Browsing Tag

Elliott Smith

Number One Babe Team delivered spiritual salvation in their alt-indie single, The Final Hallelujah

Posted on 18 June 2023

With subversive references to While My Guitar Gently Weeps in the lyrics and a touch of Neil Young to the lightly timbered sentimentality in the vocals, the standout single, The Final Hallelujah, from Number One Babe Team’s debut LP, See You Later, is a euphonic reverie of nostalgia, which more than has its place on contemporary airwaves.

As alluded to by the indie band’s moniker, Number One Babe Team doesn’t take itself too seriously, making their soundscapes, which also incorporate shoegaze-y guitars and touches of Elliott Smith in the songwriting, infinitely sweeter.

If Neutral Milk Hotel honeyed their soundscapes to the nth degree but still maintained the quaint humility, the result wouldn’t be too far removed from the sonic signature scribed by the Salt Lake City premier act, which has become an integral part of the touring circuit since their 2022 debut.

Stream the full LP, which hit the airwaves on June 9, via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Partisan Way gave hope to the hopeless romantics in their indie synth-pop sugar rush, I Know What You’ll Say

Posted on 3 June 2023

It may have been almost two years since we heard Partisan Way, but there was no forgetting the artisanal sonic sugar that emanated from their blissfully affectionate indie-pop hit, Borrow Me.

In 2023, they’re back on the airwaves with their single I Know What You’ll Say, which starts in the middle ground of The Beatles and Elliott Smith before there is a smooth transition into a synth-kissed summer bop, which celebrates the agonising pain of pre-emptive anxiety before a romantic proclamation.

Ultimately, I Know What You’ll Say is a waltz-y indie psych-pop invitation to embrace the beauty of vulnerability. The entire single is a testament to that very beauty; hopeless romantics may even gain some hope by the time the big synth outro comes around, following the honeyed high vocal lines atop the pop instrumentals that meld classic and contemporary songwriting. Wayne Coyne himself couldn’t have hit those notes better.

Just when we thought we couldn’t have any more predilection towards the indie outfit fronted by Dan Tierney, I Know What You’ll Say, in all its polyphonic synthy glory, allowed our soft spot to become infinitely softer under the duress of the unassured soul in the vocals.

Stream I Know What You’ll Say on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

MER reached the pinnacle of cathartic intimacy with ‘When I’m Alone’

Posted on 18 May 2023

With a touch of Adrianne Lenker to the vocals and a lo-fi ethereal guitar atmosphere which will placate the staunchest Elliott Smith fans, the NYC-residing singer-songwriter, MER’s latest artfully vulnerable single, When I’m Alone, reaches the pinnacle of cathartic intimacy.

The descent into Avant-Garde indie bedroom pop obscurity just before the track fades to a close gives you the compulsion to dive back into the passionately elevated arrangement while pulling in reminiscences to Mitski. But make no mistake, When I’m Alone is no feat of assimilation.

The visceral soul which emanates from the experimentalism is a testament to the originality of MER. The lyrical experience of fierce independence as a coping mechanism may be a relatively universal phenomenon, but MER is one in an expressively eloquent million.

When I’m Alone hit the airwaves on May 12. Hear it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Romanticism picks up in the airy American breeze in Ewan Jackson’s debut single, Counting Houses

Posted on 29 January 2023

Using real estate as a parable for the sanctity of emotional warmth was an ingeniously affectionate move on behalf of the singer-songwriter, Ewan Jackson, in his debut single, Counting Houses.

As sentimentally pure and rhythmically compelling as Elliott Smith’s iconic work, the single is a sweet ticket to a higher plateau, where love transcends the physical realm and becomes a meta phenomenon with few constraints.

Romance isn’t dead, it is picked up in the airy Americana breeze of this quiescent indie lullaby, which will rhythmically rock you into contentment while the vocals find the enamouring balance between playfulness and cupidity.

Counting Houses officially released on December 16th; hear it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Australian alt-indie singer-songwriter Greg Barnett advocated for nature in his existential serenade, ‘The C-Bomb’

Posted on 15 January 2023

Starting his single with clips of Donald Trump’s cognitive dissonance was a bold choice, but his obnoxious tones will always evoke a visceral reaction from the minds Greg Barnett aimed to compel with his standout single, The C-Bomb.

Taken from his massive 30-track debut LP, The Flat White Album, the single reminds us of the role we all need to play in salvaging the planet before it burns hotter than the temper of a right winger when expected to find a modicum of empathy or awareness.

The orchestrally laced alt-indie-folk soundscape that will make any Elliott Smith fans feel instantaneously at home delivers a shot of vindication through the affirmation that you’re not alone in your climate anxiety. Which is as warranted as it is a necessity if we want to take back our world from the disaster capitalists who would be happy to walk in the ashes as long as there are enough 0s in their bank balance before the curtains close on humanity.

The C-Bomb is available to stream 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

 

Thom Morecroft – The Last Day You Left Home

Posted on 2 December 2022

Thom Morecroft is a singer songwriter who loves to bring intimacy with melody and energy into one concise, yet catchy formula. His most recent single, “The Last Day You Left Home”, is a very earnest and understanding song that has a warm sound, and an even warmer heart to it.

The production quality is quite astonishing. It offers a really clean and pristine sound, but definitely not a sterile tone by all means. The balance is awesome, and it enables the listeners to fully enjoy the nuances that they can experience in Thom Morecroft’s music and lyrics alike. “The Last Day You Left Home” is at times energetic and catchy, at times personal and understated, echoing the work of influential artists such as Damien Rice, Elliott Smith, and Iron & Wine, only to mention a few.

Find out more about Thom Morecroft, and check out “The Last Day You Left Home” on all the best digital streaming services out there. This release is going to be a must for fans of indie-folk.

Spotlight Feature: Australian singer-songwriter, Ted, sang an insurgent indie-psych-folk lullaby in his latest single, Revolution Then

Posted on 17 November 2022

The Australian Indie-Folk singer-songwriter Ted’s latest single, Revolution Then, is definitive proof you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

The artfully quiescent call for sense to coalesce with postulation resonates like a semi-lucid lullaby, affirming enlightenment doesn’t always need to be synonymous with anger and despair. Sometimes, it is just enough to be on the right side of history.

While Elliott Smith’s records will always be there to soothe us in our darkest hours, he’s no longer here to transcribe humanity’s darkest hours. That crown has evidently fallen upon Ted, who is fearless in his quest to hold a mirror to the most tragic facets of our existence before reflecting them through his psych-tinged arrangements crafted in the mellifluous framework of his music, constructed by guitars, bass, drums, sax and keys – all recorded from his bedroom studio to feed us the intimacy we never knew we craved in these polarity-defined times.

“The song is loosely based on the French Revolution. I was inspired by some more recent political events which occurred in the US. I wanted to convey this in a way that was like telling an old story to a child, like in a nursery rhyme.”

Stream Revolution Then via Spotify.

Follow Ted on Instagram and TikTok.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Allan Hill is profound in the indie-folk delicacy of his sophomore album, Oxford

Posted on 26 June 2022

With each single an embodiment of warmth and compassion, any indie-folk fan with a semblance of self-awareness will want to make Allan Hill’s sophomore album, Oxford, their aural home.

In the same vein as Elliott Smith, Adrianne Lenker (Big Thief), and Sufjan Stevens, the album which was officially released on June 10th, is profound in its delicacy. Consisting of little more than subtly warm synths, banjo, fingerpicked guitars and quiescently revealing vocals, the release aids just that; the release of every frustration our isolated age has imparted.

With finding resilience being an overarching theme, which ebbs through the nine-track release, by the time Goodbye Blue Monday rolls around you have a confidant in the Canadian artist.

Starting with the single, Angell Woods, which was recorded in one take in the woods, it is all too easy to ease yourself into the enveloping accordant resonance of the LP. Before track two, This Time of Year cuts to the bone with the precision of the artist’s ability to allude to weather-triggered emotion that words alone can never explain.

The sepia-tinged melodicism of the title-single allows the fact that Hill only picked up a guitar during lockdown almost unbelievable. As simple as the light production, which contrasts the heavy lyricism, may be, there’s a tenacity to the rhythm, allowing it to feel as natural as breathing.

Here is what Allan Hill had to say on his sophomore release:

“Oxford delicately documents the process of starting over and coming to terms with solitude, guilt, and inevitable change in real-time. Impermanence is a common theme. Empty stretches of highway, late night phone calls, decaying suburbs, violence, tender conversations and flora and fauna are all intertwined to create an intimate yet isolating universe.”

Hear the album on Spotify & Bandcamp. Follow Allan Hill on Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Allan Hill muses on impermanence in his sophomore album, Oxford

Posted on 26 June 2022

Unlike many lockdown-born projects, the Indie-folk solo artist, Allan Hill, didn’t give up the ghost when the bars opened again. After his 2021 debut, he’s revealed the delicate melancholia refined in his sophomore 2022 album, Oxford.

In his own words, the LP is a “coming of age turning inwards and an exploration of impermanence, nostalgia, isolation and queerness.” In the title single, the invitingly warm plaintive soul wraps around the simplistic admission, “everything keeps changing, and I’m fine”, which isn’t profound in itself until you start to consider the journey an artist had to go through to make that proclamation.

The fingerpicked Either/Or-era Elliott Smith reminiscences may be strong in the nature entwined single, but Hill’s autonomy as a stunningly talented artist in his own right is enough to quiescently beat them into submission.

Oxford is now available to stream on Spotify. Grab some tissues first though, yeah?

Review by Amelia Vandergast