Premiers
Video Premiere: Death Valley Dream Cult – Death of Creation (reviewed...
There is considerable debate over how to keep the long-established rock and roll genre relevant to successive generations of discerning devotees, especially since it...
Rock/Punk/Metal
Goodbye To All That – Mark Vennis & Different Place (reviewed...
Over several singles, I have worked out where Mark Vennis & Different Place sits on the musical map, spiritually at least. At his most punky, he...
Post Punk/Goth
Liminal – Corpus Delicti (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
If the gothic sound was one of the more identifiable products of those creative post-punk years, then it was bands such as Corpus Delicti who not...
Shoegaze/Dreampop
Cloud Pleaser – Noise Factory United (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
“There must be some kind of way outta here,” thus spoke Jimi Hendrix, and it seems like in these dark days that are closing in on us,...
Indie
In a Heartbeat – Shaky (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
Nostalgia, they say, isn’t what it used to be! Yes, it’s a joke, but the idea of our nostalgic memories feeling ever more detached...
Pop/Power Pop
Past Lives – Out Run (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
With the titular single and Past Lives debut album now out, Florence-based Out Run have exploded onto the alt-pop scene. And I say alt-pop, because as infectious and brilliant...
Folk/Country
Stretch My Plum – Blackfoot Daisy (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
If Bog Witch is the musical vehicle through which Wendy DuMond is let loose to run the complete gamut of the musical spectrum from roots to rock to...
Singer-Songwriter/Acoustica
Tremble – The Quiet North (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
The ability to move so effortlessly between understatement and anthemics is just one of the traits that make "Tremble," the new single from The...
R&B/Soul
Point of You – The Heard Eye (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
As a title, "Point of You" is a wonderfully open and ambiguous phrase. Is it accusatory? Is it a chance to list your achievements?...
Reggae/Ska/Dub
Album Premiere: Lost Files – JaDon Blaxx (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
If Dancehall arrived in the seventies as reggae's leaner, faster, more street-charged younger sibling, then Lost Files is a clear snapshot of where that...
Dance/EDM
The Woven Project – Laura’s Kitchen – Intro/Outro (OuNoSoGo Remixes) (reviewed...
The Woven Project's music is, for the most part, a quietly mercurial experience, more sound as atmospherics or sparingly collated strands of ambience than...
Hip-hop/Rap
Invincible – 40pzz (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
If you’re still clinging to that worn-out notion that rap doesn’t evolve, Invincible should put that idea out of its misery in under four...
Jazz/Blues
Video Premiere: Born To It – Andra Suchy (reviewed by Dave...
With her new album, Battle Cat, about to drop, Andra Suchy paves the way with the wonderfully ’50s-infused, gospel-vocalled slice of indie-blues-rock. And you know that you are...
Classical/Instrumental
Video Premiere: Boreal – Seven Crows (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
Continuing with the singles that pre-empt the release of the full album, Powers of Observation, Chris Murphy now gives us “Boreal,” another delicate and emotive sonic...
Avant Garde
A Glimpse For Bobby – When Mountains Speak (reviewed by Dave...
Although written in tribute to the recently departed Bob Weir, visionary musician and one of the founder members of The Grateful Dead, you could...
Interviews
Power to the People: A catch-up with Power Down’s dynamic duo,...
Separated by generations, Dan Voss Jr. delivers sucker punches of ’80s and ’90s rock edge—echoing his days writing and producing for major artists—while Zeus propels their sound forward,...
Live
The Crack – En Heat (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
If, like me, you feel that mainstream music is all a bit safe, merely appealing to fads and fashions, comfort zones and marketing reports,...
Swindon
Rooks – M3G (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
The word ethereal is used a lot in music. Too much, really. Not least by overly-verbose scribblers like me. But sometimes no other word will do....
News
‘Mariachi El Bronx IV’ out February 13 Marks Alter Ego of...
On February 13 LA trailblazers Mariachi El Bronx will release Mariachi El Bronx IV, their long-awaited new album, and first in over a decade. MEB is the alter...
Playlist
That Was The Music Week That Was – 080825
Another busy week at Dancing Towers, plenty of cool grassroots artists put under the pen, lots of great music mused over, and lots of...
Books
How Not To Write About Music – III: Starting the Week...
One of the joys of writing about new music is that it stops you from getting trapped in the past. Of course, bands like...
6 of the best
Over and Over – BLOCK (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
Once you realise that “Over and Over” is, at least in part, BLOCK addressing his own battles with OCD, the repetitive, dense, dark, and claustrophobic soundscape he...
The Merchant’s Last Coin – Neural Pantheon (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
Neural Pantheon is a storyteller. And like all storytellers worth their salt, he is masterful at finding something at the heart of what might sound...
Just a Dog – Das Sporten (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
I’m not going to be the first to have noticed that same slightly world-weary, slightly detached vocal vibe that helped define the Pixies unique sound. And...
The Woven Project – Laura’s Kitchen – Intro/Outro (OuNoSoGo Remixes) (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
The Woven Project's music is, for the most part, a quietly mercurial experience, more sound as atmospherics or sparingly collated strands of ambience than...
Maybe I’m Wrong – Jeremy Engel (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
Too many artists feel the need to create music in the studio and then find ways to replicate it live on stage. It’s the...
The 68th FYC Album – Various Artists (reviewed by Dave Franklin)
It's that time of year again. As we head into Grammy Weekend, thoughts turn to new music, particularly the artists being considered for this...
