The Metal East | Heartbreaking Bravery

Tag: The Metal East

April 8, 2015

Fake Palms – Sun Drips (Stream)

The timing on this site’s return to regular daily coverage feels like it’s coming at a fortuitous moment. That statement? It would have held true for nearly every day of the past few months thanks to the monstrous wealth of great material that’s come out of the woodwork. A quartet of stunning videos will lead tonight’s frenzy. Between Torres’ arresting black and white clip for “Sprinter“, Lightning Bolt’s typically feral “The Metal East“, REFS’ alluring “Pain Goes Away“, and Rachel Grimes’ absolutely stunning “The Herald” (which very nearly snagged tonight’s headline by virtue of sheer artistry).

Songs, once again, showed up in full force. Punk stalwarts Timeshares continued to make massive strides with the Southern-tinged “Heavy Hangs“, The Wooden Sky provided a strong reminder of their high-level consistency with the sprawling “Maybe It’s No Secret“, and Bully returned with a vengeance via the 90’s-worship of “Trying“. Big Deal unveiled the heavily atmospheric “Veronica“, Ava Luna released the meticulously constructed “Steve Polyester“, and The Cave Children let loose the carefully calibrated- and lightly damaged- psych-pop of “Antigone“. Bent Denim’s masterfully orchestrated “City of Gardens“, Iji’s appealingly retro-leaning “Hard 2 Wait“, and Guantanamo Baywatch’s delightfully ramshackle and ridiculously catchy “Do What You Want” helped round out today’s offerings.

Topping things off was the pop-influenced post-punk of Fake Palms’ latest single, “Sun Drips”. Like Cloud Nothings, Radiator Hospital, and so many other acts before them, Fake Palms recently heightened their identity by expanding from a solo project into a full band. Along with that transition, the now-quartet signed to the increasingly impressive Buzz Records, joining a slew of site favorites in the process. “Sun Drips” suggests that the band’s ready to join their rankings by deftly combining so many great elements with a staggering effortlessness. In turns minimal and expansive, restrained and soaring, “Sun Drips” is a masterclass in shifting dynamics and an exquisite example of what makes post-punk such an appealing genre; its limitations are easy to bend towards other exhilarating sounds. It’s a track that’s defined by the levels of painstaking care that’s evidenced in Fake Palms’ craft and by the moods it manages to convey. This is a shape-shifting song that should serve as a serious warning: Fake Palms are ready to arrive.

Listen to “Sun Drips” below and keep an eye on the site for continuing coverage of Fake Palms and anything else they may have in store.

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April 4, 2015

Sheer Mag – Button Up (Stream)

Continuing on in the quest to get the site caught up on all the things that caught my attention in 2015 affords some unique opportunities. One of them is the chance to celebrate a few of the truly great items that surfaced over the course of this year’s first three months. By the end of tonight, all of those will be featured in some form- be it a list inclusion, a mix, or some words. In this post, there won’t be a lot of material from the past two weeks (with the notable exception of a jaunty tune from The Splits and an absolute stunner of a track from one-time site contributor Johanna Warren) but it should still serve as a healthy reminder of 2015’s formidable early strengths. One of those songs, Sheer Mag’s “Button Up” will be receiving the greatest amount of focus. Below that, as has been custom, are 75 outstanding songs from this year’s first quarter. Now, back to this post’s main draw.

Sheer Mag have been picking up a great amount of notoriety in important circles since the release of their 7″ from last year, which was strong enough to land on the site’s Best 7″ Records of 2014 list. “Button Up”, the band’s first new material since that EP, is a refinement of everything that’s made Sheer Mag so exciting from the beginning. “Button Up” retains the band’s appealing lo-fi punch but their pop sensibilities are sharper than ever, rendering “Button Up” an unlikely heavyweight. Impossibly crunchy guitars, powerful vocals, and a sense of joy permeate throughout this track and provide Sheer Mag with a valid claim as one of the most exciting upcoming bands on the market. If the rest of their upcoming 7″ can hit similar peaks, it’s not unlikely that they’ll be appearing on quite a few December lists (ours included).

Listen to “Button Up” below and keep an eye on this site for more coverage surrounding the band’s upcoming release. Beneath the embed are 75 outstanding songs from 2015’s opening stretch.