DATE ARCHIVES : October 2016

Alternative Halloween Playlist

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Halloween is almost upon us once again, as we get ready to celebrate all things ghoulish, ghostly and chilling, with fireworks and flagons around bonfires.

Every celebration is in need of a good soundtrack and Halloween is no different. And if your in the hunt for some spooky sounds that extend beyond ‘Thriller’, ‘Monster Mash’ and ‘Ghostbusters Theme’? Fear not (or be very afraid) you’re covered with this monstrous four-and-half-hour ‘Alternative Halloween’ Spotify playlist. With lyrics or titles pertaining to Halloween, or some just plain ghostly, dark and creepy; from ‘The Horrors’ to ‘Burial’, ‘Ghost Town’ to ‘The Killing Moon’ and ‘Dead Souls’ to ‘Psycho Killer’ – there is a tidy blend of genres across 60+ tracks.

Plenty here to sink your teeth into. Bone appetit! (Ba dum tss). I’ll go now, the Spotify playlist is below & have a great Halloween!

 

Fauna Twin – ‘Edge Of The Coin’

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Claire Jacquemard and Wales’ Owain Ginsberg (Hippies Vs Ghosts / We Are Animal) are Fauna Twin, and the pair will release their debut EP next month.

Inventive, gently psychedelic and embracing a flair for the epic and dramatic, it is keeping with the duo’s excellent work to date. Building from a dramatic, chilling opening, ‘Edge Of The Coin’ thaws gradually to reveal a playfully energised blitz of beats, synth and percussion, cut through the atmospheric textures with an uncontrollable sonic groove. With Jacquemard’s crisp vocals soaring high above, it all builds and bubbles toward a rousing climax bristling with vitality, and one that’ll have you reaching straight for the repeat button. A sublime single; lot’s to look forward to from this talented duo.

The Hydra EP is released on 17 November via Crammed Discs. For now, sit back and enjoy all that Fauna Twin and ‘Edge Of The Coin’ have to offer.

Introducing: The Immediate

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There’s a bit or a role reversal with this one, all will become abundantly clear below….

The Immediate are a three-piece power pop band from Mold in north Wales. Originally active in the ’90s, they split in 1997 due to frustration, an argument over a mouth organ and the success of Stereophonics – all valid reasons, no?

Earlier this year however, the trio of of Duncan Farmer, Richard Harrison & Adam Walton reunited – the latter’s BBC Radio Wales show is one of my favourites and a fine source of superb new Welsh tunes (role reversal explained) – not for one last crack at fame but for the love of making music. This love and that of music from The Jam, Small Faces, Ride, Badfinger & Teenage Fanclub among others, shines through brightly. Crafting songs about hope and love in the face of the moribund, daily grind, playing to please only themselves, with no thoughts of success or acclaim and having fun along the way. Taken from their debut EP Shadows and Ghosts, ‘Yoko’ is a case in point. Succinctly summing up The Immediate’s raison d’etre in a scintillating three-minutes, ‘Yoko’ is a guitar heavy, riff-filled indie rocker bursting with melody and vitality; and in Walton’s own words, it’s ace! Sometimes that is quite enough.

There is an album in the offing for the new year but for now, why not give ‘Yoko’ a spin below. You can get their debut EP, Shadows and Ghosts as a free download via Bandcamp.

Games Violet Share New Single ‘Tin Box’; Album to Follow in November

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Philadelphia-based Irish duo Games Violet – aka Alexander Games and Emma Violet – will be releasing their debut album Tragic Milkshake next month.

Together in their home studio, the pair write, perform, record and produce ‘surrealist pop’. Games Violet have a real flair for fascinating, surrealist and experimental pop, littered with imaginative ideas, unique sounds and a haunting demeanour. Their latest single and album taster ‘Tin Box’, is very much in keeping with this and it is another imaginative, left-field sound collage of fascinating pop oddity. Finding a space on the shadows, where peaceful beauty and chilling can simultaneously co-exist, ‘Tin Box’ is unsettling and spooky yet mesmerising and enchanting in equal measure. If one is to go by what they have done thus far, Games Violet have delivered more than their fair share of the murky, chilling and foreboding but equally, there are utterly beautiful and spectacular moments too; their debut album promises much.

Games Violet’s debut LP Tragic Milkshake will be released on November 15th. For now, listen to ‘Tin Box’ below:

‘Millions Like Us’ Podcast #20: We’re Back!

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So with my move back to Ireland, Beats’ trip back to Blighty (for a month long holiday) and logistical challenges, we’ve been quiet for a bit but as promised we are back in action. We are absolutely thrilled to share another Millions Like Us with you all!

For Episode #20 – our first transcontinental podcast – we welcome Mr. Stephen Connelly to the Millions Like Us family, who will be looking after producing and recording the pod, and has the unenviable task of keeping Justin & I on topic.

We’ve braved dodgy internet connections, technological misadventures and overcome all that global time zones could throw at us (global time zones be damned !!) to bring you a bumper 90 minutes of music chat and an eclectic, hand-picked selection of superb new tunes. There is also an exclusive track, recorded with Donal McConnon at the most recent Broken Home show (more info here).

Thanks for baring with us while we were off air, we really appreciate it. Hopefully you enjoy the new and improved MLU.

You can subscribe to MLU on iTunes and Podcast Republic, Mixcloud & SoundCloud, or find us on Facebook & Twitter. Or you can email us at millionslikeuspodcast[at]gmail[dot]com.

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Pale Honey Return With New Single ‘Real Thing’, New album for 2017

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Swedish duo Pale Honey – aka Tuva Lodmark and Nelly Daltrey – have been busily working away for a while now, crafting the follow-up to their 2015 self-titled debut.

​In the meantime the Gothenburg pair give us the first sneak peek at album number two – slated for release early next year – with brand new single ‘Real Thing’. It continues the blueprint that has served Pale Honey so well thus far; sparse but meaty riffs, crunchy guitars and drums combine with quick bursts of fuzz, interspersed with splashed of illuminating synth, which fizz and flare unexpectedly. Their scuzzy, sparse guitar-and-drums combo is tempered by Lodmark’s alluring vocals and cascading melodies – accidental beauty.

Their new, so far nameless record, is due out sometime in Spring 2017 via Bolero Recordings. For now, get on their new single ‘Real Thing’. Listen to it below and check out their Stranger Things inspired video.

Estrons – ‘I’m Not Your Girl’

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Estrons will release a new EP She’s Here Now on November 4th, ahead of which, the Cardiff-based foursome have shared their scintillating new single ‘I’m Not Your Girl’.

Having already blown us away with blistering indie-rock brilliance ‘Make A Man’ and ‘Drop’, this latest outing is equally as exhilarating and underpins why we should all pay close attention. An under-three-minute burst of coiled up aggression delivered with a gripping, almost menacing intensity, ‘I’m Not Your Girl’ unloads a barrage of ear-shattering, scorching riffs and pounding drums, as Källström’s incredibly powerful, searing vocal delivery, brings the house down around us. A scintillating and high intensity master-class of cathartic, brilliantly rage-fuelled and fuzz-drenched rock ‘n roll.

The new EP She’s Here Now is out on November 4th, ahead of all that there is the not so small matter of ‘I’m Not Your Girl’. Check it out now.

Session Victim Release New EP; Listen to ‘Up To Rise’

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Session Victim are currently putting the finishing touches to their third album, but while we await its release, we’re treated to some surprise new material from the Berlin/Hamburg duo.

The German pair have a new EP, Matching Half out this week, and from which we have ‘Up To Rise’. It is 7 minutes plus of deliciously vibrant, instrumental, disco-edged Balearic house. Sifting through a warm and fluffy haze of soft but lively drum rhythms, jazzy samples, Balearic vibes and undeniably danceable groove;  ‘Up To Rise’ makes for an incredible and irresistible, one track sure to engulf any dance floor in euphoria. This one will leave you in a sort of slo-mo state of blissful hypnosis and utterly content.

You can sample the superb ‘Up To Rise’ below, while you can get all the necessary details for Matching Half here.

R.Seiliog Announces New EP & Shares ‘Cloddio Unterdach’

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R.Seiliog is the alias of North Walian off-kilter and imaginative musician/producer Robin Edwards, and is due to release his forthcoming EP Shedhead on 18th November.

The latest EP follows on from the sublime albums, Doppler (2013) and In Hz (2014), and is preceded by new single ‘Cloddio Unterdach’. Enveloping a trance like ambience, ‘Cloddio Unterdach’ is an immersive and hypnotic genre-bender, majestically blurring the lines between exhilarating electro and propulsive Krautrock. Lush, glistening and altogether frosted elegance, it is a futuristic, vividly imaginative and unique, shapeshifting sound. Yet again, R.Seiliog appears at the very top of his game; he is one of the the most enticing, intriguing and dynamic producers around.

R.Seiliog’s Shedhead EP will be out on 18th November via Turnstile Music. You can listen to ‘Cloddio Unterdach’ below, and you are in for a treat!

The Orange Kyte – ‘Elasticity’

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Throughout 2016, Vancouver’s The Orange Kyte has been on an enviable quest to release a new single each month and if you’ve been keeping tabs on proceedings, then you’ve been treated to some fine music already.

Centred around Vancouver-based, Dublin-raised Stevie Moonboots and a revolving cast of friends and collaborators, The Orange Kyte continue with their impressive musical manifesto with superb new single ‘Elasticity’. ‘It swaggers and grooves its way through a swirling haze of psychedelic ambience, meandering pleasantly toward the midpoint before exploding into life as guitars growl, synths swell and a tambourine snaps, with Moonboots’ incredibly impressive vocals soaring high above. Elasticity’ pulses through the gears towards a triumphant climax, of what is an irrepressible sonic exploration of the psychedelic. It is yet another intoxicating release from The Orange Kyte, one can wonder if all these singles would make for a hell of an album, if all put together.

You can get your hands on ‘Elasticity’ here. Or, conversely, check it below, and its video; comprised of road trip footage from the band’s recent trek to Alberta for shows in Calgary and Edmonton.

The Orange Kyte has announced some Irish shows for December, check them after the jump.

The Orange Kyte: Irish Dates

Dec 28th: The Grand Social, Dublin
Dec 29th: The Kino, Cork
Dec 30th: Sandino’s, Derry