Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me. Porridge Radio

Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me. Another title impossibly long title to remember. Lucky for us fans the music is. Porridge Radio released another album that is extremely memorable. Despite the music is "more mellow" than on its previous two records, the impact is identical, if not bigger because of the nuances the band has found in recording its songs.

Porridge Radio made its debut on this blog with 'Every Bad' in 2020 followed by Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder To The Sky in 2022. Before 2020 the band released several albums that passed me by. With it latest album the band can compete with 'Every Bad', my introduction to Porridge Radio that sort of swept me of my feet. A first impression can only seldom be surpassed. A relationship with a band can deepen and that is where Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me ('Clouds') comes in.

In 2024 Dana Margolin (guitar, vocals), Georgie Stott (keyboards, backing vocals), Sam Yardley (drums, keyboards) are joined by new bass player Dan Hutchins after Maddie Ryall left the band in 2023. The voice and songwriter remains Margolin. It is her emotions and deeply felt inner feelings, frustrations and anger that the band and producer Dom Monks have to support respectively capture. Well, after listening to Clouds multiple times, I can only state mission accomplished.

Let me start with pointing to the song 'Pieces Of Heaven'. The song just goes on and on with a very elementary chord progression and vocal melody. Yet, whether despite or because of the monotony, the song becomes fully mesmerising. This is a dreamstate, daydream, spriritual healing, whatever you would like to call it, in one. A 2024 'Candy Says', that will do as well. Dana Margolin keeps her voice at one level, to share her tale with us, as a tale it is and not a multiple repeat of the same line. The music is sober and yet so effective. 'Born Confused' the opening song of 'Every Bad' once swept me off my feet, 'Pieces Of Heaven' sweeps my brain in a way The Rolling Stones did one year ago with 'Sweet Sounds Of Heaven'. What's in a title? No, it's the music, stupid.

To compensate Porridge Radio closes the album off full blast and repeating the line "Sick of the blues, I'm in love with my life again", multiple times. But then notice the dynamics and that trumpet joining for the, unexpectedly short, outro. The song has an important message, in the end the only person who can make you feel happy is yourself. With a little help from a partner and friends, I add from personal experience, but in essence, yes.

Dana Margolin's voice remains something of a mystery. Yes, she's capable of singing in a traditional sense, but quite often she sounds as if she's on the point of breaking down, having a fit of out of control anger, or about to cry in utter despair. At times everything together even. This makes that her voice is an expression of inner most feelings and speaks in such a direct way that I can imagine many people can't stand to listen to it from a fear of a too direct confrontation with the inner demons of the singer. Of course, it could be her voice just sounds this way, but that I doubt. Just listen to how for example 'God Of Everything Else' and 'Sleeptalker' start; and then evolve.

Clouds is an important album and one of the best released in 2024. Where my reception of 'Waterslide ...' was a bit mixed, this one can be called a dream of an album by Porridge Radio. The band has found a balance that sounds extremely attractive and will make me come back to Clouds again and again.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

You can listen to and order Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me here:

https://porridgeradio.bandcamp.com/album/clouds-in-the-sky-they-will-always-be-there-for-me

Sober Maal. De Mannen Broeders

Een sober maal anno 2024 is zonder twijfel iets geheel anders dan een sober maal in 1786 of 1850 en zelfs in 1914 het jaar waarin de Vlaamse vluchtelingen voor oorlogsgeweld in de kerk van Middelburg sliepen die op de hoes zijn te zijn. Dat is de tijd waarop De Mannen Broeders terug kijken. Sober Maal is dat helemaal vanuit een muzikaal standpunt gezien, want behalve de drone die een kerkorgel als grondtoon kan hebben, is de muziek die de teksten omlijst onvoorstelbaar en zeer waarschijnlijk niet om aan te horen voor een persoon die leefde zonder elektriciteit, quinoa en gemotoriseerd vervoer. Laat staan in een kerk te horen was.

Dat alles maakt Sober Maal bepaalt niet een minder indrukwekkende plaat. Tonnie Dieleman, a.k.a. broeder Dieleman en Colin van Eeckhout, zanger van Amenra slaan hier de handen ineen onder de naam De Mannen Broeders. "Aangetrokken door de donkere kant van het leven, verdriet, rouw en een voorliefde voor ritueel" zijn ze aan de slag gegaan op basis van (religieuze) teksten van onder andere priester en kunstenaar Omer Geliet, al bekend van eerder werk van Dieleman.

In vijf opnamedagen, met hier en daar assistentie, namen zij het album op in de doopsgezinde, 18e eeuwse kerk in Middelburg. Geen heel rare keuze, gezien de achtergrond van de teksten. Het kerkorgel werd een onderdeel van het proces. Verder zijn een piano te horen en de banjo van Tonnie Dieleman, al dan niet met een strijkstok bespeelt.

Als broeder Dieleman heeft Tonnie Dieleman mij al verschillende keren ver uit mijn comfortzone getrokken met een reeks platen die niet anders dan speciaal kunnen worden betiteld, 'Uut De Bron', 'Komma', ik heb niet een andere plaat in mijn collectie die maar bij benadering hierop lijkt. Totdat Sober Maal hier aan is toegevoegd. Van Eeckhout is voor mij een nieuwe naam. Metal is voor 98% mijn ding niet. Van metal is hier geen spoor te bekennen, van muziek over drones des te meer.

Opnieuw is het de mix van soberheid en weelde die mij als eerste raakt. De Mannen Broeders weten met heel weinig veel te bereiken, zoals in de vooruitgesnelde single 'Verteere Heel'. Een grondtoon en een floortom of basdrum, dat is het wel. Toch weet het binnenkomende banjo spel van Dieleman het nummer op zijn kop te zetten. Over impact van muziek gesproken.

Het album kent ook besproken woord bijdragen. Het klinkt als een preek. De teksten zijn van Omer Geliet Mijn vrouw hoorde het bij thuiskomst van haar werk en vroeg zich luidop af of ik mij aan het bekeren was. Daarmee is de sfeer van Sober Maal goed omschreven. Dit is kerkmuziek, maar dan anders. Het gaat ook over verdraagzaamheid, zoals in 'Grafschrift' en de vriendschap tussen priesters van een andere vorm van christendom. Iets wat (ook) in 1786 niet gewoon was. Ook hier wordt weer met minimale middelen absolute schoonheid gecreëerd. Een paar pianonoten van Pim van der Werken is al genoeg. Als dit nummer geen plek krijgt in Wino Penris' 'Kairos' show, dan weet ik het ook niet meer.

Kerkmuziek komt ook sterk naar voren in het prachtige koor in 'Onze Lieve Vrouwe'. Als de plaat een hoogtepunt heeft, dan is dit het wel. De hemelpoort staat wagenwijd open en laat de engelachtige zang zo nederdalen op de gelovigen en ongelovigen gelijk, zonder aanzien des persoons. Zoals het hoort. Het nummer volgt een derde preek en start met een drone en mannelijke samenzang, waarna de dames zich erbij voegen. De galm van de kerk is een extra instrument dat prachtig is gevangen in de opname. Ik heb geen idee waarom dit nummer mij zo raakt, maar het is van absolute schoonheid.

Zonder de muzikaliteit van de betrokkenen te kort te willen doen, is het heel bijzonder om te horen hoe met minimale middelen een maximum effect kan worden bereikt. Sober Maal is een album van grote en sobere schoonheid. Het doet zijn titel volledig eer aan, want een sober maal kan zeer voedzaam zijn.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

Je kunt Sober Maal hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://mannenbroeders.bandcamp.com/album/sober-maal

Cosmic Room 99. Cosmic Room 99

Over the past months Cosmic Room 99 debuted on this blog with its singles 'E-Corp' and 'Plastic Venus'. Now it's time for the band's eponymous album. The bio coming with the album mentions psych rockers. It is quite easy to state: yes, true for 100%. On Cosmic Room 99 the band explores several forms of psychedelic rock.

Cosmic Room 99 is a band from Italy releasing its debut album. It consists of Antonio Angeli (vocals/drums) and Matteo Scarpa (vocals/bass), both members of Kill Your Boyfriend, and Diego Menegaldo (vocals/guitar), a former guitarist of New Candys. The band mostly recorded in its own studio in Treviso, a town a little north of Venice. The inspiration comes from a documentary on the discovery by a NATO employee of a plan to "eredicate a part of the world's population to maintain Earth's sustainability", called 'The Cosmic Room'. That sounds rather Dan Brown to me, so let's focus on the music.

The Italians have listened to a lot that has been going on in psych rock over the past decades. To my ears, things start with those typical The Velvet Underground rhythms. From there the band that comes to mind most to me is The Black Angels. Cosmic Room 99 brings the same mix of directness and mystery to its music. Listen to 'Red Lights'. The band combines that pounding on the skins, making the song rock hard, with an electric guitar that does everything from shredding to playing a stark rhythm and mysterious wafts of tones. The voice is somewhere between real and treated. It makes for a very direct and yet mysterious song.

It is perhaps a decade ago that I wondered whether the world needed one more psychedelic band. Since then dozens have reached me and the answer must be mostly yes. There certainly is room for Cosmic Room 99. Especially because the band is not afraid to rock. It brings a lot of energy to its music. In combination with the quality of the songs, the band wins out easily. The fact that it has three singers, makes for more variety as they sound very different.

A good example of how the mystery ends on the higher level, is the aptly called song 'Atmosphere'. The tempo goes down, the bass receives a fuzz oomph (or something like it) and there are whole swaths of sounds smeared out over the song. Together with the way of singing, it gives 'Atmosphere' a dreamy quality. Underneath is a huge rhythm section, above it a host of melodies are presented in an early Pink Floyd style, from before that band really broke big. Whether Cosmic Room 99 will ever get there is uncertain but certainly something it may want to strive for.

Cosmic Room 99 successfully manages to manoeuvre itself between these two sounds. It makes band and album a welcome addition to my psych rock collection.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

You can listen to and order Cosmic Room 99 here:

https://cosmicroom99.bandcamp.com/album/cosmic-room-99

Sentir Que No Sabes. Mabe Fratti

De uit Guatemala afkomstige muzikante Mabe Fratti levert met Sentir Que No Sabes een album af dat de fantasie constant prikkelt, maar het is ook een album met een unieke sfeer en een bijzondere schoonheid.

“Rich, rewarding, spellbinding music from a true original”, het zijn de woorden van de Britse kwaliteitskrant The Guardian over Sentir Que No Sabes van Mabe Fratti en zoals zo vaak heeft de krant het bij het juiste eind. Mabe Fratti maakt op haar album muziek die je songs na song weet te verrassen of zelfs te verbazen, maar het is ook bijzonder mooie muziek en muziek die, ondanks het label avant garde, verrassend toegankelijk klinkt. Net als bijvoorbeeld Arooj Aftab betovert Mabe Fratti met muziek die anders klinkt dan alle andere muziek van het moment. Het is muziek waarin invloeden uit de jazz, neoklassieke muziek, Midden-Amerikaanse muziek, avant garde en pop en rock op bijzondere wijze samenvloeien. Bijzonder mooi.

Zonder enige twijfel het meest bijzondere album dat ik deze week heb gehoord is Sentir Que No Sabes van Mabe Fratti. Het is niet het eerste wapenfeit van de celliste uit Guatemala, die momenteel Mexico City als uitvalsbasis heeft, maar in tegenstelling tot haar vorige albums kan Sentir Que No Sabes rekenen op flink wat aandacht van de betere muziekpers. Dat is op zich best bijzonder voor een album waar het etiket avant garde wordt opgeplakt, maar met dit label vertel je maar een deel van het verhaal van de muziek van Mabe Fratti.

Je hoort het direct in de openingstrack, die verrassend veel klinkt als een redelijk normale popsong met een lome beat, jazzy drumwerk en de mooie stem van Mabe Fratti, die haar Spaanse teksten met veel gevoel voordraagt. Het is wel een redelijk normale popsong met een twist, want de blazers op de achtergrond klinken wat atypisch. Wanneer stemmige pianoakkoorden worden toegevoegd klinkt het nog wat conventioneler, maar op hetzelfde moment is duidelijk dat Mabe Fratti muziek maakt die anders klinkt dan alle andere muziek van het moment.

Het is muziek die me qua sfeer wel wat doet denken aan de muziek van Arooj Aftab, al is de muziek van Mabe Fratti minder jazzy. Invloeden uit de jazz spelen wel een rol in de songs van de muzikante uit Guatemala en dat hoor je vooral in het spel van de ritmesectie. Het wordt gecombineerd met invloeden uit de neoklassieke muziek en de avant garde, maar ook liefhebbers van aangenaam in het gehoor liggende popsongs met een kop en een staart hoeven Sentir Que No Sabes zeker niet direct opzij te leggen.

Dat Mabe Fratti een achtergrond heeft in de avant garde hoor je vooral wanneer ze haar cello er bij pakt en wat vervormde en tegendraadse klanken uit de speakers laat komen. Omdat de rest van de muziek op het album vrij toegankelijk is versterkt de cello vooral het unieke karakter van de songs van Mabe Fratti, maar heb je niet het idee dat je naar een heel experimenteel album aan het luisteren bent.

Dat idee heb je zeker niet wanneer Mabe Fratti zingt, want de muzikante uit Mexico City beschikt over een prachtige stem. Het is een stem die nog wat mooier en bijzonderder klinkt door de Spaanstalige teksten, die de muziek van Mabe Fratti voorzien van een extra dimensie, net zoals het gebruik van het Urdu dit doet op de albums van Arooj Aftab. Wanneer de stem van Mabe Fratti wordt gecombineerd met fraai klinkende blazers doet de muziek op Sentir Que No Sabes Mexicaans aan, maar wanneer de cello of de ritmesectie invalt of flink wat strijkers worden ingezet is de muziek op het album toch opeens weer meer neoklassiek of jazzy of schuift het op richting triphop, waarna elektronica de muziek van Mabe Fratti weer een andere kant op kan duwen.

Het doet me in muzikaal opzicht soms ook wel wat denken aan de muziek van Talk Talk uit de meer experimentele dagen van de Britse band, maar die vergelijking is niet meer relevant wanneer Mabe Fratti zingt. De muzikante uit Guatemala was het afgelopen jaar zeer productief in diverse samenwerkingsverbanden en heeft haar nieuwe album gemaakt met flink wat gastmuzikanten, die allemaal bijdragen aan een geluid dat totaal anders klinkt dan de andere muziek van het moment, maar dat desondanks zeer makkelijk weet te verleiden. Het levert wereldwijd zeer positieve recensies op en dat is echt volkomen terecht.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt Sentir Que No Sabes hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://tinangelrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sentir-que-no-sabes

Dust Chaser. VanWyck

Ah, sometimes things seem easier to explain than I could have imagined. Christien Oele, the singer-songwriter behind VanWyck, was born in The Netherlands but was raised in New Zealand, before returning to NL. So, she drank from the same water, whatever it is that is in there, as singer-songwriters like Reb Fountain, Vera Ellen, Aldous Harding and Ebony Lamb and others have. Mostly the first singer though.

On her new album Dust Chaser the associations with Fountain are once again quite obvious. I'm very happy with them as both make make albums that guarantee some serious listening, mystery and beauty. VanWyck lives up to expectations with Dust Chaser - and the some.

VanWyck made her debut on this blog in 2018 with the album 'An Average Woman', reviewed by Erwin Zijleman, followed by 'God Is In The Detour' (2020) and 'The Epic Tale Of The Stranded Man' (2022) reviewed by yours truly. That Dust Chaser follows is only logical. Some things have changed, as the album is released on a different label. But, there is more.

My impression is that on her new album VanWyck rocks a little harder. That there is a far greater role for the electric guitar. That may be totally erroneous as in my mind I hear slow(er), mysterious, piano driven songs and very little relatively harder rocking songs. The balance between the two is quite right here on Dust Chaser. There's even a song that positions itself in between. 'Desert Bride' is a song I would opt to call roots music, with its typical lead guitar (sound) and rhythm suggesting endless trips down an I-something highway through the endless U.S. deserts.

I noticed that in both previous album reviews I mentioned Reb Fountain. Recently I found that both singers have more in common than just their style of making music and way of singing. Both released their first album relatively late in life. Both emigrated to New Zealand with their parents when young. This doesn't explain the similarities, striking it is.

The more surprising is a song like 'Jump In'. With a little imagination I can call it funky and bluesy. 'Jump In' has a great rhythm and goes for it in a totally different way than one would expect from a VanWyck song. Oele shows a different side to her musicality. It makes Dust Chaser more dimensional, so more varied and interesting. The mystery and beauty comes with a bite in 2024.

I have never seen VanWyck live. This is going to change in a few weeks. I have no idea what to expect, except that the music will take concentration from the listeners. If people start talking, it will be hell. Otherwise it may well be a mesmerising experience. On the basis of the three albums I know, expectations are high and because of Dust Chaser even higher.

Wout de Natris - van den Borght

You can listen to and order Dust Chaser here:

https://vanwyck.bandcamp.com/album/dust-chaser

2024, week 41. 10 singles

Is there any nice news left in the world? Yesterday I got the question whether the situation in NL and much of the rest of the world was bringing me down. Luckily, I could answer that I'm not that kind of person but yes, I'm seriously worried about many things (They all came together in this evening's 8 PM news: politics, war, weather/climate change.) Then we are going to make some music tonight, was the response, as we were on route to band practice last night. We rammed the hell out of 'Radar Love'! In the mean time life is made a little prettier by the 10 songs in this post. With a lot of new names as well, so enjoy!

Are You Live Here? EP. Iskander Moon

When does an EP stop being an EP? An interesting question, because with seven songs, each, minus the intro, clocking (well) above the four minutes I would opt for mini album. That said, Iskander Moon presents itself as an atmospheric live act. The songs were recorded live in the Funkhause studio in Berlin. A live album that is not a live show. Iskander Moon is the moniker Belgian (Ghent) singer-songwriter Iskander Moens releases his work under. Start listening to Are You Live Here? and you will be sucked into an atmospheric musical work, that will make you recall albums by the likes of Patrick Watson and City + Colour, all artists that work somewhere in between pop, ballads, atmospherics and mystery. You will hear traditional instruments for pop bands, but at some point a trumpet can come in like it does in a song like Soft Cell's 'Torch'. The instruments are played in a way that can mesmerise a listener, dreamy, floating, tense, yet relaxed. Iskander Moon is also not afraid to give a song body, like it happens in 'Berlin'. The tempo goes up. Drums and bass gain prominence and a guitar starts shredding. In 'Saturday Silence' the mood is brought down immediately, but as you will notice a spine in a song can return in a totally different way. There's no need for tempo or noise to do so. This band masters that expertly. For six songs Iskander Moon plays with the mood and responses of the listener and succeeds to do so with ease.

