The brainchild of singer/songwriter/guitarist James Alex, Beach Slang -- and acoustic counterpart Quiet Slang -- delivers angst-ridden indie rock heavily influenced by the songcraft of Paul Westerberg. Founded in 2013, the project released two EPs and two albums as a four-piece before Alex issued his first Quiet Slang recording with different backing musicians in 2017.
Formed in Philadelphia by Alex, with guitarist Ruben Gallego, bass player Ed McNulty, and drummer J.P. Flexner, Beach Slang released two EPs in 2014: Who Would Ever Want Anything So Broken? on Dead Broke Rekerds and Cheap Thrills on a Dead End Street for Tiny Engines. The band signed with indie powerhouse Polyvinyl in early 2015, and their cathartic full-length debut, The Things We Do to Find People Who Feel Like Us, arrived that October. After the critical acclaim of the album, Beach Slang wasted no time recording their sophomore LP, A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings, which saw release in September 2016. When the time came to tour in support of the album, Flexner parted ways with the group, and multiple guest drummers took turns in his place.
In 2017, Alex released an EP with two of the band's songs alongside covers of the Replacements and Big Star using the name Quiet Slang. Titled We Were Babies & We Were Dirtbags, it was arranged for voice, piano, and cello. In 2018, he released a full-length album of all Beach Slang material under the moniker. Much like the EP, Everything Matters But No One Is Listening swapped the electric guitars of his band's music for piano and strings.
Marcy Donelson
AllMusic.com
