Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous!. Melanie Baker

Melanie Baker laat zich op haar debuutalbum Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! vooral beïnvloeden door indierock uit de jaren 90, maar geeft wel een bijzondere eigen draai aan alle echo’s uit het verleden.

De Britse muzikante gaat op haar in april verschenen debuutalbum flink los met de gitaren, die af en toe stevig ontsporen, maar ze maakt ook indruk met lekker in het gehoor liggende rocksongs. Het zijn rocksongs die de muzikante uit Newcastle met veel passie en energie vertolkt, maar ook als ze op de tweede helft van het album wat vaker gas terugneemt, blijven de songs, de muziek en de zang van Melanie Baker makkelijk overeind. Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! is hierdoor een album dat zich weet te onderscheiden van de meeste andere indierockalbums van het moment en dat is gezien het enorme aanbod van de laatste jaren echt een flinke prestatie.

De Britse muzikante Melanie Baker oogst direct bonuspunten met de titel van haar debuutalbum Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! en doet dat ook met de ruwe openingstrack AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!. Het is een openingstrack die laat horen dat we van Melanie Baker niets anders dan een pittig rockalbum mogen verwachten. 

Dat is haar eerste album dan ook en als ik er een etiket op zou mogen plakken, zou ik kiezen voor indierock. En om nog wat preciezer te zijn 90’s indierock, want de Britse muzikante vindt haar inspiratie eerder in de door vrouwen aangevoerde indierock uit de jaren 90 dan in de indierock van het moment. 

Dat betekent dat ze moet concurreren met stapels geweldige albums uit het verleden en dat is geen eenvoudige opgave, maar Melanie Baker heeft een album vol bravoure afgeleverd. Het is een album dat een stuk steviger klinkt dan de meeste indierockalbums van het moment. De Britse muzikante schuwt de hoge gitaarmuren en opvallend gruizig gitaarwerk niet en de gitaren mogen ook op andere manieren ontsporen. 

Het herinnert me direct aan bands uit het verleden, zeker als ook nog een randje grunge wordt toegevoegd, maar Melanie Baker is ook een kind van deze tijd. Dat hoor je vooral wanneer de gitaren even gas terugnemen en Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! dichter tegen de indierock van het moment aankruipt, maar het grootste deel van de tijd plaats ik het debuutalbum van Melanie Baker eerder in de jaren 90 dan in het nu. 

Dat betekent zeker niet dat het album klinkt als een retro indierockalbum, want de songs van Melanie Baker klinken ook fris. Het is in muzikaal opzicht een knappe niche die Melanie Baker heeft gevonden en ik vind haar debuutalbum bij herhaalde beluistering alleen maar indrukwekkender worden. Dat ligt vooral aan het gitaarwerk, dat steeds weer net wat anders klinkt en de 90s indierock ook zomaar kan verruilen voor het gitaarwerk dat is te horen op de albums uit de Berlijnse periode van David Bowie, om maar één voorbeeld te noemen. 

Niet alleen de muziek, maar ook de zang op Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! herinnert op een of andere manier aan de jaren 90. De zang van Melanie Baker klinkt soms prettig onderkoeld, maar klinkt meestal aanstekelijk uitbundig, wat nog wat extra energie toevoegt aan het geluid op Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous!. 

In muzikaal opzicht bevat het album misschien flink wat echo’s uit het verleden, maar in tekstueel opzicht past het album goed in deze tijd met de teksten waarin Melanie Baker geen geheim maakt van haar queer identiteit, waarmee ze aansluit bij een aantal groten uit het genre. 

Af en toe is het allemaal wel erg ruw en stevig, zoals in het punky Cabin Fever, maar zeker als Melanie Baker kiest voor lekker in het gehoor liggende rocksongs, en dat doet ze met grote regelmaat en zeker op de meer ingetogen tweede helft van het album, weet de muzikante uit Newcastle me makkelijk te overtuigen. Als ze dat niet direct doet is het even wennen aan al het gitaargeweld, maar ook dan wint de Britse muzikante mijn sympathie redelijk makkelijk. 

Er verschijnen momenteel nogal wat albums die zich keurig houden aan het stramien van de indierock van het moment en wat dat betreft klinkt het debuutalbum van Melanie Baker fris en anders. Ik ben er van overtuigd dat ze met Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! een breed publiek kan aanspreken, maar ook een ieder die normaal gesproken niet zo gek is op het soort muziek dat op dit album te horen is, zou eens moeten luisteren naar de songs van Melanie Baker.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt Somebody Help Me, I’m Being Spontaneous! hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://melaniebaker.bandcamp.com/album/somebody-help-me-i-m-being-spontaneous

Real Life Evolution. Joan as Policewoman

Everyone seriously involved in music will recognise the following. You follow an artist for several albums and see a few live shows and then for reasons that are not determinable, you miss an album and another one and even forget to play older albums. That happened to me with Joan as Policewoman somewhere in the 10s. Come 2026 and I'm alerted to a new version of her debut album, Real Life.

Many artists say that they would have liked to spend some more time recording or that a song takes on a different guise due to the many times it is played live. It is less usual that an artist reimagines his/her own recordings. More often it is a remix by another producer or musician. Not Joan Wasser, she went back into the studio, well a few actually, to come out with new versions of the songs from her first album.

To prepare for the new version, I decided to look into my backlog of WoNo Magazines, but to my surprise I did not find a review of 'Real Life' there. That makes it impossible to share my original thoughts with you. My guess is that my response then, would not have been that much different as it is today with the Evolution version. Joan as Policewoman does not go for immediate effect but for longevity. She does not play easy to digest pop music but commands listening to get to know the songs better with each spin, to unlock the inner richess of the melodies and arrangements.

What I decided not to do is compare the two versions. The new voices, Krystle Warren on 'I Defy' and Iggy Pop in 'Save Me are totally obvious, but other changes will be far more subtle. A difference is also in Joan Wasser's voice. It has aged in a pleasant way. This little extra edge to it, makes for good listening.

With her music Wasser hovers somewhere between pop and jazz. Opener 'Anyone' with its fretless bass makes that clear from the very start. The singing of the harmonies gives a little soul edge to the song as well. I only have faint memories of Ella Fitzgerald records of the generation preceding mine, but I can imagine Ella singing a song like 'Anyone' in a more jazzy arrangement. The song gives the album a very serious, yet pleasantly and good start.

I hadn't played 'Real Life' for quite some time. I gave a copy in the 00s to my now wife, but unfortunately she is a little less accurate storing her records, so good luck finding it somewhere. The songs all sounded instantly familiar though. Even in such a way that it is hard to pinpoint to the new elements. My gut tells me they are there though. A little slower tempo, a new harmony vocal, a different setting of instruments? I think it's all there, but what is more important, 'Real Life Evolution' is a good album. The album shows off the richness of the songs but also the musicianship and musical imagination of Joan Wasser. Listening to the Evolution version is a joy.

Do I recommend buying the album should you have the original version? Yes, I do. Joan as Policewoman shares her evolution with the 'Real Life' songs in the past twenty years with her fans or even newly interested individuals who missed out on the first time. There is a lot of beauty to discover on the new version.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Real Life Evolution here:

https://joanaspolicewoman.bandcamp.com/album/real-life-evolution-album-2026 

Jammah Tammah. Jammah Tammah

Some time ago, I received an email about the band Jammah Tammah, forgot about it and now have to fit the news into the heavy release schedule before the summer break. But believe me, it is worth it to do so. I almost became consistent, as Jammah Tammah passed me by for 99.5% in the time it was active (1991 - 2003), because it was only the name that rang a faint bell, nothing more.

Reading the Wikipedia page of the band, which isn't up to date, it is clear that what was and is Jammah Tammah is not an easy answer. Fact is the band started in 1991 around singer Eddy Huizing, formerly of The Boegies, another 99.5% band for me, and Thuur Caris and focused on playing ska, rocksteady and mix it with European polka and punk. The drummer was an Atari machine! After many changes in the line up the band folded in 2003, although there are still former members working under the name Jammah Tammah Groove Experience since the 2010s.

