Tag: indie music

Posted on

Blue October – Moving On (So Long)

Blue October is an alternative rock band from Houston, Texas. They’ve been around since 1995 and scored a couple of big hits in 2006 with Hate Me and Into The Ocean as well as a good number of top 40 singles. I’ve never been that much into them but I’m reconsidering that because their 10th studio album, This Is What I Love For, released back in October, got a bunch of really great songs, such as Fight For Love, and today’s addition to the mixtapes: Moving On (So Long). I checked their back catalogue again and it’s better than I remembered. I’ve been wrong about them all this time.

Moving On (So Long) is a folksy track with a country vibe to it. The tune is certainly very radio-friendly but in a nice way. One of those songs that can lighten up your mood right away. Quite frankly, it is a great song to start your weekend with.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative
  • Folk/Indie

Posted on

Plain White T’s – Let Me Take You There

If you know only one song from Plain White T’s, it’s likely to be Hey There Delilah. By far, the band’s most successful single and a beautiful song indeed. That track was part of their fourth studio album, 2007’s Every Second Counts, which also featured a tune that I really loved back then called Let Me Take You There. I hadn’t listened to it in years until I stumbled upon it again earlier this week. It’s a gorgeous song that got overlooked due to the incredible success of that other song mentioned above. I hope you can enjoy this gem as this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative

Posted on

Kaleiders – Alright

If you’re a fan of The Gaslight Anthem, chances are you will like Kaleiders too. Although not specifically from Manchester, this four-piece band hails from nearby Warrington and aims to bridge the gap between melodic punk and indie rock, resulting in a sound not that different from the popular American band mentioned above. Alright, in particular, which was the first song the band ever recorded in 2016 but have now remastered to give it new life and a cleaner sound, gives me that vibe. This new version is part of the band’s brand new debut full length album: Melancholy Undertones.

A guitar-driven song, Alright is high in energy and riffs while also having an optimistic flavor. It’s evident that we have a talented band in Kaleiders, the question is whether or not they can be consistently good. Only time can tell but I like their odds. So far, so good.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative
  • Punk-Rock

Posted on

Suave Martyrs – Tell Me What You Wanna

Mancunian band Suave Martyrs have been releasing new music at a steady pace since completing their lineup in 2019. They describe their style as a blend of ‘60s West Coast rock, Manchester-era indie and psychedelia, but their latest single, Tell Me What You Wanna, is supposed to be a departure from their usual approach. I’m not too familiar with their previous tracks in order to comment on whether that is a good thing or not, but I, for one, really enjoyed the new sound. It reminded me a bit of New Radicals and similar bands from the late ’90s.

Tell Me What You Wanna was written during the lockdown, which each band member coming up with their parts separately and merging them in production. All in all, the end product is pretty impressive considering the circumstances and the fact that the band was going in a new direction. I don’t know if the Suave Martyrs are planning to stick with this new sound, yet I hope they give it a try. It’s catchy and sounds fresh in today’s environment. Make sure to give them a try here.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative

Posted on

Bleachers ft. Bruce Springsteen – chinatown

Jack Antonoff is behind a huge number of hit songs today but casual listeners might not recognize him by name. He is a guitarist and drummer on the band Fun., which went on a hiatus in 2014 so that its members could focus on other projects for a while. Jack went on and created Bleachers, an indie pop band that hit it big with its debut album Strange Desire (2015), to the point that it made Jack one of the most sough-after songwriters and record producers in business today. He has written/produced songs for the likes of Taylor Swift, Lorde, and Lana Del Rey, just to name a few.

When I saw that Bleachers had a new song featuring fellow New Jersey native Bruce Springsteen, let’s just say that it really caught my attention. I’m happy to report that the track is as good as expected. It really sounds as if Bruce were singing a Bleachers song or vice versa. It sounds classic and modern at the same time and from the moment I listened to this gem for the first time, I knew I had to feature it here. Enjoy this instant classic below and good luck getting that chorus out of your head!

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative
  • Folk/Indie

Posted on

Pulley – Thanks

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the US, which is why I thought it appropriate to feature a little known gem called Thanks as this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry. This concise but sweet song is just 74 seconds long and was the last track on the fifth studio album, Matters (2004) of California-based punk rock band: Pulley. This band released 5 albums between 1996 and 2004 and only one since then until now, and whereas they never reached the popularity of other punk rock bands from that time, they garnered a loyal following. Something curious about them is that Pulley‘s lead singer, Scott Radinsky, was a major league pitcher and a pitching coach after he retired.

Most punk-rock albums feature one or two acoustic tracks and Thanks was that song on Matters. It is a tune to reminisce about the past and appreciating your old friends.

To those of you celebrating it today, Happy Thanksgiving!

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative

Posted on

Dirt Royal – Lose Our Way

If you are looking for alternative rock music that can cheer you up, Dirt Royal is just the band for you. This three-piece band from Brighton, UK, merges garage rock and punk to produce energetic music that is catchy and fun, including satirical lyrics commenting on serious socio-political issues. After starting in 2013 and releasing a debut album in 2014, they worked on a number of singles and EPs over the years, but hadn’t released another full album until last month, when they dropped Great Expectations, an upbeat album that is on-brand with the band’s style of infectious melodies and chanty choruses, while discussing themes like unrealized potential and nostalgia.

Lose Our Way is the last song on the record and also its second single. It’s a perfect example of everything I said above. Check it out below and pay attention to Dirt Royal. They are here to stay.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative
  • Punk-Rock

Posted on

Tough On Fridays – Patches

Tough On Fridays is a three-piece rock band from Texas that started in 2017. It is female-fronted, which is always nice to have in rock music. Their sound reminds me of late 90s alternative rock, but, if you listen to their latest album, A Fantastic Way To Kill Some Time, you will see that some of the tracks got elements of punk rock as well. If you want to read a fantastic review of that album, just head over to friend blog, Eclectic Music Lover, as Jeff wrote about it last month. It is spot on, as usual.

Instead, I will focus here on Patches, my favorite track on the record. I really like the mellow guitar that emphasizes the melancholic vocals. The lyrics, singing about an unrequited love, are honest and relatable. Who hasn’t been in that position at some point in time? In fact, I think authenticity could be Tough On Fridays‘ brand, as they are making the music they like with real lyrics about what they actually feel or think. In the age of the influencers and people pretending to be someone they’re not, it’s refreshing to hear a band who just wants to keep it real.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative

Posted on

Our Lady Peace – Life

The first Our Lady Peace song I heard was Superman’s Dead, and, at least at first, I didn’t like it that much. It wasn’t until they released Spiritual Machines, their fourth studio album, that I started to take them seriously. I’m glad that happened because otherwise I would have missed out on some great music from these gods of Canada’s alternative rock scene. The band has just released a remastered edition of this double-platinum certified album to celebrate its 20th anniversary, reason for which I decided to feature one of its best songs as this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry.

All things being equal, I would probably have chosen Right Behind You (Mafia) for this entry, but Life is just as good and has a beautiful message that is more valid than ever today; message that OLP managed to transmit quite well on the music video (see below). Sure, life can be messed up sometimes but everybody is dealing with some issue, one way or another. We just have to keep moving on. Call me crazy, but I think this song comes in handy this year.

By the way, Our Lady Peace announced that they’re working on a follow-up to Spiritual Machines and plan to release it next year. Color me intrigued.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative

Posted on

Counting Crows – Mr. Jones

Musical taste is totally subjective and the process of coming up with favorite songs even more so. It’s not just about the quality of the tune because not all great songs will become special to you. There’s a bit of randomness or luck involved. Listening to a song for the first time at the right time and place in your life will play a huge factor because then it will be forever linked to a certain moment or phase in your life. Mr. Jones by Counting Crows is definitely in my top 5 and a big reason behind that is that the first time I heard it (a few years after its release), I had just finished high school. It is an incredible track, for sure, but I know that I love it that much because it can transport me back to that point my life. Which song has the same effect on you?

Anyway, here’s this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry. Enjoy this #musicalcrush of mine.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

  • Everything
  • Alternative