WHITNEY – ” Light Upon The Lake: Demo Recordings “

Posted: January 1, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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We still can’t get enough of Whitney‘s debut, Light Upon the Lake – it’s the perfect record for any season, mood, or time of day. It’s rarely left the turntable since it came out back in 2016, and since then we’ve found more ways to fall in love with it. So we’re excited to announce that the Light Upon the Lake: Demo Recordings, which was set for a November 10th release. We’ve also got a previously unreleased track, “You and Me,” to share with you, too.

Light Upon the Lake, the debut from Whitney, was born from early-morning songwriting sessions during one of the most brutal winters in Chicago’s history. Vocalist/drummer Julien Ehrlich and guitarist Max Kakacek began writing unflinching, honest songs about everything from break-ups to the passing of Ehrlich’s grandfather. The pair leaned on one another for both honest critique and a sounding board for working through their newly-discovered truths.

The brief, intense period of creativity for the band yielded Light Upon the Lake’s exceptional, unfussy combination of soul, breezy Sixties/Seventies rock, and somber heartbreak woven together by hopeful, golden threads. After critical acclaim and nearly nonstop touring since the album’s 2016 release, Ehrlich and Kakacek are going back to their roots for the first time, with the full demos from Light Upon the Lake . After a whirlwind year following the debut, the demos offer a way for listeners to get a glimpse into the very beginning of Whitney’s sound.

“After almost two years of non-stop touring we decided we wanted to close the chapter on Light Upon the Lake by releasing the songs in their earliest incarnations alongside a cover of a band favorite by Allen Toussaint, and an unreleased track called ‘You and Me.’ We’re looking towards LP2 as we finish out the year on the road.” – Love, Max and Julien.

Whitney “You and Me” from Light Upon The Lake: Demo Recordings out November 10th on Secretly Canadian

WILCO – ” Love Is Everywhere (Beware) “

Posted: January 1, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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There’s nothing cheerful about Wilco’s weary new release, “Ode to Joy”, but Jeff Tweedy’s sullen, even sardonic, songs on the band’s 11th studio album are no less appreciable for their dark matter. The decaying guitar tones, sorrowful flourishes, and incessant stomp of “Bright Leaves” sets the tone from the outset, as Tweedy sings, “I never change/You never change.” Some songs here are personal (“Hold Me Anyway”), others political (“Citizens”), but Wilco accompanies them all the same with their incredible chemistry and a restrained instrumentation that keeps Tweedy’s questions front and center. “I blow my horn for the whole band,” he sings.

“Ode to Joy” is Wilco’s eleventh studio album, and it seems informed by maturity, which is less a newfound dimension than a deepening of the band’s growth over the past decade. Jeff Tweedy’s relative calm in the face of turmoil is the defining force underlying the record, and it’s clear from the outset: his vocals on opener “Bright Leaves” sound like they were recorded as the rest of the room was napping. The song appears to address his marriage; that topic would have been mined for something caustic and even sinister on, say, Summerteeth, but here it is marveled at for its consistency and durability, warts and all. This isn’t head-in-the-sand naiveté, but rather a calculated effort to shun the grim perspectives Wilco may once have embraced.

Everyone’s perennial alt-rock favorites Wilco just want to feel joyful. Is that so much to ask? In 2019’s dire, dreary political climate, maybe it is. Maybe we should risk our individual happinesses to better our community; maybe there’s a way to materialize that joy into political action. That’s the central tension in the band’s song, “Love Is Everywhere (Beware),” It’s the lead single from their newly announced 11th album, “Ode to Joy”.

Ode to Joy – Wilco’s 11th studio album – released October. 4th , 2019 via dBpm Records. The album features 11 new songs written and produced by Jeff Tweedy and recorded by Wilco at The Loft (Chicago, IL) in January 2019. “Love is Everywhere (Beware)” is the first single from the album release.

ANGIE McMAHON – ” Silver Springs “

Posted: January 1, 2020 in MUSIC
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A good friend with whom I exchange music tips across hemispheres pointed me in the direction of Angie McMahon before the UK release of ‘Salt’. I was won over by a song called ‘Pasta’ but the album is a much more complex listen, showcasing her remarkably emotive and gnarly vocals. Electric folk is probably the label to use, but there’s some variety here with ‘Keeping Time’ offering a scuzzy strut and the more jagged end of Mazzy Star being evoked at times. Good stuff.

