listen with bndcmpr
Back in March of 2020 I put together a list of tracks for the Penfriend Correspondents’ Club Forum, and almost all the tracks are on bandcamp…
Penfriend/Everything Looks Normal in the Sunshine; Noga Erez/Sunshine; Beauty Pill/The Damndest Thing; Sammus/Mighty Morphing; The Wiggly Tendrils; Ringing Ears and Beating Hearts; Hussalonia/Don’t (Stop Believin’); Hallelujah the Hills/Country Before Kings; Sidney Gish/Sin Triangle; Fiva/Du bist nicht mein Monster; Lizzo/Juice
This is a mix of some recent-ish discoveries and some old favorites I think deserve wider exposure. Also for some reason, there are a lot of horns, sampled voices, and guitar solos.
I stumbled on Noga Erez through a collaboration with Sammus, but the subtle textures and transitions of this track really grabbed me. Also: Sunshine!
Beauty Pill leader Chad Clark’s music is always thoughtful and impeccably arranged, but most of his songs do not feature dueling guitar solos.
Sammus produces her own tracks and she’s an incredible live performer, just by the way.
To have a song written by The Wiggly Tendrils about how my wife and I met was one of the most amazing presents I have ever received.
Long-running mostly-solo home recordist Hussalonia tackles an amazing range of genres, but sardonic wit and sly musical references are present in almost all the recordings.
Boston band Hallelujah the Hills’ new album is probably their best, but the chorus hook of this older one keeps popping into my head for some reason.
Discovered Sidney Gish when she played a set at a comedy festival in between stand up artists.
I love offbeat covers, and I think Downtown Boys reworking of Selena’s reworking of the Pretenders’ classic has an amazing energy to it. Almost Clash-y!
The Fiva song translates to “You are not my monster” by the way. I took a German class that introduced us to some German artists, and I love the samples and the chorus hook of this even if I can’t understand most of the words.
Finally, I like when mixes end on “up” note, and Lizzo’s newest record has been a key “coping strategy” for me since I first heard it.
I Hate The Sound Of Guitars 