Welcome to “Underrated Artists,” an entertainment column from the St. Louis Park Echo covering unpopular and unknown artists. Every week, a different Echo staffer takes on the role of writer, reviewing single releases and albums from four underrated artists.
Haley Bonar has been releasing music since 2001 but she’s never seen the big, wide-ranging recognition I think she deserves. My first experience with Haley Bonar was with her song “Eat for Free” off of her 2014 album, “Last War,” and immediately, I was a fan. The simple guitar patterns sound beautiful when paired with her mysterious voice and tragic lyricism make the perfect song to cry to. Her sound is sort of a cross between Noah Kahan and Phoebe Bridgers. It has a classic indie-folk instrumental simplicity which pairs perfectly with her whimsical yet rough voice. When an artist makes modern folk music, the comparison to Noah Kahan is somewhat inevitable, but in this case I think they do have a similar simplistic sound and write about similar themes such as isolation. Some of her other songs like “Hometown” and “Kismet Hill” instrumentally venture beyond just guitar strumming but the sound still retains its pleasing simplicity. Bonar is a textbook indie artist in a way I think many indie fans would appreciate. If you miss the indie vibes from the 2010s then you should definitely check out Haley Bonar’s music.
Wild Nothing is an interesting artist because it’s a project rather than a band or single musician. Formed in 2014 by musician Jack Tatum, Wild Nothing is mostly run by Tatum with a group of musicians who help perform the instrumentals and tour. As far as indie pop groups go, Wild Nothing is about as traditional as you can get with multi-layered vocals, synthy instrumentals and different distortion effects on the sound that give it a dreamlike feel. The songs “Headlights On” and “Dial Tone” off of Wild Nothing’s most recent album, “Hold,” are perfect examples of everything a synth song should be. The two songs are catchy and recognizable without being annoying or too repetitive. I am usually not a huge fan of the electronic sound of synth instrumentals, but Wild Nothing does it in a way that sounds perfectly blended and cohesive. I would recommend Wild Nothing if you’re looking for an artist with a unique yet modern sound.
Sarah and The Sundays is a five member band that started releasing music in 2019, but have only recently started garnering a bit of attention. I first started listening to Sarah and The Sundays in 2021 after I heard their song “Vices” off of their 2021 album, “The Living End.” The steady, catchy beat and fun guitar rhythm makes this song one of my favorites of all time. The carefree lyricism and twangy guitar gives this song amazing beach vibes and it’s been on all of my summer playlists since the first time I heard it. Sarah and The Sundays are one of the most instrumentally interesting bands I have ever heard. The melody of songs by Sarah and The Sundays are refreshing and unique, which I have found lacking in other popular artists. While there are no bands that really approximate Sarah and The Sunday’s sound, the lyricism of The Backseat Lovers is fairly similar with common themes such as young love and chaotic youth. Sarah and The Sundays is a band full of talented musicians and lyricists who deserve more attention. I would recommend this band to anyone who is looking for music with a carefree, youthful energy.
The final band, Tiny Habits is without a doubt the most unique of the artists on this list. Rather than one main singer, Tiny Habits features all three of the band member’s vocals at some point in almost all of the songs. This technique creates a very mystical, blended sound that puts you in the moment when listening to their songs. The first song I heard from Tiny Habits, “tiny things,” was recommended to me by a friend and instantly, I was engrossed by their distinctive sound. Many of their songs such as “Flicker” and “Mudroom” are slower songs with soft vocals and instrumentals. The music of Tiny Habits is some of my favorite study music because of the relaxing sound and mellow vocals. Tiny Habits reminds me a lot of the supergroup boygenius because of the blended vocals from the different members and the hazy, sad sound of many of their songs. I would recommend this band to anyone who wants more lowkey music to listen to during times when relaxation is key.
