20 BEST TRACKS OF THE MONTH – APRIL 2024
ALL TOGETHER
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TRACK BY TRACK
1. ‘Light In A Quiet Room’ by RIDE (UK)
Superb track from Ride‘s new superb album Interplay
It starts with Mark Gardner‘s starry-eyed vocals glistering over a poppy mid-tempo soundscape. At the 3-minute mark, the song fades out with subtle piano touches but restarts for a psychedelic, multi-layered wall-of-orgastic sound finale.
Wowzers.
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2. ‘Big Time Nothing’ by ST. VINCENT (New York)
Absolute top-tier track from her new LP All Born Screaming.
It’s an irristible 24 Carat old skool disco stomper to fill dance
floors with.
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3. ‘Sink Ya Teeth’ by THE MYSTERINES (UK)
New high-powered rockin’ banger from the British post-punks’
second LP, titled Afraid Of Tomorrows, that’ll see the day of light
on June 7.
Cool as fuck!
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4. ‘Enrage Engage’ by SELF HELP (UK)
These British indie upstarts take you on a bouncy ride with
this jagged juggernaut from their upcoming debut LP.
Enrage Engage is a roaring roller coaster ride, going forth and back, left and right,
circling around a pulsating Yard Act like groove that gets under your skin without
asking, while the song derails in different surprising, up and down directions, now
and then.
Don’t miss these young bloodthirsty dogs, they’re going places.
Buy
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5. ’99’ by METZ (Canada)
Cooking highlight from the Canadian noizz trio’s
new mind-blowing longplayer ‘Up On Gravity Hill’.
99,99 score.
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6. ‘Body Of Mine’ by LAMBRINI GIRLS (Brighton, UK)
Lille, France 2024 – Photo by Turn Up The Volume
Another supersonic gender sucker-punch from Brighton‘s riotous feminist punk duo fury.
They slash, trash, and smash with unbridled vigour and biting zing. Not your typical girls.
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7. ‘Something To Fight For’ by TYPHOID ROSIE (Brooklyn, NY)
Photo: Janier De Jesus, via Typhoid Rosie
It’s the first single off their, forthcoming 5th LP, called
Last Words. It lands on June 21. More info here.
As we experienced before Typhoid Rosie always storm full steam ahead from
the kick-off until the very last rollicking riff. This punked-up, harmonious chant
with its sickly sticky refrain triggers your best zigzagging moves.
Expect 122 seconds of afire party fuel peppered with Rosie Rebel‘s
combative rawk’ n roll vocality and vociferous pizzaz.
Fight here.
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8. ‘Reckless Heart‘ by ARROWS OF ATHENA (Boston, MA)
Single from the duo’s swirling debut LP The Ghost Archives
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I’m quite sure that AOA are huge fans of former Swedish glam and glitter pop duo Roxette. The bliss and blitz at play on Reckless Heart is sonically similar. Sizzling guitars, battering drums/bass grooves, sensuous vocals and a peppy chorus combine here for a power pop pearl that flames lustrously. Orchestral melodiousness, fiery 90s spirit, and musical.
An invigorating joyride.
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9. ‘Life’s A Fucking Miracle’ by JAMES (Manchester, UK)
Standout, life-celebrating, pop bliss from Manchester‘s
imperishable, power pop veterans’ brand new LP Yummy.
Ecstatic.
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10. ‘Just Like Everybody Else’ by SPIELMANN (Leeds, UK)
Photo credit: Thandiwe Zivengwa
This song will feature on his debut EP, titled
‘Fifteen Minutes With Spielmann’, and landing
on 31 May.
This is glorious, full-orchestrated pop, that transfers you in an eye/ear blink to a sonic dreamland with its affecting melodiousness, riveting chorus and warm-hearted vocals. Three minutes and twenty seconds with Spielmann sounding not like everybody else.
