| END 2020
Biden/Harris ticket wins the presidential election, but Trump is not going away.
Vaccines for COVID-19 start distribution at the end of Dec. |
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HMS Morris
Five songs recorded in 2020 from Wales-based art-rock group HMS Morris. A perfect prog pop piece. We're getting a lot of spins out of Poetry and Babanod. (Dec '20)
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Ruckspin
Nice debut solo album from London-based artist Ruckspin. This one covers a good amount of EDM ground - some post-dubstep we'll be spinning in the lounge during cocktail hour, some cinematic scores, and some dnb that may get some folks on the dance floor. We'd expect no less from this Submotion Orchestra producer/engineer. A no brainer to add to your collection. (Dec '20)
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Swimwear
Swimwear, Sydney-based artist Tim Derricourt's project, delivers a concept album based on Richard Yates’ 1960's novel Revolutionary Road in this one. It's a mellow, lush, intimate listen from start to end. Almost, at times like in Funny Bones - Part II matching the sublimeness of the characters in the book ... living lives at their most heartbreaking and uplifting. (Dec '20)
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Chris Dawkins
Leeds, UK artist Chris Dawkins describes the new 11-track album as a ‘melting pot of life’s experiences’ – from his session work with Nightmares on Wax, to Asian influences stemming back to his childhood, when he watched Indian movies while his mum was baking. He says to expect steady building tempos and layering soundscapes, signature jazz and atmospheric trip hop and dub that suck you in gently ... we got that. This is a solid disc to put on to add texture to your dinner party or post-club nightcaps. (Dec '20)
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Connective Zone
Some well produced, energetic beats. (Dec '20)
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Trundle
Brookly-based due recorded this one in Plattsburgh,NY and Brooklyn while COVID was taking off May-September 2020. (Dec '20)
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Belle & Sebastian
Live album that includes a lot of B&S favorites. Recorded from various venues-including the Royal Oak Music Theater, one of our old haunting grounds-in 2019. A nice listen. (Dec '20)
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Oly
Nice pop songs set amongst some 80s synths. Nice way to close out the year with this Miami-based artist while we spend our December sheltering-in-place on Siesta Key. (Dec '20)
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Rosehip Teahouse
Cardiff, UK's Rosehip Teahouse says this of their lastest EP: "a lot of the songs are re-arrangements of the very earliest Rosehip demos". We are wondering of those demos were cut back in the early 90s when female fronted, jangly guitar alternative bands ruled the roost. Teens, after you spin this one, go back and familiarize yourselves with Natalie Merchant, Cardigans, and Cocteau Twins. (Dec '20)
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Pumuky
The lastest release from CN, Spain based brothers Jaír and Noé Ramírez are "intricately sculpted songs that are utterly hypnotizing ... explore the border of dreams & reality" the bands writes on bandcamp. We're spinning Pandroginia, Doppelganger and Castillo Interior, the best song on the disc. (Dec '20)
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The Left Outsides
Someone took the Brian Jonestown Massacre, dialed up more 60's psychedelic Laurel Canyon and then mixed in some tunes you can imagine might come from Low if they were playing some old English folk songs in a dark corner of Ye Olde Red Lion pub in Northern UK circa the 16th century. In other words, we are really enjoying this album start to finish. (Nov '20)
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Ana Roxanne
Sometimes music that has an interesting backstory, inspiration and great production can just fall flat. Other times, that backdrop lends itself to a truly impactful piece of art. Such is the case in this release from SF Bay Area artist Ana Roxanne. Here's our suggestion for how best to experience it: Take advantage of a global pandemic lock-down and the coming of long, dark, cold nights. Dim the lights and kickstart the fireplace. Pour yourself a glass of your favorite brown then stretch out next to the fire, cat by your side, and re-read Jeffrey Eugenides' Middlesex while this one spins in the background. (Nov '20)
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Mart Avi
Probably the best album with the lowest rating we have on here. Estonian producer Mart Avi covers a lot of ground here: Crooning over some nicely orchestrated synth soundscapes 80s-style drum machines beating out surprisingly soulful R&B. Interludes that sound like they've captured a Jedi light saber battle in Star Wars. Some techno here, ambient there. Well produced, well done. That said, probably as enjoyable to us as working through the Illiad in it's native ancient Greek. (Nov '20)
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tunng
We love The Guardian's opening sentence/question in their review: "A concept album about death and grief during a pandemic?" Tunng’s Dead Club project seems to cover the subject in depth. “It’s not just a record, it’s a discussion, it’s a podcast series, it’s poetry, it’s short stories, it’s an examination,” says the band’s Mike Lindsay. Subject matter aside, we're competely loving this "folktronica" release. Three songs into it we had to do a double check to see if this was a new Damon Albarn solo project, as the vibe, even down to the vocal delivery, could sound right at home on Albarn's Everyday Robots. As with that release, we love this one. (Nov '20)
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Primitive Ignorant
Industrial, glam, electro-punk from former 80s Matchbox B-Line Disaster bassist Sym Gharial. (Nov '20)
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Gidge
Good production, good music ... We're spinning New Light on heavy rotation and when we hear it come on we inevitably think, "wow, this is good, what are some of the other tracks from this disc?" Then we remember. we really wanted to like everything about it, but ended up liking the pieces more than the sum of the parts. (Nov '20)
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North Americans
In 2016, William Tyler's Modern Country came out and we were all, "Wow, where did this come from?" Then we were "Country, really?" With all instrumentals, dexterity on the guitar and a mood that wasn't "get yer shotgun and pick up", it certainly wasn't the country music pushed on folks today. Nor any country from the past: not western swing, not honky-tonk. Tyler was writing a new, well, I guess, modern country. We have deju here. We feel the expansiveness of the west in these instrumentals. The simple, repetitive guitar strums ... the gorgeous, intimate slide guitar. It's distinctly American ... It's the West. The same drone you feel when driving I-80 from Salt Lake City to Reno, NV. And, it's every bit as spectacular as the landscape and wide open blue sky on that drive. (Oct '20)
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Hey Colossus
The lucky thirteenth record by Hey Colossus is a loud one. Good ole straightforward rock and roll. Push the amps up to 11, switch on the fuzz pedals and let's rock it out. We're spinning Nine is Nine, Revelation Day and the droning cinematic 15 minute travelogue that is A Trembling Rose. (Nov '20)
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Emmy The Great
We've visted Hong Kong since back in the days when getting there meant the 747 had to make an abrupt 90 degree turn--to avoid plowing into a mountain--right before the plane landed. We loved sitting on at a starboard window and looking down on the endless row of tenements, drying laundry hanging out their windows, neon lights blazing ... all a seemingly couple hundred feet below us. But our sweetest trip was our most recent. Right before all hell broke loose. It reminded us why we love this city and it's unique England meets China mashup culture. We were as giddy as school children to see the streets of Lan Kwai Fong filling up for a spontanenous celebratory TGIF. We were enamored with the XLB, delighted at the sidewalk escalators wisking you up the hills of Central HK, and made every excuse we could to stop in every little bar on Staunton Street for a drink. When they closed we got lost admiring the street art in the crooked alleys and staircases. We feel that energy, optimisism, and familiar warmth in Hong Kong via UK artist Emmy the Great's recent release, April. It broke our heart to see her ode to Hong Kong come out after the city's 2019 pro democracy protests and resulting Chinese government crackdown. We hope the post-One Country, Two Systems Hong Kong is still as mystical and beautiful as Emmy's singing about it is. (Oct '20)
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The Stain
Back in the days when one could travel internationally ... we digress, but that opening line belongs in a dystopian syfy fiction piece, not a music review ... we spent a good amount of time in New Delhi. The flight from SF lands in the middle of the night. You arrive to a mostly empty Indira Gandhi International Airport dazed, after an exhausing 22 hour flight that started Friday morning and ends early Sunday. Buzzed from the cheap alcohol fueling your last leg, you step out to hunt down a ride to the city and immediately get hit with the dark, hazy heat and grime of India. Confusion abounds. Scraggly strays with bad legs crossing your path in the front. Hustlers heckling you for undecipherable services cross to your back. Your Uber app connects intermittently, like that flickering florecent overhead light on it's last leg in that horror flick, while you shuffle your cockeyed gaze from