On the cusp of a second UK/EU tour and with a new line up in tow, Karina Gill’s San Francisco dreampop collective Cindy return with All Weekend, the lead track from forthcoming EP Swan Lake.
Whilst arriving with customary style and grace, the change in personnel has inevitably lead to subtle shifts in the band’s sound. Where once lay the soothing swell of keys we now find intricate guitar lines weaving melodically around Gill’s effortlessly affecting vocal, the rhythm section’s gentle precision at once commanding and calming. The starkness of the whole puts me in mind of Cindy’s very earliest recordings, but with a finely honed lightness of touch that allows the deep beauty of the songwriting to truly take flight.
Cindy are: Karina Gill, Staizsh Rodrigues (Children Maybe Later), Will Smith and Oli Lipton (Now).
Swan Lake arrives 4th October via Tough Love Records. You can pre-order the vinyl/digital here.
Cindy tour the UK and Europe this Autumn, you can find full ticket information via Outsider Artists here.
Arriving with the minimum of fuss and the hugest of hearts, mysterious UK lofi pop duo The Gabys mark their return with Colour Me Out, the lead track from their forthcoming third self-titled EP.
Drifting past like morning (mourning?) clouds after the longest of nights before, Colour Me Out’s threadbare changes and fragile melodies sound like both the beginning and ending of everything that ever was and is ever likely to be.
As ever, it’s hard to find the words for music I feel as deeply as this. There is a rare spirit and sense of wonder to The Gabys’ art that is truly beyond compare. Released 23rd August via Fruits & Flowers, you can pre-order the vinyl/digital here.
The 2022 release of Claudia’s Ethereal Weaver brought the work of Bay Area DIY musician (and Paisley Shirt Records boss) Kevin Linn to a wider audience via its release on the Madrid based label Meritorio Records. Two years on, its follow up Ten Brocades enlists the help of fellow San Francisco based friends/musicians Karina Gill (Cindy/Flowertown) and Michael Ramos (Tony Jay/Flowertown) to help bolster Linn’s pop chops and bring forth some of Sad Eyed Beatniks strongest tunes to date.
Placing its focus on stolen moments in time and friendships/relationships both past and present, Ten Brocades’ vivid and varied songs weave their magic with wild style and giddy abandon. Passing Melody is my personal favourite, its gloriously persistent riff framing some trademark spiralling Linn soloing coupled with an infectiously cool vocal. In truth however, every moment here is a highlight, with each spin revealing new treasures awaiting discovery. Out now via Meritorio Records on Vinyl/Digital, Ten Brocades is an undoubted DIY psych pop triumph. Order here.
Ahead of the release of the self-titled third Teenage Tom Petties album on August 2nd, singer/guitarist Tom Brown has unleashed a second single bursting with pure, unrestrained DIY power.
A relentless burst of soaring melodic riffery, Night Nurse dismisses the standard power pop verse/chorus/verse structure in favour of an unwaveringly propulsive momentum that builds towards a truly thrilling finale.
Clocking in at barely a hundred seconds, by the time you catch your breath it’ll most likely all be over. Best just spin it again yeah?
“It started life as an attempt at a 50’s ballad about not being able to sleep. Over time it sped up and became something I felt The Smoking Popes might have done before they found God.” – Tom Brown
Teenage Tom Petties releases August 2nd via Safe Suburban Home (UK) and Repeating Cloud (US). Tapes/downloads are available to pre-order here.
You can catch TTP live as part of the Safe Suburban Home Roadshow throughout August, more information here.
A year on from the comforting lofi jangle of Perfect Worlds, two newly released recordings see Tony Jay exchange the enveloping half-light of their more customary DIY pop for darker, deeper hues.
Blown out and lovelorn, The Darkest Corner’s aching strum and hum sees Bay Area fog pop auteur Michael Ramos finding solace in solitude, with palpable waves of emotion breaking gently beneath cathartic bursts of glacial guitar tones.
Recorded during a period of necessary confinement whilst caring for beloved cat Penny, both The Darkest Corner and the forlorn soundscapes of instrumental Ancient Slice reflect the timeless sense of uncertainty such situations can conjure.
Bursting with subtle experimentation and intimate nocturnal wanderings, new album Knife Is But A Dream arrives 16th August on cassette/download via Slumberland Records, Paisley Shirt Records and Galaxy Train.
Tony Jay tours Japan this August, dates are as follows:
Bay Area artist Ryann Gonsalves has been omnipresent on the underground independent scene this year as frontperson and key member of the bands Torrey and Aluminum.
The full-hearted melodic gift that flows through both of these projects can also be explored in its starkest form across Ryann’s enchanting DIY solo album Ouch!, recently released via local label Dandy Boy Records. Amid all of these varied and vivid creative ventures, Ryann very kindly found time to answer a few questions for heavymetalkids.uk:
Hi Ryann, thank you so much for talking to heavymetalkids.uk. The recently released Torrey album has been steadily capturing hearts and minds here in the UK. The songs were primarily created alongside your brother Kelly, would it be right to assume you grew up as part of a very musical family?
Thank you so much for wanting to catch up, Fran! Definitely part of a music loving family. My mom introduced us to so many good bands at an early age and started taking us to shows when we were super little. Growing up, she was really supportive when we wanted to learn how to play; buying us our first instruments and setting us up in lessons. Very grateful for that! Music was always around. Some of my warmest memories are listening to her favorite CDs in the car, singing along with her from the backseat.
