Indie Rock

New album: Mainland Break || One Way Ticket to Midnight

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

Denver, Colorado’s Mainland Break – Evan Oliver (vocals, acoustic guitar, keys), Kevin Kohl (vocals, bass), Travis Rice (guitar, synthesizer), Ian Gassman (guitar) and Steven Hennig (drums) – play jangling indie rock (or rocking jangle pop), which they do in a pretty exciting way. After their debut EP Short Stay (May 2019), they now return with their first full-length album. As its title suggests, the One Way Ticket to Midnight LP takes us “through a lonely, reflective night that recalls distant friendships, lost love, and missed opportunity” – from sundown to sunrise. The idea is good, the execution even better. The lyrics are appealing (“I’m out tonight // To bark at the moon // My hair swept back // By a Dio tune” – from the title track), but it’s the way they are declaimed – polyphonic and infectious – that makes them come alive. However, it’s the tight guitars and thumping beats – energetic and inspired – that really make this record a glorious experience.




One Way Ticket to Midnight, produced by Mark Anderson, is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP (self-released). RIYL: Rolling Blackouts C.F., Ducks Ltd., R.E.M., Kiwi Jr.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: The Wind-up Birds || “Pop​.​Thinking” (with E-shaped Stories video premiere)

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock / 1 Comment

The Wind-up Birds are an energetic post-punk four-piece based in Leeds (UK), active for about twenty years, and probably that’s why they are so much better and smarter than most bands that want to piggyback on the recent revival of the genre. On their new EP Pop​.​Thinking, you’ll hear four pieces of evidence of this – idea-stuffed, haunting and urgent. Paul Ackroyd (vocals), Mat Forrest (guitar, back-up vocals), Ben Dawson (bass) and Oli Jefferson (drums) deliver convincing poetry reading, stirring tempo changes and gripping harmony choruses, pulsing rhythms and mean guitar riffs, and omnipresent swinging keyboard melodies. But who’s that mysterious band member touching the keys? That question is central to the video for opening track E-shaped Stories, which we proudly premiere here. It may be the best music video of the year, at least the one with the most suspense so far, with images that give the lyrics – picking on Netflix binge culture – a double meaning (“I hope by the end that you fill in all the blanks // I’ll be so happy but I won’t say thanks”). Even if you might not get a satisfactory answer, these four songs are very worthwhile.

The E-shaped Stories video is created by Hyve Music. The Pop​.​Thinking EP is out now digitally and on CD through Sturdy Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: Ra Ra Viper || Pound For Pound

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

Ra Ra Viper are an Australian indie rock outfit featuring Oliver Bolt (vocals, guitar), Oliver Kruk (lead guitar), Jack Tesser (guitar, backing vocals), Julian Sanders (bass) and Harry Tesser (drums, backing vocals). In 2021 they released their debut EP Kawaii, which is now successfully followed by the six-track Pound For Pound EP. Personally I like sing-along stomper Sally (She Lies) the most, but I guess this is one of those bands where every listener has their own favorite tune. Expect vibrant music full of hooks, blissful, dynamic en energetic, with memorable guitar riffs and clever song structures. These guys are reportedly even more impressive live, so you know what to do.

Pound For Pound, produced/recorded/mixed by Andrew Lawson, is out now streaming and on vinyl 12″ (self-released). For fans of The Strokes, Noah Dillon, Razorlight, Eades, Kings of Leon.

Add to wantlist: Ra Ra Viper

New album: Life Strike || Peak Dystopia

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

If not for the occasional reference to modernity, Life Strike appear to come straight out of the postpunk/new wave scene of 1980s UK or the pop underground scene of New Zealand from the same era. Early R.E.M. and The Chills come to mind as well when listening to the latest LP by the Melbourne three-piece. Then again, Life Strike have a sci-fi feel to it in terms of mood and themes, so they may in fact be time travellers from four decades ago, who knows. I think they describe their sound as apocalypse pop, which I think is very cool. That also applies to how I’d rate Peak Dystopia: very cool, with no shortage of exceptional songs.

Peak Dystopia is out now on Stable Label (Australia) and Bobo Integral (Rest of the World).




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Bobo Integral

New EP: Gloriosa Rotonda || Fuera de Tiempo

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

Fuera de Tiempo can be translated as ‘out of time’, but for this release we are happy to make room in our schedule for fifteen minutes. We’re talking about the four new tracks from Spanish garage/psych rock outfit Gloriosa Rotonda, featuring Carlos Naval (vocals), Fernando Naval (guitar, backup vocals), Abel Maregil (guitar) and Tommy DeWolfe (bass). The musicians know how to fuse modern indie rock with vintage punk-funk rhythms – guitar riffs merge with synthesizer and drum machine arrangements – resulting in super exciting music. Surprises for the dance floor.


