Snooping the Bandcamp

(Copying the name and style of my favorite and former music site: Bandcamp Hunter in Australia) No talent to do reviews. No time to do reviews. Simply bands on Bandcamp. Snooping around the Bandcamp like Scooby Doo (or my dog Vinca, RIP).  I will try to post daily, so please return. Please feel free to make recommendations by clicking the "Ask Me Anything" link below.

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7/16/26.

I'll gladly admit that I still read Pitchfork reviews. I'll also state for the record that I find more new music that I like from Maximum Rock N' Roll than I do from Pitchfork. But, Pitchfork is still a great source of discovery for me.

"Distant Lands" from zzzahara (Zahara Jaime/Los Angeles) does recall another great Pitchfork "find" from a few years back- fantasy of a broken heart.

I'm always partial to musicians who make music because they almost have to. Jaime, in a recent interview said, "Honestly, if no one heard my music, I guess I'd be cool with it, because it's the only art form I know how to do. I don't know how to draw or anything else."

In that same interview, Jaime stated that Phil Elverum/Microphones, Sparklehorse, Neutral Milk Hotel and Sun Kil Moon were all influences on this release. Zzzahara also is 1/2 of the group The Simps.

This was released by London-based label Lex Records.

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7/15/26.

Here we are in July of 2026 and this is Diät's first post. They've been hashtagged 14 times over the years, but I bought their LP "Positive Energy" about 6 months before I started this blog in December 2014, so I guess I never really went back to give them their own post.

To me they have an Aussie post-punk/Total Control kind of sound. I've compared bands like Rank/Xerox, Marbled Eye, Soft Shoulder and Trauma Harness to DIÄT over the years if that helps paint a picture of their sound. Member Josh Newton has also been in The Lewers, Itchy Bugger and Bobby Would.

Diät is based in Berlin, Germany when they're active. Iron Lung just released this live album. While you're at Iron Lung, also check out Consensus Madness "Endeavors", another new release which is described as "Dangerhouse, UK77, neue deutsche welle, 90s Japanese garage".

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7/14/26.

One letter and two numbers. Amazing how so little can say so much: C86. One of the hashtags at the bottom of "The Original Rock 'N' Roll Chair" Bandcamp page is "C86", and with that simple hashtag The Passmore Sisters guaranteed a listen from me. This CD is compilation of singles and b-sides from 1985 to 1987, and while it absolutely fits the C86 tag, they don't appear on the exhaustive 3 CD "NME C86" compilation from Cherry Red.

Originally from Bradford, England, The Passmore Sisters relocated to Manchester. They recorded three sessions with BBC - two with John Peel and one with Janice Long. My ear hears three bands - Aztec Camera (Roddy Frame's vocals), The Housemartins, and The Smiths.

Vegetable Records released this in 2018. The CD actually has 19 tracks.

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7/13/26.

Well, that escalated quickly. A great line from Anchorman, seems appropriate here when discussing Twisted Teens. The New Orleans, Louisiana band rose rather quickly to prominence when their S/T LP was pressed onto vinyl (we first mentioned them in December 2024). Their star rose more when Pitchfork reviewed "Blame The Clown" in February 2026 (we covered this release back in October 2025), and now they've released another LP, "Florida Water Blues".

This album retains the sound of earlier Twisted Teens albums - that is it focuses on the vocals of CPN Hollywell. There is a definite swampiness to them, but he's a great songwriter too. I know I've said this a million times, but for my money CPNPC "XLEP" is his best work. It's still available on cassette.

This appears to be self-released. Be sure to check the right side of the Bandcamp page. Twisted Teens is currently on tour.

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7/12/26.

I'm not sure how something as "up my alley" as Spice World escaped a post when their debut LP, "There Is No I In Spice World" was released in early 2023 by Tenth Court/Meritorio Records. This is classic Aussie pop in the dolewave vein of Dick Diver/Boomgates.

Now, Rough Skies - the label run by Julian Teakle in Hobart, Tasmania is releasing the follow up LP from the Fremantle, WA based band. The Bandcamp page promises a vinyl version is coming. The two songs currently available are a bit less "dolewavy" than the debut.

Heads up, I received an email from Meritorio (many of you probably did) announcing a €10 sale on many titles, including the "There Is No I In Spice World" LP. In keeping with the Aussie theme, Girlatones, Go Get Mum, and Monnone Alone are available for the €10 price.

Go get 'em. The offer is good until the end of August.

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7/11/26.

The last Maston (Los Angeles, California) post came over 4 years ago. He's been making music since then, but the flood of music that is the reality of this blog sometimes makes beloved musicians fall to the temporary wayside.

I actually thought about Maston because I was listening to French musician Initials MB (Maxime Baderspach) and thinking, "Hey, this reminds me of Maston."

