2023. Week 17, 10 singles

King's Day, Liberation Day, there are a few festivities in my country these two weeks. School holidays ties the two festivities together. A chance for a lot of people to take a well-deserved break. This blog perseveres, no worries. This week we present ten more recent singles, with the clock striking a lot of rock. For those more into softer songs, hang in there. You'll be okay as well. Enjoy!

Road To Hell. The Dust Coda

'Highway To Hell', Road To Hell what is in a hardrock song's title? Well, where the two songs are concerned the singing along factor is taken care of in a successful way. The Dust Coda knows its classics and is able to add a good song to those classics with a chance of becoming one itself. The London four piece rocks alright. The song opens with an ear-catching riff followed by the rough voice of Australian John Drake. He has that rough edge to his voice that has to come with the genre, giving the tough song the right kind of credibility. The dual guitars do the rest. Great rhythm with the rhythm section and all sorts of great riffs and licks that escape the tight rhythm playing. The chorus does the rest. A softer interlude, Guns 'N' Roses style, gives the song a little breather before that great chorus comes back in. Here we go again: "the road to hell is wide open".

King To The Blind. Fence

Alternative pop is a strange denomination for a genre as pop is short for popular. What is considered pop music by the youth of today is something that lies way beyond my personal generation gap. Alternative pop does suit my purposes to describe a song that has some very nice pop elements, while it has nothing to do with mainstream 2023 pop music. King Of The Blind is such a song. Fence's members manage to bring in some great pop elements into their song. Starting with the soft intro, later some glorious harmonies are brought in. At the same time the guitar work shows that this band is 25 years in business and was influenced by early 1990s Boston area bands like Buffalo Tom and The Lemonheads. The la-la-la sequence shows that The Beatles are no strangers to Fence as well. The combination of pop and rock works here in a perfect, albeit alternative way. Oh, you guessed that already.

Somebody. CIEL

Somebody does not last for two minutes I found and could not imagine it was only this short, listening for the first time. The song sort of contains it all. The riff, the pogo moment, the energy and the soft singing of Michelle Hindriks. CIEL is a band from Brighton consisting of people all born in another country. Does that show? Not for me me, no. CIEL plays modern pop-rock songs that are springing up all over the world. From New Zealand to Europe to the U.S., this kind of music is popular once again, where a band like Nada Surf is playing it for close to 30 years now. Alternative, yet full of pop elements, with the fun riff that almost cannot be taken seriously, yet works so well in Somebody. Hindriks sings over it all with a voice full of innocence and youth belying the tough drumming behind her and the noise in general. The combination works quite well.

Sunchild. Para Lia

When can an artist claim to be a WoNoBlog veteran? I do not have an answer. Para Lia is working towards the release of its third album and with new single Sunchild can be found on these pages once again. Coincidentally, I mentioned the band in a post yesterday, as some of the songs of The Bellwether Syndicate reminded me instantly if René and Cindy Methner's music. Para Lia's music certainly has one foot in rock's past, yet is modern in its sound, a sound that is defined by clarity. In Sunchild Para Lia uses dynamics in its song perhaps more than ever before. The drums, all programmed, are huge. René shreds his guitars in the solo's. Can Para Lia's sound become more present here? I doubt it. Cindy sings some lovely harmonies adding to the melodiousness Sunchild already has in abundance. The details in the single are all fun to follow and explore. It will be a while before the albums is released later this year. The first introduction is a pleasant one.

27 Okay. Fake Indians

Not even two months down and here's another by Fake Indians. Live fast, die young, is the theme of the song. The 27 club, is not there for everyone to join, and luckily so, I add. Imagine what the world would have missed if 27 was the age for all. No, "my my hey hey" for example, a song title Fake Indians quotes in 27 Okay, let alone 'Rocking In The Free World'. 27 Okay rocks alright. The Belgian band is not holding back on its new single. It starts with just noise before the main riff is let loose and the band starts rocking out in a loud and tight way. Do not forget to listen to the bass runs played by Slander Laets. Exactly the sort of thing that makes a rock song more interesting. Fake Indians has TMGS' Stof Janssen on voice and lead guitar, who is releasing his inner rocker in this band. Successfully so. Hopefully, it's going to be a great summer and at the end of it a great Fake Indians album.

Tears (For Two). Ultra-Lite

It's rock what the clock strikes so far this week. Philadelphia's Ultra-Lite released its 7" single Tears (For Two) recently. Don't expect a happy song. The title gives that much away, I guess. This is a break-up song, even if it's just in the head of the "I" in the song. The song has an element of emo in the way of singing, the music is more solid than what I associate with emo. The chorus is an inner monologue storm and has that feeling. The song even gets an extra kick in the butt, as if it needed it! It makes Tears (For Two) even better than it already is. Gone are the subtleties you may find in the verses. Ultra-Lite just continues in a straight line here. Thoughts racing and racing inside the singer's head. Dreaming of leaving but locked up on the inside. Six rock singles in a row. It may be a record. If so, I'm glad I broke it with Tears (for Two).

Crippled Love. Withered Hand

With 'How To Love', Withered Hand's first album in nine years, out this week, we focus on single Crippled Love. It is one of those superb bitter sweet love songs that can get anyone in a sweet melancholic mood. Dan Willson sings his song like the puppy looking at you that is simply adorable. The difference being the dog has no idea and Dan Willson gives it truly his all. He knows what he's going for alright. That all is more than enough, as the effect is instant and maximum. Crippled Love strums away in a mid-tempo with two guitars playing beautiful melodies all through the song, all sounding so clear. Until the force comes in mildly for the chorus and the guitars are strummed, creating a layer of guitars. The music is still so well mixed that the tambourine shines through every time with all else going on around it. One of those little effects that make the whole of a song. Crippled Love is pop music as it once was meant to sound and lucky for us fans is still made today.

A Song About Me. Oscar Lang

Six rock songs in a row, then Withered Hand and now A Song About Me that really breaks the rock chain. Oscar Lang releases a song that fits into a long tradition of U.K. pop music. All the way to the 1970s and ELO and the 60s with bands like The Move (also with Jeff Lynne but in the backseat). A Song About Me is of the dreamy kind, with a small hint at psychedelic music, just like it has some classical elements in the big orchestral arrangement and finally to the band of bands itself, The Beatles. The ending is a classic one. Of the kind that could go on for minutes (but does not). The beginning is so leisurely. Lang plays his piano, accompanied by an Air-style bass and drums. There's a hint at Prince's 'Raspberry Beret', in the way a ballad can be psychedelic at the same time. Slowly but surely the song grows and becomes more impressive right up to that massive ending. I'd never heard of Oscar Lang but what an introduction A Song About Me is.

Best Friend. Wallice

There's a link between Oscar Lang, above, and Wallice. They released a song together called 'I've Never Been To L.A.'. Another link is the way 'A Song About Me' and Best Friend start and then use dynamics to get to a different feel. Things stop there though. Best Friend falls into a more traditional pop-rock idiom, Wallice's bio calls indie-pop. It certainly starts as a pop song with its slow keyboard part and acoustic guitar. It is all a sort of a rouse. When she starts singing "you're my best friend" a whole band kicks in for all they've got. Giving the song a totally different feel. The keyboard riff returns for a short while, after which things get a little more disturbed. Best Friend trots well-trodden musical paths, yet convinces and that is what a song should do when all is said and done.

A Fool. Melle

A few weeks ago Dutch singer-songwriter Melle debuted on this blog with his single 'Can't Come Home'. Today his new single makes these pages. With A Fool Melle touches on that bittersweet vibe good ballads have. Not that A Fool is in the toothaching sweet ballad category. No, far from. Melle presents a tough ballad with a lot of dynamics. From a modest beginning to a huge sound in the middle to the softest of endings. Melle should do a duet with Dutch-Irish singer Jane Willow based on the title of their singles. Both have dared to go the high road for their respective music. A Fool is not as expansive as 'Can't Come Home' but it is not as if Melle saved on expenses with the vast arrangement. Yet, no matter what is going on around him, this is about his singing. And this voice is able to move mountains it seems. The music moves the light to darkness and back while his voice sort of does the opposite. This is the second single that stands out. What's more in wait for us unsuspecting listeners?

