Sound Check

Pearl Charles

Magic Mirror

Pearl Charles is an L.A.-based musician that crafts throwback feel-good pop songs landing somewhere between Alt- Country and 70's era California Rock (think Eagles, Jackson Browne, Carly Simon, Fleetwood Mac, Carole King, The Doobie Brothers, et al.). Perhaps it comes as no surprise given the Yacht Rock craze that is just vanishing in pop culture’s rearview mirror, as well as the recurring prevalence of Fleetwood Mac viral videos that a new era of performers embracing this sound would become more visible. While Pearl Charles is an example of this phenomenon however, it is important to note she is not fresh off the boat. The thirty-year-old singersongwriter first appeared in her late teens as part of the country duo The Driftwood Singers and later joined L.A.-based garage rockers The Blank Tapes on drums. She has been producing solo material since her eponymous 2015 debut E.P. (also very much recommended). With Magic Mirror, her third release, Charles presents a much sleeker, smoothed-out record reminiscent of the previously mentioned California Sound. I described it to friends as Carly Simon impersonating Joni Mitchell with Graham Parsons and The Carpenters sharing musical writing duties and occasionally ABBA drops by. The evolution pays off in spades. Magic Mirror was the first album of 2021 that had me instantly hooked. The opener "Only for tonight" is awash in biggerthan-life pop production reminiscent of a vintage ABBA immediately grabbing the listener's attention and making them want more. The "more" comes time and time again throughout the record. It is an album where each successive song becomes "one of your favorites" at some point or another. One particular note about Magic Mirror is that the album is upbeat and positive, even when the subject matter may not be idyllic. Coming out of 2020, a year in which very few can tally more wins than losses, Pearl Charles still manages to craft an album that lifts the spirit and makes you sing. Even the final apocalyptic tinged "It doesn't matter" is a gentle nod to being at peace with the end of the world as long as it comes in the arms of the one you love. Magic Mirror is highly recommended.

Pynch

Somebody Else/The Whole World's Going Crazy

Pynch began as a bedroom project for Spencer Enock eventually blossoming into a full-fledged band once he relocated to London to further pursue his musical studies. The two 2020 singles, the band's second and third releases, were bookends for the 2020 pandemic. "Somebody Else" was released in July of last year as pandemic reality settled in, and "The Whole World" followed in October as vaccine hopes began to rise. The two songs are up-tempo and catchy while also simultaneously being nihilistic musings for the generation that are doomed to exist at the very end of what the viral/meme culture refers to as the "fuck around" era and the inevitable rise of the "find out" dystopia. Fun stuff! Somebody Else is reminiscent of a vintage LCD Soundsystem track with tongue firmly planted in cheek and awash in self-effacing lyrics, a cry for help from a person going through an existential crisis way before their time is due. Half hopelessness, half a plea for normalcy despite not knowing what normalcy even is supposed to be, Enock screams in the singles final moments, "I wanna feel everything at once. I wanna quit my job and move to Japan. I wanna die doing something I love. I wanna feel like I'm doing enough. I just want to feel something real." It's a plea from the generation that knows we can't sustain our current predatory culture yet is bowed from the pressures of doing just that. October's The Whole World is a companion single focusing the inward lens of Somebody Else outward to the world at large. It's an acknowledgment of all the troubles the global community faces and how many times they seem bigger than life. The Whole World inevitably concedes that maybe we are beyond the tipping point of repair (the previously mentioned "find out" era). Instead of wallowing in despair, Enock seems to wax poetic, musing on all the beautiful things he's experienced and seen. Explaining that the world is burning, and for his generation, the only course may be to embrace one another for support knowing their motives were at least pure of heart. It's an emotional take from the generation charged with inheriting all of the world's problems, both created and ignored by those before them but given very few tools to solve any of them.

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard

L.W.

In February, hyper prolific Australian rockers King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard released their first album of 2021 entitled L.W. It is the second half of a "double album" that includes the November 2020 release; K.G. King Gizzard is widely known for two things; pushing out albums within exceptionally shorts periods (L.W. is their 20th in ten years) and stylistically jumping around from Prog Rock, Heavy Psyche, Thrash/Death Metal, Acoustic Microtonal experiments, Space Jams, Blues, Acoustic jams and pretty much any other sound as they desire. The latter has made their catalog daunting for newcomers due to sheer volume and frequent genre changes. If you are one of those intrigued with King Gizzard but always wondered where to start, then L.W. is the album you have been waiting for. It's a poppy and accessible romp that touches on many of the previously mentioned genres without going too deep down the rabbit hole of anyone in particular. You want space synth lasers and Necromancers? It's in there (Ataraxia). Looking for those chill North Africaninspired vibes? It's in there (Static Electricity). Scathing political takes? It's in there (Supreme Ascendency/East- West Link/ If Not Now). You want to get trippy; it's in there (See Me). You just want your face melted; it's in there (Pleura/KGLW). When artists have deep catalogs, fans can usually point to a few critical albums for newcomers to explore. However, in the case of King Gizzard, one can quickly receive six different responses to "best" album queries from six different fans. L.W., ten years into the band's existence, is an album that unifies the many genres the band has explored. Through out the album’s nine songs and brief 42 minutes one can hear reflections of most of King Gizzards catalog from Murder the Universe’s Sci-Fi Prog Rock, the acoustic balladry of Paper Mache Dream Balloon all the way to the death metal of Infest the Rats Nest. As such, it is an excellent starting point for those ready to join the cult.

Idi Et Amin

The Remedies for Violations E.P.

Idi Et Amin is the SLC based shoegaze/experimental project of Rocky Maldonado and Catalina Gallegos. The duo has previously released an L.P., Texas Rose, in 2019 and a two-song E.P., A Phone in Kyoto, in 2020. The Remedies for Violations is their newest two-song E.P. released this year as they move closer to releasing their sophomore LP, Candy Suck. In the original days of the late 80's when the shoegaze phenomenon exploded in the U.K. and found its way to U.S. shores via the underground indie and college radio communities, there was a large swath of styles assigned the moniker. In fact, looking through “top shoegaze albums of all time” type listicles, it seems anything released in the U.K. with some distortion in the late '80s or early 90's got lumped in the genre. One thing almost every fan, critic, admirer, and revivalist can agree on, however, is the supremacy of My Bloody Valentine's 1991 release, Loveless as the pinnacle of the genre. When I listen to Idi Et Amin, I know I'm listening to a band that gets that in the best possible way. Rocky and Catalina have taken that sound and made it their own while simultaneously giving full acknowledgement the bands that laid the foundation thirty years ago. More importantly they also pull from the sounds that inspired those first wave bands, a critical step that many revivalist bands fail to deliver. "Rainbow Brunette" is quite easily the best "shoegaze" song that I have heard in years, and the accompanying “Porcelain Boy” crawls its way into your brain as well despite its slower more measured approach. The Remedies for Violations EP is absolutely essential listening for anyone that loves the genre. Homage to late 80’s shoegaze wrapped in a package of 60’s era psyche and garage that leaves you desperately awaiting their next full release. Support Idi Et Amin best through Bandcamp and their YouTube page.