Browsing Tag

Melodic Rock

Find resolve through the rhythm and lyrical reflections in Flame’s seminal alt-indie release, ‘Heat’

The standout single ‘Heat’ from Flame’s alt-rock EP, Pride of the Lamb, which paints in colours from all across the alternative spectrum, ensues with a barrage of folkish rhythmic intensity before establishing a melody in the arcanely beguiling atmosphere.

The seraphic on the senses release transcends sound and moves into the remit of transformative meditation through the ethereal timbre of the lead vocals which refuse to bleed into the instrumentals in true shoegaze fashion as they relay mantric messages, guiding the listener towards transformation.

Flame lights fires through the trailblazing authenticity within their sonic signature, which pairs the textural motifs of grunge with the cathartic consolation of melodic rock as they build insurmountable walls of sound, brick by brick, note by note, while sharing a singular vision of leading the listener away from their ego.

Hit play and feel something primal within you wake in the presence of the Edinburgh-based alt-rock powerhouse who have exactly what it takes to stand at the vanguard of the post-shoegaze revolution in sound.

With one of the most distinct voices on the indie rock circuit, Flame is perceptibly in the minority of artists who favour their expression over commercial appeal, but there’s nothing within their debut EP that says they can’t have both; it’s pure evocative perfection.

Stream Heat as part of the 5-track EP on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

INTERCONTINEN7AL made history with the post-rock panache in their globally recorded single, Night Shift

Night Shift, the standout single from INTERCONTINEN7AL’s history-making EP World Over, isn’t just an ambitious cross-continental collaboration; it’s an emotive tour de force, commanding you to succumb to the progressive rock sublimity.

The single opens with a cinematic neo-classical prelude, complete with intricate finger-picked guitars and orchestral swells, setting a reflective and ornate tone. As the track evolves, the mood shifts seamlessly into psych-pop territory, with Beatles-reminiscent guitar riffs that carry listeners deeper into its emotional core.

When the soft melodic rock vocals enter, backed by soulfully ethereal harmonies, another seamless metamorphosis is complete, one which will allow fans of Chris Cornell and Eddie Vedder to recognise the heartstring-pulling resonance as it resounds over the essence of 70s folk rock.

INTERCONTINEN7AL, based in Castle Rock, Colorado, emerged from the COVID-19 lockdowns, redefining global collaboration with their innovative use of virtual tools like BandLab. World Over is their fourth album, showcasing an eclectic range of styles, from progressive rock to bossa nova. By recording instrumentation in locales as remote as Antarctica, they created a genre-spanning collection that’s as inspiring as it is groundbreaking.

With Night Shift, the band transcends novelty and crafted a testament to the universality of emotion, delivering a track that lifts listeners far above the confines of geography or genre.

Stream the World Over EP on all major streaming platforms, including SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hover pierced the post-grunge veil with the visceralism nestled within ‘In My Head’

In My Head by Hover

The Cali fourpiece powerhouse, Hover, unchained the gates to the post-grunge pantheon with their seminal single, In My Head. The grungy indie anthem opens introspective floodgates over crunchy overdriven guitar chords; when the reprise of ‘in my head’ pours over the instrumentals, you can’t help but be reminded of the visceralism of Zombie by The Cranberries, yet Hover makes the mantric confession their own through the raw emotive power of the vocal delivery.

With hints of everything from grunge to indie rock to college radio rock to pop punk, and every element riling up the last, In My Head unravels as an anthem of catharsis for anyone who knows how much hostility can be bred within the confines of the mind. In My Head proves that Hover doesn’t just have the technical chops to ensure their recorded material carries immense emotional weight, they also have the ability to take weight from the listener as the burden of rumination is lifted.

The Coachella Valley hailing outfit is easily distinguished from the rest with their attitude-spiked melodic rock. Rather than merely layering fuzz-laden riffs, Hover let raw reflection spill from every sonic seam, adding a welcome blast of authenticity to alt-rock’s current landscape.

In My Head is now available to stream and purchase via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Todd Michael Chapman is the lyrical cheerleader everyone will want in their corner with ‘Celebrate It’

New York-born-and-raised singer-songwriter Todd Michael Chapman reached his uplifting zenith with his latest melodic Americana rock single, Celebrate It.

Covering the all-too-relatable phenomenon of chasing dreams and overcoming adversity for the promise of an emotional payoff and never finding any serotonin at the end of the endeavour, Chapman uses the single as an opportunity to remind his fans to reflect on their wins as much as their losses.

Joined by a female vocalist who effortlessly complements his stridently euphoria-painted harmonies, Celebrate It is enough to strip the weight of ennui right off your soul and rose tint the way you perceive your impact on the world.

The country-twanged classic rock melodies paired with Chapman acting as the lyrical cheerleader everyone will want in their corner transform Celebrate It into the ultimate anthem to slam through your speakers every time you need an intravenous shot of optimism.

Stream Celebrate It on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Feeding the Frenzy: Buddy Pease Strikes with the melodic rock resonance in ‘Vampires at the Door’

Baltimore-based artist Buddy Pease dives evocatively deep with his latest single, ‘Vampires at the Door’, introducing a glimpse into a visceral intersection where classic rock riffs meet soul-stirring existential angst.

Opening with steady, euphonic guitar chords, the song ramps up with soaring Slash-reminiscent guitar work that electrifies the production, priming listeners for a soundscape laced with the gritty intensity fans of Soundgarden will instantly recognise.

Pease’s imploringly raw vocal lines add a striking edge to the track, reaching into the psyche as he exposes the shadowy figures of human existence—the ones that lurk like parasites on the fringes of everyday life.

Through each evocative twist in the melodies, ‘Vampires at the Door’ becomes more a revelation of Pease’s ability to capture the unease and silent struggles many of us contend with.

