Tag: special friend

Top Albums for Nathan

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Honestly, I thought about foregoing a year-end list this year. I mean, if you read our site, you know what we love. But, list making can be fun, especially if you really really love music. My criteria was simple, and not based on what I think is “best,” but rather looking at the stuff I listened to the most, and eventually bought (or was gifted). Popular locals for my Nathan Wrapped have me living on an island in between San Francisco and Australia; label of the year would be Trouble in Mind (congrats to Bill and family!); genre would be: most awesome. Again, this is one man’s personal tastes, take it for what its worth.

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Special Friend Release Selkie Video

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Is it a seal or is it a human? Well, depends on how you look at the mythological Selkie, the title of the latest single from Special Friend…but who am I to decided for you? What I can tell you is that this might be the tastiest bit of pop music you’re going to hear today. I was hooked with the guitar notes immediately, setting me up to swoon later once the duo opted to combine their voices so seamlessly. In doing so, there’s something in the sound that seems like a lantern floating through the sky, filled with the promise of tomorrow. There’s this tonal switch and string arrangement after the two minute mark that cut right to the core, so I fell in love with the tune all over again. The group will release Wait Until the Flames Come Rushing In via Skep Wax, Hidden Bay and Howlin’ Banana on June 27th.

Last Week’s Jams (4.3 – 4.7)

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There was a ton of great music dropping last week, which seems to be the norm for this Spring…not that we mind one bit. I tried to give some love to our Austin friends like Jana Horn and Letting Up Despite Great Faults, who both dropped new releases…and new tunes from Batty Jr. and Born Twins too, so keeping the ATX alive. It was good to hear new stuff from Estonia’s Pia Fraus, who’ve always crafted great landscape shoegaze. New stuff from Cindy and Beach Fossils wasn’t a bad way to slide into the week either, but we closed it out with a fun feature between My Favorite and Holy Wire. Check it all out.

Special Friend Announce Wait Until the Flames Come Rushing In

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What happens when you get three great indie labels together to release a new LP? Well, if you ask me, bringing Skep Wax, Howlin’ Banana, and Hidden Bay all together to release a new LP from Special Friend, then you’ve got the guarantee of a solid batch of songs. Our first listen is the hypnotic tune below, working with this guitar shuffle that circles beneath the surface of dual vocal work. There’s something in the way the guitar feels like its rushing you forwards that’s thrown in juxtaposition to what’s the melodic overlapping from the vocals. In a way, it sort of sounds like something Sonic Youth would have put out if they were into lo-fi indie pop…warranting a positive nod on my end of things! We’ll give you more updates on the release date of Wait Until the Flames Come Rushing In when we’ve got em’.

Special Friend Share Ennemi Commun

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Not too long ago I raved about “Pastel,” the first single from Special Friend‘s forthcoming Ennemi Commun album…and here we are today with the LPs title track. Rather than dwell on the sweetness of the first single, this one pushes you into the fuzzy arena of that sort of porto-psych-pop, like someone who went to Levitation festival that was really into everything Laetitia Sadler’s done then churned this out on the other side. And I’m not complaining one bit. Plus, Erica gets the spotlight on this one, riding in between the fuzzy edges with this distant support from Guillaume, or so it would seem. I love the wobbly synth lines in there too, all before the song jettisons out into this spacey rock exploration. Ennemi Commun drops on March 26th!

Special Friend Share Pastel Video

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The latest single from Special Friend, well, its quite special. It’s a double edged pop affair, with this incredibly charming guitar work that gives it that old school sort of indie pop feel…the sort you’d expect to hear back in the 80s circle of pop. Still, its steadied by this really solitary percussive element, which allows for the song to structure the vocals, which ultimately win you over. I mean, these two voices are so perfectly fitting its hard to imagine either one existing without the other. Plus, just as the ghost on the video has captivated you; the 2:40 mark brings with it this uptick in energy, bringing out this frantic bit of jangling pop that should be played on all your speakers today! Ennemi Commun will be released by Hidden Bay Records/Howlin Banana on March 26th.

Special Friend Share Before Video

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Two things that Special Friendhave going for them at the moment…1) they reference a mix of Yo La Tengo/the Pastels in their sound 2) they hail from the same scene that’s given us recent faves like En Attendant Ana and Marble Arch. I mean, that would be enough, usually, but they’ve also go the songwriting chops to back that up. I love the casual quality of the guitars, sharp chords ringing brightly before quieted picking comes in. They also meld their vocals perfectly, with huge shared melodies that should warm any fan of good pop music. They’ll be releasing their new EP on September 27th via Howlin Banana Records!

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