it to the endless sea of dirty, white, small Suzukis in the basement of a concrete parking garage. The air is so thick you can see it. The ride to your hotel is an adventure you last experienced in your childhood riding Disney World's The Haunted Mansion: loud, fast, startling, way too little light, and what the hell is that in the middle of the highway that we came within an inch of hitting? The ride New Delhi artist The Stain takes you on with his latest release is the exact same. According to him, "The Stain explores the plethora of darkness through his productions with deep basslines, dark soundscapes and experimental drum patterns." We think our description was more vivid. We will definitely queue this one back up on our return visit. In the meantime, Godmother is making our lonely late night and lounge playlists to keep us company now. (Nov '20)
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Juana Molina
We're a big fan of Juana Molina. If you're also digging her vibe, check out this live album recorded at the NRMAL Festival in Mexico in early March 2020, a few days before the world came to a halt in a massive lockdown. What we'd give nowadays to a) travel to a foreign country, b) go to a goddamned bar/event to see live music, c) be at this gig and go wild over that version of Un dia - outstanding stuff (Oct '20)
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Bosq
Bosq and his International Jam Session are creating some high-energy Afro Latin rhythms here. (Oct '20)
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Order Of The Toad
The second album from this Glasgow based band is a nice quirky indie pop rocker that covers a lot of ground in twelve roughly three minute songs. We get some late 60s psych-rock songs--Mend It, A Pittance, Cruise Control, Fabulator as well as some quirky Robyn Hitchock/Softboys/Syd Barrett vibes on others such as Rabbets, Lindow Women, and Toads Theme. The Toads also do a nice job of switching it up between Robert Sotelo and Gemma Fleet on the singing (although interestingly very little joint boy-girl harmonies/singing), which keeps it fresh. (Oct '20)
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Bachar Mar-Khalifé
Recorded in December 2019 in the Jaj mountains of Lebanon, Paris multi-instrumentalist Bachar Mar-Khalifé goes back to his roots to record his new album On/Off. There's some spoken word over beats, a songwriter and his piano and some some nice chanson française, in particular on the best track of the disc L'amour à plusieurs. Surprisingly though, the release does not contain a lot of Middle Eastern influence throughout. (Oct '20)
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Deep & Rolling Green
While we didn't think the whole disc was our cup of tea, there are some great, lush moments from this Norwegian via UK band. The last three songs, in particular, were a great way to close out the album. (Oct '20)
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Working Men's Club
The Quietus has a nice little write up on this disc. We agree with their descriptions: "full-force techno-rock wig-out", LCD Soundsystem influenced, ... we agree even more with this excellent album. We're adding this to our "2020s or 1980s?"" playlist to continue to fool our friends on music they missed "the first time around" ... even though this is a debut album :-) (Oct '20)
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Clipping.
We're not quite sure about this Horror Film Hip-Hop genre. But Rapper Daveed Diggs dials up some skillfull speed rap on Nothing is Safe and Club Down. (Oct '20)
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Max Daniel
Solid indie pop rock from this San Francisco based artist. We have The Way It Is, The Sell Out, It's Gonna Be Alright, Meant To Be (which channels some Elliot Smith) and Behave, the best song on this disc, on heavy rotation here at tunefilter HQ. (Oct '20)
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Zooni
Familiar Ground is the second EP from Brighton based Zooni, released on producer Charlie Andrew's (Alt-J, London Grammar) label Square Leg Records. We're spinning Cascara, The Details, Dissolve, and Familiar Ground, which is our favorite on this disc. (Oct '20)
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LOMA
Knowing nothing about it, we pop this one in and are intrigued. Soft, female singer, slow, but a lot going on musically. We like it. They the second song Ocotillo hits. Wow. Methodical, droning on, quiet rage. Shit, we need to figure out who these guys are. Oh, Shearwater frontman Jonathan Meiburg is in this ... and Brian Eno, a fan of theirs, was invited to make a contribution and accepted. laid down a . Now it makes sense. (Oct '20)
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SaD
We had been digging Simona Castricum's The Half Light from the Panic/Desire release earlier in the year so imagine our pleasant surprise in seeing Simona's name in the credits of this one. Here, she teams up with fellow Melbourne native Daphne Camf on some throwback goth/industrial, Depeche Mode-style tunes. We can definitely imagine the gang dancing to these at City Club in downtown Detroit circa early 1990s. (Sept '20)
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Chris Smith
Second Hand Smoke is the long-awaited new record from Melbourne guitarist Chris Smith. Calming and expansive, sweeping cinematic vistas and melancholy melody. It was largely built from 8-track home recordings and layered with found sounds, field recordings, spoken word as well as multiple instruments and vocals. Think Americana meets pschydelia space rock. We're spinning Oh' Sweet Nuthin' and Beeswax on heavy rotation. (Sept '20)
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Rustre
Usually we gravitate to the dark metal a little later in the year, as the days draw shorter, night grows longer and a chill fog hangs in the Winter San Francisco night time air. But hey, we've been cooped up inside for 6 months during a global pandemic, so bring on the dark ambient. Leipzig, Germany artist Rustre delivers it in droves. (Sept '20)
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Joshua Burnside
Joshua Burnside was born in Northern Ireland, where he draws inspiration from the beauty, the ugliness and the rich musical and literary heritage of an often tormented corner of the world. Whatever he's channeling over there in Belfast is not just coming from the ghosts of his Irish ancestors before him. We're hearing old dusty Americana, some African roots, R&B ... a world of folk music. (Sept '20)
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Sebastian Mullaert
Influential Swedish house and techno producer and live performer Sebastian Mullaert was inspired by the majesty of the natural world on this one. Situated on the edge of the Söderåsen National Park, an area of outstanding beauty; primeval forests, deep ravines, and huge boulders left over from the last ice age give the area an enchanted, otherworld air, he had the perfect inspiration for recording Natthall--named after a small, rocky bluff sitting on a 50m ridge with majestic views east over the Rönne river, fields, and acres of trees. We think this ambient release captures some of that mysticism and otherworldly air quite nice. We also think Moonwaker (our favorite track here) does a nice job capturing that setting if we were run for our lives through it on a dark moonlite night being hunted by a serial killer. (Sept '20)
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Still Return
Brooklyn artist Still Return mentions being influenced by his childhood immersion in the sounds of 90s sci-fi/fantasy soundtracks, his parents' New Age music cassettes, and the ubiquity of the DX-7 and D-50 synths to develop this deeply personal and counter-New Age release. We are hearing his agnst. We like how he takes synth sounds associated with lightness and, often, a shallow positivity and turn them to express something contrasting and dark. As he says it, "more akin to how I experienced life soundtracked by them." We can see that. Hey, if it worked for the soundtrack to Netflix's Stranger Things ... (Sept '20)
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Men I Trust
We have Seven and Dorian on heavy rotation, giving us a bit of a thowback to the poppiness of The Caradigans combined with a very smooth cognac. (Sept '20)
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The Oh Hellos
Interested in some earlier Sufjan Stevens? Want it with a hint dustier ... less Midwest and more dusty Texas hill country? We think you'll be pleased with this one from San Marcos, Texas brother and sister team The Oh Hellos. (Sept '20)
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Marie Davidson and L’Œil Nu
What's a good record collection with out a good dose of chanson francaise? Just in My Head is a classic example in our opinion, one we quickly dropped into our dinner music playlist. Chanteuse Marie Davidson is backed by a trio formed in Montreal’s DIY scene to deliver not only this classic gem but some more straightforward rockers and electro-clash tunes as well. (Sept '20)
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Iress
We're spinning Dark Love and Shallow from this Los Angeles Doomgaze outfit. (Sept '20)
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Fleet Foxes
Foxes frontman Robin Pecknold admited to suffering from anxiety--"worried about what I should make, how it will be received, worried about the moves of other artists, my place amongst them, worried about my singing voice and mental health on long tours"--during the creation of this, the Foxes' fourth studio album. With how well Father John Misty, Fleet Foxes old drummer, is doing in his solo career, we could definitely understand Pecknold harboring some anxiety ... if not a little shadenfreunde. But Robin, no worried buddy. You just put out the best Foxes album in our opinion. Enjoy it! We certainly are. (Sept '20)
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Billy Carter
The 2nd full-length from Korean rockers Billy Carter is a fantastic hard hitter. Unapologetic garage rock taking on some of today's pressing social issues: LGBQT, domestic abuse, womens rights. It's absolutely facinating to see the Korean angle on these issues--e.g., in the case of racism, it involves the natural ginger hair girl maybe gpt some bad blood mixed up into her. It's also just great to hear a garage rock band rage against the establishment with such clear, straight-forward lyrics. (Sept '20)
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MID 2020
The country is gripped with Black Lives Matter and social injustice protests after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Masks actually become a fashion accessory as everyone (at least in CA) buys a couple. |
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Gruppe Eulenspiegel
Midevel folk. You need to rock this one out at the Renasannce Festival. (Aug '20)
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Aphir
Reverse Pandora and No Accident were highlights on this one for us. (Sept '20)
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Father John Misty
Two new songs from Father John. Piano and acoustic guitar ballads in his typical style. As always, solid work. (Aug '20)
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Liela Moss
We're spinning The Individual and Turn Your Back Around, which will definitely be on the playlist for the post-covid dance party, from this London, UK artist. Good energy pop. (Aug '20)
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We Are All Astronauts
You know how there's that gut wrenching scene in your favorite movie. Where the protagionist dies or disappears into the sunset while the dramatic music is queued? Well, this is that music. Only you don't need the movie. Just put on headphones. (July '20)
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Simon Posford
This is the soundtrack for a suspenseful, dark, dreamlike and at times action filled movie. A dystopian syfy flix filled with pain and beauty, machines and life, fast paced and slow and reflective. What's the movie about? The artists/your life on lockdown during COVID-19. (July '20)
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A.A. Williams
Slow down, clear some time off your schedule before you put this one on. A.A. Williams' debut album under Bella Union, Forever Blue rewards patient listeners. Songs unfold at their own slow pace as Williams' almost whispers through them early on until the built up energy is released through a heavy crescendos. Melt is the best song on the album. (July '20)
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Father John Misty
Father John Misty does some nice covers of Link Wray’s Fallin’ Rain, Cat Stevens’ Trouble and Anthem and One of Us Cannot Be Wrong from Leonard Cohen. Proceeds from the EP benefit CARE Action and Ground Game LA. (July '20)
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Futuro Conjunto
Growing up on Rush's 2112 and Hemispheres, we love concept albums as much as the next dude. Boy does this multimedia project do it in. Set in the South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley in the the mid-2100s, you are taken on a journey back into the "far past", circa mid-2000s to hear a concert that the protaginists great-great-great-great-grandmother recorded before the Treaty of Unbinding Illusion was signed. Created by a scholar and filmaker, this project presents a facinating speculation on national and local (Rio Grande Valley) history. A little more than half of the 20 or so "tracks" of the album tell the story. The music on the remaining tracks are delivered by 6 made up bands/performers and cover a lot of ground - post punk, pop ballad, and modern takes on traditional Mexican mariachi music. The later of which we think is spectacularily done, especially on El Huracan del Valle from the fictious group "La Mosca No Muere". (July '20)
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Asher Gamedze
We're digging this, the debut LP from South African drummer Asher Gamedze. It's the sort of classic Jazz we like - frenetic, free form. None of this smooth Jazz crap. Gamedze's drumming on this is fantastic. It's relentless, driving, moving. The artist credits this--and this album's inspiration--to not only the jazz classics (Coltrane, Biko, Makeba, Malcom & others) but his experience with historical colonialism and the manifestation of resistance. We like the results, in particular the twist in the form of a perfect late night, dark smokey bar closer that Siyabulela, sultryly sung by Nono Nkoane, adds to the mix. (July '20)
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The Lazy Eyes
Strong debut EP from Sydney based youngsters. Just some solid sunny, hazy, pop rock songs. Cheesy Love Song is, despite the title's warning, probably our favorite here. (June '20)
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Mounika.
From the initial song intro (i'm sorry), we were caught by the simple, sweet beats. We've popped it into our mellow morning playlist where it fits perfectly. (June '20)
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Tridact
We are loving the tune Teleskopik off this one. We might have had to have some close friends over for a Saturday night dinner and drinking session then blast this one out ... if that we're allowed and all. (June '20)
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SAULT
The third studio album from British R&B outfit SAULT came out on Juneteenth, fast on the heels of the Black Lives Matter social justice unrest in the US. It was our soundtrack for the Summer of Protest (to borrow a title from a great Dears song). It was exactly what we needed to hear. The Zeitgeist album of the year ... and it was damn good. (June '20)
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Daniel Dor
We're digging Why would you worry? Nice, mellow tune. (May '20)
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Car Seat Headrest
We're really digging this one. Weightlifters starts it off in an energetic, expectation laden manner. Martin provides the perfect indie pop/rock single. There Must Be More Than Blood takes is low and slow for seven and a half minute ending (at least how we end the album). (May '20)
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New Spell
This one was one of the new discovery surprises of the year. As with a lot recent music, there's definitely a harkening back-in-time feel on this one, their final installment of their Of Time EP series. Future's Wild--complete with Donna Summersesque staccato singing--sounds like it can be used to drive the dance floor at disco-era Studio 54 with no one the wiser. Where You Are and Forgotten slow down the synthwave party and bring in a little more melancholy. We love that the duo can mix it up so well. Plus, their from San Francisco so get some homecooking with this reviewer. (May '20)
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The Magnetic Fields
It took us probably a decade of listening to figure out that we really, really like The Magnetic Fields. Mind you, Distant Plastic Trees and The Wayward Bus came out in 1991 and 1992 - the height of grunge. Harpsichords, triangles, bells, ukulele and a dude singing in a very low baritone along with a girl that sounds like it was recorded in the 1930s? Hell, it took us a decade just to try to figure out what exactly we were listening to. By 69 Love Songs in 1999, we were hooked. Long way to say, if you like TMF, you'll like this one. Lots of the old formula. We love it. (May '18)
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American Trappist
We're really digging Philadelphia musician Joe Michelini's full length, released under the American Trappist moniker. We're actually shocked that this is not on the radar of some of the larger pubs that cover the indie scene (Hello, Pitchfork? the Quietus?). Perhaps it's a little to dark at times (Natural Causes?) A little to loud/noise rocky at other times (Losing My Grip?) Kind of like The War On Drugs though, it's always solid and in some cases simply sublime (...Rides Again!) (May '20)
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They/Live
Named after the 1988 John Carpenter sci-fi/action film, Whitney Mower’s new project They/Live pays homage to artists of that era (like Kate Bush and Cocteau Twins) while weaving in sounds, themes, and a powerful female perspective very much rooted in the present (think Grimes, Juana Molina, The Knife). This is a really good release. Feels like it could have charted Billboard Top 50 back in the mid 80s. Our favorites are Story of Isaac, Both Alive, The Heavy Wind, and Foreigner. (May '20)
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Umwelten
Another electronic, darker ambient release. Throw this one on before or after Echoes Above the Sea as the soundtrack to keep fueling your lonely, dark, quiet, sinister night. (Apr '20)
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Caleb Landry Jones
Love the cabaret stylings of Caleb Landry Jones' songs. We have Little Planet Pig, Thanks for Staying and Lullabbey on heavy rotation (May '20)
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Good Good Blood
We have the wolves and harper ran away on heavy rotation. (Apr '20)
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Elephant Tree
The third full-length album from London-based stoner rockers Elephant Tree is our go to early when we it to get heavy. (Apr '20)
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The Book of Ships
We have Stripminer on heavy rotation at tunefilter HQ. Giving us a bit of a Manic Street Preachers If you Tolerate This sort of vibe from this Melbourne, Australia group. (Apr '20)
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aswekeepsearching
We have Glued on heavy rotation and are digging it. This mellow but uptempo downtempo instrumental sounds like the background music they play in movies for that time when the protagonist is alone, late at night studying, looking over stuff and piecing together the mystery. (Apr '20)
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Mr. Barth
Some good energy deep house from this Helsinki artist. (Apr '20)
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Chema Armengou
Nice release of house music. We're especially digging Mar on this one. We the clubs reopen, we'd queue the lasers and fogs and play this back to back with Mr. Barth and dance away 2020. (Apr '20)
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grouptherapy.
This release from the collective of TJW, Jadagrace, RHEA, KOI, and executive producer Dee Lilly is solid. While it basically consists of 2 songs from each artist, they hold together really well. To twist their words about the release: "[While] we’re all separate artists, we run together." (Apr '20)
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Fiction Non Fiction
Almost one year after the release of this EP, the bands Facebook post announcing this release still has only three likes. And one of those is from us. Unbelievable that so many people can just miss out on a release that features perhaps one of the best, feel good songs of the year: Just Like That (And the Hands Clap). We loved it so much we made them a music video. (Apr '20)
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Start 2020
COVID-19 (aka Coronaviris) as the world on edge, and us on lockdown here at TF HQ in SF
"Cutting the cord" and streaming TV rather than getting it from a cable company is accelerated with the launch of Disney+ and NBCUs Peacock. Paramount+ is right around the corner as well. Perfect timing while everyone is watching more news during the pandemic and WFH.
NCAA Tournament is cancelled as most major sports cancel their seasons short.
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Katie Von Schleicher
Really solid album from this Brooklyn-based indie rock artist. We are spinning Caged Sleep, Wheel, and Messenger quite a bit, but Nowhere may be the best song on the album. (Mar '20)
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School of X
Good solid pop rock. We have Bad Love on heavy rotation. (Apr '20)
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Psychic Ills
Psychic Ills founder, frontman, and songwriter Tres Warren leaves us a couple of last songs before his untimely passing. We're enjoying the gift. (Mar '20)
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Alden Patterson and Dashwood
Music of our ancestors, we enjoy listening to some of this ole English folk with some nice three-part harmonies. (Mar '20)
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Nils Frahm
We're not sure how to classify Berlin artist Nils Frahm's work. Do we put it in our classical playlists? Ambient? These moody, meloncholy piano-led instrumentals are definitely not pop rock. It's the same problem with have with some of our other favorites from folks like A Winged Victory for the Sullen and Ludovico Einaudi. This is a fitting sound track to apocolyptic/dystopian piece that, oh, I don't know, maybe involves a global pandemic and out of control sociopath leader of the free world? At the very least, we definitely know we're putting this one in our put these in our "Lonely Late Night" playlist. (Mar '20)
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B.C. Camplight
We were drawn to this one by some of the similarities to John Grant--relatively big, bearded US dude camped out in Manchester, smooth soulful baritone vox, and at-times whimsical lyrics (e.g., rhyming "plane" with "John McClane" on Back To Work) packed in extremely well produced pop rock songs. Glad we got sucked in. This hit us as hard as Pale Green Ghosts. Phenomenal album. While we're throwing out accolades, how about B.C.'s label Bella Union? Wow, just knocking it out of the park with that roster of talent. (Mar '18)
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Slow Dancing Society
No dancing happening with this disc, just a release of lovely, deep space, ambient music. (Mar '20)
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Mystery Guest
We're spinning The Day Lou Died on heavy rotation over here at tunefilter HQ. (Mar '20)
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Waxahatchee
Solid Americana. (Mar '20)
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Peter Bjorn and Paul
We have Simple Song of Sin on our Heavy Rotation. (Mar '20)
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Sunstinger
This new single from Sunstinger starts as if it were right at home as a track on the Verve's 1993 A Storm in Heaven--which, of course had us hooked from the beginning. As it gets into it, the song takes on some shoegazer vibes. Solid, fuzzy indie rock here. (Mar '20)
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Fake Laugh
Very nice melodic, well crafted pop songs. We're spinning, and enjoying, Alarm Bells and Exotic Bird. (Mar '20)
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Hey Hey My My
On initial spin ... and perhaps catching Hawaii in the title ... we're thinking some good toe tapping Yacht Rock a la fell Brits Duckworth Lewis Method. Yet, these are yacht rock in a cold, choppy sea with dark gray skys overhead. Guess we just figured out the British part of the title. Tennessee, Bottleman and A Place are our favs. (Mar '20)
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His Rawest Majesty
Nice little EP of three house tracks that we're getting into. (Mar '20)
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Savage Mansion
Solid second album from these Glascow indie rockers. Now to Levitate and Merrie are our favorites (Mar '20)
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Peace Awards
We are spending a lot of time with this album as we start to spend a lot of time in doors due to San Francisco's Shelter-in-Place order due to COVID-19. This is a nice (debut?) album from this Helsinki, Finland group. It's kept us even keel. Here's our video to Strangers, our favorite song. (Mar '20)
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M.O.S.
