We loved ‘Blue State’, the first new single from the band and this one kicks with the same dark intent. Choppy verses that emerge into a widescreen rock chorus that swings like a heavyweight. Shades of QOTSA with a side serving of Fugazi just below the surface. “’Close to the Edge’ is a commentary on a communication breakdown” states Joel Byrne, “it’s essentially the soundtrack to a really … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Wolf & Cub – Close To The Edge
Protomartyr Ultimate Success Today Domino Once more Protomartyr take the four elements of rock ’n’ roll – guitar bass drums and vocals, and twist, caress and mangle them into a new version of the band’s ever-evolving sound. On their fifth album that sound is more urgent, disillusioned and anxious amid the record’s dystopian assessment of modern America. There’s a desperate, pleading quality to singer Joe … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Protomartyr – Ultimate Success Today
New York metal trio Mockcharge deliver in spades on their recent single ‘Marauder’, with its breakneck speed riffs, deadly screams and at its mid-point it drops gears and gets low-slung and sleazy before a hi-hat count-off sends the song to its crashing conclusion. To our ears it sounds like a beautiful collision between Motörhead and White Zombie. Of the track the band say: “This song … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Mockcharge – Marauder
Straight out of the gates into a krautrock, psych sprint from Chicago group Montecore. The song comes from their One Night album that came out in May and they’ve already followed it up with a new album, House Fire Themes, which hits the same frantic, hyper-melodic hypnotic sweet-spot, Those kinds of songs that could (and should) go on endlessly as guitar solos fire off into … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Montecore – Ott Sauce
Great new song from the esteem larrikin-rock exponent Peter Bibby. The verses sound like S.P.U.D/Solid Gold Hell from 90s Auckland. Countered by the sweet chorus, the song goes everywhere else across 6 minutes. Recorded with the band Dog Act. ‘Whyalla’ is simultaneously a love letter and a cursing damnation to regional Australia. Its spoken-word bridge lays down tall tales about some of its most notable legends, … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Peter Bibby – Whyalla
Simple music done well, with fire and passion, great production, hooks and attitude. German group Pabst have it in spades on their recently released single ‘Hell’, taken from their brand new album Deuce Ex Machina. The song has a glam stomp that bristles and surges impressively. Alt rock that sounds like it belongs on radio and in sweat-soaked dive bars. Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Pabst – Hell
Japanese genre-destroyers Boris return with a new album, NO, due out July 3rd, self-released on Bandcamp. Check out the searing, careening distortion punk-fest that is ‘Loveless’. A message from BORIS: “International borders are ‘closed’ now. All kinds of anxieties, fear, sadness, anger, and hatred have arisen to drive the world apart.Everyone is in a process of trial and error, doing what they can to live.The … Continue reading NEWS: Boris Announce New Album ‘NO’ and Release Single ‘Loveless’
New Media are an indie rock quartet from who channel a shoegaze sound reminiscent of Ride, the rhythmic influence of Manchester and the heavier guitar sounds of bands like The Cure. ‘Tunnel Vision‘, their second single of 2020, winds its way around knotty drums and guitars that squeal and squall, adding to the rising sense of tension before it jumps the tracks in the last … Continue reading New Media – Tunnel Vision
Dei Lucrii are a psychedelic noise-punk quartet based in Los Angeles California who’ve just released their new EP Devil’s Thumb. Below you can check out the first two tracks from the release, both of which hit the accelerator and burn ominous rubber across the melting highway bitumen. There are shades of stoner rock and punk, with a dark and heavy underbelly, in their sound. You can … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Dei Lucrii – Devil’s Thumb / Scathe By The Bull
Here’s a really nice slice of 60s-tinged, indie guitar pop from Portland-based artist Alex Schiff who records under the name Blue Canopy. The vocal layering in particular grabbed our attention with their tripped-out Beach Boys vibe. ‘St. Albans‘ comes from his debut EP Mild Anxiety which is out now. “St. Albans is about an old friend who I lost touch with, but consistently visits me … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Blue Canopy – St. Albans
Australian band Bollard have released a video clip for their new single ‘Ziggurat’. It’s another distinctive piece of post-punk rock, where rhythm is king and the guitars fire off on tangents of noise and avant dissonance. They allow space to flow through the track as it ebbs and flows across nearly five minutes. Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Bollard – Ziggurat
Strange Things from Vancouver, British Columbia recently released their Sunshine EP and one of its highlights is ‘I Feel Fine’, a tumbling cascade of distorted guitars and howled vocals that flies along on sustained notes of electricity and an endless groove. The heavier psych end of shoegaze is the order of the day here. Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Strange Things – I Feel Fine
Doubtful Sounds 