Birthday Cake

Turn Up The Volume’s 20 BEST TRACKS – OCTOBER 2023

Posted on by JL

Best of the best of October 2023

ALL TOGETHER


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TRACK BY TRACK

1. ‘Sometimes, I Swear’ by THE VACCINES (UK)


(Press photo)

The celebrated British indie rockers prepare for the launch
of their 6th LP, titled ‘Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations’, with this
new stonker, bringing the sonic euphoria of The Killers to mind.

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2. ‘The Dancer’ by IDLES (Bristol, UK)


Press photo

The Bristol punks announced the release of
their 5th LP. They named it Tangk and is slated
for release on 16 February 2024.

First appetizer Dancer features backing vocals from
LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy and Nancy Whang.

From now on you can dance to Idles.

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3. ‘In Slow-Motion’ by EX-HYENA (Boston, MA)

This synth-pop duo is warming up for their third full length ‘A Kiss of the Mind’

Lead single ‘In Slow Motion’ is dark-synth-wave pizazz at its haunting best.
Booming beats rotate on and on towards a full orchestral plangency while
shadowy vocals add even more sinister vibes.

Score!

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4. ‘Mouth Yellow’ by PHUTURE MEMORIEZ (New York, US)

These masked synth-punk freaks from Vancouver (CA)
produce lots of mayhem on their new album Play Cobra.
One of the 5 best albums of the month on TUTV’s list.

Mouth Yellow is one of the crazy corkers.
Fasten your seatbelt, folks. It’s a rough ride.


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5. ‘TK421’ by LENNY KRAVITZ (US)

The veteran superstar born Leonard Albert Kravitz in New York City 59 years
ago has his new longplayer – a double one – dubbed ‘Blue Electric Light’ out
on 15 March 2024.

On the video for the first taster ‘TK421’ Kravitz
drops his towel and shakes a lot of body parts.

Rock your ass off, Lenny.

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6. ‘Downtown Operation’ by DUBINSKI (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Four brothers who’ve literally been through everything together – from childhood
through adolescence, success and grief – using music as the gel to hold them in place.

This first cut from their forthcoming 2nd album is a pure not-so-happy
pop pearl about the doom and gloom era we’re living in.

Its whirling groove, its ebullient beat, its glistering synth flashes, its vivacious
harmonies and last but not least its tremendously infectious chorus combine
for a top-notch earworm. Think Everything Everything and/or Hot Chip turning
up the heat.

Watch/listen.

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7. ‘lie’ by MILLIE MILNER & THE DEADNAMES (Manchester, UK)


Photo Credit: Izzy Clayton

Beginning as a solo project and growing into a band, Millie Milner & The Deadnames
of Manchester, UK was forged with a stronger mission at the heart to be the queer representation that the band’s members struggled to find in their own teenage years.

Lie was inspired by a breakup of Milner‘s and co-penned by a friend. It tells of
a need to take ownership of their life and their choices and the newfound element
of fun and recklessness they found themselves surrounded by as a newly single
person.

It’s indie at its vivid best. Sparkling guitars going berserk now and then, firm
drum hits, crystal clear vocals/harmonies, evocative lyrics, and a steamy chorus.

Clap your hands.

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8. ‘Plastic Punks’ by AUTOGRAMM (Seattle, Chicago and Vancouver)


Photo by Dave Paterson

This Vancouver pop-punks have, so far, 2 albums
on their résumé and #3 waiting in the pipeline.

But first this old-school punk chant.
It’s fun, it’s witty, it’s pogo time.

Jump.

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9. ‘Dream Job’ by YARD ACT (Leeds, UK)

These British indies shot to the top like a comet
last year with their ace debut LP The Overload.

Dream Job is a chirpy harbinger for album number two,
baptized ‘Where’s My Utopia’ shows up on 1 March 2024.

Tune in.

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10. ‘Dead Moon Rising‘ by CACTUS FLOWERS (Houston, Texas)

This psych-rock act is fronted by Jessica A.M., whose mother photographed bands for
the legendary Rolling Stone music weekly during the magazine’s counter-culture heyday.

