LITM Rock Picks Tunes Brought To You by Low Wave, Sean Griffin, Pool Club, Phil and Chandra!
Low Wave – "Poison Pear"
If there was a soundtrack to desert heat, it'd be like Low Wave's "Poison Pear." It's as if the song is half-fuzzy, half-feral, and half-exquisitely calibrated. It's like the illegitimate child of Skunk Anansie and Queens of the Stone Age after a drunken night in a bright, tawdry dive bar. There’s something deliciously unhinged about it - those riffs shimmer with psychedelic sweat, the bassline struts like it owns the place, and the vocals? They slice clean through the haze, balancing fury with finesse. You can hear the ghosts of Jefferson Airplane floating through the mix, but this is no nostalgia trip - it’s a full-throttle revival. Low Wave constructs rock architecture the way it should be done: jagged, unrepentant, and full of life. "Poison Pear" is massive without being bloated, defiant without brashness - a demonstration that rock can still sound risky and smart. It's the type of song that won't request your attention - it commands it, smiling in the process.
2. Sean Griffin – "Rocks Off"
Seán Griffin's "Rocks Off" is just what it claims to be - a filthy, swaggering piece of rock 'n' roll that punches like a shot of whiskey followed by a boost of adrenaline. From the opening guitar sting, you know you're in for a wild ride through unadulterated fun. The song charges headlong like a fight in a bar and has the allure of a vintage jukebox song. Griffin's vocals snarl and howl with conviction, underpinned by a beat so tight you could coin-toss off it. You can pick up notes of The Ramones and Billy Bragg, but Griffin grounds it in his own unique way - a sound mix of Celtic toughness and Catskill soul. The wah-wild guitars and growling bassline add to it the garage rock snarl that has been missing from playlists recently. There's no overpolishing here- and that's the magic. "Rocks Off" is rock at its most basic: sweaty, loud, and alive enough to make you think again.
3. Pool Club – "Changing Tides"
"Changing Tides" by Pool Club is like a deep breath - one of those great songs that doesn't merely play to you but with you, coaxing you down slowly until you remember to forget to breathe. Constructed on glistening synth layers and waves of ethereal guitar, it's the sound of introspection translated to cinema. The indie-pop heartbeat keeps it light, while the chillwave textures give it this oddly weightless sadness - ideal for late-night drives or midnight musings. It's music for individuals in the position of great life changes, looking into the void and saying, "maybe that's alright." Each beat, every reverberation sounds deliberate, as if emotional support beams propping the entire thing up. Pool Club have produced not only a track, but a landscape - one that knows the pain of uncertainty and makes it something beautiful in an odd kind of way. If existential crises did have a soundtrack, "Changing Tides" would be the reassuring hum on the periphery.
4. Phil – "Home"
Vienna indie band Phil reached a quietly dazzling groove with "Home," a track that simultaneously feels both intensely familiar and somewhat unreal - as if a dream you continue attempting to recollect upon waking. The first groove is an instant tip of the hat to Tame Impala's smooth funk, but there's an undeniably European sadness threaded through the synth rushes and basslines. "Shiny on the outside, burning bright…" That one line alone explains the pain hiding behind the track's gleaming fringes. The production is lush but unpressed; each instrument allowed room to breathe, to hurt, to signify. What makes “Home” linger is its intimacy: it’s not just about belonging somewhere, but about the quiet restlessness that comes with it. The song hums with that tension - comfort vs curiosity, peace vs the pull of motion. Phil doesn’t shout to be heard; they whisper truths wrapped in groove. And that’s why “Home” hits harder the longer it stays with you.
5. Chandra – “It’s OK”
Chandra's "It's OK" is the type of song that's hugging you and high-fiving you simultaneously. It's sunny, explosive, and emotionally raw - a contemporary rock anthem with its heart firmly on its sleeve. Right from the introductory riff, it crackles with drive: sharp drums, jangling guitars, and a melody that almost demands to be sung back in a hot club. But beneath the singalong sheen is a message that cuts deeper than most inspirational posters ever could - "It's OK to not be OK." No platitudes, no manufactured optimism, just sheer relief at being human. Chandra Nair presents it with gritty conviction, walking the tightrope of vulnerability and confidence, with producer Elliot Vaughan ensuring every beat connects with precision and warmth. "It's OK" sounds like sunshine bursting through a persistent haze - glorious, purifying, and incontrovertibly alive. If joy had an electric guitar, this would be its sound.
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