Bournemouth based indie rock four-piece Small Talk have released their debut single ‘Headstart’. Formed in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Small Talk is comprised of school friends Ben Lewis on Vocals and Bass and Ali Barron on Guitar with Harry Whitton on Drums and Jack Babbe on Guitar.
‘Headstart’ is an ethereal indie anthem laced in refined instrumentation and glorious melodies. The song is earnest and heartfelt at its core as warm vocals caress a dreamy melody while the lyrics discuss love, loss, heartbreak and loneliness. The band display their knack with earworm melodies and tight well-paced musicianship as they blend indie elements with subtle moments of pop to create an enjoyable listening experience for listeners to indulge in. Looking forward to hearing more from this four-piece.
About the track, Ben Lewis said: “Headstart was written at a time when I just felt inferior to everyone. It seemed everyone I knew on social media was moving on with their lives and doing amazing things while I was stuck in the same place. It kind of tackles that issue through the eyes of someone who went through a difficult relationship and experienced this downfall.”
Alternative Metal band Concrete Colossus have released their new EP, ‘Dead Man’s Hand’. Dallas, Texas-based band Concrete Colossus was formed out of the love of jamming. The five band members had previously been in different bands, developing their skills and honing their individual sounds. When frontman Brandon returned from the military wanting to get back into music he slowly gathered the collective that would come to be Concrete Colossus around him. Initially a jamming project, they quickly realised they were onto something.
Riding in on an explosive soundscape of pure unadulterated fury, ‘Dead Man’s Hand’ is a hard-hitting collection of alternative rock. Not for the faint-hearted, this five-track EP pulses with a raw battering of heavy instrumentation. Utilizing jagged lacerations on guitars with rampant bloodthirsty bass grooves mangled between mammoth drums; songs like ‘Ezekiel 25:17’ and ‘Incarceration’ are ground-shaking forces of nature. Filled with coarse metal elements, growling vocals and savage instrumental builds that surge through a thick alternative wall of sound ‘Dead Man’s Hand’ is an enjoyable maelstrom of mighty musicianship from Concrete Colossus.
Cork-based singer-songwriter, producer Fintan McKahey has released his new single ‘Amber’. The song was recorded and produced by Fintan in his newly built space, Ivy Hill Studios. Fintan McKahey is a low-fi indie singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer from Cork, Ireland. His EPs and several singles have achieved national radio play and press acclaim. He has performed headlines and showcases in major venues across the country.
‘Amber’ ripples with delicate ambient soundscapes and rich instrumental moments. The track is a fine display of Fintan McKahey’s emotive musicianship and deft musical prowess. Delicate in its approach, the song drifts around soft soundscapes while sharp mournful pangs on pedal steel guitar create an element of loneliness that contrasts the warmth of McKahey’s vocals. The track is a well-crafted ballad that reveals many instrumental gems with each subsequent listen; ethereal keys, folk dipped acoustic guitar and gloriously haunting dark embellishments to name a few. ‘Amber’ is simply a joy to listen to again and again. Press play and enjoy.
Dublin-based new wave rock band Hook have released their new single, ‘I Want To See You Tonight’. The band formed in early 2019 consists of Eoin O’Donnell (vocals, guitar), Morgan O’Brien (drums) and Danny Spelman (bass, vocals). The tight-knit three-piece released their critically acclaimed debut EP back in March 2020 and received much-deserved airplay from around the world.
‘I Want To See You Tonight’ sees Hook take their irresistible sound and saturate it with emotion to create one glorious listening experience. Bright guitar glimmers between a pop-punk backdrop to create an uplifting and dynamic soundscape for listeners to indulge in. The track is brimming with gusto with rasped vocals exuding emotion and urgency as O’Donnell exclaims “ I want to see you tonight” between kinetic instrumental builds. Hook have become known for their richly layered, catchy tunes and ‘I Want To See You Tonight’ is a perfect example of this. The track is a magnificent new single that is sure to have you singing along in no time.
Drogheda pop-punk band Rowdy Outsider have released their new single, ‘I Know You Don’t Wanna Talk to Me’. The band consists of vocalist Matthew Doyle, guitarist and bassist Conor Whearty and drummer Sean Murtagh.
‘I Know You Don’t Wanna Talk to Me’ surges with youthful vigour as Rowdy Outsider pour shredding indie rock into a pop-punk backdrop. Drizzling sweet melodies into crashing guitars and shimmering synths the band create an exhilarating tune that slips into the ears with ease. Boasting intricate guitar lines that ricochet off a punchy drum foundation and irresistible groove-filled bass, ‘I Know You Don’t Wanna Talk to Me’ marks Rowdy Outsider a band to keep an eye on. Enjoy.
About the track the band say: “I Know You Don’t Wanna Talk to Me is about dealing with a traumatic series of events in your life and being able to look back, laugh and not take life too seriously”
Self-produced, the band say it’s the least precious they’ve ever been about the recording process. “We wrote and recorded everything really quickly for this song and didn’t worry about perfection in performance or production. We wanted to reflect the tongue in cheeklyrics in the music and production”
Irish indie-rock outfit modernlove. have released their new single ‘Follow You’ through Akira Records (Phoria, Henry Green, Mt. Wolf, Rosie Carney, Shura). Produced and mixed by Tom Leach (Col3trane, Lewis Capaldi, The Streets) and mastered by Kevin Tuffy (Alfie Templeman, Matt Maltese) the new single is a rousing ode to the anthemic indie bangers of the early 00’s that the boys grew up on. Their debut EP ‘monochrome blue’, released in September 2021, saw modernlove. combine their earliest work into a statement debut offering. Featuring the singles ‘Liquorice’, ‘2 Missed Calls’ and ‘lmk (if you wanna see me)’, they received strong playlist support, landing on New Music Friday UK, Fresh Finds, Alt-Pop and The Pop List amongst others on Spotify, as well as New Music Daily, New in Alternative and Breaking Alternative on Apple Music. They have also received strong radio support with 2FM, BBC R1, BBC R6, BBC Ulster, XS Manchester, Across the Line, and Radio X.
Filled with sharp guitars and a brisk rhythmic foundation, ‘Follow You’ is an instant shot of adrenaline. In true modernlove. manner the track hurries behind clever, well-crafted lyrics while warm main vocals and lush backing vocals exude a sweet and irresistible charm. The band flesh out their sound with vibrant drums, hook-filled melodies and jaunty guitars that inject a dash of zest throughout. modernlove. are becoming known for their rich tunes and utterly lush production and ‘Follow You’ is a perfect example of this. With a dynamic clap along feature and swirling instrumentation ‘Follow You’ is a catchy banger that evokes images of live crowds bellowing back the lyrics at the top of their lungs. Press play, turn the volume up and enjoy.
Speaking about the new offering, the band said, “‘Follow You’ is a love song about the early stages of infatuation in a relationship. It’s about finding yourself in a relationship so intimate that spending each waking moment together still isn’t enough, hence the lyrics “when you fall asleep I’ll follow you. Musically, we wanted to write a song that resonated with the nostalgia of those same naive infatuations and took us back to when we first started the band as teenagers finding ourselves as people as well as artists. A simple four chord structure that echoed the likes of bloc party, the cure and new order. A song that we could fully jam on together and jump around to.”
Whelan’s plummeted headfirst into an energetic maelstrom last night as Dublin indie rock band Emily 7 took to the stage for their eagerly anticipated headline show. The crowd and band were hungrier than ever for this performance as the show was two years in waiting due to covid.
Against a backdrop of helium balloons spelling Emily 7, the two support acts KLDD and Curtisy tackled the task of warming up the crowd. Sleek sounding, tight and exuding an impressive nonchalant stage presence, four-piece KLDD had the crowd eating out of the palm of their hands. Comprised of Kilian Callegari on bass, Liam Bennati on drums, David Bradford on lead and Davy O’Toole on vocals and rhythm the band blend moody indie rock with grunge hues and glimmers of punk-pop to create a dynamic sound filled with vigour. The crowd bopped, cheered and some even fangirled over this budding band’s sound. With driving basslines, a fantastic rapid drum assault and some pretty slick guitar work there was plenty of talent on stage – an impressive performance from the four-piece.
Filled with some pretty sleek hip hop backing tracks, Curtisy‘ssetfollowed. Curtisy’s loose performance style, fun attitude on stage and wandering wordplay made for an intriguing listening experience. With raps drifting between topics of girls, drinking and social insights; the artist’s swaggered rhymes and repetitive “yeah, yeah” phrase lingered in many of the crowd’s heads for the rest of the night. Curtisy is fleshing out his style and refining his sound, it will be interesting to see what the hip hop artist does next.
‘Put ’em Under Pressure’ triumphantly introduced Emily 7. The crowd bellowed “Olé Olé Olé Olé, Olé Olé” while clapping and cheering as the band took to the stage. It was a whirlwind of antics, frantic post-punk and sweaty moshing from the get-go. Whelan’s shaked beneath our feet as the cheeky resounding sound of ‘Stephanie’ caused a dance frenzy from the crowd. Filled with thrilling rhythms, soaring wails on guitar and roaring bass grooves the band’s sound is impressive and the four-piece wasted no time in delighting the crowd’s ears with a constant glorious onslaught of instrumentally riveting tunes.
Kyle Bellew and Daniel Clarke are charismatic frontmen who share lead vocals. They exuded a charming persona throughout the set while subtly fighting off the entangled helium balloons behind them. Scott Bellew’s charismatic drumming was a joy to witness and perfectly complemented Brandon Carrig’s superb laid back bass. It was fun chaos all around that was rapturously well-received by the audience. This was particularly evident when the band played ‘Oh Me, Oh My’; the crowd bellowed back the catchy lyrics with such vigour and enthusiasm that made it a memorable moment on the night.
Like all good shows, a broken instrument or two is the norm and a kick drum malfunction,- “we f*cked the kick drum” saw the band styling out the brisk repair with a sleek instrumental jam. The four-piece were comfortable on stage and a broken instrument hiccup was nothing to these guys, within seconds they were back, filling the venue with more blazing tunes.
Emily 7 are a must see live act. They delivered a fantastic live show with an intense conviction that few bands can muster. There are exciting things to come from this band, and I for one am looking forward to it.
Ryan Egan has released his new single, ‘Soft Power’.The song is the third single and title track off Ryan Egan’s debut LP ‘Soft Power’ out April 8th, 2022. The song was produced by Ryan Egan and Kevin Basko (Foxygen,The Lemon Twigs). The track follows up the album’s debut singles ‘Weeknights’ and ‘Alone For the Last Time’, which generated immense buzz, with features including Spotify’s New Music Friday, Kings of A&R and more.
‘Soft Power’ is a lush, R&B-hued laid back listening experience. Soft beats bounce off a psychedelic soundscape of hazy guitars and loose keys while a smoky bass smoulders in the backdrop. The song exudes an irresistible melody with Egan’s warm vocals at the forefront expressing the tracks clever lyrical content, “Who took your money? Who put you to the test? One sip of gin for while your head’s a mess and spinnin’ like a carousel”. ‘Soft Power’ is an expertly crafted tune and a fine display of musicianship from Ryan Egan.
Luke Clerkin has released his new single, ‘Fall in Line’. The track was recorded remotely between Dublin and Berlin with producer jaako. It will be their 4th release together since the pair began collaborating in late 2020. Previous releases have gained critical and radio success getting support from Spin, RTE and BBC amongst others. Luke has also announced a headline show at The Cobblestone on February 24th.
‘Fall in Line’ exudes tense soundscapes, crisp production and the catchy songwriting of Luke Clerkin. The artist’s eloquent lyrics set the scene, taking the listener down an emotional rollercoaster through well coined lyrical content, “condensation fogs up the window, write your name and mine in hearts” while suspenseful pulsing beats simmer beneath soft chiming keys and warm guitar refrains before giving way to a sweet, infectious chorus. With electronic fluctuations and an adrenaline-driven crescendo, the track has a compelling cinematic sound that is sure to charm its way on repeat.
Talking about the release of ‘Fall in Line’, Luke said ‘This song explores the contemplation of doing something you shouldn’t and imagining the consequences of that action. More specifically, it’s about someone who is contemplating getting involved with a person who is already in a relationship. They imagine the heartbreak that it would cause for the other person in the relationship, and the feeling of guilt and shame that would surround the cheating couple.’
Delivering anthemic stadium-filling rock, ‘Like a River’ is the latest release from iconic 90s Rock band Sundogs Wilder Seasons. After making their long-anticipated comeback, Sundogs Wilder Seasons teamed up with former Led Zeppelin producer Leif Mases who guided them through this record. ‘Like a River’ started as a three-chord progression from Scott Bush, with the rest of the band joining in simultaneously and the song organically taking shape. Inspired by unending love, ‘Like a River’ was written to convey feelings of true passion. Formed in Florida in 1994, Sundogs Wilder Seasons have made a big name for themselves, having had three singles in the Top 100 Powercuts and several other charts without major label backing.
Drenched in anthemic might ‘Like a River’ is a passionate tune from Sundogs Wilder Seasons. The band build the track superbly, the song broods atop steamy guitar lines, groove infested bass and punchy drums creating a powerful wall of sound while the rasped vocals and shredding guitar solo drive the track to epic heights. Smooth on the ears with a classic rock edge ‘Like a River’ is a compelling new single from Sundogs Wilder Seasons.
Stream ‘Like a River’ below
Author: Danu
Indie: (n) an obscure form of rock which you only learn about from someone slightly more hip than yourself.
