Bright Sparks is posted once a month and offers a collection of really great songs that we’re determined not to let slip past our radar. Vol. 19 is fresh out of the box.
Michelle Blades – Kiss Me on the Mouth
Michelle Blades is a Mexican-Panamanian songwriter currently based in Paris. The latest taste of forthcoming full-length, Visitor, her new single ‘Kiss Me on the Mouth’ sees Blades occupy the grey area between upbeat and melancholy, pop underpinned by a high-strung tension. The result is something strange and compelling, the facade of innocence hiding something altogether more weird or dangerous. But Blades never allows the mask to slip too far, presenting a simmering intrigue in place of any sure answers.
The track comes complete with a video directed by arts collective Fuerza Basicas, which you can see below:
Visitor is set for release on the 29th March via Midnight Special Records.
Dehd – Dying For
Hailing from Chicago, Dehd is Jason Balla, Eric McGrady and Emily Kempf (who got a mention in our piece on Desert Liminal). Following 2017’s Fire of Love, part of Infinity Cat‘s subscription series, the trio are back with ‘Dying For,’ a brand new single on Fire Talk Records. The song sees Dehd smooth out their angular side in favour of a more relaxed style, leading to a laid back indie rock that’s coloured by the wild west—like cowboy music for the digital age. The result is a song that finds comfort in the isolation and escape of wide open spaces, the conviction of one’s eternal loneliness countered by the promises of the open road.
“Is a dream worth dying for
when you’re six feet under ground?
And what are you lying for,
aren’t you tired out?
Hussy – Forever
Hussy is the recording moniker of South London multi-instrumentalist Sophie Nicole Ellison. While her sound might be most accurately described as dream pop, new single ‘Forever’ shows that Ellison does not limit herself to the blissful and soft. Rather, the track feels caught between an otherworldly lightness and a great, raw weight that seeks to drag anything and everything down into the void, producing an ominous and dark atmosphere from which you will struggle to wake.
Never Betters – Alone
In April, we wrote about a split release from Ontario bands Grievances and Never Betters, describing how their spiky energy and cathartic release powered succinct, attitude-driven songs that might be labelled ‘post-pop-punk’. Now, Never Betters are back with a brand new single, ‘Alone’, and though the track doesn’t quite reach the tumultuous crescendos of the previous release, the spirit remains. Opening with jagged pop-punk guitars that soon race into sweeping rhythm, the track finds April Romano maintaining a cooler, more considered vibe—her repeated insistence of “I am alone” neither wry nor melodramatic, rather a mere reportage of simple facts.
Deanna Petcoff – Stress
The music of Toronto’s Deanna Petcoff exists at the intersection of beautiful and playful, finding depths of emotion connected to yearning and loss while maintaining a sense of joviality in the face of such things. Latest single ‘Stress’ makes this style clear, detailing impatience and loneliness as a fact of life, and telling it with a sense of amused perspective. “‘Stress’ is about frustration, loss of hope and acceptance of a situation that will never be fixed,” Petcoff explains. “The unbearable weight of not feeling good enough for the person you want and thinking they might want you too.”
Check out the video, directed, edited and produced by Brittany Farhat, below:
Find Deanna Petcoff on Soundcloud and Facebook.
Sen Wisher – Feather Tongue
Based in Eugene, Oregon, Sen Wisher is the experimental project of Ben Swisher. Far from being a solo effort, Swisher enlists the help of an array of musicians, including Sophie Blair (of Nymph), Stuart Wheeler (Quiet House) and Stephen Cope (Officer Jenny), to form a vivid sound capable of portraying the wonder and complexity of the natural world. Take single and opening track ‘Feather Tongue’ as the case in point, existing somewhere between soft emotion and experimental inventiveness—sincere simplicity which rises into a dizzying crescendo.
Bird Languages is out now via Song Club Records and you can get it from the Sen Wisher Bandcamp page.
Bels Lontano – That moment when you die and you think of everyone you ever knew in slow motion and it’s incredible
Bels Lontano is the recording project of composer and producer Bret Bohman. Drawing upon a range of electronic genres and influences, not to mention non-musical inspiration too, Bohman works to explore “concepts of liminal spaces, natural beauty, therapy and personal growth.” The resulting music takes the form of “rich sonic tapestries” that owe as much to IDM and hip hop as they do to neo-classical and ambient styles.
Taken from a forthcoming EP, Kind Decade, the succinctly titled ‘That moment when you die and you think of everyone you ever knew in slow motion and it’s incredible’ leans more toward the ambient end of things, though shows off such a diverse palette of influences through it’s sheer warmth and lightness.
Kind Decade is set for release soon, so keep an eye on the Bels Lontano Bandcamp page for further details.
