If It's Too Loud...

2016 has been a pretty rough year for everyone, but luckily it's been a great year for music. This has been such a particularly great year that I've been agonizing over my top 10 this year more than others. In such a great year, I wouldn't normally include an EP in my top 10, but Crushed  by Weakened Friends is too great not to include. For a band that only formed last year, they've had a great year topped off with a mini-tour with a reunited Letters to Cleo. It was a perfect pairing for such a 90s influenced band. Weakened Friends have this amazing indie rock meets power pop punk sound. "95" is one of the most perfect songs of the year. "She's so Cool." truly shows their great pop chops with some of the best "Whoah oh oh"s you'll ever hear, and yes, that's important. "Blankets" might be the hidden gem of the EP in it's almost power ballad sound, but a sped up power ballad. Crushed  might have landed higher up in...

Because sometimes you swap them a dozen times over the course of your final rankings and decide they're both worthy. For Field Mouse, Hold Still Life was my favorite album of 2014 , and the band continues to be a favorite of ours around these parts. The Casket Girls are definitely a band I've come to love at all, with True Love Kills the Fairy Tale a favorite of mine from 2014 even if it didn't make my top ten. With their new albums, we have two bands on two different trajectories, both making for great listens, but for different reasons. With The Casket Girls, The Night Machines is largely more of the same. It's a solid listen from top to bottom with a great share of dark indie pop, but also just haunting melodies throughout. Field Mouse, in comparison, abandons a lot of the moodier, shoegazey style in favor of a more up-front indie rock affair. In both cases, they end up being addictive listens, both in terms of general musical quality but also in terms o...

The same day we dust off Forgotten Fridays we bring you two fantastic releases for Friday Freebie. The first is a live EP from Boston's (well, formerly Boston) favorite neo-soul dynamo Eli Paperboy Reed. Reed's been at it since before the current soul revival, and it seems like he should get a lot more recognition on the national level than he actually does. As much as I've always enjoyed his albums, I've always heard that he is an artist that you need to see live. Somehow I've never made it to one of his shows, but after hearing this EP I'll definitely be getting out to see him next time he comes home. If you want proof of how amazing he is live, just check out the opening track "Hold Out" and remember that it's just a recording and you're not actually there live. To get your copy of of Live at Union Pool , head over to NoiseTrade . For more information on Eli Paperboy Reed, check out his website . Also from NoiseTrade this week (seriously...

Forgotten Fridays is an occasional feature here at If It’s Too Loud... where we go back and find the lost records of our glory days. We played these on our college radio shows, put them on countless mix tapes, and then forgot they existed. Once a week we go back and remind you, and help decide if they were any good. Last week while doing some Black Friday shopping (for myself) at a used record store, I came across Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved  in the discount CD bin. I hadn't even thought about this album for about 20 years, so I figured I'd give it another listen. Now, to be fair, I've always hated Kiss. While I gained an appreciation for classic rock bands in my 30s that I hated in my 20s (Bruce Springsteen, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC), the same can't be said for Kiss. Released in 1994, Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved  now stands as a bizarre slice of 1994. The mid-90s was a time of bizarre tribute and compilation albums, and this might stand out as one of t...

Photo via Facebook It's December 1st, so I guess it's ok to start posting about Christmas music, right? Amazon is dusting off their "Indie for the Holidays" playlist again this year, and this edition features a version of "Carol of the Bells" by noise rock legends The Melvins. As with most covers by The Melvins, "Carol of the Bells" is equal parts novelty and actual homage. Knowing The Melvins, this cover could have been a LOT heavier and thrashy, but they keep their pounding at a minimum to still be The Melvins but your aunt still might be able to tolerate it. You can listen to The Melvins' version of "Carol of the Bells" below. To check out the entire playlist for "Indie for the Holidays" (the 2016 version will be available on 12/2), head on over to Amazon . To find out what The Melvins are up to, check out their website .