So, while we're at it, a little love for Initials MB:

Back to Maston. The "Foreign Affairs" 7" is prime Maston - still steeped in The High Llamas, Ennio Morricone, and Van Dyke Parks. It is released by BeWith Records. Initials MB "Cinema" is released by Funk Night Records.

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7/10/26.

As I've said many times, I don't receive very many messages. Unfortunately, most of the ones I get are from bands that have no physical release, so right off the bat the rule-follower in me knows he won't be able to post about their music. And that's before I listen to the music. So when I received the following message, I was heartened to see there was a physical release:

Hey, last month BBC Introducing played my music and said ‘if you’re a fan of David Bowie you’ll love this artist’. You wouldn’t believe how angry that made some men on Facebook. Anyway, my new album's now on Bandcamp – the artist is Gurry Wurry, and the album is called Glue. Cheers!

I was also pretty excited that I genuinely liked the music. I must have listened to it start to finish at least three times. Not going to lie, I assumed Gurry Wurry [the vehicle for the music of Dave King] were based in Wales - they definitely sound way more influenced by Gruff Rhys/Super Furry Animals/Euros Childs than David Bowie. Not from Wales, but Edinburgh, Scotland, this was produced by Andy Monaghan (Frightened Rabbit).

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7/9/26.

I'm not at all surprised that I like this. I am a little surprised this is out of Oakland, California.

Edith's Head "My Back Wages" is a 9 track cassette lo-fi indie rock album that starts with a sound reminiscent of Le Villejuif Underground, TH da Freak, and early Primal Scream.

The eighth song, , is without a doubt the most experimental. The two person band () employs a certain "Spat" on the following instruments: paint roller, hand drum, saddle soap tin, bellydancing sash, suction cup, and guitar.

Then the album closes with one of the strongest songs (and appropriately titled) "Screed".

The real Edith Head was a famed Hollywood costume designer and the inspiration for the character Edna Mode from the film The Incredibles.

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7/8/26.

Ruth Garbus' new LP "Profound" has been getting some well deserved accolades of late, including an 8.0 from Pitchfork. Garbus is a veteran musician of the Brattleboro, Vermont music scene. She's been a member of both Happy Birthday and Feathers (both with King Tuff, aka Kyle Thomas. Happy Birthday also has her parter, Chris Weisman and Feathers has Kurt Weisman - all have been covered at one point on this blog).

"Profound" is sparse, and gorgeous. This has an El Perro del Mar and at times an Eleanor Friedberger feel to it.

I also really love the cover. If you've ever wondered what a forty something "senior portrait" would look like you have your answer. This is released by Orindal Records which is responsible for much of the Dear Nora releases.

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7/7/26.

Spectralate were a band formed in the early 2010s by Alan Holmes and Annie Muriel on the island of Anglesey in Northern Wales. Holmes has been in many bands, most notably Fflaps (1987-1992) and Ectogram (1996-2012).

Spectralate is beautifully orchestrated and hues closer to Would-Be-Goods, Tele Novella, and Jens Lekman than either of the above mentioned bands. And while both Holmes and Muriel are Welsh musicians, I can't say that this has the classic signs of Welsh indie music. In other words, while Holmes may have played with Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, this doesn't necessarily tend to that sound.

And I don't know enough - or anything - about Anglesey, to know if this music is informed by the culture or landscape of the area. All I know is it's beautifully consistent throughout. The band released several full lengths in a 3 year period.

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7/6/26.

My "in" to The Thermals was the album "The Body, The Blood, The Machine". I fell in love with Hutch Harris' vocal style, his melodies and of course the accompanying music courtesy of Kathy Foster and Jordan Hudson.

It looks like we are getting a new Thermals (Portland, Oregon) record. While I'm pretty stoked, I'm tempering expectations as from the sound of it, this is mostly a Hutch Harris solo effort. Kathy Foster helped play, but it doesn't really seem like she had a hand in writing any of the songs. But, in one "interview" Hutch assured us that "SHE'S RIGHT HERE, sitting next to me working hard on the layout for the LP, as I write this. Not only did I have Kathy’s blessing to make a Thermals LP, I had her help as well."

"Good Morning Fellow Scavengers" certainly sounds like The Thermals, who disbanded back in 2018. But apparently Harris missed, "the noise, the nerves and the chaos that the band always embodied. The exuberance, the raw power, and the punctuality!"

We posted "The Body, The Blood, The Machine" back in 2020. I mentioned Ted Leo & The Pharmacists back then as a band that put me in a similar mood. I might add Titus Andronicus to that.

This is being issued by Hutch's own label - Catsup Aspic. The CD version is limited to 50 with handmade covers/signature by Hutch.

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7/5/26.

I can't believe a release as good as Deadbeat Beat "How Far" has led to only 4 total mentions since 2019. Seems odd for how much I've listened to that release. But, it's true.

