Noon:30 / Tanya Donnelly / Bunnygrunt at Stereo Embers

Noon:30 – Brought to us with the description “grimy trip-hop urban post-punk,” you can imagine how instantly that got our attention. To this we’d add tribal, moody, whispering with danger, breathing with menace. The product of two young women from D.C. – Blue, vocals and bass, Aissa Arroyo-Hill, guitar and sound design – we’re pretty certain that they are at least among the more intriguing, adventurous entrants into 2015’s debut class.


Tanya Donnelly – How exciting is this? Founding member of legendary Throwing Muses, part owner of the lasting Breeders legacy and prime driver of mid-90’s juggernaut of melodic suss Belly has, if you’ve not been following, been self-releasing a series of Swan Song EPs over the past couple of years, numbered 1-5, “an ongoing series of EPs made up of collaborations with various musicians, authors, and friends,” according to a note below their Discogs listings. Swan Song the album will include many if not all of the tracks from those EPs – tracklisting was still being determined at press time – and we here at SEM couldn’t be more thrilled if Belly did a reunion gig in our front room.


Bunnygrunt – This St Louis-born  band began life as a kind of cuddly proposition but over the last 20 years have grown into an altogether different breed, casting their net wide into melodic grunge/punk, classic rock, cynical singer-songwriter fare a la Warren Zevon, and the ever-irresistible lure of power pop. Though somewhat relegated over the years to the fringes, we’re figuring that the upcoming Vol. 4 just might land them on some bigger stages. But whether that happens or not, all we can is: we’re happy!

[Link]