indiewave

Read time: 1 min 45 sec

Over the past few months, my pocket of the Northeast was experiencing its most brutal winter in years.  However, my library doesn’t have much that would fit on a ‘depressing log cabin wintry mix evening’ Spotify Daylist, so I’ve been looking towards Spring over here.  Escape the elements and surf the indiewave:

PawPaw Rod – “Again”

I saw PawPaw Rod perform in a dark basement venue in Philly last Autumn and the guy just oozes cool.  He took the stage with a doobie hanging out of his mouth whilst donning a leather vest, no undershirt, bell bottom jeans, a sick belt buckle and white cowboy boots.

His first order of business was to ask the crowd for a lighter.  He probably had one, but he’s smart.  There’s no better way to get a crowd full of friendly stoners engaged as 90% of the venue was gesturing towards the stage with a firestarter. 

Musically, Rod has found a unique blend of rock and hip hop.  OK, stop thinking about Limp Bizkit.  Think about hooky psych rock.  Think about prime Tame Impala employing an occasional rap cadence.

Mild High Club – “Tesselation”

Don’t worry, there is nothing pro-Musk going on here.  A tessellation is a pattern of geometric shapes that fit together perfectly on a plane without any gaps or overlaps.  Now that we’ve clarified that; this song is awesome.  Just like in the geometric pattern; the elements of this song fit together perfectly.  The drums are big, the guitar is crystal clear, and the organs are a nice compliment.  I wouldn’t quite call this Yacht Rock Revival but its Yacht Rock Revival adjacent. 

Butter Bath & Jermango Dreaming – “My Love”

I saw music outlet FACEMELTS pose the question “Why is Australia producing so many good bands right now?” along with a montage of what felt like 25 Aussie bands.  They dropped the ball by not including either of these talented Sydneysiders.  Underappreciation aside, BB & JD teamed up to drop one of the best indie dance songs of 2024.

I am not sure which of them is responsible for that bassline, but it has played on an endless loop in my mind for the last month.  Jermango –with your permission- I may need to steal that opening line, “I never get enough of your oxygen” for next year’s Valentine’s Day card. 

Soft Hair – “Lying Has To Stop”

In 2016, lovable weirdos Connan Mockasin and LA Priest dropped a collab album to minimal fanfare.  To be honest, the lack of commercial success isn’t entirely surprising.  There was some strange shit on there… and that’s coming from a guy who enjoys some strange shit. 

“Lying Has To Stop” was the most approachable song on that album and it’s a certified indie banger.  If given the chance, it easily could have lived alongside STRFKR and MGMT in your 2010 indie pop radio Pandora mixes.

The Simps – “Hold Me Down”

Ahh, the age-old question.  “What are the cool kids listening to?”  Right now, this is the answer…  maybe not this exact song… but this understated brand of pop/rock that’s tailor made for skateboarding TikTok’s.  Not usually my style, but I haven’t been able to stop playing this song from Eyedress’ side project with zzzahara. 

Maybe it’s because they describe my dream girl in the verse: “she’s looking good, she’s smellin good, she’s rollin up a Backwoods.” (joking babe lol I don’t even like girls that roll blunts lol like that’s actually illegal in a lot of states).

As for the rest… 

Sam Evian and Hannah Cohen somehow sound futuristic and retro at the same time on “Dream Free.”  Alice Phoebe Lou’s side project strongboi continues to pay dividends with “fool around.”  Get lost in the dreamy guitars of Golden Daze on “Lynyrd Bassman” (I just found out it’s actually the demo version of the song that I’ve had saved on Spotify but for some reason it hits harder than the polished version for me) 

Note from the author: ‘surf the indiewave vol. 2’ was originally written for oldfiltersnewlight.com and featured in their e-newsletter