As you will soon realize, none of the bands written about here are from Minnesota. As we've grown more connected to the nationwide network of bands that Twitter refers to as "DIY," we've found a lot of music that we love. It sucked that we couldn't cover it (as per our own self-imposed limitations). So we decided to change it. This weekly column, the National Anthem, will be one of the primary places we explore releases from all-across the United States (and sometimes even Canada). Don't fret, our hearts (metaphorically and literally) are still in the Twin Cities. We hope that you can find a new band that you love from this.
Interlay - "Spine" (self-released)
Our first venture into the great unknown outside of Minnesota doesn't take us very far. Interlay is a Madison, WI quartet making gothic shoegaze that feels as wide as the night sky. "Spine" is our first taste from a forthcoming EP, a follow-up to 2018's all-too-brief Ritual.
The occult influence is immediately apparent. A haunting ambiance accompanies the band as each instrument gradually establishes itself. Vocalist/guitarist Alexandria Ortgiesen sings with a dead-eyed intensity, summoning a vague sense of dread with delivery alone. Interlay sustains their foggy menace for the song's full five-minute duration without changing much. And fortunately they don't need to — the morbid soundscape they create has enough texture to last more than long enough. This is undoubtedly aided by production from Double Grave's Seth Tracy (whose work here is anything but mid-fidelity).
While "Spine" released at the beginning of the month, I'm very glad I finally came across the song. It builds on the promise of Ritual and teases at what seems to be a very good new release. Watch the video for "Spine" here. Buy and listen to "Spine" below.
GET TUFF - "a piss poor excuse to stay in bed" (self-released)
GET TUFF is labeled by the project's sole member RB Roe as "drama pop." All three singles they have released live up to that descriptor. "a piss poor excuse to stay in bed" presents the same drama in a different context. "rag doll" and "misery" painted with a much darker palette than "excuse," which goes in an unexpectedly neon direction.
Roe packs a lot into what is at its core an upbeat synthpop bop. They fit a lot of detail into extremely deft melodies, grabbing your ear with how unabashedly catchy they are and filling your head with self-aware observations on anxiety, depression, and recovery. There's familiarity in how Roe depicts the days where it'd be a miracle to ever get out of bed. Even with lessons learned and knowledge of how it always goes, they are incapacitated by fear and the sting of every betrayal. Their anxiety is "deeply in love" with its place at the forefront of their brain and refuses to let go. The pastel pulse of the beat for "excuse" gives each lyric just enough extra punch to keep you coming back for more (I have listened to the song six times in a row and cannot wait for a seventh, to illustrate the point).
Buy and listen to "a piss poor excuse to stay in bed" below.
Philadelphia's no thank you makes music that shimmers. The trio plays a mildly heavy brand of indie rock, mixing it up with sounds that would fit in at any point since 1994. New single "Enough" cranks the grunge meter, especially in comparison to the poppiest moments of their back catalog (see: "Juicy J"). no thank you has been heading in this direction since 2018's All It Takes to Ruin It All; "enough" is the natural result of the fuzzier experiments on that album.
Vocalist/guitarist Kaytee Della Monica is a guiding lighthouse for any ships lost in the downpour of fuzz generated by her and her bandmates, Evan Bernard and Nick Holdorf. The visceral actualization of her need for a partner "to be in love enough to earn my trust" roars like a tidal wave throughout the entirety of "Enough," only to come crashing down in its final seconds. "It's never enough," the song's last lyric, lingers in your ears well after the song ends, covered in the wash of noise that accompany it.
"Enough" is a perfect introduction to the sound of no thank you's forthcoming album, Embroidered Foliage, out October 23 via Lame-O Records.
Bloomington, Indiana's Pictures of June is a wave of static noise on the path to cleanse you. The screamo trio pushes the limit on the four tracks of new EP Ghost of the Feast. Live wire tension is programmed into the DNA of their chosen genre but even still, Pictures of June walks the tightrope with rehearsed deadly precision. Their previous EP Thanks for Everything...Thanks for Nothing set up a template for intricate, cathartic music with emo's trademark ironic song titles. Ghost of the Feast continues on in even beefier fashion.
The riffs on these songs are faster than a ricocheting bullet, setting your head ablaze. Opener "Kevin Spacey Kill List" dazzles with technical glee even as it howls an anti-predator screed against the titular actor. "Between the City and Home" finds space to create a sweeping dance between punishing noise and jaunty riffs right out of a jangly indie song. The volcano of "Six Seasons and a Movie" has absolutely nothing to do with Community. Instead, the band evokes a full-scale prison break, sonically and lyrically. The residual pain of past experiences clings closer to the heart than ever expected and looms over every new day with oppressive darkness. Closer "V" shrieks the EP to an end. All three band members - Wilder, Noah, and Jacob - yowl with a dying fury as the song dissolves into static.
Pictures of June will give you ironclad catharsis unlikely to be found anywhere else. Buy and listen to Ghost of the Feast below.
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