Tawny Peaks

Tawny Peaks were a five-piece emo/indie band from Montclair, New Jersey that were around from 2011 to 2015. This is yet another band I thought I had done years before, but somehow slipped through the cracks until now. Tawny Peaks put out two incredible full-lengths of clean, jangly math-inspired emo, with distinct and often harmonized vocals. Fans of bands like Joie De Vivre, Brave Bird, Dowsing and You Blew It! will fall in love with this, if you're not already familiar with it. As a quick anecdote, guitarist/producer Sam Skinner is also a member of Pinegrove. There's not much else to say other than these two albums have been sorely lacking from this blog, so please do enjoy.

Tawny Peaks (2012)

1. With Steps

2. Collect Calling

3. More Proof

4. March Sadness

5. The Tree Song

6. Molehill

7. Ambiguity

8. Bring Back The Mountain

In Silver River (2014)

1. Go Ask Arthur

2. Wasting Space

3. Righting The Writ

4. Bending Time

5. Caught Fingers Crossed

6. A Broken Spoke

7. In Silver River

8. Portrait Of Pushkin

9. Confessor's Kingdom

Bandcamp

Spotify

Facebook

Jazz Hands

Jazz Hands were a four-piece emo band from Northern Ohio (no idea what city) that were around in at least 2010. There's no much info out there about them, aside from their sole EP, which was put out by Messy Life Records. They played a twinkly style of midwestern emo that was just starting to break out at the time, complete with screamy gang vocals. For a loose comparison, they're like a mathy-er (mathier?) Cap'n Jazz or Algernon Cadwallader. Enjoy.

The Party EP (2010)

1. Balloon Boyz

2. I Don't Think I'm Into Toga Parties

3. Champions of Breakfast

4. Remember the Boat Times?

5. Tiny Hands

Bandcamp

I Love Your Lifestyle

I Love Your Lifestyle are a five-piece emo/indie/punk band from Malmö and Gothenburg, Sweden that formed in 2012. They play an excellent blend of up-beat punk mixed in with the bright, twinkly/noodley guitar sound of midwestern emo, with some catchy as hell Cap'n Jazz vocals. Basically, they're Algernon Cadwallader reincarnated. We Go Way Back is one of the best emo records to come out in the past few years, and their new 2-song EP is just as good. I can't recommend this band enough for fans of Kinsella-inspired midwestern emo. Enjoy.

I Love Your Lifestyle EP (2013)

1. Spider Monkey

2. Cristoffer Robin

3. Poetry Issues

4. Dynamites & Catfights

5. Happy Lacuna

6. Long Time No Bruce

I Was A Loser In School EP (2015)

1. Prank

2. Zitch Dog

3. I Was A Loser In School

We Go Way Back (2016)

1. Nice Jacket. Not

2. My Yard

3. Jazz Nights

4. Common Sense

5. Oh, Twisted Me

6. Overall Adderall

7. Testimonial Deadline

8. Routine

9. Brain Freeze

10. No Time For Major Fuck Ups

11. Birds of Paradise

12. Dirty Shades

13. Roda Mossan

14. Summer 03

Touch / Fire (2017)

1. Touch

2. Fire

No Driver (2020)

1. Stupid

2. Car

3. No Harm, No Foul

4. Shilly-Shally

5. Align!

6. I Have No Point To Make

7. Fram Och Tillbaka

8. Well, That's Not Ideal

9. OK

10. Inner Freakness

11. Making Nothing Out Of Something

Bandcamp

Facebook

Sport

Sport are a four-piece punk/emo band from Lyon, France that formed in 2011. Aside from a demo, the band have recorded two full-lengths in their time together, both of which have garnered nothing but love. Sport are the kind of band that play upbeat jams about feeling down, and do so with a fun-loving conviction. They mesh the noodly guitar work of bands like Snowing and Algernon Cadwallader with the raw energy and catchiness of Spraynard and RVIVR. I cannot recommend this band enough. They click right from the get-go and would definitely appeal to a lot of people who frequent this blog. So don't sleep on this any longer, grab these two indie-punk masterpieces. Without a doubt this is some of the best output the genre's seen in the last few years, and I can never tire of giving them a listen. Enjoy.

Demo (2011)

1. Athènes, 1896

2. Calgary, 1988

3. Cortina d'Ampezzo, 1956

4. México city, 1968

5. Los Angeles, 1984

Colors (2012)

1. Barcelona, 1992

2. Helsinki, 1952

3. Lake Placid, 1932

4. Saint Moritz, 1928

5. Melbourne, 1956

6. Sydney, 2000

7. Paris, 1900

8. Paris, 1924

9. Lillehammer, 1994

10. Saint Louis, 1904

11. Annecy, 2018

12. Sarajevo, 1984

13. Montreal, 1976

Bon Voyage (2014)

1. .

