Blending elements of hardcore, emo, and indie rock in a melodic cocktail unmatched by scene contemporaries, Atlanta four-piece Microwave balances frankness with a penchant for wit, allowing personal confessions to make a striking impact. Owning the best of the punk continuum, lead vocalist Nathan Hardy will sing, scream and yelp amidst snarling guitar work. While often tipping into the heavier side of resonant punk, the band shines brightest in soft reservation. Their debut record Stovall is simultaneously dynamic and emotionally powerful while still maintaining a poetic edge. Its somber but optimistic mood is flawlessly encapsulated by the lyrics, “you should have known this day would come/I guess if you’re gonna be stupid, then you gotta be tough.” – Audotre

Two years before  emo/indie rock outfit Free Throw formed in Nashville, the Memphis Grizzlies made national headlines for their “grit and grind.” Some not familiar with basketball may assume this was another phrase describing the team’s tireless work ethic. Journalists and analysts claimed this “grit and grind” was their disruptive defense. A ‘free throw’ is usually given to a player disrupted by defense — so while unintentionally borrowing the ethos of their home state’s NBA franchise, Free Throw went on the offensive. Consider the band’s signature play: a three-guitar attack which stacks raw immediacy with large-scale aspirations. Sometimes this arrangement is abrasive; other times it’s more nuanced. What connects these two different threads is Cory Castro’s frayed vocals, gaining their power from a violent shout and their confessions from a measured whimper. Combine that range with a set of lyrical themes that play out like an uneasy three-way phone call and what remains fills speakers with a darkness offset by instrumentals which sway and bend with warm nostalgia. But what fills most of Free Throw’s golden playbook is a commitment to winning their own way. After strings of DIY touring circuits and an intense love affair with their van, it’s clear to see their blooming, road-tested legacy answers to no one but their enthusiastic audiences. With their live sets packing rooms across the country, not without alcohol and crowd sing-alongs in tow, it seems this grind has paid off so far, with the grit packing their songs with not just unrelenting talent, but the forward-thinking energy to match.