*photo by Yunkin Keophoma

The 70s was a good era for music. To today's generation, much of that decade is considered to have produced nothing but solid gold oldies. But for matrimonial duo Smokey Brights, it's the era they've used as channelled inspiration for their sonic release. They're like a sift through milk crates full of records, each one touching on a different aspect of rock history. 

With a psychedelic flair that encompasses both funky and groovy notes, Smokey Brights have used their new EP, Come to Terms (Freakout Records), to express a list of grievances to come to terms with. Of them, heartbreak, shady politics and empty conversations are all examined within the four tracks on Come to Terms, softened by rousing crystalline rock sounds. It's entirely too easily to get caught up in Smokey Brights' textures and whether you're fervently listening to the lyrics or dazedly zoning out to their resonance, it's an all around enlivening experience.

 *photo by Stanton J. Stephens

They may not be sisters or even siblings for that matter, but SISTERS have that type of likeminded connection that makes for great, danceable pop music. Much like the indie club bangers of the mid 2000's, SISTERS know the exact formula to make people move.

On their latest release, titled Wait Don't Wait, the duo employ synths, baritone sax and flute on top of the usual guitar and drum combo in creating their joyous tunes. Some lean heavily on jazz chords while others have grubby basslines that make your shoulders bounce. Whenever everything is combined, there's an album full of melodious bangers that can up any mood and get any party started.

If you're looking to dance while at SXSW, take every chance you get to see SISTERS.

 *photo by Hanna Stevens

With sounds and lyrical content as indicative as their moniker implies, The Complex Dialect blend jazz, blues, hip-hop and rock in the makings of their progressive tunes. Their atmospheres are indeed complex, yet, incredibly easy to get lost in. For a band comprised of eight members that makes total sense, as each contributing element help make The Complex Dialect one of the more dynamic newer acts to hit the scene. Their debut album Change shows that.

With Change, the band has tried to symbolize the problems and solutions in our current state of the world. Each song hones in on subjects fraught but true with society (like police brutality and capitalistic slavery), meant to spark internal and external debate and reflection through music. The Complex Dialect contend their intention is to hearten the dispirited, stating that "We look for non-conventional solutions to conventional problems. We strive to be the change we want to see in the world."

Feel the change and listen to one of the album's tracks "Look For A Friend For The End Of The World" below.

Brooklyn via Seattle Tenderfoot's newest single "Semiprecious Life" (streaming) has a low hum which lends a calming touch to a song about an existential crisis. The track, which is included in the upcoming LP Break Apart (out February 2nd), features frontman Adam Kendall Woods's breathy voice waxing about his old and changing home of Seattle, as construction noises pulse behind the rhythm. The other songs on Break Apart will deal with different kinds of change: relationships fading, health deteriorating, hopes dying and growing. To celebrate the release, Tenderfoot will play a show in Seattle in February and then one in Brooklyn on March 16th at C'mon Everybody. Listen to "Semiprecious Life" below. - Will Sisskind