The Underground Stage
If NOCON’s debut was a statement of intent, the anti-pop of ‘Hoax’ is a demonstration of their breadth. Here, the aggression is dialled down while leaving the avant-garde fully intact, leaving you with a hypnotic little charmer, its spiralling eyes drawing you into a world that is equally as soothing as it is carnival-clown strange.
EGOISM’s woozy dream-pop takes a wearier turn here, with a new track that’s as delightful as it is depressed. The guitars are still sparse and sparkle like lens flares, but the lyrics & vocals are considerably more weathered. Melodic refrains recur from previous single ‘You You’ (literally the same “you-oo-oo”), and the contrasting registers are […]
Proving that their first track was no fluke, this follow-up from OK Hotel is just more proof of this outfit’s ready-to-eat status. This is a more pensive, even plaintive, record than their debut but it’s still got a song at its heart the size of a damn jumbo jet, and is another precision strike that […]
I just can’t take my eyes of this project. If you’re new to this, Agnes Manners (again, HOW GOOD is that name!) is the new muscial scheme for the ex-Hellions Matt Gravolin. We’ve had a fistful of tracks so far – with an album imminent – and the whole thing has been nothing short of […]
This thoroughly distorted slab of a song may hint at being an exercise in lo-fi noise, but there is so much more going on here, as if Japanther wrote ‘New York City Cops’ – as roughly as it’s been cut, this is hyper-sharp songwriting, guaranteed to draw blood. The drawling vocal! The searing guitars! The […]
A disposable culture based on short-term sugar hits is always surprised by work that requires time and depth. Rolling in to shake the ground like a thundering bank of stormclouds, Taken from his ‘Low Key’ album, ‘3-6-27’ is the sort of track to jerk anyone out of their complacent modern stupor. Anyone who can take […]
Coming off like the lead song from the punk version of Grease, this celebration of youthful antics is a spring tonic for the soul whether you’re a giddy-eyed teenager or a jaded old cynic. “We’re having the time of our lives / But we won’t always be this young” is a killer line – and […]
The chorus on Wishful Thinking’s latest just EXPLODES out of the speakers like fireworks. Three minutes of absolutely note-perfect punky jumping that triggers uncontrollable grins just as it demands repeated listens.
Fraser A. Gorman’s delicate vocal and intergalactic arrangement creates an atmosphere almost entirely made of Flaming Lips, but the addition of swooning pedal steel and a distinctly bucolic twang take it beyond mere pastiche. This is a rich and delicate song, evocative and emotional in all the right ways, a bright and warming light for […]