Pauma know that the finest pop songs are built on the simplest structures. It wouldn’t take a Royal Academy graduate to perfect the four-stop circular progression that forms the bedrock of ‘Sink Or Swim’, but these fellas dispatch it in a wilfully composed manner. From this locked-in phrase, cut from cavernous surf guitar and a laidback finger-clicking shimmy of a beat, rises a wounded baritone vocal, recalling such grandees of savvy Eighties croon as Ian McCulloch and Edwyn Collins. As the chorus blossoms, awash with reverb and fuzzy keys, the rather defeatist lyrical premise of “I Want To Give Up/Don’t Want To Give In” is a neat counterpoint to a stirring few bars of sound. Pauma’s silhouette-based promo photo, as spectral as the song’s outro, indicates that this London quartet wish to give off an enigmatic air prior to the release of their debut EP. But then a band that can pen stylish pop nuggets as catchy as this one don’t need to be a bunch of try-hards.
Pauma’s debut EP is out on 10 November
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Listen/Review: Demob Happy – Succubus
If there’s one band in Brighton guaranteed to host the best Great Escape after-party, as well as be a consistent burden to plasterers in the area after causing ceilings to cave in with their uproarious sets, it has to be Demob Happy.
Due to the sheer quantity of bands in the city, you have to be a cut-above to get noticed and Demob have rattled enough cages and massacred enough nights at Brighton’s Late Night Lingerie club to warrant this attention. Grotty, feral and lucid, ‘Succubus’ is the debut single to be released from Milk Parlour Records, the band’s own label, on November 17. These boys are a clan, you can tell they live out of each other’s pockets and this consequent camaraderie and brotherhood brings unmistakable cohesion to their sound and chemistry to their live set, facets that reinforce their ability to carry the same intensity in any live setting. Whether playing live out of the back of their van, at a student party or at Concorde 2, Demob Happy should not be missed.
Starting with the distinctive DH fuzz bass sound, the opening riff makes you feel uneasy but wanting more, like there’s a devil on your shoulder licking your face with its sandpaper tongue. Complemented by ‘Era Vulgaris’-era QOTSA-like guitar tones, ‘Succubus’, dissected by frontman Matt Marcantonio as being a “love-sucking demon who leaves your front door open but your mind on pause" delivers enough promise and excitement to justify Demob as being one of the most lauded new bands in NME recently.
Marcantonio wields his bass with the same vigour and demeanour that would make The Datsuns smile, and this aptitude is backed up with enough songs, in the same calibre as ‘Succubus’, that’ll make you crave their debut LP.
Succubus is a female demon or supernatural entity in folklore and is derived from the late Latin term succub which means to ‘lie under’, the polar opposite of what Demob Happy will be doing next year - they have the potential to be one the best breakthrough bands of 2015.
'Succubus' is out on Milk Parlour Records on November 17
Follow @Alister_88 on Twitter
See Demob Happy live in October
5: Manchester, Eagle Inn
6: York, The Duchess
7: Hull, The Adelphi
8: Sheffield, Southsea Live
9: Guildford, The Boileroom
10: Maidstone, The Rafters
11: Sunderland, Independent
13: Newcastle, Think Tank
15: London, Birthdays
17: Brighton, Bleach
Listen / Review: Syd Kemp - As I Don’t Get It
'As I Don't Get It', the first track from Syd Kemp's ‘The Horror’ EP, isn't an easy one to label. It immediately strikes you as too off-kilter for a pop song, but it's too easy to listen to to be called experimental. It blurs psychedelic rock, ambient, new wave and indie rock, somehow achieving the feat of evoking both an unsettling, anxious atmosphere and euphoria. There is a seemingly endless depth to the opening, then the song’s signature synth riff kicks in; it's on edge and an instant hook. Kemp scatters his unique paranoid pop with a mix of horror sound effects. The distorted vocals bring an inherent spookiness, yet, helped by the buzzing saxophone, the whole thing sounds like a chemically induced dream.
