Browsing Tag

60’s Rock

The 60s and 70s have swung back with riotous force in At the Arcade’s scuzzed-up slice of garagey alt-rock, With You

Posted on 3 April 2023

At the Arcade served up a sleazily scuzzed slice of garagey alt-rock for their latest single, With You, which puts the emotion into as much overdrive as the riffs. Somewhere between the 60s and the 80s, the riotously eclectic outfit finds its distinctive-by-design prodigal edge that will leave you ricocheting between past eras while affirming that THIS is the sound of the future.

Ensuring that the bouncy and brashy chorus guitars are just as infectious as the salaciously sweet vocals, With You is a track you definitely won’t mind tattooed across your temporal lobe. The Rotherham indie rock aficionados have been revered for their superlatively high-energy shows since 2017. It is about time the airwaves got a taste of their harmony-heavy fervour.

With You was officially released on March 24th. Check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Swing back to the late 60s with Sarah Streitz’s dusky groove-led rock hit, Time Passes

Posted on 23 November 2022

Ahead of the release of her 2022 album, Different Space, we got stuck into the retro grooves of Santa Fe and Minneapolis singer-songwriter Sarah Streitz’s single Time Passes. While there’s no arguing with the titular statement, clearly, Streitz doesn’t conform to the linear passing of time if the tonal nostalgia that the dusky rock record spills is anything to go by. With just a few licks of the bass and her effortlessly cool vocal performance, you’re doused in late 60s synaesthesia.

After leaving Americana and country (mostly) behind her, Streitz teamed up with the Grammy-winning sound engineer Marc Whitmore to deliver soundscapes that would make Tarantino’s head spin. Evidently, Whitmore poured the same magic into Time Passes as he did with The Black Keys records – there’s something infinitely intoxicating about her demurely vintage vocal timbre colliding with the bass lines that roll around the shimmering organs and spacey sonic effects that bring a touch of modernism to the trippy swing of the single.

Time Passes is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Find a ‘Moment of Joy’ in Firebug’s Bluesy Desert Rock Single

Posted on 20 March 2022

The immensely and immeasurably talented Joshua Tree recording artist, Firebug, has given us a taste of what’s to come on their forthcoming psychedelic desert-rock album by teasing us with the old-school-rock-but-never-as-you’ve-heard-it-before single, Moment of Joy.

They kicked up the dust on the archetypal desert rock vibes by adding a little New Orleans flavour and nuances of folk and blues. If I could take a bath in the arcanely psychedelic tones that are swathed in 60’s and 70’s nostalgia, I’d be hesitant to get out. For impious musos, sonic experiences don’t get much more spiritual than Moment of Joy which grips you by the scruff of the neck and drags you into the feel-good bliss with the striking vocals as a guide.

So far, the successes counted by Firebug include performing at SXSW in Austin, CMJ in NYC, Sonisphere Festival, and the Viper Room in LA. After this release, it is easy to see that Firebug is only just getting started.

Moment of Joy is part of Firebug’s album, No Return, which will drop on March 18th, 2022. You can check it out for yourselves via Firebug’s official website and SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Grammy-balloted artist, Luanne Hunt, has released her ornately picturesque 21st studio album, Portraits in Song

Posted on 7 February 2022

During her 27-year career, Luanne Hunt has released 21 studio albums and picked up three Grammy nominations along the way for her refreshingly authentic take on modern country. With her love of folk-rock feeding into her sonic signature, her music is as diverse as it is nostalgically comfortable. Her latest album, Portraits in Song, captures her talent at its finest. It is a testament to her determination to strive for excellence and hit emotional chords along the way; you’d be hard-pressed to find a more elegant soul in country-folk-rock.

The album starts on the instantly arresting single, “It Was Always You”; the ardently visceral single is brimming with shimmering soul through the orchestral scoring and Hunt’s ethereally ornate vocals that cherish the notion of perpetuation affection. Her 70s folk-rock influence comes to the forefront in Midnight Rain & Roses, which will undoubtedly be a hit with any Stevie Nicks fans. The arcane production paired with the warmly overdriven guitars and Luanne Hunt’s vocals that become the epitome of beguiling is matchlessly stunning.

