POSTS TAGGED : Girlpool

Girlpool announce new album, Powerplant, share ‘123’

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On May 12th, Philly-based outfit Girlpool will make their return with a new LP, Powerplant. The album follows their brilliant 2015 debut, Before the World Was Big, and sees Harmony Tividad and Cleo Tucker joined by a full band.

Heralding this auspicious news is lead single ‘123’, which shows off this new dynamic, complimenting their stripped back guitar-and-bass approach. ‘123’ opens like a lot of other Girlpool song, with a slow, muted and watery-sounding guitar melody before the drums kick in. With that, it bursts into a life, in full colour. Yet, it is still the vocal harmonies which provide their edge. Imbued with a vulnerable, angst-ridden tone, it and the woozy, undulating quality compliments the dreamlike imagery perfectly.

As mentioned above, Girlpool’s much-anticipated Powerplant is out May 12th, via new label home ANTI- Records. For now, check out lead track ‘123’, along with the video.

Girlpool have also announced a pile of North American tour dates, hopefully some shows on this side of the Atlantic will follow soon.

 

BarryGruff Albums of the Year (2015)

BGs Albums of the year 2015So it is that time of year again, lists, lists and more lists. Well, not be out done, here are my 41 (yes 41, and yes it’s a weird number) albums of 2015.

It has been such a good year for new albums, probably the best since I started the blog back in 2010. So much so that there is very little difference between the top 5, top 10, top 15 and so on. So without further ado, here are my favourite records from 2015:

There is also a Spotify playlist of the Top 20 albums, to save you time and hassle (it’s here).

41. Only Real – Jerk At The End of the Line’

40. Rozi Plain – ‘Friend’

39. Wildling – ‘Molecules To Moon’

38. The School – ‘Wasting Away And Wondering’

37. Sweet Baboo – ‘Boombox Ballads’

36. The Stammer – ‘Days In Between’

35. SexWitch – Sex Witch’

34. Faith Healer – ‘Cosmic Troubles’

33. Girl Band – ‘Holding Hands With Jamie’

32. Joanna Gruesome – ‘Peanut Butter’

31. Fort Romeau – ‘Insides

30. Soft Serve – ‘S/t’

29. Applescal – ‘For’

28. Zefur Wolves – ‘Zefur Wolves’

27. Hot Chip – ‘Why Make Sense?’

26. Drenge – ‘Undertow’

25. The Charlatans – ‘Modern Nature’

24. Gaz Coombes – ‘Matador’

23. Bill Ryder-Jones – ‘West Kirby County Primary’

22. Drinks – ‘Hermits on Holiday’

21. The Expert – Dynamic Drift

20. Boxed In – ‘Boxed In’

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BarryGruff’s Albums of 2015 So Far……

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I’m not exactly the best at keeping you and the site up-to-date with album reviews, to be honest, it’s the old enemy time. Discovering the hours to scribble some thoughts about this album or that has become rather elusive, but thankfully finding time to listen to albums, and music in general, is less of an issue.

Here are a list of my most listened and loved records of 2015 so far with Spotify links and playlists for overall albums of 2015. There are plenty of playlists on Spotify and Soundcloud and on the blog too. Oh, and with regards to albums *cough, cough*, you can still download GruffWuff, a 19 track compilation celebrating 5 years of BarryGruff, for FREE from bandcamp, *cough, cough*.

Top 24 albums of 2015 so far…

01. Czarface – ‘Every Hero Needs A Villain’

02. H. Hawkline – ‘In The Pink Of Condition’

03. Villagers – ‘Darling Arithmetic

04. Blur – ‘The Magic Whip’

05. Ghost Culture – ‘Ghost Culture’

06. Boxed In – ‘Boxed In’

07. Django Django – ‘Born Under Saturn’

08. Girlpool – ‘Before The World Was Big’

09. Stealing Sheep – ‘Not Real’

10. The Charlatans – ‘Modern Nature’

11. Courtney Barnett – ‘Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit’

12. Gaz Coombes – ‘Matador’

13. Hot Chip – ‘Why Make Sense?’

14. Applescal – ‘For’

15. Public Service Broadcasting – ‘The Race For Space’

16. Jamie xx – ‘In Colour’

17. Sen Segur – ‘Films’

18. Zefur Wolves – ‘Zefur Wolves’

19. Faith Healer – ‘Cosmic Troubles’

20. Mowbird – ‘One-Offs’

21. Joanna Gruesome – ‘Peanut Butter’

22. Fort Romeau – ‘Insides’

23. Rozi Plain – ‘Friend’

24. Pale Honey – ‘Pale Honey’

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BarryGruff’s May 2015 Playlist

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A regular monthly feature to the blog; a nice, neat and handy playlist of tracks featured during the month.

May was another fine month for new music. We had an exclusive premier of The Expert’s new tune, ‘Da Wha?’, the lead single from his forthcoming LP. There were new tunes from Sleaford Mods, Girlpool, Applescal & Tame Impala, ahead of their respective, forthcoming albums. There were excellent new singles from Tomorrows, Telegram, SertOne, Roots Manuva, Foreign/National, The Adventures of Bert & Henry and PANKHABILLI.

Also featuring on the playlist are: GEM_DOS, The North Sea, Disconcerting P, Sweet Baboo, Heaters & Faith Healer. Yeah, so, May was pretty damn good.

Listen to BarryGruff’s May 2015 playlist below.

Girlpool – ‘Cherry Picking’

 

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Girlpool’s debut album Before The World Was Big is released next week (June 1st) on Wichita Recordings Worldwide.

Ahead of LP’s release on June 1st, the duo have shared another new track from their much anticipated debut album. Entitled ‘Cherry Picking’, it offers yet a further brilliant example of the Philadelphia based two piece’s snarling minimalism, that has become their forte. Arming themselves with nothing but guitar, bass and two perfectly matched voices, the sparse, dissonant guitar crash into the pair’s sweet, yet angst-ridden vocal harmonies, for a full-on, fresh and raw assault. This stripped-back, minimal instrumentation accentuates the brash, dispirited feeling and air of vulnerability. Cleo Tucker & Harmony Tividad continue to provide proof, if proof be needed, great music doesn’t have to be complicated.

Girlpool have a ton of live shows lined up across N. America and Europe and if they’re in a town near you soon? They come highly, highly recommended. They were utterly sublime in Vancouver last month.

You can check out ‘Cherry Picking’ below, ahead of Before The World Was Big‘s release next week. Pre-order the debut album here.

BarryGruff’s April 2015 Playlist

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A regular monthly feature to the blog; a nice, neat and handy playlist of tracks featured during the month.

It was another excellent month for new music, one which saw the return of CZARFACE, Miaoux Miaoux, Girlpool and Jinx Lennon, with new tracks from their respective forthcoming albums. There were new singles from The Urges, Wilding, Fold, Tuff Love, Hippies Vs Ghosts, Lazy Day, Freedom Fry & Imploded View, and tracks from forthcoming EPs from Tomorrows, Graham Cooney & JUNK.

Also featuring on the playlist are: The School, Fueds, Mowbird & Cotton Wolf. Yeah, so, April was pretty damn good.

Listen to BarryGruff’s April 2015 playlist below.

Introducing: Girlpool

Girlpool are Philadelphia based, by way of Los Angeles, duo of Cleo Tucker (Guitar) and Harmony Tividad (Bass).

The pair recently announced that they’ll be following up their excellent self-titled EP with the release of their debut album, Before The World Was Big in June. This week Girlpool have shared the album’s first official single and title track, ‘Before The World Was Big’. Their sound is raw. Comprised only of guitar, bass and vocal harmonies, this stripped-back, minimal instrumentation accentuates the brash, dispirited and vulnerable feeling, and adds serious weight to the powerful and candid lyrics.

Capturing what has become their forte, ‘Before The World Was Big’ is a hooky, poppy punk song, utilising little more than stabs of bass surrounded by rhythmic guitar strums. From this to the swaggering tale of revenge and piercingly screechy ‘Jane’ to the spat-out vocals, bouncing baseline and rocking chorus of their most immediately affecting song ‘Blah Blah Blah’, the duo lure you in with their tales of youth and uncertainty of young adulthood (does that really ever subside?). Utterly raw, infectious and supremely brilliant – proof if proof be needed – great music doesn’t have to be complicated.

Before The World Was Big is out June 2nd via Wichita Recordings and the duo have a string of tour dates with them opening for Waxahatchee, including Vancouver on May 2nd at the Biltmore Cabaret – see the full list here.