#10 SLUMPED Last Day on Earth
Oakland isn’t the first place I think of when I think of warm, fuzzy alternative rock laced with grunge and injected with a heavy dose of Weezer (probably the band I swooned over the most in the 90s), but then SLUMPED came along with their record Last Day on Earth and changed all of that. This is a record that I’m gonna sing along to when I need good energy and heavy riffs to remind me that when all else fails in this insane, exploitative, violent, ridiculous world, people will still be making music that speaks to the good in humanity.
#9 ENUMCLAW Home in Another Life
Just like their older records, this is music for being emotionally vulnerable to. ENUMCLAW’s sound is angsty and honest, and their lyrics are unvoiced thoughts that could have come straight from my youth brain. I adore their watery riffs, even as they pull me inside rooms I usually keep the doors closed to. Vocalist Aramis Johnson strikes a perfect sonic balance between caring too much and not giving a fuck, that sweet spot where we sit for most of our lives trying to decide which path to take. The sounds on this album meander through indie rock, dream pop, shoegaze, grunge, and noise rock, blending it all into songs that sound both new and familiar at the same time. Home in Another Life is going to be getting heavy spins in our home on cold sunny mornings and grey rainy evenings.
#8 BUG BATH World Of Fools
As soon as the first tones of “Like a Memory” hit my synapses I knew BUG BATH’s World Of Fools was gonna be one of my favorite records of the year. This is a record that’s got everything I love about the alternative rock/grunge/indie sound that’s making a comeback right now. Soaring melodies, singable lyrics, infectious percussion, solid basslines, jangling riffs, a hint of tambourine, and an atmosphere that makes me want to lick and stick the little album art stamp into my next Columbia House order (if you’re a 90s teen you know what I’m talking about…I probably still owe them money). World Of Fools has me hooked on BUG BATH!
#7 SHOP DOG Pry
SHOP DOG is taking me somewhere a bit darker and more melancholy with their record Pry. This is a record to listen to when you’re ready to revel in the shit that’s fucking with your peace. The melodies will pull you out of whatever self-pitying mindset you’re in, remind you that it’s okay to be done with the bullshit, and help you move on. Pry has an epic, expansive sonic atmosphere and at the same time it’s raw and unfiltered like a band you’d go see in someone’s backyard.
#6 ROXY 2 Roxy
ROXY 2 is where the lines between alternative rock and shoegaze blur into one another, with a sound like an icicle dropping into an unfrozen lake. Clean, sharp, and crisp, and suddenly melting into concentric circles of layered, fuzzy melodies. Their record Roxy is one of those pieces of music that feel like it fills and takes over the room when you put it on, melodies washing over every surface and leaving you time and space to dream.
#5 THIN VEIL Temporary Motion
Angular riffs, dreamy vocals, and heavy drums take over my senses as I listen to THIN VEIL’s new record, Temporary Motion. It’s one of those records that I’m singing along to on my first listen, like I know it but it’s also brand new. And now that I’ve given it many spins, I can say with certainty that Temporary Motion is going to make a lasting impact on music in 2024 and beyond. “Receive” is one of my favorite songs of the year, no matter the genre. Thin Veil takes me on a ride with this release, from clean, melodic breakdowns to walls of relentless fuzz.
#4 AMERICAN CULTURE Hey Brother, It’s Been a While
While listening to this record I began to think about the 1st time I heard Primal Sream’s Vanishing Point and how it made me feel. Imagine if Mark E. Smith decided to create a Madchester project through the lens of early Beck the outcome might sound like “Hey Brother, It’s Been a While” . Every song on this record sounds different they all created with the passion that only American Culture has (This is a brief overview of a sensational record )! “Let It Go (feat. Midwife)” is a straight banger and very fucking addictive plus the video is RAD!
#3 MILLY Your Own Becoming
This collection of grunge-meets-indie rock-meets-shoegaze anthems transported me back to the underground shows I couldn’t go to in the early 90s because I was just a kid and I didn’t know about them. MILLY helped me re-live an era I missed but knew I loved. Melancholy guitar lullabies that shift into aching riffs and a wall of fuzz in seconds. On their new record, Your Own Becoming, they’ve taken a turn for the even heavier, and I love it. This record leans into angular distortion, driving bass, and crashing percussion more than their last record, but keeps the sweet, gentle vocals that float above it all. Stand-out tracks for me are “Blocked on Everything,” “Spilling Ink,” and “Bittersweet Mary,” but the whole record plays like butter from start to finish to start again. Listen for yourself.
#2 URIKA’S BEDROOM Big Smile, Black Mire
This unassuming group of slackers walks on stage and next thing I know I’m completely captivated by their dreamy sound. They recently released their debut full-length Big Smile, Black Mire — you can get it here — and it’s just as brilliant as I imagined it would be. It’s strange and new and otherworldly, but it’s also comforting like a deja vu that reminds me how much I need this 90s-esque alt/indie rock sound in my life. I could’ve come down after a rave listening to their song “XTC” at 6 A.M. in 1999, but I can also listen to it while cooking breakfast for my kids in 2024. Their sound is an enigma; I wouldn’t necessarily call it shoegaze, but it has the same shimmer, and I wouldn’t necessarily call it trip hop, but it has similar vibes. Whatever I call urika’s bedroom, Big Smile, Black Mire is a record I’m gonna be listening to on repeat.
#1 SCARLET HOUSE Homecoming
Not gonna lie, it was a hard choice over who would top this list. But as soon as I heard SCARLET HOUSE’s Homecoming, I knew this band was doing something special. The haunting vocals floating like spirit vox over the rhythmic, chugging riffs, all gracefully carried by heavy, driving basslines…yeah, this is it. The Smashing Pumpkins-esque riff opening “Wanted” had me sold immediately, and I’ve been hitting replay on Homecoming ever since. “Blind” is probably my favorite song on this record, the riffs hit me in my chest and the vocals take me out of my body all at the same time. Scarlet House is bridging the sounds of the 90s with the sounds of the 2020s and they’ve created a release that we’re going to be listening to for years to come. This release is everything I’m excited about with alternative rock in 2024.
