If It's Too Loud...

This one should probably be higher on my list than #10, but I may have burnt myself off on it by leaving the CD in my car for months. Abigail Lapell's fifth album, Anniversary , is an amazing mix of traditional folk and modern folk. The album opener, "Anniversary," is a beautiful and light love song that sets the mood for the rest of the album. A song like "Count On Me," one of the tracks that Lapell collaborated with Great Lake Swimmers on, has a more modern feeling while still being rooted in tradition. "Rattlesnake" and "Flowers In My Hair" are more traditional while still sounding like music recorded this decade. The latter was recorded in a church and consists of vocals, handclaps, and foot stomps. Anniversary is one of the more compelling folk releases of the year, and is a showcase for Lapell's fantastic songwriting and vocals. If you haven't checked this album out yet, it's definitely time to. Songs of note: "Count On...

Photo by Jen Squires We're trying to be patient for the new album from Abigail Lapell to be released on Friday. The Toronto singer-songwriter has been blowing us away with each new single, and anticipation is high here at If It's Too Loud... Luckily, we have one last single to tide us over, because sometimes a day can be too long to wait. "Flowers in my Hair" is an acapella track that's just Lapell's vocals, backing vocals, and foot stomps and handclaps to provide a beat. The result is a sunny, upbeat track keeping with folk traditions while modernizing them a bit. The fact that the album was recorded live in a church just adds to a song like "Flowers in my Hair." Plus, a song like this is perfectly timed just as we're starting to get the first Spring weather here in New England. Abigail Lapell says of her latest single: "'Flowers In My Hair' is a summery song about skinny dipping and lying around sunbathing, covered in flowers, and ...

Photo by Jen Squires While we impatiently wait for the new album from Abigail Lapell, the Toronto singer-songwriter has a new single out. "Count on Me" sees Lapell teaming with Great Lake Swimmers on a song that is somewhat folky. The song has this odd power behind it, despite being relatively quiet and reserved. It's an uplifting and hopeful song without ever getting remotely cheesy. The focus of "Count on Me" is the vocal pairing of Lapell and Tony Dekker, who might just be meant to sing duets. This is a simple and powerful song that will just sink itself into your psyche and refuse to let go. Abigail Lapell says of her latest single: “I started writing ‘Count on Me’ for my sister’s wedding and finished it in time for her first anniversary. It’s a song for me that evokes marriages or funerals or other life ceremonies.” You can watch the video for "Count on Me" below. Anniversary is due out May 10 on Outside Music, and is available for pre-order here ...

Photo by Jen Squires The latest single from Toronto's Abigail Lapell exists as a conundrum. "Rattlesnake" is based in traditional folk, but it also sounds completely modern. The track sounds like it has a looping element, and Lapell's electric guitar sounds completely modern. The guitar might be the secret weapon of the song, as it has a modern quality that is somehow haunting. The way the guitar mixes with Lapell's vocals creates this element that is oddly comforting while still clashing a bit. It's like the modern and the past are being forced to find a common ground, and while they are, it's not entirely comfortable. Abigail Lapell says of her latest single: “Rattlesnake is an ode to love and superstition. The trad-inspired track combines powerhouse vocals and slightly distorted finger-style electric guitar. The serpentine melody unspools around a catchy refrain, doubling vocal lines about archaic love omens and herbalist incantations to timeless yet mo...

Photo by Enno Kapitz / digitally altered by Kosuke Kawamur The latest song from Japanese noise legends Buffalo Daughter isn't subtle in its message. It's impossible not to know what "Global Warming Will Kill Us All" is about just based on the title. Aside from the message, the new single is actually pretty groovy. It's filled with tons of vocoder vocals, and sure, it's noisy. And weird. But the song has this great groove to it that is going to remind you a lot of the 90's, especially music released on Grand Royal. (Of course, Buffalo Daughter released their debut album on Grand Royal back in 1996, so it does make sense. suGar Yoshinaga of Buffalo Daughter explains the song's creation: "It was mid summer of 2018 (insanely hot summer when even mosquitoes were not around) when we gathered all those puzzles and pieces together to make them into songs for the album. This song is one of them, and with the impact from the extreme weather, we felt the cry...

Photo by Enno Kapitz / Digitally altered by Kosuke Kawamura Buffalo Daughter first came to most of our attention way back in 1996 when their debut album was released on Grand Royal Records, the Beastie Boys' label. The Japanese noise legends fell off my radar after that, but have been releasing music ever since. September sees their first album in seven years, and we can check out a single from the album. "ET (Densha)" is weird. It's a combination of post rock, indie rock, shoegaze, techno, prog rock, etc. There may be a little of everything here. It may not be for your top 40 loving office mate, but Buffalo Daughter keep it oddly accessible... for the most part... until it isn't... at all. "ET (Densha)" almost starts off as moody atmospheric music you could keep on in the background, but it's almost like the song knows that's what you're doing and slowly starts demanding more and more of your attention until it's literally screaming at y...

Hailing from Tokyo, DYGL started off as a pure punk band but have blossomed into a more dance friendly indie band. That's not to say they're not a rock band. DYGL definitely are rock based. Their latest single, "Don't You Wanna Dance in this Heaven?" solidifies this. Written about Fuieho law which forbade dancing until after midnight in Japan that was on the books until 2015, "Don't You Wanna Dance in this Heaven?" is a slow, slow burn. It takes over a minute to get going, but it's an early 00's garage rock revival dance song mixed with psychedelia that we never knew we needed until just now. Plus, it is very heavily influenced by 90's Brit pop, which we're always for! You can listen to "Don't You Wanna Dance in this Heaven?" below. Songs of Innocence & Experience will be out July 3 via Anniversary. For more on DYGL, check them out on Facebook and Twitter .

Photo via Facebook Bands like The Get Up Kids and The Anniversary are guilty pleasures for me. I always felt that I was a little bit too old to be into them back when both were at the height of their popularity. This was really driven home at a Get Ups Kids show I went to at the Worcester Palladium in 2001, which was the very first time I felt old at a show. I was 25.  I was thrilled and hesitant when I first heard that there was a new supergroup formed from members of both The Get Up Kids and The Anniversary. Radar State features Matt Pryor and Jim Suptic of The Get Up Kids and Josh Berwanger of The Anniversary. Adam Phillips of Architects is on drums. The band has released the first song off their upcoming EP. "Spinning Wheel" sounds like classic, old school Get Up Kids, the kind of emo you can listen to in your 30s or more without embarrassment. It's just fast enough to have a punk edge but melodic as can possibly be. We'll see how the entire EP is with three...