New Music, Emerging from your Local Scene
Noname has dropped a new single called “Song 32”. The track was produced by Phoelix and is her second single of 2019. Both singles come on the heels of her 2018 debut full-length album, Room 25.
You can catch Noname on June 4th at Huntington Bank Pavilion with Anderson.Paak and Thundercat.
Last month, The Deli teased the release of a new single from Nashville alt-rock up-and-comers The Ivins, who have already seen success from having their music played on FOX Sports and in quite a few Spotify playlists. Now, "Certain" has dropped across all streaming platforms, and a music video showing the band rocking out to the new track has materalized on YouTube. While the music video captures the energy of the band’s electrifying performance, you’ll find that there’s more where that came from live. Catch The Ivins at New Faces Nite at The Basement East on April 9th, where they’ll play alongside some of the city’s other fine local acts such as Mariela, Morgan Wade, and Jon Worthy & the Bends. – Will Sisskind
The pairing of Chris Walker & Tim Gibbon, a.k.a. La Palma, recently shared its debut self-titled album. A bubbling, bouncy, psych-pop/surf vibe hangs in the humid air. The balance of low-key, laid-back melodies and adventurous instrumental combinations create a compelling/calming dynamic. Unassuming, infectious rhythms and harmonic vocal textures hypnotically draw you in.
The Dubuque label Personal Archives released a new album, Nothing Stays Buried (la la la la), from the duo of Reid Karris and Alexander Adams this week. This is improvised experimental music that finds Karris on prepared guitars and Adams on drums.
We have shared the music Karris on several occasions, but I don’t believe we have mentioned Adams in the past. He runs the fantastic local cassette label Lurker Bias, and has released several solo albums over the last few years.
A psych inspired quartet that doesn’t mind embracing a Southern styled grit, Vision Arcade channels a blend of Audioslave, the Black Keys and Rival Sons. The young rock group has already scored shows at venues such as the Mohawk, Come and Take It Live!, and Emos but the release of their debut single "Afterglow", soon to be accompanied by a music video, will continue to raise their profile. The band purveys 70’s influenced alt-rock with bluesy undertones and the four piece consisting of Max Robison, Rory Kendall, Connor Torres and Evan Brock are on a steady track to a larger fan base.
On I’m Not Getting Any Taller, the latest album from indie-folk outfit Daisy the Great, the duo solidifies its own voice that’s equal parts heart-wrenching and humorous. From first listen you can hear how they bend seemingly cutesy harmonies and mid-tempo, acoustic ballads into revealing and hypnotic displays of genuine hurt. The mundane, the absurd and the sentimental attachments found in life are lovingly displayed but still illustrate how affecting they can be. Songs like “Dips” morph from swaying, bluesy-pop to a dreamlike oasis that slips between your fingers before it crystalizes. Like a smile that can’t help but crack, I’m Not Getting Any Taller snaps a photo of the bleak and the blithe moments of life, something that rarely sounds as good as it does here. If you want to see Daisy the Great live and enjoy cocktails, you can catch them at Manhattan’s restaurant Le Fanfare on April 17, an event organized by our blogging friends The Wild Honey Pie in a collaboration with bourbon makers Noble Oak. –Tucker Pennington
Rock trio Big Night In has released the first single, “Truth or Dare”, from their forthcoming album, Super Dualism. This is the “big dumb rock” from Ben Standage (bass/vocals), Dave Mattfield(guitar/vocals), and David Hughes, (drums) and this single marks the first new music from the band since their 2016 self-titled debut.
Wanna find some music that has something to say? Let us introduce you to Covert Contracts (Get Better Records), the debut LP from Control Top. The album builds off bassist, singer and lyricist Ali Carter’s intrinsic response "to feeling trapped and overwhelmed in a capitalist patriarchy, offering indictments of wrongdoing and abuse of power, odes to empathy and ego death, as well as declarations of self-determination." Combined with the frenetic guitar work of Al Creedon (I Im Eye My, Bleeding Rainbow) and the manic drumming of Alex Lichtenauer (HIRS), the post-punk, power trio exorcises societal demons to create one of the most exciting releases to come from Philly’s underground music community this year. Control Top is currently on tour with Laura Jane Grace and the Devouring Mothers, and is scheduled to perform next in Philly on Saturday, May 18 at Franklin Music Hall, opening for The Hives + Refused. (Photo by Farrah Skeiky)
Whisper Hiss is releasing their first physical release, a 7” single, this Thursday. The single, “Everything Must Go” is essentially a 60’s beach party was compressed into one gothic synth song. It makes you want to do the Mashed Potato decked out in the most emo clothing you own. The 7" comes with a digital download which includes an additional three previously unreleased songs. The band is also playing a show to celebrate on the same day, April 11th. It’ll be at Mother Foucault’s Bookshop, and Creature to Creature will also be playing a set. You can check out the facebook page for more information. Stop by to support the band and hear some great music!
-By Avril Carrillo
Last we heard from Lex Vega—who performs as Mini Trees—was last year when we covered her reflective single "Take It Back." Her latest, "Steady Me," expands upon her lithe ambient touches with a tightly crafted indie-pop sound. Vega brims with cautious optimism, recognizing the goodwill that comes from being in a healthy relationship while also accepting its inevitable missteps. She’s gradually coming into her own, taking another songwriting leap forward with sure-footed ease.
"Steady Me" is the first single off of Mini Trees’ forthcoming debut EP, which is set for release in May. Juan Rodríguez
Big city power pop from Oscar Tango. They have just released a new EP titled “Choice Morsels”. The opening track “London Station” has a very oldies inspired vibe to it with drums that’ll make you tap your toes, a rolling baseline and guitars strumming at just the right time. Very much Sloan inspired – mostly resembling Chris Murphy written tracks but with a sweet solo that Patrick Pentland would enjoy too. You can see Oscar Tango perform at The Piston for Indie Night on April 9th with Mercy Flight. – Kris Gies
Hip-hop up and comer Caine Casket is happy to go against the grain of the genre’s current mood by delving into his Liberian ancestry and producing emotionally charged lyrics that go beyond the surface of parties and money and examine the state of race relations in America today. By allowing percussive rhythms, electric guitars, and ambient sounds to lead the way in many of the tracks from his latest record 9 Nights, Caine Casket truly brings out the spirit of his ancestry and raises the pulse of today’s hip-hop with something wholly new and refreshing. Caine Casket will be representing Garden State, New Jersey at his next show at Elsewhere in Brooklyn, NY. Check out his single “Domino” below. – Rene Cobar
