The intimate (that means slightly cramped) Borderline was the host for last night’s gig by Blitzen Trapper supported by The Dutchess & The Duke. The latter gave us 35 minutes of beautifully crafted folk harmonies and the occasional arsenic tinged lyric. The hushed, attentive crowd and easy going banter from the band made it feel like a 60s coffee house in Greenwich Village and so … Continue reading Live Review: Blitzen Trapper
March saw East London singer-songwriter Russell Joslin release his second album Jet Black And White – it is a troubled and compelling collection of songs written just before, during and after a life changing trip made by the songwriter alone to America. It follows his well received 2007 debut album Dream Token. The two tracks we have for you bookend the album. Opener Dreams And Country Lanes is slightly … Continue reading Introducing…Russell Joslin
We were introduced to the delights of Eagleowl via the excellent Song By Toad blog. And let us assure you the delights are many, especially on their superb EP For The Thoughts You Never Had (well worth some eMusic credits here). Following a gorgeous single around Christmas called Sleep The Winter, the band now have a new EP out titled Into The Fold. You can sample … Continue reading New EP from Eagleowl
The Futurebirds play the kind of off-kilter, psychedelic and slightly ramshackle country rock that MM likes. A lot. Having released a freely available self-titled 6 track EP, they are now readying their debut album Hampton’s Lullaby (out July on Autumn Tone Records). We’re looking forward to acquainting ourselves fully with the record and check out advance track Johnny Utah to see why. Until then, go … Continue reading Mad Mackerel Recommends…The Futurebirds
What a cracking start to the weekend. We’ve already given you two absolute gems from Howling Owls in the shape of the down-tempo, disconcerting Snake Charmer (No Money In The Bank) and the captivating and sinister Family Tree, and now rejoice because we have a third. It is another brand new track, another gem. That’s a 100% record so far. So download, lay back, turn up the … Continue reading Rejoice: more from Howling Owls
Surely May must be my favourite month – or maybe September? – it’s too close to call. Anyway, traditionally a time of spring cleaning, I thought I might make the most of my enforced incarceration this week owing to one poorly daughter. Alas, I didn’t get much further than a bag of old letters and photos – letters from old friends and older boyfriends. How … Continue reading Mrs Mackerel’s TFI Friday
Nice free summer sampler available from Peapod Recordings just by clicking here. It includes an unreleased track from MM faves Brown Bird amongst others. And if you don’t know how good Brown Bird are just check this out – no. 6 in our top ten of 2009. Get more of their stuff from eMusic here. Visit MySpace here. Download Brown Bird – Wrong Black Mare … Continue reading Free sampler from Peapod Recordings
Busy, busy, busy today but wanted to post this. Cloudy Shoes is from Damien Jurado’s forthcoming album Saint Bartlett. Out on May 25th. Visit his MySpace here. Pre-order the album here. Download Damien Jurado – Cloudy Shoes mp3 (from Saint Bartlett) Continue reading New from Damien Jurado
The Diamond Center are psychedelic folk-rockers who pair a wall of reverb and noise with an eerie gothic country creeper, creating an unique blend that is hard to put a finger on. Influenced by albums spanning the musical spectrum, they hint of Phil Spector and Joe Meek’s experimental studio style, the live rawness of the Velvet Underground, as well as the nouveau psych-folk stylings of … Continue reading Mad Mackerel Recommends…The Diamond Center
It’s been a long time since MM has used the word cretin, despite it being a prime insult of choice during long-ago school days. So who better than MM fave Wooden Wand to resurrect it into our daily vocabulary. Following (for him) a rather lengthy silence since the outstanding Born Bad album, he has self-released Wither Thou Goest, Cretin in a limited edition of 200 … Continue reading Wooden Wand releases Wither Thou Goest, Cretin