Library Girl. The Dogmatics

The Dogmatics, so I'm told, played in the Boston area in the 1980s before folding, after which members played in a host of other bands. Some recordings have surfaced recently on Rum Bar Records. Now decades later the band is back and shows that it hasn't lost any of its tricks. Library Girl starts with the kind of chord-riff that started 1000s of great rock songs. Library Girl is no exception. It's the kind of song that sounds almost familiar, one you want to sing along to, beer in one hand and fist in the air with the other hand. While your head is going up and down as if there's no tomorrow. Library Girl is the kind of rock song any fan of this kind of music should get to know to draw The Dogmatics out of the Boston circuit. Yes, Library Girl is that good, believe me.

First Time. Greg Mendez

What a story. A guitarist unable to use his right hand, turns to an electric organ and only plays it with his left hand. It results in one of the most bare songs I have heard for some time. It's just Greg Mendez' downcast, melancholy voice and the chords played on the organ. The only embellishment is literally a few single notes in the outro. Greg Mendez had released his debut album, that received good reviews and then fate struck. Mendez needed surgery on his wrist and could not play and preform for four months. The result is an upcoming EP, 'First Time / Alone' to be released on 18 October. An EP the world might never have heard, as it rose from a forced break from performing and guitar playing. The mood of the single reflects the down side of life Greg Mendez will have felt, after the twist of fate. The result is an intens, yet sweet single.

Summer Breeze. Black Doldrums

In the week before 'In Limerence' is released Black Doldrums is found on the blog for the third time. Summer Breeze is a song that combines the darkness of Joy Division with the light side of The Cure in its new single. And in a successful way. Singer (and guitarist) Kevin Gibbard has a dark voice with which he is able to return to the doom and gloom of the early to mid 80s with ease. When around him the rhythm guitar has this light sound, the sun starts to shine a little as well. There's a host of guitar overdubs and a synth adding to the atmosphere. The London trio, besides Gibbard, Sophie Landers on drums and new bassist Daniel Armstrong, creates a sound that is impossible to recreate on stage as a trio. That is for them to figure out. On Summer Breeze the band does a lot right, if not all. Black Doldrums manages to weave a little pop into its early 80s new wave sound. This makes Summer Breeze a very attractive song to listen to.

Orange Background. Crash Harmony

Orange Background is a nostalgic song in a few ways. To explain, I have to point out that Crash Harmony reformed after more than three decades after calling it a day in 1988, during the bandmembers' college days in New Haven, CT. The song is on the one hand a message from the then young men to their older selves today and it is musically a trip down memory lane to the music that was emerging on the U.S.' east coast at the time. Think The Lemonheads, Buffalo Tom, etc. Crash Harmony obviously liked the bands at the time and still does. It brings good memories back for me as well and adds a song very much worthwhile hearing to a well-liked and known roster. Note also how Crash Harmony plays with the tempo within the song and its mood by adding an organ. Well done. So, Dave Derby, who can also be found on this blog as a member of Gramercy Arms, Nils Nadeau, Jon Nighswander and Mike Potenza came back together and now did record an album, so it may be the band with the longest wait for a debut album ever, 38 years. No One Asked For This' is out on 18 October.

See You Again. Jon Chesbro

Another new name to the blog Jon Chesbro is. See You Again is the lead single from his latest EP, 'Outta State Outta Mind', released on 25 September. See You Again is a dreamy single of the kind that allows you to travel in your mind, in the way Chesbro travelled around the United States, to come back to New England with a bunch of new songs in his bag. He starts the song with a lot of oohhs over the solid music, providing a dreamy vibe to See You Again from the start. I have reached the 0.50 second mark before the vocals starts. All the time there is a prominent drum part. Whoever is playing, Jon Chesbro is promoted as a multi-instrumentalist, he's having a great time. Even if it's a machine it obviously is. The musicality Chesbro is capable of, shows in the many guitar parts that both adorn and solidify See You Again. Beware, a new guitar part can come in any second. It makes for great listening.

Stay Strange. Then Comes Silence (with Goth Dad)

Now what can I call the music presented by Then Comes Silence on Stay Strange? It's rock, it has a metal edge, it is postpunk in the style of Killing Joke et al, maybe even goth. So, have your choice. What is clear that Stay Strange contains loads of energy that Then Comes Silence was able to capture in the studio and share with its fans and other listeners. On the single the Swedes are joined by Vision Video's frontman Dusty Gannon a.k.a. Goth Dad. The two singers really go for it but in the background it is guitarist Hugo Zombie and drummer Jonas Fransson that kick life into the song. That is not all though. There's a wild guitar intro and a bit mysterious interlude that gives the rock song a little psychedelic edge, before the song is kicked towards its end in full rock swing. On an average day a song like Stay Strange will be a bit much for me. On the right day it is all I need.

Motoroller. Pixies

I will probably have written this before but Pixies totally passed me by around 1990. It was a few years later before I became interested again in music  by new bands. That did not stop right up to today. Not so though in 1987 or 1988 when Pixies broke in the alternative rock world. In 2024 I am again listening to a new single by the band and I like it. Where fans of old may not like it at all, I love the way this single develops. The little darkness, the voice of new bassist Emma Richardson of (or ex?) Band of Skulls. Boy did I love that band's 'Diamonds and Pearls'! The chorus of Motoroller is simply so great. The lead guitar underneath it. Black Francis taking his voice down and Emma Richardson challenging him for the whole of the way. There's an album announced for 25 October, 'The Night The Zombies Came'. It may well be that for the first time I have to check a Pixies album out.

If God Is A Woman. Larkin Poe

Time for some dirty, low down electric blues. Larking Poe returns to the blog with a great blues rock song. The sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell are on route to release their ninth album, 'Bloom' on 25 January since 2014. With If God Was A Woman the tone is set for some dirty blues rock. Dark distortion and a wining, even darker slide guitar say it all. God help us men if Larking Poe is right that if God is a woman, the devil is too, turns out to be true. "I will pray for you", Rebecca sings. It's better to be an atheist, just to be sure. Musically you will have heard it all before, from artists and bands like Stevie Ray Vaughan or Heart, but who cares when it sounds as good as If God Is A Woman does. Larking Poe, the name of the sisters' great-great-great-great-grandfather and cousin of Edgar Allan Poe, is smoking on this song and I have no doubt 'Bloom' will as well.

I Don’t Know What To Save. Sophie Jameson

We end this week's singles post with a very serious song by British singer Sophie Jamieson. You can find her on this blog with her album 'Choosing' in a review written by Erwin Zijleman. For me she is a new name though. I have to say that I'm impressed by the way she builds up I Don’t Know What To Save. With her voice that is somewhere between deep and higher, she commands listening. Jamieson sings with a lot of emphasis stemming from the use of her voice. Always in full control of the words. Musically, the song contains great dynamics, including beautiful details. In the small parts, the music is very elementary. Like in the intro, where only an electric guitar accompanies her voice. A short interlude brings solo notes from a second guitar. After the second verse slowly but surely more instruments come in, including a string section. Then drums and bass kick in, giving the song a boost, that is reflected by the singing. Beautiful melodies adorn the music and I Don’t Know What To Save just grows and grows. The album ' I Still Want To Share' will be released on 17 January.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

Bowie for Dummies #36

It's been a while since the previous incarnation of the best read post by far on the blog. Chances are that there is a lot of new stuff to be discovered there. This is the 36th version since we published the first one on 8 January 2017. In this post you find all Tineke Guise's explorations on Bowie on the Internet with the links to music, clips, news, and what not.

Here is the link to the original but updated post where all is revealed:

http://wonomagazine.blogspot.com/2017/01/bowie-for-dummies.html

Below A Massive Dark Land. Naima Bock

Naima Bock had left the band Goat Girl before my introduction to the band and released a solo album in 2022 called 'Giant Palm'. Today she returns with Below A Massive Dark Land, an album of truly ambitious proportions, impossible to reproduce live with the modest means Ms Bock will have to play live.

This starts immediately in the opening song. 'Gentle' starts ever so modest. Just her voice and a plucked bass note. A single one that just continues to be plucked. In the second verse more and more instruments come in all playing that same note, until the end of the verse. By then a modest orchestra and choir join in. The mood for Below A Massive Dark Land is set here alright. From that single note the song opens up and receives a lush arrangement. Not so much complex in the number of notes, it is the complexity of all instruments as a whole that sets Gentle apart from the average song.

Naima Bock is of Brazilian-Greek decent but grew up in the U.K. On 'Giant Palm' she showed her musical heritage. She leaves that all behind on Below A Massive Dark Land. Instead she goes all out on her new album. Where I wrote then that her voice is not her strongest feature, here she show growth and self-assuredness. She can be compared to some of the singer-songwriters coming out of New Zealand in the past years like Aldous Harding, Vera Ellen and Erny Belle. Singers who take on adventure in their music.

Below A Massive Dark Land is an incredibly rich album. The songs have all been given a treatment where more is less and less is more simultaneously. The folk element brings to mind the late Norwegian singer-songwriter St. Thomas, in that slow, relaxed way of singing. From there Naima Bock brings on every instrument that fits the song. Acoustic guitar, bass and drums can be joined by any form of horn, her voice with a host of overdubs or other singers in that St. Thomas kind of choir singing. Listen to 'Feed My Release' to get my drift.

Someone already declared this album a masterpiece. For that it is too early in my opinion. I have no way of telling what the album will do to/with me over the coming months, let alone years. What I can share with you is that in the first listening sessions it made a great impression on me. It is an album that forces the listener to pay attention. This is where good music and my relation to it starts. Below A Massive Dark Land and I are off to a great start so to say.

It is easy to write that I did not see this one coming on the basis of 'Giant Palm' and of having been a bass player in Goat Girl. This is an album that goes beyond just being nice or good. ('Giant Palm' got really great reviews btw, I was simply more modest in my praise.) Below A Massive Dark Land is an album that will allow for exploration for quite some time. There is everything between what could have been heard in her grandmother's garden shed where she lived for a while while, playing to herself, writing this album, and the lush arrangements heard in several songs. This will bring you from English folk as played around 1970, Fairport Convention is not far away on a song like 'Takes One', before St. Thomas returns and all sorts of other instruments are added, taking the song to its own strata. Even a violin enters. Naima Bock has taught herself to play the instrument in the past two years. 'Takes One' is another song that shows how rich this album is.

As I already wrote, time will tell where we will go. For now, I'm sincerely impressed by Below A Massive Dark Land and will continue to listen for sure.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

You can listen to and order Below A Massive Dark Land here:

https://naimabock.bandcamp.com/album/below-a-massive-dark-land

Angels Got His Back. The Bard Band

The Band is no longer among us, with only one member still alive (Garth Hudson), enter The Bard Band. The way Angels Got His Back opens, I feel like I'm back in the cinema in Breda, decades ago, watching 'The Last Waltz', which, a few singles aside, was my introduction to The Band.

The Bard Band "was formed in 2017 by college friends Jamie Pagliaro (acoustic guitar, lead vocals) and Michael Schreiber (keyboard, organ, vocals), who had lost touch for two decades. The lineup grew to include Dave Menez (bass guitar, vocals), Mike Potenza (electric guitar, vocals) and David Kolk (drums, percussion, vocals)", as  the bio says. Angels Got His Back is the band's first full length album after an EP called 'Come Back Often'.

On the album The Bard Band takes the listener on a trip down memory lane of American and British classic (folk)rock music with as much rock influences as there are soul ones. Fans of these mixes will find a lot to their liking on this album. Take the title song, the second on the album. You will find Van Morrison as much as the Michael McDonald era The Doobie Brothers. With his raspy, well-aged voice singer, guitarist and songwriter Jamie Pagliaro fits the bill of these kind of songs perfectly.

Okay, don't come to me complaining that 'you do not hear anything new on Angels Got His Back'. In that case you've missed the point of the album. These men, all moving on in life are writing originals in the style that they loved when younger. And doing a great job at it, I can only add. The Bard Band are on a roll here. The songs are spot on and the sound is so clear. From the acoustic guitar to the warm organ, from the bass to each hit on the drums, all can be heard in great details. What it shows, is that these men know what they are doing. Producer and mixer Ray Ketchem deserves to get full credit for his work on Angels Got His Back.

Photo: Jamie Pagliaro

The only thing that I can hold against The Bard Band is that it all sounds ear friendly. Besides Pagliaro's voice there is no danger in Angels Got His Back, underscored by the Eagles style harmony singing, like in 'We Are Such Stuff'.

With seven songs the album is over far too soon. I wouldn't have mind a few more songs in this style. The Bard Band really lays it on with a warm sheen over its music. With all the post punk energy flying around these days, The Bard Band's music is exactly the right antidote to balance things. What a nice album it is.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

You can listen to and order Angels Got His Back here:

https://thebardband.bandcamp.com/album/angels-got-his-back

Wildwood. Ann Buckle

De Amerikaanse muzikante Anne Buckle heeft een verrassend mooi en eigenzinnig countrypop album gemaakt, dat in alle opzichten betovert, maar vooralsnog helaas schandalig weinig aandacht krijgt.

WILDWOOD, het eerste album van Anne Buckle is een album vol bijzondere verleidingen. Zo is er een stem die wel wat aan Kacey Musgraves doet denken, zijn er de bijzonder aangenaam klinkende countrypopsongs en is er de bijzondere instrumentatie die subtiel maar altijd op fraaie wijze de grenzen opzoekt. Dat ik het debuutalbum van Anne Buckle heb ontdekt is puur toeval, maar wat is dit album me een kleine week later al dierbaar. Ik heb dit jaar niet te klagen over memorabele countrypop albums van persoonlijke favorieten, maar de mij tot voor kort totaal onbekende Anne Buckle levert met WILDWOOD een album op dat zeker niet onder doet voor mijn countrypop favorieten van 2024.

WILDWOOD, het debuutalbum van de Amerikaanse muzikante Anne Buckle, ben ik niet tegengekomen in de vele releaselijsten die ik raadpleeg ter inspiratie. Dat ik het album toch nog heb ontdekt heb ik te danken aan het Amerikaanse duo Steel Blossoms, dat is te horen in een van de tracks op het album en hiervan melding maakte op haar socials.

Het was overigens zo ongeveer het eerste levensteken van Steel Blossoms dat me opviel, sinds hun fantastische titelloze debuutalbum uit 2019, maar dit terzijde. Dat ik vervolgens ook nog ben gaan luisteren naar het eerste album van Anne Buckle heeft alles te maken met de slappe tijden van het moment, maar ik ben heel blij met dit bijzondere debuutalbum.

WILDWOOD opent met de track Appalachian Dream, waardoor ik er van uit ging dat Anne Buckle zich op haar debuutalbum zou richten op het maken van muziek die zich heeft laten inspireren door de folk zoals die aan het begin van de vorige eeuw in de Appalachen werd gemaakt. Dat is zeker niet het geval want de eerste track van WILDWOOD opent als een elektronische popsong van het moment, inclusief vervormde stemmen.

Dat duurt overigens maar dertien seconden, want hierna is duidelijk dat Anne Buckle niet voor niets Nashville als thuisbasis heeft gekozen. Appalachian Dream schuift al snel op richting country of countrypop, al duiken er met enige regelmaat eigenzinnige accenten op, die duidelijk maken dat Anne Buckle zich niet volledig laat vastsnoeren in het keurslijf van de Nashville countrypop.

De Amerikaanse muzikante heeft er overigens al een bijzondere carrière opzitten, want ze werkte eerder als diplomaat en is bovendien een geschoold violiste. Inmiddels bespeelt Anne Buckle een heel arsenaal aan instrumenten en heeft ze bovendien ontdekt dat ze een prima zangeres is.

Na de opvallende openingstrack was ik onder de indruk van de bijzondere touch die Anne Buckle geeft aan de op het moment zo populaire countrypop en die bijzondere touch gaat een album lang mee. De meeste songs op WILDWOOD bevatten alle ingrediënten die countrypop wat mij betreft aangenaam en interessant maken, maar Anne Buckle voegt er haar eigen ding aan toe en heeft als bonus ook nog eens een bijzonder aangenaam vleugje Kacey Musgraves in haar stem.

De countrypop songs op haar debuutalbum bevatten hier en daar een snufje pop, zijn incidenteel voller en steviger ingekleurd en worden hier en daar verrijkt met fraaie orkestraties, maar overdadig wordt het nooit. Anne Buckle weet de Nashville countrypop op subtiele wijze te verrijken en heeft hierdoor een album gemaakt dat zich weet te onderscheiden in het genre.

Omdat de stem van de muzikante uit Nashville zeer geschikt is voor countrypop en de songs buiten de instrumentatie redelijk dicht in de buurt blijven bij het stramien van de klassieke countrypop song zullen liefhebbers van Nashville countrypop onmiddellijk vallen voor het debuutalbum van Anne Buckle en pas hierna ontdekken hoe de Amerikaanse muzikante op fraaie en subtiele wijze de grenzen van het genre opzoekt.

WILDWOOD is echt in alle opzichten een uitstekend album en het verbaast me dan ook dat het album tot dusver zo weinig aandacht heeft gekregen. Het is ook doodzonde, want dit zo knap gemaakte en mooi uitgevoerde album verdient alle aandacht. Mijn hart heeft Anne Buckle in ieder geval gestolen met dit eigenzinnige countrypop album dat ook nog eens ruim een uur duurt.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt het album bestellen op de website van Ann Buckle:

https://www.annebuckle.com/store/album.

Living Room concert: Tamara van Esch, Chima and Kohei Kondo. Saturday 5 October, Haarlem

Tamara van Esch and yours truly have tried to organise this living room show for some time. It never worked out. First Covid stopped any ideas of organising anything for me, then the date we chose proved the wrong one, until 5 October. What took place was unique and most likely will never be repeated in our street.

Tamara indicated to want to wait until her Japanese friends were over and bring them along. They had played together in the spring of 2023 in Japan. This October they perform together during the Aki Tour 2024 (autumn tour) that brings them to several venues in The Netherlands and Germany, including our home!

Usually, I prepare for a show but this time I just wanted to be surprised. I had never heard of our Japanese guests and decided to keep it that way. The set up was different as while singer and songwriters Tamara van Esch and China played their songs, painter Kohei Kondo painted live, magnified by a camera and beamer. We saw him paint a different painting for each song, inspired by what he heard and even paint to the rhythm of a song.

Photo: Wout de Natris

Chima, a singer living in Sapporo on the northern island of Japan, opened the show. With her soft and modest voice she brought her songs accompanied by her electric guitar, played with a delicate fingerpicking style, with minor exceptions. All but one song were in Japan. So I had no idea what they were about. The mood she set was enough to enjoy her songs. "Drop, drop, drop", she sang at some point and afterwards said she had tried the Dutch sweet called drop. From the look on her face it was more an experience than something to be relished.

Chima never looks at the audience when playing/singing and totally draws into herself, while not losing track of Kohei. A song can be lengthened at will to make sure he can finish his idea. At times strange little noises came from her direction. Each time she was making them herself. Adding a layer of mystery to her presentation. Chima may be a modest singer, she is able to mesmerise her audience and certainly in association with Kohei Kondo.