Fuera de Tiempo, produced by Pablo Thonon, is out now digitally through Estudio Mazmorra.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Private Lives || Hit Record

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

The debut LP by Private Lives (Montreal) comes with an exclamation mark rather than a question mark. It’s not just the cocky album title (Hit Record), it’s the sheer level of conviction and confidence they present themselves. Like a mix of Blondie, the B-52’s and Be Your Own Pet, Private Lives have a sense of urgency that is laudable. It’s like they are on a constant quest to find the sweet spot between pop catchiness, punk attitude and getting sprayed with cold water on the hottest days of Summer.

Listening to Hit Record, Private Lives make me believe you could put them on a bill with indie punk bands, a bill of postpunk bands, a bill of alt pop bands or a bill of garage bands and in neither case the audience would be complaining.

Hit Record is out now on Feel It Records. It contains the 5 songs of their 2022 debut EP as well as handful of new ones. It’s great.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs

New album: XXX Piss || XXX Piss

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

When your co-worker, a mainstream music loving person who knows you run a music blog, asks if you discovered any cool new music over the weekend, do you always tell them the truth?

Well, I took a liking this new band featuring members of The Hussy and Proud Parents.

“What are they called?”

Heather Sawyer and Liam Casey.

“No, I mean the band”.

You wouldn’t like ’em.

“Just tell me, I’ll google them.”

You wouldn’t like them, they play a wild and anarchic brand of garage pop that is scrappy, fun and playful. But much too ramshackle for your taste.

“Tell me.”

You sure?

“Yeah!”

Okay, they are called XXX Piss.

“…”

Please don’t Google them at the office. I’ll send you a link.

The debut album of XXX Piss is out now on Winsconsin label Nightbell Records.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Palehound || Eye On The Bat

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Wow. Is it me, or does Palehound sound razor sharp on their new album Eye Of The Bat. Few records in recent days has managed to reach this level of urgency, this level of vulnerability, and this level of authenticity. Eli Kempner uses words as arrows on a mission, and sings them with so much honesty and rawness, there is just no denying Eye On The Bat. This is powerful stuff, haunting and awesome.

Listening to Eye On The Bat feels a bit like opening my favorite book. I can find something memorable on each page. Kempner opens songs with lines like “I didn’t wanna see that bloody hand on your stomach that night,” “I’ve become the person I’d wanna punch in the face,” and “We broke up on Independence Day, crying while the next door neighbors raged.” Even though you are reluctant to discover the backstory to these outpourings, it’s impossible to look away. You want to know what happened. The music almost works as a soundtrack to the lyrics, sounding more ominously, hushed or cathartic depending on the emotions Kempner wants to evoke.

Kempner has created the perfect record for lovers of books, and the perfect short story collection for lovers of music. Eye On The Bat is a special kind of record. It is out now on Polyvinyl Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Polyvinyl

New album: Being Dead || When Horses Would Run

By / / Indie Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

Texas-based multi-instrumentalists Falcon Bitch and Gumball solidify their friendship and creativity in Being Dead, along with Ricky Moto. Their full-length debut album When Horses Would Run is so versatile and weird that you fall from one surprise to another, wondering whether all this was born out of naivety or genius, unsure of what to take seriously or not. We probably shouldn’t make it more complex than necessary: “We’re having a good time // We hope you’re having a good time too” (from We are Being Dead). Or take catchy ramshackle single Muriel’s Big Day Off, which I can’t get enough of, which tells a tale of two characters who spend their day doing exactly what they want. However, the delivery method of the thirteen stories here is anything but commonplace. Expect psychedelic indie rock that indulges in art punk, jazz, folk, surf and garage rock, a sound for which the term eclectic was coined, with lyrics that transport you to a confusing, non-existent world. Freaky and playful, guaranteed to captivate.



When Horses Would Run, produced by Falcon Bitch, Gumball & Jim Vollentine, is out now digitally and on cassette, CD and vinyl LP, through Bayonet Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Bayonet || Discogs

New EP: Goat Yoga || Don’t You Think I Wanna Go?

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

Goat Yoga, that sounds just crazy enough to be an actual thing in today’s society. I did a quick check on Google, and wouldn’t you know it, for the past 20 minutes I’ve been watching Youtube videos of Goat Yoga retreats, rubbing my forehead in the process. Don’t get me wrong, I love goats. I think they are one of the funnest animals on the planet. But Goat Yoga? Really?

How did I get here? It’s all because of a band called Goat Yoga. They are from Brooklyn and make the kind of music I have a soft spot for. Goat Yoga are not unlike Local Drags in the sense that they fuse the pace, hooks and pop sensibilities of powerpop with the energy and straightforwardness of pop punk. There is also a touch of Brit pop to the sound of Goat Yoga, particularly on the title track.

Despite their silly name, the six songs on the Don’t You Think I Wanna Go EP show enough promise to make me want to follow Goat Yoga. The band, that is.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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