DATE ARCHIVES : April 2016

SALES Share Single ‘Ivy’, Ahead of Debut LP on April 20th

Over the past 18 months or so Florida duo SALES, have repeatedly proven themselves to be a reliable and plentiful source of catchy, melodic and pleasantly chill dream-pop.

Now, with their long-awaited debut LP almost upon us, Lauren Morgan and Jordan Shih have shared new single ‘Ivy’. It is a pensive, slinky, free-flowing meander with a mildly distorted drumbeat and repeated guitar riff, undulating around Morgan’s gentle, gauzy and alluring vocals. It all softly splashes, swirls together, working perfectly with their pre-existing penchant for mellow guitar, bedroom pop. The pair couldn’t have created a more endearing tracking, it is simply wonderful. Not only that but it showcases everything that makes SALES such a wonderful band and exciting proposition, and why if you’re not already looking forward to the release of their debut album on April 20th, you probably should be.

SALES’ self-titled debut is out on April 20th but till then, you can check out the marvelous ‘Ivy’ below:

SALES’ have a whole host of live dates lined-up across North America, you can check the full list here.

 

Introducing: Omaloma

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Omaloma is the new musical project of Welsh artist George Amor. Formerly of now defunct Welsh psyche supremos Sen Segur, and current bass player for Palenco, Amor has heralded this fine news with a debut single of shimmering, psychedelic escapism, in the shape of ‘Ha Ha Haf’.

Released on Cae Gwyn Records, ‘Ha Ha Haf’ (translates as ‘Ha Ha Summer’) is ever so pleasing on the ear. Imbued with a suitably sunny disposition, it is a bright, cheery and beautiful, psych flavoured pop song. Awash with undulating effects, cosmic rhythms and meandering melodious, it perfectly combines piano, jangly guitars and soft, soothing vocals (sung in Amor’s native Welsh). Breezy pop brilliance from Omaloma, which much like April in Vancouver thus far, is an early taste of summer.

Needless to say, it is going to interesting tracking Omaloma’s progression through 2016, and beyond. For now, you can enjoy the wonderful Ha Ha Haf’ and ‘Lutra’, Omaloma’s inclusion on Swooshed; Cae Gwyn Records’ most recent and most excellent compilation (it is available here).

 

L.A. Witch – ‘Drive Your Car’

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Los Angeles garage-rock trio L.A. Witch –  Sade Sanchez, Irita Pai, and Ellie English – are releasing a new 7″ single to celebrate their North American tour with The Kills.

The single is question, ‘Drive Your Car’, is a perfect exponent of their signature sound that veers between moody post-punk and explosive blues-punk-garage. It is a just-over three-minute ferocious blitz of scuzz and sass. Amid the reverb, coarse guitars, chugging riffs and explosive drumming are chased down Sanchez’s ghostly, howling vocal. Softening the blow somewhat, there is a hint of the psychedelic chipping away at what is fierce, fierce track. All in all, this combination makes it impossible not to love, and an easy one to enjoy on repeat.

You can check out ‘Drive Your Car’ below, the 7″ is out now and comes b-side ‘Ain’t Comin Home Master’.

Meanwhile, L.A. Witch will hit the gig trail across North America with The Kills incl. Vancouver on May 31st, in the Commodore Ballroom – full list of dates here.

Millions Like Us Podcast – Episode #14

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We’re thrilled to share yet another Millions Like Us Podcast with you all. It’s fantastic to back with the latest in a series of music podcasts hosted by Justin & I, in conjunction with Vancouver news & culture site 604now.

Every two weeks we aim to serve some lively and entertaining chat mixed with an eclectic selection of fabulous music from metro Vancouver and elsewhere. There’s plenty in there, well over an hour in fact, of great tunes and plenty of chat.

You can read more on it over here and of course, listen below (and the tracklist (with links) is after the jump too). You can subscribe to ‘Millions Like Us’ on iTunes & Podcast Republic, Mixcloud & SoundCloud, or find us on Facebook & Twitter. Or you can email us at millionslikeuspodcast[at]gmail[dot]com.

Thanks for all the support and once again, thanks for listening! We hope you enjoy Episode #14. And last but not least, thanks to Caroline for the super image.

