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Local Music Round-Up 1/10/19



Technically one of these releases came out in 2017, but who cares? I sure don't! It's week two of the 2019 Local Music Round-Up Redux Extravaganza! On a completely separate note, if a weekly dose of my incoherent hot takes on music isn't enough, I've been writing about one album every day on my website! It's mostly bad, but two randoms on Wordpress thought it was cool enough for them to follow, so that's good enough for me. 



Oklahoma - "Talking Cheap" (self-released)

Oklahoma have released a few singles from their record Fever Dream (including one-off "Disco" back in August 2018), and "Talking Cheap" is the latest and greatest one. The band finds coherency in a melting pot of 2010s indie influences. Pleading vocals, some slight electronics, and a plinking piano interlude all find their place cleanly. It's difficult to accept the transient nature of human relationships, and Oklahoma rage against the dying of a past love. The rather blunt repetition of "Have you had your life with me?" is smoothed out by spacious and anthemic transitions. While there are only a few streaks of heaviness throughout, Oklahoma hint at numerous directions they could take in other, more streamlined tracks (synth pop, garage rock, whatever Grizzly Bear does). 




more or less - Residuals and Consequences EP (self-released)

The Foo Fighters are still cool. Especially when their classic punky sound is inspiring bands like more or less. more or less, consisting of three veterans of the Minneapolis punk scene, ultimately sound like they're having fun. Chugging four-chord progressions and cracked glass vocals are the fire that fuels their debut EP. There is no pretense to be found here - just the saving grace of punk rock. The relatively uncomplicated songs gain value through sheer energy and camaraderie, blissfully ignorant of anything other than the music.





Soft Topics - ep (self-released)

I never really wonder about the process of choosing cover art, especially when it's a seemingly meaningless image. But sometimes, it clicks as soon as you hear the songs. Minneapolis quartet Soft Topics weave songs of tranquil indie that sound like the twilight depicted on the cover of their debut release, ep. Opener "Actually Actually" is practically whispered in the listener's ear. Clean, plaintive guitars chime in the shadows as vocalist Summer Grimes dreams out loud. Not to overdo it with the sleep metaphors, but the band seems to be on board with it - the final track is called "Somnabulance" after all. The distant echoes of effects-laden riffs sing a beckoning call into night as the track dissolves beautifully.





Inconsistent - Acting Cool EP

I am almost 90% sure that Inconsistent is fronted by Tom DeLonge. Maybe I'm just hallucinating. A striking similarity to the world's preeminent alien-truther isn't the only hallmark of classic emo found on the band's debut EP, Acting Cool. The depressed lyrics, the straight-out-of-diary delivery, overall heaviness - the gang's all here. Inconsistent won't convert you, but they'll certainly welcome you with open arms. It only takes two tracks for the band to pretty much nail the thesis of every emo album - "I am emotional and I don't talk that well" goes the opening line of "Rad But Not Really." Produced by Remo Drive's Erik Paulson (and released one week after Greatest Hits), Inconsistent is anything but.



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