I have recently found myself listening to more and more female led bands of all kinds. There are heavy rockers like The Pretty Reckless and Vigil of War. There are less heavy but still very rocking bands like Ex Hex and Bat Fangs. And then there are bands that for some reason I refer to as indie pop rock & roll. Sometimes I throw in “punk” so it’s indie pop punk rock & roll. In this category, I feel like there is a golden age occurring. I am an Apple Music user, preferring that over Spotify for no real reason. Every Friday I go to the Listen Now tab where there are playlists updated and new releases listed and I look for new things. What I seem to keep finding is the aforementioned female-fronted indie pop rock n roll. TONS of it, actually.
Over roughly the last three or four years, here is sampling of some bands I enjoy that fit the category:
The Beaches, Bleached, Beach Bunny, The Regrettes, Monowhales, Eliza and the Delusionals, Sydney Sprague, Hotel Caviar, Glacier Veins, Coach Party, Alex Lahey, Soccer Mommy, Wet Leg, Laura Lee & the Jettes, Lucy Dacus, Samia, Attic Salt, Courtney Barnett and many more.
This list is the tip of the iceberg, it really is. I get that Bleached and Courtney Barnett and others on my list have been around for quite a while, but I think this musical style is spawning more and more artists every day. Is it just me, or has this type of artist has been proliferating faster than most other genres? Colin had a “That Song!” post about Haim. They seem a little less indie and a lot more pop, but the song he liked, “The Steps” kind of fits in here pretty well, too.
Here are eight songs, with video, that I think are all tremendous. I sort of think of them as a guilty pleasure, since I have always been a punk and metal kind of person—walls of guitars. But these songs are undeniably catchy and infectious. Listen to them one after another, make a playlist of them, but be warned, you may find yourself craving more. And you can easily find more, so much more.
“Lame” by The Beaches
“Daydream” by Bleached
“FLAG (Feel Like A Girl)” by Coach Party
“Take It Back” by Monowhales
“Monday” by The Regrettes
“Oxygen” by Beach Bunny
“I Haven’t Been Taking Care of Myself” by Alex Lahey
“Mud” by Attic Salt