Podcast #14 Tracklist:

 

Holy Fuck – ‘Xed Eyes’

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Canadian electronic maestros Holy Fuck announced a new album called Congrats, their first in six years, which will be released on May 27th.

We’ve already had ‘Tom Tom’, a beast of a tune by any measure, and now they’ve shared ‘Xed Eyes’. The Toronto foursome continue their blinding form with this blistering, big and noisy psychedelic dance-rock banger. It is the kind of thing we’ve come to expect from Holy Fuck, making the dark and experimental, danceable. ‘Xed Eyes’ is fuzzy, scratchy, distorted, serrated, jagged and somewhat jarring mix of noise, with percussion mechanical and precise, cutting through the breezy, psychedelic textured sound. The more you listen, the better it gets. Not that it was required but the levels of anticipation have been raised a few notches.

Congrats is out on May 27th via Innovative Leisure. Check ‘Xed Eyes’ below:

Holy Fuck are playing Levitation Festival in Vancouver on June 17th, @ The Rickshaw.

 

Peaness – ‘Oh George’

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Chester indie-pop trio, Peaness (as in the quality of a ‘pea’) have impressed at every juncture so far. Their debut EP No Fun, released in August last year, was a splendid introduction and they kicked off their 2016 in similarly sumptuous style, with single ‘I Wish I Could Be Free’.

The trio of Rach, Balla & Jess now follow that with brand new single ‘Oh George’. Out on April 15th, it is inspired by the recent UK government changes made by chancellor tory tyrant, George Osbourne, and touches on the frustration and heartache caused since the new policies began to bite. Political tones or not, it is a bright and buoyant indie-pop-powerhouse. The the trio deliver an immensely catchy, addictive and urgent, 3-minute-pop-song, awash with wonderful vocals, sweet harmonies and catchy riffs, all coated in a light fuzz. It seems from the outside at least, Peaness have no problem at all in knocking out top quality, catchy, 3-minute indie-pop gems. Long may this bountiful yield continue.

The new single is out on April 15th and available for your ears right now, below. Peaness are also releasing a 7″ AA single of “I’m Not Your Problem / Fortune Favours The Bold” via Vancouver indie label ‘King Fisherbluez’, which is due out later this year.

Photo: Twin Moon

The Orange Kyte – ‘Which Vivian?’

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Revolving around Vancouver-based, Dublin-raised Stevie Moonboots (House of Dolls & The Subterranean Satellite Band), The Orange Kyte is an experimental music project with an admirable manifesto to release a single a month, throughout 2016.

Along with a revolving and merry band of collaborators and cohorts, The Orange Kyte promises sonic explorations in sound. Drawing heavily from a love of ethereal tones, fuzz, reverberation and all things psychedelic, the third instalment of the year, ‘Which Vivian?’ delivers just that. It takes a bright, shimmering surge of ’80s, Bunnymen-esque post-punk, treating it to some early ’90s shoegaze and indie guitar jangle, and wrapping it up nicely in a light, fuzzy haze of mild psychedelia. Mesmerizing and intoxicating in equal measure, ‘Which Vivian?’ is the best yet from an impressive trio of tunes this year. The Orange Kyte promises to be a gift that keeps on giving in 2016.

You can get your hands on ‘Which Vivian?’ here. Or, conversely, check it below.

 

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BarryGruff March 2016 Playlist

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Your regular monthly round up all the blog action, in a nice, neat and handy playlist of tracks featured throughout the month.

March was good, as was the weather but even better tunes and whatnot. We had tracks courtesy of Helen Love, Teleman, Weird Dreams and Kelly Lee Owens  from their respective, new and forthcoming albums. We had introductions to Estrons, Hannah Lou Clark, Deep Sea Diver, Games Violet, Pavel and Eoin Dolan, while there were excellent new singles/EPs from Bousada, Anderson, Junior Bill, Silverbacks, Slow Riot, Boxed In and David Harks. Oh, and there were two new episodes of ‘Millions Like Us’, Justin Beats & I’s new music podcast extravaganza for 604now (if you missed them, check ’em here). You can also subscribe to ‘Millions Like Us’ on iTunes & Podcast Republic or find us on Facebook & Twitter.

Well then, that’s that for another month – listen to BarryGruff’s March 2016 playlist below. Enjoy!