If It's Too Loud...

Nolan the Ninja is one of the perfect rappers for those of us that miss old school hip hop. He drops the whole R&B chorus blueprint that has dominated hip hop for the past twenty five years. "Oranges" has a wonderfully sparse production. I would compare it to early Wu-Tang Clan, but it lacks that menace and sense of danger you heard in Enter the 36 Chambers. The music has an upbeat, nearly bouncy feel to it, so maybe we can go with Wu-Tang meets De La Soul? There are those of us that will think that sounds like perfection. Trust me, it is. You can listen to "Oranges" below. SPORTEE , the new album from Nolan the Ninja, will be out April 19 on Mello Music Group. The album can be pre-ordered here . For more on Nolan the Ninja, check him out on Facebook and Twitter . SPORTEE by Nolan The Ninja

Hailing from Quebec, CRABE's new single is an interesting one. Sung entirely in French, the song is about the lack of noisy and crazy music in Quebec's festival circuit. (At least, according to the email they sent us. I speak zero French, so I can't confirm myself.) "Festival" is an outrageously noisy and disjointed song, barreling into multiple directions at once and sometimes sounding like you're standing in the middle of an arcade. This is all while somehow maintaining being a rock song, and one that has an odd groove all its own. It's completely unique and challenging, but fantastic for those reasons.  You can listen to "Festival" below.  Notre-Dame De La Vie Intérieure, the new album from CRABE, will be out May 3 on Pantoum Records. For more on CRABE, check them out on Facebook and Bandcamp .

Album of the Week : Artist : Stella Donnelly Album : Beware of the Dogs Quick Description : Debut album from a very buzzworthy artist. Why You Should Listen : We've loved what we've heard from her so far. Overall Thoughts : We hopped on the bandwagon with Thrush Metal early, and to say this was one of our most anticipated releases this year would be an understatement. I don’t really know what I expected from this, but an upbeat, direct, almost-British-indie feeling record was an unexpected surprise for me. This is a really fun record in a lot of ways even if the subject matter in the songs is not always the same tone, and it’s something I want to spend a lot more time with if only because there are clearly so many layers to this. This won’t work for everyone, as I can imagine many listeners being turned off by the tone and presentation, but if you are willing to give this the proper time? This is a real gem. Recommendation : Best of the week. Artist : Xeno and Oa...

Providence's Heather Rose in Clover are basically tailor made for us here at If It's Too Loud... Their latest single, "Satellite," openly flaunts its 90's influences. "Satellite" is packed with mid-90's alternative power pop, and I'm hearing similarities to bands like Fuzzy, Velocity Girl, and Belly all over this song. It's filled with swirling, slightly distorted guitars and some insanely catchy hooks. Heather Rose in Clover explains the song like this:  "'Satellites'  was written as an expression of that deep-seeded longing to reconnect with those we have lost through distance, time, and even death. Inspired by Houdini's fascination with the afterlife, coupled with the extraordinary relationship that exists between mathematics and outer space, Satellites is rich in imagery of hope, searching and discovery." You can listen to "Satellites" below. Canyons , the debut album from Heather Rose in Clover, will...

Photo by Shawn Brackbill Hailing from Pittsburgh, The Gotobeds exude a raw power on their latest single, "Calquer the Hound." It's a high energy garage rocker with an industrial feel. The song is just about as noisy as you can get while still keeping to the rules of melody and normal song structure. That's not to say that "Calquer the Hound" is a pure noise rock track. There is plenty of time where it's almost a normal, straightforward rock song. Almost. But behind the entire length of the song lies the menace of noise, just waiting to break free. You can listen to "Calquer the Hound" below. The track features Rob Henry of Kim Phuc and Evan Richards of The City Buses. Their upcoming album, Debt Begins at 30 , also features guest appearances by members of Mission of Burma, Pavement, Downtown Boys, Silkworm, and more. It will be out May 31 on Sub Pop Records, and can be pre-ordered here . For more on The Gotobeds, check them out on Facebook...

