Self-proclaimed grunge pop baby talker’s latest venture is a cover of an iconic mid-2000s rock track – TV on the Radio’s “Wolf Like Me.” It’s a high energy, lyrically passionate song that talker manages to make her own. The music video is quite simple, showing talker and the band recording in a studio, which allows for the music to be the focal point. talker’s voice brings a unique, edgy femininity to the song. Her cover is cool and effortless, and it makes you want to dance around until its time to press replay again.
Grunge-pop musician talker recently released her soft, mellifluous new track “Intimidated”. The robust range of her vocals is impressive, especially with the control she has over them. With a slight bit of rasp, she delivers the song in a heart-wrenching and infinitely relatable way. Wait for that instrumental buildup around the 2 minute mark, and you have a new anthem to jam to, speakers as loud as they get.
The eleven-track compilation stunner just released by Dazzleships Records honestly serves as our life soundtrack at this very moment in time. Ever since we got our first listen, we’ve been running the tracks back through our minds, creating more with these songstresses as our inspiration. Dazzleships Records Presents: Raise By Women is both tantalizing and evocative of a generation – or more – in its entirety. Skull Diver‘s “Bad Star” sets the tone, giving us a grunge indie/pop soundscape to play with, absorbing itself into the quirky and lighthearted tone of Mini Blinds‘ “Happy” before Cat Hoch‘s “Say You Love Me” throws us into an 80’s-inspired bliss.
Natasha Kmeto‘s “Your Girl” blends synths in a similar way to its predecessor, but in a much more contemporary and soulful way. While Rilla‘s “Side Sleeper” is one to get your head bobbin’ to, your feet groovin’ a bit, Johanna Warren‘s “The Blessing The Curse” dunks you in an ethereal, mellifluous soundscape before DANDAN gets all experimental on us with “Broken Mirror”. Black Water Holy Light‘s “Sunrise” belongs on an episode of The O.C. (Seasons 1 or 2 exclusively, please?), and Laura Palmer’s Death Parade brings us to a slow, folk-tinged, melancholia with “Scrollin'”. Haste basically says it all within the instrumentals of “Let’s Touch Ourselves”, with gorgeous vocals and alluring lyrics to make it a powerhouse of a track. And the entire collection is rounded out quite nicley with Sheers‘ “An Osscasion”, which plays with dissonance and a more earthy, string-led sound that really feels delicate.
Keep up with the latest from Dazzleships Records and all their new projects here.
KIDDO makes her musical debut this week with the stunning single “Drunk And I Miss You.” With the only glimpses into the artist’s identity via her hand-drawn computer images of herself, the Swedish singer and songwriter tells a story with this instantly memorable single.
Sitting alongside a captivating official lyric video that again features her own incredible animation, this guitar-driven single infuses moments of pop and retro grunge – making KIDDO an act we want to hear more from right away.
Are you into quirky, emotional, indie rock music? Because Active Bird Community – and their brand new album Amends, out today – could really do the trick for you. The Brooklyn-based collective has been creating their brand of alternative music together since 2005 when the guys were in middle school, and the evolution has been impeccable, as they hone their sound into something 90’s babies will cherish, perhaps, more than anyone else. Amends is direct evidence of that.
Beginning with the title track, Amends establishes that slacker sound to a T while it meanders through with rough guitars, perfectly sometimes-whiny vocals, and a robust, head-bobbing energy. This carries well into second track “Holier”, though third track “Sweaty Lake” – as memorable as that name is – picks up the pace immensely, and understandably so. (See: the title “Sweaty Lake”.) Things slow again in “Unwind With Me”, which is, again, a direct reflection of the song title.
Once we get to “Baby It’s You”, I don’t think anyone is expecting a horns section. But there it is, an intro that wakes you back up with its differentiation from its predecessors. The pace takes that of a Weezer track, and we’re on board with the energy again. .”Virginia” feels more 90s grunge than others thus far, ragging on people for being “just a cliche” and challenging the object of their attention. “Blame” slows down to a ballad-like crawl, emotional in its disposition, while “Downstairs” adds some more quirk back into the feel of the album with light percussion and a rough, beautiful bass line.
“Metrics” starts with a toe-tapping, pop-like feel, and then delves back into the whirring guitars, hard percussion, and upbeat attitude of the majority of Amends. “Silver Screen” begins slow, simple, and then bursts into this kaleidoscope of sound that we didn’t necessarily see coming. “Lighthouse” rounds it all out quite beautifully, performed on acoustic guitar to really enhance the lovely, soft feeling of the lyrics.
You know, until it gets a little rowdy toward the end. But we really couldn’t have hoped for anything different.
Florida natives Deaf Poets just released “Change & Bloom”, a single off of their upcoming EP of the same title which is due out on June 15th. The duo has already enjoyed quite a bit of success, having played with The Growlers, Mac DeMarco, and Matt and Kim just to name a few. Their latest single brings a throwback while incorporating a 90’s grunge style. Sean Waters provides us both the angsty vocals and the guitar on “Change & Bloom”. Bandmate Nico E.P on the other hand, shows off his mad drum skills and does not hold back. So if you are somewhere in between “I like rock” and “not heavy rock”, “Change & Bloom” is definitely for you.
Speedy Ortiz just released the latest track “Villain,” which opens with a heavy bass line and grunge rock feel. The lyrics remain quirky with lines like, “He talks like he knows me so I’m being polite,” and “I want to know if no means all right.” The track takes a stab at the topic of unwanted advances and the struggle of having to act “polite” in awkward situations.
Take a look at the vintage, candy-colored inspired video and you’ll agree that “Villain” is more than just a song, it’s an anthem for many.
We wanted to pick a theme that relates to the type of music we played, the music that influenced our sound, and the music that speaks to each of us personally. A couple suggestions came out that had the words glitter, psychonautic and rock, but we eventually settled on Sonic Glitter Bomb. Once we each started picking songs, we realized that not all of the songs were very glittery… Someone said, okay this is like anarchy on the playlist and thats what we ended up with! It makes perfect sense for this playlist. What you get is anarchy on any given theme. We all come from different musical backgrounds and have different influences, whether its’s metal, punk, grunge, garage or americana…but all of us unite under the umbrella of rock and roll!
Honey and Salt just released their self titled LP. The grunge/rock/punk band has a variety of ten tracks on the LP starting with “A Nihilist Takes Up Knitting” and ending with “Cascade.” The band is described as sociopolitical or as I like to call it “music with a purpose.” Honey and Salt has good reason though. Wade Allen, on main vocals, is a philosophy teacher which definitely influences the bands lyrics. On “A Nihilist Takes Up Knitting” Wade pleads “Right or wrong is not subjective.” “Blame game” is an anthem of “who and what is blame?”
My favorite, though, is “Bowling Green Memorial.” “Bowling Green Memorial” rounds out at a whooping eight minutes and nine seconds. What most impressive though, is that the majority of that is a drum/guitar solo that will take you be surprise. Just when you think the solo is over, Honey and Salt will bring you back into the music. Honey and Salt is definitely worth the listen. The LP is more than just an album—it is truly one big box of sociopolitical prompts, wrapped carefully and neatly to give to any listener so that they can ask themselves “How and why are we here now?”
