“The River” is a recent track from AMFM, strutting a hazy rock sound with ample melodic engagement. The project comes via David Caruso, producing his tracks out of Brooklyn. Hypnotic guitar swells complement vocals that reflect on the passing of time, remarking things are “just the same as yesterday,” while also looking ahead of future years. Approaching the two-minute mark, a dose of spacey synths add enjoyably to the textured bliss. The wave of shoegaze-y guitars that follow caps this section off as a standout sequence of events. “The River” is a well-produced gem that rewards listeners with hypnotic textural charm and a strong melodic output.
Per Caruso: “This song was about the competition thats been created with social media. The quest for likes. The quest to be liked. You’ll never really be happy. Does it matter?”
This post appeared first on Obscure Sound. By Mike Mineo.
“Alice” is a newly released track from Cape Weather, the Los Angeles-based collaboration of Natalie Smith and Eric Jackowitz. Entrancing vocals are complemented by contrasting elegant piano and buzzing guitar doses, captivating thoroughly from an aesthetic standpoint.
La Palma, the musical duo of Philly artist Tim Gibbon and D.C. musician Chris Walker formed earlier this year, dropped a new single on Friday titled “Swept Away/Holiday.”
But this is not your typical holiday track.
The song kicks off with a sunny, lazy tropical guitar vibe and Caribbean style percussions and what sound like at first seagulls but it’s a guitar string weeping or some other cool effect.
The song floats along with elements of beachy dream-pop and psych waves. You can almost feel the sun on your face and the warm breezes coming off the ocean.
Right at the mid-point the track transforms and morphs into a series of sound effects – all once again creating that sunny vibe. Towards the end, the track morphs again, this time into a strange little acoustic jam.
Gibbon describes the track best: “It begins with a lushly produced story of a dip in the ocean-turned deep-sea psychic tumult; the track then abruptly flips on its head to a more stripped-down acoustic feel, itching for an elusive holiday escape from the day-to-day grind.”
Because they live in different cities, the duo’s music is created correspondence-style – passing recordings through the cloud to build textured compositions and layers of instruments that glean from everyday sounds and experiences, steeped in beachy psych-pop and indie folk.
Gibbon and Walker are both writers, vocalists, and multi-instrumentalists on the guitar, keyboards, bass, percussion, and programming. Their music definitely falls under the indie rock umbrella, incorporating genres and sub-genres such as psych-pop, indie folk, experimental, bedroom pop, and dream pop.
They met years ago in D.C.’s music scene while playing with bands like Kittyhawk and Let’s French.
The duo has opened for bands like Goodnight Lights and Spelling Reform and are primarily influenced by bands like Animal Collective, Helado Negro, Devendra Banhart, and Melody’s Echo Chamber. We first featured La Palma back in the spring for their debut single.
The UK rock band Curse of Lono has been releasing a visually striking series of music videos that are part of a four-chapter, 18-minute short film and accompanying debut EP.
This newest, and third chapter, of the short film is “Saturday Night”, was inspired by a waitress that songwriter Felix Bechtolsheimer met while he was living in a sober house.
“I wrote [“Saturday Night”] for a beautiful waitress I met while I was living in a sober house…[she] died of a heroin overdose less than a year later and the song spent years sitting on the shelf gathering dust.”
Years later, he says, “When I stumbled across ‘Saturday Night,’ I had a big smile on my face. Lyrically there’s a lot of sexual innuendo but under the surface it sums up the sense of weariness and nihilism that surrounded my group of friends when we were in our teens and early twenties.”
The compelling, at times even dazzling, video was created with director and cinematographer Alex Walker (A Bird’s Nest, No One Will Know) and was shot by cinematographer Bart Sienkiewicz.
The collection of songs that emerged since then has formed a stunningly cinematic EP that combines spaced out, melodic, harmony-laden indie roots with driving, gothic guitar alt-rock elements, and a visually compelling story from start to finish.
Bechtolsheimer formed Curse of Lono in London in 2015 following the breakup of British roots pioneers Hey Negrita. Last summer, ex-Hey Negrita drummer Neil Findlay; lead guitarist Joe Hazell; bassist Charis Anderson and keyboardist Dani Ruiz Hernandez all joined Bechtolsheimer to complete the band.
Singer, songwriter and musician Eden Warsaw knows how to write and record a killer catchy pop song that doesn’t sound like the cookie cutter crap on the radio, and which is also not as unrefined and amateurish as a lot of indie pop. In fact, as a multi-instrumentalist too, Warsaw is totally immersed in every aspect of his music, which is usually a good sign of an artist who really takes his work seriously.
The breath of his talents are evident in the new video, “Searching For Someone,” the title track for his debut LP. The song starts off with a heavy bass drum effect that drops suddenly, giving give way to light piano keys, summery-feeling synth keys, bright, strumming guitar chords, bubbling bass and remarkably melodic hooks, all encompassing Warsaw’s well-honed, strong vocals, which at times can range from semi-falsetto to modal register – a benefit many singers wish they could pull off.
“The song has a good summer vibe to drive around to with the windows down,” he says. “The inspiration for the debut album was to create an audio sci-fi or futuristic love story from start to finish, using experimental sounds that are relatable and current.”
After enjoying a kind of mini DIY hit with his single, “Diamonds,” in 2014, the Toronto artist took his time – nearly two years – honing his sound; writing and recording new songs; reworking them and mixing, and along with his fellow band members, devoting himself to perfecting the sound and stepping up his game, encouraged along by avid fans of his earlier work.
After two years of writing and recording, Eden Warsaw, along with his band, had a bunch of songs to work with and release, whch they’ve been doing. In addition to guitarist and vocalist Warsaw, band members include Phanat Chan (guitar/synth); Kyle Densmore (drums), and Troy Donaldson (bass).
