Gem Club‘s bio begins with a simple, two-sentence statement: “There are times when beauty and sadness are inextricably linked. Massachusetts-based Gem Club understands this fragile symmetry.” The sheer essence of the band is captured here, in this brief moment. Read More »Gem Club: Hypericum
“I’m a Ghost”, the opening for the new 12 track Adios I’m a Ghost album from The Moondoggies, begins with 23 seconds of thick vocal harmony that is true to folk with its soothing and laid back nature. However, this is merely a false sense of security. With crashing drums from Carl Dahlen, and lively guitar riffs from Jon Potrello, The Moondoggies dive into the track “Red Eye”. Throughout this track, guitarist, Jon Potrello, adds tasteful guitar riffs and a lively solo that leaves listeners wanting more. Read More »The Moondoggies: Adios I’m a Ghost
I must admit, I was quite sad to hear that What The Heck Fest, an über indie music festival in Anacortes, WA, was coming to an end after ten years. While I had only attended a few, I caught a many great acts at the event, including The Hive Dwellers and Stephen Steinbrink. Good news: The Anacortes Unknown Music Series is gearing up to take its place. Read More »Coming Soon: The Anacortes Unknown Music Series #2
Australia’s Lost Animal is a conundrum. It’s a conundrum because I find it very difficult to describe. Preface: I’ve been enjoying the sounds of Ex Tropical since November. Far enough back that I attempted to put the album on my Top 50 LPs of 2012 list, despite noting its release date in my coverage of their superb video for “Say No To Thugs”. Read More »Lost Animal: Ex Tropical (Album Review)
There have been a lot of videos about death and murder this year. In “A Dark God Heart” by Sleep Party People, a little girl finds a body beneath the water in a bathtub. “A Game” by Ski Lodge has an American Psycho edge to it. A serial killer takes out Liars in “No. 1 Against The Rush”. There are more (these are the ones that are top of mind) and now there’s “Say No To Thugs” by Australia’s Lost Animal. Read More »Lost Animal: Say No To Thugs (Video)
There’s fuel here, power and angst. Unnatural Helpers is back with a new track called “Hate Your Teachers” and they… Read More »Unnatural Helpers: Hate Your Teachers MP3
“Fuck Off” is a somewhat departure from “Nightmare”, the first publicly available track off Grave Babies‘ debut Hardly Art EP, Gothdammit. Amidst a softly pleasant backdrop are slightly creepy, pseudo-surreal gothic images put forth by director Jordan Utley. The opening notes of the song are initially reminiscent of Bunkbed’s cover of Xiu Xiu’s “Fallen Angel II”, acting as the perfect opening tune for the new EP. After nearly two minutes, a beat kicks in, then guitars and finally vocals. This completes the cold wave circle. Read More »Grave Babies: Fuck Off (Video)
Somewhere under a mountain of music, somewhere behind boxes of stuff from the living room, tucked away on my CD… Read More »TacocaT: Spring Break-Up
“Nightmare” mixes post-punk and fuzz for a highly infectious coldwave sound. It’s a bit odd, coming from Seattle. The fuzz seeps into everything, the harmony vocals, the percussion, all stemming from the guitar. Grave Babies maintain the nonchalant-ness of their chosen genre, yet there’s something oddly upbeat and positive about “Nightmare”. Read More »Grave Babies: Nightmare
Black Marble is Ty Kube and Chris Stewart, who produce somewhat minimalist synth music. With a synth drum beat, a… Read More »Black Marble: Pretender
