Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
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.
Purest Form – “Burn”
Los Angeles industrial metal trio Purest Form are not wasting any time after releasing one of the best EPs earlier this year. Their searing new single “Burn” is an infectious rallying cry for total destruction driven by vocalist Story Beeson’s sinister snarl, Madison Woodward’s pulverizing heavy metal riffs, and Riley Joyner’s thrashing basslines. Directed by Jeremy Stith of Fury, the video flashes between saturated hues of bright reds and blues as Beeson screeches and demands that whatever’s left in sight is burned to the ground.
Loan Pham | @x_loanp
Dominic Angelella – God Loves a Scammer
Dominic Angelella’s been around, and if you’ve read more than this one article on The Alt you’re almost certainly a fan of the music he’s been involved in, having played on albums by artists from mewithoutYou and Smidley to Mac Miller and Kendrick Lamar to Tinashe and Ravyn Lanae. On his fifth solo LP God Loves a Scammer, he mostly sticks to noisy indie rock and dusty folk, flipping between the two modes with ease; impressively, neither seems to be more comfortable for Angelella, and he pulls both off beautifully. The rollicking seven-ish-minute “Babylon Working” is a highlight, and it’s immediately followed by another, the subdued ninety-second jaunt “Leeds Irish Center.” God might love a scammer, but we love Dominic Angelella.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Liska – “I’m Coming Back”
“I’m Coming Back” is a sultry, groovy jam from Chicago-based pop siren Liska. Sounds like the best of slacker rock but with a determined and sassy edge. This deserves to be a hit!
Elizabeth Piasecki Phelan
Puddled – “Between”
After Naomi Davidoff’s breakup, she left her band Spooled Up and relocated to Philadelphia. Grunge-pop newcomers Puddled really aren’t very new at all – each member cut their teeth as multi-instrumentalists in the Baltimore music scene. They each bring their individual sound and perspective to the studio. “I’m not one for in-between,” Davidoff proclaims on “Between.” Over scuzzy guitar, gritty vocals, and slick hooks, Davidoff finds independence and renewal through dramatic life transitions.
Giliann Karon | @lethalrejection
Cheridomingo – Shapeshifter
Cheridomingo’s new album Shapeshifter pulls from gritty 2010s alternative rock and R&B influences with a core that’s grounded somewhere within the mid 2000s emo / pop punk realm. Two years after their last release, the Ventura, CA quartet seem to have hit their stride as they confidently blaze their own trail in pursuit of a more diverse yet emotionally driven sound that brings to mind bands like Badflower or Microwave.
Loan Pham | @x_loanp
Stateside – “Thirty Mile Stretch”
After last summer’s excellent It’s What We Do EP, Stateside opened for the first portion of the storied Koyo/Anxious/One Step Closer triple headliner tour, their hardcore-informed pop-punk a perfect complement to those bands. They put out a great single called “Since Last Season” in March, and it must’ve built up some momentum, because the California quintet just signed with Pure Noise and dropped another killer track. “Thirty Mile Stretch” is another banger, and if you’re a fan of any of the bands mentioned above, then you need to get on Stateside now. They won’t be opening tours much longer.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
The Alternative’s ‘New Music Friday’ playlist
Each week we compile 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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