New single: FRIENDLY IS BETTER
Second taster from his upcoming solo debut EP
Wolf: says: “My daughter and I were playing in the garden and I was
singing this melody over and over: ‘Friendly is Better’. I recorded a little
demo: I wanted to juxtapose the acoustic/folky side (guitars) to the electric
bass and synth drums – which are in fact handclaps and a pillow as a bass
drum. Lyrically it’s pretty straightforward: I propagate the smile as the best
form of communication. I’m not turning the other (Christian) cheek, but
rather some kind of Buddhist open mind greeting. But in an agnostic way.
Buddha says: “Do the Anjali Mudra Press your palms together in front
of your chest and say a greeting term either in your own language or in
a language that the other person understands.”
Turn Up The Volume says: Wolf could be the singer of Belgian top band Balthazar, Wolf could be the unknown brother of Bonnie “Prince” Billy, but
at the end of the day, Wolf is Wolf. After his wistful debut single Not To he
continues his musing journey, on his horse, with this slo-mo meditation. Friendly is better, Wolfis better.
Friendly is better
As simply as simplicity
But simplicity is hard to teach
Friendly I’m better off Kindliness is a novelty it trains the muscles you can’t see
Friendly is better You told me about divinity But mockery is just not me…
Yes, we have already reached the middle of 2021. The world, finally, looks brighter
than last year. Mad summer parties are just around the corner. And here’s the perfect soundtrack… Turn Up The Volume’s 20 best knockout tracks of 2021, so far!
All together on Spotify…
. Track by Track…
1.‘Finger Pies’ by ANIKA (Berlin)
Electro earworm that moves and grooves from the get-go driven by a rolling
bass riff. Strangely catchy, mysteriously designed with a hypnotic effect. Top!
Catch the vibe…
2.‘Nike Soldier’ by ALAN VEGA (US)
Alan Vega is dead! Long live Alan Vega! This spine-chilling
slo-mo groove comes from his lost album Mutator.
Check in…
3.‘Night Is Mine’ – ULTRA SUNN (Brussels, Belgium)
Combine D.A.F.‘s industrial vibes, Sisters Of Mercy‘s gloom and doom hallucinations, and Depeche Mode‘s pop-noir thrills and you know it’s time for a dazzling night. It’s the title track from their standout debut EP.
Put on your leather jacket and dance…
4.‘One + One’ by DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 (Canada)
With Is 4 Lovers the Canadian champions of drone noise rock made one of their best
full-lengths (so far). And the lead-single ‘One + One’ is a bulldozing, yet catching power blast that comes right at you.
Get slammed…
5.‘Ten Points On The Damage Meter’ by HOW TO LOOT BRAZIL (Germany)
No rest for all who are addicted to dance their asses off. This is a hip-shaking belter, 145 seconds of steamed-up pop-punk euphoria. Imagine German dark disco legends D.A.F. on speed, fronted by Brit-girls Shampoo who are in trouble again.
Here comes the shot of adrenalin…
6.‘Coma-Inducing Gibberish‘ by PIZZA CRUNCH (Scotland)
Scottish hit the bullseye with this sturdy stunner. A fab-tastic masterstroke to shut up all narcissists. Beware of getting too excited. It can lead to a rock ‘n’ roll coma. Whatever! Go for it!
Right here, right now…
. 7.‘Stay’ by ONISM E (New York)
A soul-stirring and highly affecting vocal highlight – from one of the best albums of 2021 – by this rad emo-striking NY-based outfit. Stream/buy ‘Survivors’ LP here.
And stay for this pearl…
. 8.‘Fall Of The Big Screen’ by DEADLETTER (South London)
Imagine George Orwell fronting The Fall back in Nineteen Eighty-Four scaring the
world with a grim, futuristic vision of humankind about to collapse in 2021 due to
a deadly virus. Scary!
Turn up the heat here…
9.‘Wake Up’ by LOBSTERBOMB (Berlin, Germany)
A screaming triumph. This up-and-coming Berlin trio combines Bikini Kill‘s rough
outcries, L7‘s detonating gusto, and B-52‘s peppery liveliness. Touchdown!
Wake up here…
10.‘Heroin’ by PERMO (Scotland)
A sizzling slice of trash and slash punk. Expect 135 striking seconds of heavy thunder
and creepy lighting. Totally insane drums and bass, deranged guitar frenzy, and cranked-up, psych-o-tic howling. Fucktastic intensity!
Hell yeeeaaahhhh…
. 11.‘We… Are Doomed’ by THE IRRATIONAL LIBRARY (Dutch-American)
A challenging rap and roll rant by an open-minded-plainspoken-ass-kicking-anti-establishement-and-other-scumbags force of doom and gloom. The title track from
this caring collective’s excellent new album.
Apocalypse now…
12.‘Boilermaker’ byROYAL BLOOD (UK)
The blues-rock tandem is back with this motherfucker of
a slam dunk from their brand new album Typhoons.
Wham bloody wham bam…
13.‘The Men Who Rule The World’ by GARBAGE (US/Scotland)
A surprisingly funky disco banger that triggers your head’s up-and-down movement the very moment the money drops into the corrupt politicians’ pockets. I still love you, Shirley!
Let’s roll…
14.‘This Is Not’ by CROWS ON WIRES (Germany)
Sultry synths, punchy percussion, glimmering guitar lines, and vibratory vocals.
Sounds like Sisters of Mercy are back, produced by Bauhaus who listened to Soft
Cell on repeat. A stunner, indeed!
Get magnetized here…
15.‘Vendetta’ – ICEAGE (Denmark)
An intoxicating jam with a threatening pace. A glam
power punch from their best-ever album Seek Shelter.
