Few artists have the momentum that YUNGBLUD has right now. Having burst onto the scene in 2018 with his debut album, ‘21st Century Liability’, there has been no slow in pace since then with a new third self-titled album now upon us.
2020’s ‘weird!’ not just continued the impetus of ‘21st Century Liability’ but instead strapped a jetpack to this young musicians back. The question here then is does this third effort suffice to keep the train rolling?
Simply put, yes! Seemingly that momentum is relentless and YUNGBLUD is once again able to not just capitalise on his successes but fully build on them. His distinctive vocal presence ensures that all his work is easily identifiable, which almost allows some additional freedom to experiment musically.
Surrounded by talented collaborators such as WILLOW on single, ‘Memories’; YUNGBLUD is able to push boundaries whilst not alienating his pre-amassed and incredibly loyal fanbase.
The snobbish gatekeepers of rock music will be disgusted to hear that this hugely talented musician described as the future of rock but whilst dinosaurs like Gene Simmons continue the tired trope that rock music is dead we need to evolve and unshackle ourselves from our preconceived notions of what rock music is!
The difference between YUNGBLUD and some of the posers that have trod this path is that he has the musical substance to equal his powerful aesthetic. He achieves his admiration through a total package and that sets him apart from many of his contemporaries.
This self-titled album is exhibit number three in the case for YUNGBLUD as the future of rock, and the jury are ready to return their verdict of guilt!
PET NEEDS – PRIMETIME ENTERTAINMENT – ALBUM REVIEW
Eighteen months ago, mid-pandemic, Colchester punks Pet Needs burst onto the scene with their debut album, ‘Fractured Party Music’. An all or nothing exercise for a band at a crossroads in their career, the album permeated into the consciousnesses of the Xtra Mile Recordings scene of bands and their hardcore fans.
The catchy pop hooks and rambunctious rock and roll energy of the album established the band their own dedicated fanbase and took them on an adventure of a lifetime touring the world.
Now the band are once again ready to unleash a smorgasbord of musical pleasure into the wild as they follow up that debut with their oh-so important sophomore record, ‘Primetime Entertainment’.
Picking up where their debut left off, the record bursts straight into life with ‘Lost Again’, ‘Ibiza In Winter’ and the anthemic ‘Get On The Roof’. Listeners are left in no doubt about the direction of the band as they hoist their punk rock mast again.
Like predecessor ‘Fractured Party Music’, ‘Primetime Entertainment’ is also produced by Frank Turner. His fingerprints are all over the album with the sonic growth of Turner’s latest effort ‘FTHC’ also present on this album.
‘Spirals’ is an incredible rip-roaring track which pushes everything the band offers to the extreme. Given the energy and passion of Pet Needs live, ‘Spirals’, is surely destined to be a highlight of their upcoming tour.
Thematically speaking, ‘Primetime Entertainment’, is Pet Needs at their honest and reflective best. There’s plenty of the tongue in cheek lyrics which made ‘Fractured Party Music’, such a fun record, but there’s perhaps a greater sense of seriousness this time around.
When the world is in a bad way, and you just want to lose yourself in some loud guitars and singable songs; don’t fear Pet Needs are here again to service your needs with another liberating release of energy!
Reading & Leeds Festivals are the traditional end of the UK Festival season, and this year is a milestone year as a full calendar takes place for the first time since 2019. Let’s not dwell on why, instead let’s head straight into the action on a packed and hot Saturday at Reading Festival.
Sold out well in advance, Saturday at this year’s event is a particularly hot ticket with a stunning line-up throughout and topped by Arctic Monkeys and Bring Me The Horizon.
We are in the arena bright and early for surprise opening act Wargasm who storm the main stage with a set packed full of energy and attitude. The band appears to be on a world conquering mission, and nobody can argue their work ethic. It’s also damn hard to argue with their captivating stage presence and musical outlay.
We then head into the ‘Festival Republic’ Tent for the next couple of acts. With the new two main stage structure at Reading & Leeds Festivals the separate ‘Pit’ and ‘Lock-up’ stage has sadly been a much missed casualty. There is much less choice now for the music connoisseurs amongst the crowd; which isn’t a problem with a stacked line-up like today but is very evident on Friday and Sunday.
This change does mean there is less cohesion in the line-up with heavy rockers Static Dress followed by lad rock upstarts The Skinner Brothers in the tent. Despite their difference styles both deliver energetic and well-received performances for the early risers.
There is more indie-fuelled sing-a-long action next back on the main stages with The Lathums pulling in a decent crowd. Whilst there is nothing earth-shatteringly new about what they do, The Lathums do this modern stock-indie reasonably well.
WATCH POPPY PLAY ‘BLOODMONEY’ AT READING FESTIVAL
Poppy – ‘BLOODMONEY’
Whilst there were no moulds broken on one main stage, over on the other is Poppy, an artist who has broken every mould she’s been in. Yes, originally a Youtube sensation, then a bubblegum pop idol and now a heavy metal phenomenon, Poppy crosses many boundaries. Today she oozes rockstar appeal as she owns the stage with their eclectic musical offerings, proving along the way that she retains a very bright future.
A bright future is also ahead for Sueco, who attracts a good sized audience in the tent next for his debut UK performance. Over the next thirty minutes Sueco has that crowd in the palm of his hands as he runs through fans favourites including TikTok sensation ‘Paralyzed’.
Enter Shikari are a band more concerned with the future of the planet than that of their career and they take a main stage next for a politically charged call to arms with epic musical accompaniment. New single, ‘The Void Stares Back’ including guests Wargasm sounds absolutely huge as do tracks from previous album, ‘Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible’.
WATCH ENTER SHIKARI PLAY ‘{ THE DREAMER’S HOTEL }’ AT READING
A passionate speech is curtailed through either a power failure or for the conspiracy theorists – censorship. Either way even with a stifled end to their set, the band show once again that they are one of the best live acts on the planet.
We’ve mentioned the stacked line-up today and part of the reason for such excitement is the collection of a number of bands in the best live act conversation. Next up on the other main stage are Fontaines D.C. who receive a hero’s welcome by swelled crowd.
WATCH FONTAINES D.C. PLAY ‘BOYS IN THE BETTER LAND’ AT READING
New album, ‘Skinty Fia’, takes centre stage as the band deliver the likes of ‘I Love You’, ‘Jackie Down the Line’ and ‘Roman Holiday’. A young fan coming out the crowd to ace guitar on ‘Boys in the Better Land’ provides one of the highlights of the festival, and the band leave the stage having proven themselves to be in the pool of future headliners.
Another band no doubt destined to headline Reading Festival in the not too distant future is Wolf Alice. Whether rocking hard on ‘Smile’, serenading us with ‘Safe From Heartbreak (If You Never Fall in Love)’ or showing their all round brilliance on ‘The Last Man on Earth’, Wolf Alice are a band that can literally do it all.
WATCH WOLF ALICE PLAY ‘HOW CAN I MAKE IT OK?’ AT READING
A twelve song set absolutely flies by this evening and with a rammed field of fans left desperate for more, surely a full headline show from the band is a must next time they come to town.
That’s one thing Reading & Leeds Festivals have always excelled at – giving new headliners their shot. That’s exactly what they do next with heavy hitters Bring Me The Horizon finally being given the main stage headline festival set they earned years ago!
What those who gather for the performance are greeted with is a band at the peak of their powers, both creatively and as a live act. The band proceed to deliver a memorable set for all the right reasons. This is a victory for Bring Me The Horizon and for heavy music and the band do all in their powers to fulfil all expectations.
WATCH BRING ME THE HORIZON PLAY ‘BAD HABITS’ WITH ED SHEERAN AT READING
Bring Me The Horizon – ‘Bad Habits’ feat. Ed Sheeran
The setlist is flawless, the visuals are stunning, the crowd interaction is on point and the band sound incredible; this is a real moment. A moment made even bigger by the band bringing out Ed Sheeran for a dose of ‘Bad Habits’ to the ear-piercing sound of teenage girls screams.
