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Without Pandering, The Memories Encourage Us All to be on the Lookout For When Life Sends Us a Helping Hand When We’re Down on “Second Try”

TheMemoriesKelseyReckling_sm — The Memories, photo by Kelsey Reckling

Instead of tapping into Laurel Canyon vibes and fuzzy, 90s rock, The Memories seem to have been influenced a touch by 70s power pop (think The Raspberries and Big Star) and 90s indie pop via the Elephant 6 collective for its single “Second Try.” Half the band is also in the great garage punk group White Fang but the only element that translates over to The Memories is a knack for solid hooks and surprisingly clever yet thoughtful lyrics and a spirit of fun and hopefulness. “Second Try,” though, has melancholic tones and atmospheric jangle in the guitar work and what might be described as an elegance of tone and sincere hopefulness. As if to say sure you’re down, you’ve weathered what seems a long string of misfortunes that simply isn’t ending but keep an eye out for when things aren’t always working against you by not adopting a defeatist attitude. The lyric “don’t deny the help if it comes to you, be kind” is just one of the turns of phrase in the song that builds on a theme of being aware of subtleties in opportunity to hang on to to pick yourself up a bit and not constantly beat yourself down. In fact, “Take life by surprise” and give it a, yes, second try or third or twentieth or more. But it’s the uplift in the melancholic tone and not offering the usual platitudes that makes this pop song something more noteworthy. Listen to “Second Try” on Soundcloud, follow The Memories at the links below and look out for the new album Pickles & Pies out May 29 through Gnar Tapes and Axis Mundi Records.

open.spotify.com/artist/4sGXRKVt3jXcqjUCRuK67C
thememories.bandcamp.com
twitter.com/memspop
facebook.com/The-Memories-321633651184829
instagram.com/thememories420

Furlong Celebrates the Dynamic of Social Rivals in the Brash and Catchy Fuzz Pop Anthem “Hate Girls”

Furlong_HateGirls1_sm — Furlong, photo courtesy the artists

Furlong takes a different approach to youthful angst on its single “Hate Girls.” Its brash, fuzzy pop bursts with palpable joy in being the villain in someone’s life story in the way people can be melodramatic rivals in high school. The zest for besting someone you love to hate because they’re annoying and imagine themselves superior over nothing. But the song is not without self-awareness in the line about how the two parties imagine themselves masters of the art of invective and revenge when in fact the stakes aren’t so high. The bouncy rhythm and rapid loud-quiet-loud dynamic of the song and the way the raw vocals and splintery guitar are on the verge of going off the rails is reminiscent of Butt Trumpet (“I’m Ugly and I Don’t Know Why”) or, to use a more recent reference, Bully. The possible nod to Mean Girls in the title is also a nice touch. So if you’re looking for something blunt but tuneful and brimming with exuberant energy, listen to “Hate Girls” on Soundcloud where you can also connect with Australia’s Furlong.

soundcloud.com/furlongband

Shasta’s “Roaming Hearts” Shows Us How to Process Heartbreak and Heartache Without Getting Stuck in Bitterness and Resentment

The music video for Shasta’s “Roaming Hearts” looks like something that might have come out of the late 80s with the washed out colors, collage style visual elements and a bit of stop motion effects. Something you might have seen in a Bangles or They Might Be Giants video of that time. Glistening synths casting an uplifting sheen, the mix of live drums and drum machines, the alternately jagged and introspectively atmospheric guitar and melodic bass in which Micayla Grace’s seems to dance about in reverie combine to make for a song that seems rooted in styles across decades. At the same time there is an emotional immediacy and intimacy to the song as though it had originally been written on an acoustic guitar to work out the melodies, the structure and the use of space. The pedigree of the group might suggest a different set of musical expecations as Grace was once a member of Bleached and Albert Hammond Jr.’s band, drummer Jon Sortland is in The Shins and guitarist Cecilia Della Perruti is a multi-instrumentalist who has been a touring member of Beck’s live band as well as that of Charlie XCX not to mention her own group Gothic Tropic. The band started when Grace met synth player Jennifer Duardo in an alley in the Mission district of San Francisco and found in each other kindred creative spirits. “Roaming Hearts” has a freshness of spirit that makes its tale of heartbreak and heartache not just more palatable but transformative in working through the complex emotions and not getting lost in bitterness and resentment, which is a much more original take on an age old subject than we often hear in a pop song.

The Granular Sonic and Emotional Collage of Vijuuns’ “Overlay” Makes For an Immersive Listen

Vijunns_Overlay1_crop — Vijunns “Overlay” cover

Vijunns’ song “Overlay,” named after the Photoshop blending tool, explores the theme of urban decay. With the accompanying music video with performance artist playing the role of an enigmatic figure walking through and moving about various settings in Bombay Beach on the Salton Sea, the layers of sound – flowing and swirling winds of white noise, granular, melodic tones, pulsing arpeggios, meditative beats – work enhance each other while existing independent of each other. The effect gives a different emotional context when taken as a whole and the use of the imagery of urban decay draws on a sense of a memory of a place that persists in the mind that in your emotions overlays the current conditions of the landscape. Walking through them those layers of meaning for you mingle and you come to appreciate the world as it is now in a new way as it has a new context for people that don’t remember it as you once did and so it exists in experience purely in its current form. The track, too, is reminiscent of early Tycho or early 2000s Boards of Canada with their own drawing upon sonic and emotional artifacts of an earlier era to craft a musical experience for today that anchors the listening experience across time if you can tap into its references and if not just provides a soothing and deeply immersive and lush bit of ear candy. Watch the video for “Overlay” on YouTube and connect with Vijunns at the links below.

vijunns.com
soundcloud.com/vijunns
facebook.com/vijunns

“Of Two Minds (feat. Boy Indigo)” by Adrianna Krikl is Like the Romantic Outro Music to an Unconventional, Sprawling Space Opera

AdrianaKrikl_OfTwoMinds1_crop — Adrianna Krikl “Of Two Minds” cover

The appropriately titled “Of Two Minds” by Adrianna Krikl featuring with Boy Indigo is like being invited into a windswept realm of streaming, melodic drones, floating on rising, blissful clouds of tone while a nearly androgynous voice sings like the collective voice of that ethereal space. What the song brings to mind is what the outro soundtrack to a cinematic version of the Saga comic series by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples might sound like. There is an air of romance and mystery to the song, of promise and uncertainty but unshakeable hope and inner tranquility in the face of any turmoil to come. Listen to “Of Two Minds” on Bandcamp and connect with Adrianna Krikl at the links below.

adriannakrikl.com
tidal.com/browse/album/131467630
deezer.com/us/album/131894332
soundcloud.com/adriannakrikl/of-two-minds-feat-boy-indigo
music.apple.com/us/album/of-two-minds-feat-boy-indigo/1499157476?i=1499157477
open.spotify.com/album/0IQPOJ8hrz2GP9vlTkoU0M?highlight=spotify:track:2bAXwwOPcrm5OQ5Yu8sD83

Laveda Makes Having Youthful Illusions of Immortality and Vigor Shattered Sound Triumphant and Life-Affirming on “Ghost”

Laveda_Ghost1_crop — Laveda, photo courtesy the artists

Give Laveda’s “Ghost” some of your time to come to full bloom. The introduction sounds like someone recorded a secret practice session, like the first recordings you might make before you figure out anything like mic placement or having a real mic at all. It is a sonic metaphor for the vulnerability and tenderness, hopefulness, honesty and bravery in the music and words to follow. The song quickly gets to its grand sweeps of melodic guitar and vocals that both sit perfectly with that melody and float breathily over the quiet sections. Though the song is about being in a situation that changes your perspective on life in an instant by shattering the illusions you might have about your own immortality when you’re young or your personal myth of willpower overcoming all when you’re a little older. Laveda’s great momentum in the song also indulges in moments of imperfection that give it the grit and unvarnished quality that actually complements well its polished grandeur. Fans of Slowdive and Alvvays will appreciate not just the delicious atmospheres but the song’s creative dynamics and layered emotional colorings. Listen to “Ghost” on Spotify, connect with Laveda at the links below and look out for the group’s new full length What Happens After out April 24 via Color Station.

soundcloud.com/lavedamusic
open.spotify.com/artist/4k9HOB4zrVAEasP7nm31F7
facebook.com/lavedamusic
instagram.com/lavedamusic

Owsey Remixes Koresma’s “Northern Lights” to Craft the Chillout Lounge Music For a Floating Nightclub in Full View of the Aurora Borealis

Koresma_NorthernLights_OwseyRemix1_crop — Koresma “Northern Lights (Owsey remix)” cover (cropped)

The Owsey remix of Koresma’s “Northern Lights” gives it a dusky and lush, downtempo sheen. Adding sultry vocals, some subtle low end, and luminous strings, Owsey has enhanced the electronic horns of the original so that the song develops from a late night jazz vibe to a trance-y, chillout atmosphere that glimmers with shifting colors of the actual Northern Lights. Like if you could be in some kind of floating nightclub somewhere within clear visual distance of the phenomenon and the sense of wonder and calm that might fill you seeing them for the first time in person without the haze of pollution putting a filter between you and the experience. Listen Koresma’s “Northern Lights” as remixed by Irish producer Owsey on Soundcloud and connect with Koresma at the links provided.

soundcloud.com/koresma
open.spotify.com/artist/14EybDMySlkntyuxgm1pek
twitter.com/Koresmamusic
facebook.com/koresmamusic
instagram.com/koresmamusic

The Dark Atmospherics and Breakbeats of “No Fun” by Sundaes is the Soundtrack to Falling Out of Fascination With Self-Destructive Fun

Sundaes_NoFun2_crop — Sundaes, photo courtesy the artist

When “No Fun” by Sundaes begins you may have a flashback to 90s electronic music like Underworld with some hushed atmospherics and low key breakbeats. But when the nearly whispered vocals come in it takes on the quality of one of those dreams where everything seems murky, dark and lit by cool colors. The most distinct sonics are the shimmery drones and the accents of tone like glitches, flashes of another world, in the beat. The narrative could be a dialogue or memories of an emotionally abusive relationship with someone or some thing that seemed to be so fun and exciting until things took a turn toward the worse. The vocals and words don’t seem anguished but understanding of the dark appeal of Dionysian fun that lasts until its borderline forbidden exotic quality turns from pleasure into pain. It’s almost as if the song is capturing in retrospect the early phases of being in the social circles of someone mysterious and exciting who does help facilitate moments of seeming transcendence in hedonistic pursuits until you have to deal with real life stuff and that person proves not to be as amazing as maybe you once thought. “No Fun” is the third single from Sundaes’ debut full length Volume 1 out on Nashville’s Banana Tapes. Listen to the song Soundcloud and connect with Sundaes at the links provided.

sundaes.band
soundcloud.com/sundaesmackenzie
open.spotify.com/artist/7qiXFwby9N5MEUFATBy5cp
youtube.com/channel/UCPR0cy8PuhdGR5-4eGa6iSQ
facebook.com/sundaesyummysundaes

Suzie Chism’s New Album Where Examines and Questions the Internal Narratives of Our Lives

SuzieChism_Talkers1_Crop — Suzie Chism, photo courtesy the artist

Suzie Chism’s new album Where dabbles in styles across its nine tracks but in doing so it reflects the themes of the record. Fuzzy guitar give a quality of modern garage rock or neo-grunge, melancholic synths create introspective moods and textural acoustic guitar give a sense of spontaneity. All contribute to an album that seems to come from the perspective of someone who left her home town to go to some place more seemingly glamorous until you get there no matter how streetwise you thought you were before getting there. The story arc of the album, if indeed there really is a through line, is one of a person who puts on a brave face in situations that seem to call for it and in a process of self-discovery and adapting to life in a bigger city with a culture where presenting yourself is expected one can come to lose a bit of a sense of self for a moment or for an extended period of time until you realize you yearn for real connection with people. Throughout the album you get the feeling the narrator in each song is struck with a forlorn heart. On the title track the line “If lonely is a state of mind then where am I?” speaks to the existential crisis you hit when deep down you know that so much upon which you’ve been focusing your energy is folly.

On “Something Blue” we hear that maybe the spirit of making the best of things is derailed when the subject of the some comes to the realization that in her headlong pace to reach what she thought was desirable is making her miss what’s actually good in her life and that she’s fearful of staying in bad habits that make that an inevitability. And by the end of the album, these personal insights set the stage for at least trying to make one’s actual dreams come true. “Night Walks” is like a cross of rockabilly and 60s pop and there is a vibe of 60s girl groups and the compelling melodrama of that music to Chism’s songwriting on Where but it has that sense of self-awareness that one hears in more modern times by similarly influenced music with Best Coast—the knowledge that maybe you have made some missteps in life but having an internal compass can keep you aimed toward what matters. It is a record about questioning your own assumptions about what you’re life is supposed to be about. Listen to Where on Spotify.

Emiji’s Transcendent “Mountains” Drifts Into the Intersecting Realms of New Age and Ambient

Emiji_Mountains2_crop — Emiji “Mountains” cover

“Mountains” is a bit of a new direction for Irish ambient artist Emiji. It still features well crafted, melodic drifts, drones as ethereal wind blowing through the track and a sense of a spiritual journey in sound. With Heart Singing providing non-verbal vocals that trail off into echoes that dissolve into the rest of the soundscape there is an even stronger sense of grounding in tangible emotions and a sense of wonder. With the slowly ascending arc of piano that runs through the song it suggests being at the heights of the title and looking across the landscape and its tranquil grandeur when the sun is beginning to come up, peeking through rainclouds or slowly going past the horizon toward night. The second piano figure toward the end of the song changes the tone slightly to give the ethereal song a hopeful flavor. The effect of the vocals with the organic instrumentation and electronic drones is reminiscent of the better New Age music of the 80s and 90s without the pretentious baggage attendant with some of that musical milieu. Listen to “Mountains” on YouTube and connect with Emiji at the links provided. “Mountains” is the first song from Emiji’s new LP My Journeys due out in 2020.

emijimusic.com
open.spotify.com/artist/3U5ch0tyGeTVlf3YCRY9Eq
emijimusic.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/emijimusic
instagram.com/emijimusic