Angie McMahon released a breathtaking cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Silver Springs,” a piercingly beautiful song of heartbreak that started as a b-side and has since become a classic in its own right. We’ve been playing this in our set for a long time, and had a moment to record it in Nashville this year

LOMELDA – ” M For Empathy “

Posted: December 31, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Lomelda nails it with this album lots of killer melodies and harmonies linked to poignant lyrics, Just some of the most simple, gorgeous, heartbreaking — and shortest — songs I’ve heard in a long, long time. My new album ’M for Empathy’ is mostly things said or shoulda said, heard or shoulda. Much of it, and it’s just a lil, came to me, or outta me, outta a deepening silence. Something you can hear a lot of I hope. It let me voice again. It also let me not, and only sing as much as I wanted, which is important too. Making peace with the word in me, just a lil, all my might.

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at Lazybones Studio in Silsbee, TX
January 26-28, 2019

Performed and produced by Hannah Read, Tommy Read at Lazybones Studio in Silsbee, TX
January 26-28, 2019.

LEMOLO – ” Swansea “

Posted: December 31, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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This is the third full release from Seattle’s Meagan Grandall, a project now 10 years old. A sweeping, symphonic expression of loss and the ache that comes with it, I have listened to this album this year at home, and in my car at the loudest possible volume while in the worst possible mood. Lemolo has been with me for many years now as a favorite, but Swansea was there for me this year. Another great collection of captivating dream pop from Meagan Grandall. The lush sounds and production are warm and welcoming, with intelligent arrangements full of varied instrumentation that never fails to impress..

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Meagan Grandall: Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Synth, Bass, Violin, and Vibraphone
Nathan Yaccino: Drums, Percussion, Guitar, Bass, Cello, and Vibraphone
Alex Guy: Violin and Viola
Maria Scherer Wilson: Cello
Jon Karschney: French Horn

released October 11th, 2019

All songs written by Meagan Grandall ,Lemolo is the Seattle dream pop project of songwriter and multi-instrumentalist.

HEART ATTACK MAN – ” Fake Blood “

Posted: December 31, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Emo-adjacent indie-punk bands are having a moment right now, and Heart Attack Man are undeniably part of that. The Cleveland band’s second album, “Fake Blood”, dips into college rock, grunge, punk and power pop, but all you’ll be thinking about are their seething riffs and incisive hooks that leave it all out on the field. Their pumping melodies bleed profusely while their slower riffs are satisfyingly sedating. Throughout their eleven tracks, frontman Eric Egan uses lurid physical anguish as a metaphor for emotional agony. On “Cut My Losses,” they “paint the walls with your brain,” on “Blood Blister,” there’s talk of “dead skin and phantom limb memories,” and on “Rats in a Bucket,” they have “a corpse’s worth of bones to pick.” On one hand, Heart Attack Man embraces an us-against-the-world mentality with steam emanating from their nostrils, but they also have a self-destructive side which exposes them to friendly fire. This dichotomy is illustrated in the final track, “The Choking Game,” where their invincibility and insecurities meet (“Some days I walk on water / Some days I run on fumes”).

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If bloodthirsty angst and strapping power punk is your scene, go out and buy some Fake Blood.

Eric Egan,
Adam Paduch,
Tyler Sickels,
Seamus Groman

Released April 19th, 2019

PORRIDGE RADIO – ” Lilac “

Posted: December 31, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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“Lilac” is a surrender to the uncertainty of love, and a reaffirmation that its messy realities are worth trying to parse. Against warbled guitars, ascendant strings and marching drums, Dana Margolin screams into the void, “I can never seem to find it,” with the kind of passionate exhaustion that sounds like she’s ready to throw herself into the sea. Despite feeling stuck, she ultimately reaches the conclusion that if kindness and love aren’t noble causes, then nothing is noble. “I don’t want to get bitter, I want us to get better,” Margoli sings as she sides with humans’ better nature and delivers one of the most intense vocal performances of the year. The strings and guitars cry out and match Margoli’s existential urgency, resulting in a late song of the year contender.

