Its name may have twee-pop connotations, and its 2014 debut got called shoegaze a lot (a tag that fit loosely at best), but this Philly/Brooklyn outfit’s new one is a solid set of straight-up, no-qualifiers-needed indie rock. Frontwoman Rachel Browne’s sweet, tough vocals recall ’90s icons like Liz Phair and Shirley Manson (or, oddly, Jill Sobule, if she rocked about 20 times harder), and the band works a correspondingly bedrock alternative vibe and heavy/pretty balancing act, making equal space for driving punk riffage (“The Mirror“) and toothsome pop hooks (“The Order Of Things”).
It’s hardly revolutionary, but Episodic is an immediate, righteously enjoyable half-hour that should by all rights mark another breakout triumph for the vibrant, whip-smart East Coast DIY scene that’s produced pals like Hop Along, Speedy Ortiz, Swearin’—all bands whose members made contributions here, not so incidentally, and whose fans should definitely be taking notice.
—K. Ross Hoffman
