So full disclosure I run a record label and I’ve come to an agreement with Blood Makes Noise to let me promote releases every week. The idea is every week I will present a playlist with some new Mint 400 Records music and what I think inspired our songwriters. This weeks playlist is a pretty interesting mix of musicians. From our newest signing, Asbury Park NJ’s Lowlight and their first single from their forthcoming album to UK Indie Folk gem Poggy and finally Clamb from Boston and their brand of Avant Garde Indie Synth Jazz.
Lowlight are a very interesting band because musically they don’t really fit into the box of what current female fronted indie bands like Phoebe Bridgers, Soccer Mommy, Nat Vazer and others sound like. They take more of a classic songwriting approach sort of in the same vein as Waxahatchee but the end result is exclusively Lowlight. Renee Maskin has one of the most distinct voices in all of the New Jersey scene and something about it harkens back to more classic rock influence than indie rock influence. So it became hard to find a band to compare them to, instead I threw a great Pretenders track on our playlist to remind people there was a reason The Pretenders asked Lowlight to do a bunch of tour dates with them and this track exemplifies that. The band on this newest release and the forthcoming album take some exciting chances with interesting interspersed tones and pieces of music almost in a very prog way and audiences are sure to enjoy the musical journey that Lowlight takes you on.
Poggy is the musical project of Mary Ann Hatton a soulful indie folk artist from the UK. All of Poggy’s recordings have wonderful harmonies that bring each track alive. There is just so much joy conveyed in every track and I don’t know how to explain it but it just feels like the ocean or the beach are important to the creation of this music and perhaps being from the coastal town of Deal, Kent has contributed in some way to the overall sound. The comparison I made for this specific track was to Enya but I feel like Poggy has a little more 60’s influence to it. Overall Poggy is the kind of music you put on when you are in a bad mood because you know it will completely reverse your mood. I found Poggy originally through an A&R search and of thousands of demos hers were the only artist we were interested in at the time and she turned us down. Luckily about year later I came across her album again and it was just such a musical gem that wasn’t getting enough attention that I had to ask her again to please reconsider. I’m very glad it worked out because this new release is so enjoyable!
Clamb the avant garde indie synth jazz project from Boston is one of our initial signings for our sub-label Raining Music which is dedicated to jazz and instrumental music. Clamb is a group that are kind of like going down a rabbit hole once you get sucked into their world. On social media they have their own cryptic language they speak in and their album covers are like images the illuminati might put in their monthly mailers. Clamb have a distinct sound and are pioneers that are redefining what jazz could be as they break traditional style. Their music is extremely well played and although the synth may fake you out into thinking this is synthetically created music, it is not, this is a traditional trio making music I think is along the lines of JD Beck and Domi as well as other modern influence. I think the title Avant Garde sometimes scares people into thinking they aren’t going to hear actual musical form and songs in the traditional sense but I feel like Clamb doesn’t venture so far into that territory that it’s not enjoyable. The tracks feel like modern indie pop without vocals and then slowly you realize, ah, the vocals are not going to come in and musically this is going to get weird, but that is all in a good way.
- Neil Sabatino