Evening Standards
World’s End
Lets Pretend (2019)
It’s a dramatic understatement to say that music has changed since I first discovered DIY in the 1990s. But in many ways, one of the first things I discovered about real people making music, is that contacting a label you like usually leads to good things. While you can sample music online nowadays and there are ample bot-driven “recommended if … Read more
Full Sun
Thinkin’ About It
Lets Pretend (2019)
There are certain musical styles where I struggle as a reviewer to offer you my deep thoughts beyond yay or nay. Power-pop is definitely one of those areas, and that’s the label I’d slap on Full Sun. Thinkin’ About It is a 10-song blast of high energy, upbeat jams.Over the course of the record, every band member shines. The bass line in … Read more
Howardian
The Silly Shit You Say
Lets Pretend (2019)
While the title of Howardian’s fourth LP, The Silly Shit You Say, imparts a whimsical, spontaneous first impression, the record itself feels complete. This isn’t some spur-of-the-moment side project from Ian Vanek (Japanther), it’s the real deal.Overall I’d say the influence of this record is 1980s new wave mixed with new millennium DIY punk and a dose of lo-fi. Keyboards really … Read more
Prizzy Prizzy Please
Prizzy Prizzy Please
Lets Pretend (2007)
The band is named Prizzy Prizzy Please. They have bright colors and octopus tentacles on their cover. Instruments included: keyboards, bass, drums, and sax. The self-titled release from Prizzy Prizzy Please starts with a nice little buildup in the almost instrumental "Shorgasm." It features a hypnotic rhythm section accentuated with saxophone. The singer/saxophonist, Mark Pallman, takes breaks from the horn … Read more
The Mimes
Plastic Pompeii
Lets Pretend (2021)
After all the bedroom pop to come out of quarantine, we finally have a band doing something new that sounds like a real record, not an experiment. The Mimes features Maura Weaver, John Hoffman, and Megan Schroer, who played together in Boys long ago, and more recently in separate projects such as Homeless Gospel Choir, Ogikubo Station, and Vacation.Fittingly, The Mimes sound a bit like … Read more
Tweak Bird
Any Ol' Way
Lets Pretend (2014)
Tweak Bird is the Los Angeles sludge-pop duo of Caleb Benjamin and Ashton Leech. Their stoner/garage rock crossover sound has enabled them to share the stage with acts ranging from art metal quartet Tool to cheeky indie poppers Best Coast.The duo’s latest release, Any Ol’ Way, combines the gritty metal of Kyuss with the indie psychedelia of Tame Impala. The album starts with the lackadaisical intro track … Read more
Vacation
Mouth Sounds #2699
Lets Pretend (2018)
For running with the DIY punk scene, Vacation are surprisingly diverse (not to mention prolific). The band’s latest is the 12-song Mouth Sounds #2699 and its 26-minute span delivers the band’s general sound of fuzzed out garage-punk bangers, but within that general sound they deliver crunchy grunge riffs, pop melodies, and flat out noisy bursts, all within a short-song framework that rarely … Read more
Vacation
Self Titled
Lets Pretend (2011)
First off, forgive me if at some point I wander off and say something about Summer Vacation or Vacation Bible School, and I keep mixing these bands up in my head. Vacation is Cincinnati-based band that sometimes gets the pop-punk label, although I would argue garage-punk if I had to choose one. The band, while using pop-punk structures and a … Read more
