Ov Stars is a duo comprised of Alice Genese and Shaune Pony Heath. Genese some may know for her tenure as the bassist in Psychic TV from 2003-2020. She had also been involved in the underground music scene around Hoboken, NJ as a member of Gut Bank and Sexpod whose own output is perhaps long neglected but worth exploring on their own. Heath was born and raised in South Africa and moved to the USA at 23 to pursue a creative life not as readily available in his home country. Genese had already started releasing music as a solo artist with her 2014 debut album Sticks and Bones and through her brother she was introduced to Heath and the two gelled personally and creatively. Their debut EP as Ov Stars, Tuesdays, is a warm and energetic blend of cosmic country circa Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, psychedelia and pop. Fans of Low and Marianne Faithful will find a good deal to appreciate in the finely crafted melodies and evocative atmospheres across the record’s five tracks. The duo is starting to perform live shows so check in with Ov Stars on Instagram @ovstarsband for live dates and notification of when the vinyl edition of the EP is released in later 2022. Tuesdays is, however, available now digitally on Bandcamp.
Psychic TV at Summit Music Hall 12/11/15, photo by Tom Murphy. Genesis Breyer P-Orridge on left, Alice Genese on right
Listen to our interview with Ov Stars on Bandcamp and if you happen to be in Brooklyn on or around June 30, 2022 you can see Ov Stars performing as part of the We Are But One – Breyer P-Orridge exhibit at Pioneer Works in Brooklyn.
For “I Like You,” Bloods’ latest single from the forthcoming album Together, Baby!, the group tapped the talents of Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! Fame and an obvious influence on the Australian trio. The song has an upbeat momentum and exuberant melodicism of The Breeders. It’s lyrics could apply to a friendship or a romantic relationship in which the bond is especially strong and in which the feeling is not just love but like and there’s a difference but having both at once reinforces those feelings in a way that feels special. Grace comes in during the second stanza with fortifying vocals and in the last part of the song Grace and Bloods trade lines and come together in the end where the song makes perhaps more explicit the type of relationship described with the lins “Not sleeping alone anymore/Never sleeping alone anymore” and the words “You pull me in I pick you up/Now we can stop pretending” that close out the song hits with more poignancy. The song isn’t much over two minutes but it feels like it describes an important relationship with great economy. Listen to “I Like You” on YouTube, look out for Together, Baby! The group’s debut album out September 23 through Share it Music (proceeds from the album going to Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, Australia) and follow Bloods at the links provided.
Cam Maclean’s enigmatic, dusky pop single “Visions” on the surface level sounds like a modern equivalent of yacht rock song but with the chill vibes and perpetually on vacation energy cut out completely. It’s more like the kind of song that would be perfect for a noir drama directed by Sofia Coppola but written by Ed Brubaker. There is an existential undercurrent to the song that comes from a place of deep introspection and when Maclean sings of how “there is no darkness that can purify his soul” it just makes sense from the perspective of darkness as a metaphor for the unknown and that in too many realms of life it’s not there on the edge of town or in neglected corners of downtown areas in a compelling way. And the song sounds like a melancholic reflection on how things have changed and how it changes people and the places they live and how what was special about so many cities is being bleached out by corporate developers and the like buying up so many “undervalued” property and draining the personality out of every place many people might like to live and make their own in a social ecosystem that isn’t comprised of moneyed monoculture and the businesses and public works that seem to cater to that. Who can say if Maclean had this perhaps heavy handed socio-political, analytic projection but this moody song, a touch of accordion adding a nice glimmer of nostalgia, certainly captures a time in life when you’re assessing what it’s all about and where you are in life and how you took for granted simple and familiar comforts as it’s fading away. Listen to “Visions” on YouTube and connect with Maclean at the links provided.
