“I’m coping” Kaimbr assures the listener on “Cora”, the first track of his latest full length release, Share the Shelter. Starting the album with a song dedicated to his mother, Kaimbr switches between conventional raps and a sense of lo-fi innocence on the album. Giving the album a real sense of concept are the retro, often melancholy samples, which add a nice touch of melodic material to the album, giving it a unique, tight sound.

Here is “Defiant” from Kaimbr’s latest album Share the Shelter, which dropped May 16th.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Since the end of the 90s, electronic musicians have been experimenting with bleaker aesthetics to give voice to a society that lacks a social safety net and seems to be careening towards destruction. The work of artists like Burial in the early 2000s ushered in an era of dubstep that was defined by a deep sense of loss and loneliness. Groups like Crystal Castles and Boards of Canada brought new elements of eeriness to electronic music, and the rise of vaporwave in 2011 turned the techno-utopian pop jingles of the early 90s into anthems of despair.

In this tradition comes Richmond electronic musician’s Chino Amobi‘s debut album, sardonically titled PARADISO. Oscillating between an edgier version of the soundtrack to Stranger Things, chaotic noise collages, and experimental dub-step, Amobi’s PARADISO is ambitious and powerful.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Irreverently quirky, with a slurred, seemingly codeine influenced flow, DMV producer Mike of Doom’s latest album, MICHAEL, is an amusing and at times semi-serious collection of songs about Mike’s life. The strongest element of this album is its genre bending. Mike of Doom explores everything from vaporwave to punk to trap without ever losing a sense of playfulness and confidence. The genre bending keeps the album fresh, and despite the sometimes stale subject matter of the songs, the music is truly entertaining to listen to.

A pleasing and ambitious release from DMV’s own Mike of Doom.

-Written by Michael Dranove

On her 2nd full length release, DC-based Sneaks shows she is a creative tour-de-force. As the minimalist backing tracks drive the music under the oblique spoken-word metaphors, Sneaks somehow manages to make listeners forget the fact that her music has no melody, barely any harmony, a rhythm section consisting almost solely of drum tracks, and lyrics that often don’t even rhyme! There is some serious originality at work in this music, anyone able to take the sound of Devo, strip it to its bare bones and somehow keep the music enticing is worth looking out for.

-Written by Michael Dranove

The first few seconds of Near Northeast‘s Indali are ethereal, almost like the sound we imagine people hear when they are approaching the gates of heaven. Slowly creeping through the ambiance are reverb heavy guitar lines, keeping the music somewhere in between shoegaze and indie pop, with the legato feel helping the music steer clear of twee.

A certain seriousness is essential for the song given its subject matter: a mother and child being dragged out to sea by riptide. The video’s visuals underscore the tragedy in the music, with images of playful beachgoers intermingled with footage of people being drowned in tsunamis. As drummer Antonio Skarica put it in an interview with DC Music Download, “The line is so thin between carefree frolicking and complete destruction.”

Near Northeast’s new album True Mirror drops May 3rd.  You can catch the album release show at St Stephen’s church on Newton St this Friday night.

 -Written by Michael Dranove

Haunting, gratifying, and very indie, Den-Mate‘s Entropii is a pleasing blend of Icelandic dream rock and the sounds of synthwave/witch-house pioneers Crystal Castles. With an eerie aesthetic that is very much 2010s-dark indie, Den-Mate is making music that is not only very trendy, but also quite high-level. This is quality material, well produced, full of crisp and clean melodies clashing with unsettling backing tracks.

The impressive craftsmanship on display here is a sign of the young Virginia native’s potential, Den-Mate is definitely a band to look out for in the near future.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Fresh from a weekend stint in folk friendly Charlottesville, Handsome Hound returns to their hometown this Saturday to headline Songbyrd in Adams Morgan. Well-crafted and soulfully entertaining songs are the key to this group’s success, as the indie-folk-rock outfit continues to build off of the attention garnered by the release of their first EP last year. Creative and well thought out, the music does justice to the band’s influences: Americana legends like Johnny Cash and modern folk stars Shovels and Rope.

Don’t miss Handsome Hound and Odell Fox this Saturday, April 22nd, 6:30-9 at Songbyrd in Adams Morgan.  Tickets on sale here or at the door.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Richard’s Glasses is the first album from leading Phantom Tollbooth inspired Arlington indie-rock-post-grunge outfit Milo in the Doldrums.  High-level songwriting and musicianship shine through on this engaging blend of Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and other 1990s/early 2000s rock.

The key to this album is its variety, with the music being well-thought out and attention grabbing at all times. The touching ballads mixed in with the high-energy grunge make sure this album is well-paced, and at no time does the band allow the listener’s attention to wander.  

A well produced first mini-album from Milo in the Doldrums.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Here was a music video that put a smile on my face: DC Deli emerging artists of the month Venn covering one of my all-time favorite songs, Ceremony by New Order. Venn does a nice job capturing the sound of the original track and wrapping it in their own shoegaze sound, setting it all to a cute, superbly retro video.

Being such a huge fan of the original it’s hard for me to refrain from nitpicking. I do wish the guitars were more lo-fi and the vocals a little less intelligble among other things, but reservations aside a fantastic homage to a classic.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Havana Seoul’s “Payday: Revenue, The Stunt” is at once laid back and full of excitement.  Crunchy, open air backing tracks and playful rhymes combine to capture the sound of a blissful feeling made possible by making money and buying brand new shoes.  Whether or not making money and spending it is enough to satisfy you, when the beats drop on this track and Mi-Yung starts rhyming the music becomes truly irresistible. -Written by Michael Dranove

The liner notes to Poppy Patica‘s debut release, Tripping None, claim that the music is a blend of modern experimental pop and 80’s pop/punk. However, listening to this EP for the first time I was overwhelmed by memories not of listening to 80’s music for the first time, but rather of listening to of Montreal’s first album Cherry Peel, released in 1997. What came across to me on this album was the sound of 90s- indie legends like of Montreal, The Unicorns, and Deerhoof/hunter.

From the heart twinging chord changes on “Sink” to the lo-fi buzz of “Top”, this release modernizes some of the best elements of 90’s indie pop, and the result is truly wonderful.

A great debut from DC’s Poppy Patica.

-Written by Michael Dranove

Savage, Maryland based (seriously) power metal outfit Burning Shadows returns with their third full length release, Truth in Legend. True to the power metal penchant for symphonic tales of medieval era non-fiction and fantasy, Truth in Legend features songs about Norse mythology, the execution of the Knights Templar, and a song inspired by the game Skyrim. Whether power metal is your thing or not, the musicianship on this album is impressive. There is nary a guitar riff that doesn’t line up perfectly with the tight, driving drum/bass beats; and the lead singer moves through upper and lower registers with ease.

Here is “Day of Darkness” from Burning Shadow’s latest release, Truth in Legend.

-Written by Michael Dranove