Local Music Singles Roundup: November 2024
Local Music Reviews
By the time this issue hits the streets, the world will be deep into the 2025 Grammy nomination buzz, debating who will win Album of the Year or whether the awards have lost all integrity once again. But here in SLC, we’ll be focused on the right thing: sick local bands making sick music. Below are six more incredible tracks to dig into.
Ashbury Yacht Club
“Stumble (Hey Th0t)”
Self-Released
Street: 02.24
Ashbury Yacht Club = (Lumpy and the Dumpers + Flipper) x Prison Affair
Perhaps one of the most unassignable in micro-genre hell of punk music is Ashbury Yacht Club on their single “Stumble (Hey Th0t),” a track that is, in essence, a grab-bag of punk and hardcore tropes, blended together into a quite suave and grimy three-and-a-half minutes. Driven by an incredibly catchy bass groove under a blanket of fuzz, “Stumble (Hey Th0t)” stands shoulder-to-shoulder with underground hits from the likes of Hoax, though with slightly dialed back vocals. One of the biggest charms of this track is the unpredictable lead guitar, which only comes through to play a few stinging riffs, then backing off for the bass to shine through. Just when you think they’re fading off, they grab you by the shirt collar to belt out death metal vocals and then cut out the lights. “Stumble (Hey Th0t)” has made it into my musical rotation and I only hope to hear more from this group in the future. –wphughes
Camp Ghost
“Decompose”
Self Released
Street: 09.27
Camp Ghost = Pinegrove + Pierce The Veil
A Midwest emo song at heart, “Decompose” opens with subtle dueling acoustic guitar parts. Just as quickly as we are kept in this acoustic pocket, we are thrown with violent whiplash into absolutely disgusting (in a good way) screamo, visceral vocals that reminds me of something you might hear on a Pierce The Veil record. The second release this year for the group (after their EP Flowers), there is a clear quality in the track that convinced the band to drop this as their second-ever single. Coming off as anthemic, if this is your introduction to the band, it feels like all you would need if you’re gonna get down with them. Something compels me to mention that almost an air of Car Seat Headrest could be sensed (but that may just be myself imagining things). If you got a fever for some Midwest emo, this may be the cure you were looking for this whole time. –Jake Fabbri
English Budgies
“Witches Brew”
Self-Released
Street: 10.03
English Budgies = Death Cab For Cutie + Counting Crows
Provo indie soft-rockers English Budgies are making the local live performance rounds ahead of their appropriately seasonal spooky single “Witches Brew.” Seemingly prolific, the Budgies may merely be dabbling in some autumnal playfulness, or may already be brewing up more tracks to offer their listeners. Either way, this brew is brisk and fragrant, no matter what comes after. There’s little especially Halloween-y about the single, which is lightly moody yet melodic and energetic with a few brief ambient moments. The vocals are buttery smooth and sometimes suffused with a touch of sadness. Lyrically, “Witches Brew” is rich with visuals of the ordeals and misdeeds of the Puritan era crucible and the stygian suffering of bygone times. The track is crisp cut—just over three minutes in length without a bit of excess flourish. Perhaps pair this little sonic trick-or-treat with a locally crafted pumpkin ale, and your sweater-clad Saturday evening will be complete. –Paige Zuckerman
Gonk
“Big Pig”
Self-Released
Street: 08.24
Gonk = Snõõper + Together Pangea
Über-stylized and borderline nostalgic, Gonk’s newest release “Big Pig” pulls on the heart strings of 2010s garage-punk fans while oozing a more contemporary egg-punk warmth. The local four piece—led by sole songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Alex Sandoval—have done something a little different with this release. Traditionally, Sandoval has written and recorded every piece of Gonk’s discography using electronic drum samples, and playing every instrument himself. “Big Pig” is the group’s first “live” drop, meaning every band member is playing their respective instrument on the recording. In the egg-punk world, it’s not overwhelmingly common for releases to be live renditions, but I must say, “Big Pig” rips! The energy of the live drums and clear instrumental synergy of the group as a whole gives even the most couch-locked punk FOMO and proves wholeheartedly that this band is going places. If you enjoy the tangibly fervent energy of Together Pangea’s live performances, or the precise and drive-y cerebral instrumentation of Snooper, there’s a good chance you’ll love “Big Pig” by Gonk. –CJ Hanck
John Elwood Morgan
“Linger”
Self-Released
Street: 09.30
John Elwood Morgan = Willi Carlisle + Avett Brothers + Dead Man Winter
There’s something to be said for being unassuming and unexpected, this indie/folk song is both. Every element of the song was smart and well done, but then, after a few listens what I thought was sharp became a razor. When a song has an easing quality, its depth might be overlooked. “Linger” starts out like many similar singer-songwriter fare—Morgan picking an acoustic guitar, playing harmonica and singing—but the subtly dynamic presentation of the voices and instrumentation brings the listener closer and builds not with crescendo, but like moving water knowing its way down the river. “One by one, they come along like the lyrics of a song you’ve never heard, yet somehow seem familiar, they greet you like an old friend that you didn’t know you had.” Music conveying wanderlust has a place in my heart, and this drips with questions and comfort; not an easy balance, and John Elwood Morgan makes it sound easy. I’m looking forward to the EP release on November 25. –James Orme
Seize the Fire
“Nightlight”
Self-Released
Street: 09.21
Seize the Fire = Tyler Glenn + Kal Mara
Teasing a glimpse of their upcoming LP as the duo behind Seize the Fire, a new Salt Lake City-based alternative band, long-time best friends Dalan D and Marcus Augenstein, give us a wistful and incandescent debut single produced by Kal Mara. On “Nightlight,” they join the emerging catalog of ex-Mormon ballads, evoking both old and new classics like Tyler Glenn’s “Midnight” and David Archuleta’s “Hell Together.” Abandoning “drinking up all of that Kool-aid” and being “sick from the pews on a Sunday,” they sing about their dark night of the soul, while sleeping with the lights on. Released the same month as Hulu’s “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” the track pulls back celestial curtains to reveal the deeply personal backstage journey of a faith transition that’s missing from the interview confessionals of our state’s most controversial new reality TV stars—plus all the accompanying joy, sorrow and nostalgia in between (but none of the swinging). –Arthur Diaz
Read more Local Music Singles Roundups:
Local Music Singles Roundup: October 2024
Local Music Singles Roundup: September 2024