Indie Rock

New album: cootie catcher || Shy at first

Experimental Toronto twee pop infused with ones and zeros

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

If you like your indie music quirky, playful, and a little twee, Shy at First, the new LP/Tape from Cootie Catcher, is well worth a listen. The Toronto four-piece may have the standard setup of bass, guitar, and drums, but they’re anything but conventional. With multiple vocalists, synths, DJ scratches, and electronic beats also in the mix, Cootie Catcher take their alt pop in unexpected and exciting directions.

They have a bit of that Architecture in Helsinki energy—twee pop infused with ones and zeros, bouncing between catchy hooks and offbeat experimentation. There are underground pop gems like Words Mean Less and instant earworms like Friend of a Friend, but for most of the tracklist, expect the unexpected. And expect to be entertained.

Initially, Shy at First might seem like an oddball record, but give it a few spins, and it starts to feel like a group of new friends you can’t wait to hang out with again and again.

Shy at First is out now on Cooked Raw.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Olivia’s World || Greedy & Gorgeous

Olivia’s World is worth exploring

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

Based in Sydney, formed during a stint in Vancouver, and shaped by a love of U.K. underground pop and the U.S. riot grrrl movement, Olivia’s World is firmly of this planet—yet hard to pin down. Led by Alice Rezende, the band takes a freewheeling approach on their debut full-length, Greedy & Gorgeous, blending twee sensibilities with a whole lot of alt-pop and noise-pop energy.

It’s fuzzy indie pop with bite, veering from the dissonant chaos of Baby Bathwater to the undeniable radio-friendliness of Healthy & Wealthy, a track that could have slotted neatly into the ‘90s alt-rock scene. Then there’s Sourgum, which channels a modern indie punk spirit. Slacker vibes and a sense of urgency somehow coexist in Olivia’s World, making this a surprisingly cool and unpredictable listen.

Greedy & Gorgeous is out now on Little Lunch Records and Lost Sound Tapes.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Dick Texas || All That Fall

Valerie Salerno and the art of the unexpected

By / / Indie Pop, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

Ever wondered what Mazzy Star would sound like if Hope Sandoval was backed by an untamed rhythm section that behaved paradoxically? Me neither, but that’s about what you can expect from Dick Texas, the noisy slowcore project of Detroit-based songwriter Valerie Salerno (guitar, vocals), also featuring Jack McKay (guitar, percussion, vocals), Adis Kaltak (bass, mellotron, lapsteel, percussion, vocals), Willy Kipps (drums, percussion), Indira Edwards (viola) and Sree Kota (violin).

Their debut full-length All That Fall contains seven idiosyncratic songs—almost 37 minutes in total—in which dreamy folk pop full of grief seemingly effortlessly blends with experimental dissonance (for example, in opening track Long Dirt Driveway you first hear the clattery lead-up to the oyster being broken open for 2 and a half minutes, only then does the pearl inside reveal itself). It works better than you might expect, as alienating and mysterious as it is—beautiful and intriguing.



All That Fall, produced by Valerie Salerno and Adis Kaltak, is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Tortilla Flat Recordings.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: So Cow || Rebel Bishop

Yet another catchy, unpolished indie rock record from this Irish band's, perhaps their most consistent yet

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Power Pop / Leave a Comment

I believe Rebel Bishop is the eighth full-length by Irish indie rockers So Cow, a band that’s been around since the mid-’00s and has built up a discography well worth exploring—especially if you like your indie rock catchy and unpolished. There are plenty of gems to unearth in their past work, but their latest album stands out as one of their most consistent. It’s as if they’ve perfected the balance between sounding loose and fully in control.

Take 1993, for example—one of the more laid-back tracks, yet it carries the kind of vocal melody that makes you wonder if it’s a lost pop classic from decades ago. When the percussion finally kicks in at the one-minute mark, it’s a subtle but telling moment, proof of the band’s patience and confidence in their songwriting.

That’s what I love about So Cow. The songs on Rebel Bishop work on a surface level—scrappy, up-tempo tracks like Rebel Bishop I and The Marian Years are instantly enjoyable. But if you really sit with the album, you start to notice just how much depth is packed into these songs. There’s more to So Cow than meets the ear.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Nära Döden || Villkorslöst

Imagine Marked Men and Alvvays joining forces

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Punk / 2 Comments

Damn, I forgot how cool Nära Döden is. Their new 10-song record Villkorslöst is an essential indie punk listen—dark, infectious, and impossible to shake. True to their name (which translates to Near Death), these songs aren’t exactly bursting with joy, but they hit hard in the best way. Drawing from ’70s post-punk and the 2000s Swedish punk and indie scene, the band somehow sounds like Marked Men and Alvvays joining forces—if that makes sense.

Nära Döden doesn’t need more than a couple of chords and two to three minutes to leave a lasting impression. Even if Swedish isn’t your first (or even fifth) language, the emotional weight of these songs is undeniable. Singer Hanna Winberg brings a rawness to her voice that sets the band apart even further.

Songs like Missar tåg and Helvete? I’ll take those for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—no hesitation. Villkorslöst is out now on LP via Septembernatt Records.

Add to wantlist: Septembernatt

New EP: Greygarden || I Don’t See It Coming

Promising debut from Kansas quartet

By / / Country & Folk, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

Greygarden is a new indie rock band from Lawrence, Kansas, featuring Chris Elliott (vocals, rhythm guitar), Ty Q. Harris (lead guitar), Cael Harris (keys), and Henry Parks (drums). They make their debut with the 7-track I Don’t See It Coming EP, that sounds more mature—solid and thoughtful—than you might expect from such young guys. They deliver rootsy duels between piano and guitars (alternately swinging, jangly or subdued), with raw and powerful vocals, guaranteed to bring a smile. The title song that opens the EP is the undisputed highlight here, but the versatile tunes that follow show that the quartet has more up its sleeve.



I Don’t See It Coming is out now digitally via You Serious? Productions.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Lone Striker || Lone Striker

Tom Brown strikes again, this time in unanticipated ways

By / / Alternative Rock, Country & Folk, Indie Pop, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

That Tom Brown fella sure knows how to keep things interesting, huh? Between Rural France and Teenage Tom Petties, he’s already got his hands full with two underground darlings. And now, here comes another project—Lone Striker—straight from his bedroom. They say that’s where the magic happens, though in Tom Brown’s case, I suspect it involves more cables and coffee than candles and cuddles.

But let’s stay on topic. Lone Striker is more than just another home-recorded project; it’s a major departure from Brown’s usual sound, even when several of the songs are easily reimagined as TTP songs. Brown spent five years shaping this record, driven by his love for warped Americana acts like Silver Jews and Sparklehorse. Not only did he take his time, but he also threw in all sorts of oddball instruments, loops, and samples, resulting in an album that’s both intimate and unpredictable.

Lone Striker is the kind of record that sneaks up on you, the perfect soundtrack for a productive workday or a long drive to nowhere in particular. It drifts in and out of focus, sometimes hazy and dreamlike, other times hitting with laser precision. The laid-back drum loops pulse like a heartbeat, guiding your breathing without you even noticing. And then there are the surprises—because this album is full of them.

The late-summer melancholy of Dunno will have your BBQ guests asking for the artist and song. Funny Way of Showing It sounds like a lost ’60s pop hit, stripped-down and lo-fi but irresistibly catchy. Cursed Like Roy cranks up the Phil Spector vibes, while Never Blown a Kiss starts so unexpectedly I had to check whether I was still listening to the same album. And that chorus hook? Absolutely massive.

As a fan of Rural France and Teenage Tom Petties, I figured I’d enjoy this. But even so, Lone Striker caught me off guard in the best way possible. Out now on Safe Suburban Home, Repeating Cloud, and Hidden Bay Records.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp (SSH & RC) || Hidden Bay

New album: Amusement || First 3 EPs

Portland punk rock with heart and volume

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

Amusement dropped their third EP last week, and it’s a triple win. I have yet to hear a song by this Portland quartet that I don’t like. Their latest Holding On EP—now available for a pre-order as a 7″ on Dirt Cult Records—is every bit as strong as their dual debut singles from late 2023.

If you like your melodies raw and noisy, Amusement should be at the top of your listening pile. They’re loud, they hit hard, and their noise is oh-so-melodic—playing the kind of punk rock that could only come from musicians with a healthy dose of hardcore and alt-rock in their record collections and a great deal of chemistry. Think Jawbreaker meets Dag Nasty meets Farside meets Superchunk meets Dinosaur Jr. Powerful stuff with loads of heart.

Right now, Amusement have built a 7-song discography that lands somewhere between fantastic and awesome. And you can now own all three EPs on a 7″—or grab the full collection on one convenient LP, courtesy of Shield Recordings and Brassneck Records (pre-order available, expected to ship late April or early May). As a bonus, they’ve thrown in a Dinosaur Jr. cover (Budge) that was recorded specifically for this purpose.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Shield || Brassneck

New album: Yuasa-Exide || Hyper at the Gates of Dawn

Douglas Busson's latest is outsider music at its best

By / / Alternative Rock, Garage Rock, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

At Add to Wantlist, we like our music raw and real, and few recent discoveries embody that spirit as fully as Yuasa-Exide. No need to rehash the backstory of resilience behind this project—we covered that before. Let’s focus on the music, because Douglas Busson has delivered another lo-fi masterpiece. He handled most of Hyper at the Gates of Dawn himself, with bass and piano contributions from musical friends, plus Emily Gerber lending her voice to the opening track.

The 14 tracks on “Hyper” start off easy to like, then slowly work their way into your system, becoming hypnotic, then downright addictive. This is outsider music at its most unfiltered—no shine, no polish, just raw creativity. The kind of thing Neutral Milk Hotel or Guided by Voices could release as a rarities collection, sparking endless deep dives and discussions among devoted fans.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Telethon || Suburban Electric

Wisconsin's hard pop band's sixth album is as manic as it is melodic

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Power Pop, Punk / Leave a Comment

The sixth Telethon LP is a concept album of sorts, subtitled “11 different character studies delivered via rock & roll.” It blends the band’s trademark sound into an ambitious package—one that veers into breakdowns, theatrics and manic sidesteps, throws in surprise instruments like French horn, clarinet, and viola, and even gives a soundbite from The Exorcist III a prominent spot (on I Believe in Slime).

At its core, though, Suburban Electric is a dynamic, pop-punk-leaning indie rock record that’s an absolute blast. Some may call it (modern) power pop, and the band’s Bandcamp tagline currently reads “powerpoppunkrock for the modern kids.” But I prefer their original self-description: Wisconsin Hard Pop.

Album available now on LP, CD & Tape at Halloween Records.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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