Most of punk’s sonic hallmarks calcified into cliche long ago, but if there’s one trope still able to induce the shock of the old, it’s the dissonant, direct, stubbornly wonky female vocals that animate the work of the Slits, the Raincoats and X-Ray Spex. On Manchester trio Virginia Wing’s fourth album, frontwoman Alice Merida Richards evokes their thrillingly relatable voices with her own – a jerky, unmediated sprechgesang that combines vacant.
Expanding from a duo to a trio, complete with saxophone, the Manchester group embraces newfound production gloss without sacrificing its indie-pop roots.
Adrian Spinelli February 11, 2021
Sun June Photo: Santiago Dietche
The Chronicle’s guide to notable new music.
NEW ALBUMS
Sun June, “Somewhere” (Run For Cover/Keeled Scales)
Austin indie quintet Sun June’s 2018 album “Years” was one of that year’s hidden gems, filled with sweet and melancholy love songs led by singer Laura Colwell’s embracing voice aimed directly at a hopeful heart. Now on their second album, Colwell has found love with bandmate Stephen Salisbury and it’s reflected in songs like “Everything I Had,” “Real Thing” and “Everywhere.” The band has started expanding their sound into richer pop songs, but it’s Colwell’s voice that still channels the unmistakable nostalgia of young love in anyone who hears it.