White Reaper | Heartbreaking Bravery

May 26, 2017

Hermetic – Postscript (Album Review)

A lot can be released in a week’s time. Fortunately, that means there’s a lot of room for excellent material, like the music videos Lydia Loveless, Kamikaze Girls, Kino Kimino, Duncan Lloyd, Sløtface, White Reaper, Mise en Scene, TV Sets, Angelo De Augustine, Guerilla Toss, Thick, and Brightness made public. More than just music videos surfaced, though, and — as always — a lot of what cropped up came from unheralded or barely-known artists. Hermetic was one of those projects but Postscript, the project’s latest full-length, proved that they’re worthy of recognition.

A duo comprised of Eric Axen and Bart Newman, Hermetic find success on Postscript by meticulously mining a lot of aspects of post-punk, bedroom pop, and their various niche hybrid offshoots that tend to get overlooked. From Albini-esque production and tones to palpable nervous tension to the dynamic composition, Postscript never comes across as anything less than ridiculously historically-informed. Hermetic’s done their homework and it shows from the record’s surprisingly heavy opening track, “Fault-Finding Mission” which brings to mind both acts like The Wrens and an innumerable slate of shoegaze-leaning projects.

Following Postscript‘s ridiculously impressive opening statement are a cavalcade of tracks that throw a variety of punches, finding clever ways to land each blow. Hermetic rarely dips out of insistent mid-tempo mode throughout the course of the record and it creates an absorbing accumulative effect. Everything from the ambient swirl of “Relics” to the moody mid-song turn in “Withering” is elevated because of the record’s tonal consistency. Each track has something to offer and stands out on its own but they create a much larger whole together. It’s an outstanding release from a band that deserves a lot more attention. Hit play and leave it on repeat.

Listen to Postscript below and pick it up here.

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April 4, 2017

Watch This: The Honorable Mentions of 2017’s First Quarter

Over the course of 2017’s opening three months, a lot of great material was released. Naturally, the most abundantly rich category wasn’t simply songs, music videos, or full releases, it was live videos. It’s been quite some time since the last Watch This ran on this site, an oversight being amended tonight, and in that time scores of great clips have surfaced. Below is an extensive list of some of the finest to have emerged over that time and all of which are more than worth the their runtimes. Of course, it’d be impossible to watch all of these in one sitting, so feel free to bookmark the page and sift through the selections whenever the feeling takes

Mitski, Jay Som, The Walkmen, Kississippi, SUÐ, NE-HI, Kamasi Washington, Monica LaPlante, Tokyo Police Club, Money, Tank and the Bangas, Mary Lynn, Canshaker Pi, Allah-Las, Yeesh, Communions, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Andy Shauf, Blue Rodeo, MOON, Temples, Born Ruffians, Justin Vernon & Sean Carey, L.A. Salami (x2, 3), Bruno Bavota, Hórmónar, Mustard Gas and Roses, Pinegrove, Jean-Michael Blais & CFCF, Dude York (x2), Bash & Pop, Nail Polish, Ron Gallo, Lume, Slaughter Beach, Dog

Craig Finn (x2, 3), Honeyblood, Middle Kids (x2), No Parents, The Molochs, The Black Watch, Sløtface (x2), Looming, Lemuria, Campdogzz, Black Marble Selection, Clara Clara, ELLA, American Wrestlers (x2), The Coathangers, Outer Spaces, Sam Kogon (x2), Lilah Larson, Michal Pydo, Old 97s (x2, 3), Lizzo (x2), The Madcaps, Snail Mail, The Mysterons, Subcutanea, Holy Tunics, Hamilton Leithauser (x2, 3), Alex Lahey, Greyface, Axel Flóvent, Diarrhea Planet, Peter Silberman, Luxury Death, Suburban Living

Microwave, The Cigarette Bums, Roya, Carinea, The Orions, Secret Crush, Tyrone Cotton, Fast Romantics, Izzy True (x2), Hand Habits, Priests (x2), Reality Something, Frances Cone, Moss, White Mystery, Tennis, Louie Louie, Adna, Let’s Eat Grandma, Kite Base, Twin Limb, Ty Segall, Morus Alba, Odd Robot, Coals, The New Pornographers (x2), VANT, Shame, Sierra Hull, MOON, Rose Cousins (x2, 3), Food Court, Grace Joyner, Mrs., Michael Nau, Nikki Lane (x2, 3), FIDLAR (x2, 3), The Melvins, Skyway Man, Big Eyes

