If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Jon Salazar Chicago's Smut have a new single out that is going to give you some serious 90's flashbacks. "Touch & Go" has some seriously grungy guitars, but it's more along the lines of the mid 90's as the second (or possibly third) wave of grunge bands were starting to break out and more melody starting edging its way into alternative rock. Smut is also putting a little bit of a pop sheen into "Touch & Go," which we never would have admitted back then. Most of the pop side comes from Tay Roebuck's vocals, which are otherworldly at times. This is an interesting mixture of bands like Bush, The Sundays, and Letters to Cleo. We're always down for a 90's throwback sound, especially when it's as great as this one. You can watch the video for "Touch & Go" below. Tomorrow Comes Crashing is due out June 27 on Bayonet Records. For more on Smut, check out the band on Instagram and Facebook . Upcoming live dates a...

Photo by Jon Salazar It's been a little while since we've brought you new music from Smut. After a line up change (please welcome Aidan O'Connor on drums and John Steiner on bass!), they've returned with a new single. "Syd Sweeney" is inspired by the actress, and it's a note perfect alt-rock song. This one is reminding me of all of my favorite alt-rock bands from the mid to late 90's. It has that crunchy and noisy alt-rock with plenty of pop hooks, although we never would have admitted to how poppy it was at the time. Smut aren't rewriting the alt-rock rulebook with "Syd Sweeney," but they have perfected the formula, and when you're nailing a sound so well, why change it up? If you loved bands like Letters to Cleo, Veruca Salt, or that dog, you're going to love Smut.  Vocalist/lyricist Tae Roebuck says of the band's latest single: “Women in entertainment are exceptionally talented, smart and beautiful, because they have to be....

November 11 : Artist : Smut Album : How the Light Felt Quick Thoughts : Smut is the sort of comfortable indie rock that I love, where it's not doing anything particularly revolutionary but is still doing what they do better than anyone else in the moment. Don't overlook this listen, there's a lot of great music to love in here. Songs of Note : "Soft Engine," "Believe You Me," "Morningstar" Artist : Delivery Album : Forever Giving Handshakes Quick Thoughts : This album has a lot going for it, and its refusal to conform to any specific genre is a benefit when many acts could treat it as a drawback. This album won me over right away, and will likely win you over, too. Songs of Note : "Poor-to-Middling Moneymaking," "Baader Meinhof," "No Homes," "Good" Artist : A7PHA Album : II Quick Thoughts : I wanted to highlight this because it's great, but also because it reminds me a lot of when Tric...

Photo by Jaycee Rockhold I certainly wasn't expecting a band named Smut to sound anything like this. The Chicago based band's latest single, "After Silver Leaves," is this gorgeous slice of dream pop. The focus are the stunning vocals of Tay Roebuck and swirling guitars. Instead of the raw, in your face punk/rock I was expecting, Smut are the kind of band that can be compared to The Sundays and The Cranberries. The beauty of the music does hide quite a bit of darkness. Much of Smut's upcoming album is about Roebuck's younger sister who died by suicide weeks before her high school graduation.  Tay Roebuck says of her band's new single: “ This song is about a former relationship I was in, it was really horribly abusive. But the approach to this one was to just spell it all out and see how silly it feels once shit really hits the fan.  The song sounds so happy, but I’m talking about driving someone to a hospital when they’ve overdosed. And having to detach my...