In the beginning of Boy With Apple’s “Brighter Than The Sun” it sounds as though you’re about to be dropped into a late 90s Britpop song but in a move similar to what we heard on “Sugar” by Beach Fossils, Boy With Apple takes a sharp left turn not so much into lush post-punk but transportingly ethereal dream pop. The percussion accents and grounds the music with its steady yet expressive drive while the vocals sound like they’re coming from somewhere deep in a luminous cave. Keyboards hold a glistening melody as guitars surge and swirl like billowing clouds of effervescent tone. It sounds a little lo-fi but that adds to the mystery of the song like footage of a lost shoegaze band of the early 90s shot on sixteen millimeter two track audio capture. There’s a rough charm to it even though the song has a softness that makes it immediately accessible. Listen to “Brighter Than The Sun” on Spotify and follow Boy With Apple at the links provided.
Bonelang set the existential song “Dog Cannibal” to a fairly uplifting beat with an orchestral composition with a slightly urgent pace. But the vocals which include Kweku Collins trade couplets revealing slices of life that tie it to concrete experiences and those pondering the nature of what it all signifies beyond what we’ve come to think of as the good life like a sip of cold Coca Cola, and spending hours under the sky in the summer evening with “flashes of ‘Neighborhood #1’ by Arcade Fire” and learning about one another. But the question of was this life everything you hoped for even though maybe it was the one you worked hard to get. The rapid fire rapping in the last third or so of the song drives home that side of the song and the choruses of “maybe you can help me lick my wounds” and “dog eat dog eat dog” and references to a mouth like a guillotine sound like a call for help and the realization that maybe some situation you idealized revealed its not dark side so much as the hard reality of what it takes, the compromises and too often ruthless habits, to even merely get by in one’s chosen realized American Dream. Fans of cLOUDDEAD and maybe even Hymie’s Basement will appreciate the creative and precise wordplay and the eclectic soundscapes that weave together modern production and stylistic flourishes with classic pop song craft. Listen to “Dog Cannibal” (which is a clever way of saying “dog eat dog,” of course) on Spotify and follow Bonelang at the links below.
Lindsey Jordan came out on stage looking like a rock/pop star from another era with what looked like a leather jacket and a lot of browns and rust colored pants. And for someone performing many songs from a fairly heavy record, Valentine, she seemed to be very upbeat and quick with the playful gestures on stage and with her band and lighthearted quips with the audience that really made the performance uplifting. There was a casual and free exchange with the audience who were attentive and supportive, a kind of rapport that set the tone for the show and somehow seemed to exist for the opening act as well.
Joy Again at at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22
Philadelphia-based indie rock band Joy Again opened the show and it seemed as though more than a few people in attendance were familiar with its music. Considering the group has been active since 2014 and roughly the same time frame as Snail Mail. Initially it hit like some sort of post-Mac Demarco, bedroom pop-esque band but then there was a keyboard player and a guy playing Moog and as the set went on the band’s ability to stretch out beyond initial impressions made its music more interesting and enveloping. Evidently Moog/keys player Zachary Tyndall evidently has a brother who lives in Denver and in attendance and after giving that shout out Tyndall took lead vocals for a spirited cover of “My Own Worst Enemy” by Lit.
Snail Mail at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22
Snail Mail’s set list drew liberally from both Lush and Valentine beginning with “Adore U.” Although there seemed to be a sense of camaraderie and good humor on stage, Jordan ably brought the intensity to her vocal performance when the moment called for expressing the strong feelings that undoubtedly inspired the song as if reliving the song but being able to let go of that moment. And the singer’s ability to convey a broad range of emotions was impressive. It was as though Jordan summoned these memories and living in them temporarily whether those feelings have a traditionally strong expression or as in “Ben Franklin” a melancholic acceptance. All executed with a fluid command of and confidence one might not expect from songs that articulate trauma and hurt so poignantly.
Snail Mail at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22
Between songs Jordan free formed the banter almost like a comedian interacting with people. Before playing “Light Blue” along with the band off stage Jordan reacted to the enthusiasm of the crowd saying, “Come on., don’t gas an old lady up. You’re gonna make an old lady cry. Just kidding. I don’t see myself as an old lady.” Later when Jordan asked what day it was, Sunday or Monday, someone said it was Easter and the singer joked, “Bad Catholic. I didn’t come here with an Easter agenda.” In general it was a lively and charming performance that kept your attention throughout including the encore that included “Mia” and ended with “Pristine.” Given the aesthetic of the band it felt like some kind of modern take on classic pop and rock except that Lindsey Jordan’s songs are so vulnerable, open and raw it felt like a collective purging of anxiety for an evening.
Snail Mail at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22Snail Mail at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22Snail Mail at Ogden Theatre 4/17/22
Charming Disaster is a goth folk duo from NYC that has been weaving tales of human relationships with each other, with the world around them and with the mythologies and beliefs that inform our behaviors since 2012. Inspired in part by the work of Edward Gorey and Tim Burton, the project regularly employs unconventional instrumentation in composing poetic and thought-provoking songs in a classic pop vein with an Americana flavor. At times their songs are reminiscent of what the Cramps might have sounded like had they directed their songwriting for a softer dark cabaret vibe or Tav Falco dialing back the rockabilly and emphasizing the folkloric aspect of his work. Whatever the exact way one might use to describe the band’s beguiling body of work, Ella Bisker and Jeff Morris clearly spend some time considering the types of stories they want to convey and the sounds that might best suit it given tools on hand to make every release unique and imbued with its own identity. For the latest Charming Disaster record, 2022’s Our Lady of Radium, Bisker and Morris took inspiration from the life and scientific discoveries of Marie Curie and the era in which she lived including her involvement with séances, the folklore of the mountains from which radioactive ores were mined and the tragic lives of the “Radium Girls” who painted the dials of watches with radium-based paint and were subsequently poisoned by radiation for their efforts. The album was written and recorded during the peak period of pandemic isolation and the musicians made great use of instruments and objects on hand to give the nine songs an intimacy and poignancy that made its inspired and deep storytelling immediately accessible. The record as well as a companion lyric and art book were released on March 4, 2022 with the album available digitally, on CD and translucent green vinyl with black splatter through their Bandcamp page.
Listen to our interview with Bisker and Morris on Bandcamp and connect with Charming Disaster at the links below the interview link.
Listening to Lillian Blue Makin’s song “Nicotine” and you can readily visualize the path she takes while smoking and trying to wean herself from a relationship that’s over even if the feelings aren’t there yet. And parallel to that the line about not smoking another cigarette when the pack is done brilliantly ties the experiences together in your mind and how quitting cigarettes or even giving them up for even awhile can be so challenging because it’s become a habit of life the way some relationships can be and you get to the point where you’re not sure why you’re holding on to either habit. The song is just over three minutes but it feels so short and says so much and when Makin sings how she hopes “this feeling goes away in time” it feels like that better instinct in your head coming forth to nudge you in a direction better for your physical and psychological health. The image of the lingering feelings burning out over time like a pack of cigarettes is also as fine a symbol as you’re likely to hear in a song any time soon. The textural guitar and spare percussion and keyboard accents with a subtle flourish of harmonica bring to the song a pastoral quality to the song especially in the end where it feels like things are going to resolve in a positive way even if the low key pain of missing someone you’re not getting back together with again still lingers. Listen to “Nicotine” on Spotify and follow Makin at the links below.
The Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom Murphy
The Velveteers have certainly reached an interesting crossroads in their career on the eve, as it were, of their national tour opening for Greta Van Fleet following the 2021 release of their debut full-length album Nightmare Daydream. The album and its thoughtful and incisive lyrics and imaginative sound palette much expanded from its early days perhaps helped to that level with the help of Dan Auerbach’s production of the album is a creative success even if it has yet to set its performance on streaming services on fire. But this show at The Fox Theatre felt like a way to acknowledge its roots as a band from Boulder with a hometown performance before setting sail to win over the audiences of a popular buzz band operating in a loosely similar realm of rock music drawing on older blues based rock. And for the occasion the trio brought on the bill some friends from the local scene who may have emerged around the same time as The Velveteers or shortly after.