Wout de Natris

Vestige & Vigil. The Bellwether Syndicate

Listening to Vestige & Vigil it is as if time has stood still since the 1980s. Despite the album being from 2023 it could have been recorded in 1983 - 1986. From the opening seconds, in the instrumental song 'Vestige', an urgency comes through that makes the album one in the category 'I want it all and I want it now', as the band happens to sing in 'Noir Thing'.

Everything about The Bellwether Syndicate's album is huge. The music, the production, the double tracked vocals, it is all aimed to be able to play in the largest stadiums. Memories from old albums by U2, The Simple Minds, Killing Joke, The Armoury Show, The Cult or Big Country, all come forward. Nearly all of them from the British Isles. The more striking it becomes that The Bellwether Syndicate is from Chicago.

The band formed in Chicago after William Faith moved there from Los Angeles. The band released an EP in 2014 and one single some years later. Vestige & Vigil was six years in the making. There's no real explanation provided, although I can imagine a certain pandemic to have been of some influence. Whatever the reason, the result is what counts and the record is remarkable.

The band's members are William Faith (vox, guitars), Sarah Rose Faith (vox, guitars), Philly Peroxide (keyboards, percussion), Stevyn Grey (drums) and Corey Gorey (guitars). Produced and recorded by William Faith, it makes him responsible for the successful huge sound.

Promo photo: David Staudacher

The album holds a few musical flavours. Post punk is certainly one of them but far removed what is called post punk in the U.K. and here in NL today. The link with the original post punk of the 1980s is obvious. At the same time The Bellwether Syndicate is not afraid of throwing in some rock Foo Fighters style, like in 'We All Rise'. People who like Cottbus, Germany band/project Para Lia will certainly find something to their liking on Vestige & Vigil.

Having listened though this album several times now, what remains with me every time, is the enormous sense of urgency. The Bellwether Syndicate is in fear of not catching the last train or bus home. On the basis of Vestige & Vigil it should though and be invited to tour extensively. If the band is able to translate this sound to the stage, success ought to be guaranteed. A song like 'Clarion' sung by Sarah Rose Faith has a golden chorus, just like the great single 'Golden Age', that is not on the album. Vestige & Vigil is a rock album deserving to be checked out extensively.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Vestige & Vigil here:

https://thebellwethersyndicate.bandcamp.com/album/vestige-vigil

And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow. Weyes Blood

Vandaag een recensie uit 2022 van Erwin, die op de stapel is blijven liggen. Die hoort er vanaf te komen, want Erwin is echt in vervoering geraakt door dit album.

Weyes Blood vervolgt haar imposante muzikale reis met het werkelijk prachtige And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, dat betovert met memorabele songs, wonderschone arrangementen en zang om van te watertanden.

Na de jaarlijstjesalbums The Innocents, Front Row Seat To Earth en Titanic Rising lag de lat ontiegelijk hoog, maar het deze week verschenen And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow gaat er wat mij betreft overheen. De songs van Natalie Mering zijn misschien wat toegankelijker geworden, maar de arrangementen op het album zijn wederom betoverend mooi, wat ook geldt voor de zang van de Amerikaanse muzikante, die hier en daar herinnert aan Karen Carpenter. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow slaat op fraaie wijze een brug tussen verleden en heden en voorziet de donkere avonden van het moment van een prachtige soundtrack. Schrijf maar alvast op voor de jaarlijstjes. (Het werd nummer 4, WdN.)

Natalie Mering maakte een tijdje deel uit van de Amerikaanse cultband Jackie-O Motherfucker, maar begon ruim 15 jaar geleden aan een solocarrière onder de naam Weyes Bludh. Haar eerste soloalbum bracht ze in 2011 uit onder de naam Weyes Blood & The Dark Juices, maar Natalie Mering maakte op mij voor het eerst een onuitwisbare indruk met het bijzondere The Innocents, dat in 2014 onder de naam Weyes Blood verscheen.

Het speelse en avontuurlijke album vormde de basis voor twee net wat toegankelijkere, maar wat mij betreft wonderschone albums. Front Row Seat To Earth uit 2016 en Titanic Rising uit 2019 kregen een hoge notering in mijn jaarlijstjes over de betreffende jaren en ik was zeker niet de enige die diep onder de indruk was van de sprookjesachtige klanken, de betoverende songs en de prachtige stem van de Amerikaanse muzikante.

Dat het nog een flink stuk beter kan laat Natalie Mering horen op het nieuwe album van Weyes Blood, het tweede deel van een trilogie die werd gestart met Titanic Rising. Ik was direct bij de eerste keer horen hopeloos verliefd op And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow en koester het album inmiddels als één van de mooiste of misschien wel het mooiste album van 2022. Op haar nieuwe album trekt de muzikante, die zich na omzwervingen door de VS heeft gevestigd in Los Angeles, de lijn van met name Titanic Rising door, maar het nieuwe album van Weyes Blood laat ook flinke groei horen.

Het alter ego van Natalie Mering maakt ook dit keer muziek die met één been in de jaren 70 en met één been in het heden staat. Alle songs op And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow herinneren aan de grote vrouwelijke singer-songwriters uit de jaren 70, maar de muziek van Weyes Blood raakt dit keer ook met enige regelmaat aan die van de door mij zeer bewonderde Aimee Mann.

Dat geldt niet direct voor de instrumentatie, want Natalie Mering pakt op haar nieuwe album flink uit met strijkers en elektronica, wat een groots en meeslepend geluid oplevert. Het is een geluid dat hier en daar tegen bombast aan schuurt, maar Natalie Mering trapt nergens in de valkuil van overdaad. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow is voorzien van een rijk en gloedvol geluid met hier en daar klassiek aandoende of new age achtige klanken, maar de arrangementen blijken keer op keer van een bijzondere schoonheid en trefzekerheid.

De stem van Natalie Mering vind ik misschien nog wel mooier. Ik hoor hier en daar een randje Aimee Mann, maar ik hoor ook flarden van Karen Carpenter, die inmiddels terecht wordt geschaard onder de mooiste stemmen uit de jaren 70. De zang op And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow is tien songs lang goed voor kippenvel, waarna de prachtige klanken de bezwering nog wat verder opvoeren.

De meeste groei hoor ik echter in de songs van Natalie Mering. De Amerikaanse muzikante heeft een aantal betoverend mooie songs geschreven, waarin je steeds weer nieuwe lagen ontdekt. Het zijn songs vol echo’s uit het verleden, maar het nieuwe album van Weyes Blood is ook absoluut een eigentijds album.

Het is een album dat wonderen verricht wanneer de zon onder is en de temperatuur daalt, maar And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow is zeker niet alleen een album voor de donkere seizoenen. Weyes Blood had al drie prachtplaten op haar naam staan, maar het nieuwe album is nog een flink stuk beter. En deel drie van de trilogie hebben we nog tegoed. Bijzonder indrukwekkend

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://weyesblood.bandcamp.com/album/and-in-the-darkness-hearts-aglow

the record. boygenius

Superbands, it's something that has been around since the mid 1960s, starting with, I'd say, Cream. boygenius is one for that category, a supertrio, consisting of three singer-songwriters gaining popularity in say the last six to seven years. They already recorded an EP together in 2018 and now there's a full album.

The strange thing is, that nearly all reviews on this blog were from the hand of Erwin Zijleman and not mine. I have, hardly, found my way into the music of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus. Erwin is a fan for years, not me and yet, there's only one word for the record: Great!, including the exclamation mark.

The trio shows several sides of itself but all are exemplary. The sound is modern, while playing at times as if it is 1966 with Simon and Garfunkel as an example and rocking out as if Courtney and Kurt were recording together in 2023. Time sort of stops in some of the tracks on the record.

Not being a connoisseur of the trio's, individual, music I can't arrive at the famous one plus one is three, in this case four, conclusion. Only that it very much seems like it does. There's so much going on and so diverse that inspiration is abound here.

the record is a record that fits into a long tradition. One of my favourites in this genre is Hazeldine's 'Digging You Up'. Three women singing songs together in the American folk(rock) tradition. 'Cool About It' as the acoustic version of 'Homeward Bound', Paul Simon does not get a nod for nothing, I notice. boygenius explores the inner and outer edges of the genre and is not afraid of rocking a little and some more on the side.

It is all done in great taste and with a lot of inventiveness. Whether the trio draws neatly within well-drawn lines or escapes all boundaries like in the hard rocking '$20' the common denominator is quality. The great strength of boygenius is their harmonies. The three know how to make the best of their collaboration. Their joy in singing together is what truly jumps out of the record. Just listen to the subdued 'Revolution 0'. It's very atmospheric, with a synth sound leading the song, the voices at some point come from almost everywhere. They even get an almost spooky quality in line with the treated keyboard sound.

Do I have an explanation why I like the record and, so far, not the individual records and previous EP? No, I have not. It cannot have been a coincidence of listening to a record at the wrong moment. There are too many of them by now. I just have to enjoy the fact I like the record this much. It doesn't matter, does it? One record in the home makes everyone some money and I can play it any time I like on the stereo. Everyone wins.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order the record here:

https://xboygeniusx.bandcamp.com/album/the-record

Wonder. Jody & The Jerms

On the basis of the singles appearing in the weekly singles section, it may not come as a surprise that Wonder comes forward as an album post as well. Jody & the Jerms present a very nice pop album that wallows in the past and is the right sort of album for 2023 all in one go.

Jody & The Jerms formed in 2019 and appears in a hurry. Come 2023 the Oxford band around Jody and Niall Jeger releases its third album filled with glorious jangly pop tunes. Recorded in Ride's Mark Gardener's studio Wonder is just that, a wonder of fine pop tunes. With these songs in hand the band is ready to take on the world.

Anyone who looks at the photo's of the band will recognised its members have lived and will have a musical past behind them already. I do not know what the story is. What I do recognise is the ability to write and play pop songs that are always a pleasure to listen to. Anyone could have fooled me on the basis of the music that I'm listening to a young aspiring artist with a penchant for old style pop music.

Pop music, especially from girl bands from the U.S. from around 1980, is what shines through on Wonder. Jody & The Jerms obviously love the music that came from the likes of The Go-Go's, The Bangles and Blondie. The band writes songs in this style and gets away with it gloriously. Jody Jeger fronts the band with an obvious pleasure. She's having a good time singing these songs and shining because of it.

Promo photo: Peter Millson

Behind her, the jangly guitars give the music something from the past. The Byrds, REM are combined with indiepop from the past. Just like the sound of the keyboard/organ pinpoints the music to an era from long ago. The fact that people still make music in this style says something of the strength and longevity of the genre.

Luckily, Jody & The Jerms do not mind rocking a little harder as well. Wonder deserves the rocking sound of 'Just For Show'. A nice boogie rhythm bringing T. Rex to mind, in combination with a Blondie vocal melody works really well. Single 'Insatiable' already showed this band can rock a bit harder successfully, in a 60s style over a The Go-Go's pop feel. 

Wonder shows a few sides to Jody & The Jerms making it a besides a nice also a nicely varied album. Okay, it may not be the most original album I've recently heard, it deserves to be heard nonetheless. Albums with a great pop feel are to be treasured. This is one of them.

Wout de Natris

 

You can listen to and order Wonder here:

https://jodyandthejerms.bandcamp.com/album/wonder

Record Store Day: Indian Askin and Loupe live

Photo: Wout de Natris

Saturday 22 April was Record Store Day all around the world with live music in record stores all over the world. Karen and I celebrated in Haarlem and visited both record stores. In fact I visited North End for the first time. The store has been chosen as the best record store in The Netherlands some years a go and winds up in the top 10 each year. It's too far away, it's that simple. In search of the shop in the mall I ran into my football hero of old, Willem van Hanegem for the first time in my life as well.

We drove there to watch Indian Askin once again. Nelson Ayala played an acoustic set with a friend accompanying him on guitar. In 2023 there isn't a band any more. It did not survive the pandemic. There is a new single, 'Possessed', see last Sunday's singles post, and new music waiting to be pressed on vinyl scheduled for late September.

Good songs are good, also when played around, in the case, an imaginary campfire. The atmosphere was almost as relaxed as at one. The banter on stage, the little mistakes, the response from the audience, all made the show very informal. Like it should be when in such a small venue. We learned about different tunings of the guitar and that Ayala plays nearly every song in a different tuning, where his companion only had to make sure to remain in tune.

Indian Askin is a band that should be a lot better known than it is. It has the songs and the live shows I saw all were fascinating because they are up to a certain point unpredictable. A song can wonder off, at least for the unsuspecting listener and land on its feet again a bit later. Just like they did in North End: here we go and the solo started or the bridge ended, etc. With a good new single, the band/singer deserves attention, again.

Photo: Wout de Natris

In the afternoon we cycled to Sounds in the city centre and saw Loupe setting up gear in a spot of a few combined stamps at best with people walking straight through the setup the whole time, records in hand. A spotty teenager with 'Roxy & Elsewhere' second hand under his arm? Cool.

Loupe is working towards its debut album to be released in June. The three ex'-Dakota members and a new singer. If someone had told me she is 13 or 14 I would have believed him or her. At the same time she was standing there as if nothing could touch her. Simply enjoying the option to sing and play, where the other three never seemed totally relaxed. I had never been this close to an artist performing not even in my own living room.

The to be released new songs all sound extremely promising. The dreaminess of Dakota is still in place. Loupe is able to mesmerise listeners, even when playing loud. Despite the issues with the sound for the band members, they made the songs come totally alive. The harmonies sounded nice, the great guitar lines came through beautifully and Loupe gives each song a punch at the right moments. Oddly enough, from my position right next to the bass player, I could here everything perfectly. Loupe is ready for the next step when the album is there. We have to be patient just a little longer.

Wout de Natris

You can find and order Indian Askin's music here:

https://indianaskin.bandcamp.com/track/possessed

and Loupe here:

https://thisisloupe.bandcamp.com/album/do-you-ever-wonder-what-comes-next

Never Have I Ever. Naaz

Het is een tijd stil geweest rond Naaz, maar een van de grootste talenten binnen de Nederlandse popmuziek keert gelukkig terug met een indiepop album dat echt niet onder doet voor de grote albums in het genre.

Een paar jaar geleden leek de Rotterdamse muzikante Naaz klaar voor een nationale en misschien zelfs wel internationale doorbraak. Na twee EP’s die bol stonden van de belofte werd het echter stil rond Naaz. Ze keert terug met haar debuutalbum Never Have I Ever, dat de torenhoge belofte van de EP’s van Naaz alsnog waar maakt. Meer dan waar maakt zelfs, want op haar debuutalbum zet Naaz een reuzenstap. Never Have I Ever is een geweldig indiepop album met vooral ingetogen songs. Het zijn songs die direct aanspreken, maar het zijn ook songs vol avontuur die nog een flinke tijd door groeien. Naaz is terug van weggeweest en dat is echt geweldig nieuws.

Naaz Mohammad was jarenlang een van de grote beloften van de Nederlandse popmuziek. De jonge Rotterdamse muzikante met Koerdische wortels timmerde vanaf 2017 stevig aan de weg met frisse en aanstekelijke popsongs en bracht twee EP’s uit, die werden overladen met aandacht en superlatieven. De afgelopen twee jaar was het helaas stil rond Naaz, die de tijd nam om persoonlijke trauma’s te verwerken. Deze week keert ze terug met haar debuutalbum, Never Have I Ever.

Een paar jaar geleden zou een debuutalbum van Naaz met veel bombarie zijn onthaald, maar Never Have I Ever is een toch vrij anonieme release, al is de aandacht wel op gang te komen. De relatieve stilte rond het album heeft gelukkig niets te maken met de kwaliteit van het debuutalbum van Naaz, want de Nederlandse muzikante maakt, met enige vertraging, de torenhoge belofte van haar eerdere EP’s meer dan waar.

