Fox Evades shines on their catchy new single Strange Forever. The DIY bedroom pop project celebrates the musical musings of songwriter Jordan Mae. On Strange Forever she captures the spirit of iconic new wave acts like New Order, Echo and the Bunnymen, and The Cure. You’ll immediately latch on to the trademark infectious delayed guitar, as it holds your hand and walks you through this vintage journey.
An extension of retrofuturism, she reimagines dreamy new-wave in an indie aesthetic, adding her personal touch to this timeless style. She adds in a hint of 90s soft-alternative, channeling the melodramatic vocal stylings of the late Dolores O’Riordan and Natalie Merchant, leaning into that combination of art-pop and immaculate charm.
Strange Forever would also connect well to the dark pop leanings of growing underground acts like Korine. There’s a growing underground scene that yearns for this aesthetic. An extension of the massive synthwave movement, the explorations of guitar based new wave has room to grow, and Fox Evades is a brilliant addition to that scene.
Enjoy Strange Forever now on our Best New Indie playlist.
Australian artist Sahara Beck is a songwriting chameleon whose works runs the gamut of the indie palette. Her writing has won international critical praise. Her new single Stillness embraces indie rock’s recent pop leanings, and would fit nicely next to buzz releases by Phoebe Bridgers, Clairo, and Snail Mail.
Sahara Beck’s crystal clear, effortless vocal has a soft affect that cuts right through the mix, but settles elegantly over the bare rock arrangement. The aura is lifted by tasteful production, subtle soft pianos and synth leads to fill every inch of the dreamy auditory spectrum. As the song builds in heavy exclamation, Beck never waivers. She stays true to her calculated approach and trademark delivery. Her confidence is sexy and pomps with the awareness of someone who knows their worth. “I’ll take the number, but I’ll never call it.”
Stillness, in essence, is a metaphorical reflection of how sometimes life just stops and you can’t control it. It’s an exquisite reflection on these past couple years and how we adapted to unexpected changes, you can lament on the accident ahead and how it stalled you, or you can embrace this rare chance to stop and reflect. Unfortunately so many were consumed by the horrors of a hermits existence, but some of us were able to absorb these changes and come out winning. Sahara recalls “Its the dark in the silence, it feels nice. It’s just for a minute. I’m stuck in my head and I don’t wanna stop but the stillness is nice.”
It was hard to slow down, hopefully you made it across.
Enjoy Stillness now on our Best New Indie playlist.
Sehruhtonin is the experimental art pop project of Sarah Valerie. Her new single In-Between is a dark introspective brooding arrangement. A relentless war drum trails her haunting vocal, which roams though the musical movements like a specter. Her whispery rich lead vocal settles into the soft sanctuary of lush harmonies that blend like harmonious overtones. The minimalistic ingredients of a slow release electric piano and warping background vocal recalls some of Radioheads darker reflections like Videotape and You and Whose Army. It also has some of the dark-dreamy female warrior energy of all girl indie supergroup Warpaint.
Sehruhtonin offers an effigy for our chaotic loathing, those toxic obsessions that eat away at our sanctity, the come-down from temporary chemical happiness. Dark and intoxicating, it is mysterious like the ocean’s abyss, as the artist laments “Sinking sea, where have I fallen to. In-Between, what I fear and what I knew.” It’s a suffering that we can’t understand, we yearn to dissect it and eliminate its complicated origins, but again and again we resolve to the drugs and their temporary oasis. Soon, though, we are lost in their dependence, and subjected to new tortures.
Cinematic and beautiful, it’s easy to get hooked on the siren pop of Sehruhtonin and conjure visions of where this soundtrack lives in your memories.
Get lost with In-Between now on our Best New Indie playlist.
A trio of impressive producers come together for a collaborative project, an EP called Only The Good Ones. Songwriter and singer Bronte Horder is lifted by the production duo of Cali Satellites and producer DJ Leo Guardo. Each artist brings unique ingredients to the project, all coming together seemlessly on the catchy Life Of The Party. Indie Pop with an EDM heart, its the chill contemplative affect that could just as easily bump in the club. It connects with the minimalistic dance pop of The XX, as one solo sparse guitar grooves over an otherwise all electronic soundscape. Horder’s clean vocal delays as it dissolves, as the producers twist and bend the ethereal reverberated remnants, creating heavy doses of atmosphere. A chill wave 80s era synth-bass recalls the retro synth pop of trailblazers like Com Truise and how they marry EDM and wave aesthetic. But overall Life Of The Party only hints at an affinity for wave. It is more elegant and intellectual than the copy cat lure of wannabe 80s bands.
Besides the elegant production, its the robust vocal of Bronte Horder that sets this apart. She channels Dua Lipa, as she remains catchy and graceful, allowing the sentiment of the lyric to engulf you without resolving to ridiculous overdone scale fills. The delivery is convicing, like she’s greeting you at the impasse of a massive rave, setting some ground rules before releasing you to the decadence of the night. And that’s how Life Of The Party is served best, a proper opener to a raucous night at the club, it sets the standard, “You Don’t Have To Be the Life Of The Party, Just Show Up.”
Enjoy Life Of The Party now on our Best New Indie playlist.
The Wild Is Calling 