by Meredith Schneider | Jan 15, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
The very end of 2017 brought us some stunner releases, and not enough time to get through it all. San Francisco’s rock outfit The Go Ahead – comprised of – Kyna Wise (vocals), Alex Mamelok (bass), Josh Hertz (guitar), and Chris Kelly (drums) – charmed us in December with the release of their latest, an EP titled In Harms Way. A six track EP birthed from struggle and existential questions, this work implores you to look deeper at your own life.
The Go Ahead wastes no time getting you right into the thick of it, beginning slowly with first track “Bones” and then luring the listener in with rough guitar and hard-hitting percussion. Wise’s vocals are like a siren, pulling you in despite your want to know – and to hear – more, at least for the first couple of minutes. Then, you might find yourself melting into her voice for the remainder of the work. (Warning: You will.) While “On My Side” slows things down, it bursts into this beautiful, mellifluous track, a pattern not dissimilar to next track “Bloodshot”. (If you don’t like the idea of blood coming out of your eyes, maybe skip this song.) “Coastline” has more of a pop feel to it, lyrics tinged with melancholy and a thirst for salt water. “About to Burst” feels just like the title might suggest, while final track “Fuel” almost drains you of your energy just by adequately enjoying the tempo and energy adjustments throughout the song.
It’s rare to find all of your own energy invested in a release from start to finish, but The Go Ahead has managed that feat with In Harms Way.
Keep up with The Go Ahead here.
by Meredith Schneider | Jan 10, 2018 | albums, wolf tracks
Recently, Lakeland, Florida alternative musician Luke Wilmoth released a four track EP that is absolutely blissful to listen to. First track “Slow Dance” makes us feel ready for late spring nights, early summer evenings with the light glow of the sun on our shoulders as we bathe ourselves in rose colored glasses. In fact, it’s that easy-going feeling of summertime outdoors in the heat that this EP evokes for us. Which, honestly, as misplaced as that may seem in the midst of the crazy weather we’ve been having, it actually provides a soundscape escape that really adds color to those gray, dreary days that have been flooding our collective existence lately.
“San Pellegrino” feels like turn of the century indie to us, the most positive sounds to a song that has many more layers than you could realize with just one listen. “I Took Your Picture Off the Wall” resembles that same time period, and that isn’t just because of the novel-like title of the track. Light as a feather rock really keeps our hips swaying, and once again we can’t do anything but imagine ourselves singing along to this at an outdoor venue with Wilmoth himself leading us on vocals. Fourth track “Pinwheel” rounds it all out very nicely, a slight amount of additional edge to it with deeper guitar riffs and harder hitting percussion. Don’t get us wrong, the song still belongs at the ending of your next blockbuster romantic comedy, but it’s beautiful and endearing in its sound, enough to make us look forward to celebrating life and love this year.
Keep Luke Wilmoth on your radar by following him here.
by Meredith Schneider | Dec 7, 2017 | wolf tracks
As if the double entendre of the title of singer/songwriter Cody Melville‘s impressive tenth album isn’t enough, he has birthed a genre-hopping, robust work of art to support it. Gliding from a sound that could easily have been inspired by Bruce Springsteen, to more twangy, country-inspired compositions, to soulful ballads and beyond, Melville has somehow managed to capture an entire lifetime’s worth of styles and energies in just one release. Bonds Eye might not be officially available until tomorrow, but for now we have the honor of hosting a streaming premiere of the 10 track release in its entirety. So make the right choice, and get lost in the breathtaking complexity of it Melville’s latest.
Bonds Eye is out December 8th, and the rest of his catalog is available on Bandcamp. Keep up with Cody Melville here.
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 16, 2017 | wolf tracks
Polish alternative band Trupa Trupa – comprised of Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, Tomek Pawluczuk, Wojtek Juchniewicz, and Rafał Wojczal – released an eleven track collection titled Jolly New Songs at the end of October. Packed with intense attitude and reverb for miles, the album’s sound will keep you captivated as it trudges through first track “Against Breaking Heart of a Breaking Heart Beauty” until the last fourth, when it enters into an even darker soundscape and really thrashes into “Coffin”, which enters into the light, indie pop realm with its sound. By the end of it, you spiral into a feeling of falling, which is perfect because the third track is a frantic attention-getter that swirls into a dreamlike state-inducing trance track titled “Falling”. And while “Mist” is darker, led by percussion, the title track keeps a pleasant sound to the vocals, as though it’s staying on the polite end of the soundscape almost because of its title. That’s all well and good, until the song takes on an almost Tim Burton flare and spirals into a heavy instrumental cacophony that feels dangerous and inviting.