“This actual rollout wouldn’t be possible without the guys in the band,” Warsaw says. “They are massively talented musicians that heard the music in studio and convinced me to finally start releasing everything. We are all like brothers.”
The guys will be performing at Canadian Music Week from May 2nd – May 8th. Visit the Facebook page.
Now that Coachella and Record Store Day have come and gone, it’s time again for another installment and playlist of Fresh Tracks, featuring talented indie and DIY artists and bands from around the world.
In this edition:
MOSAICS – San Francisco, California DTHPDL – Findon, England Dead Day Revolution – Los Angeles, California The Looking – New York, New York Voys – Paris, France Charlie Millikin – Cincinnati, Ohio The New Apollos – New York, New York Linda Draper – Brooklyn, New York Kristaps Locmelis – Jersey City, New Jersey 33 Years – Boca Raton, Florida Janet Odani – Brisbane, Australia
MOSAICS – “Year of Valor”
San Francisco electronic trio MOSAICS, who built a fairly large following a couple of years ago with standout singles like “Soju,” recently dropped the title track from an upcoming EP, set to drop on May 20th.
On the newest single, “Year of Valor,” the band, featuring founders Devon Kelts (guitar) and Tyler Hill (production), and new vocalist Maryam Sadeghian, fuse experimental electronic music with pop and acoustic guitar elements that guide Sadeghian’s sultry vocals to merge wonderfully with the instrumentation.
“Maryam’s tantalizingly sultry vocal arrangements, her confidence, and her professionalism,” Kelts said, “have been hugely beneficial to the success of the Year of Valor single, and strike just the right balance with the darker aspects of our sound.” Already the track has garnered thousands of plays online.
DTHPDL, or DeathPodal, first gained attention back in 2009 with the electro pop cassette release of Exu_Wowin. The DTHPDL project is the brainchild of Findon (a village in West Sussex, England) singer, songwriter and musician Alastair J. Chiversand.
Over the past couple of years, he set out to recruit band members D. MacDonald, Humdrum Jetset and Ross Taylor. The band recently completed a tour of Scotland, and have also opened for Team Ghost (ex-M83), YAK, Shield Your Eyes, Paws, and RM Hubbardand Islet, and are due to play the Restless Natives Festival in Glasgow with Blanck Mass, Tim Hecker and Future of the Left.
The band dropped the new EP, The Future, a few days ago in the UK, writing that it is an “exploration of weird, electronic pop, post punk drones and belief,” with the standout title track and their new video.
It’s good to see that there are still plenty of talented bands recording balls-to-wall rock like Los Angeles duo Dead Day Revolution, whose new album, On Our Own, features thrilling rockers like “Vampire Blues”; riveting, stadium-ready tracks like “Children of The Night,” and the Pearl Jam-sounding, “Ghost,” as well as unusually titled blazers like “Dancing on the Corner of Death” (whatever that means).
And yet Dead Day Revolution can also lay down a mean ballad-like slow dancer, “Down The Road,” definitely one of the standout tracks on the album. But it is the more accessible pop rocker, “Needles,” with it’s upbeat rhythm and melodic hooks, that will likely appeal to the much wider audience. Either way, the members of Dead Day Revolution – Skeeter Joplin (drums) and Mike Sandoz (guitar, vocals) – are not rookie musicians, and considering that they have built up a ‘following’ of more than 94,000 Likes, many agree.
New York City based musician, singer and songwriter Todd Carter has branched out again with a new band project called The Looking, featuring well-known musicians like bassist Andy Hess (The Black Crowes, Gov’t Mule), Diego Voglino (Marshall Crenshaw) on drums, Steve Elliott (Shooter Jennings) on guitar, and background vocalist Sasha Dobson (Norah Jones).
The band’s debut single, “Lead Me To The Water,” is a driving country rock track (but not like the Billboard cookie-cutter crap) featuring a wailing steel guitar and an upbeat, melodic rhythm. Other songs on the band’s new album include the precisely-picked acoustic gem, “Where Did You Go?” and the contentious “Bone To Pick.” Todd Carter will kick off a week-long tour from Pittsburgh through the midwest ending in Columbus, Ohio on May 23.
Voys is the musical project of Parisian artist Patrick Derache. Earlier this month, Voys released a new video, Louise In The Clouds. It is the first video of the musical story of a fantasy world of pop and rock sounds, organ melodies, guitars, rabbit heads and the character, a masked girl who transitions from teenage years to adulthood.
It’s a weird but enchanting world Voys creates in the video, which has garnered more than 14,000 views in three weeks, which isn’t so bad for any music video these days, as well as more than 4K Likes on FB – a heck of a lot more than a lot of artists have. Voys top musical influences include Lou Reed, Neil Young, David Bowie, Sex Pistols and The Clash.
A superb mix of soul, funk, rock and some jazz elements, along with infectious rhythm and an array of vocal styles, make up the sounds of Charlie Millikin, an Ohio musician, singer and songwriter who is set to release his self-titled, debut EP on May 6th.
Performing music since he was a child, Millikin has honed his sound over the years, gaining notoriety in the Cincinnati area, where he is also scheduled to perform a number of shows in coming weeks. Fans will be treated to standout songs like “Change Me” and the arresting “Take Control.”
The New Apollos is a brand NYC rock band formed by producer and musician Neill MacCallum, who has worked with well-known musicians like Wesley Schultz (The Lumineers) and Nick Bockrath (Cage The Elephant). With a raw, surfy sound, and a garage—like blend of 60’s experimental pop and 90’s alternative rock, as displayed so expertly on the band’s new single, “In The Shade,” the band will drop the debut album on May 30th, which based on the success of the single, should be something worth checking out. The other band members include Karen Walker (pianist and vocals); Gregoy Morgan (drums) and Isobel Ward (bass and production).
