If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Michael Dubin Matt Pryor may be best known for his work with emo heroes The Get Up Kids, but he has a much wider musical range than that. His latest single with The Salton Sea shows his more alt-rock based side' "Union Transfer" is a huge power ballad of a song, heavy with emotion and an intense musical backdrop. This is the type of song begging to be played live, with a raucous, noisy crescendo. It starts off simply enough, and is right along the lines of what you might expect for a Get Up Kids solo song to sound like. But "Union Transfer" ends up going in such a delightfully unexpected direction that it's cranked up our excitement for the full length album. Matt Pryor says of his latest single: “This is the most vulnerable song I’ve ever written. It marks the place and date of where I hit rock bottom." You can listen to "Union Transfer" below. The Salton Sea is due out November 14 on Nightshoes Syndicate/Big Scary Monsters, and is a...

Photo by Michael Dubin While many people in the realm of punk release solo albums, they tend to be along the lines of acoustic/folky songs. That's not the case with Matt Pryor (The Get Up Kids), who just released a new single under the moniker Matt Pryor & The Salton Sea. "The Dishonesty" may have acoustic elements, but it's a straight up rock song with nary a hint of The Get Up Kids' Midwest emo sound. Longtime fans of Pryor's are going to find a lot to love in "The Dishonesty," as it is slightly emo adjacent. It's a little more chill than we're used to from Pryor while still being upbeat and almost pogo worthy. Matt Pryor says of his latest single: “This is a song about lying and hurting the people you love when you’re in the throes of addiction. I think Josh [Berwanger, director of the video for "The Dishonesty] really captured the insanity of how that feels."  You can watch the video for "The Dishonesty" below. The...

Photo by Adam Parshall I've adored Weakened Friends for years now, and it feels like it's been forever since we've had new music from the Maine trio. I knew new music was imminent, but have been a little nervous since the band has kept insisting everyone was going to hate their new music. If "Quitter" is anything like the upcoming album, there's no chance in hell we're not going to love it. "Quitter" is everything we've come to love about Weakened Friends. It's a modern take on classic 90's indie rock, except even catchier and fun. Sure, maybe this one delves into pop territory a little deeper than we're used to, but longtime fans are going to love this song. You can watch the video for "Quitter" below. It was filmed at Funtown Splashtown U.S.A. in Saco, ME just to make it as Maine as possible. Quitter is due out November 19 on Don Giovanni Records and Big Scary Monsters. You can pre-save/pre-order your copy here . For m...

Photo by Andrew Northrop It's been a couple of years since we heard new music from London's Doe, but we currently have a new single, "Heated." The new song keeps up the heavily 90's influenced sound that made us adore Doe in 2016. It still has the classic loud/quiet/loud set up with verses just barely above a whisper and a loud, clanging chorus. But there is something smoother with "Heated." It has a more mature and less bratty sound. Doe has definitely grown as a band and this song is a huge step forward. Instead of a punk song, they have released a single that is just shy of being an anthem. It still has guitars that don't sound quite right and parts that stumble around, but that's part of the charm of indie rock.  You can watch the video for "Heated" below. Grow Into It , the new album from Doe, will be out September 28 on Big Scary Monsters in Europe and Topshelf Records in the US. For more on Doe, check them out on Facebook ...