Browsing Tag

Rock n Roll

Leah Nawy is the ultimate contender for originator of the year after releasing her debut single, NUISANCE

Posted on 22 August 2023

By combining the soul of Sade with the tongue-in-cheek charm of Kate Nash and leaving plenty of room for her own striking rock-licked sonic signature stylings that open the floodgates to a rush of 90s pop nostalgia, Leah Nawy hit the ground running with her feisty and fresh debut single, NUISANCE.

If you’ve still got the attention span to appreciate a perfect three-minute pop hit, lose yourself in the vibrant tones, groove-driven and funk-dripping instrumentals, and some of the sweetest sugared-with-attitude vocal lines you will hear this year.

With a polyphonically jazzy rock n roll outro that enabled Nawy to dig her heels into her authenticity, NUISANCE is a debut that no one will be quick to forget. Even with the industry more saturated than it has ever been, there’s no denying Leah Nawy is a promising triple threat with her charisma, talent, and ear for earwormy melodies.

After she finishes her Masters degree in songwriting and production at Berklee NYC, she will be an unstoppable force.

NUISANCE hit the airwaves on the 28th of July; stream it for yourselves on Spotify.  

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Pick up Propter Hawk’s seminal blues rock release, Telephone

Posted on 5 August 2023

Fill up your whiskey glass and pick up the seminal single, Telephone, from Propter Hawk – if you can lift the heavy with swaggering rock n roll riffs, that is.

As a born rock frontwoman, Malorie Blake on lead vocals knows just how to pay homage to bluesy overdriven rock with her authentically Americana high-octane vocal lines which effortlessly gel with the if-they’d-be-any-tighter-they’d-be-claustrophobic instrumentals as they weave through eras and genres with ease.

With influence from The Beatles, The Band, and Otis Redding feeding into their amalgamated free bird sonic signature, you’ve never encountered an outfit quite like Propter Hawk before, nor are you ever likely to with their commitment to authenticity and their devilishly distinctive use of distortion on their vintage gear.

If you’re desperate to hear more after Telephone, you only have two weeks to wait before the release to wait before the official launch of the debut eponymous LP, which is due for release on August 18th.

Telephone is available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify. 

For more info on Propter Hawk, check out their official website. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Christo Mondavi reversed the laws of gravity with his psychedelically transcendent single, Daisy’s Gone Electric

Posted on 15 July 2023

Christo Mondavi firmly implanted psychedelic soul back into rock n roll with his latest single, Daisy’s Gone Electric; the hazily lofty single brings brand-new and literal meaning to the concept of dancing on the ceiling.

With the colourful melodies and Mondavi’s honeyed harmonies resonating as though they have been pulled into this atmosphere from a far higher plateau, Daisy’s Gone Electric isn’t a single you can slip into; it is a single that instantaneously reverses the laws of gravity while paying homage to the tones popularised by The Doors and The Beatles.

For an extra lick of authenticity, there are also touches of Bowie to the spacey Odyssey-esque progressions and Zappa to the zanily pure vocal and lyrical presence, which proves Mondavi has a soul of solid 60s psych pop gold. Perfection may often be seen as an unattainable ideal, but if anyone can claim to sonically come close, it is Christo Mondavi.

Daisy’s Gone Electric is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

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

BreakTime got all revved up in their 60s pop-rock single, Motor City Mama

Posted on 4 July 2023

If you wanna grease the wheels of your 60s pop-rock playlists, the latest single, Motor City Mama, from the illustrious nostalgia peddlers BreakTime, will get you all revved up with the Beach Boys-esque vocal harmonies and the bright guitar melodies that burst with vintage flair. Hitting play is like stepping into a parallel universe where Brian Setzer managed to work his way into the Beatles.

The New Jersey-hailing outfit started as a cover band before they started to nod towards their favourite eras and artists in their original music rather than assimilate them, which is exactly how BreakTime acquired their amalgamated sound that emanates rockabilly, sixties pop, blues rock and surf rock.

