A Sunlit Walk in The Underground Forest: New Pop, Folk , Rock and Indie Music We Loved
Welcome to A Sunlit Walk in The Underground Forest: a series where I hand-pick new pop, folk, rock, and indie music I love ☀️
Featuring Barbara, Badvril, Sibille Attar, Fawn, Georgia Gets By, Dev Lemons, Gia Ford, ICELANDIA, lighthearted, Tycho, Sea Lemon, garbagebarbie & Leilani Patao
This edition features: a song that could apply to the main character in Lucy Maud Montgomery’s ‘The Blue Castle’; a song whose music video reminded me of ‘magdalena bay mini mix vol 3’; a song that sounds like driving a station wagon through winding dirt roads, the smell of smoke and coffee mingling together; a song with a stop-motion, purple-tinted fairytale-like world music video; a song whose blending of electronics and indie textures remind me of the electronic technicolor wonderland of mid 00s music; an aquatic sont that could be from the 2000 movie ‘The Beach’ and more!
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A Sunlit Walk In The Underground Forest ☀️ Light Pop • Folk • Electronica • Calm
Barbara - Isn't She Strange!
I am currently reading ‘The Blue Castle’ by Lucy Maud Montgomery - a book I had never heard of (despite being an ‘Anne of the Green Gables’ fan) until Ariel from the ‘Books Unbound’ podcast mentioned it. (Of note, ‘Emily of New Moon’ is another wonderful book from this author - a series I was unaware of until it was mentioned in an episode of the Netflix show ‘Russian Doll’).
The main character in ‘The Blue Castle’ breaks out of the stifling familial dynamic and starts a journey to becoming free, a decision which is greeted by her family with pure and utter horror, and is viewed as her becoming strange to the point of almost being feral. It's funny because it feels like ‘Isn't She Strange!’ fits right into what the main character in that book is experiencing:
“And didn’t mother always say, “That isn’t/that just ain’t the way people get by, So you should quit your quirky ways, learn how to behave, then you’ll be fine” Still you have the same dream every time”
I find this song liberating, especially the lyrics “But underneath your mask you’re still a funny little thing/Such a funny little thing/You’ll always be a funny little thing…” which is true because you are just always going to be who you are no matter how much you try to mask it. The chorus is so dreamy; it kind of reminds me of Mika, and also it will serve as a reminder that if the very worst thing someone might say about you is ‘isn’t she strange!’ then you have nothing at all to lose.
Connect with Barbara
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Leilani Patao - what
Leilani is an artist who is releasing music without going through streaming DSPs; more options are popping up for artists should you also wish to avoid going down that route, one such example being Subvert.
On this new song ‘what’ the artist shares:
"I wrote this song a few years ago when I felt my most frozen. I felt really powerless, and I felt terrified of what could happen if I started putting these stances into my songs. There's so much pressure to be palatable, to find what everyone likes and to do it. To follow the systems that are in place, even if you don't like them, even if they're wrong." They continue, "I can't just protect what I've got anymore because it's being taken away from me anyways. I can't lay low; I can't be quiet. I think the funny thing about this song is that I may be singing, 'I'm begging you, please,' but I'm no longer begging. I am telling you to do something. Do anything at all."
The lyrics “No need to read the news/what’s it got to do with you” reminded me of something that happened recently, where I found myself almost losing my eyesight from hot, boiling fury while listening to a podcast that I usually love (this kind of reaction being fairly unusual for me). The host who is an influencer/writer, had moved from Europe to the US during the current regime when social safety nets for Americans were axed and ICE was at its worst, declared that there is really no need to engage with the news, they don’t feel the need to engage with that, there is really no point at all, and I was thinking to myself that for all the Americans who are not rich influencers they do not have the privilege to not engage, because if they don’y, they won’t survive, literally.
Good art puts into words that which you know but cannot express in words; but it also manages to say the things that you fear, things that lie on the tip of your tongue; ‘what’ does both of these with a switchblade.
