Our inbox is over flowing again so we are letting you good people know exactly what is new and available out there in the music world. This week we cover a bunch of various facets of the indie rock world and I have to say for the most part it was pretty great stuff that I had never heard before. Maita is the big winner, that's a new favorite, looking forward to checking out some more music by her. If you want to see your band on one of these lists, send us streaming music and as short bio.
BAND: MAITA
BloodMakesNoise Rating: 10/10
Genre: Indie Rock / Indie Pop
What the band says they sound like: Maria Maita-Keppeler digs into that crippling oxymoron of modernity, the constant bombardment of communication paired with utter disconnection. The album grasps passionately for a world that too often seems at a gauzy distance.
What we think they sound like: Speaking on the single "Loneliness" to me this has a very Soccer Mommy vibe and I love that because it's dark, it grooves and it's catchy as hell. It sacrifices a little of the indie "I don't care" style of delivery for a little more croon but I'm ok with that. The chorus almost feels Mazzy Star-ish because of it. On tracks like "Pastel Concrete" and "You Sure Can Kill A Sunday" both have this great energy almost in the vibe of Wet Leg and it works really well with Maria's vocals. This album has killer tracks from start to finish, I think this is an artist you will be hearing much more about in the near future.
Songs to add to your playlist: Loneliness, Pastel Concrete, You Sure Can Kill A Sunday, Where Do You Go?
BAND: SWEET TEETH
BloodMakesNoise Rating: 9.8/10
Genre: Indie Rock, Garage Rock
What the band says they sound like: ’90s-inspired powerpop explosion. By far the most powerpoppy song we’ve ever written, I’m not sure if we’ll ever do one like this again. The lyrics are about classic first date nerves and all the anxiety and joy that love brings, hence the title. It’s influenced by late ’80s and early ’90s alternative rock; from the Sonic Youth-inspired intro, to the line of text saying ”whatever’s cool with me”. _
If you know, you know…_
What we think they sound like: This track starts with a great burst of noise and busts into a jangly garage rock 90's inspired song. I hear Guided By Voices, Soul Asylum, Lemonheads, a little Pearl Jam but mixed with 60's structure and vibe kind of like The Leaves or something like that. It's like all that but also has little bit of a dark fuzzed out grunge thing going on at the same time, reminds me a little bit of that Gerard Way single from a while back "Haunted House" and I'm sucker for throwback sounding simple song structure when it's done well. Vocally it's also a little bit in the vein of Matthew Sweet also, has only good influences combined into a great track, looking forward to hearing more.
Songs to add to your playlist: Love Panic
BAND: THE MESSENGER BIRDS
BloodMakesNoise Rating: 8.1/10
Genre: Indie Rock / Indie Pop
What the band says they sound like: ‘Tragic Comedy’ started out as a natural carryover of themes from our first record and then became an animal of its own,” Parker Bengry and Chris Williams of The Messenger Birds said. “The more objectively sad and deranged our lives and the world around us became, the more it felt like an inside joke we weren’t in on or some elaborate prank someone was doing to us. A lot of what we were writing was sort of like ‘oh, this would be really funny if it wasn’t true’ and took on this Nathan Fielder-esque dark sense of humor, which maybe isn’t the most healthy way to process life-altering traumas, but it’s what worked for us.”
What we think they sound like: It takes a full minutes but finally the anticipation ends as the drums kick in and the guitars continue the simple melody. This totally sounds like the opening track of an album so while it may not be one of those tracks great for a playlist or a listening to over and over it's a great build and a really cool song. Thinking as duo and how to keep your music interesting is always a challenge and these guys do it right, they understood the assignment. Although 6 minutes for a single is bit long in this day and age where attention spans are shrinking but if you hang in there you get rewarded with the big thrashy loud ending that you were hoping was going to be delivered.
Songs to add to your playlist: Tragic Comedy
BAND: SLIGHTEST CLUE
BloodMakesNoise Rating: 8.5/10
Genre: Post Punk, Indie Rock
What the band says they sound like: Fan favorite “Sibilance” delivered a punchy follow-up single, translating the band’s raw live sound into a patchwork quilt of blistering guitars, fuzzy bass, heavy drums. This translation work continues dutifully throughout Twin Silver, resulting in an equal parts energetic and earnest first outing for
Slightest Clue.
What we think they sound like: I will say this band has their own thing going on that is somewhere between Fugazi and Talking Heads. It's a really interesting mix of indie pop and post punk that feels like a real live band is playing the music and every instrument plus the vocalist showcase their personality within each song. At moments it's Sonic Youth and Sleeter Kinney, it's got nice angular guitars that give it a dance punk vibe. This band sounds like they could be at home just as much at a punk hall show or a club full of hipsters in Brooklyn. So much personality comes through from everyone in the band, and it's amazing how each vocalist is equally great for the song they sing on, hence the Sonic Youth comparison, it's like Thurston and Kim. I'm digging it and the raw intensity on tape will make you want to see this band live.
Songs to add to your playlist: Sibilance, Just Fine, Look At The Way She Goes, Breathe Slow
BAND: HOW TRAGIC
BloodMakesNoise Rating: 7.5/10
Genre: Indie Rock, Garage Rock, Surf
What the band says they sound like: Goodbye Cruel World” is a mid-tempo punk song with a touch of 1950s balladry overtones, and it’s as seething as it is sensual, smoldering with ill-fated romantic ideals. One choice passage reads: We hemorrhage apathy, As The World Turns/There’s not much else to do but sit and watch it burn/Goodbye, cruel world/Goodbye, cruel world/and this wasteland/Goodbye cruel world. This is a song for the ages, but we will probably be looking down at our phone checking out influencers, and the meticulously-curated lives on display when the earth explodes in a big ball of fire. But we can’t say we weren’t warned.
What we think they sound like: Here's the thing, could this be any more dramatic? And I'm not sure if I mean that in a good way. I'm a sucker for rockabilly and anything with a throwback 50's vibe but I have to l know the someone is hanging on by a thread if they are going to sing the lyrics "Goodbye Cruel World" and I'm not sure I'm buying it. It's too nice and pretty. It's kitsch so if that's your thing you might really enjoy this and I'm sure if I heard this being played by a local band at a show I'd be into it. Something about this line in the press release, "we will probably be looking down at our phone checking out influencers, and the meticulously-curated lives on display when the earth explodes in a big ball of fire" rubs me the wrong way, like one maybe don't hang out with vapid idiots and two... I forgot what I was gonna say, I was busy watching people fall down on TikTok. Joking aside it's catchy, I'll give em that.
Songs to add to your playlist: Goodbye Cruel World