2. Reggie Lewis

3. Eric Tabarly

4. Florence Griffith-Joyner

5. Ulrike Maier

6. Jacques Mayol

7. Andre The Giant

8. Charles Lindbergh

9. Charlotte Cooper

10. Matthew Webb

11. Doris Sams

Slow (2016)

1. Deadfilm

2. Rébuffat

3. Nod

4. Full House

5. Leaves

6. Muscles

7. Trompe l'ennui

8. Word95

9. ..

Bandcamp

Facebook

Tiny Moving Parts

Tiny Moving Parts are a three-piece emo/screamo band from Moorhead, Minnesota which formed in 2008 when they were still in high school. The band consists of two brothers (bass/vocals and drums) and their cousin (guitar/vocals), I call that a fam jam (#cringeworthylilwaynejokes). Anyway, these guys blow me away. For a three-piece, their sound is so tight, and they have masterfully established themselves as one of the front runners in the modern emo/screamo scene, along with great bands such as Old Gray, Native, Grown Ups, and the Merchant Ships-related bands. The trade-off vocal parts, the bright and twinkly guitars, as well as the math rock-level technical bits of the bass and drums are some of the distinctive characteristics that comprise Tiny Moving Parts' sound. They are one of those bands that make you want to sing along and cry along to at the same time, you know? Basically one of the best kind of bands. The vocals can be super catchy, but with some emotionally hard-hitting lyrics relating to topics such as nostalgia. They just got signed to Triple Crown, and for a fucking good reason. Check out all of this stuff below, though the early things are from when they were in high school, so the quality of recording and such is questionable, but the later stuff is absolutely killer, both for the music and production value. Enjoy.

Waves Rise, Waves Recede, The Ocean Is Full Of Waves (2008)

1. The Poem

2. De La Exsorta

3. Me Vs. The Eohippus

4. The Mountain That Climbed Itself

5. Sfumato

6. The Accents From The Backwinds

7. The Sea That Drowned Itself

8. Searching For The Orang Pendek, With Biotite Eyes

9. Moving To Antarctica

sfumato ('08) (2008)

1. sfumato ('08)

Moving To Antarctica (2010)

1. For the Sake of Brevity

2. I Remember My First Bear P.1

3. I Remember My First Bear P.2

4. Weather Too Unbearable For Bear To Bare

5. You Have No Idea How High I Can Fly

6. I Don't Care, Larry Bird?

7. We Don't Cross Fingers

8. I'll Sum This Up

Birdhouse Sessions (2011)

1. We Don't Cross Fingers... LIVE

2. I'll Sum This Up LIVE

De La Exsorta (Single) (2011)

1. De La Exsorta

The Dan Martin Split (2011)

1. I'd Rather Soar With The Thought Of Birds Carrying Us Away

2. I'm Still Here, You're Still There

Old Maid/Coffee With Tom (2012)

1. Old Maid

2. Coffee With Tom

This Couch is Long & Full Of Friendship (2013)

1. Dakota

2. Along the Lakeside

3. Grayscale

4. Vacation Bible School

5. Clouds Above My Head

6. I

7. Waterbed

8. Amateur Night

9. II

10. John P.

Old Gray/Tiny Moving Parts (2014)

1. Old Gray - Clip Your Own Wings

2. Old Gray - An Epitaph

3. Tiny Moving Parts - Swimming Lessons

4. Tiny Moving Parts - Fair Trade

Pleasant Living (2014)

1. Sundress

2. Always Focused

3. Fourth Of July

4. I Hope Things Go The Way I Hope

5. Whiskey Waters

6. Movies

7. The Better Days

8. Boxcar

9. Spring Fever

10. Entrances & Exits

11. Skinny Veins

12. Van Beers

Celebrate (2016)

1. Good Enough

2. Happy Birthday

3. Birdhouse

4. Headache

5. Common Cold

6. Stay Warm

7. Breathe Deep

8. Volumes

9. Minnesota

10. Minnow

Swell (2018)

1. Applause

2. Smooth It Out

3. Feel Alive

4. Caution

5. Wildfire

6. Whale Watching

7. It's Too Cold Tonight

8. Malfunction

9. Wishbone

10. Warm Hand Splash

breathe (2019)