The latest single from Quelle Chris is a rare gorgeous hip hop song without any R&B involved. It involves guest rappers Cavalier and Bilal Salaam, but also has Grammy nominated pianist Eldar Djangirov and comedian James Acaster. Just to show how different "Straight Shot" is from the vast majority of hip hop out there today, here is what Quelle Chris has to say about the song:  Straight Shot is one of those ideas that reached out to me, we got along and I simply showed it around town. The chorus, poem at the end and basic piano progression literally came to me in two separate dreams. My first thoughts were “I gotta introduce you to Bilal Salaam and James Acaster. Though I’m not sure just how to yet.” Then as we hung out I knew I needed to first introduce the idea to Chris Keys. Now initially I thought it was an interlude but quickly realized while hanging with Chris it was a song. After writing the first verse I knew I needed to invite Cavalier over to meet our new fri...

One of my favorite things about March are all of the RPM challenge albums that start popping up in the first half of the month. The first is from Death and The Poetess, aka Blake Girndt (The I Want You, Walter Sickert & The Army of Toys) and Jojo Lazar (Burlesque Poetess, Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys). The duo just released their first offering, On Ghoulie Isle . They describe their music as "crypt-folk," but it's much more fun than gloomy. As you would expect from... well... everything about this project, it's quite odd. The album is quite bare bones, with the only instruments credited as being used are a classical guitar, ukulele, flute, and a "tiny 1990's yamaha keyboard." As fun as it is, there is, of course, a dark feel, especially in a song like "Split the Lark." As their Bandcamp describes the album: " It's as though the crypt-folk mourning-wear fancying duo was dropped on a Coney Island-esque boardwalk in ...

Green River Festival is looking to break out in 2019. The five artists they previously announced (First Aid Kit, The Wood Brothers, Tyler Childers, The Devil Makes Three, and Rhiannon Giddens) and a great base for any festival. Today they announced more of their line up, and... this one will be legendary.  In addition to First Aid Kit, Friday will also include folk rockers Parsonsfield and indie folder Heather Maloney. Joining Saturday are world music legend Angelique Kidjo (someone I probably would never see if it wasn't for a festival like this), rocker Low Cut Connie, one man band sensation The Suitcase Junket, Boston roots staples Session Americana, and Boston's fuzzed out Americana sensations The Stone Coyotes. Sunday now includes The Record Company (which is a huge get for a smaller festival), neo-soul group The Suffers, and Cedric Burnside, grandson of R.L. Burnside.  The Green River Festival will take place July 12-14 on the campus of Greenfield State College in ...

Photo by Eats Humans Despite being just 21 years old, Atlanta's Faye Webster is about to release her third album. The lead single from that album, "Room Temperature," is a groovy indie country ballad heavy on pedal steel guitar. The instrument gives the song both a country and Hawaiian vibe. The video, directed by Webster, goes more on the Hawaiian side of things. Webster says of the song:  “ Pedal steel has always been one of my favorite instruments and I generously sprinkle it throughout the record, but in ‘Room Temperature’ it is unarguably prominent. It is the first thing you hear in the song and I wanted the visual to mirror the feeling of hearing this Hawaiian/bendy/Spongebob guitar, and what better way to capture it all than Miami? ” The result is a fantastically cool song with a modern 60's feel.  You can watch the video for "Room Temperature" below. Atlanta Millionaires Club , the new album from Faye Webster, will be out May 24 on Secretly Can...

Photo by Choe Sells We were both huge fans of Stef Chura's debut album Messes. It had this great 90's inspired alt rock feel. She's about to release a follow up, and the first single, "Method Man," is available to listen to. "Method Man," is still 90's alt rock inspired, but while Messes  was the bouncier side of 90's alt rock, "Method Man is decidedly harder, noisier, and more disjointed in the best possible way. It still has it's bouncy upbeat feel, but it's far thrashier and has some moments that dabble into the experimental side of grunge. Chura says about the song: A long time ago I was pondering the literal words "Method Man” while listening to Wu-Tang. There was a person in my life that I had a confusing array of emotions for, sometimes I was in love with him, I admired and looked up to him, I thought of him as superior to me. He was older than me and I was a teenager. At that age I experienced a titanic amount of a...

The release of Captain Marvel this week is perhaps the most anticipated movie release in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since the first half of Infinity War , with the added weight of much of what Black Panther brought to the table. This post is not about any of that, but instead about lead actress Brie Larson’s attempt at pop stardom, Finally Out of P.E. . Released in 2005 when Larson was only 15 years old, this is not only a relic of a time that perhaps has not dated itself all that well, but an early piece of art from an acclaimed actress that has largely been forgotten to the sands of time. Reports are that the album only sold a few thousand copies overall, and when I tripped up on the album a month or so ago when I went back down a Holly Brook/Skylar Grey (credited as a co-writer on “Done With Like”) rabbit hole, I knew I had to give it a listen – at best, it was going to be an innocuous pop record, at worst the second-worst cringeworthy embarrassment of Larson’s career (be...

When I think of music from Portland, ME, I don't really think of music that could be described as "...  an experimental doom-metal fiasco." That's Toothbrush, though. The band is compr ised of Sean Ahern on bass and Chris Gervais on drums. According to an email they sent out, "...  bonded over their fondness for 70's era prog rock, jazz fusion, and the band Chicago." You would never guess that based on their latest single, "An Ocean of Sulfur Will Run Deep Through Your Veins." It's a thirteen minute song recorded live that sounds like Lightning Bolt decided to get sludgy and groovy. It's an intense extended blast of noise that never quite overstays its welcome, despite hardly being a pleasant listening experience. Of course, this won't be for everyone, but if this sounds like your thing, it's a thrilling listen. You can listen to "An Ocean of Sulfur Will Run Deep Through Your Veins" below. The single will be releas...

Photo by Allison Taylor Creative Back in January we brought you "River Song" from Porteau, describing it as a "dream pop/folk song." Today we have a new song, "Penelope," and if you liked "River Song," this is definitely for you. "Penelope" keeps the dream pop/folk song vibe going. It's an absurdly lush and beautiful song, sounding like Mazzy Star going folk, aka dream pop/folk. Just to give a hint of what to expect from the song, here is what Porteau has to say about it: " Upon seeing a painting of Andromeda by Gustave Doré, we sought out to write music that sounded like the piece o f art looked - cold, urgent, yet liberating. A mutual understanding and inspiration was found and became a driving and unifying force. Using this as a catalyst, our debut record – Water’s Gate – naturally revealed itself." The song somehow sounds exactly like that press release reads, and that is a fantastic thing. You can listen to ...

Photo by William Joseph Johnson Bohannons have been around since 2005 and we're somehow just discovering them. It's exciting to have a new band to delve into the back catalog of, but also a bummer because we missed out on fourteen years of fandom. Hailing from Chattanooga, their latest single, "Sleep Rock," is a powerhouse combining country and indie/alt rock. I'd call it alt-country, but that doesn't quite fit as "Sleep Rock" isn't country enough even for that moniker. But, it's still decidedly country. It's a huge rock song with country roots but a punk/indie ethos, with hooks. The closest comparison I can come up with is Jason Isbell fronting a hybrid of Wussy and Sebadoh. You can listen to "Sleep Rock" below. Bloodroot , the latest album from Bohannons, will be out April 5 on Cornelius Chapel Records. You can pre-order your copy here . For more on Bohannons, check out their website . Current tour dates are below the so...

Album of the Week : Artist : The Honey Dewdrops Album : Anyone Can See Quick Description : Porch-style roots music. Why You Should Listen : It's a gorgeous album reminiscent of so much of your favorite roots music. Overall Thoughts : One of the few highlights of a mostly-lackluster Oscars last weekend was Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch performing their song from The Ballad of Buster Scruggs . It reminded me how much I love what those two do when they collaborate, and this album is directly reminiscent of that. Great harmonies, solid folk music – it’s the whole package, and it’s exactly what I was looking for. Recommendation : Easily the best of the week. Artist : Matthew Mayfield Album : Gun Shy Quick Description : Mainstream-friendly alt-rock. Why You Should Listen : It's indie enough for your sensibilities, but mainstream enough where your friends won't hate you for it. Overall Thoughts : Matthew Mayfield clearly came from the Bob Schneider school of alt-r...