Cherry Glazerr (x2), BAB, Savoy Motel (x2, 3), Laura Marling (x2), Mikey Erg, Thumpers, Fishbach, Emma Ruth Rundle, Horse Thief (x2), Black Marble, The Album Leaf (x2), Wet Lips, Bev Rage and the Drinks, Her Again, Esme Patterson, Death and Memphis, Nancy Pants, Mirel Wagner, John Doe, The Two Tens, Avi Buffalo, Lisa Hannigan, Andy Shauf, Mark Eitzel (x2), Marching Church, Chris Farren, Ahem, Cloud Nothings, BABY, Sweet Crude, Chicano Batman, Rubblebucket, Looks Like Mountains, Ladywolf

Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, Dead Man Winter (x2), Good Doom, TÖLVA, Monobody, The Shacks, Fleurie, Molotoy, Parlor Walls, YDIMITU, The Gotobeds, Peacock Affect, Austra (x2), Dave Brannigan, Papier Tigre, Elephant Stone, You Blew It, Grand Parc, PAVVLA, Alice Jemima, Dusk (x2), Jens Lekman, PWR BTTM, Melkbelly, Nail Polish, Leif Vollebek, Shull, Jennifer Niceley, House of Wolves, Chuck Prophet, Fair City Fire, The Reptilian, Lil Sluggers, Mint Green, Local Natives, Henry Jamison

The Sonics, Nocturnal Habits, Julia Lucille, Loamlands, Halldór Eldjárn, The Hill Country Devil, DakaBrakha, The Chinchees, Oddissee, Way Worse, BADBADNOTGOOD, Tenfold, The Staves, The Vaughns, Sunflower Bean, Flasher, Weyes Blood, Charlotte Cardin, Mammút, Benjaminto, Naked Giants (x2), Hippo Campus, Delicate Steve (x2), White Reaper, Gurr, Muncie Girls, Julien Doré, Birdtalker, Mario Batkovic, Seu Jorge, Ace Henderson, Nudity, High Waisted, John Craigie, Sammus (x2, 3), Beach Slang

45ACIDBABIES (x2), Fiona Silver, Calico, Viagra Boys, Fox and the Acres, The Veils, Anna McLukie, Iguana Death Cult, Sad13 (x2), DIA, Hospital Job, Katie Ellen, Albin de la Simone, Nick Hakim, Holy Pinto, Nessi Gomes, Radio Eliza, Michigan Rattlers, Wallacy Willians e os Besouros, Dæphne, The Mysterons, Cincin, Listener, Rykarda Parasol, Magic Bronson, (T-T)b, Tourists, Foxing, Eyukalpitus, Twin Lords, Dijon, Red Baraat, Dan Layus, Camp Claude, Solilians, Andy Svarthol, Octave Noire, Benoît Lizen

Bishop Nehru, No Win, Hits Like A Girl, Sauna Accident, Bullet Points, Golden Grands, Strand of Oaks (x2, 3), The Singing Butcher, Fishbone, See Gulls, Santoros, Burn Fetish, Wildwood Kin, Noam Pikelny, Alejandro y Maria Laura, Gang of Four, RLLBLL, Star Anna, Industrial Revelation, Lohai, And Also the Trees, Bror Gunnar Jansson, Jealous of the Birds, Star Parks, Shawn Fogel, Joel and Bill Plaskett, Ess See, Edna Vazquez, Plastic Picnic, Rodney Crowell, Mother Mother, Molly Burch (x2, 3), Blind Pilot

The Kraken Quartet, Fraea, Other Suns, Nina Diaz & Luz Elena Mendoza, Alexandra Savior, The Big Pink, From Indian Lakes, Mike Wexler, Nimrod, Tyte Jeff, Mega Bog, Big Star’s Third, Robyn Hitchcock, Strange Americans, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Community Daughter, Severin Bells, Talmud Beach, Timber Timbre, Tall Heights, Tim Kasher, Sundara Karma, Guantanamo Baywatch, STEVENSTEVEN, ZenSoFly, asdfhg., Olivensteins, Becca Stevens, Grandaddy, Bad Licks, Maren Morris, The Memories, Sloucher

