MINNESOTA SOUND REVIEWS - 2/26/25
Reviews by: Alexandra Haynes, Writer @xalexonlinex
Edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner/Editor @PlaylistTC
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Orchid Club “Flypaper”
Orchid Club invites us into their grunge-laden groove with “Flypaper” from their self-titled EP, which dropped in August 2024. It’s the last track, a delightful send off to a fantastic first collection of songs from the band. Their jazz-punk flavor, with a spoken word vocal style and gritty instrumentals that aren’t afraid to be tantalizingly fashionable, is showcased in full capacity. I would love to hear them on a bill with Omaha locals, Pagan Athletes, as I feel their sounds are wholly complimentary, especially with their storytelling similarities. The lyrics to “Flypaper” are heart wrenching poetry, and the vivid simile of a life with depression feeling like a slow death attached to flypaper really sticks with you (if you pardon the pun.)
Texture Freq "Head Machine"
Breakneck pacing and rowdy, chanted lyrics drowning in noisy instrumentation are hallmarks of Texture Freq’s brand of hardcore. We are brought a chaotic catharsis with “Head Machine,” the final track on the band’s What May Come EP, released in September 2024. Texture Freq’s melodic slowdowns offer the listener the chance to take a breath, though these breaks are short and unforgiving as you get quickly thrown back into their whirlwind of sound.
Rad Owl "Tent City Dream"
“Tent City Dream” dives into big sound here, with their drummer holding down a hot, feverish tempo throughout. The instrumentals are mean while the vocals stay clean; Rad Owl have a metalcore leaning to their punk rock which makes it easy to see why the album this song is featured on was called Rage Gracefully. This track addresses the systemic issues that the average person ignores, empathising with their desire for apparent normalcy while imploring us instead to “defy,” to “give,” and to “embrace.”
Night Jobs "Bag of Purple Weed"
In a beautiful tribute to a beloved dog, “Bag of Purple Weed” tells a sentimental story of when a drug pick-up became an accidental adoption, but Night Jobs didn’t “tell the cats / [he] should’ve told the cats.” Highly emotive, raw in narrative and in vocals, this track from the Shop Dog EP (released in October 2024) is evocative - colorfully illustrative and sure to make you wish for the good ending to the story, where man’s best friend gets to “ride shotgun, the whole way home / head hangin’ out the window, ears flappin’ in the wind.” The pop punk (erring more on the side of punk) riffs that underscore the sentimental tale, with wonderful drumming to match, gives “Bag of Purple Weed” the perfect nostalgic canvas.
Floodwater Angel "Goth Girl Dream House"
“Goth Girl Dream House” has a psychedelic, woozy quality, diving into jammy and indulgent riffs and fills while smothering itself in multi-generational rock’n’roll influences. For fans of sprawling soundscapes and songs that have that vintage cool, the apparently separated/on indefinite hiatus Floodwater Angel have nailed something timeless and larger than life with a contemporary flair. The lyrics are a poetic, psychological exploit with haunting effects, while the band shows off their prowess. “Goth Girl Dream House” is the 6th track on their diverse, self-titled LP, which was released in June 2024.
The Drop Dead (now known as Peony Park) "If in the end"
A recent rebrand in January has The Drop Dead going by a new name - Peony Park. Released before the change, “If in the end” is featured on the now even more appropriately titled The Peony Park EP, which dropped in June 2024. This song weaves mellow verses together with the pining, spirited pain of its rising choruses, where anticipatory loss reigns supreme. It blends an impactful emo through line with post-punk, drafty melodies.