Their new sultry mid-tempo garage blues-rock corker is fuelled by echoing, rollicking
riffs, steady drum hits and bewitching Jessica A.M. vocals. Dead Moon Rising resonates
like glorious legends The Cramps with a mean machine vibe, rock-and-psycho-billy
swagger and footstompin’ dynamics. From bad moon rising to dead moon rising.

Check in.


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11. ‘Run Run Run’ by THE LIBERTINES (London, UK)

The Libs met in the studio once again for a new LP.
It’s been 8 years since the release of their 3rd album
Anthems For Doomed Youth, which was their first
in 11 years back then.

Their new one ‘All Quit On The Easter Esplanade‘
and comes our way on 8 March 2024.

Run Run Run is a sickly sticky runner.
A vintage Libertines anthem.

Let’s roll.

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12. ‘Violence’ by EMPTY HEAD (Belgium)

Two years after the release of their charged self-titled debut EP Empty Head are
back with a brand new follow-up EP named Tales Of A Modern Man. A 5-track
one anchored by the overarching theme of the Modern Man and bristling with
a wiry tension.

Opener Violence sets the tone with its hammering beats, its inflammable
guitar galvanism and frontman Simon Galloy‘s sky-scraping vocals.

Strike!

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13. ‘Gift Wrap’ by GAS KÜNST (UK)

Garage punk misfits from Cheshire, UK produced 2 EPs so far them out here.

And on this new speedball they go fast forward, with sharp-teethed
gusto, with high-voltage garage dash and biting vocals. All burners on.

Bang-on.


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14. ‘Sowieso F***ed’ by USE KNIFE Belgium/Iraq)

This Belgian/Iraqi launched their excellent debut
full length The Shedding Of Skin, last year.

Their new piece is “a cynical “c’est-la-vie” anthem, set to a heavy 95 BPM beat and a disarray
of fucked up samples & sounds, about ten little wanderers who wander kilometers from home trying to belong. But home is where the heart is. And the House will never share its wealth.”

The release was initiated before the brutal reality of the genocide happening in Gaza.
Now, the cynical message must make way for solidarity with the Palestinian people.”

Expect a both haunting and hypnotic trip, with ominous slo-mo beats pounding
relentlessly with eerie chants all over it. Dark clouds in the air, calm before the storm, subdued electronic anger. It’s an alarming beast of a track.

Fuck all war-greedy political leaders.

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15. ‘Man Of The Hour’ by FRANK CARTER & THE RATTLESNAKES


Press photo

Carter and Co release their fifth LP Dark Rainbow on 26 January 2024.

First single Man Of The Hour is a gorgeous surprise. Sonically and vocally
we get the softer side of the post-hardcore punk and tattoo artist. A super
duper ballad.

Sing it loud.

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16. ‘Birthday Cake’ by TEEN IDLE (Boston)


Photo by Samantha Abdelbarry

Abdelbarry: “The song reflects on having a friend who is acting in immature
ways you’ve outgrown, but knowing they still need your support and friendship.”

It features on her new notable album Nonfiction.

Birthday Cake is slow-progressing musing that appeals instantly with its
rudimentary PJ Harvey-esque guitar play and Abdelbarry‘s affectional voice.
The song has both a romantic and wistful sonority that captivates and moves.
And halfway melancholic synths accentuate the overall ruminate timbre in
an endearing way.

Arresting.


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17. ‘Can’t Break You’ by CALEB ORR (Alabama, US)

Caleb Orr is a young skilled country-pop-rock singer-songwriter who grew up in Helena, Alabama. He found his passion for music at a young age. He and his two older siblings were raised on music legends like Alan Jackson, Van Halen, Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.

Great voice, great musicality, and great guitar play, echoing classic country
melancholia, and proving that the genre is simply timeless. As we all know, music can
have a healing, comforting and cathartic power and it also works here as Orr wants
to shake off bad habits of the past and want to focus on the future as a compelling
singer-songwriter.

Rad debut.

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18. ‘My Girls My Girls’ by THE KILLS (US/UK)


(Photo by Turn Up The Volume – Amsterdam, 2016)

Blues-rock tandem Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart are finally
back in town. Their 6th, marvelous LP God Games came out
last week.

One of my fav tracks is this sweet little gem.