One thing I love about doing this blog is getting sent music from bands in areas I would probably never find otherwise. We naturally cover the Boston scene pretty well, and cities like New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Nashville, Athens, etc. are always going to be pretty well represented. But West Phoenix, Arizona? I honestly can't think of any Arizona bands. Plus, Arizona shoegaze? Citrus Clouds are that band. On their new album, Imagination,  the band introduce us to this ultra-chill version of shoegaze dubbed "desertgaze." It's pure droned out, melodic pop bliss. It comes across as more of a poppy version of Galaxie 500. A song like "It's You That I Find" borders on repetitive and almost lasts too long, but considering the dreamlike state it brings you to, you won't be complaining. "Shapes and Things" might be the most bouncy song, with a swirling guitar riff and one of my favorite shoegaze guitar solos ever. The title track, "Im...

Last week Weezy Ford, sister of Sallie Ford, released her debut EP, Bobbypin Graveyard. Interestingly, none of the songs from her Soundcloud that we covered last year are on this five song EP, so we get a completely fresh look at Ford. Bobbypin Graveyard  isn't quite as barebones as "Phantom Lover" was. These songs just barely brush into the indie rock meets soul sound that her sister has mastered, but I mean just barely. The opening track, "You Ain't Gonna Find It," might be the closest. It has this weirdly great dichotomy with the instrumentation being heavy blues with Weezy's voice having an almost vulnerable quality. "Shakey Knees" is my personal favorite track of the album, and just amps up the dirty aggressive blues rock aspect. It sounds as if a 60s girl group backup singer took over vocal duties for The White Stripes. It's such a joy to hear music that is so raw and sweet at the same time. The EP is an absolute blast, and complet...

This one will make you feel old. Apparently the whole neo-rock/garage movement of the early 2000s that brought us The Strokes, The Hives, etc is now due for its own revival. The latest single from Animal House is filled with the type of garage rock that was all the rage back at the turn of the century. "Domino" is fun and catchy as hell, with the kind of attitude that's going to reinvigorate the term cheeky. Although I had assumed they were British, the band is from Australia, so let's hope they're just the start of a new burst of Australian garage rock. "Domino" is the latest single from the new EP, Sorry , from Animal House. You can watch the video for "Domino" below. For more on Animal House, check out their website .

We basically only have a couple weeks of new releases left for the 2016 calendar year, so this week has a few new releases and a few I tripped up on late. Artist : Various Artists Album : Polyvinyl Plays Polyvinyl Quick Description : A Polyvinyl Records celebration for their 20th birthday. Why You Should Listen : It's current Polyvinyl artists playing past Polyvinyl songs... Overall Thoughts : ...and it's predictably hit or miss. As someone who has been loving Polyvinyl stuff for most of their existence, I knew I'd love and hate some of this, and it's great for that sort of fun look back, but I wouldn't recommend this to anyone but fans of Polyvinyl's catalog. And the fact that no one covered "Marry Me, Archie" is just criminal. Recommendation : Fun for fans or those into weird covers. Artist : Natalie McCool Album : The Great Unknown Quick Description : Poppy singer with a weird bent. Why You Should Listen : You like melodic pop, but w...

Photo by Andrew Benge Making a song as a pure tribute to a deceased musician is always a tricky thing. The sound has to be similar enough to the subject without purely aping their sound. Plus, it's nearly impossible not to just come across as completely hokey. Bruising somehow pulled it off. I'm going to go out on a limb and assume "Rest In Peace Kurt Donald Cobain (1967-1994)" is about Kurt Cobain. It starts off with some of the feedback that Cobain was notorious for, and then it goes into more of a pop/tribute territory for the rest of the song. The lyrics stay pretty monotone and drone on in that early 90s slacker style, but the chorus (which just barely edges into the loud/quiet/loud dynamic Cobain admits to borrowing from the Pixies) is the type of pure pop that Cobain had a not-so-secret love of.  "Rest in Peace Kurt Donald Cobain (1967-1994)" will be released as the B-side to the previously mentioned "I Don't Mind" on December 2nd...

