
Hatestick – Candle
Genre: Post-Punk, Lo-fi Rock, Indie Rock
Hatestick relies on personality and telling tall tales, but luckily, those are some of the best and least used traits of an interesting rockstar.
There are many people who suffer from nostalgia when it comes to music. There are many who claim music is not what it once was and likely it will never be that way again. These casual complainers are of all ages and nationalities. They cry for a Golden Age that many never witnessed in person.
But it’s not the music that has gotten worse; it’s just that the people making it have become tremendously boring. Even your A-list celebrities have nothing to write about, no stories to tell, and rely on their publicists to invent some kind of romance with a fellow star as a means to disguise how awfully plain they are. Chris Martin will outlive Keith Moon, but I betcha at the doors of hell, he’ll have fewer stories to tell the guards.
Hatestick’s “Candle” is lo-fi, character-actor-rock. It sounds like what The Strokes might have created had they a. not had a recording budget and b. had better stories to tell. It’s far from perfect, but that’s part of the charm. Why waste your time on creating flawlessness when the stories Hatestick has to tell involve no saints, only sinners? Best of all, this is not the work of someone that sounds like they’ll bore you over lousy beer.
Bad Magnets – Now I Know
Similar artists: Tame Impala, Toro y Moi, Neon Indian, The Beatles, St. Vincent
Genre: Psychedelic Rock
Bad Magnets rely on mystery and esoteric practices to get their kicks, or, at least, that’s what they want their followers to believe.
I’ve always considered starting a religious cult. It’s not so much calling as a verified career path. It sure beats answering calls and writing reports. The hours aren’t much better, but if done properly, it can be much more financially satisfying. Best of all, other than the god you represent, you get to be your own boss.
But I’m not alone, of course. A quick YouTube or Google search will reveal countless materials created, usually by people in their mid-teens, meant to teach you how to manipulate individuals and crowds to do your bidding. The official line is that they’re supposed to make you more charismatic and help you get dates. But there’s a direct link between being in a cult and being taken out on a date by a creep.
What about music? Bad Magnets’ “Now I Know” is psychedelic rock that harkens back to the days when a charismatic man with a guitar could start a new religion by Monday, get rich by Friday, and end up in jail by the weekend. It’s a song built around slow-building, mysterious grooves, and one that makes you yearn for a time when gurus could strum a guitar.