Bouncy and positive pop music, full of blippy synths and a subtle reggae feel. Maybe a Lily Allen comparison would be a bit lazy of me to make. But, there it is anyway.
Here’s Wiltshire-bred, London-based Kate Lomas with “Leave Out the Lows”
The song is a single that is the third in a series of collaborations with producer-mixer Guy Britton, demonstrating a lightness of touch to this song about not sweating the small stuff, and giving the people we love a bit more slack when it comes to minor slights. In the era we’re in right now, we have bigger fish to fry. So, leave out the lows, everyone.
The song has garnered some attention in Lomas’ native Great Britain, with BBC1 “track of the week” accolades and BBC Introducing features. In the middle of Brexit chaos and daily Trumpster fires, goodness knows anthems to positivity and the enjoyment of simple pleasures are needed!
Fiery new wave disco rage pop. Crunchy stream of consciousness folk-punk. Jaunty, fun-loving indie pop.
That’s what we’ve set up for you in this week’s Radio Free Lightning Bug Pack of Three. Knock ’em down one by one by listening here.
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“Lash Out” by Alice Merton
Name: Alice Merton
From: Berlin, Germany (by way of many points on the map)
Sound: Upbeat guitar pop with a hint of PJ Harvey bite and Florence Welch attack, ready made for the dance floor
Story: Alice Merton was formally trained in composition in Manheim, Germany, although she spent her early life in Canada, with stops in the US, England, and Germany with an English dad and a German mum. How’s that for an international sensation? Recently, she’s done the rounds on North American TV appearances including Kelly & Ryan, and The Late, Late Show with James Corden, and has been listed as “one to watch” in Rolling Stone. This song featured on her latest EP No Roots, is about resisting the pull to fall in line with the expectations of others, instead forging a path of one’s own.
Sound: Folk-influenced alternative rock infused with punk rock spirit and stream of consciousness flow.
Story: Originally premiering on Consequence of Sound, this track from Bostonian-bred, LA-based indie rock band Slothrust (Sloth-rust as opposed to slo-thrust, friends), this cut as taken from the band’s upcoming record The Pact (out September 14, 2018). It’s one of a selection of singles that serve as a harbinger to that release. You can read this interview on Billboard magazine with creative lead Leah Wellbaum who talks about the new record, among other things. You can then hear yet another single of theirs, “Peach”.
Sound: Cheeky, bouncy indie pop that doesn’t take itself so goddamn seriously, but seriously gets in your head all the same.
Story: “The only way to get these songs out of your head is with a bullet” says Thirsty Curses front man Wilson Getchell during the recording of the band’s newest record All Shook Up, which is out right now, friends. That’s kinda dark, maybe. But this tune helps to illustrate the point by its brightness, buoyed up by frenetic playing and affable delivery, not to mention a kaleidoscopic animated video that matches with the childlike energy of the music. The song and the rest of the record was produced by none other than Mitch Easter, he of Let’s Active and the early production chair occupier for a little band called REM.
Radio Free Lightning Bug 