Browsing Tag

Classic Rock

Shake, Rattle and Roll with GaryHalacan’s Latest Nostalgia Slice, Hip Dip

Posted on 14 July 2023

GaryHalacan took rock n roll right back to its roots with their latest jive-worthy single, Hip Dip; there are scat vocal melodies, frenetic blues keys hammering and adrenalizing fretboard work by the smorgasbord.

As the nostalgic tones shake, rattle and roll, reminding us the genre existed way before the emergence of the Rolling Stones, the party-rocking atmosphere of the single is maintained throughout the release which proves the only thing GaryHalacan takes seriously is keeping the vibes high and the riffs soaring.

GaryHalacan is the music project of the Ohio-hailing engineering professor Paul Paslay. After growing up on a steady diet of classic rock, Paslay spent his high school and college days in choirs and multi-instrumentalists in bands. During the early 00s, the muse found him, and he started to write original music, influenced by everyone from the Beatles to DEVO to Spinal Tap. For Hip Dip, Paslay collaborated with musicians from across the globe, including musicians from France, Peru and Argentina to create a sure-fire serotonin spiller.

The official music video for Hip Dip is available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Blomqvist & Mattjus borrowed a few tones from Dogs D’Amour for their acoustic rock triumph, Dangerous Curves

Posted on 10 June 2023

Any fans of bluesy rock in the same vein as Dogs D’Amour, Pretty Boy Floyd, and The Quireboys won’t want to hesitate to get the acoustic rock LP, Right on Time, from the devilishly reverent duo, Blomqvist & Mattjus, in rotation.

Track 6, Dangerous Curves, is the perfect introduction to the duo’s redefinition of the iconic rock tones that built the sonic landscape in the 70s, 80s and 90s. With vocals that could give Massive Wagons a run for their money and catchy choruses that would be best enjoyed while driving with the top down, this infectiously low-down and dirty acoustic anthem is far too irresistible for a solitary play. The celebration of sensuality veers just close enough to 80s sleaze to scintillate it with salaciousness, but the sense of bluesy soul quickly perturbed any sense of vulgarity.

Right on Time was officially released on May 23; get stuck into it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

It’s the end of the world as we know it, and The Star Prairie Project refuse to let it go quietly in their classic rock lament, Visions of War

Posted on 12 December 2022

The last time we heard The Star Prairie Project, they were serenading us through their rock ballad, Queen Isabella. Today, they are here with their aptly dark classic rock forewarning of a bomb-blistered destitute future, Visions of War.

With testaments of how visions of war pierce through the subconscious veil and perturb our dreams, it is a striking account of how plagued by the weight of the world we are. No matter how much we try to cast our gaze away from the screens which burn fear into our psyches.

It almost felt sacrilegious to appreciate the sheer ingenuity on offer here. But in the same breath, it is a stunning reminder that no matter how disparate the world gets as it amps up the chaos with every turn, humans are just as capable of fucking BEAUTIFUL things. And the tragedies falling like dominoes all around us are a crying shame of potential.

Here’s what The Star Prairie Project had to say on their latest album:

“Fight or Flight trumpets the fact that the world order as we know it is teetering and crumbling before our eyes. While too many remain oblivious to this fact, there is no denying that human civilization is facing its gravest challenges since World War II. To make matters worse, these challenges are hitting us from all possible directions.

As if we weren’t busy enough dealing with the accelerating climate change, environmental degradation, flora and fauna extinction, we’re also batting political and social discord unforeseen in many western nations … until recently. As the prices of consumer goods and gas are soaring due to the war in Ukraine, the poor become poorer, and the rich become richer. It’s unintentional, but we’re creating a fertile recruiting ground for street gangs and organized crime – the riot squads have never been busier.”

Visions of War is now available to stream on Spotify. Delve in and prepare to be arrested.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nestle into the safe chasm of alt-90s nostalgia with I’ve Tried Sleeping’s single, Without the Faintest Idea

Posted on 23 November 2022

With a moniker as defiantly dejected as I’ve Tried Sleeping, we knew we’d find ourselves head over heels when we dug into their eponymous debut album.

The standout single, Without the Faintest Idea, unravels as though Bob Dylan wrote The Truman show. Sonically, the single is an intersection between the college radio rock vibes of R.E.M., the striking viscerality of the Cranberries and to perfectly round off the single, there’s plenty of unadulteratedly classic rock riffs that drive the searing hot tones right into your synapses while they uplift you from the drudgery of the modern age into the safe chasm of alt-90s nostalgia.

If anyone has a chance of making it in the sorry state the music industry is in, it is the five-piece outfit fronted by Charlie Edwards. They’re a powerhouse, but that doesn’t get in the way of their effortless affability, which makes their tracks a pleasure to endlessly play on repeat. They get better with every listen.

Stream I’ve Tried Sleeping’s debut LP for yourselves on Spotify and Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Herringbone speak to the sinners in their classic rock revivalist debut single, Soloman’s Song

Posted on 14 October 2022

Herringbone’s debut single, Soloman’s Song, is a classic rock to the core exploration of shame, secrecy, and repentance that will throw you right back to the most iconic era of sunset strip glam rock.

