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Music Blog for Indie Rock Fans

The Serenity Club launched an attack of anthemic alt-rock reclamation with ‘Taking Back My Life’

Posted on 28 June 2024
The Serenity Club

With pop-fuelled alt-rock choruses that will be euphony to be the ears of the Foo Fighters between verses that reanimate rugged 90s Britpop swagger, The Serenity Club’s latest single, Taking Back My Life, is an unforgettably emboldening anthem of reclamation.

The high-octane synthesis of volition, redemption and serotonin is set to put the London-based triadic powerhouse on the map ahead of their debut five-track EP, Obsession Submission, which is due for release later this summer. The timely release of the single also means that it incidentally coincides with the General Election; I couldn’t think of a better track to listen to on the way to the polling station.

Hints of 90s-era Manic Street Preachers (think along the lines of Slash n Burn, You Love Us, and Kevin Carter) resound throughout the vivaciously fuelled guitar licks and the razor-sharp hooks that don’t stop at pulling you into the centre of this intensely liberating hit. They open the doorway to one of the most determined-to-embed earworms you’ve ever encountered as they work alongside the unflinchingly dynamic vocals of Mit Inajar.

With an exhilarating sound that Wembley Stadium could scarcely contain, The Serenity Club has exactly what it takes to take their career to stratospheric heights this summer; just try standing in their way.

Taking Back My Life will be available to stream on all major platforms, including Bandcamp, from June 28th.

Discover more about The Serenity Club via their official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Run The Enemy filtered indie post-punk poetry through a pensive Americana lens with their sophomore single, Barbara Gray

Posted on 28 June 2024

For their second single, the cerebrally poetic Indie/Americana ensemble, Run the Enemy, unearthed the sublime from the serendipitous, immortalising the fleeting yet eternal encounter between Elvis and Barbara Gray in 1956.

Infused with samples of fervent Elvis fans within an Editors-esque post-punk framework, the Cambridge, UK-based band magnifies the tenderness of transient intimacy in a pop culture moment of pure connection, inviting listeners to inhabit that ephemeral instant and luxuriate in its synchronicity.

With vocals reminiscent of Elbow, choked with emotion and deftly illuminating the lyrical depths, and an atmosphere of sepia-toned nostalgia enveloping the hauntingly angular guitars, iridescent keys, and throbbing rhythm section, Barbara Gray lodges itself in the soul, simultaneously imparting the transcendent nature of a moment never to be lost to history.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a better entry into the UK indie scene in 2024. It’s only a matter of time before Run the Enemy tears its way into the mainstream.

Run the Enemy Said:

“The song is about randomly overlapping lives, inspired by the fleeting moments shared by Elvis and Barbara Gray, captured on film by Alfred Wertheimer in 1956 at the Jefferson Hotel in Virginia.

For over fifty years, the girl remained anonymous until she appeared on the Today Show to discuss the one day that her life crossed with Elvis’s, like a crossword clue; he was seven down, she was eight across. Despite the moment being so transient and their lives going in such different directions thereafter, their moment is preserved forever on film.”

Barbara Gray was officially released on June 28th; stream the single on Spotify.

Follow Run the Enemy on Instagram. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature Pulsative post-punk meets trip-hop in Dissolved Girl’s 3rd spectrally filmic release, I’m a Beast

Posted on 28 June 2024

From their debut, we knew London’s ‘Trip-Rock visionaries, Dissolved Girl, possessed a locked and loaded arsenal of potential. Their third single, I’m a Beast, is definitive proof of their ability to eclipse the airwaves with their lustrous presence which is a phenomenon in its own right.

I’m a Beast explores the emotional wreckage left by sociopaths and narcissists, creating a darkly cinematic atmosphere through dissonant rhythms and ethereal vocals that paint power into vulnerability.

The blend of trip-hop, post-punk, and indietronica ensures the cold, monochromatic aura seeps into the listener’s psyche, with hooks that pierce deeply and crescendos that provide a cathartic release. Dissolved Girl’s latest single transcends mere alt-90s homage; their intricate instrumentation, driving post-punk basslines, and vocals reminiscent of Shirley Manson establish them as masters of refined, dark soundscapes.

Before forming Dissolved Girl, Nick (guitar, songwriter) and Claire Edbrooke (vocals, songwriter, producer) were involved in various musical ventures, always with the goal of succeeding with original music. Their collaboration led to the creation of a unique sound, bolstered by the addition of Arthur Keys (bass) and Dom Chandler (drums).

Despite their recent formation, Dissolved Girl has already garnered significant radio play on stations such as Amazing Rock & Metal, MM Radio, Radio Wigwam, WDNF-Philly, SLE Radio, Prospect Radio, and Krac Radio. Their fanbase is steadily growing as they prepare for the release of their debut LP later this year.

