Browsing Tag

Indie Alt Folk

Gwac paves the way towards acquiescence in his alt-indie-folk single, Stacks

Posted on 30 December 2022

South Korea-based singer-songwriter, Gwac, unveiled the quiescent alt-indie-folk melancholy in his debut EP, MOHO, on December 19th. Narrating themes of loss, denial, regret and acceptance, the 4-track EP flows through the grief cycle, hitting the most visceral spot on track two, Stacks.

With hints of Neutral Milk Hotel’s In the Aeroplane Over the Sea paired with the monoculturalism-shattering world music motifs, innovation mellifluously spills. The accordance set up by the angular guitar work and woodwind instrumentals fed through torrid effects reflects the storms we weather before we arrive at a state of mind where we break through the listless frustration and arrive at a place of acquiescence.

“Throughout the making of this EP and digging through past experiences, I learned that sadness has a lot of dimensions for me. Some of the saddest memories are sometimes the most beautiful things I know. There’s no need to try and erase them or run from them. By just letting it be, I see a bit of light in my unsettling mind”.

On that note, Gwac’s mind may be one of the most beautiful things I’ve encountered in 2022. His tangible songwriting and instrumentally conceptual talents are one thing; his ability to recontextualise pain and share a brighter philosophical perspective with his listeners is fundamentally requisite in these times.

Stream Stacks on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mark Houston has made his tribally transfixing alt-folk indie debut with ‘Open up the Pages’

Posted on 3 March 2021

Ironically, Mark Houston’s debut single, ‘Open up the Pages’ is the aural equivalent of a page-turner, each progression immerses you more in the canter, it’s mesmeric and unpredictable in equal measure.

For their debut, the Spokane, WA-residing singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist played with funk, alt-folk and indie-pop elements to construct a sweetly connectable single, confrontational through the directness of the lyricism and soothing through the jangly, shimmering pop-rock melodies.

The grippingly poetic lyrics paired with the tribalistic experimental-to-the-point-of-artfulness instrumentals made Open up the Pages one of the most promising debuts we’ve heard this year. Yeah, it’s only March, but the bar has been set extremely high by Mark Houston.

Open up the Pages is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

ReHumanise has released their arcanely eclectic single ‘The Sacred Realm of Sokar’

Posted on 5 December 2020

Embark on a tribally psychotropic journey with the latest release, ‘The Realm of Sokar’, from Irish producer and composer ReHumanise (Damian Brady).

With Eastern and West African rhythms, shamanic influence and the beguiling sitar chimes sitting alongside synths, this cultural smorgasbord transcends what Western music alone could in terms of rhythmic transfixion.

The soul-inspired grooves and hypnotically mellifluous progressions of the Folk single are instantaneously accessible through the infusion of Indie and Rock which will simultaneously remind you of Beck, Hozier and the Stone Roses, but rest assured, The Realm of Sokar is far too arcane to offer even a hint of assimilation.

If you don’t really consider yourself a spiritual person, you may feel otherwise inclined once this stunning release eased to a quiescent close.

The Sacred Realm of Sokar is available to stream on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Scott Rocco – Sum of You: Ardently Enrapturing Indie Americana Alt Folk

Posted on 28 November 2020

Award-winning artist Scott Rocco’s talent in creating soulfully cutting Alt Indie Folk Rock has discernibly got sharper, his latest release, ‘Sum of You’ resounds with NYC romantic cool.

While people are far too busy discussing whether Fairytale of New York should be allowed airplay, they’re sleeping on stunning releases such as Sum of You which delivers pure anthemic Americana while simultaneously exuding the intimacy of Indie Folk.

With their debut album IGNITED in the pipeline, you’ll definitely want this mind-blowingly exceptional artist on your radar. His ability to materialise the human condition and the essence of our suffering in his soundscapes is practically unparallelled. As far as I’m concerned, there is no better purveyor of raw heartfelt rock currently contributing to the airwaves. The level of emotion contained in Sum of You is potent enough to reanimate even the most jaded of souls (I’m pretty much speaking from experience there).

You can listen to Sum of You on Spotify

Review by Amelia Vandergast

8udDha bl0od – HAUn71ng: D3M0n5: Candidly Cathartic Alt Folk Blues

Posted on 20 April 2020
https://soundcloud.com/william-orpen/haunting

Any fans of Alt Folk which comes with an ethereal chill will undoubtedly want to check out the smoking gun of a single “HAUn71ng: D3M0n5” from the experimentally dynamic Brighton-based artist 8udDha bl0od.

8udDha bl0od put his distinctive mark on a timeless sound with HAUn71ng: D3M0n5. It was more downtempo, accordant, and organic than their recent releases. Yet, it was engorging to hear the artist put their soul at the centre of the vocally-led track. 8udDha bl0od’s Indie Blues vocals float synergistically above the stripped-back acoustic soundscape which is candid as it is cathartic.

HAUn71ng: D3M0n5 shares the same accordant arrestive allure as tracks by the like of Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, and Elliott Smith, but 8udDha bl0od definitely didn’t fail to make the soundscape his own. It feels like that should go without saying when it comes to 8udDha bl0od’s music.

You can check out HAUn71ng: D3M0n5 for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Prepare to be captivated by B.W. Johnson’s artfully pensive Alt Folk Pop single “I Can’t Row for Two”

Posted on 19 April 2020

B.W. Johnson’s stripped-bare, emotively haunted standout single “I Can’t Row for Two” had us transfixed from the prelude. As you can see, the track title alone offers pensive poetry. Yet that linguistically bruising wit is just a drop in the ocean compared to what this artful Lo-Fi Folk Pop single contains.

If you can imagine what Radiohead would sound like if Thom Yorke took their sound in a slightly folkier direction and used warmer organic tones, you’ll get an idea of the kind of exploratively emotive alchemy which spills from this timelessly striking soundscape.

I Can’t Row for Two is just one of the singles which feature on B.W. Johnson’s second album French Kiss Lessons, the entire record will undoubtedly enamour any fans of Elliott Smith.

You can check out the album for yourselves by heading over to Spotify now.

Keep up to date with the latest releases from B.W. Johnson via Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jr. Rabbit – Situation: Eccentrically Enamouring Indie Alt Folk

Posted on 5 March 2019

Finding an Indie Alt Folk artist with magnetic amounts of charisma is like finding a needle in a haystack, so, naturally it was a delight to stumble across up and coming US-based artist Jr. Rabbit. His latest release “Situation” is raw, catchy, and oozes with distinction.

Instead of striving for concordant harmonics with his vocals in Situation while he was versing about depression kicking the shit out of him, you’re treated to real, unperfumed, human emotion which hasn’t been polished for ease of ingestion. But that’s not to say that Situation isn’t still a single that you will want to hit play on time and time again for the quintessential candid charm.

Any fans of the biting lyricism of Fidlar and Wavves are sure to appreciate what Jr. Rabbit has cooked up with Situation. And there’s plenty more to come in 2019 from the eccentrically endearing artist.

You can check out Jr. Rabbit’s latest single “Situation” for yourselves by heading across to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast