Y’all are wild for this one. We just mentioned last week that the music round-up was a little smaller than usual, but this week’s is just massive. Everybody’s releasing great music (and music videos!). We hope that this Bark List will be your gateway into something new, something that you’ll love. Many of these bands are also playing live shows now (check out our event calendar for Only Good Gigs [tm]), so if you go, make sure you take a mask and don’t be a weirdo.
Our special picks this week are Pond View’s “Golden Years”, the new Tekowa Lakica track “HOUSE”, and the new album from Elison Jackson (Good Deeds).
Check out this Bark List’s songs below, and as always, if you like what you hear: share it with a friend! And if you have the means, consider buying their music. Spotify is nice and all, but unless you plan on streaming a song multiple hundred times, Bandcamp is best. I know that tracking down songs on Bandcamp can be a pain in the ass, so if you discover new music on Spotify, consider throwing your playlists into this tool to quickly track down the Bandcamp page of these artists: https://hypem.com/merch-table/ .
You can follow us on instagram and twitter for more music during the week.
Albums + EPS:
Carter Lee – The Goldenboy: A Muchlove Story
The head of MUCHLOVE. production (check out their sick visuals), Carter Lee’s new album of psychedelic beats defies any kind of single genre. It’s old-school in some of its sounds, and progressive in its application of those beats — you won’t find anything else like this. Let this be your trip.
Elison Jackson – Good Deeds
Y’all, the new Elison Jackson record rules. Released by NHV’s Free As Birds Records, Good Deeds is a great collection of americana punk songs. The title track throws in some synthesizers; “Going Clear” is a loose and cool ballad; the spacey final track “Evil Deeds” is about as great an album closer as you can get. Our only complaint? “Caught One in the Jaw” isn’t on it!
Fade to Pharoah – Fade to Pharoah
Recorded in both Pennsylvania and Connecticut, this new project (centered around Adam Hess and recorded by Brandon Dunlap) mixes old school folk jangle with shoegaze to incredible effect. It’s psychedelic, slow, and cool as hell. The EP is only four songs long, but each track is filled with a beautiful little pocket of dreams and sleep. 🙂
Ice Cream Orphan – The Last Part of a Four Part Joke
Is Harmony Pulaski’s (from Two Headed Girl) new album as Ice Cream Orphan her last? The title “The Last Part of a Four Part Joke” sounds like this fourth album, and first since 2019’s stellar Your Lips Exist, has a sense of finality to it. The album is as wild as you’d imagine from Harmony, whose surreal lyrics are paired with wildly catchy chant-like melodies.
Keep Me Safe – My How You’ve Grown
Keep Me Safe have kept a low profile since releasing their debut single “The 1973 Tetherball Championship Trophy”, but they’re back this week with a full album! For fans of acoustic-laden emo, but it’s also dangerously close to folk punk at times (like “I-95”) if that’s your thing! And hey, any album that has a lyric that rhymes “Connecticut” with “predicate” has my full attention.
The//Moon – Glimpses of Other Realities vol. 2
Just a few weeks ago, The//Moon released Glimpses of Other Realities volume 1 on Firstname Lastname Records. Volume 2 is here, a quick, dirty, dark trip through pitch-black, wet alleyways. Every track is less than a minute (except one), so you got no excuse to check this out — what, you’re busy every single minute of the day? C’mon.
Steve Hartlett – 308
On occasion, Steve Hartlett (Ovlov, Stove) will drop a surprise solo record on bandcamp. 308 dropped yesterday without warning: a quick lo-fi acoustic EP of 5 tracks. The whole thing is up on bandcamp now for $3, and if his other solo releases are any indication, this is not one that’ll be on the usual streaming services, so you’ll want to grab this one right now.
Singles:
Adversity – “Happen to You”
Earlier this year, Adversity (from Wethersville / Hartford) dropped his EP Cloudy Conscious, and if you didn’t catch it already, you gotta hurry because he’s still moving forward. The newest single is “Happen to You”, another burner, but this time with vibraphone!
All for Naught – “Alone”
All For Naught have re-recorded their debut EP and are getting a new mix/master. While we wait for the full EP to drop (or re-drop), you can check out this outstanding sneak peak, “Alone”.
Anxious – “Call From You”
Emo, hardcore, melodic punk, whatever you want to categorize them as, Anxious is back with a new single. They debut it at their CT homecoming show at the Space Ballroom, and it coincides with their new signing to Run For Cover Records. Hell yeah. Does that mean Ben Affleck is gonna be checking out their upcoming debut album?
A Will Away – “Spittin’ Chiclets”
The Nicest Folks from Naugatuck! The second single of 2021, A Will Away follow their “Re-Up” with this banger. Does this mean that they might be following up 2019’s Soup later this year? Damn, we hope so. Check out their music video for the song below in the Music Videos section!
BAO Joey – “JLO Freestyle”
We don’t often cover freestyles in the music round-up (it’d be like three times as long!), but we couldn’t resist shouting out BAO Joey’s newest track. The wizard from Waterbury strikes again.
Driveway Ceiling – “The Ballad of Bill Buckner”
This new project has only released two songs, and I still have no idea how to describe their sound. “Step 2 You”, which we covered in a previous Bark List, was like a hyperpop trance, but “The Ballad of Bill Buckner” is a slower, dreamier, swirling mix of defeat, sadness, and synthesizers. I mean that in the best way possible. If you ever want to feel what Bill Buckner felt when he fucked up that one time, check this out.
Escape Ladder – “Aquarium” (Demo)
Formerly known as Bad Past, Escape Ladder has relaunched with a new single / demo to commemorate the name change. Self-described as an “ambient/diy/pop-punk acoustic project”, we’re promised that more music will be coming very soon.
Good Memory Ghost – “Shape of a Heart”
“Shape of a Heart” is the debut project from Lyme-based Good Memory Ghost, who’ll be releasing more music on Tipsy Cliffs Records (out of Providence, RI). The post-post-punk (or alt-indie-rock? who’s to say?) group’s members include Justin Bellucci, Helene Brunæs, Charlie Champion, and Patrick Miett.
Grand1sle – “Pirate Pizza Party”
Tom Fisher from He Was An Artist has a new project! Grand1sle debuted at the Minus Points / Montclair show at the Beeracks last week, and don’t pretend like you were expecting pitch-shifted, chiptuned, blast-beat-fused emo.
Have a Nice Life – “Floating”
One of CT’s most engimatic projects, Have a Nice Life dropped a new song last week: the sparse, beautiful “Floating”. The song doesn’t have the same gothic, blowout post-punk that you might be expecting, which is what makes “Floating” such a perfect surprise. Will this be a one-off? A sign of a wild stylistic shift to come? God I can’t wait to find out.
Kayana – “Typing…”
Kayana from Jelani Sei recently performed vocals for Armand Hammer (!!!), dropping this new single to celebrate the occasion. If you’ve heard her solo work before, you’ll be happy to slide right back into that warm, hazy dream she crafts so well.
Pond View – “Golden Years”
Fresh off of their 2021 FarmFest (which included like 9 bands and over 100 people in attendance!), Pond View are running a victory lap with “Golden Years”. Crunchy rock-n-roll from one of CT DIY’s favorite up and coming bands. No gonna lie — if this song was on their first album, it would’ve been the best song on Fungus?. Check it out now!
The Problem with Kids Today – “Baddest Bitch”
The name kinda says it all, don’t it? Rock-n-roll delinquents Reena, Tate, and Silas are back with their third single, another fiery 90-second anthem. Come check out Michael Bolton’s favorite DIY band in the state!
Scooped Up – “Reruns”
Loud, wild pop-punk, Mildford’s Scooped Up returns with “Reruns”. It’s fast, high-energy, and will help you close out the summer in style. They also dropped an awesome music video (see below).
Spirit Was – “I Saw The Wheel”
Spirit Was usually gets classified as a “New York” band, but Nick Corbo is from Torrington, so… “I Saw The Wheel” is the first single (and video) for the upcoming album Heaven’s Just a Cloud. You can pre-order the album on vinyl, and yes, it does include (1) Corbo’s idiosyncratic and wonderfully deep guitar work and (2) his phenomenal illustrations.
Sundots – “WAGAILWOA” feat. OnlyAfter6PM
Drew Collins is the architect and CEO of Sundots, our favorite international corporation. This track was originally released on Through the Soil, a DIY compilation that raised funds for NAMI (one of our favorite non-profits). Dreamboat Josh Merkin is credited with “shaker and sounds”.
Tekowa Lakica – “Touch”
Just a few weeks ago, Tekowa released a new single (“Water Rising”), so we were surprised when “Touch” dropped so soon. For our money, we think “Touch” is even better than that previous song (which is already so good). If you take the latest few Tekowa Lakica songs, put them together in an EP, and you’d have one of the best EPs of the year without a doubt.
Trace Mountains – “America”
There were a lot of shows that were cancelled in the opening maw of COVID-19, but one of the shows I was looking forward to the most was Trace Mountain’s tour stop at MAC650. That record (Lost in the Country) is amazing, and they’re already prepping a new LP with House of Confusion. Not 100% a CT band, but they’ve had enough CT members to easily qualify, obvs.
Music Videos:
A Will Away – “Spittin Chiclets”
Some of the best use of harmonics in 2021.
Gambit – “Water” prod. ZTK
“A rap song about being thirsty”. Damn, I dunno what it was like to film this, but I felt bad for Gambit for real: buried up to his neck in that dry heat! Check out the new song and video now!
Pond View – “Golden Years”
It’s 3AM, do you know where your band is?? Pond View is apparently outside Branford rocking out while everyone else is asleep.
Scooped Up! – “Reruns”
First single + video for the upcoming (and second ever) Scooped Up! record. The band lugged that old school TV all over Connecticut.
Spirit Was – “I Saw The Wheel”
First single + video for the upcoming record Heaven’s Just a Cloud.
Tekowa Lakica – “Touch”
You can find “Touch” on all major streaming services, but the only way you’ll be able to see the music video is through her instagram page!
Trace Mountains – “America”
Directed by Jim Hill of Trace Mountains and Slight Of (who I think is from Naugie, but I can’t remember what they told me, sorry Jim).
