Featured Crucial Releases from Aug 16
Look at me! Working on a post ON release day and not two weeks later. 😄
A bunch of very good releases this week, so let’s’ dig in to the stuff we care about!
Triple Seven by Wishy (Listen)
Wishy is a shoegaze-adjacent band and this is their debut full length, Triple Seven. They’ve received quite a bit of buzz after two very good EPs, Paradise and Mana – both released in 2023.
Wishy isn’t just a straight shoegaze band, as you’ll hear power pop, indie rock, and emo influences. If you grew up in the late 80s and 90s (even early 2000s), Wishy is basically your favorite alternative bands all mixed together in a blender.
I’m a big fan and I think you will be too…
Disaster Trick by Horse Jumper of Love (Listen)
Horse Jumper of Love crosses slowcore with shoegaze to make quiet/loud, intense songs that burrow into your soul – they most definitely could have fit in the 90s indie scene with bands like Codeine, early Karate, Hum, and Red House Painters. I only discovered this band last year after the release of their fourth full length Heartbreak Rules, but immediately felt at home given my love for the bands I mentioned above…
Disaster Trick builds off their discography, while adding a layer of confidence and consistency that results in this being my favorite album of theirs to date. Not to mention it has features from some of my favorite current artists: MJ Lenderman and Karly Hartzman from Wednesday and Ella Williams (aka Squirrel Flower).
If you like 90s indie rock or any of the bands/genres I mentioned above, give this one a listen…though I imagine not many people are late to the game, like I am!
Champion by Pom Poko (Listen)
To wrap up my featured releases for this week, I will give you one record that doesn’t have a certain word mentioned in both of the album blurbs above…I’m sure you can guess!
Pom Poko is from Norway and they play the most catchy, glitchy off kilter indie rock you’ll hear… such a fun listen every time. I stumbled upon them in 2021 with the release of their second full length, Cheater…and so glad I did.
Honorable Mentions
Real Life by Hazel English (Listen) – indie pop/dream pop. Think Daywave, Hatchie, and the like… and very good. Was a serious contender for my top three this week.
In the Shadow of the Holy Mountain by Blind Pilot (Listen) – indie folk/pop hybrid in the same vein as bands like Band of Horses, The Head and the Heart, etc. Very solid record!
Stay Golden by Combat (Listen) – hyper emo in the vein of Origami Angel and apparently a concept album/rock opera. Think Say Anything’s …is a Real Boy.
