If It's Too Loud...

We can all officially feel old now that bands are reminiscing about 2012. Out of Manchester, England, Hot Shorts have a new single, "Summer of 2012." The song is a fast paced indie rock jam that's as discordant as it is catchy. It's hanging on barely by a thread and threatens to fall apart at any moment, which is what makes songs like this so great. Singer/guitarist Chris Killen says of the song:  "'Summer of 2012' is a song about owning your "first real iPhone" and also about how a smartphone can possibly be a ticket to numbness if you just stare at it all the time. It also contains a stupid Bryan Adams joke intro. The video is made out of various things we filmed (on our iPhones) while recording the album over five days at Big City Jacks with Michael Whalley." You can watch the video for "Summer of 2012" below. I Understand & I Wish to Continue , the new album from Hot Shorts, is out now via Icecapades. You can pick up...

You'd think that releasing two albums this year would be enough for Shopping. Apparently not for drummer Andrew Milk, who has a side project called Vertical Slump. Vertical Slump will be releasing their debut EP on October 2. The first song from that EP, "Tether," definitely has a similar post-punk sound to Shopping, but Vertical Slump are more discordant and somehow upbeat. It's a unique mix of 70s post punk ferocity mixed with 90s American indie slacker rock. Think Joy Division meets Pavement. Ruined Value  is due out October 2 on Icecapades. You can pre-order the EP here . You can follow Vertical Slump on Bandcamp and Tumblr .