Normally, touting a song or band as “soft rock” is a proverbial death sentence; bands like the Eagles probably killed it for the rest of the bands that don’t want to be as loud or angry or crazy as possible. Sometimes, you just want to feel good, and the music to soundtrack that feeling is of the soft variety. One of those good bands that probably loosely fall under “soft rock” (because they can get fucking loud if they want to) is NYC-based LVL UP. After releasing the appropriately-titled “Soft Power” from their upcoming album Hoodwink’d, they’ve just put out another song, “I Feel Okay”.
The song has that feel good/feel free sentiment common in most beach rock songs. A lot of that has to do with the reverb-laden guitars and jogging drums and bass–it moves forward with the speed of a highway drive or the leisure of a boat ride (someone blurts out, “Very island vibes,” right as the song ends). It brings to mind the usual suspects: Beach Fossils, Real Estate, etc., but LVL UP have always been great at creating their own voice in the shuffle. Three out of the four members write music for the band, so each song is like a little dive into each songwriter’s voice, and “I Feel Ok” is no exception.
Stream the song in the embed below, and read on for LVL Up’s August tour dates.
LVL Up August Tour Dates:
August:
18 Philadelphia, PA at Golden Tea House
19 Montclair, NJ at Bat Cave
20 Richmond, VA at Gallery 5
21 Washington, DC at Comet Ping Pong
22 Pittsburgh, PA at The People’s Warehouse
23 Columbus, OH at TBA
29 Hamden, CT at The Space
30 Brooklyn, NY at Shea Stadium
Hoodwink’d is due September 23 via Double Double Whammy and Exploding In Sound.
