
Flew Away - Fanclubwallet
“Flew Away” is the third of five stunning lo-fi tracks on the debut EP from fanclubwallet, Hurt is Boring. Ottawa-based musician and illustrator Hannah Judge looks back from a place of acceptance on the demise of a relationship, exploring themes of misunderstanding and miscommunication, what-ifs and so-whats, and how our own emotions can take us by surprise. She sings, “I didn’t know that it would make me feel this way seein’ your face online every day,” which is a testament both to the virtual spaces we have largely existed in for the past year and to the challenge of creating distance from our hurt when it always seems to be one tap or scroll away.
Judge’s description of her style as “writing emo shit that doesn’t sound emo” is spot-on. Her vocal style is relatively understated, but her words pack a punch, and both complement the lo-fi instrumentals to give her music an undeniably nostalgic yet poignant bedroom pop sound. The mood is relaxed, but the sound is tight, guitar and bass riffs keeping time with a drumbeat during verses that punch between choruses and bridges backed by the youthful and energetic plinking of a toy piano—a favorite instrument of Judge’s that can be heard peeking out from behind layers of sound throughout the EP. A joyfully chattering crowd can also be heard at times in the background of “Flew Away,” adding a house-party vibe to the track—a nod, perhaps, to social lives past, and a sound we’ll hopefully all be hearing more of sooner rather than later.
Written from her childhood bedroom during the pandemic, which coincided with a Crohn’s disease flareup for Judge (the line “I went to bed and didn’t get out for 10 months” is meant literally in her latest single, “C’mon Be Cool”), the EP is “about taking the good with the bad,” Judge has said. “You can’t really appreciate one without the other.” Not only was the EP written in Judge’s childhood bedroom, but it was also produced by her childhood best friend, producer Michael Watson. The pandemic has allowed many of us to reach back and connect (and/or reckon) with our past selves and past lives and take the good with the bad in what we find there. Judge likes to leave her lyrics up for interpretation, specific enough to allude to a situation, but vague enough to leave room for the listener to find their own meaning within the words. In keeping with this practice, “Flew Away” is sure to offer a little something for everyone. Photo by Ian Filipovic.
— Maya Bouvier-Lyons on May 21, 2021Hope Tala - Crazy
Following the recent drop of razor-sharp anthem "All My Girls Like to Fight," R&B artist Hope Tala brings a moment of respite with softer-spoken track "Crazy," a ballad with gorgeous bits of a personal narrative of love. Tala's signature sound of warmth can be found fluttering among lyrics of encouragement and adoration for the object of her affections — the hook telling her lover that they can "go crazy" over and over again. "Crazy" holds intimacy in the small details of average days with the person that you love, like the sweet gesture of having a hand on your thigh as you drive. In anticipation of her new EP, Girl Eats Sun, which comes out November 13, Tala gives us an exciting track with different energy from her previous single. The Londoner continues to grow her range and wow listeners with her creativity in production and writing. Photo by Rosie Matheson.
— Julie Gentile on October 23, 2020
Sir Woman - Making Love
Wild Child’s Kelsey Wilson is experiencing an exuberant freedom in her solo project Sir Woman, and she is sure to have you spellbound within her groove. Wilson sings of a woman with a totally transfixing presence in “Making Love.” Feathered with soulful, glimmering touches of keys and a feel-good rhythm, this track is made for falling in love under the ambient glow of a roller rink. Wilson draws heavily on themes from music rising out of the '70s disco scene, revering women almost as talismans, beholding some glamorous magic and power in their being without any effort. This track is a funk-filled and daydream-inducing form of nostalgia for a bygone era that promises enchantment and glory. Photo by Barbara FG.
— Laney Esper on October 23, 2020
Tempesst - High on My Own
Bringing modern tones and textures to ‘70s rock sensibility, “High on My Own” is a stand-out track from Tempesst's recent debut album, Must Be a Dream. This dose of joyful psychedelia from the Australian alternative five-piece injects the start of the album with an electric energy. It’s easily one of the peppiest tracks on the record, while still having a slowed-tempo chorus. Tempesst makes this refined, fun-loving sound look easy to execute, and as a listener, you can’t help but feel like it’s second-nature to them. Though this is their first LP, the London-based band have been cutting their teeth releasing singles and playing shows for most of the late 2010s. Tempesst’s full-bodied sound is the culmination of years of playing, experimenting and soaking up fresh experiences. Their influences run the gamut, from the Brooklyn indie rock scene to '70s psychedelia. The vocals are reminiscent of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys) or Van McCann (Catfish and the Bottlemen). All in all, Tempesst possesses a likability and originality that I hope carries them far, and something tells me this new album is just the beginning for them. If you sit down to listen to “High on My Own” today, I hope you do so with the intention of hearing the whole album. It’s an incredibly easy and enjoyable listening experience (plus “Mushroom Cloud” follows “High on My Own,” and it’s another one of my favorites on the record). Photo by György László.
We are also thrilled to share that we have been collaborating with Tempesst on the official music video for "High on My Own," which will be out soon. Keep an eye out!
— Hannah Lupas on October 23, 2020
Pine Barons - Reaper
On “Reaper,” a song off their recently released album Mirage on the Meadow, Pine Barons combine psychedelic instrumentals and vivid lyrical imagery to deliver a haunting track that truly rocks; perfect listening for this, the spookiest of seasons. The tone is firmly established within the first few seconds, as a series of long atmospheric tones from the synth drape themselves over the drum and guitar lines. Before the lyrics come in you have already been set on a meandering walk through the dark forest in your mind.
Songwriter and vocalist Keith Abrams cleverly illustrates the concept of scattered thoughts in the pre-chorus where, utilizing different production effects, he plays two intertwining inner monologues: one perpetually questioning, and one confident in its defeatist statements but not offering any answers. From this back and forth bursts the hook, which delivers everything you could ask for in a great rock chorus. It’s melodic, it’s powerful and it stays with you long after the song has ended. For much of “Reaper” there is an expertly curated sense of movement, like some physical manifestation of inner anxieties is stalking you at a distance. The closing guitar solo and coda, which layer in melodic callbacks from earlier sections, bring about a feeling of envelopment, like that fog of fear has finally caught up and engulfed you. Photo by Chris Sikich.
— Emerson Obus on October 23, 2020
Kevin Morby - Valley
“Valley,” the opener off of Kevin Morby’s latest album Sundowner, is a melancholy ballad to the singer-songwriter’s Midwestern roots. Like many of the songs off the album, “Valley” finds the singer reflecting on life in the Midwest by using its landscape as a vehicle to remark on the simplistic beauty of it all. Morby’s singular voice acts as a guide through the rich landscape that the laid-back instrumental paints, as he croons, “In the valley below me / In the valley below / They all pretend not to know us / They all act like they don't know.” As the two-minute mark rolls around, Morby keeps quiet and lets his guitar steal the show, once again showcasing simplicity, as you can almost close your eyes and see the grand and underrated beauty that Morby depicts just lines before. Photo by Johnny Eastlund.
— Jonah Minnihan on October 22, 2020
Sam Lynch - Keeping Time
Billowing richness within and throughout, Sam Lynch’s “Keeping Time” is a mingling of revelry and the phenomenon of loss. Lynch says it's “a song about losing your footing, and the endless search for something steady to hold onto.” While the impermanence of many things can be jarring, Lynch’s delicate voice, along with the tranquil demeanor of the tone in which she hovers over verses, brings a certain grace into the realm of instability, creating space for coming to terms with life’s ever-present ambivalence. This track is one of many gorgeous odes to distinct forms of loss on her new album Little Disappearance, which was released in full on October 9 and is deserving of many a listen. Photo by Mackenzie Walker.
— Laney Esper on October 22, 2020
Moon Kissed - Shake // Those Feelings
It bops, it grooves, it gets your feet moving and then it breaks your heart. Through driving drums, hypnotic synths and poetic lyrical paradoxes, “Shake // Those Feelings,” the new single from Brooklyn-based trio Moon Kissed, tackles an age-old question of love: is the passion worth the pain? In the first section of the song, Moon Kissed juxtaposes a dancey synth rock tone with lyrics drenched in a deep longing to feel again: “I’ve been struggling with numbness,” and more bluntly, “I want you to break me.” As the song goes on, the vocals build and layer, the drums get bigger and the synth gets funkier; it becomes impossible not to at least bop your head along and, more likely, you’ll find yourself dancing around whatever room you’re occupying at the time.
Then, once you’ve been fully immersed in the whirling, intoxicating melody, the song undergoes a powerful shift. The drums cut out, plucked guitar strings and longer atmospheric synth tones take over, and the intense longing, which characterized those lyrics that you started to dance to, is presented in its raw vulnerable form. A softer vocal and a pensive mood guide you out to the end of the beautiful track. Photo by Evan Parness.
— Emerson Obus on October 22, 2020
Samantha Margret - Feminist Gf
With her latest single, “Feminist Gf,” San Francisco singer-songwriter Samantha Margret has evolved into a sharpened power, in both production and lyricism. This is a track that begs to be listened to on hi-fi headphones — with creeping touches like soft, panned tapping-fingers-on-drums at the onset, a bass that thumps in your chest and the endlessly creative mixing of Samantha’s clear vocals, the singular energy of Billie Eilish comes to mind, paired with the endearing personal touches of Taylor Swift’s best lyrics — all still with a style that is distinctly Samantha’s. With her prior release, “Emotional,” she took on the patriarchy in a more playful tone, but the Samantha we hear on “Feminist Gf” has stepped forward, teeth bared, to usher the offending misogynist into a new era (her line "You've got a feminist girlfriend, like that makes you excused" could cut with a knife). Songs like Swift’s “You Belong With Me” may have made some of us feel comforted back in the early 2000’s that didn’t squarely fit into a traditional feminine narrative, but as feminism has evolved to be intersectional and inclusive, “Feminist Gf” deserves a place among the girl-power tracks we need now. Rather than against each other, Samantha unifies femininity of all types and expressions to focus where it counts.
— Stephanie Lamond on October 22, 2020
Julia Jacklin - to Perth, before the border closes
Julia Jacklin’s new offering “to Perth, before the border closes” features scathingly honest lyrics performed with a lush, dreamy vocal style and sepia-toned guitar sounds. The song is a meditation on the prevalence of change in our lives — as she states simply, “Don’t you know that everything changes?” She also ruminates on the fact that the very nature of change means that sometimes we can’t fully trust or rely on others, even those who are closest to us. This is made evident as she questions, “Will you get on that flight? / I got a feeling I won’t do it alone / I got a feeling / But everything changes.” Jacklin is arguably at her best when the musical arrangement is kept classic and simple, allowing listeners to hone in on her expertly crafted lyrics and beautiful voice, which is reminiscent of legendary vocalist Patsy Cline — and "to Perth, before the border closes” is no exception. Listen on Bandcamp or wherever you stream. Photo by Nick Mckk.
— Paige Shannon on October 21, 2020
Quarter-Life Crisis - Postcard From Spain (feat. Frances Quinlan)
“Postcard from Spain” is the stunning lead single from Canadian producer Ryan Hemsworth’s new project, Quarter-Life Crisis. This track blazes with post-modern complexity and profound artistry — but considering it features lyrics and vocals from the insanely talented Frances Quinlan of Hop Along, we would expect nothing less. Known for her quizzically insightful lyrics and searing vocals, Quinlan was tasked with writing the lyrics and vocal melody for an instrumental track Hemsworth had previously recorded. The finished product is a beautiful sonic tale that recounts one character’s muse-inducing trip to Spain. The track features overlapping layers of both electronica and modern rock, which, like Quinlan’s lyrics, contribute to complementary sonic tones that are fragmented but undeniably intertwined.
Quinlan is one of several artists that Hemsworth will be collaborating with in his upcoming project. The full Quarter-Life Crisis EP is set to be released on December 4 by Saddle Creek.
— Lilly Rothman on October 21, 2020