Brooklyn based musician Linda Draper is set to release her eighth album, Modern Day Decay, this Friday, April 29th, featuring the standout title track. The album was funded through crowdsourcing on PledgeMusic. The funds allowed for only two days of studio time with help from Grammy award-winning mixing engineer Geoff Sanoff (Bruce Springsteen, Green Day, Cat Power), who ended up mixing “Modern Day Decay” at Little Steven’s studio, Renegade Nation.
“This project was a collaborative process,” Draper said. “Every step of the way and I am grateful for the support that has led me to where I am today.”
Draper’s first earned some notoriety in 2001 with the release of her debut album, Ricochet, produced by Kramer, who is famously known for his work with Low, Galaxie 500, Lou Reed and Urge Overkill, among others. Not surprisingly, Draper grew up in a musical family, and has studied everything from Bach to pop before beginning to write her own songs as a teen.
It’s always refreshing to hear something completely different. We love being surprised. Jersey City instrumental musician Kristaps Locmelis offers just that on his experimental electronic “Shelling Out For A Tiki Bar,” which might remind some of a cross between space rock and Martin Denny. Another new track released just days ago titled, “Rover,” is a short mix of funk, R&B, psychedelic synths and experimental sounds.
The Floridian husband and wife duo of Paula and Kevin Tolly, known as 33 Years, have been performing folk, rock and country for many years and toured with a band around the U.S. In fact, they’re touring right now with the release of the new album and a number of singles, including “Love Don’t Live Here” and “A Case of Whiskey.”
Janet Odani is an Australian musician with a new album, Transparency, featuring songs like the upbeat “Make It Alright,” which is available via YouTube.
Music lovers around the world are in shock today at the sad news of Prince’s passing. Here are just a few of the highlights of an amazing career – an artist who single-handedly made it safe for artists to cross and mix genres and to be totally original and humble – not to mention to stand up to the record industry. RIP Prince, the master genre-bender. Influence on indie rock? Immeasurable.
Check out Prince’s guitar solo of George Harrison’s ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ during 2004 RNR Hall of Fame. And don’t miss Sandra Bernhard’s revealing dance video for “Little Red Corvette.”
Rare – Extended Live Performance of ‘Purple Rain’ in Syracuse, NY in 1985 (suitable example of Prince’s stellar guitar playing abilities; audio is much better than video; it was 30 years ago)
Rare video of Prince in 1978 on American Bandstand – six years before Purple Rain.
Full interview of Prince on CNN in 1999
Prince talks to Tavis Smiley in 2011 about his music and other stuff
British Documentary about Prince (VH1 Behind The Music apparently never did one because Prince wouldn’t let them)
Quote of the Week: Caitlin Jenner, eat your heart out grrl – you could never be half the woman Prince was
Prince would laugh at that because part of what made him so great was that he was not afraid to be outrageous and express himself in such a flamboyant way at a time when it was not OK at all (height of the AIDS epidemic) to dress like he did. Prince, though, made it cool.
NOTE – By the way, YouTube: Please remove the karaoke tracks of Prince’s songs. Let’s have one thing that’s scared. He wanted his music shared, but he didn’t want it bastardized.
It’s not a stretch to say that the Arizona teen Christopher Tom isn’t exactly your average 15-year-old. He’s actually a prolific singer, songwriter and musician.
Since the age of 13, Tom has been on a mission to perfect his songwriting craft. But he didn’t want just quality. He set out on quantity as well – writing upwards of 200 songs. And in stark contrast, Tom released his debut, self-titled EP last August, featuring only six of those songs. For the EP, he not only wrote the songs, but performed and recorded all of the instruments, and then mixed and mastered every last note, resulting in 15 minutes of frenzied and exuberant indie rock and synth pop.
On one of his newest tracks, “Every Friday (Dance),” the young muthusiast pulls out the dance beats with shimmering synth arrangements, pop rock guitar chords and his signature adolescent male vocals. Borrowing from many different influences, including The Beatles, The Strokes, Weezer, Gorillaz and Beach House, Tom places a huge emphasis on melody and hooks. We urge folks to take a little time to check out some of the other tracks from his self-titled EP on his Bandcamp page.
The uptempo pop rock song, “The Ballad of Joey Domino,” is yet another example of Tom’s amazingly diverse musical palette and sensibilities in collaboration with his friend ‘Mark E’. Another song, “That’s Not How It Works,” is totally a Strokes-influenced song from top to bottom. Next, the silly pop rock track “Don’t Call On Me,” (in which his adolescent boy’s vocal range is tested successfully), is immediately reminiscent of They Might Be Giants, and “Candle Boy,” with its twinkly pop melodies and softer vocals.
The standout track from his debut EP is “The Coast,” a song that probably has a wider audience with its simplistic melodic hooks, regular rhythm changes, programmed beats, layered vocals and flowing keyboards. Tom isn’t going to take over the world – just yet (there are a lot of Kinks to work out), but for a 15-year-old, he definitely shows a tremendous musical progression and penchant for variety; he appears to deliberately make it so that each of the songs is completely individual, whereas we have all heard EPs/LPs where all of the songs sound pretty much the same.
Are you a teenager making music at this level? Tell us your story and send us some of your songs. Submit to IRC.
Don’t Call On Me – Christopher Tom from Christopher Tom EP
The Coast – Christopher Tom from Christopher Tom EP
As we were putting this post together, Tom ranks #1 among Tucson musicians on Reverbnation.
Peixefante is a remarkable new shoegaze/dream pop band from Goiania, Brazil that captured our ears and hearts with lush dream pop songs like “Por Baixo da Blusa.”
It’s simply gorgeous; feel yourself floating over lush green hillsides and turquoise beaches. The echoey whistling throughout the song is a really special, even magical, touch; there’s almost a tinge of Burt Bacharach (some people might hear it) and Ennio Morricone interlaced within this song.
