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I CAN BE INDIE TOO
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“Think About It” – American Authors
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AMERICAN AUTHORS
– Member/s: Zac Barnett, James Adam Shelley, Dave Rublin, Matt Sanchez
– Genre: Indie Rock/Indie Pop
– Location/Formed: Boston, Massachusetts, USA/2006
– Album/s: Oh What a Life (2014).
“THINK ABOUT IT”: American Authors have a bit of Imagine Dragons’ folk-pop magic in them, as they demonstrate on new album Oh What a Life, which features a host of American Rock-esque tracks that will perform well blasting from car speakers as well as soaring over radio waves.
“Think About It” follows the band’s hit single “Believer”, both in its album position and in its composition. As is becoming a trademark of American Authors’ sound, a fun pop sound is the main course on “Think About It”, which features a catchy hook, crisp indie guitar riffs, and flexible vocal lines.
The folk-driven-pop track shows a slightly more electronic side of the band than others on the album, with synths peppered in here and there to round out the backing production. Thematically, “Think About It” is more reflective than one would anticipate, with Barnett singing “I’m always hung up on the risk / don’t know what I think about it.” We, however, know just what we think about American Authors – and it’s all good thoughts.
NUTSHELL: With lots of clamps and stomps and hooky choruses, American Authors are off to the races with freshman album Oh What a Life, and in particular on the crunchy, ebullient track “Think About It.”
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Love” – American Authors; “Cross My Mind” – Twin Forks; “Young Hearts” – Strange Talk
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AND THE BEAT GOES ON
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TRISTAM
– Member/s: Tristam
– Genre: Dubstep/EDM
– Location/Formed: St. Isidore, Ontario, Canada/2011
“ONCE AGAIN”: I don’t really go in for too much EDM these days. After a while, I get tired of slow-building, repetitive synth lines and beat drops and soulless lyricism and the like. However, every once in a while a dance track comes along that breaks the mold, as is the case with Tristam’s “Once Again.”
Yes, it builds slowly, and yes, there are sick beat drops, but there is more to the song than just that. The dreamy, melodic piano intro sets the song up nicely to introduce Tristam’s vocal line, which segues into the first chorus, which in turn has a hard hitting bass drop and all the staggered drum rhythms you could wish for.
The fact that Tristam sings his own vocals is impressive in its own right within the EDM world, but the fact that he’s actually really good at it makes this track that much more special (specialer). Additionally, the lyrics are not your usual vapid, let’s-just-throw-disjointed-phrases-together-because-no-one-is-listening-to-the-words-anyway lines, but carry at least a modicum of gravitas: “As the sun steps down and escapes the day / We’ll calmly walk away, walk away from the fray / When the structure falls and all else fails / We will build it once again.” I mean, it’s not Neruda, but it’s better than Bieber.
NUTSHELL: Though you may not be rocking out to this track in the clubs come this weekend, you could definitely augment tomorrow’s workout with Tristam’s “Once Again”, which is slightly more intelligent and unique EDM than you may be used to.
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Till It’s Over” – Tristam; “Games (Passion Pit Remix)” – Claire; “I Got U (feat. Jax Jones)” – Duke Dumont
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POP CONFESSION
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“Raging Fire” – Phillip Phillips
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PHILLIP PHILLIPS
– Member/s: Phillip LaDon Phillips Jr.
– Genre: Rock/Pop Rock/Folk Rock
– Location/Formed: Albany, Georgia, USA/2009
– Album/s: The World from the Side of the Moon (2012).
“RAGING FIRE”: Hey, remember when American Idol actually discovered talented musicians? Well I don’t, but Phillip Phillips is at least one example (okay and Kelly Clarkson, I’ll give them that) of how the Hollywood-ers can get it right every once in a… decade.
“Raging Fire” is the newest single from Phillips and is the lead single from his untitled sophomore project due out this Spring. While some critics are deriding the track as a “Coldplay B-side”, I think the song deserves more credit than that. (After all, Coldplay’s most recent song “Magic” is anything but musically legerdemain, LET’S BE REAL).
Phillips puts his soulful, almost-gravelly voice to good use here as heartfelt lyricism is matched by radio friendly melodies, anthemic instrumentation, and a thumping beat that, if the song does nothing else, will at least rev up your heart rate. For me, the song’s appeal is in its overall composition, which ebbs and flows between soft acoustic sections to thumping choruses with horns and drums galore, from steady beats to syncopated, building rhythms.
NUTSHELL: Putting all fire puns aside, Phillip Phillips’ “Raging Fire” really is a fantastic folk-rock-pop track, and should (screw it!) fan the flames of excitement that precede his second album release.
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Home” – Phillip Phillips; “Marathon Runner” – Yellow Ostrich; “Wherever This Goes” – The Fray
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SWEET DREAMS (ARE MADE OF THIS)
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“Ilsa Drown (feat. Jónsi)” – Death Vessel
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DEATH VESSEL
– Member/s: Joel Thibodeau
– Genre: Folk/Neo-Traditional Rock
– Location/Formed: Providence, Rhode Island, USA/2005
– Album/s: Stay Close (2005). Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us (2008). Island Intervals (2014).
“ILSA DROWN (FEAT. JÓNSI)”: Death Vessel has intricate ties to Sigur Rós and Jónsi, a fact which of course made me quite excited to preview their newest album, Island Intervals. Standout track “Ilsa Drown” features vocal contributions from Jónsi, but even more-so, the track as a whole has the texture and feel of one of Sigur Rós’ quieter, acoustic songs.
This instrumentally ornate folk song sounds like it has been crafted in a simplistic yet beautiful world somewhat foreign to ours, but also akin enough that we feel shades of truth embedded in its melodies, in the rise and fall of the electro-drum rhythm, in the stuttered repetition of synthesized piano pulses.
