• September Girls – Cursing The Sea

    January 31, 2014 - By 

    For devotees and avid consumers of feedback-drenched guitar pop that once formed the backbone of the “Paisley Underground” or C86 scenes, it may seem like a long, cold Ice Age has been in situ.  September Girls could be those first green shoots emerging through the rocky landscape or the first of the small, furry animals to roll out of hibernation. This ain’t punk, and it sure isn’t nihilism. The songs on Cursing the Sea surf the wave of the Sixties and Eighties guitar bands and the influence of the sonic genius of the Beach Boys and Phil Spector.  For sure,…

  • Franz Ferdinand – Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action

    August 30, 2013 - By 

    Franz Ferdinand have kept a deliberately low profile ahead of their latest release, Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action, with lead singer Alex Kapranos having being quoted as saying that he felt “misinformation” had been forthcoming about their last album Tonight: Franz Ferdinand. Being cut from a literary sort of cloth, there is – you’ve guessed it – a concept of sorts linking the songs, apparently based around the cynic’s search for optimism and the sceptic’s search for a manual ‘crop up’ here and there. Don’t follow Alex’s words? No, I don’t either, and if your listening pleasure is enhanced…

  • David Lynch – The Big Dream

    July 25, 2013 - By 

    American auteur David Lynch‘s reputation as the foremost curator of surreal, gothic Americana alive today precedes him in such a huge way that “Lynchian” is surely the most frequently used journalistic crutch after “on acid.”  The soundtracks to Twin Peaks, Wild at Heart and Blue Velvet have defined these movies as edgy, dreamlike and often uncomfortable viewing.  Most directors resist the temptation to indulge their musical passions outside of the home studio; even fewer choose to pick up the microphone. When David Lynch – a soft-spoken, nasally-toned Montanan – sings on opener “The Big Dream”, at first it seems no…

  • Maya Jane Coles – Comfort

    July 9, 2013 - By 

    Maya Jane Coles has steered a steady and prolific career as a DJ and remixer since teaching herself the rudiments of her trade at the age of fifteen through the wonders of computer based DJ packages.  Having filed Essential Selection mixes for Radio 1 and remixed for top dogs such as Gorillaz and Massive Attack, Maya Jane was named fourteenth most influential DJ in the world by Rolling Stone, a prestigious feather in anyone’s musical cap and headphones.  The perpetual challenge for a DJ when creating an album is the choice of vocalist for the tracks; it can either lift…

  • Gold Panda – Half Of Where You Live

    June 17, 2013 - By 

    Derwin Schlecker, formerly of Peckham and Chelmsford but now Berlin-based, has metamorphosized into his alter ego Gold Panda and returns to bring the listening public the follow-up to the highly acclaimed and 2011 Mercury Prize-nominated Lucky Shiner.  A little bit of cursory internet research provides hints as to the influences, references and source material that provide the layers and strata for Gold Panda’s world. Time spent in Japan and study at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London has certainly left a lasting impression on Schlecker, as this release is held together at the seams…