The second single, “Cruzada Moderna” is more subdued and serious, yet wonderfully composed and performed from the airy guitar playing and rhythms to the wonderful vocals and choruses.
The band’s debut EP, Lorde Pacal (a mythological Mayan prophet), was done totally DIY. No fanfare. No buzz. And yet their music is worth a buzz; they’re just really good musicians. Listen to the EP from start to finish a few times and those of you who are open to cosmopolitan, multi-genre mix of experimental dream pop, psych rock and Bacharach/Morricone, are likely to appreciate Peixefante as much as we do.
The EP tells the epic story of “mankind’s fascination with the universe and our ancient seeking for answers to its great mysteries,” the band’s synth player, Lipito Melo, says.
“The songs are all connected to one another and reveal the tales of a mythical ‘hero,’ from the day he was born – passing through technological discoveries and surviving in the outer space – up until the day he finally returns home.”
Not surprisingly, after submerging into this EP – streaming it now at least four times through – we are routing for the band.
Their name is difficult at best to pronounce, and Portuguese, outside of Brazil, is not as widely spoken in the western hemisphere as Spanish; therefore, it’s difficult even for native Spanish speakers to say the world because Spanish simply doesn’t have any relationship to “peixe”-“fante” – it’s closer to French than Spanish.
The band describes it this way: “The name itself, the Portuguese combination of ‘fish’ and ‘elephant,’ exemplifies the constant mutation in which the band’s music in based upon, from the deep giant synth waves psychedelia to a drunk swampy rock.”
The Best DIY Music of 2015 series, ten installments in all, features more than 150 bands from across the United States, Canada, U.K., Australia, France, Germany, the Scandinavian countries, South America and many other world locales.
If you love discovering new bands with great music, we urge you to review the entire series to read about talented bands and listen to their music. No matter what kind of alt. and indie rock you like, you’re going to find awesome some artists and bands you didn’t know about before, and who will likely be favorites for a long time. You heard them here first!
Here’s another collection of bands to watch who dropped impressive DIY singles, EPs and LPs in 2015.
Jean Pool – Jefferson, New Jersey Wooden Waves – Buffalo, New York Endless Forms – Tulsa, Oklahoma Optimus Rex – St. Louis, Missouri Alberteen – Nottingham, England Ember Oceans – Chicago, Illinois Sun Blood Stories – Boise, Idaho Erick Macek – Los Angeles, California Oliver House – Phoenix, Arizona Tim Bick – Brighton, England
[zbplayer]
From the small suburban town of Jefferson, New Jersey, the new alternative rock band, Jean Pool, reminded us of a mixed drink with plenty of Modest Mouse, a shot of Weezer and The Strokes, and salted with a dash of Arctic Monkeys.
Their infectious single, “Fluffy,” an IRC Song of the Day in December, is absolutely superb, and easily one of the best DIY debut singles of 2015. The band’s debut EP, Wet, dropped last November, and includes the blazing psych alt. rock of “Parking Lot Plans,” the Arctic Monkeys-like “Alone,” and the jangly punk of “Older.”
We like how Jean Pool’s vocalist and guitarist Dan Barrecchia, described the band’s muse: “In an era of sarcastic and whiny/emo/pop-punk based music, Jean Pool finds it’s influences from the legends of rock music. We play every show like it’s our last and thrive off of the crowds energy. We’re dynamic and catchy all while keeping the feels in our lyrics, guitar solos, and bass slappage.”
The other members of the NJ quintet are vocalist and guitarist Dan DiCaio, Paul Brushaber on bass and Brad Odgers on drums. The band’s major influences include Red Hot Chili Peppers, Modest Mouse, Jimi Hedrix, The Strokes, Led Zeppelin, and Arctic Monkeys. The band classifies their music as a mix of alt. rock, psych rock, punk, and post punk. They’ve shared the stage with bands like Happy Body Slow Brain, Deal Casino, and Terror Pigeon.
Formed in 2010, Wooden Waves is a new-to-us band from Buffalo, New York. During the summer, WW’s released, Wilder Dreams, the band’s debut album, featuring noisy indie rock on songs like the unforgettable “Song For Sweatypalms,” with its fast, busy rhythm, relentless, free form post punk elements, and experimental indie rock with minimalistic-like guitar jams, and vocalized hoots, ah-yah-ah-yahs, wooh-oohs, and minimalistic jams. You can tell these guys have a lot of fun – and that’s really what it’s all about.
The follow-up track, “It’s Only Sky,” is also noisy and energetic, with some melodic hooks, booming bass, voracious drums, and a driving rhythm. These guys are really good. You can tell that they’ve been working on their own unique sound for years. The band are fans of The Bats, The Feelies, Mogwai, Yo La Tengo, Mike Watt, Jonathan Richman, The Ramones, Descendents, and Mr. Show.
The members of Wooden Waves are Ray Fulton (guitar/vocals); Nikki McIntosh and Joey McIntosh on keys and vocals; Billy Fulton (bass), and Sonny Baker (drums).
Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the DIY band Endless Forms has made a name in the area for its “unique chamber-rock exploration of sonic space, mixing a traditional song structure with the liquid textures of ambient alternative music,” according to songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Justin Allen. That’s pretty much indie rock; and they’re pretty damn good at it.
The band was put together by Allen himself after he completed mastering his debut album, Lazarus, as Endless Forms. They were so impressed that they joined up to play live gigs. The full band features Robert Redmond (keys); Sean Ammons (lead guitar); Donnie Fite (bass), and Will Cook (drums). Lazarus was just dropped back in October. It’s an impressive debut, with plenty of musical highlights and introspective lyrics.