Come 2026, and here is a live compilation album or so it often seems. It is not. It's far more complex. I'll get back to that. What you hear, is a complete dam burst of energy released through the decades, from the early 90s right to the mid 20s and all from a band that does not exist any more. I'll get back to that later also.

First, the music. Kicking off the album is a song called 'Black Monster'. It sounds like a Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention track that is going completely off the rails, something Zappa would never have allowed under any circumstances on penalty of ostracisation from the band. Not Jammah Tammah, the punk attitude is showing through for one 100%. The copper is everywhere, the rhythm absolutely leading, the seeming chaos is everywhere. The ska element ever more present. The secret is it is all under control, as this music really works. I can see Eddy (Piepke-Speedy-Mousie) Huizing bouncing across a stage in my mind's eye energising stages every time he climbs on one.

When the band started in 1991, ska, and especially the English Two-Tone version, was a thing of the past for some years already. All the bands had folded by that year. Enter Jammah Tammah. The band released three albums at the time. It must have been somewhere around that period, I came across the name but never heard any music, as far as I can remember.

When some of the band members decided to have the records on the digital platforms in 2023, they found a host of recordings that were never used, mostly of poorer quality. This is a relative comment. The reason these songs were never released at the time, is that the band always recorded live, to capture the energy. Somehow, the band never managed to record these songs without too many mistakes being made. The band couldn't fix at the time, so discarded the recordings. This led to a cunning plan.

What we hear on this album is a recreation of the past. Nearly all original members recorded their parts a new and separate from each other. That is what we hear today and despite this new version, the energy is captured as if this is a live recording. The only practical problem Jammah Tammah encountered was that singer Eddy Huizing, in this phase of his life, does not want to be associated with his past lyrics any more.  Enter modern technicalities. With the same sort of software programme Peter Jackson used to create 'Get Back', The Beatles documentary, Huizing's vocals were isolated from the recordings and mixed over the new recordings, including from real live recordings, audience and all. The result is as if the listener is in a venue listening to Jammah Tammah going at it. Do expect sudden fade outs but that takes nothing away from the fun had by all.

It may well have been, that I would not have liked the original recordings, as I wasn't into this kind of music. There is however a Gruppo Sportivo link every once in a while, so who knows what the answer would have been? Fact is, I never have learned of Jammah Tammah's (ja maar, toe maar in Groninger dialect) music at the time. Today I have and 'Jammah Tammah' is one huge party, from beginning to end. It's 2026 and it's never too late to get to know a new band. Wow!, is the word here.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Roses. Widowspeak

Of course, checking the past of this blog, I find that Erwin Zijleman beat me to a Widowspeak album review. His love for female singers precedes mine by something like two decades. With 'Plum' Widowspeak came into my life in 2020, undoubtedly in the time of the second lockdown. The music resonated within me immediately. My second album, Widowspeak's sixth, 'The Jacket' was not that good in my ears. Now, four years later, Roses claims a spot just like 'Plum' did six years ago.

There are two versions of reception of 'Roses'. The first is on a modest level of sound. Believe me, there is far less to enjoy, as the second version is to play it somewhat louder on a headset and all of a sudden a host of details unfold themselves. 'Roses' proves to be a very, very rich album with a host of guitar parts that are everywhere my ears can cope with.

Widowspeak formed in Brooklyn, NYC in 2010. Through the years only guitarist and vocalist Molly Hamilton and guitarist Robert Earl Thomas, a married couple, remained of the original four piece. On 'Roses' it is Molly Hamilton who creates a dreamy kind of pop music with her somewhat sleepy sounding vocal delivery. The music may have some elements of dreampop, but equal parts consist of indie, roots and French sigh girls. All together this creates a near magical mix of alternative pop music that goes down really well with this listener.

Photo: Alexa Viscious

The album starts with one of the more solid numbers, 'The Hook'. As far as I'm concerned, this title describes the situation quite well. I'm hooked alright after listening to 'The Hook'. The song does what a million other songs have done in the past. A guitar that plays some slow solo notes, a piano here and there playing some slow notes as well, a warm Hammond closing everything that was left open in the crooks and crannies of the mix. Molly Hamilton overdubs her vocals in all the right places. Out comes this Americana-indie track that sounds as warm (the music) and dreamy (vocals) as can be. When in the next song, 'No Driver, I'm remembered of my favourite Hazeldine album, 'Digging You Up', I'm sold, hook, line and sinker.

In the rest of the albums, the songs remain warm and rich. Guitars are everywhere, including a pedal steel here and there, creating a great mode, that in a way is the same mood but it's never enough. On Roses there simply is never enough of a good thing. Recorded on the Greek island Hydra with the band's touring members Willy Muse, John Andrews, and Noah Bond, in January and fine tuned at home in Brooklyn, the band is ready to take on the world once again. To think that the members of a band this good, have regular day jobs to sustain themselves, makes it something close to a miracle that we are able to hear Roses. I know, it's not unique, yet it gives you pause that making great music does not assure you an income sufficient to live off. It must be the product of total dedication to the muse that houses within the Widowspeak duo.

So let's be grateful for the present Roses is. Widowspeak has delivered an album of great beauty.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Roses here:

https://widowspeak.bandcamp.com/album/roses 

The Sky Knows I Exist. Naaz

Het in alle opzichten wonderschone debuutalbum van Naaz vierde eerder dit jaar alweer de derde verjaardag en krijgt deze week gezelschap van The Sky Knows I Exist, dat in alle opzichten een typisch Naaz-album is.

Aan het eind van 2023 twijfelde ik geen moment over het album dat mijn jaarlijstje zou aanvoeren. Never Have I Ever van Naaz wist op dat moment al een jaar te betoveren en te ontroeren, hoe vaak ik ook naar het album luisterde. Sindsdien zag ik Naaz meerdere keren live, wat het verlangen naar haar tweede album aanwakkerde. Dat tweede album is verschenen en wat is The Sky Knows I Exist een prachtig album. Het is een album waarop Naaz haar unieke geluid nog wat verder heeft doorontwikkeld. The Sky Knows I Exist klinkt direct als een Naaz album, maar wederom heeft ze haar grenzen verlegd en laat ze nog maar eens horen hoe groot en bijzonder haar talent is.

De Nederlands-Koerdische muzikante Naaz behoort wat mij betreft tot het allerbeste dat de Nederlandse popmuziek te bieden heeft. Dat was al zo toen ze in 2018 haar eerste EP Bits of Naaz uitbracht en dat was nog steeds zo toen ze in 2023 haar debuutalbum Never Have I Ever afleverde. 

Voor de release van dat debuutalbum keerde Naaz de muziekwereld enkele jaren de rug toe na een aantal nare ervaringen, maar gelukkig kroop het bloed waar het niet gaan kon en maakte ze met Never Have I Ever een van de mooiste, een van de meest persoonlijke en een van de meest indringende albums van de afgelopen jaren. 

Sinds haar terugkeer in de muziek doet Naaz alles zelf en dat kan alle kanten op. Ze organiseerde zelf haar comebackconcert in Carré, trad op met een aantal orkesten, kletste zichzelf het voorprogramma van Lana Del Rey in, begon aan een boek en kondigde onlangs aan dat ze met opera aan de slag gaat. Gelukkig is ze ook haar liefde voor indiepop niet verloren, wat de afgelopen jaren indrukwekkende concerten opleverde en nu de release van haar tweede album The Sky Knows I Exist, dat de komende tijd ook op een aantal podia zal worden vertolkt. 

Het vinyl van The Sky Knows I Exist werd gisteren keurig op de dag van de release afgeleverd en sindsdien ben ik in de ban van het tweede album van Naaz. Iedereen die de tegenwoordig in Amsterdam woonachtige muzikante volgt, kent al een aantal van de tien songs op The Sky Knows I Exist. Het zijn songs die laten horen dat Naaz de afgelopen jaren wat dichter tegen de indiepop aan is gekropen, maar het is wel indiepop die het unieke stempel van Naaz bevat. 

