here they are:
"Burn Too Bright" by Laura Veirs: It's been 7 years since we last heard from indie-folk-rocker, Laura Veirs (by herself, at least - she was also part of indie-folk supergroup, case, lang, and veirs, back in 2016), and it feels like it's been even longer ago than that. I was not expecting to hear new material from her any time soon, yet here it is. Underneath the quirky upbeat vibes of her latest song, "Burn Too Bright", there lies an undercurrent of darkness, perhaps because the song is essentially a eulogy to Richard Swift, one of Laura's record producers and a member of indie-pop sensations, The Shins, for 6 years. Swift died two years ago from alcohol complications when he was only a year past 40. I had no idea until today that Laura has been a mother for about a decade now, but she has, and that probably just makes matters worse for her in light of both losing a close friend two years ago and losing her marriage just one year later. Here's hoping Laura continues to burn brightly in this world, but not too bright!
"Club Zero" by The Go-Go's: As both a Southern California native and as someone whose father has connections to the L.A. punk scene, it makes me proud that 2020 has been a great year for members of that very scene. In spring of this year, Los Angelean punk rock poets, X, made a surprise splash onto the fringes of adult alt radio with the spiky yet catchy "Alphabetland." Now it's The Go-Go's turn at bat. Both X and The Go-Go's moved away from punk later on, branching out into folk-rock and pop/rock respectively, yet 2020 has found both groups returning to their punk roots. With The Go-Go's being the flashy, bubbly group they are, there's a bit of a pop influence to their latest song, "Club Zero", but it's also the band's hardest rocking song since "We Got the Beat", perhaps even a little harder edged than that one was! You might be wondering why the song is called what it's called. There is no actual location known as Club Zero (that I know of), but there was the Zero Zero Club in Hollywood that existed during The Go-Go's heyday, which is how the song derived its name. There might also be an undercurrent of nihilism to the title of the song, as well as a sense of rebellion of, to quote the group's Jane Wiedlin, "zero f**ks given", the unapologetically brash attitude of both this song and the era it was created in!
"Double Denim Hop" by Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard: Here's another rock and roll throwback, this time more evocative of the swingin' sounds of the early to mid-1970's. Groups like Sweet, Foghat, Steve Miller Band, and Thin Lizzy seemed to influence the retro sounds of this song with an equally retro title. The title of the song was just thought up on a whim when the lead singer happened to be wearing double denim (which all four members sport in the song's music video). He posted his trendy look on Instagram, referred to it as, "that double denim hop", and thus, a new rock song with an old rock sound was born! One more thing. The band's name IS "Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard". Is that anything like "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice"?! WHOA, holy cow, there he is! How'd Beetlejuice get here?!
"Just Because I Can" by Lissie: It has now been a decade since indie-folk-rocker, Lissie, first graced adult alt radio with her debut record, and its Triple A radio hits, "In Sleep", and "When I'm Alone." Her latest track, "Just Because I Can", is meant to be a retrospective to the year she debuted on the music scene. A bittersweet indie-folk ballad, "Just Because I Can" illustrates the struggle Lissie went through and eventually achieved to gain both recognition and independence as a musician. 2010 seems a little soon to be nostalgic for, but Lissie has already developed a nostalgia for that year and the importance it played in helping her break through to a small yet very dedicated audience that seems to have grown bigger every year since. I love how moving this song is, and how much strength and dedication was put into it!
"What You Gonna Do?" by Bastille (featuring Blur's Graham Coxon): It may be Bastille's Dan Smith on lead vocals here, but "What You Gonna Do?" is clearly a Graham Coxon song as far as its instrumentation is concerned! The song contains far more guitar licks than pretty much any Bastille song I've heard so far! I must say, I'm pretty impressed by the punchy power pop vibes this song has. Its brief, two-and-a-half minute length also distinguishes it from other Bastille songs, which often run roughly between three-and-a-half to four minutes. Both the length and sound of "What You Gonna Do?" were intentionally meant to be different from most of Bastille's other material. Dan Smith has acknowledged just what a chaotic year this has been so far, and "What You Gonna Do?" was meant to be a quick moment of fun, goofy escapism from an otherwise troubled world. So what you gonna do? Rock out and dance my butt off, that's what!