The Horror is out now on Little League Records
Read more of Holly’s reviews here
Listen: Kate Miller – Collar Up
Dispensing with the sort of ostentatious nom-de-plume that has improved the prospects of countless pop stars from Reg Dwight to Elizabeth Grant, Kate Miller is gambling that her music alone will be enough to linger in the memory banks, aggrandising her rather bland title by proxy. Fortunately, her first release, ‘Collar Up’, is packed with promise. An infectious meld of glossy AOR and sensual R&B, the lead track from Miller's debut EP ‘Neophyte’, out on September 29, builds on a neck-straddling bassline that strides towards a soaring and singable chorus on which choral backing enhances the 19-year-old London art student's pristine pop vocal. Kate Miller – remember the name.
‘Neophyte’ is out on 29 September via Karma Artists
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Listen: Kormac Feat. Speech Debelle - White Noise
Dublin-based DJ Kormac shares with Lost in the Manor the fourth track from his upcoming album 'Doorsteps', featuring Mercury Music Prize-winner Speech Debelle on vocals. Kormac is getting championed by the likes of Annie Mac, DJ Food, DJ Yoda and Mr Scruff, and we wholeheartedly endorse that. Give it a listen.
Kormac's new album 'Doorsteps' is out on Oct 20 via Bodytonic Records
Words by Chris Sharpe (Musicborn)
Introducing / Listen: Lomboy - In The Chamber Of Vanu
If you've just had a hard day's work and want to do nothing but just chill, then the best option is to sit back, relax and let the sweet sounds of Lomboy float right through you.
The band are based in Brussels. If you are wondering what Lomboy means, it's an evergreen tropical tree native to Southeast Asia.
"In the Chamber of Vanu" is out now on Philippine indie label Lilystars Records.
Enjoy and share if you like the track!
Listen / Free Download - Cocoa Futures - Scotland
As you all know, after much passionate debate, the Scottish have finally voted 'No'. To celebrate the whole referendum campaign, and indeed the country, Scottish band Cocoa Futures are giving away a free download of their brilliant track, 'Scotland'.
Greg from Cocoa Futures said:
"This song is about the place where we grew up - Scotland. The day after the referendum will be a happy or sad one for most, and some of us will also wonder if a big opportunity has been missed. Either way, we wanted to remember that, whichever way you voted, Scotland is still great."
Cocoa Futures play the Finsbury on Nov 13th with The Ghosts & Hero Fisher - Get Tickets
Listen / free download: Louis Berry – 45
‘I think I would like to play chess with the devil’ rasps Liverpudlian Louis Berry over the opening salvos of his debut single’s lean psychobilly shuffle. And, sounding like Dan Sartain turned Scouse and streetwise, or a modern-day P Paul Fenech from The Meteors, Berry has a malevolence to his voice that insists you believe him. It’s the spark that illuminates this lively slice of unidirectional rock’n’roll.
45 is out now as a free download
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Review: Jane Allison - Just Another Girl
Welsh-born and Bristol-based, but with an ear cocked somewhere to the south of the Mason-Dixon line, Jane Allison releases her pretty collection of Celtic Country & (Great?) Western in September. Backed by an able assemblage of Bristol’s finest folk players, Allison’s expansive vocal and beautifully formed harmonies are top-drawer, lending emotion and authenticity to her rootsy musings. ‘Just Another Girl’ is being marketed as Americana, and certainly the delightful Southern swing of ‘Hymn To Hope’ (listen below), the homespun ‘Country Lovin’ and the poppy title-track display many C&W tropes (chicken-peckin’ steel guitar, standup-bass-and-brushes shuffles, hell, even banjo). Yet a chunk of the album is actually taken up with ethereal piano balladry, the most striking of which – the powerful gospel lament ‘Real Life’ and the mournful AoR of ‘Wait For Me’ – touch on mystic folkisms that are more Brecon Beacons than Blue Ridge Mountains. The intersection of these two approaches is reached on ‘Fading Moon’, which, lovelorn subject matter aside, sounds like something off PJ Harvey’s ‘Let England Shake’.
All considered construction, polished instrumentation and consummate vocal, Allison’s songs have bountiful commercial scope, in whatever style she chooses to perform them. Already an established actress, she plays two musical roles equally effectively on ‘Just Another Girl’: her next move may be to decide which one suits her best.
