Brooklyn-based indie pop collective The Davenports – masterminded by multi-instrumentalist Scott Klass and a rotating cast of artists – has been riding high off of critical acclaim over their fifth album, You Could’ve Just Said That, and for good reason. Klass’ mastery of the production process – from concept to recording and mixing – is on full display, as it is the first release charmingly self-recorded at home. This allowed him to really do whatever experimenting and manipulation he wanted to with the tracks, resulting in a powerhouse audio adventure.
Today, The Davenports focus on the release of their official music video for “We Know We Want To.” The song itself? A layered, stripped down-yet-sweet confection for the ears, calling for simplicity and honesty. Explains Klass of the track:
This is essentially a love song, but with a polyamory spin, based on a story I heard. I don’t know how common it is. Two people were part of a friend group that believed strongly in polyamory, and it just stopped working for one-half of that couple. They loved their primary partner and reached a point where sharing was painful and stopped making sense. It was pretty heartbreaking to hear about how they just put up with it for a while, just fighting their truth. It’s a question about the balance between your honesty and your principles in situations where the two might not be aligned.
The refrain: “It’s principle we all have sold / that one-on-one is tired and old / let’s put the party line on hold…and hold each other like we know we want to.”
When it came to the official music video for the piece, Klass knew he wanted to work with Mount Emult, who he has worked with previously. The artist creates gorgeous collage-style stop-motion by hand that “blows everyone away.” And Klass’ praise is not wrong. The video was pieced together so masterfully, there’s a sense of magic, nostalgia – and the simplicity the song is asking of us – to it all.
“I wanted someone great to interpret it their own way,” explained Klass. “This is essentially a love song, and the rush of imagery is, to me, as fitting of the rumination related to heartbreak as it is a visual juxtaposition to the song’s theme.”
You can get your first peek at the video for “We Know We Want To” here, now.
Keep up with The Davenports on Instagram, and pop some of their tunes into your library.
Maddie Zahm’s latest single “Sheets” was performed on tour last year, and was a huge highlight of the performance. It was a long wait to have a studio cut version, but finally, it’s arrived. “Sheets” is also part of an exciting, yet-to-be announced project.
An anthemic breakup song, “Sheets” is a massive fuck-you to a woman Zahm dated that quickly moved on from their relationship—a bit too quickly. The scenario is all-too relatable for many. Zahm explains:
And like every dramatic, you know, young gay in Los Angeles, I got updates from my friends that my ex was kissing blondes at a party. It crossed the line for me. So I went home and I wrote “Sheets” and pretty much I just was like, ‘did she even change her sheets before she’s making out with other people?’ That’s insane.
Her can’t-miss Sad & Sexy tour begins next month, and we’re betting she’s coming to a city near you. Grab tickets for your date, below:
3/21 – Houston, TX – The Heights Theater 3/22 – Dallas, TX – The Kessler 3/24 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl Nashville 3/25 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground 3/26 – Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre 3/28 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club 3/29 – Philadelphia, PA – Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia 3/30 – New York, NY – Irving Plaza 4/1 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club 4/3 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues Cleveland 4/4 – Columbus, OH – The Athenaeum Theatre 4/5 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House 4/7 – Detroit, MI – Saint Andrew’s Hall 4/8 – Indianapolis, IN – HI-FI Annex 4/10 – Chicago, IL – Metro 4/11 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue 4/12 – Lawrence, KS – The Granada 4/14 – Denver, CO – Gothic 4/16 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex 4/18 – Seattle, WA – Neptune 4/19 – Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre 4/21 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall 4/23 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren 4/24 – San Diego, CA – Music Box 4/26 – Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theatre
Indie rockers Julien Baker and Torres (Mackenzie Scott) have released the second single off their highly-anticipated country record, Send a Prayer My Way, out on April 18th.
The latest song after December’s “Sugar in the Tank,” “Sylvia” is about Scott’s dog.
The morning I went to pick up Sylvia from an upstate shelter, I was at home making my coffee and I turned on WFMU and Dolly Parton’s “Cracker Jack” was on. I burst into tears—it felt like the universe was telling me she was going to be mine (Sylvia was only meant to be a foster). I remember thinking that I’d love to write a song like that, a song that people could feel in their chest within five seconds of turning on the radio, because anyone who has ever had the honor of sharing a home with a beloved pet knows that a pet is family—they’re the best friends you could ever have.
The video for “Sylvia” includes scenes from their sold-out surprise show at the Mercury Lounge back in December.
