2026, week 40. 5 singles

This week I had a new dream. A variation on an old theme. My former band, The Beerhunters (1993-1996), was ready to start playing a gig at a company event. Everything was in place since the evening before, soundchecked and all. Except when I arrived, there was a huge open spot where my amp, guitar and effects should be. With no clue where it could be. In my mind I was going through every option where it could be, looking around the premises, etc., ever more stressed. Who to call? And then I remembered I had taken everything with me to play another gig with my other band, but still no clue where the gear could be. And then I woke up. Not stressed at all, I'm glad to say. The Beerhunters, I don't even have the t-shirt anymore. Here is some new music for you though. Enjoy!

Never Can Tell. Jake Bugg

Jake Bugg entered my life in the fall of 2012 with his debut album 'Jake Bugg'. My personal favourite remains his second album 'Shangri La' (2013), where he is just this little more adventurous, at age 19. Since, I surely but slowly lost sight of his work. Bugg today is still only 32 and on route to release his seventh album. Listening to Never Can Tell, the first single from 'Alamo' (13 November), is a return to form. Of course, his characteristic voice will sound familiar always, but the music once again has that folky rock to it. Just a little Chris Isaak is enough. The lead guitar plays a modest riff during the whole of the song. What I like best about Never Can Tell though, is that slightly psychedelic turn in the song's chorus?, where things appear to slow down because of a time change. I put a question mark after chorus, because what is it? Many parts return while different. It makes Never Can Tell a little intriguing as well. Welcome back to this blog, Jake Bugg.

Tiny Feet. Little Grandad

Energetic live shows? A four piece band? Indie band? Just a few words that come with the bio. Listening to the song, two voices and acoustic guitars, made me wonder whether I'm listening to the wrong song and then it comes. The voices announce the change and in comes the band full force. It doesn't change the beauty of the melody, it just gives the song and the listener a kick under the butt. The change is surprising but also welcome because of the way it is executed. Little Grandad doesn't overdo anything, just does what it is good at. The band is a new name on the blog. Formed in 2025 around the brothers Jack en Harry Lower with Ned Ashcroft and James "Jimmy" Brennan. The two brothers sing the lead vocals together and are clearly used to do so for a long time. There's an album on the way. 'Speak Softly, Son' will be there on 22 January 2027.

Hit&Run. Linka Moja

Gritty guitars form the background to Linka Moja multi-layered vocals. One Linka Moja is not enough, there are several delivering the vocal melody. While over the chorus she speak-sings in a The Shangri-Lahs kind of way. Hit&Run has an alternative sound, while a very innocent sounding vocal melody that has a definite pop vibe. Listen to the lyrics though and that innocence disappears immediately. It is all about uncertainty in love and life, ideal forms, self-mutilation, cheating now or years, even decades from now. What about living and enjoying life when you're young? Uncertainty is part of growing up and the saying love can only start when you're able to love yourself is true. Try and tell that to your younger self though. Linka Moja has caught teenangst in a good song with several interesting moments within it. The only thing missing is the real scream-singing in the "it is so fucking over" right at the end of the speak singing chorus.

Long Live The Resistance EP. Cindy Lawson 

Cindy Lawson debuted on this blog as singer of The Clams, when the band's work was re-released in 2022 and remained a fixture through the years since after she picked up her music career. In 2026 she releases a four song EP, that rocks loudly from beginning to end. She has an urgent message to share and has no time to spare for subtleties. Single 'The Reckoning' has already received a spot on this page but rocks so hard that it deserves mentioning once again. In the lyrics Lawson goes full out and makes it a reckoning to all who have done her wrong over the years. That punkrock/garagerock attitude is taken along into the second song 'Burn'. "Minnesota fights against fascism", "don't believe the lies". Just a two lines from the song and you know that the resistance is in full force here. Cindy Lawson and band nail the blatant fascism in the U.S. to the musical wall. Again, the story that in modern music there is no political outrage any more is laid by the wayside. Punk music (and folk music) have always been politically outspoken and Cindy Lawson has enough anger in her to want to vent it, from a personal and public point of view. Long Live The Resistance vents it all. To top it all, she shares 'Howard Zinn Died For Your Sins' with us. It doesn't get more angrier than this song. "How do you sleep at night?". "We were there, we saw it happen ... in our town, you shot them down". This is all about Renee Good and Alex Pretti, denying everything writer Howard Zinn (1922-2010) stood for. At the same time this is not just punk rage and anger, but also musically the song is so good. I sincerely hope it doesn't have to come to real resistance but things do not look good. And not just in the U.S.

Desire Is Movement. Trixie Whitley

Desire Is Movement is a very mature song. The kind of song that shows an artist on the top of her artistry. Trixie Whitley has the skills to create a song that is both complex and yet sounds so free flowing. It combines elements of Michael Kiwanuka and Whitney Houston without having to create any kind of eclectic vocal outings to impress from beginning to end. On her previous single, 'Building Fences', I compared the song to the mood of Bowie's 'Blackstar' and Mariah Carey. There is some consistency between the two songs I find. Desire Is Movement is built from Trixie Whitley playing the piano and from there paying the drums herself, totally on intuition and not by way of technical assistance. Desire Is Movement is not a song you put on if you like to hear instant pleasure. This song takes an effort from the listener but one coming with full gratification. Album 'Folded Time' will be released on 23 October.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

If I Let It Quiet. Josaleigh Pollett

Josaleigh Pollett maakt vanuit Salt Lake City inmiddels al flink wat jaren bijzondere muziek, maar ze legt de lat nog wat hoger op haar nieuwe album If I Let It Quiet, dat de balans vindt tussen experiment en aangename popsongs.

Ik ken de muziekscene van Salt Lake City eerlijk gezegd niet. De stad bracht ons ooit The Osmonds, maar verder ken ik geen muzikanten uit de hoofdstad van Utah. Tot deze week dan, want dankzij een tip maakte ik kennis met de muziek van Josaleigh Pollett, die laat horen dat er in Salt Lake City wel degelijk interessante muziek wordt gemaakt. If I Let It Quiet kan worden getypeerd als een singer-songwriter album, maar het is wel een singer-songwriter album vol verrassingen en vol uitstapjes buiten de gebaande paden. Josaleigh Pollett zet je soms op het verkeerde been, maar ze schrijft ook popsongs die je alleen maar wilt koesteren. Interessant album.

De Amerikaanse muziekwebsite Paste zette me vorige week op het spoor van de Amerikaanse muzikant Josaleigh Pollett. De non-binaire muzikant uit Salt Lake City, Utah, heeft de afgelopen tien jaar al heel wat muziek uitgebracht, maar ook voor Paste kwam het in juli verschenen album If I Let It Quiet kennelijk als een verrassing. Paste noemt Josaleigh Pollett immers in de introductie van het album “a hidden treasure”. 

Daar kan ik me wel in vinden, want If I Let It Quiet is een fascinerend album en ook de vorige albums van de Amerikaanse muzikant zijn op zijn minst bijzonder en absoluut de moeite waard. Van deze albums vind ik If I Let It Quiet het meest toegankelijk en het album is wat mij betreft toegankelijk genoeg om in de smaak te vallen bij een grote groep liefhebbers van singer-songwriter muziek. 

Het nieuwe album van Josaleigh Pollett is absoluut te beschrijven als een singer-songwriter album, maar het is zeker geen doorsnee album in het genre. Het is een album dat flarden bevat van mooie en tijdloze folksongs, die makkelijk verleiden met mooie klanken en de zeer aangename stem van Josaleigh Pollett, maar de muzikant uit Salt Lake City maakt ook muziek die heel makkelijk van kleur verschiet en je minstens net zo makkelijk op het verkeerde been zet. 

De songs op het album klinken deels organisch, maar er wordt ook regelmatig elektronica ingezet, waardoor de muziek van Josaleigh Pollett ook kan opschuiven richting indiepop. Niet alleen de muziek op het album verschiet makkelijk van kleur, want ook de stem van Josaleigh Pollett kan meerdere kanten op, wat nog wat extra contrast toevoegt aan het album. 

Het zorgt voor een serie aansprekende maar ook lekker eigenzinnige songs, die anders klinken dan die op de meeste andere albums die worden gemaakt in de genres die Josaleigh Pollett bestrijkt. Nu opereert de Amerikaanse muzikant ook vanuit een andere scene, want Salt Lake City is in meerdere opzichten ver verwijderd van Nashville of Los Angeles. 

Het album klinkt nog wat eigenzinniger door de productie van Jordan Watko, die in het Japanse Osaka woont, waardoor het album op bijzondere wijze werd opgenomen. De afstand tussen Salt Lake City en Osaka zorgt voor een bijzondere sfeer, waarin de tijd af en toe lijkt te verspringen. Jordan Watko maakte overigens een bijzonder album onder de naam Crowd Shy, maar dit album ben ik nooit tegengekomen. 

Ook de andere muzikanten die zijn te horen op het album, ken ik niet, maar If I Let It Quiet is in muzikaal opzicht een spannend album, waarop van alles te ontdekken valt. Toen ik het album voor het eerst beluisterde, boden de songs van Josaleigh Pollett betrekkelijk weinig houvast, maar uiteindelijk valt alles op zijn plek en worden de bijzondere songs op het album stuk voor stuk memorabel. 

Ook de vorige albums van de Amerikaanse muzikant staan vol bijzondere songs, waardoor ik er opeens een interessant stapeltje albums bij heb. If I Let It Quiet is wat mij betreft het meest geschikte album om in te stappen, maar het album maakt je zeer waarschijnlijk nieuwsgierig naar het andere werk van Josaleigh Pollett, die af en toe stevig experimenteert, maar de toegankelijke popsong ook nooit helemaal uit het oog verliest. Wederom een hele interessante tip van Paste dus.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt If I Let It Quiet hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://josaleighpollett.bandcamp.com/album/if-i-let-it-quiet 

Draw The Outline. Sorcha Richardson

"Draw the outline" are the first three words on Sorcha Richardson's new album, lifted from the opening song 'Sea Pink Moon'. The words that were my introduction to Sorcha Richardson or so I thought, as I found to have reviewed her single 'Grenadine' in June.

Sorcha Richardson is from West Kerry in Ireland these days, after having moved to New York and back to Dublin. Draw The Outline is her third album, after 'Smiling Like An Idiot' brought her success in Ireland in 2022. Her music on Draw The Outline has the slacker rock ingredients that I usually find in music from Australia (Courtney Barnett) and even more from New Zealand (Vera Ellen, e.g. in the song 'Carpenter'). Sorcha Richardson has an identical approach to music. A laidback rhythm and a relaxed, on parts of the album an almost slacker way of singing. There's just no hurry in most songs. Like in 'Grenadine', that progresses slowly but surely.

So my advice is to enjoy Draw The Outline to the fullest, as it allows you to go with its flow. Follow these mysterious sounds that can weave themselves in and out of a song. These wafts of electronic music that are there and then aren't. Not unlike Reb Fountain presented on her eponymous album from 2020. Here it is more direct though as they are allowed into the forefront as well. It gives the album a layer of mystique coming with the west of Ireland where it can be foggy for days, then be sunny, to end the day with a hurricane. Where leprechauns roam and peat smoke can still fill your nose. If this was Sorcha Richardson's intention, she caught it superbly. Further on in the album you will hear folk/singer-songwriter songs as well, sparsely arranged around an acoustic guitar.

That acoustic guitar is the basis of this album. When the weather of West-Kerry allows, she can sit at the beach with friends and sing and play the songs this way. From there the songs are built up. Together with producer Chris W. Ryan she chose for a mostly rustic sound with some mystery added.

With 'Illinois Again' the tempo goes up, slightly, while a more indie rock oriented vibe is shared with the listener. A variation of music that makes Draw The Outline a stronger album because of this change of approach. At heart 'Illinois Again' may be a soft song, in part because of Sorcha Richardson's voice, the more prominent drums and that dark sounding lead guitar, give a different impression.

Draw The Outline is a deceptive album. Anyone playing this album in the background, will no doubt wonder, is it over already? What have I heard? Anyone playing the album somewhat louder or with a headset on, will hear the depth Richardson and Ryan have put in the album and will reach the other side in awe of what they have just heard. Listening has become a rewarding experience. I'm listening through a headset right now, I am on the latter side of the equation. So should you. Draw The Outline is a beautiful album very much worthwhile getting acquainted with.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Draw The Outline here:

https://sorcharichardson.bandcamp.com/album/draw-the-outline 

Eyes Full. Zoh Amba

Zoh Amba timmert al een aantal jaren aan de weg als jazzsaxofonist, maar kiest op het deze week verschenen Eyes Full voor een totaal andere weg met ruwe folksongs vol stevig gitaarwerk en bijzondere zang.

Ik heb het vorige week even geprobeerd met Eyes Full van Zoh Amba, maar het was niet het juiste moment voor het album. Het is een album dat ver is verwijderd van de muziek die Zoh Amba tot dusver heeft gemaakt. Samen met gitarist Kevin Hyland en drummer Jim White maakt Zoh Amba ruwe songs met een mix van folk en rock. Het zijn songs die associaties oproepen met de muziek van Big Thief of de albums van frontvrouw Adrianne Lenker, maar Eyes Full is rauwer en intenser. Toen ik er een paar dagen geleden naar luisterde was het wel het juiste moment voor de nieuwe muziek van Zoh Amba en kwam het album wel binnen. Vervolgens begreep ik opeens alle superlatieven die de Amerikaanse muziekpers erover heeft opgeschreven.

De albums van de Amerikaanse muzikant Zoh Amba, die zichzelf overigens identificeert als non-binair persoon, zijn me in het verleden meer dan eens aangeprezen, maar na even luisteren was ik er snel uit dat het niets voor mij was. Op deze albums maakt de muzikant uit New York jazz en ook nog eens het soort jazz waar ik vooral heel erg nerveus van word. 

Het vorige week verschenen Eyes Full is een heel ander soort album, maar wederom waren de Amerikaanse muziekcritici eensgezind en waren de superlatieven niet van de lucht. Het nieuwe album van Zoh Amba opent met een folky song en het is er een die me niet direct overtuigde. De nerveuze jazz is in de openingstrack OCD verruild voor stevig aangezet en wat eclectisch akoestisch gitaarspel en de stem van Zoh Amba en ik werd er wederom wat nerveus van. 

Het is een stem waar ik een paar jaar geleden waarschijnlijk enorm aan had moeten wennen, maar de stem van Zoh Amba lijkt nogal op die van Big Thief zangeres Adrianne Lenker en ook de manier van zingen is vrijwel identiek. Daar moet je tegen kunnen, maar sinds Big Thief me van mijn sokken blies met haar eerste paar albums heb ik wel wat met het soort zang op Eyes Full van Zoh Amba. 

Na de wat onrustige openingstrack gooit de muzikant uit New York er ook nog wat invloeden uit de indierock tegenaan en worden de associaties met de muziek van Big Thief alleen maar sterker. Zowel de zang als de gitaren klinken wel wat ruwer en compromislozer dan in de muziek van Big Thief, wat Eyes Full een wat lo-fi karakter geeft. 

Het nieuwe album van Zoh Amba is een album dat je na een paar tracks snel opzij schuift en nooit meer beluistert of het is een album dat je maar blijft intrigeren. Net als de Amerikaanse muziekcritici was ik direct onder de indruk van het album en pakte ik het album er steeds weer bij. 

In muzikaal opzicht rammelt het behoorlijk en ook op de onvaste zang van Zoh Amba kun je heel veel aanmerken, maar op een of andere manier klopt het. Wanneer je vervolgens vaker naar het album luistert worden de songs van de muzikant uit New York beter en grijpen ze je nog wat steviger bij de strot met de ruwe zang. Ook het gitaarwerk op het album overtuigt dan nog wat makkelijker, zeker in de meest rauwe passages. 

Zoh Amba keerde voor het nieuwe album terug naar het platteland van Tennessee, waar de wortels van de Amerikaanse muzikant liggen en waar Zoh Amba niet paste, en dat hoor je in de songs, die worden gedomineerd door invloeden uit de folk, met hier en daar een randje blues en country. Het is ver verwijderd van de muziek die Zoh Amba als saxofonist maakt, maar geef mij maar Eyes Full. 

Als Big Thief niet had bestaan en Adrianne Lenker een ander beroep had gekozen zou Eyes Full uit kunnen groeien tot een sensationeel album, maar nu klinkt het uiteindelijk vooral als het album dat Adrianne Lenker nog niet heeft gemaakt. Dat doet niets af aan de prestatie die Zoh Amba levert, want als ik moet kiezen tussen de soloalbums van Adrianne Lenker en dit album kies ik met veel overtuiging voor Eyes Full. 

 Ook de muzikanten die Zoh Amba begeleiden zijn overigens geen koekenbakkers, want gitarist Kevin Hyland speelde in de band van MJ Lenderman en drummer Jim White behoeft geen nadere introductie. Het levert een album op dat je verafschuwt of dat je grijpt en als het je grijpt houdt het je voorlopig in een stevige wurggreep.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt Eyes Full hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://zohamba.bandcamp.com/album/eyes-full 

2026, week 35. 5 singles

Another week, another bunch of singles. Enjoy!

butsowhat. SisterBessie

Truth be, I'd never expected to review the debut single from a tattoo artist from Kopenhagen having moved to Amsterdam. It is also for the first time since a few year that I review a song in the style of "hey ho" or "ho hey" music. SisterBessie does not become that exuberant nor sings hey ho anywhere, it is in the atmosphere and melody of butsowhat. Adam Højlund Pukki, who is SisterBessie, presents a subdued form of music, that can be played with an acoustic guitar only around the campfire. Singer-songwriter and folk can be adequate descriptions of his music. From there the song is subtly arranged around his voice. Pukki's voice is not the best I've heard but it has the character needed to address the personal topic about relations and friendships in a convincing way.

