
Paul Spring – Beetle On A Blade
Similar artists: Grizzly Bear, Dirty Projectors, WHY?
Genre: Indie rock, Folktronica, Indie Electronic
Musical playlists are just as big a threat to alternative music as major record labels once were. Both of these sell one single product. Anything outside of the scope of this is useless to them.
While alternative music never had a manifesto, its objective was relatively straightforward. Songwriters could use any musical ideas they wanted. Strict genre definitions were unimportant. The weirder, the better!
The trouble is that these loose rules created new genres. And once you have a genre, you’re no longer free to use any ideas. Ironically, alternative bands ended up being quite conservative.
It’s an uphill battle that Paul Spring’s brilliant Beetle On A Blade is fighting. Coloring well outside the lines, Spring creates music that doesn’t yet have a fanbase. But it should. This pastoral-sounding piece of electro-folk is as psychedelically potent as anything you’re likely to find in themed playlists. There’s no angle to this, just the bizarre, unique vision of the songwriter.
Maja Lena – Silent Quilt
Similar artists: Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver, Fairport Convention
What’s the one style of music that never gets old? What is the one type of music that is not indebted to the times? If such a thing exists, it would need to be based on sounds that were popular before the advent of the music industry.
Music that flows naturally that doesn’t hide behind studio trickery is hard to find at the top of the charts. It’s never been easy, with few exceptional moments. It’s usually designed to inspire tranquility.
For lack of a better term, this is folk music. It’s made with acoustic instruments. It highlights the power of the human voice. And most importantly, it features stories about regular people. Not everyone actively searches for this. Almost everyone, however, has a moment of feeling connected to these kinds of sounds.
Maja Lena’s Silent Quilt is a beautiful mix of classic folk that romanticizes life’s simple pleasures and modern indie folk that prizes singing voices that can sing relaxedly.
It’s not music designed to help you start your day. These are sounds to help you end it smoothly.