Alice Glass needs a hug. Just look at this depressing list of song titles:
"I TRUSTED YOU"
"Without Love"
"LOVE IS VIOLENCE"
"STILLBIRTH"
"NIGHTMARES"
"PINNED BENEATH LIMBS"
and it goes on like that for two full albums and a handful of EPs and singles. Alice Glass has been through some shit - and we are all going to have to hear about it while she works though it. There's something gruesomely beautiful about that, but it does not make for a pleasant listening experience. It was never bad, but I kinda just wanted to get it over with. While I can be a fan of extreme music, Alice had me missing sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows. Especially when compared to her frenemy, Alice Gas. Great production though, and at least it's got a theme/character. This might not be for me, but it's perfect for my imaginary Canadian goth girlfriend.
Unfortunately, she does have plenty to legit complain about. This whole musical project exists because her previous band, Crystal Castles (the band, not the video game), was apparently a horrific, abusive relationship. We'll take Alice at her word here. And BRAVO for ending the band right then and there. Again, sympathies for sure, but now we are all going get awkward about it. Great suffering can surely produce great art, but nobody wants to rewatch Schindler's List. And most of Alice Glass is unlikely to find a permanent home in my music library, though I am certainly looking forward to making it to "C" and Crystal Castles. But wait a minute - is that even cool? I mean, I'll be skipping Chris Brown. Apparently she's not getting any royalties, so maybe fuck that band. For the record, I didn't even know there was a cute, young punk girl--being exploited--in Crystal Castles because they are basically hiding on their only portrait-album cover.
She releases a song ("Stillbirth") as a fundraiser for RAINN first, but her first commercial song as a solo artist is "Without Love." It's probably a bit of a mixed blessing that I found her first to be her best. It's a good song with Lead Single energy. It gets remixed a bunch, but doesn't make the later album. She did announce a tour opening for Marilyn Manson, but if you are wondering how those two got along, it was cancelled at the last minute so she could do her own solo tour.
Just a passing familiarity with her story makes it clear why "CEASE AND DESIST" and "I Trusted You" are her next singles in 2018, four years after leaving the relatively successful Crystal Castles but right after releasing her explanatory statement. I recall these songs vaguely for their dark brooding. Both show up later on her 2022 album. Since then there have only been some non-album releases. It's still all depressing though: what do you want to listen to, "Love is Violence" or "Remains"? "Everybody Else" from 2022 was good though; "Without Love"-good, so maybe there's an upward trajectory here. At this point (Summer 2025) it's been a full year since we've heard a peep.
We haven't had a full album since 2022, but she's still out there - and I wish her well.
"Hi, this is a message for '100 gecs.' This is Dave down at the pressing plant, and before we produce a few thousand records, tapes, and CDs we wanted to let you know that you may have accidentally sent us the wrong masters: most of these songs have bad skips in them, and sometimes the skips take over until the whole song deteriorates into noise. And if you mastered these vocals then we might be able to hear them. Not sure if these are your finished songs or somehow an album made up entirely from the cutting-room floor. So gimme a call back because I've heard some crazy things before, but I don't want to be responsible for pressing a full album of mistake noises ."
100 gecs is the first band I'm listening to that required me to "go back" alphabetically. I love them! Worth it. Not only are they a newish band that only recently got added to my library, but they also made an appearance during the previous post on Alice Gas, which necessitates this entry. Plus, they rock! I am here for it. I shouldn't call it hyper-pop because that apparently pisses them off...but I'm gonna do it anyway- the name fits! They only have a handful of releases, but they seem to have made a relatively oversized impact on our current music moment here in the mid-2020s. I'm a big fan of their whole aesthetic and sound. They might not call it Availablism, but I know (and appreciate) it when I see it. Check out their low-fi, custom-made costumes, for example.
Since it is reasonable to assume that someone reading this blog because of Albert Hammond would have NO IDEA who this modern group is, the sanitized official version of their story is worth quoting: "100 gecs is an American musical duo formed in 2015 that consists of Dylan Brady and Laura Les. They self-released their debut album, 1000 gecs, in 2019 to positive reviews, followed by a companion remix album, 1000 gecs and the Tree of Clues, in 2020. They released their second studio album, 10,000 gecs, in 2023. Their music has been noted for its often chaotic yet catchy mixture of various styles, and has been described as helping to define the hyperpop genre." Great: "chaotic yet catchy" sounds right up my alley, and they do no disappoint.
They basically only have a couple albums so far. And they are from St. Louis, Missouri, of all places, but really they are now from all over, California and Colorado and such. The official history leaves out their first pre-album, self-titled EP from 2016, which is BAT-SHIT-CRAZY. Sure, make erratic, fake dog-noises part of your debut performance! But someone working on this music definitely said, "I bet you can't work fake dog barking samples into every song on this EP," to which the other replied, "I'll take that bet." When I was listening to this glitchy, un-danceable nonsense in the car one day, my teenager daughter pointed to the stereo and said, "You know, this is why you are still single, right?" And, fair enough.
2019's 1000 gecs is a huge step forward. After a breakout performance at some sort of Minecraft online concert, these fresh songs propel them to new heights and all kinds of mainstream accolades. They play tons of festivals and make many year-end-best list, despite still being pretty far out sometimes. The vocals, for example, are almost always pitched-up "nightcore" style. Not is only is that just what we are doing right now (apparently), but also the singer has dysphoria and can't listen to her own voice. The whole album is only 23 minutes long, and in 10 songs it blazes through various genres: rock, electronica, hardcore, spazz. It's intriguingly diverse and sweet. Weird stuff happens, for sure, but underneath it all are delightful melodies and cheerful madness. It's also great that the band is really just those two people, who made the whole album sending tracks back and forth over email. The finally started inviting other people over for the remix album, which really kicks things up a notch... or ten. Some of the songs on 2020's 1000 gecs and the Tree of Clues are just remixes, some feature guest stars, and others are complete recreations; they called it a "companion" album to their prior one. The vocals that Hannah Diamond adds to "xXXi_wud_nvrstøp_ÜXXx (Remix" are particularly effective.
From that album, "Ringtone" is released in Feb. 2020 - and then they got signed to Atlantic Records. The pandemic robbed them of their planned Coachella set, but it sure brought them to my attention. It's only slightly hyperbolic to say that "Ringtone" got me through the pandemic. When I saw their super-lo-fi video it was a like a glimmer of a hope for a future in which my ideas still mattered. Just working with what you have and knowing that revision will only make it worse is what Availabilism is all about. It's all the more impressive because the remix, which is the version the music video is for, features super star names like Charli XCX and Rico Nasty, though I probably got to 100 gecs in the first place by following Sarah Bonito, who can literally do nothing wrong. The secret sauce here is A.G. Cook, who is all over brat. It's a an epic team-up for an amazing song that is not at all undercut by the extremely understated video; it's just perfect and at least 4 million people have watched it. Join them, now:
We are lucky enough to get a follow-up album that does not disappoint. It is their latest and biggest. If anything, it continues the ascent of hyperpop and accelerates it further into the stratosphere. Somehow without sacrificing the insanity, they have concocted a bunch of full-blown pop-rock songs. Also of note, Laura is not embarrassed by her voice anymore and sometimes we get it straight; actually, mostly it is still distorted or whatever, but good for her. This newest material is certainly more mainstream and mature, but not in a bad way. Certainly it has a bunch of monster singles. "Doritos and Fritos," "Dumbest Girl Alive," and "Hollywood Baby" - the last of which was my favorite....until I heard the ska songs. And wow! Someone, somewhere said that their ska sound is so clean and wholesome, it could soundtrack the trailer to hit movie for the whole family. (I'm picturing Peter Rabbit 2.) There's actually a history here too: one of the biggest hits from their first album is the absurdist ska of "Stupid Horse." Sure he says, "Pick it up!" over and over again, like he's making fun of skankers, but the song is otherwise earnest. This was confirmed by the two additional ska tracks on the new album, which are both fantastic. Even though the live rendition consists of hitting PLAY and singing over the track, "Frog on the Floor" seems to go over well with an audience- and I never thought that many people would be loving ska still in 2025, but here we are! Finally, "I Got My Tooth Removed" is just too real and awesome; it only makes sense to watch this version, if any.
So - Do yourself a solid and check-out what the hip kids are listening to this days - you won't be disappointed (unless you're a square).
The occasional authentic ska riff aside, if you like these massive breakdowns and power-pop sound, maybe also check out Sleigh Bells, a band that predates the hyper-pop nominer but came back in 2025 to claim their title as elderstatespeople. I also saw a few comparisons so Kid606, which is a deeper cut for sure, but one I vaguely remember. One might detect a slight death metal influence (notes of Cannibal Corpse?) that occasionally peeks through too. It's ALL good.
100 gecs produced some Rico Nasty tracks from her 2020 album. That's kinda a big deal! Both bands are signed to Atlantic.
They finally got a proper tour in 2021, with Alice Gas among the opening acts. It looked wild. I can't wait to see what they do next. The last we heard from them, musically, was a vinyl EP reissue for Record Store Day in 2024. Socially, Laura's girlfriend announced they were engaged in December of 2024; no word from what her husband thinks about this development, but he seems cool.
Ultimately, this has all been a lot of unpretentious fun that never took itself too seriously for a second. You know who is no fun? Alice Gas rival Alice Glass...so stick around for the next episode of Listening To All My Music Chronologically....!
A promotional photo of Dylan and Laura courtesy of Skullcandy.
