Season 2 - Power of Now

 

Over the years we have been impressed by the ability of Australian indie bands to meld some of our favorite musical bands into a pop concoction that fires our pleasure centers to great effect. Power of Now by Season 2 is, in our opinion, somewhat of a double meld because, in addition to combining some of our favorite indie pop styles, it also is the work of members from some of out favorite Australian bands -- The Stroppies, School Damage, and Parsnip. This is pop music, but it is pop music with mutations, unexpected angles and rhythms and idiosyncratic deliveries. It also is undeniably catchy and captivating, with enthusiastic group vocals, superb musicianship and touches that reference some of the finest bands in the past, including Glasgow's Vaselines and New Zealand's The Clean. This is an album we turn to again and again -- we just can't quit it. Dive in, and fail to quit it for yourself.

Season 2 are Claudia Serfaty (keys/vocals), Freya McLeod (guitar/vocals), Matt Powell (guitar/vocals), Charlotte Zarb (bass/vocals), and Carolyn Hawkins (drums/vocals). Power of Now is out via Upset the Rhythm and Spoilsport Records.

Bandcamp for Power of Now 

Upset The Rhythm Records 

Spoilsport Records

Prism Shores - Softest Attack

 

In our memories, Montreal band Prism Shores walked the boundary between guitar pop and shoegaze, and they did it well -- familiar but with just enough individual character to stand out from the crowd. But our expectations for Softest Attack, their new album, required readjustment upon the first listen. On this new outing the band leans hard into indie pop and jangle, and they do it with flair and a keen understanding of the diversity of the genre. The sound is bright and clear, the arrangements detailed and the instrumentation rich and layered. But there is nothing twee about the outing -- the amps are turned up and the rhythm section rocks. To our ears Softest Attack could represent Creation Records as well as Sarah Records, while evoking Teenage Fanclub and New Zealand's The Bats. If you like indie jangle and fuzzy indie rock, you owe it to yourself to check out this album.

Prism Shores are Jack MacKenzie (guitar/bass/vocals), Ben Gross (guitar/bass/vocals), Luke Pound (drums/guitar/vocals), and Finn Dalbeth (guitar/vocals). Softest Attack is our now via Meritorio Records.

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Bandcamp for Softest Attack