Look, we know we throw a lot of new music at you. We also know that not everyone who comes to this site has the time to be as involved with or informed about the local scene as maybe they’d like to be. So for those casual readers who either can’t or have no interest in keeping up with the parade of artists we try to cover, who may not know the difference between Bitter and Biters, we have created our TRIPLE THREAT feature. The premise is simple: Every Friday our writers will put their heads together and come up with three tracks that grabbed our attention over that week. Then we tell you why the songs are great and worth listening to. That’s it. Maybe some weeks we’ll have a guest commentator come in and share their favorites, but the format will always remain the same: three songs, some words, and we out. Enjoy.
Eureka California – “Over It”
From the upcoming LP, Roadrunners
More honesty, that’s the goal. I don’t remember when I heard Jake Ward say that, or if I heard someone else quote him saying that, or if I even heard that at all. But whenever Athens’ demolition duo Eureka California splashes into another barn burner, there’s always some hidden slice of self-effacing humility tucked inside. “Over It” slams with the usual rocket propulsion that Ward and Marie Uhler have perfected over their decade-long(!) alliance, and offers the most fist-bumping chorus imaginable. But exactly what does that mean, that you’re over it? Now’s a good time to mention that Ward also performs stand-up comedy, as the verses tumble out like well-timed punchlines in a routine: “Now Mercury’s in retrograde / You can only use that excuse once, I’m afraid.” Romance and its mythical properties are scrubbed away, to reveal just the stale disappointment that more often follows when two folks drift apart. Like most good jokes, “Over It” makes ya laugh because you’ve moaned too long about it alone, and that’s exactly the sort of honesty that keeps Eureka C as exhilarating as ever. – Lee Adcock
Roadrunners is out May 4 via HHBTM Records. Vinyl pre-orders are available here and CDs here.
Eureka California will celebrate the release of Roadrunners on Fri., May 4 at Little King’s Shuffle Club alongside Harlot Party, Lydia Brambil, Linqua Franqa, and Kai Avery. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. Admission is $5-5.50. 18+ to enter.
More Info
Web: eurekacaliforniaband.com
Bandcamp: eurekacalifornia.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @eurekacalifornia
Instagram: @eurekacalifornia
SoundCloud: @eurekacalifornia
Twitter: @eurekacalifone
CRT – “On the Count”
From the upcoming EP, CS 1
The new track from CRT is a claustrophobic adventure in stark hues and grainy tones. The project is the experiment of ex-HAWKS frontman Michael Patrick Keenan Jr., who began work on his upcoming EP CS 1 in 2017 and whose take frigid take on EBM is still a bit more sleek than his work in the noise-industrial trio NAARC. As the name Cathode Ray Tube suggests, “On the Count” is devoid of organic energy, reliant instead on mechanical pulses that drive the track in a menagerie of jagged directions while staying locked in the groove. – Russell Rockwell
CS 1 is out Apr. 30. Pre-orders are available here.
CRT will make his live debut on will on Mon., Apr. 16 at the EARL HIDE and Anticipation. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. Admission is $8. 21+ to enter.
More Info
Bandcamp: crtatl.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @crtatl
Phay – “Skressful”
From the standalone single
By default, it seems, all of Phay’s tracks seem to lean towards the bouncy and ebullient. As his SoundCloud page boasts, dude has a tendency to make straight BOPS. Still, his latest single finds the Atlanta rapper under some duress, eyeing the future uneasily as he feels life’s pressures bearing down on him. “Look at my stress now, look at my age / Way too young to be feeling this pain,” he declares on the song’s emphatic hook. And yet, despite his troubles and grievances, producers Kasino and Eric Young manage to load the track with plenty of high-energy snap. Life may be a struggle, but that doesn’t mean you can’t groove to it. – Avery Shepherd
More Info
Facebook: @Phayweather
Instagram: @phayweather
SoundCloud: @phayweather
Twitter: @Phayweather