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Track: Cousin Betty pays tribute to the glories of the mixtape in the romping single ‘Tape Hiss’
There is a very specific audience which will recognise the many obscure references to names like Peter Russell Clark, TDK cassette advertisements and Countdown in the new single, ‘Tape Hiss’ from Australian band Cousin Betty. Namely, Australians growing up in the eighties when the music show Countdown ruled the airwaves and provided a musical education …
SEE: Monsieur Minimal – ‘Easteria’: the new sound of Greek psych
WELL, wow. If you haven’t fallen into the world of Monsieur Minimal, that’s quite the place to go for a sun-kissed visit. He’s outta Greece with a really pretty entrancing take on psych-pop; there’s a little bit of summer easy listening in there, powerpoppery à la say, Todd Rundgren; a whole whack of Khruangbinesque Eastern …
Track: Buddy Glass paints a poignant tale of family and loss in ‘The Spirit of a Small Town’
In my review of Buddy Glass’s album ‘Wow and Flutter’ last year, I said the album was absolute delight: an immersive journey into the poetic and expressive world of Buddy Glass. Glass has just released a poignant video for the track ‘The Spirit of a Small Town’ – a song dealing with memories of his …
TRACK: Confucius MC – ‘Lanterns’: the first essential UK hip-hop of ’21 has entered the building
IT MIGHT just be the first properly essential UK hip-hop track of 2021, and it comes from Peckham’s Confucius MC, longtime friend of Kae Tempest, teacher, outreacher; and it’s a readymade headnod classic, fo sho, in which Confucius is joined in the flow by Sonnyjim, Verbz, and Jehst, a loop of bells glimmering over a …
TRACK: Magnus John Anderson -‘Elkhorn’: studio wizard steps out with modern compositional piano
ONE OF the sea changes we’re seeing from all this viral upheaval is the emergence of artists finding their own voice in order to create, whereas previously they might have been happy in a more collaborative set-up; or, indeed, were putting their sonic skills to the service of others in production, mastering, arrangement and other …
Track: The Chills brighten our solar system with new track ‘Monolith’ and announcement of a new album
The sun shines that little brighter and warmer this morning – even here at the southern edge of the world – with news of a new album from New Zealand legends The Chills. Due out on 14 May 2021, ‘Scatterbrain’ is the band’s seventh studio album and will be highly anticipated by those enamoured of …
TRACK: Field Works – ‘La’ali’: Arabic poetry and cosmic Americana preludes ninth instalment in the series
FIELD WORKS is less a band, more a collective exploration of the various musics that cross over and find each other out on the edges of their respective stylistic disciplines, fuse, enter the wider sphere of the ambient. It’s all helmed by Indianapolis producer Stuart Hyatt, who began the series – the forthcoming album is …
TRACK: Firestations – ‘The Circular’: bright as a button indiepop drop preludes March EP
LOST MAP’S quirkily lovely alt.popsters Firestations have released a really bright and moreish single, “The Circular”, ahead of their March EP, Melted Medium, which sings with a indiepop summeriness last heard around these parts with Real Estate – or, going further back, maybe even The Railway Children or something on Flying Nun. Bloody lovely, it …
Premiere: Austrian artist Tanzos provides words of comfort in the shining track ‘Nevermind’
Having played in one of Austria’s most successful indie bands Zeronic (with supports for New Order and The Kills), Tanzos is forging his own path, releasing a solo album back in 2017 and now with a new single, ‘Nevermind’ to be released on 29 January 2021 – which Backseat Mafia is honoured to premiere today. …
SEE: Nick Schofield – ‘Ambient Architect’: modular retro-futurism full of light and grace
NICK SCHOFIELD is a Montréalais composer in love with modular synths, and who has a new album, Glass Gallery, coming out early next month, composed entirely on the legendary Prophet 600. And it’s very beautiful; uplifting, even, music for a bright future we’ve yet to realise. By day he’s a member of singer-songwriter Devon Welsh‘s …