De Nederlands-Koerdische muzikante vertolkte op Never Have I Ever twee songs in het Koerdisch en dit waren de afgelopen jaren indrukwekkende hoogtepunten tijdens haar concerten. Op The Sky Knows I Exist kiest Naaz volledig voor het Engels, maar haar songs blijven in alle opzichten onderscheidend. 

Dat ligt voor een belangrijk deel aan de stem van Naaz en aan haar manier van zingen. Ook op The Sky Knows I Exist is de zang van Naaz weer mooi en bijzonder en bovendien verrassend divers. De zang op het album zit vol gevoel, maar durft ook te experimenteren. Het is zang die mij weer direct wist te raken, waardoor The Sky Knows I Exist makkelijk boven de andere albums van het moment uitstijgt. 

Naaz staat bekend om haar zeer persoonlijke teksten en deze zijn ook weer te horen op haar nieuwe album, dat net als Never Have I Ever een intiem album is. Naaz durft niet alleen te experimenteren met haar stem, maar ook met de muziek op haar nieuwe album. Eerder gaf ik aan dat de Amsterdamse muzikante wat is opgeschoven richting indiepop, maar het is wel indiepop die overloopt van avontuur. 

Ik vind het nog lastig of zelfs onmogelijk om The Sky Knows I Exist te vergelijken met Never Have I Ever, want het album dat in 2023 mijn jaarlijstje aanvoerde is me zo ongelooflijk dierbaar. Ook de eerste kennismaking met het tweede album van Naaz is me echter uitstekend bevallen. 

De zowel door indiepop als indiefolk beïnvloede songs op het album zijn stuk voor stuk typische Naaz songs en het zijn songs met een bijzondere energie en een enorme intensiteit. Naaz heeft inmiddels een flinke groep fanatieke fans, maar een muzikante van haar niveau verdient een nog veel groter publiek. Ik keek met torenhoge verwachtingen uit naar dit album en Naaz heeft me wederom niet teleurgesteld.

Erwin Zijleman

 

The Sky Knows I Exist is verkrijgbaar via haar website: https://www.bitsofnaaz.com. 

POM live. Ekko, Utrecht, Friday 5 June 2026 with Fit

Photo: WdN-vdB

In my review of the new POM album last week I mentioned how much better and more consistent the band had become in the past two years. 'Enlightened, Baby' belies everything that "difficult second album" is often said to be. How does this translate into a live situation?

That answer is so easy to give as one word suffices: growth. Compared to the show in Rotown in December 2023 POM has gone from a band that played its debut record live in a convincing and entertaining way (plus some more chaotic but enthusiastic, perhaps unplanned encores) to a band that owned its repertoire and used it as a starting point. With new guitarist Rosa Kiki, who replaced Joy Kunst last year, in the line up, the band went for it. The set started off in a moderate way and song for song the sound was broader, louder, better, to explode towards the end into an orgiastic music fest. Without control over the songs and playing skills getting lost in the enthusiasm. Breaks were executed and harmonies sung perfectly.

One thing stood out in the mix. The bass was far more audible than at average shows and that dry, pumping sound made the show almost funky. Up front though Liza Kim van As has turned from the singer into the front lady of POM. There is no doubt who draws most of the attention to herself, who is living the role of singer. In a tight fitting dress, she was showing the world to be proud of who she is, pink hair and all. Focusing only on Van As would take away from the whole. Drummer Justin is great and a self-assured rhythm master, the two guitarists weave their parts perfectly, found weird guitar sounds to share with us and play attractive solo parts. The whole has blended perfectly and that is where it showed the band has set a perfect next step in its career. It is ready for a next step, just like the album already showed.

Besides, when a band can afford to not play the most energetic single from it debut album, 'Exoskeleton', and totally get away with that, it must know its on the right course.

Photo: WdN-vdB

Fit from Utrecht is also a band on Mattan Records and has released only a few songs so far. in a reviews I compared it for example to Maxïmo Park. Well, I was in for a surprise. The band on stage and what I had heard on record, somehow do not add up. The unleashed energy was enough to warm up a whole city and infect all present. The band has two guitarists, yet all the solos were played by the singer on a small synth in front of him. That made it very different from most bands I'd ever seen. Fit was happy to be on this stage and it showed. They were going for it and the audience started rooting for Fit more and more. At some point I was wondering if Fit would eclipse POM, as the headlining band still had to play. That fear was laid aside easily by POM.

Near the end of the set, I was struck by a feeling that I had never had before. Having grown up partly in a Noord-Brabant village, I had missed out on live music in small(er) venues entirely. Fit gave me the impression of what it could have been like to attend a the Undertones show in 1979 or something. It was a very authentic feeling and I guess a big compliment to a band, when all is said and done, I barely know in 2026.

That feeling of energy live and capturing it on record? When I played the POM LP today, I missed some of that energy as well. It will take some time to get used to the album again, I'm afraid.

POM and Fit both made a great impression on me. Bigger stages ought to be awaiting them.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

2026, week 23, 10 singles (2)

With the weather switched to position erratic, sun, wind, rain, lots of rain, cloudy, back to sun, etc., it is easy to make amends and do two rounds of singles this week. You'll find no huge names this week but certainly some WoNoBlog favourites of the past few years and several new names. Musically, it is a nice mix as well, like open your ears widely to truly listen to softer songs, as cover your ears fast should you be partial to not liking postpunk. Either way it's here, and all in between, enjoy!

Alone EP. Carly Hann

Today, Carly Hann makes her debut on this blog with her EP Alone. She is a totally new name to me, so I looked a little beyond just listening to her beautiful dreampop songs. She was formerly known as Carly Holt until she married The 1975's guitarist Adam Hann, who also produced her debut EP. She hails from Canada. She musically first drew attention with her cover version of said band's 'About You' and now presents her own music. That music starts with an acoustic guitar. The songs on Alone can be played on the beach, in a living room or the front garden entertaining neighbours during the next pandemic. Around her soft, dreamy and relaxed voice and the guitar, other instruments join, creating a dreamy atmosphere. In the case of opening and title track 'Alone' that mood is slowly but surely expanded on and when in the bridge drums join the song, it turns into a wall of sound. Lana del Rey is not far off, but Carly Hann does keep it as her own song. 'Breathe' starts as someone trying to play piano but not really certain (s)he's capable of doing so, before it turns into a song anyway, shedding that uncertainty immediately. 'Can't Shake This Feeling' is built around the acoustic guitar once again. This time strings come in for accompaniment. 'She Got' is the game changer. An electric guitar plays fast notes and the drums play an erratic, somewhat unusual rhythm. Carly Hann remains herself and draws the song into a dreamy state anyway. Also pay attention to that violin that plays a distinctive role in the song, making it far beyond the average dreampop song. Carly Hann may have started her career piggybacking her husband's career, she's very much her own talent on Alone. 

De lytse oarloch fan Japie Ossefet. Zea

Een Rotterdams verhaal in het Fries. Het had het verhaal van mijn vader en zijn gezin kunnen zijn. Als ik goed reken is Max of zoals de bijnaam die zijn moeder hem gaf, Japie Ossefet, net zo oud als wijlen mijn oom Ben. Max is Max van Broekhoven een import Fries, zoals Max' vader of grootvader aan de achternaam te zien een import Rotterdammer uit Brabant was. Het verhaal is opgetekend in een bejaardentehuis in Heerenveen door toenmalig Dichter des Vaderlands Tsead Bruinja, muzikant Arnold de Boer a.k.a. Zea en fotografe Rosa van Ederen,.Samen tekenden zij in 2020 levensverhalen op. In totaal 11 in 11 verschillende tehuizen. Het oorlogsverhaal van Max werd op muziek gezet door Zea. Mijn vader was 7 tot 12 in de oorlog. Voor hem was het een groot avontuur, met allerlei spannende zaken die in normale tijden nooit hadden gemogen. De meer volwassen verhalen kwamen van mijn tantes en hun echtgenoten, nu allen overleden. Mijn oudste oom was bij een razzia opgepakt en in een cementfabriek in Leimen bij Heidelberg te werk gesteld, maar wel met een Duitse vrouw thuisgekomen. Dat werkte niet heel goed in net bevrijd Nederland. Al hun verhalen samen maken ongeveer het verhaal van Japie Ossefet, zonder hulp aan onderduikers, dat wel. Zea heeft het als een vroege Bob Dylan op muziek gezet en stelt het nummer nu beschikbaar voor een goed doel, ter ondersteuning van kunstenaars in Beiroet, genaamd Beit Aam (https://linktr.ee/Beit.aam). Het nummer kun je hier aanschaffen voor €1,50: https://zeamusic.bandcamp.com/track/de-lytse-oarloch-fan-japie-ossefet. Doen!

