HCTF premiere - Kleenex Girl Wonder: Take My Heart and Rub It

Rock act Kleenex Girl Wonder burst upon the scene with their sprawling lo-fi garage debut album Ponyoak in 1999. An expanded reissue, with a nice stack of bonus tracks handpicked by the band's songwriter and lead singer Graham Smith, saw this long out--of-print gem making a comeback for its 20th anniversary. Listen to Take My Heart and Rub It, a fuzz-heavy mid-tempo rocker with ear-worm potential. Keep in my mind that it was recorded in a single dorm room in Madison, WI. Warts and all it is a piece of bare bones DIY college rock

Ponyoak is released on their own Reesonable Records label (vinyl, digital).

» Kleenex Girl Wonder on Facebook

HCTF review of White Lacuna.

Kleenex Girl Wonder: White Lacuna

NYC indie rock band Kleenex Girl Wonder is basically a one-man project. Songwriter and lead singer Graham Smith has been capturing angst and love since 1996, releasing more than a dozen albums. The latest is called White Lacuna on which he once again spills the beans abut being unable to connect (The History of Ice), despair (Hope All is Lost), and evasive women (Emerita). While the lyrics are pretty dark he warps his songs in upbeat left field garage with a hint of vaudeville.

On some tracks it's just him and an acoustic guitar, but this sparse modus operandi is used to make the listening experience an intense one. Stand-out track Judas Beach is mash-up of post-punk and psychedelic shoegaze. Smith goes his own way and it has earned him a small but devoted following. He is one of those artists who can induce an innocent but incurable urge to collect all his stuff.

HCTF World premiere: Kleenex Girl Wonder's new single On Walter Hill

photo: Graham Smith

NYC pop trio Kleenex Girl Wonder have a way with words. With a lot of words to be more precise. The band's songwriter and lead singer Graham Smith can be inspired to write a song about pretty much anything. The new single On Walter Hil is about the leading UK sport bets firm and you can picture the punters standing in line with diminishing hopes that this particular bet will make them rich and change their lives forever. Walter Hill is also the name of the American director and movies are another means to dream and get away from reality.

On Walter Hil is the first taste of their forthcoming 13th album, the 2LP The Comedy Album. For an American band they sound rather English and that's pretty rare - the other way round is much more common.