Rose Variety at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom Murphy
Becc from Rose Variety seemed to indulge in a string of inside jokes and references throughout the band’s set including hinting that Rose Variety had broken up or went inactive during the early years of the pandemic but that Dry Ice had asked them to open for its own first show so this quintet got things back together for the occasion. Its music sounded like a blend of shoegaze pop and psychedelic indie rock of the sort that emerged in the 2010s. The fact that the performance felt a little rough around the edges but seemed musically coherent with a strong songwriting foundation made the threads of chaos that ran through the songs and Becc’s off-the-cuff persona just added an element of excitement to the show this early on.
Dry Ice at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom Murphy
Dry Ice had opened for The Velveteers in November 2021 for the album release show at the Gothic Theatre in Englewood, CO but if you didn’t get there early enough you missed them as I did. But listening to the band a bit online I did not expect to see a group whose music was very tight and expertly executed and was somehow both on the shoegaze spectrum with a touch of post-punk and more than a touch of riot grrrl edge and sensibilities including the final song “Don’t I Look Cute” which bassist Olivia Booth said was about killing frat boys and even brought someone on stage who claimed to be one and theatrically did so. But that aside there is something vital and visceral about the way in which Dry Ice delivers its politically/socially aware lyrics that strikes a broad emotional resonance like an amalgam of sounds and textures like there is some jazz background in the way they seem to invoke Deerhunter, Dum Dum Girls and The Slits all at once.
The Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom Murphy
The Velveteers have their sound dialed into sharp focus at this point. And while the energy is very intentional and practiced even as they seem to cut loose in the performance it still feels spontaneous like they have built into their shows the ability to indulge going off the map for periods of time so that it doesn’t get stale for them even as they deliver a strong performance. Because it can get like that when you’re in a band. How long can you sustain the excitement for yourself when you’re playing the same songs for extended periods of time and a consistent quality of performance for the many, many people you’ll see on the road that haven’t seen you several times like many fans in your hometown may have? You build into the songwriting and in the set lists and in the songs places where you can exercise spontaneity without sacrificing cohesion. And this show was an exercise in that and rock theater generally. Sure, the group has had that as part of their shows from very early on but you can see the work put in to give people a show rather than just three musicians getting up and rocking out. Demi Demitro’s combination of vulnerability and commanding, passionate vocals and thoughtful and astutely observed lyrics really set the band apart from other groups that have a rooting in the classic rock revival of the 2010s. But with Baby Pottersmith and Jonny Fig pushing the momentum in polyrhythmic fashion and giving the music a strong dynamic foundation the music and the show seems to reach great emotional heights. And with any good fortune this will translate well to the bigger stages The Velveteers take on what will hopefully be a successful run as impetus for another creative leap forward with its next record.
The Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom MurphyThe Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom MurphyThe Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom MurphyThe Velveteers at Fox Theatre 4/15/22, photo by Tom Murphy
Belgian hip-hop duo blackwave. gives us a downtempo map charting a path and a course toward self-care from being too heavily on one’s life’s grind with its song “good day.” The two vocals work so well in sync in the beat it keeps up momentum in a song about very serious personal issues and with the horns and percussion accenting the rhythm it comes off like an experimental hybrid of jazz and pop underneath the rapping. The song is about getting stuck and stagnating because you’ve spent so much time and energy hitting it hard for your job and maybe your creative projects or other personal goals you ignore that side of your emotional life that turns into melancholy then depression and anxiety when you don’t remember that you can’t sustain a headlong pace forever. The line “I’m just feeling like a bootleg version of myself” really speaks to that mode that’s easy to slip into when you think you’re doing what you want when you’re really doing what you feel you have to past a certain point because there’s only so much of you to give and that amount can change day to day and where ignoring those limitations can burn you out so that no you can’t keep on seeming like you’re living your best life. The song in the end is a reminder to honor your humanity and your limitations so that you can live in a way that not only doesn’t burn you out but those around you. Watch the video for “good day” on YouTube and connect with blackwave. at the links provided.
Queen City Sounds and Art 
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