Posts Tagged ‘Single Review’

Oscar Mic – Sun Star

Posted: 16 July 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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12th July 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

As genre crossovers go, Post-Punk/Alt Hip Hop is quite a rare one. Perhaps not as radical or as extreme as the kind of crossovers with alternative and metal bands and hip-hop acts that took place on the groundbreaking Judgement Night soundtrack in the early 90s, but at this point in time, where pretty much anything goes, this is unusual. Actually, I’d like to step back from that for a moment. Not so long ago, it felt as if anything went, that postmodernism had truly reached its peak and you could have grindcore with a kazoo and not be too surprised. More recently, while pockets of weirdness are strongly entrenched – as the recent Guardian article on Nerdcore, which managed to mention Petrol Hoers and BxLxOxBxBxY, both vehicles for beardy, ferret-keeping, pant-wearing York legend Dan Buckley (disclosure – Noisenibor performed a one-off collaboration with him in his guise as Danny Carnage, which was everything you’d expect) – things seems to have become more siloed, more set, more fixed, when it comes to genre parameters. Fluidity and crossovers remain, but wild invention seems to have given way to something of a return to convention.

‘Imagine Beck meets Sleaford Mods, meets Slowthai’ the bio says. Only, listening to this, you don’t have to imagine.

What’s noteworthy about these touchstones is that two are very white, and two are very British, the British acts both being overtly political, while all three draw on elements of hip-hop in their work. None of this is to denigrate anything about Oscar Mic or ‘Sun Star’, and nor is it a criticism to comment that it’s a hip-hop tune which is overtly white, as delivered by a pale guy with a vaguely gingery moustache. It’s a true testament to multiculturalism and artistic cross-pollination, and what’s more, ‘Sun Star’ boasts some truly sinister bass frequencies which strike way low and hit hard like subsonic torpedoes beneath the shuffling beat that clatters away nonchalantly all the way. Toss in some Beastie Boys and you’re getting a sense of where this is at.

Then there’s the really melodic indie break, and the thing has something of a quirk / arty / studenty vibe, while the video bursts with experimental oddness. And when you piece it all together… it’s gloriously mismatched and off-kilter. And we should celebrate its non-conformity.

AA

SUN STAR COVER ART

The Virginmarys – Northwest Coast

Posted: 9 July 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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5th July 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

The trajectory of the career of The Virginmarys has been an unexpected one. Starting out as a classic punk-rock power trio, they seemed to really seemed to find their niche and hit their stride when paired back to a two-piece. If the duo configuration has grown in popularity in recent years, there have equally been duos expanding their lineups.

For many acts, the cost of touring has rendered the minimal setup a necessity, but for many, it’s proved beneficial in other ways, too, compelling artists to really focus on their compositions. There is absolutely no space for a weak link or any slacking in a two-piece: there is simply nowhere to hide, and no space for skulking low in the mix adding the odd but of layering or texture.

To compensate for the lack of additional members, the strongest two-piece acts play louder, harder, determined to fill the space, and both players need to bring one hundred percent and combine to deliver something more than the sum of the parts.

The Virginmarys may not look or sound like an obvious choice of support act for The Sisters of Mercy, but The Sisters have a long history of selecting interesting and contracting tour buddies, from Public Enemy for an aborted US tour, to I Like Trains and Cubanate via Oceansize and drum-machine-driven grunge act La Costa Rasa. But contrasts tend to work well: who needs a goth band ripping off The Sisters supporting The Sisters? Conceivably one of the most cringe supports I ever had the excruciating agony of witnessing was Broken Bone, spectacularly wanky and 100% cliché industrial noise duo supporting Whitehouse. So. The Viringmarys aren’t goth and aren’t about to swerve that way, either, but no doubt they’ll have made some new fans along the way on their recent travels, and deservedly so. And those fans – and the older ones – won’t be disappointed by this new single offering.

‘Northwest Coast’ is the first single from their first album since becoming a two-piece, and it captures force of The Macclesfield power duo’s live performances, bringing a crunching riff and spadefuls of northern grit – without being dour and po-faced about chips and beans and tea, with cans of Boddingtons featuring in the video. Yep, for all of their travels, they’ve not lost sight of where they’ve come from, and this is certainly not a case of a band spending a week in the US and coming back singing in American accents. If anything, there’s an overt pride in their geographical roots, and they’re keeping it real. And it all works: it’s authentically and unapologetically rock ‘n’ roll, it’s got some swagger but arrives without any sense of superiority or arrogance. And it’s a proper, solid, stomping rock tune that kicks arse.

AA

The Virginmarys Band image

LiVES – Cancelled

Posted: 6 July 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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Roulette Records – 19th July 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

“I fucking hate how lame we’ve all become” yells Peter Chisholm by way of a hook which is almost guaranteed not to get this single mainstream radio airplay – as if it was ever likely in the first place. But the best music rarely on mainstream radio anyway. Nirvana, Therapy?, RATM breaking the singles charts at a certain point in the early 90s was a revolutionary moment in cultural terms, but ultimately, it was but a brief incursion which represented a mere moment in time, and whatever you may read about grunge taking over the world and breaking down walls, you’d never catch Tad or Mudhoney or Nymphs on the airwaves. This is not how the world works, and you’re never going to hear LiVES on R1 – especially not now.

Much as I loathed that sycophantic blowhard Zane Lowe, his show was pretty much the last bastion of alternative on mainstream radio, and while we do still – fortunately, and for now – have 6Music, it’s not the same, and 6Music really isn’t what it was, either. It’s not simply me being a miserable, nostalgic old sod: we’ve lost something, culturally, and that’s a fact.

But I digress – but not without justification. Because LiVES deserve to be heard, far and wide. ‘Cancelled’ is no right-wing supporting rant or moan about being cancelled. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. So you won’t find LiVES bleating about how right-on acts stole their slots or how being edgy has deprived them of a platform, in the way the likes of Ricky Gervais and John Cleese do, completely, and bewilderingly, without irony.

Chisholm states: “‘Cancelled’ is about my feeling of disenfranchisement of online and political society, my total despondence and hatred of the right AND the left… far right and postmodernism attitudes. They claim to be decent whilst being indecent, tolerant whilst being intolerant… always outraged, self righteous, aggressive, violent…they are swimming in hypocrisy and can’t see it. Meanwhile the real elite destroy the world around us, seemingly unnoticed whilst we fight amongst ourselves. I hate them all!!”

The frankly dismal turnout at this week’s election in the UK is a signifier of massive disinterest in politics as a whole, and Chisholm’s loathing of both sides is commonplace. ‘They’re all as bad as each other’, people moan. It doesn’t help that it’s become increasingly difficult to differentiate between the two, especially where the main parties are concerned. But cause for concern is not that Reform bagged five seats in parliament, but the fact they scored 14% of the vote, evidencing a massive surge in right-wing sentiment in the country.

‘Our final hour is a shitshow shower’ he spits as he calls out the calls out hypocrisy over a monster churning riff as cartoon images of Trump, Johnson, and Farage drift in and out of shape in the accompanying video. And if ‘Cancelled’ is the 2024 howl of disaffected nihilism that marks parallels with 1994, then it should also be seen as an awakening, a call a neglected generation to come together with a single voice and call for something better. And ‘Cancelled’ is nihilistic, and it’s angry. The guitars buzz and grind, and the rhythm section is monster-weighty and it’s the perfect backdrop to a snarling dissection of the world as is and just how hard it is to navigate. I’m drowning…. I’m drowing…’

It’s hard to argue that the right have surged forward, or that they’re a bunch of cunts, and it’s hard to ignore that the left have made a significant shift to the right. It’s also hard to deny, for anyone with ears, that this is a big gutsy riff-driven tune. Dig it.

AA

LPJ1200S

Eville – Dead Inside

Posted: 28 June 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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28th March 2024

It’s that time of year again, when, in the UK, you may be forgiven for thinking that the entire music industry is camped out at Glastonbury. This, however, is a chronic misrepresentation, and all around the world, there are quite literally hundreds of thousands of music-makers who have absolutely no connection with the event, no currency, and no interest.

Seeing a few brief snippets on BBC news, with grinning attendees being asked for their views on their experience so far and who they’re looking forward to, I was stuck by just how middle class – and / or middle-age – a lot of those taking heads are. These are the type of people who can afford the £350+ tickets on a punt for ‘the experience’ and the increasingly limited off chance of some decent or interesting acts. The headliners are so safe, predictable, bland, and there’s not much to be said of much of the lower orders, either: the only acts worth seeking out are probably those you’ve never heard of playing in the minor tents who’ve probably had to pay a heap to get in.

Despite the immense coverage and the vast audience, it’s not representative of the majority of the music scene, industry or beyond, and for that majority, things go on as normal. And so it is that we have a new single from Brighton’s brightest, brashest metal new hopes, Eville, hot on the heels of whipping up some crowds on tour with Glitchers, and likely winning new fans in the process.

Anyone who discovered them on this tour will not be disappointed, and having followed them from their very incarnation, I’m not, either.

This latest offering, co-written and produced by Harry Winks of South Arcade, pulls everything that makes Eville an exciting act together and blasts it out hard. With their roots and influences firmly in early noughties nu-metal, they’re as much, if not more about Deftones and Pitch Shifter than Limp Bizkit or Korn, exploring the darker terrains of a genre which came to be maligned as it mutated into sports metal.

As is typical of the genre but also a defining feature of what Eville have come to own as their sound, ‘Dead Inside’ pitches clean melody and rabid growling vocals against one another over a backdrop of guitars denser than lead. It’s the perfect balance of accessible levity and monstrous heaviness.

But they also embrace contemporary pop tropes, with the overt and sometimes quite wince-inducing application of autotune. In this respect, they’re quite the conundrum, and products of our confusing, conflicted, incoherent times. They are the very manifestation of the widening generation gap, appropriating from their parents’ generation while staunchly representing their own. There are no limits.

It’s both musically and emotionally articulate, and represents another flawless entry to their killer catalogue.

AA

Eville - Band shot 2

Octavia Wakes – Maybe

Posted: 9 June 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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31st May 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

There seems to be a proliferation of alternative rock acts emerging of late, many with female vocalists, which can only be a good thing. As the ‘Lips Can Kill’ tour, which saw Tokyo Taboo, Yur Mum, Pollypikpoketz, and Healthy Junkies team up to offer a package deal demonstrated, women can – and do – rock every bit as hard as men. Not that this should even be a topic in 2024. But it is, and since – despite Taylor Swift achieving true world dominance beyond even Madonna – women remain criminally underrepresented, especially in the rock and alternative fields, it’s a topic that should be tackled head-on, but not in a patronising, tokenistic way.

With ‘Maybe’, the last track from their debut EP, which they’ve been drip-feeding over the last eleven months, Nottingham quartet Octavia Wakes stand on their own merits. It’s a cracking tune, with bold, overdriven guitars stacked up-front as the vehicle for a strong, melodic and hooky vocal.

As is the case with so many great songs, it reminds me of something, but I can’t quite place it, and as such, ‘Maybe’ achieves that joyous blend of freshness and familiarity.

The bassline and guitarline at the start is reminiscent of Editors’ ‘Bullets’, but played at double speed, and the song positively fizzes with energy: it’s busy, urgent, grabbing, punky and catchy without being punk-pop. While lyrically, it’s pretty raw and feels personal, telling as it does, ‘the story of a male friend reacting poorly to being spurned, making the protagonist question their own decisions and how those choices make others see them… Along with the idea of being made out to be the bad guy whichever way the scenario plays out.’

Sometimes, you just can’t win. Unless, of course, you consider channelling that situation into something artistically strong. With ‘Maybe’, Octavia Wakes emerge triumphant – and maybe they’re ones to watch for more of.

AA

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Mayflower Madame – A Foretold Ecstasy

Posted: 11 May 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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10th May 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

Back in April 2020, writing on the release of their second album, Prepared for a Nightmare, I remarked that it had been four years since their debut, Observed in a Dream, and it had felt like an eternity. And here we are, a further four years on, and ‘A Foretold Ecstasy’ has landed as the prelude to album number three, due in the autumn.

Here, they’re straight in with that tight, solid rhythm section – a chunky bass with a hint of chorus to fatten it out while also giving it that classic spectral goth sound, melded to a relentless four-four metronomic thump, minimal cymbals, no flamboyant fills, just taut, a tense, rigid spine around which the body of the song grows. This, of course, is the foundation of that vintage gothy / post punk sound which originated with The Sisters of Mercy and, thanks largely to Craig Adams – who is arguably one of the greatest bassists of all time by virtue of his simple style of nailing a groove and just holding it down for the duration – carried on in The Mission. The Mish may lack some of the style and certainly the atmosphere and lyrical prowess of The Sisters, but the musical ingredients – and in particular that unflinching rhythm section – are fundamentally the same. And so it is that while the dominance of that thunking bass and bash-bash-bash snare may have become something of a formula, it’s hard to beat and absolutely defines the genre.

Mayflower Madame have always sat more toward The Mission end of the spectrum, whipping up songs which owe a certain debt to Wayne Hussey’s layered, cadent guitar style. But what they bring that’s unique is a swirly, psychedelic / shoegaze hue, a fuzzy swirl of texture and light. There’s a dark decadence, a lascivious richness to Mayflower Madame that accentuates the dramatic aspects of the gothiness: theatrical, flamboyant, but without being hammy or campy. And of course, Trond Fagernes’ vocals drift in an ocean of reverb, and the cumulative effect isn’t simply atmospheric: it carries you away on a sea of mesmeric sound.

With layers of synth which drift like mist across a production that balances dreaminess with a driving urgency, ‘A Foretold Ecstasy’ floats between haunting verses and surging choruses – and it’s hinting at their best work to date.

AA

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PHOTO CREDIT: MIRIAM BRENNE

Gramma Vedetta – Don’t Cross the Line

Posted: 9 April 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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5th April 2024

James Wells

While firmly rooted in classic stoner rock, Gramma Vedetta’s latest offering, which follows on the heels of album The Hum of the Machine, which made number twenty-five in the Doom Charts (the existence of which is something I was unaware of), is an expansive, ambitious heavy prog monster of a tune. Yes, it’s over six minutes long and built around a big, swinging blues-based riff which displays elements of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, but also brings in a hint of Pink Floyd in its widescreen feel. It also packs in a bunch of changes in tempo and transitions through a number of quite distinct segments.

Despite all of the elements having been done to death, ‘Don’t Cross the Line’ still feels like it’s doing something a little bit different, and, more importantly, it does what it does pretty well. Since it’s nigh on impossible to come out with something that’s entirely new – and even less likely to conjure something that’s new and remotely listenable or worth hearing – quality counts for a lot. Balancing beefy riffage with keen melody, ‘Don’t Cross the Line’ has enough to appeal to both traditionalists and those who like it with a bit of a twist, and that makes it pretty solid in my book.

AA

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Argonaut – As Cool as Fightmilk

Posted: 31 March 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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24th March 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

Ironically, it’ll take more time to upload this review of the latest single by lo-fi indie / alt act Argonaut than it will take to play it, let alone write about it.

For a band who really pushed themselves in 2023, releasing a track a month to evolve their ‘open ended’ album, Songs from the Black Hat, which wound up featuring thirteen tracks, and who may have been expected to ease the pace a bit while they took stock and began to assimilate the practicalities of a new lineup, they’ve really surpassed themselves so far this year.

The video is pretty slick in relative terms, but the song itself is a classic and quintessentially Argonaut lo-fi cut with big, thick, buzzing bass and guitar, and the dual vocals which really do define the band’s sound – Laura’s hyper-bubbly pop tones contrast with Nathan’s monotone drawl, and here they really do exploit the quiet/loud dynamic form over the course of an explosive and thrilling minute and a half. Yes, a minute and a half: sneeze and you’ll miss it. But in that time, they still pack in a strong, hooky chorus, and I’m assuming the song is a reference to It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia rather than the band, Fightmilk – and while they may never be as cool as the former, they’ve got a clear edge over the latter. So that makes them pretty cool, really.

AA

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Aliceissleeping – Dame Paz

Posted: 22 March 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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Mandrone Records – 22nd March 2024

Christopher Nosnibor

According to their bio on Bandcamp, the London trio’s sound is ‘inspired by the punch and grit of 90s alternative rock and eerie creatures of the mind’. But equally, they draw on 70s heavy rock to conjure dark and moody music that’s heavily concentrated on the power of the riff. They’ve been going a while now, emerging with a single release way back in 2015 and launching their debut EP some three years later.

‘Dame Paz’ is their first new material since their debut album, Completely Fine, in 2021 and continues the style of cover art depicting states of anguish, panic, turmoil – which is in keeping with the musical content, and in particular the lyrics.

‘Dame Paz’ is a six-and-a-half minute exploration of psychological anguish, and a collision of heavy rock, goth, and grunge. The dark mood and looming-on-a-precipice tension of the verses – primarily bass and vocal – bring shades of Solar Race, but when things build in volume, so does the sense of drama and theatricality, and they go big, and properly epic, even scaling up to operatic metal at times.

On paper, you might be inclined to think they’re a bit Evanescence or something, but Aliceissleeping do way more, demonstrating an eye-popping ambition and approach to scale which fully embraces the prog aesthetic. It’s bold, beefy, dynamic.

Frustratingly, it’s only been released on Spotify at the moment, which is a bummer if, like me, you’re a Spotify refusenick, or if you’re a band wanting to get paid for your work.

Aliceissleeping - Dame Paz - Single Cover

Pythies – Eclipse

Posted: 17 March 2024 in Reviews, Singles and EPs
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Christopher Nosnibor

Their bio tells us that ‘Pythies is a witchy grunge band from Paris (France), created by Lise.L.’ it was late in 2022 that Lise began to evolve the concept for a new, all-female musical project, in the vein of (L7, 7 year bitch, Babes in Toyland, Hole), the twistr being that it would incorporate her taste for witchcraft. You’d think this was pretty niche, but proving the theory expounded in Warren Ellis’ novel Crooked Little Vein – a brilliant book by an author who’s since turned out to be just another white male shithead and therefore probably best sidestepped, although he’s at least disappeared from the public eye following his exposure – if it exists it’s on the Internet, and sure enough, withing a few months, Lise had joined forces with guitar player Thérèse La Garce and drummer Anna B. Void, and lo, Pythies was born.

Thank fuck for the internet and social media. They may be a cesspit of angry people shouting the worst insults and a truly horrible place at times, but let it be remembered it can often be a conduit for good.

‘Eclipse’ is proof positive.

It’s a strong, guitar-driven grunge-orientated song with a darkly seductive gothy tinge to it, calling to mind Gitane Demone era Christian Death.

Amidst images of cards and tarot and esoteric mysticism, there are more direct lines which are very much more of the flesh:

Something

Is swelling

My hands

Are sweating

The vocal delivery is simultaneously sultry and dangerous, hinting at desire but also darkness, as Lise delivers the hook of ‘IwantitIwantitIwantitIwantit….’

What is it she wants? Probably nothing you’ve got to offer, fuckface. The video abounds with lollipop sucking and lascivious woman-on-woman rubbing, boozing, and BDSM, which will no doubt get a lot of blokes in a lather, but make no mistake, this is about female power and self-possession – and it’s absolutely killer.

AA

Pythies image 2

Pythies Artwork

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