Loudhorizon's Blog

CRYBABY SPECIAL: ‘No Excuses.’

loudhorizon — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 05:00:34 +0000

Coming from the current musical hotbed that is the Medway area of South East England, it was perhaps inevitable that CRYBABY SPECIAL should spurn the advances of more, perhaps ‘established’ labels and record their debut album with the excellent ‘local’ The Preservation Presents … This after all is the label that broke long-time LOUD HORIZON tips, Theatre Royal and is current home of the equally magnificent Lupen Crook.

The freedom of expression afforded by such a label is worth its weight in gold to a band such as CRYBABY SPECIAL ( I see they’ve dropped the ‘& The Monsters’ tag) who espouse the true DIY ethic by scraping by on finances whilst still managing to play virtually every gig on offer and producing their own hand-made CDs and merchandise.

This ten track album runs to around thirty minutes and is filled with a sweaty blend of gypsy punk, ska and oom-pah – all delivered with a menacing snarl of punk.

The vocals throughout are rasping and at times rather manic in a kind of psychotic way. The style of music is completely different, but without seeing the band first hand, I think there are similarities in the ethos and ‘feel’ of the band to Glasgow’s Mummy Short Arms – if that means anything to anyone.

The album comes across very much as you’d expect to hear from a ‘live’ performance. There’s a genuine excitement about the production and you are left feeling slightly exhausted by its end – as if you’d been actually skanking it big-time down the front at one of their shows.

I know there’s a fair bit of gypsy punk around at the moment, so it takes something a little bit special to stand out from the crowd and I feel ‘No Excuses’ provides this. Every track is really’ meaty’ in its sound and where the ska influences merge, it’s with more of a full-bodied Capdown aggression than simply a twee, tinny backbeat. (Check out ‘One Thing Left To Try’ and ‘I Got It Wrong’ for starters!)

This is the style that more grabs my attention and for what it’s worth, is the direction I’d personally prefer the band to follow.

‘Murder In The Wall‘ though, despite the title, has more of a bouncy, ‘light’ feel to it, with the chorus and sax hook being more Bad Manners than skacore! ‘One Winged Bird’ features that stomped ‘oom pah’ refrain I briefly referred to earlier. It’s very dramatic, and with the main vocals more spoken than sung it more than simply doffs its hat to the vaudeville style. And in that respect, I could probably pay no greater compliment than to say there’s a wee hint of Alex Harvey in there – especially so when it comes to the maniacal laugh that ends the track.

The mere thought of a ‘Beelzebub Boogie’ tickles me and with this album-closing track, CRYBABY SPECIAL emphasise the fun side to their music writings. If I were to say there were shades of early Madness about this track, I’d be meaning that in a very complimentary way.

My only little niggling doubt about this album is that the style, for the moment at least, doesn’t allow too much room for variation, with their being a bit of familiarity running through the tracks.

That said, it’s still one heck of a debut, and as an advert for their high-octane live shows, it’s a definite winner!

(Released through The Preservation Society Presents … on 6th May 2013)

(9/10)

[COLIN JACKSON]

TRANSPLANTS free download this week only!

loudhorizon — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:09:32 +0000

As you can tell, LOUD HORIZON is undergoing some changes & will have a new website in the next couple of days. This would explain why there is not many posts this week as I am trying to get everything sorted for the new look LOUD HORIZON which will hopefully launch soon.
ANYWAY! I am here to tell you all that U.S punk royalty, otherwise known as TRANSPLANTS have released their new single ‘Come Around’ FREE to download until the end of this week only. Make sure that you get your FREE download before time runs out. The full album ‘In A Warzone’ will be out in mid June & I for one am VERY exited about it.
GET YOUR FREE DOWNLOAD OF ‘COME AROUND’ HERE!

You can also listen to the track on the Youtube link below.

(I may have gone, but I’ve not forgotten) Part 2: THE RAMONES

loudhorizon — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 13:20:20 +0000

No reason ……. just because!

[COLIN JACKSON]

(I may have gone, but I’ve not forgotten) Part 1: THE CREEPING IVIES.

loudhorizon — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 13:13:50 +0000

Just stopped by to add this little gem from Glasgow punk and rollers, THE CREEPING IVIES.

This is the new, official video for the track ‘Spinning’ which in turn is lifted from the band’s excellent ‘Stay Wild‘ album.

Go get it!

[COLIN JACKSON]

THE LAZLO DEVICE: ‘Uncertain Beginnings’ / ‘Cora.’

loudhorizon — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 12:53:14 +0000

The group of friends that would eventually morph into the London band known as THE LAZLO DEVICE set out on their voyage of musical discovery back in the summer of 2010. Their course has altered slightly during that time, as have the crew, but they’ve now set a steady course that should see them leave visual traces on the radar of those that seek music with a bit of depth.

They have of course built a considerable following from playing around some of London’s established venues these past couple of years and just over a year ago they released their debut ‘Step Forward’ EP, which saw THE LAZLO DEVICE hone their sound and move in a slightly different direction with added synths and backing vocals. This in turn saw the lads garner further critical acclaim and with a fresh bunch of songs almost ready to be aired, the band have decided to issue two of the tracks from that earlier recording as a double-a-sided single.

The aptly named ‘Uncertain Beginnings,’ starts out in a very classical mode. The slow and rather downbeat piano is joined by hushed and slightly depressed sounding vocals for the first minute and a half, and despite the warm, gentle harmonies I was wondering where this was headed. The answer comes in the remaining two and half minutes where the pace perks up and the song develops into something altogether more dramatic. In fact, there are two further ‘movements’ to ‘Uncertain Beginnings‘: that initial change in beat gives the song a sort of deliberate and plodding feel for a minute or so before the piano arpeggios become more frantic, the music louder and the whole piece blossoms into a full-on final flourish that skirts the boundaries of gypsy-punk.

‘Cora,’ couldn’t be much more different!

I’m very much into my psych music and marvel at the various interpretations that bands come up with for this particular genre. You have some that present a dry, sun-drenched, stoner-type of desert rock; some teeter towards space-rock in their presentation. Others take on an altogether more trippy, psychedelic feel. THE LAZLO DEVICE seem to lean more towards the latter … but there’s something quintessentially English / British that’s difficult to explain about their delivery. The guitar effects are used to (um) good effect in supplementing the synths and the steady bass line and added reverb give the song great depth and atmosphere. The quieter vocals provide an interesting juxtaposition to the crashing sound of the instruments and this, without doubt is my personal favourite of the two tracks on offer here.

In fact, I’d say I would like to hear the band develop their sound around this particular style. Good stuff indeed!

As mentioned, both these tracks featured on last year’s EP release, but if you missed out on that, you can get hold of them both (again!) on THE LAZLO DEVICE’s debut album (as yet unnamed) which is due for release this summer.

(8.5 / 10)

[COLIN JACKSON]

FUTURECOP! drop two new singles.

loudhorizon — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:52:20 +0000

Before I start talking about FUTURECOP! new single’s ‘Misanthropist Wolf’ & ‘Superheroes’ I just have to warn you now that your ears and mind will be blown away when you listen to these guys. They have been able to instantly make a huge fan out of me, something that is so hard to do.

Swiftly moving on… FUTURECOP! consist of two mates from Manchester who started making music together in 2007. Their first single ‘Atlantis 1997′ drew in great success, however, I have the feeling that when the two new singles get out to the mass public… It will only cast a shadow over previous releases. FUTURECOP! will release their first official album ‘Hopes, Dreams & Alienation’ later in the summer. For now I am so happy to give everyone a sneak peak to the single ‘Misanthropist Wolf’ here.

It doesn’t really matter if you are into art rock/punk/indie/club or pop. If you walked into a party or a club with FUTURECOP! blaring in the background, everyone will have a good time!

MYKEL new video/EP ‘Hold On’

loudhorizon — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:18:17 +0000

MYKEL has released a new music video for the title track off his new EP ‘Hold On’ released on Ntrang Music. The Irish singer/songwriter/producer is set to have a massive year in 2013 after his last release ‘Sweet Valentine’ proved to catch the attention of a lot of people, NME to name one.

His new single ‘Hold On’ and its accompanying video clearly marks out the inspiration behind the music. Having a friend who has experienced a massive loss in their life, MYKEL decided to write a song to show his support and love to a dear friend. ‘Hold On’ is a straight up beautiful acoustic song that has been complimented well with electronic drums in the background. The vocals on this track are just so raw that you can even feel the emotion driven to write this song, even after the tenth time listening to it (believe me, I tried it.) It truly is a joy to have heard MYKEL who I am sure I will hear more about as the year progresses.

GIL DE RAY album review!

loudhorizon — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:26:05 +0000

The Following review was done by my good friend Chris Kelman.

“Gil De Ray – ‘Infect the Culture’

Purposely releasing a pay as you please record on the same day Margaret Thatcher passed away should be perceived as deliberate and riddled with left-wing intent. Throw in titles such as ‘Catholic Boy’ and ‘Kill the Rich’, then you quickly get the point Gil De Ray is attempting to make here. Thankfully Infect the Culture leaves patronizing statements at a minimum and instead soaks itself with delicious grooves and party induced lo-fi saccharine rhythms.

The scuzzy and detuned guitars mixed with the insipidly rasping melodies on ‘Sick Living’ would sit right at home on a Japandroids or Wavves record. With that, perhaps we have the only thing that detracts from this record. A lack of originality and consistency, ‘Amphetamine Psycho’ for instance should have been left in the cutting room. Thankfully these small flaws are overcome by a youthful enthusiasm and contagion which will be the key to unlocking Gil Del Ray’s potential and promise on future releases.”

To listen to Gil’s music then visit his Tumblr site HERE!

THE WONDER YEARS new video & album info!

loudhorizon — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:18:46 +0000

THE WONDER YEARS are set to release their new album ‘The Greatest Generation’ on May 13th but have released a lyric video on You tube of their new single ‘Dismantling Summer.’

The single is nothing new from what you would expect to hear from this band who have pretty much brought Pop Punk back to it’s prime after it was deemed that after 2004 Pop Punk was ‘dead.’ Although they have kept true to their sound, some people may be asking for something a little fresher from these guys, however, being a fan on this band myself I am quite content with how they have gone about their new single.

You can check out the lyric video for THE WONDER YEARS new single below & cast your mind back to 2004 when Pop Punk was at it’s best, but for now.. This song does the trick!

STILL BUST new debut album & video teaser!

loudhorizon — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 00:58:36 +0000

This is a very exiting feature for me to post as I grew up listening to Hardcore Punk music. STILL BUST are a four piece band from the UK and have announced their debut album will be released 20th May on Lockjaw Records. Their debut single off this album is titled “How Much We Sound Like Rise Against (and other things we shouldn’t say to each other.)” This song is a cracking track which I just can’t help to compare it to my favorite Hardcore Punk band of all time ‘FIVE KNUCKLE’ who were the UK’s most under rated bands ever. The single’s intro is a bit off putting, however, after the first 5 seconds it just kicks into pure organised chaos!

I strongly recommend anyone who is into fast Punk or Hardcore Punk to get this CD when it is released next month! I personally will be looking forward to snatching a copy of this CD going by the single alone. Here is a small album teaser for everyone to enjoy.

STILL BUST FACEBOOK PAGE!