Browsing Tag

post-punk

I’ve Been Waiting All My Life: Fremantle band Easy Jean impress on riveting ‘Creating Gods’

Posted on 29 August 2021

Taken off their recent five-track release ‘Hard Feelings and Real Tears‘, Easy Jean kindly bless us with the final song off the new project with a nostalgic track called ‘Creating Gods‘.

Easy Jean is a promising new-wave/post-punk Fremantle, Western Australia-based indie band who are a new act in the local scene. Featuring an all-time assortment of world class musicians who make this something special, you feel like you are delving into the start of something rather excellent.

”Easy Jean was born a little over a year ago by core songwriters Cheree Dobra from Melbourne Dream Pop Band Bayou, Andy Hill from Electronic Act Ambidexter and Drew Wootton of The Panics. Add World Music legend Grace Barbe on Bass to the
mix and Max Porotto on drums for a killer live show.” ~ Easy Jean

The sultry beat here is rather hauntingly beautiful, which compellingly captures your vivid imagination and has sensually classy vocals interwoven rather majestically at each turn. You feel her contemplative voice shine over the night-lit city outside – on a deeply thoughtful single which is full of absorbing corners – which takes you perfectly inside her wonderfully creative mind.

”A band born out of isolation” ~ Easy Jean

‘Creating Gods‘ from the effortless Australian new wave act Easy Jean, is a stunning song full of gloriously crisp vocals of the very highest order. With a simmering music video that is certainly reflective as you delve deeper into the song and feel like you need a step back – to truly think about your path – we are eased smoothly into a sterling effort from a quality band. This is the type of song to play when you need to have some quiet time alone, to look deeper in the dusty mirror in front of your tired eyes, and work out where you are indeed headed.

A truly fine effort, which will have you pondering your next move in this maze-filled world.

See the new music visuals on YouTube and find out more on the IG music fan page.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

LIVE REVIEW: A histrionic evening with Mercury Machine

Posted on 29 August 2021

The Deaf Institute became a welcome sanctum away from the culture-blind chaos that spilt from most venues on bank holiday Saturday in Manchester with the sublimely curated line-up featuring The Last Clouds, Woman You Stole and Mercury Machine.

The Last Clouds kicked off proceedings with their confessional lyrics, imploring vocals and dark indie electronica stylings that will be familiar with any fans of Covenant, VNV Nation and Apoptygma Berzerk. If any artist can prove there is an intrinsic beauty in vulnerability, it is the Last Clouds. Their recently released single, How to Get Up From This, was all it took to allow my curiosity to transpire into fanatic adoration. The theatrical atmosphere of the single wouldn’t be out of place on the end credits of an apocalyptic blockbuster. Yet, it was the heart-wrenching lyrics, “I tried to speak but it is hard because nobody cares/ I’ll tear the books from my shelf just to lie in the words of somebody else”, that cemented a place on my radar for the criminally underrated act.

If anything can spice up a line-up, it is the je ne sais quoi of Woman You Stole. They set themselves apart by an avant-garde mile with their lively debonair set that easily commanded the crowd into feeling what was orchestrating between them – even if it was fascinatingly unpredictable from one progression to the next.

Their capriciously experimental style is arresting on record, seeing it first-hand is something else entirely. Describing Woman You Stole as entrancing may sound hyperbolic but their sophisticated originality that emanates from their authenticity and mind-blowing talent, rather than through diehard determination to find obscurity, is something everyone should make an effort to witness at least once.

It almost seems needless to rave about Mercury Machine; the band that falls outside of the Manchester post-punk assimilative trap and find themselves in far darker territory, one that made me pretty nostalgic about the soundtrack to Cradle of Fear. The Manchester-based dark indie electronica five piece’s set instantly made it obvious why most of the room were sporting their t-shirts and why why so much hype has amassed around them since the release of their critically-acclaimed debut album in 2019.

Their lyrics are too efficacious in allowing you to explore the fucked up avenues of the human psyche while the pace of frenetic rhythms allow you to find euphoria through defiantly dancing to depictions of our mental precariousness. I couldn’t have asked for a better hit of post-lockdown catharsis.

Bands should always be judged by how much they move you emotionally and how much they can make you move; as Mercury Machine got the first post-lockdown dance from me, I can’t give them much higher praise than that.
Their inhibition-stripping histrionic sound still finds space, occasionally, for Marr-style guitars that add even more energy to their caustic industrial sound could fill stadiums. If goths felt more inclined to leave their bedrooms, that is.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jack Wakeman & The Dreamstriders have cosmically revived 80s pop with ‘Visions’.

Posted on 27 August 2021
Jack Wakeman & The Dreamstriders

Glasgow-based alt-rock artist Jack Wakeman & The Dreamstriders are set to release their 80s-inspired track, Visions, which starts with growling post-punk basslines around glassy synths before evolving into a sonic mash-up of psych, synth pop and indie.

The kooky, hooky choruses pull you into an atmospheric soundscape that practically imparts neon strip light synaesthesia as the up-vibe grooves bring the energy and Wakeman’s vocals spill Bowie-level magnetism.

On the basis of Visions, Wakeman was discernibly influenced by the iconic Manchester sound after he relocated from Doncaster and worked as a bassist for members of New Order and the Fall. In 2020, he relocated to Glasgow and started to assemble an outfit that allowed collaborative chemistry to spill to the tune of his signature ‘apocalyptic optimism’.

Visions will be available to stream from August 27th; you can check it out for yourselves on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Post-Punk Goes Pop Niels Bacher – Insecure

Posted on 25 August 2021

Niels Bacher’s latest single, Insecure, exposes his boldly vulnerable songwriting style at its finest. His preceding single, Too Sick to Love, set the bar high; with Insecure, he created a melancholic plateau far above it.

After nods to the Verve in the prelude, the alt-electro pop hit transgresses into an electrifying synth-driven post-punk track with trip-hop beats and Niels Bacher pouring his heart out into clever vocal hooks around the fiery melodies that gear up to the same frenetic momentum that you would find on a Poison Ivy record.

You’d be seriously hard-pressed to find a more honest lyricist; Niels Bacher succeeds not just in exploring a fraught, often stigmatised, emotion and leaving no proverbial stone unturned in Insecure. He also succeeds in creating a sonic experience so chilling that those deliverances of bitter truths hit with maximum evocative impact.

Insecure is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

On My Own: Szopa shows us strikingly into those evenings all alone on ‘Lore’

Posted on 24 August 2021

With his second album ‘Vital Organs‘ on the way in early 2022, Szopa drops a juicy electronica-filled trip-hop masterpiece with the drum-packed beats of mysterious intrigue with ‘Lore‘.

Damian Malecki aka Szopa, is a Polish-born Sheffield, UK-based post-punk/dark wave musician, audio visual artist and nature lover. He fuses a blend of innovative music creations which has your mind in a real state of excitement, as you feel that this is an artist who looks deeper at life than most.

”In his music, Szopa attempts to explore and highlight the dark, sinister thoughts that hide behind our words and actions, with an array of orchestral sounds, tribal drums and electronic loops. Being on the autism spectrum, Szopa’s music draws attention to complex, internal processes and a feeling of alienation.” ~ Szopa

Like a true storyteller, he skillfully wraps us in quickly before unearthing a truly sumptuously explosive track which captures your varied mood rather quickly. He has a terrific style full of wondrous fascination – which always seems to be totally imaginative beyond the norm – and with that utmost conviction of his smartly penned process.

‘Lore‘ from the Sheffield, UK-based dark wave/post-punk musician Szopa, is the story of finding the strength inside to venture outside in this rather odd world again. Those lonely nights alone have taken their toil and you are looking for more, as you stretch your imagination and work out what you do indeed crave, to awaken your sleepy senses.

Made with a fantastic beat with soothing vocals on a breathtaking beat, this is a absorbing track which will have you thinking of the vast possibilities out there in beautiful nature.

Hear this fine new track on Spotify and see more via the IG music channel.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Gabrielle Ornate has released her ethereal synth-pop anthem, Waiting to be Found.

Posted on 6 August 2021
Gabrielle Ornate

‘Waiting to be Found’ is the latest colossal alt-pop single from the luminary artist Gabrielle Ornate, which allows synths to bring a post-punk-style atmosphere while she feeds new-age-style-soul into the vibrant, massive production through the unapologetically intense vocals.

It is easily one of the most ethereal summer pop anthems that you will hear this year, or any other year, given that feels like quite the sonic paradox. Despite the alchemic ingenuity of the release, accessibility oozes through the sincerity and the rhythmic pull of the dark and sultry dance pop-rock earworm.

Waiting to Be Found was officially released on August 6th; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Never See Her Again: Silver Magpie wishes his true love would stay behind on ‘The Storm’

Posted on 30 July 2021

As he begins to flap his dusty wings so he can fly to where he deserves to be after sheltering away where it didn’t feel quite right before, Silver Magpie ponders deeply as to why his lover is sailing so far away and not into his arms instead on ‘The Storm’.

