We've been waiting a long while for new music from Abe Anderson, Cannon Falls' resident producer extraordinaire. Not because he hasn't been busy — he's released two albums with two different bands in the last three months alone, on top of recording work and launching a YouTube channel . But it's been far longer since he's released any solo music. From his 2019 debut EP Slacker  onward, there's been a handful of varied yet uniformly excellent singles; however, nothing too definitive. The wait is over with "Love You More," the first single from his forthcoming debut record. It's Anderson's shortest song to date, but it revels in its brevity. Written at the start of lockdown as a tribute to his partner, "Love You More" glows warmly with gracious dedication. Hints of new wave peak in between spidery guitar lines. It's a far cry from the grungy pop-punk Anderson was putting out just over a year ago, but the songwriting has held tru...

       To say we've been waiting for this one for a long time would be an understatement. niiice.  is finally back with their first new single since 2019's Never Better , the stellar EP that launched the trio into the national DIY spotlight. "shlonkey kong" is the appetizer to the band's forthcoming second LP, Internet Friends . The band has boiled all the quintessential elements of the NCU (niiice. Cinematic Universe) into one pure song - so potent it'll get you high in a single hit. Guitarist/vocalist Roddie Gadeberg is an absolute master at writing songs that people can scream along to while still detailing incapacitating anxiety and its many side-effects. Their are weed references galore (would it be a niiice. song if there weren't?), but Gadeberg tells us why  he's smoking so much too. As great as weed is, it's still a coping mechanism to deal with self-doubt, back pain, and other problems. Never Better  was perfect proof of the musical synthe...

(Cover art by PJ Rork ) Oh, how I've missed Lettering . The Chicago trio have blessed us with their first new music since last year's phenomenal Harbinger / Less Violent  EP. The two tracks only add up to just under six minutes of material, but Lettering packs as much punch as humanly possible in each. The A-side, "Corpse & Catholic," is bursting with waves of fuzzed-out guitars and emotive vocals. Defiance of one's past and the guilt of moving on fuels the intense energy. Instead of simmering in shame and complacency, the band fights back. The single's B-side, "Better Hell," kicks off with a drum pattern reminiscent of Foo Fighters' "My Hero." However, it doesn't dwell on it. Almost immediately, the band crashes in with another vigorous yet heavy song. Riff after riff builds the intensity to a shredding scream. Listen to "Corpse and Catholic" and "Better Hell" below, out now via Brace Cove Records .

(Cover by Alexis Politz ) On this illustrious Friday, we've been gifted with a "new" song from Mineapolis' very own niiice . "Sweaty Hands" been a staple of the band's set ever since coming out at the very end of 2018 on the Brace Cove Presents (Vol. 1) compilation (where's volume two?). If the 2018 version was the song's first Pokemon evolution, then this video from DIY Prom last fall (filmed by Bethünni Schreiner) is the second stage, which in turn makes its official re-release as "Sweaty Hamm's" the third and final stage. Do not fret, this is still the same song we know and love. It fully retains the air of anxiety and desperation so candidly depicted in Roddie Gadeberg's lyrics. The lopsided uncertainty of questions like "are you still there?" and "will it ever get better?" are flung into the open as an act of catharsis. Answers may not come, but sometimes all you can do is ask. Bravery is inhere...

There is no way to describe the anticipation that built up before Harper's Jar released their debut record. The band had already left an incredible mark on the Twin Cities DIY/DIT community with the Paperhouse that could be felt everywhere. Almost every conversation about local music over the last few months has somehow pointed to  Thank You Ancestor Finger . I was even invited to attend a show by another band on the bill just so I could see what they described as "one of the best bands in Minneapolis." That band, of course, was Harper's Jar. Like everyone else, I'd listened to Harper's Jar debut EP Ode to a Luna Moth  and was instantly transfixed with the band's blend of brooding '80s alt-rock and the cutting side of '90s grunge. When the record's first single "Dandy Golden Blue" dropped last November, I was beyond excited to see what was to come next.  With all that momentum behind them, the trio of Devin Ware, Alex Dunn, ...

(Cover by Téa McLawhorn) VIAL  are a special band. That much is apparent to literally anyone that has listened to their infectious debut album " Grow Up " or who made it to a show before everyone was stuck inside. Their combination of gloriously in-your-face politics and stellar songwriting has made it abundantly apparent clear that their rising star can is only destined to go higher. And higher it has gone. For a momentous new holiday, the band has re-recorded the punkest song in their current discography, "DIY," to reflect how it has been played live. Bassist Kate Kanfield takes center stage with a vitriolic vocal performance that completely takes the piss out of the posers and jerks that inevitably seem to fill every DIY space. The track was an obvious highlight from the album, but it comes to life even more in the context of a single. VIAL combines genuine punk ferocity with always-relevant criticism of a scene that to this day  still favors groups of w...

Normally, you expect a Harper's Jar song to tear you apart. The band's new single "when you're without me" makes you never want to be apart. Scorched earth guitars and howling passion are substituted with dedication, yearning, and pure beauty. "when you're without me" has my favorite chord progression of the year. From the song's first second, the interplay of guitar and bass dances an elegant ballet, in spiritual sync but moving soloistically. The vocals are delicate and melodious; they invoke an undying love with tender words. The chorus is screamed from a place of control, out of the need to rise above the white noise of existence and to assert true affection. Harper's Jar is a consoling friend, a kind lover, a burst of light through the dark clouds bearing down from above. Any dissonance is resolved with simmering peace. Whether that peace comes immediately or not doesn't matter — it's guaranteed. "when you're wit...

(Artwork by Sara Legel) When Wrister put out their debut record in December of last year, it affirmed my opinion that anything over three minutes is prog rock. "Flowers On The Fault" is a raucous, unabashed ode to feeling complacent and looking for an out. It is two minutes of thrashing drums and jangly guitars that felt like a drop-out anthem. While Wrister's debut album Different Teeth feels like a party record with its loud instrumentation, it's more like a heartfelt conversation in the kitchen while the party goes on around. The record has the band looking for a place to connect, to relate, and to belong, beer-cracking sound effects and all. The album's second single "Lack of Truth" is an earnest look at trying to cut through the noise and uneasiness and find their base. As it progresses, Different Teeth gives way to subtler moments on songs like "Driver" or "Headlights" — the brashness opens up to allow for honesty. I pe...

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...

Following in the vein of Joe's introduction from his list, I embraced the fact that I'm totally still an idiot emo kid at heart. Emo and punk were a part of my formative musical experiences (we don't need to talk about the rest), but I was relatively late to the game with virtually anything other than MCR, Panic, and Jimmy Eat World's "The Middle." As time as gone by, I've allowed myself to be enveloped in the raucous emotions that call the genre home. There won't be a ton of local emo on this list, but that mostly seems to be because a lot of the emo bands I love took the year off. That may totally predict my 2020 year-end list, but in lieu of emo, I found a whole lot of other stuff to fall in love with, from piano ballads to country(!) to whatever the Happy Children are were. Albums and EPs (Cover art by Caleb Hinz probably??) The Happy Children - Same Dif  (self-released) This is unsurprisingly my album of the year. Earlier this yea...

The year may be close to over and most publications have put out their favorite album lists, but that hasn't stopped Twin Cities bands from sliding in with a few last-minute shredders. This includes the debut single from the trio Wrister ,  "Flowers on the Fault." With this track, the band is here to thrash and dash - "Flowers on the Fault" is two minutes and one second of pure jangly punk. Wrister doesn't rely on massive chorus either; instead, they build over a series of verses describing feelings of listlessness which can be summarized by the lyrics "I'm here again in nowhere." Wrister has partnered with  Brace Cove Records to put out this single. You can listen to "Flowers On The Fault" down below. Flowers On The Fault by Wrister

(Cover art by Elaine Mozey) Back for week two! VIAL is keeping up the hype with a second video before Grow Up  blows all your minds on Nov. 29. The band's second single, the album's title track, is a cry for arrested development. You know what's more relatable than wanting to be a kid again? Pretty much nothing! With lyrics by guitarist/vocalist KT Branscom, "Grow Up" lists off the miseries of adulthood (hating how you look, hating your job, bills, the innumerable pains of capitalism). But they find catharsis by just...kinda freaking out a little. After about two minutes of relatively straightforward indie rock, the song shifts to something almost doom-y. The tempo turns to molasses and slows the band to a fudgy near-halt. Katie Fischer's drums thud with just a bit of extra oomph. All four VIAL boys repeat the chorus ad infinitum  - it's half a chant, wholly catharsis. Buy the song on Bandcamp, or stream it on your platform of choice. Grow Up by...

(Album art by Alexis Politz ) It's not quite Thanksgiving yet, but we have been given good reason to be thankful. Indie punk quartet VIAL have blessed us with their debut single and  video. "Rough," off their forthcoming album Grow Up , sets the scene for another fantastic entry in the hallowed halls of stressed-out punk anthems. Regrets and rapidly accumulating angst pile up faster than you can say "get to the gig." The lyrics are shameless in their catharsis. VIAL offset the restlessness by setting their diaristic poetry to a catchy and jaunty punk banger. Buy it on Bandcamp below or stream it on the platform of your choice.  Rough by VIAL The video, directed by Emily Nordstrom  and shot by Sophi Dudley, lightly parodies Scream  and is very good. There's some good ol' kidnapping and murder. Revive the spirit(s) of Halloween and get spooked. But not too spooked - VIAL has another video out next week! Wow! Grow Up  will be re...

Delilah Fang - "Impostor Syndrome" (self-released) Delilah Fang describe themselves as a dream pop band. While many of the traditional elements of the genre are present in their sound, it's somewhat of a misnomer. Perhaps that's just a problem with my pre-conceived notions of what dream pop sounds like. "Impostor Syndrome," one of two singles the band put out ahead of their EP Lonely Once Too , has too much momentum to be a hardcore dream pop song. I mean, yeah, there is  reverb on the guitar and there are moments that one could describe as "washed out." Beyond that, it's a quirky, laid-back tune; to put it into two words, it's a jangly gem.  I love songs that get swept away by the groove, and on "Impostor Syndrome," drummer Alyse Emanuel and bassist Lee Carter have incredible synergy. They never lose hold, even as the song splits in two toward the end.  Somewhat ironically, my favorite part of the song is its most drea...

Let's be absolutely clear: Lettering shreds. The Chicago trio returns with their second single of 2019, following their contribution to We're Trying Records ' Midwest Split . As good as the song was, it was far too short. "YBP" is Lettering's more formal comeback, what with it being the first single from their forthcoming album Harbinger/Less Violent . "YBP" is dense even as it breezes by. Different compositional phases drift in and out of focus, like the wind getting caught in the heavy foliage of an elm tree. On the surface, the song is nonchalant; beyond that, it possess a very deliberate poise. It's a minor major chord in nearly four-minute form.  Fortunately, it is still familiar as the work of Lettering. The guitar work alternates between chimes and chugs and duels with classic, pleading vocals. It's just a bit more expansive than before. In my honest opinion, that's one of the most familiar "new album" tricks. Ta...

There is an anxiety that comes with putting out music under your own name. People will immediately associate it with you, for better or worse. I would argue something against that, though. The courage it takes to overcome that anxiety is a much greater force than any potential negative response. "Somersault" is the first single from Abe Anderson's forthcoming EP, Slacker . Over the course of the last two years, Anderson (best known as the bassist in niiice.) has been tinkering with these songs. At long last, they are about to be put into the world, and we are so excited to premiere "Somersault." The song starts heavily enough with a thudding riff not dissimilar to the stoner punk favored by niiice. Anderson's voice comes in somewhat reluctantly, admitting that he "don't ever want to feel this way." Before he even begins to explain why, there is an understanding of the lyrics' personal nature. Whether it's Anderson himself talking...

(cover art by Bethünni Schreiner ) This is truly an iconic day in Minneapolis  music history. Two of the best punk bands known to man - niiice. and Gully Boys - have just released a split. Both tracks are relatively low-key, compared to the mind-melting shredding on the bands' latest records . However, the pair of trios go out of their comfort zones on their respective song. On "Caffeine," niiice. brings their classic boozy-depressive focus to another ode of exhaustion. Roddie Gadeberg reaches into his falsetto at one point and really expands his voice into new non-screaming realms (there's some screamed double-track vocals, of course). For most of the first two minutes, Gadeberg locks in with the bass and drums. The riffs are a solid as a stalactite, but after about two-thirds of the song the stalactite falls. A subdued harmony of trumpets comes in for a catchy brass interlude (what's a punk song without some...brass?). However, it isn't until the...

For a state that boasts its reputation as a snow hell fairly proudly, there don't seem to be a whole lot of albums about Minnesota winter. Yeah, there's "Sometimes It Snows In April." But that song is way  too beautiful and sentimental to reflect the depressing heaviness that comes with gallons of snow. Even for people that enjoy snowfall and winter, it just sucks  after a certain point. Minnesotans get used to it, though. They suffer with a wink and joke. I would argue that niiice.'s new EP Never Better  hits the dichotomy of these winters right on the head. The songs may not directly reference the frigid season we pretend to love so much, but the emotions coursing through their veins pay direct respect. Opener "Snowbored" is the thesis statement of the record, if you don't mind me getting all high school English. In an interview with City Pages, frontman/guitarist Roddie Gadeberg summed up the song's sentiments: "The normal depression...