French Cassettes, an indie band based in San Francisco, has released their new single “When You Know, You Know” and it’s every bit as dreamy as a song can get! The song is featured on their new album, Benzene, set to come out on June 7th.
When asked about how the song came about, songwriter Lorenzo Scott Huerta muses, “I was listening to a lot of Bread and Barry White at the time, and this one just came out of that very quickly. I’d never paid more attention to what kind of pick I was using on my guitar; I just wanted it to have that feathery strum sound.”
The band consists of Huerta, guitarist Mackenzie Bunch and drummer Rob Mills, with the song itself mixed by Nick Krill. A fun fact is that “When You Know, You Know” was created at Bunch’s record studio in Oakland, CA.
The music is similar to that of a lullaby, with a slow melody and clear guitar acoustics strumming the song forward. The lyrics are like a diary-entry, describing a dream one had the night before. In the chorus:
Baby don’t wake me every time, no You don’t have to wake me every time, no Maybe I seem lucid in your eyes I don’t wanna see that go
It’s apparent that they are reminiscing about a time with a loved one; they see it as a dream-like experience and express how they don’t want to wake up from it.
The song is accompanied with an official music video; the visuals add to the haziness of the song, and makes one lose themselves in a nostalgic memory.
French Cassettes are currently touring around the US, with the exception of Vancouver in late July of this year. In addition to YouTube, you can also stream “If You Know, You Know” on all streaming platforms.
Part of the fun of writing about an artist like Le Destroy (aka Kristina Olson) is that using words like sleazy, grimy, and harsh are encouraging rather than not. Her politically charged songs mix the aggressiveness of punk and industrial with the loose, unchained spontaneity of dance music. Le Destroy’s work sounds like a late-night rave in a soul-crushing dystopia and that’s exactly the appeal.
This style carries over to her recently released album, Trashumanism, which was accompanied by a graphic novel that visualizes each song by chapter, taking the dystopian themes of the album into a fully cyberpunk environment. Olson is no stranger to cyberpunk, figuratively and literally, with her contributing songs to the hit video game Cyberpunk 2077. However, the graphic novel allows her music to become more atmospheric, set against a grubby high-tech science fiction landscape that the audience was clearly meant to visualize her work in from the start.
The music video for the song “Autonomy” was also recently released, and features anime-inspired animation courtesy of studio Ferr. It features the main character of the graphic novel, the Artist, dancing, flipping the bird, and lip-syncing to the song against a neon-lit future noir backdrop. The video is well-animated and visually striking and complements the song perfectly.
As for the actual song itself, it’s really exhilarating and seems inspired by hardcore punk with even some elements of thrash metal (I was reminded a bit of Bad Brains while listening to it) with distorted guitars and Olson screaming out her lyrics. However, Le Destroy builds on these genres by incorporating pulsing synthesizers and industrialism, showing the influence of co-producer Danny Lohner of Nine Inch Nails fame. It can still function in a dance setting like some of Le Destroy’s other songs, though it would fit more in a mosh pit at a punk club rather than something more EDM-focused.
The song is not only punk musically, but also politically. It’s deeply anti-capitalist with a focus on personal (ahem) autonomy in the face of political unrest, accentuated by its chorus of “fuck your system, let autonomy reign!” Even without the cyberpunk stylings of Le Destroy’s music, “Autonomy” and Trashumanism in general speaks deeply to modern social and political issues that can resonate with a disenfranchised younger audience, as well as being consistently enjoyable.
Direction / VFX and Compositing: Marx Ferreira – insta @ferranimation Character Design: Luiz Felipe Martins – twitter @lulohre Background Design: Bruno Tabor – insta @tabor.bruno Rough Animation / Tiedown: Maíra Colares – insta @colaresmaira.art, Gustavo Mochiuti – insta @ghakusho, Bruno Jordani – insta @jojordani, Giordana Medaglia – twitter @gimedaglia12, Ari Negreiros – twitter @ari_tooniverse, Daniel Santana – insta @danielsantana.ds, Ambrósio Pentú – insta @ambrosio_pentu Cleanup Animation: Guilherme Manzano – insta @manzart__, Gabriel Alves – insta @gabr1el_alv3s
SONG CREDITS Produced by: Danny Lohner, Le DestroyMixed by: Danny Lohner Mastered by: Howie Weinberg Written by: Kristina Olson
Julia Gargano is a mad talented singer-songwriter hailing from Staten Island. Her musical project, Ferry Townes – a clear homage to the Staten Island Ferry – blends her effortlessly sultry vocals with thoughtful lyrics and stand-out melodies. (I mean, if you have yet to hear her first single “Be Here”, check back in and agree with me later.)
