On Repeat's EPs of the Year
There was no shortage of short players in 2022
2022 was a banner year for full-length records, so it only stands to reason that the same would be true for EPs.
Great material sounds came from all corners. Joining traditional music centers like LA & New York were cities like Green Bay and Bellingham, Washington.
This list alone has two EPs Santa Fe, New Mexico making the cut.
The internet and recording technology/distribution advances mean bands no longer have to trek to where the music is being made. They can make it right where they’re at and get it right to you, geography be damned.
As I did with full-length records, these are not ranked from bottom to top but rather listed in order of release date. Everything from emo to power pop to industrial is represented here; doing a direct comparison or ranking felt like it’d be arbitrary at best.
So with that, let’s get right into it!
Stomatopod- Competing With Hindsight (1/28)
Chicago-based band with a gritty sound sure to blow your speakers if you’re not careful. They sound exactly like (insert your favorite 90s band on Matador here).
For your playlist: Be The Hog!
New Dad- Banshee (2/9)
New Dad come across like a band that’s almost too good for their own good. Record reviews are supposed to be objective—and certainly not hyperbolic— but it’s hard to overstate just how great this EP is.
DIY Mag called the record “an inevitable ascension of a band who are so acutely aware of their own gifts, it’s impossible not to be drawn in.”
At least I’m not the only one, I guess.
For your playlist: Banshee.
Khruangbin ft/ Leon Bridges- Texas Moon(2/18)
I picked this record up after seeing friend of On Repeat, Terry Barr, raving about it. I “kinda” liked Khruangbin, but I really liked Leon Bridges- especially “Interstellar,” his track with Avalanches. I picked up the record on the strength of those two points. On the first listen, I wasn’t too impressed. By the third spin, I was sold.
Bridges’ vocals, paired with Khruangbin’s sultry grooves, were the gift we didn’t know we needed this year.
For your playlist: B-Side, Mariella
Neutrals-Bus Stop Nights (3/25)
With snarling lines like “You think you know what’s best for us. You don’t know anything” on “Pressures of Life,” you’d be excused from mistaking Neutrals for Stiff Little Fingers or anyone else that went to the same late 70s post-punk finishing school….Bus Stop Nights crams a lot of jagged guitar & motorik drumming into four tracks- just enough time for you to listen on your “15” at work. It’ll be better than whatever coffee is on in the breakroom.
For your playlist: Bus Stop Nights
Oblivz-Managers (5/23)
The follow-up to 2021’s Uplifts, Managers is a more fully formed sound. A sound that has been described as sound[ing] fuller and denser, with Slater and Wilmoth finding a New Order-ish medium between guitar rock and electronic music.
For your playlist: Up In The Air, Dr. Y.
Hazel English-Summer Nights (6/17)
Beautiful sugary pop that will have you longing for warmer temps and longer days.
At any rate, Summer Nights is a bit like cotton candy. Delicious, makes you feel good and doesn't stick with you. That's not always a bad thing, of course. As much as I like to make fun of "just vibes" music, sometimes something that reminds you of sunny days at the beach is what you need most- especially if it's already snowing in October. WHICH IT TOTALLY IS AS I TYPE THIS.
It’s still snowing here, by the way…
Favorites: Summer Nights, When You’re Around
Lifeguard-Crowd Can Talk (8/5)
Picture this: The members of Fugazi come in off the road, settle down and start families. Then their kids get to high school and form a band. And it’s as good as their parents’ records were.
That’s Lifeguard.
I’m really excited to see where these guys can take it.
In high school, I was in a band for about three days. Listening to what my peers were putting out showed me my talents lay elsewhere. Fast forward to today, and it’s a little disconcerting to realize people my age now have kids putting out music. Lifeguard are a Chicago-based trio, and Crowd Can Talk is their latest EP. It’s a blistering ride that brings to mind early Fugazi and others from the Dischord finishing school.
If only I’d have had a fraction of this talent.
For your playlist: Typecast
Feir-S/T (8/30)
If you’d told me last year that one of my favorite EPs (and one of my favorite songs) of the year would be from a band based in Kuala Lumpur, I probably would’ve just tilted my head. But that’s exactly what happened. Feir’s self-titled EP worked its way into my heavy rotation and hasn’t ever really left.
