Echo Beach Radio 8

My God, It's Full of Feels

Sometimes when theres big change, I don’t quite know what to do with myself. Usually music helps. Here’s the stuff on repeat this last few weeks, most of it brand spanking new, all of it with a certain lamentation and/or “get to work” vibe. We’ll start mellow, and end angry.

But mostly I offer these songs from mostly young new musicians as a beacon of hope. However you’re feeling this week, I hope you take hope knowing there are young folks out there singing their hearts out, crying their pain, anger, love and hope into microphones. That hasn’t changed. That won’t change. So here’s some great new music.

Spotify playlist:

Or watch the videos all at once with ads on Youtube, or just keep reading.

Ceremony - Galaxie 500 (Joy Division Cover)

All new music this time, except this first one, which is a 15 year old cover of Joy Division’s most tragic song, written both a few weeks before lead singer Ian Curtis killed himself, and in an desperate attempt by bandmate Bernie Summers to re-engage Curtis and bring Ian back. The irony is that it ends up being both the most hopeful, and saddest song. There’s no studio version of Ian singing it (just some real bad live mixes), and I like to think that the cover here, from a short-lived but amazing millennial band Galaxie 500, does justice to it more than even New Order’s “official” post Curtis release.

As Good As It Gets - Katie Gavin & Mitski

I know Katie Gavin only as the part of synth/indie pop band Muna, which is how this solo project of hers ended up in my feed. Absolutely heartbreaking but extremely real love song, with lyrics that for sure need a preamble to my wife (This isn’t a hint! It’s just a lovely song that breaks my heart!)

I want you to disappoint me on and on until we’re old.
I’m inside folding laundry. You’re outside fixing the hose.

And I think this is as good as it gets my life,
I think this is as good as it gets.
Pray to god that you think it is enough …

Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come - The Wombats

A fairly well known 2000s-era indie band who has made lots of normal music, I know them mostly from their weird and wonderful 2008 banger “Let’s Dance to Joy Division,” they’re back with a song that seems to capture my mood pretty well these days. I mean come on, this is the chorus. The whole song is honest and hilarious:

I’m sorry I’m late I didn’t want to come.
It’s not that I hate you, I just hate everyone.
I don’t want to socialize unless I’m getting numb.

Digging a Pond - Gladie

Augusta Koch, the singer of Gladie and former Cayetana frontperson, has been on these lists a few times, and this one’s really fantastic. Like all her best stuff, it’s very simple, and her voice and the delivery is what caries the whole thing.

I had the thought today, that I’ve done enough
I had the thought today, It’s okay to give up.
If I detonate all these ideas will they serve me
If I detonate all of these ideas will I be free.

Metalhead - urika’s bedroom

Hat tip to the weekly “Download 15” show on SiriusXMU for dropping this new dreampop classic on me. The entire album — Big Smile, Black Mire — is a danged masterpiece of the form, and it was hard to pick a tune to represent what really should be a full headphones-on-in-a-dark-room experience, but Metalhead has a great hook and a bit more drive than some of other more etheric pieces. It’s absolutely worth lingering through the handful of short spoken word pieces on the album too. The whole thing is an experience worth having.

Yoke - Medium Build & Julien Baker

This showed up in my feed because Julien Baker can do no wrong and I just habitually listen to any of her stuff. I am aware of Medium Build (Nick Carpenter) but none of his stuff had particularly landed hard for me. This one does. A super stripped down vocally gorgeous tune that also just reaches right into my chest.

I guess it was better than the alternative
Plenty wanted more than us.
Always a roof. Always food to eat.
Plenty of dogma stained love.
’cause Yoke was so heavy.
The Yoke was so …

Abigail - Soccer Mommy

OK, enough sadness. Here’s a *delightful* little diddy from extremely well known band Soccer Mommy which is entirely about a videogame romance inside Stardew Valley. And it’s wonderful. Also the video is super cute. And also a pretty strong commentary on modern love.

Under the Rug - Arcy Drive

This kind of “sloppy garage rock” is really hard to make clean and tight while still feeling like the product of a bunch of drunk kids figuring their stuff out, and new-to-me New York band Arcy Drive really nails it. I’ve been digging into their catalog and they’re rocketed up the “bands I wanna see live” list in the course of a week or two.

God of Everything Else - Porridge Radio

I found Porridge Radio because they did a colab with another band I love from Chicago, Lala Lala, but theire “big hit” Sweet didn’t really do it for me. Some punk vibes but not sure of itself.

THIS is a different animal. I got goosebumps the second I heard it because it reminded me of Amanda Palmer in 2008 when she dropped “Who Killed Amanda Palmer.” Just an explosive raw voice, taking Riot Grrrl tendencies and stripping them right down the the core.

What Have You Done To Me - Imogen Heap

The thing I love about Imogen Heap is that there’s always a clear sense that what your listening to is EXACTLY what she wants. This tune includes that trademark intentionality, but also does some really fun and interesting things in the soundscape, from shifting rhythms and keys to a lot of interesting vocal modelling, there’s something interesting happening in every single second of the tune.

I know its a whole SIX MINUTES, but I promise you won’t be bored.

Warsong - The Cure

In general I’m NOT a fan of bands from my youth just running out the clock, but holy eyeliner batman, this probably-the-last Cure album - Songs of a Lost World - has all the combined talent, weight and years. It reminds me of a few other twilight-epics: Bowie’s Blackstar, Zevon’s The Wind, Johnny Cash’s American IV. It’s honestly my favorite Cure album since Disintegration in 1989, and my second favorite of all time after 1982’s Pornography. It’s an *album* … it knows what it’s doing. And Warsong anchors the middle of it, and it’s a classic cure tune - both heavy and light at the same time. Also worth noting this the first *real* album where 2012 add-on Reeves Gabrels really shines through on guitar and bass.

God’s Country - Lambrini Girls

Closing it out with two AWESOME and ANGRY punk tracks. The first is from brand new UK band Lambrini Girls who are, to put it bluntly, DONE with it. With everything, especially the UK. The video is basically a litany of stuff that’s awful. But regardless, the music is awesome and has the Black Flag edge that I haven’t heard from young punks in a while.

ONE NATION - Pinkshift

… and on this side of the pond, another GenZ/Young Millenial grunge-punk band is MAD, and has made some amazing music. I get the message is gonna land weird or wrong for a whole lotta people right now, to which I would say: listening to people you disagree with is important. Haven’t we learned that in spades lately? The last thing I think I need to do, speaking personally, is closed down the iris on reality even more. So listen to some punk. Pop your own bubble.

Peace,

Dave