psych-soul

Grandma Mousey: “When I’m Not There”

Ever since we first caught sight of them in 2022, we’ve continued to make room for Grandma Mousey in our wheelhouse, even after their initial nest expanded from three members to five. Yeah, Granny M’s grown on us so much over the past couple of years, that we don’t mind ratting on their talent again at all.

Because between endeavorous concert stage props, Apollo program-era influences spanning from psych and classic rock to jazz, a humble refusal to take themselves too seriously, and an ongoing obsession with grasshoppers in their song titles (see the previous point), this Austin indie rock lab experiment feels like an anthropomorphic version of Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum, and Phooey, spacey tastes included. And coming off their third studio installment Couch Surfing from last October, they’ve stirred local show rodents into a modest following…at least enough to keep the Orkin man from shuttin’ ’em down.

Now, a half decade out of their hole, Grandma Mousey’s stickin’ their not-so-elderly indie rock whiskers into something that’s a little less Mothers of Inventions and a little more your grandma’s speed – Motown-inspired modern rock. And that’s on behalf of “When I’m Not There”, the lead single from Grandma Mousey’s upcoming EP Slime Community – out this Summer. Where Vanilla Fudge famously put a decelerated, painfully melodramatic twist on The Supremes, Grandma Mousey maintains the powerhouse harmonies, infectious hand claps, upbeat tempo, and major chord progressions of soul’s golden era, albeit into strange places of softly sweet, paradisal psychedelia thanks to some choice synth swells, liquid bass lines, and far out lead guitar.

In terms of Grandma Mousey’s gig next Friday at Anderson Mill Pub? We hope you’ll be there. To Grandmother’s mouse we go!

Helado Negro: “Gemini and Leo”

Raised in sunny South Florida against a backdrop of ’80s club bangers and pivotal ’90s hip-hop, multi-instrumentalist Roberto Carlos Lange’s found sturdy legs in Brooklyn for his Latin-leaning experimental electronic folk project Helado Negro. The pursuit that began with 2009’s Awe Owe has since earned Lange several awards and considerable critical acclaim, including a widely popular NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert from 2017 and most recently with Helado Negro’s highly-lauded 2019 LP This Is How You Smile.

Tomorrow Helado Negro ventures even further into his bold exploration of soundscapes with his seventh studio full-length, Far In, an eclectic collection of exotic tones and dance-friendly bops. So needless to say, Helado Negro’s horoscope is looking pretty auspicious, and you can get an early gaze into Far In with one of the record’s most impressive star-crossed genre-blender, “Gemini and Leo”!

The Los Sundowns: “Al Final de La Tarde” (feat. Alex Chavez)

For more than two decades, Grammy-winning guitarist and producer Beto Martinez has imprinted Austin with his Latin-leaning outputs: Grupo Fantasma, Money Chicha, and Brownout. And though psychedelia’s always been a major factor in Martinez’s formulas, with some conceptualizing on behalf of Dos Santos drummer Daniel Villarreal, the two have dawned on a new Latin psych-soul project, The Los Sundowns.

In a little over a month The Los Sundowns will release their debut self-titled EP, stacked with a roster of talented collaborators from Villarreal and Martinez’s combined rolodex and issued through Beto’s new label Lechehouse Music. And while we all anticipate auspiciousness from The Los Sundowns when drops on February 12th, the group’s tided us over with their lead single, featuring fellow Dos Santos veteran Alex Chavez, “Al Final de La Tarde”!