De popsongs van Naaz waren op haar debuut EP Bits Of Naaz nog wat fragmentarisch en sprongen bovendien van de hak op de tak, maar het waren op hetzelfde moment popsongs die lieten horen dat Naaz bulkte van het talent. Het springerige en fragmentarische is niet helemaal verdwenen op Never Have I Ever, maar dat is wat mij betreft juist de charme van Naaz, wiens talent de afgelopen jaren alleen maar verder is gegroeid.

Het debuutalbum van Naaz is een goed gemaakt popalbum met wat uptempo songs, maar vooral songs die zich in een wat lager tempo voortslepen. Zeker de uptempo songs schuren tegen de hitgevoelige pop aan, maar de songs van Naaz bevatten ook altijd een eigenzinnig randje, waardoor het predicaat indiepop het meest van toepassing is op Never Have I Ever.

Zeker in de zich wat langzaam voortslepende songs maakt Naaz indruk met fraai ingekleurde songs en een stem die aan volwassenheid en souplesse heeft gewonnen. Natuurlijk mag Naaz nog niet vergeleken worden met de wat mij betreft allerbesten in de indiepop, variërend van Lana Del Rey tot Phoebe Bridgers tot Taylor Swift, maar toch heb ik bij beluistering van Never Have I Ever associaties met deze groten uit de indiepop.

Naaz heeft een aantal zware jaren achter de rug. Het zijn jaren die haar in persoonlijk opzicht en als muzikant hebben gevormd. Waar de EP’s van Naaz het moesten doen met een handvol goede ideeën, worden deze goede ideeën op haar debuutalbum bijna eindeloos aaneengeschakeld.

Het prachtig geproduceerde album schakelt bijna achteloos tussen elektronisch ingekleurde songs en ingetogen akoestische songs, hier en daar versierd met strijkers. Zeker in de meer ingetogen songs zingt Naaz prachtig en hoor je goed hoe haar stem aan kracht en doorleving heeft gewonnen. Een enkele keer komen haar Koerdische roots aan de oppervlakte, maar de in het Koerdisch gezongen songs vallen zeker niet uit de toon.

Naaz werd na haar plotselinge vertrek uit de muziek vrij snel afgeschreven, maar met haar debuutalbum laat ze horen dat dat erg voorbarig was. Never Have I Ever is een album dat dertien songs lang imponeert en dat iedere keer dat je naar het album luistert weer wat indrukwekkender en eigenzinniger is. Naaz was goed in 2017, 2018 en 2019, maar in 2023 is ze van wereldklasse.

Erwin Zijleman

2023. Week 16, 10 singles

Writing on Record Store Day in between two shows at different stores, we have 10 recent singles for you anyway. Old(er) favourites return and some new ones crop up, as usual I could add. It starts with being somewhat surprised that a "new" band is with me already for 22 years. It ends with the surprise of a singer returning with a totally different kind of song that truly works. So, enjoy!

Gotta Get To Peeskill feat. Violent Femmes. Dropkick Murphys

The day arrives that a band is in your life for over 20 years, as in a band that you discovered after a certain age. To add to this, my cassette tape containing "Hallowed Ground' probably has disintegrated by now. The two bands collaborate on the new Dropkick Murphys single Got To Get To Peetskill. Had the title not contained feat. Violent Femmes, I would not have noticed the difference. (The video helps you out.) I was assuming the more screamed part of the lyrics is by Violent Femmes, but Gordon Gano's role is bigger. The song itself is the true Irish side of the Boston band. There's only traditional instruments to be heard here and as always it works. The Murphys attack them just a little harder and out comes its take on Irish songs. It's always nice to hear it, also over twenty years after my introduction. And 'Hallowed Ground'? I still have to replace that tape one day.

Possessed. Indian Askin

In the late summer of 2021 before lockdown #x I ran into Nelson Ayala in Amsterdam's Tolhuistuin and asked him if there was new work coming up. "Yes", he answered. One and a half year and a little later there is single 'Possessed'. Whether Indian Askin is still a band, I can't tell, Ayala is certainly there with his typical way of singing and intonation. Possessed is on the loud side of Indian Askin's music. This is alternative rock alright. For Indian Askin Possessed is even fairly straightforward. The song starts pounding and does not really stop. Like most songs by the band I instantly liked it. There's always a twist and in this case it is an almost poppy part that invites singing along to. The band has an distinct own sound and not only because Nelson Ayala's way of singing. It is mostly in the music itself. It is in a typical Indian Askin style and Possessed has that typical quality. Welcome back.

Golden Age. The Bellwether Syndicate

The Bellwether Syndicate will release its new album in the coming week, 'Vestige & Vigil'. Golden Age is one of the singles preceding it. 1980s doom and gloom is at the heart of Golden Age. People who lived through the decade and those who caught on later will recognise the approach of the Chicago band. You are all allowed to stick your own names on Golden Age. What is important in 2023 is that this song has one thing over most 80s doom bands, a huge sprightly step in its music, that was lacking at the time. The members of The Bellwether Syndicate have lived and more than likely something to live for and that other, wiser station in life shines though its music. If the title isn't a dead-giveaway here, I'll eat my last remaining 80s pop band t-shirt. (Well, I have a few left, actually. 'Serious Moonlight Tour' may be the eldest. Golden Age on top of this all has a good vocal melody and some nice melodies to appreciate. The kind of invitation one expects from a single release.

Dickpic feat. Anna Lux. Schattenmann

What to make of this title, what to make of a woman singing "schik mir ein Dickpick"? The band presents the song as a bellwether to things unimaginable for most people in the world. Schattenmann is a new name for me. A German language rock band in the vein of Rammstein. Especially when Anna Lux comes in for the chorus with the melodic synths behind her the connotation is not to ignore. Something like 'Moskau' for example. The deep and dark guitars and drums do the rest. What Schattemann manages, is to combine the dark rock with melodic prowess. This results in a chorus that is very singable. That may be where things go wrong. Just imagine thousands of people singing "bitte, bitte, schik mir ein Dickpic" because I'm so alone. That aside, Schattenmann scores with this song. The album 'Día De Muertos' is out on 30 June.

The Snitching Hour. DEADLETTER

"Love thy neighbour" is the main message of DEADLETTER and the neighbour will love you back. All laudable but what about the music? For me this song is on the edge. A band like The Gang of Four still can't get me to move, let alone enjoy the music. The Snitching Hour is close but at the same time does not forget a song needs something of melody. The chorus is the strong moment of proof here. What I certainly also like is the saxophone coming in and out of the song. With the stricter postpunking verses the song has two faces and the combination does lead to enthusiasm. As a whole it is surprising that so many youths come up with music inspired by the time that their parents were growing up. Music they may have heard at home when growing up. The Snitching Hour is my introduction to DEADLETTER, there is an older  EP, and, yes, it does have promise. Bring on the next single please.

Spellbinding. Smashing Pumpkins

A synthpop single, with the accent on pop, by Smashing Pumpkins? Yes, that's possible in 2023. Spellbinding has the most poppy chorus of the band ever. I didn't know the band had it in it, is what I'm inclined to write and do. An earworm it may even turn out to be. Admittedly, I haven't bought a song by Billy Corgan since the Zwan album and hardly listened to new work either. If I'm correct on 5 May a box set of 43 songs will be released on the basis of three digital albums in the past few months plus 10 extra songs. I have heard one other song, somewhere last year. Spellbinder is one of the singles and it is totally surprising. A synth is at the heart of the verses and yes guitars come in, let's say at best half as deep as in the old days, with a "happy" lead guitar sound to finish the sound off. I am totally surprised as this is the kind of song that could have been a hit, decades ago.

