These LITM Rock Picks capture the range of indie-rock, coming to your from artists like Phraen, Forrm, The Spitting Pips, and more!
1. Phraen – Dover
Dover sets the stage for Phraen’s latest album, After, with a brooding, intentional mood that sucks you in with intrigue. A dreamy atmosphere mingles with a slightly hazy effect to create a track that knows when to pull back – nothing on this song is overdone, whether it’s the vocals or the instrumentals. Delicate and fragile, yet strong in intent, Dover is the kind of track that doesn’t demand your attention, but earns it. It never clamours or relies on gimmicks; rather, it sets an atmosphere and leaves space for you to explore it at your own time. Give Dover a listen here!
2. Forrm – Palazzo
When you imagine a scene from a movie about facing difficulty and then choosing to forget it, to let loose just for the night, Forrm’s Palazzo could very easily be the song that plays in the background of this montage. With vocals drenched in distortion and backing instrumentals that provide a strong, relentless foundation for them, the song balances unbridled joy with a sense of weight with a perfection that’s hard to put a finger on. It’s bittersweet in both delivery and lyrics, with lines like “This world’s gone mad / We’re holding, holding, holding, holding, holding the line in the palazzo,” and those evoking remembrance and nostalgia for a time that may never come back. Listen here!
3. The Spitting Pips – Sidelines
From its opening moments, Sidelines by The Spitting Pips is the spitting image (pun intended) of a classic indie-rock track – it doesn’t matter which one, because this is one that takes inspiration from all the greats and yet creates something of its own. The track is a cohesive experience, from the title to the narrative woven through the lyrics (“No, I don’t mind waiting on the sidelines if it means that I can waste away with you”), to the sound of the hopeful turmoil that accompanies it. The Spitting Pips manage to strike a perfect balance between grit and melody, distortion and clarity, rhythm and spontaneity, and it pays off – this is a must-listen!
4. Vasa Kumora – Six Feet Inside You
Vasa Kumora’s Six Feet Inside You is a dark exploration of the line between love and obsession. Turning ‘six feet under’ on its head while retaining the dark connotations that come with it, this track doesn’t hesitate to dive headfirst into the space where you love someone so much, you want to become a part of them. A lot of this meaning is usually left up to interpretation, but what makes this track especially effective is how vivid its imagery is (“I want you to let me in / Deep down your tongue… From your bones, I'll be born… Your flesh is mine to mold… Where you stood, I'll stand alone”). Give it a listen here!
5. ferb – Lifted
ferb’s latest single release, Lifted, opens with a high-energy drum and guitar set that creates an atmosphere that’s distinctly indie-rock in its bright, unrelenting nature. This is a song that dives deep into the nuances behind saying you’d do anything for the person you love, with lines like “I’d dig tunnels just to see you smiling / and I’d waste my engine just to get you lifted too,” giving you that warm and fuzzy feeling – a beautiful contrast that you can’t help but notice when placed amidst the heavy, distorted instruments that surround it. Lifted stands out because of its commitment to its sound, making you want to listen and find yourself within it too.
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