This is the sort of performance that you don’t want to follow but that’s just what Arctic Monkeys have to do next. Being one of the most hotly anticipated acts of the weekend and one much craved by fans in recent years, surely this would be easy for megastars such as Arctic Monkeys.
WATCH ARCTIC MONKEYS PLAY ‘R U MINE’ AT READING
Arctic Monkeys – ‘R U Mine’
Sadly for those in attendance what the band deliver is a lukewarm showing. The opposite of Bring Me The Horizon, the setlist is poor, the visuals are basic, the crowd interaction is nearly non-existent and the sound is too low. A stunning day such as this needed a big finish and that should in hindsight of been Bring Me The Horizon.
Arctic Monkeys are a huge act with a back catalogue you can hold against anybody else, but today it feels like a phoned in effort. It isn’t a bad show by any stretch of the imagination; it’s a good show that should’ve been a great show.
Hopefully the band can rediscover their spark with new album, ‘The Car’ on the way, but tonight belongs to a different Sheffield band!
Welcome everyone to another edition of our weekly music News Report!
We start this week with the best tour announcements from the last seven days and that begins with more huge stadium shows from Coldplay.
After the success of their ‘Music of the Spheres’ stadium tour this summer, the band have revealed that they will return with multiple shows in both Manchester and Cardiff in 2023!
Another artist with new tour dates to reveal this past week was KT Tunstall. Tunstall will be hitting the road hard early next year along with special guest Andy Burrows.
Tunstall’s new album, ‘NUT’, is out September 9th.
Rounding out the tour announcements in our News Report this week are Himalayas who have revealed that they will head out around the UK later this year.
We move our News Report onwards now to the best new releases from the past week. Arctic Monkeys have announced their long-awaited new album, ‘The Car’, will be out October 21st!
Muse debut video for ‘YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE IT’S HALLOWEEN’
Muse – ‘YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE IT’S HALLOWEEN’
The week saw Muse release new album, ‘WILL OF THE PEOPLE’, on which Matt Bellamy says:
“Will Of The People was created in Los Angeles and London and is influenced by the increasing uncertainty and instability in the world. A pandemic, new wars in Europe, massive protests & riots, an attempted insurrection, Western democracy wavering, rising authoritarianism, wildfires and natural disasters and the destabilization of the global order all informed Will Of The People.
It has been a worrying and scary time for all of us as the Western empire and the natural world, which have cradled us for so long are genuinely threatened. This album is a personal navigation through those fears and preparation for what comes next.”
Muse also debuted the new video for single, ‘YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE IT’S HALLOWEEN’, which you can check out above.
Alien Weaponry debut video for ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’
Alien Weaponry – ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’
We continue our News Report with Alien Weaponry who have shared a video for ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’ taken from their ‘Tangaroa’ album.
“This was an absolute blast to film! ‘Down The Rabbit Hole’ represents the growth I’ve experienced throughout my life and putting to bed demons from the past. The video captures the meaning well – the broken objects representing said demons. It’s the rough times in life that make you who you are, as long as you rise above it.” – Lewis de Jong
Ayron Jones debuted new single, ‘Filthy’, this week which you can listen to above.
“Where I’m from the word ‘Filthy’ is used as the highest compliment in the land. It means that you are so good at what you do and who you are that it should be a sin,” shared Jones. “That’s what was on my mind when I began working on this song. I wanted to celebrate counterculture and promote pride in what means to be considered ‘different.’”
This week saw Eva Under Fire reveal the release dates for their highly anticipated debut album, ‘Love, Drugs & Misery’, which will arrive September 23rd.
Thrilled to be sharing the news, lead singer Eva Marie said, “We’re super excited to finally be releasing our album Love, Drugs & Misery. We can’t wait to show you guys the full scope of what we’ve been working on for so long. It was kind of a wild ride because when we’d completed the record, we were super proud of it, it was some of our best writing to date, and then the world shut down. It’s been long-awaited, much-anticipated, and there’s so much heart and soul in this record. I can’t wait for you guys to experience it with us.”
