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.
Credit: Brett Falcon
The Rock*A*Teens – “Go Tell Everybody”
From the upcoming LP, Sixth House
The Rock*A*Teens have never been accused of half-hearted songwriting. It’s been 18 years since the band released their last album, Sweet Bird of Youth, but “Go Tell Everybody” picks up where the group left off, channeling the same tangled tales wrapped in a myriad of moody hooks and memorable poetry. It’s only the first single from the band’s upcoming record Sixth House on their long-time label Merge, but it’s a good indication that the band’s ability to lose themselves in murky fairy tales has only deepened with age. – Russell Rockwell
Sixth House is out June 29 via Merge Records. Pre-orders are available here.
More Info
Facebook: @The-RockATeens-20434388510
Lord Narf – “The Truth”
From the standalone single
Well, OK. So Awful’s sickest MC, Lord Narf, has been dabbling in house and meditation this year. Previously, she’s dished out saucy zingers from the shadows, with a slinky cadence that casts hexes on her adversaries. Here though, Shiva Child grants the rapper and vocalist an Orbital-esque dance floor to hover over, and suddenly the MC that regularly threatens to defile your property has blasted to the cosmos. Fortunately, even in this quasi-stellar state, the omnipresent Lord Narf hasn’t lost an inch of her attitude. As the beat progresses into beast mode, she wills away unwanted lovers with the divine apathy of a monk: “Let it be written / let it be done… I don’t need you / I am one.” Of course, our protagonist has always preached agency in any romantic endeavor, but here she elevates her message from nasty roast to divine incantation. So breathe in, breathe out, and sit your ass down. Even in orbit, Lord Narf still slays. – Lee Adcock
More Info
Bandcamp: awfulturdz.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @awfulnarf
Instagram: @lordnarf
SoundCloud: @lordnarf
Twitter: @LordNarf
Mull – “Dohta”
From the standalone single
On the surface, the debut single from Mull, aka fledging producer Colin Mulligan, feels fairly direct and straightforward. But stray too near to the ominous bass thump that initializes the track like some malevolent call to arms and you may get drawn headfirst into Mulligan’s oblique and nocturnal technoverse. Overall, it’s a cut that favors patient sculpting and moody atmospherics over dizzying dance floor euphoria, which is crucial because much of what makes “Dohta” so compelling is the way individual rhythms build, collide, and merge into yet more stark and gripping sounds. If heady electronica with a dark bent is something you find intriguing, you’ll want to give Mull a long listen. – Guillermo Castro
More Info
Facebook: @MullATL