Just Another Girl is out on 6 September.
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Listen: Candy Darling - Money
Candy Darling are named after Lou Reed’s transgender muse, so it’s perhaps no surprise that their debut single is all brash melodrama. Yet the camp theatrics of the Bristol trio’s grinding electro noir is shot through with malice on ‘Money’, a spurned lover’s defiant stand given edge by the cold-hearted clarity of Emily Breeze’s powerful vocal (reminiscent of Karen O’s), as she proclaims: “Next time I see you I’ll be laughing/and you’ll be shot down with regret”. Her memorable couplets adorn an industrial meld of serrated synth oscillations, distorted glam guitar and piercing snare claps shattering a lazy 4/4 that gives the track an unhurried, peacocking swagger. ‘Money’ is a sleazy, bittersweet egocentric shout-out which, like all the best comebacks, is delivered with a good deal of wit.
Money is out on 1 September
Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Listen/Review: Wampire - Wizard Staff
Listening to Wampire's latest offering, 'Wizard Staff', it becomes clear why the band titled their upcoming sophomore album 'Bazaar'. This chilled-out 70's soft-rock inspired track is a jumble of assorted sounds and styles. Carried by a solid but lazy drum beat, it strays from the path at will, its Mayer-esque guitar riff unexpectedly accented with blues licks and fleeting saxophone flourishes. The combination of Eric Phipps and Rocky Tinder's vocals bring an air of psychedelia as they drift blearily through the song, and just as the listener begins to get comfortable, that sax floods through and commandeers the bridge, sounding as if it's crying out into the night from high on a lonely rooftop. 'Wizard Staff' won't become Wampire's go-to encore hit, it's not going to incite a frenzy. It's the song playing in the background when you're sat in an empty bar in Shoreditch on a Tuesday night, waiting for it to get busy, yet it never does. We can't say it's exactly what you'd expect from a song called 'Wizard Staff', but we think that's probably a good thing...
'Bazaar' is out on October 7 on Polyvinyl.
Words by Holly Warren - Read more of Holly's work here
Listen: Rökkurró - The Backbone
In a year when the sombre balladeer pining across forgettable laptop-lite has become the default delivery for the unimaginative, we should applaud the return of Rökkurró, whose new single, ‘The Backbone’, a paean to their Reykjavik home, is a triumph of slow and moody electronica-edged introspection, thanks to its orchestral approach. Sure, the chord progression holds no shocks, but listen to that compatible lope of kick-drum and snare, those gorgeous fretless bass runs, that misty synth enveloping slivers of piano, the track’s measured wax and wane, and, of course, the voluptuous vocal of Hildur Kristín Stefánsdóttir (we’re guessing ‘Hildy' to friends). Kate Bush-like in its outlandish scope and inevitably Bjorkish in stress, her voice forms the emotional vanguard to this Icelandic tearjerker, a lesson in how to wallow opulently.
The Backbone is out now.
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Review: Happyness – Anything I Do Is All Right
Hailing from South London, but sounding like they’ve been locked up in J Mascis' basement for the past year, living on a strict diet of fish heads and fuzz pedals, alt-rock three-piece Happyness are the slackers’ and sofa-surfers’ new favourite band.
‘Anything I Do Is All Right’ is the first single from their debut album ‘Weird Little Birthday’. Powered by a riff that wouldn’t sound out of place on Graham Coxon’s ‘Happiness in Magazines’, this track is their most disorderly and frenzied offering. Like a Tasmanian devil causing chaos in a field full of Daisies of the Galaxy, picked by E from Eels, the single has instant intensity and mass appeal. Don’t expect the rest of ‘Weird Little Birthday’ to resemble ‘Anything I Do is All Right’, though, as most tracks lean towards a more minimal, elegant sound, which brings cohesion to an albu, bathed in an opulent, lo-fi vocal effect. Standout track has to be 'Pumpkin Noir', which could be the soundtrack to most Ouija-board enthusiasts’ evenings.
