By Charlie Maybee
Boston, Massachusetts based indie rock band, Holy Smokes, have just released their debut single “Radiator Song” which merges the rockin’ energy of garage aesthetics with a more polished composition. The first single off an upcoming self-titled album shows off its DIY foundation with songs that were recorded in basements, kitchens, and living rooms on 4-track tape machine during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
With the raw sound of these old school recording methods comes a special kind of energy that works well with kind of classic rock and roll sound that Holy Smokes is sporting. The band writes that this song, “explores the immediate wake of a failed romance”. With lyrics like “The sound of the heat pipes / And the static in your bedsheets / Gives a sense of singularity in all this”, the primary singer-songwriter, Eric Bolton, reflects on feelings the delusion that a brief fling has major significance. He describes It as a break-up song, but it’s also a commentary on the act of writing a break-up song.
With additional lyrics written by Patrick Grenham and guest backing vocals by Wayne Whittaker (Haerts, Pigeon Club), “Radiator Song” announces the arrival of a great new band: practiced and refined, but also proudly independent and creating for the pure joy of making a mess.
“Radiator Song” is currently available to stream on Bandcamp and SoundCloud, or find it on the Alchemical Records Miltigenre Mixture playlist on Spotify.
Charlie Maybee is a dancer, musician, educator, and writer based in Charleston, South Carolina who currently teaches with the Dance Program at the College of Charleston. His primary work as an artist is with his performing collective, Polymath Performance Project, through which he makes interdisciplinary performance art that centers tap dance as the primary medium of expression and research. He also currently plays rhythm guitar for the Charleston-based punk band, Anergy, and releases music as a solo artist under the name Nox Eterna.
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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.