Dissolved Girl Said

“This song touches on a few concepts, but in its original form, it was about people with personality disorders. They wreak havoc in others’ lives and simply move on to the next victim without remorse or feeling. There is a certain irony that the person inflicting the damage finds moving on so easy, and yet the person affected by their behaviour is left reeling, wounded, and confused about how or why this has happened. It is about feeling resilient as a victim in the face of all that and coming back stronger.”

After being mixed by Dani Castelar – who has three number 1 albums with Paulo Nutini – and mastered by Matt Colton, I’m a Beast was officially released on June 14; stream it on all major platforms, including Spotify now.


Review by Amelia Vandergast

Riverman opened a doorway to 60s psychedelic pop summers with his alt-indie single, Somnambulism

Posted on 26 June 2024

Once you grab an oar with Riverman’s seminal single, Somnambulism, taken from his Summer Up / Summer Down LP, you’ll be reluctant to ever put it down. Riverman, the moniker of the Winston-Salem, NC-residing singer-songwriter Steve Hedrick, has earned his place in the pantheon of indie greats with this epoch-traversing genre-fluid installation of nostalgic euphony.

With sticky-sweet harmonies that pull at the heartstrings as fervently as Elliott Smith’s dreamy timbres juxtaposed with an exuberant indie-pop production which interweaves Johnny Marr-esque jangle-pop guitars and opens a doorway to 60s psychedelic pop summers all the while embracing brash, garage rock-infused licks, Somnambulism, which introduces Riverman as a ‘soporific spectre’ is a release that will send serotonin firing through your synapses.

The metaphorical exposition of sleepwalking is a masterclass in nostalgic synthesising. Riverman effortlessly infuses motifs from a broad sonic spectrum to pour a cocktail of aural summer haze that will quench your thirst for fresh indie sounds. It’s a lush escape that’s impossible to resist.

Stream Somnambulism on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Heatwavers – Today I’ll Mostly Be: A Sunlit Anthem for Modern Malaise

Posted on 25 June 2024

Heatwavers have made their debut with Today I’ll Mostly Be; an enrapturing anthem which effortlessly melds the vibrant sounds of the ‘60s with the spirited essence of 00s indie. The iridescent-with-soul indie pop production is bolstered by garage rock licks and dusted with the glitter of jangle pop to deliver an infectiously hooked earworm that you’ll want to lean on every time you need the reminder it’s okay to be fallible and dogged with fear of the future.

The unshackling sun-bleached tour de force of hedonically melodic bliss introduces an idiosyncratically awkward archetype with a soul of gold who leads the listener through the reverie designed to liberate from the aches of inadequacy.

The chorus reprise of “I’ve tried my best and I need a break from life, so today I’ll be mostly getting drunk and high” flips the narrative of the typical summer pop hit to deliver a resoundingly bitter-sweet sign of the times marked by the dangers of self-awareness and the traumatic influence of the current climate. The sunny-side-up sonics paired with the realism within the lyricism ensured that Today I’ll Mostly Be will be the seminal sound of the summer.

Formed during a serendipitous stroll in Mykonos, James (UK) and Nige (NZ) of Heatwavers embarked on their musical journey across continents. Their shared love for 60s pop and indie rock, influenced by bands like Best Coast, Surfer Blood, and The Shins, fuels their creative dualism. Despite the physical distance and the constraints of the pandemic, they triumphed with a zeitgeisty cocktail which juxtaposes an effervescent sonic palette with introspectively deep lyrics.

Today I’ll Mostly Be is now available to stream on SoundCloud, Spotify, and Bandcamp.

Connect with Heatwavers on Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Post-Punk Pulsates Through Dissolved Girl’s Latest Alt-90s Spectral Sonic Shadow, I’m a Beast

Posted on 22 June 2024

Dissolved Girl is back for round three; the gloves are off, and teeth are bared in their latest single, I’m a Beast, which blasts past alt-90s pastiche and scathes the rhythmic pulses with killer hooks, sharp enough to tear through the monochromatically cold atmosphere of the release which aches for redemption.

Ornate gothic instrumentation carves its way through the production while the basslines pulsate with post-punk volition under the vocal lines which blend raw power with haunting vulnerability. If Garbage released this single at the zenith of their career, the spectrally sensuous soundscape would have darkened the top of the charts for weeks. We may be living in a new sonic epoch, but the London-based four-piece is unflinching in their determination to keep bands relevant in the modern music industry.

With their refined approach to bending minds through esoteric alchemy and their ability to linger in the psyche for long after the final shadowy note, it’s only a matter of time before they take the alt-music underground by storm.

I’m a Beast was officially released on June 14; stream the single on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

IST IST dominated the Manchester post-punk pantheon with their latest single, Repercussions

Posted on 14 June 2024
IST IST

Look at Manchester as a landscape and you’ll be confused by the claim that we do things differently here; the proverb only materialises through the mettle of sonic architects in the same trailblazing vein as IST IST.