Watching The Credits. The Beths

I have to be patient for about three more months but The Beths are coming to NL and I have tickets. People following the blog will know The Beths have landed well here. The band around singer - guitarist Elizabeth Stokes surprised me with a new single, a leftover from the 'Expert in A Dying Field' sessions. Can you tell? No, as the song would have fitted easily. Maybe it is a tad to optimistic, happy sounding in comparison? Watching The Credits is about what we at home call stick around for "de kleine lettertjes". Musically it fits right in with the alternative rock the band plays. The Beths play perfect alternative popsongs that get a twist somewhere along the way and usually it has to do with the guitar solo of Jonathan Pearce. It is as if he at times loses the direction of his fingers somewhere among all those little squares on his fretboard. In Watching The Credits it is not that extreme but present. It is of the many things making The Beths' music so surprising and attractive.

Toaster Oven. Quest For Tuna

I am listening to a song recorded in 1989 and re-released in a more modern format than a cassette. The song is half-serious, half a joke. The music obviously is serious. Tight, punk-rocking and all it should be. The lyrics is where the joking part begins. Sung in a serious way, as if the toaster oven Jay Allen is singing about is a metaphor for a girlfriend. The toaster oven gives the singer everything he needs until it burns his English muffin. That's the day the relationship ends violently. In the meantime there's a lot to enjoy with the Boston punkers of old. When bass player Justine Covault started her own record label Red on Red, the idea came up to search for Quest For Tuna's master tapes of old. They were found, recorded at the time by the then almost famous producer Sean Slade in the Fort Apache studio. Available for the first time in decades, I am glad I get to know about the now long defunct but once loved kitchen appliance.

labour. Paris Paloma

With labour there is a second song in this overview on things happening to women that are not supposed to happen. Paris Paloma addresses the topic of inequality within relationships and male domination. The labour is of the "24 hour baby machine" kind. Sorry, I do not feel addressed. labour is becoming a popular song fast, reading the bio. To me it is a modern song that fits in a row of modern singer-songwriters that move around somewhere between traditional singer-songwriters and electronics. The sound is far from traditional, despite a new tradition in the making. There are the usual instruments, even an upright bass. The layers of vocals are very modern and the sounds and atmospherics moving in and out also. The result is a song that is on the edge of my tastes but false to the right side with ease. With a lot to discover musical as a little extra.

Not Your Angel. Ruth Blake

Search hard and you will find Ruth Blake twice on this blog. Once with a single and the second time in a collaborative single. Her folk side is completely gone on Not Your Angel. It appears Ruth Blake has embraced her electronic side on her new single. Coming out of a broken relationship she decided to show another side of herself. Working with producer James Yuill the whole track is built up from electronic devices with Ruth Blake riding the electronic waves, totally in command. Surprising on the basis of her previous work? No doubt about it. The vocal melody could have been over a totally different arrangement but fits the song totally. Anyone who listens beyond the beats and loud bass synths will start discovering the rich arrangement Not Your Angel has with little electronic melodies popping up all over the place. Ruth Blake may not be an angel, she sure is an inventive singer and musician. Let the anger out, Ms. Blake. It works for you.

Wout de Natris

Escape Somehow. Peuk

This April it is 29 years ago Kurt Cobain decided to stop living. Considering almost all our children are younger, how old do you have to be to have a vivid recollection of Nirvana when it was active? Let's put that at 8 to 10 years. That makes a person now all close to or older than 40.

The more striking is the influence the band still has on people younger than that age. See the Nirvana t-shirts and hoodies on the streets, hear the music new bands are making. Not to speak of all the misery shared through lyrics and interviews today. Cobain set a new standard there as well.

Why is all this relevant? Because I was blown off my feet by Belgium band Peuk (But, as in cigarette) and its album Escape Somehow. The album is a successful mix of Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins and Veruca Salt, but definitely starts with the first. Nirvana's approach is all over Escape Somehow. The dark, the light and the darker, darkest. moving towards the dark riffs of Smashing Pumpkins. Nele Janssen's voice and way of singing brings in Veruca Salt. (The band itself calls upon Hole, Pixies and The Breeders as influences. Fine, of course.)

All comparisons are nice but not if you do not deliver yourself. And that is what Peuk does, deliver. The music on the album is of the kind that attracts attention immediately and grabs you right up to the end. The grungy music is melodic enough to be nice, tough enough to be grunge and varied enough to create the necessary light segments in the darkness to remain interesting. Speaking of the best of all worlds.

Peuk started with a chance meeting in a record store in Hasselt and from there grew into the powertrio it now is, consisting of Nele Janssen on voice and guitar, Dave Schroyen on drums and Jacky Willems on bass. This is their second release after 'Peuk' in 2019.

Promo photo: Eva Vlonck

What strikes me is the balance the band is able to strike in the way guitar, bass and drums interact in a lighter song like 'Break Table'. Sure, the dark side is let loose as well, granted. I like how it plays out together before each member goes off into her/his own tower of noise. Peuk is good as this, as the album shows.

Everything comes together in the final song, 'Erase Me'. Most likely it is an until now hidden track from the couple Love - Cobain. It sounds more like a cover than an original, but is not. Where does inspiration for a song like this come from? It seems like I do not really want to know. When I heard it the first time, I was almost shocked and heard something else, he raped me, in the pained screams at the end than is actually sung, erase me. The song starts and ends so small and then! Impressive? Yes. Frightening? Almost. Good? Certainly. Nele Janssen is in direct competition here with Wednesday's singer Karly Hartzman. (See 18 April)

Peuk came into my life with a bang and seems here to stay. All lovers of alternative rock with a grungy edge are advised to check Escape Somehow out. It will be worth your while.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order everything but the new album here:

https://peuk.bandcamp.com/track/bokkenpaleis

CLEARING. Hyd

CLEARING van Hyd is vooralsnog wat ondergesneeuwd, maar dit bijzonder aangename maar ook buitengewoon interessante album verdient alle aandacht van liefhebbers van in artistiek opzicht hoogstaande elektropop.

Ik heb vorige maand vrijwel niets gelezen over CLEARING van Hyd, dat ik vervolgens wel in een enkel jaarlijstje tegen kwam. Ik begrijp waarom, want het debuutalbum van de Amerikaanse muzikant Hyd is een album vol mooie verrassingen. Het elektronische klankentapijt op het album klinkt hier en daar hitgevoelig, maar de songs van Hyd zitten ook vol diepgang en avontuur. Dat hoor je in de veelkleurige klanken op het album, maar ook in de zang en in de persoonlijke teksten van de muzikant uit New York. CLEARING van Hyd leek me bij eerste beluistering niet echt mijn ding, maar inmiddels ben ik diep onder de indruk van dit bijzondere album, dat alleen maar mooier wordt.

CLEARING van Hyd verscheen pas medio november, maar wist desondanks nog een enkel jaarlijstje te halen. Daar is wel wat voor te zeggen, want hoewel het debuutalbum van Hyd zich net wat buiten mijn muzikale comfort zone begeeft, vind ik het een sensationeel goed en absoluut jaarlijstjeswaardig album. Het verbaast me dan ook dat CLEARING tot dusver relatief weinig aandacht heeft gekregen.

Hyd is het alter ego van de Amerikaanse muzikant Hayden Dunham, die zichzelf identificeert als non-binair persoon. De muzikant uit New York heeft meerdere jaren gewerkt aan het eind 2022 verschenen debuutalbum, waarop Hyd onder andere samenwerkt met de begin 2021 overleden producer en muzikante SOPHIE en met eigenzinnige muzikanten als A. G. Cook, Jónsi en Caroline Polachek.

Over het nieuwe album van Caroline Polachek, dat medio februari is verschijnen, wordt al een aantal weken heel erg druk gedaan, maar iedereen die met hoge verwachtingen uitkijkt naar dit album, moet ook zeker eens naar CLEARING van Hyd luisteren.

Het debuutalbum van Hyd staat vol met songs die zijn ingekleurd met flink wat elektronica. Het album zal daarom snel het etiket elektropop opgeplakt krijgen en dat is een genre dat ik over het algemeen maar matig kan waarderen. Het debuutalbum van Hyd had me echter direct genadeloos te pakken. Het is een album dat me wel wat doet denken aan Cult Survivor van de Oostenrijkse muzikante Sofie (niet te verwarren met de eerder genoemde SOPHIE en inmiddels bekend als Sofie Royer).

CLEARING van Hyd is ingekleurd met vooral donker getinte elektronica. Het is elektronica die af en toe stevig is aangezet en hier en daar vervormd uit de speakers komt, maar de batterij elektronica die is ingezet voor het debuutalbum van Hyd kan ook verrassend mooi en subtiel klinken. De muzikant uit New York heeft een goed gevoel voor lekker in het gehoor liggende popsongs, die hier en daar zeker over hitpotentie beschikken, maar CLEARING is ook een spannend album vol betoverend mooie klanken en bijzondere wendingen.

Hyd schrijft niet alleen lekker in het gehoor liggende songs, maar het zijn ook songs vol diepgang, wat is doorgezet in de persoonlijke teksten op het album, die een inkijkje geven in de ziel van de Amerikaanse muzikant. De persoonlijke teksten worden ook nog eens vertolkt met een bijzonder mooie en interessante stem, wat het album nog wat specialer maakt.

Ik was vrijwel onmiddellijk onder de indruk van het debuutalbum van Hyd, maar CLEARING is ook een album dat je vaker moet horen voor je alle geheimen van de muziek van Hayden Dunham hebt ontdekt. CLEARING begon voor mij als een aardig album net buiten mijn comfort zone, maar als ik vandaag mijn jaarlijstje zou maken zou het album er zeker in staan.

Het debuutalbum van Hyd is door de stevige productionele bijdrage van de door een noodlottig overval overleden SOPHIE een fraai eerbetoon aan de eigenzinnige Schotse muzikante en producer, maar CLEARING onderstreept ook nadrukkelijk de talenten van Hyd. Ik begrijp dan ook niets van de relatieve stilte rond dit album, maar ben blij dat ik het zelf wel heb opgepakt. De fysieke release van het album komt overigens pas later dit jaar en hopelijk is dat een goed moment om dit uitstekende en zeer interessante album nog eens stevig onder de aandacht te brengen.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt CLEARING hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://hyd-earth.bandcamp.com/album/clearing

Labyrinth. Heather Woods Broderick

On her latest, fourth, solo album Heather Woods Broderick presents intimate music. Music that is inline with many bands of the last decade. Dreamy, hovering singing and indirect. On the other hand she is not afraid to be present as well. Instruments and effects are prominently mixed and not as it were the wallpaper behind the singer. Listen to 'I Want To Go' and you will get the picture. Broderick has totally her own take on dreampop.

In this mix she is not afraid to incorporate electronic rhythms that are the main part of a song. This makes her music modern in sound without losing herself in modernity. She is very much a singer-songwriter, just do not expect an acoustic guitar playing intricate patterns over and over. Just listen to how subtle single 'Admiration' plays out over the slow beats and rhythmic sounds. Just beats and a synth accompany the singing until circa half way other instruments come in setting the song on fire as it were.

You will find this approach more often on Labyrinth, making it what this album is. An amalgam of modern sounds and traditional songwriting. Over the music Broderick sings with a dreamy voice, better: voices, as she at times is all over the place vocally, but always dreamy.

Heather Woods Broderick is from Maine but lives in LA, with many years in Oregon in between, where she was a feature in the local music scene, collaborating on different albums and playing in touring bands, e.g. of Sharon van Etten. Around these projects she releases her own music with Labyrinth as the latest expression.

In a song like 'Tiny Receptors' she is almost as esoteric sounding as Josephine Foster. The song shows what Heather Woods Broderick sounds like in her living room, all alone with her guitar, although in an interlude, solo would not describe it in a correct way, weird sounds are allowed in. The singing stops abruptedly, adding to the mysterious atmosphere of the song.

Electronic beats take over, announcing the next song. 'Blood Run Through Me'. If there is a formula behind Broderick's music, it is that from tranquil she always moves to a more eclectic part of her songs. Of course, this is relative with the dreamy kind of music that fills Labyrinth. On top of the music her dreamy voice, with enough "bathroom" on it, is always on top of the music. Heather Woods Broderick is central on her album, as she's allowed to be.

Admittedly, when listening to the whole album by the time I reach 'Blood Run Through Me' I have heard enough. When I play the song stand alone, it is as impressive as most of the other songs are. So despite Labyrinth being near the edge of my musical tastes, the album lands really well. A nice discovery it is.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Labyrinth here:

https://heatherwoodsbroderick.bandcamp.com/album/labyrinth

can't hate myself into a different shape. Brimheim

Het debuutalbum van de Deense muzikante Brimheim sneeuwde helemaal aan het begin van 2022 helaas wat onder, maar het is een interessant album dat binnen de indierock en indiepop met de besten mee kan.

Ook in 2022 verschenen weer stapels albums van jonge vrouwelijke singer-songwriters met een voorliefde voor wat melancholische indiepop en indierock. Verzadiging ligt inmiddels stevig op de loer, maar het zou zonde zijn als dit ten koste zou gaan van de muziek van de Deense muzikante Brimheim. Het debuut van de muzikante uit Kopenhagen is inmiddels al meer dan een jaar oud, maar can't hate myself into a different shape is een album dat alsnog alle aandacht verdient. Het alter ego van Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff heeft een persoonlijk en donker album gemaakt, maar haar songs kunnen verrassend toegankelijk klinken en op hetzelfde moment de fantasie stevig prikkelen. Bijzonder album.

In de onderste regionen van een wat obscuur jaarlijstje kwam ik can't hate myself into a different shape (geen hoofdletters) van Brimheim tegen. Het is een album dat verscheen in de eerste maand van 2022 en het is een album dat volgens mij compleet is ondergesneeuwd. Ik had zelf in ieder geval nog nooit van Brimheim gehoord, maar can't hate myself into a different shape is absoluut een album dat aansluit bij mijn muzieksmaak.

Achter de naam Brimheim gaat Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff schuil. De Deense muzikante werd geboren op de Faeröer eilanden, maar woont tegenwoordig in Kopenhagen. Met can't hate myself into a different shape heeft Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff een zeer persoonlijk album afgeleverd. Het is een album waarop psychische problemen centraal staan, waardoor het debuutalbum van Brimheim een donker gekleurd album is.

Brimheim is actief in een genre waarin het de afgelopen jaren dringen was en waarin het zo langzamerhand echt overvol is, maar met can't hate myself into a different shape heeft de Deense muzikante een bovengemiddeld goed album gemaakt. Brimheim maakt op haar debuutalbum in meerdere opzichten indruk.

Om te beginnen vind ik de zang op het album erg mooi. Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff zingt vooral fluisterzacht, maar brengt desondanks flink wat variatie aan in haar zang. Zeker in de wat onderkoelde passages zit de zang op can't hate myself into a different shape dicht tegen die van Phoebe Bridgers aan, maar Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff kan ook een stuk krachtiger en expressiever zingen en heeft dan een duidelijk eigen geluid.

De mooie stem van de Deense muzikante is een van de sterkste wapens van Brimheim, maar er is zoals gezegd meer. Ook in muzikaal opzicht is can't hate myself into a different shape een interessant album. De muziek van Brimheim heeft het ruimtelijke en donkere wat zoveel Scandinavische albums kenmerkt, maar het debuutalbum van de muzikante uit Kopenhagen is ook een avontuurlijk en veelzijdig album.

De muziek van Brimheim is vaak relatief sober en atmosferisch, maar een aantal tracks op het album is veel voller ingekleurd. De song van Brimheim bestrijken hierdoor het hele spectrum van Scandinavische ijsprinsessen muziek tot de uitbundigere indiepop en indierock zoals die de laatste jaren vooral in de Verenigde Staten veel wordt gemaakt.

In vocaal en muzikaal opzicht kan Brimheim in deze genres met de besten mee, maar ook als songwriter maakt de Deense muzikante makkelijk indruk. Op can't hate myself into a different shape staan zoals gezegd een aantal zeer persoonlijke songs, maar het zijn ook songs die lekker in het gehoor liggende melodieën en refreinen en combineren met avontuurlijke passages, waardoor can't hate myself into a different shape niet alleen het oor streelt, maar ook de fantasie prikkelt.

Er is het afgelopen jaar maar weinig geschreven over het debuutalbum van Brimheim, want alleen de Britse muziekwebsite The Line of Best Fit noemde het album in januari een van de beste Scandinavische albums van het jaar. Het is een voorspelling die wat mij betreft is uitgekomen, want ik schaar het debuutalbum van Brimheim inmiddels onder de allerbeste album van 2022, zeker in het genre waarin de Deense muzikante opereert.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt can't hate myself into a different shape hier bestellen en luisteren:

https://brimheim.bandcamp.com/album/can-t-hate-myself-into-a-different-shape

Rat Saw God. Wednesday

Wednesday is one of the strangest band names I know. Rat Saw God nonetheless is an album that on the one hand underscores the band's name and on the other simply does not stop amazing. Let's start with the comment that album and band are very present at times and far beyond comfortable.

Wednesday's first appearance on this blog was with a review of 'Twin Plagues' by Erwin Zijleman in 2021. In the review he pointed to the progress the band had made but also implicitly admitted, in hindsight, to have under-estimated the band's debut album, 'I Was Trying To Describe You To Someone'. I picked up 'Twin Plagues' up because of the review but have to admit not to have played the album recently.

This is very different with Rat Saw God. The album is spinning in high rotation the past weeks. But where to start? With a warning to sensitive ears? That is a good one, I suppose. Despite the fact that Rat Saw God is a varied album with a good many songs on it, I doubt that many unsuspecting people will get through the minutes of screaming in which 'Bull Believer' ends. I also doubt whether it's possible for singer Karly Hartzman to sing the song live everyday and come home with a voice in one piece. Dr. Janov's therapy may even deem the screams here too much of a good thing. No doubt Hartzman needed to get something of her chest and I can only hope for her that it worked.

The rest of the album is far more comfortable alternative rock. The singing is put through an effect giving Karly Hartzman's voice a gravely quality as if the microphone is sort of broken. It gives the whole album a gravelly tone. Musically the album manoeuvres itself somewhere between alternative rock, indie and folk/country. Don't be surprised when a pedal steel turns up, played by Xandy Chelmis, replacing the huge sound of guitarist Jake Lenderman. Wednesday moves close to a band like Big Thief here but just as easily moves towards big chords of powerpop from the late 70s, where the pedal steel moves through like a fish in water.

Promo photo: Zachary Chick

Rat Saw God surprises in this sense as it is far more varied than the first two songs promise. The band shows several sides to itself and gets away with every single one. The album also shows the progress Wednesday has made in the past years. No issues with moving forward and growing along the way for this band. This includes a nice observation like "a daughter of God has a little bad luck sometimes".

Wednesday does fit in what can slowly be called a movement. Female led alternative rockbands, not afraid of experimenting a little. Big Thief, The Beths, Courtney Barnett, Jen Cloher, Vera Ellen, many can be found on this blog and not for nothing. They are all good, draw the right kind of attention to themselves with great music and slowly but surely start leading the rock pack.  Wednesday is no exception in this list.

With Rat Saw God Wednesday makes a huge step towards more fame. Those with more sensitive ears, will just have to skip song #2, more precisely after circa five minutes, like they will skip Blur's, and enjoy all the rest offered on this album. There remains more than enough for that to happen.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Rat Saw God here:

https://wednesdayband.bandcamp.com/album/rat-saw-god

Carvings. Juni Habel

Singer-songwriter Juni Habel bracht begin 2023 het indrukwekkende en werkelijk wonderschone Carvings uit, dat betovert met mooie klanken en imponeert met de geweldige stem van de Noorse muzikante.

Het debuut van Juni Habel heb ik ruim twee jaar geleden gemist, maar met haar tweede album maakt de Noorse singer-songwriter diepe indruk. Dat doet Juni Habel vooral met haar mooie en bijzondere stem, maar ook de klanken op haar tweede album zijn prachtig. Carvings bevat invloeden uit de Britse folk en de muziek van de Scandinavische ijsprinsessen, maar Juni Habel heeft ook een duidelijk eigen geluid. Het is een geluid dat zoals gezegd direct betovert, maar Carvings is ook een album dat de tijd moet krijgen om te groeien en doet dit vervolgens tot indrukwekkende hoogten. Het album is een grote grote verrassing.

All Ears, het debuutalbum van de Noorse singer-songwriter Juni Habel, viel aan het eind van 2020, mede door de corona lockdowns, helaas wat tussen wal en schip. Het eerherstel komt met het deze week verschenen Carvings, want wat is dit een prachtig album. De Noorse muzikante heeft op haar tweede album maar een paar noten nodig om een onuitwisbare indruk te maken. Dat is niet zozeer de verdienste van de wat unheimische klanken of het akoestische gitaarspel waarmee het album opent, want het kippenvel wordt vooral veroorzaakt door de betoverend mooie stem van Juni Habel.

Dat betekent overigens niet dat Carvings niet mooi of bijzonder is ingekleurd, want dat is het album zeker. Het grotendeels akoestische geluid op Carvings is bijzonder sfeervol en past prachtig in het huidige seizoen, al zou een flink pak sneeuw en een dikke laag ijs niet misstaan bij de fraaie klanken op het album. Subtiel akoestisch gitaarspel vormt de basis van de muziek op Carvings, maar door subtiele accenten van strijkers, piano en wat minder goed thuis te brengen instrumenten en hier en daar bijzondere achtergrondgeluiden, wordt de muziek van Juni Habel voorzien van een bijzondere onderhuidse spanning.

Die spanning wordt versterkt door de indringende zang van de Noorse muzikante, die af en toe in meerdere lagen uit de speakers komt in mooie en trefzekere koortjes. Het is een stem die, in ieder geval bij mij, stevig binnenkomt en die bij herhaalde beluistering van het tweede album van Juni Habel alleen maar mooier en indrukwekkender wordt. Juni Habel beschikt over een stem die is gemaakt voor pastorale folky songs, maar ze klinkt toch anders dan de roemruchte Britse folkies. Carvings is onmiskenbaar een album uit het hoge Noorden, al is Juni Habel ook zeker geen typische Scandinavische ijsprinses.

Het tweede album van de Noorse muzikante, die samen met haar oma in een oud schoolgebouw op het Noorse platteland woont, doet me af en toe wel wat denken aan het briljante Little Black Numbers van de Britse folky Kathryn Williams, maar Carvings heeft ook een duidelijk eigen geluid. Het tweede album van Juni Habel bevat slechts acht songs, maar bevat desondanks bijna veertig minuten muziek. Zeker in de wat langere tracks op het album neemt Juni Habel de tijd om de spanning op te bouwen of om eindeloos af te dwalen, maar Carvings is desondanks een album dat de aandacht moeiteloos vast houdt, wat ook haast niet anders kan met zang als die van Juni Habel.

Carvings is in vocaal opzicht een van de meest indrukwekkende albums die ik de laatste tijd heb gehoord, maar ook in muzikaal opzicht maakt het album steeds meer indruk, zeker als je de tijd neemt om te verdwalen in de bijzondere songs van de Noorse muzikante. Ook ik heb het debuutalbum van Juni Habel eind 2020 niet opgemerkt, maar Carvings wist me zoals gezegd al na een paar noten te betoveren en is hierna begonnen aan een indrukwekkend groeiproces.

De muziek van Juni Habel is absoluut muziek waarvoor je in de stemming moet zijn, maar als je er voor in de stemming bent is Carvings bijna veertig minuten lang van een bijna onwerkelijke schoonheid en intensiteit. Wat mij betreft, is Carvings van Juni Habel een van de hoogtepunten van het jaar tot dusverre.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt Carvings hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://junihabel.bandcamp.com/album/carvings

2023 Week 15, 10 singles

The weeks fly by. The sun is out, pollen fly on the breeze making eyes water and noses run. The music business goes on no matter what. This week we have some nice, brooding, dark songs, some unrelentless loudness and end with the smallest of them all, a traditional folk song. Rock on where you can and enjoy the silent, intricate moments!

My Way Of Thinking. Beebe Gallini

Beebe Gallini returns to the blog with a raucous rock and roll track in the best 'You Really Got Me' and 'All Day And All Of The Night' tradition. The spirit of 60s garage rock and the original punk scene is very much alive in 2023. Playing for the fun of it and making it sound as good as you can. This attitude and approach to the song oozes out of my speakers. The fun extends to the video as well, where the band members keep swapping roles with obvious fun. My Way Of Thinking is a song written by Donna Weiss and recorded by a band called Randy and The Radiants in 1965. Is it on my 'Nuggets' box? If not, that would seem a serious omission. Beebe Gallini takes the bull by the horns and literally drags the track from the obscurity where it was hiding. Anyone looking for three chords and the truth, can stop looking. It's staring you straight in the face here.

Your Mind Is Not Your Friend (feat. Phoebe Bridgers). The National

Yes, I skipped 'Eucalyptus' that stood in line for today. There's a more recent single and it's beautiful. Your Mind Is Not Your Friend is a dark, brooding song full of compassion. Matt Berninger sings in his slow way, accompanied by one of the indie darling singers of the day, who sings harmonies, not a duet. She adds another layer to a song that is already so fully layered. Music is everywhere I am able to pay attention to at the same time. Listening to this song is musical multitasking! So much is going on that it is impossible to keep up with all the small and bigger parts of the arrangement. It makes Your Mind Is Not Your Friend a rich listening experience. Very much like Berninger's solo record, which may prove to become my way into The National. Two of the recent singles all go down well. 'First Two Pages Of Frankenstein' is slated for 28 April. It is one to watch out for.

Honey I Do. Josh Ritter

It appears Josh Ritter is a bit tired of his former self. Too bad, in my case, as I think he never made a better song then 'Man Burning At Both Ends', from 200-what, 4? (Sorry, Mr. Ritter.) Soon he is to release a new album and single Honey I Do precedes it. It is a song that does not sparkle in any way, like The National's dark and brooding song does. Honey I Do's atmosphere is not in line with its title. It is downcast and muddied over. And yet, the song obviously has something going for it. Because it is an almost happy song, as close as Ritter wants to get to a happy song. Because of the fine details that he worked into the arrangement. Also here the comparison to 'Your Mind Is Not Your Friend' works. Not that rich but certainly rich. As if little flowers are allowed to come out of the ground before being cut off immediately to be placed into an unseen vase. You can only smell the flowers as it were. The song may be be called Honey I Do, the message is not so nice: "No one's ever going to love you, again". Whoever the honey is, he/she will have to deal with it.

Froide Et Méchante. Caprice

Me and French? It never really got off the ground. Even when I tried hard, somehow it just did not stick. Mostly words remain from my efforts. Not enough to understand lyrics, let alone speak it beyond ordering something and hoping not to get an answer. Recently in my inbox a single from France reached me and I like it. Froide Et Méchante (cold and mean) is a modern pop song and chanson in one. Caprice is a new name for me but she has released several singles in the past few years. Froide Et Méchante has a mysteriousness in it, created by the electronics accompanying Caprice. The mood explodes in a rap part where she appears to let it all come out. The modern pop feel works against the more traditional way Claire Gibeaud sings. Fans of Sophie Hunger, Belgian singer Lizzy and Dutch Pitou should gives this singer/band? a chance.

Divinity. High Priest

Sometimes just trying something out works like a storm. As that is what Divinity is. High Priest decided to try out one more song and came up with a high roller and rocker of a song, based on an iPhone recording by guitarist Josh Regan. Divinity starts with a warped guitar riff before the band goes off full force. In the best standard set by Deep Purple and all that followed after, riffs and fast, loud chord changes jump up and down in my room. I am not a metal fan but when it comes in this mix with classic hard rock, I come a long way and Divinity is definitely up my alley. Two singles in a row on WoNoBlog for Chicago band Hip Priest. 'Invocation' is scheduled for late June.

Cocaine Footprints. These Beasts

Yes, things can get even louder on this blog. The blood from the bass players throat is on the inside of my desktop's screen. Grunted screams all over the place. Usually, I'm turned off immediately. This grunting only takes place in the second part of the near 8 minutes long video single. Dark is a word that passed by several times today already and it befits Cocaine Footprints. These Beasts, also from Chicago, making the Windy City feature prominently on this blog today, is a trio in the classic rock trio formation.  The drummer is pounding away in a truly impressive manner. A huge bass drum that comes through the whole of the way in a super prominent way, dry skins and cymbals are all over the song. The guitar is hugely in overdrive, playing mostly power chords. It is the bass that surprises me. Looking at the video the instrument in played in such a slow way, while the sound is huge as well. I doubt whether I will be able to undergo a whole album, 'Cares, Wills, Wants' out on 21 April, this single is sure impressive.

Inside Outside. This Is The Kit

No, it does not get any louder still. This Is The Kit (in Dutch a nickname for the police when I was young) Inside Outside is a nice indie folkish rock song. Based on a somewhat unusual rhythm, the song slowly but surely plays itself out. This Is The Kit is Kate Stables' brainchild. Together with her band mates Rozi Plain (bass/voice), Neil Smith (guitar) and Jamie Whitby-Coles (drums) she presents new work on route to album 'Careful of Your Keepers', planned on 9 June. Inside Outside has a dark layer over it. It is in the way Kate Stables sings, that some light and optimism is provided by the song. The vocals become more layered the longer the singles last, just like more and more guitar parts are added. Whitby-Coles keeps that rhythm going giving Inside Outside a playful appearance as well. There are several links to music coming out of Australia and New Zealand in recent years, where this song easily stands its ground. I'm not certain, but I suppose the Rozi Plain that was on this blog recently with her latest album, is the same woman. A nice introduction this song is to This Is The Kit.

Insatiable. Jody and The Jerms

A second single by Jody and The Jerms on WoNoBlog. With a 'Last Train To Clarkville' kind of riff and a Kirsty MacColl flavoured tune Insatiable is irresistible. Singer Jody Jeger sings with this bittersweet voice that simply makes listening to her compulsory. The Jerms are behind her but the song is mixed in such a way that it is all about Jody. She carries the song and leads the band here. What does happen behind her is an attempt at pop perfection though. Listen closely and you will hear that everything falls into its right place. That nice riff, the little organ that comes forward a little a few times, the drum fills and bass runs. It all spells perfect pop. Insatiable is a beautiful song. No more words are needed here.

Tiger. Pip Blom

There must have been something in the water in the Blom - Smit home during the pandemic as both have come up with so different music afterwards. First Willem Smit with his tremendously good Personal Trainer album, 'Big Love Blanket' and now Pip Blom with the first new single Tiger. This is a daring move, because when even a New Zealand record store cum record label announces your new album as a must order, that tells you something. Tiger is a pop-short single with loads of electronics, far removed from the alternative pop/rock Pip Blom played. The guitar is still there in the intro but drops away for electronic beats and synths. I do not really know yet make what to make of the new course. Context will definitely be provided soon but I am willing to give the band the benefit of the doubt for now. The band is evolving and as such that is a good thing.

Come Fare Away With Me, The Jean Ritchie Experience. Kate MacLeod

The third single from Kate MacLeod's project of exploring the songs of Jean Ritchie is here. The second on this blog. Kate MacLeod plays all the instruments you hear, all to do with strings in one form or another. On vocals she is accompanied by Morgan Morrison, Paul Hammerton and Stephanie Thompson. Together they create an atmosphere of what I have learned to call British folk. As all involved, including Jean Ritchie, are from the U.S. this seems a bit awkward to write down. It shows how far music transcends borders and imagination. Influences come from many sources, as the title to the song already indicates. Who knows what Jean Ritchie's grandparents were singing to her in her youth, inspiring her to make her own music? Come Fare Away With Me is song of intricate and inner beauty that radiates through Kate MacLeod's version. The kind that touches. The contrast with some songs above here could not be bigger, yet its effect drives home to me in a clear and pleasant way.

Wout de Natris