Here’s what Luanne Hunt had to say about her 21st album:

“I consider ‘Portraits in Song’ to be my crowning achievement thus far; it reflects my love of folk-rock artists in the same vein as America, Crosby, Stills and Nash and Van Morrison. I can’t get enough of the songs from the 60s and 70s era, they truly are the bar I always set for myself.”

The album also features the Latin Grammy Award-Winning drummer, Heitor Lima, the world-renowned piano player, Hal Ratliff (Righteous Brothers, Grass Roots), and the acclaimed Canadian composer/conductor Jordan Grigg.

Portraits in Song is now available to stream on Spotify. Or you can head over to her official website to purchase the album.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Star Prairie Project remind us what old school rock romanticism looks like with ‘Queen Isabella’

Posted on 31 December 2021

The international outfit comprising of artists from the US and Portugal, The Star Prairie Project, have released their nostalgically sweet 2021 album, Shine a Little Light, and that’s exactly what they did on the airwaves with this sentimental array of Beatles-inspired soundscapes.

The mellifluously easy chords in the standout radio-ready single, Queen Isabella, paired with the shamelessly impassioned vocals and lyrics that remind you what old school romanticism sounds like put The Star Prairie Project in the same league as Chris Isaak. Isaak may have set the bar high with Wicked Games, but The Star Prairie Project easily transcended it with the soul in their kaleidoscopically colourful melodies.

After starting with a Neo-western intro and working up to one of the most visceral rock homages to love we have heard this year, Queen Isabella is a triumph of an emotional rollercoaster from start to finish.

Queen Isabella is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

James Sebastian saved our Shipwrecked Soul(s) in his latest 70s rock n roll hit

Posted on 20 December 2021
James Sebastian

After getting hooked on his unforgettably sweet single, Lemon Sunshine, the UK-based solo artist, James Sebastian, has shown us a harsher 70s rock n roll edge in his latest single, Shipwrecked Soul.

While the vintage garagey tones feed the frenzy in the instrumentals, James Sebastian’s raconteur vocal timbre ensures that apathy isn’t an option when you hit play on this unapologetically feel-good hit. The up and coming singer-songwriter found the perfect way to influence his listeners to take their melancholy in their rock n roll stride. In a time when authority and answers are hard to find, it is beyond refreshing to hear an artist with the ability to vindicate our jetsam-like misery so viscerally. That’s before we even move on to his talent at pulling authenticity of vintage rock. So many artists  have left us questioning if that was even possible. Notably, James Sebastian is a diamond in the rough.

Check out James Sebastian on Spotify and Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

I Just Need To Get Away: LA’s Kilo Tango desires that enticing fun to get rid of the lonely empty spaces on ‘Lace and leather (not forever)’

Posted on 16 May 2021
Lace and leather (not forever) by KiloTango

As she looks temptingly through her breeze-filled bedroom curtain and wholeheartedly wishes for some much-needed excitement, Kilo Tango opens her front door to a possible mistake with the enthralling ‘Lace and leather (not forever)‘.

Kilo Tango (Kee-lo Tayn-go), is a Kt Mitchell-formed artist from bustling Los Angeles, California. She stylishly intermingles her 90’s dream pop, 60’s rock, and modern pop creations smartly together, like a hungry kitty cat looking for a tasty snack in the middle of the night.

She saunters cheekily into our eager speakers with careful precision and a purring curiosity — as each lyric is sung with such wondrous intrigue — that has you nibbling on your lip, as you keenly await the full experience to soak in sweetly.

We are introduced to the true story of feeling that so much before was such a waste of time, as the story of desiring that real fun right now is shown to us by a truly wonderful singer-songwriter, who is so refreshingly honest at every turn.

Her voice is ear-catching, the genuine energy eases all over your stretching body, as you sit back and remember when you were so tired of dull relationships, and just wanted to have some fun for once.

‘Lace and leather (not forever)‘ from the engaging LA artist Kilo Tango, shows us into a world of the fleeting night that was mind-numbing before you switched things around, and took a chance on someone you thought might let you down later on. The heart-beating thrill of the chance-to-see-what-happens rolled the dice for you — as you looked eagerly for that winning six — to make your evening all worth it after all.

Hear this spellbinding new single on Bandcamp and find out more via her paw-printed IG music page.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen