Browsing Tag

Indie Punk

Diablofurs’ Vampires of Rome will sink its teeth into the heart of any power pop fans.

Posted on 21 October 2023

Imagine Sonic Youth came to fame on this side of the Atlantic, they displaced their distorted guitars with analogue synths, and punky power pop ran in the veins of Goo, and you will get an idea of what Diablofurs consummately concocted with the lead single, Vampires of Rome, from their forthcoming album, Welcome to the City of Fun.

The deeply affecting atmosphere in the verses of Vampires of Rome, which holds an alchemic candle to Echo and the Bunnymen, makes the crescendos even more sonically transcendent to experience. While just about anything with a hook gets labelled as an earworm in these lazy days of music journalism, the infectious appeal of Vampires of Rome is far too intoxicating to experience once. From the first shoegazey rings of euphonic bliss from the guitars in the intro to the Teenage Kicks-y energy when the track reaches its momentum, the nostalgic sense of fabled romanticism will sucker diehard romantics and those whose souls haven’t been stirred viscerally since the 80s.

After receiving critical acclaim from Vive Le Rock, being lauded and spun by 6 Music and BBC Introducing and performing unforgettable shows at Rebellion, the Nottingham-based outfit is set to take the scene by storm with their sophomore release.

Pre-order the sophomore LP, which is due for official release on October 27, from Rough Trade and ensure it sells out as fast as the debut album.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hybridic indie punks Junior Bill painted an anthemic picture of injustice with ‘Boys from Jungle’

Posted on 4 February 2023

With socially conscious lyrics as hard-hitting as the ones penned by Bob Vylan, Kid Kapichi, Meryl Streek, Junior Bill are way ahead of the trend of cuttingly observational and compassionate lyricism in their latest single, Boys from Jungle. Punk boomers who bemoan the wokeness of contemporary punk may want to save their blood pressure spiking by looking away from the hit that advocates the rights of asylum seekers and paints a stark picture of the injustice that greets them when they arrive on our blighted shores.

Rather than skating by on their lyrical wit alone, Junior Bill concocts awakeningly volatile alt-indie instrumental ensembles that are lightyears away from the usually brashy swagger of UK indie rock. With off-kilter guitars that wouldn’t be out of place in the alt-90s no-wave movement and the post-punk nuances tearing through the rhythm section, getting wrapped up in the hybridic punk aesthetic is non-optional.

Boys from the Jungle is the first single from their forthcoming debut album, Youth Club!, which more than has the potential to become the UK alternative album of the year.

Boys from Jungle officially released on January 27th. It is now available to stream on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

UK Trio The Horizons Brought in a New Wave of Punk with ‘Just Friends.’

Posted on 4 January 2023

The Plymouth UK indie punk-rock trio, The Horizons, single-handedly brought in a new wave of punk with their latest hit, Just Friends. The sweeping choruses are as animating as Reel Big Fish’s cover of Take On Me, while nuances of 90s pop-punk bite away in the same vein as The Offspring’s Hit That in the backbeat. The frenzied grungy instrumentals are dusted with a sugar-coated post-punk snarl that immediately arrests you in the intro before they bring in the silky pop harmonies. Some bands need an entire LP or discography to establish their dynamism, not The Horizons.

Once the fear subsided that this wasn’t an incel-y track bemoaning the friend zone, the euphoria in the upbeat indie punk hit quickly became infectious. The hit becomes infinitely sweeter when you register the self-awareness that allows them to traverse around commitment issues while pertaining to a roguishly modern brand of romanticism.

Just Friends. was officially released on December 28th. Check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

The Empty Page affront the new normal with their 90s nostalgia-implanting electro-punk anthem, Dry Ice

Posted on 20 November 2022

Rather than releasing a sonic sign of the stagnant times, The Empty Page protested our drab and dog-eared-with-anxiety modernity by letting pulsating synths guide the way towards 90s nostalgia in their electro-punk hit, Dry Ice.

Lyrically, you’re reminded of how it felt to be stripped of inhibition, sharing the euphoria with strangers long before they could request you on Facebook and never speak to you again and even longer before the pandemic left its mark on our social appetites while the dizzying guitars drop off-kilter momentum around the gravelly pulls of the post-punk bass strings.