Today, Ferry Townes releases her sophomore single. A mid-tempo release, Gargano’s raspy tinge on a wide range of notes is nothing short of captivating. This track is specific, incredibly moving, and entirely about a relationship that means a lot to her.
“’T.G.F.K’, which stands for ‘Thank God For Kyle’, is about my bestest friend,” explains Gargano. “The initial idea came from being so grateful that our relationship is what it is- that we’ll never have to fall in love and break up, but we will just be friends forever.”
The video is a true love letter in itself. Julia and Kyle are depicted throughout, having so much fun just living their lives in support of each other. The warm lighting, casual dancing, and adventure really make it feel like a montage in a romance film. And, if we are being honest, it totally is. How many relationships mean more to you than the ones you have with your best friends, truly?
Celebrate friendship this spring with the beautiful vocal stylings of Ferry Townes.
The electric guitar starts the song “Firecracker Man” by Thorslund with feelings of anticipation about what sounds, harmonies, and lyrics will be electrified. The pulsing sounds of the drums speed up the tempo with their steady beats and sudden rapid beats in between.
Our protagonist has kept his energetic and fun spirit hidden but now he is ready to take his dancing shoes out of his pocket. With these, he is a charming man who is confident to show everyone his expressive personality. The dance is a form of expression. The shoes are a metaphor for him taking the dancing steps to express himself to people he meets. Thus, he is no longer waiting to be a firecracker man; a man who charms people with his personality and makes everyone he sees smile. He now is going to be a firecracker man!
He is tired of pretending to not be the spotlight of the dance floor as in the past, he dominated the dance floor. Once he stopped dancing, he lost his self-confidence to reveal his charming personality. He felt ordinary because he lost his will to dance, which made him feel extraordinary and unique, as implied by the description of his dancing as “funky.”
He associates wealth with his charming personality. He always imagined that his charming personality and superior dancing skills would make him wealthy. As he continued toward his goals, he kept losing his confidence. But now a surge of energy is careening through him to dance his way to wealth and the recognition he craves from everyone he meets.
He not only wants to uplift himself, but he also yearns to uplift the people he meets who will be supportive of him. He will teach them to dance so well, that their incredible, funky dance moves will not be an illusion, but a reality!
The video itself is an edgy, fun display of Thorslund’s live performance chops. Check it out below!
The opening punchy power chords of Meg Myers‘ new single “Me” announces not only the forthcoming album T/IA but the importance of self-love. Waking from a fretful sleep, Myers opens her eyes to a sunny day with enlightenment on transcendent love. The simple solid bright colors of Myers’s little room create a happy vibe for its inhabitant despite its limited space, and it echoes a childhood imagination reminiscent of a grade school party this Valentine’s love season. Like the kids and Myers, we all yearn for love and acceptance. “Me” shows us how we can first love ourselves and always have this inner strength.
The part of one continues as Myers gazes out the window, not in lonely longing but in a happy daydream. Unafraid, she looks into the camera to assert her “someone else” is “me.” We see her lean into her mirror to kiss her reflection, demonstrating a joyful acceptance. From forehead to looking glass forehead, we see the singer enjoy her own company. She knows the transcendence of this relationship, and she claims this level of greatness for a potential romantic one.
Banging out those steady chords on a little blue piano, she maintains this love foundation. A mascara-covered eye opens over the lens so we can see from Myers’s perspective. We too can transcend the lies lobbed at us about dating culture so we can be rooted and ready to accept a suitable someone else. No more will Myers be a victim of manipulation. As she basks in her presence, she will carry on as strong as the “Me” beat, bright as her single room and transcendent of her self-love. Romance can take it or leave it.
At just 18 years old, Michigan-based Eli 07‘s (Eli Wilson) true musical talent originally gained him traction on TikTok. But his collaboration efforts and insane vocal talents are what will sustain him in the music industry for years to come. His music is soulful, equal parts softness and conviction. “15 Miles” is a rhythmic piece that utilizes acoustic guitar to create a sound that feels like the perfect blend of aughts’ emo and modern indie.
The music video – directed and edited by Rascreative – serves to perfectly amplify the initial pull and sadness of the track. With cool undertones, it follows the artist while he sings his woes on an abandoned beach. A sense of emotional struggle is introduced to the visual as he wears a suit and tie, but then abandons the buttoned-up look to connect with the waves. It is a scene worthy of a major motion picture.
Check out the video below, and let us know what you think!
Production Assistant: Felipe Navia Song Produced by @King Theta Mix/Mastered by @felipejnavia Written and Performed by @eliwilson07
