by Meredith Schneider | Nov 22, 2017 | 5 to 7
Relatively new to the scene, rock trio
Invisible Candy – comprised of Jen Smith (cello), Carter Zumtobel (drums), and Colin Campbell (guitar/lead vocals) – often refer to themselves as “Brooklyn’s chamber rock sweethearts,” but might just be on their way to having the world believe them. The fact that a rock trio features a cello prominently is already alluring enough. Take three distinctive performers who proudly proclaim their newfound love for “flowers, German expressionism, fake blood, and obviously candy,” add the frenetic, romanticized sound that steadily flows from the speakers, and you’ve got genre-bending rock that encapsulates chamberpunk ditties like “Mental Hatchets” alongside sweeping indie rock tunes like “Simone”.
In honor of their latest single we got a few minutes to learn more about the band behind that intense, enigmatic sound.
What is the Invisible Candy conception story?
Jen Smith: We’re not a concept band, but I could see us going in that direction. We have divergent influences from the past that we could weave into a modern sound and build a narrative around that process … that’s the dream, right? But as of now, the origin story is three people met through mutual friends and started making music together. The name literally came out of a dream and since inception we’ve been challenging ourselves to write more freely … more psych, more garage rock, more experimental.
Colin Campbell: We’ve all been in bands that had several more cats to herd at once. So a trio, at least as the constant core to then ornament, was immediately appealing.
Carter Zumtobel: 
With your collection of bold personalities, what is the writing process like? Does it vary from song to song? Take us inside your process!
JS: Well, this EP we’re working on is somewhat “soaked” subject matter – heavy, drunk, woeful. Even though our original batch of songs is from Colin’s notebook, Carter brings a new element with the drums and we have to work as a collective to find what the cello will add. Nothing is set in stone. We revisit a lot of songs on a structural level just to see what happens. And it’s usually a fun jaunt, not at all a confrontational or frustrating process. We will have some new material soon too, and that might come from Carter’s writing and my arrangement or Colin on lead guitar and me on keys or any number of combinations. We’re all about the possibilities right now.
CC: I generally use simple pop structures with lyrical references from an otherwise useless liberal arts background. Part of me always wants to coax audiences into something sweet and entertaining, almost saccharine, then twist it with something a tad more sonically or lyrically demanding.
Your latest track “Mental Hatchets” is so, so good. Do you mind discussing the inspiration?
CC: It’s of course an unironic bullet-pointed list of why we’re living in a globalized urban utopia!
With so much good music being released right now – especially since a certain event last year – we’re falling over ourselves trying to keep up with it all! It makes me wonder, is there pressure with an up-and-coming band to have a message or stance with everything?
JS: For me, it’s important to have a stance and to have integrity, on stage and off. I’ve seen lots of bands lend their talents to benefit shows, and we are participating in that movement too. We’re donating a set to Thursdays for a Cause at Our Wicked Lady in Brooklyn on 12/14, for example. That’s something we’d like to do regularly, as well as put our resources behind artists from marginalized communities.
As artists, we’ve looked to the past for inspiration, like the antifascist movement Rock Against Racism, to see how musicians felt and dealt with such troubled times historically. And I think off stage, we’ve all taken steps to educate ourselves on structural oppression and we talk to each other pretty freely. The openness and acceptance in this band definitely helps me effect changes in my non-performer life.
If you could be a superhero, who would you be, and why?
JS: Superman, because I am a masochist and I want to know what it’s like to control your otherworldly strength in every human gesture, thereby taking notice of every delicate and unbearable human gesture.
CC: Professor Xavier because he does his ass-kicking under a cozy blanket on a levitating barcalounger.
CZ: Rod Kimble, stuntman extraordinaire.
BIGGER question… if “Mental Hatchets” were part of a Thanksgiving meal, what part would it be and why?
JS: I think cranberry sauce cause it’s a small portion with a lot of zing!
CC: The stuffing, just cause it’s all I can think about right now.
CZ: Keep on rocking in the free world.
___
Catch Invisible Candy at Gold Sounds Bar in Brooklyn on November 29th. Keep up with the band
here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 21, 2017 | wolf tracks
Earlier this month, Kentucky-based alternative/indie group Father Mountain – comprised of Travis Cox, Jesse French, Austin Hohiemer, and Zane Martin – released ten track full-length debut Apartment Living. With that title alone, I don’t know a single person who wouldn’t be intrigued to find out if there are shared experiences in the plane of living in actual apartments. Of course, we expected topics to bounce around a little more than that. What we didn’t expect was that the album would make us feel so good.
With vocals laced so thickly with sincerity, Father Mountain completely pulls you into the emotions of every song. “Grey” teaches us not to assume too much about the mood of the track based on its title, while “Sobriety” saunters along in a melancholic sound space. (Slightly as expected.) “Friends” picks up with more of an alt-pop vibe, something that distracts from the self-assessing narrative about the importance of timing and friendship – or otherwise – hitting you when you least expect it. “Grace” exists at just over one minute, discussing the struggle of decision making in relationships, and giving us a line with the word “grey” that feels much more melancholic than the first track. “Hallelujah” has a very distinct Death Cab For Cutie feel to it, winding a narrative about angels and the afterlife, really packing in the religious verbiage and allowing those who attended private school a bit of a leg up when deciphering it.
Keep up with Father Mountain here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 21, 2017 | wolf tracks
New York based trio Sunflower Bean – comprised of Jacob Faber (drums), Julia Cumming (vocals/bass), and Nick Kivlen (vocals/guitar) – released their latest track “I Was A Fool” to welcome November, and we haven’t stopped spinning it since. While, ideally, we’d tell you that the song has a nostalgic, 70s sound to it, we acknowledge after hearing almost a year of some of the most incredible vintage-sounding releases, there comes a time when you realize there is a pattern that makes it a modern sound trend again.
The thing is, that doesn’t happen with Sunflower Bean. Though it certainly begins in the 70s, “I Was A Fool” doesn’t belong in just one timeframe, not even in just a single decade. Instead there are many influences, an incandescent haze settling over all of it to bring a warmth to the sound that is both unique and inviting in its glow. Julia’s ethereal vocals again take front seat with those rose colored feelings, taking some of the most melancholic lyrics and making them feel carefree and light.
“I Was A Fool” is out now. Keep up with Sunflower Bean here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 21, 2017 | wolf tracks
Perhaps one of the only positive things people residing in the United States can glean from 2017 is the amount of inspired music that has been created over the past 16 months or so. Not one to be outdone, pop artist Darja has released a compelling and beautiful track titled “Rise Up”. Admits Darja of the track:
“Rise Up” is about shaking off the last remnants of past trauma, about shedding the old skin to be reborn into a new stronger, lighter, more confident and positive self. There are people out there who have gone through much tougher life experiences than I have and I want this song to be their song, I want it to give strength and inspiration to those who need it the most.
A song that utilizes its smooth production quality and effortless infectious vibe to inspire its listeners, “Rise Up” is an absolute pop dream. And if you’re already feeling confident and ready for whatever is to come, the dance club beat will keep you partying for a while, whether you intended to or not.
Keep up with Darja here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 20, 2017 | wolf tracks
Nordic indie pop artist Majken may now be based in Los Angeles, but she’s carried her whimsical, infectious musicianship over and lit up the soundscape with her debut album Dancing Mountains. Her quirky monotone is lightweight, and almost enhanced in the reverb that the album is bathed in. From first track “Dreaming of Franco” – which starts us off with summery, carefree instrumentals that house lyrics that meander from times of love to times of distrust in a past relationship – through moody, 80s trance track “Here And Now”, all the way until the end of “Dear You” – which brilliantly features Maxime Sokolinski – softness is magnified into this surreal musical journey.
While the album was conceptualized on a journey – and we can find elements of her surroundings of Paris, the Nordic Fjord, and Los Angeles in each song, really – the same unamused, delicate sound we have come to know and love of Majken’s voice ties all twelve tracks into this concise, wistful collection of fun. The good news for Majken newbies is that we can get a sense of how far she’s come with her music with just this first full-length, as a couple of the tracks featured – including “Where It All Begins” and “Dreaming Of Franco” – were originally included on her Deronda Hotel EP. With songs like “A Little More Time”, Majken’s sound takes on almost a She & Him vibe, while ultimately we find notes of inspiration from acts The Velvet Underground and The Kinks most endearing. “I Have A Dream” is a mixed bag of tricks, and quite possibly our favorite track off the album. So, if you’re looking to start on a positive note on this weeknight, that’s where it’s at.