Photo: Wout de Natris

Tamara van Esch is in transition as an artist. Her records are all filled with Dutch language songs. This evening almost all, including a few songs from her upcoming album (2025), were sung in English. Her music is serious and of the kind that demands listening. In a solo setting that is a given of course. And especially in a living room. She accompanies herself on guitar or on piano. During a few songs she used a loop pedal slowly enhancing her sound with more and more layers of guitar melodies. Timing is essential here to make sure it all fits, while she keeps singing as well. In the mean time Kondo was painting behind her making her songs come alive in paintings. With little drops of paint, water colour, oil, sprayed water, finger nails, using anything from the tiniest brushes to a huge brush. It could all be seen on the screen behind Tamara.

Photo: Wout de Natris

Yes, the painting took some attention away from listening but the combination was so perfect. The songs of both artists, no matter how different the two may be in style and singing, came doubly alive. The combination was magical and mesmerising, as the audience showed the whole of the evening

The paintings went on sale immediately after the show and many of the visitors went home with one. We have one of our own living room on which the show is announced. A perfect memory of a perfect evening.

Folks, this show is really worthwhile visiting. On the tour poster on top of this review are the other dates you can see the trio in action. Don't hesitate, go!

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

You can buy Tamara van Esch's  music here:

https://tamaravanesch.bandcamp.com/album/tussen-lagen

 

 

Hysterical Strength. DEADLETTER

As I already wrote recently, over the past weeks several postpunk records were released all deserving a spot on this blog but being ignored for a while. So, here we go once more.

DEADLETTER featured on this blog already with some singles. In the posts I commemorated the unusual line up of the band a few times, with a saxophone playing a huge role in the soloing. The rest may be more familiar in sound, the excitement is there alright.

Postpunk is a term that is as wide as it is deep. It may well be impossible to give a real description. Literally it is everything that came after the first generation punk bands. But what about new wave? That came right after as well. Anyway, it seems like bands that do something weird with rhythms, notes and chords yet manage to capture the energy of punk qualify.

DEADLETTER certainly does. It does all these things, and of course, the singer that speaks-sings his lyrics. The band captures a lot of energy in its songs, but who are they? Hysterical Strength is the band's debut album after all.

The band started as a trio in Yorkshire. Zac Lawrence, Alfie Husband and George Ullyott are friends for almost as long as they can remember. Playing music together, at some point they all moved to London. Here guitarists Will King and Sam Jones, and saxophonist Poppy Richler joined and the rest is history as they say.

As influences bands from The Fall to Fontaines DC are mentioned, but listen to 'Mother' and tell me that Richler has not heard Bowie's 'Blackstar'. The sax floats just like the one on Bowie's fantastic swan song. The other influences are obvious as well, but because of the addition of that saxophone DEADLETTER has a fairly unique sound carved out for itself. Exactly this is what sets the band so much apart and makes it so intriguing to listen to. That and Zac Lawrence who is declaiming his lyrics like a U.K. Ferry Heine, frontman of Dutch band The Kift. All huge waving of hands and pumping himself up to bring his emotions across.

Although postpunk veterans will have heard a lot of this kind of music before, Hysterical Strength has a lot going for itself. It is an album very much worthwhile checking out and cherish.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

2024, Week 40. 10 singles

Weeks fly by and ever faster it seems. Never a dull day, or not that I notice. What I do notice, is a world that is more in flames by the day it seems, while we live our lives. For the first time I can imagine that people somewhere between my grandparents and parents age where sitting outside on a surprisingly warm May evening and out of the blue heard air planes flying over and hearing explosions in the distance. NL was at war in the early morning of 10 May 1940 and I can only imagine who truly saw that coming. Where are we today with wars raging extremely close by? There's also a sense that there is nothing individuals can do to stop it. So, what else can a poor boy do but to play in a rock and roll band? Or listen to songs produced by artists and formulate an opinion on them? Within 24 hours I happened to have done both. So, enjoy the selection.

The Girl That I Call Home. Tears For Fears

When was it, 1983?, that Frits Spits played 'Change' in his 'Avondspits' show as his record of the week? Not much later followed by an even better song, 'Pale Shelter'. From there we went to ever greater achievements by Tears for Fears in the 1980s. And from there, things went quiet as far as I was concerned. Come 2024 and there is an announcement of a new Tears for Fears single, announcing a double live album. The single holds a lot of familiar elements from those glorious 80s days. Fans of old and those who latched on through their parents or other forms in which older music is heard will recognise these elements easily. The Girl That I Call Home, Roland Orzabal's love song for his wife of many years, is a song that may not be able to compete with the best songs of the duo. What it does, is make me feel good and love the music the band makes here. This single simply is good. It has that great flow and dreamy atmosphere. so typical for the band's best songs. The lyrics describe a situation where things are totally okay, where a look is enough. Daily life and routines of decades, may never have been set to music better. "You are the girl that I call home".

Verteere Heel. De Mannen Broeders

De Mannen Broeders, Colin van Eeckhout en Tonnie Dieleman, hebben een tweede single gepresenteerd aan de wereld. Op de dag van schrijven duurt het nog tien dagen voordat de plaat uitkomt op 11 oktober. Opgenomen in een paar dagen in een kerk in Middelburg. De video is dit maal opgenomen in een kerk in Gent. Verteere Heel is een lang, bijna zeven en een halve minuut, en intens nummer. Van Eeckhout zingt, indringend en bijna gepijnigd, met een minimale begeleiding. Een bas drum of floor tom en de banjo van Dieleman. Wel komt op een gegeven moment het kerkorgel erbij. Dit maakt het nummer direct anders en toch niet omdat het zo intens blijft. Verwacht geen spannende wendingen, maar hypnotische bezweringen, omdat veel hetzelfde blijft. Niet monotoon, maar wel veel herhaling. Dat is juist de kracht van Verteere Heel.