"From Here to Ohio" is the follow up, seven years in the making. The sound is similar, although the Bandcamp write up mentions that vocally, Deadbeat Beat (Detroit, Michigan), owes a debt to Turtles, the Beach Boys, and the Cowsills. Musically, there is still a Flying Nun feel, but on the notes for this release the band doesn't name drop The Clean like they did on the last release.

This was mastered by Warren Defever (His Name Is Alive) and was released by Canadian label We Are Time, but if you're in the US, you can get it through Revolver/Midheaven.

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7/4/26.

I recently learned of the Floating Eels project. It's made up of three people: David Mitchell, Paul Jones, Björn Magnusson and is described as an album of improvised music that "was recorded live to 4 tracks during a couple of long sessions in London [where Mitchell currently lives] late summer 2025".

I got pretty excited by the name David Mitchell - yes, it is THAT David Mitchell: The Exploding Budgies, Plagal Grind, Goblin Mix, 3Ds, and Ghost Club are just some of the bands he's been a key member of.

There is no physical release of "Get Down With the Floating Eels" yet, but David Mitchell is all over the release-iverse so I hardly feel like I'm breaking my "release-must-exist" rule. If you want to hear David Mitchell on vinyl, cassette or CD, you have many options (including Leather Apron, another Mitchell band I'd never heard of).

As far as sound goes, this does sound like David Mitchell, and it does sound improvised. It also sounds amazing.

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7/3/26.

About 3 weeks ago, I said that angels should have announced the release of The Clog's debut LP. Break the angelic chorus out again - Charlie Ivan Band are back with their 2nd LP, "Of Nothing".

"Where The Dogs Go To Die" was my #2 album of 2024 (#1 was CPNPC "XLEP"), and it has continued to shine in my record collection. So, I was pretty excited to hear about the new album, even if it's only two songs (for now). Currently "Of Nothing" is the more upbeat while "I'm Tired" lives up to its name. Both songs build upon the sound established on "Where The Dogs Go To Die".

Dylan Young (Way Dynamic) produced most of this (and he played on quite a bit), but Michael Beach produced and played on the last song. The Charlie Ivan Band is made up of same three regulars as the first LP and then an extensive list of collaborators.

This time around, Bedroom Suck Records is releasing this. The Charlie Ivan Band is based in Alice Springs, Australia. This is a relatively small town that is basically smack in the middle of the country. If you're looking for a party band, you can book Alice Springs' legends Wolfpack Amadeus.

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7/2/26.

Thanks to Maximum Rock N' Roll for bringing this band to my attention. I usually look at the online music review "magazine" once or twice a month. I don't share their tastes on 80% of the reviews - I'm not a big hardcore guy, but I do love me some melodic punk, power pop, or post-punk, which they will review from time to time.

Fashion Bathers are a Manitoba, Canada based band. But as one of the MRNR reviews says, this sounds more like a cross of Tony Molina and Aussie punk. I actually think it sounds like Tony Molina crossed with The Ramones. Tony Molina for the short song bursts of melody, and Ramones for type of melody.

This is released by Knuckles on Stun, a Nashville based cassette label (the label also released another cassette by the band, "III"). With a name like that you pretty much know what you're getting. Maximum Rock N' Roll covers a lot of their releases.

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7/1/26.

The Phone Call are yet another London, England based band. The great thing about this release is that it name drops all sorts of bands, and I haven't heard of one of them. So great. I'm not totally surprised, since this isn't my normal indie pop, but this is pop. So members of The Phone Call have previously been in the following bands: David Cronenberg’s Wife, The Awkward Silences, and Slushy Guts (the previous band was apparently "electro indie legends").

I do know some of the influenced or "sounds-like" comparisons given on the Bandcamp page: The Cool Greenhouse, XTC and Pulp. I would add that it reminds me a bit of both Art Brut and Sleaford Mods (a much less gritty and angry version of Sleaford Mods).

This is released by British label Blang Records.

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6/30/26.

I honestly don't recall another independent label that keeps such a regular/frenetic release pace as Subjangle. I've been following the label since it's inception and early on, I bought a lot of the releases. But after the first couple of years, I couldn't keep pace with the releases and now I only post/buy every now and then.

This is one of those "every now and then" moments. According to the email release announcement, Liberty Belle's Francois Cantot and Darrin Lee were chatting on Instagram, "about our mutual love for a certain release [The Go-Betweens "Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express"], when he mentioned that he has his own music. Intrigued I request he sent it to me and it just happened to be the most beautifully fragile indie-pop you can imagine. This is definitely going to appeal to those who prefer the McLennan end of The Go-Betweens repertoire!"

Maybe the band name hints at this, but this also recalls the work of Belle and Sebastian. Cantot's songwriting reminds me a bit of Martin Phillips (The Chills). The Bandcamp page also mentions The Bush Tetras and Sarah Records as touchstones.

Subjangle has a 15% off code - belle15 - that will work until July 2nd.