New Music – Page 213 – Queen City Sounds and Art

“Coffee In The Morning” by The Millennial Club is Like a Hazy Early Morning Conversation With Yourself About Whether or Not the Relationship is Over

TheMillennialClub-CarlyWhalen_sm — The Millennial Club, photo by Carly Whalen

“Coffee In The Morning” by The Millennial Club has the kind of hush, hazy sound that sounds like what an early morning before the day gets into full bloom feels like—cool, languid, indistinct memories and a mind awake but not ready to take on the reality of modern, urban America during business hours. The back and forth dialogue of male and female vocals (the latter from guest singer Tori Romo) and the pondering about the contrasting viewpoints of people in a challenging relationship. The production allows tones to swirl and drift into the distance while the voices sound as intimate as a conversation with yourself. The chorus of “If it was easy everyone would do it” is like a mantra to keep trying even though the relationship seems on the verge of coming apart. And having that talk with yourself before your brain is in the linear logic mode demanded by daytime life is the perfect format to suss out the complexities of a situation so that you’re not yet in a place where you pick everything apart based on what you think you know rather than from a place where what you feel and what you think are closer together in your psyche. Listen to “Coffee In the Morning” on Soundcloud and follow The Millennial Club at the links provided. Look for The Millennial Club’s sophomore EP in 2020.

thisistmc.com
soundcloud.com/themillennialclub
twitter.com/shessoinsane
facebook.com/shessoinsane
instagram.com/themillennialclub

Urchin’s Blend of Jazz and Techno Blurs the Line Between Early 2000s Progressive Trance and Indie Electro on “Without No Fear”

Urchin1 — Urchin, photo courtesy the artists

“Without No Fear” by Urchin is reminiscent of the kind of music that one might have expected to hear in a movie taking place parallel to Trainspotting. The similar touchstones of blending jazz, electronic dance music and soul are there. But it’s an update on that sound that captures the heightened reality offered by the tranquil moments in otherwise stylized action movies like Layer Cake and Snatch. The track from the project’s forthcoming 2020 sophomore EP hits one’s ears like an Underworld song rooted more in organic sounds but imbued with that sort of hypnotic momentum and effervescent sound design. The song is a bit like using and indie rock and jazz palette of sounds with the style and structure of progressive trance. It’s a fascinating and evocative bit of abstracting together music that has traditionally been in two different spheres though these days those worlds are closer together than ever as methods of recording and production for both are similar and musical tastes not so sectarian. Listen to “Without No Fear” on Soundcloud and follow Urchin at the links below.

urchinband.com
facebook.com/urchinband
instagram.com/urchinmusic

Harley Small and Wallgrin Invite Us Into Their Shared Cauldron of Dreams With “Magic Circle”

harley-small-wallgrin-1_crop — Harley Small and Wallgrin, photo courtesy the artists

Harley Small and Wallgrin named their collaborative song “Magic Circle” after John William Waterhouse’s 1886 painting “The Magic Circle” depicting a woman using a wand to draw a ritual space in order to conduct a feat of ceremonial magic—a ward against the trespasses of the world while working on something special, sacred and personal. The song is carried by a breathy, drifty melody buoyed along by Kai Basanta’s intricate drumming as Small and Wallgrin welcome the listener to that magic circle where reality warps as the tones and vocals are processed to stretch out into gently reality altering proportions interweaving with synth tones similarly manipulated to give a sense of an expanded personal universe within the protected environment of that magic circle where one’s imagination and creativity can incubate and develop before coming forth fully formed so that the hermetic development can become an experience shared to a world outside the intimate company of those who key into the song’s unusual yet compelling structure and free flow of sounds and ideas. Like a cauldron of dreams issuing forth an alchemical blend of shared aesthetics, realities and aspirations. Musically it might be comparable to an experimental indie pop song in the classic 90s vein when Elephant 6 bands would use noises, samples, field recordings and tape manipulation as part of the process of writing uniquely affecting, even at times haunting, pop songs. But the production exists in a post-Animal Collective and post-Super Furry Animals realm of idiosyncratic psychedelia. Listen to “Magic Circle” on Soundcloud and follow the artists at the links below.

wallgrin.com
wallgrin.bandcamp.com
instagram.com/wallgrin
twitter.com/WALLGRINnoize
facebook.com/wallgrin
harleysmall.bandcamp.com
instagram.com/harleysmall
twitter.com/harleysmall
facebook.com/harleyedwardsmall

I, Doris, the World’s First Middle-Aged Girl-Band, Sends Up the Spurious Notion of Middle Aged Female Anonymity With Its Cheeky New Single “Just Some Doris”

IDoris2_crop — I, Doris, “Just Some Doris” cover (cropped)

I, Doris claims to be “the world’s first middle-aged girl-band.” And so it seems. What makes this interesting beyond a mere gimmick is the fact that Western culture generally encourages everyone to “grow up” and give up doing anything creative or having a real identity or personality after 35, much less 40. And if you’re over 40 and not rich or famous there is no public place for you in society. Especially if you’re a woman. Which is what makes “Just Some Doris” a delightfully cheeky indie pop gem taking aim at the notion that all women over 40 are basically interchangeable. The refrain “Just some Doris, you can just ignore us, don’t need to know my name, girls are all the same, birds are all the same, chicks are all the same, Doris is our name,” spills such notions back out into the world to send it up as the absurd conceit it is. But instead of screaming these sentiments, I, Doris takes the sarcasm a step further by delivering the message in a pleasing, accessible form as a nice pop song. Is the subtext that just because someone is polite and pleasant doesn’t mean they’re not telling you arch truths you need to acknowledge? It’s a playful pop song with layers of meaning both overt and covert and the melody is too catchy to resist. Watch the video for “Just Some Doris” on YouTube and follow I, Doris at the links provided.

idoris.bandcamp.com
twitter.com/justsomedoris
facebook.com/IDoris
instagram.com/idorisband

The Melancholic Indie Pop of “The Xennials” by Blissful Red is an Ode to Coming of Age in a Time Before Constant Connection and Instant Access

BlissfulRed3_sm — Blissful Red, photo courtesy the artist

From the stop motion drawing animation of the music video to the start and stop dynamics of its spare melody, “The Xennials” by Blissful Red captures a sensibility that came to the fore during that early to mid-90s period in Western culture. One that embraced a lo-fi sound and songwriting approach favored by artists like Microphones and Sebadoh, willfully rough around the edges but making that into a more authentic and intimate songwriting style inspired in part by that brief period when artists that didn’t fit with the previous era of overproduced music and bloated bombast or the one that came after of conservative artistic choices guided again largely by commercial potential over artistic originality and a turning away from idiosyncratic creativity. By putting into the video visually interesting but rough drawings of classic 90s album covers and clothing colored in by crayon and colored pencil by hand it’s almost as though Blissful Red is invoking how coming of age at the that time was a mixture of having art handed to you by an older generation and discovering what was meaningful to you in your anecdotal way long before almost everything could be researched on the internet sans the context that made it all meaningful to the people to whom it resonated originally. Almost as though the act of the drawing was a way to emphasize how your identity had to be hand crafted analog style with the context not summed up for you in some online article or playlist. There is a sense of a loss of that way of being and the culture that came out of that time that fostered a real sense of having access to an alternative culture by having to pursue and cultivate it rather than have instant access. Of not being able to access everyone all the time and feel an artificial sense of connection, of existing before a beige, interconnected monoculture set in. It’s not a mournful song, but one that looks back fondly to a time not so long ago that may seem quaint to many now. Watch the video for “The Xennials” on YouTube and follow Blissful Red on Soundcloud.

soundcloud.com/blissful-red-1

Tomas Raae & The Malibu Beach Band Encourages Us to Follow Our Inner Light and Curiosity Toward Paths of Our Lives’ Fulfillment on “Flashlight Beam”

TomasRaae1_sm — Tomas Raae, photo courtesy the artist

With a name like Tomas Raae & The Malibu Beach Band you might expect something like a surf garage project. But with the ambient version of “Flashlight Beam” it’s more like something Nico might have done had she lived long enough to collaborate with Jenny Hval or Joanna Newsom. Alice Carreri’s luminously ethereal vocals float through a tranquil soundscape directed by spidery guitar work and textural percussion. Distorted synth washes flash through the track like the object in the title, sweeping away the darkness for a moment as if to emphasize the idea in the song suggesting how we all need to figure out where we want to go and the path we can discover for ourselves if we’re willing to go beyond what we assume is possible based on the limited horizons of our upbringing and culture. The vocals drift toward those that alluring and mysterious territory just outside the reach of where our personal flashlight beam can illuminate and make clear to us unless we take those steps into the unknown trusting our ability to navigate the new if we don’t let the unknown be a source of fear and allow it to be a beacon for curiosity. Listen to “Flashlight Beam” on Spotify and follow songwriter and composer Tomas Raae at the links provided.

https://open.spotify.com/track/3gZpNdiFoDVbJoGEZIeT1R

TomasRaae.dk
facebook.com/TomasRaaeandthemalibubeachband
instagram.com/tomas_raae

“Got It Like I Like It” is Like Qwiet Type’s Personal Action Movie Outro Anthem

QwietType2_Crop — Qwiet Type, photo courtesy the artist

“Got It Like I Like It” finds Qwiet Type in a bit of a different sonic realm than the other singles reviewed on this site. Rather than the somewhat whimsical yet ambitious pop of “Shakedown” and “My Friends Are Coming Over,” this song makes you think not of Harry Nilsson so much as the moment in an 80s action movie or cop show, think Miami Vice or another Michael Mann vehicle like Band of the Hand or Manhunter, where one of the protagonists is reflecting on all the struggles to finally reach the point in the plot at the end of the story where the greatest challenges are overcome and they can take the time out to enjoy the kind of victory and triumph that really only fully makes sense in your own head because that’s where a lot of our struggles take place even if they seem tough even from the outside. Though the song has an uplifting vibe and somewhat celebratory it also obviously comes from a place of genuine feeling but needing to downplay how hard it’s been in order to enjoy the moment. Listen to “Got It Like I Like It” on Soundcloud.

