The Fat Angel Sings

On this record, the band Kings Of Leon harkens back to their gritty origins while simultaneously finding new gears.

Kings Of Leon are back & bigger than ever with their 9th full-length studio album, ‘Can We Please Have Fun’. as the title suggests, it’s a document of one of this era’s great rock & roll bands cutting loose, trying new things, and, yes, having some fun. recorded at dark horse studio and produced with new collaborator kid harpoon (harry styles, florence + the machine) the album sees a new side of Kings Of Leon. it’s the sound of a band unified in vision and purpose, freed from any expectations, and the album the band says they’ve always wanted to make.

The Grammy award-winning, multi-platinum rock band Kings of Leon are coming back big with their 9th full-length studio album, “Can We Please Have Fun”.

“Untame the Tiger” emerges 15 years after Mary Timony’s previous release, following the end of a significant relationship and framed by the passing of Timony’s father and mother. “This was the hardest thing I’ve been through,” Timony explained, “Every week I had to manage a new crisis.” While this appears to reflect Timony’s usual struggle with imposter syndrome and wavering self-confidence, “Untame the Tiger” resonates with both poignancy and vulnerability, each lyric and note peeling back layers of intricate emotions.

Throughout the album, Timony’s profound emotional journey stemming from the end of a significant relationship and the loss of her parents deeply shapes her lyrical content. Whether she personifies loneliness as a haunting presence whose persistent knocks at the door are inescapable or navigates themes of loss, Timony skilfully combines pure, unfiltered rock with profound depth and meaning.

Her approach may seem one-dimensional, but that’s precisely why it appeals: a guitar hero as esteemed as Timony wouldn’t be expected to hold back on her strumming prowess, just as a chef wouldn’t be reprimanded for creating a tasty meal. The riffs in “Untame the Tiger” complement the themes being explored without overshadowing the lyrical content, creating an experience akin to the sheer bliss of discovering your favourite band for the first time.

There’s a euphonious heart double-fast-pumping beneath lovable licks and dangerously infectious lyrical twists that fires these jangly songs along like the proverbial train full of gasoline. Where previous record ‘Modern Fiction’ wore its influences proudly on its sleeves, this time round, they’ve ripped off their shirts, spread their wings and are taking off entirely under their own independent volition.

Their last album reached dizzy heights, featuring prominently in our end of year round up, and we think that this one even out-soars that, gliding easily over the golden-hued vistas it so effortlessly invokes with each gleaming shard of indie rock excellence. 

Two and a half albums into their career, you can still draw a straight line through Ducks Ltd.’s discography. Aside from a few extracurriculars and a subtle name change, the Toronto-based duo have stayed true to their core mission of keeping the Kiwi definition of ’80s guitar pop alive and healthy as retroactive interest in subgenres of rock from the following decade continue to dominate our attention.

Yet after a few listens to their new LP “Harm’s Way”, and with a bit of context from the band, these nine breezy tracks begin to solidify as a project apart from either of their past releases. While the instrumental palette feels familiar from the opening track’s guitar twangs, tight drumming, and mellow vocals, frontman Tom McGreevy and fellow guitarist Evan Lewis fill every crevice of “Harm’s Way” with ideas inspired by a voracious appetite for new musical discovery far beyond—though certainly still including—The Clean. 

From the bright Telecaster sounds of Merle Haggard’s backing band, to the economical lyric-writing of The Weather Prophets and Aussie songwriter Paul Kelly, to the blown-out jangle-pop of early MBV, McGreevy and Lewis aren’t shy when it comes to sharing how the tracks they had on repeat at the time of the album’s recording seeped into the final product. They even appreciated the backing vocal work in Dehd’s recordings enough to borrow co-vocalist Jason Balla for a track while putting the album together in Chicago.

With the LP dropping tomorrow via Carpark Records, get an early taste for what “Harm’s Way” has in store For fans of: Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever / Kiwi jr / Orange Juice / the Go-Betweens / the Pains of Being Pure at Heart / the Reds, Pinks and Purples

Leeds-based musician Amber Strawbridge announced her debut album as Bored at My Grandmas House, Show & Tell, due out June 7th via CLUE Records / EMI North. The title track is a charming indie pop track that Amber calls “quite a tongue-in-cheek song about me being the opposite of an open book and all the little specific things about me that I sometimes wish were different. Overall it’s about me being a guarded person and fearing the possibility of having to be vulnerable and realising that vulnerability is actually a beautiful thing and something i shouldn’t be so scared of.”

An enthralling album of soul-searching introspection that channels her ennui into an enduring & vivid set. having been instantly enamoured with her debut ep, ‘Sometimes I Forget You’re Human Too’, a few years back, we knew she was a talent to keep an eye on and, when the album was finished, we had to make sure we were fixing ourselves up with a dinked edition of the release. 

‘Show & Tell’ sees the 22 year old songwriter continue the emotive & philosophical themes of the ep, pinned around connection; with yourself, with the world, with loved ones.

