TRACKS

Image: Tales

TALES - NOSE DIVE

Words: Luke Waller

Nose Dive, the third and latest single released by Newcastle and Sunderland-based alt. rock band TALES, is a marvellous mixture of modern anthemic punk and old-school heaviness, all topped with a hypnotic, futuristic gleam. There’s more than a smidgen of Foo Fighters about the whole affair – but who’s going to complain about that?

Following 2019’s dissonant, psychedelic debut single Amitriptyline and 2020’s more sober Muscle Memory, Nose Dive seems a natural progression for the group. Inspired by an episode of Charlie Brooker’s dystopian series Black Mirror, the track deals with the role social media plays in young people’s lives. From its bright opening bars through to its crowning, innovative outro, Nose Dive is perhaps TALES’ finest work yet.

Released: 10.12.21 www.facebook.com/talesncl

SAM FRENCH - D|W|F

Words: Hope Lynes

Sam French, an alternative pop solo artist and producer, brings a uniqueness to his new track D|W|F through the inclusion of spoken word broadcasts into the soundscape. The news report-style voice adds a layer of depth which makes the atmosphere feel like floating. You can feel the layering and advanced production in this uplifting piece, which is unsurprising given French’s position as a skilled producer.

At times, it’s a genre-blurring piece; the vocals are reminiscent of emo rap, although they’re backed by instrumentation which is more indie pop in style. The raspy voice is almost haunting, and the track is certainly memorable through the catchy and fun chorus. The song is ultimately based on a reflexive experience, and evident through a rising and falling ambience.

Released: 17.12.21 www.samfrenchmusic.co.uk

ANALOGUE BLOOD - EQUINOX EP

Words: Jake Anderson

Have you ever wondered how it would feel to be forcefully given hallucinogens and then shoved straight into a psychedelic vortex? You have? That’s a weird thing to wonder in your free time, but you’ll be happy to know that Analogue Blood’s newest EP, Equinox, is as close as you’ll get to this feeling.

This five-track EDM project is full of distorted guitar loops, punchy drums that’ll go mano-a-mano with your ears, juxtaposing with the hypnotic vocal samples spliced throughout. Some of the vocal layering synergises with the clean production of the EP really well, such as the electrifying Hypnotize, but on tracks like opener Celestial Equator it slightly misses the mark – having an odd vocal effect and being too quiet in the mix.

Released: 14.01.21 www.analogueblood.bandcamp.com

Jarpsy by Scarlet Kane

JARPSY - DESOLATE TOWNS

Words: Jake Anderson

Festival season might be over, but for some it never truly stops. Some of us like to bring those dirty guitar riffs that entrance thousands back with us, to add a sense of escapism to our mundane lives. On the other hand, some of us just like indie rock. No matter the side of the fence you’re on, Jarpsy have something for you with their new single Desolate Towns.

The Mackems hook your ears from the opening strutting guitars, which become the foundation looping throughout the track. Once the riff is drilled into you, the track builds up with rhythmic drums and thick vocals, climaxing with a guitar solo you could mosh to.

Released: 03.12.21 www.jarpsy.com

BOSOLA - ME ON A GOOD DAY

Words: Hope Lynes

Bosola’s new track Me On A Good Day is a certified gloomy banger. The atmospheric sad mood of the lyrics are in stark contrast to the uplifting nature of some of the guitar riffs, and the unique vocals also work to blend misery with the eccentric. With a modern shoegaze edge, this track is for fans of JAWS, spinning melancholic winter content with slightly springy soundscapes.

The tune is the first taste of a new EP from the Heaton-based alternative three-piece, which is due for release in Spring 2022. With an old-school vibe that resonates a state of familiarity, this is a powerful song that is rather hard-hitting to listen to due to the tortured emotions the vocalist projects.

Released: 06.12.21 www.bosola.bandcamp.com

MOTHERLAND - WAITING

Words: Michael O’Neill

A ferocious and unapologetically loud transmission from the Newcastle-based alt. rock quintet, Waiting is a glorious dose of heart-on-sleeve anthemic rock which charts, in the group’s words, “the various stages of love wherein the narrator is completely giving their self to someone but doesn’t know where they stand within it all”.

Despite being a well-trodden narrative in the pop songbook, Waiting’s narrator never comes off as insufferable or self-pitying (the typical pitfall of any song that deals in frustrated love and power chords) and I adore how the shifting tempos, the squalls of evocative melodies (the intertwining lead guitar lines are just divine) and the brilliant lyricism really evokes the frenzy of emotions that can accompany such a conquest with phenomenal accuracy.

Released: 03.12.21 www.facebook.com/motherlandneuk

THE BAND FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION GLITTER TITS EP

Words: Michael O’Neill

It’s very rare that a band with a Really Fucking Good Band Name can deliver the unique goods that their eye-raising moniker promises. However, The Band For Disease Control And Prevention certainly are up to the task on this six-track release.

The title track alone, a spell-binding riff-laden ode to basking in one’s own excellence, is a delightfully goofy and chest-pounding banger, brilliantly showcasing the ferocious talent of vocalist/guitarist Karena Serdeka. Elsewhere, the social commentary on the direct Stories and Read All About It sits effortlessly alongside the playful pop songcraft on Space Invader. It makes for a relentlessly entertaining, refreshingly thought-provoking and gloriously unpretentious twenty minutes of unadulterated DIY widescreen punk, fit to burst with character and glorious riffage.

Released: 06.12.21 www.facebook.com/tbfdcap

TOM CAT E AND THE STRAYS - EMILIO’S MONSTER

Words: James Hattersley

If I heard these stray cats prowling around the alleys in the dead of night, scrapping with each other and howling up a storm, I wouldn’t be mad.

Formed over the height of the pandemic in Newcastle, Tom Cat E And The Strays have pawed together a collection of hard rock hitters, starting with debut single Emilio’s Monster. Grab your cat nip and buckle up for a non-stop, relentless head banger which purr-fectly blends together the genre’s more fur-miliar elements; punctuating guitar, galvanised bass and paw-erly drums and still invites an air of flair and originality. The Strays deliver it in a frantic, driven and convincing manner that keeps it as fresh as door delivered milk. Last one – Mew-sic.

Released: 01.12.21 www.tomcateandthestrays.bandcamp.com

SUDDENLY WE STOPPED DREAMING - BECAUSE OF YOU EP

Words: Evie Lake

Suddenly We Stopped Dreaming’s latest release is characterised by collaboration and resolution, the tracks are defined by variation. The voice and lyrics of Orion Lake defines the first and last tracks, Because Of You and Sea Of Blue, as dreamy and wistful odes to lovers that seem native to a coming of age drama. The alluring, shoegaze melodies weave in and out of emotive beats that sees the EP come full circle by completion.

Someday sees Max Shephed enter on vocals, striking a different note of clean, affecting, indie rock reminiscent of Car Seat Headrest, whilst Silent Movie 2 is a reworking of a previous single with Juniper. This version establishes a more active and passionate tone, with more guitars, oomph and feeling.

Released: 07.01.22 www.facebook.com/suddenlywestoppeddreaming

SISKIN - ELECTRIC LOVE

Words: Evie Lake

The electronic duo transport us right onto the dancefloor for nearly seven minutes of epic, soulful and joyous 90s trance. The push and pull of the beat see textures build and then fall away, creating a cycle of give and take reminiscent of human connection and the Electric Love that pervades the track.

Whether that love is shared between two people or a person and the music, the repetitive vocals haunt the background establishing an ecstasy of feeling. It’s a tune intended for the speakers of a club, where we can dance sweatily but carelessly, allowing the mammoth beats to dictate movement and energy. Electric Love is melodic and bright and makes you want to experience that kind of love too.

Released: 03.12.21 www.facebook.com/wearesiskin

THE BLYTONS - I THINK THE WORLD OF YOU

Words: James Hattersley

Not to set expectations too high or anything, but The Blytons’ I Think The World Of You has one of the catchiest choruses I’ve heard in a while. An ode to the pitfalls of our social media, quick fix, one hour photo, instant oatmeal society, the song takes aim at online dating and the authenticity and fleetingness of those ‘connections’.

Running at 2.37, there’s a bit of meta self-referential humour as the song is over before it even begins (like my dates at uni). The hodge podge of instruments thrown together; aggressively happy ukulele and over-the-top mariachi trumpets are akin to swiping right so frantically that you are saddled with a stub for a thumb. Don’t swipe left.

Released: 03.12.21 www.theblytons.com

CORAL SNAKE - SLOW MOTION

Words: Luke Waller

Coral Snake dance on the border between hard rock and modern progressive metal for the first time in just over a year with their latest release, Slow Motion. And masterfully, at that. Formed in 2019 on Teesside by three former bandmates and singer/guitarist Jamie Farrell, Coral Snake are on the rise – soon to play alongside veteran Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell and his band, the Bastard Sons.

Like their two previous singles, Pierce The Heart and Waiting In Line, Slow Motion blows the listener away. Between the gentle, contemplative intro, mind-boggling guitar solos, passionate screams and elephantine rhythm and bass section of this latest track, there is nothing not to love for fans of Alter Bridge and the like.

Released: 03.12.21 www.coralsnakeband.com