CHEROKEE RED debut record out TODAY!
CHEROKEE RED’s self titled debut album, self produced album is set to be released today.
The five piece indie group have really produced a great album with such beautiful vocals complimented by perfect musicality it is hard to find anything to moan about towards this album. The band had played a few shows to build up hype about this new CD & have been good enough to let everyone hear their first single off the album ‘Lonely Summer’. How do I describe how I feel about ‘Lonely Summer’? To be honest I am positive that every person who has been asked to describe their sound will say the exact same as I have. CHEROKEE RED and especially their new single sound like the music behind a montage of the happiest moments of your life so far. It’s hard not to have a smile on your face while listening to this.
Don’t just take my word for it. Have a exclusive listen to ‘Lonely Summer’
I USED TO BE A SPARROW album released next week
I Used To Be A Sparrow are set to release their new album ‘You Are An Empty Artist’ next week. That being said I am here to give everyone a wee taste of what to expect from the due hailing from Sweden. These guys have previously been compared to Death Cab For A Cutie & I could not agree with that any more. This Indie, Pop, Punk group have our attention with their raw, heartfelt music.
If their new single ‘Warpaint On Invisible Children’ is anything to go by, this album is sure to impress even the most stubborn music lover.
You can also listen to a remix of this single HERE
WE ARE THE PHYSICS: ‘Go Go Nucleo – > For Science.’
LOUD HORIZON love them long time!
WE ARE THE PHYSICS celebrate the announcement of some ‘live’ dates that take in both Aberdare, Wales and Moscow, Russia (!!) with the video of another track taken from their second album, ‘Your Friend, The Atom,’ which was released last year.
‘Go Go Nucleo – > For Science‘ was directed by Joe and Lloyd Stas of Holomax.
Joe comments:
“With the band being based 283.2 miles away from us it wasn’t that easy to get together and do a video so we succumbed to the ultimate power of Cyberman and sent some files back and forth over the internet. Then we cut it all together with some ace mid century educational videos about the power of the atom and how you have to rinse your eyes out with water if you get nuclear radiation in them. It took us about five months to finish it off as we couldn’t persuade anyone to get brainwashed as we wanted pure authenticity. Luckily our friend Tom was in a period of depression so we convinced him that being brainwashed would help him. He’s dead now.”
This is where you can see the band play in the coming weeks:
29th March Kaluga, Russia
30th March Moscow, Russia
13th April Glasgow Old Hairdresser’s
16th May London Brixton Windmill
17th May Aberdare Elliot’s Bar
18th May Brighton Fools Paradise & Bad Math Alternative Escape
19th May Newcastle Head of Steam
EMPIRE MACHINES: ‘Proper Ghost Man.’
EMPIRE MACHINES are a four-piece indie band from Austin, Texas. Although originally formed in 2009 by High School buddies Matt Blackwell (vocals, guitar) and Trey McKinley (bass, backing vocals) the present line-up was not completed until last year when Clellan Hyatt (drums, backing vocals) joined, adding to the talents of James Boriack (guitar, keys) who had been enlisted the year prior.
Presently working on their second EP which should be ready in time for the summer, the band have been playing some ‘unofficial’ shows around their home city during the recent SXSW Festival … their first venture gig-wise along the famous 6th Street!
Ahead of the new EP, the following track, recorded at the tail end of last year, has been released. I’m not sure if this will make it onto that particular release as I’m led to believe that although they are really happy about the song itself, it doesn’t quite ‘fit,’ alongside the others that they are working on.
I’ll take that as a good sign!
‘Proper Ghost Man,’ would certainly compliment any collection of songs, I’d say. It definitely shows how the band has grown from their the release of their debut eponymous EP in 2011 (see below.) There is a real feel of ‘confidence’ in this track, a notion emphasised by the steady, metronomic stomping beat as it marches right across the track.
On the face of it, there may appear to be not too much going on here, but I reckon this is one of those tracks you need to actively listen to: to merely pass this song off as ‘indie rock,’ would not really give a true picture – I’m not so sure I’ve heard anyone blend ‘shoegaze’ and ‘psych,’ before, but that’s what I’m hearing at any rate. The vocals are rather nicely mono-toned, verging on the ‘disinterested,’ but are lightened by some subtle harmonies and the sparingly used whine of synths. The guitars shimmer in the backing, breaking out for little, light ‘indie-style,’ solos.
Like fellow Austin-ites (??) and current LOUD HORIZON favourites Black Books, EMPIRE MACHINES buck the indie music ‘norm,’ in that they are trying to have their music heard outwith the confines of their home city …. just as the rest of the world, it seems, is trying to have theirs heard inside!
If the forthcoming EP stands up to ‘Proper Ghost Man,’ then they may just get their wish sooner rather than later.
(8/10)
(Here’s the earlier, debut release … available as a free download.)
CRYBABY SPECIAL and THE MONSTERS: ‘Murder In The Wall.’
CRYBABY SPECIAL & THE MONSTERS are a core trio (expanding to five for live performances) from the Medway area of South East England. They came to the notice of LOUD HORIZON through mention by old favourites and label-mates, Theatre Royal, and being on the excellent The Preservation Society Presents record label, I just knew they were going to be well worth checking out.
Formed only last year, their blend of British ska and gypsy punk has seen them attract a loyal following .. as well as a ‘five star’ review in Artrocker Magazine (these guys know what they’re talking about!) for their earlier release, ‘No Excuses.’
The band’s debut album of the same name is due for release on April 22nd and from that, here’s the video for the next single, ‘Murder In The Wall.’
I think you can expect to hear a lot more of CRYBABY SPECIAL & THE MONSTERS …. certainly on this blog anyway!
DIAMOND RUGS: ‘Hightail.’
Maybe you’ve had a crap day today; maybe you’re about to have a crap day today! I guess it depends on the time zone from which you’re reading this.
Whatever – hit the ‘play’ button on this little beauty, and everything will seem alright!
DIAMOND RUGS are the blue-collar super-group featuring members of Deer Tick, Black Lips, Los Lobos, Dead Confederate & Six Finger Satellite, and they are set to release their first album. The eponymous long-player will be available from next week (25th March) and although I have not yet heard it, if this single (released on the same day) is anything to go by, then we’re in for a treat.
From the opening drum rhythm (Chubby Checker-esque) to the vocal delivery of John McCauley (Jonathan Richman-esque) ‘Hightail’ will have your feet tapping from start to finish.
I’ll make sure I get round to the album in the next few days and get a word or two posted here. Think it may be one to watch out for!
REVERE: ‘I Won’t Blame You.’
It must have been before LOUD HORIZON adopted this present format, but the band REVERE have been featured before on this blog … way, way back! I can’t get my hands on the EP that was reviewed (I must get my filing system sorted!) but I do recall noting that the layered sound they produced had shades of Arcade Fire about them.
I believe they released a few EPs and followed that with their debut album,back in 2010. Since then their stock has risen and support from several broadsheets has been augmented by regular slots on Radio 6Music.
Theirs is a wide, expansive sound – cinematic I guess you could say, and twists and turns all ways in dramatic fashion. Their second album, ‘My Mirror / Your Target,’ is due for release later this year, but right now they have made the first single ‘I Won’t Blame You‘ available as a free download from their bandcamp page.
Go get it!
(And here’s the video that accompanies the track:)
THE DEADLINE SHAKES: ‘Boy.’
I know, I know ….. ‘here he goes again,’ you’re thinking.
Let me take you back to 22nd August last year. That’s the date LOUD HORIZON first brought news of Glasgow’s THE DEADLINE SHAKES. At hat point, they had made no recordings and had played only a handful of shows. This is what LOUD HORIZON said then.
Since that date, my conviction has has proved justified with the likes of STEVE LAMACQ, TOM ROBINSON, VIC GALLOWAY, JIM GELLATLY, ARTROCKER, THE LIST and loads more adding their support.
Their new single, ‘Boy‘ is scheduled for release on the Flowers in the Dustbin label on 18th March and the video, which was directed by band member Iain McKinstry, photographed by Gregor MacEwan and filmed on location in Platform Theatre, Glasgow is shown below. (If you’re wondering why The Soundcloud link is also posted, it’s so that the track is also played out via the LOUD HORIZON page on the HYPE MACHINE.)
TIGERMONKEY: ‘Pretty Mad.’
Oh God!
Am I going to regret this …. it’s all so alien to LOUD HORIZON?
(But, whisper it, TIGERMONKEY could just be my new ‘guilty pleasure!) Billing themselves as a ‘Gangsta-Nerd duo with sassy lyrics ‘n’ fat beats,’ theirs is not a style of music you’ll often (if ever again) see on this blog.
But as Madeleine and Guy, who put TIGERMONKEY together last year and whose first release was ‘Do The Mobot‘ in December, say: “We are all about freedom and fun. We highlight issues and make light of them, life shouldn’t be so serious! And we do it all with a poetic yet comedic finesse!“
You can’t argue with that!
