Rock – Page 14

May 25, 2018

Lithics

Portland OR quartet, Lithics, bring the heat and melt faces on their new album Mating Surfaces. Their razor-sharp, tinnitus-causing, post-punk hooks you right at the needle drop of opening track “Excuse Generator” (below) and doesn’t let go for 29 minutes, leaving you exhausted – yet begging for more.

Mating Surfaces is out now via Kill Rock Stars. Enjoy.

May 11, 2018

Corey Flood

Corey Flood’s debut EP, Wish You Hadn’t is a dark, brooding and quite addicting indie-pop meets post-punk effort. Clocking in at just under 12 minutes Wish You Hadn’t ends way too soon – there should be like 8 more songs – I want more Corey Flood! Hopefully there will be more to come.

I couldn’t choose a song to highlight because they are all so good. Please enjoy the entire EP stream below.

Wish You Hadn’t is available digitally and on cassette via Fire Talk records.

<a href="http://coreyflood.bandcamp.com/album/wish-you-hadnt-ep">Wish You Hadn’t EP by corey flood</a>

May 2, 2018

NADINE

Collaborators Nadia Hulett (Phantom Posse), Carlos Hernandez (Ava Luna) and Juian Fader (Ava Luna) also known as NADINE bring the smooth on their chilled-out, indie-pop debut Oh My.

Check out my favorite track from Oh My, the early Rilo Kiley-esque “Can’t Be Helped” (below) for a sampling. Oh My is out now via Father/Daughter Records. Enjoy.

April 4, 2018

Salad Boys

New Zealand’s Salad Boys have returned with their newest long player This is Glue. Like previous Salad Boys’ releases, This Is Glue blurs the lines between in-your-face rock and roll and laid-back jangle-pop. Give opening tracks “Blown Up” and “Hatred” (below) a spin to see what I mean.

This Is Glue is out now and available from Trouble In Mind Records. Enjoy.

February 27, 2018

Droopies

Philadelphia 3-piece, Droopies, are the definition of the term power-trio. Their sophomore release Responsible People is packed with in-your-face hooks as they bounce between shoegazey punk rock and jangly psych-pop, with one common denominator: fuzz and lots of it. These guys get pretty big sound for there just being three of them.

Responsible People is out now digitally via Droopies Bandcamp page and on a limited cassette release through Funny / Not Funny Records. Give “Gone Wrong” (below) a spin, then go get your hands on a copy of this bad boy. Enjoy.

January 29, 2018

The Prefab Messiahs

Massachusetts’ Prefab Messiahs are back with Psychsploitation, a new slab of psyched-out, fuzz-pop goodness. This time only taking 2+ years from their last release, Keep Your Stupid Dreams Alive – compared to the 32 years between KYSDA and their first album, Flex Your Mind.

Psychsploitaion’s 10 tracks are politically charged and crammed full of all the reverb, fuzz and jangle you can handle. Give my favorite tracks “Having a Rave Up” and the appropriate album closer “Last Day on Earth” a spin below for a taste.

Psychsploitaion is available now on CD via Lolipop Records and on Cassette through Burger Records. Enjoy.

January 17, 2018January 17, 2018

Spiritual Cramp

San Francisco’s Spiritual Cramp are a refreshing throwback to the snotty rock ‘n roll and punk rock days of the 70’s and 80’s. Their debut EP Mass Hysteria is a real stomper. Check out the shimmery (dare I say Clash-like?) “Tenderloin” and the in your face “Wrecking Machine” below.

Mass Hysteria is out digitally via Spiritual Cramp’s Bandcamp page and on vinyl through Deathwish.

January 12, 2018

Sufis

Brooklyn (by way of Nashville) duo Sufis are back with the third LP, After Hours, out today (Jan 12) via Burger Records. It’s a groove-filled (seriously, this sucker is groovy as hell), psych-pop romp that’s been on repeat since it landed in my inbox. I highly recommend you spend some quality time with this album.

Give standout tracks “Till I Get Home” and “All Knowing (71)” (below) a spin to sample their goodness. Enjoy.

January 2, 2018January 2, 2018

Favorite Releases of 2017 (Sam’s List)

Better late than never – my auditory loves of 2017, in rough order…

Thundercat Drunk (Brainfeeder)
Intoxicating, weird, vulnerable, and soooooo damn funky. My Album of the Year if I had to pick one.

Slowdive Slowdive (Dead Oceans)
The comeback album of our collective dreams.

Trementina 810 (Burger)
If this hadn’t been The Year of Slowdive’s Triumphant Return, I’d like to think this gorgeous offering of dreamy shoegaze from Chile’s Trementina would’ve been the talk of the town.

The xx I See You (Young Turks)
Now that producer Jamie Smith, aka Jamie xx, is getting his due as the driving force behind The xx juggernaut, I might be able to stop raving about him. But why stop now?

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings Soul of a Woman (Daptone)
What a force. What a voice. What a loss.

Big Thief Capacity (Saddle Creek)
This album has quietly slipped on to a bunch of Best of 2017 lists because it is just that: a quiet album of incredible strength.

Grandaddy Last Place (30th Century Records)
“Even still the rockers are…”

Mountain Goats Goths (Merge)
A wonderfully engaging concept/tribute album – whether you are, were, or have ever loved a goth.

Boris Dear (Sargent House)
Rumored to be a farewell letter to their fans, it’s a welcome return to the nuanced take on sludge/drone/doom metal that first lured me in almost 20 years ago.

Fazerdaze Morningside (Flying Nun)
Nearly perfect bedroom pop.

Moses Sumney Aromanticism (Jagjaguwar)
All the feels.

Molly Burch Please Be Mine (Captured Tracks)
A sparse, timeless album that allows nothing to interfere with the purity of Molly’s hypnotic voice.

Doug Tuttle Peace Potato (Trouble in Mind)
Hypnotic psych pop with enough ragged edges to keep you awake.

Homeboy Sandman Veins (Stones Throw)
Based on record sales in the “>3hive Co-op Shop, not everyone agrees – but I think he’s one of the best, most versatile MCs around.

Waxahatchee Out in the Storm (Merge)
Katie Crutchfield finds her sound and voice amidst the rubble of a failed relationship.

Honorable mentions: Iron & Wine Beast Epic [buy vinyl], Protomartyr Relatives in Descent, LCD Soundsystem american dream [buy vinyl], Destroyer ken [buy vinyl], Open Mike Eagle Brick Body Kids Still Daydream, The Courtneys II [buy vinyl], King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Murder of the Universe [buy vinyl], Jonwayne Rap Album Two, Priests Nothing Feels Natural, Robyn Hitchcock Robyn Hitchcock [buy vinyl]