With plenty more insanely good songs coming out from the indie landscape, we’ve listened carefully and found our darlings for this week: here they are…
This Time for Real
In the heart of Hamburg’s underground scene, This Time For Real emerges as a raw, unapologetic force, wielding pop-punk like a weapon against the superficiality of our times. Their latest single, “Without You,” is a gut-punch of emotion wrapped in a catchy-as-hell melody that would make Blink-182 proud.
These hometown heroes – Gerrit Skott on drums, Philipp Ebener slapping the bass, Arne Thamer shredding guitar, and Fee van Deelen’s soul-baring vocals – have crafted a sound that’s equal parts mosh pit fury and late-night confessional. It’s as if Paramore and Phoebe Bridgers had a love child raised on a steady diet of angst and introspection.
Van Deelen doesn’t pull punches: “It’s about a broken heart and the messy aftermath,” she admits. But this isn’t your typical breakup anthem. This Time For Real digs deeper, offering a lifeline to the brokenhearted with a chorus that’ll have arenas screaming along.
Born from the boredom of small-town Germany, these childhood friends have bottled lightning. “Without You” isn’t just a song; it’s a middle finger to emotional repression and a battle cry for self-healing. In a world of plastic pop, This Time For Real is the real fucking deal.
Yours, Karim
In the gritty underbelly of Berlin’s music scene, Yours, Karim emerges with “frag nicht,” a sonic sucker punch that marks their first foray into German lyrics. This isn’t your typical Euro-pop schlock; it’s a raw, unflinching dive into the psyche of frontman Karim, laid bare over a pulsating blend of pop, urban, and indie textures.
The track is a nostalgic fever dream, flashing between childhood Grand Prix races in dusty courtyards and wide-eyed Parisian adventures. But don’t mistake this for some saccharine trip down memory lane. Yours, Karim serves up absence and longing with the bite of a stiff German beer.
The refrain “und ich frag nicht wo geht’s hin, frag nicht wo, frag nicht wo ich bin” isn’t just catchy; it’s a middle finger to existential angst: it’s about embracing the chaos.
Karim’s vocals walk a tightrope between strength and vulnerability, like if Jeff Buckley had a lovechild with a Berlin street poet. It’s the soundtrack to a sun-drenched summer of 2024, but don’t call it a beach anthem. This is music for late-night soul-searching and sunrise epiphanies.
Two years in, and Yours, Karim is running a marathon through Berlin’s musical landscape. “frag nicht” isn’t just a song; it’s a manifesto of authenticity in a world of plastic pop. Strap in, kids. This emotional rollercoaster is just getting started.
Immer Wieder Wirsing
Hold onto your vintage Levis, folks, because IMMER WIEDER WIRSING just dropped a sonic Molotov cocktail disguised as a summer jam. “Asics in der Hand” isn’t your run-of-the-mill beach banger; it’s a bittersweet postcard from the edge of a Sicilian love affair.
This Zurich-based indie provocateur is painting summer in shades of melancholy, serving up a cocktail of sand-crusted memories and Aperol-stained regrets. It’s the soundtrack to that 4 AM walk of shame on foreign shores, when the taste of last night’s mistakes lingers longer than your sunburn.
Don’t let the beachy vibes fool you – IMMER WIEDER WIRSING is dragging us into the undertow of uncertainty faster than you can say “arrivederci” to your holiday fling. It’s a masterclass in juxtaposition, like The Cure decided to crash a Jimmy Buffett concert.
Casey Frazier
Casey Frazier is a modern Renaissance man and storytelling Americana singer/songwriter with roots in Denver, Nashville, and Central California. Beginning at a young age, Casey has entertained audiences all across the country. From the raw lifestyle of herding cattle to the emotional pull of the Pacific Ocean, Casey’s music and art is influenced by his surroundings. Frazier has shared the stage with several musical icons, including Kenny Rogers and Joan Armatrading.
That was the wrap-up for this week’s Artists to Watch! Drop back again next week for more of the hottest indie artists putting music out right now…
