toledo - Austin Town Hall

Vern Matz Shares Reality Bites

October 17, 2022 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

I totally love listening to Vern Matz‘s voice; there’s something so seemingly honest in his delivery that I just instantly find myself falling in deep. On his latest single, Matz gives you a bare-bones acoustic performance, with the weight of the strum coming through to give the song just a hint of punch. It makes sense that there’s production work from Toledo on this tune, as they share a similar laid back attitude to songwriting, though elevated from the tried and bored Americana of old. If you’re looking for something soft and smooth to set you on your way this Monday morning, then by all means, nestle up to this track; there’s a new album coming real soon!

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Stream This: Cool Sounds + Toledo + Kelly Duplex

February 12, 2021 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

It’s Friday…and I just wanted to point you in the direction of some jams that have been on rotation around these parts, just in case you don’t have the time to really browse through the web and find that magic. So here’s a couple of suggestions on my end.

Cool Sounds are an Aussie outfit we’ve supported for some time, and today they release Bystander around the world. For me, I’ve been drawn to “Back to Me” since I first heard it, so I’m sticking with that as my favorite slow burn on the LP, but, there’s this subtle sunlight from “South of France.”

<a href="https://coolsounds1.bandcamp.com/album/bystander">Bystander by Cool Sounds</a>

And, earlier this week we tossed out a tune from Toledo, and the band drop their Jockeys of Love EP today. It’s a collection of well written ballads with just a faint hint of that subtle emo sound; it reminds me a lot of Good Morning, offering just good clean guitar tunes to bounce around in your head.

TOLEDO Jockeys of Love

Kelly Duplex‘s debut LP is something I’ve been raving about the last few months, sharing every little single I could. Well, today’s the day you get to hear it in its entirety, courtesy of Strange Daisy. Plus, if you’re a collector of vinyl, you’ve got to see all the limited edition colors they’re offering…on top of these rad songs!

<a href="https://kellyduplex.bandcamp.com/album/kelly-duplex">Kelly Duplex by kelly duplex</a>

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Toledo Share Sunday Funday Video

February 9, 2021 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

This Friday Toledo will be dropping their brand new Jockeys of Love EP, and as we near, the duo have opted to share another great single to tickle your ears. This one offers a playful video to accompany the serious subject matter of dealing with alcohol dependency in new relationships. For me, the joy of the project is the way they apply delicate brush strokes to their vocal delivery; take a listen at the syllabic rise just before the minute mark…a nice pop nugget that gets dropped in from time to time throughout the track. As the song fades to a close, the music just has this bubbling effervescence that reminds you of all the joy the previous three minutes brought you on their listen! The new EP is out on Friday via Telefono.

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Gentle Pop from Toledo

November 9, 2018 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

Some days I want my rock n’ roll nice and loud, some days I want it with a little jangle, but in the case of Toledo, I want my rock n’ roll nice and chilled out today. The group just dropped the latest single from their Hot Stuff EP, and while it takes on some dreamy tendencies in the meandering guitars, it’s a very settled piece of guitar pop music. I love how there’s this delicate quality to the vocals, as if they’re afraid that they could shatter the rest of the song by bursting forth. It’s the best sort of guitar tune, letting you drift off into your weekend adventures, at least mentally.

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