Every Tuesday at WSUM, our Music Director, Izzi, chooses her favorite new releases to add to our music library. Here are this week's favorites, presented to you by WSUM's Music Journalism Club.
Wallows, Remote (Deluxe)
HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “Quarterback,” “OK,” “OK-with Remi Wolf & Solomonophonic”
GENRE: Indie rock, lo-fi rock
RIYL: Peach Pit, Declan McKenna, half alive
Indie three piece Wallows created the entirety of Remote well, remotely. The original EP, released in the fall of 2020, is a lo-fi inspired, breezy romp whose cohesion is a testament to the abilities of modern technology. The new, deluxe edition continues in the vein of the original release with three new tracks; bouncing earworm “Quarterback,” synth saturated ballad “Another Story” and laid back groove “On Time”, as well of the inclusion of the previously released single “OK” and the Remi Wolf and Solomonophonic assisted remix. — Sigra DeWeese
Altin Gün, Yol (2021, ATO Records)
HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “Hey Nari,” “Yüce Dag Basinda,” “Maçka Yollari”
GENRE: Turkish psychedelic, anatolian rock, disco, synth-pop
RIYL: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, The Babe Rainbow
Altin Gün sits at an incredibly interesting niche in the music industry. For all intents and purposes they are a cover band. In their tracks there is an incredible fusion between traditional Turkish and Anatolian folk songs with 80s New York disco, 60s space rock, and 70s funk. And the act is composed of Dutch, British and Turkish multiinstrumentalists, who revitalize the folk tracks as stunning modern retellings, adding their own personality to these classics. Yol is the band's third album, and it banks on the 80s revivalist trend we're seeing in popular music acts like The Weekend. The band's traditional delay-heavy guitars are now replaced with 808 drum machines and analog synthesizers. Tracks like “Yüce Dag Basinda” and “Bulunur Mu” sound like Depeche Mode went on a succinct Middle Eastern vacation. To subvert the synth-pop formula Altin Gün implements Eastern instruments in the mix, most notably the bağlama, a Turkish 6-string guitar capable of producing microtonal tones you wouldn't see in a lot of Western music. Persian scales are also extensively used in the tracks, like in the solo to “Maçka Yollari.” Yol is a solid synth-pop album, with it's captivating unique sound fusion and Altin Gün's folk philosophy being the main draw factors for the release. If you want to delve deeper into global music, or you're just looking for a fun musically complex psychedelic record Yol is a fantastic recommendation! — Arthur Machado
