The Reds, Pinks & PurplesThe Town That Cursed Your NameTough Love/Slumberland Records [2023] The Reds, Pinks & Purples was the DIY kitchen pop project of San Franciscan Glenn Donaldson but has quickly turned into his main musical vehicle over the last five years. His prolific writing and releasing of music has benefited the listener for … Read more
Ron GalloFOREGROUND MUSICKill Rock Stars [2023] Ron Gallo has been a very well known name on the indie circuit since his solid 2017 record Heavy Meta was released. He has earned a loyal live following and shared the stage with plenty of big names like Spoon, Parquet Courts, Ty Segall, Thee Oh Sees, Wilco, and … Read more
Narrow HeadMoments Of ClarityRun For Cover Records [2023] Moments Of Clarity is the third long player from Houston’s Narrow Head. The record continues the heavy alternative rock and shoegaze mix the band is known for that transports you back to the 90’s while dealing with the world’s issues of today. Right from the opening track, … Read more
CIVICTaken By ForceATO Records [2023] Melbourne-based five-piece CIVIC are back with their biggest rock album to date. The group lead by the power singer Jim McCullough takes their fiery punk to a new level that is more melodic than previous efforts but delivered with the same take no prisoner passion. After a quick intro track, … Read more
The DrinToday My Friend You Drunk The VenomDrunken Sailor/Feel It Records [2023] Today My Friend You Drunk The Venom is the third long player from Cincinnati’s post-punk group The Drin. The group blends a darker edge of the genre with an overall cold vibe that pulls you closer into the album’s 10 songs. Their sound … Read more
The TubsDead MeatTrouble In Mind Records [2023] London group The Tubs formed in 2018 after the dissolvement of UK post-punk band Joanna Gruesome by former members Owen ‘O’ Williams and George ‘GN’ Nicholls. Their debut, Dead Meat, finds the group leaving most of that early post-punk distortion behind and embracing a classic British folk guitar … Read more
Big JoanieBack HomeKill Rock Stars [2022] It has been four years since the debut album from Black feminist punk band Big Joanie. The UK trio of Estella Adeyeri, Stephanie Phillips, and Chardine Taylor-Stone had a solid post-punk direction but now have branched out into new sound territories on their sophomore album, Back Home. While guitars, … Read more
Ribbon StageHit With The MostK Records [2022] Ribbon Stage are a trio from NYC that have created a debut album that is a compact earworm of noise pop. Hit With The Most is a 20 minute joyride of tight drums, fuzzed out distorted guitar and the floating vocals of Anni Hilator which cuts through it … Read more
The Reds, Pinks & PurplesSummer At Land’s EndTough Love/Slumberland Records [2022] San Francisco’s The Reds, Pinks & Purples can write some of the most gorgeous tragic indie pop songs you will here on the current scene. The group is the primary work of songwriter Glenn Donaldson and Summer At Land’s End is the forth full … Read more
SmirkMaterialFeel It Records [2022] Nick Vicario and his project Smirk gained some deserved spotlight last year with the release of LP. The album combined tracks that originally appeared on two small run cassettes in 2020. Material now represents the first proper full length release from Smirk and it showcases an elevation in both songwriting and … Read more
DumbPray 4 TomorrowMint Records [2022] I really like it when you can hear progression with a band, but the overall group sound doesn’t drastically change. That is the case with Vancouver’s Dumb on their third full length, Pray 4 Tomorrow. The band has already produced two solid indie post-punk albums as Pray 4 Tomorrow carries … Read more
Wild PinkILYSMRoyal Mountain Records [2022] I don’t use the word gorgeous very often to describe music as I feel it never really defines the artists I typically have in my ear. That trend stops with ILYSM, the fourth full-length from Wild Pink. The record is carefully constructed and is both confident in its approach but … Read more
Archers Of LoafReason In DeclineMerge Records [2022] I know that I was not alone in my excitement when I heard that the original four members of Archers Of Loaf reunited and made a new album, Reason In Decline. It has been 24 years since this band released White Trash Heroes (1998), so I think the … Read more
Arctic MonkeysThe CarDomino [2022] When Arctic Monkeys released the lounge affair that is 2018’s Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, I think every fan and follower settled in on that its thematic and low-key delivery was a one-off artistic deviation from the indie rock they ruled the air waves with on AM (2013). Well, it has … Read more
DisqDesperately Imagining Someplace QuietSaddle Creek Records [2022] Can you imagine what it would have been like to release your debut record days before the forever changing pandemic lockdown? Well, that is exactly what happened to Madison, Wisconsin’s Disq as their debut, Collector (2020), was essentially released to silence. No touring and no real way to … Read more
MJ LendermanBoat SongsDear Life Records [2022] Sometimes having too much music in a review stack can be a hindrance because you just know that you have overlooked something. It happens all the time around TFN because we are such a lean run machine as the third record from MJ Lenderman, which was released back in … Read more
Alex GGod Save The AnimalsDomino [2022] God Save The Animals is Alex Giannascoli’s, aka Alex G, ninth album at the young age of 29. He has been a staple on the indie DIY scene for years now and continues to push his own boundaries as a singer songwriter with every release. With God Save The … Read more
WhitneySPARKSecretly Canadian [2022] SPARK represents Whitney’s third album of originals and fourth LP overall with 2020’s cover record Candid. The Chicago duo of Julien Ehrlich and Max Kakacek have continued to evolve their warm 70’s soft rock sound and with each album have taken a bigger musical step forward. SPARK for sure highlights this expansive … Read more
GA-20CrackdownColemine/Karma Chief Records [2022] Crackdown is the third LP from blues, roots-rock, and country revival trio GA-20. The album expands on their previous sound and blows out your speakers with a modern electric blues that honors the past but feels imaginably modern. What GA-20 are good at is making the blues spread across other genres. … Read more
The BerriesHigh Flying ManRun For Cover Records [2022] High Flying Man is the third LP by Matt Berry’s pseudo-eponymous project The Berries. The album shows a progression in songwriting and song structure which results in The Berries best LP to date. The album is a very straightforward rock record which I really like. Its songs … Read more
CheekfaceToo Much To AskSelf-Released [2022] Los Angeles band Cheekface is back quickly with their third album Too Much To Ask and once again it is a lyrical play on words master class that relies heavily on guitarist/singer Greg Katz. His delivery is incredibly important as his humor stirs with point blank reality. This real talk … Read more
CLAMMCareChapter Music [2022] Melbourne punk power trio CLAMM have returned with a sophomore release in Care that is their most fierce and confident effort to date. Their songs rail against systematic power while funneling all that visceral raw emotion into a positive perspective. Basically, CLAMM keep their shit together and nail everything to the wall … Read more
The ChatsGet FuckedBargin Bin Records [2022] Anyone that follows indie music knows that Australia has been a growing hotbed for all genres of rock and punk for the last six years. While other continents have had an infatuation with pop stars and dance one hit wonders, the Aussies have been keeping it real and have … Read more
WomboFairy RustFire Talk Records [2022] Fairy Rust is the new album from Louisville Kentucky based trio, Wombo. The arty post punk from the band is quick at times but overall styled with letting songs develop at a slower pace. The band excels at not taking any music to an extreme distorted level but let’s each … Read more
HooveriiiA Round Of ApplauseThe Reverberation Appreciation Society [2022] Los Angeles psych-rock band Hooveriii (pronounced “Hoover Three”) have returned quickly with their third album A Round of Applause. It is a record that expands out from the more jam-based psych on last year’s Water For The Frogs that presented 7 songs with an average of about … Read more