Queen City Sounds and Art

Frally’s Slowcore Reinvention of Yazoo’s “Only You” Gives it a Heartfelt, Pastoral Resonance

Frally’s reinvent Yazoo’s 1982 debut single “Only You” completely as a pastoral and introspective pop song imbued with rich tones and a gorgeous vocal duet between Teddy Thompson and Frally. It turns the emotionally resonant mood of the original and imbues it with a majestic grace and deep mood. It’s like a slowcore Americana song with delicate piano work providing the framing melodies, texture and rhythm with a touch of elegiac guitar around the edges courtesy of The War On Drugs’ Charly Hall. But the commanding vocals are the star here and Thompson and Frally complement each other perfectly to deliver a vulnerable yet quietly passionate love song worthy of its source material. Listen to “Only You” on Spotify and follow Frally at the links below. Her new EP Message from the Future dropped March 28, 2025.

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Frally on YouTube

Joseph Salazar Builds a Cosmic Sense of Wonder on Hazy Ambient Synth Track “Everything Is Information”

Joseph Salazar, photo by Ishmael Quintanilla

The title of Joseph Salazar’s song “Everything Is Information” is simple enough and a bare statement of fact like Boards of Canada’s “Music is Math.” It can deconstruct some of the magic of the effect of the music as well as make it attainable for anyone willing to put in the time to connect with it. Salazar’s ambient sprawl starts out quiet and builds in almost pointillist fashion an evolving and growing soundscape of evocative drones, spare melodies and hazy flares of tone reminiscent of the cosmic, late night sounds and excursions of 1980s Steve Roach. But Salazar’s song also sounds like something that should be in a modern science fiction film that goes beyond mere adventure fantasy and action into something more struck by a sense of wonder as Salazar elicits in the listening to this song. The rich tones build and converge and wash away in the flow of gentle white noise in the end as it fades into silence. Listen to “Everything Is Information” on YouTube and follow Joseph Salazar at the links provided.

josephsalazar.com

Joseph Salazar on Twitter

Joseph Salazar on Facebook

Joseph Salazar on Instagram

Joseph Salazar on Bandcamp

Queen City Sounds Podcast S5E04: Mike Baggetta of mssv

Comprised of guitarist and vocalist Mike Bagetta, bassist mike watt and drummer Stephen Hodges, mssv is a band whose music defies easy genre categorization. Early on it was mostly or entirely instrumental but with vocals introduced more prominently on its second studio album Human Reaction and an attentive listener can hear rock and jazz roots in the mix with elements of improvisation. But on the group’s new record On And On (out March 7, 2025 via BIG EGO Records on vinyl, download and streaming) the detailed songcraft makes it obvious that the group has always been about songs but that this time the loose concept album explore themes of impermanence and chance in society, in our, on the planet and in our own minds. Utilizing detailed compositions and a keen ear for atmosphere and texture in building the emotional resonance of the songs the band uses the vehicle of the album as a commentary on and celebration of the life we live every day and its own essential significance to everything connected to it.

Listen to our interview with Mike Baggetta and follow the musician and songwriter as well as mssv at the links below.

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Lucille Two’s Richly Melodic Synth Pop Single “Seasons” is a Soothing Song About the Art of Letting Go

Lucille Two’s vivid tones enhance the emotional complexity of the synth pop single “Seasons.” The sequenced melodies and guitar accents provide a sort of gently uplifting context for Trudy Bennett’s introspective vocals as she sings about a situation in which she’s let go of a relationship in which she now sees is long in the rearview and the processing the potential painful memories involved required a touch of disassociation to have the proper perspective. To embrace not knowing fully how you feel about the other person or about why it all eventually went sideways or dissolved. But knowing that you don’t want to go back and that any appeal that was once there is gone and you’re better in your head and in life because of it. The orchestration of melody and rhythm is reminiscent of a certain era of chillwave and how that music was the perfect vehicle for nuanced emotional expression but Lucille Two here doesn’t tap into feelings of nostalgia so much as a sense of moving forward out of the temptation of fond memories that can get us to gloss over when things weren’t so glowing. Listen to “Seasons” on Spotify and follow Lucille Two at the links below.

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Lucille Two on Facebook

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Lucille Two on YouTube

Brunch Deconstructs the Dark End of Modern Science on Noisy Post-Punk Single “Dr. Benway”

Brunch’s song “Dr. Benway” is about the character of the same name from William S. Burroughs’ influential 1959 novel The Naked Lunch and within the lyrics it’s a critique of the way modern science, and the not so modern version, has been used in warped and twisted ways with consequences perhaps unintended but conducted in such a way that such consequences aren’t considered as much for the sake of discovery in the positive sense as well as that more disruptive. Think Jeff Goldblum’s character Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park and his commentary on unearned knowledge and not taking the responsibility for the blowback. The song’s rambunctious rhythms and the vocals that are initially more clear and then borderline unhinged reminiscent of Frank Black is a perfect parallel to the themes of the song. The charade of rationality cloaking the rationalization of the use of scientific methods to create quickly monetizable products or technologies for war or to exploit one’s fellow humans. Brunch just infuse that content with a danceable rhythm paired with wonderfully fractured melodies and a spirited delivery. Listen to “Dr. Benway” recorded live at Robot Dog Studio in Burlington, Vermont on Spotify and follow the band at the links provided.

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Brunch of Instagram

Araz Salek’s “Âshenâ” is Orchestral Yet Intimate Evocation of Melancholic Yet Passionate Yearning

“Âshenâ” is the second single from Araz Salek’s new album Peripheries of Nahavand (out April 11, 2025 on Worlds Within Worlds). The song and the rest of the album represents modal music influenced by the musician’s background in Turkish and Arabic makam music as well as the Iranian dastgāh tradition.The song whose title in Farsi has multiple resonances and meanings depending on the context from acquaintance, close friend, lover. The rich interplay of instrumentation including Salek’s own masterfully expressive performance on the tar interweave evocatively with Asare Shekarchi’s vocals in Farsi to convey a sense of melancholic yearning. The multiple rhythms and textures in which the tones manifest are both orchestral and intimate with the sound production rendering the whole piece vivid and instantly entrancing. Something about Salek’s arrangements lend the song a familiarity even to someone that hasn’t spent much time listening to music coming from similar roots. The energy and emotional power of the piece is undeniable in its cross-cultural appeal. Listen to “Âshenâ” on Spotify.

BB Sabina Pushes Back Against Restrictive Notions of Identity on the Gorgeously Expansive Downtempo Post-Punk Single “Multitude”

“Multitude” unfolds and evolves with iterative, pulsing, percussive synth tones, steady yet subtly shifting bass lines and vocals that intone in warm focus and trailing off in short echoes. It’s a song about refusing to be defined, penned in, forced into strict shapes and identities as an assertion of the essential changing nature of a living being going through life, to be, as singer Bethany Uhe put on the Bandcamp page for the song, “in a constant state of flux.” The recognition of which is to acknowledge reality. The song too defies easy genre categorization yet its aesthetic is coherent and strong. Think downtempo post-punk or shoegaze darkwave that fans of Jenny Hval and Broadcast may fully appreciate in all its gorgeous and moving sonic dimensions. Listen to “Multitude” on Spotify and follow Australian band BB Sabina at the links blow.

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BB Sabina on Instagram

BB Sabina on Bandcamp

Errunhrd’s Ambient Slowcore Single “Don’t Drink Chemicals” Vividly Sketches the Inner Edges of Romantic Dysfunction

The hazy, cycling drone creates a dreamlike resonance throughout Errunhrd’s “Don’t Drink Chemicals.” It and the melancholic vocal processing is fitting for a song about how it feels to be in any kind of relationship that seeks to reign you in and smother your full dimensions as a human in a warped and unsustainable co-dependent dynamic with love engaged in as an act of control and possession. To be in that situation and to perhaps convince yourself that this person is the right one when the whole situation stifles you and prevents both people from developing. Noah Brown’s video for the song is reminiscent of the work of Phil Tippett and the way it is both intimate and haunting, perfect for this song that captures a headspace many people have found themselves within not allowing themselves the knowledge that they can aspire and have for themselves a life that nurtures joy and encourages growth. Yet being able to articulate these feelings means having a greater chance of overcoming the psychological blocks that oppress and repress. Musically it’s like hearing a more ambient, witch house-adjacent iteration of HEALTH and Crystal Castles collaborating on a hypnogogic pop track. Watch the video for “Don’t Drink Chemicals” on YouTube and follow Errunhrd at the links provided. The new Errunhrd album Everything I’ve Ever Known releases May 14, 2025 on all stream platforms and CD.

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Rindert Lammers Eases Us Into a State of Tranquil Restfulness on Ambient Jazz Track “Sleep Well Hiroshi Yoshimura”

Rindert Lammers, photo courtesy the artist

Peter Marcus’ video treatment for Rindert Lammers’ “Sleep Well Hiroshi Yoshimura perfectly captures the tone of a transitional time of day at dusk and the air of peace that can permeate the landscape. At the beginning we hear a recording of a woman talk about how she slept in the back of her car on the streets of Tokyo for two years and having the greatest time of her life. It sounds like what it is, a speaker reading the words of a comment on a YouTube video, in this case one for Japanese ambient legend Hiroshi Yoshimura. This narrative gives way to soothing soundscapes and rhythms joined by Joseph Shabason’s warm saxophone melody sitting well within the incandescent tones, spare and hushed percussion and sketches of guitar. Altogether it establishes a calming pattern like the mind transitioning from wakefulness into the realm of unconsciousness as you drift off into unknown vistas of restful dreams. The light in the video fades into darker night in the video and all we hear is the vestige of the aforementioned voice and the abstract remnants of music. The song is part of the debut Rindert Lammers album Thank You Kirin Kiki which became available April 18, 2025 on Western Vinyl. Watch the video for “Sleep Well Hiroshi Yoshimura” on YouTube and follow Rindert Lammers at the links provided.

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Rindert Lammers on Instagram

Isaiah Stone’s Psychedelic Rock and Soul Single “Leavin!” is an Exuberant Anthem of Self-Liberation

Isaiah Stone’s commanding vocals and command of a guitar riff hook you instantly on “Leavin!” It’s a song about not just being frustrated with circumstances where you are geographically, socially, culturally, in your place in life and in your mind and doing just like the title suggests. The song starts and stops on a dime throughout to give the sentiments time to echo and turn in various directions as the song progresses. It’s a hard rocking psychedelic rock song in the tradition of Hendrix and Prince and Stone clearly embraces his other roots in R&B in his vocals just as did the aforementioned. The song feels like being infused with excitement for new horizons and finding a space of one’s own in which to develop into the person you were always meant to be. Listen to “Leavin!” on Spotify and follow Isaiah Stone on Instagram.