Metz/Up and Down, Away!/Dwell & Dwell EP

Metz - Metz (Sub Pop, 2012)
Finally, Sub Pop Records has signed a band that actually is reminiscent of the Sub Pop of old. Metz are loud and heavy, almost like a mix between early Nirvana and The Jesus Lizard. Albini-core! The production is polished  but still just dirty enough, the guitars are gnarly and the drums are absolutely enormous. "Get Off" and "Mule" are THE jams.


Up and Down, Away! - The Rants (self-released, 2012)
The Rants were a Detroit/Ann Arbor based band in existence quite a while ago that never saw the recognition that they deserved. After releasing the full-length Spirit! in 2006 (it had been in the making for several years, I believe), they pretty much disappeared. Vocalist/songwriter/guitarist (in this band which featured a couple of songwriters) Ian Saylor released a solo record in 2010, but has otherwise been quiet. Little did I know that the band released a new album in 2012 via iTunes, with no promotion behind it at all (though, with the possibility of releasing it on vinyl on 2013). Up and Down, Away! is pretty much classic Rants: upbeat 60s pop with chimy and jangly guitars and exquisite melodies. The main difference is that this record is less precise and more jammy (in a good way) and loose (also in a good way) than prior Rants stuff.  Up and Down, Away! sounds like a group of dudes hanging out in the basement drinking beer and banging out some garage tunes with awesome melodic sensibility. This is a party record, and it rules hard.


Dwell & Dwell EP - Snooze (self-released, 2012)
My friend (and wife of Alec Jensen) Emily Jane Powers and her friend Andrew have self-released an indie pop EP under the moniker Snooze, and it is excellent. Moody, gorgeous and relatively upbeat in places, Dwell & Dwell would fit perfectly on Slumberland Records. Tight, simply drumming, quality boy/girl vocals singing catchy melodies and the jangliest of guitars, I really can't wait to see what these two do next.