Review: This is a special Record Store Day 2024 release that rights a wrong for hardcore Madness vinyl heads.
With the exception of 'Baggy Trousers,' 'Embarrassment' stood as the sole Madness single from the 80s not to receive a 12" release. This year's annual waxy celebrations however present a special opportunity to own it on vinyl as the classic Motown-inspired hit gets the coveted treatment as part of this six-track EP. Also included is the original 7" mix alongside a previously unreleased instrumental version meticulously crafted by Clive Langer, which offers fans a fresh perspective on this iconic Madness track.
Review: Originally released in 1982, A Flock Of Seagulls' eponymous debut album heard them burst on to the new wave scene with advanced songwriting and catchy guitar laps and lyrics. With Phil Spector hailing the album as 'phenomenal', perhaps for somewhat conforming to his wally production technique, the band ended up being venerated near-timelessly for their quasi-electronic synth tunes like 'I Ran' (clock the use of early electronic drum pads in its breakdown). This is new wave at one its best pop-centric peaks.
Review: Is it really 10 years since Alt-J burst into the open with the barnstorming success of their debut album An Awesome Wave? The band set out their stall as something a little different from the get-go, but the vital essence of the band is in their ability to bridge the gap between widely appealing indie songwriting hooks and unusual touches which make everything sound new, even a decade later. It's fair to say they inspired a fair few artists in their wake, especially with the likes of 'Something Good', but none of these imitators match up to the sheer inventiveness spilling out of this incredible debut album. In the wake of their latest album The Dream, it's a treat to be able to go back to the beginning of their remarkable journey.
Review: Australian folk-indie-pop set Angus & Julia Stone, appropriately led by brother and sister Angus and Julia Stone, have been making waves Down Under for almost 20 years now. One listen to their output is enough to convince you they're a cut well above the rest, and the panel charged with deciding on the ARIA Awards obviously agree. They've now won lots, and received nominations for countless more.
Life Is Strange certainly reflects their oeuvre quite accurately. Somewhere between contemporary country, blissful indie and romantic, soft and sweet artsy indie, the project itself also reflects their forward-thinking attitude, with this one of a growing number of video game scores that are actually albums in themselves, rather than the kind of straight up soundtracks we're mostly used to.
C'mon People (We're Making It Now) (feat Liam Gallagher) (4:55)
Weeping Willow (4:05)
Lucky Man (4:38)
This Thing Called Life (5:23)
Space & Time (5:01)
Velvet Morning (5:03)
Break The Night With Colour (4:31)
One Day (4:33)
The Drugs Don't Work (5:37)
Review: It's been three whole years since we last encountered a new album from the man like Richard Ashcroft. The guy who once told us how the drugs no longer worked, only to then explain how lucky he was. In many ways, Acoustic Hymns Vol.1 is an extension of all that, a record that has come along at a time when he's clearly ready to reflect on the heady days of the Britpop and UK indie explosion detonated in the 1990s.
Whether you'd call this album a covers collection or original, new work is definitely down to opinion. Ashcroft has opted to turn his hand back to tracks released with his seminal band The Verve, and a few of his own solo bits, only reimagined and reappropriated. The latter word is the most accurate, though. Here genuinely new life is breathed back into the likes of 'Bittersweet Symphony', which, considering the scale of that particular hit, is no mean feat.
Review: Alpha Games is the sixth studio album from perennial millennial indie heroes Bloc Party. It's been six years since their last record, Hymns, so what has happened to Kele Okereke's band in that time? Notably, the line-up now features Justin Harris and Louise Bartle and this is the first record they had a direct influence on the songwriting. Listening to lead single 'Traps', there's a fierce urgency which positively leaps out of the speakers. The rhythm section rushes, and Okereke cavorts across the top with a theatrical performance which shows off his range perfectly. There's no doubt they'll be lighting up indie dancefloors and festivals alike as they ride the energy of this album into the great wide world this summer.
Review: The Blow Monkeys' classic debut Animal Magic sees a well-deserved 4xCD reissue, physically looking back on the year of 1986, in which elegant lead singles such as 'Digging Your Scene' took New York by storm. The album blends pop, funk, new wave and soul, likening the human condition rightly to that of animals - and it's no surprise that there's an anticapitalist bent running throughout the album too. A wealth of bonus material here appears too, as sophisticated sax, synth and reverb sway off into the horizon.
