Album of the Month - abysskiss

Wisconsin's Disq put out their debut album "Collector" in the early part of 2020 to international acclaim. Full of youthful exuberance and crafting whip-smart indie-rock, punk and power-pop, the Madison four-piece forged one of the strongest debut albums of recent memory and are currently working on the follow-up. After an A-listing at 6 Music and selling out key UK dates last year only to see their trip over cancelled due to the pandemic, the band return today with the brand new video for album highlight, "Gentle".

The band today also share a remix of of the track by draag me, the alter-ego of Zack Schwartz from SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE, their Saddle Creek labelmates.

Chris Adams - the Los Angeles via Oakland producer/songwriter/multi-hyphenate known as Pendant has signed to Saddle Creek. To celebrate, he’s released a new song, “Blood Rite,” a gleaming rave-infused, pop track with dark undertones, and along with it, a live performance from his recent Doomin’ Sun Fest appearance curated by Bachelor. The performance takes you from his LA apartment, onto his beloved Motor Bike (which you’ll see more of), and to the beach. Watch here. On the track Adams notes:

"I wrote Blood Rite as an attempt to reckon with my past, unveiling traumas from my childhood and connecting them to the person I see myself as today. I wanted to track the ways in which I’m bound to my past for better and for worse - the memories that haunt me make me who I am just as much as the sentimental ones. It all runs through my blood concurrently and guides me through my life."

His debut album, Through A Coil, released in 2019, was the first step in the evolution of Adams’s musical growth. Coming from hardcore and noise-punk bands, Through a Coil saw a shift in songwriting that melded shoegaze with Britpop recalling the likes of Stones Roses and My Bloody Valentine. “Blood Rite” marks yet another transformation and creative leap in songwriting that will bridge the gap between Though a Coil and his forthcoming Saddle Creek debut. Set for an early 2022 release, it’s an instantly definitive record that connects 90s house and rave music with hip-hop, shoegaze, and pop. Stay tuned for more info in the coming months.

Montreal’s Ada Lea (the moniker of Alexandra Levy) latest single is “hurt,” her first new piece of music in 2021. “hurt” lives in a snowy Montreal winter, a city that Levy calls home and lives and breathes through her music. It thrums with bass and brooding keys, as Levy uses frank language and imagery: “somebody hurt me badly, now I’m stuck in a rut // now I don’t know my body // I could say it or say nothing at all // take a walk or take none at all // get on a bus back to montreal // tell my friends or say nothing at all.” When the song hits its peak, her voice is carried by a swirl of strings and quick-tempoed keys.

Like 2020’s woman, here EP, “hurt” was recorded in LA with producer/engineer Marshall Vore (Phoebe Bridgers, Better Oblivion Community Center), and a band that includes Johanna Samuels (backing vocals), Harrison Whitford (guitars, bass), Eve Parker Finley (strings) and Tasy Hudson (drums). In the accompanying video, directed by Monse Muro, Levy sits at a decorated table, awash in desaturated colors. Peculiar images and colors flash through as the song grows in intensity.

“hurt” follows Levy’s woman, here EP (2020) and her debut, what we say in private (2019), a collection of raw, confessional, and at times messy emotions, presented through beautifully colorful pop songs. “hurt” is a first taste of what’s to come.