Writing about music in lieu of human interaction
A composition for five shakuhachi that was inspired by a profound literary experience. When composer and performer Devon Osamu Tipp read Yoshimoto Banana's novel "Argentine Hag," they experienced a sort of two-way deja-vu; Tipp felt an inkling that events that occurred within the book's plot might happen to them in the future, or had perhaps … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Devon Osamu Tipp – Smell of the Sun 太陽の匂い
The self-described "dumbest band in hardcore" returns with a second LP called No Experts. The thrashing "Weather Capital," full of grinding guitars and queasy bass, serves a mini-anthem for the band itself. Vocalist Lawson Bloom, in a voice that simultaneously brays, honks, and snarls, announces the group's reemergence from the depths of a not-so-cold winter, … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Illiterates – Weather Capital
In mid-February, HEARTAVI released REDSTARR01, a distilled sugar rush of a debut album. There was always a kid who would let their Tamagotchi die on purpose; that one sicko who would neglect their digital pocket pet, refusing to feed it or press the medicine button when it got ill, all for a sadistic chuckle at … Continue reading Daily Yinz – HEARTAVI – TAMAGOTCHI
Driving While Black's Jordan Montgomery returns with Prime Real Estate, his first album since 2020. The album's lead single, "Carne Asada," rides a triumphant Big Jerm instrumental through a series of trials--bad credit, unaffordable tuition, creative dry spells, untrustworthy friends--and emerges victorious, with drums knocking and horns blaring. As Montgomery puts it, "Pain is like … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Jordan Montgomery – Carne Asada
Psychedelic act Sleep Movies shares an outtake from 2021's Melt Transmission (Crafted Sounds). Sleep Movies mastermind Skyler Brimmeier describes Melt Transmission as a "messy, unintentional, primitive exercise in turning loops into big chaotic atmospheres and then finding a way to cool them down." On the album proper, this process resulted in series of blurred synth … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Sleep Movies – Shadow Talker
Hardcore quartet Cold Mass return with a self-titled third album. Cold Mass sure know how to make sulfuric guitars, sledgehammer drums, and throat-pulverizing yowls sound fun; a menacing groove animates the band's music, rendering it neck-snappingly, arm-flailingly danceable. Cold Mass III opener "Bring the Chairs Closer to the Casket" twists itself around a series of … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Cold Mass – Bring the Chairs Closer to the Casket
Zany pop act Junie & TheHutFriends returns with a new single. With a title inspired by an exceedingly bizarre internet rabbithole that I just got sucked into, "Hey Peabrain! U Levitate?" plays out like an invitation from a magical bunch of tricksters to join them in their benevolent mischief. If you accept, they'll show you … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Junie & TheHutFriends – Hey Peabrain! U Levitate?
Lukas Truckenbrod (also of slugss) strikes out on his own as L.T. Creacher with debut single "Bummer Proof." "When will I be bummer-proof?" sings L.T. Creacher, rhetorically, bargaining with depression's interminable slog. No answer is provided, but Creacher's guitar, which rings and rambles its way through atmospheric Americana riffs and flourishes, hits like a series … Continue reading Daily Yinz – L.T. Creacher – Bummer Proof
The psych quartet rang in the new year with a self-titled album release. The songs on Different Places in Space come suspended in a hallucinatory tide pool of sound. The jammy ballads float around like little jellyfish, and even the uptempo rockers stretch and warp like they've been filtered through an infinity mirror. "Sugar Nova" … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Different Places in Space – Sugar Nova
Collaborators unite for a single that draws from Afrobeats' signature bounce. The backbone of "Give 'em Hell" (produced by Julio) is its rhythmic heartbeat, a propulsive bah-bah-bah-bahbah that I could probably listen to on its own for several hours. We're spoiled, though, because the percussion track is adorned with insistent keyboard pulses and multiple layers … Continue reading Daily Yinz – Luwidakid – Give ’em Hell (ft. Brothamans)
Bored In Pittsburgh 