Mr. Bighead – Whiskey Cat (song review)

Mr. Bighead – Whiskey Cat (song review)

If madness has a sound, Mr. Bighead’s latest single, ‘Whiskey Cat,’ is a strong contender for that title. The song kicks off in full gear with a tidal wave of a rambling syncopated bass line, followed by stomping drums.

Splatters of distorted, twisted ska-like guitars serve as the backdrop for the eccentric, talky-shouty vocals that echo influences from fellow oddball bands Primus and Mr. Bungle. It wouldn’t be a surprise if this particular whiskey feline shares the same universe as Primus’s ‘Tommy the Cat.’

This song is a 2-minute-and-56-second drunken bar fight taking place within a hurricane. The music quickly crashes through your ears, throws you into a chaotic whirlwind, and suddenly ends with the meowing of possibly inebriated cats.

As a cat owner myself, I highly recommend this thrashy experimental garage rock song about being a whiskey cat for future playlists.

autumna – Secret Radio (review)

autumna – Secret Radio (review)

Secret Radio is an adventure in ambience. The album in its totality can be listened to on a loop and never get old. Each track has a special sense of awareness that connects the listener to a truly unique experience.

The opening song Cheat Codes conjures a warm and mysterious setting. A calming hum mixes with the swishing of water from an unknown and unseen entity. Images of an otherworldly aquarium come to mind.

Aeronautica continues the calming hum which leads into a lofi beat accompanied by the occasional almost chant-like spoken word. The sound slowly dissolves at the end, preparing a calm before the swarm.

Swarm is a buzzing delight. The soothing whir rises and falls in a way that melts away negative emotions like butter on the scalding blacktop.

Fair Weather (In Absentia) is a throwback to 80’s synth in a wondrously composed rhythm.

The People (Triad) is a moody mix that feels like watching the earth from the dark distance of space. Easy to get lost in the groove.

Seas and Surveys is hauntingly harmonic.
Brim is a serene simplicity of sounds.
Household Names is a poetic and bouncy jam of a song.

Closing out the album is the song Healer. It is a solemn but solid track that could honestly last for eternity but ends at just the right moment. Overall Secret Radio is the perfect escape for the cluttered mind.

Suborno – in the eyes of eternity (album review)

Suborno – in the eyes of eternity (album review)

There’s a ridiculous assumption that the guitar has reached its limit in its range of sound. It all had been played and there’s nothing left to creatively explore. This record by Suborno is a rebuttal to that claim.

With it’s theme focused on his life as an immigrant, he guides his guitar to strange, beautiful and vulnerable spaces. This music is an absolute expression of the soul.

Each note is twisted, bent, distorted, and drenched in guitar effects. The instrumentals, at times, turn into pulses of subtle discordance. Swirls of amorphous soundscapes implode in on itself creating undefined textures of reverberating echoes.

This album is a gossamer of calming ardency. Pure emotion that reechos deep amid a boundless space. It’s a spiritual deconstruction of artistic expression.

New Shoppe – Ultra Master (Song Review)

New Shoppe – Ultra Master (Song Review)

This is for listeners who enjoy hearing straight up experimental noise. This piece is 25 minutes of a billowy  warped up track of noise. It has spurts of echoing static wobbling within and without. The sound is twisting and unpredictable. At times, there is a turbulence of rhythm akin to the deconstruction of pure cacophony. This is unstable bedlam. There are moments that it sounds as if an 8-bit video game is being melted and twisted. “Ultra Master” is a caterwauling wreckage of sound. You have been warned.

Eamon the Destroyer – We’ll Be Piranhas (Album Review)

Eamon the Destroyer – We’ll Be Piranhas (Album Review)

This record is a trip through the rapids of a strange complex vortex of ominous descant. Each song has its own stage of multidimensional soundscapes. Guided by a deep subtle caliginous voice, slowly expressing every lyric with strain emotions. The dark instrumentals vary from melodic electronic ballads to desert scorch melodies to pirate-esque rhythm tunes. This record is painted in distorted guitars and splattering synths. It’s a shifting passageway that is turbulent and ominous. Just click play and let Eamon the Destroyer take the cerebral wheel.

Favorite songs: “We’ll Be Piranhas,” “Rope,” “Underscoring the Blues”

The Musical Junkie – Favorite Albums of 2023

Hello there! After many years of false starts and endless procrastination, I am restarting this blog. My apologies for suddenly disappearing. Life has it’s mental stresses. I really do enjoyed sharing indie music. It felt awesome to have bands and record labels send me music to review. Hopefully, it can get back to that level. For my first post back. I am sharing my favorite records of 2023.

Hope you check some of these incredible releases out. What were your favorite of 2023?

PC Worship – Buried Wish (Album Review)

PC Worship – Buried Wish (Album Review)

PC Worship has released an album “Buried Wish” that is a noisy traffic collusion of Velvet Underground and early Sonic Youth. There are layers of Garage Rock, Lofi, Post-Punk and presented in a No Wave attitude. They are synth-like sounds clashing as if they’re stuck in inchoate state. It’s grimy and raw. The instrumentals are desolate clouds of feedback, burnt riffs, demanding vocals, and fractured rhythms that pushes the songs forward. PC Worship is blended every outsider rock era into one chaotic listen.

The album begins with rising violins that resemble a shore in “Rain on an Empty Moon.” It’s a contrast to the erratic instrumentation that is to come. “Back of My $$$” is a dense murky tune that crawls with every drum beat and guitar note hanging on to dear life. There is a bland of beautifully eerie vocals supporting soulless damaged leads. It suits the unstable buoyancy of each track. This is also heard in the track “Help” which moves slowly with dissonant guitar riffs. The violin in the background give the instrumental an ominous glow. Throughout the album, there are strange noises interluding the passing songs giving the release a secular dark theme.

PC Worship has successful taken the dampness and coldness of New York and it’s history of noise rock and made their own mark. It’s bravura of imperfection. You can hear and feel the flaws of human emotion. It’s a soundtrack for the misanthrope. “Buried Wish” is meant to be heard and stored in the darkest corner of a barren area. This volatile sound is related to those moments when our souls are vulnerable and bare. So, where there is that creeping depression engulfing our thoughts we have this album to remind us that we are not alone.

Favorite Tracks: Blank Touch, Help, Perched on the Wall, Moons, Tranquil Pain

Loya – Aimovoria (Album Review)

Loya’s Aimovoria is a blend of modern and influential nostalgia. There are hints of A Perfect Circle, Tool and Deftones. They mold heavy guitars that can send a chill down your spine while crack every fiber within. The vocals are drenched in sentiment and are phenomenal. The album is an experimental rock soundtrack to a journey in the darker corners of the night. Each song blends with the next, so this is a piece that must be heard from the first track to last. I been playing during midnight drives that has been recently frequent due to a breakup. It’s the perfect escape from those moments of heartfelt discomfort.

Tracks like “Crimson” has a icy effect in the instrumental. The music has a gust of bass, skipping drums, echoing drums, and cold vocals. It’s as if you are walking through a forest covered in snow and darkness. Then there is periods midway that contrast the calmness with screams and slamming guitars. “Glitch Killer” is a personal favorite. The song starts off with sedated guitar effects and wintry vocals. “Artifact” is a standout from the rest. The beginning begins with a loop string of sounds and morphs into a strange foundation of rhythm. Again, there is a freezing fog overtaking the entire song. It sounds as a recollection of the past. There is a sense of longing. The song “Lotus” closes the album with a gentle clean guitar guided canticle. It’s the final act of an aphotic exploration of within a soul.

I honestly enjoy the vocals on every song. There is a blend of Maynard James Keenan and Chino Moreno. It’s not a photocopy though. The singer pushes each instrumental with such power and emotion. This album has excellent production and can withstand the cliché of rock music. If you enjoy the bands that were previous mentioned, you must pick this album up. The influences are there but doesn’t take away the credit of originality.

This was on my playlist during a hard time in my personal life. I been hardly writing or listening because of my depression but this band was still a daily listen. It was a companion among others bands I was constantly listening. Things will get better, I am sure. I enjoy writing on this blog, music is my passion and this album was a helpful realization of that. Thank you, Loya.

Favorite tracks: “Crimson”, Glitch Killer”

Tough Tits – Hairless EP (Jan 12, 2017)

Noisy, fun, insane garage punk with highlights of riot grrl. Tough Tits is from Newcastle Upon Tyne and have a knack of writing bursts of innate punk noise. This is an album you have to listen to loud. It’s recommended for those days when you need to be fast and focused. From fuzzy bass lines and shouting vocals, it’s lyrics are controversially poetic.

“Hairless” has a harden bass line that cracks with every note, the vocals are a chill to the back. This track is pure unfiltered punk noise. The quiet/loud structure pushes the instrumental as fierce as a car scratching through a highway on a very hot summer day. You can feel the warm air and gasoline in this track.

“Fantasy” has a contiguous groove mixed in with the discordant guitar riffs and distorted drum rhythms. It’s easy to bounce from wall to wall with this. The vocals are meant to be sung along to. This song is meant to be played very loud. Wake up the neighbor in the middle of the night with this. Make sure it’s loud enough to crack everyone’s window, that one of the only ways to do justice for this track.

The only complaint is that there are a few songs but they don’t get worn out with repetition. I’ll be following this band for future releases. If you enjoy catchy and engaging garage punk tunes, put these in your playlists. Turn up the volume until your earbuds crack, enjoy.

Favorite song: Hairless