pop | Heartbreaking Bravery

August 11, 2014

We Need Secrets – How You Remember (Stream)

At the end of last month, We Need Secrets (the project of Halifax-based Chad Peck) released Melancholy and The Archive, a shoegaze-heavy debut LP that’s been four years in the making. Anytime that amount of time’s invested in a single release, expectations are going to be considerably heightened. Fortunately, Melancholy and The Archive immediately obliterates any lingering doubts with its scorched-earth opener “How You Remember”.

Ferocious and delicate in equal measure, the oneiric “How You Remember” demonstrates Peck’s near-alarming levels of understanding in regards to genre, composition, and control. Even from the record’s first few seconds, a brief stretch of quiet ambient noise that gets obliterated when everything kicks in, it’s evident that there’s something rare happening with the music in Melancholy and The Archive. Effortlessly commanding attention, Peck (who plays next to every instrument throughout the record) holds nothing back from the get-go, going full-throttle and never letting up over the course of the record. It’s a wonder his name’s not one that’s gained greater familiarity, which is a possibility that’s not entirely out of the question if We Need Secrets is consistently held to a standard this fully-realized.

Listen to “How You Remember” below and then let the rest of the record play through- it’s easily one of 2014’s most stunning surprises. Order it here.

1 Comment

August 10, 2014

Places to Hide – Nowhere Bound (Stream)

Places To Hide have been locked into a spot worth envying for some time now, appearing- and frequently headlining- absolutely stacked bills with the finest bands from rosters like Salinas and Double Double Whammy. Everyone seems to be on their side or putting in a good word or five for the Atlanta-based quartet and that loyalty’s being repaid in full, courtesy of the band’s distinctly original take on a peculiar 90’s bent, basement pop, and scuzz-punk- all filtered through an impressive lo-fi sensibility.

Near the end of July, the band unveiled the Wild N Soft EP, offering up the careening push-and-pull of “Nowhere Bound” as a free preview on their bandcamp. Encapsulating just about everything that’s helped transform the band into something approaching the territories of “underground’s best-kept secret”, “Nowhere Bound” is a malaise-filled rager worthy of the band’s discography. Vocals are traded, a haunting wordless melody sets the song’s tone, off-kilter instrumental work clashes and complements in a manner that recalls Speedy Ortiz at their absolute finest, and sections of blistering fuzz punctuate what otherwise sounds deceptively lazy (a hallmark of late 80’s/early 90’s SST). Combine all of those elements and inject them with a keen awareness for the modern musical landscape and it’s no surprise that Places To Hide have become as celebrated as they are.

Hear “Nowhere Bound” below and expect to be reading their name a few more times on this site.

1 Comment

June 15, 2014

La Sera – Fall In Place (Music Video)

La Sera’s Hour of the Dawn asounds like summer. It’s also the best album Katy Goodman (ex-Vivan Girls, All Saints Day) has ever crafted. A big part of this is thanks to the explosive fretwork that comes courtesy of new guitarist Todd Wisenbaker, which helps lend the record quite a bit of an explosiveness. Every track on the record is a vibrant little triumph that stays just understated enough to avoid tipping over into grandiosity. One of the best examples of this is “Fall In Place”, a song that boasts an incredibly sweet chorus and keeps itself grounded with some astoundingly warm verses. Actually, come to think of it, warmth may be the record’s defining characteristic; the tones, the atmosphere, the arrangements, and the delivery- all of it feels welcoming and familiar. In that respect, “Fall In Place” may be Hour of the Dawn‘s defining song and the video matches it perfectly. The Michael Erik Nikolla-directed clip consists of nothing more than Goodman and Wisenbaker walking down a closed-off street with their dog and a crew that consistently switches out Wisenbaker’s guitar(s), it’s decidedly more slice-of-life than Big Moment- and it’s all the better for it.

Watch “Fall In Place” below and take a long walk in the sun at the next available opportunity.

–

1 Comment

May 15, 2014

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – As Always (Music Video)

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah -

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah have endured one of the stranger career arcs of recent memory but, thankfully, that hasn’t stopped them from making music. If the backlash and critical comedown they faced after the buzz from their much-adored self-titled debut had deterred them, they wouldn’t be on the verge of releasing what looks to be a fairly incredible record. The band had already shared a track featuring The National’s Matt Berninger which didn’t skimp on scuzz, which is a trend that continues on “As Always”. Additionally, they’ve released an alluring music video to accompany “As Always” that accentuates the song’s sense of unease to near-perfection.

Anchored by an engaging central performance from Will Daniels, the David M. Helman-directed clip blurs the boundaries between the naturalistic and surreal to great effect. Tracking the protagonist through a night on the town that’s filled with a quiet discontentment, it manages to become both a frightening character study as well as a cautionary warning. With the atmosphere of the clip heightened by the decision to present much of its arresting imagery through hazy exteriors, it becomes a magnetic force through its artfully positioned movements. By the climactic finish, just how harrowing everything that preceded it becomes clear- and everyone involved has something they have every right to be proud of.

Watch “As Always” below and make sure to pick up the band’s forthcoming album, Only Run, when it’s self-released on June 3.

2 Comments

Tag: pop