The November edition of The Soundcheck spotlights looking inward to see how we’ve evolved over time and what the next life chapter might bring. There’s a refreshing honesty and authenticity that comes with sharing that growth and the unexpected wisdom that emerges from it—regardless of your age or experience.

The Idiot Kids, “Wilted Bloom” & “White Flags” 

The Idiot Kids openly address overcoming addiction and missing past interactions with friends on “Wilted Bloom.”

The Detroit garage-punk trio of Jon-Mikal Bartee (vocals, guitar), Nicholas Zambeck (bass) and Andrew Maslowsky (drums, vocals) share those honest reflections on the new single from their upcoming album, Chapels, which drops Dec. 1.

“‘Wilted Bloom’ is more about that feeling of being an addict and seeing those things,” said Bartee, who’s now seven years sober. “I was driving around a few months ago, and I just saw someone smoking a cigarette with the windows down and the weather was incredible. I was like, ‘I miss it so much; I miss the meditative aspect of it.’”

Backed by fiery electric guitar, bass and drums, Bartee sings, “You’re just a weed inside my garden / Hoping that I’ll pluck you soon / You want me to feed upon your pollen / Well, I’ve got an appetite for you!”

“You’re thinking more about the experiences you had when you were smoking cigarettes with friends around bonfires or stepping outside after a nice meal and talking with your friend about whatever. The same thing with missing the blurry TV sets when you’re drunk with your friends hanging out in basements watching TV. It’s that slippery slope, and then all of sudden it’s like, ‘Well, I guess let’s do cocaine for the hell of it,’” said Bartee, who also includes a cover of Against Me!’s 2014 single, “Black Me Out” with The Idiot Kids as a B-side to “Wilted Bloom.”

“That was me dealing with [it] even now seven years sober … I still long for those things, but it’s more the experiences that I had with friends on those things and not so much the actual substance. The idea of that bloom—that thing you got from it—was actually the experiences with other people and not the actual substance. If the substances keep coming back, it escalates so quickly that you’re not going to be able to bloom. You’re not going to be able to be who you think you’re going to be.”

After beating addiction, The Idiot Kids shift to tackling insomnia on another turbocharged single, “White Flags,” which features frantic electric guitar, bass and drums fighting against exhaustion and frustration.

Bartee sings, “So bring me a dream / Bring me a clock that isn’t chokin’ / Fill my eyelids with sand! / Your ramblin’ aches need not be spoken / So get back, recall your hand!”

“I’ve always had issues with sleeping, and I’ve always had issues with insomnia. A lot of that comes from my mental well-being and the things that keep me up at night are just these racing thoughts going down the rabbit hole and not being able to pull myself out of it and not being able to shut my brain off,” Bartee said.

“‘White Flags’ is a feeling of surrendering yourself to the things that you can’t control, which is one of my biggest—if not my biggest—downfall when it comes to my anxiety. I’ll do anything; I just need to go to sleep, I need to get my head on straight.”

Finally, the B-side of “White Flags” features a stellar rendition of Agent Orange’s 1981 track, “Bloodstains.” Crunchy electric guitar, thumping bass and pounding drums explode behind Bartee, who sings, “Well, it’s a futuristic modern world / But things aren’t what they seem / Someday you better wake up / From this stupid fantasy, come on.”

“We played five songs at our first show and that was one of them. We didn’t have anything written when we booked the show; it was very thrown together with one of our friends,” Bartee said.

“Zambeck one day was like, ‘Hey, we should cover this.’ Growing up, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater … those soundtracks got a lot of people my age into punk music, including us. That was on Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4, and it’s been a live staple ever since. It was like, ‘Well, let’s record our version that we play live.’”

Looking ahead, The Idiot Kids will celebrate the release of their new album, Chapels, with a Dec. 2 show at Outer Limits Lounge featuring The Cult of SpaceSkull and Carmel Liburdi.

Dog Latin, “On Time”

I like to think that Dog Latin’s Chris McGorey and I have a similar outlook on the concept of time. Neither one of us wants to be constrained or defined by it. We both want to overpower it and follow our internal clocks—even if they differ significantly from those around us.

That’s why Dog Latin’s latest single, “On Time,” speaks to me personally and feels like a fitting folk-rock anthem after “falling back” at the end of Daylight Saving Time.

The track’s radiant electric guitar and horns echo McGorey’s carefree attitude as he sings, “Is it day or night? / Do you have the right to tell me to be on time? / I’m always on time / You’re just too early / Everything is fine.”

“On Time” is for all of those who see time as elastic and opt for an unconventional schedule. Canton’s McGorey (guitar bass) also brought his “fist-shaking ode to Father Time” to life courtesy of David Roof (drums, trumpet, trombone) at Grand Blanc’s Rooftop Recording.

Ally Evenson, In My Dreams, You Laugh at Me EP

Ally Evenson’s latest EP, In My Dreams, You Laugh at Me, takes an introspective and vulnerable approach to looking at yourself from a lucid, dreamlike state. In collaboration with Assemble Sound, the Detroit indie rocker examines life through this vivid lens and experiences flashes of growth, heartbreak and uncertainty across six tracks.

The captivating opener, “Big Lie,” speaks to the fears we have about the future and who we hope to become over time. Shielded by courageous electric guitar, bass and drums, Evenson sings, “I’d lose my mind inside a big lie / Tell me yours and I’ll tell you mine / If I die before I wake up / You believed in who I’d kill to be.”

Evenson also shines on the wistful ballad, “Porch Light,” which acknowledges the end of a relationship, yet remains hopeful for a reconciliation. Surrounded by tender electric guitar, she sings, “I’m not a quitter / I’ll tie the loose ends / Something you’d ask me for / I’ll cry when it’s over / Blame it on something to do with the stars / I’ll look up and curse the moon / And wonder who’s laying with you.” In a sense, we all leave a light on hoping something or someone from the past might return.

Once she tackles heartbreak, Evenson shifts to confronting self-doubt on “I Can’t Feel (My Body).” Alongside determined acoustic guitar, she sings, “Next time, I’ll be better / I don’t hear what I should / I see only make-believe / Stories with bad endings where the savior leaves / Don’t leave.” That honest admission prompts us to step outside ourselves and reclaim a power that’s buried deep inside.

In the meantime, you can catch Evenson opening for The Japanese House on Dec. 5 at The Majestic in Detroit.