All of the reviews of Diane Coffee's second album, Everybody's A Good Dog, touch on one unanimously agreed upon point: that Foxygen touring drummer Shaun Fleming has created a historically self-aware album that wears its influences loudly and proudly. The reference points cut through clearly: 70's glam, Queen, Rocky Horror, the fuzz-pop instrumentation of T. Rex, shades of psychedelia, Meatloaf when he really hammed it up - all with a Motown, old-soul sheen absent with his predecessors. The album is the product of a lifetime of close listening and a keen producerial ear for what defines a genre, and there's no better way to describe the way with which Fleming bounces between these influences than "playful." His performance in the KEXP live room not only confirms all the above, but brings to the fore the sincerity and individuality with which the album was crafted. Fleming infuses a theatricality all his own - undoubtedly aided by his past as a Disney voice actor - to a genre defined by distinct characters. Listen, and definitely watch, Diane Coffee tear up at KEXP, and keep your eyes on their site to know when they'll next be in the Seattle area.
Collectors of kitsch and arcane Americana in their private lives, Cincinnati's Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker are also accumulators of high praise with their band, Wussy. Over the past 15 years, from when they first formed as a duo, the now five-piece has built a loyal fanbase and gathered a wealth …
A review of Fauna Shade's single "Marzipan" described their sound as "Floydian... zapping electronic wiggles." This simultaneously whimsical yet vague description fits the band perfectly: their sound bounces through all the psychedelic subgenres, with droning stoner fuzz meeting some of Tame Impala…
