Title: salty/sweet
Artist: Trace Mountains
263 plays
Trace Mountains // “Salty/Sweet”
Oh, Dave. Ohhhh, Dave. Dave Benton. Dave Benton who also plays in LVL UP and Spook Houses. That Dave. He’s killing me.
In addition to the aforementioned bands, Dave also runs passionate New York indie label Double Double Whammy. So he’s a busy guy. Somewhere along the lines though he found time to steal away and record some solo material under the name Trace Mountains. Though only two of the tracks have surfaced so far, they are excellent. Sticking to the acoustic guitar and hushed vocals, the songs can be summed up in one word: bittersweet. In other words it’s the kind of music that makes you happy and sad at the same time, but you can’t exactly put into words why. So I’m not going to try.
PS - Is that someone playing the saw at the end of “Salty/Sweet”? Please tell me that’s someone playing the saw.
PPS - Dave also said that these tracks are going to be seeing some form of release on Double Double Whammy in the future. So there’s that to look forward to.
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T☯☯NS // [Demo] EP
(This one is gonna be quick because I’m still sick and recovering from SXSW.)
I’ve learned that when Double Double Whammy says that something is good I’d better sit up and pay attention. They’ve been mentioning Brooklyn band T☯☯NS periodically for weeks leading up to the band’s demo release last week. Apparently the band will also be releasing a split 10” with the object(s) of my obsession LVL UP later this year as well. Good vibes all around.
The band plays a laid-back brand of slacker pop that doesn’t sound lo-fi as much as it sounds like your catching it through the phone of a friend of yours who happens to be seeing the band play live. It’s a charming set of demos that is totally fitting of titles like “Grumpy Beach” and “Lame.” You see this stuff is sort of like brain bubblegum. It tastes really good and chewing on it is a lot of fun, but don’t expect the flavor to last too long.
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The Act of Estimating As Worthless // Circadian Tremors
SUNY Purchase folk outift The Act of Estimating As Worthless have themselves tagged as “quiet” on their Facebook page. While that might certainly have been true of the band’s last album Amongst These Splintered Minds//Leaden Thoughts Sing Softly (which saw its release through good time pals Double Double Whammy) they are doing their best to break out of that unassuming shell on their latest EP Circadian Tremors.
Like a soothing babbling brook, the tracks on the EP ebb and flow gently downstream for stretches before the occasional white caps bubble up and the band explodes into gorgeous, ornate instrumental interludes with horns, strings, electric guitars, and crashing percussion. It’s loud in the sense that the band is really putting their energy out there with all their might, but it’s still deft and tender in execution. This is a band that puts the utmost consideration into every square inch of their songwriting and it pays off big time on Circadian Tremors. Boosted by some expert production quality, The Act of Estimating As Worthless are proving themselves to be one of upstate New York’s more surprising powerhouses.
Circadian Tremors will be available on 12” through Broken World Media &Mt. Home Arts, but you can grab a free download of it right now on the band’s Bandcamp.
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Title: Paint
Artist: Bad Sound
259 plays
Bad Sound // SO SO SO EP
A couple of weeks ago I posted a track from Bad Cello’s upcoming album on Double Double Whammy. Well it turns out that Zeno Pittarelli, the mastermind behind the project, is also a member of another Utica, NY band called Bad Sound (don’t get them confused). The band emailed me this weekend with their latest EP SO SO SO and it’s so good that I couldn’t not share it.
Although the EP is only three tracks long, the band manages to do a lot with a little. Take the opening track “Paint” for example; the track is packed to the gills with powerful melodies courtesy of not only Zeno’s strong vocals, but also a wide variety of instrumentation (cello, trombone, flute). They also keep the tempo in a constant state of flux as the song mutates from verse/chorus to interlude after beautiful interlude (and the song is not even two minutes long!)It’s just a great representation of what you’re gonna get from not only this EP but Bad Sound’s music in general. The production is crystal clear, the songwriting is excellent, and the music is just plain fun. No complaints here.
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Title: Haunted Homie
Artist: Bad Cello
679 plays
Bad Cello // “Haunted Homie”
If the dudes at Double Double Whammy are like my brothers, then does that make my constant featuring of their work nepotism? I don’t really care because they are a quality group of people who constantly put out great releases. In case you need convincing, do yourself a favor and check out “Haunted Homie”, the first single from their upcoming Bad Cello release.
Although the songs on Bad Cello’s forthcoming album Takes sound like you’d need a five-person band minimum, it is actually the solo project of Utica, NY resident Zeno Pittarelli. “Haunted Homie” is the first track to surface from that album and it is the perfect cross-section of what you’ll get from Zeno’s music. It’s sort of a meeting ground between the rambunctious indie rock that the DDW specializes in and a more folky chamber pop sound. Controlling tempo and tone with minute detail, Bad Cello churns out expertly crafted pop music with frustrating ease. This is coffee, book, and couch music if ever there was any.
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Spook Houses // “American”
My totally righteous pals at Double Double Whammy hooked me up with this one. Not only did they shoot me a download of the upcoming Spook Houses album Trying, but they are letting me premiere the album artwork (pictured above, duh). The album doesn’t come out for a few months but the you can get a taste for what’s to come by checking out the first single “American.”
The style of the track is a perfect snapshot of the band’s direction on Trying. It’s a rambunctious guitar pop anthem with bipolar disorder. The first third or so of the track has a plodding pace with chugging bass and a vocal drawl like molasses, but then it quickly kicks into gear and shoots into the stratosphere like fireworks on the Fourth of July. It’s an excellent track on an excellent album that is sure to be a highlight of the upcoming summer. It’s out this July on cassette via Double Double Whammy and 12” vinyl via Evil Weevil.
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