The Districts – ‘Nighttime Girls’ In this “song about the allure of escapism and a character’s general preoccupation with shallowness and neon light”, The Districts are in alluring form. It opens with a burst of rousing drums before the Grizzly Bear-style guitar hooks and distorted vocals join the fray. A song that will appeal to…
On ‘Nunhead’, the opening track on Happy Accidents second album, guitarist Rich is talking about meeting by a cemetery in an attempt to block out the noise – both physically and mentally – and the song has a deliciously lo-fi vibe with its Casio keyboard effects, Lemonheads riffs and big bass sound. It’s a fine…
Fairhazel – ‘7×7’ Inspired by the Tibetan Book of the Dead, ‘7×7’ finds Fairhazel singing about breaking free and discovering further humanity. The former Boston Berklee College of Music student takes influences from a diverse range of genres, experiences and locations and this is captured in the fantastical introduction to this song. The subtle electronics…
Following a busy 2017 (including a 10-gigs-in-one-day jaunt to raise money for the Forward 4 Wiz Trust) and ahead of a short European tour with Parachute for Gordo, Spectral Nights favourite and regular contributor Joe Booley has unveiled ‘Movements III’ – the first track from his upcoming ‘Movements’ EP. Coming out on cassette and 12″…
Bad News Club is the latest signing to the prestigious paradYse Records (Marika Hackman and Spring King have also featured on their roster) and ‘The Painter’ is a stunning introduction to his heartfelt and intimate work. This is the very first take of the acoustic song, recorded onto an iPhone, and it has a lo-fi…
Reading’s incredible Are You Listening? Festival 2018 has now added Field Music, Warm Digits and Spectral Nights favourites Carnival Youth to its line-up. Taking place in various venues throughout the city on Saturday 28 April, the event (in aid of Reading Mencap) will also see performances from Idles, Her’s, AK/DK and the fantastically named Have…
‘We want to make people feel like anything is possible whilst listening to this record’ is a bold statement for anyone to make, but there’s no band better equipped to ensure this comes true than The Xcerts. 2014’s ‘There is Only You’ saw the trio cement their position as one of the UK’s best bands…
Long Distance Calling have unveiled the video for ‘Out There’, the first song from their widely anticipated sixth album ‘Boundless’ (released on 2 February). It’s a 9-and-a-quarter-minute beast of a song that veers into so many different directions that bring to mind both Mogwai and Maybeshewill. It opens with huge-sounding walls of guitar and chunky…
‘Finally’ features on Take This to Heart Records signings McCafferty‘s new split EP with Triple Crown’s Heart Attack Man. The pop-rock song is described by the Ohio band as a celebration of their love of alternative music and opens with some melodic guitars and a singalong burst of ‘Wa-oh, wa-oh, wa-oh-oh-oh-ohs’. Singer Nick Harktop opens…
Words by Joe Booley. Just two weeks after the release of Sufjan Stevens’ mixtape, ‘The Greatest Gift’, we are treated to a surprise release of the new single, ‘Tonya Harding’. With two versions of the track, Sufjan displays two sides sides of himself. In ‘Tonya Harding (in D major)’, we are greeted with the smooth…
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