playlist

   October: Week 1
   Should Have Known Better | Cottilon
   For You | Sales
   Evening | TOPS
   Wildcard | Golden Daze
   Possession | Saskatchewan
   Buddy | The Orwells
   Starlight | Pure X
   Hang Your Heart | Tokyo Police Club
   Ode to Dom | Babeheaven
   Flowers | Goth Babe
   I Can't Get You Out | Part Time
   Being Around | Our Girl 
   Let Me In | T0W3RS
   That's Chemistry | Young Rival


I'm (almost, kind of) on time this week (last week). It's more exciting this way, though. You never know when to expect a new playlist, right? Well sorry to disappoint you because maybe, one day, when there'll be 25 hours in the day, I'll have a sufficient amount of time and post regularly.

Anyway, four months, I believe, have passed since I'd written anything music-related (!!!) Which means I did not write about quite a handful of the amazing shows I enjoyed and I did not write about a large volume of fresh tunes that absolutely deserve attention. This makes me sad, so tonight I'm escaping my responsibilities to throw out some words about one of the shows I've been to during that time, along with a shout out to those new jams I can't stop listening to (on this list and past lists). Get ready for lots of near run-ons.

New music from: Triathalon, The Growlers, Travis Bretzer, Angel Olsen, Sports, Teen Brains, Allah-Las, Swimming Tapes, Acid Ghost (and so many more)
Because I want to move on to writing about that gig, I'll just list the new stuff--which you should totally trust me and check out because it's all incredibly beautiful.
Cold Shower (EP) - Triathalon
City Club (LP) - The Growlers
Bitter Suites (LP) - Travis Bretzer
MY WOMAN (LP) - Angel Olsen
Manicure (single) - Sports
Translucent (EP) - Teen Brains
Calico Review (LP) - Allah-Las
Tides (single) - Swimming Tapes
Warhol (LP) - Acid Ghost

In concert: Triathalon with Parent
Back in the young and spunky days of September, summer was just beginning to wither and fade and I had the chance to catch one of the coolest bands out there, Triathalon, in one of my favorite itty bitty spaces within a bar. Chicago's very own, Parent, started the night off with rich, vivid tunes belonging to some fictitious time period caught between the '60s and some unknown era we've never had the pleasure of visiting before. The band filled the room with a certain long-lost charm and layers of sounds recognizable, yet distant--well-defined by riffs kissed with influence from The Rolling Stones and other classic rock bands which somehow managed to simultaneously swerve into unknown territory. Above the abundance of instrumentation floated gorgeous, Lennon-esque vocals, fusing all of the pieces together into something truly sublime.

Triathalon brought with them the loveliest hints of the 70s onto the stage and the setting was perfect. The room was sprinkled with dots reflected from a lone disco ball and sparkly fringe hung on the wall next to the stage. What more could you hope for? It was a perfect atmosphere for a perfect, ear-pleasing journey. As soon as the boys began playing, I was flooded with the velvety smooth sounds that only they can so effortlessly deluge ears with. Not a single person resisted dancing. Still, I can't help but have a hard time putting into words Triathalon's sound, as there lies a profusion of nuances within each album, each song, even each sound. Everything is laced within a world of hazy, surf rock, yet drowned in an irresistible groovy quality (only unique to them). Sometimes spiraling into surges of noise before floating back to a surface-level calm--but a calm mixed with pleasing tension, eager to douse you at any moment--and unified by gentle, dynamic, at times almost falsetto, vocals. Though their latest endeavor, Cold Shower, is a bit of a shift from previous material, the smooth sounds featured throughout every one of the four songs somehow swimmingly merge together with the rest of their catalogue and might just be the catchiest (ahem, "I Want It" has been stuck in my head since it was released) gems I've ever heard.

I'm still surprised that I sat down to write this and I am even more surprised at how much I've missed writing for fun. Wow. Anyway, the moral of the story is: go listen to Triathalon and Parent. They are great bands that you should definitely know (and catch live if you are lucky enough). Next time, I'll write about a few more shows that I never had the chance to. But probably, I'll end up writing about my favorite band because I am the luckiest person and I get to see them very, very soon. xx