This is fine.
Team ATH ventured out into the cold and rainy evening to make one last go of it all. With tons of acts all about town, I feel like we did a great job covering Levitation in its entirety, so it was good to wrap it all up with one final night of great music.
We had a busy week here at ATH, prepping for the festival by throwing some Levitation interviews your way, but there was still tons of music to get out there. We ran some conversations with Video Age, Pachyman, Civic and Shannon and the Clams…plus, I got a Rock n’ Recipe in from the good folks at Lower Plenty. So, lots of words to read from other folks on their music. We also had fresh tunes all over the place from ATH favorites like the Umbrellas, Steven van Betten and Glimmer. Pretty busy week with tons to talk about, so be sure to browse through the site too…as there’s more than just sweet jams from last week!
This week is the week! Hoping that I’ll be able to catch Pachyman this week, as I’ve been super jamming to his latest LP, Switched-On. It’s a collection of Latin influenced dub, with hints of indie and psychedelic grooves…and to be honest, a sound that’s probably more obscure than it deserves to be. So, we reached out, caught up…and here we go!
While it seemed like a slow week, in my brain at least, there was lots of really great stuff to cover over on the site. We were happy to host the new video from Seablite, so be sure you drop in and give it a couple of looks. Plus, our Rock n’ Recipes features returned with Spain’s Melenas, who dropped their new Ahora LP on Friday. Plus, Austin was alive and kicking with new stuff from Molly Burch, Semihelix and Sun June. Seeing our old friends in Pop Filter return to the fold was just a little cherry on top of a great week of music. There’s lots more for you to find in this playlist!
I’ll finally get to catch Pachyman when he comes through at the end of October for Levitation; I love the way he’s working Latin sounds into a modern take on dub, sort of branching out between the two styles. For me, this song is a sunny meditation on the grooves of Pachyman, with the rhythm working beneath the sharp little bits of jangling guitar notes, while we get our musical narrator sashaying through this brightly colored video. It’s all about settling in, embracing the chill cool vibes coming through your speaker with the sun up over your head. Switched-On is out Friday via ATO Records, with a huge tour to follow, so keep any eye out friends!
It was definitely a busy week on my end, but we pushed through and still managed to crank out some really great music for you all. RayRay got to run the sweet new album stream for Grimson‘s new LP, and I was just hopping all over the place like musical ADHD music junkie I am. Had some good power-pop from the Slow Summits and Colored Lights, to give you some energy. Some great ballad work by Austin artists Feeling Small and Daily Worker to warm and make you cry at once. Plus, I got to bump that new jam from Pachyman, not to mention our weekly dose of all the goods from Australia like Lower Plenty, Screensaver, and Vintage Crop. Stream on below, amigo!
There are so many artists coming to Levitation next month, but aside from Ted Leo and Chisel, the next act on my mind is Pachyman. This new single feels like a beachfront, cocktail-sipping good time, as it employs bits of Latin vibes with sprinkles of dub and modern production to really just hit this groove you can’t get pass on…nor do you want to! The video is humorous, with Pachyman himself playing all the instruments in various outfits, claiming all the musical fame on his own. Switched-On is out on September 29th via ATO Records.
We’re still in the middle of a great year of music, and as we hit that sweet spot, there seem to be more tracks coming out every day; we try to cover as much as we can, but admittedly, we’re not perfect! It was really nice to see Emma Anderson of Lush pop her head up with a brand new track from her forthcoming solo LP. Personally, I loved that new Pachyman jam, as that guy rules and I’m totally hoping everyone catches on to his vibe. A little Austin love for Holy Wave who continue to impress with the sounds of their new LP. Then there’s old ATH faves like Pia Fraus and Tan Cologne, plus the Who Is She supergroup making the cut too. Browse, stream, enjoy.
Honestly, I’m a super-avid Pachyman fan. I was super stoked to hear that he’d be making his way to Austin for Levitation, and now I’m equally stoked to hear that he’s got a new record coming out this year. The LA instrumentalist definitely lets his Latin roots shine in his work, and yet there’s something in his style that makes it feel more than an homage…its an intangible something that makes it feel like part of the lifeblood of the modern Latin music. Plus, he’s still flirting with his love of Jamaican dub, but making it entirely his own sound, and I’m going to keep jamming this tune all day long. Switched On is out via ATO on September 29th.
Jumping into this week by looking back at last week, in the most uncool fashion, using a Spotify playlist; the world’s probably going to stop dead right there. But, last week had some rad tunes, with friends Half Dream and Squiggles both jumping in with new tunes for us. Plus, we got to revisit some recents releases from Tat Songs and The High Water Marks. And ultimately, got to meet some new faces, at least to me, like Sooner and Erasers. But, I’m starting it off with that super rad Pachyman jam, so sit back and get grooving into your Monday.
