‘Hot Sick Vile and Fun,’ out on Rocks in Your Head
Rocks in Your Head, the new San Francisco record label started by Sonny Smith (Sonny and the Sunsets) just released its second album, Volume 1: Hot Sick Vile and Fun. The collection has a wide range of songs, from the sweet acoustic Gonks’ vocals (title track) to the punky-fun rock of Toyota (track “Why”), to David Novick’s acoustic guitar song, then right into Blue Ocean’s “Love,” a pure and gentle rock song a la Weezer. When Smith put together the collection, he had the people of San Francisco in mind. As Smith says, “This is a modest selection of the [...]
Vivian Girls announce first new album in 8 years, fall tour dates
(photo: Neil Kryszak) Vivian Girls are decisively focused on the future. Having an eight-year gap between albums — and having been the subject of indie misogyny from both critics and listeners alike before those stories were given even a fraction of their due — one might imagine a hesitant re-entry to a scene that had such a vitriolic reaction to their very existence. Vivian Girls' re-emergence, however, has been anything but timid. Indeed, perhaps calling it a re-emergence is unfair, as Katy Goodman, Ali Koehler, and lead singer Cassie Ramone were all actively creating music in one shape or another. [...]
Billie Gale premieres new single “The Rules”
Oakland's own dream pop quartet Billie Gale just released their newest single "The Rules." Perfect timing, too. They'll be performing this weekend at Temescal's 40th St. Block Party. Here's to hoping they added this one to their setlist! Billie Gale is comprised of songwriter Beth Garber, guitarist Adam Wayne, bass player Eric Shawn and percussionist Justin Wayne. Together, the four pay tribute to Beth's late mother, Billie Gale, through and through: “Billie Gale is an entity with her own personality, and we all add to that as a band," says Beth. Check out their new song below:
The futurist geometry of Salami Rose Joe Louis
(artwork: Cinque Mubarak) Salami Rose Joe Louis signing to Flying Lotus' Brainfeeder imprint has been one of the most exciting Bay Area musical success stories of 2019. Since she started performing under the multi-syllabic moniker, Lindsay Olsen has operated at a distinctive place at the intersection of lo-fi beatmaking and interstellar jazz. In many ways, this all makes perfect sense: Flying Lotus is an obvious contemporary in their shared musical space. But Olsen truly marches to the beat of her own MPC, which makes it all the more exciting to see music so idiosyncratic and full of color reach a [...]
Wax Roof’s “Poseidon” is an oceanic love jam featuring Rexx Life Raj, Jay Prince and Manasseh
Wax Roof is an Oakland multi-instrumentalist that has blessed some of the Bay Area's most treasured records with his simplified, yet soulful vibe. Turning hip-hop and jazz concepts into genre-fluid chords and melodies has been his calling card, plus backing artists like Siri and Michael Sneed Jr. for their live shows. But when he's not working behind the boards for other artists -- like Seattle rapper Dave B's latest record Bleu -- Wax Roof drops his own occasional track, like this week's "Poseidon". Anchored by steady guitar melody and siren-like vocal harmonies, "Poseidon" sounds like a nighttime cruise with your [...]
Nanosaur + Jay Casio got the drip in video for new single, “Fountain”
Photo by @wheres.wables Jay Casio has tried to forge a new identity since going solo from his initial outfit, one-half of Oakland party rappers RnB Millionaires. In 2014, the autotuned rap-singer first traded in the jokey club-friendly anthems for the syrupy exposé on Water Based, then released 2017's more sunshine-y Jaycation. In that transformation, Jay seemed to have found the perfect producer partner in Text Me Records signee, Nanosaur. Their first track was 2018's 'emoceanal club banger' loosie, "Flippin' Boats" and today, the pair releases a new music video for "Fountain", the first single from an upcoming joint album, Wave [...]
Mistah FAB delivers a summer’s worth of bangers on “Hella Ratchet 2” mixtape
Fabby Davis Jr., Mr. Dope Era -- When he's not sitting court side at Golden State Warriors games or running his merch shop in downtown Oakland, Mistah FAB stays busy in the studio. He's been on a tear this 2019 and today, he drops the second installment to his Hella Ratchet mixtape series. Hitting the Bay Area with 21 new block bangers and crew anthems, Hella Ratchet 2B delivers new collaborations with Husalah, Boo4rmDa4 and Trill Youngin Mitche.
Bobbing charts frenetic, delightful waters on ‘Thank You For Singing To Me’
(photo: Maddie Deutsch) Bobbing's Robert Luisi Ross sits on the Thank You For Singing To Me album cover in cartoon form, surrounded by both lush greenery and guitar pedals. This pairing seems disjunctive at first — how is he even going to power that Zvex Fuzz Factory or OCD Overdrive in the woods? But less than a minute after pushing play, it becomes clear that the artwork is on the nose. Affected tones and natural ones coalesce into six beautifully eclectic songs, all woven together with an animated buoyancy. Thank You For Singing To Me by Bobbing Formerly of Oakland-by-way-of-Santa-Cruz [...]
Nate Mercereau celebrates “Joy Techniques” album release on July 20
Nate Mercereau is a virtuoso composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist who left San Francisco and headed to Los Angeles where he contributed his talents to records with Lizzo, Shawn Mendes, Sheila E., Jay-Z, Leon Bridges and Rhye. His newest album, Joy Techniques brings his own psychedelic ambitions into focus, through songs like "Righteous Energy" and the album's titular track. He returns to the Bay on July to celebrate the release alongside local darling singer-songwriter ZOLA and Text Me Records head honcho, Studio Dad. Nate Mercereau, ZOLA, Studio Dad Amnesia July 20, 2019 9pm, $8
Premiere: Sunset Lines: “Smoke Signals”
Sunset Lines’s latest single starts with a bang, with lead singer Liz Brooks boldly announcing that she has “big plans to get fucked up.” “Smoke Signals” is a groovy, danceable track — the chilly synths are reminiscent of the robotic sterility of '80s pop, and are balanced by Brooks’s supremely human voice. Her voice is even and smooth throughout the song, but far from unremarkable. The refrain, a sultry rhetorical question repeated over a staccato synth line, is catchy enough to get even those on the goth end of the synth-pop spectrum moving. It’s easy to see how a track [...]