The song, “Reset The Bone,” is quite a beautiful work with it’s mellow, laid back, The National-like dreaminess, accompanied by harmonica, wavy synth notes, understated drum beats, shakers, slide guitars and Allen’s seductive, bluesy vocals. No wonder he is a big fan of The National, as well as The Smiths, Bon Iver, Arcade Fire, David Bowie (RIP), and Radiohead. That’s a pretty good selection of rock legends and newer indie artists.
MP3: “Reset the Bone“ – Endless Forms from Lazarus
Indie Rock is a movement and idea based on the democratization of music. It is about freedom of expression and empowerment of artists to create what they are inspired to create without the pressure to edit or contort their art in order to appeal to corporate sponsors. – Justin Allen
Optimus Rex – Embers
A relatively new St. Louis indie rock band, Optimus Rex, dropped an under-the-radar EP in August called Embers. The intoxicating guitars, bumbling bass and rolling drums and cymbals on the single, “Witch Hunt,” definitely got the attention of the folks in the cafe.
“The lyrics come off as kinda dark on first glance,” says guitarist and vocalist Nick Stergos, “but really it’s a song about personal responsibility; about how people (myself included) prefer to blame problems on forces that are out of our hands. For some reason the thought of being powerless is easier to swallow than facing up to our own apathy and complacency.”
Nick is also joined by his brother, Jake Stergos, on drums, upright bass, and piano, and bassist Jeremy Carpenter and guitarist and keyboardist Jeremy Hill.
Another track, “Few and Far Between,” was “written in one sitting,” Stergos says. “Lyrically it’s just kind of a downer about getting old and numb. How we don’t get excited about things anymore, how nothing impacts us the way it did when we were younger.”
Since forming in 2013, Optimus Rex has opened for artists like Eve 6, Darling Parade, Tristen, and Bend Sinister. The band’s top musical influences are Thrice, Brand New, Margo & The Nuclear So & So’s, Cursive, Bright Eyes, and Radiohead.
From the UK city of Nottingham comes the DIY, self-described “rhythm and noir” band, Alberteen. They are not your ordinary band. In fact, the band itself was formed at a funeral in 2010.
Here’s how bassist Abe Berry describes the band and their mission: “We Are The Mods/King’s Evil – we’re instant three-minute pop classics, in the band’s classic rhythm and noir style; we’re 21st century post-punk sonics, instantly addictive tunes and brutal, poetic lyrics.
The songs reflect – respectively – the clash between Mods and Modernists on Margate pier (reflected in the image taken by artist Nigel Green) to violent student riots and uprisings.”
After listening to the two tracks the band sent in from their second album, Miss World, a number of times, we have to say they are definitely not a chillwave band or even an alt. rock band. Alberteen’s music reminds us of a mix between Frank Zappa, Nick Cave, They Might Be Giants and The Cure.
From their new album, the first single, “A French Connection,” is transfixing. The song and the album were produced by the legendary Mike Bennett (The Fall, Ian Brown).
A second track, “We Are Mods,” sounds a lot like a glam rock riff ala-T. Rex, and at times, like The Who (which would fit with mods, since The Who are widely regarded as the most well known band from the UK’s mod era/genre), which we surmise was intentional.
The other band members are John Rose (guitars and vocals); Phil Shaw (vocals), and Gareth Warden (drums and percussion). Among their favorite bands, Berry listed Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Parquet Courts, Temples, The Preatures, and Shamir. Alberteen has opened for bands like Primal Scream and Ramsgate Hovercraft.
The members of Alberteen actually formed the band at a funeral (of all places) in 2010. Their first single, “A Girl And A Gun,” was ultimately remixed by Cornershop and played regularly on the BBC.
The talented Chicago DIY band, Ember Oceans, embodies a breath of fresh air in the alternative synth rock genre. The band dropped their self-titled debut EP, delivering fans and listeners a collection of warm electronic grooves and rhythms, driving pop melodies, sunny surf harmonies, reverb soaked synths and crispy beats on standout tracks like “Right Reasons” and the inspirational “Karma.”
“Indie rock is like a page in a ‘Where’s Waldo?’ book. Everyone’s attention is drawn to the same place, but if you look at the big picture you might get a kick out of what else you find” – Parker Simonaitis, Ember Oceans drummer
Ember Oceans, who are obviously influenced by artists like Passion Pit, are easily in the top ranks of new DIY bands we heard in 2015. Enough said. Let the music speak for itself:
MP3: “Right Reasons” – Ember Oceans from Ember Oceans
Sun Blood Stories isn’t a trendy indie band or a band you’d book for a wedding. Instead, the Boise band, which calls it’s style ‘high desert ghost music,’ creates “long-flowing song forms and delicious noise, leaning toward post-rock in its fondness for long crescendos and crushing finales.”
Coming from the musical vocabulary of classic psychedelia, the music builds on these ideas and blooms into an “ever-moving mass of echo dream sounds.” Featuring multiple slide guitars, a space viola, thunderous drums and “far too many echo pedals,” SBS crashes and wails its way through a “wild and strange collection of songs about hallucinations, dreams and death.”
“Palace Mountain Mirage” is spooky psych rock jam that builds into a sudden explosion of ringing guitars, bumping bass, furious drumming, crashing cymbals and menacing sound effects that turn the song into a full blown sonic nightmare; awesome recording and mixing work. The followup track, “NighTremor” is equally as eerily, dark, long and trippy with constant percussive beats and sound effects.
Over the past few years, SBS has opened for bands like Mount Eerie, Ancient River, Acid Mothers Temple, True Widow, Kithkin, and Wooden Indian Burial Ground. The band’s musical influences include Janis Joplin, The Flaming Lips, Foxygen, Captain Beefheart, Bongripper, and Pink Floyd.
