02/27/24 [Home Sweet Home, Vulfpeck Reincarnate and Diamonds in the Rough]
I know, I know I’m late 😦 I was busy enjoying the beautiful weather out here in Chicago so here I am posting late. But, I’ve got some good shit up my sleeve.
A lot of these songs I found over the past weekend while walking around in the sun. Enjoy these mementos of songs found during warm weather and good vibes.
Here are FIVE new songs to listen to from artists with under 1,000 monthly listeners to widen the horizons of your musical journey:
Bedford, “Fruition”
Okay, I have something to admit– I’ve been sitting on this song for a couple of weeks because I wanted to savor it for a little longer. “Fruition” by Bedford reeks of blues and the grittiness of late-70s rock making for a charged and interesting fusion. The songs got groove right off the bat in the drums and bass and after the rhythm is established the vocals come in and make you feel drunk. The lyrics are catchy and the singer’s runs are a little rough around the edges in the best way possible; they pull you along. The reverb on the vocals makes his voice seem far away like he’s singing through an old microphone. A drum hit in the middle of the song separates the chill and flowy first half from the thrashy double-time in the second half. This swing of pace is unpredictable and fun, it feels cathartic. I also feel the need to express how excited I was finding out this band is from Kentucky… representing home well.
Otis Grove, “Big Skinny”
This song is a jaw-dropper, at first, I didn’t think I had any words to say about this song because it took the words out of my mouth. “Big Skinny” is an amazing representation of the beautiful collision of new and old–analog and modern. This song feels super sample-heavy and uses this as leverage to highlight the scratching of records and usage of tape to its advantage, feeling super nostalgic and 90s. The drums are so clean and modern but speaking of modern we have to talk about the nasty synth we hear in the second half of the song. The synth is so futuristic and light, balancing out the bottom heaviness we hear throughout. I’m always into funky drums so when I found Otis Grove I immediately knew I just discovered a gem. This is the shit you find yourself bangin’ your head to cause it’s so clean. So crazy.
Muscle Tough, “Muscle Funk”
“Muscle Funk” is a short, goofy song by Philly band Muscle Tough. The meter in this song is freakishly irregular, doing its own thing and succeeding at it. Even though the meter is irregular there’s a path here but it’s entirely flexible. This song actually REALLY reminds me of Vulfpeck with its jam-bandy sound to it. The song is quirky and unique and is definitely magnified by the eccentric tone of the guitar throughout (Cory Wong, I found your twin!!!!). The ending has just as much character as the beginning, ending on a quirky bass note with a matching reaction from the drums. I’m so glad that funk is making a comeback and I hope people start doing some weird cool shit because of it. And just like that, our two minutes with Muscle Tough is over… but it definitely leaves us wanting more.
The Present Age, “Husk”
Mysteriously, The Present Age strings its listeners along on “Husk” their third track off of their 2020 album. The song starts laying down the foundation of the song; almost like it’s asserting its dominance on this song (I’m sorry I didn’t want to use that word either.) The drums linger in the air and picking starts on one of the guitars and leads us right to the vocals. The vocals have the ability to put you at ease but if you listened to the lyrics you’d realize the opposite. Strings is such a mindblowing addition to this desolate song and adds this theatrical element to the piece. The song feels subtly murderous until we get blasted with a taste of the band going from 10% to 95%, it feels like this interlude to the creepy and slow beginning. The beginning creeps up on you slowly while the rock-heavy parts shock. A bass solo and guitar scratching add to the story of the song until we reach the end with wailing guitars that sound like sirens and then the abrupt ending. Radiohead has an evil cousin on the come-up.
Casey Smith Project, “Shattered”
Far away from Chicago, the Casey Smith Project, straight outta Fairbanks, Alaska, stuns with their song “Shattered.” It feels like a love story gone wrong, or you’re met with a decision you just can’t swallow. This trio calls for an interesting combination of music and all the instruments sound different but mesh and cover all bases. The bass and drums feel slow and dark while the rhythm guitar is higher pitched and repeats consistently as the thread tying the entire piece together. The vocals are desperate but wise and the guitar has this sad trippiness echoing throughout as the lead guitar plays around with its strumming. The guitar and vocals are having a conversation we can understand. It feels like you have the voice of reason on one shoulder and the devil on the other. This just proves there’s good music everywhere, and its so interesting seeing places have their own sound.
As always, I’ve got Bandcamp linked for all artists and I seriously recommend checking their pages out and supporting the artists directly. Nothin’ like supporting an indie artist and knowing your money is going directly to the artist.
If you’ve got a song you think needs a little more attention send it my way and I’ll give it a listen.
I’ll see you guys in a week!
where do we go from here? 
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