POSTS TAGGED : Indie. Rock

Introducing: Alffa

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Alffa are Dion Wyn Jones & Sion Eifion Land, a two-man riff machine from Llanrug, Wales.

Self-dubbed “punk-blues” two piece Alffa are a force to be reckoned with. Performing in their native Welsh, this pair have a massive sound and craft explosive tunes echoing the likes of The White Stripes, The Black Keys & Royal Blood et al.

Direct. Austere. Little is wasted here. The muscular ‘Creadur’ announces its deafening presence with a ferocious guitar riff, followed by the thunderous and propulsive drum beat with searing, hard-hitting vocals. This is a thundering three-minutes of gritty rock ‘n roll as one indestructible riff crashes into the equally mammoth percussion as the irresistible and tuneful nature of the chorus just seeps into your brain. Alffa’s other offering, ‘Tomos Rhys’ proffers a slightly different side to their punk-blues explosion. Equally hard-edged, it opens with a stomping slow-paced blues vibe struts its stuff amid bursts of riffs and crashing drums before succumbing to mammoth noise making mayhem of ‘Creadur’. Dazzling and brilliant; this is mighty stuff.

You can check out ‘Creadur’ and ‘Tomos Rhys’ below – just a suggestion, turn it up LOUD.

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YONAKA – ‘Waves’

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Indie-rock colossus YONAKA have released new single ‘Waves’, which is lifted from new EP Teach Me To Fight, out on August 17.

The Brighton foursome – Theresa Jarvis (vocals), George Edwards (guitar), Alex Crosby (bass/keys) and Robert Mason (drums) – have impressed no end over the course of the past year or so, with a steady supply of massive indie-rock anthems. Yonaka have returned all guns blazing, bringing a raucous mix of pounding beats, thundering basslines, wailing guitars, searing riffs and burning synth to create a scintillating backdrop for frontwoman Jarvis’ powerful vocals to burn brightest. Another massive tune from YONAKA – massive!

Listen to ‘Waves’ below and watch out for that EP Teach Me To Fight, is out now.

Estrons Announce Debut Album; Share ‘Cameras’

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Welsh indie-rock powerhouse Estrons have announced their debut album will be released later this year.

Titled You Say I’m Too Much, I Say You’re Not Enough, the album is due out on October 05 via The Orchard / Gofod Records.

We’ve been keeping tabs on Estrons for quite a while and they impressed on every given opportunity, reminding us what a very, very exciting proposition they are. Going by taster track ‘Cameras’; their debut promises to come good on all that potential. ‘Cameras’ is very much what we’ve come to expect from the Welsh outfit; a powerful, passionate and compelling indie-rock masterclass. It is a muscular and melodic mix of riffs – soaring, scintilating and bruising, pounding drums and Källström’s incredibly powerful, searing vocals cutting through the feedback and fuzz. ‘Cameras’ is gripping, somewhat cathartic and an emphatic example of Estrons’ powerfully emotive rock ‘n roll. Stirring stuff indeed.

You Say I’m Too Much, I Say You’re Not Enough is released on October 5th, for now, listen to new single ‘Cameras’ below.

Introducing: CHROMA

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CHROMA are a ferrous alt-rock trio – Katie Hall, Liam Bevan & Zac Mather – from Pontypridd in South Wales.

Welsh trio are a formidable force of nature and self-evidently brilliant guitar band, and led by the charismatic Katie Hall, they have a MASSIVE sound.

As far as an introduction to CHROMA, in a little over three-minutes, single ‘Vampires’ offers that in the best possible way. All scintillating riffs, high-energy, hammering percussion and bass line that pounds incessantly as Hall’s stunning vocals enter the fray, rendering everything else secondary. ‘Datod’ meanwhile, offers another side to CHROMA. Sung in Welsh, it opens quietly, introducing itself with gently a strummed guitar as Hall’s earth-shattering vocals front and centre. It slowly builds, shifting though the gears towards a muscular, cathartic climax that brings the house down around us. The juxtaposition between darkness and light, softness and harsh, is where ‘Datod’ power is sourced, that and the incredibly powerful, searing vocals – as per usual.

Two dizzying displays of what makes CHROMA a very, very exciting proposition indeed. Check ’em below.

 

CHROMA are also one of twelve acts selected from across Wales for Horizons 2018, so you will be hearing plenty more from them over the next 12 months.

THYLA – ‘Blame’

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Brighton foursome THYLA have steadily been building a rep for rousing indie-rock barnstormers and super new single ‘Blame’, thankfully does little to dispel this assertion.

Pairing biting pop hooks to soaring stellar indie rock riff, THYLA flit between grunge and dream-pop and charging forward with a thunderous bassline, ‘Blame’ packs quite a punch straight from the off. This thundering three-minutes is propelled onward on the back of crashing cymbals, energetic riffs and crisp guitar lines but Millie Duthie’s vocals – powerful, hard-hitting and self-aware – are equal to it all as they soar above; the icing on the cake. An all too alluring mix of power and precision, and the right amount of catchy hook.

Tune in now.

Yonaka – ‘Wouldn’t Wanna Be Ya’

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YONAKA are indie-rock juggernaut – Theresa Jarvis (vocals), George Edwards (guitar), Alex Crosby (bass/keys) and Robert Mason (drums) – from Brighton and judging by their form thus far, they look destined to take a spot at the top of Britain’s indie-rock table.

The quartet’s new single is ‘Wouldn’t Wanna Be Ya’; and it is a heavy hitting example of what they are all about. This is heavy-hitting indie-rock with a dark pop heart which shifts from menacing, threatening riffy rock to anthemic, epic soaring variety. The hammering percussion and bass line pound incessantly, while when Jarvis’ stunning vocals enter the fray, it renders everything else secondary. A scintillating introduction by any estimation; file next to Wolf Alice, Joy Formidable & Estrons.

You can listen to ‘Wouldn’t Wanna Be Ya’ below. Hopefully we’re hearing from these four very soon.

Dead Naked Hippies – ‘Lights Out’

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‘Lights Out’ is the debut single from Leeds trio Dead Naked Hippies.

Produced by Matt Peel (Eagulls, Pulled Apart By Horses, Autobahn), ‘Lights Out’ offers a thrilling introduction to the raucous sound of Dead Naked Hippies.

This trio – Lucy Jowett – (vocals), Joe Clarke (guitar), Jacob Marston (drums) – trade in scintillating, punk-tinged indie-rock brilliance. ‘Lights Out’ blaze forth with coiled riffs, terse drums, insistent bass and Jowett’s impassioned vocals. Drenched with pent up emotion, ‘Lights Out’ slowly uncoils, revealing itself as an unflinching, focused three minutes of gritty, cathartic and rage-fuelled fuzz-drenched rock ‘n roll abandon.

More new music is promised soon – which is great obviously – but for now get your ears around the frenetic, electrified and scintillating master-class that is ‘Lights Out’.

Estrons – ‘Drop’

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Cardiff-based Estrons announced themselves LOUDLY with their debut single ‘Make A Man’ – a powerful ‘indie-rock’ juggernaut – and guess what? They are back with an equally exhilarating new single, ‘Drop’.

Tali Källström and co.’s latest effort ‘Drop’ is just as good and just as loud, as the previous effort, showing yet again why they are a band to keep an eye on. A three-and-a-half-minute burst of coiled up aggression, ‘Drop’ gets in your face from the get go and never relents. Spiky, uncompromising and muscular, it is a frenetic and scintillating explosion of energetic, blistering guitar riffs, pounding drums and Källström’s incredibly powerful, searing vocals. ‘Drop’ is a dizzying display of what makes Estrons a very, very exciting proposition indeed. It is a hell of a ride, just hold on.

You can check out ‘Drop’ below:

Accompanying the new track, ESTRONS have announced a headline show at London’s Waiting Room, on May 5th. And they also support Dilly Dally on their upcoming European tour.

Introducing: Estrons

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Based in Cardiff, ESTRONS, are powerful and self-evidently brilliant guitar band, fronted by bilingual Canadian-Swede, Taliesyn Kallström.

Their name is Welsh for ‘aliens’ or ‘strangers’, a reflection of their mixed national heritage. Recording in English and Welsh, sometimes flitting between the two, their debut EP ‘Whoever She Was…’ was released in December of last year. The EP is a ferocious 4-track introduction to Estrons and their furious and undeniably excellent sound, can be summed up in a little over three-minutes of the EP’s lead single, ‘Make a Man’. It is everything a great ‘indie-rock’ belter should be, and more. ‘Make A Man’ blazes a trail with a ferocious explosion of energy, anthemic guitar riffs, pounding drums and Källström’s incredibly powerful, searing vocal delivery, shaking whatever’s left of the house down. ‘Make A Man’ is an emphatic exhibition of their considerable talent, and a clear indication to why there’s been quite a bit of fuss surrounding Estrons over the past 12 months or so.

They are promising more new music soon, which is great but for now get your ears around the frenetic, electrified and scintillating master-class that is ‘Make A Man’ below.

Bright Young People – ‘Solitude’

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The last time Bright Young People featured here was way back in 2013 with their fuzz-bombed, riff and attitude filled single ‘Liberties’. How time flies?

While the Welsh trio won’t be winning any prizes for prolificacy of output, the standard remains gloriously good, and that’s the main thing yeah? Their latest single ‘Solitude’ bares all the hallmarks of its predecessor; ragged, raw, riff filled rock ‘n roll sound. It’s good to see that the intervening time has done little to dampen their spirits or their energy; this is heads down, no messing, unadulterated rock ‘n roll. ‘Solitude’ is but a first taster, and a fine one at that, from Bright Young People’s long-awaited debut EP, Sunshine Town, which is due out on March 23rd.

You can check out ‘Solitude’ below