Press play and get moved…
16.‘Not To’ by WOLFVANWYMEERSCH (Belgium)
Melancholia at its starry-eyed, synth-pop best. Here’s a romantic at heart, going
solo, who’s sanely obsessed with creating music, playing music, and enjoying music,
if possible, all at the same time. Damon Albarn‘s moody side comes to mind.
Dim the lights and enjoy…
17.‘Unspoken’ by ANNIE TAYLOR (Switzerland)
A troubled love reverie with a sorrowful touch. Heartbreaking romanticism at its balladesque best, notable for its vocal splendour and silver-toned resonance.
Enjoy the sweet little pearl…
. 18.‘Carry Me On’ by THE BANKROBBER (Italy)
This new musing feels like a nightly gloaming. Acoustic soul-searching and intimate tenderness. The darksome sorrowfulness of several past and present crooners come
to mind when hearing this gloomy song.
Dream away…
19. ‘Man Alone (Can’t Stop The Fadin’)’ byTINDERSTICKS (Nottingham, UK)
Surprising stonker! An 11-minute psychedelic and epic journey. Trippy and spacey.
From their new, 13th album, Distractions.
Follow the flow…
20. ‘Amsterdam’ by MOONLIGHT PARADE (UK)
Magical and red-colored ballad, combining the melodic melancholia of Teenage Fanclub and The Coral. A sweet little gem about a wonderful city I’m in love with for a long time now. Press play and let your thoughts drift away on a cloud.
Turn Up The Volume‘s 15 Knockout Tracks for March 2021!
A fervid fusion of rhapsodic rippers and clashing crackerjacks.
‘High Horse’ by DEAP VALLY (LA, California)
When the utterly cool Deap Vally queen cats invite their friends you may expect firework like this blues-rock steamer featuring KT Tunstall & Peaches. Stream/buy the full stellar Digital Dream EP here.
‘Stay’ by ONISM E (New York)
A soul-stirring and electrifying top track – from one of, yes, the best albums of 2021 –
by this rad emo-striking NY-based outfit. Stream/buy ‘Survivors’ LP here.
. ‘White Elephant’ by NICK CAVE & WARREN ELLIS (Australia)
What can I say? Cave & Ellis made a brilliant longplayer called Carnage and White Elephant is its most impressive piece (to my ears). Mind-boggling.
‘Not To’ by WOLF VAN WYMEERSCH (Belgium)
Melancholia at its starry-eyed synth-pop best. Here’s a romantic at heart, going solo, who’s sanely obsessed with creating music, playing music, and enjoying music, if possible all at the same time. Damon Albarn‘s moody side comes to mind.
‘Five Finger Exploding Heart Technique’ by OK COOL (Chicago, US)
A sonic shot of riot grrrl guitar-pop that has an instant impact on your body activity. You just want to go out and scoot in the street, feel ecstatic, and hear your heart beat madly. These are 130 thrilling seconds you want to relive over and over again.
‘I Want Noise’ by LOBSTERBOMB (Berlin)
What you get here is Bikini Kill‘s raw outcries, L7‘s detonating gusto, B-52‘s rock lobster’s liveliness and catchy aaah-aaahh-aaaah chants. A boosting injection of Riot Grrrl adrenalin. A punk-fun knockout.
. ‘Hail Satan’ byPINK ROOM (Belgium)
A merciless haymaker, a scrappy Molotov cocktail banging from start to finish
like a brutal sledgehammer. The mean Pink machine honors their best friend.
From their brand new, ace album Putain Royale.
‘One + One’ by DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 (Canada)
With Is 4 Lovers the Canadian champions of drone noise rock made one of their best
full-lengths (so far). And the lead-single ‘1 + 1’ feels like a bulldozer coming at you.
‘Crank Bugs’ by RADIO SILENCE (Newcastle upon Tyne, UK)
Blustery guitars all over the place, manic drum hits, and combative Richard Hell vocals. 2021 is the new Orwellian 1984. From their red-hot-blooded debut EP ISOLATION.
. ‘Cimmerian’ by SLAP RASH (Manchester, UK)
After an ominous word-spoken intro this industrial hammer blow explodes like
a raging volcano and singer Amelia starts her enigmatic and nightmarish rant
about obscene abuse. Insane masterstroke with a hell-raising shock-chorus.
. ‘Living In Dystopia’ by CRUX (Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK) Crux translate their justified discontent, about our messed-up world, in this razor-sharp-cutting-power-stroke with pounding punch. A bludgeoning Royal Blood groove is the firm backbone throughout this stormy stunner. Wham bloody wham bam.
‘Hunted From Below’ by EMPTY HEAD (Belgium)
Sonic madness, mind-crushing paranoia, and muscled tumult all rolled into one bad motherrocker of an electro-shock wallop. You can smell the scent of scorching punk frenzy. Nasty, filthy and vicious! Totally insane!
‘Electric Yerevan’ by SERJ TANKIAN (LA, California) System Of A Down loudmouth Taikan rocks like hell, sings like hell and raps like hell. What
a titanic voice! Fuck SOAD, welcome Serj. From his fresh smelling solo EP Elasticity.
‘Hourglass’ by GLASS VIOLET (Bristol, UK)
Multiple waves of blistering guitars infiltrate your greedy ears, while a persistent drumbeat activates your feet and makes your head spin. When the flamboyant chorus pops up with a fervent flair à la The Killers you know and you feel that Hourglass is amplified top pop bliss with a dark lyrical twist.
. ‘Unspoken’ by ANNIE TAYLOR (Switzerland)
A troubled love reverie with a sorrowful touch. Heartbreaking romanticism at its balladesque best, notable for its vocal splendour and silver-toned resonance.
A sweet little pearl.
