bandcampsnoop

[bandcampsnoop]

6/25/25.

Lungfish (Baltimore, Maryland) are yet another of the multitude of groups that exist on my periphery. I usually have preconceived notions about the band, and if I ever get around to challenging those notions, I'm frequently proven wrong.

The first song on "Necrophones" (2000, Dischord Records) disabused my idea that Lungfish was some kind of alt/metal band. Really, "The Words" made me think of the Pogues crossed with The 3Ds.

Sometimes the instrumentation recalls the work of instrumental giants Mogwai and Pell Mell (or to a less "gigantic" degree, Dianogah). I've seen some refer to this as "emo", but, I wouldn't call these vocals particularly "emo". Insistent and intense, yes.

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6/24/25.

Barbara Manning (Long Beach, California) has been on fire in the last year and a half. First, a new CD on Ba Da Bing was released in December 2023. Next, a World of Pooh retrospective was recently released by Portland label Bulbous Monocle.

Now, a 7" on Pittsburgh label, Igor Records. "Cantor's Mind Was Rockin'" does indeed rock. The Bandcamp write up states, " Aside from her work in the 1990s with the Go-Luckys!, “Cantor’s Mind Was Rockin’” might be one of the heaviest pieces in her extensive catalog. Before Manning even steps up to the mic, the guitars roar out of the speakers, as if to make sure attention is directed their way."

Igor Records was started to release the work of Bone of Contention. They seem like a band that would have played with Manning as she toured the East Coast.

Manning has previously worked with 28th Day, S.F. Seals, Glands of Secretion, the Go-Luckys, and World of Pooh. She also has an amazing album, "In New Zealand" where she works with various icons of the Flying Nun era of New Zealand music. On another album, "Barbara Manning Sings With The Original Artists", she works with Jon Langford (Mekons) and Stuart Moxham (Young Marble Giants).

Barbara Manning's work is a national treasure.

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6/23/25.

I'm not sure why this didn't get a post when it came out. I certainly remember listening to it, and frankly, ANY Fred Thomas project is likely to get a post on the weight of that fact alone.

Idle Ray (Michigan) definitely sounds like Fred Thomas. It's not the 60s/fuzzy/pop of Saturday Looks Good To Me or Mighty Clouds. But it's much more traditionally pop than some of his solo efforts (Fred Thomas, City Center) - in fact, one Bandcamp user said, "Like a classic FT record ran through a Guided By Voices filter".

The band put up a third pressing of the LP (released via Life Like, which is Fred Thomas' label). Originally released in 2021, the Bandcamp page states that this is probably the last pressing of the LP.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/22/25.

I was reading the Pitchfork review of the new Miley Cyrus album and was impressed to see all of the indie collaborators she assembled for her album. Brian D'Addario, one of The Lemon Twigs (along with brother Michael), is one of those musicians who worked with Cyrus.

Then, almost immediately, I learned through Monorail, that D'Addario had released a solo album on The Lemon Twigs' label, Headstack Records. Warning, while the digital songs are here on Bandcamp, there is no physical release here. And this LP isn't an easy one to locate. Good luck if you want the physical release.

The music is what you'd expect based on the last couple of Lemon Twigs records. Beautiful, melodic and sweet. Comparisons range from The Byrds, to Gram Parsons to Michael Nesmith. A couple of the songs use lyrics written by Stephen Kalinich, longtime collaborator with Brian and Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys.

By the way, brother Michael, is all over this release. And he co-produced it. So, no rift and no worries about a Lemon Twigs break (pun intended).

[bandcampsnoop]

6/21/25.

This post is meant to be a celebration of Douglas MacIntyre and his label, The Creeping Bent Organisation. The label is ending its run this year with a few new releases. The one that caught my attention was Douglas' band with Davy Henderson (Fire Engines, Nectarine no. 9, Win), The Sexual Objects. I learned about this today when Monorail announced the pre-order for "Orangutang". I've loved Davy and Douglas' work (Douglas was in Jazzateers), so listening to The Sexual Objects (I listened to the compilation "Cucumber") didn't take any thought.

But, The Sexual Objects don't really have a music presence on Bandcamp. And The Creeping Bent Organisation's presence is kind of "old". So, here we are with a post for Douglas' second band, The Kingfishers (the first was Article 58). It's easy to hear how this band must have influenced Teenage Fanclub. "Reflections In a Silver Sound" was co-released by Last Night From Glasgow and The Creeping Bent Organisation.

