Song of the Day

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June 2, 2022

The Suffers: “Don’t Bother Me”

By: Jack Anderson

Without traumatizing yourself too much, try to tally up how many major moments of turmoil our society’s experienced over the past half decade. It’s a lot. And without trying to sound too hippie-dippie, we’re not going to heal with more hatred. Although she primarily applies it to the constant grind of songwriting, recording, and touring, Kam Franklin of The Suffers shares a similar philosophy, that “it starts and ends with love”.

Tomorrow this one-of-a-kind Houston soul octet drops their third studio full-length It Starts With Love. This record reinvents The Suffers’ sound by exploring the retro synths and drum programming of the 1980s, like a modern day take on the Miami Vice soundtrack. But thanks to mixing from Grammy winner Adrian Quesada and mastering from Chris Longwood (who’s worked with both Khruangbin and Parliament-Funkadelic), It Starts With Love rounds out nicely with the group’s existing catalogue. It Starts With Love comes out tomorrow, and The Suffers play this Saturday at The Mohawk with fellow Houstonian Fat Tony. Between Franklin’s fierce vocals, lyrics grounded in America’s afflictions, and Latin-inspired percussion and horns (all of which can be heard – and seen – in “Don’t Bother Me”), the unbeatable energy of It Starts With Love absolutely demands a comfy set of dancing shoes.


Episodes

December 8, 2023

nolo: “Appetite”

If you’re looking to get out of the house this evening and support some local music without just padding the band’s drink tab, we’ve got just the thing for you. Consider this our official nod to nolo, an Austin alt-rock quartet whose four members first met up in rehab a half decade back. Don’t worry; […]

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December 7, 2023

Honey Hideouts: “Goodbyes”

By nature, the id of a creative is often occupied by abstract fragments, waiting to be manifested. But sometimes the spark to bring something new to fruition only arrives with a change of scenery. And a recent case of such comes courtesy of Denmark’s Markus Artved. An accomplished producer who’s lent his ear to Lukas […]

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December 6, 2023

Uncle Lucius: “All the Angelenos”

If you missed out on some quality family time during Thanksgiving, we’ve got some musical kin for you who’ll help clean out any leftovers. We’re talking about our dear Uncle Lucius, an Americana rock endeavor spearheaded by Kevin Galloway. A beloved Austin institution since their 2006 debut Something They Ain’t, the fellas actually considered putting […]

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December 5, 2023

Gary Devlin: “Waves”

We’ll never deny the merits of lyrical therapy. Then again, the staying power and worldwide accessibility of meditative genres like classical and jazz has little to do with curated words. And more often than not with that universality, comes positivity. Cut to El Paso-born, Arlington-based songwriter-guitarist Gary Devlin. Sure, Gary’s got the makings of a great […]

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December 4, 2023

The Tibbs: “Ain’t It Funny”

We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again; the retro-soul renaissance of the last 10-15 years has been one of the most refreshing trends to break into the mainstream. And it’s been especially intriguing to hear countries outside of the U.S. tackle that classic Motown/Stax sound with their own takes on those brassy, upbeat, […]

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December 1, 2023

Chief Cleopatra: “December All Year” (Live in Studio 1A)

Apologies in advance to all the Scrooges out there, but the winter holidays are on our doorstep. So if you haven’t already, prepare for in-store speaker systems, radio spots, TV commercials, and hell even carolers to give us our annual fill of festive favorites. And while the Bing Crosbys and Brenda Lees of generations past […]

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November 30, 2023

Cinnamontal: “P.R.P.P.P.”

If the corporate powers that be haven’t already ushered in the official start of Christmastime, December 1st will certainly flip the switch. So might as well ignite the yule log early with some new, locally-sourced aural ornaments, starting today with Denise Murray. Better known by her nickname Cinnamon, and by extension, her creative handle Cinnamontal, […]

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November 29, 2023

Olivia Nowadays: “Damn This Is Real Bad”

In the era of the phonograph, when sound quality was essentially nonexistent, whatever got cut to the cylinder is whatever crackled out. Nowadays, there’s a huge divide in listener tastes when it comes to fidelity. On one side of the spectrum you’ve got audiophiles who demand nothing less than ultra-refined digital masters that make it […]

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