Month: March 2018

Here’s Electro Duo MARVA VON THEO With Gracious New Album ‘DREAM WITHIN A DREAM’

Posted on by JL

Soulful vibes for the laziest day of the week…

25 March 2018

“To all those who persist on living within a dream…”

Athens-Vienna based electro pop duo MARVA VON THEO just release its new album DREAM WITHIN A DREAM . In a press statement the longplayer is described “leaning towards an electronic sound that incorporates a variety of influences ranging from the music
of the 80’s until today. Darkwave sounds, Jazz harmonies, Rock and Dance drum beats resonate together and mature into something melancholically romantic. The vocals weave this electronic veil with soul, trip-hop and pop textures, retaining an inner tension that seduces the listener and drifts him along in a sentimental, melancholic trip inside the personal stories that are concealed in the lyrics. The passion of Marva Von Theo for experimentation is evident in their compositions, seeking a way to surpass the identification or imitation of one specific genre and offer the listener the opportunity to feel and interpret the music differently upon every listen. Like a song within a song, like a ‘Dream within a Dream’.”

MARVA VON THEO creates different soundscapes for different moods. Different vibes for different emotions. At times darksome and dancey (Secret Lover/ Perfect Sync), but mostly introspective, gripping and moony (Unconcern / What Is It About You Me That You Love / Silk). From darkwave (Somebody New) to twilight electro pop (Fame And Gold / Reaching The Stars) Overall a multi-layered work of innovative and compelling songwriting blessed with Marva Voulgari‘s impressive vox. Convince yourself, press the button and capture DREAM WITHIN A DREAM right here…


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MARVA VON THEO: Website – Facebook – Instagram


DREAM WITHIN A DREAM available on iTunes and Bandcamp

(Band photo: Periklis Liakakis)

THE GLÜCKS – Supersonic Starfighters Cause Earthquake On Album Release Night…

Posted on by JL

THE GLÜCKS – Charlatan Club, Ghent (Belgium) – 23 March 2018

What the hell happened last night in my hometown Ghent?
Was it a sonic tsunami? An ear-deafening tornado? A kick-ass rollercoaster? A smacking whirlwind? A terrific thunderstorm? A hellish hallucination? An electric chair experience?
A fucking Nightmare on Elm Street? The Ostend Chain Saw Massacre? Or the Tina Witch Project featuring Alex Kreuger? It was all this and much more. It was that two-headed machine-gun beast called… THE GLÜCKS

What were these misfits actually doing?
It was the release night of their second longplayer titled RUN AMOK. A filthy animal
of a record resonating at times as if it was recorded by a schizophrenic Manga army with paranoid problems. Yet, on first hearing, this new baby sounds more versatile and more melodic than their full-length debut detonation. But I need a couple of more spins to fully absorb all the new firecrackers, brick by brick. And so should you. It’s a lot cheaper than therapy…


Hammering Tina...


Riff Junk Alex…

What about the audience?
Totally committed to the new shit from the turbulent start to the explosive finish! Bodies flew around as if it was a human air show for wackos. Heads pirouetted uncontrollably while a wall of decibels crashed the sound system without mercy and on repeat. Crack! Boom! Wham! Damn! Bam! Walls got wet because of the tropic heat. Sweat streamed
non-stop, adrenalin streamed non-stop and beer streamed non-stop while psychedelic images on a screen behind the band caused rapid-eye-movement in the crowd. You get the picture, ladies and gents? The Cramps are the Devilish-Psycho-Masters Of Slam-Garage-Billy and these two rambunctious misfits, Hammering Tina & Riff Junk Alex, are without a shadow of a doubt their coolest apostles. HAIL HAIL… THE GLÜCKS


Fly me to the… disco ball

About time to RUN AMOK!
Here’s the smashing front cover…

Here are the smashing uppercuts…


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Album available right here, right now


Holy cow!…

THE GLÜCKS: Facebook –Twitter

(concert pics JL/Turn Up The Volume!)

TUBELIGHT – Belgian Garage Trash Force With Hottest Album Of The Moment…

Posted on by JL

Weekly vibrations to soundtrack your favorite 48 hours…

quotefield-kopie

24 March 2018

They rattle, they rumble, they roar and they roll. They are TUBELIGHT. A cracking 5-piece out of Belgium that released its second album EXPERT BY VIRTUE, THEREOF just a few weeks ago. A blazing record Turn Up The Volume had on his earphones every single day since it hit the streets (review:  here). Imagine the early Velvet Underground with Mark E Smith – who’s singing instead of barking – producing some hellish hullabaloo jams. Fierce, sharp, nasty and hair-raising with frontman Long Tall Lee spitting and sneering like the demonic best. Pretty awesome! Best gang of the moment, on record and on stage. Why
I hear you ask? Here’s why…

ON RECORD

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ON STAGE
Yesterday the trashy engine played my hometown Ghent again and turned their stupendous longplayer into a smashing powerhouse on stage at the Charlatan
venue with an overall riotous knockout sound that makes your head spin 360°.
Boiling guitars, kicking rhythm section, Ray Manzarek‘s ghost on keys and Lee
Swinnen‘s screaming and shouting on top of it. No nonsense, no special effects,
no arty farty shit. Just: MIND-BOGGLING GARAGE NOISE HAVOC TO GO NUTS TO!…


LSD boy….


Snake Oil Salesmen…


Full house…


Nervous Lee…


Flaming riffage…


“Who are the fucking Glücks?”

TUBELIGHT: Facebook / Label: Fons Records

(concert pics by JL/Turn Up The Volume!)

TURN UP THE VOLUME’s Jiving JUKEBOX – Here Are Psychedelia Explorers… THE BLACK ANGELS

Posted on by JL

Only the greats can fill a jukebox with memorable moments…

24 March 2018

Texan psychedelic turbine THE BLACK ANGELS are one of Turn Up The Volume‘s favorite mind-expanding sound explorers (last year’s ‘Death Song‘ LP is their masterpiece so far). Since 2004 these far-out angels are actually making soundtracks to be played in hell…

Astounding grooves and transcendent vibes that glow in the darkness. Spine-chilling trips exploring the dark side of humankind and the obscure complexity of people’s inflammable emotions. They operate in a sonic galaxy of their own on a quest for pure sanity. After five mesmerizing albums, this psychotropic unit created enough monumental compositions, towering orchestrations and staggering jams to fill a Wurlitzer. Dim the light, put on your headphones and travel to another universe. Here are Turn Up The Volume‘s 15 picks…

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The songs were selected from the following albums (and one EP): Passover (2005) / Directions To See A Ghost (2008) / Phosphene Dream (2010) / Indigo Meadow (2013) / Clear Lake Forest (EP – 2014) / Death Song (2017)

THE BLACK ANGELS Website – Facebook –  Twitter 

JACK WHITE Launches Clip For ‘OVER AND OVER AND OVER’ Track From Today’s Newly Released Album …

Posted on by JL

Clips that will have an impact on your eyes and your ears…

Today, on the very day of the release of his third, roaring and intrepid solo album titled ‘Boarding House Reach‘ blues rock icon JACK WHITE also launched a clip for one of the hottest tracks on the LP. Here’s the kooky video for OVER AND OVER AND OVER…

Stream ‘BOARDING HOUSE REACH’ right here…

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JACK WHITE: Website – Facebook – Twitter


New album BOARDING HOUSE REACH – available on iTunes

Up And Coming Five-Piece VIOLET Scores Anthemic Shoegaze Cracker With New Arresting Single ‘JADED’…

Posted on by JL

23 March 2018

VIOLET is a young, exciting squad out of England‘s Midlands. The 5-piece debuted last year with impressive striking track ‘Feel‘. And with today’s brand new single JADED they are knocking loudly on that big gate of fame. Singer/guitarist Luke Brickett Haycock said in a press statement that the song’ “was written in a trance-like state where it all just kind of blossomed from out of nowhere one night. It’s about that feeling when something, whatever
it is, gets ingrained and stuck in your head but you just want it gone and it doesn’t leave…”

JADED has all sonic ingredients of an epic masterstroke. It’s a tower of a captivating symphony. Tremendous shoegaze guitars build a wall-of-mind-boggling-sound and
elevate your subconsciousness to an ecstatic level of pure phantasy from the very start. And soon after frontman Haycock‘s impassioned voice kicks in you’re floating towards the very heart of the song: a stupendous, anthemic chorus that sticks instantly. Wow! Double Wow! Very big step for this highly talented team. Turn it up, folks, right here, right now…

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VIOLET: Facebook – Twitter – Instagram


JADED out today – available on iTunes

LARA SMILES – This Tempestuous One-Woman-Army’s Dynamics Are No ‘COINCIDENCE’…

Posted on by JL

Daily fuel to load your sonic batteries…

23 March 2018

Artist: LARA SMILES

Home: London, UK

Who: London-based Lara Smiles “is not only a badass on the guitar but she’s also a crafty singer-songwriter with a powerful voice who fuses an avant-garde mix of electro-rock. Pulling musical influences across multiple genres, Lara creates an ear-catching sound that is guitar-driven, synth inspired and brimming with colorful layers of alt-pop.”

Track: COINCIDENCE – brand new single…
Smiles says in a statement that the song “is about those moments in life that leave you wondering if there is such thing as fate. Many of the songs I write are ambiguous and philosophical, like ‘Coincidence’. On the one hand it’s about a moment and how it came together perfectly but on the other hand I’m questioning, ‘Is this a coincidence?’ Or is
it purely our actions alone that lead us to the circumstances we often find ourselves in?”

Score: This one-woman-army’s new single is a turbulent rollercoaster going fast/slow, loud/quiet, ardent/reflective and is powered by firework guitars, merciless drumming
and Lara‘s forceful voice. Here’s an artist who wonders about life’s mysterious moments, but her dynamic and adventurous songwriting is no coincidence. Her heart, her soul, and her passion are in there. Listen here and discover her striking drive…

LARA SMILES: Website – Facebook – Instagram – Twitter


COINCIDENCE out now – available on iTunes

 

Happy 50 To ‘BLUR’ & ‘GORILLAZ’ Frontman And 24/7 Musical Centipede… DAMAN ALBARN.

Posted on by JL

23 March 2018

Happy 50 to DAMON ALBARN. Born in London on 23 March 1968 this musical centipede is most famous as the frontman of Britpop legends BLUR and singer/songwriter of virtual band GORILLAZ . But as a 24/7 musician he did far more than being a legendary pop star. He collaborated with countless artists, from African roots artists to sixties icon Marianne Faithfull, from writing musicals to forming a band with The Clash bassist Paul Simonon.
Here are 3 crackers Turn Up The Volume! picked to celebrate the man’s 50th birthday…

GIRLS AND BOYS by BLUR (1994)

CLINT EASTWOOD by GORILLAZ (2001)

MR. TEMBO by DAMON ALBARN (solo – 2014)

ICEAGE – New Track ‘TAKE IT ALL’ From Upcoming Album Moves Like A Nasty Serpent…

Posted on by JL

22 March 2018

New album ‘Beyondless‘ by Danish noiseniks ICEAGE will be out early May. And today the band just shared another special taster off that upcoming LP. TAKE IT ALL is a pitch-black slow-moving groove growing more threatening with every second like a scary nightmare doing your poor head in. A military-like drum beat starts the obscure trip and goes on like forever while scintillating guitars and a glimmering violin paint shadowy clouds and on top of it all there’s frontman Elias Bender Rønnenfelt‘s haunting vox dominating intensely this mind-blowing orchestration like a psychotic soul looking for redemption. Wow! A truly breathtaking experience. Here’s the audio clip…

ICEAGE: Website – Facebook – Instagram


New album BEYONDLESS out 4th May via Matador Records.

(photo on top: TUTV!)