When I spoke to them recently, they mentioned that they already have enough material to head back into the studio. Don’t be surprised to see them on next year’s list as well.
Kuala Lampur seems like an odd place for this EP to come from, but here we are. Dreampop, Shoegaze; whatever you want to call it, it fits. There’s no shortage of swirling guitar, lilting vocals, and melody. Reminds me a bit of Ride.
A little bit happy, a little bit sad, a lot of awesome.
For your playlist: Sometimes
The Prize- Wrong Side Of Town (9/2)
A nice blitz of uptempo power pop from Down Under.
On their Wrong Side Of Town EP, Melbourne’s The Prize deliver plenty of power pop, jet-fueled power chords, and a whole pile of oozin’ ahhs. This record comes out of the gate at 7000rpm, and never slows down.
Play it on your next break at work. It’ll be the most energetic 10 minutes you spend all week on the clock, and beats having to make small talk with that insufferable coworker you always seem to run into at the coffee maker.
For your Playlist: Wrong Side of Town
Rileys Mountain-S/T (9/13)
Killer shoegaze from Bellingham, Washington, of all places. Rileys Mountain is part of a larger pivot away from fuzzier, sludgier shoegaze sounds toward a cleaner, brighter one.
I had a great time chatting with the duo behind the record, even if singer Maryfiona referred to bands like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the Breeders, Pink Floyd, Pixies, and Bob Dylan as “the usual dad stuff.”
Oof.
"…one can almost imagine Mary and Abe living on a diet of Cheatahs, Drop Nineteens, and Pinkshinyultrablast. I’d envisioned that scenario taking place in a studio somewhere, but maybe all that listening was happening in the car.
For your playlist: lovelylittle
Old Moon- Under All Skies (9/16)
Burlington, Vermont’s Tom Weir (who performs as Old Moon) had a busy 2022. Besides the Under All Skies EP, he also released a full-length record and a second EP. Not bad.
Under All Skies will take you back to the era before terms like alternative and indie existed when it was all bundled under the “college radio” umbrella. The EP has elements from all corners of those days in it. There are some post-punk Wire moments, jangle, and some roots rock.
All in all, Old Moon just might be your new favorite college band.
For your playlist: Dark Blue Morning
Hubba-Empty Dreams (10/4)
Jared Garcia, who performs as Hubba, had spent the last few years going through some things. He channeled that into Empty Dreams, an EP that will take you to the far corners of your mind.
When we spoke earlier in the fall, he noted that he intended to "... take a step further in my writing and write pieces like a film or a novel. I want to make people feel something in them when they hear it. I want every tone and every instrument to have intention, purpose, and its own journey to being on track and on the album."
Listening to empty dreams will absolutely take you on a journey.
What I originally wrote:
Listening to Empty Dreams, a record the label describes as somewhere in an ancient VHS western, dealing with heartache and loss, it's hard not to feel something. If you've ever been to the desert, you can relate to the strange way it feels welcoming and foreboding all at once.
If you've ever felt the loss of a close relative, the three tracks on Side A will take you back to those memories. Listening, one can almost see the Super 8 clips flashing as memories of those no longer with us.
The first few times I heard the lead single "By Your Side," it was playing in the background at work.
I thought it was a love song. In a lot of ways, it is.
For your playlist: By Your Side
The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club- Vanishing Point- (10/6)
The band name is the only unwieldy thing about this band. Another group from the Second City that wastes no time getting down to business. In this case, the business is making a concept record that’s an homage to 80’s B-list horror films. You know— the ones that used to terrify us but now make us laugh (or cringe).
Something like this stands on a knife edge between nailing it and being a parody of itself. Vanishing Point nails it.
An unwieldy band name giving the best/worst named emo bands of the early 00’s a run for their money and a sound that owes more than a nod to groups like Cheap Trick and The Cars, “Vanishing Point” is a 4-song homage to the B-horror films of the late 80s.
Given the timing of this edition, that’d alone make this worth a look—I’m not above spinning holiday-themed records. But here’s the thing; the songs all stand up well on their own. There are plenty of front-and-center vocals and a good deal of fuzz, but the hooks are never too far away. Making a themed record and doing it well are usually two different things. Not this time. The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club threads the needle perfectly.
