HEY, DADDY-O: Athens band Wieuca has been getting more and more out there over the past couple of years. Although generally tuneful and worthwhile, the band’s releases have become increasingly inscrutable while remaining reliably entertaining. The latest entry into the band’s canon is a collaboration with Atlanta rapper Father (aka Father’s Liquor Cabinet, Centel Orlando Magnum), and it’s named “William Howard Taft.” The track was mixed and mastered by Murk Daddy Flex, which is a nice name to see attached to this. Father is best known for his 2015 track “Look At Wrist” done with producer ILoveMakkonnen. This new track with Wieuca is quite smooth with a slight amount of Auto-Tune on the vocals, and its slow pacing, along with the wobbly track, gives the whole thing a real psychedelic feel. I have no idea what the lyrics are saying, though, so if you can figure it out, let me know. Find this at wieuca.bandcamp.com and major streaming services.
I CAN’T PUT MY FINGER ON IT: Weirdo band Squeeze the Squid just released a new 12-song album named You Are. This is what happens when kids are born, isolated from society and fed only a steady diet of Ween and Captain Beefheart. If there’s another explanation for this, I can’t imagine what it would be. It’s got all the guttural vocals of Mr. Van Vliet matched pretty spot on with the sense of melody and hook generations have come to appreciate from Messrs. Dean and Gene. After I spun this a few times, it didn’t get under my skin as badly as it initially did, but that’s probably because I now have the antibodies. Your mileage may vary, of course, and if you wanna roll the dice with this, head over to squeezethesquid.bandcamp.com. If you’d like to be extra nice and get these guys a few spins that count for something, then find this on Spotify.
TID BIT: A new track has sneaked out from Russ Hallauer (Ghostmeat Records, Sunbrain, The Lures). It probably wasn’t meant to garner a big announcement or anything. Even so, it’s a sweet song with a nice melody and loving lyrics. It’s called “When The Moon Pulls In The Waves,” and you can find it, as well a ton of other Ghostmeat tracks, over at soundcloud.com/ghostmeat-records.
CHOMP: Resurrected indie rockers Bugs Eat Books have emerged from their mothballs to deliver two new songs on a release named New Songs. The first, “Around,” is a real Jesus & Mary Chain-style stomper, albeit without any feedback or implied anarchy. The second, “Church of the Other Truth,” reminds me so much of The Jam’s “That’s Entertainment,” but it’s got a fuller arrangement and is far less starkly political, although it is similarly personal. Now that the Bugs seem to be moving again, it’ll be interesting to see where they go from here. Click through to the new vibes at bugseatbooks.bandcamp.com.
JUMP START: Athens rockers Kadillak just released a shiny new record, ColorVision, that is a big step up in terms of production and songwriting. The band’s previous release, the EP When I Get There, was released about a year ago. The group is still quite guitar-based but cycles through a few different moods on this. Without a doubt, though, the most significant takeaway from this is the vocals of lead singer Kadi Bortle. Last year, most likely due to the quality of recording, they struck me as being like Rush’s Geddy Lee. Now, though, it’s clear they pull from the same mixed bag as Tones & I, Shawn Mendes and tons of other modern vocalists. This isn’t odd or weird, as bands and singers tend to sound like artists they listen to. Seriously, how many metal vocalists and rappers are totally indistinguishable? While the vocals do overpower much of this record, on the back-to-back honest-to-God rockers “Novela Roja” and “Nausea” the calisthenics take a backseat and the songs are better for it. Musically speaking, the band has some key riffs (“Never Back Down,” the Neil Young-ish “Serial Lover”) that demonstrate where they can go from here, as well as one bona fide pop potential earworm named “True Nature.” Find this at kadillak.bandcamp.com.
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