A selection of new and/or relevant indie/rock tracks that have recently left an impression on us. For the full playlist click here.
Sssstephen! – “Day Trip”
Life’s good; you are walking on the beach, slightly ahead of your friends, lightly hungover, and you remember every good moment of your life faintly, like a memorable story you’d heard when you were a kid. There’s music playing in your ears in radio mode, and it switches to “Day Trip” by Sssstephen! and you just HAVE to pause and take it all in.
The tucked-back vocals, guitars breathing softly right in the centre of the mix, and the drums hanging out way in the back create a tension so frail yet so divine. Lo-fi techniques adjacent to the delicate ambient atmosphere paint a story in morning dew. It’s there. It lingers. It’s gone. But you remember.
Noralyn – “Summerland”
Brisbane-based Noralyn’s “Summerland” shines like crude gold in the sun. Light arrangement, airy vocals, and almost weightless melodies free the listener to drift into their own worlds with Noralyn’s voice floating in the background.
“Summerland” carries innocence that’s enhanced by simple lyrics and strings that amplify emotions, leading you back to the first time you fell in love. The track’s raw, unpolished mix elevates its appeal while the chorus finds its place in memory.
Ephemera Veil – “Magician”
“Magician”, the second track on Ephemera Veil’s debut EP MomentuM, floats on soft piano lines, slowly entering the deep ends, first with calming, rustic guitars and then quickening the pace with a steady drum rhythm that’s grounded by vocalist Alexandra’s static vocal melody.
Exploring emotions that come with free will and the battles we choose every day, “Magician” emerges as a triumph. It shows strength in knowing that showing up every day and breaking the chains that shackle us in itself is a gratifying act of resistance and, simultaneously, peace.
