Spencer Griffin's New Music Mondays

 here they are: "Might See You There" by Weird Nightmare:  Weird Nightmare might just BE a weird nightmare for those who aren't used to groups like Pixies, who seem like a clear influence on this band. For those more accustomed to garage-grunge-surf-indie music, Weird Nightmare are a breath of fresh air, with their newest song, "Might See You There." The Pixies comparisons don't stop there! There's also the matter of male/female vocal interplay during the chorus, as well as the song's minimalist "word salad" lyrics and remarkably short length (2 minutes). However, the song is also in E major and features tiny keyboard flourishes underneath its fuzzy guitar sound, pointing it closer to power pop groups. "Track and Field" by JJerome87 (aka alt-J's Joe Newman):  alt-J were one of the weirdest yet catchiest indie-pop groups to break out of the 2010's indie scene! On his own, lead singer Joe Newman (or "JJerome87," as...

 here they are: "American Dream" by Alabama Shakes:  Releasing a song called "American Dream" at a time when that sort of dream seems divided was intentional on the part of Brittany Howard and co this time. This swirling soul-rock slow jam expresses how disillusioned Brittany has become with both politics and how they affect other areas of life ranging from gun reform to abortion to the environment. She repeatedly refers to this dream as "the impossible dream," but not "impossible" in the sense of "sounds farfetched, but we can get there." More in the sense of how it really has become impossible now! "I can't keep dreaming," she says towards the end, reluctantly wanting to reconcile her dashed hopes with the harsher realities of American life at present. This one hurts, but in such a powerful, relatable way! "Any Old Fool" by Thee Sacred Souls:  TSS do what they do best on this song, and that is how they sound li...

 here they are: "Chance to Bleed" by Kurt Vile:  Most of Kurt Vile's material could loosely be classified as folk-rock. His latest song, "Chance to Bleed," kind of is, but it has a more palpable rock "edge" to it. Seems slightly more evocative of the "slacker rock" sounds of Pavement, Guided by Voices, or Dinosaur Jr. Even the godfather of alt-rock himself, Lou Reed, seems like he influenced this song, since Kurt laconically "sing-speaks" during some of it. A clever rhyme of "old time, lo-fi, DIY, rock 'n' roll nights" caps off the chorus, and I feel like this more or less defines what the song is! It's a song meant to capture the spirit of what "indie" was originally meant to be, and it does so, both in sound and lyric! "Going Gone" by Josiah and The Bonnevilles:  Yet another song in G sharp major with a slight "slacker" vibe, this song doesn't have the fuzzy distortion of the...

 here they are: "Coast" by Snocaps:  With Waxahatchee, Katie Crutchfield focused mostly on roots-y, country-ish sounds. With Snocaps, she seems more intent on bringing back the sounds of women from '90s alt-rock! Snocaps latest song, "Coast," gives off vibes of Liz Phair, PJ Harvey, The Breeders, Garbage, Cardigans, Luscious Jackson, and more. Fitting to its alt-rock spirit, "Coast" also has a minimalist lyrical approach (no chorus, 2 and a half minutes, less than 20 lines, repeating chord sequence throughout). The title of the song also seems like it has a double meaning, referring to both location and to its verbal use as a slangy synonym for "relax" ("I never could just coast"). Dry-witted, frustrated angst takes center stage here! "Future Soul" by The Tedeschi-Trucks Band:  As a blues-based band, it's only natural that Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks would have some rock and roll chops, but they've never rocked...

 here they are: "A Perfect Storm" by Jose Gonzalez:  "A Perfect Storm" IS a perfect storm - a perfect storm of melancholia, intensity, and calm in a single song! And it doesn't take that many instruments to do it either! In typical Jose style, acoustic guitar is the dominant instrument in this song, but he uses it in such a powerful way that I can't help but be drawn in. Jose's storm, lyrically, is a force of nature in more ways than one! The song is an eerily self-aware meditation and lament on how we are to blame for being the victims of our own impending doom. Phrases like "race against time" and "gambling with our common fate" indicate how Jose realizes that the human race has put itself in imminent danger. At least we get a good song out of it! "Back in Love" Suki Waterhouse:  One of the most insanely catchy songs of summer 2024 was Suki Waterhouse's indie-pop anthem, "Supersad"! Though her next single, ...

 here they are: "Beautiful" by Linda Perry (4 Non Blondes):  In the early days of the new millennium, this song became famous from Christina Aguilera's rendition of it. This version of the song (which is technically the original version, even though it got released much later) is pretty much the same as Christina's version, but with Linda Perry's vocals. Some might know Linda as the "What's Up?" singer (or more accurately, the "HEEY-YEEHH-YEH-EEEY, I SAID HEY! WHAT'S GOING ON?!" singer, since the phrase "What's Up?" is not said in the song itself), but after her brief glory days in 4 Non Blondes, she went quietly behind the scenes and started composing songs for major pop stars like Christina Aguilera, Pink, Gwen Stefani, and many others. Although I'm not too big on pop music, I still know what a major impact "Beautiful" had on post-millennial pop culture. The song's vulnerable tone and honest, soul-barin...