By Margaret Adams
Philadelphia-based artist Barney Cortez has released “New Age Nightmare;” the single ushers in Cortez’s new era and largest musical project yet: Hullabaloo. Cortez initially stepped into the indie scene with his debut LP, Pretty Thin, in 2018, and has since released two EPs: Doll City and Drive Thru Heart. The indie artist has been featured on NPR Live Sessions, WXPN, Earmilk, No Depression among other music outlets.
One of the most interesting parts of the track itself is Cortez’s vocals; he makes the talking-singing type of vocals likable and more interesting. It fits the rhythm of the song and deviates from the vocals during the chorus and bridge. The singer-songwriter also effectively combines sounds of psych rock, 60s folk, grunge, and pop in a very complex and nuanced way. “New Age Nightmare” describes how today’s culture facilitates further isolation, despite the constant presence of connection.
“Feeling like you can’t connect with somebody because they see the world in a different way,” states Cortez, explaining the lyrics. “When everybody around you is all lovey dovey, like, ‘oh isn’t life great,’ and you fuckin feel like you’re a million miles away and you’re not on that trip at all. It’s a modern paranoia. Alienation is what it’s about.”
Fans of IDLES, Surf Curse, and Cage the Elephant should check out Barney Cortez’s new single. “New Age Nightmare” is available on Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, and YouTube. Follow our Alchemical Multigenre Mixdown playlist for more great music featured on the site.
Margaret Adams is a Psychology major and Rhetoric and Writing minor at The Catholic University of America from New Orleans, Louisiana. In addition to her work with Alchemical, she writes for CUA’s student newspaper, The Tower, and has recently been named Quill Editor. She enjoys reading, writing, and looking at pictures of her dog, Bella.
Recent Articles March 21st. A day that I will always think of amazing album releases. DC-based musician, producer, and singer-songwriter, Rachel Levitin, released Witty Banter
Alchemical Records is a Washington, D.C. based music publication. We cover the Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Richmond, VA metro area music scenes, including band interviews, articles about your favorite musicians, new music and concert dates.