Recent guests on our ‘Discover’ New Music Podcast guests IOTA returned this week with a new single, ‘Sometimes’.
Speaking about the single, vocalist Jodie Robinson states, “This song was written about a loved one after a freak accident that I witnessed. It really put everything into perspective and threw me into a realm of gratitude with a whole new found respect for having that person in my life. It’s a love letter to this person and a reminder to appreciate what you have before it’s too late.”
‘Never Felt Before’ is the new single from Final Stair who release debut album, ‘Hope’ on September 30th.
The band comments: “ Never Felt Before is about the passionate attraction between two people. It’s about a special moment. You can feel the excitement at first glance. Your hands are starting to sweat and your stomach is tingling. They both have the same overwhelming feelings towards each other that just can’t be described. You’ve just never experienced anything like it.
When we wrote the song, we didn’t have to think twice. We realized very quickly that this song describes the topic of passion very well, as it rushes forward uncompromisingly from start to finish, is incredibly intense and hardly leaves any time to breathe.”
Northern Captives – ‘Every High’
‘Every High’ is the latest track from Northern Captives.
“Musically we wanted this song to push the dynamics to far extremes. We boiled down our verses to just kick, snare, bass, and vocals to match the intimacy of Cook’s lyrics. We kept drum parts very percussive, staying away from unnecessary ringing crashes allowed us to sonically explore low fi and broken textural sounds which would normally have been lost under cymbals.
We allowed the choruses to explode into a rich and dark sounding textural wall featuring distorted guitars and keys that amplified the desperation in the hook line ‘why must every high come down? Won’t you stay around?’” – Northern Captives
Dohny Jep – ‘Wine And Dine’
Kent-based alternative-rock trio Dohny Jep share new single, ‘Wine And Dine’.
. “Wine and Dine in its purest form is about love. It’s about those first moments of meeting someone new and the adventures that you are about to go on together, but also those first moments of conflict and how you pull together to get through those harder moments,” says vocalist Pete Herbert.
It always feels like a momentous occasion whenever superstar rockers Muse release a new studio album. The otherworldly act are shrouded in the grandiose with their over the top visual presentations.
‘Will of the People’ is the groups ninth studio album and has seen the band mix up their approach slightly with the first glimpse of new music coming on social media in a video filmed in frontman Matt Bellamy’s car. A handful of festival appearances and shows have followed as promotion has been ramped up, but really there hasn’t seemed to be the usual sense of anticipation.
That is until the play button is pushed and the opening of ‘Will of the People’ instantly grabs hold of you and screams that Muse are back! Second track ‘Compliance’ serves as confirmation that the over the top and grandiose soul of Muse is in full effect.
‘Liberation’ shows that ‘Will of the People’ isn’t a one trick pony before ‘Won’t Stand Down’ escalates the intensity as the album continues to ebb and flow. Yes, the various musical identities of Muse are seemingly all present and correct on this all encompassing record.
The hard rocking, symphonic, galactic, political and quite frankly absurd sonic buffet on offer will surely be enough to please Muse fans of all ages. It really does feel like the band have just thrown everything at the wall to see what sticks like a maniacal splatter painter in the midst of a moral breakdown.
‘Killed or Be Killed’, whilst a standout track could also be the bands motto at this point, and there is no way that they will allow themselves to be killed! Sit back, strap yourself in and enjoy the majestic lunacy of Muse at full throttle!
LAURAN HIBBERD – GARAGEBAND SUPERSTAR – ALBUM REVIEW
Lauran Hibberd has spent the past few year’s releasing a steady stream of singles and playing an endless run of shows and festival slots. During this time she has built a solid following and garnered much praise from those taking notice.
With a firm groundwork beneath her and anticipation high, it’s now time for her to unleash her debut album, ‘Garageband Superstar’, and complete her world conquering mission.
