🎸 Songs That Don’t Suck – Episode 68

A San Diego sound detox, motivational breakfast, and five genre-spanning tracks you didn’t know you needed—until now.

🌴 Sunshine, Silence & Sudden Realizations

Mark took a brief break from music last week—unintentionally.

During a work conference in sunny San Diego, he:

• Delivered a keynote 🤓
• Reunited with dozens of old friends 🤗
• Discovered he can record a podcast on an iPad in a hotel room 🎙️
• Went totally music-free for days 😳 (well, minus the “royalty-free corporate beats” filling the conference center)

But the real epiphany happened over waffles and French toast 🍓🍞 when a new friend’s wife asked the hard question:

Cue existential crisis.

Mark’s been out of the live band scene, focusing on the podcast and family. But thanks to that breakfast pep talk, he’s putting out the bat signal to form a new band:
🎶 Indie / pop / folk / alt rock
📍 Northeast Ohio
🚫 No metal or country
mark@songsthatdontsuck.net

🎧 This Week’s Songs That Don’t Suck

1. “Peppermint Roses” – The Lemon Twigs

🌈 Beatles bounce with psychedelic swirls

• If Sgt. Pepper and Ray Manzarek (The Doors) collaborated on a sunshine trip, this would be the result
• Layered harmonies, Wurlitzer organ flair, and whimsical breaks
• Hints of Jellyfish and baroque pop brilliance

📀 Album: A Dream Is All We Know
🗺️ Touring now. Mark’s plotting attendance.

“All the markers are there—this is Beatles DNA with Doors spice.”

2. “Too Much of a Good Thing” – Nikki

☀️ Alt-indie chill with lyrical grit

• Laid-back vocal vibe, like early Sheryl Crow meets Ani DiFranco
• Drum groove with a wide-open room sound
• Smart, Beck-ish phrasing keeps the lyrics sticky
• Smooth but unpolished in the best way

🥁 “Drums breathe like they were recorded in a canyon.”

3. “Fading Lights” – Riders of the Canyon

🛣️ Americana harmonies and Wilburys warmth

• If Traveling Wilburys had a Gen Z revival band
• Echoes of Wild Feathers with a timeless, dusty-road vibe
• One of the rare modern bands channeling this sound authentically
• Full album available now—go treat your ears

🌅 “Folk rock troubadours at their finest.”

4. “I Wish for the Rain” – Leanna Flores

🎷 Vintage jazz lounge in 2.5 minutes

• Smoky, candlelit club vibes
• Sparse instrumentation: upright bass, brushes, jazzy guitar
• Leanna’s vocal = absolute perfection
• Could be a soundtrack cue for a romantic drama

💋 “It’s not just a song—it’s a scene in a black-and-white film.”

5. “Why Can’t You Hear Me” – Fever

🎸 UK indie rock with teeth

• Dark, punchy alt rock from the UK
• Guitars echo Muse‘s recent work, but the band’s identity is all its own
• Layers of complexity without sounding overproduced
• Mark can’t place the influences—and that’s driving him wild

🧠 *“Challenge: You tell *me* who they sound like.”*

🎙️ …and I quote…

“If you love playing music, I don’t think you can replace that.”
—Motivational breakfast guest, Episode 68

Until next week… keep searching for and listening to songs that don’t suck. 🎤

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