The Rare Occasions are an LA-based, New England-bred indie rock band known for their
explosive garage rock anthems with catchy vocal harmonies.
Brian McLaughlin (singer) and Luke Imbusch (drummer) have been making music together
since their early teenage years. They formed The Rare Occasions while attending college in
Boston where they met Jeremy Cohen (bassist). Since then, the band have toured nationally,
won the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and released a vast catalog of music online.
In 2021 the band released their first album as a trio, Big Whoop, which received significant
press and radio play. Around the same time, their 2016 track “Notion” went viral on TikTok and
continues to make waves, topping Spotify’s viral chart in the US and several other countries,
and later landing on Billboard’s alternative charts and top 100 singles charts in the UK, Ireland,
and Canada.
They’ve since released an EP (Nov 2022) and a new single “Black Balloons” in October 2023
marking the start of a new release cycle. The 2nd single, “Darling, The Planets” comes out on
April 26th with more to come this year.
BEL
Rarely does modern music earn the badge timeless, but BEL cuts through the noise. Hailing from the small town of Clovis, California, Isabel Whelan crafts nostalgic songs with honesty and attention to detail. She occupies the intersection of indie rock, pop, and folk, while taking cues from the likes of Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, and Mazzy Star.
In 2022, BEL released her sophomore EP, Jet Lag, including collaborations with girlhouse and Boyish. The project received support from Sirius XM, Pandora playlist covers, Spotify, Apple, and several publications’ “Artists to Watch in 2023” lists. BEL spent all of 2023 playing her first festivals, touring direct support for artists Boyish, Gatlin, girlhouse, and more. She traveled to the UK and Europe in the summer, writing and playing shows across London and at the Reeperbahn Festival in Germany.
On November 10th, BEL released her latest EP, Read the Room, collaborating with producers Sean Silverman (Beach Weather), Day Wave, Jack Laboz, Jon Santana + more. The project received coverage from Rolling Stone, Ones To Watch, Raydar Mag and organic radio support from SiriusXMU, AltNation, and KCRW. The lead single “Are You Okay?” reached #1 on SiriusXMU in April/May 2023 and secured a spot on their top 41 songs of the year.
Along with new music underway, BEL is gearing up to support Cold War Kids and BAILEN in March 2024.
Amoeba Arena
Amoeba Arena brings a fresh energy to the indie scene with their unique blend of twinkly guitar riffs, jazzy chords, and catchy emo hooks. Born from a year of passionate garage songwriting fueled by PBR and American Spirits, the math rock/midwest emo quartet—Grant Meister, Jeremiah Jensen, Brayden Vilendrer, and Colin Singh—emerged through sessions at The Boise Hive. Their independently recorded debut EP showcases a commitment to DIY ethos, capturing the spirit of bands like Joyce Manor, Glocca Morra, and Algernon Cadwallader. A standout performance at Realms Arcade alongside “Awakebutstillinbed” and the buzz around their EP “Absolutely” solidify Amoeba Arena’s place as a local favorite, marking a dynamic presence in Boise’s indie music landscape
