Weekly Roundup: April 3rd
Featuring Duskwood, After The Burial, Ringlets, and more.
MOSH PITHY:
A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to.
Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers – “Lights Out”
Canberra/Ngunnawal-based four-piece Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers have dropped a new track, and this one serves as a teaser for their upcoming, yet-to-be-formally-announced debut LP for Domestic La La. It’s a ripping, grunge revival cut focused on confidence and self-empowerment, themes previously explored on last year’s EP, Pretty Good For A Girl Band. The band described the track as being “about claiming your sexuality, confidence, and not caring about what the drunk strangers in a Canberra nightclub will think of you.” Watch the video for “Lights Out” below:
Duskwood – The Last Voyage
I love a good stoner rock jam, and Somerset grooves Duskwood are right up there with the best of them. I came across this band randomly through Bandcamp some years ago, and their first album was released as two split EPs across 2019 and 2020. The quartet are set to follow this up with their sophomore LP, The Last Voyage, on May 12th via Ripple Music. On the album’s second single, the band states: “This is probably one of the fastest songs we’ve created and peaks the sense of urgency, not letting its foot off the gas until it climaxes.” Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Bad Optix – “Raid”
So, cards on the table, I’m not the biggest ska guy. Apart from playing Reel Big Fish songs while I was a DJ in alternative nightclubs, that’s about the extent of my knowledge. That said, this new track from supergroup Bad Optix is totally worth a mention. The group includes Tim Armstrong of Rancid/Operation Ivy fame, former Operation Ivy singer Jesse Michaels, Trash Talk bassist Spencer Pollard and drummer Joey Castillo, whose resume speaks for itself: Queens Of The Stone Age, Wasted Youth, Sugartooth, Danzig, Circle Jerks and the Bronx. So yeah, they’ve got the goods. Listen to “Raid” here.
Secret World – Demo 2023
Secret World is a new project from Tom Maddocks, CEO of the fantastic and essential Last Ride Records, and Josh Campiao, guitarist for Hellions and most recently revealed as the newest member of Trophy Eyes. It’s cool alt-rock stuff with a noticeable hardcore edge—think of songs in the sonic wheelhouse of acts like Drug Church and Can’t Swim, and you’ll be pretty close. The band’s four-track demo is out now, and you can stream it in full here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Ringlets – “Sever”
This is a new band on my radar that I’m super excited about. Ringlets hail from Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, and I can thank a random Rolling Stone feature for putting me onto them. “Sever,” the quartet’s recent single, features jangly guitars and punchy rhythms reminiscent of early 2000s indie rock that fans of classic Bloc Party and Interpol will definitely appreciate. The band’s debut self-titled album dropped through Massachusetts-based imprint Mutual Skies this morning, so I’m excited to dive into that this week. Listen to “Sever” here.
RVG – Brain Worms
I’m super excited about this one. Melbourne/Naarm-based post-punk outfit RVG are gearing up for the release of their long-awaited sophomore LP, Brain Worms, and it comes out on June 2nd through Fire Records. The album was recorded in London at Snap Studios with James Trevascus (Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, The Goon Sax), and the band has played on bills with acts as diverse as Pixies, Kurt Vile, Pete Doherty, Sleaford Mods, Camp Cope, Shame, and more. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
After The Burial – “Nothing Gold”
I’ve been listening to heavy merchants After The Burial for almost twenty years, which feels like a statement that’s equal parts wild and depressing to say out loud. After coming through with 2019’s Evergreen LP, the Minneapolis outfit are finally back with a raging two-track single titled Embrace the Infinity. It’s a masterclass in progressive metalcore, with plenty of atmosphere, technical complexity and hints of the group’s trademark djent fuckery. Check out the video for “Nothing Gold” below:
Sign Language – Madison & Floral
I came across this one thanks to the newsletter from the good folks over at Sunday Drive Records. It’s the debut LP from Ohio natives Sign Language, titled Madison & Floral, and it’s due out on April 21st. They peddle a sublime mix of alt-rock and post-hardcore stylings, with an attentive ear for sticky harmonies, back-and-forth vocal interplay, and driving grunge riffs. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Listen to all these tracks and more on the TPD 2023 CUTS playlist, updated weekly.
HEAVY METTLE:
A closer, more in-depth look at a new record that ticks all my boxes.
Boygenius – The Record
If you wade into the cesspools of Music Twitter this week, you’re bound to stumble upon the depths of the Boygenius conversation. On the one hand, you’ll find effusive praise, like Pitchfork’s Best New Music review of The Record, the debut LP from the singer-songwriter supergroup featuring the holy trinity of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus. As writer Cat Zhang notes, the album exemplifies the creative partnership between three young women:
“Boygenius are teammates, confidantes, soon-to-be onstage make-out partners; the songs on The Record are largely for each other, about each other, littered with inside references.”
On the other hand, you have dissenting opinions, like those of Uproxx’s Steven Hyden, who dare to burst the indie hype bubble. “There’s something about how the frictionless interpersonal dynamic of Boygenius is aggressively asserted in everything written about them,” Hyden observes.
“It’s another layer of self-consciousness placed on an already acutely mindful operation. Given that the singer-songwriters in Boygenius made their bones writing authentically about dysfunctional relationships, the idealized sisterhood being sold here feels meme-ified for internet consumption. Their magazine quotes demand to be quote-tweeted, rather than merely liked. It’s not that supergroups normally don’t talk like this, no band ever talks like this.”
Ultimately, I enjoyed The Record, and if these three women are true besties and supremely talented creative partners, then all the power to them. So, I guess all that’s left is to make up your own mind.
Stream here: Bandcamp | Spotify
ERRONEOUS BOTCH:
On the latest Pitch pod bonus episode, Paige and I dive right into the upcoming twentieth anniversary of In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, the second LP for New York prog-rockers Coheed & Cambria. This was a big formative record for teenage me, one that managed to expand my musical horizons into new genres of rock while also tickling my nerdy sci-fi fancy. Check it out below: