The House Flies – Lost Literature
The House Flies return with 'Lost Literature', a darkly melodic post-punk beauty from the Illinois four-piece that pulses with restless Midwestern energy
'Lost Literature' opens on a crunchy snare you can move to and never quite lets go. The bass is dreamy and upbeat while layered guitars wash over everything, building a wall that still leaves room for the vocals to cut through. Lyrically, it's highway nights, rental cars, low radio static, fragmented memory. The heavy chorus gives it a pop-forward pull without abandoning its darker roots. There's something hypnotic in the repetition, the way it circles back like driving the same stretch of road at 2am. Superb dark alternative, immediate and built to stick.
The House Flies are back with us again after 'Sweet Foxhound' last year. They're a four-piece from Moline, Illinois, drawing on goth rock, shoegaze and grunge while keeping a distinctly Midwestern sense of place. 'Lost Literature' is the second single from their upcoming album Lions and Ore, out November 6. It's the first full-length to feature the current lineup. The record promises longer arrangements, heavier transitions and rural imagery. It's a combination we very much are into, and recommend this single heartily.
Seema Farswani – Born To Fly
Seema Farswani's 'Born To Fly' is a soaring cross-continental anthem, fusing rock guitars with sitar and Hindi vocals into something uplifting and beautifully realised.
'Born To Fly' opens big and stays there. The guitars hit with real weight, but it's the interplay with Ananya Wadkar's sitar and Hindi vocals that gives this track its distinctive character. There's a cinematic sweep to the arrangement, layered voices building toward something anthemic without tipping into bombast. Rishabh Sharma's production keeps the rock energy driving forward while leaving space for the South Asian textures to breathe, and the chord build is just a Janet Jackson-esque heart-wrencher. The message lands too: courage, possibility, the freedom to dream beyond whatever horizon you've been handed. Superb cinematic rock, expansive and emotionally direct.
Seema Farswani is an Indian American singer-songwriter and producer based in Singapore, here again only a few weeks after 'Runways (Sunset Mix)'. This one came together through a cross-border collaboration with musicians from Singapore and Mumbai, including guitarist and co-producer Rishabh Sharma and sitar artist Ananya Wadkar. This one's a real gem, and we're excited to see where her genre-fluid approach takes her next.