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Tony Molina / The Softies
The following description was submitted by the event organizer.
Northern California native Tony Molina has a restless, multi-faceted musical personality. He got his start playing in hardcore bands, but over time developed two distinct styles that are very far removed from that sound. Initially under the name Ovens, then as a solo artist, he crafts bite-sized chunks of melodic pop that can be broken into two sub-headings: quiet acoustic guitar-led ballads and noisy electric songs that sound like Teenage Fanclub with J Mascis and the Fastbacks' Kurt Bloch spearheading a dual guitar attack. Molina broke through with 2013's Dissed and Dismissed, which leaned almost exclusively on his louder songs to great effect. Not content to be pigeonholed, however, he switched to the gentle, acoustic side of his dual nature for his next two releases — which included 2018's Baroque pop-influenced LP Kill the Lights — before issuing 2022's In the Fade, an album that incorporated all aspects of his previous work as a solo artist.
The Softies are a guitar-oriented duo based in the Pacific Northwest, consisting of Rose Melberg (Tiger Trap, Go Sailor, Knife Pleats) and Jen Sbragia (All Girl Summer Fun Band), who are known for their minimal yet shimmering approach to pop music.
They debuted in early 1995 with "Loveseat," a single issued on the Slumberland label; their gorgeous debut LP It's Love followed later in the year on K records. After a self-titled 10" LP on Slumberland Records in 1996, the Softies returned to K in early 1997 to issue their sophomore effort, Winter Pageant. Fall 2000 saw the release of their third album, Holiday in Rhode Island, also on K Records.