Drug Tax, the band’s forthcoming EP, is out next month and to preview the release, they’ve offered up a beach-heavy clip that comes courtesy of Thomas Ignatius, who highlights what makes the band so appealing. There’s a sense of fun permeating throughout “Out of Touch” that’s both familiar and inviting. Surf elements blend seamlessly into psych elements, the visual effects and color grading offering an acute reflection of the band’s musical aesthetic. It’s a deceptively clever and impossibly entertaining moment of quiet catharsis that more than proves Fruit & Flowers are ready to advance their career to even higher levels.
Listen to “Out of Touch” below and pre-order Drug Tax from Little Dickman here.
Now that Watch This has resumed regular installments, the overwhelming amount of material on offer may necessitate more than one installment of the series. The 126th volume exclusively focused on individual performance sessions, while the five featured performances below are all full (or nearly full) sessions. The vast majority of the bands selected for feature below have already earned mountains of praise from this site (especially in the live department) and are providing even further justification for those earlier claims. Everything that’s here is here for a reason. So, as always, sit back, adjust the volume, relax, and Watch This.
1. Palm (Audiotree)
One of last year’s most buzzed-about live acts has been capitalizing on that momentum this year and recently got a chance to show off their deadly syncopation for Audiotree. Palm may still be a ways off from having the sort of name recognition as, say, Battles, but they’re well on their way to that point. Frenetic, razor-sharp, and endlessly intriguing, the band’s a sure bet to steal any show they play. As a shockingly young band, they’ve also got a terrifying amount of potential growth and exploration on the horizon. If they sustain their trajectory, their journey will be one of the most explosively rewarding of the next several years.
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2. Thao & The Get Down Stay Down (KDHX)
Utilizing a fairly stripped-down for this KDHX session, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down manage to find some new life in already vibrant material. The band runs through three songs for the radio program, straddling the divide between consummate professionals and friends just having fun. Everything they try here works beautifully and re-establishes Thao & The Get Down Stay Down as one of the more exemplary live acts that’s currently touring the circuit.
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3. Posse (Band In Seattle)
Band In Seattle has been making a lot of strong moves lately and that streak’s extended with this session featuring Posse, who make the most of their spotlight by demonstrating their considerable range. From slow-burners to mid-tempo trots to furious noise-inflected basement pop, the band never sets forth a false foot. Impressive to the end, it’s a memorable showing from a band that’s looking poised to be on a lot of people’s radar very soon.
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4. Speedy Ortiz (PressureDrop.tv)
Speedy Ortiz have been making the rounds again thanks to their latest release, the very strong Foiled Again EP. Accordingly, their schedule’s been a lot busier and afforded opportunities like this discography-spanning live session for PressureDrop.tv. In 10 songs, the band asserts their dominance as a live act with a practiced ease, underscoring their gnarled dynamic approach nicely.
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5. Frankie Cosmos (KEXP)
For the past year or so, Frankie Cosmos — like a lot of acts that comprise The Epoch — have been quietly having a well-earned breakout moment. This year’s Next Thingwas the band’s first official full band release and, arguably, their best. Previously the solo bedroom project of Greta Kline, Frankie Cosmos has long derived its powerful emotional pull from its live show, something that comes through with this beautifully-shot KEXP performance.
To start: this won’t be today’s last post. This will be this week’s Watch This, though, as next Sunday’s going to be devoted to work for an upcoming feature. Additionally, last week brought forth an embarrassment of riches and one Watch This just wasn’t enough to cover everything. All of that is to say that this will be another non-conventional installment that will offer a small break from the regularly scheduled every-Sunday appearance of this series. In the 49th installment, the performances take place in everything from small shops to late night talk shows and festival aftershows. Every performance is committed and provides some insight into the level of dedication these bands put into their live set. It’s all worth taking a few beats to take in- so, as always- sit back, focus in, turn the volume up, take a deep breath, and Watch This.
1. Ty Segall – Manipulator (KCRW)
It’s strange to see the Ty Segall Band playing in an environment this contained- and it’s evident the band’s doing their best not to jump out of their skin while they tear through the title track off this year’s excellent Manipulator. Even if the band can’t exercise their usual being-shocked-to-death style movements as freely as they’d be able to without the restraints of their headphones, this is still one hell of a performance- and a great reminder to see them as many times as possible.
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2. Mountain Bike – Good for Nothing (Bruxelles Ma Belle)
As what will likely be an introduction to Mountain Bike for many, it’d be impossible to ask for something more artfully executed than their recent session for Bruxelles Ma Belle. Shot in a small store, the band delivers a performance of the excellent “Good for Nothing” with an infectious amount of verve. Gorgeously lensed and perfectly executed, it’s enough to suggest that Mountain Bike are just getting started.
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3. Posse – Shut Up (Pitchfork)
Any time a band shares the stage with METZ (whose performance at this show was featured in yesterday’s Watch This), it’s going to be difficult for that band to hold their own. That Posse manages to do so while playing a much more downtrodden, folk-influenced variant of post-punk is a feat that can’t be overlooked. “Shut Up” is an arresting performance of hypnotic proportions and, by being just that, easily secured Posse an entry in this volume.
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4. The So So Glos – Diss Town (Last Call With Carson Daly)
How the hell does Blowout keep sounding better? The So So Glos‘ breakthrough effort from last year was full of a joyous strain of music that perfectly married basement punk with basement pop and having neither influence outshadow the other. Live, the band manages to up the already considerable levels of energy, turning their shows into mass singalongs that border the cathartic (which is why this band has been showing up in this series since the very first installment). Everyone’s in on it together, the band, the audience, and the people the band brings in- like the trumpet player and the person in the wings who looks like he’s having the time of his life less than a minute into this no-brakes performance of “Diss Town”. Don’t be the only one left out of the party- everyone’s always invited.
[Due to some temporary embed issues this video can only be seen here.]
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5. Mount Eerie – Emptiness (Pinball Sessions)
P.W. Elverum has been making breathtaking music for several years now, under a variety of different guises. Mount Eerie has always been the one that’s stood out, thanks in part to Elverum’s fearlessness in regards to form and expectations. From relentlessly heavy sections that threaten to take post-rock into the realms of doned-out doom to the blissfully melancholic, it’s anything but predictable. Seeing Elverum strip away all of the ambient soundscapes to deliver a solo piano performance is an arresting experience for a myriad of reasons, each pointing to one simple fact: this is an artistic voice that still warrants our full attention.
Heartbreaking Bravery 