Milton Keynes might not be the first place you think of when you think about pop-punk but it does have a great new five-piece group to offer. Yes, Autumn Fires have been making their mark recently and now double down with their latest EP, ‘BLOOM.’!
Winners of ‘The Deal’, the band have benefited from the support of Marshall Records and the studio wizardry of Romesh Dodangoda for this four-track collection and that certainly contributes to a polished sound which enhances the poppier elements perfectly.
All the elements that you’d want from a proud pop-punk record are present and correct though including those catchy hooks, bouncy riffs and relatable lyrics. Led by lead single ‘Fall For You’, each of these tracks passionately flies the genre’s flag and showcases Autumn Fires as genuine contenders.
EP’s are fantastic for providing an accessible snapshot of what a band can achieve, particularly one at the front end of their career. ‘BLOOM.’ is therefore an ideal way for Autumn Fires to introduce themselves to a bigger audience!
Since playing the record in full at the “mystery” show during their House of Kong exhibition, the hype for ‘The Mountain’ has steadily risen. New Gorillaz albums always hit a bit different, and this new collection already feels like a monumental release for the group.
With much writing and recording happening in India, the influence of the regions culture is central to the sonic ambience of this album and helps to give these songs a unique identity compared to the big hitters in the Gorillaz back catalogue. This is of course still a celebration of world music; as recent Gorillaz albums have been.
Thematically, ‘The Mountain’ is very much a conceptual record based around the themes of life, death and the afterlife. This leads to some of their most emotive work to date with songs which we will all unfortunately be able to relate to.
As with any Gorillaz record, this is a collaborative project with many guests strewn across the album including Sparks, IDLES and Johnny Marr. A particularly nice touch though considering the themes of the record is the inclusion of unused vocal takes from previous collaborators who are sadly no longer with us such as Bobby Womack, David Jolicoeur, Mark E. Smith, Dennis Hopper and Tony Allen.
The collection is an album in the truest sense. Cohesively built and designed to be enjoyed as it’s put down. For those needing a reminder of how we used to do things before short-form media – that means to listen to the album uninterrupted, in order, from track one to fifteen. The album is a long one, needing your undivided attention, but it does reward you for your time completely with a fully immersive listening experience.
If you are viewing ‘The Mountain’ through modern music consumption lenses, then you’d say that the album is bloated and some fat needs to be trimmed, for example you’d say a near five-minute intro track is unnecessarily elaborate. That really isn’t the point of this album though! Every element adds to the grandiose, intense and spiritual aesthetic that gives the album its heart and soul.
What is somewhat amusing is that this is the album that has taken Gorillaz into Stadiums and it will be fascinating to see how the album is absorbed into their big summer shows, which tend to attract more casual fans.
That is a question for then though and the only question now is how Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewitt continue to evolve one of the most evolved projects in music. The term genius is thrown around too much, but you have to sit in awe at the pure creative force of nature that Gorillaz has become!
The backstory to New Found Glory’s latest studio album, ‘Listen Up!’ is a truly remarkable tale.
The health battle fought by guitarist Chad Gilbert has been well documented. His ongoing battle with a rare form of cancer has led to his withdrawal from the stage, but whilst his bandmates hit the road, Gilbert hit the writer’s chair.
The result is an album thematically tied to the notion of offering hope to those going through hard times wishing to stir growth and strength. The title of the album is designed to get listeners to actively listen to the lyrics of these songs and absorb that encouraging meaning.
Musically, this is very much classic New Found Glory. The pioneers of pop-punk focus their energy into a record which carries their signature sound and delivers it with confidence.
This is a genre of course which was rooted in youthful exuberance and therefore many of the bands’ contemporaries have struggled to deliver impactful albums during the later stages of their careers. If any pop-punk bands want to see how to do so with real worth then ‘Listen Up!’ should be the textbook example.
It’s a great moment to be able to celebrate the band and everything that they’ve brought their scene and everything that we hope they’ll offer in the future.
After making a strong impression with their early work, the career of Coventry’s indie darlings The Enemy petered out in 2016. After a lengthy hiatus however, the band re-emerged in 2022 and have been reintroducing themselves to fans via well-received tours since then.
The time has come though for the trio to back up their reunion with new music and that arrives fully in the shape of their fifth studio album, ‘Social Disguises’.
Their return has been accompanied by a humility and maturity which contradicts the brash youthfulness of their early years. When writing and recording this album however, the band have said that they tried to make it with the same frame of mind as their first.
That leads to their signature swagger being present but being structured by the added experience that they now possess. This manifests in songs which represent the best of both worlds and translate particularly well for an audience who have likely themselves also matured but will want to relive what drew them to the band in the first place.
The pre-release singles, ‘The Boxer’, ‘Not Going Your Way’ and ‘Trouble’ represent the album well, acting as a good indicator of what fans could expect.
The final run of ‘Serious’, ‘Innocent’ and ‘Finish Line’ is also particularly enjoyable. In fact, amongst the ten tracks (plus one interlude) there isn’t a particularly bad track. The album flows nicely and does their return the justice it deserved.
Where many bands in this scenario would fail to deliver something of worth, The Enemy can be proud of what they have created.
U2 have surprise released a vital new EP, ‘Days of Ash’. Arriving on Ash Wednesday which also happens to be the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, this surprise release hasn’t been forced onto people’s phones this time, but its message is one that does need to be heard!
This release is a big moment for the band, their first new music in nearly a decade, and an accompanying acknowledgement that an album will arrive later this year as well. But as the band have made clear – they felt these songs needed to be heard immediately.
Five songs, an a poem by Yehuda Amichai, these are protest songs addressing the killings of Renée Good, Sarina Esmailzadeh and Awdah Hathaleen – and the scary times that we live in. This is of course a band unafraid to address important subjects and they describe these as songs of defiance and dismay.
U2 are at their best when they have something to say and the vitality of these songs resonates sonically with their most urgent work. Produced again by Jacknife Lee, there are contributions from Ed Sheeran and Taras Topolia on the closing track, ‘Yours Eternally’, which punctuates the short collection so well.
The new album later this year will have a different feel but on ‘Days of Ash’, U2 have reminded the world who they are and what they represent. As the final track says, “..If you have the chance to hope. It’s a duty..”!
McKenzie Ellis is used to rebuilding herself and since breaking through under her alias MOTHICA has never shied away from frankly addressing her self-destructive tendencies. It took bravery to cancel her first headline tour in 2024 at a time whereby her career was gaining real traction, but it was necessary for her to get sober again.
An experience such as this was always going to influence her next steps and now she is back with a fire in her belly, a desire to inspire and a brand-new EP with which to showcase her talents again. ‘Somewhere In Between’ is a therefore more than just another release, and you can feel that across the five emotive tracks.
Fitting the lyrical themes, the collection is a sonic evolution for MOTHICA as those pop hooks are now accompanied by a rockier, brasher sound which is very in tune with modern heavy music. The intensity of the music ensures that the songs hit even harder and will undoubtedly stir listeners own emotions with fierce a passion.
There really is no denying that MOTHICA is creatively entering exciting new territory and as far as a rebirth statement goes, this EP is as bold as they come!
Cork’s Cardinals have been turning heads over the past year with a string of engaging singles and now that time has arrived for their debut album, ‘Masquerade’, to go the microscope!
Well those looking close enough will notice the care and love placed into the craft of this record. Indeed, each song means something, but the album in its entirety becomes greater than the sum of its part with very particular placings for these songs making the album evolve over the course of the ten tracks.
Cardinals are band of brothers (both literally and figuratively) having grown up together and their shared experiences held to bring a vivid honesty to the record. This aesthetic will undoubtedly get some high profile and somewhat obvious comparisons but there is an aura which sets them apart woven throughout.
You can’t help but pick up on the emotive and vulnerable nature of these songs and that only manages to cultivate those all-important feelings of relatability. Songs that can make you feel something mean more and this is an album made of those songs.
Just take the morose epic closer ‘As I Breathe’ as case in point. The track provides the perfect juxtaposition to the rockier first half of the record and does its job perfectly in making you want to hit play again!
With folk storytelling, punk attitude and indie style there is plenty going for Cardinals and now they have navigated the tricky set of a debut album with such ease it is exciting to consider what the future will hold for them!
Nearly four years have passed since Gogol Bordello released, ‘Solidaritine’, their show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people in the face of the Russian invasion. Sadly for the world, that tragedy continues and now the band are back with an album of hope.
‘We Mean It, Man!’ really does pick up after its predecessor but looks to offer optimism that healing will be possible once the atrocities end – see ‘Life Is Possible Again’.
Led by charismatic frontman Eugene Hütz, the ensemble band again bring a chaotic mix of genres and styles together into their signature sound.
Working with Nick Launay and Adam Greenspan whose recent works include Amyl and the Sniffers and IDLES does however bring some additional post-punk grounding to the album. But by and large this is another riotous listen from the self-proclaimed gypsy punks.
The album closes with another version of Angelic Upstarts anthem ‘Solidarity’ featuring New Order icon Bernard Sumner. This feels like the perfect way to conclude these pasts two records and send that important message of unity.
With the band almost three decades into their career, it’s not a surprise that there isn’t anything groundbreaking on this album. But for fans of the group, it’s reassuring that they still have the heart and energy to deliver such driven work.