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19. ‘Dusty Road’ by THE LAST HURRAH (!!) (Norway)

This is the brainchild of seasoned Norwegian singer-songwriter Hans Petter Gundersen

Dusty Road is a smooth mid-tempo country musing with a bluesy feel and both
a melancholic and yearning sensitivity. Warm voice, captivating melody, vintage
pedal steel guitar charm. All the matching ingredients for a warm sepia-colored
nugget.

Nostalgic Americana the Norwegian way.

It features on his brand new full lenght Modern Nostalgia.


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20. ‘Landlord’ by ALREADY DEAD (Boston, MA)


Photo Credit: Brian Ferrazzani

Dan Cummings fronts Boston’s rowdy trio Already Dead

No wall-of-Already-Dead-dynamite electricity this time. Cummings
picked up his acoustic guitar and wrote this bone-chilling cry-out
about living on the edge of drowning or surviving.

Imagine British leftist/political activist and terrific veteran songsmith Billy Bragg
raising his voice or equally politically driven folk legend Woody Guthrie killing fascists
again with his wooden guitar. Landlord‘s profound emotions go from hope to despair
and back, and Cummings‘ anxious vocals send shivers down your spine.

Captivating.

TUTV: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter

Songstress And Multi-Instrumentalist TEEN IDLE Talks About Her Enchanting Debut Album ‘NONFICTION’

Posted on by JL

14 October 2023

TEEN IDLE is the musical moniker of NJ-based producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Sara Abdelbarry. In middle school, Sara was convinced she would
become a cardiac surgeon – conveniently, her craft still gets to the heart, just with
sound instead of a scalpel.

She just released her debut album, titled NONFICTION. An enchanting collection
of diary songs, marvellously crafted and grippingly performed, with a vocal allure
and a musical tone that brings PJ Harvey to mind. Yes, that good.

TUTV invited Sara for a chat about herself and her top debut longplayer.

But first, as usual, we start an interview with a piece of music.

Hello Sara,
Thank you for taking
the time for this Q & A

When and how did you start your musical project TEEN IDLE?

“Teen Idle came to be in sort of a funny way actually. I had been writing songs
since I was 17 but never had an official band or music project. Once I was in my
senior year of college, I saw that a musician I’m a big fan of challenged herself
to write a song every day for a month.

I figured it might be cool to tackle this project for a week, so I did! I posted it on
Bandcamp under the album name July and some of these songs became Teen Idle
songs. That’s where the project started.”

What’s the story behind your moniker?

“I always sort of had the name in my back pocket since high school and told myself that whenever I start a band, Teen Idle had to be the name. I first saw the name because it was the title of a Marina And The Diamonds song, although I’d never actually listened to the song.”

Which track would you play to the people who never heard of you?

“I’d probably say “Birthday Cake” or “Every Night”. I think these tracks off the new
album are a nice bridge from the previous record to this one, but also show the
new musical direction I aimed to head towards.”


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The album is titled NONFICTION? Why’s that?
I suppose the songs are non-fictional.

“In making this record I really felt like I was filling up the pages of a diary
with the happenings of my life during those few years. In some ways the
lyrics are really bearing my soul, and then in other songs the writing
was inspired by the lives and stories of those close to me.

So the combination of these things felt like a comprehensive account of what
it’s like to be a young adult, which felt pretty close to the bone and kind of intense.”

When did you know that these are the kind of songs that you
wanted to write and make them sound like they do, Sara?

“I’ve always had this penchant for writing really emotional music. It all started when I discovered Fleetwood Mac actually. I remember hearing the song Rhiannonfor the first
time and being moved by the intensity and rawness of it. That’s actually the feeling I’ve
been trying to chase ever since.

And since that point, my music has grown to be even more cinematic. I think my goal
is to really tell a story through song, which is why sonically there are so many peaks and valleys in my music, often with very climactic outros.”

What do you want to express with the album’s artwork and who designed it?

“I designed the artwork and I was looking to really get the literary themes of the album across because of the album’s title. Naturally, I settled on having this sort of disheveled bookshelf on the cover, which I feel like really encapsulates the theme of this album: personal, messy, yet somehow put together.”

Were you listening to other music/artists when
you were writing/making the record?

“I’m always listening to music. But in the making of this, I was only listening on off hours when I wasn’t working on the record. I never came into my studio with a song I was actively trying to reference or sound like.

I know some people make concept albums or have a clear sonic references before they begin a song, but that really wasn’t the case here. I was listening to a lot of music, from jazz, to more indie stuff like Angel Olsen and Phoebe Bridgers, to Middle-Eastern funk music, all of which are bound to have had some subconscious influence on the album.”

I always wonder how and why a musician becomes a multi-instrumentalist like
you are one, Sara. How much time does it take to become one and what’s the goal
of it?

“Interesting question. I think ever since I picked up the guitar at age 9 there was always this curiosity in the back of my mind for just music in general. At that age I needed to specialize in an instrument, because kids obviously can’t do so many things at once and hobbies are more focused. But as time went on I really started to be interested in piano,
as I listened to more and more music, and decided to teach myself.

The other instruments I think just came to me as I became a producer and learned that
I knew how to craft a song. Especially in the case of drums, it’s really just a tool for me to be able to know how to communicate to a drummer or record a rough take of drums on
a demo.”

So I suppose you played all instruments on the album?

“I did in fact, except for the drums and the brass. The drums were done by my talented friends Samir Tawalare and Danny Murray. The saxophone on Saccharine was recorded by Travis Sullivan and French horn was done by Claude Lumley.”

Single BIRTHDAY CAKE is a bittersweet gem. What is the song
about, and how did the song come together sonically, Sara?

“Birthday Cake” is really about this sort of anti-hero archetype, a person who you really want to root for and help, but all of their actions keep getting them into trouble. It’s about the person like that who we all know. Sonically, I’m pretty sure I had the chorus finished before any other part of the song.

I was sitting with a guitar one day and once I landed on the particular
melody for the chorus, I knew right away that it was a keeper.”


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Suppose NONFICTION was the soundtrack
of a movie, which one would it be?

“Hmm, I’d definitely say some sort of coming-of-age A24 film.
And maybe a Greta Gerwig movie about emerging adolescence.”

What’s your next step, Sara?

“Going to be continually promoting this record and hopefully go on a tour in the next year, even if just a small weekend tour. And as always, just continuing to write and write more material.”

Thank you very much for this interview, Sara.
May the road rise with Teen Idle.

NONFICTION


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BUY Album HERE

TEEN IDLE: Instagram – Linktree
TUTV: Blog – Facebook – Instagram

Turn Up The Volume’s 20 BEST TRACKS For JULY 2023

Posted on by JL

ALL TOGETHER


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TRACK-BY-TRACK

1. ‘Just Shadows’ by JEEN (Canada)

Canadian singer-songwriter Jeen launches her 5th album
later this year and Just Shadows is the first taster.

“I wrote “Just Shadows” just thinking how the darker parts of everything can snuff
out some of the best people’s light. It’s about trying to get out from under it so we
don’t just become casualties of our shittiest days.”

Just Shadows is a cast iron, drumming energy-stroke detonating with firm
puissance when the chorus hits your ears and Jeen‘s towering voice spices
all things up with flamboyant flair. The vitalizing impact of this effervescent
summer anthem is heartening.

Top!

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2. ‘Los Angeles’ by LOL TOLHURST x BUDGIE x JACKNIFE LEE (UK/LA)

A new supergroup has arrived.

It features The Cure drummer LOL TOLHURST (64), BUDGIE (65),
former Siouxsie and the Banshees drummer and Siouxsie‘s husband,
and Irish music producer Jacknife Lee.

Los Angeles is the title track of their first, forthcoming LP.

It features LCD Soundsytem‘s mastermind/voice James Murphy
and soundwise it’s what you may expect from these musicians.

Los Angeles is a stompin’ and pumpin’ percussion burst
to stomp your feet and pump your fists like mad.

Bang-on.

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3. ‘Milk’ by BLACK GRAPE (Manchester)

Happy mondays Shaun Ryder, and rapper Kermit (Paul Leveridge) are back.
They fabricated a new, their 4th, LP named Orange Head hitting the streets
in November.

Milk is the lead single. A pounding disco-rock blast
with the 24-party madchester vibe of the 90s.

Bingo.

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4. ‘The Trench Coat Museum’ by YARD ACT (UK)

The British post-punk mavericks announced a few weeks ago that they finished their
2nd longplayer, but first we can go gaga to this new smashing stand-alone single.

The Trench Coat Museum is an 8+ minute dancefloor filler infused with a flabbergasting bass riff, spiced with Smith‘s parlando vocals, schizo guitars and yes, cowbells. I guess that for the second half of this super-duper knockout, Smith left the studio for a cup of tea. Anyway, from there on jumbo techno-like beats take over.

Fucktastic.

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5. ‘Three‘ by SEARCH RESULTS (Ireland)

I swear, when this knife-edged tune hit my ears for the first time, I thought
I pushed the wrong button and instead of these young Irish gunslingers I got
post-punk legends The Fall on my headphones.

These young Irish gunslingers’ combination of hyperkinetic drum/bass beats,
fanatic guitar riffage, Mark E Smith sneering and an overall staccato sonority
is irresistibly engrossing.

Tune in.


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6. ‘Algorithms’ by KASABIAN (Leicester)


(photo by Turn Up The Volume)

Last year Leicester’s rock heroes KASABIAN returned with
their number one longplayer The Alchemist’s Euphoria.

To warm up for a hot festival summer the band invited us to sing-along
on this magnified pop lullaby. Its anthemic chorus is irresistibly infectious.

Let’s roll.

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7. ‘That’s Where She Belongs’ by THE CORAL (Scotland)

The seasoned psych-folk-pop-rock troubadours will offer us, on 8 September,
two albums. Sea Of Mirrors and Holy Joe’s Island Medicine Show.

If you haven’t found your sonic twilight summer companion yet, then this new
Coral tune will be the one. The Liverpool gang are experts in writing/creating hum-along, whistle-song, sing-along and dream-along pearls while you can tap your feet to the beat. Imagine sitting in a rockin’ chair on the porch of your farmhouse in a Serge Leone-directed spaghetti western. That’s the vibe.

Listen/watch.

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8. ‘Do You Mind I’m A Little Late For Life?’ by BY FAR (Belgium)

Their debut single Bricks already entertained my music-addicted ears,
and this new one is a stone gold gem too. The fervent passion and the
overwhelming psychedelic resonance are nothing less than astounding.

The song’s bone-chilling progression blows you away, slowly but surely.

Get puzzled.


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9. ‘Vampire Empire’ by BIG THIEF (Brooklyn, NY)

This is a diamond of a song. Vampire Empire is another staggering
new gem by a staggering band. Intense, dynamic, jaunty and avid
vocals by Adrianne Lenker. I love Big Thief.

Enchanting.

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10. ‘Through To You’ by LEBARONS (Toronto, CA)

Through To You is a track from the group’s sophomore album,
titled Days Are Mountains. It lands on August 11th.

It all starts with a steady, feet-activating drum beat, soon followed by an explosion
of hectic guitars. And in an eye/ear blink the whole resistlessly sonic process steamrolls over you, again and again, and riffs and grooves and moves it’s way like an electric-charged whirlwind to a sped-up climax. Frontman MacDonald wants to bang his head against a wall. That doesn’t sound like a bad idea in case you need to get rid of some demons, that is.

Press play.


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11. ‘Ocean View’ by MERES (Australia)

The energy developed here is off the charts. Meres rock their tails
off on this sinewy punk missile. Chainsaw guitars, forthright drums/bass
spanks and the both sensual and spiced vocals of Mary Shannon.

This hit-and-run uppercut will start lots of moshpits.

Stroke!


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12. ‘Queen’ by CLONE (Canada)

Clone is a lush rock ’n’ roll collage collective that fuses the sequined swagger of 70’s glam with the DIY gut punch of early punk and polishes it all off with the audacious vocals of contemporary pop.

Their new single Queen is a big wham T.Rex bang.

The British trashy 70s riffs, groovy hooks and flashy licks are all over the place. It also echoes Bowie‘s smashing 1974 hit Rebel Rebel. And I can’t but think of glam rock icon Suzy Quatro when front Amazon Juniper Watters comes on with her sensual and sultry vocals.

She’s not a clone, she’s for real, she’s the perfect queen for this firecracker. She’s extremely inspired by drag culture and is a huge supporter of the drag community.

Big bang.

