Bandcamp notifications in your mailbox: love ’em or hate ’em? If you ask me on any Bandcamp Friday, you’ll probably get a quiet response, a shake of the head. I am probably thinking of the 100+ BC notifications in my mail knowing that once I’ve finished wading through them, there are 20+ new ones waiting for me. Those are probably my least favorite mail days. The best kind? Reading that, out of the blue, one of my favorite bands have a new release out. You know that animated gif of Jerry’s (the mouse antagonist of Tom the cat) heart beating out of his chest? That was me receiving an email a couple of days ago announcing that The Whiffs have a new release out with two unreleased tracks from their Scratch’N’Sniff studio sessions – arguably one of the finest power pop records in recent history.
The official statement is that the release is in “celebration of The Whiffs‘ upcoming West Coast Tour, August ’23.” But listening to these two songs, I have to believe Dig! Records is humble bragging, like how good must this band be if they can leave out these two songs from Scratch’N’Sniff. The Whiffs surely had reasons to do so, with less-is-more as the most reasonable argument, but Satellite and As I Am are of the same high quality as the rest of the songs on Scratch’N’Sniff. The crying guitar licks of Satellite alone making the hairs on my arm raise. And As I Am features killer guitar work and great melodies.
Two perfect power pop songs available for a name-your-price download is one hell of a deal from Dig! and The Whiffs. I can’t wait to discover what the label has in store once The Whiffs announce their world tour.
Add to wantlist: Bandcamp