by John Tindale Norwich duo Rosa Walton and Jenny Hollingworth have always had a unique connection. Going back some 13 years, to when the duo were aged four, they found themselves drawn to one another and that instantaneous connection is one which has carried on throughout their childhood and into young adulthood. This intuitive relationship is evidenced best in I, Gemini –a truly unique album which pushes pop music to its limit.
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by Ollie Rankine An artist employing the aid of external songwriters in the 21st century is by no means unusual. Whilst the music industry remains dominated by large corporate record labels, commercial viability has never been so important and if the writing talent doesn’t match up to the attractive image, the necessary precautions must be taken. Perhaps with something to prove, the title of Jake Bugg’s new record, On My One
by Ed Biggs Following the reformation of his legendary, pioneering no-wave/noise rock outfit Swans at the end of the noughties, Michael Gira has overseen the most powerful, emotional and, arguably melodic sequence of albums in the band’s catalogue. Only hinted at in 2010’s returning effort My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky, this monstrously epic iteration of Swans, dealing in songs that more often than not last
by John Tindale By now, Hot Chip are a staple of the British electronic music scene because of their remarkable ability to release consistently brilliant albums that are both clever and danceable in equal measure and much of what the members do in their other projects follows a similar parallel; whether it be Joe Goddard and his more EDM inspired work, or Al Doyle and his time in LCD Soundsystem –
by Ollie Rankine After releasing six indie pop-soaked albums and then spent five years on recording hiatus, Swedish trio Peter Bjorn and John have eventually found themselves embarking on the pilgrimage to full blown pop perfection. Perhaps hoping to finally be rid of that never-ending whistle hook that at first helped mould the trio’s career highlight but completely dwarfed their many other fine accomplishments, PB&J’s new album Breakin Point looks for
by Ollie Rankine It’s certainly easy to be cynical about bands like The Temper Trap. Often placed somewhere between the dreariness of U2 and Coldplay, and certainly not helped in the long term by that ubiquitous 2009 song, the Australian four piece’s distinguishing traits are easy to unfairly ignore. For starters, the flawless falsetto vocal range of frontman, Dougy Mandagi provides The Temper Trap with an edge not many artists can
by John Tindale To say that Band of Horses have been the victims of their own hype would be a fair statement based on the amount of expectation put on the then-Seattle-based band. Debut album Everything All The Time saw the band soar to the attention of mainstream media, because of both the excellently crafted folk-tinged rock (see ‘The Funeral’) and of the back story of lead vocalist Ben Bridwell (google
by Ed Biggs A seven-piece band whose key creative driving forces came together after the disintegration of Smith Westerns in December 2014 – their lead guitarist Max Kakacek teaming up with ex-Unknown Mortal Orchestra drummer Julien Ehrlich – Whitney deal in the kind of bright, unfussy and skilfully arranged alt-country made popular by Wilco, Midlake and Real Estate over the last 15 years.
by John Tindale Tegan Rain and Sara Keirsten Quin, identical twin sisters from Calgary recording under the name Tegan and Sara for the best part of 20 years now, are a remarkable duo. Rising to fame in the mid-‘00s for their indie-rock music, they met with acclaim from critics for their albums The Con and Sainthood. But on previous record Heartthrob in 2013, their sound moved in an unashamedly pop direction
by Ollie Rankine It was sometime after the release of their 2011 album Blood Pressures that The Kills guitarist, Jamie Hince, slammed his hand in a car door which consequently rendered one of his fingers totally useless. Although Hince has undergone five operations in an attempt to return the use of such an essential tool of playing music, the severity of his injury has forced a total shakeup in his guitar
