Browsing Tag

post-punk

The Tearless Life – Conversations with Angels: Heart-String-Tearing Post-Punk Transcendence

Posted on 14 August 2023

In the same way, Suicide, Joy Division, and Echo and the Bunnymen singles stir scintillating alchemy into melancholic souls, The Tearless Life’s seminal single, Conversations with Angels, is capable of the very same heart-string-tearing post-punk transcendence.

The cleverly intended imperfections in the production of the release from the East Lancashire outfit, which was founded earlier this year, only serve to add to the glitchwavey artfulness of the disjointed by dissonance single, which unravels as a lost-in-transmission call into the void.

While some howl into the void, others seek comfort in the realm of the celestial for comfort. If you can relate to the latter, your aural voyage into Conversations with Angels is guaranteed to be a visceral one.

Conversations with Angels was officially released on July 22nd; stream the official music video on YouTube, or purchase the single with the B-Side, Your Just Touch, via Bandcamp.

To keep up to date with the band by following them on Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Subatlantic bled etherealism into indie post-punk with their latest single, Critic

Posted on 8 August 2023
Say It Again by Subatlantic

Illinois’ premier indie outfit, Subatlantic, is on scintillatingly atmospheric form in their single, Critic, taken from their hotly-anticipated LP, Say It Again.

With angular guitar lines that will reel you into the centre of their darkwave pop universe, vocal lines that could give Debbie Harry a run for her money and the coldly beguiling tones spilling from the reverb-heavy keys, if Dead Can Dance, they’d dance to Critic, which unravels as a revelation of ethereal ingenuity.

With Becca Rice at the helm of the fourpiece, which has been dropping the temperature on the airwaves since 2008, Subatlantic has established itself as a dynamic powerhouse to watch; with soundscapes to suit every conceivable mood, there is undoubtedly something for you lingering in their artfully textured discography.

Stream and download Critic via Bandcamp or snag yourself a limited-edition colour vinyl pressing of the LP, Say it Again.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sean Grant & The Wolfgang synthesised dystopia in AI (Nothing Rests Everything Moves)

Posted on 3 August 2023

The age of the artist is playing its swan song, and it hums to the tune of the latest single, AI (Nothing Rests Everything Moves), by Sean Grant & The Wolfgang.

The diaphanous vocal lines cascading into the cinematically dystopic darkwave atmosphere constructed by clamorous industrial tones created an evocative juxtaposition that paints the vulnerability of sentience in contrast to the inexorable existential threat of artificial intelligence.

Sean Grant & The Wolfgang have metamorphosed a myriad of times since they introduced themselves on the airwaves with their critically acclaimed EP, 7 Deadly 7, in 2016; each evolution in their always sonorously synthesised sound lends itself effortlessly well to the discontent in the collective psyche.

As a complete antithesis to Grimes’ latest single, I Wanna Be Software, through which she willingly volunteers herself to a dark future of transhumanism, which still probably isn’t as cold as getting into bed with Elon Musk, this latest installation of transcendently discordant soul taps into the powerlessness of the average human as exponential technological progression threatens to tear away our purpose and replace it with inadequacy.

Admittedly, Sean Grant & The Wolfgang didn’t appear on my radar until I saw they were venturing into Manchester to perform with The Battery Farm and SOURDOUGH; all it took was one hit of AI to convince me to grab a ticket and get down the front for the live rendition of the obsession-worthy single released via their label, Vandalism Begins at Home.

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Stream the latest single from Sean Grant & The Wolfgang on Spotify and give them a follow on Instagram and Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

djamesk13- She Rides in Secret: grungily Lynchian psychedelic Britpop

Posted on 27 July 2023

For his latest single, She Rides in Secret, the alt-rock artist, djamesk13, orchestrated a scintillating installation of grungily Lynchian psychedelic Britpop.

Finding the middle ground between Pixies, Stone Roses, the Psychedelic Furs, and the pioneers of darkly dissonant post-punk, She Rides in Secret is a hypnotic aural effigy to authenticity, inexplicably carved by one of the boldest experimentalists that we have had the pleasure of putting on our radars in recent years.

The moodily sludgy lo-fi propensities of She Rides in Secret may not be anyone’s cup of tea, but if you’d prefer to lose yourself in a sonic storm in a teacup, delve right into the seductive soundscape that will caress you with its succinct melodies and wistful romanticism.

She Rides in Secret was officially released on July 17th; hear it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Forget Black Mirror, delve into the darkwave dystopia of Dr Void and the Skinjob’s latest single, Android’s and Polaroid’s

Posted on 21 July 2023

Darkwave and post-punk caustically collide in the latest single, Android’s and Polaroid’s, from the irreplicable powerhouse, Dr Void and the Skinjob’s.

With synth lines dark and reverberant enough they could have been stolen from an 80s horror OST and drum fills frenetic enough they leave the senses in a tailspin, the Glasgow-hailing three-piece surpass their influences from She Past Away, Gary Numan, The Damned, and Clan of Xymox by creating electrifying installations of sonic frenzy paired with dystopic lyrical themes.

Android’s and Polaroid’s follows a similar tale to the TV series Humans by depicting the story of an over-used sex droid that is seduced by freedom and wants to taste human morality after being subjugated to the worst facets of the human condition. It seems that Charlie Brooker isn’t the only one with a talent for portraying dystopic narratives that aren’t too far from the realm of possibility.

Android’s and Polaroid’s is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Motel TV is in ‘Cruise Control’ on their cerebrally poetic new wave indie single.

Posted on 17 July 2023
MOTEL TV (EP) by MOTEL TV

The Chicago, Illinois indie evocators, Motel TV, are fresh from the release of their eponymous debut EP, featuring the introspectively transcendent single, Cruise Control; with one half of the four-piece outfit employed as successful psychotherapists, the single unravels as poignantly as expected.

With the post-punk-y electronic drum fills snapping against the ethereal reverb that spills from the accordant synth and guitar lines, a beguiling atmosphere is created for Motel TV to induce you into a deeper hypnotic state with their cerebral lyricism.

Just when you think you’ve got Motel TV all figured out, Cruise Control evolves from the psychedelia-instilled new wave dream pop synthetics to immerse you in a riff-powered chasm of garage rock as a reflection of the living discordance we all have to resist to keep on a path towards inner peace.

Naturally, any and all reminiscences are fleeting in Cruise Control, but fans of The Smiths, Joy Division and The Psychedelic Furs will easily accommodate the single in their playlists.

Stream Cruise Control which is part of the Motel TV EP on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Fill your cup with the frenetic furore that spills from the punk rock veins of Lex Maria’s single, Plague or Pain

Posted on 15 July 2023

Nestle into a riotous plague-pain dichotomy with the standout single from Lex Maria’s sophomore EP, Ghosts. The clamorously cold post-punk single, Plague or Pain, from the Swedish purveyors of angst-fuelled alternative rock, is a messily discordant hit that fans of Melvins, Pixies, and Sonic Youth shouldn’t need to be asked to listen to it twice.

The heavy down-tuned guitars paired with the pervasive air of self-reported sexual frustration and the Marilyn Manson-esque effect-laden spoken word verses create a strong sonic tonic which won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if cacophonous catharsis is your poison, fill your cup with the frenetic furore that spills from the punk rock veins of Plague or Pain.

Ghosts was officially released on June 30; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Fallsurge left us on the ‘Tripwire’ of his industrial-rock-meets-post-punk hit

Posted on 26 June 2023
Tripwire by FALLSURGE

After beating the skins for Swervedriver and 5:30, Jez Hindmarsh formed his post-punk meets electronic rock project, Fallsurge. Post-punk has had its fair share of angsty icons, but they’re deathly pale when put in comparison to Fallsurge, especially after the release of Tripwire.

With hints of Celldweller and Skinny Puppy in the production and PJ Harvey’s Down By the Water in the rancorous atmosphere against the protestive post-punk snarls, Fallsurge is one of the most inventive alt-electronica acts since Prodigy.

And yeah, that should probably go down as blasphemy, but the caustic industrial cuts in Tripwire against the cold chaotic sonic whirlpooling guitars, laid down by the LA-based guitarist, Dave Dupuis, created a pioneering cocktail of viscerally vitriolic alchemy. We’re officially stoked to hear what follows.

Stream and purchase Tripwire via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Call To The Void rampaged the UK rock scene with their eclectically experimental debut single, Uncontrollable

Posted on 25 June 2023

For their scuzzy garage rock debut, Uncontrollable, the Southeast, UK-hailing prodigal sons, Call To The Void, pierced protestive proto-punk energy with a gothy 80s atmosphere that will beguile any fans of Bauhaus.

Doused in Nirvana’s Bleach with a touch of the New York Dolls’ rancorous attitude and fleeting Pantera-esque guttural vocals, the eclecticism of Uncontrollable is an achievement in itself. With each member bringing their own sonic penchants to the table to blend into the same soundscape, their heavy, raw, and haunting alchemy was always an inevitability.

After operating as a duo under the moniker, DENY ALL, the brother duo enlisted the boundless dynamic vocal prowess of the frontman, Jack Osborne. His ability to switch between post-punk crooning in the same vein as Echo and the Bunnymen, PIL-reminiscent snarls and Kurt Cobain on a vehement day is a gift that will undoubtedly see Call To The Void go far.

Uncontrollable is now available to stream on Spotify.

Follow Call to the Void on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Shackles Unbind in Ellery Twining’s Experimentally Liberating Single, WHAT’S GONNA SET YOU FREE

Posted on 24 June 2023

If Sonic Youth prolonged Kim Gordon’s spoken word verse in Kool Thing and played with post-pop and post-punk sensibilities, the result would be as coldly electrifying as the standout single, WHAT’S GONNA SET YOU FREE from Ellery Twining’s 2023 LP, RESULTS.

With a Joy Division-esque atmosphere ringing in the background of the stellar production by Eric Lichter of Dirt Floor Recording Studio, all the right motifs are in place to bring a tonal sense of familiarity, while Ellery uses his distinctively exasperated devil-may-care vocal energy to set the listener free from sonic monotony.

The soundscapes were compiled to reflect the childhood and coming-of-age experiences of Gen X kids, with themes of popular culture, childhood survival tactics and the ramifications of living in an era when divorce became socially acceptable at its core. Forget the Coupland novel, for nostalgically vindicating resonance, delve right into RESULTS.

Stream WHAT’S GONNA SET YOU FREE with the rest of Ellery Twining’s LP, RESULTS via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast