Something Else
is a band from Houston that plays a danceable brand of post-punk with melodic vocal performances, angular guitar work, and foot-tapping rhythms. Something Else has rocked big venues, smoky dives, and energetic house shows in towns across Texas. For fans of: Franz Ferdinand, Arctic Monkeys, XTC, and the Pixies.
Press quotes
"['Don't Want It'] has moments of subtle indie rock with almost post-punk vocals. There's nice little nuggets of jingle in the guitar and the stride set by the snappy drums makes the track hard not to stay in your head. The disaffected vocals eventually open up alongside the jangle pop hooks and the rhythm section, making the song one you'll probably repeat again and again."
"Looking around the country, there’s a pretty hefty list of new indie rock bands cropping up. Last year we noticed a new band out of Texas called Something Else, and we were amazed out how much growth we saw from their early shows to their later sets. Now with their debut out and their work towards its follow up, they’ve released a video for the song 'Don’t Want It' to put that chapter behind them and move forward."
"... the superlative 'There's a Rumor', 'Levitation Pt.1' and 'Levitation Pt. II', provide the listener with that 80's spiky angularity of guitar work ... 'Losing (Failure)' and the superlative 'Don't Want It' drift away from the Postcard inference momentarily, incorporating salubrious chunky funk bass lines ... before returning wholeheartedly with the playful Orange Juice stylistics in the two instrumental tracks, 'Interlude" and 'This is the End (Interlude)'"
Language barrier due to podcast being entirely in Portuguese, but according to Luís of Madsardines, he stated that "[Something Else has] the best music in the entire episode, 'There's a Rumor', is the most underrated song ever, the song was stuck to my head until today!"
Something Else transmits guitar indie music in the best form that is known today. Push and rhythm to the rescue. In the song “Levitation Pt. II,” compact indie rock give its hand to swift dubby post-punk, in which it’s difficult to come up with the chorus more catchy and flawless.
Something Else was featured on KVRX Austin - Student Sounds, where Ben, James, and Jerel talked about how the band was formed and their approach to writing music. The interview also includes a live cover of "Fill in the Blank" by Car Seat Headrest, as well as a live performance of "This is the End (Interlude)".
Recognitions
"Eight Houston music releases you need to hear in 2021" -Joey Guerra for the Preview at the Houston Chronicle
2018 - The Best of Jangle-pop (singles)
Long Bio
As with many bands from the Third Coast, Houston’s Something Else has a sound comprising a melting pot of styles. In their case, it's various blends of classic alternative rock, ranging from the quirky power pop of bands like XTC to the frenetic dance punk of Gang of Four to the garage rock growl of early Arctic Monkeys. The end result is a danceable brand of post-punk with melodic and charismatic vocal performances, angular guitar work, and foot-tapping rhythms. Noted for their energetic and borderline unhinged live performances, a Something Else show is not one to miss when they come to a town near you.
The band formed when Roy Jang (vocals), Brian Madina (guitar), Jerel Jallorina (guitar), and Ben Whelan (bass) started making music in Houston, TX in 2013 while attending high school together. Scrappy rehearsal sessions in the early days led to a sprinkling of gigs, such as graduation parties and dive bars. Early highlights included a sold out show at the storied Fitzgerald’s (RIP) and a show opening for Kurt Travis at Walter’s Downtown (also RIP). After going through several drummers, James LeBlanc, another Houston native, met Ben at the University of Texas at Austin in 2015 and took over on drums following the departure of their prior drummer at the end of 2016. James brought not only his drumming to the band, but also his technical proficiency in instrumentation and production.
In the summer of 2017, all members returned to the Bayou City to record their debut album with John Allen Stephens (The Suffers, Children of Pop, J. Balvin). In 2018, the band did a live, in-studio session at KVRX Austin, in the same studio that has hosted the likes of My Morning Jacket, Modest Mouse, and Ought, ahead of the release of their debut album. This album, “An Entire Album About My Ex-Girlfriend”, was released on August 22nd, 2018, and the band jumped on I-10, playing shows across their home state of Texas, including gigs in Houston, Austin, and San Marcos, and even a Weezer cover show in San Antonio. Their hard work paid off, as the lead single “There’s A Rumor” received airplay in both Houston and Austin. The album garnered the band praise in various publications including the Houston Press and Jangle Pop Hub, who named “Don’t Want It” among their 25 favorite singles of 2018.
Up until the pandemic in March 2020, the band continued this momentum, with more shows in Houston, including an opening slot for the Gotobeds (Sub Pop), while also expanding their reach to other Texas college towns like Nacogdoches and Denton. Even COVID-19 couldn’t slow the band down, as they began writing their second album in isolation - an album which the Houston Chronicle cited as one of “Eight Houston Releases You Need to Hear in 2021”. The Houston Chronicle also featured the band on the Chronicle Concerts, which showcased three songs played live from Jerel’s driveway and included the premier of a song from the forthcoming album. Something Else’s sold-out show at White Oak Music Hall in June 2021 was their first concert since the start of the pandemic and served as a testing ground for the band’s newest material. The band is aiming to book a tour of the South once the madness dies down in anticipation of the forthcoming sophomore album.
