Tag: women who kick ass

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Los Angeles’ Swimming Bell Lovingly Tackles Beck’s “The Golden Age”

Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and musician Katie Schottland is the creative mastermind behind Swimming Bell. Earlier this year, she released her five-song  Rob Schnapf-produced EP Somnia  through Perpetual Doom. 

Somnia invites listeners to an ethereal sonic realm, a sort of underwater dreamworld where melodies drift effortlessly and rhythms pulse like ocean currents. Schottland envisioned the EP as an escape from the crushing weight of reality, a space where listeners could feel suspended — as though they were floating — between wakefulness and dreaming. Collaborating with Schnapf, Schottland embraced a much more percussive approach, allowing textures and rhythms to guide the listener through the material’s shimmering soundscapes.

“I wanted this EP to feel like sinking into water, where everything is softened and suspended,” says Schottland. “Given all the stress and tension in the world, I wanted to make a feeling of escape – something hypnotic and transportive. Rob and I explored percussive layers in a way that felt both grounding and dreamy, creating movement within.”

Her first single since the release of Somnia EP is a gorgeous and lovingly faithful cover of “The Golden Age,” off Beck’s critically acclaimed and beloved 2002 effort Sea Change. “Sea Change has always been one of my favorite albums. I love the production so much,” Schottland says. “I’ve wanted to cover ‘The Golden Age’ for a long time and when my pedal steel and keyboard players lit up at the idea too, it felt right. Rob Schapf produced this version, and we kept it minimal and open, letting the song unfold naturally.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Wombo Shares Nervous “S.T. Tilted”

Since their formation back in 2016, Louisville-based trio Wombo — Sydney Chadwick (vocals, bass), Cameron Lowe (guitar) and Joel Taylor (drums) — have carved out a unique lane for themselves, contorting post-punk structures into uncanny shapes. And with their Danger in Fives, which is slated for an August 8, 2025 release through Fire Talk, reportedly sees the band not only enhancing their formula, but routinely perfecting them.

To ace their techniques, the Louisville-based trio had to tear them apart first. Long-held , standardized practices of writing and workshopping material in Joel Taylor’s post-war basement rehearsal space were paused while the band explored different writing process. And that experimentation results in the band showcasing some subtle shifts and additions to their sonic palette, including digital texture and the incorporation of drum machine on a couple of tracks. The band’s desire to change their model was in part to “get away from a results mindset, where it’s about producing things for a certain expectation instead of doing it all for the joy of exploring,” the band’s Cameron Lowe says. Adds the band’s Chadwick, “I don’t want to be in a band that’s confined to one form of writing. Where’s the fun and the creativity and the exploration in that? You have to push yourself and try something new.”

Danger in Fives final advance single, “S.T. Titled,” sees the band at their distilled, purest essence. Anchored around Lowe’s angular, off-kilter bursts of scratchy guitar, Taylor’s skeletal yet propulsive drumming and Chadwick’s supple bass lines, the song’s arrangement serves as a nervous and uneasy bed for Chadwick’s dreamily mesmerizing delivery. By contrasting the deeply nervous and uneasy with the seemingly calm, the song somehow manages to evoke our current nightmarish moment in which we’re all slowly losing our minds — and trying not to show it. But, as always cracks will show . . .

“It’s the first song we wrote after the Slab EP that made it on Danger in Fives,” the band’s Lowe says of the single. “We weren’t sure it was going to work, but all the contrasting parts ended up being cool. It’s rare for a Wombo song to be written on guitar first like this one, with some of the bass and drum parts jammed out in the basement afterwards. The wacky guitar part came last.”

Directed by the band’s Cameron Lowe, the accompanying video for “S.T. Titled,” continues a run of entirely self-produced videos. The video sees the band in a hand-made waiting room set, constructed by Lowe and Chadwick in Chadwick’s garage. The band is seen anxiously waiting in the waiting room — with the expected anxiousness and unease that waiting rooms entail.

The Louisville-based trio will be marking on a tour to support the new album. The tour includes a September 12, 2025 stop at Baby’s All Right and a September 14, 2025 stop at one of my favorite rooms in Montréal, L’Escogriffe. Check out the rest of the tour dates below.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Helang Shares Swaggering, Club Banger “Firehot”

Helang is a Chinese American producer and DJ, who specializes in crafting an eclectic. club friendly sound that blends elements of house and techno with ethereal soundscapes and driving, dynamic grooves. Throughout a series of releases through HE.SHE.THEY., HILOMATIK and Set About, before she launched her own label Dauntless Records, the Chinese-American producer and DJ had developed a reputation for being an outspoken artist, who always stands her ground — and for a sound that’s an authentic and deeply artistic expression of herself, in which she never shies away from pushing back against conventions.

She has played sets at The Brooklyn Mirage and Kappa Futur Festival and others. Building upon a growing profile in the electronic music scene, she has shared stages with Adam Beyer, Charlotte De Witte, Eric Prydz, Amelie Lens, Nicole Moudaber, CamelPhat and a growing list of luminaries. Additionally, she has received features in Billboard, DJ Mag, Forbes, Mixmag, Beatportal and 6am group.

Her latest single “Firehot” is a bombastic club banger that sees Helang pairing wall and ceiling rattling thump, glistening and wobbling synth stabs and a sultrily yearning vocal sample with euphoria inducing hooks and massive drops. Sonically recalling JOVM mainstay LutchamaK and Between Two Selves-era Octo Octa, the song sees Helang boldly challenging gender roles and norms in a way that feels mischievous.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Big Wild Teams Up with Phantogram on Slinky, Dance Floor Friendly “Too Loud”

Jackson Stell is a rising producer and artist, who initially started his career in his native Massachusetts as hip-hop producer, known as J Beatz. Following a life-altering trip to Big Sur, Stell switched creative lanes, adopting influences from the area’s natural beauty and open spaces. As Big Wild, the Massachusetts-based artist refines alt/indie electronic music by blending organic elements, lush soundscapes with bold, genre-defying creativity and panache. 

Stell’s breakthrough was back in 2015 when he toured with acclaimed electronic outfit Odesza and remixed “Say My Name.” That year also saw the release of “Aftergold,” feat. Tove Stryke, which stopped the Spotify Global Viral charts. 

Building upon a rapidly growing profile, Stell followed up with 2017’s Invincible EP and his full-length debut, 2019’s Superdream, which saw the Massachusetts-born artist taking on the roles of singer/songwriter for the first time, while blending indie, electronic and disco influences. Stell supported Superdream with extensive touring across the US, European Union and UK while helping to establish his reputation as an innovative and boundary-pushing artist. 

His sophomore Big Wild album, 2022’s The Efferusphere saw Stell continuing to explore and push the boundaries of genre and emotion. 

The past few months have been busy for Stell: Earlier this year, he released -the first bit of new material since The Efferusphere — “Love Any Longer,” “You Belong Here,” and “The Universe” feat. feat. iDA HAWK,  a sprawling dance music track that mischievously nods at James Bond-thriller-like soundtracks, cinematic psych soul and British Big Beat fueled by an infectious optimism. All three of those previously released songs will appear on Stell’s highly-anticipated sophomore album, Wild Child. Slated for an August 29, 2025 release through Giant Music, Wild Child is reportedly one of Stell’s most dynamic and personal albums to date. After The Efferusphere, Stell found himself craving the curiosity and joy that initially drew him to music.

That search let him to reconnect with his inner a child — a creative alter ego that he has dubbed Wild Child. The album’s material reportedly sees Stell creating a richer sonic palette that draws from and meshes elements of indie pop, psych rock and ’60s music. And throughout the album, Stell embraces the kind of playful and mischievous unpredictability informed from creating without constraints.

Primarily written and produced by Stell alongside a close-knit cast of talented collaborators, Wild Child‘s material explores themes of renewal, resilience and connection to the Earth that simultaneously echo throughout the lyrics and sonic textures while striking a balance between childlike wonder and the hard-fought wisdom of maturity. “Wild Child runs throughout the album and is fighting to stay alive and thriving despite the things the world throws at us,” Stell says. “The album’s about exploring that side of ourselves that we don’t explore much as we age. I think we’re often pushed to repress that part of ourselves when we get older, because it’s deemed silly or irresponsible, but I’ve realized that maturity is about balancing both aspects of ourselves.” 

Wild Child‘s latest single “Too Loud” feat. Phantogram is a slinky, dance floor friendly bop that showcases Stell’s unerring knack for crafting incredibly catchy hooks. Anchored around the same playful and upbeat sensibility of its immediate predecessors, “Too Loud” feat. Phantogram may arguably be the most 80s sounding track of the album to date, managing to channel Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me,” and the like.

“I first made the demo while I was making The Efferusphere. I can’t really pinpoint inspiration besides following what excites me,” Stell says. ” I try to trust that feeling and not overthink it. As simple as the demo sounded, there was something that consistently grabbed me when I listened back. It was sexy and ethereal. I was hung up on the second verse and the lyrics until I was connected with Sarah from Phantogram. Her voice was perfect and was the last big piece to the puzzle. She smashed it and my team and I were so stoked to work with her. I remember the head of the label, Nate Albert, telling me the song needed to be finished in a week to make it to vinyl. It’s such a cliche when finishing an album, but this truly was one of those songs submitted in the final hour in a mad hellish dash.” 

Stell continues, “Sarah’s voice was meant for this track, she really occupied the imaginary space of the track,Her tone and attitude was the perfect compliment [sic] to the production. Sexy and ethereal. I’m really excited for the day when we can play this one together on stage.”

“This song makes me want to roll the windows down and turn the volume all the way up,” Phantogram’s Sarah Berthel says. “Working with Jackson has been such a blast and we can’t wait to dance with you to this soon.”

singer/songwriters by William Ruben Helms
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Live Concert Photography: Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park 7/19/25: DJ Rekha’s Basement Bhangra Beyond feat. Rashmeet Kaur, DJ Rekha, Tara Lily and Sonny Singh and Guests

Live concert photography of DJ Rekha’s Basement Bhangra Beyond at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Faetooth Shares Forceful and Stormy “Hole”

Led by Jenna Garcia (vocals, bass), Los Angeles-based outfit Faetooth specializes in a sound that they’ve dubbed “fairy-doom:” a unique and eclectic amalgamation of doom metal paired with vocals that alternate between spellbinding melodies to guttural shrieks and howls. 

Last month, the Los Angeles-based outfit announced their highly-anticipated sophomore album Labyrinthine will be slated for a September 5 release digitally through AWAL and on vinyl and CD by The Flenser. Labyrinthine will reportedly see the band further establishing their “fairy-doom” sound while embracing a newly softened, more intimate tone, anchored around emotional rawness.

Throughout the album, the material touches upon themes of loss, self-pity, personal relationships and more. The inmate balance doesn’t dilute their intensity; rather it reframes it, offering listeners a haunting yet delicate atmosphere, layered with entrancing textures that build up to explosive catharsis. The result is an album that’s a hauntingly visceral and disturbing vision, anchored by deep introspection. 

Labyrinthine will feature the previously released, “Death of Day” which to my ears channeled the likes of Tool and JOVM mainstays Slumbering Sun, and “White Noise,” a bruising ripper rooted in a palpable and unsettling mix of anguish, despair, loathing and fury that feels both lived in and deeply familiar. 

“Hole,” the album’s latest single is a slow-burning and meditative doom metal dirge that slowly builds up into a bruising and stormy intensity, fueled by a lived in urgency and desperation to get away from a seemingly fucked up past and fucked up cycles of dysfunction, abuse, etc. And much like the previously released singles, “Hole” does so with an innately empathetic sensibility that says to the listener “I’ve been there. You aren’t alone.”

 

“’Hole’ is a meditation on the choice of confronting the past, or burying it,” the band’s Jenna Garcia explains. “Sobering, waking, realizations of cycles find themselves bared, culminating in an invocation-like verse that declares severance to all ties to a creeping past.”

Directed by Joe Mischo, the cinematically shot visual for “Hole” follows a a woman frantically running through a wooded countryside that includes madness, regret, possession and witches.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Street Eaters Share Furious and Impassioned “Tempers”

Oakland-based post punk outfit Street Eaters — co-founders Megan March (vocals, drums) and John No (bass, vocals), along with Joan Toledo (guitar) — will be releasing their long-awaited and highly-anticipated fifth album, Opaque on September 5, 2025 through Dirt Cult Records. The seven-song album reportedly sees the trio attempting to stitch up the bloody wounds of their past while being a meditation on birth, death, excavated trauma, and trying to find steadfast kinfolk in a world that’s increasingly splintered, fucked up and cruel.

Much like all of us, Street Eaters have been through the wringer a bit since 2017’s The Envoy.

The band’s guitarist Joan Toledo, left a transphobic family and government in her native Florida, eventually relocating to San Francisco, where they became an editor at Maximum Rocknroll Magazine and a radical union organizer at the world famous City Lights Books.

The band’s front woman Megan March had a child. And while becoming am other was, as she puts it, “and incredible joy and opportunity to rewire emotional pathways and deep wounds,” it was also a reminder of her own childhood: March’s mother was violently homophobic and eventually threw Megan and her teenage sister — both queer — from their childhood home.

For March, childbirth was both a traumatizing and transformational experience. Ironically born on July 4, her baby immediately entered a world steeped in bureaucracy: The hospital was so understaffed that March was neglected until the last moment and was forced to endure an emerging C-section. “I was borderline dehumanized by the toxic, misogynistic nature of the American medical system and its focus on efficiency and profit before care,” she says.

“Opaque is a record that gets deep into the stark and beautiful reality of growth and transition from trauma and loss,” Street Eaters’ March explains. “What does it mean to wake up one day and realize you are living the way you have always demanded to live  — yet with all those jagged piles of emotional, physical, and social/political baggage still slicing through the veil?” The album isn’t just confrontational; it’s complicated. It sees the band, much like the rest of us, groping towards identity, understanding, and a place in the world in the process of being curated. “It’s a transition into finding peace with the world — a resonant connection with community and chosen family, getting beyond a lot of the pain and hurt,” the band’s John No says. “We’re trying to suture up wounds at this point and create something that’s healthy.”

Opaque‘s first single “Tempers” is a furious, adrenaline pumping ripper featuring scuzzy, serrated power chords, thunderous guitars and March’s urgent and impassioned vocals. March says, the song is about “being in isolation and not being sure what the future is going to be like and how things will be when the storm is over.”

The accompanying video directed by Krista Wright and Theo Garvey, in a hospital waiting room, where no one ever seems to get helped with anything. The band turns the hospital room into a stage that they rip up with a furious performance of the song.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: GHXST Shares Brooding “Cosmic”

Initially formed in Brooklyn back in 2010 and currently based in Los Angeles, indie duo GHXST — Shelley X and Chris Wild — specialize in a sound that draws from The Velvet Underground, Black Sabbath, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Mazzy Star, 90s grunge, and their never ending travels to nowhere.

The duo’s latest single “Cosmic” is slow-burning, slithering and brooding doom metal-like dirge reminiscent of the RidingEasy Records roster and Faetooth with a subtly stoner rock/desert rock vibe. At its core, the song channels the heat and the hauntingly uneasy stillness of the desert.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Automatic Returns with Trip Hop-Inspired “Mercury”

Formed almost a decade ago, Los Angeles-based post punk outfit Automatic — Izzy Glaudini (synths, vocals), Lola Dompé (drums, vocals) and Halle Saxon Gaines (bass, vocals) — have released two albums:

  • Their full-length debut, 2019’s Signals saw the trio quickly establishing their sound, which paired motorik grooves with icy atmospheres. 

  • Their sophomore effort, 2022’s Excess saw the band sonically riding an imaginary edge where the 70s underground met 80s corporate culture. 

After they finished touring to support their sophomore album, each member of the trio pursued their own interests: Glaudini honed her skills as a producer; Saxon Gaines enrolled in botany classes; and Dompé got married, moved out to the country and began caring for horses. 

With two albums under their collective belts, the trio wanted to do something different for their third album. Slated for a fall release through Stones Throw Records. Is It Now? sees the trio collaborating with producer Loren Humphrey to build upon the sound of their previous releases — minimalist yet danceable songs, which they describe as “deviant pop.”  Throughout the album’s recording process, Humphrey encouraged the band to play live and loose through long takes that allowed the rhythm section to breathe.

Is It Now? will feature album title track, “Is It Now?,” a continuation of the sound they’ve established through their first two albums, while simultaneously being a subtle refine with one of the tightest grooves they’ve written to date with their unerring knack for catchy hooks. And at its core, the song expresses a deeply modern sense of unease and restlessness.

Is It Now?‘s second and latest single, “Mercury” is a brooding and slow-burning, trip hop-like track featuring glistening synth stabs and a propulsive backbeat sample that’s heavily inspired by the Stones Throw catalog. The band’s Izzy Glaudini says, the song’s lyrics are a reminder “not to fall into nihilism or cynicism, to instead see life through a bit of a spiritual lens.” She adds, “Despite the horrible shit constantly happening, life can still be mysterious and beautiful. I wanted to lean into a sense of dreaminess, and to have the verses feel like a dark lullaby.”

Directed by Sira Sounds, the accompanying, dreamily shot visual features the trio — both individually and as a unit — drinking from a goblet with green liquid.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: South of France Teams Up with Little Trips and Grace DeVine on Sugary and Coquettish “Sugar Rush”

Led by Denver-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and creative mastermind Jeff Cormack, South of France is an indie pop project that sees Cormack and collaborators specializing in a groovy, beat-driven take on escapist, vacation pop. 

Cormack’s South of France work has been featured in a number of smash-hit TV shows, including Bojack Horseman and Shameless while receiving praise from American Songwriter, NPR, Rolling Stone and others. And adding to a growing profile, Cormack and his collaborators have opened for a growing list of acclaimed acts including, Portugal. The Man, Young The Giant, Flaming Lips, Michigander, Tennis, Zella Day and others.

Cormack’s forthcoming South of France album My Spirit Animal, My Baggage is reportedly one-part solo album and one-part collaborative effort with a series of vocalists, emcees and musicians. I’ve managed to write about four album singles:

Cormack’s latest South of France single, the Greg Laut co-produced “Sugar Rush” is a saccharine sweet, coquettish and breezy bop that features Grace DeVine’s ethereal cooing floating over a trippy and blissed-out, psych pop-influenced groove. “Sugar Rush” continues a remarkable run of summery and escapist pop that showcases Cormack’s unerring knack for funky grooves and catchy hooks.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: she’s green Shares Shimmering and Bittersweet “Willow”

Minneapolis-based outfit she’s green — Zofia Smith (vocals), Liam Armstrong (guitar), Raimes Lucas (guitar), Teddy Nordvold (guitar) and Kevin Seeback (drums) — specialize in crafting dreamy soundscapes that transport the listener to scenes of soft summer rain and fields of swaying wheat, infused with raw emotional intensity. 

With the release of their earliest singles “river” and “smile again,” the Minneapolis-based quintet quickly became a staple within the Midwestern alternative scene, while earning praise from Complex, Star Tribune and The Current. Their debut EP, 2023’s Wisteria saw the band establishing an honest and exploratory songwriting process and a reputation for being a force in the world of sonic surrealism. Adding to a growing profile, the rising Minnesotans have supported their material with tours throughout the Midwest and East Coast with the likes of Hotline TNT, Glixen, Friko and others. 

Earlier this year, she’s green recently signed to New York-based Photo Finish Records, who will be releasing the band’s highly-anticipated Henry Stoehr-sophomore EP Chrysalis on August 15, 2025. The EP will feature the previously released  Souvlaki-era Slowdive-like “Graze,” which I wrote about earlier this year.

The EP’s third and latest single “Willow” is a shimmering, rousing The Sundays-meets-A Storm in Heaven-like showcasing the band’s penchant for rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses paired with Zofia Smith’s dreamy and ethereal delivery floating over thunderous drumming and swirling and hazy, shoegazer guitar textures. While arguably being one of the more energetic songs on the new EP, “Willow” is underpinned by a bittersweet and uneasy longing over something that you’re slowly losing — and that you can’t possibly stop.

“‘Willow’ reflects on our dying relationship with the natural world—a relationship that’s not always loving, but formative nonetheless,” the band explains. “It’s an energetic song that we love playing live.”

The accompanying video features the band’s frontperson Zofia Smith wandering through a forest, looking towards the dappled light shining through the tree canopy. While there’s longing and sadness in there voice, the light on her face also suggest that there’s hope just on the other side. But as the video ends, the viewer’s viewpoint becomes increasingly blurry as she sings about uncertainty and melancholy.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Living Hour Shares Fuzzy and Simmering “Wheel”

Acclaimed Winnipeg-based indie quintet Living Hour — Sam Sarty (vocals, multi-instrumentalist), Gil Carroll (guitar), Adam Soloway (guitar, vocals), Brett Ticzon (bass, keys) and Issac Tate (drums) — will be releasing their Melina Duterte, a.k.a. Jay Som-produced fourth album Internal Drone Infinity through Keeled Scales and Paper Bag Records on October 17, 2025. Initially known for their lush fusion of dream pop and shoegaze, the Canadian quintet have continually evolved throughout their history, gradually merging folk-inflected slowcore, fuzzy indie pop and hazy noise rock into a sound that’s expansive and emotionally piercing.

Internal Drone Infinity was recorded during the stark, isolating cold of a Manitoba/Winnipeg November. Duterte flew in the day after performing on Saturday Night Live with Boygenius, and the energy of that whirlwind transition seeped into record’s intimate yet vast emotional core.

Drawing from Yo La Tengo, Magnolia Electric Co., The Weakerthans, Feeble Little Horse, Yuck and DIIV, Internal Drone Infinity sees Living Hour reportedly crafting a striking sonic atmosphere, full of icy, melodic vocals, grainy textures, twangy warmth, screeching distortion and immersive percussion. Thematically, the album explores the cyclical process of observation, documentation and projection. While being a raw, commanding expansion of their long-held dreamy sound, the album’s material also gives voice to the quiet strength and simmering rage of the overlooked.

Before I forget, drums on two album tracks, “Wheel” and “Texting” were recorded by The Weakerthans’ Jason Tait at his Winnipeg home studio.

The forthcoming album’s first single “Wheel” is angsty and fuzzy, 120 Minutes MTV-era alternative rock-like track, which features arguably some of the biggest and catchiest hooks and choruses they’ve written or recorded paired with the band’s unerring knack for breezy melodies. But just underneath the surface, the song is a tale of simmering and uneasy rage about being taken advantage of — and unnecessarily being put in danger.

“The story of ‘Wheel’ begins with buying a car off Facebook Marketplace in BC,” the band’s Sam Sarty explains. “Turns out the car was junk, but I had no choice but to drive it home to Winnipeg. It took 3 days. I was driving through the mountains, and the headlights were so dim, and for a stretch there was nowhere to turn off. It felt like a weird, horrific video game–navigating the road and dodging danger and trying not to die. I also felt so deeply betrayed by all the men involved in the whole thing.  

“These men feel like a series of characters now. I felt so powerless in this weird system that prioritizes men and their opinions. In this song, I was able to imagine an alternate reality where I’m a vengeful spectator in these men’s lives. What if I had died on the road, and what if I came back and plagued them all with my powerful essence that they so easily dismissed, contorted and took advantage of in order to sell me a fucked up car?”

“I fantasized about how it would feel to ‘fall off the wheel’ and lean into this witchy, monstered realm of existence where men are de-centered. One where I would have no hesitation to put those men in the same danger they put me in.”

Filmed by Leigh Lugosi, the accompanying video for “Wheel” was shot on VHS and features the band performing the song in the studio, doing band hang out/photo shoot kind of stuff, as well as goofing off. And fittingly, it feels like it could have aired on 120 Minutes back in the day.