The Coral Gables – When’s It Gonna Stop?
Genre: Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Alternative Rock
Similar artists: The Silver Jews, Wilco, Pavement
I suppose that it’s all for the best if we all know our place in the world. At the end of the day, this makes it easier to be ambitious towards things that we can realistically achieve and spend less time on those that may just be the fantasies of a kid thinking that they are going to walk on the moon. It certainly helps with saving time and may save you from developing a nasty drinking habit later on as well.
You don’t expect great stand-up comedians to have dreams of being leading men in great Hollywood dramas. The majority of them thought that they were funny and ran towards the comedy clubs, ready to embrace whatever opportunities were being handed to them.
Similarly, rock musicians are either really happy about their lives or unhappy and unwilling to make it a secret. I am sorry to say that the latter category is usually much more interesting. The first produces songs about girls and cars. They treasure their success and can always be caught smiling.
The latter is usually in it out of a desire to document their downfall. They are smart enough to be funny and smile only when being sarcastic. You’ll have to listen to The Coral Gables’ When’s It Gonna Stop and decide just how much gallows humor you can take. If the poetry doesn’t get you, perhaps, the really pretty mix of sounds that makes this feel like a mash-up of The Band and The Silver Jews just might. Talent shouldn’t be wasted even when you’re miserable.
Kama Tala – The Wayside
Genre: Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Dream Pop
Similar artists: Vampire Weekend, Alabama Shakes
Eventually, most people put away their make-up, their spiked bracelets, and their leather jackets and start listening to songs that just… err… sound good. This may sound obvious, but you’ll just need to go through the collection of extreme metal that I had acquired through my teen years and realize that sounding good was just not something being given a whole lot of attention.
This is all fine and good, but what do the people that make music sound good actually have got going that all of the other folks do not? It’s usually not the talent, the hard rock, or the dedication. Most often, it starts with themselves having a good record collection to draw upon and enough good sense to learn the basics that made their favorite artists tick, swing, and gel.
Kama Tala’s The Wayside is simply an immensely pleasing indie-rock song that you’ll have a hard time hating if you possess ears and aren’t tone-deaf. It is certainly music that mixes the sounds of their favorite modern indie-rockers. However, it also contains great production values and a singing tone that is confident and warm. Why do you listen to music? Sometimes simply because it sounds good, I suppose.
