
Washing Machina – The Loop
Similar artists: Pixies, Ride, The Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters
Genre: Indie Rock, Dream Pop, Alternative Rock
The sad thing is that true-blue, incorrigible weirdos who end up starting bands rarely end up getting many fans except for people who are just like them. That’s not much of an economic model or way to run a band. To really get things cooking, what bands need is to retain some of their weirdness while getting cool people to come to their shows accompanied by their girlfriends.
That all sounds like a difficult mission. It is. Wild Man Fischer made interesting music. But you couldn’t get a guarantee from him that he wouldn’t bite children. Captain Beefheart made excellent music. But you couldn’t get a guarantee from him that he wouldn’t start a cult. And besides, none of these people exactly made the kind of music you’d want to play at parties.
Thankfully, the rulebook has been written. Cleverly taking inspiration from Pixies or The Smashing Pumpkins, Washing Machina creates a strange but highly accessible sound with “The Loop.” Yes, this is pop music for weirdos. It’s bizarre, includes strange imagery, and feels like it was written by someone stuck in a dark room for a long time. But the drums also have a real swing to them, and the backing vocals do just enough to lure you in. They’ll have you tapping your foot in no time.
PELTZ – Bright Side
Similar artists: Incubus, Local Natives, Grizzly Bear, Radiohead
Genre: Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Alternative Rock
The world is not incentivized to care about your troubles. I know that must be a hard thing to hear. But visit any bar in hopes of telling your sorrows to strangers, or try to find a friend’s shoulder to cry on, and you’ll find out. Sure enough, most people will listen for a while. It’s just the polite thing to do. But, if you want them to listen to you for a long time and even share a piece of advice, you have to make it interesting enough for them.
Writing pop songs works in much the same way. This is particularly true if the brand of songs that you are writing is one focused on feelings of sadness, loneliness or feeling lost. In order to let the audience be the proverbial shoulder to cry on, the song has to be made about them. They need to feel that these troubles are ones that they understand, live through and thrive under.
There is something in the singing of PELTZ on “Bright Side” that suggests universal truths being discussed and dissected. It’s not hard to hear how much of inspiration Incubus, particularly Brandon Boyd’s singing, had on this track. However, it is also the way in which the smooth, precise playing gives the song a real warmth and pop appeal that makes this song the kind that audiences can find themselves in.