Review: Snail Mail – Valentine

Lindsey Jordan sounds like a young woman possessed. Possessed with purpose, direction, and a more rounded out sound than what came through the speakers of the bedroom pop classic debut album, Lush. Snail Mail, which is also comprised of bassist Alex Bass and drummer Ray Brown, sounds like a band pushing the boundaries of the “bedroom pop” label, and breaking down the damn door in the same process. Jordan has been put in the same vein as other artists like Soccer Mommy, Phoebe Bridgers, with even some comparisons to Fiona Apple, yet Snail Mail has found a way to break free of these similarities and created a lush (no pun intended) and rounded out sound on Valentine.

The Ellicott City, Maryland based artist is ready to explode out of the indie rock scene, and has already collected several high album ratings for Valentine from other music publications (and rightfully so). From the initial chords on the title track as Jordan croons, “Let’s go be alone / Where no one can see us, honey / Careful in that room / Those parasitic cameras, don’t they stop to stare at you,” it’s almost as if Snail Mail is making the conscious choice to leave that “room” that trapped her in the bedroom pop label, and leave that scene far behind as Jordan establishes herself as one of the better artists in the indie pop realm. As Jordan explodes into the chorus of, “So why’d you wanna erase me, darling valentine? / You always know where to find me when you change your mind,” it becomes crystal clear that she has the songwriting chops to elevate her game at just the right time.

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The Maguas – “Release Me”

Maguas

Today I’m excited to premiere the latest single from the emo/alt-rock band called The Maguas, for the track “Release Me.” The Maguas shared this about the song, “‘Release Me’ holds a very special place in our hearts as a band. We feel this song helps to portray that feeling of hopelessness one faces when their heart is broken after the loss of a loved one. This song is our interpretation of that internal struggle to let go or move forward from the fear of losing someone so dear to us. This song was conceptualized following the loss of our drummer’s grandfather and is a tribute to Brandon’s coming to terms with his grandfather’s passing.” If you’re rocking out to this song, please consider purchasing the single at your favorite streaming service starting tomorrow.

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Review: Sellout – Dan Ozzi

Sellout

When I last chatted with author Dan Ozzi about his book called Sellout, I asked him, “What does the word “Sellout” mean to you today?” And the author barely blinked by telling me, “Probably nothing!…And so I saw that word still out going around a lot recently, but I don’t see it as much for musicians anymore, because there’s no money in music now, right? How do you sell out?” What I wasn’t expecting from that answer was for Dan Ozzi to be completely on point with his description on the state of the music scene in this comprehensive look at eleven bands’ trajectory into dipping their toes into the major labels’ waters.

The book is carefully and thoughtfully organized into 11 succinct chapters following each of the eleven bands’ major label debuts. As you can imagine from the back cover stating the albums covered in the book, not all of these records were major label success stories. In fact, only a handful of them could be considered to be the record that put those bands on the map and would change their lives for the better (or worse). The book is incredibly entertaining, well-researched and Ozzi lives up to the hype of describing himself as “America’s Only Music Writer.”

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Interview: Right On, Kid

Right On, Kid

Recently I was able to catch up with the band Right On, Kid for an interview about their new album, Life is a Movie, as well as a music video (that feels like a movie) for the song “Stay Close.” In this feature, I asked thew band about how their touring regimen has been going, the band’s core influences, as well as what the rest of the year looks like for the band. Be sure to check out their new music video for “Stay Close” linked in this article.

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Divided Heaven – “Burn Me” (Video Premiere)

Divided Heaven

Today I’m thrilled to share the worldwide premiere of “Burn Me” by Divided Heaven. The band is comprised of Jeff Berman, and the band’s upcoming album Oblivion is slated for an early 2022 release date via A-F Records. Berman shared this about the great new single, “‘Burn Me’ is a punch thrown at the self-aggrandizing internet trolls. ‘Burn Me’ aims to counter the all-too-prevalent cultural pessimism and cynicism with the most raw and vicious song Divided Heaven has ever released. It’s not always easy to put your art on public display and to open yourself up to criticism and bullying (I’ve had my fair share, and then some). ‘Burn Me’ is a tribute to the artists that push the boundaries of their genre, dive into the androgynous, dabble in the dirty, all in the face of vitriolic social commentary. Produced by the great Charlie Stavish and a great way to kick-off this Oblivion-era of Divided Heaven!” If you enjoy this track as much as I did, consider pre-ordering Oblivion here, and international fans can pre-order here.

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Interview: Michael Gilligan of Fake Chapter Records

Fake Chapter Records

A couple of weeks back, I thought of a cool idea to start a small “series” of interviews taking a look at a few indie record labels and some of the unique facets of what makes them important in our scene. First up is Michael Gilligan from Fake Chapter Records, whose label is celebrating their 25th Anniversary this year. To celebrate, the label has put together a compilation of 25 bands from the 25 years of the label. The compilation releases on November 11th, but you can secure your copy here.

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Dancing On Tables – “Riviera” (Video Premiere)

Dancing On Tables

The Scottish alternative rock band called Dancing On Tables have returned with their latest single called “Riviera.” In this high-energy performance video, the band showcase their musical chops that led to them gaining the coveted support slot on a recent Catfish and the Bottlemen touring stint. The song comes from their Play Play Play EP, and if you enjoy what you hear as much as I did, you can check out the brand new album here.

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Review: PLEXXAGLASS – Where Is Your God, Knowing What You Know Now?

Welcome to the world of Plexxaglass! This brooding collection of songs found on the singer’s debut is filled with raw emotion, great vocals, and killer production as well. Where is Your God, Knowing What You Know Now? is simply put an artistic statement to the boldest degree, as the nonbinary vocalist shines all over the LP. Led by the first song, “Lilith,” produced by Mike Shinoda, it becomes crystal clear that this artist is here for the long haul. The ultra-talented vocalist sways from one song to the next with veteran poise not normally seen this early on in a career.

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Interview: Dan Ozzi

Dan Ozzi

A couple of weeks ago, I was able to schedule a Zoom interview with the extremely busy, Dan Ozzi. In this interview, we discussed his unique writing process for his new book called Sellout, some unique stories of his time working in the music industry, advice he would give to other writers, as well as his process for preparing for an interview. Be sure to check out Sellout, which is available for purchase here.

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Pass Away – “Oreo” (Song Premiere)

Pass Away

Today I’m thrilled to premiere the single for “Oreo” by Pass Away. This Brooklyn, New York band formed in 2013 in what began as a side project from members of I Am The Avalanche and Crime In Stereo, Pass Away has become a powerful songwriting force in the scene. The band shared this quote about the new single, “This song is named after Oreo, a black cat that I woke up with sleeping on the top of my head on a very early Lower East Side morning. I was in a strange place, laying next to a stranger who a few years later ended up being my wife. I didn’t think I was worth a shit or worthy of any kind of love or partnership at that point in my life. This song is about knowing when to pump the brakes, chill out on the self abuse and let the good stuff happen.” With great hooks and impressive songwriting, Pass Away are truly onto something great here. The track comes from their new album, Thirty Nine, and pre-orders are now up.

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Interview: Keep It A Secret

Keep it a Secret

Recently I was able to catch up with the band Keep It A Secret before they released their latest single, “Middle With My Thumbs Up.” In this Zoom interview, I asked each of the band members about their core influences, their dream show on what bands they think they would be best to open for, as well as some of the back story on how they became the band they are today. The band has been steadily releasing new material, and is considering an EP at some point soon.

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Review: Incubus – Morning View

It’s amazing what a little visual perspective can do for a band. While many of the 90’s Alt-Rock and nu-metal scene were sledging away in the studio, Incubus decided to create an environment most conducive to the music they wanted to create. The band decided to live in a large, spacious house in Malibu, California. This would be the last record made with bassist Alex “Dirk” Katunich, and he described in interviews that the band, “tried to do that for at least the writing portion of Make Yourself, but we didn’t have enough clout at the time. The idea was to not feel as if you were driving [somewhere] to work on a record. You could just get up and it was a natural extension of your day.” Vocalist Brandon Boyd shared that sentiment in other ways by saying, “every time we’d pull into the street we had the view of the ocean and Pacific Coast Highway. I got a big creative boner every time I’d show up to the house.” And from that, Incubus would give birth to the record now known as Morning View. If Make Yourself was an introduction to the sound that the band would start to round out their repertoire for their career, Morning View was them becoming true artists in every sense of the word.

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Neutral Snap – “Sleeves” (Video Premiere)

Neutral Snap

Today, I’m pleased to share the new music video premiere of “Sleeves” by NOLA pop-punk band Neutral Snap. The song comes from the band’s new album, out this Friday, called Tell Me How I Feel. The band shared this quote about the great-sounding single, “The “Sleeves” music video follows a guy who is totally fed up with the world and everyone around him. We based this idea off of our own feelings of how we went stir crazy during lock down. “Sleeves” is about becoming self-aware with the fact that you are not going to please everyone. People suck, the world is on fire (literally), but this song is super fun and it highlights the fact that we are human and we make mistakes, but that doesn’t make us any better or worse than anyone else.” With so much going on in the world, Neutral Snap may have just delivered the song to help us cope with everything.

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Review: Sweep Echo – Moments Before The Wind

The New Jersey based emo band called Sweep Echo is really onto something great on Moments Before the Wind, an EP that was just released and is filled with stylistic, brooding hooks and that sound that is inescapably familiar for those who grew up during the emo boom of the 00’s. Comprised of guitarist/vocalist Dan Holden, guitarist Eddie Flynn, bassist Vince Mannino, and drummer Ty Perle, Sweep Echo does a great job of putting the best parts of the genre into a three song collection filled with purpose.

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Review: Smallpools – Life in a Simulation

After countless stand-alone singles, EPs, and relentless touring, Smallpools have finally returned with their proper sophomore release called Life in a Simulation. The pop-rock band consisting of vocalist/keyboardist Sean Scanlon, drummer Beau Kuther, and guitarist/producer Mike Kamerman released their debut, Lovetap! in 2015, which seems like forever in regards to following up a popular debut. The marketing strategy for Life in a Simulation was fairly unique in that many of the singles released from the record slowly trickled out over the last year or so, including a great collaboration with Morgxn on the song “Slowdown.” While I feel the best may still be to come for Smallpools, this album definitely feels like a rebirth and a celebration of the uncertainty to the days that lie ahead.

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