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Whitney Walker – “Heather From Here” (Video Premiere)

Whitney Walker
Adam Grundy

Today is the perfect day to share the latest single and music video from Whitney Walker called “Heather From Here.” In this great sounding track from the singer-songwriter, Walker channels the best part of rustic rock into a heartfelt message of hope. Walker shared:

I used to write songs really quickly, but I stopped being able to write songs as fast when I got sober. It took six or seven years until I could write like that again. I was living in Amesbury, Massachusetts at the time and going through a long breakup with my then fiance. I hated it there. Used to call it ‘Lamesbury.’ It’s right on the water, and kinda has a big class disparity, somewhere between working class and hoity-toity. But this turned out to be a fertile songwriting time for me. I was always channeling the Pixies and Lou Reed in my head. I wrote it on acoustic guitar and it ended up being one of the more under-adorned songs on the album, and the only song on the record without Dana. This was the last song we recorded for the record, and it went quick. I recorded at Will Bradford’s house here in Portland [Maine], and he has this really cool vocal booth. Will [Bradford] played bass, lead guitar and keys. Brooke did the backing vocals. Her range is great as it isn’t what she normally sounds like on TheWorst records. It was very much a label [RascalRecordZ] affair.

If you’re enjoying the sound Whitney Walker went for here, you can check out his full-length record, A Dog Staring Into a Mirror on the Floor, on March 3rd.

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Swim Camp – “Dougie (For Sharyl)” Song Premiere

Swim Camp
Adam Grundy

Today I’m excited to bring everyone the latest single from Philadelphia slowcore band, Swim Camp, called “Dougie (For Sharyl).” The track comes from the forthcoming LP, Steel Country, out everywhere on February 24th via Julia’s War Recordings. On this latest single, Tom Morris shared, “This song is about developing a codependent friendship with someone who is not good for you. They support you, but enable bad behavior. Ultimately this ends up being bad for everyone involved. I recorded this song to tape in a cabin in the Poconos after my friend Sharyl heard the demo and insisted that it become a fully realized song, so it is largely for her.” If you’re enjoying the direction Swim Camp went for here, please consider purchasing the song here.

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Strawberry Fuzz – “Dropout” (Song Premiere)

Strawberry Fuzz
Adam Grundy

Today is a great day to share the latest single from indie punk rock band Strawberry Fuzz, called “Dropout.” The single comes from the band’s new LP, Strongs Dr., that releases everywhere music is sold on January 18th via CandyShop Recordings. The band is great for fans of similar artists like The Germs, White Reaper, and Black Lips, but they really have a unique style that is truly one of a kind. When speaking on the new album, vocalist Colby Rodgers shared, “The album is a blend of all the people I grew up with in LA. Stoners, pill heads, downers, uppers, straight kids — it’s pretty much all in there.” If you’re ready to discover your next favorite band, you’ve come to the right place. I was also able to catch up with Strawberry Fuzz for a brief interview below.

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Chris Garneau – “Overexposure” (Song Premiere)

Chris Garneau
Adam Grundy

Today I’m thrilled to bring everyone the latest single from Chris Garneau called “Overexposure.” The track was co-produced by Benoit Bel (Kate Nash, Will Oldham, Bjork) and focuses on the vulnerability felt after a break-up. On the single, Garneau shared:

This song is about the absence of a lover, the pain of separation, and how a break-up can haunt the heart over the years. I wanted to capture a narrator who longs for a past that glimmered with hope and affection. His desire to ‘go back to that feeling’ is a wish to return to his faith in love and to abandon the regret and despair that now washes over him. Like a haunting spell, the repetitive, circular motion of the melody reflects a sense of overexposing yourself to loss. These thoughts can inundate and torture a person’s mind and take over. This state of entrapment makes me think of someone who continues to press down on a bruise and prevent it from healing.

If you’re ready to get hurt, and fall in love all over again with Chris Garneau, you’ve come to the right place.

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Hurt Season – “Afraid To Love” (Video Premiere)

Hurt Season
Adam Grundy

Today is a great day to share the latest single and music video from Hurt Season called “Afraid To Love.” For those unfamiliar with the artist, Hurt Season finds their inspiration from artists like Pierce the Veil and Santana, while adding some layers of complexity to his music to make it his own. Speaking on the latest single, he shared, “‘Afraid To Love’ is a deep, meaningful song about a break up. Written from the perspective of someone who is tired of being strung along by finicky emotions and commitment issues, it’s a beautiful goodbye.” I was also able to catch up with the artist for a brief interview below.

