Kiwi Jr Drop Night Vision Single
Kiwi Jr have a slew of really great records under their belt, so it’s no surprise they’ve got the support of Sub Pop. I spent a lot of time with both Football Money and Cooler Returns, so I’ve got high expectations for the forthcoming Chopper LP. This new tune sees the band kind of branching into this warm pop territory; it reminds me a lot of the last Strokes record (which I don’t mind); I think the fading vocal in the chorus hits just the right notes. It’ll be interesting to hear the whole of the record, as it seems like the band have less of a Pavement nod and a bit more polish this go round…still, a good jam is a good jam, and this is certainly one of those. Chopper is out August 12th.
Jimmy Hewitt, aka 
When we began this blog back in the day, I covered Gentleman Jesse quite a bit; his work as a power pop revisionist had my attention from the start, and I felt like Leaving Atlanta was tragically overlooked. So, here we are a good ten years later, and Jesse Smith returns; he quietly dropped Lose Everything last Fall, and now there’s a brand new EP he’s working on for Third Man Records. The EP features a cover of “True” by Atlanta band the Fans, as well as this stomping ripper co-written with Greg Oblivion. Grab the Compass EP over 
Strangely, when this new track from Hellrazor drops in, I thought to myself, “I wish this is what that new Hum record sounded like.” But, with that spacey noise up front, the noise recedes, opening up this tune to a bit more of a melodic draw, pulling back the covers on the band’s pop tendencies. Still, you can hear the thump of the drums, tempered since their opening pummel; they take the chorus and help launch the song into this wall swell of ferocious noise, albeit one with a softened underbelly. Plus, those in need of the heavy fix get a mid-track breakdown with furious drum work that doesn’t quit until your ears are bloodied and the song crawls to a close.
I’ve definitely been enjoying the jams from