Parcels – Herefore

My understanding of the French language is extremely limited. I spent two quick semesters in college completing workbook exercises conjugating être over and again. Je suis, tu es, il est… The only time it really came in handy was when my family and I got locked out of our hotel room in Corsica, France. Nous restons dans cet hotel!

I’m rambling on about my linguistic incompetency because tonight was the first time I’ve had to translate French in two years. Deliceuse Musique, a French music blog, recently posted about Parcels – an Australian duo who dropped an EP in March. So, with the help of my elementary French skills and a peek at Google translate, I know a few basic facts about Parcel: they’re Australian, genre-bending and their recent EP “Clockscared” is unbelievably catchy.

Chayed Out, Francois

Miracle Fortress – Maybe Lately

Miracle Fortress sounds like the name for a place in Adventure Time, the cosmic-psychedelic children’s television show I’ve never seen an episode of. It could also be the title of a redoubt that a very plucky army won a decisive victory in.

What it is, at least for this blogger’s purposes, is a band name. Miracle Fortress, whose groovy and accessible songs remind listeners of the Beach Boys. A band with a sound that suggests a quirky hypothetical: What if the Beach Boys never existed? Presuppose Fleet Foxes, MGMT, Tame Impala, you know, bands of a pop/folksy/electro tone, came together for a seaside bonfire?

Together, the best and worst elements of those musical acts would sound something like Miracle Fortress. Here’s “Maybe Lately,” a jam with summer vibes so strong it almost sounds like a Beach Boys knock-off. But that’s the case with music today anyway. Everything echos and repeats.