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Colony House – “Would Ya Could Ya” (Song Premiere)

Colony House
Adam Grundy

Today I’m thrilled to bring everyone the newest single and visualizer video from Colony House, called “Would Ya Could Ya.” This Nashville-based rock band will be releasing their next full-length record called The Cannonballers on February 3rd, and this single is a great introduction for those unfamiliar with the artist. On the latest single, the band shared:

It’s too easy getting sucked into the grind of everyday life… the hustle and the hurry we all willingly subject ourselves to. “Would Ya Could Ya” is about breaking the mold. At surface level, it’s a ‘let’s get outta here’ open road, never look back type of cruiser, but beneath the surface, I think it recognizes that we are often the obstacle standing in our own way and that it’s up to us to make the next move.

If you’re enjoying the direction Colony House went for on this electric track, please consider pre-saving their full-length record here.

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Angel Abaya – “Over / On / Under” (Video Premiere)

Angel Abaya
Adam Grundy

Today is a great day to share the latest single and video from singer-songwriter Angel Abaya called “Over / On / Under.” The eclectic song comes from her debut album, The Bubble, which will be out everywhere music is sold on May 5th via Earth Libraries. Abaya shared this about the new single, “This song puts you in a chaotic mood. You’re either dodging lightning bolts or breaking shit and robbing a rich guy’s house.” If you’re ready to embrace the chaos, Angel Abaya is the right artist for today.

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Chorus.fm’s Top 30 Albums of 2022

Best of 2022
Jason Tate

We begin the new year as we have so many times before, with our annual ranking of the best albums of the year. Below you’ll find the contributor best of 2022 list with blurbs written by the staff talking about why we loved these albums. Each album title links to a streaming page so you can make sure to check out anything you may have missed. There’s also a playlist featuring a song from every album on this list, and a few staff members have shared their individual lists and some commentary, and you can find those at the bottom of this post.

As always, thanks for spending 2022 with us, and I hope you find something new to check out and love.

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Modernizing the Supporter System

Jason Tate

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about noticing some suspicious activity on our Stripe account. It turns out that some nefarious actors were using the system to test stolen credit card numbers. I detailed the potential cost implications of this in the newsletter (in time and real money,) and I am now happy to announce that I’ve made a series of changes to hopefully mitigate this activity.

I have rebuilt the website’s supporter platform to better use Stripe’s tools for processing payments and managing subscriptions. I also took this opportunity to add a variety of features and better streamline the entire flow.

For anyone that is currently a supporter, nothing has changed. You don’t need to do anything to take advantage of the new system; your account will automatically work with it.

The Changes

  • I redesigned the support page. All three plans now offer even more ways to signup, including Apple Pay and Google Pay. Just pick which tier you’re interested in, and you can easily signup and choose between the monthly or yearly options.
  • There’s also a new manage page for supporters to manage their subscriptions. This page lets you change your payment method, switch from a monthly to a yearly plan, change membership tiers, and cancel your plan (plz no).

Unfortunately, I had to turn off membership signups for the past two weeks while I was making this change, and the end of the year is usually one of the biggest signup periods we have (end-of-the-year lists, holidays, etc.). So, if you were unable to signup before, or you’re a long-time reader ready to now, please do!

I’ll monitor the new system over the next few days to see how it’s all working while I finish putting together our end-of-the-year feature. If all goes well, I should have some time this week to work on a few other new features for the website I’ve had on my list for a while as well.

As always, thank you to everyone that reads this website and helps fund its continued existence. If you ever have any questions or issues with your subscription, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

Liner Notes (December 24th, 2022)

v
Jason Tate

Hello,

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas eve. I’ll be spending the weekend with family, so this week’s newsletter is very brief. I really just wanted to wish everyone a wonderful holiday and thank you all for subscribing and reading each week.

Next week I will be working fixing the Stripe issue I detailed here, and finalizing our end of the year feature for publication on January 2nd. I had hoped to work on a few other features I’ve had on my list for a while, but this Stripe issue really needs to take priority. I got a good start on it yesterday and hopefully there won’t be too many setbacks and I can get this rolled out within the next week.

Some things I saw around the internet this week that are worth your time:

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Victory Kid – “No Brakes” (Video Premiere)

Victory Kid
Adam Grundy

Today I’m thrilled to bring everyone the new single and lyric video from Victory Kid called “No Brakes.” This high-energy new single capitalizes on the momentum gained from their previous LP Discernation, and was recorded with Mike Pepe (Taking Back Sunday). Lead vocalist Harrison Nida shared this about the blazing new track, “The song is about ditching doubt, toxic thoughts, and anything else that may hold you back. Recognizing those as they come up and releasing them to become the best version of yourself.” By putting their best foot forward, Victory Kid are keeping excitement in their band high as we turn the page on 2022.

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Liner Notes (December 10th, 2022)

Snowflake
Jason Tate

This week’s newsletter has me mostly frustrated with credit card fraud. There are also some thoughts on music I’ve been listening to, an app I don’t think I’ve recommended before, and various other tidbits. As always, there’s also a playlist of ten songs I liked, and this week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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