I feel very honoured to have my blog featured again on the Boggs Holler Curiosity Shoppe Show with AprylRae and David saying lovely things about it.
Here's the link to their podcast
So the pressure's on to write a decent blog this month!
With my fortnightly DAFT POM show on InYourEars and my monthly roundup #Indie100Cup with Michael Tanner on his
Rebirth of Cool TV YouTube Channel
I'm getting to my blog later and later each month but the new music doesn't stop and neither will I.
I had about forty songs I wanted to write about this month but having a few other outlets now, affords me the opportunity to share more music than my blog's self-imposed limit of 20 songs. So enough of my editorial problems let's get into the tunes.
1) Joker by The Haciendas
@HaciendasThe
I'm starting my April blog with a right couple of jokers. Two songs released recently with the same name. This is from Manchester (where else?) and it's only the second release by the band. This is an indie rock band with the emphasis on hard rock. From the two tracks I've heard I predict they would be a riot when they can play live again and they have a Manchester gig scheduled for October.
2) Joker by Reclaim Vienna @Reclaim_V
The second in our pair of jokers is from the North West's Electro Eighties Enthusiasts Reclaim Vienna. I wonder if they hope to reclaim the Austrian capital from Ultravox? The song is a high tempo indie pop banger with swirling synths, propulsive beats and a catchy chorus.
3) Pink Lunettes by Pond @PONDband
This is a bit of a left field move even for a psychedelic indie rock band from Western Australia. They have embraced the electro dance floor with a groovy move in the direction of Working Men's Club or Klaxons. When the beats cut out they end this song with more familiar Pond trippiness. Their next album should be excellent.
4) Spinning Me Out by Jet City Sports Club linktr.ee/jetcitysportsclub
Sydney band Jet City Sports Club have released their debut EP called September Sun which is a great collection of 5 laid back jangling indie tunes that has already had the celebrity approval of Bobby Carlyle and getting airplay from me. They sound delicious so if you haven't discovered them yet, dive in!
5) Go Away by The Tazers @TheTazers
South Africa's The Tazers bringing the noise, attitude and riffs like a punk rock version of Kings of Leon. I'm not familiar with the Johannesburg music scene but thanks to The Tazers I'm now vaguely aware that it exists.
6) Faster Chopper Boogie by Acid's Trip linktr.ee/acidstrip
"White Trash, I've No Class, Let's Drink and Smoke That Grass" Sweden's Acid's Trip evoke memories of The Ramones or The Stooges with an energetic punky bop also known as the Gothenburg Groove. Album Strings of Soul is released in early May.
7)Text Back Blues by Jackson Lucitt @JacksonLucitt
The debut single from the indie folk singer from the hotbed of Welsh musical talent - Port Talbot. Jackson soaked up the American influences when he visited Nashville and now he's merged those with his love of indie rock. It sounds like Jake Bugg fronting the country cousins of Revivalry.
8) My Port Talbot Town by Vela Incident @IncidentVela
An ode to their hometown in South Wales from my favourite band that record in their closets. The Vela Incident have just released a remastered album of all their previous singles and b-sides. I do like a song that shouts out a local place. I've never been to Port Talbot - honestly I'd never heard of it until Vela Incident put it on the map. Hopefully the band are busy recruiting a new guitarist who can work within the cramped recording wardrobe studio.
9) The Town You're From by Lucy Gaffney @Lucy__Gaffney
Here the Irish singer songwriter picks up the theme of local shout outs. This acoustic strum-along performed barely louder than a whisper. It evokes nostalgic recollections of how places change but retain a pull on you regardless of how far you've traveled. The song was written by former Coral founder Bill Ryder-Jones who also duets with Lucy on this.
10) Overflow by Emperor of Ice Cream @TheEmperorsCork
This band were originally formed in Cork back in 1992 and this latest single sounds like a blast of early Nineties indie that got me hooked on the genre. Overflow is somewhere between baggy, shoegaze and the JAMC and that will always be a wonderful sonic sweet-spot.
11) Darkside by 3 Little Wolves
A hypnotic downbeat groove from a band new to Spotify and Twitter. 3 Little Wolves have recorded a couple of albums uploaded to YouTube but the new direction is the first to be released on Spotify. I've known Paul - the man behind the band since the Mid-Nineties and we shared many adventures and gigs back in the heyday of Britpop. The 3 Little Wolves are new to Twitter so please give @3LittleWolves1 a follow.
12)Pink River by Nice Biscuit @nicebiscuitband
Back with new material, it's Nice Biscuit, Brisbane's psychedelic garage rockers bringing catchy harmonies and the wigged out tunes that Australians demand.
13) It's Mine, It's Ours, It's Yours by No Expectations linktr.ee/No_expectations
This Geelong punk band have featured on my last two DAFT POM radio shows with their previous singles. You may know them as I did as fun snarling thrashy punks but on this song they show a much greater musical maturity that caught me off guard. I think this is their best song yet and I'm having trouble describing it and its influences. I don't even want to try and describe it because I can't do it justice. It's a total cop out for a music blog - but I'd be interested to hear what my readers/listeners think of it?
14) Things Just Come and Go by Alex Spencer linktr.ee/alexspencer
Alex is a new Mancunian singer songwriter and this is his debut song ahead of a debut album. Very much a lockdown project, Alex has spent his time cooped up honing his writing and production skills. Alex Spencer is one to keep an eye on this year.
15) Darkness In Your Eyes by The Heavy North @theheavynorth
Darkness in your eyes is a blues rocker, pounding drums, killer guitar licks and a top vocal performance from Kenny. It's the first glimpse of the debut album which is surely gonna be a modern classic.
The song's narrative is based on troubled soul, feeling low and craving love but the warning signs are visible in her eyes.
16) Frank by Garage Sale linktr.ee/garagesaleband
Garage Sale are a Melbourne band who play grunge rock. It's been decades since I was into that scene but when I heard this I was transported back to 1993. Frank could sit nicely alongside Siamese Dream. Listen right to the end to hear their pet cat make a debut appearance.
17) Better by Radium Dolls linktr.ee/radiumdolls
An anthem for the times - this song is suitable for anyone that needs a lift when things are getting them down. The chorus here should help restore the spark of hope. Their positivity is infectious.
Radium Dolls are another band from Brisbane and there seems to be a bit of cross-fertilisation (probably not the term I was searching for) with the next band.
18) Slow Burn by Perve Endings linktr.ee/perve_endings
Also in Brisbane and possibly sharing band members with Radium Dolls is Perve Endings. I adore the vocal performance on Slow Burn. This is so powerful!
19) April Nights by Shag Rock @shagrockmusics
Brisbane provides three in a row now with the indie surf of Shag Rock and the appropriately named April Nights. Shag Rock plan to release a double album this year which is unusual in the modern music scene.
20) That'll Do by Mark Frith
Mark has an interesting tale that he is happy to share about his career in the music industry over the last 15 years. He's got thr talent but his band The Troubadours never broke through in the UK. He's now a solo artist with a big following in the North West of England and Japan and id sharing the process of writing and recording his debut solo album via a series of YouTube videos. Give him a follow or subscribe here linktr.ee/Markfrith and join him on his journey.