How did the Torrey/Slumberland Records link up occur? It must have been quite a thing to see the album emerge on such an esteemed indie label?
While recording, Matthew Ferrara took the lead and sent the mixes over to Mike Schulman. When we finally asked if he could send them along, he had already beat us to it, which was a sweet surprise! Mike and Matthew are such wonderful individuals and were so supportive throughout the whole process of recording and putting the record out. Mike puts so much care and love behind every record he puts out and I’m amazed to be part of such an unbelievably talented lineup of bands.
Torrey – No Matter How
Your DIY solo album Ouch! for Dandy Boy Records shows you as being highly proficient across a wide range of instruments. It must be very freeing to have such a varied means of expressing yourself artistically?
Thank you so much for all the support you’ve shouted out for my solo stuff, truly appreciate it!! It was super cathartic to track everything for this record and I’m really excited to take what I’ve learned and pour it into the next one. Drums were my first instrument, I’m very wobbly at them, but I love playing and look forward to getting better. Recording Ouch! was such a playful, emotional, and freeing experience. I couldn’t have asked for a better co-pilot in Rick Altieri who recorded and produced the record. Jokingly, I listed him as “emotional support” in the credits, but Rick truly showed up for me with such authentic care while recording these vulnerable and emotionally driven songs. He’s amazing to work with and a truly incredible friend!
Dandy Boy Records has become one of my favourite Bay Area labels over the last couple of years and label boss Bobby Martinez seems a really top guy! How did you guys become acquainted?
I first met Bobby a couple years ago when he hit up my bandmate, Marc Leyda, to chat about putting out the first Aluminum EP. We went to get tacos in the Mission and the rest was history! The three of us instantly clicked and have been close friends ever since. Bobby is the best and is so important to our steady growing scene here in the Bay! He believes in his friends, pours so much love into Dandy Boy Records, and has cultivated such a warm and inspiring community within the Dandy family.
Ryann Gonsalves – Feeder Fish
There has been a real buzz around Aluminum’s debut album Fully Beat. Can you tell us a little about how you came to be involved with this great project? Is it challenging trying to keep so many creative plates spinning simultaneously?
Marc reached out to me during quarantine with a couple of songs needing melodies and lyrics– I sent him back some demos and from there we kept at it! Since it was lockdown, I hadn’t actually met Austin Montanari yet but we were in this band together for probably a year before meeting, which is pretty wild! As for being in a lot of projects, it’s really only challenging when everything is active all at once! I’m kind of an introvert, but am learning how to recharge and rebalance a little as I go so I don’t necessarily need to disappear for a few days at a time like I usually do.
With the Bay Area scene seemingly as vibrantly creative as ever, what do you think it is that makes things there so unique? The unity and solidarity amongst the arts is truly beautiful to see.
We believe in each other! It really feels like everyone here wants each other to succeed and will help each other out as much as possible to get there. My bandmate, Chris Natividad, for instance, is such an inspiring person in our community. He’s continuously booking sick shows, connecting bands, planning tours, and the go to person in the Bay for touring bands to hit up. We have such a wide range of labels reaching into all facets of the rad art being made here as well; like JB from Cherub Dream Records who’s created a space in the Bay that feels so inclusive, badass, and beautiful! There’s a sense of belonging here that I feel like many folks, myself included, haven’t experienced before. Okay, I’ll stop gushing. I love the Bay! I love my friends! End Rant!!
Aluminum – Behind My Mouth
And finally, my 14y/o daughter has started playing guitar over the last few months and has really taken to it. What advice would you give to a young person looking to kick on creatively?
I’d say be as weird as you want and trust yourself! Many people will try to tell you how to be, how to play, how to sing, how to move, how to be an ‘actual musician’, but try your best to push that aside and listen for what excites you and lights you up! Art is play and hiccups happen, but by being true to yourself and your creative voice you’ll always be on the right path.
The biggest thank you to Ryann for taking time out from so much beautiful creativity to speak to the blog. I truly appreciate it.
Be sure to check out Torrey’s self-titled album which is out now via Slumberland Records and available here. Ryann’s solo collection Ouch! is available via Dandy Boy Records here. Lastly, Aluminum’s debut long player Fully Beat can be picked up via Felte Records here. Thanks all.
I first discovered the kosmische noise-pop of LA quartet Dummy during plague year 2020, the far-reaching ambition of their DIY motorik explorations providing much needed focus during a time of frequently overwhelming stasis.
Following two low-key EP releases, the fully formed arrival of their stunning 2021 debut Mandatory Enjoymentand a contribution to Sub Pop’s esteemed singles club, the band return with Nullspace, the first taste of their sophomore LP Free Energy.
Nullspace is all groove, all energy. Cyclical beats propel the band toward dizzying new heights, their customarily meticulous melodies deeply embedded within a rush of urgent, ricocheting electronics.
Free Energy arrives 6th September via Trouble In Mind Records, you can pre-order Vinyl/CD/Cassette/Digital here.
Dummy are: Alex Ewell (drums, synths, bass), Emma Maatman (vocals, synths, organ), Nathan O’Dell (vocals, guitar, organ), Joe Trainor (guitar, bass, synths).
Dummy tour the UK this winter, further information here.
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