Despite that stream of pre-album singles, ‘Garageband Superstar’, was always going to be a major hurdle for Hibberd. A debut album for any artist is a statement and whilst there are some famous exceptions, this first impression is often make or break for artists.
LISTEN TO ‘STILL RUNNING (5K)’ FROM LAURAN HIBBERD ON YOUTUBE
Lauran Hibberd – ‘Still Running (5K)’ feat. DJ Lethal
Hibberd manages to navigate this hurdle with ease, with her debut album an all out statement of intent. ‘Garageband Superstar’ is brash and in your face yet also vulnerable and relatable. This highly accessible thread runs throughout album standouts such as ‘Still Running (5K)’, ‘Average Joe’ and ‘I’m Insecure’ and adds layers to the pure enjoyability of the album.
Musically the album captures everything that helps Hibberd standout live with a bouncy indie pop vibe making this a very fun record. Lyrically ‘Garageband Superstar’ is brutally honest and completely unashamed. This combination feels like a winning one, with the early hype now justified and that anticipation more than met.
This is no doubt the first step in a very long and prosperous career for the talented garageband superstar!
Broadcast details and additional guests for the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Show
Welcome everyone to another edition of our weekly music News Report!
We start this week with an update on the two Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts scheduled to take place next month in London and Los Angeles.
The two shows promise to deliver a spectacular celebration of the life of the legendary drummer. The already stacked list of special guests joining Foo Fighters grew this week with London additions including the likes of Travis Barker, Justin Hawkins, Brian Johnson and Lars Ulrich.
Those not lucky enough to have tickets were also provided details this week of both livestream and on demand options to watch the London show as below:
A singular piece of festival news in our News Report this week and it comes from Croydon event Cro Cro Land!
Our recent ‘Discover’ New Music Podcast guests BERRIES have joined a packed line-up with the likes of She Drew The Gun, Dream Wife, Bang Bang Romeo, Big Joanie, Wooze, Fraulein and more!
Red Hot Chili Peppers debut new single ‘Tippa My Tongue’
Red Hot Chili Peppers – ‘Tippa My Tongue’
We move our News Report on now to the best new releases from the past week and where better to start than with the new single from Red Hot Chili Peppers?
The group surprised fans recently with the announcement that new album, ‘Return of the Dream Canteen’, will be released on October 14th.
Now the iconic band have given the first taste of what to expect with new track, ‘Tippa My Tongue’, which you can check out above.
The Struts shared their new single, ‘Fallin’ With Me’, this week, and you can give it a listen above.
“The song’s lyrics were written down whilst on numerous nights out with someone that I was seeing at the time,” frontman Luke Spiller says. “We always kept meeting at the same place on the Sunset Strip and after a while I had a collection of phrases and lines that all had a certain feel to them.”
“The song’s lyrics were written down whilst on numerous nights out with someone that I was seeing at the time,” Spiller says. “We always kept meeting at the same place on the Sunset Strip and after a while I had a collection of phrases and lines that all had a certain feel to them.”
“Fallin’ With Me’ is something that The Struts have never done before. We’ve done a lot of straight-up rock, but this feels different,” Spiller says. “The response we have been getting while performing it live has been electric, so I’m excited for everyone to hear the studio version!”
As they prepare for the main stage at Reading & Leeds Festivals, DMA’s have shared their brand new single, ‘I Don’t Need To Hide’, which you can check out above.
Guitarist Jonny Took comments: “There’s a confidence you obtain when you find someone who loves you for all your faults, quirks and obscurities. They make you feel like you don’t need to hide anything from anyone anymore.”
The Murder Capital share video for single ‘Only Good Things’
The Murder Capital – ‘Only Good Things’
Our News report continues with news that The Murder Capital have shared the video for their single, ‘Only Good Things’, which you can watch above.
Speaking on the new single, front man James McGovern says,
“This track for us has been an exciting evolution for the band. It’s so bright. It’s so colorful. This is a part of the narrative of the overall record that we feel reaches a real place of inner calm, inner peace but at its core, it’s a love song. You get a song like this where, the protagonist in this song is quite simply asking – not pleading – just willing to ask their counterpart to rid them of their intrusive thoughts, the devils on their shoulders and to be truly vulnerable.
We’re so excited to go to a place like this because perhaps it’s not what is expected of us. It stood out to me during the creation of this record that it is more about the friends that are still here and celebrating those connections, those relationships and being unafraid of life and it’s many seasons. Where ‘Only Good Things’ stands within the record is at a moment where the sonic and the lyrical narrative especially, are of newfound joy.”
Beth Orton has shared her new single, ‘Friday Night’, which you can listen to above. The track will feature on new album, ‘Weather Alive’, which is out September 23rd.
Orton states, “Friday Night is someone reflecting on, and trying to decide, what to give up or what to surrender to. Passion or ambivalence? Whether to “bleed or rust in the rain.”
“Most of us are struggling to make sense of where to put the love we have for those that are lost to us, let alone the ones that remain. Sometimes there is no right answer except to find the wisdom in the spaces between the endings and beginnings, in the remembrance of things past or in search of lost time, there are always re-percussions to the choices we make. We are listening to the internal dialogue of someone living it out, what is futile and what is worth fighting for, and trying to do as little damage along the way. Friday night being the night that makes the week more bearable, there is hope.
“Coming to realise what is real and what is out of reach can be unbelievably painful, waking up to the love that remains can be the greatest gift and the most wonderful surprise. Even in absence there is presence, there is no escape but to look for where the love is still alive within us.”
As ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist alumni, Liverpool’s Courting prepare to release their debut album, ‘Guitar Music’, on September 23rd, the group have dropped a new single.
You can listen to that single, ‘Jumper’, above.
Speaking on the new single, frontman Murphy-O’Neill says, “Jumper is an outlier on the album. It is a gentle story of true unrequited love, meant to playout like a 2006 romcom. It is about growing old and believing everything will fall into place, the mundanity of doing dishes, and leaving oppositional film reviews.”
There was new music on offer this week from The Skinner Brothers, who debuted the title track of their upcoming EP, ‘Lonedon’.
Zac Skinner says, “I wanted the EP to have a mixtape kind of feel. It’s four different songs which I feel captures the essence of the band at this point.”
You can listen to the track above, and pre-order the EP here.
Many Reading & Leeds performers are sharing new music, another being Witch Fever. The band has debuted their latest single, ‘I Saw You Dancing’, which you can check out above.
The song will feature on their debut album, ‘Congregation’, which is out October 21st.
On the track Amy Walpole says, “This is a song on the album that we’re really excited about as really it’s the first time we’ve written and allowed a song to have space and time to breathe! We’ve been so used to writing quick thrashy tunes it was fun to experiment and write slower ones for the album. We really love the drone of the guitar, the rattle of the bass and the reverb on the snare drum, as well as the vocals being a little more relaxed and expressive”.
Speaking on the video Amy adds, “Horror has always been a genre that we’ve drawn inspiration from for lyrics and artwork because it’s such a potent and multi-layered genre. Horror has such a potential for holding a mirror up to society to reveal the oppression it continues to uphold. Typical elements of horror include violence, suspense, fear and the abject which are powerful fictional tools to expose the dark underbelly of society. Horror isn’t known for being the most progressive or inclusive genre, often centring straight white men, and portraying women and people of colour as either helpless victims, monstrous villains, or a side story to push the male characters plot line forward. Furthermore horror has also historically ignored the existence of marginalised genders and members of the LGBTQ+ community.”
Walpole says on the album, “As our first album we’re really excited to just get it out there. We feel that it’s a step above what we’ve done before as we had a chance to experiment with sound and structure. It was our first opportunity to explore writing a body of work which was challenging but has been so rewarding!”
She continues, “It pushed our creative process because we also had to think about the songs sitting side by side on an album! We tried to break out of what makes a typical ‘witch fever’ song whilst still being true to what makes our sound what it is.”
