If It's Too Loud...

At this point, it's pretty much a guarantee that any time Tristen releases an album it's going to end up on my top 10 for that year. Aquatic Flowers landing at #10 just proves how great of a year this was for new music! Tristen has moved more towards the indie pop side of things from the more alt-pop-country of 2014's Charlatans at the Garden Gate (although looking back that album was quite pop, too). Aquatic Flowers is eleven songs of perfect indie pop. "Complex" is one of the best songs of the year, and I wish I wasn't already married because "Wrong with You" would be a perfect song to play at my wedding. How great is this album? It even has a fantastic song about being a new parent ("Julian"), which is a subject that trips up even the best songwriters into mediocrity. I assume most of our readers are already huge Tristen fans, but if you aren't you need to check this one out ASAP. Songs of note: "Complex," "Wrong with ...

As we hear more from Tristen's upcoming album, it sounds more and more like she's keeping her newer pop sound but dipping her toes back into the alt-pop country that put us on her bandwagon. "Cool Blue" nails that sound perfectly. It's a breezy pop song with just the perfect amount of classic country. Plus, Tristen is bringing some vintage 60's cool into the song to make it irresistible. This is all with "Cool Blue" being a fairly simple song. It's light instrumentation focusing on Tristen's vocals, which have never sounded stronger. This may end up becoming your favorite song from Tristen. You can watch the video for "Cool Blue" below. Aquatic Flowers  will be out June 4 on Mama Bird Recording Co. You can pre-order/pre-save a copy here . For more on Tristen, be sure to check out the artist's website .

Tristen is a long term favorite here at If It's Too Loud..., and her latest single reminds us exactly why. She's moved away from her alt/pop-country sound a while back in favor of a more pop sound, and "Wrong With You" is a pop song, but Tristen lets just the teensiest little bit of her old country roots bleed into this new one. While Jeff tends to be more of the pop guy than I am, Tristen is the rare exception that I can't seem to resist. At a time when a lot of our alt-country favorites are adopting pop music, Tristen is one of the few doing it this well.  You can watch the video for "Wrong With You" below. Aquatic Flowers is due out on Mama Bird Recording Co. You can pre-order/pre-save your copy here . For more on Tristen, check out the artist's website .

If you've been as into the music of Tristen as we have, you're going to absolutely love her latest single. "Athena" fits right in with Tristen's more recent musical releases. It falls into the indie pop category with just enough of a country twang to keep things interesting. What "Athena" adds in is some serious rock guitar. The entire song is dripping with some shoegazey reverb, but it's when the guitar kicks in for the chorus that it really takes off. It's a sound we haven't heard previously from Tristen, but it goes along perfectly with what we love from her. In an email to fans, Tristen says of the new song: "What messages lie within these myths for women? For how long have female characters been sculpted by the hands of men? In 'Athena,' co-written by Lera Lynn, I pounded out a major chord grunge song dedicated to the powerful Greek goddess of war, strategy, and men’s domains. I wanted to write a song for the girls--the Athe...

I've been smitten with the music of Tristen ever since I saw her opening for Justin Townes Earle back in 2012. Since then, her music has shifted from a more country/Americana sound to a more pop oriented one. Most artists lose me with that change, but Tristen keeps pulling me in. Her latest single, "Complex," keeps her more pop sound, and draws me even further into Tristen fandom. The song has this insanely upbeat sound, as most pop music does. "Complex" is a much more organic feel to it than most pop music, with a slight New Wave goes Americana feel. The past year has been insanely hard, but we're starting to at least get some positive music like this to help lift us up! You can watch the video for "Complex" below. It features appearances from Vanessa Carlton, Alyssa Milano, and more! Aquatic Flowers  is due out June 4 on Mama Bird Recording Co. You can pre-order the album here . For more on Tristen, check out the artist's website .