Melodic Tonic, vol. 8

Happy Monday from under this pile of new music I’ve been swimming in the last few weeks!

Summer is one of our busiest seasons here at The Revue, thanks to festivals nearly every weekend. While we aren’t complaining about seeing so much live music, it cuts into the time we can spend exploring new recorded music. That’s why this week’s Melodic Tonic includes not just some upcoming singles but a few recently released gems that escaped our radar while we’ve been festival hopping.

Grace Love & The True Loves

Hold on to your proverbial hat, because Grace Love & the True Loves will blow it clear into next week. This 9-piece soul group from Seattle has been making waves in the Pacific Northwest lately. With the release their debut album on vinyl later this fall, they stand poised to cause a stir worldwide. With her sass and skill (not to mention the tight backing band whose infectious rhythms make it impossible not to dance), Grace Love is guaranteed to move you. This is definitely a band to watch. They have released a few singles off the upcoming album, and they’re both so good that you’re getting a double dose of sweet Seattle soul to start your week:

“Fire”

“Say What You Gotta Say”

Official links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | YouTube

EZTV – “Trampoline”

We featured Brooklyn-based trio EZTV earlier this summer and they authored one of the most interesting and amusing Artiste 5, and they’ve quickly become one of our favourites. This music is immediately accessible: plenty of no-frills indie rock stripped of extraneous production so that the beauty of the sound is free to shine. And shine it does. There’s a sunny quality to the newest single, “Trampoline,” from their Calling Out album released last week on Captured Tracks Releases.

Official links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | YouTube

Nic Hessler – “Into the Twilight”

The debut album from 23-year-old Southern California native Nic Hessler is full of bright, energetic, meticulously crafted lo-fi indie pop. You wouldn’t know this is his first release because it is a solid collection of polished songs that belie his young age. Hessler spent the last five years recovering from a sudden onset of Guillain-Barré Syndrome, a condition that left his extremities temporarily paralyzed. During this period he continued writing and recording, finally releasing Soft Connections in March on Captured Tracks. Here are two standout songs from the album:

“Into the Twilight”

“I Feel Again”

Official links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | YouTube

Kid Wave – “Best Friend”

For a band of twenty-somethings born after the grunge era, Kid Wave are well-versed in the art of delivering authentic grunge-rock vibes amid driving melodies and fierce pop hooks. The London-based Swedish/Australian/British quartet isn’t going for a retro throwback sound. Instead they have created a fresh sound that harkens back to ‘90s grunge and shoegaze but without its introspective sullenness. Lead vocalist Lea Emmery has a softer tone than her grunge predecessors (more Tanya Donnelly than Courtney Love), and this gives Kid Wave a fantastic balance of dreamy pop vocals on the surface with plenty of jangly guitars as a foundation. Their debut album, Wonderlust, released June 1 on Heavenly Recordings.