Plovdiv. Tramhaus 

Tramhaus in 2026 is a band that has been around half the world, that is able to premiere its new single on a Seattle radio station and receives reviews from internationally renowned websites. So, what can I add to all this? To start a personal note. In 2025 I visited Plovdiv on a 43 degrees Celsius day and, reading the title, wondered how it is possible that Tramhaus first single release from its upcoming new album, Blister' (9 October), is called after the city. The band wrote the song there on a free day, touring Bulgaria and Turkey, in a rehearsal room. I hope they did get a peak at the Roman antiquities in Plovdiv. The song Plovdiv presents a louder and more direct Tramhaus. Through live shows, I was able to see the way the band gelled more and more through the years and Plovdiv is the result. There is less room for subtleties and more for a full band experience. The first verse is the group's community singing, recorded like a church choir in a church with the worst kind of acoustics, before singer Lucas Jansen takes over and explodes in the chorus together with the band. Getting better acquainted with Plovdiv, I notice better that the, lets call it the Nirvana, approach to a song, is still in tact. The erratic subtlety that characterised early Tramhaus songs, has been traded in for blasting. Live it will lead to even more enthusiasm is my guess. After a hesitant start, I'm sold.

Honeydripper. Ruby James

Ruby James returns to the blog with a dirty track that is somewhere between, what exactly? Certainly rock. The dirty guitar soloing gives the song its dirty vibe. There is something dancy in there as well, e.g. in the way of singing and rhythm. Except the song goes off of its rocker as in totally when it approaches the end. That guitar is really going for it. It is all very gritty in a blues kind of way. On top of it all, it's pure sex that is dripping from this record and it is intended that way so I understand. Ruby James wrote Honeydripper with songwriter Kate Vargas. Together they came up with this groove and built the song from there. It's convincing alright. Be on the look out for the album, 'Call It Rock & Roll', from 7 August onwards.

Punch Drunk Love. Personal Trainer

Punch Drunk Love is Personal Trainer as you've never heard it before. More than ever before the band sounds like a band that could be any regular band and it has dropped everything to do with loud electric guitars. In fact, Punch Drunk Love could have been, with a little imagination, a hit for The Kinks in the mid-60s. The band took an acoustic album and playing live in the studio together, as the starting points and that is what the single sounds like. A piano is the leading instrument for most of the song, playing its slow notes. You'll find a violin playing short solos with the guitars only playing accompanying riffs and soft chords. Over it all Willem Smit is singing softly. There's no need to shout at all. I fell in love slowly with album number 1, but in the end never truly found may way around number 2. Number 3, 'Human Assholes' is slated for 4 September. I'm sure we'll hear more in the meantime.

Magic In The Air, feat. Palmyra Delran. Dan Miraldi

"Sometimes you really have to wrestle with songs, but ‘Magic in the Air’ felt pretty effortless", says Dan Miraldi in the accompanying bio to his latest single on the writing process. This is exactly how the song sounds like. Magic In The Air combines pop, rock and a little punk attitude into a song that sounds somehow perfect. That relatively slow riff/solo guitar leading the listener into the song, followed by a mellow mood coming with a glorious, not too warm feel of a summer day. Miraldi manages to get this mood across without giving up on the firm body of the song. Palmyra Delran adds a nice female touch to the whole in both lead and harmony vocals. On top of it all comes this dreamy bridge, making a perfect song even better. Welcome to the blog!

Letting Go. Deardarkhead

An instrumental track somehow is the hardest to write about for me. Not that I analyse lyrics a lot, it is the layer of how vocal melodies interact with the music, where I often focus my attention on. Deardarkhead is a band from New Jersey, formed in 1988, that in 1998 released its only full length album to date, 'Unlock the Valves of Feeling'. Since several EPs saw the light of day, the last one being from 2016. Since its singer left, the band has become an instrumental outfit and listening to Letting Go focusing on extremely melodic instrumental tracks. Guitarist Kevin Harrington leads the pack with a very clear sound, while never overdoing the number of notes he can squeeze in. This is about melody and not about chops and prowess. He is supported by drummer Robert Weiss and bassist James Malizia, The mortar in between is played by guest keyboardist Joe McGinty (The Psychedelic Furs, Nada Surf, Ryan Adams and Deborah Harry), who adds just the right texture. It is this combination of musical facts that make me like Letting go. There will be a full length album, Deardarkhead's second, on 10 July called 'The Pendulum Swings'.

Still Here. High on Stress

In March you may have found High on Stress on this blog for the first time. In my few words on single Over/Through I compared the band to the likes of Gin Blossoms and The Jayhawks. Today, I will go a step further and compare it to a band that I liked a lot more around 1995, Slobberbone. High on Stress has that same level of intensity and just being who and what you are as musician and band. Of course, everything is well thought out and there is a lot of attention being paid to details, that make the song more interesting to listen to. "It goes on and on, on and on, and I'm still here", they sing. Unmistakably true, as Still Here sounds very much alive. This song rocks in a way only, for lack of a better word ,rootsrockers from the U.S. can. Album 'Still Here' is out there for a month already, I notice just now. It's time to take a listen. This title song hits all the right buttons.

Hard Evidence. Ringlets

Ringlets is on tour in Europe and celebrates with the release of this stand alone single. Hard Evidence is not an easy song to digest. Everything is just a little less normal than what is expected from a song. The vocal melody is monotonous in the verses and the accompaniment is stern. The mood is darker. It also is in the chorus, but the mood changes to playful because of the band accompaniment while still being somewhat stern, as the vocals do not join in the playfulness. They remain moody, sang in a deeper and subdued way. The New Zealanders show that their band has a few sides to it. Having listened to Hard Evidence a few times, I notice the song is growing on me. Ringlets reaches the bar it set for itself with the superb album 'The Lord Is My German Shepherd (Time for Walkies)' with ease.

Gonna Be Alright. Chaser

A real 7". It's not exceptional but also far from normal in 2026. (And what bands like The Rolling Stones or Arctic Monkeys charge for one, € 17,99, borders on the absurd.) I don't know what Southern California skatepunkers Chaser charges for theirs. Based on what I'm hearing, things are going to be alright. 'My Promise' is a melodic punk track in the best form as Rancid and The Offspring are capable of. Deep dark and dry drum skins are leading the way for Chaser. This drummer truly leads the way with more rolls, fills and double bass fills than my ears can keep up with. Guitar lines and bass are all all over the place as well, supporting a golden vocal melody. Yes, of course, it all sounds very familiar but who cares when a song is this good. The other side of the 7" is a rendition of Bob Marley & the Wailers' 'Three Little Birds'. As that track was high jacked by 020's fans, I leave it you to find out for yourself. Greetings from 010 supporter,

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Total Dive. Brown Horse

De beste mix van countryrock, alt-country en indierock kwam de afgelopen twee jaar niet uit de Verenigde Staten maar uit Engeland en ook dit jaar heeft het Britse Brown Horse met haar nieuwe album Total Dive een sterke troef in handen.

Met haar debuutalbum Reservoir legde de Britse band Brown Horse ruim twee jaar geleden de lat hoog voor zichzelf, maar het vorig jaar verschenen All The Right Weaknesses vond ik dankzij een indierock-injectie nog wat beter. Het in april verschenen album Total Dive trekt de lijn van het vorige album door, maar het energiek en gedreven klinkende nieuwe album van Brown Horse slaagt er wat mij betreft weer in om het niveau van de band naar een nog hoger plan te tillen. De Amerikaanse band Wednesday won het vorig jaar nipt van de Britse band, maar Brown Horse slaat met het prachtige Total Dive keihard terug en levert een van de meest opwindende albums van het moment af.

De Britse band Brown Horse houdt de vaart er vooralsnog flink in. Aan het begin van 2024 verscheen het debuutalbum van de band en Reservoir was en is een prachtig album. Op Reservoir combineert de band uit Norwich op fraaie wijze invloeden uit de countryrock zoals die in de jaren 70 werd gemaakt met invloeden uit de alt-country die vanaf het begin van de jaren op de kaart werd gezet. 

Op haar debuutalbum klinkt de muziek van Brown Horse eerder Amerikaans dan Brits, maar Reservoir laat ook een eigenzinnig geluid horen, waarin bij vlagen stevig gitaarwerk en de opvallende en emotievolle stem van Patrick Turner nadrukkelijk de aandacht trekken. 

Brown Horse haalde in 2024 met Reservoir mijn jaarlijstje en de Britse band herhaalde dit kunstje vorig jaar met het in het voorjaar van 2025 verschenen All The Right Weaknesses. Ook op haar tweede album omarmt Brown Horse invloeden uit de 70’s countryrock en de alt-country van latere datum, maar All The Right Weaknesses klinkt een stuk steviger en gruiziger dan het debuutalbum van de band. Het is in een aantal tracks meer een indierockalbum dan een rootsalbum, al is er altijd wel iets van country te horen in de songs van de band. 

Brown Horse maakte het de Amerikaanse concurrentie twee jaar achter elkaar moeilijk en duikt een jaar na All The Right Weaknesses alweer op met een nieuw album. Ook met Total Dive levert de Britse band weer een uitstekend album af en het is een album dat na de eerste twee albums voorzichtig bekend in de oren klinkt. 

In de openingstrack van het nieuwe album laat Brown Horse direct weer de combinatie van behoorlijk stevig en gruizig gitaarwerk en een alt-country vibe horen. Het zorgt ervoor dat de verrassing er inmiddels misschien wat af is, maar de band doet er ook nog een schepje bovenop met nog wat steviger gitaarwerk en nog wat intensere zang van Patrick Turner. 

Total Dive is me inmiddels net zo dierbaar als de jaarlijstjesalbums Reservoir en All The Right Weaknesses en ik schat het derde album misschien nog wel hoger in dan de twee geweldige voorgangers. De Britse band beschikt over vier getalenteerde songwriters en die hebben een serie fantastische songs geschreven. 

Het zijn songs die nagenoeg live werden opgenomen, wat zorgt voor heel veel energie en dynamiek in de muziek van Brown Horse. Zeker als het tempo wordt opgevoerd en de gitaren en andere snareninstrumenten alle ruimte in mogen nemen, knalt Total Dive uit de speakers en denk je af en toe te luisteren naar Neil Young & Crazy Horse in hun beste dagen. 

Ik heb soms wel wat moeite met de stem van Neil Young, maar Patrick Turner van Brown Horse is een geweldige zanger, die met zijn intense voordracht makkelijk overeind blijft in het volle en stevige geluid op Total Dive. Het wordt allemaal nog wat mooier wanneer een vrouwenstem invalt en als er dan ook nog eens een gruizige maar ook melodieuze gitaarsolo opduikt is het gevoel van gelukzaligheid compleet. 

Toen ik alweer een nieuw album van Brown Horse zag opduiken in de releaselijsten vroeg ik me af of de band niet wat meer tijd zou moeten nemen voor haar albums, maar Total Dive nam de zorgen onmiddellijk weg en ligt goed op koers om voor de derde keer op rij mijn jaarlijstje te halen.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt Total Dive hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://brownhorse.bandcamp.com/album/total-dive 

It's All Good, Sugar. The Greenberry Woods

It's All Good, Sugar is an album containing pure pop with elements from all the decades in which, when all is said and done, the best music was made, because it was invented in these years. Come 2026 there are on average far more accomplished musicians and of course recording options are so much better now than in the 1960s and 70s, that musicians could not even dream of them. The Greenberry Woods is obviously making the most of these options and present a poprock album that can go with the best of them from the 2020s.

All in search of pure pop do not have to look any further. It's All Good, Sugar is filled with it, twelve songs long. In fact, it's incredible that The Greenberry Woods are able to come up winning, song after song after song.

The first time I heard an album like this, as in tapping into the 60s pop era with fully original songs of very high quality, was with the album 'Catch All' by a band filled with musical friends from different bands called Swag from 2001. Since circa ten years a host of albums have reached me attempting the same feat. I like many of them, but it seems with It's All Good, Sugar The Greenberry Woods have raised the bar some more.

Promo photo

As I had never heard of the band before, I decided to read in. The Greenberry Woods released two albums in the 1990s before calling it a day, 'Rapple Dapple' (1994) and 'Big Money Item' (1995). Like many of its contemporaries the three songwriters of the band, Brandt Huseman, Ira Katz and Matt Huseman are giving it a new try some 30 odd years later. I am not totally surprised by the 1990s link. The song 'Very Good Year' reminds me of the sound of the one album band The Caulfields alled 'Whirligig'. It also means that the band members most likely are well into their fifties, reliving a passion they once had. Based on what I'm hearing, that was very wise decision. The three are joined by multi-instrumentalist Paul Krysiak (also in Splitsville with the Huseman twins) and drummer Joe Parsons.

Another band I could mention from the 1990s, is The Posies. Like it The Greenberry Woods manages to combine The Beatles and Big Star with that tougher sound of the 1990s poprock. All the elements blend in a way that keeps tingling my ears for the whole of the album. Take 'The One That Makes You Happy'. The strong and loud guitar chord progression manages to blend perfect pop vocal melodies and harmonies. The third is Scotland's Teenage Fanclub, originally also with three songwriters and singers, as The Greenberry Woods also excel in softer, dreamier songs.

What more can I write? Hearing is believing, so let me leave you with pointing you to the link below to be convinced by the perfection on offer on It's All Good, Sugar.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order It's All Good, Sugar here:

https://bigstirrecords.bandcamp.com/album/its-all-good-sugar 

2026, week 23. 10 singles

With some good old pop cum rock and roll on my earphones from one of the records below, WoNoBlog is back with a bunch of singles after having missed last Sunday. Too much going on and too beautiful weather. There is more in life than music. This week you find a very old name and a whole lot of debutants below, so more than enough to explore. Enjoy!

The Sky Isn't Falling. Strawberry Alarm Clock

About sixty years after releasing the songs that led them to be a part of the legendary 'Nuggets' box, Strawberry Alarm Clock is back and finds itself for the second time on this blog this year. The Sky Isn't Falling (but if it did, on a clear day, we'd all have a blue hat) is a very much alive poprock single in the best tradition of a band like Moody Blues, to name an example. What is perhaps striking, is that all five original members are present, not a normal thing for a 1960s psychedelic rock band. I like, again, the way the band lets the guitars go out of their pens but also the enthusiastic vocal melodies make The Sky Isn't Falling feel very much alive. There's an album in the making for later this year. Based on the three preceding singles, it's going to be special.

The Ghost Of Roky Erickson! EP Muck and the Mires

What are the chances that two artists are joined together by the order of chance, being the moment an email reaches my inbox announcing a new single or EP? In general close to 90% is my guess, but what if both artists are found on the 'Nuggets' box set released in the late 1990s and the LPS in 1972? Especially, as the artists are (from) bands from the second half of the 60s? In this case Strawberry Alarm Clock and The Eleventh Floor Elevators, the band of Roky Erickson (1947-2019). That chance must be extremely small. Muck and the Mires return to this blog with an EP called The Ghost Of Roky Erickson. Muck encounters his ghost after the elevator stops on the 13th floor. As always Muck and the Mires rock with the 1960s well in mind. Riffs fly around, fun is had by all, band and listeners. Of course, the band is part pastiche, as it successfully milks things that were successful once. This comes with a big but. Muck c.s. is a very good band, tight, bright and totally alive. On top there is often a layer of sheer fun. The title song attest to that best, with its extremely good riff and a touch of the madness that accumulated in Roky Erickson's head over the years, both caught in lyrics and the music. The other three songs are 60s rock, 60s pop and 60s poprock. It's instantly recognisable and yet fresh and new, exactly how I have come to love the music of Muck and the Mires over the past decade.

Call It In. Editors

Editors is a band I love and hate. Twenty years ago, I sort of liked it but also found the bombastic sound often too much of a not so good thin and the deep, pumped up voice of Tom Smith often too much to bear for long. Then some great singles came along anyway and somewhere in the mid 10s I even bought two records and then not with 'EBM', Editors' previous album. Four years later there's Call It In. The song is very up tempo, the sound is tough yet modest for Editors and Tom Smith's voice is different. Where is that deep resonance? There's also less of an effect put on it, as it sounds very natural. All bands of the age Editors have reached, can't escape from comparisons to all things that passed. Yes, Call It In reminds me of previous singles, but certainly has a right to exist. The tempo and urgency, the nice and smooth synth sound really works in the right spots. A strong single showing the right form.

Finally Arrived. Wooden Overcoat

Listening to Finally Arrived one song pops up in my head, The Everly Brothers' 'All I Have To Do Is Dream'. That is the state of mind the Portland, Oregon band the Wooden Overcoat brings in. Finally Arrived is the right title for this song, as it is slow. Don't get me wrong though, the song has an extremely slow psychedelic vibe to it that does bring me into an alterative reality. One where I'm totally relaxed and move with the softly lapping waves of Finally Arrived's instrumentation. Band leader Brant Hajek takes his time and so are bandmates Dillon Glusker (bass), Mac (guitar), and Brian Levin (drums and backing vocals). Listen deeper to the song and you will notice far more is happening than you thought after the first dose(ing off). This is a gem of slow psychedelia if I ever heard one. EP 'Hello Sunbeam' was released on 29 May. (And, a wooden overcoat is a euphemism for a coffin, so I've learned.)

Punching The Flowers. Death Cab For Cutie

This band is about to release its 11th album on 5 June, 'I Built You A Tower. I'm sure I have one from maybe 20 years ago, but do not have a strong recollection of it I'm afraid. So, I'm listening with a near open mind to Punching The Flowers. This is a strong alternative rock single. The pace is near relentless, while the drummer has found an original pattern that he is ramming home for the whole of the way. The song may be soft or hard, he's hitting dry and hard. The song reminds me of The Hold Steady and a little of R.E.M. Especially the former is a band that I cannot listen to for more than a few songs at a time. The singer's voice is the cause of that and my guess is, it will be the same for 'I Built You A Tower'. In the meantime, I'm enjoying Punching The Flowers.

We Need Some Love Today. The GrooveBuzz 

A new band, a first single. The band is active since 2023 and is a collective of seven singers and musicians. Drummer and producer Leon Klaase alerted me to the song and it is a very rich and swinging affair. In fact it sounds more like a ten piece band to me with voices and copper everywhere once the song has left its somewhat hesitant start. That is, compared to what follows. After the piano led intro, the strong and deep voice of Mieke de Jongh takes over, accompanied by Annabel Romijn and Fran Genis. The accompaniment changes towards a funky kind of soul music with a percussive guitar assisting the solid drumming of Klaase and the supportive bass played by Marcel van de Bas. The multilayered saxophones of Peter Romijn do the rest. The band is working on the release of its first album, 'Hit In The Heart', a line taken from this single.

Scattered Like Dust. Charlot

The band Charlot, Lotte Mulder, Hilde Luytjes, Boaz van Willegenburg and Alex Haak, makes its debut on this blog as well, with its third single from its upcoming second album, to be released in September. All that came before passed me by. Not Scattered By Dust, a pleasant mid-tempo dream- and synthpop song that has more than enough hooks in it to stick to my brain with ease. Lotte Mulder sings with a highish voice, close to breathy. The synths sound like a friendly pop version of the synth sound Gary Newman made famous with his Tubeway Army hit 'Are Friends Electric?' from 1979. The sound Pet Shop Boys turned that into a hit machine. Charlot uses it to make a song that crosses the bridges of decades and comes up with a song that fits nicely in 2026, with a great guitar part for those liking one.

5 Year Plan. BERTHAJU

5 Year Plan? I remember from my history lessons that they tend to fail after a while because the goal becomes more important than the result. The best example is the bridge that was built parallel to a river because the building specs showed it that way and no one dared to call higher up and ask questions. Dutch-German band Berthaju is not bothered by the hesitation of lessons history can bring and signed to Rotterdam label Shai Records after a successful stint during the Popronde 2025. 5 Year Plan is the first sign of this collaboration and listening to the single that was a good decision. Bethaju plays music that is somewhere between postpunk, alternative rock and Wet Leg, but most of all very alive and energetic. There will be an EP in September. Keep up the good work and Bethaju's 5 year plan will lead to great results.

Grenadine. Sorcha Richardson

After all the poing-poing energy of the previous bands, it's time for some introspection and that is exactly what Grenadine brings. Sorcha Richardson may sing "I push the peddle" and something with metal at the start of the chorus, musically she certainly does not. The song sets a slow chugging pace with minor accents in the guitar progression she plays over and over. With her style of music she fits in nicely with the likes of Aldous Harding. Listen more closely and you will notice that just this little more is happening in the background, making Grenadine more exciting that you'd  think at first listen. Sorcha Richardson, another first timer on this blog, is from Northern Ireland. An album is underway somewhere in the future.

The Head Tree feat. The New Eves. Opus Kink

What to make of The Head Tree? My first thought is De Kift on acid singing in English. It isn't though but there is quite some likenesses in the way the horns come in upending a song totally and partly the way of singing. But also a song like 'Pappa's Got A Brand New Pigbag' comes to mind, as well as totally freaked out psychedelia. In other words, what is not happening in The Head Tree? Opus Kink is a collective from Brighton in the U.K. that collaborates here with The New Eves, a British folk punk band from Brighton with clothing like The Last Dinner Party. The start of the first verse made me think of circa 1970 folk like Fairport Convention but after that all anchors are away setting Opus Kink adrift wherever a musical whim takes it and believe you me, the song is full of them. Believe it or not, it works, just like De Kift works. Check that band out Opus Kink fans! and I promise to keep my ears open for more coming out of this Brighton collective.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Light Remaining. Abrasive Trees

From the upbeat alternative pop songs of POM yesterday, let's move to a far darker side with south-western England's Abrasive Trees. With its new album Light Remaining the band certainly deserves attention.

The core of the band consists of Jay Newton (guitars), Matthew Rochford (vocals, guitars) and Will Tyler (drums, bass). Each song may need something extra, like a cello, voice, etc. The trio excels in songs that are lurking somewhere in darkness like a massive storm cloud blocking out all sunlight. Whether or not and if so when the storm breaks loose, changes per song and is for you to find out.

Lighter sounds come forward from that solid front that makes up the foundation of the songs. Usually a lighter toned guitar (or two or three). The voice(s) hover(s) over the background. My favourite example would be 'Carved Skull'. From utter silence the song rises. When vocals join, it seems like a monk choir singing in the church of a medieval monastery. Next, Abrasive Trees pulls up that storm cloud before it tones down a little making room for Matthew Rochford's voice. The band keeps playing with the light and the shade, constantly changing the mood of the song. In between I wonder, is 'Carved Skull' a reply to the famous scene/song in 'Jesus Christ Superstar' where Caiaphas and Annas sing their duet? The sonorous sound of Ben Roberts' electric cello and the female voice of Yunala Songweaver add an extra touch to the whole. Finally, the song is filled with extra guitar parts adding to the light and the shade. This song shows Abrasive Trees at its very best.

Promo photo

As a whole, Light Remaining hosts a range of influences. There are some elements in the sound that make me think of symphonic rock, yes, even Yes comes to mind here and there, while the more direct approach brings me to 80s doom bands like Sisters of Mercy. All of a sudden the band can move from a dark, tranquil mood into a postpunk rant as if the two are not contradictory. The band manages to stay out of the clutches of all sides though and created its own, dark universe. One which is pleasant to dwell in as a listener.

Then the band name. What I see in my mind's eye are animals rubbing their skin against the bark of a tree. Does Abrasive Trees come from seeing this, while walking your dog? Of course this has nothing to do with the music. That is solid and absorbing. The kind of music that is able to wash over the listener, claiming attention. From the moment the meditative spoken word section of 'No Solace' begins I am sucked into the album before it actually truly starts. From the moment the band kicks in, full force, I'm fully submerged in Light Remaining.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Light Remaining here:

https://abrasivetrees.bandcamp.com/album/light-remaining-artist-edition 

Enlightened, Baby. POM

Amsterdam band POM can be found on this blog for well over four years and many times at that. Calling myself a fan may be overstating it a bit; there are no posters above my bed or things like that. Where the music is concerned though, debut album 'We Were Girls Together', now 2,5 years old, still comes by regularly. And here is album number two.

To fall with the door into the room, as we call it here, Enlightened, Baby is an album that is at least as good as 'We Were Girls Together' and may well prove to be better. In opening song 'Rover' POM immediately touches on the quality level The Beths has a tradition to start its albums with. That rock and alternative pop blend that many bands go for but seldom touch upon. 'Rover' does and sets the expectation level for Enlightened, Baby quite high.

My overall view comes up with one word only: growth. POM's debut album was one full of enthusiasm and a few very good songs, as in really, really good. Enlightenment, Baby knows the same level of enthusiasm and joins that with better songs on average. The album was produced by POM's guitarist Luc Siegers, who seemed to have not only make the band's sound deeper but broader as well. Keyboards and an endless level of additional melodies can be heard, that make the album not just good but also a joy to listen to. The sheer fun of discovering all the extras that went into a song!

Speaking of joy, guitarist Joy Kunst left the band and was replaced by a new guitarist, Kiki. That is all I currently know, though. Up front, if course, is Liza van As. She's, if possible, even more present than before. Liza is the front woman with a voice that will reach all corners of the world, need be. POM deserves this by the way, as the band is that good in 2026. I hope that after this release the band is able to move up a notch in the venues and play abroad some shows. Ekko should be my last time in a smaller venue with POM.

Promo photo

Liza van As went through a dark streak after losing her father. When she decided to write about her deep mourning, what came out were pop songs. Most likely to everyone's surprise. Listen to the title song, deeper into the album. The lyrics are serious, the music is full of spunk, inventiveness and synth sounds. For the first time POM must be laid against my Veruca Salt meter and succeeds. I wrote about growth and this is what 'Enlightenment, Baby' shows.

Having played Enlightenment, Baby several times, I notice I find the album better than the listening session before that, with obviously still more to enjoy in the future. On the basis what I've heard, this album should bring the breakthrough.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Enlightenment, Baby here:

https://pomtheband.bandcamp.com/album/enlightened-baby 

Hurts Like Hell. Charlotte Cornfield

De naam Charlotte Cornfield zal niet bij iedereen een belletje doen rinkelen, maar de Canadese muzikante maakt inmiddels een aantal jaren mooie en onderscheidende albums en ook Hurts Like Hell is er weer een.

Sinds mijn eerste kennismaking met de muziek van Charlotte Cornfield een jaar of vijf geleden vind ik haar alleen maar beter worden. Op haar samen met Josh Kaufman gemaakte vorige album schoof ze wat op richting Amerikaanse rootsmuziek en dat is ook het overheersende genre op haar nieuwe album Hurts Like Hell. Vergeleken met de meeste zangeressen in het genre klinkt de stem van Charlotte Cornfield wat ruwer, wat Hurts Like Hell voorziet van een herkenbaar eigen geluid. Het is een geluid dat zich dit keer ook in muzikaal opzicht nog wat genadelozer opdringt, waardoor Charlotte Cornfield de stijgende lijn binnen haar oeuvre wederom weet vast te houden.

De Canadese singer-songwriter Charlotte Cornfield bracht in 2008 haar eerste EP uit en leverde in 2011 haar debuutalbum af. In eerste instantie timmerde de in Toronto geboren muzikante alleen in eigen land aan de weg, maar haar derde album, het in 2019 verschenen The Shape of Your Name, werd breder opgepikt en leverde haar onder andere een zeer lovende recensie van de Amerikaanse muziekwebsite Pitchfork op. 

Ik ken de muziek van Charlotte Cornfield zelf pas sinds de release van haar vierde album, het in 2021 uitgebrachte Highs in the Minuses. Ik moet eerlijk toegeven dat ik het album alweer vergeten was, maar maar toen ik voor het schrijven van deze recensie weer eens naar het album luisterde, was ik direct weer enthousiast over het met Arcade Fire producer Howard Bilerman gemaakte album. 

Op Highs in the Minuses doet Charlotte Cornfield zowel in muzikaal als in vocaal opzicht denken aan Big Thief, maar laat ze ook horen dat ze intense en aansprekende songs kan schrijven. Opvolger Could Have Done Anything beviel me in 2023 nog wat beter. Op het vrijwel volledig samen met Josh Kaufman (The Hold Steady, Cassandra Jenkins, Bonny Light Horseman) gemaakte album schoof Charlotte Cornfield wat op richting Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar het album klonk net als zijn voorganger niet alleen intiem maar ook ruw. 

Charlotte Cornfield werd na de release van Could Have Done Anything moeder, maar pakt de draad na een aantal jaren weer op. Het in maart verschenen Hurts Like Hell is inmiddels al haar zesde album en het is wederom een zeer overtuigend album. De Canadese muzikante nam haar nieuwe album op in New York, waar ze de studio in dook met de vooral van Adrianne Lenker bekende producer Phil Weinrobe. 

De vorige albums van de muzikante uit Toronto werden gemaakt met een zeer beperkt aantal muzikanten, maar voor het nieuwe album werd flink uitgepakt. Charlotte Cornfield laat zich op haar nieuwe album begeleiden door muzikanten uit een aantal bands en deed voor wat extra vocalen een beroep op Feist, Buck Meek, Christian Lee Hutson en Maia Friedman. 

Toch is Hurts Like Hell niet zo heel ver verwijderd van de vorige albums van Charlotte Cornfield. Ook bij beluistering van het nieuwe album moest ik direct aan Big Thief denken. De stem van de Canadese muzikante lijkt soms sprekend op die van Adrianne Lenker en ook de wat ruwe Amerikaanse rootsmuziek op Hurts Like Hell met af en toe een uitbarsting en vaak een fraaie hoofdrol voor de pedal steel doet denken aan Big Thief. 

Ondanks het grotere aantal muzikanten dat heeft meegewerkt aan het zesde album van Charlotte Cornfield klinkt haar muziek nog altijd intiem en redelijk sober. De balans slaat op Hurts Like Hell duidelijk door richting Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar door de karakteristieke stem van Charlotte Cornfield en de wat ruwe muziek op het album, is het allesbehalve een dertien in een dozijn Amerikaanse rootsalbum. 

Ik moest bij de eerste kennismaking een paar jaar geleden nog best wennen aan haar stem, maar de zang op Hurts Like Hell vond ik eigenlijk direct bijzonder mooi. Charlotte Cornfield is nog altijd geen hele bekende naam binnen de Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar ze levert met haar nieuwe album het derde bovengemiddeld goede album op rij af. En van die albums vind ik Hurts Like Hell vooralsnog de beste.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt Hurts Like Hell hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://charlottecornfield.bandcamp.com/album/hurts-like-hell 

All The Right Weaknesses. Brown Horse (2)

Brown Horse komt vrij snel na haar terecht zo bejubelde debuutalbum Reservoir op de proppen met All The Right Weaknesses, waarop de Britse band haar alt-country geluid verrijkt met een heerlijk gruizige gitaar vibe.

