FFO: Pup, Joyce Manor, Hotline TNT, Ovlov, atmospheric indie rock with hints of punkish pop

While Vincent Ford and Gulfer’s other founding member, bassist David Mitchell, no longer contribute the majority of songwriting they once did, morsels of their original sound remain. Signature wistful vocals and oblique-yet-nimble guitars are still a fixture, as are thematic elements that touch on burnout, climate crisis, and losing touch with a difficult reality. But Third Wind’s stylistic turns are emphasized by deeper texture and simpler songwriting, influenced by the reemergence of 90s alternative and shoegaze.

listen → more info →

FFO: Alex G, Red House Painters, My Bloody Valentine, shoegaze-inflected guitar rock

Written during a time of immense inspiration, Strohmer was able to peel himself away from detached nihilism, uncovering the physicality and therapeutic powers of songwriting. Newly emboldened by this discovery and the talented community surrounding him, Strohmer channeled this revelation into his work, taking Knifeplay from a bedroom experiment that merely wrote songs to a more substantial project with a purpose.

FFO: Sasami, Mannequin Pussy, Model/Actriz, Priests, fiery choruses in the depths of the mascara moshpit

Ekko Astral are here to uplift, a mission exemplified by the frenetic and bewitching pre-release singles “baethoven” and “devorah,” cornerstones of pink balloons in both style and theme. The former serves as a reminder to keep your larger than life personality in a world that wants to downsize you, where the latter proclaims urgent solidarity with missing and murdered people. Such crucial messages of upliftment are the foundation of pink balloons, and, by extension Ekko Astral, whose thrashing debut leaves no stone of solidarity unturned.

listen → more info →

FFO: Sasami, Mannequin Pussy, Model/Actriz, Priests, fiery choruses in the depths of the mascara moshpit

On their standalone single "baethoven", the rising D.C.-based Ekko Astral immediately grab your attention with a sense of verve, vitality, and uncontrollable excitement. Lead vocalist and frontwoman Jael Holzman set out to make a funhouse mirror song that's all about the pain of being yourself and having a larger than life personality in a nation that wants to downsize you. With crashing drums seared with a piercing momentum, fuzzed-out guitar riffs, and Holzman's biting and energetic vocal delivery, Ekko Astral locks you into the band's vigorous spirit in just under three minutes.

listen → more info →

This 7" vinyl features an exclusive track from both Ratboys and T.V.NOT JANUARY, released in honor of the bands' 2024 Japan tour.

FFO: Sufjan Stevens, Stereolab, Yo La Tengo, Crumb, Broadcast, Steve Reich

Across its fifteen songs, Rose Main Reading Room ultimately proposes a world of marvels and compelling complexity: “Oblast” cheekily prods at mutually assured destruction; “Ocean Life” explores the infiniteness within ourselves; while “R.I.P. (Running in Place)” unpacks an all too familiar stagnation. It’s all part of, and crucial to, Rose Main Reading Room’s transportive power, ever reaching for the wonder and magic of the world we live in.

listen → more info →

FFO: Iglooghost, A.G. Cook, Hakushi Hasegawa, Soushi Sakiyama. blown-out, pop-forward electronica

Scattersun expands on the heartfelt sibilance of Fax Gang’s prior output with Parannoul’s penchant for epic song structures and tumbling climaxes, layered with diaphanous vocals that oscillate between hope and despair. Lead track “Lullaby for a Memory” comprises elements of twitchy drum n bass and Parannoul’s overdriven pop-shoegaze, with pitch-corrected vocals interfixed through uptempo percussion, piano, and distorted layers of melodic atmosphere.

listen → more info →

FFO: Tortoise, Battles, Don Caballero, Pele, The Mercury Program, Explosions in the Sky

NOW I SEE THE LIGHT (2024), toe’s fourth full-length album, is a bridge between the experimental restraint of their later work and the explosive abandon of their earlier output. From the opening tracks, toe balance serpentine passages against meditative repetition. On “LONELINESS WILL SHINE,” “サニーボーイ・ラプソディ,” and “NOW I SEE THE LIGHT,” Hirokazu reprises his role as part-time vocalist, breaking the band yet further from the instrumental work that formerly defined them. As a whole, NOW I SEE THE LIGHT closes the loop between early and late toe, giving them a clean slate for their new outlook.

listen → more info →

FFO: Pup, Joyce Manor, Hotline TNT, Ovlov, resurgent sounds of alt rock mixed with noodly emo

The final release from Montreal's Gulfer.

listen → more info →

FFO: Beach Fossils, Real Estate, Triathalon, Chastity Belt, Boy Pablo, The Drums, Vampire Weekend, Frankie Cosmos, Another Michael

In the Spellbound sonic universe, enchanting hooks about friendship and growing up in New Jersey orbit driving verses that prize brevity, never laboring longer than necessary. On lead single “Rocky Road,” Boyscott explore the mental gymnastics required for a career in music, pulling on the threads of fear and excitement they experienced in their early tours. Such reflection is abundant on Spellbound: “Arthur Kill” refers to the peculiar beauty of a boat graveyard in the Arthur Kill tidal strait; where “Lima” interpolates a song that stuck with Hermo since high school. All told, Spellbound continues what Boyscott started with Goose Bumps, honing their pristinely arranged indie pop morsels into a fully realized sound that vindicates the near ten-year wait.

listen → more info →

FFO: My Bloody Valentine, Grouper, TAGABOW, Cocteau Twins, Tony Molina, and You'll Never Get To Heaven

"pond" is the final unreleased song from the Blue Smiley vault. Originally intended to be on the now beloved album 'return,' "pond" was pulled from the tracklist shortly before release. The never before heard song will be released on late songwriter Brian Nowell's birthday, October 11.

listen → more info →

Our year in review: 18 tracks from 18 different artists spanning twitchy drum n bass, math rock, post rock, screamo, overdriven pop-shoegaze, progressive rock-skewed artpop, and everything in between. Available on CD, cassette, and digitally.

listen → more info →