The Reckoning. Cindy Larson

Cindy Lawson returned to punkrock in 2022 and made it to these pages regularly that year, leading up to her album 'New Tricks'. Four years later she returns with single The Reckoning, announcing a to be released EP. On her new single she captures a truckload of energy, enough to light up a small town for a night or two. The Reckoning shows how music of old can be treated with respect and turned into great new songs. The song rocks and rolls with a great role for a dirty sounding lead guitar that makes great use of the fundament the band lays down for it. Over it all Cindy Lawson steps into the spot light and grabs the attention the song allows her and she deserves. Her voice was made for tough songs like this, without losing any femininity, as she can shout and pur at the right time, while without doubt kicking a loud-mouthed, rude man into the corner. "On your knees and cry". More direct than this lyrics seldom come. 

Ride With You. Cast of The Wanderer

What a strange band name, I thought. It turns out that it is the cast of the musical 'The Wanderer' based on the career and life of Dion (DiMucci) of 'The Wanderer' and 'Runaround Sue' fame from the post Elvis and pre-Beatles era. I take it that Ride With You is a song about as old as the two famous hits. Translated into the musical, it becomes a stark, modern sounding rocker, that fits in today quite well. There's no way Dion has ever sounded like this. The two vocalists, Mike Wartella and Diego Andres Rodriguez, really rip it up and remind me of on the one hand Status Quo and the other John Travolta in 'Greased Lightning'. It is loud and it rocks but is smooth enough to go down nicely with a bigger, more average crowd as well.  The musical has some songs that were written specifically for the musical. Ride With You is a Dion song though. The original is a jazzy, bluesy song that has gotten a total makeover and a successful one at that. I do not mind to ride with both versions for a while though.

You’ve Got To Choose feat. Mia Boostrom. Sean Coleman Project

From jazzy-bluesy to blues with a lot more, all contained in the voice of Mia Boostrom. I have never heard of her before, but what a voice. The song starts hesitatingly though. It's as if it will be a sort of gospel inspired song, with an acoustic guitar and a Hammond organ. And then comes in this big drum fill and a few lead notes and the rhythm guitar playing the riff. The whole brings Mia Boostrom in her strength and from that moment onwards she doesn't look back. Let's say that Beth Hart has a great competitor. The band behind really rocks out. To think that You've Got To Choose is a debut single from Sean Coleman Project, what more lies in wait for us?

Into The Stars. Nocona

Into The Stars? That title was almost the title of the first The Rolling Stones single of its latest album 'Foreign Tongues'. Los Angeles band Nocona uses the same title to announce its upcoming album 'Backslider' scheduled for release in December. Nocona touches upon a country flavour, while mildly rocking nonetheless. The pedal steel guitar takes on a big role with its typical sound, bringing up images of balmy evenings somewhere in the South. It gives Into The Stars a distinct flavour that takes it away from the way it starts. I'm inclined to place it somewhere between country rock and pop and there the magic happens. This year it has been six years since Nocona was on this blog first with it album 'Los Dos'. And here is the second single this year already. My appetite has been wetted.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Lost Weekend. Phoebe Bridgers

Although this is only Phoebe Bridgers' third solo effort, she is around for about ten years and as a part of boygenius she has become perhaps even more famous. For my part, I have not been convinced of her solo work, and neither of her two colleagues, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker. boygenius did go down well though. So here is Lost Weekend and what do I think?

Recently, I saw a video podcast about 'Revolver', posing that it was the album that set the standard for recording techniques for all that was to come. Listening to all the effects used on Lost Weekend, it shows that the narrator was more than right. Of course, the studio and in many cases a laptop can do a hundredfold more than the 'EMI studio', as it was called then, was capable of in the spring of 1966. Phoebe Bridgers makes use of it all and successfully so.

For the first time, I am sucked into her album almost from the start, despite the electronic start of the album and her vocoder recorded voice. Let's face it, it is a bit weird to return as a solo artist and distancing yourself from your listeners as Phoebe Bridgers does on 'The Outsiders'. And yet, she caught me immediately with the song. Something I cannot explain to you. She didn't the first time around with 'Lost Boys', the most popular and second song on Lost Weekend. That has changed by now. I even find myself singing 'Lost Boys' in my head. From what I've read, is that Ms. Bridgers did want to put distance between the world, her fans and herself for some time. After boygenius went on hiatus, she took her time to figure her next step and her life out. Blood goes where it needs to go though as singer-songwriter and that is all that matters for the listener of Lost Weekend. Does the title refer to John Lennon's lost weekend in L.A., that lasted for about a year?

If anything, Phoebe Bridgers is at the top of her game with Lost Weekend. Somewhere between modernism, singer-songwriter and folk she invites her listeners to pay attention to her music. That starts with the electronics of 'The Outsiders' and the more lush arrangements in the first half of the album. Much is made by others on the two sides to this album. The second half is perhaps more elementary where the arrangements are concerned, the atmosphere of Lost Weekend does not significantly change. In that sense, it is an album, as one piece of work.

That one piece includes the at times personal lyrics in contrast with the at times aloof presentation in the music. That must be a very conscious choice by Phoebe Bridgers. Show and hide and let the listeners take care of themselves. They always do anyway, reading in lyrics what it is they get out of it. To me it seems the most difficult for a singer to do, writing lyrics that you may have to sing for decades to come. Fans demand it, while you may not want to, as things change in lives.

Coming late to the Phoebe Bridgers party, it does make me wonder if I have missed something on 'Somewhere In The Alps' and 'Punisher' that I did not or was not able to hear in 2017 and 2020. It may be time to take a re-listen. Lost Weekend goes down quite well and so did boygenius for most of the songs. Not to forget Phoebe Bridgers' contributions to the last two The National albums. So, who knows where I will wind up.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Lost Weekend here:

https://phoebebridgers.bandcamp.com/album/lost-weekend 

A Sign in the Weather. Bella White

De Canadese muzikante Bella White maakte een onuitwisbare indruk met haar vorige album Among Other Things, maar imponeert als zangeres en songwriter op het werkelijk prachtig klinkende A Sign in the Weather.

Bella White is pas 25 jaar oud, maar haar stem klinkt veel ouder. Het is een stem met heel veel emotie en doorleving, waardoor ieder woord dat ze zingt hard binnenkomt. Dat was ook al zo op haar vorige album, dat terecht werd geprezen door de critici. Ik vind Among Other Things nog altijd een geweldig album, maar het in juli verschenen A Sign in the Weather is wat mij betreft nog wat beter. Bella White maakte haar album in New Orleans met lokale muzikanten, die tekenen voor een tijdloos folk- en countrygeluid. Het is een geluid dat heel goed past bij de stem van Bella White, die laat horen dat ze sinds haar zo bejubelde vorige album alleen maar beter is geworden.

Just Like Leaving, het debuutalbum van de Canadese singer-songwriter Bella White, sneeuwde in de eerste herfst van de coronapandemie helaas wat onder, maar haar in het voorjaar van 2023 verschenen tweede album kreeg gelukkig wel flink de aandacht die het verdiende. 

Bella White was pas 22 jaar oud toen Among Other Things verscheen, maar het album maakte wat mij betreft een verpletterende indruk. Dat Bella White voor de productie van haar album niemand minder dan Jonathan Wilson had weten te strikken en ook nog onder andere Buck Meek en Drew Erickson naar de studio haalde hielp zeker, maar ze maakte vooral zelf indruk met haar songs en haar stem. 

In mijn recensie van Among Other Things noemde ik Bella White een van de beste zangeressen binnen de rootsmuziek van dat moment en dat was zeker niet overdreven. De zang op Among Other Things is echt bijzonder mooi, maar ook het brede palet aan invloeden en de fraaie klanken en productie tillen het album ver boven het maaiveld uit. 

Bella White heeft de lat hoog gelegd met haar tweede album, waardoor ik met hoge verwachtingen begon aan de beluistering van haar deze week verschenen nieuwe album. Bella White kreeg na de release van haar tweede album te maken met pieken en dalen in haar leven en verruilde Canada na een verbroken relatie voor de Verenigde Staten. 

Voor het opnemen van haar nieuwe album A Sign in the Weather streek ze neer in New Orleans, Louisiana, waar ze samen met producer en muzikant Ross Farbe haar nieuwe album produceerde. Ik ken Ross Farbe eigenlijk alleen van de albums van Esther Rose, maar A Sign in the Weather is net als het vorige album een prachtig klinkend album. 

