NYC Scene Report – Two-Man Giant Squid, Beck Zegans, & I Am The Avalanche

This week’s NYC Scene Report features Two-Man Giant Squid looking for “3 Hits,” Beck Zegans readying her Engraving Of Armor, and I Am The Avalanche “LAUGHING AND BLEEDING” while looking for strength.

* Two-Man Giant Squid recently released a new 7-inch titled A Band In The Post-Modern World via Mint 400/Trash Casual, and the B-side asks a very big question – what would a band do for “3 Hits”?

Frontman Mitchell Vinokur describes “3 Hits” as, “Possibly our band’s most tongue-in-cheek song to date,” saying that it’s “a playful take on what it’s like to be a band in modern times when streaming has made music an unsustainable career, AI is running rampant, and the world is just a giant hurling ball of shit. It’s a true story – we did get asked to open for Wheatus on a boat. We didn’t set out to make a fake beef with them, but here we are.”

He continued, adding, “In the end, we’re all burnt out on getting ahead. Stuck in a paradoxical industry where everyone is fighting for a piece of the pie, but that pie is no money. So here’s our alter ego story – a dirtbag band asked to open for Wheatus on their boat, and only obliging for a trade-off of the sacred ‘3 hits.’ Whether that’s songs, or drugs, for this particular band, we’ll let you decide.”

A great indie rock song, with a hint of a Talking Heads influence, “3 Hits” is certainly a hit as far as I’m concerned. Give it a listen, and I think you’ll agree.

* Beck Zegans is preparing an Engraving Of Armor, and she’s not talking about taking a trip to the mall to wait in line at Things Remembered. Her Engraving Of Armor is her latest album, which is due out May 22nd via Exploding In Sound, and it features the single “I Want You.”

A song about dating in NYC, Zegans says, “‘I Want You’ is all swept up in this insidious urge to bolt when things start getting too good.”

The video for “I Want You” was filmed at four prominent indie music venues in Brooklyn – Union Pool, Cassette, Baby’s All Right, The Space at Irondale – and wonders what would happen if all these venues were somehow physically connected to each other by a series of magical secret passageways.

Personally, I love the concept, and I love the song. Click play, and check it out.

* I Am The Avalanche just released their fifth album, THE HORROR SHOW, via Equal Vision Records, and it’s a shot of inspiration that came from a place of loss.

Frontman Vinnie Caruana explains, “About 75% of the lyrics were written after my best friend passed away suddenly, and unexpectedly.”

Noting that, “Experiencing ultimate loss will change you on a cellular level,” he says that when it come to the album, “The message is simple – You are stronger than you think you are, and you are not alone.”

Check out the single “LAUGHING AND BLEEDING,” and feel the avalanche of emotions presented by I Am The Avalanche.

For more of the best of NYC’s indie music scene, come back next Wednesday, and check out the archives for previous columns.