Dancing Mountains is out now. Keep up with Majken here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 20, 2017 | snapshot
If anyone would have predicted it they probably would have switched the bill around a bit, but the talents of three bands with animal references in their names combined forces to play a killer show at a venue that, honestly, sounds like it’s named after an animal. The Social Animals played their last show on a long list of North American dates to an intimate audience at The Rino in North Kansas City on a Wednesday night, with local favorites Violent Bear and – filling in last minute – Chase the Horseman opening. Check out some highlights below!
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 20, 2017 | wolf tracks
As if they’re not already beginning the narrative with a pretty intense band name, Sweden-based psych garage rock collective Baby Jesus – comprised of Fredrik Kristoffersson (guitar/vox), Elis Jäghammar (bass/vox),Svante Pålsson, and Rasmus Högdin – took it a step further earlier this year with the release of their full-length album titled Took Our Sons Away. Clearly developed with a different frame of mind than their 2015 self-titled debut, the guys of Baby Jesus have somehow managed to bottle their live show energy into their sound, something that many bands never have the knack – and perhaps not even the want- for.
Starting with “Feel For You Girl”, you’re looped into this false sense of nostalgia with the rough production and beautiful, lush ambiance to the instrumentals. It makes you just want to prep for a progressive/badass sock hop, and we’re pretty sure you’ll know what we mean when you hear those first chords. While “Over and Over Again” really goes wild, waning guitars and the mostly-yelled-but-sometimes-delivered-with-finesse-vocals that Baby Jesus has really become known for allow you to settle into the sound. “All Out” and “Down South” carry similar toe-tapping beats, while “That’s All Right” carries an album slow down that we were starting to need. Really, the track has the same freeing garage sound as its predecessors, though it feels more like a garage ballad if we were to categorize it.
But those first five tracks don’t even begin to scratch the surface of what there is to enjoy about Took Our Sons Away. A delectable collection of diverse and captivating moods, whirring instrumentals, and a pension for the spotlight drive these four men into our hearts as they take us on a fourteen-track journey through parts of the last two years of their lives. From the 50s doo-wop feels of “Hold My Hand” to the hint of 13th Floor Elevators in “Ain’t Got No Place To Go” (among others), to the eerie static sounds of “Baby Jesus – The Beat”, we’re floored by the band’s ability to keep us on our toes for this long.
But that’s not all. At the time of release, the masters for Baby Jesus’ 3rd full-length were being prepped, and we’re expecting new music in early 2018 already. So consider yourselves spoiled. We know we do.
Took Our Sons Away is out now on Yippee Ki Yay Records. Keep up with Baby Jesus here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 20, 2017 | wolf tracks
Recently, futuristic pop collective – and self-proclaimed “intergalactic archeologists” – Moviestar released their music video for hard-hitting, electrifying track “Stupid People”, which will be found on their upcoming 2018 release Stupid People/Happy Days. As the band recites the many reasons we avoid society at large as much as possible, a video game made of paper cutout puppets and a pretty intricate “level up”-type of backdrop commences. As the protagonists overcome obstacles to earn all of their instruments and to work together, the music keeps your feet tapping and your mood vibrant. Check it out, and you’ll see what we mean.
Stupid People/Happy Days is out February 9th. Keep up with Moviestar here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 19, 2017 | wolf tracks
This weekend, Gainesville-based alternative rock/indie collective The Forum – comprised of Michael Higgins, Nick Wheeler, Jacob Farrell, and Alex Klausner – dropped a surprise 6 track EP into our laps, and we cannot tell you how thrilling it’s been to dig into it. Illuminate initiates its journey with the undeniably upbeat track “Father Hunger” – despite its quirky, almost existential, lyrics – that lures you charmingly right into mid-tempo track “My Chest Is Your Dance Floor”. The title itself is captivating, the song following the narrative of giving someone permission to, for lack of a better term, stomp all over you.
“Neurons” is led by an intricate and fun percussion section, the sound swirling into a relatively upbeat song with more of a veil over it, which can be found in the twinge of darkness in the vocals. By “Stop Singing”, we’re enveloped in bewitching guitar chords as a jazzy feel to the instrumentals appears and continues right into fifth track “Aftertaste”. In fact, there is something about the vocals that keep us playing this one on repeat, so it might take a minute for you guys to catch up as well, but last track “Blue Jay” is this intricately concocted layered track, beginning delicately and then tumbling into a cacophony of crashing symbols and passion. It’s presented as though the song begins as a timid, introvert of a specimen and slowly develops its ability to speak up and completely annihilate the environment around it.
In a good way. Trust us. (But listen to it too.)
Illuminate is out now. Keep up with The Forum here.