Het beste alt-country album werd vorig jaar niet in de Verenigde Staten gemaakt maar in het Verenigd Koninkrijk. De Britse band Brown Horse leverde met Reservoir een album af dat herinnerde aan de betere albums uit het genre. Maar net een jaar later is Brown Horse alweer terug met haar tweede album waarop de band haar geluid verder heeft ontwikkeld. Ook All The Right Weaknesses bevat flink wat invloeden uit de countryrock en de alt-country, maar het album klinkt ook wat ruwer en steviger. Wat is gebleven zijn de uitstekende songs en de prima zang. De oogst binnen de alt-country viel de afgelopen jaren wat tegen, maar wat is dit een topband.

De Britse band Brown Horse debuteerde begin vorig jaar met het prachtige Reservoir, waarop invloeden uit de countryrock uit de jaren 70 samenvloeiden met invloeden uit de alt-country uit de jaren 90. Het album deed me meer dan eens denken aan Hollywood Town Hall en Tomorrow The Green Grass van The Jayhawks uit de eerste helft van de jaren 90 en dat zijn wat mij betreft twee van de beste alt-country albums aller tijden. 

Brown Horse stond na de release van haar debuutalbum vooral op het podium en heeft de energie van het podium meegenomen naar de studio. Het deze week verschenen All The Right Weaknesses werd in slechts een week opgenomen en live ingespeeld, wat het album voorziet van veel vaart en energie. 

Brown Horse is zoals gezegd een Britse band, maar de band uit Norwich klinkt ook op haar tweede album weer vooral Amerikaans. Ook op All The Right Weaknesses laat de band zich stevig beïnvloeden door alt-country uit de jaren 90 en countryrock van nog twee decennia eerder, maar het tweede album van Brown Horse klinkt ook ruwer dan het debuutalbum en verkent ook zeker invloeden uit de rockmuziek. 

Op Reservoir trok het geweldige gitaarwerk van Nyle Holihan al de aandacht, maar de Britse muzikant krijgt op All The Right Weaknesses nog veel meer ruimte en heeft de songs van Brown Horse vol gestopt met geweldige riffs. Door het gitaarwerk schuift de muziek van Brown Horse op het nieuwe album van de band ook wel wat de kant op van de (blues)rock bands uit de jaren 70 of schuift de band zelfs op richting 90s indierock, maar door de pedal steel en de banjo blijven ook invloeden uit de country belangrijk. 

Ik heb persoonlijk wel wat met het lekker ruwe en energieke en vooral door gitaren gedomineerde geluid op All The Right Weaknesses, dat net wat eigenzinniger en ook wel wat eigentijdser klinkt dan het geluid op het debuutalbum van de band. Het is een geluid dat direct aanspreekt en vervolgens steeds beter wordt.

Ook op het tweede album van Brown Horse trekt de opvallende stem van Patrick Turner de aandacht. Het is een stem die de muziek van Brown Horse voorziet van onderscheidend vermogen, maar ik vind de stem van de Britse muzikant ook erg mooi. Patrick Turner neemt op All The Right Weaknesses het grootste deel van de zang voor zijn rekening, maar er is vergeleken met het debuutalbum een wat grotere rol voor de stem van Phoebe Troup, die ook zeer verdienstelijk zingt. 

Het tweede album van Brown Horse stond na een maandenlange tour in een vloek en een zucht op de band, maar ondanks het feit dat er maar net iets meer dan een jaar is verstreken sinds het debuutalbum van de band laat Brown Horse flinke groei horen. Meerdere leden van de band schreven mee aan de songs, die van een constanter en hoger niveau zijn. De zang van Patrick Turner is net wat minder expressief en wat mij betreft mooier, terwijl de muziek van de band wat steviger en uitbundiger klinkt. 

Een ding is niet veranderd en dat is dat Brown Horse ook met All The Right Weaknesses weer een geweldig album heeft gemaakt. Het is een album dat zeker in de smaak zal vallen bij liefhebbers van countryrock en alt-country, maar ook een ieder die makkelijk valt voor (indie)rock zal zeer gecharmeerd zijn van het tweede album van Brown Horse. Ik had zo snel na Reservoir nog geen tweede album van Brown Horse verwacht, maar All The Right Weaknesses is een zeer aangename verrassing.

Erwin Zijleman

The Boys Of Dungeon Lane. Paul McCartney

How many McCartney albums does one need, is a valid question in 2026? It appears one more. At first listening, it is clear that The Boys Of Dungeon Lane is not just an average Paul McCartney album that is easy to ignore.  It's an urgent album with several songs that go way beyond the average.

One eye-catching detail is certainly worth noting. Andrew Watt has produced the album and has received co-writing credits of several songs. The recordings started in 2021 and continued for years. And let Watt also be the one who kicked life in Paul's contemporaries The Rolling Stones as well, with Paul playing bass on a song on 'Hackney Diamonds' and the upcoming album (10 July). Both dinosaurs of the beat, R&B and pop era still sound like themselves with Watt in the producer's seat, but certainly with a fresh sounding tinge. If not pure and pleasant surprises.

As I wrote before, Paul's voice is not what it used to be. It is in steady decline from overuse in the past decades, from 1957 right op to 2026, or sixty-nine(!) straight years. Where in the end that stopped me from playing 'McCartney III' more, his previous solo album from 2020. So far, I am not bothered much on The Boys Of Dungeon Lane. Somehow he manages to use his voice in different ways, where the wear and tear is less obvious. Strangely enough it is when he uses it in a mildly higher register.

Paul McCartney turns 84 in the coming weeks but there is not much suggesting his age. Again he played most of the instruments himself, only assisted here and there by Andrew Watt. Again an analogy with The Rolling Stones. Some of the lyrics look back at his youth, see eg 'Down South' about George Harrison I'd say and then we are talking about the 1950s. The album title is a street in Speke that led to the river Mersey, where boys went out to play. Something I can completely relate to, despite having grown up ten-fifteen years later. The adventures are sort of similar, as there wasn't much else to do then but explore the surrounding neighbourhoods.

Musically, The Boys Of Dungeon Lane is as varied as can be expected. From an acoustic ballad to a wild rocker, you'll find it on the album. With one of the highlights the duet with Ringo Starr, 'Home To Us', perhaps one of the most Beatlesque songs McCartney ever released or better, what The Beatles might have sounded had they all lived until 2026 and decided to make music together once more. Besides that, 'Home To Us' is so much alive, belying the age of the two protagonists. It deserves to be a hit, but certainly is in my universe.

From the opening song it is clear that Paul McCartney means business. 'As You Lie There' has a few faces to it. From the soft McCartney, to the harder rocking Paul. It is all there and more. This is the song by a man who was challenged to get more out of the original idea. It starts out oh so soft and nostalgic, with Paul sing-talking, looking back to a once upon a long ago. From quiet reminiscing to desperation, all within a minute. The accompaniment changes to something bordering a symphonic rock ballad. Next up is a great guitar solo and Paul shouting out his despair once again, and still more to come. It's clear this is a man on a mission and not just presenting us with another record. In a way, 'As You Lie There' reminds me of 'Band On The Run', because of all the changes.

The album continues with McCartney in a minor rocking mode. 'Lost Horizon' has a nice shuffle sound without overdoing it. Again he makes the most of his 2020s voice. It can be said that 'Lost Horizon' sounds familiar, but it has a freshness that I haven't heard for a long time from McCartney. All over the album there is a rock element that pops up and that makes all the difference for me. I'm quite convinced this is Andrew Watt's contribution. Next up is an acoustic song, that was the first single from the album, 'Days We Left Behind', holding the title to the album. Here it is that I wished his voice was better, because this is a really beautiful song and deserved his voice from twenty or more years ago. By the way, in 2026 it has become possible to miss a new Paul McCartney single, as no one alerted me to it.

Sure, there are a few songs in the typical McCartney style that appeals less to me, but they are not bad songs and that rock element that seeps in. As I read somewhere today, "this is as good as his best work in the past 50 years". That makes 'Silly Love Songs' as a single, when Paul still scored hits. Several songs can more than compete, so I agree with the writer. Like I said, it seems I need another bunch of silly Paul McCartney songs anyway. One question remains, reading about starting working with Andrew Watt in 2021, who came first, Paul or Mick c.s.?

Wout de Natris - van der Borght