Overwhelming Colorfast, "Coming Down"
It's another largely forgotten mid-90s underground rock band! Overwhelming Colorfast put out three records, all of them pretty solid exercises in Hüsker Dü-esque melodic loud rock. That comparison, by the way, is pretty much required due to Bob Reed's singing so strongly resembling Bob Mould's. Although, truthfully, this is more like Sugar than it is like Hüsker Dü. Anyway, it's decent stuff if you're into this sort of thing.
Pile, "Rope's Length"
There are some bands that kind of don't fit neatly in any particular genre, leaving me to just describe them as "rock". Or indie rock, I suppose, although that's not a super important distinction these days. Pile wander a bit, sounding a bit post-hardcore sometimes, a bit noise rock sometimes, a bit this, a bit that. It's a nice mix, and I quite like them, but I also throw my hands up a bit. It's rock, have a listen, what do you think?
Oh yeah, that's good critic-ing!
Soul Supreme, "Let's Ride"
This is from an EP, a tribute to J Dilla, featuring re-workings of a bunch of his tunes. This is a Q-Tip joint originally, and this version features J-Zone rockin' it on the drums, so it's all very tasty.
Mary Timony, "The Golden Fruit"
After the breakup of Helium, Timony went solo for a bit, and this is from her first solo record. It's more eclectic than Helium was, with more of a space-y vibe to the whole thing. It's not my favorite work of hers, but it's of course interesting.
Negativland, "Electricity (1987)"
Negativland's Don Joyce started a radio show on Berkeley's KPFA in 1981, and it continues to this day even after his passing on in 2015. While it started as just a regular radio show, it gradually evolved into a strange collage thing, featuring a cast of regular characters and an overwhelmingly surreal feeling. Some of the episodes were released as standalone records, giving us a glimpse into the bizarre world lovingly created by Joyce and his collaborators. It's hard not to see echoes of this in something like Welcome to Night Vale or other oddball narrative podcasts.