Going Steady, An Early Look: New Singles 1-24-20 – 1-30-20

I Think You’re Great – Alex The Astronaut – An Aussie singer songwriter, she’s new to me but she can write circles round most people working this side of the street, a gorgeous guitar lick powers the oddly sad song about a friend who has joined the nine to five ranks, “Have you been playing your guitar much lately…?” is the first line and by the next line, “do you get to see the sky much lately?” you kinda wish she wouldn’t. But it is such a gorgeous melody the upbeatness mellows the sorrow – A-

Blood Bank – Live From Ericsson Globe, Stockholm SE, Oct 31 2018 – Bon Iver – For the tenth year anniversary of the Blood Bank EP, Justin and pals are releasing an extending version with outtakes and live takes, this being the latter, and quite beautiful but you might have hoped for a live version from the early 10s not 2018 – B-

Bright Morning Stars – Bonny Light Horseman, Justin Vernon – Sounds just like early Bon Iver – B+

Heavy Metal – Cindy Lee -haunting art MOR via Canada – B

Bliss Out – Drug Church -emometal, screamed vocals – C+

B1 – Live – Dungen – instrumental jazz metal, a vigorous and loud progness – B

Jerome – Endless Boogie – Stephen Malkmus  featured in a band that lives up to its name on an old school hard rocker  boogie – B

Teenage Hive – FACS – goth metal sound, waking nightmare stuff, with excellent musicianship -especially the guitarist who kills it – B

Don’t Read the Comments – Heart Bones -synthy, 50sish, pop jones – B+

Midnight – Helen Money – winding, whiny cello in the middle of orchestrated darkness – B-

Tongues of Wild Boar – Hilary Woods -art rock like sinking your teeth into your own flesh, dastardly and creepy – B

Philae – Insect Ark – more roiling seas of industrial sounds – C+

Casino Queen – Jackie Lynn -synth bloop EDM pop track – C

P*$$Y Fairy (OTW) – Jhené Aiko – sweet, soulful and very sexy, I saw her opening for Drake back in the day and was less impressed than I am on this dream of song – A-

Blueberry Beads – John Carroll Kirby – Jazz fusion from the heavy duty hip hop collaborator (Solange, Frank Ocean) – B

Waltz – Katie Gately – a deadly waltz filled with foreboding and industrial sound effects – B

Legs, Run – Lala Lala – dreamscape, like an owl in daylight – B

Wave – Laya – harp and violins wind their way between the quasi-operatic vocals  – B

Progeny of the Singularity – Lychgate -black metal weirdos will make your ears bleed… in a good way – B-

Cop Car – Mitski – A song she’s had around for ages, gets dusted off and handed to a movie I plan on seeing,  “The Turning” – B-

Unreal City – M. Ward – An odd, untethered singer songwriter track from Conor’s and Zooey’s buddy  – C+

Dance Of The Clairvoyants – Pearl Jam – Fuck Eddie Vedder, I didn’t get the verified fan code for ticketmaster and Stubhub has tix on sale for thousands.. oh and the song is a complete turkey – C-

Do U Wanna – Porches – not bad bedroom pop though two years was too long between releases and he is more or less forgotten – B-

Reveries – Radical Face – soft soap pop composition, strong bridge – B+

Chew Your Bones – Smoke Fairies – nice harmonies, but the song is too Americana moody would be folk – B-

Xian Man – Stephen Malkmus – He reminds me of Beck -both need to be much better than they are,  I prefer this to his Jinks material (though not Pavement), the guitar sound is a specials sixtyish electric notes plucker – B

Red Light – Tee Grizzley, Hit-Boy – Hit-Boy released a good album earlier this month, this is very average – C

I Feel Alive – TOPS – Intensely smart, pure pop cleverness old school style  – B-

Traverse – Typecaste -industrial strength, metalcore , screamo viciousness – B-

Fire – Waxahatchee – Beautiful folk song with a rock backbeat and a terrific vocal, – B+

Last Sniff – Wilma Archer, MF DOOM – MF Doom is a strange addition to the better living with production art, sonic classicism – B

Terrible Boyfriend – Worriers – At their best, say “Jinx,” Lauren sounds both very tuneful and very exacting, at her second best,  this one, they still is very tuneful and very exacting, and very self doubting with a killer instrumental bridge – B

Fear of Heights – Wye Oak – Typical Wye Oaks indie pop 2009 – C+