(Cover art by Aiden LaFollette-James) I am easily pleased. For example, I am extremely pleased to finally have these Floodwater Angel songs out in the world. They've been fiery staples of the band's live show for a good while now, so convincing of FA's musical power that my friend who had never been to a gig before specifically requested the demos for "Daughter" after the band's set. Floodwater Angel changes lives, y'know? The band's new double-single, entitled Playboy , is the band as a coin, perfectly offering their duality in acidic rock fervor. "Daughter" is the mosh-starter you didn't know you needed (unless you've gotten to the gig ). Maddie Knorr steps out as a songwriter with a defiant middle-finger to all the homophobic creeps, unsupportive parents, and anyone between. It's a raging anthem for anyone who has been through similar experiences. The song is music as catharsis. There is no doubt that people will be shou...

Hit the Skids - "Cloud 9" (self-released) Richfield? Underrated! Hit the Skids adhere to the classic belief that there is no need for a fourth chord. The Richfield trio keeps it straightforward and potent on their first single of 2020, "Cloud 9." This no-frills throwback punk at its finest — the most common lyric is the word "yeah!" after all. There's never been a need to adorn songs like this with any bells and whistles. Instead, Alex Fuller, Jake Yaeger, and Vic Fischer let the music speak for itself. The single includes a live version of the song recorded at the Depot Coffee House in Hopkins, featuring Matthew Mwangi on drums. Check out both version below. Cloud 9 (Single) by Hit The Skids Sister Species - "Cottonwood Trees" (self-released) I love it when a band release totally opposite singles, back to back. Chamber pop septet Sister Species have pivoted from the catchy anxiety of "Heat Death" to ...

To put it simply, Ca$ual absolutely rips. Fed on a steady diet of riffs, the Minneapolis trio has been steadily releasing their brand of thrash-infused hardcore since 2015 EP Shade and continuing with 2017 debut album  Come Around . The band returned in December with their first song in two years, the grimy non-album single "Muck". Rare Form finds Ca$ual absolutely chomping at the bit from beat one. "Flyin' Blind," the EP's frantic opening salvo, has the band looking to take charge. The track's opening words "I built a monster / Just to let it die" burns with the desire to create something you can destroy, and as the EP progresses, Ca$ual's focus on moving forward becomes tireless. The song "Coffin" deals with the fears of losing everything you've built, "Gratitude" is all about the band grinding, and "The Harm" has the band putting on a tough-guy persona with the lyrics "Shit has to get ugly b...

It's always a pleasant surprise when songs resurface. They get tossed online with little fanfare, as a way of "just getting music out there" or freeing up space on a hard drive. Maybe so the DIY scene kids can learn the lyrics before the next house show. It's often more a means to an end than a full-fledged statement. That is how we arrive at "Moody Knows Best," the debut single from Bugsy . Emily Schoonover has been prolific over the last few years, as  Sharon is Karen  (RIP) or as part of Bruise Violet , and now with Bugsy. The quartet are prepping to release their first EP in two weeks, and "Moody Knows Best" is our first delightful sample. Originally released last year as a demo, "Moody Knows Best" is a refreshing slice of punky power-pop. The dueling guitars of Schoonover and Griffen Desai have a natural propulsion, fueling the song like a batch of pure jet fuel. Bugsy are conscious of their strengths - anxious lyrics w...

DURR  - "Scream" (self-released) Hey, look! The first rap we've ever covered! Technically, I heard about "Scream," DURR's new track, because Lucas is also the vocalist/guitarist of local punk heroes Pierre . But here we are anyway - I'm excited! The only throughline connecting the two projects is their natural velocity. DURR tears through a vicious beat that's half 90's boom-bap sample and half skittering high-hats. All it takes is these two elements, tossed into a blender, to make a crunchy, booming beat to flow over. A DURR in motion tends to stay in motion, and he ca$ual ly spits menacing bar after bar, line after line. If you could inject music directly into your bloodstream, "Scream" would give you enough energy to run for miles. "Scream" will (presumably) appear on CAPSAICIN , the album DURR is releasing tomorrow. The Personas - "Picture Show" (self-released) Sometimes a song is just good...

Album art done by Aaron Mylungs If you follow  Bob Ross Mob Boss , you'd know that the band finds it difficult to put a genre tag on their music. Thankfully, the band has figured it out as they get ready to release their most definitive release yet with their second EP Everything's Chrome in the Future . Following up on their 2018 debut EP  Hot Sauce ,  the St. Paul-based quartet has been spending time distilling their sound down to a punchy blend of post-punk, emo, and alternative rock.  Today we are extremely excited to be premiering, "Honestly, Honesty," the first single off the upcoming EP. In an interview with Ear Coffee, members Aaron Mylungs and Bray Fischer talk about the single's theme of a strained relationship and their desire to move into a sonically heavier direction. "That song is a lot about interpersonal stress and feeling unheard in relationships and moving on in relationships," said Fischer.  Each verse is sung through a clenched...

