Released by Richie Records and TestosterTunes in Philadelphia comes the second 7″ single from BRAINWASHED YOUTH. It’s a hilariously unique cut of unfocused foolishness and sloppy-heavy guitar punk mixed up into one lone record. Continue reading “Brainwashed Youth – The Trilogy 7″”
Hailing from Los Angeles comes THE FRANKS. They’re a three piece band consisting of Jean Don’t, Ronny Ray Gunn, and Mimi Malone, as taken directly from their Myspace. They’ve got two official releases out there, and the most recent is this smoking hot 7″ from Hit City USA. Continue reading “The Franks – Duh 7″”
Traps, PS hail from Los Angeles, California. This is their debut four song 7″ from Papermade Music, and it was recorded and mixed over three short days at the original Grain Studios. Last we heard from Papermade it was quite good, so let’s see what they have for us this time around. Continue reading “Traps, PS – Prove It to You 7″”
To be honest, before coming across this 7″ I had never heard of these guys. Before even finishing the 7″ on it’s first time around, it was already a done deal. Maybe that’s because of the enthusiastic and grandiose pop vibes, or just how the record is overflowing with material that is sure to crack a smile on any face. Continue reading “Tranzmitors – You Get Around 7″”
Most recently coming from the Slumberland label (and Tough Love if yr in the UK) is a brand new split 7″ between Ireland’s GIRLS NAMES and San Francisco’s BRILLIANT COLORS. It’s a magical double A-side single featuring a song apiece from each band, and worldwide it’s limited to just 600 copies. Continue reading “Girls Names/ Brilliant Colors – Split 7″”
Anybody remember our boys from Australia named IOWA? We covered their first 7″ a little over a week ago. Now we’re back with their latest 7″, which comes from their own personal Desert Mouth Records label. Continue reading “Iowa – Lose Yourself 7″”
Hailing from Chicago comes HEAVY TIMES. These three guys have been out there recording music for awhile now, and their most recent release comes in the 7″ vinyl format from the renowned Hozac Records label. Continue reading “Heavy Times – No Plans 7″”
Coming from a small independent DIY label based in Plymouth, Portsmouth and Weymouth (depending on the season) comes a split 7″ from Exeter’s New Years Evil and Falmouth’s The Black Tambourines. The name of the label is Art Is Hard Records (which could be a reference to Cursive?), and this happens to be their second official release. Their first release was put out in quite a unique fashion, as they sold t-shirts along with a download card of a compilation album from nine of their favorite local bands. This time they stuck to the traditions of putting this 7″ out on wax, but who knows what’s to come down the road. It seems like these two brotherly bros running the show have some new and innovative ideas up their sleeves.
While we don’t know what’s coming next, we can always bring our attention to what we have right now. It’s a 7″ with a song on each side, one from New Years Evil called “Shame”, and one from The Black Tambourines called “Tommy”. New Years Evil come at you full force in “Shame” with crazy rampant drumming, springy bass lines, and some fiery guitar licks that are sure to please. The guitar undoubtedly gets crazy during the final minute after a quick build up, resulting in mind-bending solo action that literally sounds like the dudes fingers were on fire while he played.
Flip that wax and it’s time for the B-side “Tommy”, which starts out on a slower note, only to quickly pick up speed. After that injection of energy the song takes form, bringing concentrated, almost fuzzy guitars to the table with a scuzzy wall of lo-fi grit filling out the song. The tom-tom driven drumming is enough to keep your feet tapping along as the choppy guitars continue to tear everything up in their path, and there’s even some cheerful “woo-woo” chanting in there to help lift the mood that much more, as if this song wasn’t perky enough already. After the joyful chants and forceful drumming, the song starts to slowly fade away into a mysterious abyss with some careful guitar picking, which brings the song to an end. Without a doubt these two songs need to be heard, and you can do so simply by playing them below. If you’re really feeling daring today, why not visit Art Is Hard Records and snag a copy for yourself? I’m sure it’ll be worth it. See ya tomorrow.
New Years Evil – Shame –
The Black Tambourines – Tommy –
My Rating: 7.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Lo-Fi, Pop
Split 7″: Tracklist:
1.) New Years Evil – Shame
2.) The Black Tambourines – Tommy
New Years Evil on Myspace
New Years Evil on Bandcamp
The Black Tambourines on Myspace
The Black Tambourines on Facebook
BUY the 7″ directly from Art is Hard Records
What’s up people? Today we’ve got what I believe is officially the fourth band from Australia here on the Drone. They’re simply known as IOWA, and they hail from Melbourne to be exact. They’re a three piece band taking the traditional set up with Dylan Stewart on guitar and vocals, Jordan Barczak on bass, and Matt Rooney on drums.
These guys have been quite busy in 2010, releasing two of their first records from their own label, Desert Mouth Records, and after that it looks like things will only continue to grow for the band. The 7″ we have here today was their first official release, and then in the near future we’ll talk about their second 7″ as well. Both come on opaque colored vinyl and are limited to some small number (I know it’s 150 for the green vinyl – not sure about the red one). So let’s dig in.
The A-side kicks off with a jam called “Stay Solo”, and it’s a slower paced number with a longing, gloomy feel. Lazy sounding guitars and a crunchy, dirty bass line take control while the drums and cymbals crash along to keep up. About three-quarters of the way through the song changes directions and an epic build-up begins to form right in front of your face, only to come plummeting back down with ridiculously heavy guitars and more crashing cymbals. This right here suggests these guys know a thing or two about psychedelia over in Australia, and they prove it immensely. Now flip that record and it’s time for the B-side, called “AM”.
“AM” starts off with a bang as they ditch the sadder feelings from the previous song and go for the gold in this track. A little bit past the halfway mark the ending starts to unfold with buzzy, humming bass lines and a shimmying guitar line, only to pop off into a dazzling display of cymbal smashing, heavy guitar hooks, and a “let the good times roll” vibe. It’s hard to pin down which of these two songs could qualify as the main highlight from this single, so how about we go with both? Seriously, check this stuff out and see for yourself. If you still want more, head over to their Bandcamp where you can find downloads and other songs to listen to, including the 7-minute epic bonus track “Weighed Down”. Enjoy!
Stay Solo –
AM –
My Rating: 7/10
Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Grunge, Alternative
Stay Solo 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Stay Solo
2.) AM
3.) Weighed Down (bonus track on CD)
Iowa on Myspace
Iowa – Official Website
BUY their releases from Desert Mouth Records
Check out the Iowa Bandcamp for some free downloads!
Meet Total Slacker, Brooklyn’s bowl-cuttest band about town. Vice blog described Total Slacker as “that band that everybody hates because the skinny guy has a bowl cut”, so if people care this much about the dudes hair, they have to be doing something right. This is the debut release from these new guys, but after hearing the music, you’d probably never think that it was their first. Well, that’s because in a way, it’s not.
The band is filled out by Emily Oppenheimer on bass and vocals, Ross Condon on drums, and Tucker Rountree on guitar and vocals. Rountree, however, is the interesting member of the bunch. Originally coming from Salt Lake City, Rountree first started playing guitar at the young age of 7 years old. He mainly learned from his father, who taught him bluesy guitar licks and such. Coming from an artistic family, Tucker was always surrounded by music and became enamored with jazz thanks to his grandfather Will. As he grew up, he taught himself how to play guitar, constantly honing up on his skills to get where he is today. Before long, Rountree was well known on the jazz scene, and had the chance to put out his very own album under the name “Tucker Rountree Sound”. Don’t believe me all you bowl-cut haters? Check out this link right here. Not only can you still download the album, it gives you some pretty insightful information about Rountree, which is where I got all that information from above.
Okay, so, maybe I went off on a bit of a tangent there. But I feel like you guys needed to know this. Especially since this band doesn’t seem to be getting all the respect it deserves because of one dudes haircut. Background information like that provides awesome insight for a band that is said to be “brand new”, when in fact they’re not entirely “brand new”. In my opinion – who fuckin’ cares about his hair! If anything the hair gives the band some personality, and apparently a reason to be hated.
So yeah, now you’re probably wondering what the hell Total Slacker sounds like since I’ve been neglecting to talk about the band for this long. Let’s keep it simple, shall we? This 7″ comes with two brain-burning tracks with one of each side called “Crystal Necklace” and “Video Store Rental Guy”. Each turns into a smokey, raging psychedelic onslaught right before you ears, and if you’re into psych, this WILL be right up your alley. Coming complete with pounding drums, face melting guitars and throbbing bass lines, it’s no wonder why this Brooklyn trio is catching on so well…orrrrr not so well. Snag their 7″ with the link below before you can’t anymore.
Crystal Necklace –
Video Store Rental Guy –
My Rating: 8.7/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Lo-Fi, Garage Rock
Crystal Necklace 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Crystal Necklace
2.) Video Store Rental Guy
Total Slacker on Myspace
BUY the 7″ directly from Insound
For those still curious about Tucker Rountree & Total Slacker:
Check this out – Words about Tucker on FB
Check this out – Tucker Rountree Sound mp3’s
Check this out – Tucker Rountree Sound Myspace
Check this out – Vids of Rountree playing with jazz dudes (if this doesn’t work just search ‘Tucker Rountree’ on YouTube)
Check this out – Rountree’s other band, the poppy ‘Web Dating’
Check this out, too – Total Slacker: A Brooklyn Love Story
Styrofoam Drone 