Bella White deed voor haar vorige album een beroep op een aantal grote namen, maar op haar nieuwe album zijn vooral lokale muzikanten te horen. Het zijn muzikanten die overigens prima spelen en onder andere sfeervolle bijdragen van de viool en de pedal steel toevoegen aan het geluid van Bella White. 

De Canadese muzikante maakte op haar debuutalbum nog Appalachen folk, maar op A Sign in the Weather hoor ik vooral invloeden uit de folk en de country, met hier en daar uitstapjes naar de kosmische country. Zeker als de pedal steel invalt klinkt de muziek op het album echt prachtig, waardoor ik A Sign in the Weather in muzikaal opzicht nog interessanter vind dan het vorige album. 

Bella White heeft indringende songs geschreven over de voorspoed en tegenspoed in haar leven en het zijn stuk voor stuk aansprekende songs. Het mooist op A Sign in the Weather is echter de stem van Bella White, die nog maar eens laat horen dat ze een van de beste zangeressen in het genre is. De Canadese muzikante is nog altijd piepjong, maar heeft een stem die overloopt van gevoel en doorleving. 

Het is een stem die je op A Sign in the Weather song na song bij de strot grijpt en die alleen maar mooier wordt wanneer je het album vaker hoort. Het is ook een stem die prachtig past bij de sfeervolle rootsklanken op het album en die de meeste indruk maakt wanneer de muziek behoorlijk sober is. 

Zeker in de meest melancholische momenten op het album snijdt de stem van Bella White dwars door de ziel en klinkt ze niet als een jonge singer-songwriter, maar als een oude ziel. Het vorige album van Bella White was prachtig, maar A Sign in the Weather is als je het mij vraagt nog wat indrukwekkender. Wat een talent deze Bella White.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt A Sign In The Weather hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://bellawhitemusic.bandcamp.com/album/a-sign-in-the-weather 

Water For Gasoline. Reb Fountain

With Water For Gasoline Reb Fountain turns over a new page in her career as singer-songwriter. In more than one way. The album is not only released through a new record label and the first recorded in her garage studio, but the music is also more down to earth. The movement towards change I noticed on her previous album, 'How Love Bends', has now reached completion. The result is an enigmatic album none the same.

Reb Fountain entered my life late in the fall of 2020 with a single and then her album 'Reb Fountain'. Just before or in the middle of another lockdown, who knows exactly today, the album was a great way to listen to together in our isolation. It was the almost magical, mystical atmosphere that caught me and my now wife. The album 'Iris' followed this up in an even better way. Being able to see Reb Fountain perform in Paradiso in Amsterdam was so special.

The subtle changes on 'How Live Bends' were "a shock" but things were alright quite soon and prepared me for Water For Gasoline. The change is mostly because of stripping away that mystical layer within her songs. Reb Fountain sings as she sings, that has not changed. The music around and behind her is somehow more direct, her voice this little more prominent in the whole. The approach makes the songs just this little more individual and the album as a result less "a whole".

Yes, this makes Water For Gasoline less unique, like 'Reb Fountain' and 'Iris' were in my ears. The new album can be compared to other singer-songwriters working on brink of folk, country and indie. I will let you pick your own favourite, mine remains Reg Fountain. She takes me by the hand and leads me through the album. The mid tempo brings the listener in a form of trance and in the right mood to become one with music and Reb Fountain's voice.

After getting more familiar with Water For Gasoline, a totally different comparison presented itself, Bob Dylan. Take the title song. Reb Fountain presents a long story, over the same chord progression with a hint of blues in it. In her own style she presents her story, in a way Dylan did in e.g. 'Hurricane' or 'Sara', to stick to 'Desire'. Repetition in such a way that the listener almost or even truly forgets it is that in the end.

With 'Good People', the only song she wrote with co-producer Dave Kahn, she makes a stand. "Good people, stare the fascists down" she sings. It looks like we will all be tested on this over the coming years, as fascism and nazism are making a comeback from the underground fast. It will take more than just staring down, I'm afraid, but I totally relate. On vocals she is assisted by Dianne Swann and Tami Neilsen.

'Good People' is a great example of how Reb Fountain's sound has changed, without losing her strengths. It makes Water For Gasoline an interesting, intriguing but above all good album, that I will want to listen to again and again.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Water For Gasoline here: 

https://rebfountain.bandcamp.com/album/water-for-gasoline 

2026, week 27. 5 singles (2)

"Along with the sunshine, there's got to be a little rain sometime", sang Lynn Anderson 55 years ago in her hit single "(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden'. It is like that here at the time of writing, together with a neighbour complaining about a barking dog on my block that is making people crazy. Thank God for double glass, it seems. 'Rose Garden' did make me wonder: which came first the book or the song? Hannah Green's bestseller is from 1964 so I've just found. The song won in my personal case. In the meantime I have five more recent singles for you, enjoy!

Dark Eyed Junco. Kristin Hersh

You have to go back to 2019 to find Kristin Hersh on this blog. She returns with a dark and intense single called Dark Eyed Junco. There is very little light that Ms. Hersh lets through in this song announcing her upcoming album 'Sugar On Blackstone' (18 September). It all starts with a guitar part somewhere between a melody and a riff. Together with the lead note that returns over and over, it already sounds eerie, like a modern version of some themes in 'Once Upon A Time In The West'. When the band kicks in, it is all papered over, blackout style. Kristin Hersh's voice is not your every day solo voice, but it fits this music perfectly. The role of drummer Rob Ahlers is prominent in several parts of the song, really sweeping it forward. Dark Eyed Junco may be a dark but it is also an intriguing song, making me look forward to hear the whole album.

Hello Sunbeam EP. Wooden Overcoat

Wooden Overcoat returns to the blog with its EP. The first of the four songs is 'Home'. There are these songs that function as a time machine. Despite the fact that no band could sound in 1967 like Wooden Overcoat does in 2026, it emulates bands like Traffic, The Lemon Pipers and what not from the day, while fitting in nicely with a whole host of psychedelic bands of the last 10 to 15 years. Although there are a multitude of angles in which to play this kind of music, from The Black Angels to Wooden Overcoat, there are more similarities than differences. Wooden Overcoat aims for the relaxed vibes coming with psychedelia, peace and happiness, adorned by kaleidoscopic fluid projections in the background. The band's frontman is Brian Hajek playing guitar and singing. He's joined by bassist Dillon Glusker, guitarist Mac and drummer Brian Levin. Including the overdubs Wooden Overcoat creates a full sound without muddying it all up. And someone must be playing the keyboard. I'm not sure if I would get through a whole album in this style. The four song Hello Sunbeam EP works like a miracle though. It's warm, relaxed and more than just pleasant.

How Long Is Too Long. The Broken Heartbreakers

More from New Zealand and a new name to me. It was twelve years ago The Broken Heartbreakers released its previous album. It may well be that I was not alerted yet on New Zealand releases at the time. For me this is a new band. How long is too long? is a good question to ask after an hiatus of twelve years. Many people will have forgotten all about you. With this single the band places a gentle reminder of its existence. How Long Is Too Long is a beautiful acoustic folk song. It fits in a tradition of British folk songs and adds a little jazzy atmosphere and even a hint of Latin American music. Someone like Bebel Gilberto will be able to translate this into a modern sounding bossa nova with ease. The Broken Heartbreakers is Rachel Bailey and John Howell with drummer Paul McLennan-Kissel. How Long Is Too Long is a song that is so delicate. From the soft voice of singer Rachel Bailey to the accompaniment, all is aimed for an effect on your soft side and it works. Album 'Imagine If We Could Just Keep Driving' is due on July 17. 

The Fire. De Staat

Classic De Staat The Fire is. These five words sum it up nicely. The heavy rhythms, the darkness, the electronics, Torre Florim Janssen (the addition of Janssen is new to me) sing talking, the band answering here and there. After 'Old McDonald' a long time ago, De Staat today is "rowing gently down the street". You will all find it all on The Fire. Nothing new under the sun then? If I'm honest, no, there isn't. Is that a bad thing? No, it's not. The energy caught in and on The Fire is obviously genuine. It's the kind of song that will get a venue and festival field going alright. As long as you don't expect any grand new insights  from De Staat, you'll be just fine with The Fire.

