The Inland Northwest isn't considered a musical hotspot, but there's enough of a musical culture in Spokane and the surrounding areas that a wide swath of sounds emanates from our oft-overlooked region. While everything released locally can't be covered in this space, here's a sampling of some of the best sonic vibes to come out of the Inland Northwest this year.
Absolutes The Emergency Exit
This collection of extremely polished and catchy pop punk calls to mind bands like Jawbreaker and The Ataris. It's enough to get nostalgic millennials yearning for the Warped Tour mosh pits of their teenage days. theemergencyexit.bandcamp.com
While his Alter Bridge bandmates might be busy riding the high of Creed's sudden revival, Spokanite Myles Kennedy is still more than capable of creating huge alternative hard rock songs on his own, as The Art of Letting Go illustrates. You're not gonna find anyone around who has soaring vocals and big riffs more suited for modern rock radio. myleskennedy.com
Spokane's noise rock wunderkind continues to grow up and show out through waves and waves of distorted sound on his latest and most personal LP to date. It's the type of album best experienced with the speakers cranked way up. hayesnoble.bandcamp.com
The sonically explorative chamber folk group showcases the expansive edges of its sound, frontman Dario Ré's poetic songwriting, and its communal spirit on perhaps the best album ever recorded at a library (Central Library's studio, to be specific). heatspeak.bandcamp.com
The best local mixtape of the year finds Spokane's premiere punk rapper reintroducing himself in barely controlled fiery bursts of thrilling darkness. instagram.com/jang_the_goon
You don't have to be a religious person to appreciate this gorgeous and graceful collection of solo piano. Noeldner's fresh interpretations of Christian hymns might be most moving for believers who know the originals of these tunes from Sunday services, but even those not of the flock can enjoy the calming and lovely musicianship on display. calebnoeldner.bandcamp.com
The folk trio of the local teachers deserve stellar grades for its gem of a debut album, which combines harmonious heartfelt love songs with pissed off feminist rage in a way that would make their Lilith Fair foremothers proud. betsyrogue.com
There's nothing as undeniable in the Spokane scene as the soulful sound of Allen Stone's voice. No mystery there. The singer-songwriter's latest EP goes down as smooth as his vocals and sports delectable grooves that can get anyone dancing. allenstone.com
The debut album from Nothing Shameful features a finely tuned, hard rocking emo sound that would've fit in perfectly on a late-stage Warped Tour lineup. Frontman Ethan Harrison sings with an urgency that imbues each track with an energetic vitality. nothingshameful.bandcamp.com
With a sound that calls to mind the earnest, mildly folky pop punk of The Front Bottoms, Scared of Bears' latest album doesn't shy away from songwriting that feels overly vulnerable in a completely wonderful and authentic way. Raised By Wolves is probably Spokane's best hidden sonic gem of 2024. scaredofbears.bandcamp.com
The latest solo album from Atari Ferrari frontman Matthew Joseph Hughes mixes vintage singer-songwriter folk, modern bedroom pop and a dash of classic rock. The sonic diversity and Hughes' crafty songwriting make for a rich and colorful sonic tapestry. automaticshoes.bandcamp.com
Acing the clichéd "chill music to study to" test, the latest from Jayson Orth's one-man band not only serves as the best local chillout ambient album of the year, it's among the best collections anyone in the genre put out in 2024. While Slow Down is too good to be reduced to background music, it does make for a wonderful soundtrack when you just feel like zoning out. augusttoaugust.bandcamp.com
Wait Till I Get My Money Up Gabriella Rose
While she may have packed her bags to move from Coeur d'Alene to Nashville in mid-2024, we still have a place in our musical hearts for the rising gospel country singer's crackling stripped down, no-nonsense EP and its viral TikTok hit "Doublewide." tiktok.com/@gabriella.rose.music
There's always plenty of terrific thrashing noise to be found via Spokane's healthy hardcore punk scene. While Room 13 wasn't exactly stoked about how the clean production of their EP turned out, it makes for one of the most accessible local entry points to the genre in 2024 while still boasting heavy riffs and acidic screamed social commentary. room13nwhc.bandcamp.com
What You Think You Want Snacks at Midnight
Spokane's most eclectic rock band can shift from rebellious hard rock rage ("F– You") to tender indie pop ("Sleep Deprivation") to chill vibes rock ("Breathe") at the drop of a hat. What we think you want is to spin this energetic LP on repeat. snacksatmidnight.com
Even More 2024 Inland Northwest Releases...
- 11th Hour - The Madrigal Project
- absence - [ocean jams]
- Adoration - Carissimi
- bounds - LilTumorboii
- Chuck the Bear - Chuck the Bear
- CityArt - joshuasunn
- Class War '24 - Proleterror
- Closer - Secret B
- Coal Country - Cole Stauffer
- Compadre - Irving Washington
- Coming Home - Cedar Compher
- A Dark Spot - wilhelmi
- Deaf Harmoniques - Toasted Locust
- Decisions - Glenn Case
- deer - éamonn mac uallocháin
- DEMO MMXXIV - Violent Abuse
- Desert Breezes - Nick Seider
- THE DIGI E.P - Dj Digi
- Drawing the Dead and Desperate - The Cutting Tides
- Dirty Blinds - Travis Curtin & Dustin Villaret
- Distorted Realm of Reality - Telepathic Station Nine
- Distortion II - Ben Jennings
- Doctor's Note - WiCKED STiTCH
- Electronics and Radar - Generic Meds
- Esuna - Mikhail Hammer
- Forever Burnouts - Peru Resh
- The Gift of Gab Reimagined - The Arkitek
- Harder Than You - Iron Chain
- Haunt Me Forever - FeatheredI Heart
Karle - Karle - Closed on Sundays
- INCANTATIONS/RITUALS - Zadøk
- Influences - Jared Hall*
- Insomnia (i'm almost sleeping) - Aaron Hudson
- In the End - Night Watchers
- Introvert - Don Hawkins
- The Late, Great Joe Albi - The Walleye
- Lost & Found EP - Borealism
- Makoto Noru - Avalon Kalin
- Meaner Than Evil - A.R Tokin
- Message of Hope - Brian Hoffpauer
- Might - David Larsen*
- Missing Pieces - The Claustrophobes
- The Morning Haiku - Kevin Brown & The Beloved Country
- Movie - Kevin Kohler
- The Muse - Steven James Wylie
- Oenomaus - M. Lindsay
- Outsider / Pray for a Better Ending / The Fear of Leaving the Dark - Jonathan Nicholson
- Piano and Ambience 1: Miscellany - Kurtis Ebeling
- Prayers Unanswered - Lust Hag/Reaping Fields
- Psychic Death III: The Final Chapter - Psychic Death
- Polykronos 2 - Polykronos
- The Price of Playing God - The Night We Died
- Pumpkin Carvers - The Green Warriors
- queen girlmouse - touchy feely paradise
- RESTLESS DREAMS - KEZE
- Sad Clown Blues - Paul Dew
- Schild und Schwert der Hardcore - Stasi
- Sketches - Jeremy Wales
- Somber - TruckDog & the Go People
- Sp'q'n'i - Hísemtuks Hími•n
- Split - Lone Sentinel x Aetherius Cementarius
- Spokaine - MAUP
- Sonic Druid - Sonic Druid
- SUMMER ROAD - SK1RV0
- Synthphony Melodic - huzu band
- Horizon - RezDragon
- Tapeworms: Vol. I - Timeworm
- This Can't Be Unseen - JoeyDGAF
- Toxic Jungle - BaronAlbatross
- Transdimensional Jumper - Not Chris Stark
- Triptych: Part One, Two, and Three - Harvestman
- The UFO Tapes - Apopheniaks
- Versions - Wake Up Flora
- veryolddog + R0R - veryolddogVol. 2 - DR3WBIE
- wander - hekzter
- Within - Piram
- Worrier - Handsigns
- Zatara - Gold Dong
