Swiftumz

Blending the clattering energy of punk, the bright melodies of vintage indie pop, and the baked bedroom feel of '90s lo-fi, Swiftumz are a fine example of the vibrancy of the San Francisco Bay Area noise pop scene of the 2010s and 2020s, as evidenced on 2015's noisy gem Everybody Loves Chris and 2024's taut and hooky Simply the Best. The group was founded by Chris McVicker, who got his start in rock & roll after dropping out of a marching band in middle school because he thought the songs were too lame. He turned his attention to other forms of musical expression, forming and joining lots of bands, punk and otherwise, most notably Special Ed with Tina Lucchesi, ex of the Bobbyteens. Through this connection, one of his songs, "Don't Cha Want Me Back," was recorded for a 2009 Hunx & His Punx single. Tired of being in other people's bands, McVicker started working on his own music. His debut album, Don't Trip, was released in 2011 on Holy Mountain Records and featured McVicker and friends conjuring up tunes that recalled everything from C-86-style indie pop to the weirdos of the early-'90s lo-fi scene. He formed a live band to take the music to the stage, playing the Bay Area and beyond. After releasing a couple singles in 2013, "Love Ya 4 Eva" and "Willy," Swiftumz returned in May of 2015 with an album titled Everybody Loves Chris on hometown label Melters. After the release of the 2017 single "Game Six" for the Fruits & Flowers label, McVicker began work on the second Swiftumz record. It took six years of hard work with the help of friends and cohorts like Kelley Stoltz, Alicia Vanden Heuvel (ex-Aislers Set), members of the Bananas and the Dirty Ghosts as well as guitarist Chris Guthridge, who played all the album's solos. Simply the Best finally saw the light of day in June of 2024 on Empty Cellar Records and featured a punk-meets-indie pop sound similar to their previous album, albeit a bit more streamlined and less weird.
© Tim Sendra /TiVo