OK – so maybe it is a little Timmy Mallett meets The Ting Tings … but what the hell!
Something for the weekend, anyone…?
BROWN BEAR & THE BANDITS: ‘Olive Tree.’
The coastal town of Largs on the West of Scotland is probably better known for its famous ice-cream parlour than for producing credible, pop / soulful bands with masses of potential. But that now seems set to change with the emergence of three-piece BROWN BEAR & THE BANDITS.
Around a year ago, they released their ‘Truth Or Dare‘ EP and the gig-going public of Glasgow and around sat up and listened! There has been a general buzz going around these parts since then and now, with the release of their first single proper, ‘Olive Tree,’ the likes of BBC Introducing are finally picking up on the vibe.
I reckon that ‘vibe’ will soon turn to fully blown ‘hype’ shortly. So, if you’re in Scotland and fancy being able to make that claim of ’I saw them play before they were famous,’ then this is where you need to be:
Friday 23rd February : Tolbooth, Stirling (supporting Miniature Dinosaurs)
Friday 1st March : MV Festival, Aviemore
Thursday 25th April : Hootananny, Inverness **
Friday 26th April : King Tuts, Glasgow **
Saturday 27th April : PJ Malloys, Dunfermline **
Sunday 28th April : Electric Circus, Edinburgh **
(** – Revolving headline dates with Miniature Dinosaurs)
…And here are a couple of tracks from last year’s ‘Truth Or Dare’ EP just for good measure:
GUITARS HAVE GHOSTS: ‘Green Lover.’
I’ve been at this blog lark a good few years now (almost six years for LOUD HORIZON in this kind of format) and so I have learnt to take what PR Companies and bands’ ‘agents’ say with a pinch of salt. And as a cynical Scot … well, you know …!!
London based GUITARS HAVE GHOSTS have been described as ‘a formidable rock force,‘ and ‘at the forefront of London’s live music circuit for the past two years.‘ And you know what ….. based on this latest single release, it would be most unfair of me to doubt the accuracy of the claim.
Formed back in 2010, the lads have crafted their songs playing ‘live’ and last year self-released their first single ‘Superchild.‘
‘Green Lover‘ is the follow-up and is an anthemic rock track, with a nice transition at mid-point – just the kind of song that you could easily imagine earning that ‘formidable rock force,’ tag.
(I really should be more trusting!!!)
(‘Green Lover’ is released on March 11th)
(7.5 / 10)
GARDEN OF ELKS: ‘Rowan’s Magical Bucket.’
At the time of writing the post back in late November that announced the arrival of Glasgow’s GARDEN OF ELKS, it was not known exactly what song would be the second ‘A’ of the the band’s debut release, the ‘double-A-sided’ ‘This Morning We Are Astronauts‘ single. Well, somewhere along the way (probably ’cause of Christmas and my fortnight’s holiday straight after) it completely eluded me that the honour went to the following track, ‘Rowan’s Magical Bucket,’ which has now been set to animation.
But I’m right on the case this time! GARDEN OF ELKS’ next single goes by the name of ‘Floaty,’ and will be released as a digital download in March, with a limited batch of tapes on sale for one night only – the 7th of March in Nice ‘N’ Sleazy (Glasgow), where they will be supporting Scottish unsigned music veterans, Campfires In Winter.
SECRECY OF STATE + KILL GOLIATH = ?
OK – so here’s today’s little puzzle to keep you occupied for the next, ooh, five seconds.
When Irish bands SECRECY OF STATE decided to join forces with their compatriots KILL GOLIATH, what was the resultant sound like?
As your teacher would have undoubtedly said, here’s the ‘working out.’ (At least, that’s what it was called in my day in Glasgow!)
So, we have:
PLUS
EQUALS
(The full answer, in video form, and written explanation can be found in a LOUD HORIZON post of 6th February )
HADOUKEN!: ‘Levitate.’
Probably not the kind of band you’d expect to see here on LOUD HORIZON (with 248k+ Facebook ‘Likes’ already, they’re hardly in need of more publicity!) and the video’s already gone viral so you’ve probably seen it already … but just in case there are other ‘slow’ people out there like me, here’s sound of HADOUKEN‘s new single, ‘Levitate,’ which is due for release on March 11th, together with the equally impressive and brilliant video that accompanies it.
HADOUKEN! will be touring the UK in April, and you can catch them at the following venues:
April 17 – Norwich Waterfront
April 18 – Leeds The Cockpit
April 19 – Glasgow Arches
April 20 – Newcastle Academy
April 22 – Sheffield Leadmill
April 23 – Birmingham HMV Institute
April 24 – Manchester Academy 2
April 25 – London Electric Ballroom
April 26 – Brighton Concorde 2
April 27 – Bristol Fleece
PHILHARMONGREL: ‘Sitting Pretty Are Ugly Things.’
PHILHARMONGREL are a seven-piece math-rock band from Ireland, boasting two bass players and two drummers. When I say ‘math-rock’ I use that term loosely as I reckon there’s more uniformity and melody about their music than you’d normally expect from a band who has that particular genre thrown at them. Anyway ….
I THINK the reason behind the doubling-up of the rhythm section may be due at least in part to the fact that PHILHARMONGREL originated from two different bands. Band member John McGrath explains:
“In July of 2012 at the height of the Greek economy crisis we set upon a tour of Greece as two separate bands, Kill Goliath and Secrecy Of State. When the opportunity of a recording session was offered in place of some cancelled gigs, due to the unrest at the time, we entered the studio with the aim of writing one song together. SPAGU was conceived with surprisingly great ease, drawing on what was happening around us in Greece and utilizing the skills of all 7 musicians. We agreed to shoot a video on our second day of downtime. Some locals told us about a great location in the mountains, overlooking Athens. The spray paint was bought and the video was shot in haste as the day came to a close and the light failed.”
The following single, ‘Sitting Pretty Are Ugly Things,‘ is the first from the band, and is a taster if you like, for an EP that will be released in the coming months.
Should prove interesting.
THE FAT WHITE FAMILY: ‘Cream Of The Young.’
Had your dinner yet?
This is quite brilliant! In both an audio and visual sense!
The music’s weird, in a great way, and you wonder just where it’s going. It’s fresh and completely innovative, but to call it ‘quirky’ would be like suggesting Caligula enjoyed the occasional evening-in with a few friends.
THE FAT WHITE FAMILY are from Peckham and Brixton in London, and are determined to confront the ‘yuppie’ takeover of their towns with havoc and, well … something ‘real.’ And it seems to be working, as they are right now becoming one of most sought after bands in the metropolis.
Judge for yourself – I reckon there’s a lot more to THE FAT WHITE FAMILY than simply their ‘shock & awe’ tactics of their first year together, when they seemed to attract attention as much for various incidents of chaos, blood, nudity and weirdness as their music.
THE THESPIANS: ‘Under Seige.’
You know how sometimes, just sometimes, you KNOW that you’re going to enjoy a record within the first few seconds of its opening? Well, here’s one that had me bouncing around before the reverb from the first guitar riff had faded!
THE THESPIANS are a Liverpool four-piece, who on the evidence of this, their latest single are going to be the new darlings of Radio 6Music and Festival fodder for the forseeable future. Without knowing too much about them, I sense an air of ‘coolness’ and ‘rebellion’ in equal doses, just from this video – maybe out the same garage-rock school as the likes of The Strokes or The Vaccines, but who cares?
More please!
(Ok – their earlier video for ‘Reason To Reason’ is also added below)
(‘Under Siege’ is released on 7” vinyl (limited edition 250 pressing) Monday 4th February 2013 on Eighties Vinyl Records)
(9/10)
THE PHYSICS HOUSE BAND: ‘Titan’ (+ free download.)
Brighton’s The Physics House Band have been performing to an ever-growing audience of fans with word spreading right across the UK. Sam Organ, Adam Hutchison and Dave Morgan formed the band in the summer of 2011, bonding over a collective love of fusion, Ninja Tune and Warp Records. Whilst citing a “passion to make music that has no shelf life or trend” the name gives an insight to the bands intentions. “It’s physics because the important elements are sound, heat, light and electricity. Not fashion.”
What I like about these guys is their ability to pretty much infuse the influences of the past four decades into their music. ‘Titan’ for example has definite Seventies ‘prog’ tendencies and I believe their shortly to be released six track EP amounts to ‘a twenty-six-minute psychedelic excursion through a menagerie of musical styles, moods and aural textures.’
(You can download the track ‘Titan,’ here)
You can see THE PHYSICS HOUSE BAND play at the following venues:
Sat 13 Apr UK LEEDS Dirty Otter Festival (info)
Tue 16 Apr UK MIDDLESBROUGH Mixtape 18+ FREE (info)
Wed 17 Apr UK GLASGOW Bar Bloc 18+ £5 (info)
Thu 18 Apr UK YORK The Basement 16+ £5 (info)
Fri 19 Apr UK LIVERPOOL MelloMello 18+ £5 (info)
Sat 20 Apr UK MANCHESTER Kraak Gallery 18+ £5 (info)
Sun 21 Apr UK NORWICH Hog in Armour 18+ £5 (info)
Mon 22 Apr UK GUILDFORD Boileroom 18+ £5 (info)
Tue 23 Apr UK BRISTOL Louisiana 16+ £5 (info)
Wed 24 Apr UK WINCHESTER Railway 16+ £5 (info)
Thu 25 Apr UK SOUTHAMPTON Avondale House 16+ FREE (info)
Fri 26 Apr UK PLYMOUTH White Rabbit 16+ FREE (info)
Sun 28 Apr UK BRIGHTON TBC 18+ TBC (info)
Mon 29 Apr UK LONDON Old Blue Last 18+ FREE (info)
LAZY TALK: ‘Luzaville.’
LAZY TALK are a five-piece coming f that old London town, fusing reggae, ska, indie and punk. They have already been picked up by Radio 1Xtra and will play support to the likes of Faithless and The Happy Mondays later in the year. Their debut EP is set for release on February 25th and the lead track is posted below by way of a teaser / taster.
I can’t find an awful lot more on the band at the moment, but feel sure that more will emerge as the year progresses and LAZY TALK get the airing that this track, at least, merits.
(You can see from the number of hits the video has had that LOUD HORIZON is a little late to the party, but hey …. ‘Luzaville,’ takes me back to my youth, so it’s definitely worth an airing here. Love it!)
THE FADES: ‘Free Little Pill.’
‘Free Little Pill’ is the latest release from London’s THE FADES. Due out on St Valentines Day, it is a double-A-side single, the other track, ‘Eight Times A Day,’ being lifted from the band’s acclaimed debut album, ‘Ragnarock.‘ (Is there an intended correlation between the two track titles and the day of release?)
The former song is not what I had expected from the garage-rockers, but its vocal harmonies and guitar remind me a little of early Teenage Fanclub which is always a good thing!
I love it!
(‘Free Little Pill’ / Eight Times A Day’ is released through Genepool Records on 14th February 2013)
(9/10)
ORPHANS: adopted by Mike Watt (for one night only.)
I wouldn’t normally plug individual gigs since most people reading this will come from another country never mind the same city as this show.
However, ORPHANS are a Glasgow band that I have liked a while now, so as a wee ‘one-off’ here’s details of an upcoming show with il Sogno Del Marinaio, featuring the legendary Mike Watt (Stooges, Minutemen, fIREHOSE) at the Art School in Glasgow on the 2nd March
If you’re around Glasgow on that date and fancy going along, here’s a link leading to where you can buy discounted price tickets.
I’ll admit I know nowt of the headliners, but here’s why I like ORPHANS – partly ‘coz of the music, but also because they have made this track available as a free download!
Artrocker New Blood – THE DEADLINE SHAKES
LOUD HORIZON recently joined hot new Glasgow band THE DEADLINE SHAKES for a beer and a chat. You can read the resultant ARTROCKER ‘NEW BLOOD‘ feature by clicking here.
For one night only (I think.) WE ARE THE PHYSICS.
To ‘celebrate’ the end of the world which supposedly happened at eleven minutes past eleven this morning, WE ARE THE PHYSICS have released this video … which will be taken down tomorrow (Saturday 22nd December. Maybe.)
I’m not gonna waste any time over it … the soundtrack is one of my favourite songs (‘Olivia Neutron Bomb,’ ) taken from the band’s latest album, ‘Your Friend, The Atom,’
IVAN & ALYOSHA: ‘Running For Cover.’
IVAN & ALYOSHA are actually a four-piece band from Seattle. Formed initially by Tom Wilson and Ryan Crabary in 2007 when they met while working on separate projects. Their first release, I believe as a duo, was an EP entitled ‘The Verse, The Chorus.’
But while their project had a name, the band themselves didn’t! However, on discovering a mutual liking for the writings of Fyodor Dostoevsky they opted for IVAN & ALYOSHA, taken from the Russian writer’s ‘Brothers Karamazov’ novel.
The following track, ‘Running For Cover,‘ is the first single to be lifted from their forthcoming debut album, ‘The Times We Had,’ which will be released on 26th February 2013.
This is one of those songs that quietly drifts into your subconscious with it’s lush harmonies and warm vocals. It builds in depth towards the mid-point and for some reason, it sounds just perfect as I listen to it for the first time on a frost-bound, chilly winter’s morning
