2024, week 2. 10 singles

In week two of the new year a very old hero of mine enters the blog, as a solo artist, for the first time. All the other names are less big or even fairly unknown. That gives you the opportunity to explore a few new names, from very different musical backgrounds. So, enjoy.

Samosas & Kingfishers. Robby Krieger And The Soul Savages

Without Robby Krieger the world might never had heard of The Doors as he is responsible for most of 'Light My Fire', the band's major breakthrough song and it's best known one, bar one, perhaps, 'Riders On The Storm'. Although his name popped up here and there, I had no idea that he was still recording music. Until Samosas & Kingfishers came along late last year. Krieger, who is now well into his seventies plays, with an ageing band of brothers, a jazzy instrumental with an Indian overtone. The song slowly finds its way but is simply pleasant to listen to. The warm sounds of an electric piano and organ, provides the kind side to jazzy mood, while a smooth but present bass provides the foundation over which Krieger plays his melodies, like a Carlos Santana playing a sitar and later a sitar like electric guitar. The music is rather dated but certainly worthwhile.

Alles Wacht. Puntjudith x De Toegift

Na het onverwacht leuke concert van Puntjudith in het Patronaat afgelopen december, beloofde ik een nummer van haar te beluisteren. Het laatste nummer dat ze heeft uitgegeven is de song met De Toegift die ook live werd gebracht. Het is een prachtige song met fraaie diepere lagen, die uitnodigen om de plaat vaker te draaien. De vraag is wel, wie nu met wiens sound aan de haal is gegaan. Door de kenmerkende stem en stemgebruik van Maxim Ventule wordt Alles Wacht heel snel een De Toegift song. Qua sfeer passen de twee bands sowieso goed bij elkaar, maar hier vloeit alles samen. Het elektronische van Puntjudith gaat perfect samen met de langzame, contemplatieve sferen van De Toekomst. Kortom, dit duo hoort bij elkaar en dan komen die diepere lagen nog, die in de elektronica, de loops en de achtergrond liggen. Mooie plaat.

Autofahren. iedereen

To sing "Ich möchte ein Tempolimit", and then come up with Autofahren!? What were Ron Huefnagels and Tom Sinke thinking when they wrote this song? How to make sure that everyone listening to this song in a car will get a speed ticket? Are they working in the police force with a tight fine quorum? iedereen, Dutch for "all", is a German punkrock duo, singing in German. The one pounds a drum as loud and wide as possible, the other sings and tries to break his guitar in two, as he playing it so fiercely. Together they cook up a storm. The band name is explained. iedereen originates close to the Dutch border where the Rhine river enters The Netherlands. A word is easily borrowed. Listening to the music, I'm the last to object. For those who can't stand punkrock, it's all over in two minutes. The question remaining is how much I'm speeding in these two minutes. The best advice I can give, is to use that cruise control iedereen also sings about.

Good As It Used To Be. Twist & Writhe

Alternative rock on the brink of punk or the other way around, I'm open to both. A slightly rougher version of Foo Fighters. Twist & Writhe is a new band with members who have been around, well worn in, so to say. Expect huge guitars, a loud rhythm section and a singer with a rough voice to top things off. One thing is abundantly clear, neatness was not a goal when Twist & Writhe recorded Good As It Used To Be. The song is part enthusiasm, part let's get to the bottom of our sound and part skills. Guitar one sounds dark and plays huge chords, guitar two plays higher on the neck and is all over the place with melodies underscoring the chords. The bass manoeuvres itself between the two, making the sound decidedly deeper. The drums are all over the place, like the two guitars are. Singer Arthur Nusser is like a fish in water here. Sonic onslaught of the pleasant kind Twist & Writhe presents. The band's first EP was released on 5 January.

Ruin. Daniël Tomàs

Another instrumental this week. Daniël Tomàs enters the long line of pianists who present solo performing albums. Tomàs expects to release his new album 'Pintures II' this year. Ruin is a track from that album. Within a few minutes the pianist takes the listener through a few moods quite quickly. In the music he tried to capture the Battle of Arnhem, where the allied armies landed paratroopers, "one bridge too far". The composition starts fairly quiet, not totally at ease. There is a tension at its core. The lead melody brings a restive feeling, that slowly contains more and more notes. Far removed from the guitar driven songs I usually listen to, I notice that Ruin captures me, with ease even. Although I'm sure I can not tell this composition apart from the many I've heard over the past years, I like this one.

Storm. Harrison Stone

A single from Down Under, Australia and to be more precise, Melbourne. Harrison Stone released his debut album this Friday, 'Wonder, Won't You?'. The album is filled with songs like Storm, if you like the short version. Stone is a singer-songwriter who is not averse to bring some electronics and atmospherics to his soft, pop songs. A modern version of Crowded House and in line with many singer-songwriters of the past circa ten years. To be more specific, I'm thinking of someone like Canadian Patrick Watson, who matches Storm in atmosphere with ease. In that sense Harrison Stone does not offer something new, nor adds to what exists already, except for his songs which are new and deserve to be heard. His soft-toned voice is pleasant to listen to and so are his songs, starting with this single. As such it is a true commercial for 'Wonder, Won't You?'.

Mud Room. Screw Cart

Man, man, what fun these guys will have playing their surfy garage rock. The member of Screw Cart know exactly where Abraham found his mustard all these decades ago. Every trick in the book comes by. You can check this list yourself if you like. I want to focus on the energy this band shares with us. I'll grant you that the singer may have sung better in his younger years, perhaps, his rough and gravelly voice fits this bill. Listen instead to the guitar flying off the tightrope a few times to land, against all odds, on its feet anyway. Listen to that load of energy and all the little bits and pieces nicked from elsewhere that adorn Mud Room and I assure you, fun is the house.

My Golden Years. The Lemon Twigs

When was this song recorded? In 2023 most likely but anyone could have fooled me had they played the song on a mono device and said this was a totally forgotten, overlooked gem from the 1960s. The Lemon Twigs come extremely close to The Beach Boys, just to name one famous band. The pop feel, the harmonies all are so spot on. While musically the band is far more direct, moving towards the U.K. before it all comes together in a slightly psychedelic interlude. In other words My Golden Years is completely up my alley. The Lemon Twigs is around for some years already but never crossed my path. This has changed and I'm sure My Golden Years is the first of more to come in 2024. I'm looking forward to hear more and fast please.

Slime. Marika Hackman

After 'Hanging', Slime is the second single of Marika Hackman's latest album, 'Big Sigh', released this Friday, that finds not only its way to this blog but is written by myself. Slime is a nice, moderate rocksong with a sound that is as wide as the Grand Canyon, with at least as much reverb as shouting over the rim will create. The spacious sounding mix reveals the extreme attraction of the music. The single is as mysterious as it is interesting. The song certainly has a mysterious element, as if not all is revealed by Marika Hackman. We hear different sounds coming in and leaving again, little bubbly notes, a few notes from a keyboard, overdubbed guitar parts. The richness of the music is astonishing. Over it all Hackman sings with an as cool as sensual voice, better voices, as you can hear her multiple times. I was impressed by 'Hanging'. Marika Hackman did it again. 'Big Sigh', right?

I Got Fear. TORRES

Torres, or Mackenzie Scott as the tax office knows her, returns to WoNoBlog with a dark new song. A mix of acoustic instruments, primarily the acoustic guitar and drums and electronic sounds that weave in and out of I Got Fear. And there's the sound I can't make out whether it's an exotic organ setting or a classical instrument like a bassoon. This accompanies the singing for the larger part of the song. Darkness is what sticks with me most, with the eerie sounds coming deep out of the woods, like the wolves in Drs. P's 'Dodenrit'. I Got Fear does not give room to any other sentiment and it shows. "You're panicking", like Torres sings, tells it all. "Think I'll be alright", we can only hope this is the case. What remains, is an extremely clear sounding song that provides the right space to all the instruments to play their part and that is where this single scores points.

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