Everything Happyness have released so far bleeds 90s Sub-Pop. From the scribbled handwriting on their artwork to the video for ‘Great Minds Think Alike, All Brains Taste The Same’ (which could be something out of Garth from Wayne’s World’s VHS collection), the band have a clear direction of where they are going from an artistic and recording viewpoint. They know how to trigger their fan base’s pressure points by giving them well-constructed college-rock pleasers. With appearances on the BBC Introducing stages at Reading and Leeds later this month as well as Bestival in September, it’ll be Happyness’ turn to soundtrack your t-shirt tan and lukewarm can of Carling this summer.
‘Anything I Do is All Right’ EP is out on Noisey on 1 September
Words by Ali Waite: Follow @Alister_88 on Twitter
Listen: Prawn - 'Glass, Irony'
Such is the vigorous collision of crunching guttural bass, pummelling drums and distant distorted guitar riffage that the initial 50 seconds of Prawn’s ‘Glass, Irony’ could comfortably be extended into a zippy alt-metal instrumental, dispensing with such conventions as lyrical angst. In fact, it’s almost a downer when singer Tony Clark introduces his emo-esque New Jersey drawl. But hang in there, listener, as that uplifting opening sequence returns to underpin the chorus, and is only enhanced by Clark’s “Let’s Keep Swimming” line, before the track goes rollicking off in unforeseen directions towards fade-out, even finding room for a blast of trumpet among the controlled clout and overdrive. One senses, despite the occasional ugly Durstish belch, that these boys relish in scratching at the frontiers of streamlined stateside punk, and ‘Glass, Irony’ certainly preps the palate for Prawn’s second album, ‘Kingfisher’, washing up on this side of the pond next week.
Kingfisher is out on 12 August on Topshelf Records.
Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Review / Listen: AJ Ellis - Bury the Devil
After calling time on the Five O’Clock Heroes, AJ Ellis’ first solo album finds him of contemplative singer-songwriter vintage, blessed with a warm baritone and a knack for penning catchy adult-oriented pop. At its best, ‘Bury the Devil’ evokes the work of Lloyd Cole or Roddy Frame, or even a Robyn Hitchcock shorn of the surreal. This polished, uncluttered LP is a good-natured body of work: the cheerful calypso-soul of ‘Stand Up’ and the all-go-to-the-hoppish country skiffle of ‘Dance All Night’, for example, offer an upbeat bed for lyrics that seem to have been written by a man coming to terms with emotional commitment. Ellis unearths the odd ear worm with the likes of the jangly ‘Isambard’, on which he engineers a lovely bridge-chorus combo, and LITM’s favourite, ‘I Belong To You’, perhaps the most complete pop tune here, from its smooth rimshot’n’harmonics opening through a celebratory chorus to the searing guitar solo.
Morphing from subdued soul man on ‘Hit the Bottom’ to honky-tonk crooner on the title track, on which he determines to ditch those demons for good, Ellis can be a hard man to pigeonhole. That this New Yorker’s debut was recorded in Yorkshire, mixed in Nashville and mastered in Kentucky may go some way to explaining why there’s no defining influence here, no real sense of place or scene, other than vague Americana, to tag this collection with. But its easy listening feel is of universal appeal and stands or falls on the strength of the tunes, most of which, appropriate to ‘Bury the Devil’’s theme, get better with familiarity.
Bury the Devil is out on 28 July on Ragtime Records.
Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Watch: Traams - Selma
One of the summer’s hotly anticipated releases is Traams’ new EP, ‘Cissa’. After an abrasive tour across Europe with indie heroes Wire, Traams made their mark on SxSW and gathered a global fan base thanks to a mix of art-rock that would make Stephen Malkmus’ hairdresser happy for eternity. One of the flagship acts on Brighton-based FatCat records, the band are a true reflection of the restlessness that defines growing up in a small town – never satisfied or content, just trying to drive past the Little Chef on the A27 outside of their Chichester home, never to return.
‘Selma’, the first offering from ‘Cissa', is a succinct, hook-laden 2.20 track featuring the signature askew, off-kilter guitar work that will make the trio’s fans salivate. Having previously worked with producers Rory Attwell (Yuck, Male Bonding) & MJ of Hookworms, the group are currently at the cutting-edge of angular alternative music. Expect this EP to be full of short, instant and contagious songs that will complement the soundtrack to your summer. Check them out live at their EP launch at Bleach (Brighton's hottest sweatbox) on July 12th or at Beacons festival in August.
