Posted: by The Editor
The Alternative Weekly Roundup is a column where our staff plugs a variety of new releases in a concise, streamlined format. Albums, singles, videos, and live sets. Check back each Monday to see what we were jamming the week prior.
Bedroom Eyes – Turned Away
Bedroom Eyes’s fourth LP Turned Away runs through an impressive arc; as it nears the end of its thirty-minute runtime, the record subtly gets heavier and heavier. The final minutes of closer “Iris” pull the band out of the shoegaze reverie of the previous eight tracks and towards a climactic, explosive finale. Turned Away never feels monotonous the way some records of this kind can; it’s got enough variety from song to song to keep things fresh, from the post-punk balladry of the title track to the blustery “Brood.”
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Rebuilder – “Stayin’ Alive”
The type of punk tune that follows a natural path from chunky palm mutes and eerie synths to a huge refrain meant to be screamed back at the band in a packed, sweaty bar, Rebuilder’s “Stayin’ Alive” earns its final blast off when the drums flip the track around 2:40. The group’s new record Local Support, out this Friday, should definitely be on the radar of anyone who’s salivating at the lineup for this weekend’s Four Chord Fest.
Aaron Eisenreich | @slobboyreject
Empty Country – “Erlking”
“Erlking,” the track that accompanied the announcement of Empty County’s upcoming Empty Country II, has all the classic hallmarks of Joe D’Agostino’s work. Come for the warbly, sputtering guitars, the wavering falsetto, and the glittering keys; stay for the evocative portrait of a nation in decline: “one short verse, thirteen bars / the force of fifty collapsing stars.”
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
New World Man – The Beast Is Back
New World Man scratches a particular itch for me. The Beast Is Back and their previous EP are crossover metal tied explicitly to New York. All this means for those non-obsessives is they have ’80s guitar metal leads but still build their songs in a hardcore structure. Fans of Mindforce and Dead Heat should take notice, as they will find a lot to love here.
Hugo Reyes | @hvreyes5
glaive – i care so much that i dont care at all
18-year-old Ash Gutierrez came up in the hyperpop sphere, his early work heavily influenced by the emo-rap of projects like GothBoiClique. He was 15 when he started, and in the time since, his focus has shifted. He’s moved past the digicore of all dogs go to heaven, and he’s embraced bigger, more accessible sounds. He’s touring with emo favorites Origami Angel and Oso Oso, and their influences absolutely seep into his debut LP i care so much that i dont care at all. Every swing glaive takes doesn’t quite connect on the record, but there’s enough here to enjoy—The 1975-esque “the car,” the overblown “the good the bad the olga,” the jittery pop-punk of “the prom,” to name a few—to suggest glaive’s next outing will be great.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Teenage Halloween – “Supertrans/Takeaway”
Kicking off with the line “my identity’s to blame” over some guitars that are taking a beating, the double single of “Supertrans” and “Takeaway” is a great snapshot of Teenage Halloween’s explosive and rapidly paced punk. The band sounds fantastic here, playing at a quick pace, but with a feeling of complete ease and relaxation that counters the generally anxious nature of their tunes. The pair are the opening tracks off Teenage Halloween’s upcoming Till You Return, which is likely to be one of the better punk records out this autumn.
Aaron Eisenreich | @slobboyreject
american poetry club – walking song b/w our apartment 2
The two newest songs from NY indie collective american poetry club are two of their very best yet. They exist in the same space as lullabies, awash in synth jingles and bleating trumpets, moving at their own pace and leaving nothing in their wake. B-side “our apartment 2” is particularly affecting, cries of “are you ever coming home?” punctuated with howling horns and drum fills. Imagine if Los Campesinos!’s twee era lasted forever.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Mikie Mayo – “dorrance st.”
Mikie Mayo’s “dorrance st.” is a sunny, irresistible ballad with some fuzzy guitars adding a touch of grit to the acoustic and piano base. The song feels seeped in the kind of stuff you used to see on MTV in the early 2000s, sounding (in the best way possible) like a long-lost collaboration between Vanessa Carlton and Incubus when Mikie describes a friendship falling apart, as “when you moved to the big city / drowned in weed and whiskey / and there’s nothing left for me” is followed by some record scratches sneaking through lush mix.
Aaron Eisenreich | @slobboyreject
The Alternative’s ‘New Music Friday’ playlist
Each week our editor Lindsy Carrasquillo compiles a playlist of songs our staff has been jamming. We post it on Fridays on Twitter and then include it in each edition of the Weekly Roundup to make sure you don’t miss any of the great music we’re recommending.
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