Sunday, 20 April 2025

2025, week 16. 10 singles

Easter weekend. I made a typo typing eater weekend. It can be called that of course. A few days with the family, food, drinks, Easter eggs and most likely less time to read a blog or listen to new music. Here are ten new songs anyway, so enjoy! And, Happy Easter!

Throw A Fist. The Northern Line

Just listen how Throw A Fist starts. The Northern Line lays down an irresistible groove. I won't say it's like The Stone Roses but the concept certainly is. Drums and at least two percussive instruments play for 10 seconds, bar two short bursts on a Hammond organ. Then the bass joins in and  the organ starts playing a melody. Guitar one joins the rhythm and then guitar two starts playing the main riff over that strong groove. Only at 40 seconds the singer joins with "I never felt so low". That may be, by after that 40 seconds I'm in high spirits. What a great groove and what an upbeat song Throw A Fist is. The Massachusetts band relive the Britpop days of the mid 90s, with a band like The Charlatans in mind, think its album 'Up To Here' e.g. It seems like I did not judge so positively on The Northern Line's debut single 'Lightning Strikes', as you cannot find it on this blog. Throw A Fist is and rightly so. What a groove!

Nothing. Sex Scenes

Nothing starts with a groove as well, but here we are in punk territory immediately. Sex Scenes is from Milwaukee and is the kind of band that does not hold back. Not in its music nor in its artwork. The blood vomiting skull on its album's sleeve is somewhere between a joke and serious. The music is all seriousness though. In just 2.14 minutes Sex Scenes tells and plays all. Nothing is the band's first single from the first album 'Everything Makes Me Sick', and it comes with a bang. Sex Scenes is around since 2016 but it's singer, Sarah Turbo, joined in 2021. She sounds like Amy Taylor of Amyl and The Sniffers in an angry mood. Behind her the band rages with a distorted bass guitar and guitars that play a great hook or two during the song. Nothing is quite the introduction to the upcoming album, to be released on 8 May.

Wonder. Benét

Unwinding, the big slow down comes with Wonder by singer Benét. The song starts as a sort of 'Let Love Rule', but next reminds me more of G. Love & Special Sauce where its rhythm is concerned. Wonder slowly evolves into a dreamy song, where friends of Benét wonder about a topic that concerns them, sampled into the song. This makes Wonder a song that sets itself apart, as it is not entirely the singer's song. Musically, Wonder is a basic song. Drums, a bass guitar is enough to kick it off. Surely but slowly the song flashes out with more instruments and in the vocal arrangement. It becomes an intricate weaving of instruments and voices, that makes for interesting listening. And then other voices take over, where the melody keeps Wonder going. It all ends abruptly, with an acoustic guitar providing a short coda. Album 'Make 'm Laugh' is expected on 6 June.

Scars. After Elmer

With Scars Rotterdam band After Elmer turns the clock back for a few decades. Around the year 2000 there were bands like Creed that started to play songs like these, post grunge. But there's also some emo in Scars. After Elmo builds up the song in an excellent way. An empty beginning with strong accents from guitar and drums. Next up is the release in the chorus, where the band goes full out. It's the kind of chorus that deserves a moshpit. An audience that goes apeshit as one. No matter how forceful the chorus is, the band has taken care of a strong vocal melody. That is just one part of the song though. The dynamics work really well and the band is an ace in getting the accents in all the right moments. After Elmer may have hit its jackpot with Scars.

Low Hanging Fruit. Matt Tecu + Fernando Perdomo

An instrumental is not your every day on this blog, but we have another one with Low Hanging Fruit. I have no clue who Matt Tecu + Fernando Perdomo are. The names are totally new to me, but this single rocks in a very old-fashioned way. Low Hanging Fruit rocks to hard to be from a cheesy circa 1970 movie soundtrack but the song contains the concept of it. That organ does the trick alright. It provides this psychedelic feel to the whole. The lead guitar is somewhere between surf and rock, while the drums definitely make it a rock song. The bass on the other hand is in Serge Gainsbourg territory. It gives you an impression how diverse Low Hanging Fruit sounds. It's from an album called 'Getting Warmer' which is out already.

Before The Fall EP.  Kier Byrnes & The Kettle Burners

On Before The Fall Kier Byrnes & The Kettle Burners defy genre and time with an all-time mix of folk, Irish folk, punk and what not. Of course, rightly so you will think of The Pogues, Gogol Bordello, and even Dropkick Murphys. It's all in the opening song 'White Russians', right up to the mock Iwan Rebrow background singing. The instruments and approach are more traditional than the last two mentioned bands. That makes Kier Byrnes & The Kettle Burners a more traditional band. This shows in the songs that follow, as the punk tempo goes out of the songs. 'When The Money's All gone' even  moves into country territory. The accordeon gives the song even a French Mediterranean flavour. The lead guitar adds a Chris Isaak kind of rock and roll. 'Train's Off The Rails' moves into The Paladins style rock and roll. In the following two songs you will be surprised once again by the music on offer. Kier Byrnes & The Kettle Burners may have a hard time choosing what kind of band it wants to be, in each song the band convinces. Before The Fall is an EP that deserves attention. Party time, is another good description.

Call Out Your Name ft. Pete Townsend. Inge Lamboo

A Dutch singer working with The Who legend Pete Townsend? The answer is yes, as you can see. The result is an indie rock track with some real fiery guitar work by Townsend. What is more important, is that the track caught my attention from the very start. Call Out Your Name hovers somewhere between indie rock and a Fleetwood Mac kind of pop. Lamboo has a voice that can compete with every female singer coming out of the U.S. in indie rock/pop. Whether Alanis or Katy Perry, she's right up there. The music itself is fairly basic. She let's her voice do the talking. And then there's that lead guitar that throws "some mud against the wall in that old sixties style" as Townsend called his contribution. At 79 he has followed Inge Lamboo online and was especially caught by her mash up of Arctic Monkeys with Fleetwood Mac. The result is a nice single and a trip to London for Lamboo to see The Who and present the single to Townsend. Her second album, 'This Is How The Future Sounds' will be released on 30 May. 

The Experiment EP. Replaced By Robots

Replaced By Robots only rang a bell because of books on the fourth industrial revolution, not because of a band. That changed with the release of this five song mini album which the band released recently. The trio consists of Goolkasian, Heather Joy Morgan and Adam Wade. Morgan has a background in painting, the others have played in various bands over the past two decades. For The Experiment they worked with producer Paul Q. Kolderie. It resulted in a mini album that combines upbeat alternative rock, with some glam rock and synth things. Replaced By Robots manages to combine several decades of music in a successful way. Heather Joy Morgan even does a Nico, one who is not on the verge of moving to the other side. What gets to me, is the upbeat music that The Experiment offers. It allows for both serious listening and dancing all in one. Replaced By Robots delivers it all in one go.

SS-100-X. The Speed Of Sound

What the story is, I still have to get into. Fact is, The Speed of Sound has released three albums under the name 'A Cornucopia', with partly the same track names. One of the singles from an album titled additionally 'Minerva' is SS-100-X, I suppose a soviet Union type missile that was aimed at us in the 1970 or 80s. This song is 'I'm Waiting For My Man' by the Velvet Underground during day time. Without any trouble I'm able to sing "standing on a corner ..." over the intro. The vocal melody is it's own, making it a different song. The song has a chorus as well. SS 100 eggs, I hear, influenced by Easter? The lyrics are not on scoring heroine but on the Kennedy assassination and conspiracy theories around it. SS-100-X was the code name of the car the Kennedys were in on that fateful day in 1963. The combination of the lyrics and the music make it an interesting song to listen to. In fact it's good.

