Muet flex, Zinnia unload and The Fame get lippy in a predictably quiet post-SXSW/Junos Roundup. Sssshhhh! Don’t wake the publicists!
1 Coming up with a good band name is hard: Just ask anyone who’s had to do it. Now, I’m not sure if Chicago post-punk trio Muet have a good name. It kinda looks like suet, which is gross, and it’s the French version of mute, which makes them seem kinda pretentious. But I guess it’s dark and weird and intriguing, which seems to be what they’re going for, based on their video for their ominous single Muscle. So maybe it’s not a bad name after all. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “Muet is the sound of American Noir. Sonically defiant art Rock sung under the shadow of a long brim hat. Deliberate dissonance and heartbreaking melody are stitched together beneath sodium light with tales of the tragic, the romantic, and the bizarre.” A long-brim hat?
2 Some things you need to know. Some things you’re better off not knowing. The story behind Toronto art-pop outfit Zinnia’s single Bullets probably belongs in the latter category. But the cathartic and climactic tune itself — singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rachael Cardiello’s latest preview of debut album Sensations in Two Dot — is definitely something you should know about. And now you do. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “There are statistics that had always seemed far fetched and distant when I was young. As I’ve gotten older I’ve watched those statistics very much become a reality for the women in my life. Bullets was written four years ago on an old upright at my mom’s house in Montana. I’ve carried it with me since then and sifted it through many arrangements and band settings. Though written in response to specific events, it has been heartbreaking to see the song remain relevant over these past years as the same struggles appear in the lives of those close and far.” And right here:
3 Fame may be fleeting. But The Fame — a fresh-faced indie-rock band from Toronto — are persistent. Late last year they shared their first single Wide Awake in this space. Now they’re back with the followup Cherry Lipstick, a chunky midtempo alt-anthem with a big power-chord chorus and plenty of swagger. SAYS THE PRESS RELEASE: “A blast from the past that sounds like the future. A song about being young in the world of today, Cherry Lipstick draws heavily from our 90s alt-rock inspirations. We wanted to make something that anyone listening can relate to.” Pucker up, buttercup:
