Niek

New album: L’Resorts || Explorers

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

Explorers is L’Resorts follow up toVacation (2021), and if those names alone don’t bring a positive mood, wait until you hear the music. L’Resorts is the musical project of love interests Martha Cannon (Lady Cannon) and Vincent Kircher (Jaill) who draw influences from Velvet Underground, Camera Obscura, ’60s pop, folk and country. The result is a playful folky take on indiepop that has a strong country feel in part due to the vocal performances of Cannon and Kircher.

If you have time for just one song today, I strongly recommend Blasting Off or Pieces Of My Love, arguably the most sunny and upbeat sounding songs on Explorers. Better yet, join L’Resorts on all of their explorations, and let their generous and gorgeous melodies wash all over you.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: Stay Put || 2

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Punk / 1 Comment

Stay Put made a strong entrance to the scene with their debut EP last year. They return even more strongly with their second EP which simply is called 2. The four new songs showcases Stay Put’s exciting blend of punk rock, college rock and altpop. The B-side of this 7″ contains the two major hits Zap Gun and Working Holiday which reveal the poppy side of Stay Put, but it may very well be A-side Big Slump that is my favorite by the band so far. I’m really enjoying the trajectory this band is on, and can’t wait to discover what’s next.



2 is out now on pink 7″ through Crew Cuts (UK) and Blind Rage Records (US).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Crew Cuts || Blind Rage Records

New album: Cathedral Ceilings || Summer Of Misguided Dynamite

By / / Punk / Leave a Comment

Concidence or not, in the same week I finished Tom Beajour’s extremely fun oral history of Hair Metal, I stumbled on an extremely fun record he recorded and helped produce: Cathedral Ceilings’ Summer Of Misguided Dynamite, which for the record has nothing to do with Hair Metal, but is very much a punk rock record. If there are any similarities, it’s that Cathedral Ceiling is unafraid to show their pop sensibility. This is catchy stuff, really.

Summer Of Misguided Dynamite also is highly energetic and dynamic, and given the youthful enthusiasm that seeps through the songs, I was kind of suprised to discover Cathedral Ceilings is actually a band of scene veterans. Throughout the record, the band effortlessly bridges the gap between being pop punk or punk rock. They kinda sound like a mix of Sicko, late career 7 seconds, Lawrence Arms and Dillinger Four, if that makes any sense. Plenty to like on this one!


Purchase Summer Of Misguided Dynamite on LP through Dromedary Records.
Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: Owen Adamcik || Ickle Stardust’s Revenge Fantasy

By / / Punk / 1 Comment

Owen Adamcik plays in The Geeks, but also releases solo material. His EP (I am reluctant to call a 8 song, 9 minute release a full length or mini-album) Ickle Stardust’s Revenge Fantasy was released two weeks ago and I almost forgot to write about it, if it weren’t for Rejection to pop up through the shuffle function. It’s a killer throwback punk track that showcases Adamcik’s talent for writing strong melodies. Those melodies shine bright on Ickle Stardust’s Revenge Fantasy, and the unpolished production and heartfelt howling voice of Adamcik gives the record a classic punk feel.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Mitraille || Mitraille

By / / Punk / 1 Comment

After releasing three EP’s, the first Mitraille LP is here. Mitraille is a three-piece from Belgium who describe their sound as garagepunk. I am not too sure about that. I usually associate the angular guitar riffing and throbbing bass lines that is central to Mitraille’s sound with post punk leaning genres. But there definitely is a lot of punk abrasiveness and attitude in Mitraille, and the eleven songs on Mitraille’s self-titled LP are frenetic, aggressive and surprisingly melodic.

The Lows is an early highlight on the record. It arguably is the most catchy song on the record and has a rockin’ chorus. It is by no means the only standout, and on the remainder of the record Mitraille prove they have succesfully graduated from the EP format.


Mitraille is expected to ship early July. Pre-order now at Belly Button Records.
Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Walker Brigade || If Only

By / / Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Power Pop, Punk / 1 Comment

Walker Brigade’s biography raises as much questions as it provides answers. For example: How does it take a band that’s been “serving up anthemic despair with savoir faire since 2014” eight years to finally release their debut full-length? And how did Walker Brigade end up on a first ballot for the Grammy Awards before even releasing an album? But mostly: how did a band this good remain hidden for so long? Well the secret is out now. It’s called If Only, and it’s an exciting compilation of new material, the out-of-print debut mini-album Therapy Animal, and a significant amount of bonus material including alternate versions and cover songs.

How to describe the sound of Walker Brigade? Essentially, this is rock’n’roll, but with an artsy post punky kind of vibe. The band cites X, X-Ray Spex, The Soft Boys, Mission of Burma as their influences. The band also covers songs by Wire (Sand In My Joints), Mel Brooks (I’m Tired as originally performed by Madeline Kahn in Blazing Saddles), The Soft Boys (I Wanna Destroy You and Rock ‘n’ Roll Toilet) and The Only Ones (Lovers Of Today) – the latter two included as bonus tracks. If you give Walker Brigade the attention they deserve, you’ll find a lot of additional influences as well. In that sense, If Only is the next best thing to time travel for those wanting to experience rock’n’roll history.

But at no point those associations with past bands become a distraction. The songwriting is just too skilled, the execution too good, and with the production unpolished yet crisp, the strong melodies are memorable and  superfluous. Listen to openers Fallout and Disease for example, or the short and catchy What Is Wrong With Me? Another highlight is Tower, how can you not fall for that chorus?

I am finding new things to like about this record with each play, and feel like I’ve only scratched the surface. If Only is out on CD through Big Stir Records. It may very well be the label’s best release yet.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Big Stir Records

New album: Ross Storm || The Meridian

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Psych, Uncategorized / Leave a Comment

Instrumental music that is a blend of “prog & math rock, with notes of jazz and post-punk” is not something I expected to like. But somehow I’ve been enjoying The Meridian by Storm Ross quite a lot. Apparently, it’s already Ross’ fourth release on Already Dead Tapes, but relative to previous releases it’s more of a team effort. On The Meridian, Ross is joined by Yuma Uesaka on tenor sax and Skeleton Birds bandmates Jeremy and Jonathan Edwards on bass and drums respectively.

According to Ross, this is some of his best work to date. And although I’m unfamiliar with his previous output, I’m taking his word for it. The Meridian is as exciting as it is hypnotic, and as vibrant and colorful as the album art. These are no bedtime instrumentals to make you fall asleep, nor will they provide a relaxed start to your day. But I expect the songs on The Meridian to keep you fully awake at work. In fact, I’m pretty sure A/B testing will show The Meridian will significantly raise your focus, productivity and quality of your day.

The Meridian is out now on Tape at Already Dead Tapes.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: R.E. Seraphin || Swingshift

By / / Power Pop / 2 Comments

Powerpop revivalist R.E. Seraphin is transmitting some serious ear candy to the airwaves with his latest EP Swingshift. On his 2020 LP Tiny Shapes, Seraphin already hinted upon greatness, but there were also some songs that clicked less with me. On the Swingshift EP there are no weak moments. The five originals on the EP work on a superficial level in the sense that you don’t need to listen closely to appreciate that this is some quality guitar pop. It’s all too easy to fall for songs like Playing House and Big Break. But only a thorough listen will reveal the true power of these songs. There is a great deal going on and the instrumentation is top notch, layered and diverse – the top supporting cast Seraphin gathered for the recordings, including members of several ATW favorites like Yae-Ming & The Rumours, Sob Stories, Tony Molina and Mantles, surely contributed to this.

As a bonus, Seraphin covers I’ll be Around (Wipers) and This Time There’s No Happy Ending (Television Personalities), two solid picks and Seraphin’s execution is brilliant. Swingshift is out now on 12″ though Mt. St. Mtn and on tape through Dandy Boy Records and Safe Suburban Home Records (UK/EU).



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Mt. St. Mtn || Dandy Boy Records || Safe Suburban Homes

New single: Ditches || Drunk Dial #9

By / / Punk / 1 Comment

Perhaps I’m lazy (or lame) to label Ditches as Swedish answer to anything by Jeff Burke, but I can’t help it. In spite of Jeff Burke’s DNA fully contaminating the sound of Ditches – I have trouble considering that as something bad by the way, the songs of Ditches at no point sound redundant. That was the case on their fun and criminally underrated 2020 self-titled LP and it also applies to their new two song single which is part of Drunk Dial Records’ ongoing single series. If you are unfamiliar, the label’s idea is to get artists drunk, put them in the studio to record one original and one cover and release the result.

Ditches sound in particularly good form on the single, seemingly untouched by the intake of alcohol and the likes. The A-side showcases Lost In Time, a Ditches original that is among the top songs the band has released so far. On the flipside is a blistering cover of Abra Cadaver by fellow Swedes The Hives.

Drunk Dial #9 is out now. Hopefully it’s a sign of more new hits by Ditches.



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: The Young Rochelles || Interstellar Communication

By / / Power Pop, Punk / 1 Comment

On their latest EP, The Young Rochelles covered Phantom Maggot, a classic from Lillingtons’ sci-fi masterpiece pop punk record Death By Television. Apparently, that set the band on route to further explore of the galaxy, because on their new EP Interstellar Communication Young Rochelles leave all planetary boundaries behind. Listening to the four songs on the EP, I can fully imagine The Young Rochelles in a space ship on a mission to distribute the pop punk virus across the universe.

My favorite song here is Beyond The Sun. The contrast between the sunny and upbeat melody and the lyrics (“I Wanna Leave The Planet For A While”) gives me a chuckle and chokes me up every damn time.

The four-song Interstellar Communication EP is out now through four labels: Hey Pizza Records (US), Endless Detention Records (AU), I Buy Records (IT), and Dumb Records (JP).



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Hey Pizza Records || I Buy Records || Endless Detention Records

Scroll to Top