Hello and welcome to the Bark List, where we collect new songs and albums we love. Now that that blog has relaunched for 2021, we’ll be trying to keep these Lean and Mean. Previously, we would make little video promos for each individual song, but we’re putting that process on the back burner for now (each video promo took like 15 minutes at the quickest, and 25 minutes at the longest, so you can imagine how time-consuming it was to make 30+ promos for these lists!). We’ll be trying to release these posts once a week, and this particular Bark List covers the music of early July 2021.
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:
Believe It, It’s Easy – Believe It, It’s Easy
Tired of ending up at the last of these alphabetized lists, Zeb Mrowka’s new project, Believe It, It’s Easy features first on our list now! We loved Zebvlon, but that project has been quietly laid to rest. Mrowka’s new songs slap just as hard, and their debut EP features guest spots by Jillian Deluz, Angelica Padua, and Pasquale Liuzzi. Oh, and there’s tapes!
Chef the Chef – Junkfood Deluxe Edition
You know we love anything Chefren Gray cooks up, and he just re-released his album Junkfood as a deluxe package. That deluxe package will net you some new bonus tracks that are not available digitally, so you gotta cop this one on CD to hear these new songs (many of which have been previewed on Chef the Chef’s instagram page).
Chop x 7 – Cyberviolence
If your coffee isn’t as strong as you want it to be, might I suggest starting your morning with Chop Chop Chop Chop Chop Chop Chop’s new EP, Cyberviolence? It’s the equivalent of dipping your face into a vat of battery acid and taking a deep breath in. Harsh, fast, and incredibly energizing. [to the Folger’s tune:] The best part of waking up is chop chop chop chop chop chop chop.
June Jissle & Deegan – A Lot of Things EP
June Jissle, one of NHV’s most prolific producers, just dropped his EP with Deegan. If you want a little adventure in your pop music, you gotta check these tracks out.
Knowte – My Obsession EP
What up, Worthy Family? Knowte has some new tracks out, already, and their last LP 20/20 just dropped last year too. And while that might seem like a fast turnaround, you get the sense that Knowte can’t help but make music all day every day. He lays it out in the final track, “Me”.
Mountain Movers – World What World
Everything is coming up Mountain Movers! The NHV stalwarts’ new album just got a glowing review in Post-Trash (our favorite indie blog, tbh), an opening spot for Yo La Tengo in NYC’s Central Park this summer, and a beautiful new vinyl record. You can pre-order that record from Redscroll Records for an exclusive art-print too!
Nahadoth — The Green, Regenerating album
Inspired by Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing comic series, this new album from Nahadoth. We’re not sure if we’re meant to keep the identity of Nahadoth quiet (like we do with the above-mentioned Chop 7x), so we’ll leave it out of this entry. Suffice to say, this is one of our favorite abstract musicians, and The Green, Regenerating harnesses the wonderful, corrosive, Lovecraftian spirit of nature.
STOUT – Anomaly
The new album from New Haven’s finest is wild, soulful, and surprising. With new music from STOUT, you can expect incredible vocals and melodies, but I wasn’t expecting electronic-inspired production. It’s loud, bold, tight, and heavy. STOUT didn’t have to go that hard, but she did, and we’ll be spinning this one for quite some time.
Violet and the Ghost – Beetle in the Ashtray
We’ve always been a fan of Violet’s music, but what I really love about Beetle in the Ashtray is just how creative it is. She’s brought her usual fantastic melodic hooks and sharp lyrics, but every single song on Beetle in the Ashtray has some sort of surprise in it. We’re still plumbing its depths, but so far, a favorite is “An Ode to the Dolphin Ladies of Dolphin High”, featuring the vocals of Wesley Garlington. It’s strange, surreal, and puts me in the mood to create something. Thank you.
Singles:
A Will Away – “Re Up”
The Naughty Naugatuckers (sorry, still trying to get a good nickname going for this) have followed up their awesome Soup EP with this early single.
