From February of 2015, the band Rose Windows doing the christening of the new live studio at listener supported KEXP in Seattle. I think they broke up about 6 months after this recording, but they left three very interesting albums as their legacy.
The Power Punk/Doujin band Story of Hope burst on the Indi scene in April of 2013, selling CDs in the back of the halls where they played. In 2015 their Historia EP was released nationally and immediately outsold everything they had done to date, earning them a small but intensely devoted audience. The first track here is from that release, Your Colors, Your Feelings, a Screamo anthem featuring Ryuto Ajima, the second track is Forever from the Alethea full album released in January of 2016.
The Balconies are a Canadian Alt Rock band (emphasis on the Rock) operating out of Toronto these days. Their first album was released in 2014, and they have put out quite a few good songs in a fairly short span of time. The first track was posted a few weeks ago, Money Money, the second is War from last April, the 3rd is 2014’s Boys and Girls. And yes, you can pick these up at the usual places.
The art rock band PASSEPIED just posted a new track this week called Hyper Realist, the first displayed here, and as always it is just as much about the visuals as it is about the music. I had to also include TOKINOWA, their ending theme to the anime Rin-Ne, a story about shepherding lost souls to their next reincarnation written by Rumiko Takahashi herself. To finish the set off, Nagasugita Haru, another music/visual tour de force from about 8 weeks ago.
Taka of One OK Rock recently posted a few covers online, and they are fairly amazing. The first is Zayn’s song Pillowtalk, and I thought it strange he was covering a former One Direction singer’s work until I saw and heard the original version of the song. The second track is Adele’s powerful anthem Hello, and that one was never a surprise. Considering what a master of rock Taka is, it is nice to get an idea about which more relaxed tunes he appreciates enough to add his own renditions to the worlds musical collection.
The new Hello Sleepwalkers release is Planless Perfection, which they rolled out back in March, and the VR style 360 degree song posted first is from that album. I recommend putting on your VR headset and best set of headphones for that one; being surrounded by the band while they play is quite a nice effect. The second track here, called something like the collapse of the Myth of Huai, is also from their latest realease. They are probably best known for doing the OP for the first season of the anime Noragami, which is a fun little show about an unemployed god; that track was on their 2014 album. Finally, again from Planless Perfection, a slight change of pace with their song Breaking Dawn.