Posted: by The Editor
The Alternative Weekly Roundup is a column where our staff plugs a variety of new releases in a concise, streamlined format. Albums, singles, videos, and live sets. Check back each Monday to see what we were jamming the week prior.
Color Temperature – me talk pretty
Color Temperature’s warm indie folk seems tailor made for the time of year when spring bleeds into summer. Whether it’s soundtracking “a walk ‘round the neighborhood” or just a lazy day on the porch with an iced tea, me talk pretty is sure to match the vibes perfectly, the jaunt of “skywatch” and the title track lending the placid record a bit of pep.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
CLAMM – “Monday”
Australia’s CLAMM have a new single out, and it is full of angry punk energy; according to Maisie Everett, “Monday” is “a dig at those in charge who seem to reap all the benefits without putting in the work.” It is a song that you can throw your first in the air to, which we all need sometimes.
Jami Fowler | @audiocurio
Interventions – “Target”
Intervention’s urgent, rough-around-the-edges pop-punk is a fresh take on the genre. “Target” feels like a darker, more modern take on classics like “You’re So Last Summer” or “Fluxy.”
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Coupons – “Waiting”
“Waiting,” the new tune from Coupons, starts with a wicked guitar riff under the lyrics “so much for perfect / my head is hurting / at least I’m being honest / I know it’s not working,” with the feel of early 2000s alt-rock. Like their last record Up & Up, “Waiting” doesn’t stay stuck in one mood, as the song shifts to a driving backbeat reminiscent of “Moz Disco” off Up & Up in the bridge. It’s a fun journey and the band sounds great, especially at the end where the bass holds things down to let the guitars go wild for a trippy ending that eventually fades to some impressive vocals to cap it off.
Aaron Eisenreich | @slobboyreject
DAPOOLPARTY – Voices
DAPOOLPARTY has a futuristic indie sound that keeps an active listener on their toes. Throughout his latest album Voices there’s industrial beats, trance experimentation reminiscent of the turn of the century, west coast rock riffs, Metheny-adjacent jazz fusion, and plenty more.
Anne Hurban | @fyrbyrdtransanne
Always Other – “I Just Wanna See You (One More Time)”
“I Just Wanna See You (One More Time)” might be the biggest-sounding Always Other track yet. It’s built on a propulsive beat and an infectious buzzing riff, and it’s got a gorgeously layered, opaque hook that manages to be both catchy and incomprehensible at once.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Ogbert the Nerd – “A New Kind of Borkulator”
At first, Ogbert the Nerd’s “A New Kind of Borkulator” feels like sort of left turn with a bossa nova guitar pattern. The fakeout doesn’t last long, as the lines “the sun comes up, he dies / roll credits,” signal a shift and we’re back in the group’s manic but incredibly tight style of emo with sick riffs, drums that seem to slingshot you from one idea to the next, and lyrics like “it’s not my home / it’s just a fucking building / never really had a chance to be part of it / it’s just a total fucking waste to even say that I lived there.” It’s an instantly lovable track, as the hooks are as fun and catchy as the guitar solos are frantic and mind-bending.
Aaron Eisenreich | @slobboyreject
Den of Wolves – King; Cold
Den of Wolves’ pulverizing new King; Cold EP cements the Charlotte, NC, trio as one of the most impressive, and most versatile, bands in metalcore. In a year that’s seen releases from heavyweights like Underoath and Vein with a Callous Daoboys record on the way, King; Cold still manages to be a standout. It’s a brutal twenty-five minutes that can go toe-to-toe with any of those bands’ latest, from the post-metal riffs that open the record to the southern-fried chorus of “HONEY” to the call-and-response growls in “DOOM.” Den of Wolves has got it all.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
The Alternative’s ‘New Music Friday’ playlist
Each week our editor Lindsy Carrasquillo compiles a playlist of songs our staff has been jamming. We’ll post it on Fridays on Twitter and then include it in each edition of the ‘Weekly Roundup’ to make sure you don’t miss all of the great music we’re recommending.
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