Proletariat's comeback last year came as a bit of a surprise after they bowed out after a series of sold-out Manchester shows you could count on both hands a couple of years ago, burning out before it seemed they'd achieved much of what was expected of them. Having released a trio of singles since they announced they return and unable to return to the gig circuit because of the restrictions, they set up a live stream show from Hyde's Festival Theatre on Friday night.
There's two kinds of reformation - the big cash-in on the legacy and nostalgia culture that seems to be polluting the pool for new artists being able to make their mark and those that aim to conclude unfinished business that come about as a result of old friends getting back together to rekindle the magic of their formative days and the excitement of being in a band. The latter tend to be more rewarding and Bradford's thirty-one years later follow up to their Shouting Quietly debut sits alongside Thousand Yard Stare's Panglossian Momentum as a shining example of a record that's been made for the sake of making it.
Live music. Remember that? The thrill and excitement and adrenaline as the drums kick in, guitars roar and the bassline rumbles seductively and then the vocals come in, delivering words of wisdom, experience, loss, love or any combination of them? Close to a year after the gig scene came to a grinding halt and on the day we finally (hopefully) got a date for it to start again, The Blinders reminded us what we've been missing with a scintillating live show mixing tracks from last year's Fantasies Of A Stay At Home Psychopath and their debut Columbia on a Twitch live stream from Scruff Of The Neck's Manchester offices.
Dulcimer Melody's debut album Dark Alchemy was one of our favourite random finds of 2020, following an effusive championing of the album in Facebook group to find a record we described as "a meticulously constructed set of ten songs, taut with tension, rippled through with dramatic moments and with a voice that soars, drifts and takes the listener off on a journey through its creator's detailed mind maps." With a new single Absent Friend, we got in touch with her to ask a few questions and she recorded her answers for a video interview.
Matter Of Mind's first single of 2021 demonstrates a harder edge and a vitriolic biting response to an ex who's done them wrong as the Stockport band deliver their most ambitious single to date.
Rang Dizzy is the first track to be revealed from Ryley Walker's forthcoming album Course In Fable, his first studio album of original material under his own name alone since 2018's Deafman Glance.
Sometimes the only PR that can sell you an album is the music itself. We were listening to something sent to us in one of the hundred or so emails we get every day when, away from the computer, You Tube threw a song we'd never heard before by a band we'd never heard of at us. And then when you delve more you find and album and a back catalogue.
After Loose Articles announced themselves with their Orchid Lounge EP in 2019 things went a bit quiet from them, but now their new tracks are coming along like buses. Except they don't like Buses as they tell us in their latest two-minute onslaught accompanied with an equally chaotic video.
Mother Machine is the latest single from the newly-formed Lean Logic released by the Ogenesis label. Julia Grantham waxes lyrical about the beauty of this intriguing track.
Rosellas recently released their new single Damaged and played the Music Feeds festival alongside the likes of Liam Gallagher and Blossoms, winning over a whole set of new fans in the process. We caught up with Drew and Euan to chat about their prolific songwriting, remaining true to themselves and standing out from the crowd and their plans for the rest of 2021.
Out Of Reach is the sixth single from Maidstone band The Shop Window, a track that captures the uncertainty of the times we're living in, locked in our homes and wondering what the hell is going on. Set to an addictive and catchy guitar hook that drives the song along and vocals that possess a comforting warmth and understanding to them, Out Of Reach has a genuine timeless feel to it.
The Slow Readers Club have revealed a new video for their track Everything I Own, taken from their recent album 91 Days In Isolation, written remotely during the first lockdown last year. Filmed in the imposing location of an empty Manchester Arena, the video both complements the song perfectly and gives us a reminder of exactly what we are missing out on.
Keeley return with their second single - the double A-side The Glitter And The Glue and You Never Made It That Far - an impressive follow-up to last year's stand-out debut single Last Words. In just two minutes and thirty seconds The Glitter And The Glue is a thrilling headrush of a song, whilst its partner-in-crime You Never Made It That Far shows a more experimental electronic side to a band whose intrigue grows the more you discover about them.
8 Men is Hennessey's first release of 2021 following on from their 01 EP. It's a protest song and a call to arms to redistribute half the world's wealth that resides in the hands of the 8 Men of the title. Merging post-punk spirit with electronic sounds Hennessey emerge sounding unique, fresh and vibrant - music with a message which you still want to dance to.
Recorded in France in 2020 Drunk Tank Pink was ready to be unleashed to an expectant public when everything came to a crashing halt due to a global pandemic that has caused nothing but heartache for a plethora of musicians. This was Shame’s second album and it was meant to showcase their new found maturity and sound. Nurtured in the womb and ready for arrival into an expectant world the delay has been worth the wait.
Spunsugar follow up last October's release of their brilliant Drive-Through Chapel debut album with a new single (You Never) Turn Around. Incorporating a more melodic sound whilst retaining the headrush excitement of the debut, (You Never) Turn Around is the final chapter of a story that started on the album.
Turnstiles are one of the most exciting bands emerging from Ireland at present with five singles under their belt by the end of 2020. They start off 2021 with their debut EP, four new songs that see them stretching the boundaries of their sound whilst retaining the intensity of their early releases. We caught up with Jake, Colm, Cillian and Luke to find out more about them and their approach to their music.
We were given the heads up on Turnstiles in late 2019 by our friends with exceedingly good musical taste across the Irish Sea. Since then we’ve never looked back following the Galway-based five piece as they consistently produced music of the highest calibre against all the odds that 2020 threw at them. January 8th 2021 sees the quintet release their debut EP ‘The Turnstiles EP’ via Blowtorch Records.
Dial back two years and Proletariat were on many people's lists as the next band to break out of Manchester and then, almost overnight, they announced a split and disappeared. Now they're back, with a new line-up, a powerful new single Go Ahead and a new approach to what they do best. We caught up with front man James for a chat about what happened and what's going to be different in 2021 for Proletariat.
And finally we reveal our five favourite albums of 2020, a strange year in pretty much every respect, but one that still managed to deliver some stunning new music to our ever-growing collections of albums.
Today we reveal five more of our favourite albums of 2020, a strange year in pretty much every respect, but one that still managed to deliver some stunning new music to our ever-growing collections of albums.
Today we reveal five more of our favourite albums of 2020, a strange year in pretty much every respect, but one that still managed to deliver some stunning new music to our ever-growing collections of albums.
Today we reveal the first five of our favourite albums of 2020, a strange year in pretty much every respect, but one that still managed to deliver some stunning new music to our ever-growing collections of albums.
The Red Stains return with their second single, live favourite Freezer Jesus, and their first ever video that captures both the wild lyrics of the song and the chaos that seems to follow the band around wherever they go.
Live From The Attic was the first opportunity for people to hear Ist Ist's debut album Architecture played live in its entirety with the addition of a few old favourites and the first airing of a brand-new track from the sessions for their second record. The self-released album hit number three in the independent charts in May against the odds and has consistently won new admirers since. Yet as the evening was to prove, Ist Ist are at their most formidable in the live environment even without an audience present as they deliver an alternate version of the songs from Architecture that will cement its place in the hearts of those whose path it has crossed.
Back in March, Blossoms' biggest UK tour to date to celebrate their number one album Foolish Loving Spaces was cut off in its prime. Nine months on, they performed a live stream from on stage at Brixton Academy with songs taken primarily from that album.
Loose Articles return with their first single since last year's Orchard Lounge EP. Up The Disco is a riotous barrel of fun that doesn't take itself too serious accompanied by a music video that follows in the same vein.
Watching the latest series of Jools Holland during these troubled times unearthed a gem for many in terms of Dublin artist For Those I Love.
Last Friday saw Cobain Jones release his debut single Hooked and last night he revealed the first in his series of Estate Tour videos. We caught up with him for a chat about the single, signing a record deal, meeting his musical heroes and how he wants to be an inspiration to others.
In celebration of the vinyl reissue of his debut album Show Me How The Spectres Dance, Liam Frost and friends performed an in-the-round live performance of the album plus a bonus track at his hometown venue Bury Met.
Distant Life is Celestial North's seventh single and her first of 2020 as she has spent lockdown writing tracks for her debut album. Her most uplifting song to date, there's an infectious energy from the opening bars as she takes a look back over her life and contemplates finding herself and learning from the lessons of earlier life
It's been quite a year for Lanterns On The Lake. Their fourth album Spook The Herd earned them a Mercury Prize nomination to go with universally positive reviews for their strongest record to date. Touring plans had to be put on hold because of lockdown and tonight's show, initially planned to be a socially distanced event in the stunning surroundings of Gateshead's Sage, had to be changed to a livestream playing Spook The Herd in full.
LIINES today release their new single Sorry and couple it with last year's On And On as part of a limited 7" single. With new member Anna Donigan joining earlier this year and recent appearances on Gorilla TV and radio play for the single, it feels that LIINES' star is continuing to ascend despite the constraints of lockdown. We caught up with Zoe and Leila for a chat about the single and what's been going on over the past few months.
We caught up with Liam Frost to talk about the vinyl reissue of his 2006 Slowdown Family album Show Me How The Spectres Dance, his live show A Love Letter To Bury that is broadcast tonight from The Met and his new project The Fountainhead.
VLURE might only have one released track available, a live video at all, but they've got a lot of people excited about their uncompromising sound and attitude. That excitement is heightened by a second video, a live performance of Euphoria '94 for the SAY Awards last week.
Ist Ist today revealed Under Your Skin, the penultimate in a series of ten videos shot to accompany their independent and vinyl chart top five album Architecture. A simple shoot captures perfectly the claustrophobic cloying nature of the track.
Meal Deal is the second track to be taken from Meal Deal's forthcoming EP Tell Me Your Mind And I'll Tell You Mine due for release on November 20. Clocking in at seven minutes and fifty second, the song takes the listener on a real musical journey with enough ideas for an album in its own right told by Hannah's rich emotive and unique vocals.
The Slow Readers Club follow up Spring's Top 10 album The Joy Of The Return with the eight track 91 Days In Isolation, written during lockdown and recorded as soon as it was possible to get back together in the studio. Featuring singles Yet Again and Two Minutes Hate, it's a much more direct yet nuanced record than its predecessor whilst maintaining the anthemic qualities that have won them so many new fans over the past few years.
Beast Behind Your Eyes is the first single to be taken from Jack In Water's forthcoming debut album due for release in early 2021, a decade after his first release. Following on from last year's Presence EP, the single continues to deal head-on with personal issues that affect him and those around him, this time focusing on members of his family who seek solace and escape in alcohol.
