A long drive, rain, a Prisoner Cell Block H style hotel room, discovering the camera was still at home… the initial omens for The Great Escape were not great. Thankfully first impressions can be deceptive as Brighton is a sparky town full of quirky shops and streets, trendy young things and youthful counter-culture swagger (“I smoked 35 bongs once” being my favourite bit of eavesdropping of … Continue reading Thursday @ The Great Escape
Today, Chris T Popper and I are heading south to Brighton and our first visit to the Great Escape festival. There are a whole host of bands we’re looking forward to seeing, from the South American punk-pop of Las Kellies, the angst of Gambles, the spectral folk of Mirel Wagner and the junkyard blues of the Amazing Snakeheads, to the stoned slacker indie of Dune Rats and the … Continue reading We’re Heading to the Great Escape…A Playlist
Not specifically a psych band, or a retro-glam outfit, or a blatant ’70’s throwback, Milwaukee’s Space Raft are, instead, a classically brilliant pop-rock combo which incorporates elements of all the above while working by their own rules, beholden to no genre. Space Raft, their self-titled debut album (out next week), is proof positive of this. Have a listen to the shimmering, fulsome We’re Not Alone, and hear … Continue reading Introducing>>> Space Raft
Boys is the latest single of alluring slow-fi, indie rock from Portland, Oregon’s ungoogleable bed. It is closer to Low or Grandaddy than Sonic Youth, but the influences of all three are there… It is a cracking track, have a listen! Buy from Bandcamp here. . Continue reading MM Shorts 560: Bed
Here is a second track from Texas troubadour Collin Herring’s new album Some Knives. The uptempo percussion and sinewy, haunting pedal steel guitar that threads through Kicked Around is a delight, the song about a relationship that has gone stale. Have a listen… . Continue reading More From Collin Herring
Cashew & Cleary is a psych-folk duo comprised of Eric “Cashew” Harding and Patrick Cleary, both veterans of the Los Angeles music scene. Both had been fans of one another’s music and started getting together for songwriting sessions. The result is Husbands Vol. I, the first entry in a set of forthcoming EPs. You can check out the EP’s lead track, the Lee Hazelwood inspired, spaced-out, … Continue reading Introducing >>> Cashew & Cleary
A collection of very fine musical films for you to peruse. From the hip guitars and indie insouciance of Made Violent (and one of the best lyric videos we’ve seen) to the punchy folk-rock of Sean Grant & The Wolfgang. From the ominous menace and brandy-warm baritone of John Joseph Brill’s Muscle and Bone (inspired by his recent diagnosis with multiple sclerosis) to the danceable psychedelia … Continue reading Videos Round Up
Nerve Endings is the third song to be released from hard hitting psych-rockers Heavy Glow’s upcoming album, Pearls & Swine and Everything Fine, to be releasedon the 4th June. Stream it here. . Continue reading MM Shorts 556: Heavy Glow
Louisville, Kentucky’s White Reaper are a raucous and strident three piece that combine sparkling hooks with fluid, fluttering rhythms to create psychedelia-tinged garage punk that doesn’t sacrifice an ounce of sonic bite. Their self-titled debut EP is a six-song blitzkrieg that traces the band’s present and future. Check out the dingy and jangly single Conspirator and the more urgent, spasmodic jerkiness of Half Bad complete with freaky keyboard riff…. . … Continue reading Mad Mackerel Recommends… White Reaper
Listen to Barrett Land, the latest track of alluring, swirling psychedelia from Velvet Morning, who on the strength of this are going from strength to strength. . Continue reading MM Shorts 554: Velvet Morning
The Mad Mackerel 