MINNESOTA SOUND REVIEWS - 4/16/2025
Reviews by: Alexandra Haynes, Writer @xalexonlinex
Edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner/Editor @PlaylistTC
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XINA “PURE POTENTIALITY”
Oh, this is everything. “PURE POTENTIALITY” by XINA is RnB-slash-modern industrial - incredibly metallic, yet soulful. It expertly blends noisy elements and supernatural synth tones with warm, silky, melodic vocals. There’s an off-kilter groove of mechanical sounds which grind against the composition until everything circuit-bends into eccentricity, stirring up all its parts together to combine into something fresh and compelling. Playfully dark and aesthetically transhuman (“Create your reality,” XINA sings,) this song was released as a single in February 2025 and is set to be on her upcoming EP, IRON X. XINA is an artist that just blows me away; I can’t wait to listen to the EP’s future tracks. I’d say this artist is one for fans of SOPHIE - imagine replacing SOPHIE’s hyperpop leanings with RnB, and you’ll be on the right track with envisioning XINA’s musical impact.
Guitar Band “Guitar Band No. 1”
With some delightful hot mic audio at the start of this recording, “Guitar Band No. 1” is a deliberately slow burning composition, pushing the boundaries of repetitive riffing and the effect it can have on the listener. You seem to grow accustomed quickly to their seemingly endless, stringy phrases, although the song develops intricacies oh so gradually that become easier to latch on to as time goes on. It feels as though you may never get a resolution to the musical edging (the most satisfying release is 15 minutes in, by the way) and when drums join the frey to drive the tempo, you’re brought back into the moment of continual tension. You become incredibly sensitive to every adjustment the musicians make, hyper-aware of the expected - and eventual - changes throughout. A guitar-led noise wall gains intensity, then tapers back, and gains on you again, but never loses that same core melody played throughout the maddening, but undeniably talented, nearly 18 minute track. The art rock experiment that is Guitar Band is played with an insanely impressive eight guitarists and two drummers, all weaving their thread into the noisy tapestry.
A Sunken Ship Irony “Heads or Tails”
“Heads or Tails” is an post- meet-cute indie folk narrative, reflecting on the choices made in long distance relationships and the emotions welling up below the surface of potential separation. Its an absolute and unashamed confrontation with loneliness, cradled beautifully by the vocal duet, harmonies which illustrate the protagonists as two sides of the same coin, the head and the tails. (The title has a more literal and very sentimental connection, too, described by singer-songwriters Josh and Ivy in their Minnesota Public Radio interview.) Insecurity is presented frankly with the song’s stripped back composition; the simple structure allows the listener to focus on the vocals singing slice-of-life poeticisms - “We’re like two crabs, they walk sideways but never ahead, so / There’s no forward progress, and you left me on read.” This song was released on A Sunken Ship Irony’s February 2025 release, the six track Tangled Smoke EP.
Gully Boys "Love Me 2"
Gully Boys have a super slick single on their hands with “Love Me 2,” released in February 2025. The mixing and mastering sound amazing, allowing the band’s precise instrumentation - tidy, aggressive drumming, funky, rapid basslines and playful riffs - to truly shine but not overpower the vocals, which tell a tale of misplaced affections and inadequate lovers. Gully Boys keep the spirit of pop punk well and truly alive, drenching theirs in grunge with grimy tones while never forgoing catchy hooks that turn up the party. Their skill is undeniable. The song’s accompanying music video serves revenge fantasy/indie horror, which only goes to embolden their message which, according to Gully Boys, was “shaped by the pain of heartbreak.”
The Thirsty Giants "Drowned"
The Thirsty Giants self-describe as “basement punk”; this is an especially well-suited label given that this song’s accompanying EP, THIRST A.D., was in fact recorded in a basement. This band repeatedly brings us real, raw, punk rock. It’s self-produced, clamoring, and skillful. The distortions are cranked up in “Drowned,” while its lyrics (touching on emotional overwhelm) are sung with a powerfully cracking voice. The rhythm section - bass and drums - complete the vibe, holding down a strong and sway-worthy tempo. “Drowned” straddles the line artistically between being devastatingly evocative and cathartic enough to heal the listener who relates.
Leslie Rich "Milkman"
Leslie Rich’s accent lightly penetrates his heartfelt and honeyed voice in “Milkman.” I was pleased to learn that this multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter is from across the pond like me, albeit our upbringings were in different countries - Rich is an Irish expat. This song showcases his vocal talents well, composed with just those smooth and strong vocals with an acoustic guitar, appropriately minimalist for this folksy tale. His songwriting is incredibly strong, capturing magical metaphors to invoke strong nostalgia and stirring emotions (“You joke around that that’s how you found me then / The milkman dumped me on the step / And if I was bad he would gladly take me back.”) The love that pours from sentimental chords and every long-held note of affection (“I belong to you / And you to me…”) is poignant each listen. This song was released on Rich’s HARDHARDLOVE Acoustic Sessions EP in October, 2024.
