Tag: Constant Lovers

Top 20 singles of 2018: #’s 20 – 16

2018 was the first year I started keeping track of my favorite singles of the year. It’s probably because there were so many good ones, including some that were just released as singles and others that stuck in my head for days. Who made the top 20? Read on and find out.

#20: “Sleepers” by Exploded View – This dreamy psych / synth track is a trippy mix of Velvet Underground and 80’s synthwave. It’s the kind of track that makes you wonder, “Who is this?” as soon as you hear it.

#19: “Nocturnal” by Magic Wands – Easily one of the best synthwave tracks of the year, this lush song is great for make-out sessions and has just enough of a dark edge to keep it dangerous.

#18: “You Are Dinner” by Constant Lovers – Good grief, does this thing have power. It’s a wild rock track with punk guitars and spat lyrics that the lead singer almost screws up but uses the moment to push his vocals even further.

#17: “Wheel of Fortune” by Protomartyr – The video of this shows one of the band members punching himself in the face. That’s apt, because this songs hits you just like that (especially when the chorus kicks in).

#16: “Singularity” by Jon Hopkins – The build of this electronic track is stunning to behold. It almost takes you by surprise like a big wave you didn’t see coming while standing hip-deep in the ocean. It’s over far too soon.

Who made the top 15? Come back tomorrow to find out.

Keep your mind open.

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Constant Lovers share heavy, frantic track “You Are Dinner” from upcoming album.

Constant Lovers share first track from forthcoming album Pangs
 Chaotic, fun punk rock’n’roll w/ members of Helms Alee, Damien Jurado, Harkonen, Suffering & The Hideous Thieves, Triumph of Lethargy

Hear and share “You Are Dinner” (Soundcloud) (Heavy Blog)
“A curve ball…A barely contained explosion of rock n’ roll riffs and potential, shaking off bonds that lay at the base of why rock n’ roll is so good.” — Heavy Blog Is Heavy
Seattle, WA quartet Constant Lovers premiere the first track from their forthcoming sophomore album, Pangs today via Heavy Blog is Heavy. Hear and share “You Are Dinner” HERE. (Direct Soundcloud and Bandcamp.)
It’s like we’ve all forgotten what a great rock ‘n’ roll band should sound like. Everything’s been subdivided into narrower and narrower genres. The idea of a loud, fun, sometimes heavy, other times chaotic, brash and unfettered rock band seems completely alien today. Constant Lovers is one of those – like how the MC5 sounded completely different on every album, yet always unparalleled in rhythmic, propulsive force.
Considering that Constant Lovers is a coterie of Seattle musicians from a mixed musical background, their collision of styles makes perfect sense. Drummer Ben Verellen plays guitar and sings in celebrated crunchers Helms Alee (Sargent House), guitarist Eric Fisher played with Sub Pop songwriter Damien Jurado, guitarist/vocalist Joel Cuplin played in Murder City Devils offshoot Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive To Death and bassist/vocalist Gavin Tull-Esterbrook in murder balladeers Suffering and The Hideous Thieves. The entire band’s members have generally vacillated across the board of musical convention over the years.
Hearkening to the late-60s/early-70s boundary pushing of proto-punk, Constant Lovers have added saxophone and the use of improvisation in both recording and their live shows. Some tunes are as taut and wiry as Television, others are heavy as modern doom metal, most of them are just loud and fun and less than serious — aside from delivering the goods to the good people. Of course, more modern comparisons are equally fitting, like early aughts chameleons and fellow Seattleites The Blood Brothers, rock iconoclasts Cloud Nothings, and a more playful amalgam of the band members’ other outfits.
At once a celebration of the heavier sounds featured in their last album, Experience Feelings, Pangs also signals a turn towards a more exploratory nature. Pangs opens with a slow fade in to the propulsive skree of “The Wound Up Get Down” reminiscent of The Birthday Party. “You Are Dinner” repeats an urgent, chirping guitar line before erupting in a heavy, slinking riff. “Meow Meow Meow” takes a rock’n’roll swagger, chopped into jagged slashes of guitar over syncopated drums. Elsewhere, “Bone Shard Fashion” and “Lullabye” serve up low end fury and frantic vocals. Throughout, while it’s an aggressive and wild ride, Pangs never abandons melody for the sake of crunch.
Pangs will be available on LP and download on October 26th, 2018. Preorders are available HERE.

Artist: Constant Lovers
Album: Pangs
Record Label: Self-released
Release Date: October 26th, 2018
01. The Wound Up Get Down
02. Meow Meow Meow
03. Ceiling Sweats
04. It’s Electric
05. You Are Dinner
06. Bone Shard Fashion
07. Know The Knot
08. Rally Cry For The Pang In Your
09. Lullabye
10. Amuse Bouche
11. Pang Time
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