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Leeds-based trio Night Owls have announced their return with brand new single Out of My Head, out now via Till Deaf Do us Party Records.
It builds handsomely on the fuzz-drenched, slacker-influenced grunge pop of their 2016 debut EP Informaldehyde. By taking a leaf out of the shoegaze scene handbook, the new single sees them taking a doped-up, dreamy and melodically obtuse approach to their raucous, serrated grunge-pop.
Stream it below.
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We shared the throbbing, confrontational punk of Chest Pains’ pay-what-you-want single Petrified earlier this month and now we have the follow up for you.
Like Petrified, Shame is a track that seethes and churns, frustrations threatening to boil over, but just about held in check by tense guitars that every now and then gallop away backed by a frenzy of clattering percussion.
Good stuff indeed. Listen below and click through to download on another pay what you like deal.
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Lo-fi garage punk legends Black Mekon are back with a new LP One In The Hate. It will see a worldwide release on 25th August via PNKSLM Recordings. It is the long awaited follow up to 2013’s Stolen Bible 2.
The masked duo (Black Mekon, and his brother Black Mekon) keep the same raw energy heard on the previous album – and with song titles like Janet Was A Klepto, Hold On To Your Hate and Frank Died Hanging From An Electric Fence you can be pretty sure that their wonderfully scuzzy, feral attitude remains right to the fore.
Listen to Salt Liquor below. Order the album here.
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If you’re not yet familiar Erin Rae’s story, she is East Nashville’s go to harmony girl. If you’re listening to a record by Margo Price, Andrew Combs, Anderson East or chatting to Richard Thompson or Aaron Lee Tasjan – they will sing her praises.
Now she is finally taking her turn in the spotlight with new single Wild Blue Wind – shimmering analogue synths are balanced with siren like slide guitar – all washed over with her hazy honey-eyed vocal tone that has drawn comparisons as diverse as Feist and Aimee Mann.
Have a listen.
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Following on from the excellent Mind Fire, Theo Verney has released his latest single Letter Down, taken from his debut album One Small Piece.
Moody and atmospheric, it successfully blends satisfyingly crunchy guitar breaks with a more reflective, melodic side and even manages to finish like a long lost Pink Floyd track.
Intrigued? Stream it below.
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Danish five piece Lød’s debut track, the pulsating hypnotics of the eight minute Folder has been one of our favourites of the year so far, so we’re delighted to be able to share the second track from their upcoming self titled EP.
Today it is the the clanging motorik groove of Så Bla, a minute longer and again sung entirely in Danish, it is just as good.
Tune in and relax… Pre-order the EP here.
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We first posted about L.A. Witch back in March last year and now the threesome have signed to Suicide Squeeze Records for the release of their eponymous debut album.
Reverb-drenched guitar jangle and sultry vocals conjure the analogue sound of a collector’s prized 45 from some short-lived footnote cult band. The melodies forgo the bubblegum pop for a druggy haze that straddles the line between seedy glory and ominous balladry.
Check out Untitled from the record below.
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We have a hopelessly inadequate amount of time to listen to all the new music we receive, even after we automatically filter out the remixes, electro-bangers, and crappy dance tunes we get sent.
So here is a hasty pick and mix selection for you of some of the best of recent weeks – just dive in…
Rainy Sundays comes from a Tomkins Square reissue of Will Beeley’s 1979 album Passing Dream, it showcases his emerging tough, husky, alt-country sound, presaging modern day troubadours like Chris Stapleton and Jamey Johnson.
Erin Rae’s new single is Like The First Time, which has a lovely languid feel combined with retro fuzz drenched guitar solos. Think European 60s psyche guitar soundscapes created by the Beatles and Yardbirds combined with creatively disparate influences such as Richard Harley, Wilco and Michael Nau.
With a deep reverence for all things Grateful Dead, The Dan Ryan aren’t afraid to allow their songs to open and evolve in their own time while also holding on to the folk tradition of Texas natives like Townes Van Zandt, whose picking style and strong narratives sits as the base coat to Guidance which is the title track of their forthcoming long player.
Johnny Kills are a garage-surf-indie-rock trio based in Brighton/London/York and Let’s Talk About Me is their excellent self-released debut single.
The Big Drops have just released their latest single, the trippy psych-folk of Gong Gong Jar. They describe it thus, “This song is about letting go of the imaginary drug induced monkey inside your head and going with the flow of it all. Sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. The aristocrats sucking up to the king. The monkey’s in control of the human spaceship.”
Norway’s Sløtface have shared new track Nancy Drew one of the band’s most hard-hitting releases to date. The new single continues in Sløtface’s fiery feminist footsteps, with vocalist Haley Shea reimagining the track’s teen detective namesake as the noble vanquisher of indie rock’s boys’ club. “My girl is wiping slates clear / And I long for the look / And a soundtrack of women who all know what’s up / I keep hearing their cherry bombs through the walls,” she seethes amid sneaky, plundering guitars.
Warsaw Radio are a Brighton based folk five-piece band. Channelling big folk-pop moments reminiscent of Frank Turner, while throwing in inspirations of Wilco and Fleetwood Mac, Still Have You to Hold is a bold mix of the relevant and the retro.
With the gloomy psychedelia of The Growlers, self assured swagger of The Velvet Underground, spaced out vocals of Jesus & Mary Chain and the expansive instrumentation of Brian Jonestown Massacre, Dream Joints weave together a patchwork of influences to create a unique sound that stretches from vampiric to blissful. Check out Everyday Obstacle from new album Just Like Medicine.
Also from Brighton, Other States are a six piece psychedelic indie band that tell desert stories of stragglers and strays. New single Make Amends has a seductive tone and laidback groove underpinned by western style guitars and smooth Americana, all the while frontman Mark S. Aaron’s baritone croon spins a romantic tale.
The new single from BANNERS, Someone to You, is an uplifting and universal track that has elements that recall Mumford & Sons (when they weren’t shit).
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We’ve already shared Dark Horse the first track from America, the upcoming solo album from Howling Bells singer-songwriter Juanita Stein (out 28th July via Nude).
Now we have I’ll Cry, a song of which she says, “It is a musical ode to the all American greats I took my cues from as a budding songwriter. Roy Orbison, Patsy Cline and the work of Phil Spector, all of whom made a significant imprint on my heart, I’m forever channeling that soulful sadness. I’ll Cry is a song that speaks of an impossible love, his resistance, her infatuation. Never a happy ending.”
Listen below, and also check out her UK tour dates for July and August.
UK Tour Dates
Fri 7th July – Bluedot Festival, (headlining 2nd stage) Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire
Sun 9th July – British Summer Time with Tom Petty, and the Heartbreakers – Hyde Park
, London
Sun 23rd July – Deer Shed Festival, Yorkshire
Sat 29th July – Cambridge Folk Festival – Cheery Hinton Hall, Cambridge
Tue 1st August – The Prince Albert, Brighton
Wed 2nd August – Thousand Island, London – TICKETS on sale on Friday 2 June
Taking influences from house music to post-punk, West African music, Tropicália, gamelan and more, the songs on Psymon Spine’s eclectic new album You Are Coming To My Birthday partner fuzzy synths with distorted bass lines, and lush vocal harmonies coupled with flowing string arrangements.
It is giddy, euphoric stuff – watch the video for the propulsive, guitar driven Experience Machine and stream another of the album’s standout tracks, the electrifying Lines and Lines and Lines End.
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