Featuring two hauntingly alluring vocalists, the focus of the track is undoubtedly on the vocal lines. Thibodeau piercingly starts off the first verse singing of drowning and weather imagery before the ethereally-minded Jónsi joins in the fun, contributing a chorus of somnolent beauty.
NUTSHELL: Evocative and emotional, “Ilsa Drown (feat. Jónsi)” is an ambitious electro-folk track with a particular aesthetic, one which is masterfully communicated by Thibodeau and artfully augmented by Jónsi.
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Circa” – Dead Vessel; “Sinking Friendships” – Jónsi; “Holland” – Novo Amor
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OLD RELIABLE
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“Hard To Hold (feat. Tegan and Sara)” – RAC
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RAC
– Member/s: André Allen Anjos
– Genre: Electronica/Indie Rock/Synthpop
– Location/Formed: USA/2007
– Album/s: Chapter One (2012). Strangers, Pt. 1 (2014). Strangers, Pt. 2 (2014).
“HARD TO HOLD (FEAT. TEGAN AND SARA)”: Without tending towards grandiloquence, I really don’t know what more I can say about RAC. Anjos’ music has been featured so many times on Soundillustrated that I really should just have a selection each week dedicated to him. However, as that is most likely not going to happen, but seeing as RAC has been a mainstay of this blog for a year now, I thought I’d devote this week’s Old Reliable slot to an old and reliable musician who never fails when it comes to crafting wonderful indie-pop songs.
RAC teams up with Tegan and Sara on his newest album (the first solely to feature original music!) for “Hard To Hold”, an excellent, toe tapping, finger snapping, 80’s throwback. The Canadian twins’ sugar-toned vocals are balanced by Anjos’ masterful production, which alternates between isolated synth riffs and cello-based bass lines.
While not quite measuring up to stunning hits like “Let Go”, the collaboration with Tegan and Sara will broaden the listener base and hopefully bring RAC all the exposure he and his unerring music deserve.
NUTSHELL: Resist the urge to fall immediately and all-consumingly in love with RAC’s head-boppingly fun track “Hard To Hold (feat Tegan and Sara)” – I DARE YOU TO TRY. Though they say this track is “hard to hold”, you’ll find that it is definitely not hard to hum. (Dad joke of the day = complete.)
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Repeating Motion (feat. Karl Kling)” – RAC; “I Was a Fool” – Tegan and Sara; “Rats” – Rainy Milo
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SINGER/SONGWRITER
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KINA GRANNIS
– Member/s: Kina Kasuya Grannis
– Genre: Acoustic Rock/Pop/Indie
– Location/Formed: Mission Viejo, California, USA/2001
– Album/s: Sincerely, Me. (2005). In Memory of the Singing Bridge (2006). Stairwells (2010). Elements (2014).
“THE FIRE”: Much like her musical doppelgänger Priscilla Ahn, Kina Grannis has been on the outskirts of mainstream musical stardom for most of her career. If she keeps producing tracks like “The Fire”, however, she shouldn’t be off the radar for much longer.
At first listen, “The Fire” seems unlike any of Grannis’ previous music, and I’m sure diehard fans are already up-in-arms over her “selling out” to pop culture. However, an attentive listener will note that, while the song definitely has matured from previous sweet, strummy, acoustically driven tracks, “The Fire” is still quintessential Grannis – just with a little more “ooomph.” And let me tell you, that oomph makes all the difference.
“The Fire” definitely has Top-40 potential, with an attention grabbing chorus, simplistic yet refined production, and stunning vocals. A steady guitar bass line guides the bulk of the song, providing a gruff juxtaposition for Grannis’ angelic voice. Sonically, there are several layers of ethereal vocal lines that overlap and build off each other towards the song’s climax, while the indie-pop arrangement shows off Grannis’ evolving artistry.
NUTSHELL: As with most of Grannis’ music, it is her gently crooning voice that sells “The Fire”, but this track is head and shoulders above her others when it comes to complexity, lyrical probity, and mass appeal.
SOUNDSIMILAR: “Sweater Weather (The Neighbourhood Cover)” – Kina Grannis; “Torch Song” – Priscilla Ahn; “Still” – Daughter
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PICK OF THE WEEK
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“Smoke Filled Lungs” – Basecamp
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BASECAMP
– Member/s: Aaron Miller, Aaron C. Harmon, Jordan Reyes
– Genre: Electronic
– Location/Formed: Nashvilla, Tennessee, USA/2013
– Album/s: Basecamp – EP (2013).
“SMOKE FILLED LUNGS”: With a trio of experienced producers at the helm, it would be idiotic to think that Basecamp’s music would be anything other than atmospheric, brooding, and wonderful. The Nashville musicians are masters of a brand new type of soulful, R&B electronica that immediately swept me up in its powerful aura, and hopefully will enrapture you as well.
The breakup-inspired “Smoke Filled Lungs” is brilliant in the way it communicates the range of situational human emotions, from anger to sadness to final acceptance. Accompanying this tale of the universal human experience is a downtempo electronic background, which features experimental production (listen for the stuttered vocal lines after the choruses) alongside smooth and sensual vocal lines. A gorgeous swirl of instrumental accents round out the song, giving it an intriguing neo-classical feel.
NUTSHELL: Though it is a somewhat muted and unsophisticated track on the surface, “Smoke Filled Lungs” is one of the most palpably beautiful and powerfully emotive songs I’ve heard, and will gently suck you into its darkly stunning world of stuttered electronic beats, syncopated rhythms, and layered, choral-esque vocals.
SOUNDSIMILAR: “2 Thingz” – Basecamp; “Bloodstream” – Stateless; “How We Feel” – Panama
Thanks for readlistening!
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