
Phantom Sugar – Too Psycho
Genre: Lo-fi Rock, Indie Rock
If anything truly unique were delivered onto our rock playlists, we probably wouldn’t like it. That would be music unheard of before. We wouldn’t know how to judge it. There’d be little to compare with.
Sure, some would pretend to understand it, even enjoy it. But they’d be lying, and sure enough, they’d retreat into the comfort of hearing their favorite songs once nobody was there looking.
What almost all of us enjoy in pop-rock music a strong dose of familiarity. Naturally, we can’t just accept plagiarism. That would be beneath us. Instead, we want those familiar sounds used cleverly by artists who understand their potential and who speak their own hearts using those tools. That’s not too much to ask, right?
Except it usually is. That’s why a memorable track becomes a hit quickly. Phantom Sugar’s “Too Psycho” is easy to enjoy. It’s a unique track in how familiar it sounds, yet it avoids being a cover of anything else. It’s a jingle that gets stuck in the brain right away. Many things needed to go right for this to happen. And, because you may want to play this on repeat, it deserves praise.
Alan Fakeman – Rebound
One famous YouTube vlogger recently complained about indie rock’s lack of a central message. What is it protesting? What is indie-rock trying to achieve, and who is trying to please in the process?
Those questions are fair game, sure. But they might be just missing the point here. Indie-rock doesn’t adhere to any principles and that’s its thing. It’s a promise that however much pop music will change in the future, kids with guitars in indie-rock bands may find a way to make this brave new world their own.
Unlike metal bands, these groups rarely have uniforms that they need to wear or makeup that they need to apply. Unlike synth-pop or EDM artists, there’s no requirement to be tech-savvy before they can begin their careers.
Alan Fakeman’s “Rebound” is a nice snapshot of where indie-rock retreated to next. This is a funny, memeable song made with cheap guitars in someone’s basement that you won’t need to hear more than once to remember. Alan Fakeman are inspired by the emotional, warm guitar music of the 90s. They’re not trying to be cool and are getting a real kick out of making music that has no rules.