Darren Jessee - "Wild Ascending Blue"

Photo by Dustin Condren

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, but I had no idea Darren Jessee (the drummer for Ben Folds Five) has a solo career dating back to his 2018 album The Jane, Room 217. His latest single, "Wild Ascending Blue," is a quiet, orchestral folk/rock song. The sound makes perfect sense once you remember he co-wrote BFF's biggest hit, "Brick." This new song is a delicate and intimate song that is also fully fleshed out and has the kind of sound that could end up actually breaking out into the mainstream. If you only know his previous work in Ben Folds Five, chances are you're going to enjoy his solo music. This is adult contemporary with a mature sound but a classic indie rock sensibility.

Darren Jessee says of his new single:

"I wrote this in open D and it created an interesting tonality. The lyrics are connecting with the natural world and getting support from the natural world. It’s the emotional center of the album. Trey Pollard did the string arrangement."

You can watch the video for "Wild Ascending Blue" below. Central Bridge is due out March 24 on Bar/None Records, and can be pre-ordered through Bandcamp. For more on Darren Jessee, check out the artist's website.

Winter - "sunday"

Photo by Elizabeth Weinberg

There's that genre of music that skirts the worlds of indie rock, pop, and folk that we cover a lot of here at If It's Too Loud..., but we both find it fairly irresistible. The latest single comes from Winter. The musical project of Samira Winter, Winter just released "sunday" which melds an impossible number of genres seamlessly. "sunday" is mostly a pop song, and a pretty straightforward one. But Winter also includes quite a bit of a shoegaze and dream pop element into the song. You get the hazy feel of shoegaze throughout. Earlier in the song it sounds like it's going to stick in the indie rock and indie folk genres as this laid back, atmospheric song. And then the beats kick in and it's almost a dance song. Almost. 

You can watch the video for "sunday" below. What Kind of Blue Are You? is due out October 14 on Bar/None Records. For more on Winter, check out the artist on Facebook and Twitter.

Winter featuring SASAMI - "good"

Photo by Athena Merry

The latest single from Winter (aka Samira Winter) really skirts the line between indie rock and indie pop. "good" has much more guitar than your typical indie pop song, but Winter's vocals are almost pure pop. This one is reminding me a lot of classics from bands like Mazzy Star and The Sundays, but somehow a little more edgy and more pop than those two bands. The guitars in "good" just have a little too much crunch in them (especially toward the end), but there is also an odd lilt in the guitar. Winter has created this song that lives in both worlds and is perfect for fans of either. There is a lot to love in this one.

Samira Winter says of the new song:

“This song is intoxicating. SASAMI has such a strong presence and voice, she really turned up the notch in how alluring and seductive this song feels.”

You can watch the video for "good" below. What Kind of Blue Are You? is due out October 14 on Bar/None Records, and can be pre-ordered here. For more on Winter, check out the artist on Facebook and Twitter. Upcoming tour dates are below the video.

Sept 12 - Brussels, Belgium -  Ancienne Belgique, AB Club #
Sept 13 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso #
Sept 14 - Cologne, Germany - Yuca  #
Sept 16 - Stockholm, Sweden - Nalen Klubb #
Sept 17 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Ideal Bar, VEGA #
Sept 19 - Berlin, Germany - Badehaus #
Sept 23 - Paris, France - Le Pop-up du Label  #
Sept 25 - Bristol, UK - Louisiana  #
Sept 26 - Manchester, UK - YES #
Sept 27 - London, UK - Village Underground #
Oct 22  - Los Angeles, CA @  Zebulon
Oct 28 - Chicago, IL @ Hideout
Oct 29 - Lakewood, OH @ Mahall’s *
Oct 30 - Toronto, ON @ Drake Underground
Oct 31 - Montreal, QC @ Casa Del Popolo
Nov 1 - Boston, MA @ Lilypad
Nov 3 - Washington, DC @ Comet Ping Pong 
Nov 4 - Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
Nov 5 - Philadelphia, PA @ Ukie Club 

# w/ Hatchie
* w/ Panchiko

Little Hag - Breakfast

I spent last week with my family in the Asbury Park area of New Jersey enjoying the sun, ocean, the boardwalk, Korean tacos from MOGO, and donuts from Purple Glaze. While I was there, Little Hag released a new EP. I was excited to check out the songs on Breakfast as soon as they came out, but as soon as they were released I realized that this might not be family listening as the three songs are entitled "Piss," "Blood", and "Cum." 

But, titles aside, Breakfast is phenomenal. "Piss" is a weirdo little alt-pop song that will infect your brain fully and have you subconsciously singing "The world is my toilet." "Blood" may be Little Hag's finest song yet. It's intensely confessional song that shows the pop side of indie rock, but in a cheery, heartfelt way. "Cum" is what Laura Stevenson would sound like in Bizarro World. And I mean that in a great way.

You can watch the video for "Piss" below. Breakfast is available now via Bar None Records. For more on Little Hag, check out the artist's Linktree.

Little Hag - "Get Real"

Little Hag came out of virtually nowhere to release what was probably If It's Too Loud...'s album of 2021, Whatever Happened to Avery Jane? (It was my #4 album of the year and Jeff's #2.) Avery Mandeville's musical project is back with a new-ish single, "Get Real." In a Facebook post, Little Hag states that this is a remixed song, possibly from her time recording music under the name Avery Mandeville. (It's hard to find her previous releases online...) This version of get real is a bizarre version of pop punk goes dirty protopunk. It's a lot edgier than what we got with the previous album. Of course, then the song takes a few unexpected swerves into the realm of Gwen Stefani style pop. Finally the song goes into more of an alt-singer/songwriter territory, so it's wonderfully all over the place while still sounding like parts of one cohesive song.

You can listen to "Get Real" below. Little Hag has two new releases coming out in the next two months: An EP titled Breakfast on August 11 and an album called Leash on September 24, both presumably on Bar None Records. You can pre-save/pre-order these here. Little Hag is playing a show this Friday (July 16) at the House of Independents in Asbury Park, NJ. For more on Little Hag, check out the artist on Facebook.

Little Hag - "Tetris"

Photo by Benjamin Lieber

Every so often I'll see an update from a musician I'm following on Facebook and I'll no recollection of who they are or why I'm following them. That happened recently with Little Hag. Surely I'd remember following an artist with that name, but it didn't sound familiar at all. After a little digging, I realized that Little Hag is the new moniker of New Jersey musician Avery Mandeville. She's just released a new single from her upcoming album, and it's a must listen. "Tetris" is like the kind of folk-ish, indie rock, and indie pop music we love from artists like Lucy Dacus and Julia Jacklin, but through this bizarro lens that is somehow both more dancey and punk. "Tetris" is dripping with an attitude not usually associated with this style of music, with lines like "Everyone wants to fuck me / No one wants to see me cry" and "Text bitches til your eyes fall out," you'll be dying to see what Mandeville is going to do with this new musical project.

You can watch the video for "Tetris" below. "Tetris" will be included on a full length album due out in 2021 via Bar/None Records. For more Little Hag, check out the artist's website.