MP3: “Palace Mountain Mirage“ – Sun Blood Stories from Twilight Midnight Morning
MP3: “NighTremor“ – Sun Blood Stories from Twilight Midnight Morning
“Indie Rock is a term that covers so much music that it is now almost meaningless. But its also a starting point for people to find some of the best music being made.” – Ben Kirby, Guitarist
It’s almost impossible not to get the urge to want to stand up and dance and sing on Los Angeles songwriter and musician Erick Macek‘s uplifting, celebratory track, “Love,” which he wants to be shared with the world in order to promote peace.
“More personal to me,” Macek says, “indie music is seeing what you’re really made of. It’s the blood, sweat, tears, and the culmination of one’s hard work. It’s the freedom to create what you feel.”
The first single, “No Worries,” from his debut, self-titled EP, is more somber, and follows the theme about the failings and the victories of life. He worked with Grammy-winning producer Mikal Blue (Jason Mraz, Five For Fighting, Colbie Caillat, Jason Reeves), who produced, mixed and engineered the crowd-funded EP, the band’s fourth release.
Band members include Stephen Jones on bass; Bill Jones on guitars and ukulele; Anne Seidler on piano, wurlitzer, and rhodes, and Christian Hogan on drums & percussion.
Macek and co-writer Kate Earl were accompanied on their duet “You Say,” by bass player Dean Dinning, from Toad the Wet Sprocket. In 2014, songs from Macek’s Colors May Change album received significant placement on shows like Life Unexpected and Melrose Place. The band has opened for artists like Joan Jett, Gin Blossoms and G. Love.
MP3: “Love“ – Erick Macek from Erick Macek EP
MP3: “No Worries“ – Erick Macek from Erick Macek EP
Three college friends from Arizona State University in Phoenix formed a new band, Oliver House, last summer and got to work. Over the ensuing months, they honed their skills, pumping out heavily melodic and percussion laced tracks.
The results of their hard work over the past year are impressive. The band’s debut single, “If You Love Me You’ll See,” is an ominous, but driving psych guitar rocker with a chugging base and accompanying beats. The interplay between bassist Dan Horner III, guitarist and lead vocalist Sean MaCauley and drummer Holden Flesner is particularly potent. They sound like a band that has been together for years, not months.
The second single, “Warhawk,” from the band’s new EP is a softer, acoustic psych pop style track with a chugging bass and drums all the way through. The chorus, “away…away…away,” is another constant, accompanied by a high nylon guitar mini-solo at the end of the track. We can’t help but to wonder how much a great producer, and manager, could help make these guys a popular indie band nationally. Right now, they have a good start with a terrific debut EP, which officially dropped in March.
MP3: “If You Love Me Youll See“ – Oliver House from If You Love Me You’ll See
MP3: “Warhawk“ – Oliver House from If You Love Me You’ll See
Somewhat creepy and strange, the semi-dark psych pop of U.K. musician and multi-instrumentalist Tim Bick on the track, “Information,” a song that includes kick-ass guitar playing, is oddly compelling. He’s obviously no newbie on the guitar.
Bick marries classic 60s and 70s pop structures with “wrly witty wordsmithery that takes a few cues from Aimee Mann or Fountains of Wayne’s Chris Collingwood.” He dismisses claims that his music is retro, insisting instead: “It’s just an organic thing that was planted in the ground a long time ago.”
The eccentricity doesn’t end with the songs themselves. Apparently, according to Bick, he is working on the development of ‘The Emotionalizer,’ a “piece of studio hardware designed to maximize the emotional effect of music that modern technologies tend to reduce.” Hmmm…stay tuned.
With Bowie (RIP) so much on our minds these days (see our Soundcloud Bowie covers’ collection), Bick’s music sounds influenced by Ziggy Stardust. And yet, Bick retains his own unique sound that is sparse, elongated, heavily narrative, lo fi, guitar-laden, and imperfect – all elements that work nicely together. Either way, we suspect that listeners who dig these two tracks will want to hear more.
While 2015 is over, the Best Music of 2015 is still being tallied, and we’ll be featuring the top music – both DIY and ‘mainstream indie’ – for the next few weeks. We have hours and hours – even days – of playlists published throughout the year in popular post series like Best New DIY Music of 2015; 7 Bands You’ve Gotta Hear; Artist of the Week; 5 Rock Bands You’ve Gotta Hear, and Best New Releases (featuring signed artists).
Don’t miss our Song of the Day, and other special playlists, on Indie Rock Cafe’s Soundcloud page, and follow us on Instagram for regular new bands, songs, album covers, videos, amazing photos and more. And for more and more playlists, including the best signed and talented indie artists and bands, singles and new releases, follow us on Spotify.
Sound Is Lovv – Los Angeles, California Bad Hounds – Akron, Ohio Margarine – Boston, Massachusetts My Tribe Your Tribe – Kildare, Ireland Beachmen – Salt Lake City, Utah Serve The Sun – Amsterdam, The Netherlands Ocean Glass – Champaign-Urbana, Illinois Hookspine – Lille, France Jaromil – Dijon, France Tombstones In Their Eyes – Los Angeles, California
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Sound Is Lovv – Shipwrecks
Based out of Los Angeles and born from Brad Watson‘s solo project, Sound Is Lovv creates dreamy, shoegaze noise rock that is simply arresting and transfixing. Influenced by “90s alt. bands and their ’80s shoegaze predecessors, along with 60’s Motown,” the band shoots to “offer a heavier brand of modern shoegaze and dream pop.”
The band’s true standout track, “Take Me With You,” from their debut EP, Shipwrecks, is a slow blaze of rolling beats, echoey, soft vocals, hypnotizing guitars and choruses that soar and float above the green and blue world below – truly one of the best DIY dream pop tracks of 2015. Don’t miss the music video for the track.
“Take Me With You“ – Sound Is Lovv from Shipwrecks
Sound Is Lovv doesn’t restrict itself to just one genre, which is part of the magic found on shoegaze/noise rock tracks like “And Don’t Believe,” with its crashing cymbals, riveting and soaring guitars and heavily reverbed vocals.
In addition to Watson, the band members include guitarist John Rockwell; bassist Dario Grenados and drummer Joel Murray. Tag Sound of Lovv as a Band to Watch in 2016.
“And Don’t Believe“ – Sound Is Lovv from Shipwrecks
“Indie Rock is taking certain ideals of mainstream music and hodgepodg’in them together to create one’s own desired sound. Next to that sound, and re-envisioning it to accommodate broader tastes and facilitate accessibility, is what is required in order to initialize your brand as ‘independent’.” Brad Watson
Margarine from Free Tibet
The psych rock unit Margarine is a Boston-area DIY band that puts an emphasis on melodies “in the stylistic realm of the Beach Boys, Grizzly Bear, Fleet Foxes, and Animal Collective,” says the band.
He speaks the truth because from the first few seconds, right to the very last, of the fantastic, even mind-blowing track, “White M & M,” we were fans.
“It features an upright bass, a real grand piano, a guitar tuned to open D, and drumming on the back of that same guitar,” MacKenzie said. “We considered using a more conventional percussion instrument, but the sound of the guitar surface cut through the mix perfectly and it turns out you can get a pretty wide range of tones out of the back of a guitar.” That is exactly on point.
Other talented band members, and fellow university students, include Charles Wiston on keyboards and Matthew Okun on guitar. Bass player Ryan Accardi is a senior at Wellesley High School.
“White M & M“ – Margarine from Free Tibet
“Rocking Horses“ – Margarine from Free Tibet
Bad Hounds from Bad Hounds
Bad Hounds are an Akron, Ohio rock band with two songwriters and singers – Ty Deming and Alex Gallo, both of whom are also guitarists, supported by bassist Mike Varga and drummer Cory DiBello.
The band released their self-titled, debut album this past August featuring passionate alternative rock songs like “Salt” and “Aphrodite.” Akron should be proud to have a band that stays true to their roots and can really rock it.
The young band’s top musical influences are Tame Impala, The Black Keys, Manchester Orchestra, Bad Books, and Alt-J. The band have already built a respectable following in and beyond Akron.
My Tribe Your Tribe – Ghost With You/Will To Survive
Straight out of the picturesque Irish town of Kildare, located just 10 miles outside of Dublin, a new alternative shoegaze trio with the cool name, My Tribe Your Tribe, lighted up our radar thanks to a trio of debut singles released throughout 2015.
Garnering nearly 4,000 plays on Soundcloud, the hottest track, “Ghost With You,” sizzles with gritty synths, blazing alt. rock styles and booming percussion. The talented young musicians that make up My Tribe Your Tribe are George Mercer (lead vocals, synths, guitar); Tod Doyle (drums, vocals), and Colm Daffy (bass, guitar).
My Tribe Your Tribe hit the ground running since forming in 2014. Despite the fact that they haven’t even release an EP or LP yet, the band has played numerous music festivals around Ireland.
We can just imagine how the gorgeous “Ghost With You” was a hit with festival goers when MTYT were on stage last summer. And, if you listen to their other two tracks, “Will To Survive” and “Only A Horizon,” you might be able to hear the seeds (hearing seeds?) of a hot and fresh new DIY band from Ireland.
The beautiful Emerald Isle has given us so many amazing bands over the decades, and there are so many DIY and small label indie and alt. bands in Ireland that are amazing (see our Soundcloud page). MTYT has opened for bands like Electric Picnic, Body and Soul, and Hard Working Class Heroes. They are most influenced by the music of Jape, Deerhunter, St. Vincent, and Spoon.
“Ghost With You“ – My Tribe Your Tribe from Ghost With You/Will To Survive
“Will to Survive“ – My Tribe Your Tribe from Ghost With You/Will To Survive
Let’s turn our sights to a talented young new band from The Netherlands. Serve the Sun is an Amsterdam-based indie soundscape quartet.
As evidenced by songs like “Helianthus,” the band paints a sound that relies on deep bass lines, grooving rhythms, shoe gaze-heavy guitar sounds, and sweet, emotive vocals, creating what the band prefers to call ‘indie groove trance.’
The second track, “With One Another,” is mystical, downbeat and sparse. The second half of the track picks up the tempo and introduces layers of swirling synths, almost as if the sun suddenly broke through the dusky morning, casting its warm rays onto a cold, dark world.
The band members include Tim Schakel (vocals, guitar); Manuel Verburg (guitar); Nard Koemand (bass), and Job van der Zijden (drums). These indie grooving, sample-loving musicians list musical influences as Radiohead, Atoms for Peace, The Veils, Bonobo, and Flying Lotus.
Producer Pim van de Werken (Eins, Zwei, Orchestra and Silence is Sexy), says it just about right in referring to Serve The Sun’s debut album: “It’s beautifully layered and experimental. Lie down, close your eyes; this deserves a careful listen.”
The band’s new EP, Watching the Watchers, is out now. Review the official music video for “Helianthus” via YouTube.
“Helianthus“ – Serve The Sun from Watching the Watchers EP
“Indie Rock is music with freedom. Free from standards who limit the creative mind and create borders. Indie rock means you can express music the way you want to. “ – Tim Schakel
Serve The Sun on Facebook
Ocean Glass – Track By Track
The Champaign-Urbana, Illinois-based indie rock band Ocean Glass has acquired a dedicated local following since finalizing their lineup in September of 2015. The band, only a little more than a year old, have become known for their high energy shows and have opened for top midwestern bands like Into It. Over It.
The track, “Stumble,” is what really drew us into this band from the Great Lakes region. With its ringing guitars, bumbling bass, and crashing cymbals and skins, “Stumble” is this new band’s standout track. Ahmed’s vocals, and the band’s choruses, are uplifting, and yet there are veins of angst, love, and hurt: “I wanna run away with you/but you tie me down.” That’s a fairly brilliant juxtaposed lyric.