Press Club – Headwreck
Working out of Brunswick, Australia, Press Club make a raucous yet celebratory brand of indie rock that races with a sense of abandon that rivals the likes of Japandroids. After winning acclaim down under, the band have signed with Hassle Records to spread their full-length Late Teens further afield early next year, and earned shows with Cloud Nothings, Iron Chic, Dream Wife and Joyce Manor in the process.
‘Headwreck’ is the perfect example of their sound, channelling a relentless intensity into something both tight and raw, lead Natalie Foster growling and shouting with throaty emotion to seal the sense of urgency and authenticity.
Late Teens is set for release on the 25th January via Hassle Records and you can pre-order it now.
Frederick The Younger – Everyone’s Changing
Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Frederick The Younger is duo Jenni Cochran and Aaron Craker, with the addition of Shelley Anderson (bass) and Taylor Powell (drums). Following up from 2017’s Human Child, the band have recently put out a new single, ‘Everyone’s Changing’, a song which continues their distinctive combination of western folk and retro psych pop. Still, there’s a newfound tenderness to here, some of the swagger stripped back in favour of slow-burn sincerity.
Find more at the Frederick the Younger Bandcamp page.
Great Health – Lazarus
Now the solo project of Virginia’s Tyler James, Great Health saw members of its band quit ahead of a planned tour and recording session. ‘Lazarus’ is something of a reaction to James’s experience, a cathartic slice of emo-rock that serves as both an attack on the vapidity of the music scene and an ode to following your dreams of making art. So, while possessing all of the heart-on-the-sleeve emotion of the genre, Great Health maintains a wryness that helps lift them beyond melodrama and into an area that’s far more interesting and emotive.
“To sold out circle jerk crowds
To sold out overplayed bands
On their hands and knees
Play the same song againAs Lazarus lay out longing for scraps
We’ll help ourselves to seconds before going back
But step by step we’ll take your hand
Step by step by step we’ll book your band again”
Sasha Cay – Washing Dishes
Sasha Cay is a songwriter from Montreal who this November put out a brand new EP, Sink Your Teeth. Pitched halfway between relaxed and melancholic, the album brings to mind the likes of Sun June in its ability to craft nuanced feelings from understated instrumentation. Single ‘Washing Dishes’ demonstrates Sasha Cay’s captivating rhythms and alluring vocals, where simmering emotion burns bright beneath the gentle surface, undercurrents of bright white feeling that are sure to drag you under.
Pretty Matty – Kicked Out
Led by Matty Morand with a revolving cast of bandmates, Pretty Matty formed in Montreal and now exists in Toronto. “Pretty Matty is my experiment in writing music that makes me feel good,” Morand explains, “inspired by bands that I love like The Breeders and Paramore.” Still, after a self-titled debut EP that came out in March, it’s fair to say that the act has moved beyond mere experiment, something that plans of tours and full albums will attest.
In preparation for the forthcoming album, Pretty Matty have released a new single, ‘Kicked Out.’ Complete with a video by Jono Hunter, the track shows off the band’s blend of pop and punk aesthetics, managing to pour carefree energy into the disaffection of youth.
You can find Pretty Matty on Bandcamp.
Ladada – Float Away
Based in Virginia Beach, Ladada started out as the solo project of Josiah Schlater, though soon evolved into a full band. Building upon Schlater’s surf rock sensibilities, new EP Heaven on the Rocks draws upon shoegaze and punk to produce a sound that’s rich and dreamy though always propelled by a keen sense of energy. Which is the perfect description of single ‘Float Away’, a song that opens with lush swells of guitar and vocals but kicks into an engaging momentum soon enough, guitars, drums and vocals all pressing to cut through the gauzy texture.
Heaven On The Rocks is set for release on the 15th February via Gold Robot Records and you can pre-order it now.
Weston Smith – Paranoia
Weston Smith makes “mind bending songs harking back to the past,” utilising synths to their full range in support of his casual vocal delivery that fans of The Washboard Abs will appreciate. Taken from his latest album, Introspective, ‘Paranoia’ serves as a great place for those unfamiliar with Weston to jump in to his strange world. Beneath the near-conversational vocals, subtle synths threaten to swell into some great climax but never quite follow through, leading to a curious, twitchy sound that lives up to its paranoid name.
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Introspective is out now via Feels So Reel Music and you can get it from the Weston Smith Bandcamp page.
Human Girlfriend – Opposite People
Formed by George Matsuo and Thomas Paparella as Les Tigres, Human Girlfriend came into existence after the addition of Jared Shaw and Thomas Miritello saw the band adopt a more fully realised sound. ‘Opposite People’ is as good a place as any to get acquainted with the Human Girlfriend aesthetic—a sparkling, nostalgia-filled indie pop that’s as laidback as it is heartbroken.