It’s a major shift from the Manchester-based outfit’s previous sound that has been lauded by just about everyone that matters. The duo has ventured into their The Julie Ruin era, and we couldn’t be here for it more. After all, synths were the true gateway to punk and DIY (FIGHT ME), and this new anxiously frenetic earworm that will pull Polaroids of strobe-lit hedonism towards your temporal lobe is the ultimate affront to the new normal.

Dry Ice will officially release on November 18th. Watch the official video on YouTube, add it to your Spotify playlists, or support the band by purchasing the single on Bandcamp. 

Follow the Empty Page on Facebook, Instagram & TikTok. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Chicken Man and the Bad Eggs attack the gentrified in their scuzzy new wave punk hit, Indian Pale Fale.

Posted on 14 August 2021

Merseyside’s new wave punk outfit Chicken Man and the Bad Eggs is set to release their most frenetic single to date, Indian Pale Fale, which delivers a ferocious attack on gentrification and the gentrified.

With the same high-octane sonic force as Oh Sees and Cabbage, serious virtuosic stripes in the scuzzy over-driven guitars, and the infectiously antagonistic vocals, the 5-piece powerhouse’s signature sound pierces through the drudgery on the airwaves. They’ve already been accoladed by Huw Stephens, Dave Monks and John Kennedy from the BBC and ripped up plenty of stages in the Northwest with their blistering hot sound. Something tells us the accolades won’t stop there; they are the ultimate aural force to be reckoned with.

Their playful approach to lyricism is exactly what the music scene needs. It is beyond refreshing to hear a band giving punk fans the escapism they turn to music for.

Indian Pale Fale is due for release on August 13th; pre-save the single on Spotify.

Check out the band on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

DAAY makes the disillusionment of adulthood relatable with his alt-indie single, ‘Little Foot’.

Posted on 28 May 2021
DAAY

Take a walk through relatable growing pains with the third alt-indie single from South London-residing artist DAAY that emanates the same chaos as Oh Sees alongside a James Brown-Esque serving of soul. Little Foot is an intoxicating mash of ingenuity that proves there’s plenty more to art-rock than Radiohead.

With sax solos that scream with the same visceral furore as Pete Wareham’s strident howls, nostalgic bluesy licks, and a general state of inhibition and instability running right through the release, Little Foot is for every music fan who thrives on finding authenticity alongside relatable insanity.

Little Foot conceptually shares the frustration of needing to answer endless questions as we navigate our dark and often fetid landscapes as adults while it imparts the nostalgia of childhood simplicity and ignorance. In the process, DAAY paints the process of disillusion with the world as a universal one. If the world ever needed a reminder that no one’s life – regardless of social media statuses – is a bed of roses, it’s right now. DAAY discernibly delivered with this consistently volatile aural exploration of style.

The release of Little Foot was an efficacious way of creating an appetite for the solo artist’s forthcoming singles, due for release in 2021. Save space on your radar.

Little Foot will be available to stream and purchase on all major platforms from May 28th.

Check out DAAY on Spotify, Bandcamp and SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bag Ratty Bro share their automated aspirations with their pop-punk single, ‘ROBOT HOOVER’

Posted on 1 April 2021
Bag Ratty Bro

While I never thought I would hear a punk track with lyrics that aspire towards acquiring a Roomba, I’m ridiculously glad that I did. Bang Ratty Bro’s debut single ‘ROBOT HOOVER’  may not be the 70s anti-capitalist punk we came to love and build our morality around, but it’s a punk playlist staple all the same. This mostly comes as a courtesy of the guitarist exhibiting some serious prowess outside of the usual ‘you know 3 chords you can start a band’ punk form.

Bag Ratty Bro’s ROBOT HOOVER is easily up there with Candyskins’ release Mrs Hoover as an anthemically-charged hoover-inspired feat of dopamine-boosting indie punk.

You can hear Bag Ratty Bro via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Reclaiming Their Place: Chicago’s The Gelheads drop buried-away three-track EP ‘Tail Lights’

Posted on 13 March 2021

After celebrating twenty years together as a band, The Gelheads joyously recover their old hidden-away recordings that were almost lost in the sands of time, with their new exciting three-track EP called ‘Tail Lights‘.

The Gelheads are a Chicago, Illinois-based four-piece indie-punk/rock band with a hardened edge flowing in their creative veins, as they make music that you can motivate yourself with again, powering in like old pros in with an incredibly fresh sound for us to truly immerse ourselves into.

