Jacksonville-by-way-of-Milwaukee jazz artist Lynne Arriale released a new album earlier this month. Accompanied by musicians Alon Near and Lukasz Zyta, Arriale delivers a potently imaginative assemblage of instrumental tunes that honor the human spirit’s drive to defy all odds, feel with intensity and seek meaning everywhere. Each song is titled a different facet of such experiences; “Faith”, “Curiosity”, “Gratitude” and
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Hardcore punks Gangstalker released an album a few weeks back. The band brings blast after blast of raw, loud, distorted hardcore that will appeal especially to those who like their punk with a noisier edge and touch of humor. “Older we get, the more pissed we’ve become” the band describes the record, and those sentiments get blatantly driven across at
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Emo/post-hardcore act Courtesy released a new single earlier this month. The band recently told us in an interview that “Cascade” was the first song vocalist-guitarist Noah Skilling ever wrote. It begins as a somber acoustic guitar tune that patiently builds into full-band horsepower, lyrically touching on someone swooping in to come save you. Courtesy are working on a new album
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Human Ant Farm released their debut EP back in February. The alternative/shoegaze act brings a batch of ethereal, textural tunes laden with oceanic distortion, twinkling guitar melodies and stormy reverberation. The band’s patiently potent dynamic hits you like a ton of bricks, like all of your dreams and memories are flashing before your eyes in an emotional montage. Human Ant
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Contemporary-classical composers Wilhelm Matthies and Paulo Chagas released a new album earlier this month. As an Internet collaboration, these six improvised pieces are described by the artists as “movements through mental landscapes.” Instruments utilized here include bass clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor recorder, piano and percussion. Let your mind wander into waypoints shrouded in mystery with “Mirror” by Wilhelm Matthies and
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Quarters Rock ‘n Roll Palace hosted a rambunctiously fun night of live music on Thursday with an all-local bill featuring Florida Brothers Band, The Women and WWE Energies. The show celebrated a re-release of The Women’s album “Glitter”, now remastered with additional touches and new artwork. WWE Energies consists of vocalist-guitarist Max Hey and keyboardist Caroline Dillon. The duo’s style
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Hip hop artist and producer Super Ego Beats dropped his first-ever music video this week, accompanying the title track off his 2023 album “Elevator Music.” Shot by MadxLove, the scene finds Ego in various locations throughout Milwaukee including the train tracks, Black Cat Alley, a Walker’s Point balcony and his studio. He even pulls out a sword at one point.
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Darrin Alston is a creative force of many mediums, and he’s officially kicked off his music journey with debut single “Square.” Produced by Mystik MusiK, the tune brings fun, playful bars from Alston where he name-drops his company Sorta Ridiculous Productions, gets the nerdy girls swooning, travels to Mars and hits the tennis court in the 2 minute and 17
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Singer-songwriter Father Sky’s latest single is a true ode to the heart. Anthony Deutsch’s distinctly tender, buttery voice sings passionately of love and light with electro-soul and R&B flavor. There’s an undeniably genuine sense of curiosity yet urgency here, seeking to untether oneself from confusion in favor of transcending into high levels of self-awareness and consciousness. “Where to Begin?” is
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Chelsea Wolfe arrived at Vic Theatre in Chicago on Tuesday night as part of her current tour supporting her seventh studio album “She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She.” It was her first performance in Chicago since 2019. Opening for Wolfe was Divide and Dissolve. Based in Melbourne, Australia, Divide and Dissolve formed with Takiaya Reed on guitar
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Surf folk artist Blacktop released the visual to “Expectations” off his last record “Gardening is a Practice, Not an Idea.” Shot by bandmate Jordan Taylor, the scene follows Austin Wood out and about in nature with guitar in hand, playing it gently as he hangs out near the water. Cardinals sing and waves soak the shore in a fall haze,
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Adorner now has the visual out to their most recent single “Nimwe.” We find vocalist Madeline Stadel in a winter wonderland, walking through snow under barren trees and pausing at times to take in the beautiful scenery. The music swells as Stadel goes deeper and deeper into the picturesque nature, captivating us with the duality of harsh weather and scenic
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Osseo released a new EP earlier this month, bringing four songs of raw, gripping emo rock. Whether it’s the introspective wash of “Verona Court” or the cathartic slow burn of “I Don’t Like You”, Osseo demonstrate their evolving adaptability here by way of impassioned melodies and intensely convicted lyrics, leaning into a heavier side compared to earlier material. Osseo weather
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Promises hosted the third Stand Up / Fight Back benefit this past weekend featuring a wide variety of heavy music.
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Singer-songwriter Ryan Schmidt has a new tune out – his first since 2022 album “Portrait.” Driven by a raw acoustic melody, “Neon” touches on living your life blind to demons right in front of you. Once what blinds you burns out, you realize what’s been blocking your peace, and that’s when the song swells into a moving grandeur that echoes
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Folk rockers Chris Haise Band released two singles last Friday. Haise is known for his evocative yet affable lyrical approach, and this pair of tracks is him at his most emotionally raw and sincere. “Medusa” is a bouncy bluegrass tune about coming to terms with your personal shortcomings, complete with a radiant cello solo. “Breaking My Heart” is driven by
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Experimental-electronic act The Demix kicked off March with a new EP. Consisting of material he’s been playing live over the last year, “ARRIVAL” brings all the hyper-driven electronica you could need to get amped up. Whether it’s by way of a caffeinated bass blast or an ominously textural atmosphere, there’s a masterful, tried-and-true versatility to the artist’s attention to detail
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Sbowe released her debut full-length album on the 1st of the month. The cellist-composer brings nine tunes of robust orchestral instrumentation that incorporates everything from accordion to bass clarinet to tuba to a vast selection of auxiliary percussion. Thematically, the record is an eclectic rumination on the tumultuous yet organic human experiences of grief and impostor syndrome. Movements take breaths
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Scrimshaw released a record last week – their first new music since 2018. It’s got eight tunes that bring a wildly eccentric, absurdly fun take on rock and roll laden with meandering melodies, cartoonlike vocals, irreverent song titles and psychedelic-punk force. The album flows like you’ve stumbled into an animated dream and are wandering around trying to make sense of
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Indie/post-punk rockers Full Nude released their debut album on Friday. The band rips away with seven songs of snappy melodies, resounding riffage and lyrics that balance humor with vehemence. Madi Moon and Sarah Long trade off on lead vocals, taking us into imagery of Walmart parking lots, “The Golden Girls”, antinuclear utopias and more. Full Nude bring plenty of wonderfully
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Indie rockers Half Moon HideAway have followed up their recent debut EP “Sunbeams” with a new single dropped last month. “Wasting Time” is a sauntering tune about procrastination and living leisurely while avoiding the task at hand. It’s tempting to lay around the house and do everything except the one thing you need to do most, and Half Moon HideAway
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Midwest emo act Excuse Me, Who Are You? (EMWAY for short) released a new single on Friday. This tune laments a past relationship and wishing you could start all over again, but ultimately you learn to accept that life is short. Employing post-hardcore riffage and vociferous shrieks, EMWAY’s “Maybe That Trucks Hit Me…And This is All a Dream” is the
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Composer-percussionist Dave Schoepke released a new album at the beginning of the month. Schoepke has been known to use a drums-centered approach in his music to convey narratives and storytelling, and this record finds him incorporating synthesizers into his methodology as well. Such an addition unlocks a whole new realm of atmospheres for Schoepke, with the contrast between the two
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The Cooperage hosted a delightful trifecta of all-local music on Friday evening featuring Jacob Slade, Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang, and Blacktop. Blacktop is the indie pop project of Austin Wood. His style incorporates elements of surf and folk with an abundance of dreamy, atmospheric textures. Tracing his origins of making music, Wood recalls, “In high school I
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ANDII has returned with her first new music since 2019, a single released on Leap Year. This breezy pop tune finds the singer-songwriter clownin’ around with love, expressing that she did what she could to make things work but ultimately getting in her own way. Love can be a real beast, but it’s great to hear from ANDII – stay
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