New Sounds

04/06/2024

09/02/2024

Album Review: IDLES - TANGK

⭐️⭐️⭐️ ½

'Is it a step down? No! But it's barely a step sideways and it certainly isn’t a meaningful step forward.'

IDLES have had a strange journey over the last few years. Reaching such a dizzying creative peak in 2018 off the back of their debut Bruta...

08/02/2024

News: Steve Hackett announces new single, Circo Inferno

Set for a release on February 16th, The Circus And The Nightwhale is Hackett’s twenty-sixth solo release, and features Nad Sylvan as one of its vocalists.

Former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett has just unveiled ‘Circo Inferno’, the third video and single from  The Circus And The Nightwhale. Set for a release on February 16th, The Circus And The Nightwhale is Hackett’s twenty-sixth solo release, and features Nad Sylvan as one of its vocalists. ...

19/01/2024

Live Review: Wild Child, The Grand Social, Dublin

A stripped down affair, which showcases a band experimenting in a lush and intimate setting.

Wild Child have stripped down the material for this particular tour, and while 'Alex' suffers from the lack of percussionist, some of the other ballads are perfectly suited to the new backdrop. 'Going In' feels like it was written for Abney, who moves up and down the fretboard with the dedication of...

02/12/2023

Album Review: Peter Gabriel - i/o

⭐️⭐️⭐️

'The anthemic choruses are everywhere for one, but it's not the latter period masterpiece I feel it deserves to be, considering the wait time and sheer quality of Gabriel's catalogue.'

3I was ecstatic when the first full moon of the year rose it’s head. That night not just marked the mighty release of Peter Gabriel’s first (non soundtrack) release in 20 years, but one with Eno, Fripp and the rest of the original Charisma gang. Thinking about it, I couldn’t think of many arti...

30/11/2023

EP Review: Sophia Amato - NY/LON

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Comprising six tracks, the EP stands as an alt R&B love letter to New York. 'A world where imagination knows no bounds'.

4London-based artist Sophia Amato, with roots tracing back to Sicilian heritage, presents a mesmerizing sonic tapestry on her sophomore EP, ‘NY/LON.’ Fusing elements of pop, R&B, and electronica, Amato collaborates with industry luminaries to produce a unique and lyrically driven sound. Drawing ...

27/11/2023

EP Review: Honesty - WHERE R U

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'A five-track exploration into the uncharted territories of contemporary electronic music, UK bass, garage, shoegaze, ambient, and beyond.'

4Leeds-based collective HONESTY introduces us to their sonic odyssey with the release of their debut EP, “WHERE R U,” a five-track exploration into the uncharted territories of contemporary electronic music, UK bass, garage, shoegaze, ambient, and beyond. Formed out of spontaneous sessions at Th...

23/11/2023

Live Review: Chris Wong at Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney

Wong presents 'relaxing tracks are a synthesis of easy listening beats and personal lyrics about Dublin and being a young, mixed raced, creative person in 2023, with all the ups and downs that accompany that.'

4 Photo Credit: Luke McCormack Last Thursday, London was blessed with a visit from Dublin up-and-comer Chris Wong, for a gig at the Paper Dress Vintage Venue, in Hackney. If you haven’t been, it’s a clothes shop with a large upstairs gig space, two bars, and a great smoking area. It’s a good s...

23/11/2023

Live Review: Festevol Express and Jimmy's Last Blast, Liverpool

'A collection of neon lights illuminates the bar, filling up with gig-goers one final time for Evol’s FestEvol’s Express, a showcase of Liverpool’s local talent.'

Photography by Fraser Lester  Sometimes there are venues that capture something special. Somewhere that, every once in a while, you feel like you are in the right place at the right time. For many Liverpudlians, that place was Jimmy’s. Announcing their closure just a few days prior, it’s fair t...

20/11/2023

Single Review: Sock Drawer - Serious Tune

'It’s such a great tune, full of psychedelic pop, beats, indie/synth pop, MGMT and the Bloodhound Gang sprang to mind.'

