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Fall Out Of Bed. Mountaineer
Those who followed this blog over the past years know that a new single by Mountaineer will very likely fall on fertile ears. Marcel Hulst in both his Maggie Brown and Mountaineer guises has produced four magnificent albums. With Fall Out Of Bed his fifth album is announced. The single is extremely small. Two acoustic guitars, some atmospherics and a few sparse piano notes. This is all it takes to give me goosebumps. And of course, his soft, almost whispering voice. News has it that Excelsior Recordings has, finally I might add, signed the band. What my ears tell me, is that the mix is wider and the multitracked vocals come as a surprise. Fall Out Of Bed is a song of extreme beauty, another one in a long row of beautiful songs. Album 'Country Dragon' will be released on 3 April.
When did I hear music like this coming out of Hollywood? More decades ago than I care to remember. There are still musicians out there who haven't heard that the musical genre went out of fashion a long time ago. And the world should be glad that they haven't heard the news. Michael des Barres' voice may sound like he drank the whole Jack Daniels shack all by himself over the past decades, he is rocking like there is no tomorrow. His band is supertight and the riffs are flying. His drummer manages to add all these little extras into his drum patterns, The electric solo guitar is simply on fire. Kiss Or Kill Me is one heck of an introduction to this artist.
"I’ve always loved ‘Bumble Bee’, and I’m still surprised by how many people have never heard it", Ruby James writes in the accompanying bio to the song. Well, I have to admit I'm not able to mention a single song by LaVern Baker and do not really know who she is. What I do know, is that Ruby James is on fire in the song. This is a reimagined rock and roll song alright for the second quarter of the 21st century. Rosie Flores infuses the song with a some solos that are bordering on metal and are far removed from traditional rock and roll. This combination works really well. I'm amazed that a song like Bumble Bee can be released in the U.S. and not be on Malibu Lou's Rum Bar Records. Album 'Call It Rock And Roll' will be released later in the year.
Residing in Los Angeles and calling yourself Detroit is a bit confusing, I have to admit. But okay, I can live with it, when the band presents such a dose of dirty garage rock that makes me smile from ear to ear. Detroit Illharmonic Symphony is a serious version of the Toy Dolls. With a singer that is just about able to not use the helium canister by his side. Fans of a host of punk bands from the past, starting with bands like The Clash and The Ramones and slowly working their way up from there, will dig Who Loves You. With a vocal melody that in my ears spells a huge U.K. influence, with even a few famous sixties acts in mind. Who Loves You is totally charged and gives it its all from the get go to the very end. There is an album out already and it's called 'Everything Is Shattered'.
Not so long ago UAPs were everywhere and then they were not (and then they were in El Paso, after I wrote this). When Mark Valentine was touring the East Coast in 2024, there were repeated sightings and that led to this song. "I was imagining them looking down on us scurrying around New York with our guitars — and wondering if anything like rock ’n’ roll existed in their own dimension". Let's hope that was what drove them away, if they had bad intentions. It led to a nice rock song like they are coming out of the U.S. for decades with recent favourites like Brad Marino and Geoff Palmer. Mark Valentine comes in with this infectious Farfisa organ that is all over the song, playing its main riff. It makes for very interesting listening and in comes that guitar solo, yeah! Album 'Uncommon Side Effects' is there on 10 April.
Motorpsycho is on this blog from the very beginning. Many of its albums have made the end of year lists over the years, but a single? The answer is yes, in 2024 with 'All Is Life (I Love You)'. With Fanny Again Or, a blistering track is added to this single section. Bass player Bent is singing and is pouring his heart and vocal chords out. As always there are a bunch of great guitar solos and riffs by Hans flying around. What is super catching, is that the band is really not holding back. Well into their fifties and they rock like it is 1970. And that is just Motorpsycho's intention. Motorpsycho is going all out on this one. They wanted to make a record like it was that year, as nobody is making them any more. You will find more on 'The Gaia ll Space Corps'. The album will be released on 27 March.
Cardinals is a band from Ireland, Cork, and it has no trouble pointing that out in its music. I Like You is a rock song, but all through it is an accordeon giving the sound of Cardinals a distinct sound. In the softer parts the accordeon even gives I Like You a French chanson flavour as well. And then the band lets it rip once more and becomes an alternative rock monster anyway. These two faces makes I Like You very intriguing to listen to, as it sets the band apart. Had they just rocked, Cardinals would have sounded like many alternative rock acts. Here it certainly doesn't. The nucleus of the band are the brothers Manning, singer guitarist Euan and accordeonist Finn. Most likely they thought up this concept and brought three others in to make this, at times, monster of a band. Album 'Masquerade' is out since Friday last.
More Ireland, albeit living in London these days. Bleech 9:3 is a band around Baz Quinlan (vocals/guitar) and Sam Duffy (guitar). Put Cannonball on and you will be brought back to the post-grunge era of bands like Creed and Staind. Quinlan is trying to sing as low as Staind's Aaron Lewis and getting there. In other words, Cannonball is not a happy song. It is convincing enough though. Cannonball slowly fleshes out from the wobbly guitar riff, with a second guitar behind it, it starts out with. Quinlan sings over it, slowly but convincingly. For the second verse bass and drums, nice and deep, join and then the song takes off. I'm not familiar with the three previous singles of Bleech 9:3, but Cannonball seems like a mission statement to me. One question remains though, how should I pronounce the band name? Bleech 3, Bleech 9 divided by three, something else entirely?
In week 2 Jaguero made its debut on this blog and here is Hold Me Close already in week 7. Again punkrock with an emo side to it from Italy. Just listen to how the song blasts to life. The distorted guitar really nails it where grabbing attention is concerned. Drummer Andrea Campesato Segnini is pounding away, providing the song with so much power and a very solid bottom end. Andrea Cichellero has the exact voice for this music, making it sound familiar but also simply spot on. Jaguero really rocks on Hold Me Close and that is all you need to know. Album 'Make Me Feel Alive Again' is due on April 10.
Plastic Family is a brand new band from The Netherlands that released its first single in December of last year. It reached me a bit later, but there's enough enthusiasm in the song to prevent me from writing about it. It appears to me, Plastic Family started off by plundering the record collection of the members' parents, perhaps even grandparents. The sixties vibe is well spread out over Love & Heartbreak In High School, with a U.S. connotation because of the title. The video does the rest, although that is more 70s. The Big Star association accounts for that perhaps. The five members play in a host of other bands as well, that would take up too much space here to mention. Together they present a strong rock song with a pop vibe that makes it quite irresistible to listen to. Hopefully there will be more soon.
Wout de Natris - van der Borght
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