The Fat Angel Sings

Dublin based band Sprints have released their second EP “A Modern Job” via Nice Swan Records.  The 5 track EP is again produced by Daniel Fox of Gilla Band and follows their 2021 debut EP release “Manifesto“.

Formed in 2019 Sprints comprise guitarist and vocalist Karla Chubb, guitarist Colm O’Reilly,  drummer Jack Callan and bassist Sam McCann.  Together they are a formidable whole, producing raucous, spine-tingling and intensely personal songs.  As Karla further explains: “Our only ethos in music is to write something that matters and that means something.  It’s all about expressing our identities and injecting our personalities into it.”

The EP opens with ‘How Does The Story Go?’.  The lyrics include the line: “I’m the only fucker in this place who isn’t doing fine, and I’m not fine.” Singing along to this feels cathartic and liberating.  The irony here is the majority are probably thinking and feeling the same, and to sing this en masse releases that negativity. The track refers to a friend who is moving on: “The cards are stacked, and the house is packed and I wanna go home”.

Next track ‘Modern Job’ which as Karla states: “is just really my entire life’s crisis in one song.”

The pressures of society and the media to achieve the things which they dictate will make us happy can be over-bearing.  Sprints write gems of lyrics which are instantly relatable: “I wish I didn’t count the days by the things I didn’t say.” Sprints sing they wish they had it all, but know that self-acceptance is the key to happiness, and if that means not conforming to society’s norms then so be it.

The first unreleased track on this EP is ‘Delia Smith’ and I’m intrigued by the opening line:
“My Mum always liked Delia Smith and I drank drank drank just to deal with my shit.”

Again its raw and that electric guitar mid-track adds a fizzing static.  The lyrics are brutally honest sung in the first person.  Wrapped in a punk soundscape the delivery is passionate and heartfelt with the vocals building in their intensity: “Who want to be special anyway, Me fucking me and I’m not ashamed”.

‘Little Fix’ is the last single and continues the energy and social commentary of the pressure of fitting into society.  The closing track is ‘I’m In A Band’ and it’s a riot.  Begins with scuzzy guitars which continue throughout the track.  Here Karla shares lead vocals with bassist Sam.  Karla sings as if bored by the questioning:
“Everybody asks, everybody asks, are you in a band? Yeah I’m in a band Everybody asks, everybody asks, are you any good? Yeah I think we’re good”

When it comes to Sam the lyrics are: “Everybody says, everybody says, are you in a band? Yeah I’m in a band, Everybody says, are you any good? Yeah I think we’re tough”
Just that slight tweak shifts the meaning with humour.  The energy does not let up until the final note and by the time you get to the end of this track, trust me, you will start this EP all over again, after all ‘How Does The Story Go?’

Sprints travel to Sustin Texas event SXSW, have various festival appearances in the summer, and headline their biggest gig to date at The Dome Tuffnell Park in October. 

thanks to God In The TV Zone

In 2020, Ganser navigated the tricky task of releasing their sophomore LP “Just Look at That Sky” during the height of a pandemic, not realizing that its art rock tendencies, dark humour, and themes of internal emotional weather would resonate with the likes of Rolling Stone, The Quietus, Paste, Vice, Sound Opinions, Bandcamp, Brooklyn Vegan, and more year-end lists. With tour plans cancelled, the challenge of safely filming, directing and editing music videos, and speaking out on sexism and racism within the music industry online a constant conversation, the band made new connections with artists also confronted with making art in 2020. Now, they return with an EP of collaborations “Look at the Sun”, partnering with a diverse guestlist of artists for remixes of tracks from the critically acclaimed JLATS.

“I feel like there’s a group of us that released any kind of art project in 2020, we were all on Twitter wondering what the hell was going on, doomscrolling. We were all reacting to everything that was happening in real time, it felt like a surreal limbo. In a way, it was very vintage internet, commiserating with folks we’ve never met in person yet. The idea of getting back into the world, finally meeting Sadie and Bartees, it’s something to look forward to.” -Alicia Gaines, Ganser

The remix EP, “Look at the Sun“, draws its collaborators from a wide range of connections. From past shared stages in the form of GLOK’s Andy Bell and Girl Band’s Adam Faulkner, to 2020 tours meant to be with Algiers, and new relationships built online in lockdown (Sad13, Bartees Strange), “Look at the Sun” embodies connections made online when real-life ones weren’t possible. The process was not unlike choosing the attendants of an ideal dinner party, whose styles would play well while also bringing their unique sound to the table. What resulted was an incredible mix of talented artists collaborating to make something truly lovely in the wake of a very hard year. 

Released May 6th, 2021

Ganser is Alicia Gaines, Nadia Garofalo, Brian Cundiff, & Charlie Landsman. All songs written & performed by Ganser except “Bags for Life” trumpet and trombone performance by Kevin Natoli & Michael Cox.

Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Tom Skinner’s latest single after “The Smoke” and “You Will Never Work in Television Again” .

 It was shot in 16mm black and white by director Mark Jenkin in the abandoned Rosevale Tin Mine in Cornwall, England. The film was hand developed in water from that mine. The new songs follow the trio’s previous recent singles “You Will Never Work in Television Again” and “The Smoke,” which were both produced by Nigel Godrich. “The Smoke” was also recently remixed by Dennis Bovell.

“Skrting On The Surface”.

Filmed by Mark Jenkin deep under the surface of the earth in an old Cornish Tin Mine, The Rosevale Mine.

Muse have announced their new album “Will of the People”. It’s out August 26th via Warner Bros Records. The new single “Compliance” arrives today with a new video directed by Jeremi Durand. It was shot in Poland and inspired by the movie Looper.

“Will of the People was recorded in Los Angeles and London and is influenced by the increasing uncertainty and instability in the world,” Matt Bellamy said in a statement. “A pandemic, new wars in Europe, massive protests & riots, an attempted insurrection, Western democracy wavering, rising authoritarianism, wildfires and natural disasters and the destabilization of the global order all informed “Will of the People“. It has been a worrying and scary time for all of us as the Western empire and the natural world, which have cradled us for so long, are genuinely threatened. This album is a personal navigation through those fears and preparation for what comes next.”

“Compliance is about the promise of safety and reassurance sold to us by powerful entities during times of vulnerability. Gangs, governments, demagogues, social media algorithms & religions seduce us with misleading untruths and comforting fables. They want us to join their narrow worldview in exchange for obedience and turning a blind eye to our own internal voice of reason & compassion. They just need our Compliance.” (Matt)

“Will of the People” is Muse’s follow-up to 2018’s “Simulation Theory“. The new album released 26th August 2022

Arcade Fire have announced “The Lightning I, II,” their first new single in three years. The song will arrive on Thursday, March 17th. The announcement follows a series of mysterious postcards that the band sent to fans. The postcards and a graphic for the new song say, “We missed you.”

The new album has finally been announced is out May 6 via Columbia Records. The album was produced by Nigel Godrich, Win Butler, and Régine Chassagne. As promised, the group has shared the video for their new song “The Lightning I, II.” The album was recorded in New Orleans, El Paso, and Mount Desert Island. The 40-minute, seven-song album is split into one side called “I” (an opening side about isolation) and another called “WE” (about reconnection); the first three tracks are on “I,” and the next four are on “WE.” The album’s cover features a photograph by the artist JR with tinting by Terry Pastor (who worked on David Bowie’s Hunky Dory and Ziggy Stardust covers).

Arcade Fire’s last album was 2017’s “Everything Now“. Two years later, they shared a cover of “Baby Mine” forthe movie Dumbo. More recently, the band performed an as-yet-unreleased song called “Generation A” on Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020 and made “Memories of the Age of Anxiety” for the Headspace app. Arcade Fire have been promising a new album since 2020. They also officially released their score for Spike Jonze’s 2013 film “Her“, which they created alongside composer Owen Pallett. 

The band’s last album was 2017’s “Everything Now“, which the group promoted with fake news articles and free cereal boxes. Arcade Fire have been promising a new album since 2020, when they said that work was “flowing” on a new LP. That same year, they celebrated the 10th anniversary of their 2010 album “The Suburbs”.

The band’s line-up on the album is Régine Chassagne, Win Butler, Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, Jeremy Gara, and Will Butler. Dan Boeckner (of Wolf Parade), Paul Beaubrun, and Sarah Neufeld all appear in the new music video and have been playing in the band’s live line-up; Will Butler and Richard Reed Parry were absent for the video’s filming.

Will Butler has announced his departure from Arcade Fire. Butler, a core member of the veteran indie rock band, shared the news ahead of the band’s show at New York’s Bowery Ballroom on Saturday.

Arcade Fire’s frontman and Will’s brother, Win, did not address his departure during Saturday’s show. Wolf Parade’s Dan Boeckner has filled in for Will at the band’s recent gigs.

The band’s final album with Will, WE, is set for release on May 6th

Liam Gallagher is not the kind of artist who was going to be stopped by the sizeable problem of not being able to play to an audience during lockdown. So when the idea of playing a playing and filming a live stream show came up, he looked at the precedent set by the Sex Pistols and The Clash and decided to hit the River Thames, armed with a boatload of attitude, a phenomenal live band (including Bonehead) and an arsenal of classic songs. The show has been captured in full on the new live album ‘Down By The River Thames’.

The show has been captured in full on the new live album ‘Down By The River Thames’, which will be released on May 27th via Warner Records. Originally streamed on December 5th 2020, the show became one of the most memorable performances of the lockdown era. From iconic Oasis favourites (‘Supersonic’, ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol’) to big hitters from his two all-conquering #1 solo albums (‘Wall of Glass’, ‘Once’), Liam’s inimitable snarl boomed across the Thames and dominated London’s gloomy winter skyline. There were plenty of welcome surprises too: debut solo performances of the Oasis songs ‘Hello’, ‘Fade Away’ and ‘Headshrinker’, and the first live version of ‘All You’re Dreaming Of’. Liam’s voice is absolutely on point throughout, with a full-throttle snarl of anger and attitude that doesn’t compromise any of the finesse of the studio recordings. Liam commented, “So here it is, the gig they said we could never pull off! As we were in lockdown, bored and depressed, rock ‘n’ roll came to save the day once again. It was a top night and a top gig and it’s captured here on record for you to all enjoy.”

Born and raised in small Texas towns, the members of Good Looks met and began playing together in Austin.

Songwriter Tyler Jordan grew up in a South Texas coastal town dominated by the petrochemical industry, his childhood steeped in the tension between nature and industry, exploitation abundantly present and the wealth gap on full display. His father’s church, described by Tyler as “cult-like in its intensity,” was home base and where he learned to sing.

Tyler eventually met lead guitarist Jake Ames in the late-night song-swap circles of the Kerrville Folk Festival campground (where they would also meet Buck Meek and Adrianne Lenker pre-Big Thief). They shared their mutual love of the Texas hill country canon (Blaze Foley, Townes Van Zandt, and Willie Nelson), a love of cheap diner food, thrift store baseball caps, and a healthy dose of harmless shit-talking.

‘Bummer Year’ is a moment of quiet contemplation from Austin’s Good Looks that finds singer Tyler Jordan reflecting on old friendships and divergent paths in life. The ruminative midpoint guitar solo perfectly echoes the song’s sentiment. They began playing in bands together, backing up other songwriters and taking turns in the spotlight. They sought out producer Dan Duszynski (Loma, Cross Record, Jess Williamson) to engineer their debut album.

What would form was Good Looks, a blue-collar political indie-rock band with healthy doses of Replacements swagger and shimmering, desert rock riffs not unlike The War On Drugs.

From the album ‘Bummer Year’ out April 8th, 2022 on LP, CD, and cassette via Keeled Scales.

It’s hard to nominate an album of the year when I’m struggling to stop hitting repeat on two beautiful tracks I’ve heard recently: the sun-dappled “Change” by Big Thief, and Taylor Swift and Phoebe Bridgers’ song for the ages “Nothing New“. But I’m here to talk albums – and among the standout’s for me in 2021 was “Delta Kream”. Old-school fans who’ve wanted Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach to revisit their OG hill country blues influences are in for a treat, with the duo here aided by RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough sidemen Kenny Brown and Eric Deaton. Auerbach sits in the pocket as Brown’s slide playing takes centre stage, and there’s an authenticity in these grooves rarely heard in modern blues.

The Black Keys perform an exclusive new track from their forthcoming album “Turn Blue” from the BBC’s Maida Vale Studios for Zane Lowe