Java.Dec.2017-pages

PRO TEENS
Philistines
POST HOC
Daffodils
SUN SYSTEM
Strange Ways We Meet
I’d be pretty content to live in a world where PRO
TEENS put out an album every year, and for the
third year running, they’ve done it with Philistines.
After the sudden release of Accidentally, their
second album, Philistines has dropped just as
suddenly. Thirty seconds into it, all of your worries
are washed away with its soothing arrangements.
PRO TEENS are an indie pop outfit unlike any other
in this town. They’re the only ones dealing this drug,
and this release will make you want to go through
their back catalog.
There are bits of soul, surf and R&B all over, without
a lot of verse/chorus/verse happening. It’s more like
beautiful soundscapes for Andrew Phipps’ intensely
rich poetry. Philistines is sort of a mini-album
compared to the previous two, but I’ll take anything
I can get to add to their list of songs I play on repeat
on any given Saturday.
Right from the start, “Tulsa” is sleek elegance,
exploring the smoother side of life, while
“Bloomin’” seems to be a bit more of a wry personal
commentary. “She’s Gonna Be So Great” is literally
screaming for a video and “Signals Crossed” has an
arrangement that makes my mind stutter. PRO TEENS
get a little trippy on “A Companion” – it’s still an
ultra-lounge exploration that’s quite literally dizzying.
“Crocs” comes across as a bit of a confessional, with
a linear story of loss, and the swingingest groove to
be found here. The record finishes with an array of
catchy hooks in the single-worthy “You Won’t.” Once
again, PRO TEENS’ fully evolved sound is uniquely
their own in this brilliant package.
My girlfriend texted me one night and said, “Have
you heard Post Hoc? If you haven’t, you’re going to
love them.” She was right. Daffodils is the debut
from this powerful new outfit: Nathaniel Shrake
(vocals/guitars), Curtis Kennedy (drums/vocals),
Gonzalo Hidalgo (guitars) and Kevin Hurt (bass). I
heard a demo of “Moonlight Fire” and was hooked.
That’s the tune that kicks this off. It’s a melodic, hookheavy
alternative rocker that gets the blood flowing,
and with a couple minutes edited out, it would make
a bombastic radio single.
They quickly discard straight-up rock for some quirky
indie-pop charm on the title track, which displays a
range of vocals, from calm and cool to railing with
rage. “Long Dead” returns to full-on indie rock, and
it’s earth-shaking, chest-pounding fun through and
through. There’s even a touch of prog here and some
quirky indie vocals, creating a song that’s fascinating
in structure as well as rhythm and melody. The lyrical
opening of “Morning Light” immediately captures the
imagination, with its pure pop wonderland wrapped
in intellectual musings and grinning wisdom.
“Orcas Amongst the Birds” is a killer track that makes
me smile from ear to ear. It’s a banger for sure and an
excellent tune to get out and slam dance with your
own confusion. Daffodils finishes with “Such Black in
Your Eyes,” which is a heady mix that propels to the
end, but it’s the arrangement that is most exciting,
so strange and wonderful. Post Hoc’s six-song debut
shows an amazing array of sounds, structures and
hooks, hinting there is a lot more to this band than
this record can reveal.
Sun System is an up-and-coming shoegaze band that
has been putting out some interesting demos over
the last year. This month, they release their debut
EP, Strange Ways We Meet, without a repeat of
their previous demos. Going with the indie trope of
first names only, Sun System is Cory (vocals, guitar),
Nathan (guitar), Curt (bass), Christopher (keyboard)
and Lorenzo (drums). Together they combine modern
alternative pop with straight-up shoegaze rock, which
creates an interesting genre-bending juxtaposition.
On the opener, “Smiles with No Teeth,” you can
clearly understand every lyric. “Glimmer Man”
keeps this going, and it’s more that the vocals are
up in front of the mix, rather than buried in luscious
textures of sound. The song is decidedly more 4AD
than Creation Records, but it shimmers brilliantly
nonetheless. Things slow down even further on the
dream-pop offering “Alone Together,” and that’s not a
dismissal. It’s completely intoxicating.
This moves into the even dreamier beginning of the
last song, “Scooter.” If you’re a guest, you get to
use your last name, and this tune features Travis
Williams. It’s the mini-epic of the record and has
the potential to turn into an out-of-hand, twelveminute
monster. Here, it’s six and a half minutes. The
original shoegaze movement took ordinary pop and
psychedelia and made it into feedback-laden guitar
hurricanes. Sun System take shoegaze and bring it
halfway back to pop, and it’s pretty amazing. Strange
Ways We Meet rocks right up front, then takes you
into a dream-pop wonderland. That’s a hell of a
debut, and I can’t wait to catch this crew live.
Sounds Around Town By Mitchell L. Hillman
For more on these events and other highlights of
the Phoenix music scene, check out Mitchell’s blog
at http://soundsaroundtown.net. For submissions
or suggestions contact him at mitchell@
soundsaroundtown.net
JAVA 33
MAGAZINE