Klangstof, Moses Hightower, Les Aventures de President Bongo, Kite Base, Barbagallo, Mike Doughty, The Pukes, Mothers, Tom Tukker, Modern English, American Football, Kristin Hersh, Christopher Paul Stelling, Yasmine Hamdan, Candy Ambulance, Amelia Curran, Dane Terry, Midijoyful, Drumbeat Red, Jesca Hoop, South City Revival, The Awful Truth, Ages and Ages, and The Spring Standards.

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March 27, 2017

Streams of the First Quarter: The Honorable Mentions

Less than a week remains in 2017’s first quarter and the year’s already earned solid representation thanks to a slew of incredible releases. Below this paragraph are links to approximately 500 of the finest songs that the January-to-March period had to offer. A few of which are from widely renowned artists but the vast majority are from the artists who deserve more recognition than they receive.

Now, it’s practically impossible to imagine any one individual is going to sit down and listen to every single one of the songs here but that’s not exactly the purpose of these lists. This, as was the case with the others, is a capsule of a time period that offered up art that was (mostly) lost to the shuffle. It’s a representative account of what was happening behind-the-scenes while this site was in its extended hiatus.

Most importantly, it’s a way to recognize and honor the artists responsible for crafting pieces that both deserved and earned praise, even if it’s in a relatively minor form. This will likely be one of the longest lists of links to ever run on this site and it’s likely best to just click around until something strikes a chord. So, bookmark this page, dive in, and explore what the world’s produced over this first quarter and keep an eye on this site for a few short “best of” posts before Heartbreaking Bravery resumes its regular daily coverage. Enjoy.

NE-HI, Hater (x2), Knife in the Water (x2), Thelma, The Districts, Flasher, Catholic Action, Growl, Happyness, Land of Talk (x2), Canshaker Pi, Baby!, Gold Connections (x2, 3), Jay Som (x2), Go Fever, The Mells, The Chinchees, Aye Nako, Greatest Champion Alive, Diet Cig (x2, 3), High Sunn, Tall Friend (x2, 3), Do Make Say Think, Boss Hog (x2), Fog Lake (x2), Littler, Real Life Buildings (x2), The Proper Ornaments, Alex Napping (x2), Bruising, YURT, Analog Candle (x2), The Courtneys (x2), Wild Pink (x2), Amanda Glasser

Lunch Ladies (x2, 3), B Boys, Molly Burch, Idle Bloom, WHY?, Vengeance, Phoebe Bridgers, Kane Strang, Former Bullies, The Spookfish (x2), Dude York (x2), Ben Grigg (x2, 3), Agent blå, Andrew Goldring, Fragrance., Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, Spiral Stairs (x2), Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Guided By Voices (x2), Future Teens, Wayde, À La Mode, Fraidycat, Robyn Hitchcock (x2), Eric Slick, Terry Malts, Sharkmuffin, Ride, Joan Shelley, PONY, The Coathangers, Juliana Hatfield (x2), Sorority Noise (x2), Slow Caves

No Thank You (x2, 3), Francobollo, Great Profile, Mount Song, Real Estate, Hawkmoon, Casper Skulls, Century Palm (x2), Deathlist (x2), Rosie Carney, Superorganism, Goldblooms, Day Wave, Wire, Cotillon (x2, 3), Will Johnson (x2), Anti Pony, Personal Best, Mind Rays (x2, 3), Ty Segall (x2, 3), Bonny Doon (x2), Arc Flash (x2), Tobin Sprout, Slowdive, Top Down, Mise en Scene, Thunder Dreamer, Hiccup (x2), Bent Denim, The Molochs, Caitlin Pasko, Cold Beat, Oak House

Mad Ones, The Feelies, Wavves (x2), Tonstartssbandht (x2), Those Lavender Whales (x2), Overlake, Winstons, Vagabon, Magana, Trust Fund, Fuzzystar (x2), Baked (x2), Loose Tooth (x2, 3), The Sloppy Heads, The Cairo Gang (x2), Vundabar, Chick Quest (x2), Holy Sheboygan (x2), The Craters, Doug Tuttle, Walter Martin, Nadine Khouri, Holy Now, Vassals, The Obsessives (x2), Orchid Mantis, Thin Lips, Apocalypse, Communions, Olden Yolk, Dion Lunadon, Emperor X, Shadow Band, Richard Edwards, Adna

Bleached (x2), Saltland, Tim Kasher (x2), Warm Soda, Alyeska, Matthew Squires, You’re Jovian, Little Star, Mothpuppy, Midwives, Monster Movie, Jessica Denison + Jones, Elijah, Loom, Your Old Droog, Mimi Raver, Smidley, Beachheads, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (x2), Cesar Ruiz, Leather Can, Woods, The Yugos (x2), Adam Torres (x2), L.A. Witch, David Bazan, Luxury Death (x2), Imaginary Tricks, Strange Lot (x2), Lomelda, Sacred Spirits, Matty Ann, The Hernies, Destrends, ELLA, Adult Mom, Second Still

The Dove & The Wolf, Gang of Youths, Trementina (x2), Good Good Blood, Sheer, Orchin, Anna Coogan, WALL, Artificial Pleasure, Sera Cahoone, Annie Hardy (x2), Priests, Laura Marling, Yawn Mower (x2), Toby Foster, Wear Your Wounds, The Present Age, The Knitts (x2), Junior Astronomers, No Vacation, Wolf Girl, Peter Bjorn and John, Cassandra Jenkins (x2, 3, 4), A Valley Son (x2), Jons, Sinai Vessel, Yellow Paper Planes, Seven Deaths, Snakehole, Sondre Lerche (x2), Varvara, Karen Elson

Tiger! Shit! Tiger! Tiger!, Wilding, Common Miner, Dan Misha Goldman, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Lost Boy ?, Moon Dial, The Birthday Letters, UV-TV, Girl As Wave, Big Surr, Nightlands, Menace Beach, Boytoy, Melby, Dali Vision, Desperate Journalist, Alex G, Knifey, Aquarian Blood, Winstons, High Up, Joshua James, I Am the Polish Army, Feral Ohms, French Vanilla, Bad Breeding, The Octopus Project, Born Without Bones, Laughed The Boy, Jake Xerxes Fussell (x2, 3), Cindy Lee, The Cover Letter, Michael Nau

Lyrie and the Duckies, Vorhees, Blank Square, Patterson Hood, Jon McKiel, Whips, Womps, Kikagaku Moyo, Brandon Koebs, Surf Dads, LT Wade, Daddy Issues, David Bazan, Matthew Lee Cothran, Jake Clarke, Spur, Loose Buttons (x2), Bilge Rat, Saw Black, Lowly, Jackson Boone, Superchunk, Desert Culture, Julia Lucille, The Darling Buds, Ducks Unlimited, Hoops, Taft Mashburn, Summer Moon, Conifer Vista, My Education, The Wooden Sky, Her’s, Teen Daze, Rubblebucket, Platinum Boys, Jens Lekman, Threefifty

Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs, Nadia Kazmi, Shelby Earl, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Circus Devils, Fire in the Radio, Half Waif, Metric, Sampha, Deadwall, Ground and Grave, Martin Rev, Craig Finn, Oiseaux-Tempête, Raj and the 100’s, The Wintyr, TW Walsh, ShitKid, Joel Michael Howard, Evening Darling, FOTR, Pollen Rx, Lillie Mae, Kyle T. Hurley, Hite, Tara Jane O’Neil (x2), Louise Lemón, Paloma, Stacey, Two Moons, POND, Business of Dreams, Billy Moon, Low Roar, She-Devils, White Reaper, Tiny Vipers

SOFTSPOT, Gorillaz, ROYA, Bottler, The Megaphonic Thrift, Caves, The New Pornographers, Julie Byrne, BNQT, COTE, Damaged Bug, Railings, Mark Eitzel, Deleter, Code Orange, Goddamnit, Cory Branan, No Joy, Blak Emoji, Tropical Skin Byrds, Empty Lungs, Tomber Lever, Rainbrother, Max Subar, Little Person, Perhapsy, Other Houses, Dehd, Niilo Smeds (x2), Morning Teleportation, The Co Founder, Show Me the Body, Kory Quinn, Tow’rs, Circle, Maria Kelly, Cosima, John Craigie, Holy Motors, Benjamin Booker

Me Not You, Her Harbour, Heath Green and the Maksehifters, Codist, Matt Maltese, Thurston Moore, Pissed Jeans, Feist, Odd Couple, A Deer A Horse, Cassels, Thad Kopec, Turn to Crime, Torgeir Waldemar, Oyama, Said the Whale, Altar Eagles (x2), Grace Mitchell, Radiator King, Minus the Bear, The Tarantula Waltz, Hiva Oa, Très Oui, The Buttertones, Winston Hightower, Crooked Bangs, Los Angeles Police Department, CFM, Diagrams, Boosegumps, Marcus Norberg and the Disappointments

The Nickajack Men, Semi-Attractive Boys, Banditos, Rachel Kilgour, Broken Field Runner, Residuels, Jim and the French Vanilla, Wooden Wand, Emma Ruth Rundle, Batz, Monograms, Operator Music Band, RF Shannon (x2), LAKE, Ha Ha Tonka, Fufanu, Coast Modern, The Glass Eyes, Keto, Loess, Go By Ocean, Unstoppable Death Machines, Frederick the Younger, Bendigo Fletcher, Meatbodies, The Bingers, Slingshot Dakota, Astro Tan, Football, etc., Planning for Burial, Delafye, Dim Wit, Retail Space, Emma Gatrill, Gnod, Mark Lanegan Band, and Leon of Athens.

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March 22, 2017

Music Videos of the First Quarter: The Honorable Mentions

A little over a week remains in 2017’s first quarter so it felt appropriate — especially considering the recent hiatus — to reflect on some of the best material to have been released over the course of these past three months. What started yesterday with the list of notable full streams will bleed into the following days. Today’s post shifts the focus to some of the most memorable music videos to have surfaced since the start of the year. All of the below videos piqued attention for one reason or the other, either on the film or music side, and deserve as many views as they can possibly receive. So dive in, click around, and explore. Good things await.

Future Islands, Eric Slick, J.E. Sunde (x2), The Spirit of the Beehive (x2, 3), I Am The Polish Army, Caitlin Pasko, Gurr, Retail Space (x2), White Reaper, Demure For Sure, Meursault, Rosie Carney, Pronto Mama, Touché Amoré, The Saxophones, Slow Bear, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, Cass McCombs, NE-HI (x2), Chastity Belt, Francobollo, Ruby Bones, Blaire Alise & The Bombshells, PINS, Honeyblood, Idle Bloom, Hiccup, Xiu Xiu (x2, 3), The Youngest, Durand Jones & The Indications, Blonde Summer, Tobin Sprout

Hurray for the Riff Raff (x2), Beach Slang, Peter Silberman, Clipping., Molly Burch, Tijuana Panthers, Chick Quest, Chaz Bundick Meets the Mattson 2, Los Campesinos!, Wax Idols, The Shivers, Lee Fields & The Expressions, Bleached, Oceanator, Conor Oberst, Real Estate, D.A. Stern, minihorse, Drakulas, FACIAL, Tall Tall Trees (x2), gobbinjr, Parquet Courts, Band of Horses, Sam Vicari, Slothrust, Many Voices Speak, Happyness, Paul White, Strand of Oaks, Cosmonauts, NxWorries, Batwings Catwings, Mary Lynn

The Velveteins, Marching Church, Imaginary Tricks, Frederick the Younger, Moon Duo (x2), Christine Leakey, Walrus, No Ice, Froth, Nana Grizol, Bellows, Tyler Daniel Bean, The Walters, Flat Mary Road, Teen Vice, Woozles, Danny Denial, Night Shapes, Tough Tits, Swoon Lake, Harem, The Modern Savage, The Little Kicks, Crocodiles, We Leave At Midnight, Delicate Steve, The Smith Street Band, The Magnetic Fields (x2, 3, 4), Bin Chivalry, Summer Moon, JFDR, Six Organs of Admittance, Alex Lahey, Joan of Arc

Trentemøller, Leopold and His Fiction, Hippo Campus, Cherry Glazerr, Curse of Lono, Los Angeles Police Department, IAN SWEET, Surf Curse, Delicate Steve, The Black Angels, Timber Timbre (x2), Skaters (x2), Oxbow, Static Eyes, Young Romance, Space Camp, Bonnie Whitmore & Her Band, Quin Galavis, Tim Kasher, Slam Dunk, Daniel Romano, Big Lonely, Reptaliens, Sammus, Rainbrother, Callow, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, Bill MacKay, Moody Beach, My Education, HOTT MT, Century Palm (x2), Arthur Moon

The New Pornographers, Campbell L Sangster, Son & Thief, Yohuna, Girl Scout, Tim Kasher, The Head, Perfume Genius, TW Walsh, Blood Ponies, Laura Marling, Dead Man Winter, Sean Rowe, Kate Crash, Warm Body, Free Pizza, Kidsmoke, John Wesley Coleman III, Hand Habits, Aye Nako, Dirty Projectors, Chris Bathgate, Holy Motors, The Two Tens, FOTR, Amy Klein, London O’Connor, Dan San, Lisa/Liza, Knox Hamilton, Swet Shop Boys, Homebody, No Joy, Sunday Morning, Callow, Local Natives, Fastball

Personal Space, Milemarker, Allison Crutchfield, Brother Ali, Garrett Pierce, High Contrast, Wilsen, Crazy Bones, Spookey Ruben, Mt. Doubt, Fufanu, Circles/Waves, Spinning Coin, BATYA, High Waisted, Hoan, Strange Lot, Tennis, Ex-Girlfriends, Thurston Moore, Skating Polly, Jammz, Annie Hardy, Early Riser, Jay Som, Communist Daughter, Colin Stetson, Analog Candle, CRYWANK, Cate Le Bon, Phoebe Bridgers, Geotic, Diagrams, Jenny Hval, Mastodon, CHILLEMI, Shocking White, The Cherry Wave, Oshwa

Skyway Man, Equators, The Superweaks, Luke Sital-Singh, Ivy Meissner, Redspencer, Run The Jewels, Spiral Stairs, Gothic Tropic, American Wrestlers, Moby & The Void Pacific Choir, Warhaus, Kodak Black, Annabelle’s Curse, The Obsessives, Heart Attack Man, and Harmony Tividad.

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January 14, 2016

The Honorable Mentions of the 2015 Music Categories

Before diving into the particulars of the forthcoming lists, it’s worth addressing the distinction made in the headline. Each of the categories that received a list in 2015 (music videos, songs, EP’s, albums, odds and ends) will be expanded upon in this post. However, there are still two forthcoming film lists but each of those will include the honorable mentions along with the featured rankings. An obscene amount of great material came out over the 12 months that comprised the past year so any attempts to cover everything would be futile. If anyone’s exhausted the below lists, a more comprehensive version can be found by exploring the following tags: stream, full stream, EP stream, and music video. Explore some of the top tier picks that didn’t make it onto the year-end lists via the tags below.

Music Videos

EPs

Songs

Albums

Odds and Ends

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December 13, 2015

Alex G – Brite Boy (Music Video)

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As explained in the last post, it’s been fairly difficult to get posts up over the past few months, so a bit of catching up is in order. A lot of outstanding music videos have been released in that time, so we’ll be focusing on some of the very finest in the featured slots and granting the others some of the recognition they deserve in the lists that run at the bottom of these posts. Alex G‘s “Brite Boy” finds itself in the featured spot here- and with good reason.

So often, artists go for the most direct, immediate, accessible route and find reasonable levels of success. The artists that opt to eschew that approach in favor of more understated work have a much steeper battle to fight. Alex G has always been one of the artists that belongs to that latter camp and that aspect of the artist’s aesthetic is brought to the forefront in the animated clip for “Brite Boy”. A continuously-evolving collage of surrealist cartoon imagery (while still making room for two concrete characters wrapped up in a tragic narrative), the Elliot Bech-directed clip enhances both the song’s sense of subdued melancholy and its damaged sense of hope, rendering it an inexplicably moving experience. A palpable sense of loss dominates the latter half of “Brite Boy” and, by the time the clip draws to a close, manages to cut astonishingly deep.

Watch “Brite Boy” below, pick up a copy of Beach Music here, and explore a list of some of the best music videos of the past few months underneath the embed.

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Twin Limb – Don’t Even Think
Monogold – Pink Lemonade
Winter – All The Things You Do
Patsy’s Rats – Burnin’ Honey
White Reaper – Make Me Wanna Die
Daughter – Numbers
Speedy Ortiz – My Dead Girl
Laika’s Orbit – No Matter What It Takes
Chastity Belt – Lydia
Psychic Love – Nancy
Calexico – Bullets & Rocks
The Staves – Make It Holy
Adult Dude – Bonehead
John Grant – Down Here
Palm – Ankles
Luke Top – On the Shore
Eleanor Friedberger – He Didn’t Mention His Mother
Stone Cold Fox – Contagion
Historian – Pulled Under
The Coathangers – Watch Your Back
Jaala – Salt Shaker
The Spook School – I Want To Kiss You
Angel Snow – I Need You
Julia Brown – Snow Day
The Libertines – You’re My Waterloo
Long Beard – Turkeys
The Gooch Palms – Tiny Insight
Roger Harvey – City Deer
Gun Outfit – In Orbit
Great Grandpa – Mostly Here

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August 15, 2015

Dilly Dally – Desire (Music Video)

This week, like just about any other in 2015, has been enormous for music. Since this site’s coverage was entirely dedicated to live coverage over the course of the past 7 days, these next two posts will be focusing on the great new material that saw release during that time frame. Starting with the full streams, there was no shortage of spectacular releases, including new entries from Ronnie Stone & The Lonely Riders, Doubting Thomas Cruise Control, Gardens & Villa, Places to Hide, Jesse Payne, Morly, Frau, The Barreracudas, Pawns, and Sieveheads. Music videos had a week just as strong, one that included great clips from the likes of La Lenguas, The Arcs, Noveller, Youth Lagoon, This is the Kit, Lithuania, Vundabar, Joanna Newsom, Palm, White Reaper, and Palehound. Of course, it also included the incredible featured video from site favorites Dilly Dally.

Just over a month ago, “Desire” was covered at great length on its own merits as a standalone single. Now that the band’s got the advantage of a visual medium, they can start hammering home some of Sore‘s driving thematic elements. “Desire”, specifically, is grounded with a through line about sexual release- something that comes to the fore through sensuous lighting, a color palette that’s frequently tinted white, and suggestive imagery that balances the beautiful with the mundane. There’s an emphasis on repetition and motion, which- combined with the provocative whites that dominant the video’s middle section- act as perfectly analogous to the song’s original conceit. It’s a stunning, elegant work that complements the song to a sublime perfection and isn’t afraid to shy away of the difficult, ordinary aspects that help humanize an otherwise otherworldly experience.

Watch “Desire” below and pre-order Sore from Partisan here.

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July 3, 2015

White Reaper – Last 4th of July (Music Video)

Another day of great releases gone by, another batch of exciting releases to cover. With yesterday’s coverage going to the Ben Seretan premiere, there’ll be material to have surfaced from both today and yesterday running in this post. For music videos, we were graciously gifted Eternal Summers’ kitchen trip “Comes Alive“, Heaven’s Gate’s oddly eerie “Sally Says“, The Libertines’ weirdly inspired (and psych-tinged) return clip “Gunga Din“, and Big Noble’s characteristically gorgeous “Traveler“. White Reaper‘s “Last 4th of July” wound up getting this post’s focus and will be expanded on shortly.

Heather Woods Brodericks’ Glider and Nap Eyes’ Whine of the Mystic held down the fort for the full streams (and revealed themselves to be two of 2015’s finest low-key releases). The Rubs’ basement pop gem “Until He’s Mine“, Uh Bones’ psych-damaged “Everyday Killer“, Aye Nako’s spiky outsider punk tune “Worms“, Vacation’s continuously shifting “The Heat“, Tedo Stone’s Southern-tinged powerpop number “To The Marshes“, and a pair of tracks from site favorite theweaselmartenfisher (an extraordinary, heartfelt cover of Cyndia Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and another original knockout, “Create Dangerously“) constituted the single stream bracket.

