If the term foot-stompin’ ever applied to a modern songsmith- it would have to be tagged upon that of Prinz Grizzley. With a throwback juke joint sound that is bluesy AF and a swampy cajun kick in the ass, Prinz Grizzley reverberates with a soulful edge reminiscent of an Alligator Records label act.
SeepeopleS is the politically-charged indie project led by Portland-based singer/songwriter and producer Will Bradford. The band have been making their way through the indie underground for decades, taking a fluid approach to genre lines but uniting their diverse stylistic instincts with a strident topical edge. Later this year, they’re set to return with their sixth LP, Field Guide For Survival In This Dying World, and they’ve been teasing the album with a series of singles, including their latest release, “Shame,” premiering with Under the Radar.
“A fluid approach to genre lines but uniting their diverse stylistic instincts with a strident topical edge. ‘Shame,’ takes its inspiration from the dark realities of modern life. Bradford weaves a muted confessional, one that cuts deep as it explores the shame of a country that lets its children live under the continual threat of violence. This song goes out to all the lonely scared kids in this world – I hope they know they’re not alone.”
We’ve got a classic country weeper for your listening pleasure today. Full of regret and self-loathing, the song is a preview track from the band’s forthcoming sophomore album release. The stories run the gamut from lost love to shattered dreams to lost potential, with a wry wit that recalls iconic Americana stalwart John Prine.
Flooded with anxiety and existential dread, Higgs wrote ‘Fallout’ at the beginning of lockdown, recalling a dreaded trip to yet another supermarket with limited supplies, but this time to the tune of Bobby McFerrin’s indelible ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy’ blaring over the speakers. Higgs remembers asking himself the obvious, “Is this it?”.
Red Rum Club hails from Liverpool. But as you read this new edition of the Bandsintown, Hypebot, and CelebrityAccess “6 Questions With” series, the indie band is early in a 14-city tour of the USA and Canada.
Your sound feels smartly planned but with a heavy dose of fun. For example, your new track, “Vanilla,” begins with a retro distorted bass riff sitting atop a thumping beat. Then the song builds from there, but with some strategic musical pauses. Is that the kind of playful build that fans can expect at shows on your current US tour, or does winning over a live audience require different pacing?
‘Smartly planned but with a heavy dose of fun’ could be a very good way to describe this band. I think for us, we view the US in the same way we viewed the UK when we were first starting out there.
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Red Rum Club, “Vanilla” – Red Rum Club is an independent U.K. rock band with a trumpet player. It’s opened for The 1975 and Noel Gallagher, and played the Glastonbury and Isle of Wight festivals.
“Vanilla” has a bass line that sounds a little like the The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army,” but a much fuller musical sound, since the band is a sextet. The song is about a lover who leaves because she finds the narrator boring: “She said my darling, my dear/ I’m filled with a fear/ Concerning a flaw that/ Continues to appear/ You’re living for Monday/ Your living is mundane/ Your presence is a killer/ Your flavor: vanilla.”