As the Minnesota weather forces us indoors for long periods of time, our tendency to get caught up in our own minds and ruminate is incredibly high. For me personally, being able to pair those moments with music that is open, honest, and raw is incredibly important. Enter songwriter Noah Topliff with the newest single from his band Alexander Natalie , "651."  "651." has us walking in on another conversation, this time over the phone. Topliff is chasing his thoughts around in chorus, singing, "And I know myself, and I don't, want to be here / Runnin' round my head, tryna forget, what it means." An additional layer of vocal harmony from guitarist Samuel Ketcham provides tenderness among the band's expansive folky instrumentation.  For having six members playing multiple instruments, I'm always impressed with the gentle complexity of Alexander Natalie. To put it simply, the music made by this band is absolutely beautiful.  Listen to ...

Noted cow band Harper's Jar has been one of the Twin Cities' most revered and most mysterious bands of the last few years. Despite all the (deserved) attention, they still haven't released a full-length record. That is about to change. Today, we're happy to (sort of) premiere the second single off the debut record from Harper's Jar. "home is a roach motel" keeps things mostly within their wheelhouse, but fortunately, that is one of the best wheelhouses known to man. In an interview with Radio K, the band said that this song is the one that they're most proud of, and it shows. While the overall palette may be similar, it subtly reinvents the expectations fans/listeners may have built up over years of relentless gig-attendance. It lives up to the more colorful, more flavorful sonic universe the band promised. This sounds like a song that will inspire the next generation of DIY punks to start their own bands and flourish in their own realms of nois...

Every once and a while, we extend our "local music" coverage to include bands elsewhere in the Midwest when they have a strong connection to our lil' scene here. Usually, this just means it's a Wisconsin or Chicago band signed to a MN label; in this case, it's Thank You, I'm Sorry . Until recently, TYIS was the solo project of Chicago singer/songwriter Colleen Dow. They wrote an EP of acoustic demos, the malta house demos , and released it online in March of 2019. It was really great. Now, to kick off 2020, they are releasing a re-recorded version of these demos, simply re-titled to The Malta House . Titled after the tiny Illinois town that Dow lived in while writing these songs, the EP is a hauntingly beautiful look inward at the struggles of mental illness and functioning in an inherently flawed society. If the EP's lead single, a re-done version of "How Many Slugs Can We Throw Against the Wall Until We Question Our Own Mortality," is an...

Zaq Baker is getting ahead of the curve. He's released "Down For Whatever," his newest melancholic ballad, in the middle of January instead of July, when I can guarantee that it will soundtrack a montage in a summer romance movie. Or something like that. Baker's songwriting emphasizes the timelessness of love. "Down For Whatever" was specifically crafted to represent the feelings of a youthful affection, but it functions outside of the concept of age — it could just as easily have been inspired by characters born in any decade. The arrangement is instrumentally spare, laying bare the dual vocals of Baker and Lydia Pelletier. It lends itself to the song's story, giving voice to both of the young lovers. Fans of exceptionally genuine piano-rock have much to be excited for, as "Down For Whatever" is the first of a trio of videos teasing towards the spring release of Baker's sophomore record, Good Kid Manic Summer.  See? It sounds like ...

(Cover art by Micha Rose ) Sometimes bands reinvent their sound from album to album. Maybe after a few years on, after an album or some EPs. Fox Theory operate on an entirely different level. After only one release, last December's River Kids  EP, Fox Theory have pivoted from off-kilter indie to a more emo-oriented sound. On the surface, it seems like a twinklier, riff-driven version of the sounds they had been playing with. Everything has been sonically upgraded, giving the trio a much more robust sound. Gone are the synth-parts of yore. On a deeper level, the song goes further into a very specific feeling that far too many newer DIY bands have been through. It would be a fair guess that the titular new beginning refers to the fact that, well, it's a new year/decade. But, it's far more anxious than that. Guitarist/vocalist Jack Daily details a reluctance to step into something new — in this case, the local house show scene. By referencing the unsettling Alan Resn...

Team Killer - "Morn" & "Woops" (self-released) Sometimes, I'm frustrated with bands. I see them rip a sick gig, or hear glowing recommendations from other bands, but I have no way to enjoy their music outside of shows. It's selfish, I know. I just really want to be able listen at any given moment. Team Killer were one of those bands. The quartet built up some healthy DIY buzz over the last year or so and finally they're releasing their first recorded music. It was worth the wait (shout out to NATL PARK SRVC for turning me onto them). The first of two new songs, "Morn," is a surprisingly tuneful piece of foggy rock. It sounds like a shoegaze version of the Strokes filtered through a reverb pedal. "Morn" is also better than virtually anything the Strokes has done in a decade, so jot that down. Nothing is quite clear - vocals, synth, and guitars all wash in and out of focus. However, Colby Boek's drums pound throughout wi...

New Primals  have made a name for themselves blending 70s glitter-punk aesthetics, dance grooves, and noise rock to craft a confrontation sound that is all their own. Combine that with their high energy live performances, and you have a highly volatile cocktail begging to be messed with. The band put out their spastic debut EP Wraith in 2017 and followed it up with a two-song split with the Texas band P I N K O a year later. Now, New Primals has just released the first single in the lead up to their debut album, Horse Girl Energy . "Modern Lover" feels like the sonic equivalent of grabbing a live wire and sending a million volts through your body. The song thrashes around like an animal looking to rip apart a room. The incredibly angular guitar riffs from Sam Frederick are counterbalanced by Eric Nordling's basslines. Despite the feelings affection described by Frederick in lyrics on "Modern Lover," by the end, it becomes clear that those feelings aren...

(Cover art by Billie Renaux) Here's some of that emo that was hiding from my year-end list . Right off the bat, Sonic Sea Turtles establish themselves as capable songwriters, capturing the specific melancholy and self-loathing of Minnesota's infinite winter. The quartet put out their debut EP Sound Pollution  just last August, but they've kept relatively active with releasing new songs (at least for a DIY band). While "First Snowfall" may describe the sky's initial offering of cold and sleet, the emotions are all-too-familiar. "The winter is holding off the spring" isn't the response of someone encountering a new, frozen reality; it's someone who casts their mind back to years of prior understanding and weight. However, there's a slight uplift at the end of the song's harmonious chorus — "construct a fire when it gets cold / there is still summer under the snow." The framing of the seasons simultaneously establishes t...

Another week of mostly catch-up (plus one new one)! If the huge amount of stuff we missed proves anything, it's that there are almost too many great bands putting out great music. Plus, there are only two of us, and we're both busy/tired/sad. Yet we must carry on. There's just too much music journalism money to be made. Sister Species - "Heat Death (Hold Me Here)" (self-released) For a song that is ostensibly about the end of the universe as we know it, "Heat Death" is remarkably calm. Lead by Emily Kastrul (of Betazoid), this septet brings their new single into the harsh light of a fresh winter. In this case, the illumination comes not from the sun, but from the vibrant horn arrangements, in delightful three-part harmonies. The world is crumbling and each one of us is helpless without an anchor. Kastrul pleads for someone or something to serve that purpose and provide the strength to persist through the burning winter and maybe even the combu...

(Cover art by Kai Peterson ) Nailing down the sound of the genre-fluid jazz-punk quintet 26 BATS! is quite the task. It's a little bit of jazz, a little bit of R&B, a little bit of indie rock, and enough soul to make it interesting. However, that's just how bandleader Bailey Cogan wants it. The band released its sophomore record Onyx in December of 2018, and now the band is back with the single "Magnified Iris," one of the first releases of 2020. "Magnified Iris" leaves the listener drifting as the band carefully dances around each other. Starting off subtly, the song grows as the imagery becomes more chaotic, leading to a melodic breakdown as Cogan asks, "When will I learn to harness divine intuitive dynamisms?" The last minute and a half of "Magnified Iris" finds the band vamping over the main melody, expertly playing off one another like we have come to expect with the band. 26 BATS! have definitely set the bar high as we st...

We have a very special thing to announce today - our first charity compilation is out now! All proceeds go to benefit TIGERRS , an awesome local trans/intersex advocacy group. Check out the link to learn more! Special thanks to Why Not, Partition, Floodwater Angel, Natalie Fideler, With Iowa In Between, Doggy, VIAL, niiice., Gully Boys, 4th Curtis, Kate Malanaphy, Keep for Cheap, Internet Dating, NATL PARK SRVC, Juniper Douglas, Alien Book Club, Hawt Glü, Allergen, Dad Bod, and Brace Cove Records for being a part of this! Buy the compilation below! Thank you (preemptively) for supporting TIGERRS! 2020 Charity Comp by Ear Coffee

(Cover art by Isaac Dell) I think this might be what a Why Not ballad sounds like. It's all relative. The Minneapolis trio are ringing in the new year with a new single, following up October's switch-up "Ding Dong." If one were to guess what the band's new year's resolution is based on "No Suggestions Here," it would likely "be more deliberate" or "slow down" or something like that. This is the most subdued they've sounded. As a result, it almost doesn't sound like Why Not (at least until the last 30 seconds). I'm all positive that's what they were going for. With such a dramatic decrease in cacophonous guitars and overall scuzziness comes space. And that space needed to be filled with something. A continued partnership with Caleb of Normal Parents  has filled those gaps with a coterie of weird sounds - skittering electro drums, a chime that sounds like it came straight from a N64 game, more synths that y...