Armor

Armor are a hardcore punk band from Tallahassee, Florida that began in 2019 (presumably). I don't have much info on them, except that they put out on hell of a 7" this year in the form of Some Kind of War, which is four flawless tracks of exceptional hardcore. It's a blistering release that blends the gruff aggression of Negative Approach with d-beat influence. They've also put out a demo which is worth checking out. Enjoy.

Demo (2019)

1. Intro/Broken

2. NOS

3. Way Of Life

4. Road To Ruin/Age Of Machine

5. Daydreaming

Some Kind of War (2019)

1. Figure

2. Fraud

3. Military Discount

4. Friendly Fire

Bandcamp

Pool Kids

Pool Kids are a four-piece emo/indie/math rock band from Tallahassee, Florida that began in 2017. Recently they signed to Skeletal Lightning (which are easily one of the best labels kicking around now), which was my introduction to their mastercraft. Their debut album, Music To Practice Safe Sex To came out in July, and if nothing else, it's safe to say it has won album title of the year. Thankfully the music delivers on that high standard in every way imaginable. It's a refreshing take on math rock-influenced indie/emo, featuring some insanely talented musicians and incredible songwriting. They know when to let loose on the fretboard frenzies and time signatures while staying distinctly melodic, and pull back to semi-standard chords and rhythm patterns when needed, which provides a nice blend of technical mastery and unique variation in songs. Each track is incredibly memorable and with its own emotional weight to it, even amongst obvious highlights like "Borderline" and "$5 Subtweet". They combine the technical capabilities of bands like toe. and Covet and mix them with the sound and energy of bands like Camp Cope and A Great Big Pile Of Leaves, or something like that. That's not a great descriptor of them, but it's the first one I came up with and this shit is hard to pin down to one sentence. To cut this short, this record is awesome, and if I were to go out on a limb I'd say this is the best album I've heard in the "emosphere" (that's a thing now) since what people call low self-esteem.... It'll be really exciting to see where this band goes, and happy that Skeletal Lightning picked them up. If it hasn't been made obvious yet, this is highly, highly recommended. Enjoy.

Music To Practice Safe Sex To (2018)

1. Overly Verbose Email Series pt. III

2. Borderline

3. Erso

4. $5 Subtweet

5. They Only Care About My Fills And Not My Feels

6. Five-Time 2nd Place Winner

7. I Know It's Only Fair

8. Patterns

9. Rick's Toy Box

Bandcamp

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

Skeletal Lightning

I Have Dreams

I Have Dreams were a five-piece emo/screamo band from Tallahassee, Florida that lasted for about six months between 1998 and 1999. They were formed by members of another band called New Ethic, who ended in 1998 after one of its guitarist, Daniel, died. I Have Dreams were essentially both a response and a tribute to his passing. They only ever recorded a five-song EP, Three Days 'til Christmas, which is incredible. They mesh very clean, melodic guitar riffs and vocals with very dissonant sounds and brash screaming. As generic-sounding as that description, an actual listen is required to know what I mean. They came up with five great songs, and production quality is far from a hindrance here. Fans of I Hate Myself, You And I, and bands like that would definitely be interesting in giving this a try. I Have Dreams played two reunion shows in 2001, but have been completely inactive since than. Enjoy.

Three Days 'til Christmas (1999)

1. Three Days 'til Christmas

2. Countless Rooftops

3. In Good Hands

4. I Don't Imagine You And I Anymore

5. Thank You So Much For Having The Courage To Help A Friend Change His Life For The Better