Waiting On Nina. Family Stereo

The family stereo entered my family in 1967 with a radio and pick up hidden in a kind of cupboard. From that day onwards, I started to collect records, slowly but surely. The band Family Stereo is the project of singer-songwriter Blake Watt, that will release its debut album on 31 June, called 'The Thread'. Watt's voice reminds me most of Dutch singer-songwriter Thijs Kuijken, operating under the name I Am Oak. Musically, the two operate in a folkish kind of music, but musically distinct. Waiting On Nina places itself in a long tradition of folkpop singers, who present their soft music in a poppy way, while smearing some contemplative melancholy over his listeners. Family Stereo strikes the right mood and notes to convince with Waiting On Nina. Now who was that singer that scored a minor hit with 'Lydia'? For the first time in decades I'm thinking about the song. You Tube tells me immediately: Dean Friedman. To my surprise all piano and strings, so very different musically. That mood is there though.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

2026, week 27. 5 singles

Pffff, it has cooled down, making life a little more bearable again. Well, with the World Cup taking a bad turn for my country, how can you miss three penalty kicks in a series of five and have the bad luck that the goalkeeper stops a kick only to get it against his heel after which it goes in anyway, things are relative. Anyway, it is time for music. Here's five more recent singles to enjoy!

Baobab. Upupayāma

One of the first bands of what for the ease of argument I call the new psychedelic wave that caught my attention in a positive way was Elephant Stone. Many followed, some good and interesting, some less so. Right on the opening measures of Baobab, I'm transported back to my 2014 experience. Upupayāma remains more spacey in Baobab. Nothing becomes concrete but sort of floats around them bongos and the acoustic guitar setting the rhythm. Without being Indian, the song does give off strong Indian vibes and certainly not African, where the Baobab tree originates from. With Baobab Upupayāma provides the ideal inner mind holiday, as it is a song to surrender to, unconditionally.

Gimme Ammunition. Gene Champagne

Gene Champagne returns to the blog with a 7" single. Once again it is a charged up affair. Let's face it, if this song hadn't been just that, I would have ordered him to change its title. Champagne moves straight into punkpop tracks by the likes of Blondie around 1977-1979. Let me even add The Ramones. It is the line up and the guitar solo that brings Gimme Ammunition into the Blondie side of punkrock/pop. This song holds the combination of energy, fun and skills at songwriting to not only make it stand out but to truly enjoy as well. Singing along to the chorus is something that becomes mandatory at shows. Gimme Ammunition is one big invitation to jump around, shout and sing along with it.

Which Side Are You On?. Dan Cummings

Very attentive readers of this blog will recognise the name Dan Cummings as the singer and songwriter of the punk band Already Dead, who first made a deep impression on me with the single 'The Spirit Of Massachusetts Avenue' from the album 'Something Like A War'. In this acoustic single he dusts off a traditional, that also has been on the repertoire of Dropkick Murphies. It was a class song of the working man against the higher class. Dan Cummings takes a very political stance on Which Side are You On?, but takes the song into the third decade of the 21st century. This is about siding as decedents of immigrants with today's immigrants. To point to the fact that billionaires reap all the benefits, to return to the class war just like in the original. One more artist from the Boston area who takes a stance and leaves no doubt which side he's on. It makes me muse what the modern variant of tea will be? That harbour must still be there. 

Clarion. Tasha

Who else but Erwin Zijleman wrote about Tasha's previous album, 'All This And So Much More', on this blog? But to my credit the single 'Michigan' and Love's Changing' were reviewed by yours truly. Clarion comes to my name as well. Tasha shows two different sides to her songwriting on this single announcing her new album 'You are Spring!' that was released last week. Clarion is an ultra relaxed song. In fact, it is almost a slacker tune, were it not that the arrangement belies this completely. The other side of Tasha comes forward in the intricate arrangement where instruments and notes weave in and out of each other. Notes pop up to disappear again, while other instruments join, not to leave the song. Over it Tasha sings her lyrics in that completely relaxed way. The combination simply works, as that is how the song sounds, simple. Don't be fooled by that relaxed tempo though. There is a lot going on there.

S33.u.in/HAL. Holy Wave

A new name on the blog, or so I thought. It isn't, as the single 'Happier' was reviewed by me in 2023. As our former prime minister used to say when I a political bind, "I have no active recollection of this", and got away with it. Mine is in a digital print, that makes it a bit harder to deny. What to make of the title of this song? I really have no clue. HAL is both the Dutch Holland America Line, now an investment vehicle and the super computer in Space Odyssey. It's even the name of a band from the 00s, I think. Looked at in a more broader way, I derive at "see you in hell". A lot of options. The music is almost as weird as the title. The largest part consists of a mix of indie, psychedelia and dreampop. Enter a bit of shoegazing in the chorus and instrumental interlude. The noise is pushed to the background and turns into quite some weirdness, to be faded out when the verse starts again in all its tranquillity. The result is a song with two very distinct faces, like a musical version of dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The Texan band presents a fascinating song. Album 'I'm Dada' can be expected on 10 July.

Wout de Natris -van der Borght 

2026, week 26. 5 singles (2)

The sparrows are fallow dead out of the gutter, as we say over here. At some point it becomes hard to concentrate on anything and at times I feel somewhat light-headed. For the rest things are fine, only two to three more days to go before the weather changes back to more normal weather conditions for the time of year, that will then probably feel cold. We'll see. First four more new singles and one EP for you to explore. You can do that sitting with a fan in your hand. Enjoy!

Born Sentimental EP. Julia Greenberg

Ray Ketchem is the name of a producer that in the past couple of years I run into more and more, but as far as I can recollect, I've never heard him produce a traditional folk, roots, country album. That is exactly what I'm hearing, listening to the opening song of Born Sentimental. In the title song Julia Greenberg shares with us that she was "born sentimental" and that is what the music sounds like. An accordeon plays lonesome notes in a song that sounds as if it could have been recorded in the 1950s before rock and roll broke big. Speaking of sentimental journeys. Ms. Greenberg has the exact right voice for this song, a little dark, a nice sort of wobble in her voice. In the next song, 'Sometimes The Sea', she sings as if she is a close friend of former Californian, now Swiss singer Beth Wimmer. An accordeon remains the lead instrument on this EP, giving it an authentic sound. Julia Greenberg and her three band mates recorded the seven songs in one day, but have crafted their skills through extensive touring the northeast coast of the U.S. She comes from New York City and that is quite surprising to be honest, but why not? Tradition?, yes, nice to listen to?, yes, authentic, certainly. Born Sentimental simply is a warm mini album.

My Life In England, Pt.1. Dexys Midnight Runners

46 years ago Dexys Midnight Runners slowly grew into my absolute favourite band and 'Searching For The Young Soul Rebels' became my favourite album around that time, beating The Beatles and The Stones and Pink Floyd. The singles in between the first and second album were great as well, and 'Come On Eileen' an absolute smash of an hit. 'Too-Rye-Ay' as a whole was a less good album. What happened after, I have no idea, because I played the third album about half a time, I think. And here is My Life In England, Pt.1 in 2026. Kevin Rowland's voice has certainly aged but remains totally recognisable. After having heard the song a few times the song is better than I thought during the first listen session, but can't stand in the shadow of the songs on that first album. 'I Couldn't Help It If I Tried' can still bring tears to my eyes on a good day. No matter how technically bad 'Big' Jimmy Patterson blows his trombone, as a conservatory schooled now ex-colleague pointed out to me, it is absolute heaven to me. My Life In England, Pt.1 holds nothing of that magic. It's a nice tune. Nothing more but also certainly nothing less.

Alive. Bluai

Chances are about more times than 9 out of ten that where female singers are concerned Erwin Zijleman will beat me to writing about them first. Bluai is no different. Album 'Save It For Later' was reviewed by Erwin in 2024, to be followed by the single 'Sober' by me in April this year and here is Alive already. In hindsight the album's title 'Save It For Later' has gotten a bitter meaning. In Alive singer Catherine Smet reflects on losing both her grandmothers and realises that she had not visited and talked to them enough, asked questions, finished conversations, like youngsters do or by far most of them. "I should have loved when I had the chance", she sings. And then it is too late. Musically, the theme is underscored in a beautiful way. The music is both melancholy and accusationally confrontational, while at the same time beauty is let in. The song is alive, just listen to that beautiful chord progression at the start. It is as simple as it is effective.

1999. Integra Pink

Alive, see above, and 1999 have something in common, an as simple as effective chord progression the song starts with. After that Integra Pink is the tougher band of the two. A distorted guitar, a tough drumming drummer and a big bass. The mood is not that much different though. 1999 is a melancholy song as well. The singer reflects on a situation he has been (or still is) in. The mix of rock and a little reflective sadness works quite nice here. Leo Mendez (vocals/guitar), Bardo Mendez (vocals/guitar), Nick Jauregui (drums), and Roman De La Fuente (bass) who make up Integra Pink, are announced as a punk band, but don't expect any of that here. Whether it is, you can learn on EP 'Knucks (Left)' that is out already. A tougher version of a pop-rock song is a better description.

Keep On Pushing Me. Today Junior

An indie fuzzpunk trio? Now what kind of music would that be? "Anarchy in the U.S.A.", Today Junior sings in Keep On Pushing Me. That of course brings The Sexpistols to mind with their incredibly shocking, at the time that is, single 'Anarchy In The U.K.'. Don't expect a punk anthem though. Today Junior, from Boston, keeps far from punk (and fuzz) in its latest single. As far as I'm concerned, I would file it under alternative rock with a mild pop feel to the melody. It is another sign though that in the underground of U.S. music something is brewing. There are more and more artists that do show some protest at what is going on in their homecountry on the other side of the pond. Brave? If democracy holds, far from. In the other case, God knows what will happen. With Keep On Pushing Me, Today Junior has produced an urgent song at the right moment in time.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

2026, week 25. 5 singles

Yes, you've read right, only five singles this time and no album on a Thursday. Too much work, too much football, too much playing with my own band Sweetwood, too much summer days and what not? There are only 24 hours in a day. Still, here is a nice subset of songs that were presented to me in the past weeks. Old and new, so enjoy!

Brothers. Garlands 

It has been quiet around Garlands for a while. I'm glad to announce the band from Glasgow is back with a psychedelic pop rock song called Brothers. The trio around singer-guitarist Gordon Harrow excels in songs that always have a foot firmly in the past, while certainly keeping an eye on what is going on today in the more alternative forms of pop music, only to plant its second foot right there. Brothers is no exception. The song starts with just Harrow and his guitar doing his take on an earlier George Harrison in The Beatles kind of song, while the rest of The Beatles were out doing something else. When the band joins in, the song gets far more solid (of course) but is also fleshed out. The vocals are doubled, harmonies come in, making the song open up. With Brothers Garlands has done it again.

La femme qui s’était faite toute seule. Prisoner

"The woman who made herself" is the title translated into English. As a Dutchman, "God created the world, the Dutch created The Netherlands", I can relate to the title. More importantly, the French band from Bordeaux is playing a great form of garage rock, including punky guitar and a Farfisa kind of organ that gives the song its 60s vibe. Of course not a band from the 1960s played its chords with a sound like this, but the origins are totally obvious. Singer Susanne Pemmerl brings French sigh girls to mind but just as easily Debbie Harry and a host of singers from U.S. female fronted punk bands. The addition of a deep and dark saxophone gives the song an extra layer to chew on while rocking out. Great single. On 7 august there's an album as well, the self-titled 'Prisoner'. Based on La femme qui s’était faite toute seule, it may well be great fun.

Sometimes The Sea. Julia Greenberg

With Julia Greenberg this week's post already has its second new name to the blog. The indie-folk singer from New York presents an introspective song like generations before her have done both as recording artists and from the days before songs could be recorded. Despite this enormous legacy, Julia Goldberg manages to capture my attention with ease. Both with her voice, that has a typical folk edge to it but also with the music. At heart you will hear Ms. Goldberg and her acoustic guitar like she would play it at home or at a campfire. It is enough to make the song interesting already. When all is said and done, Sometimes The Sea is as good as its basis is. What is added, is an accordion (Will Holshouser), playing as an accompanying instrument and some lead notes in between. The bass strings on the acoustic guitar are recorded so well, that it is hard to tell whether there is a bass guitar or not. There is absolutely no need for anything more. Recently, an EP was released called 'Born Sentimental'.

Wasn't It Just Yesterday. Girl With A Hawk

With Wasn't It Just Yesterday Boston band Girl With A Hawk returns to this blog with a song that immediately landed well with me. From the very first second somehow it is clear that the song is going to be just fine. It starts with an intro of a lead guitar, the band is there and then an organ enters putting the cherry on the already delicious cake. Linda S. Viens once again leads the band through a song of significance. With influences from both sides of the ocean shining through, Girl With A Hawk creates a hybrid song that should work for both fans of U.S. rock and U.K. Britpop and older (Bowie!). "I've got the looks and I've got the tunes", she sings and then she looks in the mirror and realises that "time is running out" and there's even a political statement in there, as she moves from the personal to the more general before she proclaims her love of the rock and roll life. She sounds like she does for the whole of the way. It shows in every single second of Wasn't It Just Yesterday. Album 'Renegades' is there on the 19th!

Hard Luck. Hoaxxers

With Hoaxxers we have another new name on the blog but not a new kind of music. The upbeat power/punkpop of the band will resonate with fans of a host of bands playing this genre of music since the 1990s, and mostly from the U.S. or influenced by such bands. Hoaxxers is a band from Austin, Texas and holds members of the band Joe Jitsu in it. Hard Luck is the title track of a six song EP with the same name that was released on 29 May. The song is a punkrock song that at the same time strives to be a perfect pop song. Loud and punky, but with harmonies that work while at the same time sounding very familiar. Dynamics are used successfully, in other words a textbook song and still it works. Not the best I've ever heard but certainly plain good. No more words are necessary, except rock on!

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

2026, week 24. 10 singles

Another week has sped by, it seems to go ever faster. In between I have played a great live set with my own band Sweetwood, that showed that we are still progressing and become better. Below you find ten recent singles, with a surprising number of duos making their debut on this blog. Old and new, you will find it all, so enjoy!

Deny. La Sécurité

Post punk? Yes, very much so. La Sécurité dives into the postpunk coming out of the U.K. around of 1980, when melody was traded for a sort of communist five year plan kind of music. All pleasure was traded in for music of a rigorous socialist orthodoxy kind. Enter Deny in 2026. The rhythms, the talk-singing, the accents and bursts of guitars all fit. Except this song is set on fire. The Montreal art-punk collective makes the song come totally alive and manages to throw in a musical joke or two. Listen to how the electric guitars drop away revealing the synth underneath them. Slowly but surely it also becomes clear how danceable Deny is. the song is a clear winner. Eat your heart out Gang of Four and their ilk.

Tide - Prologue. The Stream

Leiden's The Stream has found its way to this blog for over a decade now. Jan Stroomer and band are true veterans. When a new record is announced, I tend to prick up my ears. Fans will remember fondly how the previous record, 'Nature Calls', was accompanied live with a host of physics and chemistry experiments while the band played on. In 2026 things have changed somewhat. The band decided to record an instrumental album, 'Flood', and had to say goodbye to its long time drummer Koen van Dijk. This results in music that is rather far detached from what I usually listen to, but then being a guitar man, The Stream always was a bit aside of my usual musical playground. I notice that it is easy to listen to Tide - Prologue. The piano plays an upbeat melody, that comes close to classical, making The Stream leave its usual habitat of pop songs with a piano as main instrument. The doubled part gives Tide - Prologue a nice darker edge, allowing some tension to enter the composition. It is the first release from an upcoming EP, ''Flood - Prologue'.

Young Hearts. Isaac Roux

I was about to write that we have a debut on the blog, were it not that Erwin Zijleman reviewed Isaac Roux' (Louis de Roo) debut album 'Troubeld Waters' two years ago. For me it is though and I'm pleasantly surprised by the uptempo song Young Hearts is. A long time ago Rod Stewart sang about "young hearts" in his hit single 'Young Turks' and Isaac Roux taps into this line of energy, while making his song rougher and more alternative. It starts right away with the intro, where an electric guitar is allowed to go for it, after which most instruments drop away when the first verse starts, to come in again on the second line. There is some Kensington in the way the chorus presents itself, except that Young Hearts avoids the platitudes in the music that band excels in. Young Hearts remains alive, fiery and energetic. Bigger and bigger seems to be the adagium used in this single and it works from beginning to end.

Precious Days. Brand New Heartache

Usually, I listen to new singles on You Tube, as most are available there and it's easier and faster to access them. So I found that Brand New Heartache, the Nashville husband-and-wife duo of Eleese and Matthew Meschery, has exactly 1 person who subscribes to their channel and and the video had 13 views. That is no reason to write a review but this song is. Based on what I'm hearing these numbers ought to rise fast. Precious Days meanders somewhere between country, folk and pop. It's a great up tempo song not unlike Emmylou Harris' rendition of Chuck Berry's 'C'est La Vie (You Never Can Tell)'. Precious Days simply rocks and is rich in sound, orchestration and vocal delivery. Far more comparisons are possible to make, but I'll let you find your own favourites. I prefer to just like Precious Days for what it is. Album 'A New Alchemy' is slated for 24 July. Based on what I'm hearing here, it's something to look out for alright.

3, 2, 1. Bente 

Bente is meer een naam voor mij dan een zangeres. Wel heb ik een paar afleveringen gezien van het programma 'Beste Zangers', waarin zij liet zien een heleboel in haar mars te hebben. Haar eigen werk gaat tot nu toe gewoonweg langs mij heen. Tot dat ik dit nummer hoorde op de Radio 2 ochtendshow waar mijn vrouw graag naar luistert voor het werk. Ik hoorde een heleboel energie en vooral een alternatieve poprock song waar de stukken vanaf vlogen. Ja, ik krijg de doorgaans jeuk van de manier waarop veel jonge, Nederlandse zangeressen zingen. Bente moet deze techniek in 3, 2, 1 grotendeels loslaten, omdat het tempo zo hoog ligt. De manier van zinnen afbreken dat lukt nog wel, nog zoiets, maar maakt het nummer niet minder goed. Hier wordt gerockt en het staat Bente goed. De opbouw is eveneens goed. De rustpunten in het nummer zal er voor zorgen dat een zaal op het juiste moment loos zal gaan. 3, 2, 1 is een sterke Nederlandstalige pop- en rocksong.

Low Sunday Ghost Machine - Black EP. Lowsunday

Lowsunday is the second of four duos making their debut on this blog in the same week. Shane Sahene (vocals, guitar, synth, bass, drums) and Bobby Spell (bass, guitar, drums) are the two members of the original band from the late 90s who came back to release new music. In 2026, I can't judge the old work, I'm afraid, Lowsunday releases music that is as dark as it used to be in the 1980s except that it lays the light side of a band like The Cure or Big Country over its Joy Division foundation. The result is music that is simply infectious. Opening song 'You're So Wired' immediately sets the stage for rock and for the typical shoegaze style of dancing, i.e. looking at the points of your shoes and move as little as possible. Should you not be a shoegazer, I'm sure other forms of dancing are allowed by Lowsunday. Tracks like 'You're So Wired' and 'Shattered' are made for moving with abandon. Should the band plan to play live again, it will need more musicians, as layer after layer of guitars and other stuff are stacked upon each other creating a huge wall of sound. Lowsunday certainly did not leave it to chance where its comeback is concerned. This kind of music makes you noticed immediately. Love it or hate it, you can't escape it. I'm all good here.

Bug In The Cake. Violet Grohl 

Going by the name Grohl, no matter what you say, will open a lot of doors. Father is famous for well over 30 years, first as drummer and then as front man of Foo Fighters. Violet has recently released her debut album 'Be Sweet To Me' and received a lot of attention surrounding the release. It made me somewhat sceptical, next to having too many albums to listen to already. And then I ran into this video. I can only admit straight up that Bug In The Cake is a great alternative rock song. In fact, I love it. It fits in very nicely with alternative rock songs coming out of the U.S. since the 1990s. It has just enough of a pop vibe, because it has a few great hooks and an instantly singable (pre) chorus. Not to forget some great guitar solos. Bug In The Cake has a lot of urgency that Violet Grohl is sharing with the world and the song is simply a lot better than many, not all, her dad gave the world. It looks like I have another album to listen to.

Backstabber (Tailor's Version). The Dresden Dolls

And here is another new name on this blog. Although I have heard the name The Dresden Dolls before, I do not recall having heard its music. That may have been a great miss, as Backstabber (Tailor's Version) is a great song. Duos come in a lot of ways but usually it is guitar and drums ever since The White Stripes, with some doing bass - drums like Royal Blood. The Dresden Dolls present themselves as a piano - drums duo. Reading up on the band, I found that the band formed in 2000 and released two albums in the 00s. One of these albums, 'Yes, Virginia' is getting a re-release with a pun on Taylor Swift's re-releases of her first albums. For me, I'm glad to hear this song because of the re-release. Amanda Palmer's piano playing is forceful and rhythmic, while Brian Viglione fills in everything else with his drumming, besides providing background vocals. Backstabber is an ideal song to get to know the band in the 2020s.

Diablo. Deep Purple 

Deep Purple is around for 58 years in 2026. Everyone with the slightest knowledge of hard (classic) rock knows the band went through several line up changes through the decades. The current line up is four old timers and new guitarist Simon McBride. They already present their second album soon. Deep Purple is acting as if El Diablo is on its tail and given the average age of the members, that is not far beside the truth. With Diablo Deep Purple again, after first single 'Arrogant Boy' shows that it has not lost its chops. Don't expect anything new, but do expect the classic Deep Purple sound at its best. A driving rhythm, dualling guitars and organ, a great riff or two and Ian Gillan singing in his older gentleman voice, that fits this music perfectly. In 2026 Deep Purple still is a great band, no doubt about it.

Socialism Ditty. Mr. Dinkles

After The Dresden Dolls a forth duo features for the first time on this blog. This time The White Stripes is the blueprint. Mr. Dinkles, vocalist/guitarist Mac Rettig and drummer Rocco Ramos, is more a punk band though than the blues rock The White Stripes based its music on. The title and lyrics refer to what 'The Economist' recently dubbed "Gen-Z socialism". It is a spot on description as ms. Rettig shout-sings "you don't really need that, just give me that". We all know it doesn't work that way, although there definitely is a point to gen-z socialism and rethinking wealth distribution. Musically, Socialism Ditty is a raucous song, dirty for the whole of the way. A distorted guitar and ever dirtier overdubs make up the body of the song, with drummer Ramos hitting everything else home. The song starts like many other punk/garage rock songs do. The energy is there, creating the fun and expectation of wanting to listen to it. The explosion comes and does not go back into its corner until the very end. In fact, more flares start exploding, making Socialism Ditty more urgent by the second.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

 

2026, week 21. 10 singles

"Summer's here and the time is right to" eat in the garden, to walk on sunshine and what have you. Cloudless skies, 25 degrees plus temperatures. It's going to be a lovely day with ten new singles/EPs for you to explore, so I'd say enjoy the weather and the music!

Daughters EP. The Sour

We kick off this week with a new name on the blog. The four women from Tāmaki Makaurau or Auckland as we know it over here, that form The Sour present themselves on their EP with a dirty grunge/alternative rock sound that contrasts nicely with the female voices. The avid readers of this blog will know by now I have one benchmark album for this combination, 'Eight Arms To Hold You" by Veruca Salt. The Sour scores well in this benchmark. The Sour hovers somewhere between wanting to sound cool and hey, look at what we've made. All four songs have that combination, because the band made the most of the chance it was offered. The songs all have well thought out arrangements, allowing rays of light in and even a pop element in the vocal arrangements. On the other side there is the darkness in the deep sounding rhythm guitars and the coolness of the lead singer. All four songs have this quality and although there are some subtle differences between them, it's not necessary to pick out individual songs on the four song EP. They're all good, making The Sour another promising young act from New Zealand.

Sand. Swapmeat

We are going Down Under some more on this blog, but to Adelaide in Southern Australia this time. Swapmeet in part presents a softer kind of slacker rock, only to give a kick to both my ears when it feels like it, with me going, please, kick me some more. Swapmeet consists of Venus O’Broin (guitar, vocals), Joshua Doherty (bass), Maxwell Elphick (guitar, drums, vocals), and Jack Medlyn (guitar, drums, vocals). The four met in their teens and released an EP in 2024, making their upcoming album, 'Mount Zero' (17 June), their debut. Just like this single finds Swapmeet on this blog for the first time. In the part that Jack Medlyn sings lead, the band kicks in the pedals, while Venus O'Broin keeps things calm and tranquil. The combination really works on Sand and makes me certainly curious to hear more next month.

Out Of Context. Library Card

With its previous single Days Of Clay Library Card found itself on these pages for the first time. With Out Of Context the band is back. The context of Out Of Context is post punk. This is a song of contained fury about the downsides of capitalism. "You will love what you do" it is declaimed as a given; wherever one works and whatever one does there. Taken out of context of the song carrying that title, it's clear Library Card follows its own rule. Singer Lot van Teylingen talks more than sings, while the rhythm section of the band plays an incredibly fast pace, the guitarist play accents the whole time. And then it happens, with a few notes the band takes us to a postpunk version of psychedelia. Van Teylingen starts to sing changing the mood of Out Of Context completely. That is not the end. The band explodes in something we could call a solo section, before strongly accented notes brings us to the end of this impressive single. There is a cure though. Just listen to Jefferson Starship's 'Out Of Control'.

Guardrail EP. CAITLIN

With two singles from Guardrail CAITLIN (Bradley) from Christchurch, New Zealand already had drawn some attention to her EP. It deserves attention as a whole as well. Simply because the songs are so good to listen to. No, nothing spectacular may be happening on Guardrail and you will have heard singer-songwriters like CAITLIN before. Those are the very last things that you should let prevent you from taking a listen. It all starts with the voice of the New Zealand singer. She's able to settle right into the middle of your head, like she does in 'Outline', with the instruments mixed all around her voice, so that the quiet and almost modest song fills your whole head, leaving space for nothing else. All songs are at heart singer-songwriter based, I imagine having started on an acoustic guitar. From there she worked with producer Will McGillivray to find out what extra's would work best for the song. I leave you to find out about the details added to the individual songs. Believe me, they all make CAITLIN's voice shine a little bit more.

