Indie
News: The enigmatic prince of funk Donny Benét announces new EP, global tour dates and new instrumental single ‘Le Piano’
Sydney-based composer Donny Benét has perfected a brand of uber cool funk – driven by his proficient bass playing – that has caught the world’s attention, with past albums stretching back to his 2011 debut ‘Don’t Hold Back’. COVID restrictions prevented Benét touring his last album ‘Mr Experience’ in 2020 but to salve the pain, …
Live Review: Echo and The Bunnymen – 3Olympia, Dublin 09.02.2022, plus gallery
Last night saw Echo and the Bunnymen arrive to Dublin’s 3Olympia for their show Celebrating 40 years of magical songs. The stage backlit and set in a blanket of thick smoke, and the band take to the stage, opening the night with Going Up / Show of Strength. Ian asks at this point what time …
Album Review: Spoon – Lucifer on the Sofa
Austin, Texas rock’n’rollers Spoon have released their 10th album – Lucifer on the Sofa – on Matador Records and it’s a blistering, thumping, rocking album that Spoon lovers will adore and those new to Spoon will too. It’s the first set of songs in over a decade that the band have recorded in Austin and was written and recorded …
Track: Perth’s Great Gable’s new single ‘Our Love’ is a gliding, soaring slice of sparkling sunshine. Plus tour news.
‘Our Love’, the new single from Westerns Australia’s Great Gable, eases through the consciousness like a bird gliding through a cloudless blue sky: the sparse and evocative music fluttering and turning effortlessly while the vocals are soft and easy. The result is something quite mesmerising, like lying in a floatation tank while your senses drift …
News: The legendary Killing Joke are back with new EP ‘Lords Of Chaos’ and lead off with the scything and visceral title track and news of UK tour.
There is surely a patent for the distinctive Killing Joke sound – the visceral scything guitars, the urgent emotive vocals of Dr Jaz Coleman and the infectious mix of goth, pop and metal resulting in something quite cinematic and euphoric. And the good news is that the band is back after seven years and sounding …
Live Review: The Clockworks / Cheap Teeth / Niches (IVW)- The Factory, Worthing 02.02.2022 plus gallery
What an absolute joy to see gigs back up and down the country to celebrate Independent Venue Week for 2022. I travelled to The Factory in Worthing to see The Clockworks supported by Cheap Teeth and Niches. This is grassroots, and perhaps in one of the more unlikely music venue locations. With Brighton just down …
Track: The deliciously possessed Bandicoot release another triumphant single ‘Monster’ – a ‘B’ side to a special edition 7″ vinyl of ‘FUZZY’, and unveil a live video in the lead up to the release of their debut album.
There is always a frisson of heady excitement when Bandicoot are on the prowl. We premiered their demonic video to the track ‘FUZZY’ last year and reviewed a number of mind-blowing tracks that followed, culminating in the news of their debut album ‘Black After Dark’, due out through Libertino Records on 4 March 2022. Now, …
Track: It’s full speed ahead as The Goa Express are back with the sparkling ‘Everybody In The UK’, and announce live headline dates.
The Goa Express have released a number of glorious singles that have positively shone gold over the last couple of years, and it is great to see them back with the yearning and cinematic single ‘Everybody In The UK’. Laid over a bed of shimmering guitars, the vocals are imbued with a wistful air, preaching …
Track: New Zealand power popsters The Beths unveil ebullient fizzy single with a dark message ‘A Real Thing’, and announce signing to Ivy League Records.
New Zealand band The Beths‘ ability to delivery frenetic ebullient pop is never more evident than in their endearing new single ‘A Real Thing’: a powerhouse of a track that bubbles and sparkles like an opened bottle of shaken fizz. There is an almost naïve delivery, certainly a low-fi blitz and a dash of yearning …
News: Fremantle’s Spacey Jane announce new album ‘Here Comes Everybody’, sweetened even more by the release of the gentle melancholy bop of new single ‘Sitting Up’, and announce UK/European tour.
After the last few years of ever increasing accolades, Spacey Jane continue to impress with the release of the gentle melancholy pop of new single ‘Sitting Up’, accompanying news of their new album ‘Here Comes Everybody’ set for release on 10 June 2022 via AWAL Recordings. ‘Sitting Up’ encapsulates that Spacey Jane sound: crisp, crystalline …