TALES FROM TWO CITIES Jo Meares reveals the complicated process of recording his new album and how he learnt to embrace his own voice. By Chris Familton Over a series of albums, Jo Meares has slowly whittled away at his craft of songwriting and the delicate placement of those songs on atmospheric musical canvases. Dark … Continue reading
This track caught our ear with its noir verses and power pop on codeine chorus. It’s lush and swooning in the way it glides and soars at different times. Rich Webb hails from Melbourne and Stoner’ comes from his album Le Rayon Vert which you can check out on Spotify and purchase via his website. … Continue reading
Here comes the break-up album. It’s a tried and true fallback for a million songwriters out there but only a small percentage really nail the heartache, despair, fallout and renewal that comes from a fractured relationship. Marlon Williams has taken an approach that doesn’t shy away from the bruises and open wounds, instead he presents … Continue reading
Kramies recorded the EP Of All The Places Been & Everything The End in an old castle with the help of Jason Lytle (Grandaddy), Todd Tobias (Guided By Voices) and Jerry Becker (Train). It’s a swirling, hypnotic dreamscape of a song that recalls Mercury Rev and a floating-in-space Perry Farrell-fronted Porno For Pyros. At its heart … Continue reading
Matthew Baird’s 2014 album, Fall, caught these ears as a great example of how to absorb influence from varying genres and scenes with subtlety. Now, on the followup Time, Baird has again subverted the obvious and recorded a set of songs that dig into a number of musical corners with darkly rewarding results. Many of … Continue reading
Small Feet is the moniker of Simon Stålhamre, a Stockholm based artist, producer and songwriter and Ice Storm is a recently released single that finds a wonderful place between the lonesome sound of Neil Young and the avant folk of Chad Van Gaalen and Sparklehorse. Expect a new full length in 2019. I started crying … Continue reading
Josh Geffin is a songwriter who hails from London, where he’s been part of the folk scene there for the last decade. He’s been involved with experimental guitar music as well as folk music and this new album, Hum & Glow finds him exploring instrumental atmospheric country music in the vein of William Tyler and … Continue reading
This sounds like a pretty special musical project. Mercury Rev have announced the release of Bobbie Gentry’s The Delta Sweete Revisited, on February 8 via Bella Union. The record is a “reimagining” of Bobbie Gentry’s 1968 album The Delta Sweete and features an impressive cast of guest vocalists: 1. Okolona River Bottom Band ft. Norah Jones 2. … Continue reading
Kyle Jenkins of Suicide Swans continues his golden streak of songwriting and prolific releases with this second single from his debut solo LP Meltdown. The track hits a bass-led groove and never lets up. Clever sonic details like a ride cymbal doubling down on the reference to smashing on the keys of typewriters and the … Continue reading
Dashville Skyline, held on the same picturesque family property as The Gum Ball, Pigsty In July and Thrashville, returned for its 4th year with its largest festival line-up to date, comprised of 100% Australian acts, spread over three days. The weather gods had threatened through the week but blue skies prevailed for yet another superb … Continue reading
Beard Bates has a new album on the way called The World Is Blown (November 9, 2018) and here’s the latest video clip from it for the track ‘Joyous Season’. The song features the late The Icarus Line providing the dark Americana psych rock atmosphere while Bates delivers a haunting vocal that manages to channel 90s alt-rock and … Continue reading
Something a bit different this morning. This isn’t straight country or dark and earthy folk music. It’s a blast of power pop run through a fervently strummed acoustic guitar topped off with manic vocals courtesy of Mike Pace (Oxford Collapse) and his new project with the Child Actors. It comes from their new album Smooth … Continue reading
The Quill is a collective astral-folk orchestra based in London, headed by Nicky Francis. Nicky’s music is of a psych-folk sensibility, paired with grand pieces of explosive orchestral crescendo. Each track of the debut album The Tower at Hunter’s Moon (release due in the northern hemisphere autumn 2018), is characterised by large-scale rhythmic arrangements, silky strings and choir elements. … Continue reading
American band Firemelon released their new album King Leisure recently and ‘Before Goodbye’ is one of the standout tracks from it. They cover a lot of ground on the record with soaring distorted guitars, country rock swagger and widescreen Southern Californian twang. It amounts to a varied and intriguing listen. ‘Before Goodbye’ connects with its … Continue reading
NOTHING GOOD COMES FROM WAR On his new album, Empire, William Crighton widens his sound and the subject matter of his songs. He talks with Chris Familton about his creative process, Astral Weeks and parlour guitars. The best songwriters are the ones who treat their craft like a journey where life experiences, awareness and self-education … Continue reading
