I have noticed that all of my recommendations so far lie squarely in the indie genre (if that can be called a genre). But listen, it’s seasonal, okay? Fall and especially November is the time to get a little sad and reflective. For this installment of the column, I have a very milquetoast selection that I hope you’ll find heartfelt instead of boring.
“下了两天雨” which translates to “It rained for two days,” is by Hong Kong band my little airport; one of my favorite Hong Kong indie bands. the vocals on this song are beautiful and delicate, and they compliment the reverb-heavy, almost dream-pop guitar. I do have to admit that this column is not the first to hear my praises for this track—I did show Mandarin teacher Ms. Hung the band first.
“The Mattachine Society” is by The Aluminum Group, and the closest band to their sound is Stereolab’s synth-y, avant-pop warmth. The track sounds very acoustic and very jangly. It really reminds me of Belle and Sebastian too—the twee sound is perfect for this bittersweet November.
“What SNL Stands For” by Don Lennon is a bittersweet romp from the former The Umpteens lead singer’s solo career. It’s witty and topical, which I think is why I like it so much—it’s definitely a product of its time. I’m not exactly sure what Sophistipop is anymore, but this dreamy Bostonian track has managed to nail it perfectly.
Almost Charlie’s song “The Monster and Frankenstein” is twee and sinister, just how a perfect November track should be. There’s a point in this song where it swells to this almost-shoegaze-y interlude, and it is completely wasted if it isn’t part of the soundtrack for some 2000s coming-of-age movie. It reminds me of my all-time favorite movie, “About a Boy,” and the masterful soundtrack done by British folk outfit Badly Drawn Boy.
To track down the musicians behind this next track, I had to go beyond a simple Google search and to glean any information I had to check out Rate Your Music and their Bandcamp. To my knowledge, R.W. Hedges is a folk duo based in London, and their track “Best Laid Plans” deserves so much more acclaim and attention than it currently receives. It is composed perfectly and just screams English countryside. I actually mistook them for Fleet Foxes the first time I heard them, which reveals a little bit about them and a lot about me.
Check out the Spotify playlist here: <iframe style=”border-radius:12px” src=”https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/0Tmdk2yjzAm3AeSoJNAPzd?utm_source=generator” width=”100%” height=”352″ frameBorder=”0″ allowfullscreen=”” allow=”autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture” loading=”lazy”></iframe>