The album documents struggles with life, love and boredom – spelt out with sticky fingers by five idiot savants. The lyrics, title and artwork, as well as the group’s name, brings to mind a certain scrapbook absurdism at the core of Porridge Radio’s work. Faced with the dark abyss of existence, the band scrapes together some value from the nonsensical and the pointless, and then cling to it, giggling, for dear life.

PATIO – ” Essentials “

Posted: December 31, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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All 27 minutes of Patio’s debut album “Essentials” are artful and purposeful. This Brooklyn three-piece ,Alice Suh, Lindsey-Paige McCloy and Loren DiBlasi aren’t the most adroit post-punk band going today, but what they create out of sparse sounds is impressive. The satisfying contrast between DiBlasi’s pointed deadpan and McCloy’s soft vocalizing is just one reason for their intrigue. The vocal interplay between DiBlasi and McCloy on “Boy Scout” is the best example, and it also displays the full range of their lyrical charm. Lines flicker between self-deprecating or violent to wry or just plain sad. DiBlasi sings, “I just feel like I always lose / I think I’m going to go home and listen to Washer / Instead of spending any more time with you.” McCloy’s delicate vocal harmonies on “End Game” are welcome pillows of melodic pop, and DiBlasi’s punky, disconsolate grandeur on “Open” struts slowly with grace.

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Inspired by classic British post-punk, the songwriting of Cate LeBon, and the close-knit Brooklyn DIY community from which the band first sprouted, Patio now release their long-awaited debut full-length Essentials, a fundamental collection of new music for 2019. Building upon the delicacy of the band’s prior work, Essentials presents fuller sounds, heightened emotions, and grander thematic complexity. Its 10 tracks are dark and introspective, yet hopeful, and often humorous—from rambling spoken word meditations to sparkling melodies and soaring riffs. Melodramatic and grotesque expressions abound, as do soft, subtle moments of quiet self-examination. Mixed by Amar Lal (Big Ups, Ovlov).

Released April 5th, 2019

Alice Suh – drums
Loren DiBlasi – bass, vocals
Lindsey-Paige McCloy – guitar, vocals

GIRL K – ” Dog Year Lungs “

Posted: December 30, 2019 in MUSIC
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Girl K is an Indie Rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Weeks before the release of her debut album, Girl K began playing with a band. Since the album’s release on October 6th 2017, this charming group has played out their fun and heartaching tunes in hopes of spreading a message of positivity and passion.

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The ability to feel a range of emotions within the parameters of a three minute song is one of the best reasons to listen to Girl K. They are an indie rock group led by vocalist Kathy Patino, Girl K began as a solo project in early 2017. Her debut album, ‘Sunflower Court’, was released that summer and served as her introduction to the Chicago music scene. Patino Joined by Ajay Raghuraman, Alex Pieczynski, and Kevin Sheppard, Girl K released multiple singles throughout 2018 – earning a spot in Paste Magazine’s list of 15 Chicago bands you “Need to Know”.
Set to release a new album, entitled ‘For Now’, in March 2019 – Girl K is excited to introduce you to their world through new sounds, vivid story telling, and connective melodies.
Band Members
Kathy Patino
Ajay Raghuraman
Alex Pieczynski
Kevin Sheppard

BONNIESONGS – ” Energetic Mind “

Posted: December 29, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Bonnie’s sweet ethereal vocals sail over the polyrhythmic backgrounds created between her mandolin, percussion and vocal loops. Her imaginative lyrics tell stories of treehouses, mice, birds, flying and video games.
Described as “dreamy experimental indie folk” and compared to artists such as Bjork and Joanna Newsom, Bonniesongs is creating a unique sound in the Sydney songwriting scene. 

A beautiful record of patient music. Layers of sound and rhythm creating atmospheres that sublimely match the lyrical content. “Ice Cream” is a near-perfect song

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Art-folk virtuoso Bonniesongs, aka Bonnie Stewart, and will release her debut album “Energetic Mind” on 6th September 2019, via Small Pond and Art As Catharsis.

Released September 6th, 2019

Bonnie Stewart: vocals, guitar, banjo, drums, percussion
Freya Schack– Arnott: cello
Thomas Botting: double and electric bass
Alyx Dennison and David Trumpmanis: guitar noodles, bass synth and zombie vocals

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