“Leave It All” is as melancholic in sound as the title would suggest, though the song itself leans more toward an off-kilter lounge band sound, though the theatrical nature of “Love Supreme” draws us into a Wizard Of Oz-meets-death march realm where Tim Burton’s antics feel slight and far away. “Never Forget” pulls us out of the darkness and plunges us into a dark alleyway, where we’re almost marching forward, decked out in combat boots and a leather jacket. “None of Us” reminds us of a dark and murky lullaby – perhaps for Satan’s children more so than anyone else – with guitar riffs that could swallow your ears whole. The tumultuous instrumentals in “Only Good Weather” remind us of the so-called reliability of the National Weather Service (ha!), replete with waning guitars and a swirling, psych rock bed of sound. And – if you ask us – Trupa Trupa did us a service making the crashing sounds of “To Me” the last track, as it, too, splinters into an uproar of crashing cymbals and intense rock vibes before leveling out and inducing a feeling of calm with its listeners.
Every emotion is palpable with Jolly New Songs. You just have to let it envelope you.
Jolly New Songs is out now. Keep up with Trupa Trupa here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 6, 2017 | wolf tracks
In September, Boston’s folk/indie rock talent Griffin Robillard released his 9 track, full-length album titled Cracks in the Ceiling. Flooded in a sharply nostalgic feeling, the album itself was written while Robillard was living in Copenhagen. You can almost feel the growth he was experiencing while writing the piece, as his vocals are flooded with emotion as he brings you into his world with the mid-tempo, almost anthemic, title track, bouncing into the more upbeat and soulful vibes of “Ghost” before getting slightly more twangy, then bluesy/jazzy, in his instrumentals with third track “Because I’ve Told You”.
“Reel to Reel” slows things down – has the structure of a Ben Folds-type track – weaving a narrative speaking to his significant other that is slightly specific, but still very vague, perhaps for the sake of universality. While “Artifacts” picks things back up exponentially, it is with sixth track “Faithless” that we are brought back out of our seats, encouraged by the sound to move. “In Your Own Way” houses similar surf pop vibes to the instrumentals in Gin Blossoms’ “Found Out About You“, causing us a few moments of reminiscing on our 90s selves.
It is with “Nothing to Show” that things get very serious, both lyrically and instrumentally. It’s like Robillard has decided to rip his heart wide open in this one, simplifying the instrumentals slightly to really showcase the words as he croons the track into a 70s style rock stunner. “Tired of Being Cruel” is your last taste of Cracks in the Ceiling, a lot more upbeat in its composition, though melancholic lyrically as he begins the song with the line “tired of being cruel to you.” Self reflective, honest, raw. That’s what we’ve come to love about Robillard, and – while we’re plenty happy with this release – we’re already excited to hear what comes next from this talented musician.
Cracks in the Ceiling is out now. Keep up with Griffin Robillard here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 6, 2017 | wolf tracks
Michigan-based indie folk rock trio The Accidentals – made up of Katie Larson, Savanna Buist, and Michael Dause – are heading out on the road to celebrate their summer release, an incredible thirteen track album by the name of Odyssey. By now, most of us have had the chance to listen to the album in its entirety. (If you haven’t, here it is.) But their most recent offering is a music video for the title track, and we want to make sure you get your eyes on it.
“Odyssey” as a track begins slower, with a simple acoustic guitar and soulful lyrics keeping pace and leading you through an ethereal sound space even before the additional instrumentals hit the track. The video begins with the trio in what looks like a hang space in a basement, bathed in warm colors to match the warmth of the song. They’re gathered in a circle, enjoying what seems to be a small jam session. We also get to witness them play in shallow waters under a beautiful blue sky, as well as a little glimpse into their live performance life on stage. The video is beautifully captured, with softened colors and slow motion applied in just the right places. We’re deeply moved by the track, and incredibly happy with the video.
Odyssey is available now. Keep up with The Accidentals here.
by Meredith Schneider | Nov 3, 2017 | wolf tracks
Experimental indie pop collective Babylawns – comprised of Ryan Egan, Davey Alaimo, Mike Phillips, Chris Tremblay, and Conor Powers – is headed out on an east coast tour this month in support of their brand new album Sorry it’s like this, with the first stop happening tonight in Providence, Rhode Island. The nine track full-length starts with heavy hitting “too big”, crashing guitars leading you into the thrashing feel of “heartbeat” before winding you down into “anxiety”, which happens at a crawling clip. The album meanders between genres, as its listener gets bits of americana, psych rock, alternative, goth pop, and more through the expert instrumentalism of a group that knows how to cohesively switch tempo at the drop of a hat, highlighting the composition of the music at the same importance as the vocals themselves. Sorry it’s like this adequately sums up a highly relatable but often inexplicable melancholic feeling in song. And it’s something you need to experience.
Tour Dates
11/3 – Providence, RI
11/4 – Philadelphia, PA
11/5 – Columbus, OH
11/6 – Ann Arbor, MI
11/7 – Harrisburg, PA
11/8 – Baltimore, MD
11/9 – New Brunswick, NJ
11/10 – Wilton, NH
11/11 – Goffstown, NH
11/30 – Brooklyn, NY
12/1 – Portland, ME
Sorry it’s like this is out now. Keep up with Babylawns here.
by Meredith Schneider | Oct 31, 2017 | wolf tracks
There is an alt rock band located in Jersey City and Rahway, New Jersey that emerged quite recently onto the music scene. So recently, in fact, that you can judge its timeframe based on the band’s name and – if you need more proof – the title of the album they just released. y u u g e is comprised of Nick Afflitto, Alex Pergament, and Jerry Ramos, and their debut album Inauguration Day is out now. (See what we mean?)
Admits Pergament of the recording of Inauguration Day, “The album is wholly improvised in the studio. Our idea was to focus on the need for listening and accepting over performing and perfecting, as a response to the pressures of being right, winning, competing. To exercise a capacity for empathy and organic response.”
Beginning with the spoken track “Microscope”, y u u g e has created something that draws you in and makes you examine the world around you, with lines like “we’re not that different” driving the piece forward, and in direct contrast to what the overarching political message is and has been since that storied day. “Squirmy Worm” is immediately notable for its quirky percussion, a quick 45 second track that reminds us of the subject of its title, and also has us questioning what other minute details of the every day we should be paying attention to. “Captain Creepy” features Ariel Guidry, though the vocals are all high pitched, as though they inhaled helium before “talking about sandwiches” and other random things. Its follow-up – “Stinky Pants” – also features the vocal stylings of Ariel Guidry, though this time in a more soulful and fulfilling way. (Though we’re not knocking the laughter we got out of its predecessor.)
“Man Cave” is the first song on the album that begins like an actual rock track, really milking the amp on the electric guitar. Crashing drums ensue, and the band goes full metal with harsh, screaming vocals and a dark tone to the instrumentals. (Because, after all, isn’t that what a man cave is all about? Being as manly and loud as possible?) “Snow Man” is heavily characterized by the horns section, a purely instrumental track – until minute five, when calm and beautiful vocals add a layer of softness to it all – that is simplified to an acoustic guitar and trumpet.
The title track is heavy – even more so than “Man Cave” – literally evoking the gloom and doom feeling we had on that fated day in January of this year.Once again, it is only after minute five that any vocals come in, and they’re angry and loud and all-encompassing in their delivery. (Much like someone else we all know.) But meander on into “The Animals Who Saved You”, and there is a delicacy placed back into the music that makes it feel like a slow jazz type of afternoon. Ninth and final track “Grizzly Bear” begins with the trumpet, then percussion, slowly layering and building with softened, almost inaudible, and honest lyrics over the course of almost eleven whole minutes. During minute nine, everything kind of crashes into this distinct and intense cacophony of sound, and then dissolves again, perfectly rounding out this release.
Inauguration Day is available now.