Silver Magpie is a Guadalajara, Mexico-born solo indie rock singer-songwriter. He is a creative soul who has hidden his feelings away for too long, as he now expresses himself through his music creations, which only seek to find his true path in this rather confusing world.

”Mainly influenced by post-punk/alternative rock bands with some shoegaze/dreamy hints. I’ve always had trouble fitting in, always the weird/nerdish kid at the back of the class.” ~ Silver Magpie

You feel his underdog mentality the whole way through, as he wonders why his love doesn’t turn around and join him hand in hand in again. He is unsure about this new path they have chosen and senses that he should stay behind – even though there could be something exciting waiting for him – if he just took the chance and joined them on the current-filled sailboat.

”It took some time to redefine my sound and learn new things to deliver better music. This song is dedicated to all of those who have drifted away (sailing away) from others during this pandemic.” ~ Silver Magpie

‘The Storm‘ from the motivated Guadalajara, Mexico-born indie artist Silver Magpie, is an emotion-filled journey about the wind-swept thoughts, that are flying dramatically into his reflective mind. He wishes it was calm and easy to work out, but for now his feelings are mixed, as he only thinks about why they left him behind.

Life can take you onto many differing paths. Ultimately, its up to you to work out which way you think the elusive treasure is hidden.

Stream this new track on Spotify and see more news via his IG music channel.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Nadine Shah brought her broodingly veracious post-punk-tinged soul to the Barbican in a one-off performance of her seminal album, Kitchen Sink.

Posted on 19 July 2021

In our depressively dystopic times where nothing seems to hit the same, Nadine Shah made sure she was the exception from the ennui; from the moment she walked on stage to the tune of synthesised jazzy discord, the atmosphere became just as electric – despite the social anxiety that mostly muted the audience aside from rapturous applause.

In her one-off performance at the Barbican in London on July 18th, she played her jazzy post-punk record, Kitchen Sink, in its entirety before playing what she claimed to be (they are) her ‘hits’. The critical acclaim she received following the release of her album in June 2020 had little impact on her infectious humility that radiates from her unfiltered stage presence.

As a proud owner of all of her records, I still somehow managed to underestimate the immensity of her vocal talent. There are few things in life more visceral than hearing her resounding, Jazzy vocal timbre and Pete Wareham’s demonic sax solos complemented by the acoustics in the Barbican.

Within the male-dominated realms of post-punk, Shah’s misogyny-challenging latest album, as with all of her music, comes with a sense of vindication that feels like a nuanced extension of the Riot Grrrl era. If anyone can kick ass with class, it’s Nadine Shah.

The deliciously rich brooding tones in her fourth studio album are a far cry from the abrasiveness of most artists striving to inspire through their lyricism, and they are all the more efficacious for it.

Grab yourself a copy of Kitchen Sink via Nadine Shah’s website.

Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Western Bloc – Monkey Christ: Darkwave Avant-Garde Post-Punk

Posted on 19 July 2021
Western Bloc

I never thought Glenn Branca would have competition, but Western Bloc’s darkwave avant-garde post-punk composition, ‘Monkey Christ’, parallels the ethereally phantasmic effect in The Ascension. It’s got the class, nihilism and theatrical flair but through the consistently evolving progressions, you’ll pick up on contemporary post-punk styles through the reminiscence to the Editor’s impassioned sound that tends to air on the melancholy despite the bursts of energetic angsty euphoria.

Any fans of SWANS, Magazine and Echo and the Bunnymen definitely won’t want to miss out on the official launch of the Calgary-based artist’s forthcoming album, which is due for release in August 2021.

Check out Western Bloc for yourselves by heading over to the band’s official website and SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dying Pharaohs – Lost in the Dark: Neo-Psychedelic Synth Rock

Posted on 14 July 2021
https://soundcloud.com/dyingpharaohs/lostinthedark

‘Lost in the Dark’ is the latest dusky feat of neo-psychedelic synth-rock from one of San Jose’s most prodigal outfits, Dying Pharaohs. If the Editors dropped acid and experienced a spiritual awakening, we’re sure the aural results would mimic Lost in the Dark which drips with post-punk cool and is sweetened by the almost hypnogogic vocals.

The angular indie guitars around the trip-hop beats and glassy synths are beyond anything I’ve heard from the psych scene or the pools of darkwave tracks that hit the airwaves. Let the goths and hippies unite through the compassionate kaleidoscope of monochromatic tones.

Lost in the Dark is now available to stream via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast