We’re loving the rock’n'roll garage rumble of the Sunburn At Midnight EP by Thee Commons.
Watch the video for the classic surf-inspired guitar twang of the title track and listen to the perfectly executed rockabilly of EP opener Rabbits And Rattles. Just brilliant.
Unfortunately, we’re not too sure where you can buy the EP, but check their Facebook page here for more band info.
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We admit, when we first came across Georgiana Starlington, we assumed it was going to be a solo performer, so were quite surprised to discover that in actuality it was duo Jack and Julie Hines who (even more surprisingly) are better known for the Black Lips and as the visceral K-Holes.
Even more surprisingly because Georgiana Starlington actually play weary, sunburnt, country tinged music that meanders into psychedelia, shoegaze and dream pop territory. While it is certainly more reflective, it is in its own way just as powerful and arresting as their more vicious alter-egos.
Debut long playing release Paper Moon is out on the excellent Hozac label on the 26th March. You can listen to Hard Grave below or check out three tracks from the album at their Bandcamp page here.
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We posted a few weeks ago about Crushed Out (formerly Boom Chick) and their explosive hit of surf-garage momentum and rock & roll.
Their debut full-length, Want to Give, is out on November 6 on the band’s own Cool Clear Water Records. Here is a second track from it, the primal Push Down & Twist.
Download Crushed Out – Push Down & Twist mp3 (from Want To Give)
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Back in February we gave a warm welcome to the brilliantly named Shamefaced Sparrows and their own particular brand of ‘deathpop’. After too big a gap, they have thankfully got back in touch to say “…and now that we have emerged from our makeshift den, built amid an unmapped, tree-ringed field, that time has come.,..mop your brow with relief, pour yourself a stiff iced-drink, have your secretary fetch for you your finest cigar and enjoy Apple Tragedy and Ride That Seastorm! by the shamefaced sparrows..“
Well, who were we to argue. If only we actually had a secretary and smoked cigars. No matter, the stiff iced-drink was a given, and so was the quality of these two tunes plus Murder In The Dollhouse.
Like the Velvets fronted by Dick Dale, or the Beach Boys cage fighting with the Kinks these are crackling with surf-pop vintage – think cruising rain-slicked neon streets in 50s LA! Enjoy!
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Pure guitar/drum adrenalin rush, plenty of fuzz, tremolo, riffs, chunky chords, slide and Black Sabbath power chords. Formerly known as Boom Chick, now Crushed Out, a duo that rides the crest of the garage-surf and pure rock’n'roll wave.
Their debut full-length, Want to Give, is out on 6th November, on their own Cool Clear Water imprint.
Try Weigh You Down on for size and check out their Daytrotter Session here.
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We got a first ever e-mail from Hardly Art yesterday, which pleased us greatly as they are one of our favourite labels around. And frankly we’ve been sent so much “electro banging mash-up dance disco pop bpm” shite over the past few weeks (do these people that send it not actually look at the blog first? There would be more chance of Anne Frank playing the drums…) that it was a relief not to automatically hit the junk mail button on our Mac.
Their roster of releases have included lots that we have loved: Colleen Green, The Moondoggies, La Sera, Woven Bones, Sandwitches, The Beets, and the wonderful Dutchess & The Duke amongst many others.
Anyway, the main thing is they sent us the new single by the flamboyantly mighty Hunx from his album Hairdresser Blues. It is, as you might, expect great fun.
Buy the album here.
Download Hunx – Let Me In mp3 (from Hairdresser Blues)
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So many new releases, so little time. Here are a few guaranteed to brighten up a Friday.
Loving this new track, Yatton from Beak> in all its hypnotic, krautrock inspired glory. From a new album due in the summer.
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In a similar vein, Arc In Round’s self-titled debut LP, being released June 26, by La Société Expéditionnaire, reflects a sensibility garnered from endless hours of studio tracking and hypnotic experimentation – think Stereolab meets Broadcast with the addition of haunting vocals. Download Hallowed here.
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A couple of tracks from Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros eagerly awaited new record Here. Listen to That’s What’s Up and Fire.
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The new Bear Driver single is called Enemy and is probably one of the most accessibly poppy moments on their debut album. It still rocks most satisfyingly with some crunchy guitar mind you.
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Paws bash out infectious garage pop-rock and new EP Misled Youth is released as a limited edition tape with a run of 250. Download the exuberant title track and order from FatCat here.
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The Tough Shits forthcoming self-titled debut promises to deliver 29 minutes of ramshackle rock so purely balls-to-the-wall you won’t know what hit you. Download Birds (Don’t Get Tired of Flying) and hear the evidence for yourself.
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Kelley Stoltz has a new 7″ single on French label Les Disques Steak. Titled Two Imaginary Girls it features songs called Caroline and Marcy. Have a listen (via Finest Kiss).
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Blasted Canyons are releasing a 12″ called 2nd Place. Taster Holy Geometry is driven by a brilliant needling guitar refrain that is guaranteed to stick with you long after the song has finished.
Download Blasted Canyons – Holy Geometry mp3 (from 2nd Place 12″)
Sun Kil Moon has released another taste from forthcoming album Among The Leaves. That Bird Has A Broken Wing might be the best so far, starkly beautiful.
Download Sun Kil Moon - That Bird Has A Broken Wing mp3 (from Among The Leaves)
Finally, we’re loving the military stomp of Michael J Epstein Memorial Library’s new track Faith In Free Part 1 from their Faith In Free EP. It comes across like a brilliantly vicious hybrid of Siouxsie & The Banshees and Sparks.
Download Michael J Epstein Memorial Library - Faith In Free Part 1 mp3 (from Faith In Free EP)
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Here is our cherry picked selection of our favourite downloads from March for you, together with a few new tracks to create a perfect end-of-month mix. Enjoy.
Download Thee Exciters – Dinosaur Traffic mp3 (from Perpetual Happening)
Psychedelia meets proto-punk
Download The Lonesome Savages – All Outta Love mp3 (from All Outta Love 7″)
50s inflected rock’n’roll revamped and updated with elements of the current garage punk sound – oozes from the speakers in a way that is raw, primal and downright dangerous
Download Lera Lynn – Ring Of Fire mp3 (from Ring Of Fire EP)
Dark interpretation on an upbeat classic
Download Einar Lind – Brother Don’t Steal My Wife mp3 (from Introducing Einar Lind)
Perfect late-at-night soundtrack where you cannot sleep and settle in an armchair with a whiskey to wait out the darkness, while the house creaks and ticks amidst the silence around you
Roomrunner – Super Vague
Pulverising punk rock
Download The Stammer – Follow The Leader mp3 (from The Stammer EP)
A sinewy guitar lead and military percussion over which gloomy tones prevail, provides a two minute rush of monochrome tinged adrenalin
Download Justin Farren – Broken Shit mp3 (from Songs From Spare Rooms)
Comes across like a speed-fuelled Loudon Wainwright III duelling with Arol Guthrie
Download AU – Get Alive mp3 (from Both Lights)
Experimental indie-rock
Download Beast Make Bomb – It Snowed Last Night mp3 (from Skinny Legs)
Combines the distorted punk attitude of the late 1970s with some classic fuzzed out pop melodies to deliver a sweetly addictive tune
Download Violens – Der Microarc mp3 (from True)
Excellent slice of psych-pop
Download Mirel Wagner – The Road mp3 (from Mirel Wagner)
Another cheery tale of death, sparsely plucked and whispered, and coming across like a Strange Fruit for the modern day.
Download The Hussy – Stab Me mp3 (from Weed Seizure)
Like a flick-knife in a crowded flophouse, comes out of the darkness at you with a ferocity and a viciousness that is impossible to avoid and pointless to deflect
Download Dinosaur Feathers – Beatcha mp3 (from Whistle Tips)
Satisfyingly crunchy guitars with infectious groove and jangle
Download Josh & Mer – Mind Control mp3 (from Planet Music)
Unsettling and eerie electro-folk
Download Owsley Brothers – Hot Mess mp3 (from Cobalt)
Crackerjack of experimental blues and rock
Download Roadkill Ghost Choir – In The Lion’s Mouth mp3 (from In The Lion’s Mouth)
Spacey, folk rock
Download Ancient Whales – Everyone mp3 (from Birthing EP)
Insistently catchy, full of memorable guitar riffs, splashes of woozy reverb and hits a sweet spot or two with the cool doubled up vocals
Download Nu Sensae – Gumbo mp3 (from Tea Swamp Park EP)
Scrappy, tribal punk
Download Burnt Ones – Meet The Golden One mp3 (from Meet The Golden One 7″)
High octane garage glam
Download Wye Oak – Pocahontas mp3 (from Daytrotter Session, Neil Young Cover)
Top notch cover of classic
Download Guy Capecelatro III – Switch mp3 (from North For The Winter)
Tale of a killer who meets a woman who proves to be his undoing – with added pedal steel and Hammond organ
Download Titus Andronicus - Upon Viewing Oregon’s Landscape With the Flood of Detritus (from split 7″ with Diarrhea Planet)
Typically raucous, literately sharp punk rock
Download Screaming Females – It All Means Nothing mp3 (from Ugly)
Suitably coruscating and pummeling cut from NJ punks
Download Orpheum Bell – Daddy’s Crying mp3 (from The Old Sister’s Home)
Intimate, waltzy vignette is another example of their elegant and organic sound
Download Chelle Rose – Browder Holler Boy mp3 (from Ghost of Browder Holler)
Ripe with mystery and passion, and sounds like it was plucked from the kudzu-scented air of her native Loudon County in East Tennessee
Download Johnny Bertram & The Bicycles – Miracle mp3 (from Neon City)
Steeped in indie-rock and Americana and filtered through a Deep South lens
Download Ty Segall & White Fence – I Am Not A Game mp3 (from Hair)
Twisty, insistent garage-psych with junkyard vocals
Download Tyburn Saints – Broken Bottles mp3 (from You And I In Heaven EP)
Dark and foreboding indie that feels almost cinematic in its purpose and delivery
Pontiak – Highest Echo
Vintage organic stoner rock
And to finish off we have a breezy new track of indie rock from Maps & Atlases new album, we have the frenetic bank robbing fantasy of Baby Baby’s Nothing To Lose and a welcome return from veteran catchy psych-rockers The Dandy Warhols. Finally, two tracks from Field Report’s much acclaimed and anticipated self-titled debut of fragile, heartfelt folk.
Download Maps & Atlases – Fever mp3 (from Beware And Be Grateful)
Download The Dandy Warhols – Sad Vacation mp3 (from This Machine)
Download Field Report – Fergus Falls mp3 (from Field Report)
Download Field Report – I Am Not Waiting Anymore mp3 (from Field Report)
Baby Baby – Nothing To Lose
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The Lonesome Savages are a Madison band featuring members of Dead Luke as well as ex-members of Zola Jesus.
They have a debut four track 7″ EP out on the ever excellent Kind Turkey Records titled All Outta Love.
Singer Max Elliott howls over a punkabilly masterpiece that teeters on Cramps-esque infatuation but thankfully goes way beyond simple pastiche or plagiarism. No sir, this is just honest 50s inflected rock’n'roll revamped and updated with elements of the current garage punk sound. It oozes from the speakers in a way that is raw, primal and downright dangerous. It is also loud as hell and the production straddles the line between blown out madness and vintage rock’n'roll warmness.
The release is limited to 350 hand-numbered copies so they will certainly go fast! The first 100 copies are on colour vinyl and available exclusively directly from the label (click here), or you can order from iTunes (click here).
The 7″ digital download comes with an additional two track solo digital single from Dead Luke! One unreleased track plus his cover of Suicide’s Ghost Rider.
Download The Lonesome Savages – All Outta Love mp3 (from All Outta Love 7″)
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Like most music blogs we get a lot of music submissions. Sifting through them becomes, after a while, a process that is akin to shortlisting candidates for interviews. Sometimes we get minimal information “I’m Billy-Bob a singer-songwriter from Arkansaw, folks call me Bubba, I think you’ll like my music” and sometimes we get huge long press releases with photos, reviews, and lists of influences that could fill a small book.
Like most, we become attuned to picking out words and phrases that might grab our interest or alternatively turn us right off – for example anything that we get in talking of remixes, house bangers, mash-ups, dancefloor fillers, electro pop, ambient noodling and similar is unlikely to meet our tastes. It doesn’t mean its crap, just that its not what we choose to listen to, music being after all, a pretty subjective topic.
If on the other hand we get something with (a) a band name we like, (b) a description that grabs our interest, and (c) a bit of humour then we are pretty likely to give it a chance. The point of this preamble is to introduce a band who got it right on all three counts with us, and then even better more than delivered on the music front.
The band in question is a duo called Shamefaced Sparrows. It is, to MM’s mind a brilliant name for a band. They sum their music up as “death pop”, which we like the sound of…a lot. They go on to say that they combine the savage sonics of Link Wray with the melodic guile of the French Ye-Ye girls. If that sounds like a fanciful notion; consider the dynamics of both: youthful, exuberant, joyous, dangerous, daring and sexy.
Lastly, a bit of their back story: “Having recently fled our bone-‘n’-carcass-made nest in Shithole, East Midlands, we have fluttered and soared through increasingly glum and greying skylines. With ascending eagerness and hope, we scoured the grim landscape, determined to espy a never-fading, ever-blooming Eden.
We found Hackney.
Still, what can you do?“
They sent us three demos to listen to – our hopes were already high. And like an occasionally rabid hybrid of Two Wounded Birds, The Cramps and Tony Bennett they deliver in spades. If we had a record label, we would want the Shamefaced Sparrows as our first signing.
Have a listen. Save the name in your Google Alerts. Wait for a ‘proper’ release. The Mackerel’s fins are crossed for the Sparrows…
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