by LE Francis
While a lot of my columns & previous pop culture work for Sage Ciggs — especially over the spring, summer, & fall — trend toward live reviews, I want to do something a little different on the second Saturday of each month. So, I’ll be selecting five recently released singles to review, both as a way to keep pace with what’s on the horizon in the way of albums & EP’s, & to give musicians & readers a chance to suggest new music to me.
My picks skew a little convoluted in vibe this month, but we’re in the dog days of summer & I’ve personally been stuck in my feelings since mid-July, so maybe I leaned a little hard into the tracks that felt like a personal attack… Maybe I was subconsciously looking for a soundtrack to rot in a hammock for hours with, while hurting my own feelings & writing bad poetry. Whatever it was, I found five solid songs that I would love to recommend to you.
This month’s column is a mix of my personal picks & tracks suggested to me by readers, musicians, & PR folks. If you have a suggestion for next month, send it to lefrancis@sagecigarettes.com.
“LIVIN’ LAUGHIN’ LOVIN’” Bilmuri
Bilmuri, the current project of ex-Attack Attack! Guitarist Johnny Franck, has dropped several new singles over the last few months. Though I was a different sort of Myspace kid & never really vibed with Attack Attack! — “Dude, did you see Dave Mustaine at the DragonForce show?” — I got into Franck’s work over the last few years because he has a knack for writing catchy music that combines genres that don’t necessarily fit together. But his most recent track is a breezy listen. He dropped “LIVIN’ LAUGHIN’ LOVIN’” on June 23, combining his usual pop-rock sound with a chill, almost easy-listening vibe. The track also features Nashville-based singer-songwriter, Hastings. & listen, I’ve noticed that Franck seems to boost these up-and-coming musicians to his audience, which is invaluable because he has a bit of a cult following & I’ve found it hard to snag items on merch drops from time to time, especially album presses. He seems like a generally good dude writing good music with lyrics that comfort & affirm folks struggling with both mental illness & the usual woes of life. For more information, bilmuri.com.
“Stain Glass Staring” XXIIIXIX
This dreamy track from the Philadelphia-based indie/post-rock project twentythreenineteen is the perfect song for a summer evening – in particular, for cloudgazing just as the heat of the day starts to break. Swaying between the dancy, guitar-driven main drive & bleary melodic breaks that manage to keep an almost mathy vibe, there is an almost ethereal texture to it. The lyrics lean into the fantastical sound, describing being so entranced by someone’s eyes that they seem to follow even when they’ve dropped out of your field of vision. The daydream winds down into a gut-punch of a final refrain: “the eye is the window to the soul / the defiant pupil / my thinning of blue / all my love I owe to you.” This song is my first introduction to the project from Sean McCall of Sweet Pill. & I knew I’d seen the band name before when I read over the bio – turns out Sweet Pill is touring with The Wonder Years this fall. So if you like this track, maybe check them out as well, & I’m always going to recommend you go out to see The Wonder Years. XXIIIXIX’s EP “All This Love” is out August 31. For more information, visit twentythreenineteen.com.
“Lover” Soviet Shiksa
I stumbled across Soviet Shiksa first on TikTok. The act was introduced as “nightmare jazz” or “murderfolk,” genres which I apparently have been listening around the borders of for years as a Zeal & Ardor & Mike Patton fan. The project comes from Nashville-based session-bassist Christopher Shawn. Their newest single “Lover” dropped June 30 & it goes a little harder than you’d expect. Driven by a disjointed horn section & a driving, crunchy guitar, it has the spirit of a distorted, dirty 80’s pop song dragged by its ankles through some brackish bayou. Shawn’s vocals are rough & aggressive, pushing the momentum of the song until it breaks into a whispering, haunted bridge tugged back by the drums & the delayed progress of the guitar as it winds up to dance with the horns. Anyway, if you asked me to give you one of the weirdest new songs I’ve heard this week, this would be the top pick. This also may be my top pick in general, so what can I say — weird dude! For more information, visit sovietshiksa.com.
“Figment” Dramamine
Dramamine’s music has no edges. It’s an exploration of emotion across a wonderfully mellow soundscape that plays with elements of shoegaze, dreampop, and various other genres. The project’s newest single “Figment” feels larger than life, with the soft, echoing presence of the guitar shoulder-to-shoulder with a layered, ethereal vocal line. You may get lost in the immenseness of it all if it wasn’t for the measured stitch of the rhythm, grounding the reverie to the earth. & of course I, a poet who uses longing as the very bones of everything she creates, could not ignore the absolute ache of the lyrics: “I can feel you crawling around my head / and there’s nowhere to hide / in between the thoughts and the lies you said / won’t you send me a sign.” If you’re in the mood for something that can delicately pluck at your heartstrings, this is the song for you — & you’d probably enjoy most of their back catalog as well. Dramamine is the project of Philadelphia-based guitarist Pete Pom & their upcoming album “Dreamcatcher” will drop October 6. For more information, visit linktr.ee/dramamine_shoegaze.
“Benadryl Subreddit” L.S. Dunes
L.S. Dunes is a supergroup consisting of Anthony Green (Circa Survive, Saosin, The Sound of Animals Fighting), Frank Iero (My Chemical Romance), Travis Stever (Coheed & Cambria), Tim Payne, & Tucker Rule (Thursday). I’m an established Anthony Green fangirl so you can go ahead & tuck that into your back pocket as we proceed. The song starts with a punchy guitar riff dressed in a tone that reads pop-punk before eventually descending into the bridge deluge of distortion & harmonics that practically knock you over the head & drag you to an early ‘00s Ozzfest second stage. Green’s vocals in this track are rougher, ready to fight, more TSOAF than Circa. The lyrics are not saying a lot but what they manage is fucking on point: “Don’t do it just because you think you should / You don’t owe anybody anything / You’re better off when you are honest / Quit making promises that you can’t keep…” When someone is struggling with a creative block I always suggest Circa’s “The difference between medicine & poison is the dose,” it looks like “Benadryl Subreddit” may be my future go-to for the increasing number of conversations I seem to have with people who have overscheduled & committed themselves into oblivion. But regardless if you pay attention to the lyrics or not, it’s a fun track, the band is stellar & if you check it out & like it not only do L.S. Dunes have a handful of other songs you can check out, each band member has an entire discography to explore. For more information, visit lsdunes.com.
LE Francis (she/her) is the managing editor of Sage Cigarettes Magazine; a columnist & staff artist for Cream Scene Carnival Magazine; co-host & staff editor of A Ghost in the Magazine & The Annegirls Podcast; & the author of THIS SPELL OF SONG & STAR available through Bottlecap Press. She is a writer, musician, & visual artist living in the rainshadow of the Washington Cascades. Find her online at nocturnical.com.