White Reaper’s upcoming White Reaper Does It Again is an unbelievably explosive record (two of the songs the band’s released in the rollout campaign have already been featured on this site) so it sort of makes sense there’s a song on it called “Last 4th of July”. Continuing on with sensible decisions, the band’s decided to release a music video for the 100 second tune just in time for this year’s 4th.

Retro effects provide the clip with a fun opening before it takes an unexpected left turn and devolves into a beautifully-lensed series of shots where the band wreak absolute havoc on the windows and windshields of a variety of scrapyard vehicles. Much like White Reaper Does It Again, the whole affair is a jolt of surging adrenaline that establishes White Reaper as an absolute force. Join the party or get the hell out of the way.

Watch “Last 4th of July” below and pre-order White Reaper Does It Again ahead of its July 17 release date from Polyvinyl here.

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June 29, 2015

Coaster – Paralyzed (Stream)

Community Records have been putting together an extraordinary run of releases lately and that patterns set to continue with Coaster’s Slow Jams. Approaching outsider punk-inflected basement pop with an immediately distinguishable identity is one thing to simply achieve but Coaster’s on the verge of perfecting that dynamic. Restrained but strangely volatile, the band’s sunk their teeth into something that feels familiar but incredibly unique.

“Paralyzed” elicits the opposition reaction of its title; it’s nearly impossible to not find your head nodding along as the song wills itself towards a powerful, climactic finish. It’s a fairly astonishing piece of work that bodes well for the band’s future. If Slow Jams can sustain the best qualities of “Paralyzed”, it’ll very easily find itself among my favorite release of the year.

Listen to “Paralyzed” below and pick up a copy of Slow Jams from Community Records here. Find 10 more excellent songs to have been released in the past two weeks below the embed.

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Gardens & Villa – Fixations
Clearance – You’ve Been Pre-Approved
Widowspeak – Girls
Ricked Wicky – Tomfoole Terrific
Peter Matthew Bauer – Hold on to Someone (Quiet Version)
Scott Bartenhagen – Beacons
White Reaper – Pills
Alice – Shitty
Native Eloquence – Habits
Advance Base – Trisha Please Come Home

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June 9, 2015

Girls Names – Reticence (Stream)

A Brief recap at the top: over the past week and a half I’ve been preparing for a move from Wisconsin to New York, collecting songs as they appeared. Fifteen of the finest from that stretch will appear beneath the embed of the featured song; Girls Names’ “Reticence”. A wiry post-punk number that takes a hairpin turn into something a lot more full-bodied than the opening guitar figure would suggest.

What follows is a brutally unforgiving run through a desolate atmosphere before veering into a sharp left and tapping into outsider pop that leans heavily towards a new wave tendencies. As that section blooms into something otherworldly it refuses to stop unfurling, laying itself out in a tantalizing sprawl before getting cut off at the head. With next to no warning, the track reverts back to the bleak, foreboding section that dominated its first half. As an exercise in dynamics, it’s stunning. As a teaser for the band’s upcoming Arms Around A Vision, it’s enough to elevate the anticipation into the stratosphere. As a standalone song? It’s damn near miraculous.

Listen to “Reticence” below and pre-order Arms Around A Vision from Tough Love ahead of its October 2 release here. Beneath the embed, explore a list of 15 other highlights from the past week and a half.

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Dan Svizeny – Dreams Came True
Lee Bannon – Disneµ Girls
Django Django – Slow West
Failure – Mulholland Drive
The Fall – Auto Chip 2014-2016
Jaill – Getaway
Glint – While You Sleep
Beirut – No No No
Ludvig Moon – Swim Dream
Camera Shy – Colors Radiate
White Reaper – Sheila
Albert Hammond Jr – Losing Touch
Grass House – Learning to Less Feel
Bad Bad Habits – Psychic Reader
Jordan Lane Price – Sponge

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Tag: White Reaper