1. The Midwest Sky

2. Light Bulb

3. Medicine

4. Icicles (Morning Glow)

5. Vertabrae

6. Polar Bear

7. Bloody Nose

8. Soft Spot

9. I Can't Shake

10. Hallmark

Tiny Moving Parts (2022)

1. Decibel

2. North Shore

3. Demons Are Taking Over

4. Tangled Up

5. Jotting Notes

6. Downhill Spiral

7. All My Guts

8. Day Drunk

9. Bad Trip

10. 12345

Deep In The Blue (2024)

1. Before I Go

2. Deep In The Blue

3. Dizzy

4. Listen To Your Favorite Songs

5. Time Frame

6. I'll Be There

7. Paul Bunyan's Theme Song

8. The Cure (But Not Really)

9. Breeze In July

10. Waterbed Pt. 2

Facebook

Bandcamp

Website

William Bonney

William Bonney were a four-piece emo/screamo band from the Midwest that existed from 2010-2013. The band featured members who were formerly in Merchant Ships and Midwest Pen Pals, and it certainly shows in their sound. Clean, twinkly guitars are mixed with blasts of distortion, blasting drums, and high-pitched screams, quite reminiscent of the aforementioned bands, though William Bonney have refined and honed this sound over time, and the results are exquisite. The band's small discography is absolutely killer, so enjoy.

Fall Demo (2010)

1. See Ya Later

2. No Pizza

3. For My Sad Friends

4. I Think We'll Be Okay

Good Vibes (2011)

1. Leather Empire

2. No Pizza

3. Drug Lord

4. See Ya Later

5. Good Vibes

6. Monsters

Droughts/William Bonney (2012)

1. Droughts - Class Of '09

2. Droughts - Body Of Glass

3. William Bonney - The Rapture

4. William Bonney - Red River

5. William Bonney - Robbie Hansen

Unreleased (2013)

1. Dope Castle

Cap'n Jazz

I know I've been pretty inactive with the blog lately, and I'm sorry about that. A ton of things have been keeping me very occupied lately, but hopefully I can get back into the habit of working on the blog and responding to the stack of requests and submissions it's got. Thanks for being so patient, and thanks to Robert for the request.

Cap'n Jazz are legendary, seminal, influential, important, a plethora of adjectives can be used to convey the gravity of what they were. They were a five-piece band from Chicago, Illinois that initially existed from 1989 to 1995, and reunited for a shows in 2010. They are arguably THE "emo" band, pioneering the upbeat, twinkly, nostalgic energy that so many bands after them emulated, though could never quite match. The band consisted of very young members (most of them were in their mid-to-late teens) that would continue to be play major roles in many other integral bands to follow, such as American Football, The Promise Ring, Joan Of Arc, Owen, Owls, and Ghosts And Vodka. Cap'n Jazz only released one full-length, titled Burritos, Inspiration Point, Fork Balloon Sports, Cards In The Spokes, Automatic Biographies, Kites, Kung Fu, Trophies, Banana Peels We've Slipped On And Egg Shells We've Tippy Toed Over, though it is more commonly referred to simply as Shmap'n Schmazz. They also released two 7"'s, and appeared on numerous compilations. All of their recorded (and some live) material can be found on their discography album, titled Analphabetapolothology (only one song of theirs is known to be missing, which is "Naive"). This band is absolutely essential, and have had a huge impact on me as well as many others, so if you have yet to hear Cap'n Jazz, or are just getting into them, I mean this in the most sincere way: enjoy.

Analphabetapolothology (1998)

Disc 1

1. Little League

2. Oh Messy Life

3. Puddle Splashers

4. Flashpoint: Catheter

5. In The Clear

6. Yes, I Am Talking To You

7. Basil's Kite

8. Bluegrassish

9. Planet Shhh

10. The Sands Have Turned Purple

11. Precious

12. Que Serte!

13. Take On Me (a-ha cover)

14. Tokyo

15. Ooh Do I Love You

16. Hey Ma, Do I Hafta Choke On These

17. Forget Who We Are

18. Olerud

Disc 2

1. We Are Scientists!

2. Sea Tea

3. Troubled By Insects

4. Rocky Rococo

5. In The Clear

6. Soria

7. No Use For A Piano Player When You Got A Player Piano

8. Scary Kids Scaring Kids

9. Bluegrass

10. Winter Wonderland

11. AOK

12. Geheim

13. Sergio Valente

14. Easy Driver

15. Theme To '90210'

16. Ooh Do I Love You (acoustic)

Dads

Thanks to Anonymous and Awo for the request.

