Bandcamp Picks of the Week 2/3/16
Look, the alien planets of the many, many subgenre tags on Bandcamp are sometimes too overwhelming for even the likes of Captain Kirk and Sergeant Ripley to traverse. Luckily, the Crossfader music staff are your dedicated sonic explorers, bringing you the hidden gems from the farthest flung nether regions of Bandcamp straight to your ear holes and brain matter with Bandcamp Picks of the Week. Here are this week’s picks. KAZAP!
kurt – SOFT THINGS
Genre: Jangle Pop
Favorite Things: “pressure,” “it’s trying”
In the world of nice, smooth, Mac Demarco-inspired jangle-pop, Canadian singer/echo-y guitar player kurt is an especially satisfying listen. There’s a near Daniel Johnston level of sweetness and vulnerability to SOFT THINGS that even Demarco can rarely achieve. Simultaneously, there’s a delightfully discordant and drugged-out vibe to tracks like “pressure” to keep things dynamic for the whole ride. A perfect record to pop in your ears during a lazy afternoon spent alone. You can stream the record or download it for $2 here. [Carter Moon]
Stevie Dinner – ~MYSTERY FLAVOR~
Genre: “Softcore Punk”
Favorite Tracks: “Card Declined for Pizza and Wine,” “I Don’t Wanna Go Down to the Basement (R.I.P. Dee Dee),” “BU$TED A$$ HEADPHONES”
Saccharine, sarcastic, and groovily freaky, Stevie Dinner has earned the self-ascribed label of “softcore punk.” With just enough elements of “cheap jazz” sprinkled in to give the record an improvisational and unpredictable feel, ~MYSTERY FLAVOR~ manages to transcend the Burger Records pop-nostalgia its initial sound seems to suggest. Although the aesthetic of the album cover and Dinner’s overall Bandcamp profile is highly reminiscent of 2010 Odd Future, there is none of the casual suburban menace and wanton violence present in the actual music. The overall attitude of this album is more reminiscent of the weirdo fun of the Butthole Surfers and even the Ramones, with healthy doses of surf rock to keep things laid back and silly where those bands tended to get high-strung and neurotic. You can stream the record and download it entirely for free here. [Carter Moon]
Carter Moon
Carter Moon grew up in the desolate Evangelic capital of the world and responded by developing a taste in counter culture, which eventually bloomed into a love for filmmaking and screenwriting. Carter has average opinions on most things, but will defend them adamantly and loudly until no one else wants to bother speaking up. He runs Crossfader's podcast, IN THE CROSSHAIRS.
