FAVORITE MINNESOTA EPS OF 2024
Reviews by: Alexandra Haynes, Writer @xalexonlinex
Andrew Perrizo, Owner @MelodicNoiseMedia
Every year I say I'm going to start this project long before I actually do. 2024 was just full of so many great Minnesota projects that I couldn't stop listening long enough to sit down and write about them. The honorable mentions list contains a lot of artists I really wanted to write full reviews of, but just ran out of time and words. Let's hope 2025 has as many awesome projects.
Alexandra’s Favorite EPs:
The Seated Heats “Without A Groove”
This EP is so fucking cool, start to finish. It’s a callback to the never forgotten era of danceable, changemaking synth pop, but it gets smothered here in rambunctious rock’n’roll influences to massive effect. This collection of six tracks is funky and unafraid to layer ye ol’ synthesizer with gritty riffs a-plenty and big rocking vocals. Tracks like “Ostensible Analysis” scratch an itch I didn’t know I had. The bold instrumentation partnering effortlessly with cool synth melodies explode together in the EP’s final track, “First Hand Account,” but tangle beautifully on every single song. This is soundtrack material, or, at least, should be the soundtrack to your next Terminator chase/vampire blood rave/Matrix confrontation.
Favorite Tracks: Better From A Distance, Ostensible Analysis
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Orchid Club “Orchid Club”
This self-titled EP is groovy psych-punk through and through. Never mellow, but hypnotically absorbing all the same, Orchid Club linger on indulgent instrumentation with beautifully crafted chord progressions, playful percussion, and deliciously audible bass. This is for fans of hardcore, psychrock, and punk-rock all in one - the tones throughout the five tracks will never disappoint, nor will the riffing or the tempo changes. At times jazzy and at ALL times brilliant, this EP is rowdy, satisfying, and so much fun to listen to.
Favorite Tracks: Life Takes Time, Freak Disease
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E.T. “Even In Space, Colonizers Be Damned”
E.T.’s synthpunk lights me up every time. Aggro for a cause, a righteous anger fuels this project - E.T. has that true, sociopolitically aware punk backbone that makes them so impactful. “Even In Space, Colonizers Be Damned” speaks for itself and speaks loudly. Each track is upheld by futuristic, thumping electronic beats with a common tempo tying them together. The soundscapes are doomy in a dark Sci-Fi way. All three songs feature poetic, violent, and repetitive lyrics as hypnotic synth melodies loop and phase in and out of each other. “LARVA LEAKS,” my personal favorite, has killer melodies at play and comes in hot right from the start. The metaphors in the song conjure brutal imagery - E.T. do not shy away from triggering disgust when they shout, over and over, “Burst the seams/Larva leaks” in reference to getting something out from inside of you (the “fascist creep,” or our implicit biases and devolving ideals.) Their vocals get extra twisted up on Barren Part I and II, distorted robotically as they lament on an apocalyptic reality and personal collapse. This EP is another banger of a release from this duo - it stands out for being a multifaceted, riotous 11 minutes, 12 seconds of sound that I keep coming back to, to feel, to anguish, and to dance.
Favorite Track: LARVA LEAKS
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Andrew’s Favorite EP’s:
Neighbor Dog "Ozzy"
Ozzy is a jangly emo/punk delight. The whole album is a wonderfully cathartic listen, with the vocals shouted over twinkly guitar riffs and crashing percussion. The EP builds in intensity until the final song "Shutupshutupshutup." Likely my most played track of 2024, I highly recommend the cathartic release that comes from imaging who/whatever is pissing you off and screaming along to "Shutupshutupshutup."
Favorite Track: Shutupshutupshutup
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Ber "Room For You"
Room For You is a fantastic EP, even if it doesn't feature my favorite Ber song released this year. The EP expresses the wide range of emotions experienced during a relationship and after it ends. From dealing with self doubt of defining a relationship on "It's Impressive" to the self confidence of leaving a relationship in the past on "Better Man," Ber sings her inner thoughts for us to enjoy. My favorite song on the EP is the laid-back guitar pop track "Whatever Forever," which sings about how it doesn't matter what you are doing, as long as you're doing it with the right person, you're going to have a good time.
Favorite Track: Whatever Forever
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emo daycare "28 Club"
Leaning more towards the pop punk side of emo, emo daycare's 28 Club is a fun listen. The tone is immediately set in the opener "Fight! Win!", when the first thing we hear is the tail end of a story that seems to include some form of mischief, then laughter. The EP has bright guitar and peppy rhythm through out. This is slightly contrasted by the lyrics that deal with underachieving and not living up to expectations set by others. My favorite track is "Anita Cheeseburger," a nostalgic look back at both the good and bad times that you had “before everyone got too fuckin tired to do shit.”
Favorite Track: Anita Cheeseburger
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K.Raydio "The Magician"
K.Raydio is consistently one of the best song writers and vocalists out there. On multiple tracks of The Magician she demonstrates her amazing flow while layering her singing and crooning, creating what feels like a push and pull with the production. The lyrics feel personal and the production feels intimate, as if we are listening to K.Raydio narrate journal entries and there just happens to be an intricate beat underneath.
Favorite Track: Coldblooded
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Admiral Fox "Thanks For Letting Me Know"
Consisting of just two fantastic tracks, Thanks for Letting Me Know is melancholic and emotional. The combination of sadness and frustration in the narrative on "security guard at the hospital" always gets me caught up in my emotions. These feelings are reflected perfectly in the dreary, down tempo instrumentation. Throw this EP on whenever you need to microdose sorrow.
Favorite Track: security guard at the hospital
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Another Heaven "See You Later"
Just put this EP on and vibe out to the nostalgic grunge instrumentals that somehow border on prog-rock. I tend to be a lyric first listener, but with every song on this EP I found myself getting lost in the awesome guitar tone, and only getting the general idea of the lyrics. The laid-back, repetitive lyrical delivery and fuzz filled instrumentation creates an almost hypnotic effect, causing a time dilating phenomenon that will have you putting See You Later on repeat.
Favorite Track: Painkillers
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Honorable Mentions:
Bathtub Cig Good Mourning, I Love You
Chutes MIRAGE
Critterthing Colors/Go To Sleep
Daisycutter Hates You
Fragged Out Rage EP
I Want To Eat Lava And God Cannot Stop Me Do You Care?
Kat Kirschmann Kat and the Kodachromes: Popular Problems
Night Jobs Shop Dog
Popstar OBSCENE
Pyrrhic Victories Tunnel of Love
Reticent Four Songs
Sonic Sea Turtles Orbit Never Found Me
Thanks you, I'm Sorry Repeating Threes
The Draco Volans The Draco Volans