South London trio PVA have shared a new single titled, ‘Bad Dad’, which you can listen to above. The track comes ahead of new album, ‘Blush’, which is out October 14th.
Speaking on the themes of the single, Ella Harris says “Bad Dad explores the internal world of a new father checking in on his son at night, afraid of the lineage of masculinity and how it might impact someone so untainted.”
On their debut album: “We wanted to surprise people and do something more than just get across how we sound at a gig,” explains drummer Louis Satchell. “It’s quite an anxious record sometimes that is relating to mental health issues and carries within it the anxiety of making an album. It’s been a rocky ride but we always pick ourselves up.”
The new music continues in our News Report as this week The Beths presented their new single, ‘Knees Deep’, which you can check out above.
The track comes from forthcoming album, ‘Expert In A Dying Field’, which is out September 16th.
Liz Stokes shares: “I’m the kind of person who wants to go swimming, but takes like ten minutes to get all the way into the cold water, slowly and painfully. I hate this about myself, and am kind of envious of people who can just jump straight in the deep end. In a shocking twist, this is also a metaphor?! For how I wish I was the kind of person who was brave and decisive instead of cautious and scared.”
Glasgow’s Humour share their latest single, ‘live and well’.
Frontman Andreas had the following to say about how the song came together:
“Alive and Well came together quite suddenly after a prolonged period of trying to make it work. Jack and Ross had written the bones of the song, and showed it to me with the music in a more or less complete form. They sent me a voice note in which they were muttering along to the music, saying things like “I was so confused, I couldn’t understand it. Everyone’s pissed off at me,” and I could hear laughing, and didn’t think they were that serious about those being the lyrics.
Jack then suggested that I scream the lyrics as loudly as I could, which sounded right for the song when I did. I wanted the vocal to sound like somebody drunk and feeling sorry for themselves. I then wrote the lyrics to the chorus, which are loosely about getting away from a place and a feeling, but sensing that you won’t ever manage to.”
Dog Race – ‘Terror’
Bedford’s Dog Race have shared their debut single, ‘Terror’.
Vocalist Katie Healy had the following to say about the themes behind the single:
“Terror was written during a time of DPDR and anxiety episodes where I would frequently wake up screaming in the night due to night terrors. I tried to encapsulate something that spoke of a period of turmoil but important growth in my early 20’s, an experimental experience where I thought if I’d embrace these night terrors instead of hiding from them in the hope I could put them to rest completely.”
Young Fatigue – ‘love/them’
Punk trio Young Fatigue return with their latest single, ‘love/them’.
“love/them is a protest song against the parents of LGBTQ+ children who fail to accept and embrace their kids. It’s something that particularly enrages me because I remember when my mum came out to me and my siblings when I was a teenager. We found it so overwhelmingly easy to embrace and celebrate her; after all, she was our mum.
Yet time and time again I’ve watched as the families of my friends have failed to accept their sexuality and/or gender identity. My mum’s also an artist and kindly allowed us to use one of her wonderful pieces for the song’s artwork. She created it during a particularly difficult stage in her life and we felt it perfectly represented the power of turning something dark into something truly beautiful.” – Ash Dixon (Lead singer and Guitarist)
Pale Waves only released their second album last year, but with momentum in their favour they are back already with album number three. ‘Who Am I?’ was a huge release for the band, taking them to number three in the charts and taking them into larger venues and bigger festival slots.
Eighteen months later and the band are ready to capitalise on their hard work and push for greater success. With a date already set for the legendary Brixton Academy this November, could new album, ‘Unwanted’, be set to push them into arenas?
Well, opening with the epic, ‘Lies’, is a very good start for the album, and the pace doesn’t really ease as the group let their pop punk side out!
Across their three albums the band has now shown strong evolution and confidence in creating an eclectic mix of sounds. That being said each album has been distinctively a Pale Waves album with a familiar sonic undertone throughout.
With Heather Baron-Gracie at the helm their sound continues to feature an uplifting element despite the often dark and personal themes. This album fits a continued narrative of relatable music which helps to create a strong connection between band and listener.
Tracks such as ‘The Hard Way’, ‘Jealousy’ and ‘Reasons To Live’ have given a accurate view into the make-up of ‘Unwanted’ as a whole. If you’ve enjoyed the pre-release singles then you’ll love this uninterrupted tour de force of an album.
If ‘Who Am I?’ was the album to put Pale Waves on the map, then ‘Unwanted’ is raising their flag aloft and stating their ambitions for world domination!
KASABIAN – THE ALCHEMIST’S EUPHORIA – ALBUM REVIEW
To say that Kasabian’s seventh studio album, ‘The Alchemist’s Euphoria’, comes with a burden of added pressure would probably be an understatement. When one of the biggest bands in the country loses an iconic member then eyes will naturally be on what comes next, this is amplified when that iconic member is the singer!
Not to mention that it’s the nature of the world that we live in that those eyes watching are bound to be highly critical. No doubt, there will be many looking on and hoping to see Kasabian fail for various reasons.
Thankfully for the band they have already taken the time out to prove the doubters wrong in the live setting, with the band confirming that they are still one of the best live acts on the scene, the question is now turned to their studio output.
One of the reasons for Kasabian’s success over the years has been their adaptability and willingness to experiment. This works in their favour when reflecting on ‘The Alchemist’s Euphoria’, as whilst it doesn’t give the band a free pass it certainly allows extra freedom to explore their sound.
With guitarist Serge Pizzorno moving to the vacated lead vocals position, some clearly wondered if he would take the band down the more electronic route of his SLP side project. Alternatively would the band return to their early sound or maybe just continue on the path of 2017’s ‘For Crying Out Loud’.
The answer here is the one that probably should’ve been expected from the start – all of the above!
You can certainly feel the Pizzorno influence taking a bigger hold, there are nods to the early lad-rock leanings of the band and there are some playful festival favourites the likes of which emerged from the albums predecessor.
To an extent this is clearly Kasabian pressing the reset button. With ‘The Alchemist’s Euphoria’, the band has reassured fans that the past isn’t forgotten but the future remains one of exploration just as it would of done.
This album does what it needs to do to shore up the ship, but it almost leaves you now asking what’s next. This isn’t a forgettable album but it is a cleansing album to purge the difficulties of recent years and set up what’s to come.
You’ll likely have seen The Interrupters name gracing many festival bills over the past five years. You may also have noticed their name moving higher and higher up those line-up posters. Yes, there has been a slow but meaningful buzz building around the band for a while now.
It hasn’t been overnight success for the band and new album, ‘In The Wild’, is their fourth album; their debut self-titled release coming in 2014. As with many bands the pandemic came at the worst time as far as career momentum is concerned, with the hype surrounding The Interrupters fully taking hold.
Now then is probably the ideal time for the band to release a new album and get back on that horse, there has also never been a better time than now for you to jump on the bandwagon!
‘In The Wild’ sets its stall out early with ‘Anything Was Better’ and ‘As We Live’ which features Tim Armstrong and Rhoda Dakar. This is another anthemic riot of ska punk that will grab you by the hand and pull you onto the dancefloor.
Musically this album is packed full of the upbeat ska infused punk that has garnered The Interrupters such attention. They really do seem to have perfected a mix of these genres that works to elevate that basic punk sound without reaching the potentially comical capabilities of ska.
Lyrically this a personal, unshackling record in which singer Aimee liberates her troubled past. It can be tricky to tackle difficult subjects whilst pumping out ska punk, but on ‘In The Wild’, Aimee and the Bivona brothers have managed to do so faultlessly.
There isn’t a bad song on this album and too many highlights to bother listing. Realistically the best thing for you to do, is go and find ‘In The Wild’ and press play. You won’t regret the time spent savouring these incredible songs and you will get to jump on that bandwagon just before the band takes that final leap to superstardom!
