POST CATEGORY : Video

Helen Love – ‘Pogo’

Helen Love Pogo

Swansea punk poppers Helen Love are back and will release a new limited edition red 7″ single, ‘Pogo’, on September 1st through Elefant Records.

Although they’ve been around for more than two decades and establishing a dedicated cult following in that time, Helen Love’s music has a youthful philosophy and attitude, always giving off a carefree and fun air. The new single, ‘Pogo’, is in keeping with this tradition. It is a sumptuous slice of synth pop with some punk undertones and laced with some fabulously tongue-in-cheek lyrics: “Pogo pogo, hey my Italian boy .. The first punk boy in Rome…” and “Pogo pogo, hey my Italian boy, pogo pogo, I’m gonna pogo with you”. Combine this with a crazed rhythm, frenetic beats and all the colourful sounds, giddiness and fun that has become a Helen Love trademark, and you’ve got one hell of an infectious and addictive racket.

‘Pogo’ is out on limited edition red 7″ vinyl on September 1st via Elefant Records. Check out the video and b-side ‘Julie’s Got A New 7 Inch Single’ below.

 

Disconcerting P – ‘Driving’

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Padraig McCauley has impressed as much as any Irish artist over the past few years – prolific, passionate and prodigious – McCauley’s already amassed a pretty impressive back catalogue, with two quality P Affection albums and four Disconcerting P EPs, and now adds Masks to that illustrious list of releases.

Masks, the debut LP under the Disconcerting P guise, was written and recorded by McCauley in his Naas studio. An album about love, it sees him continue to grow and improve as a songwriter, singer and performer, as he entertains us through a vast range of extensive influences and genre splicing styles. Lead track, ‘Driving’, is a soothing, dreamy and jaunty americana/country tinged number. His words trickle gracefully to paint a vivid depiction of a late night drive through town as his mind wanders to and fro amid the twinkle of street lights and empty shops. ‘Driving’ and Masks are further excellent additions to McCauley’s already impressive body of work, and a fine addition to anyone’s music collection. It is somewhat perplexing however, how someone with such an abundance of talent and dearth of great tunes, can remain in the shadows for so long. Hopefully it is something that changes sooner rather than later. McCauley and his various guises and projects, are deserving of far greater recognition and too be heard by a far larger audience.

You can try ‘Driving’ & ‘Sneaking Off’ out for size below. If they are to your liking, Masks is out now, and you can ‘name your price’ and pick it up from Bandcamp.

By The Sea – ‘I See A Crystal Sky’

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Wirral five-piece By The Sea were responsible for one of the finest albums of recent years in their eponymous debut. A cult success, it’s absorbing assortment of soothing and undulating psych-pop, deserved to be heard and appreciated far and wide.

And now they’re back, with new album Endless Days, Crystal Sky, out on August 18th, with lead track ‘I See A Crystal Sky’ presented as a preview of what to expect – and it doesn’t disappoint. ‘I See A Crystal Sky’ is dreamy, absorbing and characteristically lush, with a rich vein of euphoria running through it’s core. The synths are pushed to the fore, swelling to punctuate front-man Liam Power’s world weary, chilled-reverb-laced vocals, as melting guitar, smooth bass-line and snappy, sparse percussion complete the atmospheric cocktail of dreamy melodies. ‘I See A Crystal Sky’ has By The Sea sounding bigger and fuller than ever before, which all bodes well for the new album. Well, it’s certainly good to have them back.

Endless Days, Crystal Sky (recorded with long-time collaborator Bill Ryder-Jones) is released on August 18 via the bands own label imprint War Room Records. For now, you can immerse yourself in the wondrous escapism of ‘I See A Crystal Sky’ below.

(Video) Ghost Estates – ‘In Your Dreams’

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Dublin 4-piece Ghost Estates have been making top-notch tunes for the past few years and last month they returned with the fantastically catchy ‘In Your Dreams’.

Sitting nicely alongside their previous output, a diverse blend of straight up indie-rock, reach for the sky guitar anthems and new wavey sounds, ‘In Your Dreams’, was a reaffirmation of how very, very good they are, albeit in a more streamlined, honed and refined fashion. While we tentatively await the second album, the band have unveiled a video for latest single, ‘In Your Dreams’. Created by ‘Second Frame Films’, the visual accompaniment is rather impressive and has a heavy Film Noir meets comic book feel to it as the disjointed, dreamlike imagery are blended with the song’s weaving tempo with style. An excellent video to match an equally brilliant track.

You can check it all out below and pick it up from Bandcamp for a cool €1. Fancy catching Ghost Estates live? There are some gig dates after the jump.

Aside from the new video, Ghost Estates have a number of live dates coming up including: support for the amazing The Jesus and Mary Chain in Vicar Street tonight (July 31), a slot at Castlepalooza this weekend (Aug 3) and Getoese in Moese festival in Germany (Aug 16) and support for The Mighty Stef in the Sugar Club, Dublin on Sept 26th.

 

 

Gaz Coombes – ‘This Time Tomorrow’

Gaz Coombes 2014

Earlier this summer former Supergrass head honcho Gaz Coombes stepped out with a delightful cover version of ‘This Time Tomorrow’ by – who else? – The Kinks.

Over the years Coombes has proven he’s good value of a tasty cover, or a few, most notably on his thoroughly enjoyable covers side-project band Hot Rats, with fellow Supergrass man Danny Goffey. He’s also had no aversion to ads in the past, having appeared in a Toyota Yaris advert a few years back, and what does this have to do with anything you may ask? Well, this song is part of a series of ads celebrating department store John Lewis’ 150th birthday, which is of little personal interest. Coombes’ version of ‘This Time Tomorrow’ on the other hand, yes please.  While largely remaining faithful to the original, this take is a brisk run through with plenty of Coombes’ traditional energy and distinctive voice, and he’s arrived at something that sounds utterly delightful, noticeably British and joyously nostalgic in the best way possible. Who ever said covers are a waste of time? Maybe no one did? But, anyway, they were wrong whoever they were.

Coombes is reportedly in the studio working on his second solo album, and follow up to Here Comes The Bombs. You can preoccupy yourself meanwhile with ‘This Time Tomorrow’.

(Video) Jamie T – ‘Don’t You Find’

Jamie T 2014

Jamie T has signalled his return with a new single ‘Don’t You Find, and about bloody time, too.

It’s been almost five years since the release of the Londoner’s excellent album Kings & Queens, far too long an absence. And one that’s been thankfully been brought to an abrupt halt. With ‘Don’t You Find’ we find Jamie T in a much more downbeat and melancholic mood, somewhat different to the vast majority of his previous body of work, but it’s not a ‘bad different. ‘Don’t You Find’ is a lush composition with his smooth vocals floating nicely over some sumptuous strings and a distant sounding guitar pitted with beautiful female vocals. As one of my favourite artists over the past eight years or so, it’s really great to have him back, and with an album confirmed too, this Tuesday is certainly looking up.

‘Don’t You Find’ will be released on July 21st with an album to follow at a so far unknown date.

The Joy Formidable – ‘Yn Rhydiau’r Afon’

The Joy Formidable Colorama ARUTHROLWelsh indie-rockers The Joy Formidable have unveiled their latest track ‘Yn Rhydiau’r Afon’, alongside their new Singles Club ‘Aruthrol’; a series of limited edition vinyl releases that will see them sharing a double A side with a collection of artists from their homeland.

Opening with a typically grandiose sounding solo, ‘Yn Rhydiau’r Afon’ dims to reveal Ritzy Bryan’s beautiful vocals, sung in her native Welsh, over a gentle picked acoustic guitar. A bass riff bubbles under and slowly the chorus builds toward an epic crescendo. taking us on a trip of supreme majesty harking back to the splendid rampaging guitar heroics of their debut, The Big Roar. This is a stunning return from one of Wales’ best exports and the good news is, this is the first in a series of monthly releases which prelude a forthcoming Welsh Language EP. 

Joining them on this inaugural release is fellow Welsh act Colorama, who revolve around the delectable talents of Carwyn Ellis. Ellis and his band’s inclusion, ‘Forget About Tomorrow, is an irresistible, playful and deliciously quirky psych pop certainly brings the sunshine. More on Colorama at a later date, been meaning to share their wonderfully charming sounds with you for a while now.

For now, check out ‘Yn Rhydiau’r Afon & ‘Forget About Tomorrow’ below. You can find all the details on how to pick up a copy of the 7″ here.

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(Video) Gulp – ‘Vast Space’

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Gulp, the musical project of Super Furry Animals’ Guto Pryce and Lindsey Leven, will release their debut album Season Sun on July 8th.

Ahead of the record’s impending release Gulp have kindly shared a music video for ‘Vast Space’, which we’ve heard before, and features on the LP. ‘Vast Space’ has a certain cinematic and ethereal charm. Leven’s cool, hushed vocals lightly coat the gritty, blues-infused psychedelia, and act as the perfect companion for those effervescent organ chimes. Driven by a rumbling, rambling bassline and a hypnotic rhythm; it’s got a solid sonic groove that brings to mind some of the slower Django Django moments. The video is stellar stuff, directed and animated by Ewan Jones Morris, it is the perfect visual companion. The visual, according to the band “takes its aesthetic from uhh, Greco-Roman architecture, Tetris and Microsoft Windows screensavers, maybe.” Whatever the case it’s a top notch track with an equally dazzling video, their debut record promises to be a delight.

Gulp release their debut album Season Sun on July 8th – until then sample the delight that is ‘Vast Space’.

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Cave Story – ‘Richman’

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Portuguese band Cave Story excited our ears last November when they released their quirky and playfully psychedelic collection of demos as an EP.

Kicking on from that, Cave Story have unveiled ‘Richman’, showcasing the sound they’ve been developing since last year. One would be forgiven for expecting the transition from the demo stage to witness a cleaner, polished and sheenier sound. Think again. ‘Richman’ is rough-around-the-edges, gruff, gritty and pretty sheen less indie meets garage fare. High on lo-fi distortion, drone and riffs, with little in the way of pop but remains appealing to the ears as an invariably captivating listen. It sounds as though their infatuation with the ’60s/70s has been swapped for another bygone era; the ’90s. Or not? Perhaps ‘Richman’ is, in name at least, their homage to Jonathon Richman. Or not.

There’s an EP promised in September but for now? You can listen to ‘Richman’ below or pop over to bandcamp and download it for free.

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Boxed In – ‘Run Quicker’

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We dropped in on London based trio, Boxed In, late last year with the release of their excellent debut single, ‘All Your Love Is Gone’/’Legacy’.

Well, Oli Bayston & Co. are back again with a new single, ‘Run Quicker’, and they are sounding super exciting and vital once again. ‘Run Quicker’ is a driving alternative pop track ushered forward by pulsating motorik rhythms, meaty bass and crisp jaunty piano, and filled with a host of other organic sounds. It really does get going. Quite similar in essence to watching a blurry world flash by from a train window as it hurtles along through the countryside. All in all, it is an exhilarating blend of inspiration, taking in the motorik rhythms of Can and Neu!, and touch of 80’s new wave a la New Order.

‘Run Quicker’ is the first single taken from their debut album, which is out later this year. Meanwhile, ‘Run Quicker’ is out July 14th through Nettwerk Records. Check it & the video (directed by Sam Mason) below.

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