Audacious. Franz Ferdinand

It took about 20 years, but for the first time in all these years, I'm listening to a Franz Ferdinand song that does not excite me at first listen. I have doubted whether I should write about the song and even pushed Audacious back in the line after the first listen session, something I never do. Your in or out in the singles section of WoNoBlog. One week later I find that Audacious is not a bad song. I hear what the bands tries for. Franz Ferdinand is easing away from its erratic past and goes for a pop song and succeeds, I'd say. Audacious is a pop song with a surprising twist into the chorus. The guitars are far less prominent and that gives the song a totally different feel. I am even inclined to conclude that the band has listened to The Beatles for the first time. Most likely it allows to be heard that they are familiar with the Fab Four.. This song has Beatles written all over it and in that way the single works as well. It is just not exciting. There seems to be a new Franz Ferdinand that does not want to take us out but sit in our chairs and listen to how clever the new song is - and it is, so let's get on with it

Nytår. Aursjoen

Nytår is New Year in Danish. Aursjoen is Ria Aursjoen, a singer of Danish descent living in San Francisco. She plays in the band Octavian Winters. Nytår is her debut solo single. So now, you know the facts around the release. What you do not know yet, is the almost new age atmosphere of her single. What comes closest in my mind is Enya's number 1 single (in NL) from 1988, 'Orinoco Flow' and the songs from the accompanying album. Obviously, that music was called Celtic. The music in Nytår is just as mysterious. As if it is coming to me through the mist hanging over the landscape and time. Together with producer David Kruschke she created music that you can lie down on to be carried away ever so slowly into a dreamworld of angels and who knows what else. Everything is slow and relaxed but also somewhere between Scandinavian coolness and the warmth near the hearth in a Viking hall. Aursjoen presents music that could never have been made in the Middle Ages but sounds like as if it were played in dark, candle lit churches of old. Mysterious and almost otherworldly.

Il Manzo EP. BEEF

An American, Cincinnati, band on an Italian label? Why not? It is 2024 and globalisation is only just over its highest point ever. In the four songs on Il Manzo (the beef in Italian) can be called garage rock with an alternative rock twist, played with a punk attitude. There you have it all. Because of the staccato way of playing I'll let you opt for postpunk as well if you prefer. What stands out a lot, is the organ in BEEF's music. That little old fashioned style organ, probably a Farfisa organ, gives the whole a sixties vibe. BEEF keeps up the tempo for the whole time. In all four songs the band goes for it, making sure that lovers of the (sub)genres have a good time. BEEF lets attitude go before cleanliness. The music is a big wall of sound, in which the individual instruments stand out but almost as if it is not a conscious choice. More like a live experience where a wall of sound is blasted from the speakers. BEEF obviously aimed to capture its stage sound and energy. It's not hard to be convinced. No rest for the wicked here.

Never Looked So Good To Me Before. Kate McLeod's Mind The Gap

Time to wind down completely with Kate MacLeod and the three men who accompany her on this single under the name Mind The Gap, Paul Hammerton, John Bryant, and Matthew Metz. MacLeod can be found on this blog since 2022. Solo, including interpretations of Jean Ritchie songs. Here she is in the total relax mode. She starts with an intro on her acoustic country guitar before the accompanying musicians join in. With her high voice she moves the song somewhere between U.K. folk from around 1970 and country music of old. I would venture she delivers a perfect match between the two on Never Looked So Good To Me Before. The accompaniment on piano, bass, banjo and harmony vocals is modest, yet totally right as it makes Kate MacLeod's voice shine. She is the star of this single and rightly so.

Electric Cars. The Shitdels

It still exists, a band that sounds like it recorded its song with one microphone and just a tape or cassette recorder. The Shitdels go for energy and effect and not a clean multi-tracked recording. Electric Cars sounds even more mono than the garage bands from the 1960s that recorded one single before folding, only to make it to the 'Nuggets' or 'Psychedelic States' series decades later. The Shitdels is a band from Memphis (I think, as there are so many towns mentioned in the bio). Jordan Wayne started it all as a bedroom project, included his wife and later joined by Mike Bibbs and Carlos Ortiz. You can expect exactly what is described in the introduction. The Shitdells present garage rock with a punk attitude. Drums, bass and gitar pound away. On top is a nice farfisa organ with its high, thin notes providing some solo notes here and  there. The vocals are treated in such a way that the whole gets a psychedelic undercurrent but above all this is rock and roll for modern times. Even if its basis lies deep into the 1960s. A real fun track Electric Cars is.

Busy. Rachèl Louise

From garage rock punk to a pure pop track is but a small step in the WoNoBlog singles post. Dutch-American singer-songwriter Rachèl Louise has released the first single of her upcoming second EP (Feb 25). Busy is a very nice uptempo song that hovers successfully between upbeat and the slightly sad atmosphere of the topic of the lyrics. "Whatever happened to living in the moment"?, she mourns, wishing not to be busy and to do things she would like to do but doesn't. The music reflects this feeling perfectly. The tempo just goes on and on, without a single moment of introspection. The tempo in combination with the fleeting sounds over the rhythm is exactly what makes Busy work so well. Rachèl Louise sings over it all with a part longing, part resigned voice but also gives it a little edge in the chorus. In that little edge lies the answer in how to break free into that living in the moment. That place where she would like to be every once in a while. In her music she succeeded. Yes, I like this pop gem of a song.

Hold You. Isbells

Isbells is the band of Flemish singer-songwriter Gaëtan Vandewoude. One of its members is chanteuse Chantal Acda, who can be found on this blog in numerous guises. Vandewoude asked Acda to produce the new Isbells album, giving up control for the first time. Now, I am not an Isbells connaisseur but have heard many of Chantal Acda's albums of the past years. This first single definitely is a Chantal Acda kind of song. The slow tempo and the instruments used around the minimal band setting of an acoustic bass and a few sparse piano notes. From there a trumpet and strings come in regularly. Vandewoude sings with Acda on backing vocals for most of the song. The result is a song so vulnerable, that even just listening puts me in fear of breaking it. "Let me hold you" the two sing together, but to do so would shatter everything into smithereens. The effect Hold You has on me though, is one of being impressed. Hold You is truly beautiful.

Private Pyle. Nothingheads

Ah, all recommendations for Nothingheads' upcoming album 'The Art Of The Sod' (8 November) come with a Public Image Limited (PIL) reference. Unfortunately, I never was a PIL fan, so I can't tell. What I do hear is that Johnny Lydon (as Rotten is known since starting PIL) sneer in the voice of singer-guitarist Rob Fairey. On Private Pyle, he sneers as if in disdain of the whole world. The band supports Fairey by playing in a very direct way. There's a wall of sound and a stark riff stutting the whole fabric of the song. At heart a two note riff, that gets a little expansion towards the end of the vocal line. Matt Holt (Bass / synths), Ed Simpson (Guitar) and Chanter Whitehurst (drums) deserve all the credits here. When the vocals stop for a while, the band slips into another mood, a little more relaxed, allowing for a bit of a breather. Then that riff returns and we are back to square one right until that very abrupt ending. Postpunk? No, I opt for the real thing here.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght