I was apprehensive the first time I hear “The Tower” by Wye Oak. The new track, off Andy Stack and Jenn Wasner’s forthcoming LP Shriek, is so vastly different from their previous material, I was almost initiated the metaphorical reject button. Gave it a few days, and tried it again with better results.
Author: Andy Fenstermaker
Odonis Odonis to release ‘Dissed And Dismissed’ April 15 on Buzz Records
Whenever I receive something new from Odonis Odonis, I always have flashbacks to an early EP of theirs. It’s loud, post-punk styling is deep and thick. But the new releases always surprise me. They’re not overpowering. They’re not filled with the gloom and black death that I see in my head.
The Mary Onettes: Portico
The Mary Onettes returned last week with their new album, Portico, now out on Swedish label Labrador Records. The band maintains their somewhat dark, 80s style of pop, like a softer, smoother New Order. It’s most obvious in the short LPs second single “Native Dreamâ€.
September Girls’ Debut LP ‘Cursing the Sea’ is Out Now on Fortuna Pop!
Oh September Girls. These days, your heavily distorted female dominated pop group is somewhat run-of-the-mill. That sound blew up in the indie masses with Vivan Girls, and it continued with spinoffs Frankie Rose, Best Coast and La Sera. Hell, you even hear a bit of that sound in WOODS-related band The Babies.
Wyrd Visions Reissues Half-Eaten Guitar
Stopping by The Business in Anacortes the other day, owner Nick and I had a chat about local label P.W. Elverum & Sun’s forthcoming release of the somewhat long lost Half-Eaten Guitar by Wyrd Visions.
Chad VanGaalen: Where Are You
To be honest, I almost entirely overlooked Diaper Island, Chad VanGaalen’s 2011 LP on Sub Pop. It just didn’t have the same upbeat nature as his 2008 LP, Soft Airplane, a favorite of that year. His latest venture, Shrink Dust (out next month on Sub Pop), won’t succumb to the same fate.
Virgin Of The Birds: Interview
For those unaware, Virgin Of The Birds is the brainchild of Seattle musician and Abandoned Love Records label head Jon Rooney. Virgin Of The Birds has a new album on the way late this month called Winter Seeds. I recently sat down with Rooney, with whom I’ve been acquainted since my discovery of The Lovely…
Belgian Fog: Loveless Way (Premiere)
KEXP’s Robert Dale is back with a new track called “Loveless Way” from his solo project Belgian Fog. Like his previous singles “Wait For Help” and “You Drive Me to Madness”, “Loveless Way” is an electro-fused pop song with plenty of glorious beats, a few nods to synth-based genres of past, and a deeply introspective…
The Rebel Set: How To Make A Monster
How To Make A Monster by The Rebel Set came out just about a month ago on Burger Records. I picked up a copy of the cassette and it has accompanied me on my 60 mile round-trip commute ever since. Drenched in a garage-y reverb with a subtle distortion in the vocal track, Phoenix band’s…
Morgan Delt’s Self-Titled LP out now on Trouble In Mind
Morgan Delt fits the Trouble In Mind mold. That’s to say his thick psychedelic-pop is drenched in layers of complexity of label-mates like Jacco Gardner, MMOSS and Maston. His new self-titled LP on the label dropped yesterday.