The upbeat track raucously unravels through the momentum its overdriven lead guitars that amplify the cheeky swagger in the lead vocals, which are joined by choral female backing vocals. The feminine energy and shimmering organ keys take this renegade rock revival to a spiritually enrapturing level.

When they talk about music being the best medicine, they must be alluding to the enlivening aural elixir that runs through this stellar rock track which is enough to make you pious to the prowess of Herringbone. Now that a decent live show is beyond Axl Rose, it’s time to embrace Herringbone.

Soloman’s Song is available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Down the Years get into the belly of the blackdog in their white-knuckle alt-rock hit, A Thousand Roses

Posted on 14 October 2022
Down The Years

After a promising debut, South-East London’s Down the Years led us down the rabbit hole of their atmospheric ingenuity with their sophomore single, A Thousand Roses. To say that you will feel ALL of the emotions during this white-knuckle ride through candour, all-consuming riffs, and 80s rock nostalgia is no understatement.

The evocatively sublime hit lyrically explores how depression can insidiously take hold of our ability to admit we’re at emotional rock bottom, while the cinematic styling gives you a panoramic view into the black dog’s Machiavellian ways. Starting with guitars railing against the bleeps of a life support machine, building into a rock anthem for the ages with progressive vocals and winding back down into an almost baroque outro was nothing short of stylistic and conceptual genius.

Caught between being galvanised between the masterfully immersive production and sobered by the outpour of demons that have surfaced for many as of late, emotions are hard to place during A Thousand Roses. The only thing that is for sure is that Down the Years is the powerhouse the UK alt scene has been waiting for.

A Thousand Roses was officially released on all major platforms on October 14th. Check it out via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The New Black Diamonds poured intellectual soul into their classic rock track, In Between

Posted on 14 September 2022

The New Black Diamonds poured intellectual soul into rock with their introspectively deep latest single, In Between. With 80s rock licks, the Sweden-hailing five-piece fronted by Klara Frisk pays ode to the likes of Deep Purple, Joan Jett, and Black Stone Cherry, but their overdriven sonic signature doesn’t get lost in nostalgia.

The modernist take on lyricism certainly doesn’t scratch at the surface of superficiality; it takes you on a journey of emboldening self-actualization; crank it up loud and take note.

Get stuck into The New Black Diamonds’ latest single, In Between, on Spotify and YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Delve into the azure rock pleasure of Jon Fritz’s latest single, The Pool

Posted on 17 July 2022

Jon Fritz’s latest single, The Pool, is a hellbent power-pop bop, and I may as well name the earworm it left me with; it isn’t going anywhere soon.

With the same hyped-up choruses as delivered by the Foo Fighters around the Stonesy swagger in the verses, The Pool is practically a shot of sonic adrenaline. Finding out how the single came together contextualises the energy contained within it. The track was recorded all in one take by a band that had never heard the song before. The result is a riff-driven feat of pure, unbridled raucous momentum under Fritz’s blues-rock meets college radio rock vocals.

Check out Jon Fritz’s latest single via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LUXTHEREAL has unleashed the alt-rock soundtrack to our destruction, Humanity’s Fall

Posted on 26 June 2022

The latest single, Humanity’s Fall, from the Phoenix Arizona hailing artist LUXTHEREAL, sonically resonates like a sombre-breakup track but the only thing that has departed is the promise of an empire that will stand the test of our destruction. The concept is stunning; the execution of the atmospherically hooky harbinger is equally sublime.

With a touch of proto-punk, garage rock and post-punk, there is a protestive vein running right through the intrinsically melodic body of the single, which forces you to contemplate our failures. And sure, it’s nice to dissociate and shop for your favourite nerd items on Amazon while the anthropocene raises the temperature and the parasites with shoes, otherwise known as our world leaders, carve out a new ring of hell on this side of the earth’s crust, but we can only hide our heads in the sand for so long before they boil in there. Kudos to LUXTHEREAL for being true to their moniker and delivering raw realism.

Humanity’s Fall Remastered by LUXTHEREAL is available on SPOTIFY & ALL major streaming services, you can view the video here!

Review by Amelia Vandergast

‘Judgement Day’ is upon us in Danny Vash’s seminal rock hit.

Posted on 28 May 2022
Danny Vash

With enough filth in his guitar licks and enough vitriol in his vocal lines, the US rock artist, Danny Vash has exactly what it takes to draw in fans of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Metallica with his standout single, Judgement Day.

The multi-award-winning single delivers exactly the kind of life-affirming vindication that rock and metal fans can only ascertain through sonic means. Yet, this is no average vintage rock revival. Danny Vash’s signature intellectual lyrics instantly broadside you with their resonance as they reflect on the inescapable nature of our mortal coil, which will inevitably lead us all to judgement day. We may scrutinise ourselves every day, giving little thought to our capacity for redemption, but if any track can empower you through your own free will while you still have sand to spare, it’s Judgement Day.

Judgement Day is now available to stream via Reverb Nation.

Review by Amelia Vandergast