Since their debut single, IST IST has been an unreckonable authentic force that has easily earned its place in the post-punk pantheon. With their latest single, Repercussions, taken from their fourth LP, Light a Bigger Fire, they emerge once again as an unextinguishable paragon of eminence.

From the first angular note that leads you into a neon-lit hedonic tour de force, you’re hooked into an exhilarant earworm that delivers scintillation and kinetic rhythmic propulsion by the smorgasbord.

By extrapolating the brooding vocal presence of Sisters of Mercy, the cerebral intensity of Magazine, the coruscating synths of Arcade Fire, and the menacingly pulse-pounding beats of Depeche Mode, and synthesising them into a cocktail that could only be stirred by their own hand, IST IST delivered a broodingly expansive testament to their cultivated fortitude.

Producer Joe Cross (Courteeners, Hurts) ensured that the single, which unravels as an exposition of how insidious thoughts can spill from the psyche into reality, becomes an invitation to liberate yourself from your introspective vexation – if only for the duration of the emancipating hit that surpasses ear candy and becomes an elixir for oppressive reflections.

Stream Repercussions on all major platforms, including Spotify, from June 6th.

Follow the band on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

ARCTISKY became the Chris Isaak of his Generation with ‘Unreal Love’

Posted on 14 June 2024
ARCTISKY

ARCTISKY’s latest single, Unreal Love, is the smoothest slice of rock-fervoured seduction your rhythmic pulses have ever wrapped around.

Impassioned in the same vein as The National’s Trouble Will Find Me LP, the single, prised from the Maldives-born, Melbourne-based troubadour of slick soul’s debut album, Roots Vol. 1, is a tapestry of lush tonality, stitched with edges of indie pop, the passion of RnB, funk grooves, and rock roots which puts the singer-songwriter in the same league as Chris Isaak.

Your heartbeat will become the second most important rhythm coursing through you as soon as you immerse yourself in the authenticated hit which exhibits ARCTISKY as one of the most sincere revolutionists on the airwaves. With vocal harmonies that pour as deliciously as the mellifluous melodies that unravel as a confluence of ornate piano keys, reverb-swathed synths and soaring guitar lines over the propulsive rhythm, Unreal Love is as close to heaven as you will get on the airwaves.

Unreal Love will be available to stream on all major platforms with Roots Vol 1, including Spotify, from June 14.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dance in the spectral shadows of GETNER’s Irish folk fable of moonshine madness, Poitín

Posted on 13 June 2024

After a killer debut single, which posited GETNER as one of the most promising Mancunian rock n roll acts since Oasis, the four-piece fully embraced their Irish roots with their intoxicating tour de force of a sophomore single, Poitín.

Following an intro that allows you to imagine joining Oscar Wilde in an opium-scented den of iniquity, folk rock rancour insidiously riles up as GETNER as the vocals seductively reverberate through the devilish fable which narrates a tale of an old man in Emerald Isle’s rocky hills brewing moonshine during the prohibition era, inhaling the fumes and succumbing to the eerie spectral manifestations of his inebriated with disillusion mind.

It’s a darkly debauched slice of arcane reverie which doesn’t stop short of portraying a mind-altered protagonist. Poitín ensnares you within the metaphysical atmosphere, enabling you to slip back in time and alter your own mind with the hallucinatory vapour which GETNER efficaciously sonically visualised.

After hearing Poitín, Devil Went Down to Georgia is never going to hit the same ever again.

Poitín was officially released on May 31; stream the single on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

AFTERDRIVE buried indie landfill under the immensity in their latest anthem, Gold Dust

Posted on 7 June 2024
AFTERDRIVE

The Ipswitch indie-rock breakthrough band, AFTERDRIVE, hit the wheel and blazed beyond contemporary trends with their latest single, leaving outfits in the vein of the 1975, M83, and The Neighbourhood in the ‘Gold Dust’ of their viscerally textured hit.

Ben Watts’ distinctive vocal inflections relentlessly hit raw nerves with the projections of vulnerability in the bitter-sweet release which embodies the band’s determination to bring small-town boredom blues to an international stage.

The instrumental evocative artillery shows little mercy; after showing melodic restraint within the verses, the choruses cascade into augmented alchemic chaos as the alt-indie-rock guitars construct walls of sounds to encase you within the brooding atmosphere of the intense narrative of affliction as the upbeat synths resonate as the last feign of hope in the outpour of ennui.

After their debut single, Stick Around, met critical acclaim and received regular airplay from BBC Introducing and more success was sealed with every subsequent release, we have no doubt that Gold Dust will seal the artist’s fate as one of the biggest names in the UK indie scene.

Gold Dust will be available to stream on all major platforms from June 7th. Discover ways to listen via the official AFTERDRIVE website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast