Satiricus Doomicus Americus – Satiricus Doomicus Americus

A fascinating and surprising mix of fuzzed-out guitar riffs, unusual samples, oddball vocals and doomy folk. There’s a deep and abiding sense of Weird that runs all thru this, and a not inconsiderable amount of humor. 

It pulls in threads of punk, metal, and folk, weaving them into a fun and surreal musical tapestry to support the lyrical message, which is quite pointed and political (but definitely odd enough you can probably just dig the vibes if that’s your preference). It might take a couple of listens to click – it did for me – but when it does… Oh, baby!

(Listened to the entire album)

Wojcicki – Wetmarket Scratch

Classic indie rock like the early ‘00s used to make – a little Americana, a little country, a little punk. This made me intensely nostalgic for that era and dozens of great, obscure bands I saw – I could almost taste the second hand smoke (right before it was banned!) and hear the chatter of the bar behind me. Whether you share that nostalgia with me or missed it the first time around, these songs are worth a shot. 

Each one is populated with some nice hooks, a solid rhythm section, sweet guitar licks, nice arrangements and an earnest, raspy vocal. It’s just well crafted and well meaning indie rock – how can you go wrong?

(Listened to the entire album)

B of Briz – “Profoundly Sick Society”

UK indie hip hop with conscious raps and some interesting atmospheric flourishes. Bassline-first beats drive the action here, heavy sheets of wub bass shifting around seismically underneath everything else. The vocal is delivered in a British accent and with an interesting cadence that plays nicely with the wub-driven musical bed. 

Lyrics focus on what we can do to fix our profoundly fucked society – timely! A perversely un hip hop atmosphere, almost like a lost ambient track that got stuck to the beat, tops things off. All in all, a fascinating take on conscious hip hop with unusual production.

AVXARC – MTN

Cinematic synth music based in the kosmische tradition that sounds like the soundtrack to a lost Michael Mann film. Dark, brooding and full of a restless energy despite a superficially calm vibe, these tracks reliably work their way under the skin. 

Occasional moments of brightness pop up here and there, but the overall mood is mysterious and perhaps a bit menacing – quite a nice combo. If you like your kosmische-leaning tunes cinematic and a bit spooky, this should please.

(Listened to the entire album)

Travels With Brindle – No. 1 in Heaven

Whimsical twee covers of Sparks classics by a lady with a ukulele. It’s a pretty natural fit – after all, Sparks is a band known for their whimsy – that should please fans of the band and fans of the uke. 

Those who love both should be in Heaven (just in time to hear the No. 1 song up there). Even if you’ve not heard of Sparks (definitely check out Sparks!) this might be worth a spin – it’s a fun, breezy ride thru some clever, classic songs.

(Listened to the entire album)

If you’d like to support my efforts to expose cool independent music to a wider audience, you can contribute to my year-long fundraiser via Ko-Fi. Alternately, you could always buy some of my music


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