Dads are a two-piece punk/emo/indie band from New Brunswick, New Jersey that began in 2010. They play math-y twinkly emo jams that straight up kick ass. They're still super energetic, but have a bummer-y vibe to them with the lyrics and whatnot. They're a killer band that you should check out if you haven't heard them yet. This band offers most of their stuff for free on their Bandcamp, which is the exact reason why you should make some effort to support them. Enjoy.

FFO: Japandroids, Cloud Nothings, Snowing, Prawn, Dowsing, Spraynard

Brush Your Teeth ;) (2011)

1. Dan's Christopher Walken Impersonation

2. I Don't Wanna Fuck With Another Dude's Snacks

3. Pass Me The Ball

4. I Didn't Say Pass Me The Ball

Brush Your Teeth, Again ;) (2011)

1. Dan's Christopher Walken Impersonation

2. I Don't Wanna Fuck With Another Dude's Snacks

3. Pass Me The Ball

4. I Didn't Say Pass Me The Ball

5. Dos Penes Duros

6. The Deer In The Basement

7. New Pantera

8. Dan's D'Angelo Impersonation

American Radass (this is important) (2012)

1. If Your Song Title Has the Word "Beach" In It, I'm Not Listening To It

2. Get To The Beach

3. Honestly, Chroma Q&A

4. Aww, C'mon Guys

5. Shit Twins

6. Grunt Work (The '69 Sound)

7. Groin Twerk

8. Big Bag of Sandwiches

9. Bakefast at Piffanys

10. Heavy to the Touch (think about tonight, forget about tomorrow)

Pretty Good (2013)

1. My Crass Patch

2. Can I Be Yr Deadbeat Boyfriend

3. Boat Rich

4. No We're Not Actually

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

I'll Be The Tornado (2014)

1. Grand Edge, MI

2. Chewing Ghosts

3. The Romantic Ocean

4. Fake Knees

5. Sold Year / Transitions

6. You Hold Back

7. But

8. Sunburnt Jet Wings

9. Take Back Today

10. Only You

11. Do You Still Think Of Me? (Bonus)

Compilation Songs

Soccer Dads (Fifa World Fuck)

Gold Soundz (Pavement cover)

Adam's Song (blink-182 cover)

Bandcamp

Facebook

Tumblr

Owen

Thanks to Patrick for the request, and Mike for providing so many of the rare tracks (not Kinsella, but thanks to him for making them too).

Owen is Mike Kinsella's solo project that began in 2001 in Chicago, Illinois. Mike Kinsella, as most of you know, has been in a bunch of amazing bands including Cap'n Jazz, American Football, The One Up Downstairs, Joan Of Arc, Owls, and most recently Their / They're / There. It should be noted that he played drums in some of those bands, instead of guitar and vocals like he does with Owen. Like many of his other bands, Owen is signed to Polyvinyl Records.

Owen (or Mike, for that matter) has a very distinct sound. Like his work with American Football, the music is very melancholic, focusing on alternate tunings, somewhat intricate guitar melodies and Mike's soft, delicate voice creaking over them. Though with Owen, the atmosphere is much more minimal (in a good way) since he uses a single acoustic guitar. Owen's earlier recordings are very stripped down, since they were recorded by himself in his home with his own equipment. Later albums would be done in a proper studio, incorporating more instrumentation (usually played by him) to back his vocals and guitar playing. Both eras or whatever you want to call them are absolutely beautiful in their own ways. I seriously have no idea what to say that can't be heard below. I mean, doesn't everybody already love this guy and everything he does? Though if somebody is starting out with this, check out his other bands if you haven't already, and try At Home With Owen first, though everything below is worth checking out too, it's seriously all amazing. Enjoy, and you most certainly will.

One other thing: if anybody has any rare/live/b-sides/covers/misc. tracks (not ones from The Seaside EP), I'd really appreciate you sending them to me, since I'm trying to get a collection together. I'm missing the tracks from The Rutabega side of the split too. Also, he's done three Daytrotter sessions, which I seem to have the worst luck with. I'm missing a song from the first one, I've yet to find the second one, and the third one has a 10-minute track of noise instead of "Blues To Black". So if anybody has working/full versions of those, you can send those too and I'll send my <3 back.

