Hot Congress

Amazing Twin - Grown Alone

While technically just an EP in length, Grown Alone certainly has the feel of an ALBUM. It's very apparent that Amazing Twin had that concept in mind during its creation, which is lost on far too many records today. It flows seamlessly throughout using lyrical ideas, intricate rhythmic and atmospheric elements, and the catchy, chiming guitars for which the quartet has come to be known. It's a truly polished record without ever feeling stale or manufactured. Start to finish, Grown Alone is an exercise in songwriting and craftsmanship.

Night of Joy - "Hardcore Girls are a Hoax"

"While you were registering your 15th album/project on Kickstarter, we were counting change to pay the rent and pay for this record. We play bars and have no draw, we've never been mentioned on your blog or Pitchfork, and we'll be taking shits around the clock whether you're paying attention or not. That's how the world works. It's taken Night of Joy for fucking ever to get Hardcore Girls Are A Hoax out into the world, and now you have to read this before you even listen to it. But the album is short, so you can still go meet your girlfriend at the Bane show. But remember: she doesn't like hardcore. She just has a daddy complex." —NOJ

Achille Lauro - Flight or Flight

Achille Lauro's Flight or Flight combines intricate guitar and synth melodies with the rhythms of Graceland-era Paul Simon, while vivid lyrics stutter and roll like dub music coming in over a station just out of range, recalling intimate moments and half-remembered conversations. The songs were originally conceived to be released as a series of singles, but after a few recording sessions the band realized they had enough material for a full length album. This singles-minded approach shines through, as Flight or Flight showcases some of Achille Lauro’s finest songs to date.

Hindershot - Curse Us All

It would be way too easy to say that Hindershot’s sophomore release, Curse Us All, charts the band’s growth over the past year and a half. Instead, this 4-track EP is just another exercise in strong, consistent songwriting for the Denver-based sextet. From the ambling attitude of the title track down to the experimental roaming of the final song, “Dinosaur,” each cut showcases Hindershot’s innate ability to write fluid, yet detailed, indie pop. In the end, tracks this immaculate will hook in so many repeat listeners; it won’t even matter that the band has evolved.

Kissing Party - Wasters Wall

Over the past 5 years, Denver’s Kissing Party has churned out well-crafted indie-pop music with such regularity they make it seem effortless. “Wasters Wall,” their fifth release and first through Hot Congress, was written in a more collaborative fashion than previous albums, and it shows with the addition of a few new colors to KPs traditional sonic palette of chiming guitars and dual vocals (see: the noisy, shoe-gaze-influenced coda of “The Game,” or the electronic pulses in album-ender “Gold Holes”.) Having a tremendous amount of songs to choose from has its advantages, too. Singer/guitarist Gregg Dolan estimates that they had around 278 to pick from – though that estimate should probably be taken with a grain of salt, it's irrelevant, as each of the ten songs to make the final cut is a gem.

Sun Red - Breathes Ages

It’s unlikely that there will be a debut from any other Denver band in 2011 as dense, patient, and lyrical as Sun Red’s “Breathes Ages” EP. While much of that may have to do with the fact that three of this quartet played together previously in (die)Pilot, Sun Red is very much its own thing, and is certainly a step forward for the songwriters. “Breathes Ages” will likely draw comparisons to British rock bands such as Elbow, and much of that is due to Gene Brown’s vocals, equally as weighty and powerful in the quiet moments as the loud.

The Don'ts and Be Carefuls - Sun Hits

Sun Hits, the much anticipated new EP from The Don'ts and Be Carefuls finds the band approaching danceable, hook-laden indie rock from a more mature place than their debut, 2009s Risk Assessment. With its interesting arrangements and dynamic shifts, Sun Hits is an album that works as well on the dance floor as it does off of it.

Achille Lauro - Low Cha Cha (Candle + Download)

We were miles deep into the world's largest fragrance forest, adrift in a sea of Vanilla Bushes, Lavender Beans, and lust. The expedition to find the world's most alluring scents hadn't quite gone as planned, but then, few good things ever do. Forced to admit that we were lost, we finally settled down in a peppermint bog, lit a soothing campfire, and enjoyed the aroma of paradise. Alive with passion, we raced one another down the curves of our bodies until the sun rose at last, startling us with a yak mounted rescue team. That evening was long ago, but the results of that fateful trip can still be experienced in every Achille Lauro scented candle.

- Jefferey "Cinnamon Toast" Jost, head scent hunter for Achille Lauro.

Vitamins - No Notion of Anything Only Whatever Is What

Vitamins return in 2011 with a new 7" release for Denver-based art/music collective Hot Congress.

"No Notion of Anything Only Whatever Is What." Krautrock to infinity and beyond: the A-side of this disc is motorik, psychedelic, and a bombastic blast, but not necessarily in that order. Despite its overwhelmingly dense mix of color and texture—all carefully, studiously processed and mixed—the tune still manages a spacious, blissful clarity.

Hindershot - It's Only Blood

The debut 7-inch/EP from Hindershot, It's Only Blood is a pure gold romp from the past that sneaks into the future and is chocolate dipped over a thin candy shell. Available in the form of a 7-inch vinyl record or a ghost-like digital download spirit.

Fingers of the Sun - Fingers of the Sun

Fingers of the Sun’s self-titled debut release has captured the best of the past and present as well as the familiar and excitedly uncharted. “This lively sextet takes classic pop structures and warps the lines with psychedelic flourishes while grounding it all with impeccable four-part harmonies.” - Tom Murphy, Westword

Achille Lauro - Indiscretions

“Indiscretions” is the third installment in Achille Lauro's genre-defiant catalog. The band has repeatedly created music that scoffs at convention while lacing in catchy melodies and a dance-like spirit. This release from the talented foursome certainly furthers that trend. “Indiscretions” has Westword touting “...Achille Lauro is a Denver act to watch — now more than ever.”