Lav's Music Corner

Knocknarea EP - Maruja Maruja are an experimental rock band whose live performances I've seen passed along through grainy recordings on dorky music threads for a while now. They have a combination of prog and hardcore that will remind friends of Black Midi only more methodical. This EP's quietest moments are willing to be FAR more reserved and simplistic than Black Midi's but the band can also burst into a frenzy that feels much more grating and visceral. It's a comparison that really stuck with me once I heard this project's opening track Thunder  when it dropped as a single. The song is so clearly inspired by Black Midi's sophomore album Cavalcade  that you could almost try and slip it in as a more hardcore-flavored b-side. The second track and first single Blind Spot  is even more patient though it reaches a level of noise that I'm surprised is even possible for a four-piece. The band's breakout track of sorts has been The Tinker. The track is a rushi...

Stumpwork  - Dry Cleaning Dry Cleaning dropped a pretty hyped-up debut album last year that I thought was just okay and which barely cracked my Top 100 albums of the year list. I wasn't surprised to see the band back so quickly given that they still have some hype to capitalize on and do feel like they have a genuinely youthful and creative spirit to them like so many of their burgeoning post-punk contemporaries. In fact, after hearing the singles I was excited enough for the record that I planned on doing a full review of it but never got around to it due to a busy release weekend. Singles like Anna Calls From The Arctic , Gary Ashby  and in particular my favorite Dry Cleaning song to date No Decent Shoes For Rain  forecasted the band further sinking into the methodical darkness of post-punk which excited me quite a bit. Unfortunately, I can say for the second time in as many years that I wasn't as impressed with the deep cuts here as I hoped I would be. On their debut a...

On time even though I don't have wifi right now because I moved. The things I do for my little darlings.  Enjoy <3 5.  Grapevine  - Weyes Blood Even with Weyes Blood being known for playing it lowkey the verses on this track are on the sparse side. And while the hook doesn't quite erupt like some of her best tracks it doesn't have to because the beauty comes from the subtlety. With Johnathan Rado once again on board for production every single chime, keys and swell of strings sounds immaculately aligned.  Listen 4.  Stressed  - Doechii Top Dawg's new versatile wonder child is back with another impressive new single that shows off her ability to sing and rap across an effective array of styles. Beyond her impressive display the song also has a great instrumental that's creative and pretty uncompromising in its willingness to work in charming small details.  Listen 3.  ours  - R.A.P Ferreira In the middle of this song Rory explicitly says no...

While this wasn't the biggest week I've ever covered it also wasn't necessarily slow and highlighted by a few very high profile announcement singles, there was quite a bit to talk about this week. 5.  Gary Ashby  - Dry Cleaning I was worried a bit about Dry Cleaning's short turnaround from album one to album two when I started to hear singles that sounded VERY familiar. Turns out they could circumvent the problem by just reusing ideas that I didn't mind hearing again. This new song which evokes pretty strong Scratchcard Lanyard  comparisons is a solid reimagining of that track's fundamentals in a shorter and slightly less pessimistic fashion.  Listen 4.  We Let It In  - Brian Eno Continuing Eno's ongoing return into the world of vocals he brings along his daughter for a very gentle and expansive duet. The song didn't really connect with me at first but the more I observed it's gentle tones and the remarkable sonic restraint shown throughout, I was ul...

Between two busy release weekends I wanted to take the time to really quickly get my thoughts out about a couple of indie records that have been turning heads in the past few months. I was hoping to do a full length review of some of these but with even more high profile indie releases on the horizon I wanted to get them out quickly while they are still more or less relevant. Enjoy <3 Entertainment, Death  - Spirit Of The Beehive Spirit of the Beehive are a Philly based indie outfit that I've heard mentioned in passing a few times over the years and this is actually their 4th album. I saw this thing turning heads and getting some pretty good reviews when it first came out so I gave it a listen as well as some of their other work. One thing that is immediately obvious about this record going into it is that the band will unashamedly bounce between all different kinds of genres and sounds with ease. Even within the same song they are dabbling in harsh experimental rock sounds then...