Review: Fans of veteran rock band Bush have long been waiting for the arrival of this ninth full-length. It is their first new release since their hugely successful and widely acclaimed 2020 album The Kingdom and it has a punchy, uptempo swing to it that finds them in top form. Plenty of tunes retain the band's signature moodiness with infectious hooks and big riffs detailing each of the tracks. 'Kiss Me I'm Dead' is a real standout with its heavy guitar jabs and strained vocals well as an epic chorus.
Review: Over three LPs, this impressive compilation covers album tracks, singles and B-sides across 30 years of Nick Cave's nigh-on flawless work with The Bad Seeds. Following the progression of the band through these 45 lushly remastered tracks, we hear Cave mature as writer, composer and singer, from the early post-Birthday Party morbid obsessions, through tender ballads, the grand theatrical 'Dig, Lazarus, Dig' era work, to the intense and widescreen masterpiece of 2014's 'Push The Sky Away'. In its assembly, 'Lovely Creatures' is far more than a mere compilation, it's a broad and exhaustive journey through Cave's mythological folklore universe of murder, sex, drugs, love, light and dark.
Review: Counting Crows' sequent 2021's Butter Miracle: Suite One with The Complete Sweets! Now expanding on the themes of its predecessor, the record hears all four tracks from Suite One alongside five new songs, blending this heartsick Berkeley, CA band's signature storytelling with sweeping melodies and raw emotion. Leading the charge is 'Spaceman In Tulsa', a striking single that not only marks their first new music in nearly five years, but appropriately concerns itself with the theme of metamorphosis - "the way music breaks down who we were and spins us into something new. It's about broken lives becoming something better," in the words of frontman Adam Duritz. The record coincides with a fresh tour kicking off in Nashville in Spring 2025, with stops across North America and Europe.
Review: Seven strong San Francisco rock band Counting Crows have always walked a fine line between intimate storytelling and grandiose soundscapes. This time - taking the four tracks from their Butter Suite pt 1 Ep and adding five more new tracks - they sound like a band utterly in control of their own narrative. Adam Duritz's lyrics reflect a certain self-assurance as they weave through themes of reinvention and regret. Musically, the band brings a tighter, more focused intensity, merging rock, folk and even hints of alt-country with the ease of a band at their peak. 'Spaceman In Tulsa' takes its time, unfolding languidly, savouring every detail before pushing forward. And in moments like 'Boxcars,' it's clear this is the most cohesive they've sounded in years, with every instrument serving the story rather than competing for attention. They've done the work, and now, it's all paying off.
Review: Flared, blazered indie rockers Dope Lemon don leopard-print scarves and pink supercars as they glide, sunshades on, down the street to the tune of their new album 'Rose Pink Cadillac'. After the release of their recent single of the same name, the album is decidedly electro-funky and sultry in feel, with the band reconcile every mood between the styles of Tame Impala and Anderson Paak, and teasing a stinking funk to the smooth production that belies each vocal performance by Angus Stone. Coming to CD and LP, one lucky fan who preorders the album will receive - yes - a real 1960s rose pink cadillac with their preorder.
Review: Angus from Australian indie folksters Angus and Julia Stone has an unearthly beauty to his voice so we're always partial to checking out what he's turned his hand to. This is his fifth studio album under his moniker Dope Lemon and it follows his acclaimed 2023 album, Kimosabe. There's certainly an axis between 'Golden Wolf' and some of the early Angus and Julia Stone, but with more of a Killers-esque rock engine to it. Elsewhere, 'Electric Green Lambo' takes us on a detour through some funky, soulful grooves that would suit blazing a cigar in the Havana sun. And the sleek 'Sugarcat' has the strongest beat of the set and it's a guaranteed mood bump every time you hear it.
Review: The Crown Prince of Essex is here in all his sex and drugs and rock 'n' roll glory, and while most of the tracks on this career-spanning collection will be familiar, diving back into the back catalogue is a welcome reminder of the power of modern poetry. Ever the astute lyricist, deftly combining slang with more sophisticated forms of English wordplay, it's enough to make you fall head over heels for the eccentric lad-cum-laird all over again.
With early anthems such as 'Kilburn & The High Roads' sitting next to outtakes from his final, posthumous 2002 album and classics like 'Reasons To Be Cheerful Pt.3', and 'Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick', Hit Me! is as comprehensive an introduction or as deep an exploration of a musical master's work as you are likely to find on two discs. Let's leave it at that.
Review: Liverpool's legendary Echo & The Bunnymen add to their 30-plus years of service to music with a new album, of sorts, that in fact delivers two new compositions and 13 other songs plucked from their vast and expansive catalog. Long-time fans will no doubt be pleased to hear the new beatless tinges given to their 1984 classic "Seven Seas", while of course the album is a perfect diving point for new audience to come to grips with the band too. Take, for example, the gnarlyish drawl of "Nothing Lasts Forever" that helps offset the Bowie-like tendencies heard in numbers like "Lips like Sugar" and "The Somnambulist". Sounds like a cliche, but seriously, still as good as it ever was.
Review: Gavin Friday's Ecce Homo marks his return with a bold, sonorous expression after a 13-year hiatus. The album, produced by Dave Ball (Soft Cell), Michael Heffernan, and Riccardo Mulhall, showcases Friday's evolution as an artist, blending rebellion, anger, and introspection into a deeply personal exploration of identity and societal disillusionment. Known as the former frontman of the Irish post-punk band Virgin Prunes, Friday crafts Ecce Homo with a striking mix of emotional vulnerability and defiance, tackling themes like religion, power, and self-liberation. The title track's haunting yet euphoric sound, paired with an AI-generated video, sets the tone for an album that breaks genre conventions while maintaining a sense of triumph. Ecce Homo is a work of fearless self-expression, building on the reflective grief of 2011's Catholic while celebrating the strength found in independence. This album affirms Gavin Friday's enduring artistic presence.
Review: American rock band Garbage have done well to stand the test of time. Their seventh studio album has been influenced by numerology and things such as the seven virtues, the seven sorrows, and the seven deadly sins. It is a ferocious record that chews up and spits out issues of capitalism, love, loss and grief, and is, says frontwoman Shirley Manson, "our way of trying to make sense of how fucking nuts the world is and the astounding chaos we find ourselves in." Bold, confrontational and powerful, this is one of the band's most socially and politically aware albums.
Review: Bleed Like Me was the hugely successful and critically acclaimed fourth studio album from Garbage. Originally released in 2005, the recording of the album had some ups and downs that included the band disbanding during recording and eventually cutting the subsequent tour short as well. Through all of that, the album reached number four on the top 200 Billboard chart which was higher than any of the previous more commercially successful albums. Although none of the songs were hits, the album sits very well with fans of the band. Nearly 20 years later, we finally get a vinyl version of the album! Spread across two lovely transparent red vinyl we get the Deluxe Version. Listen and enjoy one of the best rock bands of the past 30 years.
Review: Much loved indie pop pair Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory served up their iconic debut album on Mute in 2000. It has sold over a quarter of a million records since and was nominated in the Mercury Awards that year. It comes alongside the rescheduled Felt Mountain Live Tour and is often said to be the band's most crucial and influential record. As such it comes on a fitting gold vinyl with a gatefold sleeve included new and insightful sleeve notes from Lior Phillips in an 8pp 12" x 12" Booklet.
Review: The ongoing success of the musical showcasing his work, the terrific (and very Sheffield-centric) Standing At The Sky's Edge, has done much to remind listeners of Richard Hawley's qualities as a songwriter. He's genuinely one of Britain's best of the last few decades, though the varied ways in which those are presented has not always gone down well with listeners. On In This City They Call You Love - another reference to beloved Sheffield - Hawley returns to the smooth, string-laden sound which marked out his most commercially successful album, Coles Corner. His voice - deep, rich and at this point bordering iconic - naturally takes centre stage on a set packed with touching and thoughtful ballads. It's a winner, but then the majority of his albums are.
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