The Peaks and Valley’s of Pittsburgh’s Action Camp

Because I spend most of my day at a computer, I spend a lot of time wondering what to listen to next. Despite the infinite world of Pandora, Spotify, YouTube, and my own library, I still get stuck in ruts of listening to the same stuff over and over. Thus, when I get wind of something new coming along, it’s an absolute delight to take some time with fresh sounds. This last week, that new thing was Pittsburgh’s dark electro-pop duo, Action Camp‘s forthcoming LP, PA. While that last sentence may have read like a bad business presentation with too many acronyms, it’s because the LP is simply titled and written about their home state. As Ivan, a long-time Pennsylvania native, will tell you, it’s a gorgeous but occasionally depressing state, and the tone and subject matter of the LP reflects that perfectly. With songs about various infamous disasters such as the Centralia Mine Fire and the Johnstown Flood, and recurring themes about earth and industry, it’s a delightfully dark experience.

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Sharing and Reviewing My Favorite Unknown Album

Big news! My go-to “I bet you’ve never heard of this” album, no longer available in stores and produced before the days of Bandcamp, is now available on YouTube. It looks like it was actually uploaded about a year ago, but I just discovered it and compiled it into a playlist. I absolutely adore this album. It’s a rare confluence of raw edge, intelligent songwriting, and intriguing lyrics delivered by a solid three-piece. At only 8 songs at about 5 minutes each, it’s a pretty quick listen, so get listening while you read why I love it so much. The Whole Fantastic World – Chime Here’s to Looking Up Your Old Address: Like a few others tracks on this record, this song is about death. As the melody weaves in between the choppy guitar, smooth synths, and an active bassline, we learn about a girl named Dreary’s last night, concluding with “As she made her way out of the bank, To see a sea of Turin’s finest steady their aim, With one shot. Her last night.” This song sets up the tone for the rest of the record with active instrumental interludes in between many of the verses. We’ve Got … Continued

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