The Key Studio Sessions: Left and Right

Power pop punks Left and Right got their start in Charlottesville, Virginia a few years back, then moved to Philly and set up shop locally with a few cassette releases. We premiered their single “Low Expectations” back in August, and it immediately struck a chord with a sound spanning Weezer, Archers of Loaf and Mudhoney. Since then the band has alternated between short tour runs and stints working at coffee shops back home and playing DIY-minded spots like The Pharmacy in South Philly.

In the fall, the band released its infectious debut Five Year Plan via Infinity Cat Records. It’s loud and fun, with booming guitars, barreling drums and lo-fi-but-not-really production. Where some moments sound gritty and fuzzed-out, there’s a lot of polish in the LP too – and in the band’s playing, as you hear on display in Left and Right’s Key Studio Session.

We hear two songs from Five Year Plan in the mix: the soaring “My Favorite Ghost,” which has a pretty awesome Smashing Pumpkins-y guitar lead, and “Low Expectations.” The band also played three songs that were being recorded for the first time – the charging “Ringer,” the brooding “Sleep Show” (which tells the story of passing out onstage to a Soundgarden-esque burn) and an untitled rager that closed it out; their next release, clearly, is shaping up to be a good one.

Listen to the set below, download it at Soundcloud and catch the band on tour this spring with Diarrhea Planet. The tour comes to Underground Arts on Tuesday, April 7th; tickets and information can be found at the XPN Concert Calendar, and their full tour schedule can be found here.