‘what’ is taken from the upcoming EP, ‘Daisy Deluxe’ which you can preorder here.
Connect with Leilani Patao
Instagram
Gia Ford - At Least For Now
There is something timeless about this. It makes me think of driving a station wagon through winding dirt roads with ‘At Least For Now’ playing in the tape deck, as you smoke out the window, the scent mixing with the smell of coffee coming up from the cup holder.
There is something about Gia Ford that reminds me of an IT-Girl from the literary scene; she has the je ne sais quoi of a writer whose books you cannot get enough of.
This is taken from the upcoming album ‘A Room Within A Room’ which you can pre-save here.
Connect with Gia Ford
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Badvril - Fever
Photo Credit: Lupe Pacheco-Gomez
I love the 1990s nihilism running throughout this, a quality I was not just imagining, as the artists share:
“'Fever' is about hopelessness, in the most freeing way. It’s giving up on trying to control things in your life and letting the world happen around you. If it’s my time to die, that’s okay. If it’s not, it's time to get into action and change my ways. 'Fever' is about being at a crossroads and seeing yourself continually choosing the wrong path.”
I think this is something you experience with working in a creative field, as it is so unpredictable and at times very disillusioning, which can make you want to go into overdrive and try and control every little thing you can get your sweaty little paws on. This obviously does not work, and as you will learn time and time again, it takes up too much bandwidth, with misery being the only reward. This is something I have been experiencing lately, and I found ‘Fever’ to be very cathartic. This is a song to both hype you up in the morning and also to remind you to just chill the hell out.
Connect with Badvril
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Dev Lemons - eat the pavement
I saw this come up on YouTube and it immediately reminded me of “magdalena bay mini mix vol 3”, a seminal experience that opened my mind up to boundless creative avenues and forms of self-expression.
I was having a complete crisis yesterday re the bleakness of the music industry and utter futility you feel when trying to share creative projects in the current state of the internet, where it just seems that slop rises to the top and the rest of us haven’t a hope of ever breaking through. I felt like this until I discovered Dev Lemons and her discography.
‘Eat the pavement’ is such a fun kitsch and camp lyric video. I love the beautiful early computer graphics-adjacent music video; the song is so dreamy, taking place in an imaginative wonderland. Thank you for bringing me back to life Dev Lemons.
Connect with Dev Lemons
Instagram | X
Fawn - Eyes
The first thing I thought of in the opening bars of this song was that it reminded me of ‘Portlandia’ for some reason, and funnily enough, this duo are in fact from Portland. This opens with a burst of orange-tinted hazy textures with a kitsch drum machine beat. The chorus kind of reminds me of The Veronicas and plush mid-00s pop; where electronics and indie textures are all blended to create an electronic technicolor dreamscape.
Connect with Fawn
Instagram
Georgia Gets By - Lean Into The Hill
The music video for this is sublime, featuring a stop-motion, purple-tinted fairytale-like world within the music video.
Hand-making a visual world for your music adds a whole new rich dimension to the song; as you find yourself picking colors you associate with the tapestry of the music; the music video for ‘Lean Into The Hill’ being an example of this, immersing you into the world of the song, giving the words and music extra depth and a place to bloom. It also makes the whole experience a little more haunting; adding a gothic Tim Burton-esque quality.
Connect with Georgia Gets By
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ICELANDIA - Death Valley Sunrise
This was a Bandcamp discovery, and is taken from the album ‘DEATH VALLEY.’
This comes to your ears on the winds; and even though it is called ‘Death Valley Sunrise’ it feels kind of icy, perhaps communicating the vast, indifferent nature and breathtaking beauty of the plains you find yourself in. This is the opening of the album, and I, as someone who loves intros and interludes and feels like they don’t get enough appreciation, had to write about this. There is something about this that is addictive from the word go; the soundscape possessing an almost R’n’B-like smoothness running under the indie pop. Gorgeous.
