Whether it’s Bloops and Bleeps, Turd & Main, the OK Corral, the Wayback Machine, These Are the Breaks, Eat Your Paisley, or any of our many other review sections, giving us a suggested section lets us know that:

1. You have an opinion on where your music might be a good fit.
2. You actually read our magazine, and aren’t some random PR intern in an office in Santa Monica who sends out 50 demos a day, and…
3. You care about giving us poor, overworked, underpaid music types a hand with the literally thousands of music submissions we get every year!

Really, by giving us a section name, you’re saving us time and making sure our one musical expert who knows the most about your type of music will be able to give you the fairest of shakes. Album reviewing isn’t that glamorous: we get so many submissions that literally, all we want to do is curl up in the shower naked like Glenn Close in the beginning of The Big Chill because we just feel so defeated and confused, without answers to the meaning of it all! By providing us with those answers, you also provide yourself with a big leg up against the competition.

And we know what some of you (the piss-ants) are saying: “Oh, L.A. RECORD, my forward-thinking opus about man’s insignificance in the face of technology is beyond categorization!” Waaaah! First of all, you’re kidding yourself, because if you have any fans at all,  they are going to describe you to their friends by whatever genre they think you belong in. “Have you heard this psychedelic glitch hop take on Stevie Nicks?”

But secondly, you can always list multiple categories you might think apply: Suicidal Tendencies might fit well in either Ties & Flies or Satan’s Hoary Maw; Arabian Prince would be at home in both Bloops and Bleeps or These Are the Breaks. You get the idea! The categories are intentionally loose, because we too share your distrust of one-size-fits-all genre fascism.

So, send us your albums, send us your suggested category names, and hey, here’s another great idea: send it to us on vinyl! That way, we can list it in our Spin to Win section!

-Dan Collins

P.S. Please, don’t be distraught if you submit something and it doesn’t get reviewed. Math alone dictates that we can’t publish all the things we love from all of you. It’s probably not that you suck, but more like we had too many banjo-based folk albums to put in print this season and had to turn our focus to CD-Rs burned by teenagers wearing hockey masks who play in West Covina. Keep sending in your submissions, and if you’re good, we will take notice. For more info on sending us your shit, click here.

Download: Brilliant Colors – “English Cities”

(from Introducing Brilliant Colors out now on Slumberland Records)

Don’t be discouraged by the lackluster cover art, a watery-looking band photo topped with the album title in scribbly font–San Francisco’s Brilliant Colors triumphantly deliver ten noise-pop nuggets on their debut album Introducing Brilliant Colors.  Taking cues from C86-era British outfits like The Shop Assistants and The Flatmates, singer/guitarist Jess Scott layers pretty (but not afraid to be fierce) female vocals under plenty of reverb and fuzzy guitar. Diane Anastasio (drums) and Michelle Hill (bass) anchor Scott’s buried vocals and blissed-out guitar wash with their combination of tight, rhythmic beats and hooky bass lines. My favorite track on the album, “English Cities,” blends edgy and angular guitar pop in equal proportions,  suitable for both disaffected former riot grrrls and postpunk DJs alike. Other standout tracks include “Short Sleeves at Night” (my vote for indie pop song title of the year) and “Over There,” the latter reminding me that you should never need more than two or three chords to write a great song.

Comparisons to fellow contemporary C86-inspired ladies the Vivian Girls will undoubtedly crop up for Brilliant Colors. While both bands employ similar sound textures and production styles (think Creation Records circa 1991), Brilliant Colors’ songwriting prowess stands out amongst the other Girls. Beneath all the echo and fuzz you still need a well-crafted melody to keep the listener engaged, and Brilliant Colors get this.  Introducing Brilliant Colors is an impressive full-length debut.

-Natalie Hill

Bad Dudes
Eat Drugs
Retard Disco

Bad Dudes take the name from an arcade game about saving the president from ninjas, so it should come as no surprise that their music draws heavy inspiration from classic video games and 8-bit audio. Their self-titled debut found a loyal audience with college students obsessed with math rock and Nintendo-core, but with this sophomore release the band has moved out of the dorms and into post-collegiate communal living. The Dudes have definitely have grown up. Eat Drugs is a manic masterpiece of ADD-fueled rock, constantly shifting from their trademark video-game style to party anthems and intelligent (but wild!) rock ’n roll. “The title track gets stuck in your head with a simple hook and wicked breakdown, while other stellar tracks like “Cabana Boyzz, B.C.” and “Heterosaucer” display the band’s famously mind-bending technical skill. In a nutshell, they were already good and they just got better.

— JAX