Browsing Tag

Alt 90s

Bleach Bath – Branches: The Only Sludge Pop Debut You Need To Year This Year

Posted on 20 December 2022

With the rhythm section dripping as much sex appeal as the most aphrodisiacal tracks on the Deftones’ White Pony album, the alt-90s oozing from the droning walls of shoegaze guitars that have been distorted out-of-kilter and the killer sludgy pop hooks, the debut single, Branches, from the Tennessee-based artist, Bleach Bath, is beyond promising.

The tinges of emo to the lyricism, which runs through the insecurities that every girl will have battled with at some age, ensured Bleach Bath came out with all vulnerable guns blazing. It is impossible not to get on a level with the singer-songwriter and band frontwoman who has been tearing up stages across Tennessee, priming herself to make an unforgettable debut.

Any fans of Honeyblood, Wolf Alice, Ex Hex, Hole and My Bloody Valentine won’t want to skip this grungy kaleidoscopic dream of uninhibited angst and relatable uncertainty.

Branches was officially released on December 2nd. Check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mike Power – I Like You: prepossessingly pure alt-rock

Posted on 16 December 2022

Fuelling the intimate feels of Elliott Smith with the swanky proto-punk zeal of the Kinks and the melodic colour of the Beatles, the latest single from Mike Power which carries eccentric echoes of Pavement, Courtney Barnett and Decemberists, is a soul-rendered alt-rock riot.

The tight instrumental framework of I Like You allows the affably sweet sentiments in the uninhibited declaration of passion to hit that little bit harder as you lose yourself in the blossoming soul that heightens the winding alt-90s influenced rhythms to the nth degree. It doesn’t quite drop the L word, but I think we can all agree that the ‘like’ phase in a foundling relationship when we’re enamoured by every idiosyncrasy is just as prepossessing.

I Like You is just one of the singles to feature on the increasingly popular sophomore album, Compulsions, from the NYC-formed Mike Power band. We wholly recommend making time to appreciate the dynamism of it in its entirety.

I Like You is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

Steve Twinley – Time Has Always Been a Friend of Mine: Hear the Latest Collision in Indie Electroclash

Posted on 14 December 2022
Sunsneezer (2022 album) by Steve Twinley

Taken from his 2022 album, Sunsneezer, Steve Twinley’s standout single, Time Has Always Been a Friend of Mine, is an indie electroclash earworm awash with 90s nostalgia. With a beat that pulsates with the same ferocity of Emerge by Fischerspooner paired with melodic choral increments that allow you to appreciate Twinley’s softer side, his seminal single inspires you to delve into it time and time again to re-appreciate the seamless shifts in tone and emotion.

The DIY Alt-Rock singer-songwriter hails from the South Coast of the UK and takes his influence from the alt-90s greats, including Weezer, Radiohead, Green Day, Eels and Feeder, but clearly, their inspiration was just a fraction of the creativity of the single that concludes on a psytrance-Esque outro in the same vein of Infected Mushroom.

Stream and purchase Steve Twinley’s single, Time Has Always Been a Friend of Mine, on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

The Alt-90s Cinematically Lives and Breathes Through Agent Envy’s Grungy Industrial Rock Single, No Friend

Posted on 9 December 2022

San Diego artist and producer Agent Envy is fresh from the release of her sultrily fierce single, No Friend, which cinematically amalgamates trip-hop, industrial rock, grunge and metal. Under the wide-spanning influence of acts including NIN, Tool, Massive Attack and Deftones, Agent Envy found her own striking sonic aesthetic that is nothing short of iconic in itself.

Any fans of Warpaint and Wolf Alice will want to sink their teeth into this demurely powerful protest against life’s prolific protagonists who guise their usury entitlement as friendship to take what they can, and guilt trip you when they’ve bled you dry of your empathy but still haven’t quite had their fill.

“No Friend is about finally saying, “enough is enough,” and captures the triumph and catharsis of setting a boundary. The track explores a powerful side of my vocal range not previously featured in my earlier songs, along with the deep, sultry vocals that my audience is familiar with.”

No Friend will be available to stream and purchase on all major platforms from December 9th. Catch in on Spotify & YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nestle into the safe chasm of alt-90s nostalgia with I’ve Tried Sleeping’s single, Without the Faintest Idea

Posted on 23 November 2022

With a moniker as defiantly dejected as I’ve Tried Sleeping, we knew we’d find ourselves head over heels when we dug into their eponymous debut album.

The standout single, Without the Faintest Idea, unravels as though Bob Dylan wrote The Truman show. Sonically, the single is an intersection between the college radio rock vibes of R.E.M., the striking viscerality of the Cranberries and to perfectly round off the single, there’s plenty of unadulteratedly classic rock riffs that drive the searing hot tones right into your synapses while they uplift you from the drudgery of the modern age into the safe chasm of alt-90s nostalgia.

