Dennis

New album: Johnny Tramuntana || Carreau Plein Fer

Perpignan in the south of France is not only a beautiful historic city with countless sights, high mountains and a sunny coastline, it is also the pleasure-oriented lifestyle and Catalan atmosphere that forms the sound of Johnny Tramuntana. The enthusiastic four-piece – Johnny Tramuntana (vocals, guitar), Johnny Cotine (guitar), Jonnie Boum Boum (drums) and Johnny Christmas (bass) – plays rock ‘n roll with country, surf and yé-yé influences. On their debut album Carreau Plein Fer you’ll hear 13 varied songs, instrumental or sung in French, that have a few things in common: they all scream summer, fun and craziness, and they make you smile, dance and speed. Here’s the soundtrack for your upcoming summer holidays.

Carreau Plein Fer is out on vinyl LP through Soundflat Records.

Add to wantlist: Soundflat

Dusted || The 10 Best Cover Songs Of June 2022

Not all new music is really new, as many artists cover songs. Sometimes these are songs by their favorite artists, eg as a tribute to such a musical hero for a special reason, or they simply feel that a song deserves to be dusted and polished to reacquaint fans with great songs from the past. Other times, bands cover songs as a parody. Regardless of intent, some of those cover versions are so good or so much fun, we’d like to put a spotlight on them. Chosen from a wide range, here are – in random order – ten of our favorite covers from last month – links to the pages where you can add them to your wantlist included.

In June we heard some covers on the soundtrack of Baz Lurhmann’s biopic film ELVIS, The Routes’ did a surf rock Kraftwerk tribute, Elvis Costello celebrated Paul McCartney’s 80th birthday, a project of Disclotch Records contained 27 home recordings to pay homage to Daniel Johnston, and previously we wrote about releases from Thee Escapees, Mikey Erg, Reverendo Band, Runaway Lovers and Townies with some successful cover versions. Below we list the 10 best that we haven’t mentioned yet.

Hound Dog || Cover: The Record Company || Original: Big Mama Thornton
The iconic rock ‘n’ roll track Hound Dog was written by Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, first released by blues singer Big Mama Thornton (1953), and made famous by Elvis Presley (1956). The ELVIS soundtrack features an honorable cover by Shonka Dukureh, but as a fan of American roots rock band The Record Company, it’s their version that you see here (not related to the movie). It’s not a Thornton or Presley imitation: as always The Record Company gives it its own twist. In case you don’t know: they previously worked on Beastie Boys’ So What’Cha Want, still one of my favorite covers ever.

New album: Marco Busato || Night Of My Times

Marco Busato is a Brazilian-born, London-based singer-songwriter / multi-instrumentalist (please don’t confuse him with canceled artist Marco Borsato from the Netherlands), who is just in time to make your summer a bit better with his first solo album Night Of My Times. You’ll hear nine original, sunny guitar pop songs rooted in the 70’s, inspired by the psych, surf, soul, mod and tropicalia greats (the entertaining “influences” playlist includes Kevin Ayers, The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Os Mutantes, Love, Allah-Las, Chris Bell, etc.) – perfect tunes from a sympathetic music maker that make you forget your worries for a while. “Be high and low, not right or wrong”, he sings in Sunken Ships, and for someone who likes to be right, I’ll think about that again when the sun goes down. Anyway, if only the beach clubs would play these tracks instead of the usual electronic noise pollution, how right would that be?

Night Of My Times is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Bickerton Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Bickerton || Discogs

New album: High Sunn || Real. Connection. Acquisitions.

Less than three months after the release of his album Flawless Recollections, Californian one man band Justin Cheromiah is back with another High Sunn LP. He describes Real. Connection. Acquisitions. as “eleven poems featuring the pure heart of comfort, written and recorded in 16 days in the bedroom.” It’s lo-fi indie rock leaning towards garage psych, with attractive guitar melodies, intense harmonized vocals and screams, and personal lyrics. A nice one, again.

Real. Connection. Acquisitions. is out digitally, on CD, cassette and vinyl LP through Daydream Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Daydream

New album: KITIMOTO || Vintage Smell

I’ve been enjoying myself all week with Vintage Smell, the full-length debut album by Phoenix-based indie rock quartet KITIMOTO, but I still can’t quite grasp it. As if you’ve seen a movie that won’t let go, you’re convinced it’s very good and something special, but you’re aware that you did’t understand all the metaphors and references.

Jonathan Marion Douglas (guitars, vocals, keys), Zane Gillum (bass), Cavan Noone (drums, percussion) and Jason Woodbury (guitars, vocals) have known each other for over 15 years, and reportedly the 10 tracks here came slowly but surely into being, took long shaping and refining. It was worth the time and effort. All the songs – there are no weak moments – are bewitching and addictive, color outside the lines of genres and expectations, with intense guitar duels, poetic lyrics and convincing vocals. This is an ultimate example of a record that has to grow, that continues to fascinate, one with a past but for sure also with a future.