The next track, “Saltwater,” has angular guitar and bass riffs that remind us of American Analog Set. The various stops and restarts, and the tangental jams that seem to characterize the band’s style also has some similarities to one of the band’s top musical influences – the superb indie band, American Football. The band members of Ocean Glass have proven themselves to be an excellent band with a lot of promise. Keep an eye on these guys; they’re not the regular fare of indie bands you might be used to.
Currently, the band is in the studio recording their second EP, and their first release with the new lineup. The band members are Nishat Ahmed (vocals); Kyle Solner (rhythm guitar); Weston Harman (lead guitar); Justin Isler (bass); and Luke Smith (drums).
Hookspine – Averageness As A Cancerous Shivering Cell
We’ve been listening to the tracks of a young French solo musician Jean-Nicolas Lys (JnL), from the town of Lille.
His debut solo single, “Enough Cuteness,” as the artist Hookspine dropped this past summer, and we’ve been listening to it ever since. It doesn’t take long to recognize the artistry in the composition with it’s many progressions and even angular key and timing shifts with piano, guitar, bass and drums. Lys, or JNL, as he also references himself as, performed, recorded, and mixed all of the instruments. Yet another achievement.
Don’t feel out of sorts if you hear influences of The Beatles’ unique recording techniques, and the practice of sinking chapters, or at least sub plots, if you will, into songs, starting with Rubber Soul and continuing on through Sgt. Pepper, The White Album and Abbey Road (and the heart of the band’s experimental and creative genius).
However, “Enough Cuteness” is not The Beatles; nor trying to copy them. The influence is there, but the song retains its own identity and originality, which is the sign of a talented artist that can pull that off.
JNL’s top musical influences include Blur, Simian, Super Furry Animals, Elbow, Grizzly Bear, and Deerhunter. He was born and raised in Reunion Island where he began playing the piano at the age of three years old. His debut EP, Averageness As A Cancerous Shivering Cell, dropped on December 27.
“Enough Cuteness” (single edit) – Hookspine from Averageness As A Cancerous Shivering Cell
Brazen Pimp – Hookspine from Averageness As A Cancerous Shivering Cell
“Indie rock is a mix of several styles, apart from the popularity of mainstream music. it is quite vast; you can really hear totally different bands in indie music (Animal Collective vs Elbow for instance) and come across all sorts of unusual sounds.” – Jean-Nicholas Lys
Beachmen – Everybody’s Pink Inside
The Salt Lake City DIY garage pop, psych funk band, Beachmen, started out as a “home recording project” between guitarist Kyle Dickson and bassist Joshua Hunsaker.
After drummer Evan Vice joined to make a trio, the band began working on their new album, Everybody’s Pink Inside, which was just dropped on September 12th.
“In recording our new album, we wanted our audience to see our live show happen in their bedrooms,” Hunsaker wrote. “In fact, most of our songs were first recorded in one take as a band to be able to accomplish this.”
That is an accomplishment, and at times you can hear the rawness of their unperfected recording session, such as on the minimalistic, morphing track “Earthquake,” and yet it sounds awesome.
But the song, “Waiting,” changes gears; it’s bumping and chugging right along, with funk-borrowed beats, thick bass lines, and semi-tropical, heavily-distorted guitar riffs. We love the rocking and rolling jam the band kicks out, with liberal use of the whammy bar.
While they have only been together for a few years, Beachmen has shared the stage with top indie bands like Cold War Kids, Geographer, School of Seven Bells, and Wild Nothing. The fellas major musical influences are Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, Flaming Lips, Dr Dog, Radiohead, and Talking Heads.
“Earthquake“ – Beachmen from Everybody’s Pink Inside
Jaromil – The Usual Shit You Tell Someone Who’s In Pain
From the city of Dijon, in the bucolic Burgundy region of France, comes the DIY indie pop electro rock duo Jaromil, who have previously opened for indie bands like Oh No! Oh My!, Girls In Hawaii, Absynthe Minded, Syd Matters, Vitalic, Bob Sinclar, French Cowboys, and Yeti Lane.
The track, “St. Pancreas,” from the release The Usual Shit You Tell Someone Who’s In Pain, is a menacing song with spooky keys, bumbling bass lines, and smoking guitar licks. Some of the duo’s many musical influences include Sufjan Stevens, Ghinzu, Pavement, Sigur Ros, Nick Cave, Eels, and Beach House. Jaromil is Antoine Barré Foncelle on drums and Arno on vocals, bass, guitar and sampling.
“St Pancreas“ – Jaromil from The Usual Shit You Tell Someone Who’s In Pain
“Cockleshell“Jaromil from The Usual Shit You Tell Someone Who’s In Pain
The Los Angeles DIY project Tombstones In Their Eyes has a unique story. It started on the Internet a few years ago in a collaboration between songwriter/singer, guitarist and keyboard musician John Treanor and New York musician James Cooper.
After collaborating via Dropbox, and using GarageBand, the duo ended up with some two dozen songs. Treanor set about picking the top tracks, and then recruited bass player Josh Drew and drummer Samuel Sherwood to record them on their debut album, produced by musician Paul Roessler (Screamers, 45 Grave, Deadbeats, Nina Hagen).
The result is a debut album that features psych rock, garage rock, and acoustic elements, as heard on choice tracks like the expectedly drowsy, “Sleep Forever,” and the more sinister, “It’s Always Nothing.” The band’s top musical influences include The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Dandy Warhols, Built To Spill, and Elliott Smith – nice selection of four solid artists.
“Sleep Forever“ – Tombstones In Their Eyes from Sleep Forever
Hatred will try. Love will reign.
