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NYC Rock

NYC’s Lucid Lip synthed up their soul-rock signature in their achingly bitter-sweet release, No Ones’ Burden

Posted on 1 March 2024

Lucid Lip, a band which always knows which heartstrings to pull and notes to play, took their sound to more experimental synth rock territory while maintaining their evocatively impactful finesse with their latest single, No Ones’ Burden.

Staying with their signature sound of soulful alt-rock clearly doesn’t creatively hinder the powerhouse which has become integral to the NY live music scene after playing Rockwood Music Hall, The Bitter End, Our Wicked Lady and countless other renowned venues in their 10-year reign as one of the most versatile acts in the NYC circuit.

After a Grandaddy-meets-Owl-City-esque synthy prelude, No Ones’ Burden kicks into a melodiously energised alt-rock-goes-pop groove as the smoky with soul vocal lines project aching melancholy into the tonally dynamic, harmonically-heightened release. Chris Cornell himself couldn’t have conveyed the emotion in the intimate lyricism better; the candour-fuelled confessionalism of the release is bound to resound with anyone who knows how bitter-sweet it feels to be beholden to no one and be perpetually resisting the temptation to live fast and loose.

No Ones’ Burden will be available to stream on all major platforms from March 1st.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Captain Birthday and the Undertaker seduced Lady Luck with the subversive sonics in ‘Scratch Ticket’

Posted on 1 December 2023

Scratch Ticket by Captain Birthday and the Undertaker is an audaciously infectious track that defies conventional rock iconography with its inventive fusion of genres and wildcard thematic lyricism. Just as scratch tickets symbolise unpredictability, this song embodies that same quality through its musical composition. It’s not often that the worlds of gambling and rock n’ roll intersect in such a literal sense, but this duo has taken the challenge head-on, spinning the concept into an auditory spectacle.

From the nostalgia of surf rock to pivots of electrifying rock riffs which cut through the mix, commanding attention with their raw energy to the embracing of atmospheric post-punk tension, Scratch Ticket, from the band’s eponymous debut EP, delivers all that and more to ensure each transition resonates like a new scene in a play; an unveiling of a different mask worn by the same enigmatic character.

At the heart of this song is the chemistry between Jean-Michel Letalon and Andrew Vogts, who are the creative engines behind Captain Birthday and The Undertaker. Letalon, with his rock opera sensibilities and a vocal style reminiscent of the early 2000s New York City rock scene, delivers lyrics with an intriguing blend of drama and nonchalance. Vogts, “The Undertaker,” brings his classical music expertise into the realm of hard rock with electric violin arrangements that add a layer of sophistication to the track.

Scratch Ticket becomes a metaphor for the band’s journey — a gamble on the fusion of their varied influences, betting on the listener’s willingness to embrace the unexpected. The result is a song that’s both a tribute to rock’s past and a bold step into its future.

Stream Scratch Ticket with the rest of Captain Birthday and the Undertaker’s EP via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hotel Security reached the pinnacle of euphonic furore in their symphonic pseudo prog rock hit, Forget It

Posted on 25 September 2023

If Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster did an 8-ball of speed before falling into the studio, their sound still wouldn’t match the fervour in the latest single, Forget It, from New York City’s most volatile prodigal sons, Hotel Security, who have been trailblazing through the NYC alternative scene since 2020.

With the symphonic keys adding a histrionic edge to the tumultuously tight instrumentals that revolve around the dizzying guitar riffs that rip roar with Psychobilly-esque furore, Forget It would be an all-out attack on the senses if it weren’t for the melodic hooks infused through the catchy vocal melodies that give you a centre of gravity in the chaos of the pseudo-prog rock orchestration. Ironically, Forget It is as brutal as an MK-Ultra operation.

Forget It was officially released on September 15th; strap yourselves in and experience it for yourselves via Spotify. For more info on the self-professed band of music nerds, visit their official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

History battle cries in Solemn Pledge’s concept EP, Joan of Arc: Savior of France

Posted on 18 September 2023

There are concept EPs, and there are hair-raising sonic manifestos where history battle cries and culture breathes; the recently released EP, Joan of Arc: Savior of France, from Solemn Pledge is at the vanguard in the latter camp.

No matter how much time stands between the legacy of Joan of Arc and our present-day epoch, her trailblazing tale will always leave the imagination alight, as definitively proven by the rock opera retelling from the duo comprising Genevieve Elia and Michael Justin Lee.

In the standout single, To Free France, the classic Iron Maiden-esque rock tones lend themselves viscerally well to the narration of the wrath of Joan of Arc. Elia’s dynamic vocal range effortlessly encapsulates the sheer hell-hath-no-fury resilience of the feminist icon who is revered as one of France’s greatest military heroes, despite her age, gender, and discernible lack of military training.

Stream Joan of Arc: Saviour of France on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Cinematic with Soul Alt-Rock Originators, Underblue, Will Wrench Your Heart Strings with ‘Hold On’

Posted on 9 May 2023

‘Hold On’ is the latest slice of filmic funk born from the ingenuity and superlative talent possessed by the NYC alt-rock outfit, Underblue, who have been creating inner-city waves since 2016.

This seminal release is an undeniable testament that it is their time. The soulfully smoky siren-ESQUE vocal lines from Kimberly Torres, the devilishly jazzy basslines from Simon Luk, and the ornate flourishes from keyboardist Ilvi Calderon is almost too much alchemy to handle – almost. Entwined with the guitars that straddle the timbres of the Cramps and My Bloody Valentine and the drums that punctuate the soundscape with flair, Hold On is a progressively interstellar triumph.

With heavy, hopeful, happy, and heart-wrenching being the cornerstones of the ethos behind the upcoming LP, you’re damn right you should save space on your radar for the powerhouse, which has enough innovation between them to rival Mars Volta – not an overstatement.

Hold On will officially release on May 19th followed by the full album on June 9th. Hear it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Denim Dan created a capsule of 70s folk-pop-rock nostalgia in their sixth studio album, This Way, That Way, The Other Way

Posted on 26 April 2023

NYC’s Denim Dan fortified the folk-pop-rock realm once again with their sixth studio album, This Way, That Way, The Other Way, which will ricochet you back to the 70s via an aural time capsule you have never experienced the like of before. Under the heart-on-sleeve influence of Tom Petty & The HeartBreakers, Lou Reed & Leonard Cohen, you will also be able to reminisce on the slightly zanier production styles of Zappa and the Legendary Pink Dots in this warm vignette of fond memories forged in an era of personal freedom and revelation.

There are few things as sonically sweet as coming-of-age tales after decades of retrospect. The kaleidoscopically honeyed soundscapes in This Way, That Way, The Other Way allows you to cruise right back to the 70s while allowing your perceptions to shift around the pearls of wanderlust wisdom.

“This Way, That Way, The Other Way is our sixth studio album. A non-fiction coming-of-age narration of loosely factual true events from my time in New Mexico in the mid 1970s. The title track and first four songs were written in Florence, Italy during the pandemic when I felt inspired to write about my experiences of four decades earlier. The next eight songs – also written about that period – including Let Your Love Fall Down On Me [too] were recorded in 2001 right after 911 in Boulder, Colorado. They were forgotten…but my son, Marcello, found them in an old computer.”

Stream This Way, That Way, The Other Way on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LUCID LIP unveiled their end of the beginning smoky alt-rock odyssey ‘Room to Grow’

Posted on 1 January 2023

We couldn’t get enough of LUCID LIP’s soulfully seminal single, Who Would Notice? Hearing they are back on era and genre-amalgamating form in their single, Room to Grow, was a rare reason for exhilaration in the age they lament in this timely, smoky, synth-driven hit.

Horror films have made us accustomed to the odd ghosts dotted around a creepy building. The NYC outfit explored the infinitely more tangible phenomenon of nothing being left in our sightline but phantasms of everything and everyone that has given up the ghost in “the end of the beginning”.

It is as isolated and lonely as Bowie’s Space Oddity. But the feeling of estranged detachment needn’t be miles from the earth’s surface when life on earth has almost turned into a paranormal investigation as we look back on everything that these torrid times have torn away from us.

Still pertaining to some of the beauty of the world that we seem hell-bent to obliterate as the bombs drop, the forests burn, and tensions run high, the humanistically pure single becomes infinitely more evocative.

For anyone who finds it hard to express their deep, dark sadness for the collective state of the world. Or anyone with no one left to confide these complex feelings in, Room to Grow is an essential hit that is sure to inspire a few cathartic tears. I know I shed a few.

Room to Grow will officially release on January 1st. You won’t want to miss it. Stream it on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Music.

Follow LUCID LIP on Instagram and Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mike Power – I Like You: prepossessingly pure alt-rock

Posted on 16 December 2022

Fuelling the intimate feels of Elliott Smith with the swanky proto-punk zeal of the Kinks and the melodic colour of the Beatles, the latest single from Mike Power which carries eccentric echoes of Pavement, Courtney Barnett and Decemberists, is a soul-rendered alt-rock riot.

The tight instrumental framework of I Like You allows the affably sweet sentiments in the uninhibited declaration of passion to hit that little bit harder as you lose yourself in the blossoming soul that heightens the winding alt-90s influenced rhythms to the nth degree. It doesn’t quite drop the L word, but I think we can all agree that the ‘like’ phase in a foundling relationship when we’re enamoured by every idiosyncrasy is just as prepossessing.

I Like You is just one of the singles to feature on the increasingly popular sophomore album, Compulsions, from the NYC-formed Mike Power band. We wholly recommend making time to appreciate the dynamism of it in its entirety.

I Like You is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

MOVIE MOVIE shine on in their glamorously cinematic single, Bright Lights

Posted on 11 September 2022
NOW PLAYING by MOVIE MOVIE

Psychedelic Furs fans will want to clamour around the latest glamorously cinematic rock n roll meets power pop single, Bright Lights, from NYC’s new-found finest, MOVIE MOVIE.

With the psychedelically upbeat melodies that come with a swoon-some bite and Beach Boys backing harmonies, objectivity quickly falls to the wayside while Bright Lights is tonally shimmering into your synapses. While the lyrics set up the narrative of a lonesome wannabe starlet, the synths transport you away from this intrepid era and plant you into one where James Dean and Hepburn reigned supreme.

Bright Lights was officially released on July 22nd. Check it out for yourselves on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Holy Vulture unleashed their hook-rife alt-rock hit, I Can’t Help It

Posted on 10 September 2022
Holy Vulture

NYC Rock n Roll trio, Holy Vulture, relinquished all control in their latest melodically hook-rife single, I Can’t Help It. With the stabbing staccato rhythms courtesy of the bass and guitar, the tension-filled track efficaciously reflects the reality of powerlessness in the presence of an all-consuming paramour that strips us of our autonomy and replaces it with addiction to the source of the obsession. Who said romance was dead?

Since 2019, Holy Vulture has been bringing a brand-new frenetic rock flavour to the alt-rock scene. Sure, stylistic nods to the icons of rhythmic rock are there, but assimilation certainly isn’t the aim of Holy Vulture’s game.

I Can’t Help It will officially release on September 9th. Check it out for yourselves here.

Review by Amelia Vandergast