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.
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 combustion of our known world.
(Cover art by Keegan Burckhard)
Bobby Rethwish - Limbo (self-released)
What happens when you take a nice salad of the 1975 and throw in some croutons of Bon Iver and a slight drizzle of timeless synthpop? Depends on the restaurant, but I'd warrant it would end up something like Bobby Rethwish's debut album Limbo. To be clear, I'm referring to when the 1975 primarily wrote songs about romance and the wealth of confusion that comes with it, instead of the millennial "We Didn't Start the Fire." Maybe that will come on Rethwish's next record? We can only hope.
Despite the relatively overt influences, his voice remains his own, transcending the sounds in which he cocoons himself. The record's first half leads in with an exceptional batch of manic pop tunes. It makes a great deal of sense that three of the first four songs were advance singles, because they sound like it. They're manufactured to hook the listener with resplendent melodies and subtle crackles of electronics, like sparks from a hearty fire. "Human" begins the transition to the more extensive second half. It retains the free inflections of the prior trio while stripping everything else away. All that it needs is an arpeggiated guitar and Rethwish's voice. Each syllable is drenched in melancholy; they collectively drag themselves into a pool of emotion.
"Memory Pill" offers a brief instrumental segue. Minimal though it is, Rethwish's production skills and piano playing shine through. The final trio of tracks combine this off-kilter production with the prior songwriting. Each song adds roughly two minutes, giving the instrumentation room to breathe and deliberate. Some almost-torch songs, if you will.
Limbo is furnished with everything one wants from a debut record: variety, room to experiment, focus, and most importantly, good songs. The album only came out in October, but I want Rethwish to go full NATL PARK SRVC and put out like three releases within a year. Please?
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 combustion of our known world.
Rachel Bearinger - "River" (self-released)
Christmas has come and past, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate a beautiful cover of one of the least Christmas-y holiday songs. Rachel Bearinger, a local singer-songwriter, released this cover of the Joni Mitchell classic in early December; all profits will go to benefit one of our favorite local non-profits, She Rock She Rock. Bearinger keeps close to the sentimental minimalism of the original, subbing out Mitchell's piano for gentle fingerpicking.
A video was shot at Lake Oelwein in Iowa in collaboration with Good Era Film, a Cedar Falls-based production duo. Buy the song here and watch the video below.
Christmas has come and past, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate a beautiful cover of one of the least Christmas-y holiday songs. Rachel Bearinger, a local singer-songwriter, released this cover of the Joni Mitchell classic in early December; all profits will go to benefit one of our favorite local non-profits, She Rock She Rock. Bearinger keeps close to the sentimental minimalism of the original, subbing out Mitchell's piano for gentle fingerpicking.
A video was shot at Lake Oelwein in Iowa in collaboration with Good Era Film, a Cedar Falls-based production duo. Buy the song here and watch the video below.
justgrey - "Harriet" (self-released)
Another band we saw live that I couldn't help but write about.
justgrey is relatively new, but they've already released two singles (it seems like most bands take way longer to put out even one), and their latest, "Harriet," bears the Normal Parents stamp of approval. The quintet collaborated with Caleb and unsurprisingly the track bears his trademark sense of distorted beauty. Between "Harriet" and debut single "Cordial" (produced by Miloe's Theo Galetka), justgrey has cannon-balled right into the scene with a pair of great singles.
"Harriet" is, in a word, sneaky. From the start, it progresses with an indelible groove, a beautiful mix of slinking guitar and scattershot percussion. For the song's chorus, the band summons an ancient melody and shuffles into an amber encapsulation of anxiety. One of my favorite things about bands that work with Caleb is that none of them sound the same, yet they are unified by the strangely mesmerizing production that is provided to them. justgrey plays with elements of R&B and indie rock, emotive vocals and arpeggiated guitars, gnarled effects and charm, to creat a wholly unique result.
Listen to "Harriet" below.
justgrey is relatively new, but they've already released two singles (it seems like most bands take way longer to put out even one), and their latest, "Harriet," bears the Normal Parents stamp of approval. The quintet collaborated with Caleb and unsurprisingly the track bears his trademark sense of distorted beauty. Between "Harriet" and debut single "Cordial" (produced by Miloe's Theo Galetka), justgrey has cannon-balled right into the scene with a pair of great singles.
"Harriet" is, in a word, sneaky. From the start, it progresses with an indelible groove, a beautiful mix of slinking guitar and scattershot percussion. For the song's chorus, the band summons an ancient melody and shuffles into an amber encapsulation of anxiety. One of my favorite things about bands that work with Caleb is that none of them sound the same, yet they are unified by the strangely mesmerizing production that is provided to them. justgrey plays with elements of R&B and indie rock, emotive vocals and arpeggiated guitars, gnarled effects and charm, to creat a wholly unique result.
Listen to "Harriet" below.
Bobby Rethwish - Limbo (self-released)
What happens when you take a nice salad of the 1975 and throw in some croutons of Bon Iver and a slight drizzle of timeless synthpop? Depends on the restaurant, but I'd warrant it would end up something like Bobby Rethwish's debut album Limbo. To be clear, I'm referring to when the 1975 primarily wrote songs about romance and the wealth of confusion that comes with it, instead of the millennial "We Didn't Start the Fire." Maybe that will come on Rethwish's next record? We can only hope.
Despite the relatively overt influences, his voice remains his own, transcending the sounds in which he cocoons himself. The record's first half leads in with an exceptional batch of manic pop tunes. It makes a great deal of sense that three of the first four songs were advance singles, because they sound like it. They're manufactured to hook the listener with resplendent melodies and subtle crackles of electronics, like sparks from a hearty fire. "Human" begins the transition to the more extensive second half. It retains the free inflections of the prior trio while stripping everything else away. All that it needs is an arpeggiated guitar and Rethwish's voice. Each syllable is drenched in melancholy; they collectively drag themselves into a pool of emotion.
"Memory Pill" offers a brief instrumental segue. Minimal though it is, Rethwish's production skills and piano playing shine through. The final trio of tracks combine this off-kilter production with the prior songwriting. Each song adds roughly two minutes, giving the instrumentation room to breathe and deliberate. Some almost-torch songs, if you will.
Limbo is furnished with everything one wants from a debut record: variety, room to experiment, focus, and most importantly, good songs. The album only came out in October, but I want Rethwish to go full NATL PARK SRVC and put out like three releases within a year. Please?
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