Photo by Georgina Kross
Albums can often be nice snapshots for an evolving band, each song acting as a sonic and temporal signpost. That’s the case for Do What May, the Sour Notes’ fifth album and first album since 2011. The Austin group has morphed a lot over its six-year timespan, picking up new members and sounds along the way. The past three years have found the band trying out styles on various cassette- and vinyl-only releases, a some of those songs show up on Do What May. A lot of guests pop up, too, from Sara Houser of Löwin, Bailey Glover of Little Lo, and Sabrina Ellis, who trades in her dynamite Bobby Jealousy/A Giant Dog/Sweet Spirit persona for a nice harmonized turn on the album’s title track. “Do What May” seems to present the Sour Notes in microcosm: some synth-pop, psychedelia, and rock-and-roll attitude, all in a tidy, fast-moving package.
Do What May is out September 2, and the Sour Notes celebrate with a show at Cheer Up Charlie’s on September 6.
