Isaac Dunbar – Freshmen Year
Vibey and smooth, Isaac Dunbar is fitting right into a scene of American Indie acts producing top quality, emotional, guitar led music. The lyrics are incredibly self-aware and present a man with a wisdom beyond his years as Dunbar is only 15, incredible. A major gripe with recent-indie rock has been that it’s so rooted in the past and stale, but clearly the Americans haven’t been suffering with the same problem as us Brits, Isaac knows exactly when to switch it up. When this song launches into a beat-drop of sorts, from acoustic guitar to drums that sound more electronic than anything, it adopts an R&B sensibility too, showing that it’s not afraid to figure out and play with it’s identity. I adore this song, the lyrics are gorgeously carved out as a look into what it’s like to be a teen and that’s all backed up in a chill yet present musical journey.
CARDS – Right Time
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Like irresistible, instantaneous, funky beats? Here’s one for you.
Lyrically, ‘Right Time’ revels in simplicity with a feel of 00s alternative hits, think Gorillaz or Daft Punk with more soul. Better even, think a Fifa playlist from that same era. It’s summer, it’s laid back, it’s almost guaranteed to at least get your foot tapping. If this song was released by any big electronic act, indie band or DJ, it would be everywhere.
Don Babylon – Lose Sometimes
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I was shocked to read that these aren’t from Britain, after all they’re doing what I wish all of the boring British indie bands were. ‘Lose Sometimes’ melds riffage with bright guitars and lead it with seminal indie-rock vocals, it features everything that I think makes the genre so great, at a quality that so many bands are failing to meet. Don Babylon aren’t afraid to steer into punk either, making their understanding of what makes great music all the more clear. It may not be a song I remember come the end of the year, but I’m sure it will appeal to those of you that dig indie.
Ponte Pilas – Out Of My Head
For bands like Ponte Pilas, the music lives or dies on how exciting it sounds as so many bands fail to take rock and roll and make it sound like it belongs in a different era to the genres heyday. ‘Out Of My Head’ does just this, providing a vibrance and live wire nature meaning they have far more in common with the likes of The Hives than the older generation of rock and roll. This song doesn’t fail to deliver tasty guitar licks, catchy backing vocals and punchy drums, but one thing lads…. Cowbell (or wood block?!) was not needed at the end, it almost never is.
The Silver Lines – Roamer
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I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to press play on a young punk band and not hear a bad imitation of State Champs or The Story So Far. The Silver Linings are in and out in 2 minutes like all the best punk songs are, sounding like a mixture between Iggy Pop and Oasis but with a wonderfully snotty sound. They have everything that Slaves don’t. ‘Roamer’ is a youthful, biting punk jam, dipping it’s toes into hard-rock and leaving a great impact on the listener.
Please check out the artists using the links above, or alternatively through our embedded Spotify playlists below, which covers all acts highlighted on our Singles Only series. A big thanks to the bands for submitting, and as always we value your opinion, let us know what you think!
If you’re in a band and would like to be covered in our ‘Singles Only’ feature, please head to submithub.com for more information.