Last year Spanish power pop señoritas HINDS released
their jaunty 4th longplayer, called Viva Hinds.
It featured Turn Up The Volume‘s number 1 track
of 2024, the fab-tastic pop diamond SUPERSTAR.
Last Friday, the girls were in Belgium again (pictures below).
They played Lokerse Feesten – Belgium. And I had to
see them again. Always party time with the Madrid chicas.
PICTURE THIS Lokerse Feesten, Belgium
August 8 – photos by TUTV.
Pithy Spanish power pop Amazons HINDS unleashed their 4th LP,
baptized Viva Hinds last September. Critics and fans went euphoric.
Uncut Magazine said: “The fourth album is a masterclass
in simple but devastatingly effective melodies.”
During Covid-19 two members left the band, and reduced it to
just 2, guitarists/vocalists Carlotta Cosials and Ana García Perrote.
Album artwork
Last Friday, the Spanish fury, with a new drummer and bassist, organized an elated FIESTA in Brussels. They dropped infectious tune after infectious tune. A red-hot mix of old and new songs, including Superstar of course, TUTV’s best single of 2024, all causing a state of extreme jubilation among the audience (with many Spanish fans).
Carlotta Cosials andAna García Perrote.
It was a enraptured sauna event from the very start to the last single note of music.
Every single person got involved. Singing, shouting, dancing and clapping uninterruptedly for 75 minutes.
Carlotta Cosials and Ana García Perrote led the sonic spectacle with their vivacious
vocality, cool dance moves, and happy (lots of sex) and sad stories (during Covid-19
the band almost felt completely apart). Hinds, at first named Deers, is one of those kind
of ardent acts that make you jump for joy non-stop and catapult you upon cloud nine.
The party came to and end with their huge crowd pleaser Davey Crocket,
a cover of the 1991 song by English garage pop outfit Thee Headcoatees.
Gracias chicas!
ALBUM
. SETLIST
1. Hi, How Are You 2. The Club 3. New for You 4. Boom Boom Back 5. Coffee 6. Burn 7. Just Like Kids (Miau) 8. Riding Solo 9. Stranger 10. The Bed, The Room, The Rain and You 11. Girl, so confusing
(Charli xcx cover) 12. Good Bad Times 13. Bon Voyage 14. Superstar 15. Castigadas en el granero 16. Spanish Bombs
(The Clash cover) 17. En Forma 18. Davey Crockett
(Thee Headcoats cover) 19. Hello (outro)
Unquestionable standout from the Irish indie
stars’ much applauded 4th LP Romance.
TUTV: Intense jam, rollin’ on with a bone-chilling flow and
frontman Grian Chatten raps all over it with his characteristic
uptight parlando and grasping for his breath every time the
refrain comes on.
Part of their upcoming 5-track EP
that’ll land early next year.
“Progress is a song about changing places, people and times.”
TUTV: Epic. Grandiose. Staggering. Amplified guitar-pop at its mind-blowing best.
One of those not-everyday puissant killer tracks overwhelms your emotions
from the first spin.
Piece from their forthcoming second longplayer, baptized Never Exhale. It’ll hit the streets on 25 January 2025.
TUTV: Taximan does your head in the way we, brainbangers, like it.
Bam Bang Boom. No mercy for the wicked. Manic mayhem as usual.
You’d better check out if Robert ‘Travis’ De Niro is behind the wheel
before taking a cab.
The song is about rediscovering old lovers after a night out from disco(theque) to disco(theque), with references to The Pogues’ Shane MacGowan and his excessive
drinking, and a legendary Belgian crooner.
TUTV: Full steam ahead from the get-go. All engines on. Decibels up, amps up.
The breakneck speed and the relentless synth/percussion riff make your head
spin 360°. I dare you to catch up with this missile all the way.
Band: LAMBRINI GIRLS Who: A two-motor punk bulldozer from Brighton, UK who have built
a notorious reputation over the past 2 years, on record and on stage.
Cut from the duo’s upcoming debut LP Who Let The Dogs Out. Out next year, on
January 10.
TUTV: Without a shadow of a loud doubt, one of the grrrlz’s best stormers so far.
An amazeballs wall-of-nasty-guitar/bass hullabaloo, a ruthless octopus drummer
and Phoebe‘s best vocals. Hell-tastic.
‘True love is nothing more than the wrong hill to die on”.
TUTV: The jaw-dropping vitality these volcanic Irish beatniks develop here is off the charts. They build a near-unbearable tension and explode insanely, time after time, along the rough ride. Vocalist/songwriter Karla Chubb knows terrifically well how to double your adrenalin production.
TUTV: Dog Dribble operates somewhere between Yard Act and Sleaford Mods.
Its limbs-activating groove is simply irresistible. Get up, stand up, and fight
for your right to bounce up and down like mad.
Band: FAT DOG Who:South London-based gang that made thousands
and ‘true love is nothing more than the wrong hill to die on”.
thousands of ears go bonkers with their first-rate debut
longplayer Woof.
TUTV: A ballistic disco-punk whopper to end and start all (il)legal
raves with. When the huge orchestral injections blast out of your
vibrating speakers you know that these misfits are your new
favorite dogs. Hallelujah!
One of the stellar singles from their
new, third, album Insight.
TUTV: Drums and bass team up for an incessantly beat that carries
this instantaneously infectiuos trip, along with a magnetizing Cure-esque guitar riff that gets you in a trance.
Truly hypnotizing from start to finish with velvety vocals
and darkwavish synths in the back adding a twilight tone.
TUTV: No, this is not a New Order song but it could easily be one, actually a stellar one. Summer Breeze sparkles from the very start to finish with scintillating guitar riffs, zealous percussion, shiny synths and Gibbard‘s eager vocals. It’s a pure pop pearl for all seasons.
Artists: ARROWS OF ATHENA (Boston, MA) Who: A pandemic project that found its two main players – multi-instrumentalist and producer Scott Lerner and vocalist and lyricist Jac-Lyn Gibson – reuniting after the latter spent some time away from music, Arrows of Athena are crafting a distinct sound on
their own terms, bridging usually disparate ends of the pop and rock spectrum for an illuminated sound of big dance beats, heavy riffs, and melodic intensity.
On this song the duo explores the mental and emotional work required
for a successful marriage, and how we’re often careless with love.
TUTV: I’m quite sure that Arrows Of Athena 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.
TUTV: This is a psychedelic shoegaze stunner, a multi-layered symphony
propelled by about a thousand guitars, a mindboggling bass riff, and combative
drums, while Rebecca Dow‘s ghostly vocals come from another galaxy.
TUTV: What’s in store for humankind. Nuclear war or peace and free love?
Or will we be just another brick in the wall? Whatever happens, never stop
pirouetting yourself dizzy to Leg Puppy.
We don’t need your education
We don’t need no your thought control
TUTV: The most energetic, exciting, pizzazy band around. Cooking on record and on stage. Sultry garage rock for party animals. This is my absolute favorite of this years Boomerang LP. Chipper tune.
TUTV: Think Cypress Hill fronted by Zack de la Rocha, rattling like
a rapid-fire riot-gun. An avid anthem that celebrates freedom and
invites you to shout along while pumping your fists in the air.
TUTV:Hallelujah rages against the anti-LGBTQ
haters with knives between their teeth and an
unstoppable drive.
“To express oneself, now expressly forbidden/ That’s a spiritual hell, that’s
a new prohibition/ And they’ll boil you down to reproductive function/ When
they see you as a vessel and not as a person!”
Track: Anna Save A Life
. TUTV: A manic motherrocker from a duo who sound as a 4-motor hit-and-run team. Riff-o-rama all the way while bashing drums do your head in. Garage punk ‘n’ roll at its filthy best. Call your own Anna and challenge the anti-decibels police.
TUTV: Wham bloody wham bam. Expect a sharp-splitting punk rock juggernaut. Amps up and full steam ahead. No rest for the wicked with this razor-blade cutting, head over heels bombshell spiced with sneering vocals. Wham bloody wah-wah guitars bam. Scrunched Up Fist hits your face really hard. Hurry-scurry stroke.
Band: SOFT SKIES INC Who: Philadelphia-based identical-twin duo and longtime musical confidants Ryan and Martin Rex, their shared sonic compass draws a straight line from the
classic alternative of their youth to the modern alternative and dream-pop of
today.
A song of hope, riding those tender waves of nostalgia, understanding that a loss of innocence comes with age but that we emerge from the other side with newfound perspective and awareness.
Melodic guitar pop at its Sebadoh best. Uptempo shoe-slacker-gaze
spiced with scintalling synths and ethereal vocals. Start dreaming in
overdrive.
TUTV: Just Like Everybody Else is a glorious, full-orchestrated pop gem, that transfers you in an eye/ear blink to a sonic dreamland with its affecting melodiousness, riveting chorus and warm-hearted vocals. Three highly-entertaining minutes and twenty seconds with Spielmann
Peppy Spanish power pop Amazons HINDS
unleashed their 4th LP, baptized Viva Hinds.
The band is now reduced to two members. So, only
2 hinds left. But it’s definitely their best music ever.
Press info: Spanish indie rockers Hinds are back with their utterly triumphant
fourth album, Viva Hinds. Written by the band’s co-founders, co-vocalists, co-guitarists
and co-songwriters Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote, it features their first-ever fully Spanish language songs, as well as first collaborations with the likes of Beck and Fontaines D.C.’s frontman Grian Chatten.
Uncut (British music monthly): “The fourth album is a
masterclass in simple but devastatingly effective melodies.”
New album cover
TUTV: Infectious tune after infectious tune make you reach for Piña Colada after
Piña Colada. Hinds resurrect here from a difficult period with 2 members leaving.
It leads to songs of love and loss, yep, songs about life.
The overall vitalizing formula of this new longplayer lies in the fact that every single track
is embedded in an on-the-spot galvanizing melodiousness that triggers joyous, gratified and devil-may-care feelings. It’s called pop-ular music. No less, no more. Oh so welcome
in these disordered times. Uplifting entertainment for all seasons. Gracias ciervas.
. KEY SINGLE
Contender for best one of 2024
Band: iNNUENDO Who: Irish indie act founded in 2022. Their goal is to create a captivating and dynamic atmosphere with melodically compelling and distinct original songs, all while honouring classic and modern influences.
Track: DON’T ASK AWAY
Piece from their debut EP, named On Occasion, out in September.
It captures the frustration and anger of feeling unseen and used, offering
today’s youth a voice to scream out against those who value them only for
their image rather than their true selves.
Artwork by Keelin Sutcliffe
TUTV: Following rad single clear motion this new one is another sonic
and emotive triumph. These Irish indies are going places. Don’t miss them.
TUTV: What a riveting and rotating blue-wave gem, enforced by Krautrock dynamics, ongoing motorik beats, glowing guitar lines and echoing vocals. MM nail it once again
with this hypnotic and magnetic jam. Bring on the album.
F333 about the new one: “There are no diamonds to be produced without pressure.
No lessons to learn without trials. ‘Higher Power’ revolves around these ideas and reveres
the beauty in the adversity induced magic performed by marginalized communities.”
Alert your ears and check your speakers
before playing this ballistic uppercut.
Rogers: “I thought it was interesting to get under the skin of death as a being with
a conscience, but who had to get on with the job like so many of us. We wanted to explore the idea that people are more than their jobs and that we need to consider there’s more to people than meets the eye. We liked the idea of death giving birth as well, so Death became a woman and why not?”
TUTV: The song’s protagonist is named Death. She seems to be a female grim reaper, who’s pregnant, you and you need to escape from if you want this short life live the longest you can.
Death Knocked Up is a jagged word-waterfall jam rolling over a repetitive beat and trippy synth dynamics. Rogers advices us to choose future, to choose life. A spot-on proposal in these turbulent rat-race times on its crushing way to Death‘s big party if we do not make the right choices right now.
The song touches on the fact that people mostly use Pride
as an excuse to party when actually the rest of the year, the
LGBTQIA community suffers from dangerous stigma and
abuse.
TUTV: Here is an explicit middle-finger for all LGBTQIA-haters. To hell
with them. Queer-trans-punk trio Daffodildos just entered the indie
scene with sharp-cutting knifes between their teeth and are here to
stay.’No Pride‘ is a fast-forward projectile that rattles and battles for
251 barbed wire seconds.
“We’re here, we’re queer
We’re never gonna disappear.”
Band: HUGE MOLASSES TANK EXPLODES Who: Italian outfit that offer a kaleidoscopic experience,
ranging from rugged and evocative beats to dreamy
soundscapes, inspired by post-punk and psych-wave.
Track: INDETERMINATE
Piece of their 3rd album, named ‘III’,
out on September 6.
TUTV: Don’t miss the start of this supersonic Krautrock missile, or you won’t
be able to catch up. Indeterminate goes full steam ahead from the kick-off and
never looks back, never slows down. All cylinders, all burners on, and fast-forward.
Track:LE RISQUE
From their upcoming, 26th LP in 14 years (no this is
not a typo), called Flight b741. It’ll land on August 8.
TUTV: Frenzied bass-and-guitar-crazy projectile that rocks and
rolls straight on with racy panache. It has drummer Michael Cavanagh
on vocals for the first time.
Artists: RED PERIL Who: The new endeavour of the London-based Italian-Mexican musician Stefania F. Cardenas, co-founder, singer and guitarist of the now defunct all-female indie act Madonnatron (I loved them, criminally underrated) and musical partner Dexter.
RP: “Space Dogs is a song about trusting the wrong people. It’s a reflection on loneliness
and the extreme things people do when they are desperate for love and have nothing left to lose. Sometimes the only thing you can do is shoot for the stars. It might work out, or not.”
TUTV: Sultry, zippy and sprightly. Imagine your dog teaming up with Pet Shop Boys
for a Space Bowie Oddity trip. A titillating tune to move to in mysterious ways
surrounded by mysterious people in a mysterious universe. Pretending that you’re Laika in the sky with diamonds will help.
Seamus Hayes (vocalist): “The song starts with what seems like an apology. It’s been a crazy year of self-reflection and self-improvement and I owe most of it to my girlfriend. The verses are in some way directed to my girlfriend.”
TUTV: The first time I listen to this new Oscar Mic tune on Spotify it was automatically followed by a Sleaford Mods tune. Get the vibrating picture? I’ll add to this that Beastie
Boys (Paul’s Boutique era) are fighting for their right to party in there too, and that Roots Manuva definitely would rap along if this punchy buzz hits his ears.
TUTV: I had no idea that extraterrestrials could be an inspiration for a straightforward rocker like this glorious one. It’s an adrenalized, speedy and sparkling guitar-spiced energizer with an infectious chorus. Those extraterrestrials should form a band and entertain planet Earth.
Band: DEREK SMITH & THE COSMIC VULTURES
Who: Captivating pop/rock outfit from Boston with
5 LPs under their belt. Check them out on Spotify
right here
Press info: “The notion of “Tomorrow Morning” can mean different things to different people, but for Derek Smith and the Cosmic Vultures, it represents the idea of a guiding
light. It’s also the title of their new electric single.
TUTV: Stirringly soulful. Sparklingly pop melodic. Americana-like emotive.
If you mix those three elements, and you add heart-whole vocals, you get
this titillating tune that’ll play around in your head all day long.
“The meaning behind the song is best to be interpreted however you choose, if it makes you feel a certain way be that happy, sad or just forget about your own problems for a few minutes and try to put yourself in the shoes of the writer, that’s all we want and that’s why music to us is at times the only solution and the only thing that make sense because often life doesn’t and I suppose briefly to me this song is me trying to make peace with that.”
TUTV: These young gunslingers sound like a seasoned band, operating somewhere
in-between Welsh heroes Stereophonics and blue-chip Americana acts. Thick As You is a blues-infused, charged riff-ripper delivered with vital pizzazz and impassioned ebullience.
“HMRC was written off the back of a few first hand experiences, including working under
a supervisor who was high on crack and getting a phone call on payday asking if I would be
OK with just half the wage until next month.”
TUTV: Imagine walking on the street, after you hit your greedy boss with
a left/right uppercut, with hip-hop swagger, whistling to this sickly stick tune
playing on your earphones. Get the picture? In case you have a great boss you
can swagger around to this vibe too, of course.
Artist: pMAD Who: The moniker of Irish musician Paul Dillon who draws inspiration
from bands like The The, The Cure, Killing Joke, Echo and the Bunnymen,
Rammstein, and Depeche Mode.
Artist: KIM DEAL is best Who: Best know as the former drop-dead gorgeous bassist of indie icons Pixies and from her own band The Breeders, featuring
her twin sister Kelley.
COAST is a sweet little tune with a breezy, smooth vibe.
It was recorded by the late Steve Albini who passed away
in May, only 61.
Kim wrote ‘Coast’ in 2020 after being at a friend’s wedding.
But the song’s roots date back to 2000, when she was staying
in Nantucket, even though she doesn’t like the sun, beach and
watersports.
She’s still the real deal.
Whistle/hum/sing along.
Artist: KIM DEAL is best
Who: Best know as the former drop-dead gorgeous bassist of alt rock
icons Pixies and from her own band The Breeders, featuring
her twin sister Kelley.
COAST is a sweet little tune with a breezy, smooth vibe.
It was recorded by the late Steve Albini who passed away
in May, only 61.
Kim wrote ‘Coast’ in 2020 after being at a friend’s wedding.
But the song’s roots date back to 2000, when she was staying
in Nantucket, even though she doesn’t like the sun, beach and
watersports.
She’s still the real deal.
Whistle/hum/sing along.