For your playlist: Every Night I’m Dying
The Dead Century-The Well (10/7)
An EP of compact, blue-collar Power Pop from the upper midwest- played by guys that look like they could be your kid’s AP Geography teacher.
The Dead Century hails from the Twin Cities and cites bands like The Hold Steady and Weakerthans as influences. The Well is a straightforward rock album with narrative-driven lyrics. It's the sort of music Soul Asylum or even Gin Blossoms once made. In many ways, this record could only have been made in Minneapolis.
Favorites: Exit On An Interstate
Ecstatic International – EP (10/14)
Danceable pop-punk from a new band formed by old hands of the DC scene. EP is overflowing with grooves, synthesizers, and the sort of detached vocals that made me fall in love with Wire. It’s not often that good news comes from the nation’s capital. This is an exception.
For your playlist: Disruptor
Nuclear Daises- S/T (10/27)
Swirling guitars and vocals and a sound that alternates between soaring in the clouds and being in the middle of a foundry. If you like Curve and/or My Bloody Valentine, this checks a lot of boxes for you.
For your playlist: Hush
Gold Tides-Mareas De Oro (10/28)
Gold Tides describe themselves as “Sand Surfin’ Desert Rock.” There is definitely an element of surf rock on Mareas De Oro, and the desert is clearly wielding its influence here. Tracks like “So Far, So Good” will carry you away on a woozy groove.
For your playlist: So Far, So Good
Note: both Hubba and Gold tides are label mates on Mama Manana Records, a label Garcia founded with friend of On Repeat
The label is doing some great work and has a lot in store for 2023. Keep 'em on your radar.The Sinner and the Saint- Sad-Ish (11/17)
I have an almost perfect record of missing shows that come through town. I found Green Bay’s The Sinner and the Saint after seeing a tweet advertising a show they were playing...only to realize it had been the day before.
I missed the show but found a new band to get into.
Green Bay Wisconsin is more than Lambeau Field and the Packers. A lot more. There’s a thriving music scene up there, which I was a little embarrassed to admit I didn’t know anything about (I live close enough to know better).
During our chat, the band described themselves as a bit of pop, a bit of emo, and a lot of genre blending.
I’d describe Sad-Ish as fantastic.
For your Playlist: Look Alive, Punk
The Laughing Chimes- Zoo Avenue (11/18)
Athens, Georgia, gave rise to a very specific sound. Jangle rock blended with just the right amount of light power pop. Evan and Quinn Seurkamp are the brothers that make up The Laughing Chimes. The two have taken the best parts of those earlier sounds and made something spectacular.
A lot of Zoo Avenue sounds like deep cuts from R.E.M.’s early work when they’d give Mike Mills the mike. They’re actually from Athens, Ohio, but you’d never know it.
For your playlist: Laurel Heights
Headlands-Ridge (11/29)
Headlands pack a lot of sound into three songs. Huge chords, massive waves of slightly menacing sound, and ethereal vocals. Brooding and intense— like a blustery gray fall day on the Oregon coast.
For your playlist: Gain
And that’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed all of the end-of-year lists and found a new favorite or two.
Miss one? No problem! I’ve got you covered:
Records of the year Part 1
Records of the year Part 2
Records of the year part 3
Songs of the year
What’d I miss? Have something that should be on this list (or any of them)? Let me know in the comments!
On a related note: This year, I committed to reviewing 100 new (to me) records. I actually wound up coming in at 103. Some of my favorites were reader recommendations. I’ll be doing that again in 2023.
If you have something you’d like me to review/write up, I’m all ears! Comment below or reply directly to this email.
Thanks for being here,
Kevin—
P.S. Lively up your inbox! Every day The Sample forwards you a newsletter to discover. The more you use it, the better it gets at delivering what you want.
Oh, The Neutrals got me right away. I felt like my friend with the far more daring wardrobe just handed me The Neutral's EP cassette in 1987.
Great list of some under the radar acts - love to see NewDad and thanks for introducing me to Riley’s Mountain. Love that EP.
Biggest thank you for including Gold Tides and Hubba. 2023 is shaping up to be a great one for Mama Mañana Records and I know you’ll dig Lowmello’s new song out tomorrow!