Connect with ICELANDIA
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lighthearted - my sweet time (acoustic)
Meadows will forever have an association with the movie ‘Midsommar’ for me; there is something almost otherworldly in the beauty of a green meadow on a sunshine-soaked day. I came across this on Youtube; and was drawn in by the plush green of the aforementioned meadow. This is the perfect song to listen to while on a sunlit walk in a forest. The playing is wonderful, the vocals flowing together like buttercups. I love the lines “I’ve heard advice /Don’t rush what you wouldn’t do twice”.
Connect with lighthearted
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Tycho, Sea Lemon - Anotherwave
Photo Credit: Rachel Bennett
Photo Credit: Scott Hansen
I am relatively new to the world of Sea Lemon; having discovered her via the Luminelle Recordings website, as they have been home to my favourite acts of all time: Magdalena Bay.
‘Anotherwave’ is a collaboration with Tycho (a song that is available via Mom + Pop in the U.S. and Ninja Tune outside the US) and feels like being in an oceanic paradise. This has an aquatic quality that makes me think it could have been part of the soundtrack to the 2000 movie ‘The Beach’.
On the song, Tycho’s Scott Hansen shares, “I was driving late one night on a road trip through the California Central Valley when I first heard Sea Lemon’s music. Eraser came on and immediately clicked; I think I listened to Close Up about four times in a row. I started imagining Natalie’s vocals on this new song I had been working on; the lush textures felt like a perfect match for the sound. So at the next stop, I reached out and sent some demos. I was really happy when she picked the particular song I had in mind; that’s usually a good sign. We started bouncing ideas back and forth, and pretty soon thereafter, Natalie tracked the vocals at her place. The track was originally a sparse, synth-driven piece, but once I got the vocals in place, I realized something was missing from the overall composition. So Zac came over and tracked some guitars, and it all came into focus quickly. This was one of those songs where I never really had to fight anything; it all just flowed, and those are the most fulfilling projects to work on. It was really an honor to work with such a talented artist as Natalie, and I’m very proud of what we created together.”
Sea Lemon shares: “When Scott (Tycho) reached out to me and shared this song, I instantly felt a connection to the underwater-like quality of the sounds and textures. I started writing lyrics about being 'caught in another wave,’ which turned into sort of the anthemic lyrics that get repeated throughout the song. I've been such a fan of Tycho for years, and getting the chance to work with him on a track is a total dream. Scott has an extremely creative, collaborative way of working, which makes coming together on a track like this a huge joy.”
Connect with Tycho
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Connect with Sea Lemon
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punk - garbagebarbie
Photo by Josh Deangelis
I think the name garbagebarbie is one of the coolest band names I have heard in a long time (so much more interesting than the endless iterations of The [fill in the blanks]” - so my interest was piqued pretty much immediately. This is just an utter blast from start to finish; there is a touch of chaos to this that makes me think of the movie ‘Caught Stealing.’
On the song, the band shares the below:
“The song holds up a mirror to ourselves. It pokes fun at the LA bar scene which even though we can make fun of, it doesn’t change the fact that we are still in that scene,” says drummer Dan Karasev. “In a way, it was method acting. We stepped into the character the song creates while drawing from the absurd things we’ve overheard in LA bars—the kind of comments that make you do a double take and wonder who in the crowded room could have possibly said something like that,” continues bassist Anson Knopp.
Connect with garbagebarbie
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About Eimear O Sullivan
Eimear Ann O Sullivan is a multi-genre music producer, audio engineer and vocalist. After receiving a Masters in Music Technology from the CIT Cork School of Music, she went on to operate as a producer under the name Blakkheart. Her releases have received critical acclaim from Ireland's biggest music publications, such as District Magazine and Nialler9, alongside receiving heavy commercial radio airplay. She currently works in Cork recording studio Flashpoint CC. Previous clients of hers include the likes of Comedy Central’s Dragony Aunt star Candy Warhol, rapper Darce and Outsider YP. (Photo credit @Fabian Boros)
Contact Eimear O Sullivan at eimear.o.sullivan@musicngear.com
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