With his new album slated for release in the next few weeks, Pease signals he’s more than just a fledgling in the scene; he’s one to save space for on your radar as he sonically visualises the raw, universal undercurrents of human experience.

The official music video for Vampires at the Door premiered on October 16; stream the horror-esque video on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

MöTT unleashed a frenetic hard rock firestorm with ‘Best Is Yet to Come’

Colorado’s prodigal in every capacity son, MöTT (AKA Martin Epp), unleashed a frenetic hard rock firestorm with their latest single, Best Is Yet to Come. The singer-songwriter, producer and endlessly deft multi-instrumentalist teamed up with a band of rock legends in their own right, Phil X, Billy Sheehan, Jeff Scott Soho and Matt Star, to shake cynicism from the souls of everyone who kneels at the altar of rock.

With touches of Slash in the guitar work superseding the ferociously tumultuous installations of drunk n roll mayhem, it’s impossible to remain steadfast when confronted by the cultivated chaos which attests to MöTT’s ability to carve melodic hooks and catapult his cult following into the eyes of his sonic storm. If you want to hear the definition of hard rock guitar porn, hit play on the ferociously feel-good, timeless rock anthem.

Best Is Yet to Come stormed the airwaves on August 1st; feel the force of the hard rock juggernaut by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Tariq.B entered the melodic rock pantheon with his single, You Keep My World Alight

Tariq.B joined Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell in the pantheon of rock evocateurs with his latest melodic rock emotional awakening, You Keep My World Alight, which will unearth feelings you didn’t know lingered in the sediment of your soul.

The song’s title cleverly underplays the vivid romanticism and raw pop-rock melodies that pulse at the heart of this panorama of raw, vulnerable passion which once and for all proves that romance isn’t dead in our era proliferated by strands of superficial connection.

You Keep My World Alight is an undeniable attestation to how the Pakistan-born, Southwest London-residing artist has mastered the art of acoustic sensitivity; every guitar chord hits a raw nerve as the progressions flow with cinematic sepia-tinged imagery and the warm glow of alt-90s tones.

Famed for his live performances across the UK, international airplay and plaudits from BBC Introducing, Tariq.B is well on his way to filling stadiums as wholly as he fuels souls with his sound. He’s a rare artist who instantly makes you feel at home in his honeyed and honed vocal timbre.

You Keep My World Alight is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sugar the pill with The Elegant Chasers’ aural antidote to modernity, My Medicine

Rock has known many guises throughout the decades; plenty of them can be revelled in with The Elegant Chasers’ latest intensely affecting track, My Medicine. By fusing the soaring soul of Journey, the brashy grit of 90s Britpop, Slash-reminiscent guitar work, and hints of hard rock to augment the rhythmically chameleonic hit to the nth degree, alt-rock’s most debonair solo artist delivered a triumphant tour de force with My Medicine.

Featuring Lloyd Pritchard on skins, the self-recorded and produced release, which was spawned Rembrandt Rooms, Hersham, Surrey, hits a raw nerve towards the outro to deliver an exposition on the plaintive reality of living as a struggling artist in an epoch which only favours legacy artists and novelty, giving listeners plenty to think about, if they can tear their minds away from the Oasis reunion hype.

My Medicine will be prescribed on September 27; sugar the pill of modernity by streaming the single on SoundCloud and Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Slip away from material reality with the artfully nostalgic escapism in Gaud’s seminal release, Prose for the Cradle

With Prose for the Cradle, the prodigal sons of New England, Gaud, defied temporal boundaries, transporting listeners into a dreamscape where the lines between past and present are synthesised into a seraphic sonic sensation.

Taken from the LP The Singer, the track evokes an ambiguous era of melodic rock, yet resists the urge to be pinned down by any particular moment in music history. Instead, it invites you into a space where emotion takes precedence over all else, allowing you to lose yourself in its all-consuming and consoling atmosphere.

The production carries all the hallmarks of a time when songwriters poured every drop of their hearts and souls into their craft. The melodies, artful and ascending, intertwine beautifully with percussion that feels almost like an additional pulse in your body, leaving your own heartbeat to take a backseat. Gaud’s vocal delivery is nothing short of hypnotic, wrapping you in a vignette where material reality fades away and only the sound remains.

For fans of Father John Misty’s songwriting chops, Prose for the Cradle will undoubtedly strike a chord. Its poignant cuts will leave a lasting impression, sticking to your synapses with a tenacity that makes the track impossible to shake.

Prose for the Cradle is now available to stream on Spotify with Gaud’s LP, The Singer.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Unleash your demons and dance on the edge of madness with Patrice AorMelodicRock’s future-forward dance rock anthem, Crazy Night

Patrice AorMelodicRock’s new dance-rock anthem, Crazy Night, is an electrifying testament to the enduring power of rock, infused with a futuristic edge that makes every modern rock outfit sound positively antiquated.

With a pop-hooked production so slick it’s hypersonic, the track propels you into a sonic universe where the expansive presence of the vocals, which could lead a rock opera, meets the cutting-edge innovation of bands like Bring Me The Horizon.

The vocals soar just as high as the guitars which blaze through the synthetics of the track, embodying the futurism of a rock scene reimagined a century from now. Imagine what Shinedown would sound like 100 years from now, and you’ll get an idea of what the solo artist achieved with this hit which electrifies the mind, body and soul.

You’ll want to relive Crazy Night time and time again with its intoxicating synthesis of raw energy and sleek production which invites you to dance on the edge of madness and unleash your demons.

How Patrice AorMelodicRock, who started earning his rock stripes in the 80s, isn’t already at the top of the rock charts is one of the great injustices of our era.

Stream Crazy Night on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast