The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings. The Besnard Lakes

The Besnard Lakes was nothing but a band name to me. I can't recall that I have ever heard music by the band or the next best that it made some kind of an impression on me if I have. That changed with this album with the incredibly long title The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings. It's been some time since a far reaching, huge album like this made an impression on me.

Because a huge album it is. An album that could have been made in the 70s by one of the famous symphonic rock bands of the era, were it not that a part of the music on The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings still had to be invented. The Besnard Lakes manages to combine the pop rock grandeur of Oasis with sympho bands like Pink Floyd and The Moody Blues.

This new album came after a period of existential crisis for the band, after splitting with its label in 2016. It took five years to figure out what the next step should be. There's a new album because the band realised that primarily it makes music for itself and next for the world. It seems like the right choice, because even on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean I'm enjoying the result of that choice. This is what this band wants the world to hear. Nothing more but certainly nothing less, 72 minutes long it showcases all it is capable of. Be ready to be awestruck.

The album contains a few long instrumental sequences at the end of songs. As such I'm reminded of 'Shine On You Crazy Diamond' but where that song keeps a tension going despite the minimal music Richard Wright plays on his many keyboards, it is missing here. That may well be because I've been spoiled forever by getting to know this album so many years ago. Fact is that The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings intrigues me no little. The instrumental pieces are extras in an album that combines whole musical eras.

Promo photo: Joseph Yarmusch

The Besnard Lakes do not for a second try to be Oasis but is able to present some of its songs just as larger than life the Britpoppers of old could and so much more inventive at that. Throw in a little psychedelia in the style of The Dandy Warhols at its very, very best and that is when the 70s style sympho starts glowing as if its 2021. For an old rocker like me the music gets an ageless quality as it could be brand new and a few decades old at the same time.

Most songs on The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings are top heavy and yet seem to defy gravity itself. There's so much going on while the mix is broad and closed in at the same time. This makes it a heavy sound, while the long-drawn notes and the spacey keyboards make the songs appear to float on murky, hot, humid air. This is added to by the slow, high singing of Jace Lasek. The effect is mesmerising, music from a fairytale forest.

If this isn't enough to make you curious than I do not know what will. I have to leave you to your own devices.

Wo.

You can listen to and buy The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings here:

https://thebesnardlakes.bandcamp.com/album/the-besnard-lakes-are-the-last-of-the-great-thunderstorm-warnings-2

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

No Better Time. Kacey Johansing

Kacey Johansing maakte twee jaar geleden met The Hiding een prachtig album en herhaalt dat kunstje nu met het nog wat mooier ingekleurde en nog wat overtuigendere No Better Time.

Luister naar het nieuwe album van de Amerikaanse singer-songwriter Kacey Johansing en je hoort haar Californische roots. No Better Time laat zich inspireren door zowel Laurel Canyon folk als Californische pop en smeedt beide invloeden aan elkaar in songs vol zonnestralen. No Better Time is bijzonder fraai ingekleurd met zowel organische als elektronische klanken en staat garant voor voldoende vitamine D. De mooie stem van Kacey Johansing tilt het aangename geluid op No Better Time nog wat verder op en laat je heerlijk wegdromen bij de lome klanken op dit persoonlijke album, dat ook nog vertelt dat zelfs na hele donkere wolken de zon weer gaat schijnen.

Kacey Johansing maakte in de eerste helft van het huidige decennium twee nauwelijks opgemerkte albums, maar trok in 2018 in verrassend brede kring de aandacht met het sterke The Hiding. Op The Hiding verloochende de Californische singer-songwriter haar afkomst zeker niet en vermengde ze op fraaie wijze invloeden uit de Laurel Canyon folk met invloeden uit de Californische pop uit de jaren 70. 

Deze week verscheen de opvolger van The Hiding en No Better Time trekt de lijn van The Hiding door. Ook het nieuwe album van Kacey Johansing laat zich nadrukkelijk inspireren door de muziek zoals die in de jaren 60 en 70 in Californië werd gemaakt. Kacey Johansing noemt No Better Time zelf haar “LA record”, maar dat is een omschrijving die wat mij betreft ook al van toepassing was op The Hiding. 

No Better Time is een optimistisch album waarop de Californische zon nadrukkelijk mag schijnen, maar die zonnestralen kwamen voor Kacey Johansing niet vanzelf. Op No Better Time draait alles om het hervinden van liefde na een traumatische gebeurtenissen, wat neerslaat in persoonlijke teksten. Op haar nieuwe album mag de zon gelukkig weer schijnen en dat doet hij direct volop. 

Kacey Johansing werkt op haar nieuwe album samen producer en multi-instrumentalist Tim Ramsey, die eerder werkte met onder andere Vetiver en Fruit Bats. Tim Ramsey trok een aantal al even gelouterde technici aan, waardoor No Better Time echt prachtig klinkt. De Californische singer-songwriter kreeg in de studio bovendien gezelschap van een aantal ervaren muzikanten, die haar nieuwe album prachtig hebben ingekleurd. 

No Better Time is zoals gezegd een zonnig klinkend album, wat wordt versterkt door een warm klinkende organische onderlaag. Op deze onderlaag zorgt subtiel aangebrachte elektronica voor de eerste betovering. Die betovering wordt versterkt door de prachtige stem van Kacey Johansing, die de Californische zonnestralen als een engeltje omarmt met mooie heldere maar ook warme vocalen. 

Op The Hiding manoeuvreerde Kacey Johansing zich ergens tussen de vrouwelijke singer-songwriters uit de Laurel Canyon en de zwoele pop van Fleetwood Mac in en ook No Better Time laat zich zowel door Californische pop als door Laurel Canyon folk beïnvloeden. De muziek van de Californische muzikante is wat lichtvoetiger dan die van de pure folkies uit de jaren 60, maar weer wat serieuzer dan de toegankelijke pop die halverwege de jaren 70 in Los Angeles werd gemaakt. 

Op het moment dat ik deze recensie schrijf is het buiten guur en donker, maar Kacey Johansing verwarmt op aangename wijze de ruimte. No Better Time is echter niet alleen een aangenaam, maar ook een wonderschoon album. De mooie instrumentatie, die varieert van vol tot subtiel, kleurt steeds prachtig bij de al even mooie stem van Kacey Johansing en de songs op het album zijn in vrijwel alle gevallen van het soort dat je direct bij eerste beluistering dierbaar is en vervolgens niet meer aan kracht verliezen. 

Kacey Johansing trok in 2018 zoals gezegd verrassend veel aandacht met The Hiding en verdient deze aandacht ook absoluut voor No Better Time, dat ik over de hele linie nog net wat mooier en overtuigender vind.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt No Better Time hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://kaceyjohansing.bandcamp.com/album/no-better-time

 

of luister naar onze Spotify Playlist om uit te vinden waar we over schrijven:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

 

 

On All Fours. Goat Girl

Going on the interview I read in 'Oor', I took it that On All Fours could well be the third album released recently where experiment trumps free flowing melodies in an exciting and good way. So after 'Painting The Roses' by Midnight Sister and 'Silhouette' by Lili Grace it is time to focus on On All Fours, Goat Girl's new album.

Besides welcoming a new bass player the band introduces a combination of dreamy alternative popsongs and electronics woven into the popsongs. The result is beauty mixing with slightly disorienting, pulsating vibes. If one thing has revealed itself to me, it is that the songs agree with me as God's word to a churchwarden, totally.

There are certainly traces to a band like Warpaint, with a major difference for me. With Warpaint it is the atmosphere I dig, but usually not the songs that much persé. With Goat Girl it is the opposite. The atmosphere is a nice addition to the quality of the songs and I know what I prefer alright. Yes, there are estranging elements built into the songs, but they do not disturb the main message and that is and remains the songs themselves. I think the best example here is 'Sad Cowboy' where it all comes together superbly.

Because of the electronics the songs get even more layers than they already possess. On All Fours is far from an instantly digestible album but will reveal itself over more listening sessions than I've allowed myself before writing. The first layer is the basic melody that will have presented itself when the idea for the song presented itself to the author. Next comes the dreamy textures that were added with on top of it and the vocal melodies and harmonies that add to the dreaminess. You will find that the harmonies are often far from following the main melody closely but are intricate, even with counter melodies. The electronics provide another layer. The lyrics are worth listening to as well. Windows on the soul come by if you listen for them. The dreamy pop that is the result of this all, is a winner. I can't exclude that I may miss a layer or two at this point in time.

Promo photo: Holly Whitaker

I have a faint recollection of Goat Girl's first album, 'Goat Girl' from 2018. You won't find it on this blog, as I did not find it special enough to take it out of the large supply of records that come by each week. That does not make the next album something to look out for. I was certainly influenced by that interview and by a single released in the fall of 2020. 'The Crack' was interesting, so I made a note to check further, which is easily forgotten. I'm glad I checked On All Fours out as it good.

To come back to the two albums above. No, On All Fours doesn't experiment like Midnight Sister does or get totally out of hand as Lili Grace allows its music to do. This album is far more subtle. The four young women have taken their respective experiences of their lives so far and took them on as a band and not as a singer-songwriter with three backing musicians. On All Fours is a full band effort and I think it shows. Finally a tip for fans of this album, check out Dakota's 'Here's The 101 On How To Disappear'. You'll definitely like the album. (Because of this thought, I found out that there is a vinyl version after all and ordered it on the spot.)

With the album in my possession for a short time it is too early to say whether On All Fours is a triumph. That only time can tell. The impression is hinting in this direction though. I loved 2020 musically and now 2021 is starting with albums like this. So where are we heading for?

Wo.

You can order and listen to On All Fours here:

https://goatgirl.bandcamp.com/

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

10 Singles

Ten more singles are presented to you on WoNoBlog. Again a very wide range in music comes by, with songs that have the ability to instantly please, songs a listener may have to work on and ones that may raise some hairs but are still worthwhile to get to know. Sit down, relax, click on the link below to listen and let Wo. write you through his experiences while listening to the songs one by one.

Family Time. Tessel

Utrecht based band Tessel signed a record deal and releases its first single after signing. Yes, another alternatively rocking rock band from the Netherlands. And again one that taps from a totally different source. The sound is far more clear than most. The atmosphere as a whole may have a darker edge, the guitars sound very clear and the singing is even moving in the Chefs' Special territory. From a personal perspective I'm quite content with the lighter sound. I already have a Canshaker Pi, Slow Worries, Dakota or Price. Tessel adds nicely to this. Of course the band has its influences. In the bio announcing the band/song, all sorts of U.S. bands are mentioned, that I personally find boring to listen to, so can't really compare. No, for me there are a few Belgian bands that come to mind that are or were far more interesting to listen to. Tessel manages to combine a poppy vibe with a darker background resulting in an interesting introduction. Let me hear more soon.

Questions. Middle Kids

Middle Kids? Yes, I was certain I had written on the band before and looking it up I noticed that three years have past. Where does time go? The positive side is that when time flies, one isn't bored in general. Questions is the first single of Middle Kids' upcoming second album 'Today We're The Greatest'. The song is a good mix of electronics, folk and pop. Faint traces of new-folkies from around 2010, whose names have slowly faded from consciousness sound trough the song. The build up is done capably. The first verse is almost bare with hands clapping the rhythm. Slowly but surely the song branches out, with horns moving in, reminding me of that one hit of Of Monsters and Men. There's a lot going on in Questions and it's all over under the three minutes. Well done, Middle Kids.

Puke Box. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets

What do you need after eating too many Psychedelic Porn Crumpets? A puke box, that seems an obvious answer. This is the second single that comes by from the album 'SHYGA! The Sunlight Mount' coming by on this blog. Again, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets manages to rock out with a eastern, psychedelic vibe. Kula Shaker without the Indian instruments and rhythms, so more direct. The rest is all intact. So I hear a very firm rhythm section that is not afraid of putting its stamp on Puke Box. The lead guitar lines are allowed all over the place once released and the singer can sing in a mix of dreamy vibes and direct diction. The result is a slightly psychedelic rock song that is more than enough in my face but with a musical stroboscopic effect here and there. As if Puke Box can't decide whether to enter my left or my right ear. If Puke Box proves anything then it is that the album may be worth my while to get acquainted with. Two weeks to go.

I'm Staying Home. Monolord

Ah, the deep end. Deep, deep guitars enter my ear. So different from the two previous songs. The cover art of I'm Staying Home is very promising. Hieronymous Bosch style apocalyptic visions of Judgement Day stare me in the face of the kind that makes me glad that I'm not religiously inclined. When I'm gone, I'm gone after the last memory of me has died as well. Does the music match this view? Only in the fact that it's dark, as the people descending towards hell will experience before the fiery pit opens itself for them. Monolord plays on the dark mood with their dark sound. The voice of the singer isn't that deep though, more in the range of classic rock singers of the 70s. The vocal melody matches this idea. Melodically the song is fairly monotonous but that adds to the mood of the song. I'm Staying Home is a leftover from the band's 2019 album 'No Comfort' and the right song to release in these Corona days. "Stay the fuck home" as the bio reads. The Swedish band re-recorded the lyrics to suit the times and succeeded, as some scenes on the news these days are somewhat apocalyptic, aren't they?

