PRETTY & NICE, US YOU ALL WE November 6» The four quick cuts on the Boston quartet Pretty & Nice's Us You All We embody what guitarist Holden Lewis calls an endless-summer mentality. "I think our songs got happier," he says. "Our shiny acoustic-guitar pop songs were made shinier as they were fleshed out. We talk about the sun in half the songs. We got a lot of inspiration from that big yellow ball." The EP takes us on the usual stop-start/stop-rage musical bounce that defines Pretty & Nice's explosive sound: "Hibernate" is the band at their jangly finest, while "Capsules" has a bit of a disco feel. The EP will be released both digitally and on deluxe 12-inch vinyl. Pretty & Nice launched a PledgeMusic campaign to raise funds, but with a certain Dresden Doll raising seven figures, the fan-donation bar in Boston has been raised. "I don't think we're gonna raise $1 million," says bassist Roger Lussier. "Unless Amanda Palmer wants to give us $1 million."
>> LISTEN ON SPOTIFY: Artists from our Fall Preview 2012 picks <<
POTTY MOUTH,SUN DAMAGE Out September 21 » Joining Speedy Ortiz and others in must-hear, scuzzed-out fuzz-pop are the gritty tones of Northampton's Potty Mouth. Sun Damage is so fucking great, three record labels are releasing it. September 21 @ P.A.'s Lounge
CASPIAN,WAKING SEASON Out September 25 » Beverly's instrumental post-rock veterans return after a few global tours with their third full-length, Waking Season, produced by Matt Bayles (Isis, Mastodon). Caspian have even explored vocal ambience, and we detect a strong Sigur Rós vibe. Except much heavier. September 27 @ Royale
WHITE DYNOMITE,WHITE DYNOMITE Out October 6 » This town needs a rock-and-roll ass-kicking, but that's what Dave Unger's latest garage-punk explosion has in store. White Dynomite also feature bloodlines to Wrecking Crew and Roadsaw, but it's the Iggy in Unger that's a threat to the 'hood. October 6 @ Great Scott
CONVERGE, ALL WE LOVE WE LEAVE BEHIND Out October 9 » Where does a band go musically after a record like 2010's Axe to Fall? Massachusetts metalcore legends Converge won't simply show us; they'll just rip our faces off with their eighth studio album. "There's no artificial distortion, triggers, or Auto-Tune on this album," says producer/guitarist Kurt Ballou. "It's all organic." November 12 @ the Sinclair
DEAD ELLINGTON,REFUSE Out October 14 » The latest saga in their unapologetic seven-year street-punk career, Dead Ellington's Refuse EP was recorded earlier this year with the Bouncing Souls' Pete Steinkopf, representing their strongest, most shoutable effort yet. October 14 @ P.A.'s Lounge
MEAN CREEK, YOUTH COMPANION Out October 16 » Perhaps the most anticipated Boston record this fall, Youth Companion delivers on the passionate heart-on-sleeve promise the quartet offer each night on stage. National press are already using words like "Springsteen" and "Replacements," but we'll just call it Boston's more sophisticated answer to the Japandroids record.
THE YEAR MILLION, [TBA] » Out October With six tracks produced by Scott Riebling, the polished rock sounds of the Year Million are getting an electronic upgrade, while maintaining the big-room pop-vs-rock sound the band has honed in recent years.
PARLOUR BELLS, THANK GOD FOR THE NIGHT Out Early November » Fresh off their WFNX tribute, the glam-bam noir-pop styling of Parlour Bells return with a night-themed EP that pits the Great Gatsby against the Bacchae. It's a darker, sexier work, with song titles like "You Don't Wear That Dress, the Dress Wears You."
EDDIE JAPAN, MODERN DESPERATION, PART I Out November 17 » Self-described as "Morrissey writing songs for a '60s pop band heavy into Scott Walker and spaghetti Westerns." November 17 @ Lizard Lounge
MMAROTTA[a]PHX.COM:: @VMICHAELV