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13. ‘No Meaning Man’ by WE MELT CHOCOLATE (Florence, Italy)

Expect a titanic wall-of-shoegaze-layered sound that takes your breath away for almost
4 razzle-dazzle minutes. It feels as if this spectacular piece of a hallucinatory symphony comes out of space with its reverberated and tremoloed guitars, its scintillating synths,
its mystifying melodiousness and its cosmic vocals.

Splendid.

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14. ‘Nookie’ by FIDLAR (Los Angeles)

L.A. punks Fidlar produce an illegal amount of decibels on their nasty
steamed-up cover of 1999 hit NOOKIE by Fred Dust‘s gang LIMP BIZKIT.

Awesome.

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15. ‘I’m A Wreck’ by ROOMMATES (UK)

These British gunslingers kick-start your adrenalin production from the first chord on with this peppery pop-punk cryout fed by schizo guitars and distressed vocals. A thrill, although the song is about the wake of a breakup, an anthem of self-loathing, regret, and ultimately, forgiveness. I said it a million times before, heartache can lead to explosive catharsis in music.

Listen up.


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16. ‘Fury’ by pMAD

Fury is an explosive cocktail of speed metal(lica), synth sketches, post-punk tumult
and dark-Goth-wave vocals. It’s a fuzz and buzz rocket that whirls forth and back. These messed-up times cause mind-madness and paranoia that leads to furious eruptions as pMAD experiences too.

Yeah!


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17. ‘Floatin’ Stone’ by VOGUE VILLAINS (Canada)

Floatin’ Stone is a robust tune powered-up by a mean hard rockin’ machine.
References? Muscular Australian noisemakers Wolfmother and stoner rock
mavericks Queens Of The Stone Age. Say no more.

Wow!

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18. ‘Another Country’ by THE UNDERGROUND YOUTH (UK)

This must be the closest The Underground Youth come to sound like The Velvet
Underground. The repetitive jingle jangle pattern, the midnight hour vocals of
Dryer, the dreary harmonies and the ongoing melodic catchiness. All ingredients
for a psych gem are in place here.

Run, run, run.

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19. ‘Birthday Cake’ by TEEN IDLE (New Jersey, US)

This slow-progressing musing appeals instantly with its rudimentary PJ Harvey-esque
guitar play and Abdelbarry‘s affectional voice, think Sharon Van Etten.

Birthday Cake‘s has both a romantic and wistful sonority that captivates
and moves. And halfway melancholic synths accentuate the overall ruminate
timbre in a warm way.

Arresting.


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20. ‘Love Town’ by JEREMY TUPLIN (England)


Photo by Suzi Corker

Newest piece from Tuplin‘s 4th LP Orville’s Discotheque.

Love Town is a heart-warming and reflective musing about falling in love.
A romantic candlelight ballad for mind-relaxing moments. Sweet and sensitive.

Tuplin‘s vocality made me immediately think of The National‘s melancholic crooner
Matt Berninger with its affectional resonance. Beautiful. Let’s follow him to Love Town,
wherever that might be.

Beautiful.

See/hear you next month, music junkies 

TUTV: Blog – Facebook – Instagram

Songstress TEEN IDLE Captivates And Moves With New Guitar Amplified ‘BIRTHDAY CAKE’

Posted on by JL

Daily electricity to load your batteries

9 July 2023


Photo by Samantha Abdelbarry

Artist: TEEN IDLE
Who: The project from New Jersey singer-songwriter, producer, and
multi-instrumentalist Sara Abdelbarry. She released her debut EP
Insomniac Dreams in 2020.

New single: BIRTHDAY CAKE

Abdelbarry: “‘Birthday Cake’ isn’t specifically about anyone, but rather
a caricature of a person. In some ways the song is autobiographical because
the character it deals with is a hyperbolic version of the people I’ve known.

The song reflects on having a friend who is acting in immature ways
you’ve outgrown, but knowing they still need your support and friendship.”

TUTV: This slow-progressing musing appeals instantly with its rudimentary
PJ Harvey-esque guitar play (check her brand-new album and you’ll hear what
I mean) and Abdelbarry‘s affectional voice (think Sharon Van Etten). Birthday Cake‘s
has both a romantic and wistful sonority that captivates and moves. And halfway
melancholic synths accentuate the overall ruminate timbre in a warm way.

Intense and arresting accomplishment. Wow indeed.

STREAM


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BUY


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TEEN IDLE: Facebook – Instagram