Future Shock. The Gordons

Flying Nun Records re-releases a single from 1980 stemming from the Christchurch punk scene. Listening to Future Shock I hear an almost dated song by a band that has just learned to play its instruments, but manages to combine a few tremendously good influences into a song that is basking in energy. Had I ever heard of Christchurch in 1980? Chances are no and certainly not of The Gordons and their single Future Shock. That would not have changed had it not been for this re-release. The Gordons manage to combine a The Velvet Underground rhythm to a The Cure lead guitar sound, U.K. punk rhythm guitar and bass playing and Johnny Rotten style singing without the overdone accent. The result is a wild cocktail of energy and abandon. Is Future Song an extremely good song? No, but that isn't the point. It's the energy, a little anger and madness that allows for dancing, sorry, pogoing in wild abandon and leaving everything behind for a short while, while counting your bruises afterwards.

Track X. Black Country, New Roads

The name to watch seems to be Black Country, New Roads. The band's name has been going around for some time and now I'm listening to its latest single on route to the debut album. I had expected a lot but not the moody, bare song that I'm hearing. More like some more Shame of Fontaines D.C. Track X is a song that isn't a band song at all. There's a guitar or two, play a motif over and over. A singer sings with a dark voice, slowly, with held-back emotions. In one speaker there are violins in the other a saxophone. Female backing vocals do "ooh" for a short while. There's nothing that invites to sing along to, this is listening territory and I'm not convinced that Track X is the kind of song that invites many sessions over time. This is far from bad, don't get me wrong, but the music is so subtle that it appears monotonous. Listen closely and you'll hear more than you might have the first time. Still, I'm not convinced; yet?

Cool. EUT

EUT returns with another single on the brink of alternative rock and pop. Cool is the kind of song that has an edge and still fits in an ear quite easily. The opening of the song is so relaxed. The electronic sounding rhythm detonates with the slow singing of Megan de Klerk. It is a kind of mix that grabbed me immediately, it made me want to listen. And that paid off. Cool is like a song by Bettie Serveert without Peter Visser. The result is a song that breathes. A song to enjoy. Where I doubted EUT at the time of the first album, I have already heard a few songs now that seem to point towards the growth the band has gone through since its first record. It shows in the two faces the song has. After the empty intro the song is flashed out and becomes more poppy without losing its alternative edge. If radio stations today of this weren't so one-sided, this is the kind of song that deserves massive airplay and becoming better known under the youth of The Netherlands and not on my radar, as this music, no matter how nice, should not be made with me in mind. And EUT, nice, funny ending Cool has!

Animal. Lucy Spraggan

Animal is one of the singles from upcoming album 'Choices'. Lucy Spraggan is a new name for me, but in the U.K. she has already made a name for herself, e.g. through participation in a TV show like 'X Factor'. Animal is a pop single with a modern sound but at the same time with enough features to make it timeless up to a point. The singing is like I hear a lot in music of the past circa 10 years in new folk bands. Animal comes close to that genre without ever transgressing into it. For that the rhythms are to electronic, but the way guitars and keyboards are used makes Animal a nice hybrid song. Lucy Spraggan has made a song that moves on these three faultlines where her music is concerned without ever losing the pop element out of here sight. "I'm an animal" is a chorus so easy sing along to, so that is taken care of as well. A catchphrase making it hard to forget the song as well.

Forgive Her. Jillette Johnson

Jillette Johnson releases new singles almost like clockwork. With Forgive Her she adds a dreamy song to her oeuvre. A song that seems to slowly meander from start to finish, but listen more carefully and you will find murkier parts underneath the soft singing of Ms. Johnson and the soft playing guitar(s). The electronic rhythm is all but so clear and straightforward. Yes, it is the same but a little strange, isn't it? The same goes for the little "te-di-dis" you can hear in one of the corners of the mix. It adds a little mystery to the song. If anything, as an influence I would mention Stevie Nicks songs from Fleetwood Mac. Forgive Her holds the kind of mystery 'Rhiannon' or 'Sara' have. The sound is very different, the mood is not. That is what surprises me while listening to the song a few times in a row. More and more comes forward, even the singing of Jillette Johnson seems to get a little edge to it that I did not hear the first two times. She may forgive someone, but...?, that is the question I'm stuck with after listening a final time.

Let Your Love Come Home. Big Baby

Big Baby's third single is another nice hybrid of modern pop with some hints at musical times long gone. The result is a song that is simply pleasant to listen to. With the drums laying a sound, dry foundation in the verses, the song gets a great pace. Together with the bass, the song does not need more than the (harmony) vocals to keep the verses going. Big Baby dares to keep its song bare to the bone, fully confident that the melody will carry it across. It does. It's not everyday that the verse is even stronger than the chorus. Here it comes as a nice addition, not necessarly the highlight of the song. After the intro, which is the instrumental version of the chorus, the band throws out the guitar only to return in the chorus. The multi harmonies here are extremely nice of course. Three singles in, the band does 2 out of 3 for me. An album has not been announced yet, but I can deal with a fourth single soon.

Wo.

 

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

 

 

Painters. Teddy's Hit

Under every tile of Amsterdam, Utrecht, Groningen and Rotterdam's streeets an alternative rock band seems to be hiding. Where most youths appear to engage in rap, dance and games, another cross section of youngsters have taken up guitars, drums and some keyboards to make music like it was popular decades ago and give it a modern twist. With a level of quality that shows that these musicians have years of playing and practising, perhaps even studying music under their belts.

A new name, for me, is Teddy's Hit. My introduction comes with this album, Painters. Released on singer-songwriter Tim Knol's label I Love My Label, which is not a great surprise as Painters has some faint traces of Knol's punkrock record/band 'The Miseries'. Teddy's Hit is from Amsterdam and has a singing drummer, which is not the most obvious combination. The band has been working towards this release since 2016, slowly building a live reputation and repertoire.

On Painters Teddy's Hit combines early 80s new wave with 90s alternative pop and mix it with the quality of alternative, yet often very melodic rock the new generation Dutch bands excel in. Where bands like these in 80s lost me completely, this new generation draw me to their music like moths to a flame, without the danger of burning any wings. The music of Teddy's Hit combines alternative, prickly chords, rhythms and melodies with an easy flow in the songs that makes them so easy and enjoyable to listen to. I'm not afraid of calling several of the songs on Painters alternative pop. It's even a term they fully deserve.

Teddy's Hit's music does not come as a total surprise. There are clear elements of Canshaker Pi in some of the songs, without the revolutionary, radical edges that band had in its music. The way Kick Kluiving sings certainly lends a little from Willem Smit. Both have moments of boredom coming through their voices that can disappear in an instant, setting a song on its head immediately. With the band following within a flash, lighting a song on fire.

Listening to another great Dutch record within lets say six months its time to make a statement. The world raves over bands like Shame, Fontaines D.C., etc., etc. It's time we start raving about our bands so they notice across the border as well. The albums of Apneu, Global Charming, Jagd, Slow Worries and now Teddy's Hit can compete with the new U.K./Irish bands easily given half the chance. So Dutch export experts, get to work, as this new class of the early 20s fully deserves it. We have gold, perhaps even platinum in our hands. Some touring support, contact with labels, what not and who knows how far these bands can go?!

Something has changed from my personal perspective. Where for decades Dutch bands were usually an after thought, in the past years, I even buy albums regularly. Painters will be no exception here, as it is an album very much worthwhile listening to on a regular basis.

Wo.

You can order Painters here:

https://shop.excelsior-recordings.com/products/teddys-hit-painters

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Silhouette. Lili Grace

Recently I mentioned Lili Grace in a review of Midnight Sister's new album, 'Painting The Roses'. That album contained some musical curveballs and if you liked those surprises in the music, I can warmly recommend Silhoutte by Belgian duo Lili Grace.

The album was released officially somewhere in November of 2020, but as Lili Grace wanted to focus fully on its home country Belgium first, we only really got the chance to get acquainted this month. A nice cd with a sober front was delivered in my mailbox and from that moment onwards the adventure called Silhouette began in earnest. That last word is the right one to use as listening to Silhouette takes dedication and determination. Lili Grace truly takes a listener on an adventure and throws in some musical curveballs into the whole to make the listener confused and gets him/her on the wrong foot not by accident but clear design. Nothing is what it seems at first.

This introduction was written purely after listening to the music a few times and under different circumstances. After it became clear to me that I wanted to write about this album, because it demands writing, despite being so deeply estranging at times, only then I started to read the accompanying bio. It was then that the word accident got a literal meaning, as I'll explain below. I needed to write, despite and because of beauty colliding with deep emotions that seem to derail the music beyond recognition. Silhouette is not just an album. For that too much is happening.

Silhouette is the debut album of the sisters Dienne and Nelle Bogaerts from Belgium. The album was more or less created in 2017 and ready in 2018. Why it took two more than two years before it was released, I do not know. There was an extreme necessity and urgency to create this album: the car accident of their brother, who wound up in a coma in hospital, alive but from this world, a silhouette of the man he used to be. The accident, the hospitalisation and the effect on the sisters Bogaerts is what this album is about. A reflection on a dark episode in their lives. As music history attests to, the darkest experiences can lead to the best music. And I have to conclude that Silhouette can be added to that long list of records.

This starts with the angelic harmonies of Dienne and Nelle Bogaerts. You find them all over the album. The two sing together superbly and range from angels to demons, witches, little harpies and back. The music is just as far out. An almost classical ballad is thrown before the bus by a totally electronic song with estranging but solid beats. It may also be that a song gets a Kate Bush circa 'The Dreaming' treatment with even more estranging elements in the music than Kate presented the world with sort of out of the blue in 1982.

To come back to Midnight Sister. When all is said and done there's no comparison. Lili Grace goes so far beyond conventions in music, there from Belgium, right?, that they are moving towards a league of their own. I fell from surprise into surprise per song. Goat Girl releases a new album next week that is announced as moving beyond conventions as well. Watch this space whether they make it here and see who has gone out "furthest".

Can I call Silhouette an extremely good album? I simply cannot say yet. For that the album sends me off in too many directions for most of the time. What I can tell you is that it moves me on several levels and that is a where building a relationship with an album in most cases starts. I'm certainly interested to learn where the two of us will go in the coming weeks and months.

Wo.

You can listen to and order Silhouette here:

https://liligrace.bandcamp.com/album/silhouette

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Interview met Jan Stroomer van The Stream, deel 1

Interview: Wout de Natris

© WoNo Magazine 2021

Tussen kerst en oud en nieuw vond een ontspannen gesprek plaats over muziek maken, muziek spelen en muziek luisteren. Een gesprek dat makkelijk nog een paar uur langer had kunnen duren en dan nog waren Jan en Wout niet uitgesproken geweest. Hier volgt het eerste deel van een weergave van het gesprek.

Zelden heb ik geconverseerd met iemand die in zulke mooi afgeronde zinnen spreekt, met weinig haperingen en een heel prettige stem om naar te luisteren. Alleen daarom al is het plezierig met Jan te praten.

Jan en ik kennen elkaar inmiddels ruim zes jaar. Dat begon met een solo optreden in Scheltema in 2014, op een bill met Mieke van Veen en als ik me goed herinner een cabaretier of goochelaar. Daarna spraken we elkaar tijdens een optreden van een allang niet meer bestaande, Leidse band in Gebr. de Nobel. Een muzikaal hoogtepunt was zeker de presentatie van 'Sweet Sally, Sad Departure in 2018, weer in Scheltema, gevolgd door een huiskamerconcert van Jan en twee van de drie zangeressen van The Stream in 2019.

In 2020 bestond The Stream tien jaar en dit zou gevierd worden met iedere maand een release van een oud nummer gestoken in een nieuw jasje, met daar omheen allerlei optredens op mooie plaatsen en in verschillende settingen. Het eerste is volkomen gelukt en beluisterbaar op verschillende digitale platformen, het tweede plan werd steeds lastiger uit te voeren en raakte steeds verder uit het zicht door de Corona pandemie. Net als voor veel andere artiesten (en vele andere mensen natuurlijk) moesten plannen worden bijgesteld. En 2021 begint zo mogelijk nog donkerder. Tijd om daarom met het interview te beginnen.

Muziek "thuis"

Natuurlijk begonnen we met terug te kijken op het feestjaar, maar daar wil ik hier niet mee beginnen. Eerst gaan we terug in de tijd, naar huize Stroomer, het ouderlijk huis. Ik vroeg naar vroege muzikale herinneringen en wellicht invloeden. Zoals vrijwel ieder kind hoorde hij wat er thuis werd opgezet. Dit was klassieke muziek, altijd. Bach, Mozart. "Als ik een clavecimbel hoor, ben ik direct thuis, bij mijn ouders. Mijn wens was ook clavecimbel te gaan spelen". Hij had les in Katwijk bij een organist, die ook een spinet in huis had. Daar heeft hij een nummer op leren spelen, dat al snel iedere clavecimbelbouwer in Nederland kon horen op een festival waar hij met zijn vader naar toe ging. "Ik moet sowieso op iedere piano die ik zie even spelen. Ieder instrument is anders en heeft zijn eigen klank". Langs deze weg ontdekte Jan Scarlatti en leerde een paar sonates van hem spelen en zo werden vader en zoon Stroomer fan van Scarlatti.

Rond zijn 11e of 12e ontdekte hij popmuziek. Dat betekende voor Nederland in het algemeen zo ongeveer de doorbraak van grunge en Guns 'N' Roses. Jan ontdekte The Beatles, 'I Feel Fine', een plaatje dat zijn moeder nog had van vroeger. Met een tweedehands pick up en een cassetterecorder werd de collectie langzaam uitgebreid. Zo ontdekte hij Queen en ging er een wereld voor hem open, inclusief een clavecimbel in hun vroege werk. "Zie je, het kan zelfs in de popmuziek". Daarna ontdekte hij Tori Amos, maar las veel later in een interview dat Amos ten tijde van haar derde album met de sonates van Scarlatti bezig was. En toen viel alles soort van op zijn plaats voor hem: "ja, nu snap ik het". Dat was ongeveer vijf jaar geleden. "De popmusici waar ik veel mee heb, hebben eenzelfde soort ontwikkeling doorgemaakt als ik en net als ik zijn zij in de popmuziek verder gegaan, maar kijken regelmatig of zij iets kunnen lenen uit de klassieke muziek, want er is genoeg te vinden daar". Het grappige is dat ook thuis het niet bij klassiek gebleven is. "Ik kwam bijvoorbeeld met Paul Simon thuis, terwijl mijn vader thuis kwam met een cd uit het Central Park waarop Paul Simon met een Zuid-Afrikaanse band muziek maakt. We vragen aan elkaar wat we hier van vinden. Zo vinden we elkaar toch met zekere regelmaat".

Mannelijke en vrouwelijke invloeden

"Als ik naar je muziek luister heb ik het idee dat mannen meer een inspiratiebron voor je zijn dan vrouwen. Klopt dat?" We worden het erover eens dat dat meer te maken kan hebben met de lage bromstem van Jan, dan iets anders. In zijn pianospel zit wel degelijk de invloed van Tori Amos. Hij geeft ook aan een enorme fan te zijn van Regina Spector. "Een aantal pianospelende vrouwen heb ik heel hoog zitten. Maar in interviews heeft het weinig zin om aan te geven, omdat waarschijnlijk niemand die invoeld er in terug zal horen". Terugkijkend op mijn vraag, erken ik dat dit ook meer aan mij ligt. Ik ben degene die de muziek van de vrouwen die hem hebben beïnvloed niet ken danwel waardeer. Uiteindelijk ben ik de gitarist en hij de pianist, een onderwerp waar we later op terug zullen komen. Toch vinden we elkaar weer in het feit dat we beiden mannen "makkelijker" vinden om naar te luisteren dan vrouwen. Daar staat tegenover dat ik 2020 echt een vrouwenjaar vind en heel veel vrouwen of bands geleid door vrouwen heb ontdekt die ik enorm goed vind. Jan geeft aan dat er in de popmuziek al een paar jaar een beweging is om tot een eerlijkere verdeling te komen. "Uiteindelijk zal de beste altijd boven komen, maar een eerlijkere verdeling is goed".

Photo, Wo: 16-11-2014

Sociale Media en Marketing

Merk je dat de sociale media, You Tube, Spotify, etc., het makkelijker heeft gemaakt voor artiesten en het gelijkwaardiger is geworden tussen artiesten en industrie of is het een fabel?

"Ik heb zelf de periode niet meegemaakt dat de enige manier om muziek uit te brengen was om dat via een platenmaatschappij te doen. In de afgelopen tien jaar heb ik gemerkt dat sociale media telkens meer een verdienmodel is geworden. Iedere keer als ik een manier gevonden had om mijn publiek makkelijk te bereiken, was dat een jaar later al niet meer mogelijk". Tenzij er betaald wordt natuurlijk en hoeveel kan een band uitgeven aan marketing ten opzichte van het maken en spelen van muziek? Dat is telkens een afweging die moet worden gemaakt. "Tegenwoordig moet ik betalen om een release bekend te maken aan mijn 1000 Facebookvrienden. Berichten werden een aantal jaar geleden makkelijk 1000 tot 5000 keer gelezen. Nu alleen als ik daarvoor betaal. Mijn ervaring is dat het steeds moeilijker wordt en er zijn steeds meer muzikanten, vooral door muziekopleidingen in Nederland. Wij zijn klanten geworden van sociale media en niet meer de aanbieder van een muzikaal product. De opbrengsten van streamen zijn doorgaans lager dan de advertentiekosten voor een nieuwe song. Daarvoor moet je optreden". "Maar dat is toch een trieste conclusie?" "Ja, maar ik weet niet hoe het anders zou kunnen. We kunnen als muzikant niet meer anders. Daarna moet iemand anders het doen en die is er niet. Zou het nog zonder kunnen, heb ik me afgevraagd? Het antwoord is nee, dat is commerciële zelfmoord. Het is maken van een afweging: Wat wil ik bereiken en wat kost het me?

Wordt vervolgd in deel 2.

De muziek van The Stream kun je hier beluisteren en bestellen:

https://thestream.bandcamp.com/album/sweet-sally-sad-departure

of luister naar onze Spotify Playlist om uit te vinden waar we over schrijven:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Starting Over. Chris Stapleton

De afgelopen twee jaar was het stil rond Chris Stapleton, maar met Starting Over onderstreept de Amerikaanse muzikant nog eens de belofte van zijn eerste albums en verkent hij bovendien nieuwe wegen.

Met zijn debuut Traveler leverde Chris Stapleton in 2015 een droomdebuut af, waarna de twee albums uit 2017 zijn talent bevestigden. Ook met het deze week verschenen Starting Over maakt Chris Stapleton weer indruk. Op zijn nieuwe album is de Amerikaanse muzikant weer wat minder stijlvast, maar ook de uitstapjes buiten de country zijn zeer de moeite waard. Bijgestaan door twee leden van Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers, zijn vaste band en zijn vrouw Morgane maakt Chris Stapleton ruim 50 minuten indruk met goede songs, geweldige muzikanten, een topproducer en vooral met zijn rauwe strot. Chris Stapleton is de belofte inmiddels al lang voorbij.

Chris Stapleton debuteerde in het voorjaar van 2015 met het uitstekende Traveler, waarmee de Amerikaanse muzikant zich schaarde onder de smaakmakers binnen de Amerikaanse rootsmuziek. Twee jaar na zijn debuut leverde Chris Stapleton het uit twee delen bestaande From A Room af en bevestigde hij de belofte van zijn zo goed ontvangen debuut. 

Sindsdien was Chris Stapleton actief op meerdere terreinen, maar tot een album kwam het helaas niet, tot deze week dan eindelijk de opvolger van From A Room verscheen. Ook Starting Over is weer geproduceerd door de meest gewilde producer in Nashville, Dave Cobb, maar het nieuwe album van Chris Stapleton is zeker geen herhaling van zetten. 

Starting Over bevat twee songs van Guy Clark, een song van John Fogerty en elf songs van Chris Stapleton, deels geschreven met anderen, onder wie Mike Campbell, die we ook kennen als lid van The Heartbreakers, de band van de in 2017 overleden Tom Petty. Mike Campbell is niet het enige lid van The Heartbreakers dat is te horen op Starting Over, want ook Heartbreakers pianist en organist Benmont Tench is van de partij op het nieuwe album van Chris Stapleton. 

Het is een album dat laat horen dat Chris Stapleton binnen de Amerikaanse rootsmuziek op een breed terrein uit de voeten kan en het is bovendien een album dat laat horen dat Chris Stapleton nog altijd thuis hoort bij de smaakmakers binnen het genre. 

Chris Stapleton sloeg op zijn vorige albums een brug tussen rootsmuziek en met name countrymuziek uit het verleden en die uit het heden en dat doet hij ook weer op Starting Over. Het album bevat een aantal songs die herinneren aan de countrymuziek van een aantal decennia geleden, maar Chris Stapleton kan ook eigentijds klinken en kan bovendien makkelijk schakelen naar omliggende genres. 

Zeker in de wat traditioneler aandoende countrysongs op het album wordt hij fraai bijgestaan door zijn vrouw Morgane Stapleton, die het perfecte tegenwicht vormt voor de rauwe strot van Chris Stapleton, wat hier en daar herinnert aan de fraaie duetten van Gram Parsons en Emmylou Harris. 

Country en vooral wat traditioneel aandoende country speelt een voorname rol op Starting Over, maar Chris Stapleton kan ook uit de voeten met bluesy rock, met stevige rootsrock en countryrock of met meeslepende en soulvolle songs waarin zo nu en dan de strijkers stevig mogen aanzwellen. 

Ook in muzikaal opzicht klinkt het allemaal geweldig. Het snarenwerk van Chris Stapleton, Mike Campbell en producer Dave Cobb is prachtig en zeer veelzijdig, net als het orgel- en pianospel van meester toetsenist Benmont Tench. Een subtiel spelende ritmesectie en een af en toe opduikende pedal steel maken het over het algemeen vrij ingetogen geluid op Starting Over compleet. Het geluid is over het algemeen vrij ingetogen, maar Starting Over bevat ook een aantal wat stevigere en voller klinkende songs. 

Chris Stapleton maakte zijn album voor de coronapandemie Europa en de Verenigde Staten trof, maar zeker wanneer de Amerikaanse muzikant maatschappelijke thema’s aan snijdt is Starting Over absoluut een album van deze tijd. Zelf heb ik een voorkeur voor de net wat meer country getinte songs op het album, maar de uitstapjes buiten de gebaande paden dwingen respect af en zijn in de meeste gevallen geslaagd. Alleen jammer dat hij niet aan de cover van het album is toegekomen.

Erwin Zijleman

Luister naar onze Spotify Playlist om uit te vinden waar we over schrijven:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

 

The Last Exit. Still Corners

Except for a recent single, Still Corners has been absent from this blog since 2013. In the meantime I seem to have missed two albums and that for a band whose first two albums I liked a lot at the time but have no recollection of at all, I noticed just now. They disappeared in that digital labyrinth called external hard discs, the killer of all deepening of relationships with music.

Enter The Last Exit, Still Corner's first album in the 20s. Earlier this week I reviewed a box set of the studio albums of Chris & Carla, The Walkabouts' front duo, called 'Velvet Fog'. It is as if they have a new, slightly more dreamy album in 2021. The mood on The Last Exit is so similar and captured me from the second listening session onwards. I let myself be carried away by the music this duo produces. Whether slow and atmospheric or faster paced and atmospheric, the songs totally work for me.

With The Last Exit Tessa Murray and Greg Hughes release their fifth album together since 2011. Instrumentalist Hughes and vocalist Murray together manage to create an atmosphere that is dreamy but has side steps to Americana and folk, think Chris Isaak i.e., the sound of his lead guitarist James Calvin Wilsey. (Who died in 2018 I just found out because of writing this.) Hughes is originally from Arizona and I am quite certain that I hear the sound of the wind sweeping through a deserted mining town way down in the desert on this album.

So, it's time to ask myself the question why Still Corners now for the third time appeals to me near immediately but has been discarded somewhere on the pile of records and time? Of course that is the way of nearly all music, but in my post of 2013 I mention that the debut album, 'Creatures Of An Hour' only barely missed my top 10 for 2011. So, how can I not have a single recollection of the album? There's no answer I'm afraid. All I can say is that The Last Exit deserves to be heard more often for certain.

Getting to know the album better the Americana connection gets bigger and better. I just notice it much more than in the first sessions. In my recollection, and as you can glean from the above that may be shaky territory, Still Corners was more electronicaly inclined. On The Last Exit the guitars certainly play a large role over a mostly sober, but well-woundng rhythm section. It results in a part melancholy, part dreamy album where the music perfectly accompanies the stories Tessa Murray sings and escapes with some nice, solo lines drenched in reverb, vibrato and echo. If Chris & Carla had made an album together with Wilsey it had sounded something like this, with the exception of the absence of the beauty and the beast duets and harmonies of Chris Eckman and Carla Torgerson.

Once again I'm extremely pleasantly surprised by Still Corners. Will they surprise me again in 2023/24 or will I finally be fully prepared for an album by the duo? Only time will tell.

Wo.

You can order or listen to The Last Exit here:

https://stillcorners.bandcamp.com/album/the-last-exit

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Een Teken Aan De Wand. Kwartet Niek Hilkmann

Meligheid? Dat is toch het woord dat mij bij beluistering van de eerste noten van Een Teken Aan De Wand te binnenschieten en, als ik eerlijk ben, mij niet meer verlaat. Ik sluit niet uit dat de makers van de plaat, Kwartet Niek Hilkmann, het gewoon met mij eens zijn. Er klinkt gewoon een zekere verveeldheid door in de muziek die doorgaans gepaard gaat met meligheid.

Toch is dit maar een deel van het verhaal. Wie doorzet, merkt al gauw dat Een Teken Aan De Wand ook iets aanstekelijks heeft en dat dat ouderwets klinkende orgeltje onder de huid weet te kruipen.

Ouderwets is een tweede woord dat genoemd mag worden. De liedjes op de plaat klinken voor een deel alsof ze in de late jaren 60 zijn opgenomen. Ieder liedje had op de Nederlandse 'Nuggets' verzamelaar, 'Nederlandse Beat, Bluf en Branie' kunnen staan. De atmosfeer is totaal 60s, Armand, Het, om maar twee acts te noemen. Vooral ook omdat in de teksten ook van die vondsten staan als in de teksten van Armand en Bob Bouber. Het is niet alleen de spacey muziek. Dan kom ik in de moderne tijd ook bij The Kik uit, maar die band is poppier dan Kwartet Niek Hilkmann, melodieuzer ook, minder confronterend.

Een modernere naam, maar van een artiest wiens roots in de muziekscene van de jaren 80 liggen, is Spinvis. In de kleinere liedjes op deze cd schiet die naam wel bij mij binnen. Luister naar albumafsluiter 'Zaamslag' en je weet genoeg.

Promo photo: Els Kuijt

Het verschil is een band die steviger doordreunt, meedogenlozer is in zijn keuzes. Er zit een element van circa 1980 in de muziek, die niet voor optimale melodie gaat, maar het effect. Juist doordat Kwartet Niek Hilkmann die combinatie tussen jaren 60 pop, psychedelica en new wave weet te leggen, is de muziek in 2021 in mijn oren uitermate geslaagd. Hoor hoe The Velvet Underground ritmes 'Turbo Polyp' voortjagen. 'What Goes On' in een volledig nieuw jasje. Een feest voor de oren kan ik wel stellen. Over lekkere nummers gesproken, dan staat deze dit jaar wel vooraan wat mij betreft.

Tot vandaag had ik nog nooit van Kwartet Niek Hilkmann gehoord. Het is een Rotterdamse band die eerder twee singles uitbracht en nu aan de eerste cd toe is. Niek Hilkmann zingt en speelt gitaar, Arie van Vliet bas, Ruud Hilkmann toetsen en Joris Frowein drums en percussie. Ik ben behoorlijk blij dat daar verandering is gekomen.

Van de meligheid die mij te binnenschoot, is niet veel over nu ik vaker naar het album heb geluisterd. Het is gewoon heerlijk om naar Een Teken Aan De Wand te luisteren, inclusief de wat aparte, soms absurdistische teksten. Soms is het goed om even voorbij de eerste indruk te gaan. In dit geval meer dan goed. Een Teken Aan De Wand is een poppareltje.

Wo.

Je kunt Een Teken Aan De Wand hier bestellen:

https://shop.excelsior-recordings.com/products/kwartet-niek-hilkmann-een-teken-aan-de-wand

of luister naar onze Spotify Playlist om uit te vinden waar we over schrijven:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Ten Singles

Another week, another bunch of singles on WoNoBlog. Singles that most likely will not find their way into the charts. I almost see no collaborations of x, feat. y, with z. Nowadays that is a dead giveaway for non-charting it seems. That does not imply that some of these songs do not deserve to be hits. In fact there's one song, and this is in no way degrading the nine other singles, that ought to be a worldwide number 1 hit. See if you can spot which one I mean. Click on the link below and follow these roundup of singles one by one. Let us now in the chat what your favourite is!

Action Replay. The Fratellis

The Fratellis will forever be the band of just one song, 'Chelsea Dagger'. A one-hit wonder. I liked the second album so much more as a whole than the first though. After that the band broke up to come back together somewhere in the 10s, without even coming close to coming to the success of that one single. Come the 2020. We are all three decades older. Action Replay is a sensitive ballad and as such not even a bad one. It's just not what I want to hear from The Fratellis, is what my preconceptions are telling me. At the same time a lot of thought and work went into the song. Action Replay is far from a one dimensional ballad. In fact there's more than enough to enjoy in the song. Listening more often to the song I even get the impression that the music underscores the title in a formidable way. The Fratellis in action replay. Add a truckload of Beatlesque elements in the singing and I'm about to conclude that I will give Action Replay the benefit of the doubt.

Kleine Lettertjes. De Breek

Amsterdam-Noord trio De Breek is langzamerhand geen gelegenheidstrio meer te noemen. Met zekere regelmaat komen er nieuwe nummers uit, die stuk voor stuk de moeite van het luisteren waard zijn. Kleine Lettertjes is een ingetogen nummer, waarin de zang als het ware een gevecht aangaat met de achtergrond vokalen. Naar het einde toe wordt steeds minder duidelijk welke lijn de hoofdlijn is. Alleen de stemkleur verraadt het nog. Daarnaast eist de muzikale begeleiding een steeds grotere rol op. De interactie zorgt voor een zeer interessante ontwikkeling. Het liedje begint als een soort Spinvis nummer om langzaam maar zeker iets volkomen eigens te krijgen. Allerlei breaks zetten de luisteraar op een verkeerd been om telkens sterker terug te komen. Met Kleine Lettertjes voegt De Breek een echt prachtig nummer toe aan het al niet misselijke oeuvre. Het wachten is op de eerste volledige plaat.

I Who Have Nothing. Genya Ravan feat. Nile Rodgers

What a powerful single this is! I Who Have Nothing is of course a famous song in itself. Type in the song and you will find versions from Shirley Bassey to Tom Jones and Ben E. King. It is nearly impossible to imagine that this is the same song as the mellow 60s classic. The rough and well-worn voice of Genya Ravan tears the lyrics in two and stomps on the halves for a while coming up with a deep groove. Nile Rodgers is so impressed that he left his trademark funky disco style guitarplaying style at home and plays in the full service of this groove. The result is one of the most swinging songs that I've heard for years. Whatever you may think of the remnants of Ms. Ravan's voice, there's no denying that she masters this song in a superb way. Let me say this once more? What a powerful single this is! A cover that outshines the original in a million ways. Oh, do I love rock and roll (to mention another cover outshining the original.)

Deathwatch Beetle Party. Storm Seeker

Now answer yourself honestly. What do you expect to hear with a song title like Deathwatch Beetle Party? I simply was not certain. Metal? Thrashrock?, but that's only the case because of the band name. I had braced myself for many things but not a mix of metal and Irish folk. Nor German lyrics and a System of a Down delivery. Fact is, this single is all over the place and shows several sides of the band within three minutes. Not as extreme as 'Chop Suey' did, but certainly in this vein. Of course, Dropkick Murphies come to mind, were it not that the guitars are far more prominent and metal sounding. Storm Seeker is a band from Düsseldorf in Germany, explaining the German language a little more. Singer Marius 'Olaf' Bornfleth certainly listened to Dropkick Murphies' singer Al Barr. Hopefully his vocal chords will  serve him a bit better. In short, hearing is believing with Deathwatch Beetle Party, but fun it is.

Aren't You Glad. Found Instruments

In 2021 it is still possible to make a synthpop song like it is 1984. As if Nik Kershaw never went out of fashion within a few years. Found Instruments is a musical project of Jack Joseph. Aren't You Glad is the third single released. What appeals to me is the soft way the song meanders in combination with the dreamy single and synths creating the backbone and lead melody. Joseph's voice is soft tinged and warm. I can become totally melancholy with this music. It brings me down without becoming sad, as the music caresses me as well. As it were I can feel it around me. Anyone who likes this music should check out Antwerp artist Low Hill as well. You'll find something of your liking with him as well. Just like Kershaw's 'Wouldn't It Be Good', Aren't You Glad' agrees with me. If no 'The Riddle' follows we may even get on a permanent footing, who knows? Commercially, a 'The Riddle' may be a wiser decision though.

Déjà Vu. Austin Meade

In November 'Happier Alone' made it to a single roundup, in January Déjà Vu does. Meade plays a U.S. form of rock again. Not my first rock of choice, still I'm writing. Austin Meade manages to stretch a well-worn style of rock a little and makes it more interesting. The verses are very traditional and nice but not interesting enough to return to. In the chorus the tempo is changed, while in the solo all traditions are left behind. The result is a hybrid that goes well beyond the Bryan Adams and other 80s rockers from North-America. Next to that the guitar work on Déjà Vu is clear and interesting, making the songs have many layers to follow. The mix of tradition and more modern sounds make the single interesting enough to play several times in a row, like a decent single has to. It seems Austin Meade has fully succeeded here.

Song Of Co-Aklan. Cathal Coughlan

Song Of Co-Aklan is a strong single. It has a fiery rhythm and aims to ignite venues. There's a bit traditional David Bowie in the song, hidden in more modern sound than Bowie produced around 1980 in a song like 'Scary Monsters'. Cathal Coughlan who until recently was unknown to me, has had a whole career in the 80s and 90s in bands like Microdisney and The Fatima Mansions. He skipped the whole 10s and returns with this fantastic, powerful single, recorded with Luke Haines and members from his past bands. Listening more closely the song gives away a little more of its secrets. The tight rhythm is only half of the story. In the keyboard sounds hides a little mystery that is added, while the lead guitar adds playfulness. It results in a multi-layered song by the Cork based artist, who returns to pop with a very successful song that in a different time and age might have been a hitsingle. Song Of Co-Aklan is a successful return to music alright.

Mechthild. Nero Kane

In October Nero Kane released his second album, 'Tales Of Faith And Lunacy'. It did not come to a review, on this blog I should add. It all was far too dark and gloomy for me to listen to for a long time. Is it so different with the new single of the album, Mechthild? No, it is exactly the same actually. Nero Kane or Marco Mezzadri as his parents know him, together with singer and filmmaker Samantha Stella creates a song so dark that German songstress Nico might have turned away in fright. Yes, you can hear Nick Cave in this song as well. The dark, brooding song is like the cauldron of a witch boiling over. Not knowing what the fumes and liquid can do is too scary to behold. The kind to steer away from, at least the more fainthearted listener. Mechthild is the 13th century mystic Mechtild von Magdeburg, whose writings can be heard on the album. This song is an experience  and not a song in the traditional way. More impressive than good, but memorable none the same.

Francine. People Club

The difference can't be larger when the first sounds of Francine enter my ears. Think a Fleetwood Mac kind of song from the 'Tango In The Night' era. With a singer whose voice is younger that Stevie Nicks' at the time, so doesn't have that edge (yet?). Francine has more than enough of its own. The sounds is more poppy and slightly more electronic. The song is a mix of electronic keyboards and traditional band instruments. People Club is a band from Germany and is praised for its Detroit 70s style. For the life of me, I can't hear anything resembling Marvin Gaye in the song. I'll admit to some faint traces of U.S. soul of the 70s, like Philly Soul or Barry White, but like I said before, this is more 'Little Lies'  and 'Everywhere' than anything else. The song is not as light as I thought in the first seconds. Only in comparison with 'Mechthild'. In fact, Francine is rather dark for a pop song. In short , interesting and the kind of invitation a single ought to present towards an upcoming album. So far on Spotify you can find a string of singles, since 2019. So who knows what 2021 has in store for the world.

A Million Miles Away. Arrows To Fire

Is there a more unlikely story than two bio-medical persons who meet at a conference on biomedical equipment and discover a shared fashion for playing and making rock music? Still, this is the story that Arrows To Fire tells the world. The two, John Joyo and Chris Lavigne, started to create music together and released their first album in 2016. With A Million Miles Away the duo makes a statement straight away. The drums kicks the song alive in no subtle way. All the band has to do is kick the ball in the net. There's little problem in doing so. The result is a fine melodic rocksong that will get people listening, dancing and singing. In between all the deft rocking out there's room for more subtle sounds of keyboards and some atmospheric sounds and even little bells if I'm hearing correctly. The easy to sing along to melody makes it clear that Arrows To Fire has released a nice, melodic rocker that is quite memorable.

Wo.

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g