Since we never really have time to give every great new song we run across a full detailed post all its own, we’ve decided to start out your weekend with a quick rundown of the best music we’ve heard over the past week or so.
Since we never really have time to give every great new song we run across a full detailed post all its own, we’ve decided to start out your weekend with a quick rundown of the best music we’ve heard over the past week or so. Without further ado, let’s dive right in!
Minor Alps – I Don’t Know What To Do With My Hands
Fellow 90s alt-rock nerds, you’re in for a treat: Minor Alps is a new band combining the considerable talents of Juliana Hatfield and Nada Surf’s Matthew Caws. They’ve put together a new album called Get There, which comes out later this month on Barsuk Records, and the first single from it is a celebration of social awkwardness with a title pretty much everyone should be able to relate to. The fact that this is a truly collaborative effort, in which both Caws and Hatfield get writing credits and sing lead vocals on every song, is commendable, but for us, the parts of this song that stand out the most are the ones where Juliana’s voice is up front (remnants of a high school crush? Maaaaaybe…). And of course, the part where two full lines of the first verse are devoted to a description of peeling a label off a beer bottle. Who hasn’t been there? Pre-order Get There from Barsuk HERE.
Vic Mensa – Lovely Day
Somehow we missed an opportunity to tell all of you about Vic Mensa‘s amazing first single, “Orange Soda,” our song of the summer when everyone else was strangely obsessed with “Blurred Lines.” But that’s OK, as it turns out, because his new single, “Lovely Day,” is just as awesome. Vic’s from Chicago, and he’s part of the same SaveMoney crew that gave us buzzworthy emcee Chance The Rapper earlier this year. His cadence is similar to Chance’s, though Vic’s voice is less of an acquired taste. And Vic’s songs have a persistently catchy sound that will get them stuck in your head all day–so play the video above, and get ready to walk around all weekend going “Oh oh oh, what a lovely day this is, what a lovely day…” even if it’s raining. Grab Vic’s brand new mixtape, INNANETAPE, featuring “Orange Soda” and “Lovely Day,” at Datpiff HERE.
The Dismemberment Plan – Daddy Was A Real Good Dancer
It’s good to see The Dismemberment Plan back together. These indie rock nerds spent their twentysomething years making excellent albums like Emergency And I, on which they combined an excellent melodic sense with surprisingly complex song structures and a brilliant wit that was always underscored by a hint of dark sadness. All of those things have returned with them on their first album in 12 years, Uncanney Valley, though “Daddy Was A Real Good Dancer” is quite straightforward in the songwriting department, making room for an excellent chorus with a poignant undertone. On this song, singer Travis Morrison, who brings the added perspective of a 40 year old father returning to the world of rock n’ roll after a long absence, sings about his own father having to give up his adolescent dreams in order to raise a family. It’s a catchy song that’ll get your toes tapping, but if you listen closely, there’s a lot to ponder here. Order yourself a copy of Uncanney Valley on vinyl or CD from The Dismemberment Plan’s website, HERE, or grab it on iTunes by clicking HERE.
The Rott Childs – Pretty Diamond
We know almost nothing about the Rott Childs–we heard about their new video from a random press release containing very little information. At this point, we’re not even sure what country they’re from. However, for some reason, we listened to their new song. And when we did, we were immediately blown away. Featuring a vocalist who bears a striking resemblance to Sonny Kay of 90s hardcore legends Angel Hair, The Rott Childs back up their excellent vocalist with raging, chaotic noisecore that alternates between tangled rock n’ roll riffs, choppy choruses, and jazzy blast beats. “Pretty Diamond” is from their second album, Alleluia: A Brit Milah In G Melodic Minor, and if what we’re hearing on this song is any indication, the whole album is going to be a wild, rollicking trip into the minds of some crazy hardcore kids who have listened to some Swing Kids and Blood Brothers records. I’m into it. Grab Alleluia from iTunes HERE.
Tancred – Creases
Tancred started out as a solo acoustic affair, the side project of Jess Abbott from Minneapolis’s Now, Now. However, on “Creases,” the first single from Tancred’s self-titled second album, Abbott sports a full backing band. As good as debut album Capes was, this is a welcome development, as this song sports a richer, fuller sound that helps accentuate the excellent acoustic guitar and vocal melodies. “Creases” is a love song that compares mishandling a relationship to badly folding up a map. It may seem a bit of a strained metaphor, but if you consider how easy it is to tear an unfolded map, and how correspondingly easy it is to get your heart broken in a relationship, the metaphor makes an uncomfortable amount of sense. Tancred’s self-titled album came out this week, and you can either grab it on iTunes HERE or score a physical copy from Topshelf Records right HERE.
