Local Radar highlights bands that the local team at The Current is spinning heavily at their desks. You'll be able to preview a track from each as well as hear them on The Local Show and Local Current.

Van Stee
On last weekend’s Local Show episode, we got to premiere the new Van Stee single “Color In The Paper Planes.” It’s a far less psychedelic affair than “We Are,” which you may remember getting heavy airplay across the station over the summer and early fall. “Color In The Paper Planes” is fast, unadulterated rock-pop, and without a doubt the best example on the forthcoming record of every element falling exactly into place.

And speaking of that record… where is it!? Well, Van Stee has been hard at work making sure this debut is everything it should be and nothing less. So I commend them for taking extra months to get the production up to par and simultaneously prepping a significant marketing campaign to follow the release. Right now, early 2013 is the target date. If you didn’t catch them opening for Haley Bonar’s 7” release show, you may be out of luck until winter is winding down in February. Right now, there’s no new shows on the docket as the band puts their focus caps on.

“Color In The Paper Planes” is now available digitally on iTunes.

Stream: Van Stee - "Color In The Paper Planes" from We Are

The Sunny Era
The Sunny Era have a gorgeous new album out called Lost In The Sea Of Ghosts. It’s much different than previous efforts, and it’s hard not to say that this new release invokes a lot of Arcade Fire. With power hooks, gorgeous arrangements and a compositional structure that really tells a story, there are more than a handful of extreme highlights among the 13 songs.

My favorite is “Up All Night,” a track that gives Laila Stainbook a chance to use her voice. And she does it in a way you don’t expect. Her timbre is nontraditional, again lending some parallels to Régine Chassagne. It’s a powerful voice to follow for three and a half minutes, and one which really breaks down the album into its simplest terms.

The Sunny Era have a release show on Thursday, November 29 at the Cedar Cultural Center with Bomba De Luz and El De Faunt in support. 

Stream: The Sunny Era - "Up All Night" from Lost In The Sea Of Ghosts

All Eyes
We’ve been following All Eyes for a few months now, initially on the strength of a sampler they released on Bandcamp. Since then, the group -- consisting of Alicia Wiley, Jake Hanson, Joseph Christenson and Luke Anderson -- has been playing regularly around town getting their live show in sync with the record. From reports across the board, they’ve been doing a tremendous job, and now the release of their debut album is upon us.

On November 13, Shelf Life will be released digitally with a release show to follow in the coming weeks. Here’s another teaser from the album called “I Will Come Through.” It’s a longer song and one which really gets you caught up in the vibes. All Eyes will be the in-studio guest on The Local Show on December 9.

Stream: All Eyes - "I Will Come Through" from Shelf Life