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.
Harmacy – “Free”
From the Harmacy and Piss Shy Split
Bizarro re-imaginations of classic rock machismo aren’t new in punk or hardcore, but the recent track “Free” from Harmacy proves that the execution of such a maneuver can still be interesting, providing the irony doesn’t get lost in the aggression. I imagine the pummeling jam to be the perfect soundtrack for all the dudes who rev their engines down Glenwood at 7 a.m. in the morning, but more importantly it answers the question: what if Judas Priest were an SST band? – Russell Rockwell
Harmacy will perform on Fri., Oct. 26 at the Mess-Around at Gaja Korean Bar alongside Predator, Ryan Dinosaur, and Stoic Clown. Doors open at 2 p.m. Admission is $5.
More Info
Bandcamp: harmacy.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @harmacyatl
Marshmallow Coast – “Sinz of My Father”
From the forthcoming LP, Memory Girl
OK, I know what you’re thinking: what kind of nutjob spells “sins” with a z? Easy: a nutjob with a vocoder. Andy Gonzales isn’t here to stand on any podium with his space lounge bachelors Marshmallow Coast, anyway. Rather, we’re bumping down the streets of Athens, robot wingman by our side, just cruising with some sweet guitar licks on the stereo. Maybe, if Gary Numan weren’t so obsessed with gloom n’ doom and cranked a bit more Allman Brothers, we would have had this chill jam sooner. Thankfully, Gonzales is well-versed in silly alchemy, as his stints in of Montreal and Mind Brains prove; if anything, “Sinz of the Father” only affirms that his laid-back magic can still conjure a dumb grin on yr face. Hop in, then—let’s go for a cruize. (See what I did there?) – Lee Adcock
Memory Girl is out Nov. 9 via HHBTM Records. Pre-orders are available here.
Marshmallow Coast will perform on Sat., Oct. 27 at Flicker Bar alongside Don Chambers, Joe Rowe, MOTHS, and Tears for the Dying. Evening includes a rare screening of the 2007 documentary Tracking the Gorilla. Doors open at 10 p.m.
More Info
Facebook: @marshmallowcoast
Instagram: @marshmallowcoast
Shrimp – “MIA”
From the standalone single
It might be tempting to write off “MIA” as a mere product of judicious sampling, but there’s a graceful subtlety contained within MineSweepa’s production that’s disarming. Sure you can credit emo stalwarts Tiny Moving Parts for the elegant chord progressions and gorgeous guitar tones, but it would be a mistake to gloss over the layers of brooding atmosphere conjured here, or how well suited it is for Shrimp’s pensive crooning. As an artist, there’s an emotional openness to the young vocalist and rapper’s work that puts him square in the new milieu of vulnerable, heart-on-sleeve hip-hop, and on his latest single Shrimp isn’t afraid to lay bare his fears. “I had another nightmare / To keep me scared of waking up / But why the fuck would I care / If I’m never gonna make it at all,” he laments on the song’s sole verse. It’s dark and glum, of course, but also beautiful and cathartic in way that suggests there is still light in the murky distance. – Avery Shepherd
More Info
Instagram: @okshrimp
SoundCloud: @fuckshrimp
Twitter: @okayshrimp