we dedicate a little of our morning to the Reds, Pinks and Purples. Glenn Donaldson andhis conspirators have spent a great portion of the last few years working voraciously for Slumberland and Tough Love, but this week they announced a signing to legendary Fire Records. Their first release will be a compilation of rare tracks, which likely includes the tune below, as it had been up for a minute on the group’s Bandcamp page; there’s a debut LP scheduled for later in 2025, which I’m sure we’ll hear more about soon! Congrats Glenn.
So as to not be too rock forward today, I pulled back a bit to offer you this new tune from Oakland’s Hectorine, which offers more of a slow-dance pop style you’ll hopefully enjoy. There’s something in this that sounds like a montage scene from 80s pop culture, whether its the trickling keyboard notes or the saxophone billowing in the distance, it’s all about the mood altering style that changes your morning perspective. If you’re in the market for something a little subtle and not quite so in your face, sink into your chair and soak up the warmth of Hectorine; they’ll release Arrow of Love via Take a Turn Records on May 23rd
There’s a lot of really great music out there, but the world needs a band like the Gotobeds in the musical rotation, a reminder of our most basic rock instincts. They’ve mostly been silent since Debt Begins at 30 (nearly 5 years ago now), but upon their return, they don’t seem to have skipped a step, cranking out a brand of working class indie rock that feels fresh and vital every inch of the way. They get up and drive themselves into their job, banging out every last bit of sound from their guitars; the vocals are scratching at their limits, and the drums bang like a hammer…and yet, when the job’s done, they just shut off and head home. Now, just because the first instinct you feel is their aggression, don’t be tricked, as the underlying pop pieces are what make this band a necessity. They’ll release Masterclass on May 16th via 12XU Records.
There’s nothing better on a Friday than cranking up your stereo and just letting the rock songs rip, so wanted to start off this Friday on the right foot by sharing this big hook-laden pop rocker from Dew Claw. The band are an all-business pop rock outfit, as you can tell by the way they just kick in with these high octane distorted riffs that help you smash through walls. That said, they’re not shying away from their anthemic inclinations, building a set of huge riffs matched only by the huge hooks that bounce right through the chorus. Their new album, E.L.F. is out this May via Dromedary Records.
Just because we are out here prepping for that thing going down next week, doesn’t mean the world of new music plans to stop for us. My jam(s) of the day comes by way of Columbus based outfit Smug Brothers and their new single “Take It Out On Me” with accompanying B-side “Constellation of Eight.” Both tracks offer a very throwback, DIY, sort of garage meets indie sound akin to something you might hear in the late 90s Sub Pop scene. Get your dancin’ shoes on for the A-side and then stick around for the B-side to be serenaded away.
These tracks are part of the new Smug Brothers album Stuck On Beta, which is due out on June 6th via Anyway Records.
High upon my list of releases this Spring is the new solo effort from Dean Wareham, who just happens to be one of my musical go-tos. On this latest single, the song seems like it’s going to be a somber affair, lightly drifting along, guitar notes intertwining with the melody. Listen to the 48 second mark, and you’ll start to hear a new layer of guitar that lifts the song into a superb little pop dance that sparkles like a classic tune from the days of yore. Dean’s new LP, That’s the Price of Loving Me, will be out on March 28th via Carpark Records.