All the above bands and labels are Scottish - either Edinburgh or Glasgow.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/20/25.

Michael Beach (Melbourne, Australia) has given his adult life to music. He's lived in both the U.S. (San Francisco) and Australia while making high quality records. He's played with amazing musicians, including Utrillo Kushner (Comets on Fire) and Gareth Liddiard (Tropical Fuck Storm).

So, it should come as no surprise to learn that Beach can assemble a collaborative team like no other. On his new album, "Big Black Plume", Kushner and Liddiard contribute, but so do a host of other musicians including members of the Dirty Three and The Necks.

Beach's style remains steady. He wields his guitar in a Neil Young/Crazy Horse way. His piano playing must have influenced Charlie Ivan, whose album, "Where The Dogs Go To Die" was my favorite from last year.

Last fall, Beach toured the U.S. with Tropical Fuck Storm. He carried a 7" version of "The Sea". Now we get that fantastic song plus 8 others. "Big Black Plume" will come out in July 2025 on Goner Records.

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6/19/25.

We posted about The Stick Figures "Archeology" back in October 2021 when Floating Mills (Pittsburgh) released this retrospective of the band's 1981 EP plus other tracks.

Since that time Floating Mills seems to have gone silent, but the band push on. First, they have their own Bandcamp where you can listen to "Archeology", but also "Disturbance". This is being issued only on CD (I think by the band) and contains unreleased studio tracks.

"Disturbance" is yet another revelation from the band. They sound like a band on the wrong continent. Instead of being from Tampa, Florida, they sound like they could be a Scottish band (think Josef K or Orange Juice). And if you know they're from the U.S., I'm guessing Tampa, Florida isn't going to be in your top 50 guesses. They remind me of Barbara Manning crossed with Pylon, and 100 Flowers - none of which are Tampa based.

But hey, A New Personality (the Rademaker brothers first band) was Tampa based! I'm guessing The Stick Figures and A New Personality knew each other in the early 80s Tampa scene.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/18/25.

Sea Dramas are a Bay Area (Livermore to be exact) chamber/indie pop band that has been making music for over a decade. The one constant is Scott Petterson who seems to have an affinity for 1960s styled psych pop. I can't help but think of The Heavy Blinkers, Beachwood Sparks and The Botticellis (Sandy's). There's a review on Bandcamp that describes this release as "hazy folk [that] feels like the Magnetic Fields."

This looks to be self-released on Petterson's own Memory Sounds Records. Their new digital EP, "Every Problem Created For Us" is being handled by Royal Oakie (same label as Sandy's).

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6/17/25.

Worldcub are a Northern Wales band, who sound a bit like Super Furry Animals/Gruff Rhys crossed with early career Animal Collective and The Beta Band.

Worldcub have just released a new single - "Exploding!". So between "Back to the Beginning", "Suddo Tonnau" and "Exploding!", Worldcub have released 16 songs in the last year. Clearly, the brothers Hamer are brimming with ideas and blessed with the work ethic to execute these ideas.

All of their work appears to be self-released.

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6/16/25.

The Pale Fountains were a Liverpool, England band that formed in the early 80s. They fit nicely into the sophisti-pop movement that bands like Prefab Sprout, Aztec Camera, Friends Again, and Orange Juice championed. Michael Head was influenced by Burt Bacharach, Love (check out the 1982 live version of "Maybe the People Would Be the Times" (Live 1982)" and The Beatles.

Cherry Red Records is releasing a complete works set, and Les Disques du Crépuscule released this early retrospective back in 2013. I'd heard of The Pale Fountains, but probably listened at a time that this slick style of pop wasn't yet appreciated by me.

There are reissues of both their Virgin Records albums - "Pacific Street" and "...From Across The Kitchen Table".

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6/15/25.

"Liberation!" is the debut LP from Peter Matthew Bauer. While he has had a long and productive solo career he is undoubtedly best known as the bassist for The Walkmen.

Fortune Tellers has put up a few copies the test pressing of "Liberation!" (Memphis Industries) on Bandcamp. The price is quite reasonable, but that shipping!

One of the Bandcamp buyers described this LP as "Springsteen at the ashram." You can also hear the influences of The Walkmen, Nap Eyes, Kurt Vile, The War on Drugs, and even echoes of Sonny & the Sunsets. And considering the Wine Country LP just came out, I want to give that a tangential comp as well.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/14/25.

First, while this cover for Idiot Mambo's "Shoot The Star" is brilliant, it's not the actual cover of the album. Just thought I'd get that out of the way right away.

But having a different cover for this album is kind of a metaphor. Some songs on this album don't really sound like anything else on the album. Idiot Mambo try on many different sounds here. "Hot Potato" sounds like Tony Jay/Cindy Lee. "Deathdriver" sounds like country - kind in the vein of R.W. Hedges. "R U Dumb" sounds like AC/DC covered by an indie/synth band. In fact, the Bandcamp page addresses these different influences: "Shoot the Star, is a kaleidoscopic homage to their eclectic influences, from punky pop and thrift-store glam to country sparkle." 

But a lot of these songs have a rock/pop sound reminiscent of The Who. This is Idiot Mambo's 2nd album (both for Philadelphia label, Strange Mono). Idiot Mambo are based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/13/25.

The Wind-Ups play rock n' roll the way God intended. They'd been a band on my periphery for a while, but when I listened to "Live in Oakland" I was not only hooked, but I genuinely wished I could have been at the Golden Bull to hear the blistering 28 minute set. It probably would have ranked up with the best live shows I'd ever seen.

"Confection" is the new LP from The Wind-Ups (Chico, California). As with "Live in Oakland", "Confection" will be released by Bay Area label Dandy Boy Records (The Wind-Ups have also released via Mt. St. Mtn.).

There's only one song available, but the songwriting sounds like it will continue in a similar vein to what has come before. Gentleman Jesse, and any Memphis based garage rock (Jay Reatard) come to mind. It should also be mentioned that Jonathan Richman plays on a track (I think head Wind-Up Jake Sprecher works with Richman when he tours).

[bandcampsnoop]

6/12/25.

I'm resigned to the fact that my love of Kenmare, Ireland's Laurie Shaw, might not be spreading around the world as I hoped. I've been focused on sharing Shaw's music since December 2016.

His music is like Ray Davies crossed with Van Morrison. There's a storytelling element to Laurie Shaw that I can't seem to get enough of - listen to "Pink Light Bulbs" from 2018's "Weird Weekend" to get an extended idea of his songwriting talents.

Shaw new album "Magnetosphere" is set for release on July 4th. Since Shaw is Irish, I don't think he's trying to make some revolutionary/independent statement with this release, but I love the release date. Shaw is approaching 30, and he has been relentless and uncompromising in the way he makes music since I've been listening.

Over the years I've compared Shaw's sound to Bingo Trappers, Gruff Rhys, Les Cox Sportifs, Paddy Hanna, Floating Action and so much more. I now also realize he must be influenced by Sufjan Stevens.

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6/11/25.

Yes. I love the earliest of the early Galaxie 500 (Boston, Massachusetts). "CBGB 12.13.88" is a live set from 1988 at the legendary CGBG. The bill had Sonic Youth, B.A.L.L. and Unsane.

It's great to hear Galaxie 500 stripped back and sounding young. "Tugboat" gives one a great idea of how intense their live shows probably were.

Kramer was on the board that night and the mix sound great and raw. Silver Current Records is releasing this in August.

[bandcampsnoop]

6/10/25.

Pearly* are a Dunedin, New Zealand band whose debut 7" is out now on mpls ltd. (Minneapolis Limited). This is a wonderful 4 song slab that does sounds Kiwi without sounding derivative at all. "Say Whatever" starts off with the clearest nod to a Flying Nun past - with an almost Hamish Kilgour/The Feelies beat, while "Post Key BCP" feels Snapper-esque. And if I had to make a New Zealand comp for final song "Hit The Ground Beside You", I'd say The 3Ds.

But really, none of those comparisons are obvious. The fact of the matter is that Pearly* make distorted, propulsive pop/post-punk.

I'm a bit surprised Ian Henderson didn't release this on Fishrider, but maybe that can be a future release.

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6/9/25.

The Lovely Basement is a band based in Bristol, England. They released "Lazy Travellers" last year on Spanish label No Aloha Records. That label has gained some attention since they're releasing "No Holler", the debut LP from Daily Worker (former Cotton Mather).

The No Aloha Records Bandcamp page for this release states that The Lovely Basement was shooting for a sound that crossed The Velvet Underground with country twang. Bullseye.

Other bands mentioned on the page are The Clientele, Luna and Cowboy Junkies. We previously mentioned No Aloha Records because they (along with Almost Halloween Time) released "Karaoke Parkman Blues" by Bingo Trappers.