London’s Benjamin Shaw has released EPs called ‘I Got the Pox, the Pox is What I Got’ and ‘Rumfucker’ in the past, and now he’s following 2011’s debut long-player ‘There’s Always Hope, There’s Always Cabernet’ with the pun-worthy ‘Goodbye, Cagoule World’, a mini album that clocks in at just under half an hour. Bringing up…
A long-time favourite of Spectral Nights, Fatherson’s emotion-packed Scottish indie will leave an impression on even the most unlikely of music fans. Already BBC Introducing regulars and well loved north of the border, they hit the ground running when they supported on Lonely the Brave’s nationwide tour at the turn of the year. In what,…
It’s always a risk when bands return after a lengthy hiatus. Will they have the same verve and energy as when they first emerged on the scene? Will their fans remember them? Will they still be pushing boundaries and looking into the future, or will they be happy to trade on past glories and just…
From their debut mini album through to a 14-minute song that covered the different stages of the grieving process and a live show that was never less than stirring, Oxfordonians Spring Offensive have always been an exceptional band. Now, after raising the funds through a very successful Pledge campaign, we get to hear their first…
Having grown up as a child of Britpop, it was to my delight when The Bluetones announced they would be playing locally in the late spring of 2000. When they announced the date, it was the same night as my school prom. There was only going to be one winner… After always enjoying them before…
Having been around in various forms since 1998, Toronto’s Picastro have developed a unique sound that will wow fans of the likes of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, A Silver Mt Zion and Xiu Xiu. Their fifth album proper, ‘You’, is their first record to be released on Function Records – a label that has always…
We’re so late to the party with this one, but it’s such a spectacular album we couldn’t resist sharing our views on it. Originally released in June last year via TopShelf Records, ‘Whenever, If Ever’ is the debut record from Connecticut natives The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to…
Today I’ve been listening to ‘Hospice’ by The Antlers and also watched the mid-season finale of the fourth season of The Walking Dead. What better way to keep up this run of miserabilia than by listening to an album by a band who insisted the audience ‘join them in Hell’ at this year’s 2000 Trees…
When the opening line of an album is ‘Misery soaked you’, you know you’re in for a heartfelt, passionate and sombre listen and so it goes on the debut album ‘Comfort Songs’ from New York-via-Boston-via-LA resident Cloud (known to his parents as Tyler Taormina). Gravelly vocals and sparse instrumentation feature on the first track ‘Cars…
Having scattered themselves around the country following the release of their debut album, the five-piece (originally from Leeds) Killing Fields of Ontario have made a welcome return with sophomore effort ‘How the World Ends’. Having played with acclaimed folk-pop bands like Sparrow and the Workshop and Broken Records, the record promises a more sprawling sound…
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