NYC’s post-punk darlings INTERPOL aren’t the most productive band
on this planet. In their almost 30-year career they came up with only
7 albums, with 2022’sThe Other Side Of Make-Believe as their latest.
On the other hand to keep in touch with their fanbase they regulary
hit the road. They just announced dates for North America, starting at
the end of July.
Press Info: This new LP takes aim at society, individuals, and the power of big tech, exposing the illusion of connection and the invasive grip of social media. Leg Puppy 2.0 pose the unsettling question: if nothing is real, what fills the shallow void but emptiness?
First, the bad news.
Leg Puppy: “Its my last album, as much I love making albums and calling out the bullshit in the world, its that very same bullshit that is limiting an audience for our art, only to be buried to an algorithm which favours stupid trending hooks and dumbness, hence check out the track ‘The Sheep of TikTok’.
I’ll still release singles but I cant keep going through that lead balloon moment on release day. I may change my mind, but right now I think 13 albums is more than enough material for people to discover or ignore.
TUTV:First World Problems isn’t really a 24-hour rave party record.
It’s conceived/constructed as the soundtrack for a yet-to-be-made Doomsday film.
Ambient muzak and techno bombast alternate seamlessly as sonic scenery
for the concept. Listening to First World Problems is like experiencing the EBM
version of The Dark Side Of The Moon. Leg Puppy‘s lyrical wittiness, hilarious
cynicism, and brain-breaking techno beats will be missed. Talking about a
big first world problem.
Pitchfork says:“They make weirdly danceable math-rock for muffled drums
and comically fretted microtonal guitar. Vol. II is a powerful argument that we
should all start seeing spots.
Album artwork
TUTV: I just discovered this sensational 2-piece via multiple reviews of their 2nd LP
on music websites. The first thing that attracted me was (of course) their wacky outfits, and I thought that this was just another kind of gimmick act making cheapjack music.
Not!
They move ‘n’ groove with a hair-raising and incessantly funk panache for 37 minutes, motorized by authoritative bass and drums firepower, while knife-edged guitar riffs
zigzag between the tireless rhythm section velocity.
At times, they sound as if bass-funk-punk legends Gang Of Four and Devo are on
mind-bending drugs. Except for some background screeches on the first 2 tracks,
the record is fully instrumental.
Vol.II is not an arty-farty experimental affair, rather an extraordinary and explosive sonic
tour de force. And, yes, for some inexplicable reason, their outfits fit the sonic turbulence. If you haven’t discovered them yet, this is your chance to do so.
Chloe Howard (frontwoman): “The album is about a night out, from start to finish.
As the night progresses, you’re having a great time, until your ex walks in with someone
else.
You hate the way you look but rather than going home, you press the big red button
and get even more drunk. Eventually, you take yourself home full of melancholy, chaos
and anger.”
TUTV: History has taught us that relationship breakups can cause great music. Maybe Not Tonight is one of those. This cathartic record is a bitchy, guitar-riffed
power-pop one.
Vocalist/songwriter Chloe Howard shoots sonic bullets from the hip at her ex.
I bet she can kill with her looks. She details the hate for the guy that dumped
her with clear-cut lyrics and clear-cut vocals. She doesn’t hold back. Nor do
the band. All burners on. Uppercut after uppercut. A spiky and jagged, but
also a punky-dancey affair.
Press info: “Johnny Moonshine is a poetic odyssey wrapped in restlessness, rebellion, love and loss. Chronicling the rise, fall, and enduring spirit of a small-town rebel, told through the lens of a close friend and narrator, the record follows the mythic arc of our anti-hero Moonshine — a backroad dreamer, moonshine runner, hopeless romantic, and overall tragic figure.”
Davis Black (vocals/guitar): “Johnny is a charismatic kid in a small town. He could really do anything he wants. But he runs moonshine in Choctaw, Oklahoma. There are epic dirt road parties.
Boy meets girl. Boy has dreams. Boy gets himself into trouble, then it may or may not go downhill from there, with moments of hope sprinkled in, because y’know, it’s not over ’til it’s over. Johnny Moonshine reminds me of a couple of friends from my small town who had incredible potential and lost it all.”
TUTV: You feel depressed? You need some comforting music to cry into
your beer to? I’m sure outlaw Johnny Moonshine can be your muse and
imaginary buddy.
Dirt Road Souls‘s melancholic sonority and their absorbing country rock and electric-powered folk-flavored wistfulness and affecting, ear-grabbing vocality are wrapped into heart-rending tunes, telling the story of an unfortunate desperado. Early Eagles nostalgia pops up now and then, but overall it’s heart-and-soul stirring Americana at its bluesy best. You’ll feel way better after a couplde of spins.
Press info: “Often labelled a musical chameleon, Jackson insists that most of his work belongs to his own “mainstream” – sophisticated pop songs with ever-shifting rhythms
and textures. After his playful detour with What A Racket! (a 2023 side project exploring early 20th-century British entertainment and music), he now returns to that core territory.
The result, according to Jackson, falls somewhere between Fool (2019), Laughter and
Lust (1991), and Night and Day (1982). Nine new songs in total – ranging from biting,
witty pop to moving ballads.”
TUTV: At the age of 71 and after an impressive 56-year career, Jackson has earned
lots of stars and stripes. This new LP will be another one to remember. The versatile
songsmith obviously wanted to have and make fun.
He returns to his swinging Latin-pop side with both jaunty and vigorous ballroom tunes: Welcome to Burning-By-Sea, I’m Not Sorry, Made God Laugh, Do Do Do, and Fabulous People (actually the first 5 tracks).
But with the closing quartet of songs, After All This Time, The Face, End Of The Pier, and See You In September, he leaves the cocktail party behind him and offers some good
old Jackson musings. It makes Hope and Fury an album with, sonically, 2 different
moods. I like the ebullient one the most, it smells like spring spirit.
The late great country star JOHNNY CASH released his
classic I WALK THE LINE on 1 May 1956, 68 years ago
today.
It was his first No.1 on the US Billboard country charts. It remained on the charts for over 43 weeks. Inspired by the backward playback of guitar runs on his tape recorder, the man in black used the technique to produce the unique chord progression of the song. It also includes Cash’s distinctive “boom-chicka-boom” sound, created by putting a dollar bill in the neck of his guitar.