Orquestra Pacifico Tropical - "Fantasma"

By -

Photo by Jason Hill

Orquestra Pacifico Tropical is a band that makes psychedelic cumbia, and trust us... you're going to want to hear that. The Portland, OR band's latest single, "Fantasma," is an immediately infectious track. It's all of the rhythms and dance friendly sounds you expect with cumbia, but it's also wonderfully trippy. It could be our favorite instrumental track of the year, and it's going to have you diving into Orquesta Pacifico Tropical's back catalog, as well as looking up psychedelic cumbia for more of this sound. As the graffiti at The Silhouette Lounge will tell you: Cumbia is the new punk rock, and "Fantasma" shows that it can groove unbelievably hard.

You can watch the video for "Fantasma" below. El Poder is due out June 19, and is available for pre-order through Bandcamp. For more on Orquestra Pacifico Tropical, check out the band's website.


On Repeat...

Liam Kazar - "Shoes Too Tight"

By -
Image
Photo by Alexa Viscius This may be Liam Kazar's debut single, but the Chicago based musician already has an impressive resume, having worked with Jeff Tweedy, Chance the Rapper, Steve Gunn, Daniel Johnston, and others. "Shoes Too Tight" features childhood friend Spencer Tweedy on drums, Lane Beckstrom on bass, and Ohmme on vocals. It's an absurdly fun and groovy little song that is a party waiting to happen. What he gives us here is a timeless song that could truly have been released any time since the 1960's (ok... maybe not the 80's...) There are elements of classic rock, 60's crooners and R&B, indie rock, modern Americana... it's really just packed with everything in a cohesive song that maintains the vibe the entire way through. You can watch the video for "Shoes Too Tight" below. For more on Liam Kazar, check him out on Instagram and Twitter . He's also raising money on his Bandcamp for Constellation and The Hungry Brain. ...
Read more

J Mascis - "See You At the Movies"

By -
Image
Photo via Instagram Any time J Mascis releases new music will always be a big deal at If It's Too Loud... November will see the release of Elastic Days , his new solo album. Judging by the first single, "See You At the Movies," Elastic Days  will be exactly what we expect and want in a Mascis solo album. The first single is much prettier than Dinosaur Jr is. Mascis's solo work tends to be calmer and almost folky. "See You At the Movies" is exactly that, and is even almost orchestral in some places. You add in some of Mascis's guitar solos (a more tame version than Dino Jr's thunderous ones), and you've got a classic Mascis solo track. It's a typically great song, but at this point I'd like to see Mascis mix things up a bit. You can listen to "See You At the Movies" below. Elastic Days will be out November 9 on Sub Pop Records. There are some pretty reasonable pre-order bundles available, including a CD and t-shirt for $24....
Read more

Izzy Heltai - "Father"

By -
Image
Photo by Joanna Chattman I've been referring to Northampton, MA based Izzy Heltai's music as mainstream modern folk with just enough of a unique spin to keep it appealing to music snobs, too. His latest single, "Father," might be the perfect example of that. It's a quiet, deeply personal song that starts off painfully sparse but ever so slowly builds and builds as it goes on. It walks that line between accessible/mainstream and indie expertly.  You can watch the video for "Father" below. Father , the upcoming debut album from Izzy Heltai, will be out October 9. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on Izzy Heltai, check out the artist's website .
Read more