independent thoughts on indie rock, alternative, and indie pop music
Asheville, North Carolina-based indie rock outfit, Gold Light, helmed by musician and filmmaker Joe Chang, recently released Visions, the follow-up to the band’s 2013 self-titled debut, via label Hearts & Plugs. Inspired by the idea of making sense of one’s existence, Visions treads in a multi-tonal territory with fuzzy borders; evoking Cure-like sonic imagery without... Continue Reading →
Hitch, the third studio album from alt-rockers The Joy Formidable can be described in three words: massive anthemic rock. Â Since their debut release in 2010 of A Balloon Called Moaning, the Welsh trio has grown into a force to be reckoned with. Ritzy Bryan (lead vocals/guitar), Rhydian Dafydd (bass), and Matthew James Thomas (drums) decided... Continue Reading →
Music is something that we connect to and long for in good times and bad; it connects with something inside of us that longs to be explored and solidified. With Tim McNary’s new EP, Above The Trees, the singer-songwriter has dug deep into the well of the soul to find sounds that echo with my own personal questions... Continue Reading →
Chicago indie rock outfit Hemmingbirds released their new EP, Half A Second, in February; the EP bursts through the gates immediately with the title track, and while the tempo varies among its songs, the EP's energy never wanes. Brimming with glistening guitar riffs and nimble basslines skillfully steered by propelling percussion from the beginning, the EP skyrockets, takes the... Continue Reading →
Los Angeles-based four-piece indie rock band DreamVacation, comprised of Ray Silva (vocals), Gerry Matthews (bass, backing vocals), Morgan Terrinoni (guitar), and Noah Alexander (drums), released their self-titled EP recently; the band members’ personal stories over the last three years have been rife with hardship—they’ve endured breakups, living out of rehearsal spaces or cars, marriages falling apart, and family... Continue Reading →
It is apparent after a first listen to Alex Dezen’s premiere full length album, that he has crested the highest mountain tops and trudged though painfully deep valleys in his life—his art reflects aural scars transmuted via guitar chords and lyrics. He expresses anguish through melody and memory, in a highly personal and straightforward manner, via... Continue Reading →
First impressions are important. This is especially true in the disjointed music landscape in the United States at present. At the age of 9, I was introduced to the Blues Brothers, an initial early formative foray into popular music for me. Hearing Jake, Elwood, and the boys tearing it up on Briefcase Full of Blues is a... Continue Reading →
Even though he's called New York home for over a decade, you don’t have to rifle too far into Ron Pope’s music to determine that the man has copious amounts of southern heritage running through his veins. With a classic outlaw-country sound embedded in the anti-Nashville scene in the 1960 and 1970s, Pope sticks to the common... Continue Reading →
Sometimes I hear an album that feels so genuine and unique, it refreshes my musical palate, bringing new flavors I didn’t even know I liked.  My musical experience had been missing something for a while, but I didn’t know what--until my first listen to John Fatum’s debut LP, Locked Up in My Mind, due for release... Continue Reading →
Have you ever heard a song that grabbed your heart, invaded your soul, held onto both for dear life, and made you feel things you forgot you could even feel? Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats have created an entire album of songs that do exactly that, a self-titled debut on Memphis, Tennessee's renowned label Stax Records, home of... Continue Reading →
