This Little Underground

LOCAL RELEASES

Finding an identity is typically an evolutionary process for young bands. But not for Orlando’s Daisy-Chain. From the outset, they were going for something specific. When I first encountered them at a Will’s Pub show in early 2020, all they had to their name was a single. But from that brief opening set, it was clear from both look and sound that they would be one of the most distinctive bands to emerge from here in a while.

Now, Daisy-Chain further that high style on their new Blue Dreams EP. Their first release in nearly two years, this sophomore collection plays like a batch of lost gems from the British new-wave underground. A lithe and economical merger of janglepop sparkle and post-punk hues, these six songs beam with young romance and feature simple, lovely melodies that are kept to their shining essence.

As Blue Dreams amply attests, Daisy-Chain are an auspicious band with easy melodic instinct and keen aesthetic sense. The EP is an instant charm and Daisy-Chain’s most crystallized work yet. Blue Dreams now streams everywhere, but it’s also up on Bandcamp as a name-your-price download.

Studio albums and live shows are their own discrete things. But with very few exceptions, there’s always something essential lost in translation when it comes to concert records. DCxPC Live’s latest release, however, does a good job of bridging the gap, capturing the lightning of live performance with little of the less-than-ideal field conditions of concert recordings.

Volume 6 of DCxPC Live — the local label, promoter and all-around advocate of live music — is a split record that pairs Grave Return with the Hamiltons, a head-on of two of the city’s most credentialed punk outfits. While the recording is a true live capture, it was done as part of a livestream event at a proper studio, Orlando punk bastion the

Danger Room.

Befitting their experience and pedigree, both bands deliver sturdy performances here. Across two songs each, Grave Return rip propulsive, darkly melodic drives and the Hamiltons flex raw muscle that verges on noise rock. In all, Grave Return & The Hamiltons Live at the Danger Room is an impressive bottling of the live power of two of Orlando’s leading punk lights. The split release is available on Bandcamp both digitally and as a 7-inch red vinyl record. Jump on this fast, because the vinyl is a superlimited run of only 150.

Daisy-Chain’s new album Blue Dreams plays like a batch of lost gems from the British new-wave underground. It’s a lithe and economical merge of jangle-pop sparkle and post-punk hues

CONCERT PICKS THIS WEEK

If you go out, be safe, be cool.

Mariah the Scientist: As R&B rides its most potent and forward wave in gen-

BY BAO LE-HUU

DAISY-CHAIN | PHOTO BY MATTHEW MOYER

erations, the lane is thankfully wide open for left-leaning young artists like Atlanta’s Mariah the Scientist to shape the popmusic landscape.

With rapidly rocketing stock, the rise of this bright star is only just beginning. This could be the last time you see her in a room this intimate. (6 p.m. Friday, June 24, The Social, $27.50)

The Ludes, Cinema Stereo, Howling

Midnight: Indie, schmindie. Sometimes you just need to straight rock the fuck out. That’s precisely what this trifecta of guitarpowered Orlando bands are all about. The Ludes specialize in heavy blues rock that’s a speedball of grime, brawn and nasty-ass riffs. Howling Midnight are a diesel-jacked two-piece act who manage a mammoth Queens of the Stone Age sound out of an agile Black Keys setup. And hard-rock purists Cinema Stereo deliver power with flamboyance. Lighters up. (8 p.m. Friday, June 24, Will’s Pub, $10)

Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls, The Bouncing Souls, The Bronx, Pet

Needs: Soulful folk-punk icon Frank Turner and melodic New Jersey punk heroes the Bouncing Souls are known and reliable quantities. But the downticket bands on this bill are what make this a blowout show.

First and foremost, the freewheeling hardcore glory of L.A.’s the Bronx is a total party, while England’s Pet Needs will bring rousing punk raucousness from across the pond. Add it all up and you’ve got one stacked night. (5:30 p.m. Sunday, June 26, House of Blues, $36.50-$79.75)

baolehuu@orlandoweekly.com orlandoweekly.com ● JUNE 22-28, 2022 ● ORLANDO WEEKLY 33