Vintage Smell out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Fort Lowell Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Tijuana Panthers || Halfway to Eighty

We’ve been following Californian garage / surf rock trio Tijuana Panthers for a long time, have their LPs in the collection, saw them perform live, and regularly mention them as an influence on new bands (recently: Toothpicks, 3LH, The Cave Arcade), so it’s exciting whether a new release lives up to its reputation. To be honest, Halfway to Eighty didn’t click with me right away. However, on second listen I really started to like the 11 new songs, at the next spin I heard hit after hit. Longtime friends Daniel Michicoff (bass, vocals), Chad Wachtel (guitar, vocals), and Phil Shaheen (drums, vocals) continue to develop themselves and their sound is a bit more mature, but they still know how to write humorous, varied and catchy tunes. The cover art may be a nod to that of The Nerves’ One Way Ticket, but think I also hear influences from from Ty Segall, Rolling Blackouts CF and maybe even The Smiths. Ultimately, Tijuana Panthers still sound as cool, unique and irresistible as Tijuana Panthers always did – we’re adding LP number 6 to our wantlist.

Halfway to Eighty is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP through Innovative Leisure.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: ナードマグネット (Nerd Magnet) || アイム・スティル・ヒア (I’m Still Here)

All the way from Osaka, Japan, ナードマグネット (Nerd Magnet) has so much appeal that it might just become the new favorite band of 1990s/2000s pop-punk fans. On their new, third album アイム・スティル・ヒア (I’m Still Here), you’ll hear eleven energetic guitar songs that are bursting with enthusiasm. The four young musicians know how to write narrative power pop tunes – with the catchiness of Weezer and the emo of Motion City Soundtrack – that are compelling and irresistible. A favorite band won’t stay the same, as they sing in the opening track, but let’s enjoy this one while we can.

I’m Still Here is out now digitally and on CD through Thistime Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: West Coast Music Club || Faded Scrapbook

Just half a year after their previous album Take A Deep Breath (featuring the amazing single Jenny’s Still Got (What It Takes), remember?), here’s the fourth full-length from UK indie pop trio West Coast Music Club. The beautiful title Faded Scrapbook reveals the central theme of the ten new songs: their poetic lyrics deal with dreams and memories, regret and longing, faith and satisfaction. The words of Fanclub Favorite could have been ours: “We can’t forget the joy that we felt // You soundtracked our lives don’t you know what you meant.” We enjoy this Hotel California: “I asked you if you knew what ‘Tiffany-twisted’ meant // Or what ‘colitas’ were, you smiled and said Who cares? // This song is beautiful, kiss me, kiss me make you mine.” And the title track, advising to turn the page, also applies to this LP: “Around the corner something new no certainty of lasting.”

This is varied guitar-driven music that switches between dreamy jangle pop, psychedelic shoegaze and uplifting power pop. Songwriters Martin Adams (vocals, guitar) and Peter Madden (guitar, bass), together with Marc Joy (drums, bass), have delivered a small masterpiece that won’t lose its color for the foreseeable future.

Faded Scrapbook is out now digitally and on CD through 72rpm Records and Kool Kat Musik.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Thee Escapees || Breaking Out

If you name The Vibes, The Yardbirds, Nine Below Zero, The Milkshakes, The Sonics and Bo Diddley as influences, you have our attention. If you’ve played in bands like Lancashire Bombers, The Untamed, The Sundowners, Long Tall Shorty and Joe Public, we have high expectations. If your original songs are not inferior to your infectious cover version of Del Shannon’s Runaway, you’ve made a record that is wantlist-worthy.

We’re talking about Alan Walshe (vocals, guitar, organ), Dave ‘Diamond’ Prince (drums, vocals, piano, screams) and Mark ‘Fazza’ Farrington (bass), who together as Thee Escapees released their debut full-length Breaking Out. You’ll hear thirteen short but powerful songs, which would not look out of place on the large pile of American garage rock and British beat classics from your vinyl collection. A mix of trashy rock ‘n’ roll with groovy rhythm ‘n’ blues – raw and catchy, raucous and danceable. While there really are no weak tunes on the album, the standouts have been saved for side B.

Breaking Out is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Spinout Nuggets.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs || Spinout

New EP: Toothpicks || Fun & Fancy Free

Summer solstice 2022, the longest day / shortest night of the year, seems like the perfect moment to point out Fun & Fancy Free, a new 6-track EP from Provo, Utah-based 4-piece Toothpicks. The band, formed at the end of 2019 by brothers Cade Murdock (vocals, guitar) and Rhett Murdock (drums), now also featuring Truman Magleby (keys) and Brady Flores (bass), wrote “a love-letter and farewell to western surf music.” These are cool sounds – dreamy, jangly and mesmerizing – that will get us through all those hours today and the hot days that follow.

Fun & Fancy Free is out now digitally and on cassette through UPHERE! Records. For fans of Allah Las, The Growlers, Tijuana Panthers, Beach Skulls.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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