In LITM Rock Picks this week, experience the vast spectrum of emotions through brilliant compositions from artists Oliver Jordan, Scarlet Mill, Pale Cousin, minimum champion, and Dirty Power.
Oliver Jordan - Secret 13
Oliver Jordan’s Secret 13 reminds me of a quote by Stanley Kubrick, it goes “The feel of the experience is the important thing, not the ability to verbalize or analyze it.” Secret 13 embodies this philosophy in its music– consuming you with the feel of the sound. The song is about the loss of a close friend to drugs and Oliver Jordan bleeds his heart out onto the music. It is raw and fairly simple, yet manages to trigger a boundless well of empathy in the listener and lingers long after the last notes. Galloping rhythms, resonant acoustic strums, and swelling synth melodies evoke an inescapable sense of pain, loss, and melancholia. Oliver’s voice, distant and hazy, guides you through the deep blue sound like a beacon of light guiding a boat in the sea. Listen now to experience music that moves!
Scarlet Mill - Driftwood
Scarlet Mill unfailingly amuse the listener with their gripping storytelling and eclectic sonic style– a tasteful mix of Dreamwave, European Americana, and gritty chanson. Their latest release titled Driftwood is a crucial piece of the puzzle in the unfolding tale of dark passionate romance. The last few releases (part of their upcoming second full-length album), follow the intriguing saga of two lovers- a sailing musician and his muse. In Driftwood, the duo allows us to peer into the mind of the muse and her feelings on the fleeing sailor's misdeeds. The singer’s vocals, graceful yet infuriated, depict feminine rage in all its glory, tempering anger through elegance. The heavy guitar riffs, foreboding synth melodies, and slowly building rhythms possess the indie-rock spirit and create an air of enigma around the music. Listen now!
Pale Cousin - Spacecake
Pale Cousin, a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and music producer, sends the listener on an entrancing journey in Spacecake. Donning a space rock outfit, the music flows through stretched-out synth atmospheres, vivid streams of guitar riffs, and pulsing rhythms. The instrumental is otherworldly and if I may, borders on a psychedelic aftermath. It hits hard, right from the beginning, and only builds in intensity texturally and tonally. The star of the show is the guitars, morphing in shape from heavy fuzzy strums to sharp vibrant solos, adding layers of dimension to the music, all while maintaining an unwavering mysterious tone. Spacecake reveals the instrumental dexterity and imaginative styles of Pale Cousin. Listen now!
minimum champion - Before It Gets Better
Before It Gets Better seizes your senses with its exuberance, boasting emphatic drums, vibrant gravelly riffs, and evocative vocals. With years of expertise as a drummer, Nicholas Lopardo, the man behind the musical project minimum champion, brings a rhythm-driven boisterous rock sound that cements his position as a seasoned musician. The passionate vocals, soaring and falling in tonality and temperament, compete with the energetic pulse of the drums for attention, equally enthralling with its zeal. Before It Gets Better strikes a chord with all of us, it addresses the angst and frustration of being stuck in a loop of mistakes, discovering your potential, and eventually getting to a better place. The music embodies this feeling with an accuracy and authenticity that’s rare, highlighting the artist’s skill and intention at play here. Listen now!
Dirty Power - Farewell
Dirty Power, an international rock trio, brings us a reflective and grounding rock feel in Farewell. Diverging from a heavier approach to music, Dirty Power showcases their melodic and mellow aesthetics in Farewell. Opening with a somber and minimal soundscape, the music dons only the gentle mellifluous strums of the guitar and emotive reverb-drenched vocals. As the softness of the music begins to fade, like a cold fog clearing up, the vocals get clearer and the instrumentation becomes louder. It swiftly rises in intensity, as a drizzle turns to a downpour, washing over you with gritty riffs, clangy thumping drums, and powerful vocals. Dirty Power takes inspiration from the more personal-sounding aesthetics of Nirvana, Shane MacGowan, and The Dubliners to create the contemplative atmosphere in Farewell. Listen now!
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