Short Reviews of Recent Albums #3

Ben Seretan, Kississippi, Angélica Garcia, and a few other releases I've been loving

So………. I recently found myself thinking… hmm… I don’t really have a lot of inspiration for a new longform personal essay type thing, but I find myself wanting to write about a few great ~indie rock~ records I’ve had on recently…… Well well well, didn’t past Katie have JUST the format idea. Hence, the triumphant return of:

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ 𝓢𝓱𝓸𝓻𝓽 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀𝓼 𝓸𝓯 𝓡𝓮𝓬𝓮𝓷𝓽 𝓐𝓵𝓫𝓾𝓶𝓼 ♥

Ben Seretan - Allora

“What I want could fill the world up,” chants Ben Seretan on “Bend,” in a clear voice not unlike Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold’s, but distorted through a hazy kaleidoscope of wild yearning. I’ve been thinking a lot about Wanting recently. And what I’ve determined is: well, not much, but this meandering, enchanting, weird rock album has underscored my aimless musings wonderfully.

Cusp - Thanks So Much EP

My friends and I couldn’t decide if the playing card on the table—a Joker—was a good or bad omen. Regardless, Cusp sounded great as they brought their recent EP to life in that soggy Bed-Stuy backyard last weekend. Vocalist Jen Bender’s warm alto devolves into sing-song yelps when the moment demands, punchy drums and power chords always at the melodies’ helm. These songs take dream pop and turn it into something a little sharper: the sound of an indie rock band playing their cards right.

Kississippi - Damned if i do it for you EP

This feels odd to say, but this EP sort of has the Taylor Swift sauce. The first song, “Smaller Half,” brims with honeyed, emphatic vocals over synths, complete with a sugary, low-register bridge—sound familiar? However, the comparison wanes as Zoe Reynolds, who performs as Kississippi, wades beyond pop on “Jesus Freak,” a catchy bubble-grunge track, and the moody “Bird Song.” Like that one blonde girl in her best moments, Kississippi gets sweet, confessional, and a little cheeky while pushing the loosey-goosey confines of pop.

Macseal - Permanent Repeat

It’s no small feat to successfully collage early 2000’s pop-rock influences, but Macseal rips pages from the era’s most beloved books—including Third Eye Blind and Fountains of Wayne—with beguiling ease. If you’ll indulge me: I even heard hints of one of my favorite extremely cheesy, teen-movie-coded tracks in the soaring falsetto notes of “Golden Harbor” and “Beach Vacation.” If my Summer 2024 was a breezy wistful romcom, this effortlessly, infectiously catchy rock record would be the soundtrack.

Angélica Garcia - Gemelo

I’ve been waiting for Angelica Garcia to make *this* album since I fell in love with her larger-than-life 2019 single “Karma the Knife.” Gemelo is everything I want from her sound: dark, mercurial, high-key witchy, but decidedly pop. The record is a potent ascent through the fogs of grief, weaving through a moody first half and blazing upward toward ecstasy on the second. If you’re in Crown Heights this month, there’s a non-zero chance you’ll see me strut-dancing down the sidewalk with “El Que” (a strong contender for my song of the year) blaring its phoenix incantation in my airpods, summoning the fire back into my blood.

Cassandra Jenkins - My Light, My Destroyer

I love songs or albums that sound like what they’re called. The latest from singer-songwriter Cassandra Jenkins is that, painting a portrait—with airy synths, pearlescent melodies, and wry, quietly gutting confessions—of a bright love that’s left a burn. Special shout-out to the lizard lyrics on “Petco”:

It’s become my second nature
To wander through the pet store
I’d stare into the sideways gaze of a lizard
Doesn’t always make me feel better,
Just less alone, less alone

As a fellow lizard girl lingering in the blackened crater of all I’ve lost, I feel seen.

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What’d I miss? What have you been rocking with?

Talk to you soon!

Katie xoxo