PRIDE MONTH: essie + nap Pine For a U-Hauler in “Long Distance Lover”
The Philly duo essie + nap’s second single “Long Distance Lover” is an in-your-face blues rock song inspired by the anxiety of awaiting that next text message. Featuring Andrew Lipke (Amos Lee, Get the Led Out) on lead guitar, the…
Fugu Quintet Send Jazzy “Worry” From Russia, With Love
I was struck by the strong melodic line coursing through Fugu Quintet’s “Worry.” The six-minute instrumental belies the song’s title: while you could interpret the straining saxophones as an allusion to anxiety, the band creates a cohesive whole, anchored to…
PRIDE MONTH: LIT. MAJOR Finds Freedom In Coming Out
Connecticut-based singer-songwriter LIT. MAJOR finds himself entering more personal territory on his new song “Not Even Crying.” The song explores an intimate moment at his grandfather’s funeral, where he realizes that he had no relationship with the family patriarch. “He…
Ian McFarland Uses the Concrete Jungle to Fuel “Love Lines”
Ian McFarland is a songwriter from Portsmouth, NH who has lived in Brooklyn, Boston, Los Angeles, and Valencia (Spain). He has been releasing music in a number of projects since he was 13 years old and is currently based in…
PRIDE MONTH: Cindy Emch Gathers Community For The Future is Queer Country
It’s always a blast to hear what Cindy Emch of Secret Emchy Society is up to. The Bay Area-based queer country singer helped create the queer country news site Country Queer; she’s helmed the West Coast Gay Ole Oprey for…