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Select Level

Select Level | Select level | 3hive.com
Select Level | Select level | 3hive.com

Seattle multi-instrumentalist Andy Sells has been doing his thing for quite some time, (all in bands that I need to/ will be checking out) including playing bass for Nosretep, drums for Afrocop and being part of the electronic outfit FCS North.

Sells’ new project (with Joel Cuplin, Noel Brass Jr. and Jason Powell rounding out the band) is Select Level. Their upcoming self-titled album is a funktastic, 8 song romp of post-punk meets disco-groove goodness – seriously, these guys aren’t messing around, this is a solid contender for album of the year.

Give album opener “The Race” a spin (below), it’s just a small sampling of the groove packed into this album.

Select Level drops on June 21 and is available for preorder now from Wax Thématique, you should preorder this. We will also have some copies at the 3hive Record Lounge as well. You don’t want to miss this one.

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Slow Pulp

Slow Pulp | Big Day EP | 3hive.com
Slow Pulp | Big Day EP | 3hive.com

Slow Pulp’s recently self-released sophomore EP, Big Day, is a solid 10 minutes of dream-pop meets shoegaze goodness that ends way sooner then it should. Give the standout “High” a spin below, for a taste. Big Day is available now via their Bandcamp page. Be sure to catch them on tour as well. Enjoy.

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Leggy

Leggy | Let Me Know Your Moon | 3hive.com
Leggy | Let Me Know Your Moon | 3hive.com

Cincinnati 3-piece Leggy have been cranking out the solid gold, garage-pop/rock goods since 2014 and their brand new full length, Let Me Know Your Moon is no exception. The shredded guitar licks, chugging bass lines, pounding drums and powerful vocals that we’ve come to expect from a Leggy release are all there and better than ever. Give “Not What You Need” and “Taffy” spins below to hear for yourself.

You can pick yourself up a copy of Let Me Know Your Moon on your preferred format from Leggy’s Bandcamp page. Enjoy.

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The Exbats

The Exbats | E Is For Exbats | 3hive.com
The Exbats | E Is For Exbats | 3hive.com

Arizona’s The Exbats consist of father-daughter dynamic duo Inez and Kenny McClain with the Resonars’ Matt Rendon rounding out the band on bass. They play solid, crunchy, pop-punk tunes. I think you’ll like them. Their new album, E Is For Exbats is not really a new album at all, it’s a compilation of their first two cassette releases put to vinyl for the first time via Burger Records. Check out “Everybody Loves My Mom” below for a taste.

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Business of Dreams

Buisness of Dreams | Ripe For Anarchy | 3hive.com
Buisness of Dreams | Ripe For Anarchy | 3hive.com

Corey Cunningham has been making music for quite sometime now, most notably in Magic Bullets and Terry Malts. He started Business of Dreams as a way to cope with loss and a life he had left in the past. His second album and first (as BoD) with Slumberland Records, Ripe For Anarchy, Cunningham has focused his songs on moving on and letting go. What he’s created with Ripe For Anarchy is a pure indie-pop gem. A sure fit in the Slumberland catalog. Give the incredible “My Old Town” and “Ripe For Anarchy” a spin below for a taste. I can say with certainty that this will be on my favorites of 2019 list come December. Enjoy.

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Eerie Wanda

Eerie Wanda | Pet Town | 3hive.com
Eerie Wanda | Pet Town | 3hive.com

Eerie Wanda is the musical project of the Netherlands’ Marina Tadic. Her new album is called Pet Town – it’s a poppy affair, full of toe-tappers that don’t disappoint. Take album opener and title-track “Pet Town” (below) for example. Tadic’s fuzzy, yet chilly vocals work nicely with the added snaps, noodley guitars and driving bass and drums.

Pet Town is out now via Joyful Noise and available on most formats via Eerie Wanda’s Bandcamp page.

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Pedro The Lion

Pedro The Lion | Phoenix | 3hive.com
Pedro The Lion | Phoenix | 3hive.com

David Bazan is back as Pedro The Lion with a new album titled Phoenix – his first PTL release in nearly 15 years. Bazan’s writing is as personal and introspective as ever as he conjures up memories both old and new thanks to a tour stop in his hometown and a detour past his childhood home.

Phoenix is January 18 via Polyvinyl Records. I highly recommend it.

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You Tell Me

You Tell Me | You Tell Me | 3hive.com
You Tell Me | You Tell Me | 3hive.com

I’ve been a big fan of Field Music since Sean’s post about them back in 2006, so I was stoked to find out that Peter Brewis had started up another project with Sarah Hayes (Admiral Hallow) called You Tell Me. Their just released (via Memphis Industries) self-titled LP is hard not to compare to Field Music or to say that it doesn’t sound like Field Music, but the addition of Hayes’ vocals and the way they harmonize with each other along with the orchestral-pop music they’ve created around their vocals make this one heck of a collaboration that definitely stands on its own.

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Part Time

Part Time | Spell #6 | 3hive.com

Part Time | Spell #6 | 3hive.com

Part Time’s new album Spell #6 (out now via Burger Records) is one of the best releases of 2018. It is a pop-rock/new-wave gem soaked in so much 80’s goodness, it’s 11 tracks could soundtrack a John Hughes film. Take “Shattered Love” and “So Far Away” for a spin below for a taste.

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Sam’s Faves of 2018

It’s time for my annual blog post…

Without further ado, my favorite albums of 2018:

Khruangbin Con Todo El Mundo (Dead Oceans)
Durand Jones & the Indications self-titled (Dead Oceans)
Bodega Endless Scroll (What’s Your Rupture?)
Jean Grae & Quelle Chris Everything’s Fine (Mello Music Group)
Janelle Monae Dirty Computer (Bad Boy)
Altin Gun On (Bongo Joe)
Smokescreens Used to Yesterday (Slumberland)
Idles Joy As an Act of Resistance (Partisan)
Low Double Negative (Sub Pop)
Cut Chemist Die Cut (A Stable Sound)

I encourage you to enjoy these on vinyl (link will go here as soon as I get off my butt and update the online store).

And because 2018 offered so much more music than can fit neatly in a Top 10 list, here are my 23 favorite songs of the past year…