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11. ‘Body Bags’ by OWLS (Ireland)
“The song and video have been largely informed by the unfolding events in Gaza. Body Bags looks at humanity turning in on itself. For all the beauty & harmony in the world, we are chaotic by nature – violent and cruel to our own. It explores the human condition and our ability to inflict pain and suffering upon the most vulnerable.”
Producer Owls shares his thoughts about the dramatic Gaza fiasco with
a disturbing techno twister that sounds like an ultimate alarm alert.
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12. ‘Going Out’ by JENNIFER TEFFT AND THE STRANGE (Boston, US)
Get up, stand up, and fight for your right to go out, and do it with
these Boston beatniks. They make your pelvis shake and swing with
some riff-infused rock ‘n’ roll while Avril Lavigne‘s chick alter ego,
named Jennifer Tefft, as your vocal guide.
Badass stroke.
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13. ‘Mercy’ by ALAN VEGA (US)
A previously unreleased album, named Insurrection by the late
Brooklyn born master of minimalism ALAN VEGA (1938-2016), half
of proto-punk duo Suicide, comes out on May 31st.
Ahead of the release comes this taster, called Mercy.
Uncanny percussion, ghostly vocals, and other-worldly
vibes.
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14. ‘Stuck In Place’ by LONELY LITTLE KITSH (Canada)
Expect a captivating bluesy and moony slice of music that grows slowly but
surely in ardency and fervency along its Springsteen-esque strumming way. Wistful
and impassioned alternating/duet vocals flow upfront and lead us, beat by beat,
into a glowing and electrical finale.
Lonely Little Kitsch do it their own Fleetwood grunge way.
Start spreading rumours about this enthralling duo and
this new notable score.
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15. ‘Burning In Our Name’ by MAX BLANSJAAR
Following last month’s frolicsome song Anna Madonna,
Blansjaar entertains our ears again with this topnotch tune.
It’s a folky, sickly sticking, jangly earworm with Blansjaar
laid-back vocals rollin’ all over it.
“My face looks like I spent the night with Freddie Krueger”.
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16. ‘Missing’ by pMAD (Galway, Ireland)
Standout bass riff-driven, frenzied guitar-fueled, drum-beating,
darkwavish, melodic piece from pMad‘s new full-length I In Power.
‘Missing’ is about not valuing people enough when they
are with us and only realising the loss to us when they
are gone.
Don’t miss this.
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17. ‘Unlucky Love’ by JENNY DON’T AND THE SPURS (Portland, Oregon)
From the band’s new forthcoming longplayer, titled
Broken Hearted Blue, out on June 14. Pre-order info here.
Country Americana at its romantic and heavy-hearted best. Heart-and-soul vocals and easy-going, lovey-dovey vibes for the midnight hours. Wurlitzer jukeboxes were invited
to play this kind of lullaby in bars where the lonely gather for some companion.
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18. ‘Close Enough’ by STRESS DOLLS (Buffalo, NY)
📸 Peter Heuer Photography
The moniker of songstress Chelsea O’Donnell.
Another captivating guitar-pop song from Chelsea O’Donnell aka Stress Dolls.
Tantalizing tunefulness, glistening guitar sparks, and gratifying vocals.
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19. ‘Forget’ by MOONPOOLS (Switzerland)
Photo credit: Mischa Nüesc
The opening piece from this Swiss poppy shoegazers
brand new 5-track EP, titled Hide And Seek.
Crystalline vocals, soothing resonance with warm synths and glimmering guitar play.
A sWeet little, soft-hearted ballad. Think The Sundays fronted by the wonderful Harriet Wheeler
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20. ‘Tied To A Mast’ by SEADOG (Brigton, UK)
📷 Tom Chadd
Shoegazy dream pop musing from Seadog‘s upcoming LP Internal Noise, out 15 May.
Harmonious vocals, fanciful sonority, bedazzling guitar solo, and a head-in-the-clouds chorus combine for a top effort.