Louis Metric’s “Aloe Vera” is a Clever Dig at the Nihilistic Rat Race of the Modern 9-5

LouisMetric1_crop — Louis Metric “Aloe Vera” cover (cropped)

The story of Louis Metric’s “Aloe Vera” is probably one familiar to most people. Working for around ten dollars an hour at a dead end retail, restaurant or desk job, the kind that rewards talent equally and for hard work and excellence offered more work, uninspiring benefits at best and no advancement because only so many people can be promoted to middle management. Anyone that’s been there will tell you it’s one of the worst jobs in any company. So strive and make yourself valuable for what? Louis knows what’s up with that grind summed up nicely with the line, “Wearing a tag with my name don’t really bring me joy.” So he plots to get connected with a cougar with money to get more than a taste of the good life. The whimsical keyboard work in the beat signals the absurdity and surreal quality of the whole situation for everyone involved even as the lyrics describe a better life than selling one’s life on the cheap in the world under late capitalism. The song is reminiscent of early Anticon specifically Why?, with its energetic delivery and deft wordplay. The song is called “Aloe Vera” as in a treatment for burns? Burned by being offered low expectations as the be all end all of your life if you’re not already rich. Metric suggests we all have to do what we have to do until the world is better for everyone. Listen to “Aloe Vera” on Soundcloud and follow Metric at his website.

louismetric.com

Hail!Maggiedacat’s Enigmatic Single “Details” is a Document of Her Encounter With the Devil Before She Disappeared

HailMaggiedcat1_crop — Hail!Maggiedacat, photo courtesy the artist’s management and estate (cropped)

Hail!Maggiedacat is the name of a musician and producer who allegedly went missing on February 12, 2019. Though her music is said to be inspired by 80s horror movie soundtracks, her single “Details” sounds like a lo-fi mashup of ethereal guitar riffs sampled and overlaid with electronic flute and introspective vocals with which the artist sings a song about her first encounter with the devil before her disappearance. She goes over the things she could wish to be while looking for details in the offer made to her by Old Scratch and asks why she can’t be given what she wants and the devil can take what he needs. Without knowing the subject and the supposed backstory of her management and estate releasing her music posthumously, it’s a song that doesn’t give much away in terms of rooting it in a genre or cultural time frame outside of it likely had to be done after the early 1980s. The electronic percussion is simple and sounds like another sample placed in the mix alongside the subdued bass line. Though the song doesn’t feel incomplete or end abruptly there is an unfinished quality like when a filmmaker dies after somehow having made a final movie and done the editing but didn’t get around to the finishing touches. Listen to the enigmatic song on Soundcloud and follow Hail!Maggiedacat on the project’s Instagram account and watch the mini documentaries about the artist on the YouTube channel.

www.instagram.com/hail_maggiedacat
youtube.com/channel/UC6CDwP8OmDFrEYPwJ62qW7Q

Sal Dulu’s “Duluoz Dream” is a Hazy Collage of Emotions Set to Downtempo IDM Jazz

SalDulu_DuluozDream_cover_crop — Salu Dulu “Duluoz Dream” cover (cropped)

The Japanese dialogue as if from a movie heard from another room and the horn that brings you into “Duluoz Dream” by Sal Dulu suggests a sort of layers of memory. When the piano comes in and the voice calls out a name is it Jack? As in Jack Duluoz, the name Jack Kerouac gave himself as he wrote about himself in his book Visions of Cody? The sound of tape rewinding and playing back, piano chords echoing, IDM-esque percussion tapping out a beat that carries the time forward while the other elements occupy divergent frames of temporal reference. The late night, downtempo jazz aesthetic of the song blurs the line between the Kerouac references and Deckard’s “Unicorn Dream” from the director’s cut of Blade Runner. The song taps into how the mind can make those connections almost intuitively so that they may heighten the meaning of each while expressing a real moment contemplating a fond memory, a heightened and even fantastical reality preferable to the one you exist in now as your mind reflects to the past or projects into an alternate present or a future that may never be. It is an emotional collage crafted as a song. Listen to “Duluoz Dream” on Soundcloud and follow Sal Dulu at the links below.

soundcloud.com/user-727004974
facebook.com/saldulu