Floral releases single “This Year,” announce first LP in 5 years
Math rock band Floral released the first single off their long-anticipated follow-up to 2015’s The Second Floral EP. The track, to be featured on Floral LP (2020), is a four minute exploration of intricate rhythms and hyper-technical riffs. Featuring production from previous collaborator Jack Shirley, known for his work with Deafheaven and Jeff Rosenstock, the band is able to do quite a bit with minimally overdubbed guitar and drums. If no one told me that there were only two musicians on this project, Nate Sherman and Ty Mayer’s playing could easily be mistaken for a whole ensemble. Floral LP by [...]
Two Piece Fest West hits the East Bay this weekend
Not to offend all my bassist friends out there, but the Two Piece Fest West taking place this weekend begs the question: who needs 'em? Apparently not this collection of duos. Including numerous Bay Area acts along with out-of-towners ranging from Portland to Philadelphia, the lineup is full of aggressive, hard-hitting music that makes up for the lack of low-end with pulverizing beats, scathing riffs and pure attitude. Not to mention a surprising amount of diversity. There's math-rock from Mountain View with Floral, the bone-shattering/heart-stopping grind of +HIRS+, sludgy fuzz in Tweak Bird, straight-up punk rock courtesy of 1994! and [...]