If anyone has a chance of making it in the sorry state the music industry is in, it is the five-piece outfit fronted by Charlie Edwards. They’re a powerhouse, but that doesn’t get in the way of their effortless affability, which makes their tracks a pleasure to endlessly play on repeat. They get better with every listen.

Stream I’ve Tried Sleeping’s debut LP for yourselves on Spotify and Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

DC’s 90s indie rock renegades, Spunk Davies, delivered a fuzzed-up blast from the past with ‘High Tide’

Posted on 24 October 2022

Almost 30 years after their inception, the Washington D.C.-transpiring fuzzed-up rock n roll renegades, Spunk Davies, are launching their album, Your Turn to Scheme: Best of Spunk Davies 1993-97. Comprising of freshly mastered hits and material that has never before hit streaming platforms.

The seminal scuzzy indie rock meets garage rock track, High Tide, is the perfect introduction to their relic of a release that swarms with mid-alt-90s nostalgia and stays true to their dive bar-esque brand of hard, fast, and loud indie that has filled iconic venues, such as the 9:30 and the Black Cat in DC.

Their sound is one that countless bands are keen to derivatively assimilate, but notably, there’s nothing like the real deafening deal that Spunk Davies assertedly delivered in the infectious energy of High Tide. If you remembered them from the 90s, prepare to fall back in love with their erratic riff-gasmic frenetic edge. If, like me, Spunk Davies are new to your ears, set your expectation for one of the most authentic indie acts you’ve heard in the last decade.

The official music video for High Tide premiered on October 15th. Catch it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Fearless Liars bring the groove in their alt-electro-rock promise of perpetuity, Always

Posted on 22 September 2022

Electro alt-rock provocateurs, Fearless Liars have remained a firm fixture of the Denver music scene since 1999. With their 2021 self-titled debut album, their groove-led guitar music gave international aficionados of experimentalism something to sink their melody-loving teeth into.

Retaining their alt-90s sound, the standout single, Always, made a playful promise of perpetuity through the rolling basslines, funk-chopped guitars and analogue synths that will be a hit with any Bis fans. Fearless Liars may not sound like a loveable outfit but after just one hit of Always, we’re obsessed with their enigmatic energy, which makes it easy to see why the independent DIY outfit has never fallen short of adoration in their long-spanning career.

Check out Fearless Liars on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Condition Baker delivered a tenacious exposition of coming-of-age disillusion with their pop-punk hit, One Thing

Posted on 21 September 2022

The Holbrook, MA three-piece, Condition Baker, lace their pop-punk sound with an alt-90s twist; their latest single, One Thing, is the perfect introduction to their uniquely grungy and punchy sound distortion.

The infectious coming of age of lament unfurls around massive guitars fed through layers of frenetic distortion, drumbeats inspired by the Seattle grunge era and lyrics that are hooky enough that you can hang your coat on them before you head to the pit and enjoy the classic pop-punk choruses that keep on giving with every listen.

Any fans of Dookie-era Green Day, Jawbreaker, Descendants and Alkaline Trio will undoubtedly want to delve into this tenacious exposition of adulthood disillusion and exhaustion.

One Thing is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Kablamo traverses the otherworldly in their post-punk-y indie release, Unnatural

Posted on 21 September 2022

Kablamo self-proclaims their debut self-titled EP to be personal, genuine and, at times, indulgent; I can fully attest to the indulgence being universal once you slip into the seminal single, Unnatural.

Unnatural unravels through dreamy guitar melodies, glassy synths and ragged post-punk basslines beneath the dream pop vocals which mellifluously breeze through the sentimentally heartfelt release, which all too readily imparts the emotion. An evocative response to the kaleidoscopic colour of Unnatural is non-optional.

Any fans of Deerhunter, Beach House, Tame Impala and Wild Nothing will undoubtedly want to sink their teeth into this paradoxically ambiently striking release.

The debut self-titled EP hit the airwaves on September 9th. You can hear it for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Miss Kill sharpened their knives in their evocatively jagged alt-90s revival EP, Don’t Tell Me Twice

Posted on 18 September 2022

Few artists create a route back to the 90s as creatively as the Bristol sister duo, Miss Kill. Their debut EP, Don’t Tell Me Twice, hits the sonic Seattle mark just as well as it channels the emotional energy of the golden era of raw, sludgy anthems.

I’ve seen countless bios attesting to the influence of Hole, Pearl Jam and Placebo from artists too evocatively inadept to revive that clawingly consuming candour, not Miss Kill. Even the non-lexical vocals are a skeleton key to insecure soul. Each track on the 5-track release affirms the power of their tenaciously heart-breaking songwriting talent that feels so viscerally comforting in a time of such little relative comfort.

One of the lead singles from the EP, All You Gotta Do, kicks up a tumultuous storm of frustration around artful alt-rock instrumentals while the vocals unfalteringly stretch across the melancholic landscape that deserves to be firmly implanted on the playlists you turn to in protest to the exhausting unfulfillment of life and everything it has to throw at you.

Don’t Tell Me Twice was officially released on September 16th. Sink into it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast