Happy Diving

Happy Diving are a four-piece alternative rock band from Oakland, California that formed in 2013. They started out on Father/Daughter Records, but are currently signed to Topshelf, which is very fitting for them. This band has got some 90's alt rock worship going on like no other. Their guitars fuzzier than a Furby and their vocal melodies are sweeter than sugar. They blend heavy distortion with pop sensibilities, like alt. rock staples Superchunk or Nirvana. Their songs are catchy as hell, and though their influence is clearly set 20 years back, Happy Diving still manage to sound distinctly modern. Enjoy.

Happy Diving (2014)

1. As You Were

2. Sincere

3. Complacent

4. Never Been

Big World (2014)

1. Small World

2. Space Ooze

3. Weird Dream

4. Big World

5. Sad Planet

6. Mikey's Rules

7. Whenever

8. Always Noon

9. Explorer

10. 10

So Bunted (2015)

1. So Bunted

2. My Zone

Electric Soul Unity (2016)

1. Bigger World

2. Don't Be Afraid Of Love

3. Holy Ground

4. Electric Soul Unity

5. Head Spell

6. Fantasy

7. Shed Light

8. Lost My Way

9. The Call, It Thunders

10. Pain Country

11. Unknown Feeling

12. River Will Flow

Bandcamp

Facebook

Topshelf Records

We Were Skeletons

We Were Skeletons were a three-piece screamo/post-hardcore band from Lancaster, Pennsylvania that formed in 2007 and ended in 2013. They're equal parts aggressive and technical, and recall great bands like Hot Cross, Off Minor, and Fugazi. Their earliest works are quite chaotic and explosive, with frenzied guitars and vocals tearing over each other. By their final (and arguably definitive) LP Blame & Aging, We Were Skeletons had established themselves as one of the best screamo bands around. Their dark sound, angular chords and rhythms, blend of dissonance and melody, and tightness as a band had peaked, and the results are incredible. It's one of the decade's best output in terms of screamo, post-hardcore, whatever you want to call it. They were an amazing band, and thankfully put out a decent chunk of music to enjoy for years to come. Enjoy.

Summers (2008)

1. Accusations

2. Organs

3. Passions

4. Mistakes

5. Sewers

6. Naked As We Came (Iron & Wine cover)

7. Gravesites

8. Floorboards

9. Friends

10. Chemistries

Ryan Oatman (2009)

1. 99% Of The Time The Wolves Eat The Children

2. Who Are These Children And Why Are They Calling Me Their Mother?

3. I Am Orchid

4. Merchandise (Fugazi cover)

We Were Skeletons (2010)

1. Drawn From The House I've Burnt

2. Exposure To Heavy Metal Causes Whatever

3. Pudge Paws

4. It's Like Science

5. Kids

6. Her Stomach Is A Lioness

7. Bruce Willis Is Dead The Whole Time

8. This Destroys Us

9. Well, I Did Spend A Whole Year In College

4-Way Split (2011)

1. Florence & Libby - That's Where The Feathers Came From

2. Florence & Libby - Sunrise, Atlantic

3. Florence & Libby - Worth The Drive

4. Florence & Libby - These Days

5. Florence & Libby - Eggplant Caponata

6. Kids - Tony "Rocky Horror"

7. Kids - Crow Hobble (I Got This)

8. Kids - 24

9. Kids - I'm Sorry I'm A Creepy Fuck

10. Kids - Life Is A Grave, Dig It

11. Kids - My Man, The Girl

12. Kids - Our Backlash To The PC Hysteria Is Not A Fucking Joke

13. We Were Skeletons - Moleman Punched A Cop

14. We Were Skeletons - Weekend At Molemans, Pt. 2

15. Paxton - My Fallback Career As A Professional Wrestling Referee

16. Paxton - Tecmo Superbowl

17. Paxton - Caribou Queen

18. Paxton - Positive Life Choices

We Were Skeletons/мища (2011)

1. We Were Skeletons - Wolves

2. We Were Skeletons - The Ghost Of Jean Glam

3. мища  - A Midwinter Night's Dream

4. мища - ...At Least We Got Capri Suns

The Saddest Landscape/We Were Skeletons (2011)

1. The Saddest Landscape - Shifting My Clarity

2. We Were Skeletons - No Funeral

3. We Were Skeletons - Medication

European Tour Tape (2012)

1. Wolves

2. The Ghost Of Jean Glam

3. No Funeral/Medication

4. Moleman Punched A Cop

5. Weekend At Molemans, Pt. 2

6. Who Are All Of These Children And WhyAre They Calling Me Their Mother?

7. Summerholidays vs Punk Routine (Refused cover)

8. Dead Things

9. Merchandise (Fugazi cover)

Blame & Aging (2012)

1. Ruined/Wasted

2. Long Night

3. King Of Tricks

4. The Buried Seat

5. Blood Tongue

6. Disease Artist

7. End All Suffering

8. Blame & Aging

9. Appear, Disappear

10. Slow Death

11. Tremors

12. Pain Is Not The Cleanser

13. Haunting The Ghost

Bandcamp

toe

toe are a four-piece math rock/post-rock/indie band from Japan that formed in 2000. They've spent many years touring and building a fanbase in Japan, and continue to garner a larger fanbase with a recent signing to Topshelf. toe is a group of incredible musicians, just check out some of their live material on Youtube or whatever, it's phenomenal. Getting into a description of their sound is quite hard to do, since it is rather complex and experimental, but also quite melodic. They craft some gorgeous songs, and blend it with their intricacies.  They're a mostly instrumental band, though they started to include vocals the farther they've come into their career. If you're a fan of math rock, or even just amazing musicianship, I would highly recommend giving toe a listen. Enjoy.

Pele/toe (2002)

1. Pele - Drop Attack

2. toe - Velvet Blanc

Songs, Ideas We Forgot (2002)

1. Leave Word

2. I Dance Alone

3. 1, 2, 3, 4

4. Path

5. Yoru Wa Akeru

Re:designed (2003)

1. I Dance Alone (Light On Light Remix) (Kaida Shogo Remix)

2. Yoru Wa Akeru _re:desgn.d (Dave Lebleu Remix)

3. Leave Word ("Cigarette Papers" Mix) (Pele Remix)

4. Path (Mito Remix)

5. Past And Language (Nano Machine Remix)

6. Velvet Blanc

7. Path And Language

The Book About My Idle Plot On A Vague Anxiety (2005)

1. Hangyaku Suru Fuukei

2. kodoku no hatsumei

3. Tremolo + Delay

4. Mukougishi Ga Shiru Yume

5. All I Understand Is That I Don't Understand

6. C

7. Past And Language

8. Music For You

9. I Do Still Wrong

10. Metronome

11. Everything Means Nothing

New Sentimentality (2006)

1. Tsunagaru Haruka Achira

2. 1/21

3. New Sentimentality

4. Goodbye

5. Velvet Blanc

toe/Collection of Colonies Of Bees (2009)

1. The Faber

4. 繋がる遥か彼方 (Happy Birthday Little Jodie Remix)

Note: toe side only

For Long Tomorrow (2009)

1. ここには何もかもがあるし、何もかもがない

2. ショウシツ点よ笛

3. After Image

4. エソテリック

5. Say It Ain't So

6. Two Moons

7. モスキートンはもう聞こえない #1

8. モスキートンはもう聞こえない #2

9. ラストナイト (Album Version)

10. グッドバイ (Album Version)

11. You Go

12. Our Next Movement

13. Long Tomorrow

The Future Is Now (2012)

1. Run For Word

2. Tsuki Kake feat. Aco

3. Ordinary Days

4. The Future Is Now

Hear You (2015)

1. Premonition (Beginning Of A Desert Of Human)

2. A Desert of Human

3. Commit Ballad

4. The World According To

5. My Little Wish

6. Song Silly

7. Boyo

8. Time Goes

9. オトトタイミングキミト

10. G.O.O.D L.U.C.K

11. Because I Hear You

Our Latest Number (2018)

1. Dual Harmonics

2. The Latest Number

3. Etude Of Solitude

4. F_A_R

Now I See The Light (2024)

1. 風と記憶

2. LONELINESS WILL SHINE

3. TODO Y NADA

4. 街のどこかで

5. WHO KNOWS ?

6. CLOSE TO YOU

7. キアロスクーロ

8. サニーボーイ・ラプソディ

9. MADNESS SUMMER

10. NOW I SEE THE LIGHT

Website

Facebook

Octaves

Octaves are a five-piece hardcore band from Baltimore, Maryland that formed in 2009. They were formerly signed to Topshelf, and are now on Bridge Nine. Octaves play an intense style of music, focusing on noisy aggression common to bands like The Dillinger Escape Plan. They're instrumentally proficient and certainly demonstrate that. Something of note is the vocals, which are sung in a spoken word style, but with a ton of gruffness. Imagine if Dan Smith (of Listener) fronted a hardcore band, Octaves are kind of what you'd get. Enjoy.

Greener Pastures (2010/2013)

1. Fix The Fernback

2. Be Angry At The Sun For Setting

3. I've Got Boxes Full Of Pepe

4. Anaconda Squeeze

5. I Am He Who Is Called I Am

6. I'm Just Going To The Corner For Some Cigarettes

7. Shmohawk

8. Absent Kids Count

Note: This was initially released in 2010, but reissued and remastered by Topshelf in 2013

Which Way The Wind Blows (2013)

1. Premature Congratulations

2. For Goodness Sake

3. Golf Tips

4. Poppycock

5. Tax Break

6. It Figures

7. Soup And Sandwich

8. Mister

9. Like Seriously, How Many Time?

10. Ms.

Caravels/Octaves (2015)

1. Caravels - Moody Miles

2. Caravels - Slick Rick

3. Octave - Tom Petty Cash

4. Octaves - Air Traffic Control

Exact Change (2018)

1. Overture - Head

2. Moon

3. Twinkle Toes

4. Shanty

5. Boxing Day (Canada)

6. Exact Change

7. Happy Hunting

8. War Stories

9. Like Larks

10. Working Stiff

11. Creedence

Facebook

Bridge 9

CSTVT

CSTVT (formerly Castevet) were an emo/indie band from Chicago, Illinois that formed in 2008 and broke up in 2013. It's a damn shame I've skipped out on posting this band for so long, because they are absolute essentials for any fan of modern Cap'n Jazz worshippers. Along with other bands like Snowing, Grown Ups, Prawn, Algernon Cadwallader, My Heart To Joy, Joie De Vivre, you know how long the list goes, CSTVT are an incredible band who have perfected their energetic brand of twinkly emo. They expertly craft songs that are both catchy and complex, with some gruff vocals thrown into the mix. CSTVT are definitely an essential "emo revival" or whatever you want to call it band, and one of the first few that I really got in to, so if you haven't snagged their discography yet, I highly suggest doing so. Enjoy.

Summer Fences (2009)

1. Between Berwyn and Bryn Mawr

2. Beating High Schoolers at Arcade Games

3. Plays One on TV

4. I Know What a Lion Is

5. Stranger, You Know

6. Space Jam: The Return

7. Evil Robots With Swords for Hands

8. When a Movie is Made in France, it's Called Cinemas

Snack Town (2010)

1. Castevet - Chilsen

2. Castevet - (Get) Bucktown

3. Into It. Over It. - Summerville, SC

4. Into It. Over It. - Pontiac, MI

The Echo & The Light (2010)

1. Six Parts Summer

2. Narrow Hallways

3. Hiccups

4. Lautrec

5. Midwest Values

6. Model Trains

7. Bike Notes

8. Cities & Memory

CSTVT (2011)

1. Ghost Boat

2. Rogers Alexandra

Mixed Signals (2011)

6. Bassett St.

Note: Full comp here

Slingshot Dakota

Slingshot Dakota are a two-piece indie/emo band from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania that formed in 2003. They were started by Carly Comando, who was the vocalist and keyboard player, along with two other former members of Latterman. By 2006, those two members had been replaced by drummer Tom Patterson, who has been the group's second half ever since. They've got the indie/pop energy (and similar line-up) of Matt and Kim, the emo/indie sensibility of major influence Rainer Maria, and somehow fit in with modern bands such as Tigers Jaw. Essentially, Slingshot Dakota have a fairly wide appeal. It's hard not to like a band that feeds off of great songs with catchy choruses, amazing vocals, and a drum/keyboard mix. They've put out their last two full-lengths with Topshelf, which should be a blatant indication that they're one of the best bands around. Enjoy.

Keener Sighs (2004)

1. Lost Notes And Seared Hopes

2. A Glance Backwards And Forwards

3. It Wouldn't Be

4. I'll Leave The Toasts To The Bartender

5. Knights Of Nine

6. Best Friend

7. Throwing Darts

8. Application For Our Lucky Day

9. Friday Afternoon

10. Don't Forget To Stretch First

Their Dreams Are Dead, But Ours Is The Golden Ghost! (2007)

1. The Golden Ghost

2. Until The Day I Die

3. Ohio!

4. South 1st

5. I-78

6. Wave

7. Let Go

8. Until The Day I Die, Part 2

9. Tour Song

10. Lullaby

Demo 2009 (2009)

1. White Couch

2. Michael Jordan Saved My Life

3. Waiting Room (Fugazi cover)

Dark Hearts (2012)

1. Intro

2. May Day

3. Gossip

4. Disaster

5. Rasta Bacca

6. Never Hear

7. Starting Over

8. Light

9. Living/Dreaming

10. Cassette

11. Words

12. Good Year

I Guess This Is Growing Up Volume 1 (2014)

1. Lions - Man Overboard

2. Invalids - Lemmings

3. Tir Asleen - Wendy Clear

4. Dads - Adam's Song

5. Slingshot Dakota - Stay Together For The Kids

6. We'll Die Smiling - Dammit

Pet Symmetry/Slingshot Dakota (2014)

1. Pet Symmetry - Potted Plant Meets Vintage Amp: A Katherine Grube Love Story

2. Slingshot Dakota - Rise (Rainer Maria Cover)

Break (2016)

1. You

2. Monocacy

3. Lewlyweds

4. Stay

5. Doreen

6. Paycheck

7. Too Much

8. Storytellers

9. Break

Facebook

Infinity Girl

Infinity Girl are a four-piece indie/shoegaze band from Brooklyn, New York that formed in 2012. They just released their sophomore album on Topshelf Records. Prior to that, they were relatively unknown, though they did have a releases under their belt already. Infinity Girl are a shoegaze band in the sense that they incorporate distant vocals and heavily-distorted and effect-laden guitars. However, their sound is a little more diverse than the standard "shoegaze" tag. For one, they've got a lot of dream pop/indie sensibilities, particularly in the vocal melodies and chord progressions. They've also got an energy that's more pumping than brooding, which really gives life to some of these songs. As far as Harm goes, one of its best characteristics is that each song is very different and unique from the next. Not only do they have distinct melodies and such, but they experiment with different sounds and effects, almost to the point that there's no repetition of them throughout the album. You can tell they really sought to make each song stand out, and the result was definitely worth it. Enjoy.

stop being on my side (2012)

1. poppyblush

2. please forget

3. blood and dirt

4. walking around

5. it's easier seeing you now

6. even if

7. by now

8. cellophane and gold

9. pulling a smile from a drawer

10. void

11. cannons

Just Like Lovers (2012)

1. Untitled (July)

2. Taking Nothing

3. Read Yr. Mind

4. Summer Gold

5. Not My Hang

Harm (2015)

1. Hesse

2. Firehead

3. Locklaun

4. Hold

5. Not Man

6. Liner

7. Heavy

8. Dirty Sun

9. Young

10. Musei

11. Around Me

Somewhere Nice, Someday (2017)

1. The Comfort Of What I Had

2. But I'm Slow

3. Don't Believe

4. Derail Me

5. The Color Of Wine

6. Headlights

7. Dread The Snow

8. Anything

9. Millgate

10. Taking Your Picture

11. Redder

12. The Winner Always Talks

Facebook

Bandcamp