Brighton based duo, Sock Drawer, have recently released their debut single and video; Serious Tune, which is out now on Salt House Records.  I instantly loved the video, it reminded me of how I felt watching the video for Coffee & TV by Blur, an immediate kind of empathy for our box-man friend.  I...

06/11/2023

Book Review:
Lesley Ann Jones - Fly Away Paul

⭐️⭐️

As engaging as the narrative is, the book still feels shallow, lightweight and inessential, considering the quality of Jones's contemporaries.

As engaging as the narrative is, the book still feels shallow, lightweight and inessential, considering the quality of Jones's contemporaries

04/11/2023

Introducing: Francesco Presentini

'Presentini's work boasts technical acumen and ambition, bridging a gap between Britain and Italy.'

Presentini's work boasts technical acumen and ambition, bridging a gap between Britain and Italy.

31/10/2023

News: Dead Chic unveil the video for Good God

Dead Chic are a rock band, comprising of British and French members, and with 2023’s The Venus Ballroom, they have issued their debut EP. Led by songwriters Andy Balcon & Damien Félix, Dead Chic continues the tradition of songwriter-led rock bands such as Squeeze, The Smiths and The Beatles. Base...

30/10/2023

THE TALE OF THE BUFFALO BROTHERS..
Long ago, a party of Dakota warriors went out on a buffalo hunt. Afterward, they went around to survey their kills. They came upon an injured buffalo who was being guarded by another. The hunters tried to chase the healthy buffalo away, but he wouldn't leave. He even charged at them. He was strong and able to run but he wouldn't leave the other buffalo behind. They decided to leave them be and come back the next day, concluding that the healthy buffalo would leave eventually. When they returned the next day, they were surprised to see that the strong buffalo remained. He stayed right there by the side of his brother. The strong buffalo would gently prod his injured relative, urging him to rise. The hunters left again, deciding to check back the following day. When they came back, they saw that the buffalo brothers were still together- only now, the injured buffalo appeared to be getting stronger. The hunters realized the buffalo might survive after all, thanks to his brother. When they returned on the fourth day, both buffalo were gone, with two sets of buffalo tracks leaving the site where the one once lay dying. The injured buffalo had recovered, thanks to the encouragement and strength of his brother. And so we should follow their example. We will encourage our relatives when they're wounded in body, heart, mind or spirit. We shall not leave them behind when they've fallen, and run with them when they rise. This is the tale of the Buffalo Brothers, as it was told to me by an elder.
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26/10/2023

Introducing: Next Day Shakes

If you do truly have a soft spot for QotSA or simply stoner rock and blues in general, then I’m pretty sure giving Next Day Shakes a go will lead to a very fruitful find.

They're not the finished product yet, but chuck some time and refinement in with the raw energy and vibes they have, and you have damn damn damn good band.

24/10/2023

4The End Forever follows quick on the heels of Lana Del Rey’s quirky Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd, and Rose Tiger’s debut is very much cut from the same idiosyncratic cloth, working on the eccentric underground sound that could just as easily wind up on a Wes Anderson so...

21/10/2023

Live Review: King Krule at The Hammersmith Apollo

'His songs are slow and grainy, and his stage presence does not give you enough to spend fifty quid or whatever it was on a ticket'

For everyone sitting, it was a very different atmosphere. We were all in those old theatre seats that you can really lean into. No standing up, jumping, dancing, or moving at all. Glyndebourne has more Rock n’ Roll in its audience. I have never seen so many people to-ing and fro-ing to the toilet ...

21/10/2023

Single Review: William Doyle - Surrender Yourself

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The song sounds like it could have been the theme for Skins. It’s got a West country/grunge feel about it, very Razorlight or Noah and the Whale. Maybe some Radiohead added.

4On the 4th October William Doyle released a new single, ‘Surrender Yourself’. It is his first piece of music released since 2021’s ‘Great Spans of Muddy Time’. He is still taking his hiatus from his East India Youth moniker, and releasing music purely as William Doyle. Indie producer Mike...

10/10/2023

EP Review: Oliver Beardmore - Tailspin

⭐⭐⭐⭐ ½

'The music is so physical. Everything drifts and sways, hums, bends, screeches and shatters.'

I’m transfixed on Beardmore’s gorgeous vocals, other times, the drums carry me as though I’m a sack of compost on a wheelbarrow. Lacking agency, some might say, I’d disagree.

30/09/2023

Happy 38th Birthday To Tom Waits - Rain Dogs

A classic, which still sounds fresh today. It's first remaster in some years is now available on vinyl. Here is a retrospective from the papers youth.

https://newsoundsmag.co.uk/2019/03/03/raining-on-mental-health-tom-waits-rain-dogs%EF%BB%BF/ #:~:text=Rain%20Dogs%20is%20the%20ninth,all%20walks%20of%20life%20experience.

30/09/2023

Album Review: Teenage Fanclub - Nothing Lasts Forever

⭐️⭐️

'Frankly, ‘I Will Love You’ is the only reason to buy this album, but hardened fans will make something of the bass work, which is frequently startling and constantly inventive.'

Frankly, 'I WIll Love You' is the only reason to buy this album, but hardened fans will make something of the bass work, which is frequently startling and constantly inventive.

25/09/2023

News: Harvey Lee announces new book, Backstage Pass

Backstage Press exhibits Harvey Lee’s memories, whether it’s meeting some of the titans of rock, or piecing together a business plan for companies as noteworthy as Virgin and Microsoft.

Backstage Pass will be released on 14th February 2024, and is said to detail the workings of the music industry. Written over a period of four years, Backstage Press exhibits Harvey Lee’s memories, whether it’s meeting some of the titans of rock, or piecing together a business plan for companies...

19/09/2023

Album Review: Nick Ryder - Edge Of The Universe

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ryder’s penchant for barrelling, brusque arrangements and irrepressibly catchy vocal melodies is up to the calibre expected of a Beatlesque record.

Ryder's penchant for barrelling, brusque arrangements and irrepressibly catchy vocal melodies is up to the calibre expected of a Beatlesque record.

12/09/2023

In Focus: Different Kind of Dough

'The music features hard-hitting bass-heavy rap with melodic interludes, exhibiting the profile of each individual member. A bold and engaging introduction to this exciting new venture, this is the future of collaboration.'

Different Kind Of Dough are a new group. Their debut, Cypher has humour, it has swagger, it’s a house party you want to be at, and it’s, put simply, cool.

06/09/2023

Live Review: Forwards - Bristol 2023

Only two years into its run, Forwards has already established itself as a must on any festival goers calendar.

So, Forwards have done it again, hats off for what is quickly seeming to become the most invigoratingly exciting new festival in all the land.

04/09/2023

Live Review: Notting Hill Carnival, 2023

All ages were together, bopping to the thundering beat. Warm cans of Red Stripe were passed around. Bottles of homemade rum cocktails, bits of fruit swimming in them.

A photo of my first ever Notting Hill Carnival, 1995, age 0. Steve Eason, Hulton Archive, Getty Images The biggest street party in Europe came round once again last bank holiday, an annual tradition that started in 1966, with the Windrush Generation. Despite hardships, poor living conditions and mu...

04/09/2023

Album Review: Maija Sofia - True Love

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Veer beyond the confines of the British Isles to exhibit something entirely universal. Indeed, the album – stirring as it is – proves to be a contender as one of 2023’s best.'

Obviously the fact that she's Irish adds another dimension to the craft, but the lyrics - particularly on the haunting 'Smile Please' - veer beyond the confines of the British Isles to exhibit something entirely universal. Indeed, the album - stirring as it is - proves to be a contender as one of 20...

04/09/2023

Live Review: Erykah Badu at All Points East

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ½

Jungle may have been the headliner, but Erykah stole the show.

4.5Jungle may have been the headliner, but Erykah stole the show.  Last Saturday (26th of August), I made my way to Vicky Park in Hackney for the final day of the weeklong All Points East festival. Stormzy, Aphex Twin, the Strokes and Dermot Kennedy all made appearances throughout the festival.  O...