Album O The Day

Boston Bulldozer MOTEL BLACK Play It Loud On Debut Album ‘HUMOR BALANCE’

Posted on by JL

Standout longplayers

19 July 2022

Band: MOTEL BLACK
Who: 4 people from Boston
making post-punk Boston songs.

Debut album: HUMOR BALANCE

Brian George (vocalist/guitarist): “The overarching lyrical theme of the LP is faults.
It can be scary to express yourself, but you have to do it, even if that means being picked
apart by whoever is into that type of thing.”

Turn Up The Volume: The afire avidness of The Afghan Whigs (Gates / PPBB), the ferocity of Aussie hammers Wolfmother (Quoting Thoreau), the blues rock force of The Black Keys (Humor Balance), the torching tenseness of Pearl Jam (Morning Hum / Evening Standard) and a chill-out closer Single Stall. Do I have your attention? I thought so. As the cliché goes: play it loud.

Video for single Morning Hum

Stream/buy album here…


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MOTEL BLACK: Facebook – Instagram

Talkin’ About Their Generation – THE LINDA LINDAS Are ‘GROWING UP’ On Debut LP

Posted on by JL

29 April 2022

Band: THE LINDA LINDAS (Los Angeles)
Who: Awesome female teen band Half Asian/Half Latinx
featuring Mila (11), Eloise (14), Lucia (15) and Bela (17) who
play together since 2018 and already opened as support
act for punk icons like Bikini Kill and Best Coast.

Debut album: GROWING UP
Order/stream info: here

Pitchfork says: “The Linda Lindas were destined for greatness, one way or another.
The Los Angeles quartet—whose members range between 11 and 17 years of age and
are Asian American, Latin American, or both—began as part of a kid cover band organized by Dum Dum Girls’ Kristin Kontrol. The musicians, a mixture of sisters, cousins, and chosen family, then formed their own band. Within a year, they were opening up for Bikini Kill… The teen (and pre-teen) punk rockers turn adolescent angst and razor-sharp hooks into heartwarming pop-punk with ample charm.” Score: 8/10.

Turn Up The Volume: Power to the youth. Power to The Linda Lindas!

Certainly when they talk about their generation the way these young riot grrls do,
with pop-punk gems flying all over the place. All delivered with panache, flamboyance,
and swagger. These Los Angeles-based punkettes already know how to kick out the
jams. Think The Bangles teaming up with Weezer. Don’t grow up too fast, teenagers.

Singles/clips: Racist, Sexist Boy / Oh! / Growing Up

– RACIST, SEXIST BOY –

– OH! –

– GROWING UP –

Stream/buy here…


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THE LINDA LINDAS: Facebook

‘DEATH BY A THOUSAND COVERS’ Compilation – For All TAYLOR SWIFT Fans And For REFUWEEGEE

Posted on by JL

8 February 2022

Somewhere in Scotland in a bedroom lives a certain Lauren who’s running a zero profit music label called Heavenly Creature Records (could be a reference to longtime running indie label Heavenly Records). I have no idea whatsoever of who she is and if she’s a one-woman project. Anyway, this is a fantastic story putting all money-greedy major music companies into the shadow.

Just last week Heavenly Creature Records shared a charity compilation (not the first one)
on Bandcamp. Titled DEATH BY A THOUSAND COVERS it features no less than 46 covers, by artists around the globe, of songs by megastar Taylor Swift.

All proceeds go to Refuweegee. A Glasgow-based community-led charity that
aims to provide a warm welcome to forcibly displaced people arriving in Scotland.

If you’re a fan of Taylor Swift you’ll love this collection as it’s truly a high-quality production with impressive interpretations of her by now astonishing catalog. And if you’re not a Swift follower/fan you can start here to become one.

An amazing accomplishment for a great human charity-organization.
Hats off to Lauren, Heavenly Creature Records, and all contributing artists.

Open your wallet (it’s a name your price invitation)
Right here, right now…


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REFUWEEGEE: Website – Facebook – Instagram

HEAVENLY CREATURE RECORDS: More releases on Bandcamp – Twitter – Instagram

Crooners MATT SWEENEY & BONNIE ‘PRINCE’ BILLY Get Together Again For New ‘SUPERWOLVES’ Album

Posted on by JL

6 May 2021

Artists: MATT SWEENEY and BONNIE ‘PRINCE’ BILLY (Will Oldham)

Album: SUPERWOLVES
Released: 30 April 2021
Order info: here

Info via Domino Records: Where once was Superwolf, now roam
Superwolves, the new album and demon spawn of Sweeney and Billy.
The twin forces united to save up from the complicity of our own
distruction.

Artwork: Cover art was designed by filmaker Harmonie Korine,
also featuring a brand new portrait from world-renowned artist
Peter Doig.


(video still)

Pitchfork verdict: “16 years after Oldham’s tender singing and Sweeney’s cable-knit guitars made the original an underground classic, they return with Superwolves, an album that is, just as its title suggests, both a continuation of ‘Superwolf’ and something more. On the album, the duo let us in on a decades-long conversation, their respective instruments virtually finishing one another’s thoughts. Their bond is so deep, and their knowledge of one another is so profound, it’s essentially impossible to hear the boundary between them.” Full review here. Score: 8/10.

Turn Up The Volume: These two eternal troubadours do not have the masses of fans and mainstream success as master crooner Nick Cave, but they sure are in the same league of remarkable singers/songwriters. A duo made in purgatory making heavenly music for the afterlife. This record will last for a long time, a very long time.

Highlights: Good To My Girls / Hall Of Death / There Must Be A Someone /
My Blue Suit / My Body Is My Own

– HALL OF DEATH –

– MY BLUE SUIT –

– RESIST THE URGE –

Full album…

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DOMINO: Website

Massive Metalhead Machine WARRIOR PATH Unleashes Powerhouse Arias On ‘THE MAD KING’

Posted on by JL

10 March 2021

Band: WARRIOR PATH
Who: Overwhelming metal 4-pîece out of Greece

Album: THE MAD KING – 2nd LP
Released: 5 March 2021 via Symmetric Records

Info: ‘The Mad King’ marks the return of the Heavy Metal warriors from Greece, joined by the legendary voice of Daniel Heiman, with a heavier, more epic and larger-than-life sound continuing their journey through the Path of the Warrior.

Turn Up The Volume: All you metal junks out there, in this mad-as-fuck lockdown world, get up and stand up for your right to headbang to the mean powerhouse machine album of these Greek cast-iron rockers. Their new anthemic, sky-scraping, and monumental arias stupefy your dark-colored mind and all of your senses. Warrior Path is a draconian doom and gloom orchestra featuring the Pavarotti voice of metal in the middle howling his superhuman lungs out without breathing! This titanic record smells of black burning leather! Hell yeah! Don’t miss the party.


Singles: Beast Of Hate / His Wrath Will Fall

– HIS WRATH WITH FALL –

– BEAST OF HATE –

Stream/buy full album…


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WARRIOR PATH: Facebook

Daniel Heiman: Vocals
Andreas Sinanoglou: Rhythm and Acoustic Guitars
Bob Katsionis: Lead Guitars, Bass, Keyboards
Dave Rundle: Drums

Help UK Musicians With This Top Compilation – 81 (Yes!!) Tracks From 81 Indie Artists For Only £8 /$11/ 9.5 Euro (More Is Welcome)

Posted on by JL

6 March 2021

Album: AND IN THE END…
What: “A fundraising album for the charity Help Musicians UK with every penny
(after Bandcamp/Paypal fees) going direct to the charity. ‘Help Musicians’ is an independent UK charity for professional musicians of all genres, from starting
out through to retirement, giving people the extra support they need at a crucial
stage, that could make or break their career.”

Who: A tremendously extended cast of indie artists. No less
than 81 acts, no less than 81 top tracks. From punchy pop to
power punk, from electro dance to ambient vibes, from gusty
garage to rambunctious rap, from gripping singer/songwriters
to razor-sharp rockers. Yes, a truly cracking compilation featuring
several acts already championed by Turn Up The Volume before.

Price: £8 / $11 / 9.5 euro (more is welcome).
An unreal, irresistible bargain for an immense
volume of splendid music. I already bought my
copy. Trust me, it’s ace stuff!

More info: here https://www.helpmusicians.org.uk/
and here https://twitter.com/HelpMusiciansUK

Your purchase is a much-appreciated
and much-needed help for the survival
of many independent artists.

Get your copy
right here, right now…


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I HELP MUSICIANS: Website

Pop Melancholia At Its Best With TELE NOVELLA And New LP ‘MERLYNN BELLE’

Posted on by JL

11 February 2021

Band: TELE NOVELLA Who: Emotive pop duo
with Natalie Ribbons and Jason Chronis
from Lockhart, Texas.

Album: MERLYNN BELLE – second LP
Released: 5th February

“A homespun, creative bricolage that pulls from influences as diverse
as cowboy troubadours and folk baroque to tell stories that are at once
cinematic and deeply personal,” says record label Kill Rock Stars.

Jason: “Working with one song at a time allowed us to view each as
its own world. The fact that these worlds all fit together is partly due
to the self-imposed constraints, which required creative resourcefulness
at every turn.”

Natalie: “We knew this was going to be very different.”

Turn Up The Volume: Several female voice legends like Nancy Sinatra,
Linda Rondstadt, Joni Mitchell and Françoise Hardy but also modern-day
vocalists like Angel Olsen, Phoebe Bridgers and Laura Marling come to mind.
Moody music for moody times like these. Romantic, impassioned and most
captivating. Dim the lights, lit a candlelight, sit down, close your eyes and
let your though s float around the room. Pop melancholia at its best

Stream/buy here…


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TELE NOVELLA: Facebook

(Promo photo on top by Laurel Coyle, received via Silver PR)

Huge Powerhouse Blows – New Album ‘SUCKAPUNCH’ By YOU ME AT SIX

Posted on by JL

19 January 2021

Band: YOU ME AT SIX
Who: Brit rockers from Weybridge, Surrey, UK. Band formed in 2004.
They became mega-famous with six albums between 2008 and 2018.

Album: SUCKAPUNCH – 7th longplayer
Released: 15th January 2021

Josh Franceschi (frontman): “We have been in the pursuit of happiness for quite
some time, both collectively and individually, only to discover that happiness is more
than just a state of mind. We had to face our pain head on and carve it into something
positive. Our 7th studio album is the result of us finding peace and acceptance of what’s
been and gone.”

NME wrote: “The rock five-piece almost called it quits, suggesting that this might be
their last record. The passion and ingenuity here makes you hope that’s not the case…
It’s rare for a rock record to feel this exciting, especially coming from a band seven
albums deep and, y’know, from Surrey, but every track ‘SUCKAPUNCH’ feels inspired
in some way. Making this album made You Me At Six believe in their band again, and
you’d be hard-pressed not to keep the faith too.” Full review here. Score: 4/5.

Turn Up The Volume: Huge energy. Huge intensity. Huge passion. Huge guitars.
Huge beats. Huge uppercuts. Huge choruses. Huge vocality. Huge tunes. Huge
rock ‘n’ roar. Huge powerhouse record.

Key single: Suckapunch

All punches here…

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YOU ME AT SIX: Facebook


You can order at six here.

THURSON MOORE – Electrifies With Never-Ending Psych Jams On New Album ‘BY THE FIRE’

Posted on by JL

29 September 2020

Artist: THURSTON MOORE
Album: BY THE FIRE – his 7th solo LP
Released: 25 September 2020

Info: “Thurston Moore has written nine songs of enlightenment, released to a world
on fire. Taking a cue from (jazz icon) Albert Ayler‘s “music is the healing force of the universe”, this recording offers songs as flames of rainbow energy, where the power
of love becomes our call.” – Daydream Library Series Label

Thurston Moore: “These are love songs in a time where creativity is our dignity, our demonstration against the forces of oppression. By ‘The Fire’ is a gathering, a party of
peace — songs in the heat of the moment.”

NME: “On his seventh solo album the alt rock mainstay offers the sound of enlightenment
to a world in turmoil with help from My Bloody Valentine’s Deb Googe and Sonic Youth’s Steve Shelley. Thurston Moore has always been a man firmly occupied with the present. ‘By The Fire’
is not only the latest in his catalogue of precisely sculpted rock and roll, but also some of his boldest and most invigorating work to date… Moore elegantly channels his sense of poise and calm in a word going to shit, easily proving why he remains a hero in the world of alt rock.”
Full review here. Score: 4/5.

Turn Up The Volume: “Moore’s never-ending psychedelic jams are splendid sonic
food for your hungry ears, restless mind, and your pandemic infected soul.”

Singles: Hashish / Siren / Cantaloupe

– HASHISH –

– SIREN –


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– CANTALOUPE –

Full album…

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THURSTON MOORE: Facebook


You can buy the album here

Leaders Of The Pack – Discover Glam And Glitter Pop Longplayer ‘BEAUTIFUL AND TRUE’ By Portland Trio THE CRYSTAL FURS

Posted on by JL

24 Augustus 2020

Band: THE CRYSTAL FURS
Who: An queer indie pop band based in Portland, Oregon
making energetic, sonically layered indie-pop tunes with
emotionally charged lyrics.
Album: BEAUTIFUL AND TRUE – third LP
Released: 26 June

Info: “Beautiful And True” is not just our third album – it’s a new start for us. Our
first album in Portland, Oregon. Our first album out and living as our real selves.
We’ve poured a lot of ourselves into the music you’re going to hear on this album,
and we hope it brings you as much joy to listen to as it gave us to make it. It’s so
very good to be here.” says the trio about the new record.

Keyline: “And Then He Kissed Me” – The Crystals

Keywords: Modern-day Shangri-Las / Crystal(s) clear jingles / 60s sunlit pop harmonies / Tune paradise / Shake and swing extravaganza / Jangle exultation / Riot grrrl daydreams / Catchy ditties for lovers / Spicy retro organ sparks / Glam and glitter guitars / To kind to be cruel / Earworm melodiousness / Tambourine girls / Truly beautiful / Leaders of the pack

Key tracks: Comeback Girls / Burn Us Down / Hey Maxine / Like You / Second Time Around

Stream/buy full album here…


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THE CRYSTAL FURS: Facebook