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New EP: Green Mohair Suits || Sink or Sing

By / / Country & Folk, Indie Pop / Leave a Comment

Green Mohair Suits are a country / folk outfit from Sydney, Australia. After their last album Evans St (2016) it remained silent, but now there is suddenly the (digital) EP Sink or Sing with four new songs. Jason Mannell, Brian Campeau, Richard Cuthbert, and Ben Romalis have outdone themselves. Especially opening track Don’t You Mind is a very beautiful song. The country of Gram Parsons is a little further away, here it is as if The Byrds meet Brian Wilson. as if it has always been there. Nice that new classics are still being made.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: Los Traiciones || Express

By / / Garage Rock, Power Pop / 2 Comments

Please meet Los Traiciones, a cool looking four-piece from Buenos Aires (Argentina) that plays energetic power pop which will appeal to fans of Black Lips, Bee Bee Sea, The Parrots, etc. They have now released the (digital) EP Express, with three guitar-driven hits with a lot of who-oh’s that you can sing along to right away, even if you don’t speak the language. What a great discovery!

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Patty PerShayla & The Mayhaps || Cheap Diction

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots / Leave a Comment

Singer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist Patty PerShayla has a beautiful name, but more importantly, she has a great powerful voice that she knows how to use in the right raw way. After her solo EP Oracle Bones (2019) and many cover requests, she has now released the full length debut album Cheap Diction, together with guitarist Lucas Powell and drummer Alec Klinefelter. Here the power trio plays ten energetic songs, inspired by blues and classic / progressive rock, with a nostalgic feel (there are even guitar solos) but completely contemporary in terms of lyrics and sound. “I’ll lose my balance if I // Tiptoe around your feelings // You might have the floor, sure // But I’m dancing on the ceiling”, PerShayla sings on opening track Walking on My Hands. Like I’m upside down from this music.

Out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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New album: Die Mädchen || Wenn die Gesellschaft​.​.​.

By / / Indie Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

To be honest, I don’t really speak the German language, but sometimes it adds a dimension to music. For example, imho David Bowie’s Heroes gained eloquence when he performed it in German (“Und wir sind dann Helden // Für einen Tag”). That said, I don’t understand most of what Die Mädchen (translated: the girls) sing and shout on their album Wenn die Gesellschaft​.​.​. (translated: ‘when the company…’), but it does get to me. The mysterious punk / krautrock / electronic artist group from Düsseldorf is inspired by the music of Kraftwerk, NEU! and CAN, but they translated that into an original sound of their own. Electronic noise isn’t necessarily a bad thing, when it’s blended so well with strong guitar, organ and drums structures and fascinating vocals. These eight songs are about solidarity, empathy, freedom and education – this is political rock that wants to change society. Die Mädchen in the role of heroes?

Out now digitally and on vinyl LP. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Paris Pick || Hope For The Best

By / / Funk & Soul, Indie Pop / Leave a Comment

Canadian singer/songwriter Paris Pick does everything a little differently than usual, and we can only applaud that. The way she uses her voice, how she mixes genres / instruments in her heterogeneous music and adds twists / contradictions in her honest lyrics: quirky and therefore interesting – somewhat similar to what appeals to me in the music of Jens Lekman. She just released her sophomore (digital) album Hope for the Best, for which she brought in some great musicians, who looked beyond guitar and drums. These are eight original soulful indie pop songs about growing-up, colorful and upbeat. Slightly different, but it makes me happy and isn’t that what music is all about?

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Fred Lee & The Restless || Sleepwalking In Daylight

By / / Alternative Rock / Leave a Comment

Fred Lee is the alter ego of Swedish musician Fredrik Lindkvist, who in the past 20 years played in several punk bands (Knugen Faller, RIWEN, Royal Downfall, Sista Brytet, Totalt Jävla Mörker). Now he follows the path Frank Turner (with whom he has a great voice in common) also took, from hardcore to folk-rock. He wrote some narrative, soulful songs, put together backup band The Restless, with whom he recorded this strong, powerful debut album Sleepwalking In Daylight. The ten new tracks may not be as fast and loud as in the punk days, but they might hit harder (and will appeal to a wider audience). This sound can make festival fields go wild.

Out now digitally and on vinyl LP via Lövely Records. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Freight Train

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New album: Jeb Loy Nichols || Jeb Loy

By / / Funk & Soul / Leave a Comment

“Now I was born in the country // And I was raised in town // We came back up here looking for // A place to settle down // But it’s hard times in the hills // Dark clouds gather at our door,” Jeb Loy Nichols sings in We Gotta Work On It, one of the tracks on his new record. The fact that it’s titled Jeb Loy indicates that it has a personal character, just listen to the lyrics about his live experiences, relationships and moments on the road. The musician / writer / artist is born in America but now lives remote in the hills of Wales. He grew up with southern soul, bluegress, jazz and punk, and his first recording was a rap song called I’m A Country Boy (1980, unreleased), influences that came together nicely in his previous work. However, this new album is much more unambiguous: folk soul with gritty grooves and mellow melodies, carried by those recognizable, raspy vocals. The fact that the ten new songs were written and performed together with Timmion Records’ awesome rhythm section Cold Diamond & Mink makes for a tight and cohesive collection.

Out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP through Timmion Records. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New single: The Haunted Youth || Coming Home

By / / Jangle Pop, Psych / 1 Comment

Belgian psych / dream pop band The Haunted Youth plays jangly shoegaze music that gets under your skin. Their debut single Teen Rebel from early this year was good, but follow-up track Coming Home is even better (the accompanying video fits the sound perfectly – watch below). What a mesmerizing and addictive song! If Joachim Liebens (vocals / guitars), Hanne Smets (keys), Tom Stokx (guitars), Nick Caers (drums), and Stef Castro (bass) could maintain this level, how good would a full-length album be? RIYL The War On Drugs, DIIV, Craft Spells.

Out now digitally via Mayway Records. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp 

New album: Night Beats || Outlaw R&B

By / / Psych / 1 Comment

Nice to see how the cover art of Night Beats’ albums reflects the development of the American psychedelic / garage rock band. The first three covers were dark and gritty, more mood-setting than sharp, just like their music was fuzzy and echoing in the period 2011-2016. A big difference with the slick portrait photo of frontman Danny Lee Blackwell on the 2019 Myth of A Man LP, of which the Dan Auerbach produced songs sounded a bit too smooth and polished. And now there’s Outlaw R&B, the fifth full-length with original tracks, on which the sole permanent band member is drawn in bright colors and sharp lines, and the sound is self-described as raucous technicolour rock’n’roll. Night Beats have returned to their roots, but they’ve added the best of their more recent soulful work: riotous, acid-fried rock’n’roll to lose your head to, but more tightly produced and with uplifting, fresh songs that could / should be hits. Stream the full album below.

“Outlaw R&B is music for the borderless, the free, the outcasts and the forgotten.” – Danny Lee Blackwell

Out digitally, on CD and vinyl LP via Fuzz Club Records. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs || Fuzz Club

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Gimme 5! Elli de Mon Shares 5 Albums That Influenced Her The Most

By / / Blues & Roots, Psych / 2 Comments

Photo by Simone Carollo

With ‘Gimme 5!’ we take a peek into the collections of artists we admire. The premise is simple: artists WE like share 5 records THEY love.

Now this is a good story about a unique artist. Elli de Mon (aka Elisa De Munari) is an Italian one-woman band that has released six albums since 2014 and did exciting shows on countless stages across Europe, mixing primal blues with primitive garage punk. That already sounds interesting, doesn’t it? During her pregnancy she didn’t perform for a while, but she found time to write a book about the female blues artists of the 20s: Countin’ The Blues: Indomitable Women. In tribute to these great women, she then decided to record the songs she wrote about. A great idea if you ask me. Watch and listen to Elli’s version of Bessie Smith‘s Blue Spirit Blues below, and you’ll see what I mean. Intriguing, and very cool. [post continues below]

The album Countin’ The Blues releases June 18 through Area Pirata Rec, you can pre-order it here.

When I asked Elli about five records that have been important to her, I expected a list of jazz and blues legends, but I couldn’t have been more wrong: her answer contains some unexpected, surprising treasures.

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