After rising through the ranks back in 2021, the band had fantastic success after starting off at small shows first, to opening for heavyweights like Papa Roach, The Killers and even came close to working with Def Jam.

After performing live together until 2005, a long hiatus until 2020 has seen the band recover their previous recordings thanks to Andy Gerber at Million Yen Studios. A new fresh mix is here as the band emerge gleefully from the darkness, to delight their old and new fans with a comeback for the ages.

‘Little String‘, ‘After These Messages‘ and ‘Lie Awake‘, are all equally top shelf tracks and with passionate lyrics and a supporting sound that shows you their underrated quality, you hope that this is the start of a refueling fire for the band to reclaim and even build on their glory days.

‘Tail Lights‘ from Chicago indie-rock act The Gelheads, is a journey through their uplifting music that almost didn’t exist, as they bring us back to those wonderful early 90’s days, that remained locked in your mind forever. This is a quality release and surely a taste of more classics to come.

Stream this new release on Spotify and see the IG here.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Solutions are tomorrow’s news: Manchester’s Urban Theory open up our curious minds on truthful ‘A Poet’s World’

Posted on 5 March 2021

Leading our overly-stimulated minds to shy away from the mainstream thinking that only adds to the gloom, Urban Theory scribble down courageous clues for us to enamor ourselves with, on the wonderful star-gazer called ‘A Poet’s World‘.

Fast-rising Manchester, England-based four-piece indie-punk band Urban Theory, fuse together delightfully that extra thoughtful music, that takes you to a new place so you can reassure yourself, that everything is going to be okay again.

With their first released single of the year, they sound especially hungry and show intimate intent with a stunning array of thunderous soundscapes, that simmers in hot like a steaming induction cooker. They have that raw power and are impressively self-aware, as they have seen so many around them lose their way. Their message is to wake up the masses with that sonic boosting vibes, that stomps you in the soul so nicely.

Recorded by the talented team at Bury’s Edwin Street Studio, this is one of three singles planned for 2021 as the band take things up a notch with a pure single, that makes your body move and groove with delight and thoughtfulness, all somehow at the same time.

‘A Poet’s World‘ from Manchester’s riveting indie-punk/rock outfit Urban Theory, is that special type of song that has you thinking about the current world and how broke the structures really are. Whilst we don’t have all the answers, avoiding the cracked steps of today is vital so you can maze safely into tomorrow, with your head held high looking at the stars to rest your weary mind.

Hear this excellent track here on their Spotify and find out more via the band’s IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Staying true to what is really important: The Vigilance Committee drop superb new single ‘Reflections III’

Posted on 10 January 2021

The Vigilance Committee are back with their inspirational blend of real music with heart on the outstanding new single ‘Reflections III‘.

New York indie-punk rockers The Vigilance Committee are a closely-knit outfit that have been making epic soundscapes together since 2009, and they are a group that do things that really matter in life, beyond music.

”Reflections III’ is a coming home of sorts for us,” says Phil Corso (drums/vocals). “With the world the way it is, we felt it was important to get back to basics, which for us, meant writing honest music that stood for something.”

This exceptional song is about how we need to fully appreciate the beauty of building a project from the start to the finish, no matter what the end result turns out to be. Watching it fall over is tough to watch but if it means you have to compromise your core morals and values, staying true to yourself is all that matters. You are the one that has to look in the mirror each day after all.

With a more than satisfying indie-punk rumbustious melody to start us off on this excellent ride, the driving drums and haunting vocals catch your attention quickly, this is a rock solid track that is marvelously catchy and is so true to its original vision. The true story of not letting yourself fall below the standard you have set for yourself deep down and how you would rather tumble over, than stay somewhere you know isn’t for you and where you feel you don’t belong.

Valuing total integrity over worthless material things seems like a controversial thing to do these days, so its very refreshing to hear a band that still have these values and who actually say something about things that aren’t legitimate.

This is an excellent band who are underground heroes for doing what is right and ‘Reflections III’ from New York City four-piece The Vigilance Committee, sees them stay true to their roots and kicks the standard up a few notches in a previously prosperous genre, that has been in the doldrums for way too long. That all changes now.

Stream this terrific track here on YouTube and see what they get up to next on FB & IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen