Oh Wonder: “Shark”
“My wave, my shark, my demon in the dark
the blue tide pullin’ me under
are you my soul, my heart, pull everything apart
are you gonna, are you gonna be my love?”
Lyrics alone rarely prepare you for the ful...
BenZel & Stevie Neale: “Wasted Love”
There seems to be no limit to the tactics used by upward-bound indie artists to garner a following, but BenZel’s strategy warrants a bravo or two. BenZel surfaced in 2012, self-described as two teen Japanese gi...
Operators: “True”
Between my limited attention span and the fact that I feed off of musical energy, my musical cravings typically lead me to the active, the attention-grabbing, and the emotionally saturated. “True” is none of th...
Hundred Waters: “Murmurs”
“I wish you would see what I see” is a phrase that I’ve long classified as an exhausted cliché fit only for the eye-rolling-est of romance movies and The Disney Channel’s most devastating high school heartbreak...
Luluc: “Small Window”
Imagine a conversation with a close friend in which you’re describing a feeling of low-burning sadness that you can’t quite explain or articulate. To your own dissatisfaction, you attempt to describe yourself b...
Elder Island: “What It’s Worth”
On warm nights when I need some air and want to be a hazard to myself and those around me, I like to take my bike and headphones for a leisurely ride along the lake to test out my newest playlists and reflect o...
Cathedrals: “Want My Love”
It’s hard to get hooked to a song that you know you’re hearing for the first time but somehow feel like it’s already been played to death. But just like academic plagiarism is just taking without tact, stale mu...
Aquilo: “You There”
Slowly and thoroughly, UK artists have claimed ownership of my playlists. While the electronic element is par for the course, the pair that compose Aquilo break from the pack by tapping the brakes and pushing r...
BRONCHO: “Insert Coin”
For those with a special place for the loud, fast, and angry, or for those who are feeling particularly anti-establishmentary, BRONCHO is your quick fix. The Oklahoma City crew takes a steady shot at recreating...
Kill J: “Bullet”
On the track’s SoundCloud page, Kill J describes “Bullet” as a song "dedicated to the victims of other people's bullshit convictions. People who act sinful, hateful and ungodly in the name of their God.”
Wel...
Rideau: “Way With Words”
Whether listening to Mideau’s (mid-oh) few released tracks, reading their interviews, or browsing their Kickstarter page, ever-present is warm blanket of charm. Unlike many independent artists seeking to garner...
Cathedrals: “Harlem”
A few days ago, my bad habit of narrating my favorite tracks while showing them off to my friends led me to a jarring conclusion sparked by my most recent fixation, Cathedrals' "Harlem." While introducing the t...