For fans of: newdad / soccer mommy / alvvays / girl in red / boygenius / white flowers / cigarettes after sex / youth lagoon

Led Zeppelin’s main songwriters reformed on 17th April 1994 as a part of the Alexis Korner Memorial Concert in Buxton, England. On 25th and 26th August they taped performances in London, Wales, and Morocco with Egyptian and Moroccan orchestration of several Led Zeppelin tunes along with four new songs. The performances aired as part of the 90-minute MTV project “UnLedded”, and were so successful that the two coordinated a tour which kicked off in February 1995.

This release showcases an incredible performance from that tour. The setlist featured both new material and middle eastern-influenced covers of classic Led Zeppelin songs such as “Bring It On Home”, “Ramble On”, “The Song Remains the Same”, “Black Dog”, “Kashmir” and many more.

Pressed on stunning heavyweight marble vinyl, this triple album showcases Jimmy Page and Robert Plant’s stellar live performance at the San Jose Arena, California, on 20th May 1995.

“Have You Got It Yet” – The Story Of Syd Barrett And Pink Floyd will be broadcast in France and Germany on the Arte channel at 22.40 – Friday 23rd February

The influential Australian trio played their final show ever and drew legions of fans to the Concert Hall to revel in their incredible achievements as a band and farewell their fans in the best way they knew how, with one last epic performance. The ARIA-nominated trio got the rousing send off they deserve, as singer-guitarist Georgia Maq, bassist Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich and drummer Sarah Thompson celebrated a career hard fought – and won – on their own terms. After eight years crafting fearless, empowering anthems that shook up Australian music, beloved Melbourne trio Camp Cope signed off with a final farewell show at the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall in October 2023.

As Maq once said, “Camp Cope is in defiance of everyone who’s tried to bring us down, and it’s like: Well, you can’t, because we have each other, and we’re a mountain together.”

Formed in 2015, Camp Cope exploded with the unvarnished power punk of their self-titled 2016 debut, a top 40 hit that earned the band critical acclaim and a prestigious Australian Music Prize nomination. Led by the ferocious “The Opener”, a rallying cry against gendered inequality in the music industry, 2018’s alternately intimate and cathartic “How to Socialise & Make Friends” blasted into the national top 10, scoring the trio an ARIA nomination for Best Rock Album. Following Georgia Maq’s synth pop solo debut “Pleaser” in 2019, Camp Cope returned with 2022’s “Running with the Hurricanes”, a soulful, big-hearted record that featured a collaboration with Courtney Barnett and earned the band a second Australian Music Prize nod. It was to be their swan song.

Performed by Camp Cope Georgia McDonald – Lead Vocals & Guitar Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich – Bass Guitar Sarah Thompson – Drums Jennifer Aslett – Guitar & Backing Vocals Julia Jacklin – Guitar Rin McArdle – Guitar Camp Cope – Live at Sydney Opera House

Everything is the same except for the name says Lawrence – a new name for a new time. A new band too. A better equipped model for today’s hazardous roadways. After taking a step on the journey to January (‘Relative Poverty’ 10”, BFI Film, gigs) Mozart Estate will release their huge new album ‘Pop-Up! Ker- Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping’. Wow that’s some title – and it rhymes!

Featuring 16 tracks Lawrence has moved away from the idea of Mozart as a B-side band and has created a full- blown full-length pop masterpiece. There’s ‘Relative Poverty’ and ‘Record Store Day’; already well-known and established, while new tunes ‘I’m Gonna Wiggle’, ‘I Wanna Murder You’, ‘Vanilla Gorilla’ and ‘Doin’ The Brickwall Crawl’ will soon be just as popular with Mozart fans.

This compelling relevant collection resonates with potent ammunition, firing straight into the heart of the new year.

One of the quirkiest indie cult artists of the last 40 years, Lawrence Hayward has held dreams of becoming a pop star since his adolescence watching Top of The Pops in the 1970s. He’s a genius but also a genuine oddball, and as brilliant as his records have been, from Felt to Denim, Lawrence is just too left of center to actually make it happen. And that’s ok! His latest incarnation, a spin-off of his previous Go-Kart Mozart moniker, is not likely to finally give him that time in the spotlight but you have to admire the fully realized end result.

Much like the last GKM record, this one blends his main obsessions — the ’70s, stardom and money (or lack thereof) — into one shiny, earth-toned package. “Pop-Up! Ker-Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping” is as meticulously crafted as any record in his discography and loaded with very catchy, very quirky songs. A work this eccentric does ask the question, “Who is this album for?” The answer: Lawrence. “Pop-Up! Ker-Ching!” is his world and we can only window shop.

73-year-old outsider artist Lonnie Holley released his second proper album for the label, and this one’s loaded with guests from the indie music community. Bon Iver, R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, Sharon Van Etten, Moor Mother, and Jeff Parker, along with Malian artist Rokia Koné, assist Lonnie as he tells stream-of-consciousness tales of personal hardships, like growing up poverty-stricken in the Jim Crow South and being beaten at the Mount Meigs juvenile corrections facility.

His world-weary delivery often blurs the lines between singing and spoken word, and it makes for a remarkable contrast with the familiar voices of his guests. Made in collaboration with producer Jacknife Lee (R.E.M., U2, Bloc Party, etc), Lonnie’s stories are propped up by a backdrop informed by jazz, ambient music, the avant-garde, and more, taking you on a journey that is both otherworldly and inspiring.