Here are our selections of new tunes from this week that you really ought to have heard by now. 1. Sleater-Kinney – Surface Envy 2. The Soft Moon – Black 3. Elephant Micah – Slow Time Vultures 4. Strand of Oaks – Alex Chilton (Replacements cover) 5. The Dodos – Goodbyes And Endings . . . . . Continue reading Five Songs You Should Have Heard This Week
Here are 5 tunes that you should have heard already, but if not… 1. Sun Kil Moon – The Possum 2. Strand Of Oaks – My Wrecking Ball (Ryan Adams cover) 3. Kal Marks – Don’t Pussy Foot With A Pussyfooter 4. HOLY – Golden Fog 5. Swearing At Motorists – Groundhog Day (Damn The Piper) . . . . . . Continue reading Five Songs You Should Have Heard This Week
The longest day has come and gone, and halfway through the year we are. It seemed a good point to reflect and share thirty of our favourite albums of 2014 so far, and so here they are, in strictly alphabetical order of course… . The Amazing Snakeheads – Amphetamine Ballads . Amen Dunes – Love . Avers – Empty Light . Dan Baker – Pistol In … Continue reading Favourite Albums of 2014 (So Far)
The video for Strand of Oaks’ track Shut In is a literal interpretation of the melancholic but hopeful lyrics of the song. Tim Showalter, plays a hermit who has lived amongst his hoarded possessions for a third of his life. But as the video comes to a close, there appears to be hope for him, bringing creedence to the lyric, “and I’ll wait to get … Continue reading Video: Strand of Oaks – Shut In
Previously we’ve just offered Best of the Month postings with downloads, but that excludes so many quality songs we’ve decided to just post our favourite tracks – irrespective of whether they are free to download or not. If you like them add them to your Spotify playlists or do the old fashioned thing and download them from iTunes, Bandcamp, or wherever. Anyway, with a bit … Continue reading Mad Mackerel’s Best Of The Months: March – May (Part 1)
The latest track to be revealed from Strand of Oaks’ much anticipated album Heal is Shut In – a raw and visceral tale of isolation, addiction and self-doubt. It is revealing, intimate and vivid and just sharpens the appetite and anticipation for what is already promising to be a very fine album indeed even more. Have a listen. . Continue reading Strand of Oaks – Shut In
Giving us a hat-trick of cracking Americana-flavoured posts today are longstanding MM faves Strand Of Oaks (aka Timothy Showalter) and a track from forthcoming album HEAL, which will see a release on the 24th June via Dead Oceans. However, Goshen ’97 is a pretty radical departure from the introspective, occasionally surreal, and unique folk tales that defined his previous releases. This time we have a full-on, incendiary, … Continue reading New From Strand Of Oaks
Believe it or not, Mad Mackerel has been around for more than five years now. During that time we’ve posted more than 4,000 times, and offered more than 5,000 songs for your listening pleasure. And more than three quarters of a million people have paid MM a visit during our lifetime on Google’s (godawful) blogspot and since April 2010 on WordPress. We asked some of … Continue reading Mad Mackerel The last Five Years – Chris T Popper Picks His Favourites
Chris T Popper reviews Strand of Oaks at St. Pancras Old Church, London, Friday 22nd February 2013 Apparently the oldest place of Christian worship in England (it has believed to have existed since AD 316) St Pancras Old Church in central London was a beguiling if somewhat confusing venue for a music gig. Convinced we were in the wrong place we had almost turned to … Continue reading Live Review: Strand Of Oaks
As well as our Top 100 tunes of the year posts over the past five days, each of the MM contributors have put together their own lists. Kicking us off is Polly Pocket… This has been the hardest year ever to pick the best of – it has been a cracking year for top tunes but here goes….. 30. Sinead O’Connor – The Wolf Is … Continue reading Polly Pocket’s Top Songs Of 2012
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