A lot of releases are considered diverse, but Alison Clancy's debut release, Psycho Tyko , truly is. Originally from Nevada City, CA, Clancy now resides in NYC where she dances for The Metropolitan Opera and performs music with her band. The best way to describe her music might be that it's a more poppy version of trip hop, but that barely scratches the surface. You would expect any music described as "a more poppy version of trip hop" that includes synths and post punk guitars would be pretty danceable. And you'll want to dance to it, but you might not be able to figure out how to, exactly.  Her songs are filled with scratchy guitars and awkward, uncomfortable beats.  A song like "ET Phone Home" starts out like a pretty standard alt-pop song, but by the time Clancy's vocals kick in, the song has twisted into a dark corner that pop music never touches. "Tried2CallUButIDidntHaveUrNumber" is a post punk disco song that could almost get play...

Depending on your media outlets of choice, you may or may not be aware of the situation in North Dakota right now. There protesters are attempting to protect Native American lands (and the drinking water used by Native Americans in the area) from having an oil pipeline built by the Dakota Access oil company. Regardless on what side you land on, there have been some pretty disturbing and violent images coming from the standoff, with a militarized police force using rubber bullets, pepper spray, attack dogs, and fire hoses to attempt to disperse the crowd. Spirit Family Reunion are on the side of the protesters. They've written and recorded a song to show solidarity with the protesters, with all proceeds going to support them. "Goin' Out to Cannon Ball" is written completely about the standoff, and is really a good old fashioned protest folk song. A lot of songs try to be a little too artsy with their lyrics about social issues, but "Goin' Out to Cannon Bal...

Letters to Cleo is the band I've seen more than any other. It's somewhere around 25-30 times by now. This weekend I realized that I've been going to see Letters to Cleo shows for over half my life now, which is just ridiculous. But they're a band that I used to go see multiple times in one week, including a few back to back nights, so when I haven't seen them for 8 years, there's no way I'm going to be missing a show. You add in Weakened Friends as the opener, literally the band I was hoping would open the show, and it's just an added bonus. I figured rolling into the venue around 8:30 (15 minutes before showtime) would be perfectly fine. Most people there are going to be 35 and up, we have kids, need to get sitters, and all that. It would probably be a rare night out with people getting dinner before the show, so nobody is going to get there until just before Letters to Cleo go on. How many middle aged people will show up early for an opener they do...

We're starting to hit the end of the year doldrums in terms of releases. There are a few more solid weeks coming up, though. Artist : Justice Album : Woman Quick Description : The indie dance act with their latest album. Why You Should Listen : Indie electronic dance music is sort of a thing right now. Overall Thoughts : People love Justice, and with good reason. For me, they've never quite connected, and I don't know how this album sits in comparison to anything else they've done, but this is a perfectly good representation of what Justice is in my brain. The songs are catchy, the beat good, and that's all I was looking for. Will it be enough for you, though? That, I don't know. Recommendation : A good listen, might not be great for longtime fans. Artist : Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats Album : A Little Something More From... Quick Description : An EP of some odds and ends following their breakthrough this year. Why You Should Lis...

It's been just over two years since we've shared anything from Lowell, MA's Arlen with you. Just last week, they shared the first song off their upcoming album. According to a Facebook post, the band was actively trying to put out a better album than their last. Judging by "Rescue Me," they might have pulled it off. "Rescue Me" is an absolute epic while still being grounded in the pop side of alternative rock. Arlen knows that melody isn't always a bad thing, and "Rescue Me" ties Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness  era Smashing Pumpkins into Placebo. Not to mention there's a killer guitar solo towards the end of the song that the band never even hinted at in their previous songs.  The new album from Arlen, Negatives , is due out in the next month or so. You can listen to "Rescue Me" below. For more information on all things Arlen, you can check them out on Bandcamp and Facebook . Rescue Me by Arlen