Owen (2001)

1. That Which Wasn't Said

2. Most Days And

3. Most Nights

4. Accidentally

5. Declaration Of Incompetence

6. You Should Do It Now While It's On Your Mind

7. Dead Men Don't Lie

8. Places To Go

9. Think About It

No Good For No One Now (2002)

1. Nobody's Nothing

2. Everyone Feels Like You

3. Poor Souls

4. The Ghost Of What Should've Been

5. Good Deeds

6. I'm Not Going Anywhere Tonight

7. Take Care Of Yourself

(the ep) (2004)

1. Skin and Bones

2. In the Morning, Before Work

3. Breaking Away

4. That Mouth

5. Gazebo 

Owen/The Rutabega (2002)

4. Owen - Never Meant (American Football cover)

5. Owen - Poor Souls

6. Owen - May First Brings Lots Of Laughs

I Do Perceive (2004)

1. Who Found Who's Hair In Who's Bed

2. Note To Self:

3. Playing Possum For A Peek

4. That Tattoo Isn't Funny Anymore

5. Put Your Hands On Me, My Love

6. She's A Thief

7. Bed Abuse

8. Lights Out

At Home With Owen (2006)

1. Bad News

2. The Sad Waltzes Of Pietro Crespi

3. Bags Of Bones

4. Use Your Words

5. A Bird In Hand

6. Windows And Doorways

7. Femme Fatale (The Velvet Underground cover)

8. One Of These Days

Owen/The City On Film (2007)

1. Owen - Good Friends, Bad Habits

2. Owen - Top Shelf

3. The City On Film - Aurora Galore 

4. The City On Film - Fahrenheit 451

The Seaside EP (2009)

1. Heads Will Ache

2. I Woke Up Today

3. In the Morning, Before Work (live)

4. More Than Words (Extreme cover)

5. A Fever

6. Stolen Car (Bruce Springsteen cover)

7. I'm Not Seventeen 

New Leaves (2009)

1. New Leaves

2. Good Friends, Bad Habits

3. A Trenchant Critique

4. Never Been Born

5. Amnesia And Me

6. Brown Hair In A Bird's Nest

7. Too Scared To Move

8. The Only Child Of Aergia

9. Ugly On The Inside

10. Curtain Call

Abandoned Bridges (2010)

1. Abandoned Bridges

2. I'm Always In Love (Wilco cover)

O, Evelyn (2011)

1. O, Evelyn...

2. Girlfriend In A Coma (The Smiths cover)

Ghost Town (2011)

1. Too Many People

2. No Place Like Home

3. O, Evelyn

4. I Believe

5. The Armoire

6. An Animal

7. No Language

8. Mother's Milk Breath

9. Everyone's Asleep In The House But Me

L'Ami du Peuple (2013)

1. I Got High

2. Blues To Black

3. Love Is Not Enough

4. Coffin Companions

5. The Burial

6. Bad Blood

7. Who Cares

8. A Fever

9. Where Do I Begin?

10. Vivid Dreams

Other People's Songs (2014)

1. Descender (Lungfish)

2. Girl In A Box (Blake Babies)

3. Some Kinda Angel (Mojave 3)

4. Forget Me (The Promise Ring)

5. Judas (Depeche Mode)

6. Just Like Them (All)

7. Borne On The FM Waves Of The Heart (Against Me!)

8. Under The Blanket (The Smoking Popes)

Owen/Into It. Over It. (2015)

1. Owen - Poison Arrows

2. Into It. Over It. - Poor Souls (Owen cover)

3. Into It. Over It. - Local Language

4. Owen - Anchor (Into It. Over It. cover)

The King Of Whys (2016)

1. Empty Bottle

2. The Desperate

3. Settled Down

4. Lovers Come And Go

5. Tourniquet

6. A Burning Soul

7. Saltwater

8. An Island

9. Sleep Is A Myth

10. Lost

The Avalanche (2020)

1. A New Muse

2. Dead For Days

3. On With The Show

4. The Contours

5. I Should've Known

6. Mom And Dead

7. Headphoned

8. Wanting And Willing

9. I Go, Ego

Live, Covers, Compilations, etc.

I'm Not Seventeen

I Woke Up Today (Daytrotter Session)

A Fever (Daytrotter Sesion)

No More No Where

Alison (Elvis Costello cover)

America (Simon & Garfunkel cover)

Chesterfield King (Jawbreaker cover)

Concept (Teenage Fanclub cover)

Don't Look Back In Anger (Oasis cover)

The Armoire (Nervous Energies session)

Brown Hair in a Bird's Nest (Nervous Energies session)

O, Evelyn... (Nervous Energies session)

ESRT Page 14

Polyvinyl

Facebook

Bandcamp

Website