Sabine Colleen on “Electric Heart,” Vocal Inspirations, and The Power of the Banjo
The title of Sabine Colleen’s new song, “Electric Heart,” almost sounds ironic from the first listen. This is not electric music; it’s acoustic, for one thing, and for another thing it sounds like it was conceived before Edison invented the lightbulb. Over the earthy pluck of a banjo and a raspy, sawing fiddle, Colleen sings […]
Grimson on “Chimney Sweeper” and its Ambitious Animated Music Video
The music video for Grimson’s new song, “Chimney Sweeper,” is as ambitious as the song itself. Rows of cute kids-drawing people sway cheerfully from side to side before morphing into Russian nesting dolls; footprints track playfully across the screen in time with a bass solo; streaks of primary colors flash across the screen during the […]
Mountain Mansion on “Fog Walker of Copton Ridge,” Being a Fire Watcher, and Suspiria
I’ve found myself increasingly attracted to stories of the paranormal these days: ghost stories, UFO sightings, mysterious disappearances. They don’t have to be scary–in fact, I’m something of a baby when it comes to horror–but the fantastical stories themselves are enough to draw me in. I don’t care if they’re true, because the truth is […]
Joshua Powell on “Sad Boy at the Skeleton Party,” Guitar Solos, and NPR Ambitions
There are so many flavors of indie rock that it’s hard to say you “miss” any one kind of it, because there’s almost certainly a dozen Bandcamp pages that can scratch any itch you have. But as the dominant strains of indie rock have grown more dreamy (your Beach Houses, your Real Estates) and/or more […]
Constant Follower’s Stephen McAll on “The Merry Dancers on TV”
During the summer between my junior and senior years of college, I spent a month studying abroad at the University of Stirling in Scotland. It was the first time I had been in a foreign country by myself, and I fell in love the same way every student studying abroad falls in love. (I made […]
Christopher Paul Stelling on “Driving The Hearse” and Finding Comfort in the Gloaming
Death is the ultimate reminder of mankind’s limitations. We can get starry-eyed about endless possibilities and throw around bromides like “if you can dream it, you can do it,” but the fact is that there are some things we simply cannot do, and there are facts of existence that we can’t dream or invent or […]
Deborah Stokol on Literature, Art, and “I Had a Long Convalescence…”
Deborah Stokol is the kind of artist I wish to be: someone who synthesizes their various interests and preoccupations into a fruitful, prolific career. Stokol is passionate about art, literature, and music across history, as is evident from her adaptation of one of the Canterbury Tales into a sprawling prog-folk fantasia. On her new song, […]
Winterlark on “When I Saw You Stranded There” and the Delights and Fears of Songwriting
Folk-jazz band Winterlark sets the scene: two strangers, a hot idling day, stranded in traffic. The speakers spot each other between the cars, a half-glance between sirens. And suddenly, everything changes. The song, titled “When I Saw You Stranded There” tells a meet-cute love story with vivid energy. Kristin Olson plays the upright bass and […]
Ryan Cassata on “Guard Rail,” Queer Art, and Long Island
When we last checked in with the Long Island-raised and LA-based Ryan Cassata, a multi-talented songwriter and activist, he had just released “California Woman,” a stripped-down acoustic number with an effortless sense of vintage rock-star cool. Never one to settle down and stick with one sound, Cassata has released several other songs since then, with […]
Rascal Miles on “Asylum,” Vulnerability, and Safety
Vulnerability is a challenge in life and a necessity in music. Rascal Miles perfectly captures the sacredness of vulnerability and of offering a safe space for someone else to be vulnerable with you in his new song “Asylum”.” As Miles sings about staying home and being safe from the world, we find respite in the […]
