Tristen "Sneaker Waves (Modern Outsider)"
Sneaker Waves (Modern Outsider), the third full length album from Nashville’s Tristen is full of songs, each one different. I know.. i know… Every album is full of different songs (now that we’ve moved past the cash grab-y remix albums of the ’90s) but this is different. You don’t really know what kind of genre tune you are gonna get next until each tune starts. Will the next tune be dream pop? Well, if you’re listening to “Got Some” then yeah. What about a tune that sounds like Dolly Parton covering Rick Springfield? Then you must be listening to “Alone Tonight”! There are tons of new genre surprises to be found here – (no ska-metal… I assume she is saving that for the next album) so let’s start with the aforementioned “Alone Tonight.”
Wesley Gonzalez "Excellent Musician (Moshi Moshi)"
Upon first checking out Wesley Gonzalez’s solo debut, you are probably gonna say to yourself “this record is pretty bonkers.” It won’t take long. In fact, it took me 17 second (no lie) into the first song before I messaged another BRMer the following “this wesley gonzalez record is pretty bonkers.” And then when I read the following on diymag.com “Gonzalez describes the record as “angry music” influenced by the more melodic likes of Sly & the Family Stone, Donny Hathaway and The Beatles.” I was better able to describe the bonkers-ness I was hearing. It’s indie-quirk-pop at it’s finest. Check out the Elvis Costello-y “Exhibition Song.”
Palehound "A Place I’ll Always Go (Polyvinyl)"
A Place I’ll Always Go, the second LP from Palehound but their first for Polyvinyl, is an indie rock wonderland. Spindly guitar lines, plunky bass, shuffle-y drums and Ellen Kempner’s hushed, melodic vocals. It all adds up to a throwback to the ‘90s heyday of the indie craft a la The Breeders (with a little Folk Implosion percussion thrown in for good measure), plus a softer take on the modern sounds of Speedy Ortiz. Having recorded the album after a period of great personal loss, Ellen and Co. have come out the other side with an introspective blast of blurry rock. Check out the earworm “Room.”
The Peacers "Introducing The Crimsmen (Drag City)"
There you are, you just built yourself a shortwave radio that you are sure will pick up frequencies from space. You tune it all over the dial (do short wave radios have dials? Admittedly, I didn’t do a whole lot of research for this…) and come upon some alien sounds. But suprisingly, the aliens speak English. Also, this sort of sounds like rock and roll music, but like none you’ve ever heard before. That’s because it’s The Peacers! Spilling out from a split in the fabric of the universe is their strange, frazzled garage rock from space. Introducing The Crimsmen (Drag City) is like if you pushed the Kinks down the stairs mid-practice, and they never stopped playing. Half way down the steps, they tumble into Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd who was working on some Monkees covers, and the whole thing winds up this alien-sounding supergroup before they hit the landing. Cool origin story right? Check out the stonned shuffle of “Jurgen’s Layout.”