War On War. Frenchy and the Punk

In a period that the U.S. has actually gone to war, Frenchy and the Punk releases its new single War On War. In the meantime singer Samantha Stevenson has her own battle to fight, breast cancer. As a result the band has to cancel all shows for 2026, losing its revenues and livelihood. You can help the duo by supporting it. You can do so here: https://gofund.me/24f28df11. That makes two musicians I've reviewed this week battling the same disease. Back to music. War On War is the sort of anthem you'd expect with a title like that. War On War is a huge song in a 1980s style but with a rock element of all the past decades put together. Samantha Stevenson has a voice that can alert other boats in the thickest fog imaginable. It's deep and loud but above all totally convincing in a song like this. Scott Heiland creates the music around her that makes her look extremely good. If this song can't convince belligerent parties to get to their senses, I do not know what else can.

I Smell. My Purse

More postpunk from the Low Lands. My Purse is a new band consisting of Una Jongenelis, Keetje Voogd, Igor Jongenelis en Sara Elzinga. If anything, the single reminds me Tramhaus' 'I Don't Sweat', one of its first songs. My Purse is a tad less confrontational than its Rotterdam based colleagues. Slowly but surely Dutch postpunk is becoming its own genre. Always confrontational, with guitars that play parts that are not exactly the notes you’d expect to hear yet work. They always go (a bit) against the grain, yet all together make a good melody, just like the vocal melody does. My Purse has found all the right notes to convince me. Yes, there's room for one more band in the Dutch postpunk basket.

Tambourine. Lenny Kravitz, eh Lenny Lenny

With Tambourine Lenny Kravitz taps into the vein that brought him a string of hits in the second half of the 80s and very early 90s. Tambourine has that mix of swing and robustness with which he created these crossover songs that made him stand out from others at the time. It's decades ago since I stopped following him. More or less after the single 'Are You Gonna Go My Way', still my favourite Lenny Kravitz song, by far. Tambourine will most likely not change that, but I like what I'm hearing. Kravitz is singing with a highish voice, the music underneath his voice is part suave, part soul, part rock. In fact it's attractive. The kind of song I do not mind hearing more than just once...... And then I find the joke's on me. This isn't Lenny Kravitz at all. It is a Belgian artist Lenny Coorevitz working under the name Lenny Lenny. He tricked me alright. The rest of my comments do not change because of this.

Dandelions. Bonnie Kemplay

In his single 'Incantations' Ed O'Brien (Radiohead) plays the same two notes for minutes on end and did not make it here because of this endless repetition. To my surprise the next single on my list starts the same. It made me notice how much of a difference a female voice can make. Bonnie Kempley sings in a way that many 2020s female singers on the verge between folk and indie do. Ms. Kempley does not need a lot of embellishments to make Dandelion come alive, where O'Brien never managed to do so for me with his song. In all its modesty Dandelion lets in a clarinet and a piano and it is enough. Mysterious and mesmerising this single is.

Split. Horace Pinker / The Raging Nathans

A four song EP split evenly between the two bands. A horror for the true audiophile, for where to put a song by two different artists in your discotheque? Under compilations I suppose, but who ever thinks of playing a record form under that? Usually compilations get lost in translation. Anyway, Split deserves a mention here. Both bands are around for about two decades and have a host of records to their name. If you like punkrock the American way, i.e. fast, aggressive with loud and impressive guitars, with a drummer who must have numb arms and legs after each song, that are all anthems you can shout along to, this split single is your thing. Don't expect any subtlety. Just four songs that kick off and end in the exact same way. The bands from Chicago, respectively Dayton blend well together on a side by side divided split single. Punkrock on, I'd say.

The Burden. Oddfellows

In 1994 Chris Pulliam, Mark Ryan, and Mike Throneberry formed a band called Oddfellows in Denton, Texas. That must be at the same time that Slobberbone for a short while tried to conquer international stages. The effort (of both bands) was short lived. In the 32 years that followed the ex-Oddfellows formed "hundreds of bands you will have heard from", or so the bio says. And now they are back, with an extra guitarist Peter Salisbury for those who remember the first period that is. The Burden is a song that propels itself forward from the very first second. It has a 1980s vibe played with guitars. There's no stopping The Burden. The singer is singing with a voice that reminds me a little of David Bowie at his least expressionless. Come to think of it, it's more Iggy Pop is his best Bowie co-penned songs. Oddfellows plays and sings everything on one emotional level and that is a huge part of the attraction of the song. A little synth sound (or guitar effect?) is the only thing escaping it. In December 2024 Oddfellows reformed, to write and record a whole album that will see the light of day somewhere this year.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Path Of Totality. The Montvales

Het Amerikaanse duo The Montvales doet op het derde album Path Of Totality alles goed en overtuigt met een mooi rootsgeluid, lekker in het gehoor liggende songs en prachtig bij elkaar kleurende stemmen.

Ik had Path Of Totality van The Montvales bijna over het hoofd gezien, maar het nieuwe album van Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson is me inmiddels heel dierbaar. Path Of Totality van The Montvales klinkt op het eerste gehoor als een wat traditioneler aandoend rootsalbum, maar de songs van het tweetal uit Tennessee hebben ook iets lichtvoetigs en een randje pop. Het zijn songs die zijn ingekleurd met vooral snareninstrumenten, wat een aangenaam en smaakvol geluid oplevert. Het is een geluid dat verder wordt opgetild door de mooie stemmen van Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson, die elkaar prachtig versterken. De prima songs op het album maken het helemaal af. Topalbum.

The Euro Americana Chart, een maandelijkse lijst met de beste rootsalbums van de maand volgens een stuk of 70 reporters, biedt absoluut ruimte aan vrouwelijke muzikanten, maar wordt het grootste deel van de tijd aangevoerd door mannelijke muzikanten. In april was het anders en stond het nieuwe album van The Montvales bovenaan de lijst. 

Het is wat zuur dat ik als groot liefhebber van vrouwenstemmen juist dit album heb gemist in de week van de release, maar dankzij The Euro Americana Chart heb ik het album gelukkig toch nog redelijk op tijd ontdekt. The Montvales is een duo uit Knoxville, Tennessee, dat bestaat uit Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson. Path Of Totality is het derde album van het tweetal, maar ik was de naam The Montvales tot de publicatie van The Euro Americana Chart van april volgens mij nog niet eerder tegengekomen. 

Ik ga Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson vanaf nu wel in de gaten houden, want Path Of Totality is een erg goed album. Dat is voor een belangrijk deel de verdienste van de stemmen van Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson, want zeker bij eerste beluistering springen die het meest in het oor. Het zijn stemmen die elkaar prachtig ondersteunen, maar die elkaar ook versterken. 

Het zijn stemmen die duidelijk van elkaar verschillen, maar ze kleuren echt heel mooi bij elkaar. Ook wanneer Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson niet tegelijk zingen is de zang op hun album echt bijzonder mooi, maar als de stemmen samensmelten gebeurt er iets bijzonders. Bij het soort harmonieën dat is te horen op het album van The Montvales gaat de zang vaak voluit, maar Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson zingen ook fraai ingetogen, wat de schoonheid van de zang ten goede komt. 

Het nieuwe album van het duo uit Tennessee moet het niet alleen hebben van de vocale kracht van de twee, want ook de muziek op hun nieuwe album is heel mooi. Sally Buice speelt zelf banjo, terwijl Molly Rochelson zorgt voor een deel van het gitaarwerk. Het snarenwerk van de twee wordt aangevuld door een handvol extra muzikanten, die onder andere bijdragen van de pedal steel, mandoline, viool, bas, drums en nog wat extra impulsen van gitaren en de banjo toevoegen aan het verzorgd klinkende geluid op Path Of Totality. 

Het is een geluid dat goed past in het hokje Amerikaanse rootsmuziek met vooral invloeden uit de folk en de country, maar veel songs van het tweetal hebben ook iets lichts door ook een vleugje pop toe te voegen aan het geluid. Ik werd in eerste instantie vooral gegrepen door de zang van Sally Buice en Molly Rochelson, maar wat klinkt het nieuwe album van The Montvales lekker. 

Dat ligt niet alleen aan het fraai snarenwerk dat domineert in de muziek op het album, maar ook aan de lekker in het gehoor liggende maar ook aansprekende en vaak voorzichtig aanstekelijke songs van The Montvales. Het duo uit Knoxville heeft een album gemaakt dat in de smaak zal vallen bij liefhebbers van wat traditioneler klinkende Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar Path Of Totality is ook een album dat een breder publiek aan moet kunnen spreken, wat misschien ook wel blijkt uit de hoge notering in The Euro Americana Chart van deze maand. 

Ik heb het album zelf ontdekt via deze lijst en wat ben ik daar blij mee. Path Of Totality van The Montvales heeft immers alles wat nodig is om uit te groeien tot een van mijn favoriete albums van 2026, al is het jaar nog lang natuurlijk.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt The Path Of Totality hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://themontvales.bandcamp.com/album/path-of-totality