Music finds its way onto Record Rewind Play (and into our tweets) in a variety of ways: sometimes I take a trip downstream on Soundcloud and see where the flow recommendations takes me; sometimes fellow music lovers alert me to fantastic new bands on Facebook; sometimes I open my email and wade through the thousands of unread mails vying for my attention.

Some of those emails are from mailing lists I’m on, some come out of the blue from PR companies. The ones I want to focus on for Super Subs Week, though, come to me via this site’s contact form.

They come from bands doing it themselves - doing what they can and need to do to find an audience. It’s not easy work, and speaking as a little indie music blog that sometimes feels insignificant in the face of the internet behemoths, I know how frustrating it can be to keep pushing and pushing and wondering if and when it’s all going to come good.

Forebear

Forebear originally got in touch back in February to let me know of their self-titled EP. I was a big fan of Forebear, and duly featured it. More recently they got in touch again through the contact form to let me know of new single People’s Champ. Its beauty and tenderness scream the unfairness and injustice of a world that tends to overlook the remarkable in favour of the humdrum. And I’m at least partly complicit in that: People’s Champ was sent to me back in August, since when it has waited patiently for its moment. I can only apologise and mention how delighted I am that other sites were quicker to spot the suffused brilliance of its textures, moving from arpeggios and distorted vocals to lush strings and back before closing with first heavyweight then feather-light guitar tones.

Forebear are: Scott Goldbaum - Vocals / Guitar; Mike Musselman - Drums; Molly Rogers - Viola / Vocals / Keys; Nick Chamian - Bass / Vocals.

Bri Clark

Bri Clark is a 22-year-old singer-songwriter from Perth, Western Australia. Assertion is, appropriately enough, a song about being strong and not fearing rejection. The strength and conviction of the message is more than matched by Clark’s vocal and a production that generates passion and real depth of feeling through quiet/loud contrasts.

Just phase it out, phase it out

To get to where you wanna be

Don’t turn around, there’s no way back now

Just keep your eyes on me


Apeman

Apeman are a three-piece alternative rock band based in New York City. Mutantala is their second album, which the band has been working on alongside touring commitments for the last three years. Do them a kindness and have a listen - there’s much to love in its playful but intricate, ever-shifting indie rock jangle.

Apeman are: Ryan Gredd - Guitar, Bass, Trumpet & Vocals; Dexter Dine - Guitar, Bass & Vocals; Ethan Primason - Keys & Drums.

Freak Static

Freak Static is the work of Leicester-born Matt Matuska. Snooze largely defies categorisation, but Matuska himself has described his work as psychedelic pop, and Snooze as Disney-indie. Whether that captures the full range of everything that’s going on under its covers is for you, the listener, to decide…

TeethOfWolves

First quiet, then a shock, finally acoustic guitar that conjures up the spirit of very early Boo Radleys, and pure, primal vocals.

Longtime friends and music collaborators Jeremiah Bredvad and Travis Rosen began working on acoustic tracks written and performed by Jeremiah back in 2010 when they met at a now defunct coffee shop/music venue in San Antonio, TX. With limited time and funds, they were able to connect with legendary producer Gordon Raphael to create the core of the tracks that would become Teethofwolves.