We're down with this little release of a couple of house tunes. Good stuff. (Mar '20)
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In Sequence
Soapy ballads, prog rock, middle-eastern vibe instrumentals. We kept listening to this to try to figure out who makes this sort of music nowadays and it kind of grew on us. (Mar '20)
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Agnes Obel
We are giant fans of Obel's first two albums. Not so much her last one and this new release. Her instrumentals are as beautiful as ever. Parliment of Owls is a case in point. But a lot of the album seems bogged down in the heavy fog of melancholy vocal effects. (Feb '20)
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The Men
We like the out in the country, pick up in the drive, some guitars leaning against twin reverb amps, a Hammond B3 and finally an old piano with some whisky and a hife life back sitting on top of it. Fallin' Thru and Wading in Dirty Water are on heavy rotation. (Feb '20)
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Daniel Davies
We love the haunting soundscapes of this one. So it came as no surprise to find that Mr. Davies was an assistant to John Carpenter in the creation of his Halloween (2018) soundtrack. We also detect some other Jacobs Ladder and perhaps Angelo Badalmentiesq influences. But Beyond Megalith Illumination is where this one shines. It's magnificant. We'd listen to it on lazy days WFH due to COVID19 while Lucy slept next to us. (Feb '20)
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Echoes Above the Sea
We have a thing for well done dark ambient. Fennesz, Christopher Bissnnette, Robert Henke and Biosphere were our soundtrack in the Winter of the financial collapse of 2008. Flying across the country into a dark, cold PHL or JFK airport, we'd arrive at midnight, shut our jacket tight as we stepped across some dirty snow to bury ourselves in the backseat of the old cab. We'd put our headphones on and turn our glazed look out the window to the endless sea of tall dark buildings, steam billowing from their furnaces, that we passed on our way into our city center hotel. Dark ambient was the perfect soundtrack. As we'd soon find out, the Winter of 2020 had it's own reason to sink into headphones and a good apocolyptic soundtrack. We can think of no better than this masterpiece. (Feb '20)
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Perfume Genius
Mike Hadreas has come a long way since his LoFi debut album full of 2 min plus change songs, mostly just him, his piano and his four track. As with his last couple of releases, this shit is produced and grandiose. Like his last two releases, it covers a lot of ground as well: the high bms dance hall EDM in Nothing At All down to the falcetto and harp opiod accompanyment of Moonbend. While Describee is the clear hit here, Jason is probably the best song that melds his early lo-fi years with his latest high production crafts. As with all of Perfume Genius' releases, this will reward the patient listener. (Feb '20)
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Caribou
Spinning Magpie and Cloud Song in tunefilter heavy rotation. (Feb '18)
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Of Montreal
We like the title of Get God's Attention By Being An Atheist. But best song here is by far Gypsy That Remains. Aflat out 5 star high energy pop number that will beg you to dance. We love that song. Deliberate Self-harm Ha Ha is another winner. (Jan '20)
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Peat and Diesel
Good ole ass-kicking Scottish Highlands rock. We have Kishorn Commandos and Dirty Old Town on heavy rotation. (Feb '10)
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Empire State Human
This single (and EP) came across our desks right as San Francisco started sheltering in place because of COVID-19. It was tough to see our neighborhoods (including the Castro, a couple of blocks away from tunefilter HQ and home to Harvey Milk) boarded up. This song helped us get through the times. It even inspired us to create this video. (Jan '20)
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Blue Milk
Some nice killer blues songs. We're enjoying Devil's Calling and Coal in the Fire. (Jan '20)
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Morrissey
Morrissey is back with a new one. He probably isn't speaking for a generation like me might have in the past, but these are very fine tunes, decent songwriting, great muscianship and production. A decent listen. (Jan '20)
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Hilary Woods
There are many elements we liked about Irish songwriter Hilary Wood's latest release one on first listen: some beautiful string work, lush vocals, organic layers of sound, back story of her creating it while she was pregnant. However, the soundscape snippets never really coalesce into a solid melody nor does the release come together for a dark ambient release like Echoes from the Sea will do in a month. (Jan '20)
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Squirrel Flower
Solid album. Not a lot of stand out songs, but not alot of bad ones either. (Jan '20)
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Samurai Drive
Noir. Debut album from these Berlin-based producers would make a great soundtrack for your next Sin City like evening. (Jan '20)
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