Boston-based duo cry guy released their debut EP earlier this month. A soft blend of the sort of beats and bloops that characterize Cameron’s other project Little Spoon and his friend Virginia’s often-ethereal vocals, ‘tears of whatever' houses five alluring, slow-burning pop tunes. I'm already looking forward to hearing what these two will conjure up next.

until then, big love from bosstown. 

photo by returnthesun

A year and a half ago, alone in his bedroom in Allston, Massachusetts, Jimmy Hewitt began Orca Orca, then called Young Minds. In the fall of 2010 he pushed aside the plaid shirts lining his closet and recorded jangly guitars riffs. He drove around Boston, finding moments of solitude to record vocals. He put everything together and uploaded a five-song set of bedroom pop gems entitled Imago Demos.

His demos made the rounds, gracing a handful of blogs. Jimmy wanted more than a mere cameo. Fleeting blog fame was not tangible— he wanted to play shows around Boston. The project was in transition. Before one of his first shows, Jimmy told me how surprised he was to see his demos on the internet. He didn’t know how Tyler from Flashlight Tag even came across his music on Bandcamp. A month after uploading the demos, Jimmy was contacted by French netlabel Beko DSL asking if he wanted to contribute a track to an upcoming compilation that would feature some of my current favorites, like The Bilinda Butchers, Sad Souls and Endiamonds (download it here). Still, it all felt distant. People in far off places listened and loved his tunes. Yet, at his first few shows, the crowd was largely friends and family. The propagation of his music via the internet gave him hope for the project, but, at least in his hometown, he would have to wait for recognition. So, he stood on the stage, draped in reds and purples; he jammed away. Sure, maybe he’d break a string in the middle of a song, but he’d keep playing, keeping up with his trusty drum machine. Over the next few months, or perhaps the next year, Jimmy developed Orca Orca. He focused on his live show. He added a drummer, a bassist, a guitarist— it was coming together.

Now, Jimmy, alongside a couple of his closest high-school buddies, has played all over Boston. Two years ago, he may not have had the self-assurance to sing in front of his roommates, let alone a club full of judging, iPhone-wielding faces. Orca Orca is now a more complete project. After his short set a month ago, someone in the crowd shouted, begging for another song. Jimmy laughed and leaned towards the mic— “We don’t have any more songs.” Well now Orca Orca has a few more songs to its name. He’s spent the last few months crafting a new set of tunes. Today, Jimmy released his latest EP, a limited-edition cassette entitled Make Live. His new songs don’t stray far from his early demos. Recorded in his apartment in Allston, they are about the same youthful simplicities— cruising around with friends and staying up until the sun pierces the hazy horizon. You can snag Make Live over at Orca Orca’s bandcamp for free, or drop a couple of bills on a sweet tape.

Catch Orca Orca play some tunes off his new EP April 6th at O’Brien’s in Allston. Also, he’s opening for the like-minded Abadabad— so be there. Check out a couple of new ones below…

Orca Orca - when the sun comes up (original demo)

Orca Orca - Say So

Orca Orca - Make Live

Orca Orca (aka Jim Hewitt) recently released a redux version of ‘Underground,’ a demo that he recorded two years ago under the moniker Young Minds. The tune will accompany five new Orca Orca recordings on a limited edition cassette entitled Make Live, which will drop February 21st. Over the past year Jim has played a bunch of shows around Boston and he’s transformed Orca Orca from a simple bedroom pop musing into a more thought-out live band. Playing live has helped to develop the project’s sound and that will definitely be quite apparent on the new record. Check out the first single off next month’s release below…

Orca Orca - Underground

Almost a year ago Allston, Massachusetts-based artist Jim Hewitt released a set of five songs called Imago Demos under the name Young Minds. After months of listening to the mysterious project, I finally got a chance to meet up with Jim and see him play live, back in April, in front of a crowd of made up in part by his friends and roommates on Easter. After he played through his set we talked about how he really wasn’t into his project’s name, but that it kind of just happened so he went along with it and was thinking about switching it up in the future. He also mentioned a new song of his that he played for the first time live that night (he strummed the hell out of his guitar in the process and it ended up the worse for wear). Jim had only just “released” the jam, called ‘Change of Pace’, subtly on his bandcamp page a few weeks before the show. He admitted that he kind of regretted uploading it, but that since he hadn’t come up with anything since his first set of demos he couldn’t wait to share it, even if he later wished he’d waited and mastered the hell out of it.

Now months later, and after several reassuring emails telling me that there was more on the way, he’s back with a new set of songs— and a new name: Orca Orca. His first release under the new name, the Change of Pace 7”, is available for free download over at his bandcamp. It includes a new recording of his song ‘Change of Pace’, that he mastered stuck in traffic while driving home from work this summer, and a new song ‘Get Up (Get Out).’ Make sure stay on the look out for more from Orca Orca in the next few months.

Orca Orca - Get Up (Get Out)

Orca Orca - Change of Pace

Orca Orca - introduction (bonus track)

Oh and Jim also sent over a couple of covers he that recorded for some of his friends earlier this summer. He made sure to assure me that this Katy Perry cover is a joke, for the most part…

Orca Orca - teenage dream (katy perry cover)

Previously

Young Minds - Change of Pace

Young Minds - Underground

Super88 combines luscious beats with a handful of samples to craft beautifully ethereal environments far from anything near its surroundings in Allston, Massachusetts. The project’s latest effort, a four-track EP entitled play it out, moves through several scenes: ‘i hope it’s beautiful’ brings me to a dusk-draped forest while the opener on the release, ‘nervous knocking,’ evokes a Southern Shores-esque on-the-beach-at-night, bonfire-splashing-light-on-my-face sorta vibe. You can snag the EP as well as host of rad tracks from the last ten years over at Super88’s bandcamp.

Super88 - nervous knocking

Super88 - i hope it’s beautiful

Also, check out a sweet Air France-influenced jam from last year.

Super88 - er/r/ing

don’t be discouraged.

Back in November Boston’s Young Minds released his first set of songs entitled Imago Demos. Now, three months later, after playing a few shows, Jim’s gotten back to recording. And although he’s not planning on releasing his next bag of tunes until late spring/early summer, he’s just sent out a sweet jam as a taste of what’s to come. Check out all Young Mind’s music over at his bandcamp.

Young Minds - Change of Pace

Teenage Reverb is the moniker of Boston-based teen Joseph Zucco. He released his first chilled out, basement-recorded EP, Isolation Tape Night back in June on Orchid Tapes and finished up his second, Summit Demos, just two months later. Joseph’s music sways between lo-fi, surf rock, shoegaze and dulcet pop. Get Summit Demos physically from amdiscs or download it here. Summer days

Teenage Reverb - Double Exposure

Teenage Reverb - Chill Kid

Teenage Reverb - Vermont

To follow my last post, Teenage Reverb will also be on BB remix album.

Blackbird Blackbird - Hawaii (Teenage Reverb Remix)

find him. blog. bandcamp. soundcloud. twitter. tumblr.

Young Minds is a new solo-project out of Allston, Massachusetts. Recorded over the past month and a half in bedrooms and cars, Young Minds’ first release, Imago Demos is sweet five-song set. Full of smooth guitar riffs, drum machines and Jim’s always cool, airy vocals, Young Minds slides perfectly into darkening days of a fall turning winter.

Young Minds - Underground

Download Imago Demos for free: http://youngminds.bandcamp.com

Last night Vampire Weekend, Beach House and Dum Dum Girls played at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. Vampire Weekend, as you would expect, played in front of a sold-out crowd. The night kicked off with Los Angeles girl band Dum Dum Girls. The quartet, completely decked out in lace, was a bit disappointing; an energetic ‘Jail La La’ was the only song that raised the heads of the people people that were slowly trickling to their seats. Dum Dum Girls didn’t seem to be opening for Vampire Weekend, rather the next band to take to the bright lights.After a short break, and a quick gander at a youthful trio, Art Decade, sharing a single mic by the bar, I returned to see Beach House hit the stage.
    The Baltimoreans, along with a backing musicians on the drums, guitar and synth, instantly put the crowd, which was rather plump by then, into a deep and glorious daze with a five-minute ‘Walk In The Park’. The chilled out mood drew on until they hit ‘Norway’. The intense strobe lights and overall energy was something that I didn’t expect from the usually glazed over Beach House. This reinvigorated beat carried on throughout the rest of the set. Victoria Legrand’s vocals and hair bounced around the white tent and Alex Scally’s stunning guitar and reverberated throughout. Beach House’s set finished off with a splendid rendition of ‘10 Mile Stereo’, and as with almost every song they played last night it was better than the album version. The Beach House set was truly spectacular, the vivid lights and heavy drums added something that I didn’t find on Teen Dream.

    Twenty minutes after Beach House sauntered off, the New York boys strolled onto the stage to a fresh dose of hip-hop beats before picking up their instruments and hopping into ‘Holiday’. The headliners moved onto flashy hits like A-Punk and Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa. Then Ezra Koenig autotuned his mic, played around by hitting ridiculous notes before diving into a beat-bopping ‘California English,’ which I really enjoyed although I don’t appreciate it at all on Contra. They then slowed things down a bit, dropped a glowing coastline behind them and slipped into an intimate ‘I Think Ur a Contra.’ Not wanting to dwell on such a relaxed atmosphere, they quickly transitioned into ‘Cousins.’ They moved on, covering Bruce Springsteen’s ‘I’m Going Down,’ ‘Giving Up The Gun,’ and ‘Oxford Comma,’ before finish their main-set with ‘Mansard Roof.’

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