He Seems To Think That He's A King. Garret Vandermolen

Do protest songs still exist? Many people argue that they do not any more. Garret Vandermolen has decided that this has to end this situation and wrote a song against the would be (soon actually?) dictator in The White House, his oligarch friends and sycophants bowing to his every whim. The title to the song tells it all. It is not the kind of king my country has or the U.K., no a king that reigns at will, like Louis XIV, who went to war in the summer, held court in the winter and kept his potential enemies as close as possible. Raised taxes for his own whims, including hobby wars, lavish luxury, etc. It's that kind of king Vandermoolen is singing about. The song is the right mix between mocking, an upbeat beat and melancholy singing. Say Tom Petty style. The sad thing is, that everything I and many others fear, may well be reality very soon. He Seems To Think That He's A King is the kind of song that may get Garret Vandermolen into serious trouble any day soon. Hopefully, the day will come that these "mighty will fall". It will take more than this song though. Let's call it a good start and make it the anthem of resistance.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght


Saturday, 19 April 2025

I Still Want To Share. Sophie Jamieson

Sophie Jamieson maakte helemaal aan het eind van 2022 diepe indruk met haar prachtige debuutalbum Choosing en doet dit in 2025 nog eens met het minstens even mooie I Still Want To Share.

In de laatste weken van een jaar verschijnt er meestal niets bijzonders meer, maar in 2022 werd in ieder geval mijn jaarlijstje nog omgegooid door het prachtige debuutalbum van Sophie Jamieson. De Britse muzikante brengt haar tweede album juist helemaal aan het begin van het jaar uit, maar I Still Want To Share ga ik zeker niet vergeten voor mijn jaarlijstje over een maand of twaalf. Sophie Jamieson imponeert ook op haar tweede album met haar prachtige stem, die een groot deel van de 45 minuten die het album duurt goed is voor kippenvel. In muzikaal opzicht is het tweede album van de Britse muzikante bijna net zo mooi en ook de songs van Sophie Jamieson doen van alles met me. Wat een prachtalbum, wat een talent, wat een zangeres.

Sophie Jamieson doet het momenteel heel goed in de met name Britse lijstjes met muzikanten die het wel eens zouden kunnen gaan maken in 2025. Een nieuwkomer is de Britse muzikante echter zeker niet. Haar eerste EP is inmiddels al twaalf jaar oud en helemaal aan het eind van 2022 verscheen bovendien haar prachtige debuutalbum Choosing.

Het is een album dat me destijds overrompelde met de openingstrack Addition en dat is nog steeds een track die bij mij goed is voor kippenvel. De rest van het debuutalbum van Sophie Jamieson deed nauwelijks onder voor de fenomenale openingstrack, waardoor het album ondanks de release in december mijn jaarlijstje over 2022 wist te halen.

De plek ergens halverwege mijn jaarlijstje was zeker niet het eindstation voor Choosing, want inmiddels zou ik het album onder de mooiste albums van 2022 scharen. Het is dus goed nieuws dat Sophie Jamieson eindelijk de aandacht trekt met haar muziek en het is nog veel beter nieuws dat deze week de opvolger van Choosing is verschenen.

Het debuutalbum van Sophie Jamieson was een uiterst ingetogen en behoorlijk donker album met vooral folky songs en een hoofdrol voor de indringende stem van de Britse muzikante. Dat is een lijn die deels wordt doorgetrokken op I Still Want To Share, dat ook een folkalbum mag worden genoemd.

Sophie Jamieson maakte wat mij betreft een verpletterende indruk met de openingstrack van haar debuutalbum en ook album nummer twee opent prachtig. Camera opent ingetogen met subtiele akoestische gitaarakkoorden en de echt prachtige stem van Sophie Jamieson en ook dit keer wordt de spanning fraai opgebouwd. Een aantal keren barsten de strijkers los en ook dit keer maakt de Britse muzikant gebruik van de elektrische gitaar voor het vergroten van de dynamiek in de song.

Het klinkt allemaal prachtig, maar ook dit keer zorgt de stem van Sophie Jamieson voor het meeste kippenvel. De Britse muzikante beschikt over een betoverend mooi en zeer expressief stemgeluid, maar ze legt ook heel veel gevoel in haar stem, waardoor de zang op I Still Want To Share net zo hard binnenkomt als die op het debuutalbum.

Het tweede album van Sophie Jamieson klinkt net wat voller en gedetailleerder en misschien net wat minder donker dan haar zo indrukwekkende debuutalbum, maar ook I Still Want To Share is een vooral spaarzaam ingekleurd folkalbum, dat flink wat ruimte biedt aan melancholie.

Sophie Jamieson had niet veel muzikanten nodig voor haar nieuwe album. Naast prachtig gitaarwerk en fraaie bijdragen van keyboards werden vooral strijkers en drums toegevoegd. De muziek op I Still Want To Share is subtiel maar bijzonder mooi en is op prachtige wijze vastgelegd in de productie van Sophie Jamieson en de ervaren producer Guy Massey, die onder andere werkte met Spiritualized, Richard Hawley, The Divine Comedy, Manic Street Preachers en The Coral.

De songs op het tweede album van Sophie Jamieson zijn net wat meer versierd dan die op haar debuutalbum, maar alle accenten die zijn toegevoegd zijn functioneel en de strijkers passen prima bij de folky songs van de Britse muzikante. De sobere klanken vragen veel van de zang, maar Sophie Jamieson zingt ook op I Still Want To Share weer de sterren van de hemel.

Ze wordt zoals gezegd momenteel veelvuldig genoemd in de lijstjes met de beloften voor 2025, maar de belofte is de muzikante met dit werkelijk prachtige en indrukwekkende tweede album echt al lang voorbij. I Still Want To Share is het volgende prachtalbum van 2025, dat verrassend sterk is begonnen.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt I Still Want To Share hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://sophiejamieson.bandcamp.com/album/i-still-want-to-share

Friday, 18 April 2025

No Light To See. The Slow Death

No Light To See is Minneapolis band The Slow Death's fifth album. It's this blog's first, after reviewing single 'I'll Be Fine' recently. The short version of this review could be, if you like Social Distortion, The Hold Steady and The Living End (without the rockabilly) then go out and buy No Light To See. I do would like to use up a little bit more of your time though.

The Slow Death manages to cook up a storm. A very distinctive feature of the band is the warm Hammond B3 sound that  weaves itself through the songs. No matter how loud a song is, like in that already mentioned single, the instrument is there for the whole of the way. It gives the wall of sound an extra layer for sure but also adds warmth to the whole. An element that is often overlooked in punk/garagerock. It sets The Slow Death apart from many of its colleagues.

To copy the bio, "The Slow Death is Jesse "Pretty Boy" Thorson's most prolific project which has a lineup that's always evolving, and this album's tough hard working crew with Jack Gribble on drums, Luke Lechler on organ+guitars, and the bonus of Alex Bammel sprinkling some incredibly clever guitar leads on in the studio is hard to beat". Why try to up that? Thorson's voice is of the rough kind. Well worn in so to say. It gives the band a rough and  tough edge that convinces no little. The message is, The Slow Death is not kidding around, that much is clear.

A slow death is something torturers relish. The artwork, if I recognise Hank Williams there, is another form of slow death, the excessive abuse of substances. The energy coming out of this album will awake anyone from stupor. It's like getting charged. The Slow Death starts at full speed and may play a slower song here and there, the energy is never gone. That wall of sound returns when and wherever it can, rock ballad or not.

What strikes me most, is the consistent quality of the album. Where with (U.S.) albums like this, e.g. by The Gaslight Anthem to name one, I start getting somewhat bored after the third to fifth song, No Light To See keeps me on my toes for the whole ride. To be honest that surprised me, as I had expected that it would not, based on the first songs. But take the recent single 'Little Ghost', song 8 on the tracklist. It has great accents and a chorus that you would like to shout along to at any live show of the band. The "solo"/outro is fantastic in all its elementary playing.

No Light To See is a great punk/garage rock album. The Slow Death is a new name to me but one that will stick for a while. On its Bandcamp page a 'jaxtaxman' writes that this is the band's best album to date. I believe him immediately.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order No Light To See here:

https://jessethorson.bandcamp.com/album/no-light-to-see

Thursday, 17 April 2025

Fading Image. Marathon

Anyone who has listened to the recent singles of Amsterdam alternative rock/postpunk band Marathon could have known a few things before Fading Image was released. This album is going to be varied, Marathon does a Tramhaus or two, but above all that Fading Image would most likely be a well above average album.

So, little surprises than? No and yes. No, because all assumptions came true and no because the album is even better than I expected on the basis of the singles.

Marathon is Kay Koopmans (voice/guitar), Lennart van Hulst (drums) and Nina Lijzenga (bass). The three play together since high school and after a slew of singles, an EP, more singles and now an album are ready to take on the world. In my opinion Fading Image is this good. There's no reason why Marathon can't go into the footsteps of Tramhaus and go out into the wide world and play, play, play.

Fading Image is an album that thrives in darkness. As such it fits in a time in which everything seems to have become uncertain. The source of this music can be found in the early 1980, when a lot of people thought the end was nigh; not me though. I don't know if people now think it is, but certain leaders most certainly make us want to think it so. Authoritarians thrive on fear, people. Always keep that in mind when listening to that type of politician. Their words have nothing to do with your wellbeing, only their own. The song 'Fail' can stand as an example of proof. It is the only song on Fading Image that has little to do with my wellbeing.

After this short detour, Marathon's musical core can be found circa 1981. Only the starting point though. From there the band does several extras, by playing with different influences. Slower new wave like the The Cure influenced song 'Shadow Raised A Star'. A lot of reverb and delay on the guitar notes, makes for a nice mood change on the album. By growing ever bigger and bigger, 'Shadow Raised A Star' becomes a song of epic proportions.

The Cult, Killing Joke, all bands that Marathon's members will have found in their parents' or uncles' record collections. Tramhaus was already mentioned. Which is o.k. as Marathon aspires to reach these heights as well. Marathon has the same kind of energy in abundance and is able to surprise in the same way during songs. Changing moods while playing knows no secrets for Marathon.

A special mention goes out to the artwork. By now there's an interesting collection that one day may make it to a museum. Again it is an interesting painting shown hear. It is made by Bob Mollema. My tip of the hat is called for.

Back to the music. Another highlight is the faster song 'Disorder'. The tempo goes up and because of it the mood on the album is somewhat lifted. All is relative here, but 'Disorder' is what the album needs at this point. Something 'Away From Home' continues in all the right ways. A great ending to the album.

It starts again with 'Out Of Depth'. It's that kind of album, the kind to play again immediately. Marathon with Fading Image has delivered on the promise made in the past few years. Now go out and conquer the world. This album fits in with a lot I've been hearing this decade so far and then there's the quality on offer. Dutch bands simply are getting better and better. No doubt about it and Marathon is a proof of point.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

Wednesday, 16 April 2025

All The Right Weaknesses. Brown Horse

It's only 15 months ago that Brown Horse released 'Reservoir', one of the finer albums of 2024. It's April 2025 and Emma, Nyle, Rowan, Patrick, Ben and Phoebe already release All The Right Weaknesses. As far as I'm concerned the band picked things up where it left them. All The Right Weaknesses rocks no little.

At the heart of Brown Horse's music there is folk tunes. They are hidden behind the wall of sound the band builds over the folk element. Phil Spector ought to be a contented man had he been able to hear the album. Loads of guitars are stacked on top of each other, the one howling more than the one before. The opening song, 'Verna Bloom', just like the one on 'Reservoir', 'Stealing Horses', is a statement. Listening to 'Verna Bloom' makes you realise that your alive and that Brown Horse means it.

The next song, 'Wisteria Vine', comes as a surprise as the intro and first line are straight copies of 'Mooie Meid' by Dutch band The Kik. Luckily it stops there. Like 'Mooie Meid' 'Wisteria Vine' is a beautiful ballad, that draws me deeper into the album. Brown Horse has me where it wants me to be.

For two songs in a row the male-female voices blend beautifully. Brown Horse makes great use of the option their singers offer it. This continues for most of the album. This band knows its strengths. Like providing its songs a lot of power. Take the way 'Dog Rose' is built up. It starts fairly quiet, with an electric piano as an important contributor to the sound. Only one singer and then all of sudden all hell sort of breaks loose. Creating a tremendously powerful and convincing song and all around a riff that for most of the song does not change.

Having listened to the album now for a few times, I love it more and more. It's mix of folk, rock, even The Rolling Stones style rock, and country licks is simply irresistible. Like the  previous one, this is a must have album.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order All The Right Weaknesses here:

https://brownhorse.bandcamp.com/album/all-the-right-weaknesses