rescuing musical virtue in distress.
Swirling about between, and forged out of all of the best bits that the folk and pop genres have to offer, Circle is a disarmingly gorgeous song. It's as simple as that. It blends charming, chiming and understated pop with the authenticity of folk, throws in a few indie vibes, some almost nursery rhyme sonics... Continue Reading →
You can hear the echo of decades of folk music in the latest single from The Lost Trades. It has always been a genre which has revelled in the use of the voice as an instrument as well as a method of lyrical communication, and that, like many of their songs, is what Hummingbird is... Continue Reading →
If you find yourself looking for a great example of gestalt, then look no further than the band that is The Lost Trades. I've seen these guys perform individually before but what has happened by this coming together is truly transformational. They have a natural ability to gather together a tight vocal harmony that would... Continue Reading →
I imagine that every review of this album will feature the name Ed Sheeran, the Norfolk busker-cum-global superstar has named Concannon as an influence and, if you wanted to sum up this review in a few words, it would be these; If you like Ed Sheeran, you will like this!As with everything in music, this... Continue Reading →
Guitars and harmonicas have to be the most natural of sonic travelling companions, so much so that a whole series of genres, from blues to country to rock and roll, have used it as a springboard to make sweet music and so grab the attention of the music masses. And as Rory D’Lasnow fires off... Continue Reading →
The pandemic, and all of the disruption it has caused, has seemed to evoke the same response in people as any other psychological or emotional shock. Initial denial that it would not be a problem. Anger at the loss of liberties. Depression brought on by the isolation of lock down and finally acceptance. Most people... Continue Reading →
Matters of The Heart is essentially the sound of inner turmoil put to a lush, 12-string-laced, acoustic waltz. It’s a song which seems to be built on collisions; for the artist one between the heart and head when it comes to making important life decisions, for the song a strange harmony between raw, intimate lyrics... Continue Reading →
Eddy Mann is the voice of calm that we need in the world right now. As storm clouds gather, ever darker, as the world seems an ever more divided place, songs such as One Day and the previous Listen and Love, have a sort of healing quality to them, a calm, a songs which are... Continue Reading →
Arriving with perfect timing, this latest musical missive from Laslow Simplex, might seem like a simple song but its straightforward and fairly unsophisticated sonic lines, and I mean that in the nicest possible of ways, underplay the poignancy and potency of the message that it carries. Many people have made music of late ranting against... Continue Reading →
Most people opting to cover a Fleetwood Mac song tend to head for the bigger, better known, late seventies mega-hits. They may be globally known and already have a mass of fans but I would argue that there are few artists in the world than can ever do such songs justice. Heistheartist is smarter than... Continue Reading →
Sometimes you don’t need much to make an impression. Anyone can crank up a guitar or beat a drum kit in such a fashion that it will make you turn your head but often that is about as subtle as a car crash. It takes real skill to make people pay attention, especially when your... Continue Reading →
It’s a simple message but then those are always the most effective. Less is more and all that. But it is also a very fluid message, one applicable to the smallest, most intimate as well as the most world changing and relatable of situations. Although Eddy Mann’s music is an extension of his own faith,... Continue Reading →
Here’s the conundrum. Music which explores new territories is more important in the creative scene of things than music which covers old ground. But music which is, at least in part, familiar is going to pick up listeners more readily than music which is challenging to listen to. So how do you create something which... Continue Reading →
Party anthems come in many shapes and forms. Some are indeed club floor fillers, obvious but usually throwaway party tunes designed to deliver one saccharine, sugar-rush high before being discarded and forgotten. And then there are songs like Cuervo, a party tune which is the opposite to everything which I have just described. It takes... Continue Reading →
Sometimes it feels as if the unseen hands of the Gods of Music do indeed guide us along certain paths. Anthem is one of a collection of songs which first saw the light of day 20 years ago as part of a demo CD and until the recent pandemic stepped in and put a halt... Continue Reading →
As the recent brace of songs, “Rose Devoid of Form” and “Everything at Once Forever”, makes clear, The Academy of Sun is equally at home with the heart-aching and cinematic as it is with full on rock ’n’ roll. Perhaps tell me about the bands influences and musical plan of attack? Nick Hudson: We don’t... Continue Reading →
Song titles can tell you a lot about an artist. With a tryptic of intriguing titles making up the middle part of this record, namely “The Biscuit (Who Grabbed My Face)”, “Diet of Worms” and the gloriously named “The President of The United States Is The Breitbart Bimbo” tells me all I need to know... Continue Reading →
Songs, if fashioned properly at least, have the ability speak through their music whilst having a second conversation via their lyrics. The art of it of course is to make sure that both musical dialogues are in tune (pun intended) with each other. Magdalene is the perfect example of just how you do this. If... Continue Reading →
California indie-pop band The Corner Laughers are back in action — exploring themes from climate change and pastoral ponderings to childhood to the nature of time itself. Temescal Telegraph, the new album out June 5 via Big Stir Records, stands as a lively testament to the longtime band being back in full bloom. After 2015’s... Continue Reading →
I used to lament that music had, in many ways, lost its most powerful purpose. Of course there is nothing wrong with music being throwaway, a flippant, short shelf life product, designed to take your mind off the working week just gone or to give you something to dance to, to turn a frown upside... Continue Reading →
I don’t really listen to a lot of pop music these days, not the type of thing found huddled under the style over substance umbrella of today’s market. It probably isn’t really aimed at me anyway and I always feel that is exactly what is wrong with the situation. By assuming that pop should only... Continue Reading →
I get so used to listening to British bands enamoured by the glamour of American music, of ex-punks donning plaid shirts in search of a British Americana sound, whatever that might be, of pop pixies adopting the music and mannerisms of past stateside soul divas, of blues players digging for sonic pearls in the mud... Continue Reading →
I’m not sure what vibe I expected to hear from the opening salvo of a young Swindon musician, one presumably brought up on Netflix, Calvin Harris and undoubtedly surrounded by people still banging on about XTC. Whatever my presumptions they didn’t include the sun-soaked, calypso pop of Saturday Nights. (Also the Calvin Harris bit is... Continue Reading →
I suppose the trouble with getting used to watching an artist play small venues and coffeeshops armed with an acoustic guitar and little else is that you associate them with a certain troubadourish, folky-acoustic sound. But of course it is only when they get into the studio that they have the tools at hand to... Continue Reading →
If you were looking to pin a genre on Dave Sandersfeld’s music you might be hard pushed to settle on any one form. Not because it is really trying to be that ahead of curve or creating its own new pigeon-hole, that never works anyway, but because it skirts the edges of so many established... Continue Reading →
Anything which immediately makes me think of Paul Simon has got to be good right? I’m not saying that Socrates is necessarily ploughing the same musical furrow, certainly not intentionally, but there is something of the ex-Mrs Garfunkel’s spirit and joyfulness in the songwriting. He might not be the coolest name to bandy about when... Continue Reading →
That’s how you start a song. If you want to draw the listener in gradually, tease them with a few pre-song musical morsels, whip them up into a state of intrigue and anticipation before you have nearly started the song proper, then the first 30 or so seconds of Must Admit is a masterclass in... Continue Reading →
In a world teeming with identikit pop wannabes pushing the same sonic template, of would-be indie-folk troubadours and urban, musical dead ends, Rae du Soleil offers something which I haven’t encountered in far too long. Class! Whilst her contemporaries are racing around trying to out-cool, out-market, out-sell each other with music which barely stands up... Continue Reading →
It’s always great watching acts grow to fulfil their full potential. It’s one thing to have good songs, and Ben Sydes has never had a shortage in that department, but it is tough to deliver the song that is in your head when you are racing around the country in a solo, plug in and... Continue Reading →
It’s amazing how quickly a phrase becomes a meme, a meme a cliche, a cliche and accepted addition to the language. And anything that moves that quickly is obviously the perfect title for a song and the perfect subject matter to explore. It’s even better when the person behind the music is also the target... Continue Reading →