Cissa is out on July 14 on FatCat Records.
Follow @Alister_88 on Twitter
Watch: Wunder Wunder - Coastline
The days when the pop-cultural output of Australia could be charted in 25-minute segments of preposterous teatime soap have long been dunked into the billabong by such inventive and untethered rock acts as Courtney Barnett, Tame Impala and Jagwar Ma. The latest technicolour troubadours to bubble up from down under are Wunder Wunder, whose debut album, ‘Everything Infinite’, arrives on these shores on 14 July. Their taster single, ‘Coastline’, is a shot of sonic serotonin if ever there was, a psychedelic summertime high founded on a burst of shimmering guitar accessorised with oscillating synths. The beat is classic soul, the lyrics are submerged among the many reverbed layers, and the vibe lies closer to the West Coast than Highway 101 itself, but ‘Coastline’ is a feelgood composite that marks this Melbourne outfit as worthy contributors to the fertile Aussie canon. Even Mrs Mangel would be getting her groove on.
Everything Infinite is out on Dovecote on 14 July.
Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter
Watch: The Kemistry - Losing It
Londoner's The Kemistry are back in again in fine form with 2 videos for their latest track called 'Losing it'
‘Losing It’, a tale of an unidentified supernatural saviour, is a self-made double audio video release. The video produced by Typeone and The Kemistry is a visual exploration on the inner workings of the ID, featuring some perspective warping visual effects and a pretty serious projection mapped afro. B side, the Bare Beats Alt Dub mix, features an animation only revisit to the original Loosing It video and is possibly even more mesmerizing.
Watch: Terminal Gods - Cold Life
The first time I witnessed the divine intervention of Terminal Gods was at The Bull & Gate a couple of years ago, supporting LA rockers Queen Kwong. Looking like a crack commando team from the Eighties who were on the run after raiding Depeche Mode’s wardrobe, the band have since toured Europe, set up their own promotions company and even released their own comic book. Evidence that they’re now more active and productive than ever, new single ‘Cold Life’ is released on July 14th on Heavy Leather Records, a label established by the band themselves. Available on cassette, the track exudes a wraithlike, ethereal sound that would satisfy fans of The Cult or even the Stooges, with a bar-stool singalong chorus and scuzzy, driven guitars that enhance what the four-piece do best: abrasive singles with pop sensibilities. Determined to take their sound to the masses, Terminal Gods will be going hell for leather, touring the UK to promote the single in July. This group's hands on, DIY attitude deserves respect. Catch them at:
17/07 - Bannerman’s Cowgate (w/ Dressmaker) EDINBURGH 18/07 - Wharf Chambers (w/ Dressmaker) LEEDS 19/07 - The Giffard Arms (w/ Dressmaker) WOLVERHAMPTON 25/07 - Buffalo Bar (w/ Dressmaker) LONDON
Cold Life is out on 14 July Heavy Leather Records
Follow @Alister_88 on Twitter
Listen: Sykes - Gold Dust
The current, vaguely postmodern cultural landscape relies pretty heavily on a large degree of detachment: musicians obsessively hiding behind self-aware irony and indifference for fear of seeming too invested in their own emotions. Apparently no one bothered to inform Sykes of this fact because the London-based trio’s new single, ‘Gold Dust’, is a delightfully un-ironic and relentlessly catchy piece of pop music. Upbeat guitar work and soft, layered synths interweave beautifully, and there’s a special place in my heart for anyone with the balls to, un-ironically, use a handclap snare so enthusiastically. This all underpins soft female vocals, which sing of that particular, invincible feeling of being in love, bringing the song to a quietly anthemic finish. It’s a tune that, by rights, should be twee and saccharine to the point of being sickening. But Sykes are so willing to embrace their own pop sensibilities, and ‘Gold Dust’ is so invested in it’s own total sincerity, that it’s near impossible not to love.
Gold Dust is released on 14 July
Follow @Djymn on Twitter