The Brazen Youth – “Hometown”
Old Lyme’s The Brazen Youth have been teasing us on social media with shots / clips from their studio, and this is the first track from their newest batch of recordings.
Elison Jackson – “Good Deeds”
People tell me that Elison Jackson is now a Philadelphia, but if that was true, then why is New Haven’s Free As Birds Records releasing their upcoming album? Checkmate atheists. Check out the lead single, “Good Deeds”.
Flight of Silence – “Again and Again”
Brian Eldridge and company are back with another hard-hitting rock tune!
HEELE – “Still Intact”
Michael Henss (of New Haven + Hellrazor) has a new track out! We’ve been a fan since 2019’s EP Pathos (one of the first reviews we featured on this blog), and “Still Intact” is a goth/industrial ripper that tickles that spot of our brain that only Failure and Nine Inch Nails’ Fragile era can scratch. Incredibly excited for more of this.
Jillian Caillouette – “Selfish Motives”
Jillian Caillouette released some of our favorite music last year with Phases. Her new track, “Selfish Motives” retains the same pop soulfulness, but this track feels like a step ahead! It’s slick, tight, and a total earworm.
The Last Years + Jacket. – “Alive”
The Last Years contribute vocals and lyrics on this glorious synth-pop track. You can also find this track on Jacket’s new album, Volume 1: Dream.
vMandala – “Blank Spaces”
Mandala just played their last CT show (for now) as some of its members move to the West Coast. They haven’t been shy to let us know that their upcoming album will be their very best, and they just launched a IndieGoGo page if you want to support them directly! (reward tiers include vinyl!)
Mercy Choir – “Crime Not To Try”
Paul Belbusti and the whole dang Mercy Choir* will be releasing their new album, Kitchen Knife Collection, this Friday. If you want to get a quick taste of it before the full thing launches, now’s your chance. “Crime Not To Try” features the CT legend Frank Critelli, who also co-wrote the track. As you can see, both men’s last names end in “I”. And this is the kind of hard-hitting music journalism you can expect from ctverses. (*the rest of the choir is also Paul Belbusti).
Mildly Allergic – “Bobby Snaps”
We don’t know anything about Mildly Allergic! Is it a band? A person? An algorithm? The mystery remains, but “Bobby Snaps (Dive)” is their new wild single. Part DIY pop, part shoegaze, total banger.
Of Ether – “Spider in the Passcode”
We’ve been looking forward to new Of Ether music, and “Spider in the Passcode” has been more than worth the wait. Somewhere between A Moon Shaped Pool-era Radiohead and Ultraista — eat your heart out Nigel Godrich.
Similar Kind – “Parked Car Conversations”
We know we’re double-dipping a little bit because we covered this song in our recent post about music videos. (Stop reading this now and go check it out, if you haven’t yet!). Monday morning, the band surprised us with an announcement that all of their songs would be available on vinyl! You can grab a pre-order now at this link, but be sure to hurry because supplies are very, very limited. If you wanted to record-scratch “Seasons”, this might be your only chance.
Soft Screams – “Sugarfree Sadness”
Wasn’t expecting a drum-and-bass track from Sad Rock Hero Soft Screams! We haven’t seen Soft Screams play live since their solo gig at The Church in Hamden (RIP), so you won’t want to miss their newly announced gigs coming soon.
Was And When – “Feast Your Eyes”
Mike Held from Snowpiler and Ghost Chant (and an upcoming project with Autumn Eliza Sheffy) has a new double-single out now! The first track is “Feast Your Eyes” with a B-side new version of “Grave of Lust”. Put your ears on this or else suffer quietly in misery.
Music Videos:
Gambit – “Days Like This”
Kevin MF King – “Skywalking” Video
Kim Normal – “In Your Hands”
New album coming very, very soon with a release show August 6 at the Beeracks (booking by Tiny Box). Check out this lyric video created by the band’s resident hunk Conor McCarthy.
Say What You Will – “Colors” Video
Cursed:
John Mayer – Sob Rock
I talk shit about Pitchfork never covering music from Connecticut, and when they finally do, it’s this. Fuck.
