ICYMI: Max from Parquet Courts has a band called Maxband (listen to debut LP)

maxband

So much music comes out all year, and even with our daily new song roundups; weekly Notable ReleasesIndie Basement, and Upcoming Metal Releases columns; and monthly playlist of songs we like, we still miss stuff. Now that we’re in the final month of 2018 and looking back on all the music that came out this year, we’ll be publishing a post every weekday in December that catches up on some music released this year that we feel we didn’t shine enough of a light on, or didn’t discuss at all. The music we’ll be highlighting wasn’t necessarily “overlooked” in any broader sense of the word, just cool stuff worth catching up on in case you missed it.

Parquet Courts had a busy year, releasing great new album Wide Awake! back in May and touring almost nonstop since — they just played their last show of 2018 at NYC’s Hammerstein Ballroom but have more dates lined up for 2019. The individual members keep themselves occupied when not immersed in PC duties, and drummer Max Savage (brother of singer/guitarist Andrew Savage) formed his own group, Maxband, this year. Despite the name, Maxband is more than Max (who sings and plays guitar here). Bassist Patrick Smith (A Beacon School) also brings production/mixing skills, and the group is rounded out by drummer Eric Read (Bob Dylan Deathwatch) and lead guitarist Tim Nelson (Architectural Digest) — all four contribute to the songwriting.

Maxband began playing back in the spring (shows have included opening slots for The Men and Tokyo Police Club), and they released their debut, Perfect Strangers, back in August via Gentle Reminder. (Perfect Strangers was their original name.) As a singer, Max sounds a little like his brother, but no one will mistake this record for Parquet Courts. There are riffy jammers (“Spent,” “Means to an End”), and a real fondness for ethereal dreampop, too. That side comes out on supercatchy single “Jerry” — which features Patrick on lead vocals — and driving instrumental “Underground.” There’s a little Pavement-style indie rock creeping into songs like “Baggage Claim,” but it too is on its own Maxband tangent. With eight songs clocking in at 24 minutes, Perfect Strangers is a quick, fun listen that leaves you wanting more. (More should be coming soon, as they’re heading back into the studio soon.)  You can stream the whole thing below.

Sean Yeaton of Parquet Courts included Perfect Strangers in his end-of-year list (no nepotism, of course). Maxband don’t currently have any live shows on their schedule.

Don’t miss a thing! Browse our ICYMI tag, being added to every day in December.