Even though the prodigal sons of vintage rock n roll switch up their sound between their releases, upbeat harmonies, technical skill and arresting showmanship always come as standard.

Motor City Mama is available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Palace became heirs to the rock n roll dynasty in ‘Looking at You’

Posted on 24 June 2023

Just as royal blood ran in the veins of Prince and Queen, The Palace is just as imposingly majestic in their debut album, Rainbow Shades, which hit all major streaming platforms on June 9th.

The standout single, Looking at You, is a rapturous riot of Broadway-esque blues rock, with the shimmering Organ keys aiding the transcendence of the experience around the bluesy piano glissandos and the reverent rock electric guitar solos.

Star quality emanates from the natural charisma of the frontman, who utilises his soulfully profound dynamic vocal range to bring this stellar slice of rock n roll to visceral life. If your rock playlists are lacking serotonin, give them a potent fix by making Looking at You a staple.

To launch their debut LP, The Palace performed on the main stage at Indy Pride Festival, following a series of performances to capacity crowds throughout independent venues in Indianapolis.

Stream Looking at You on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Propter Hawk stoked the fires of a rock n roll revival in Clean Old-Fashioned Hate

Posted on 2 June 2023
Propter Hawk

With demurely electrifying vocal lines in the same vein of She Drew the Gun and Black Honey fused with cruising kaleidoscopic guitars which angularly nestle into the middle ground between Pavement and The Beatles, Toronto’s premier rock outfit, Propter Hawk, knocked it out of the sonic ballpark with their latest release, Clean Old-Fashioned Hate.

The feel-good rock n roll rhythmics were the perfect way to address our contemporary appetite for division and hatred while throwing you right back to the simpler times when we could believe what we read and tribalism wasn’t excessively weaponised.

Armed with their vintage gear and an MO to stoke the fires of a new era of refreshingly relatable rock n roll, the raconteur powerhouse is unreckonable; join forces while you still can.

Clean Old-Fashioned Hate will be available to stream on all major platforms from June 2. Head over to their website for more info.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

THE PALE HORSES rolled with the punches in their soulfully heavy progressive blues single, Shallow Dive

Posted on 28 April 2023

THE PALE HORSES raucously reimagined blues with their latest feat of heavy progressive blues, Shallow Dive. The shimmering tones spilling from the Hammond organ remain definitively bluesy, as do the harmonised backing vocals, but everything else in the innovated hit came straight from the Toronto-hailing artist’s very own heavy rock n roll drawing board.

Even if you can take or leave blues and heavy progressive rock, there’s enough exhilarant substance in the release to affirm THE PALE HORSES are one of the most original acts on any scene. The jazz-inspired drums and vocal lines from Dane Hartsell transform this ode to 70s vintage tones into a riot of rock renovation, which may make traditionalists itch, but anyone who appreciates experimentalism will want to bask in the heat of this scorching sonically salacious release.

Shallow Dive is now available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Groovy Shirt Club chiselled a modern edge into rock n roll nostalgia with ‘Electric Flowers’

Posted on 25 April 2023

With Groovy Shirt Club on the scene, no one can claim ‘they don’t make ‘em like they used to’. Their latest single, Electric Flowers, chiselled a modern edge into a vintage sound, captured through a live euphonically melodic performance.

The vocals in Electric Flowers are enough to give you the Chris Isaak chills, and elements of the psych originators (the Beatles, obviously) can also be noted in the kaleidoscopic soul that spills across the entire sonic landscape that you will want to visit time and time again to affirm that rock n roll isn’t dead, it’s still alive and kicking on the underground. There’s also an undeniable touch of the college radio rock sound that R.E.M. defined with their creamy chords and ruggedly sugared harmonies.

Electric Flowers is available to Stream on Spotify.

Join the Groovy Shirt Club gang on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Tin Zelkova has unveiled their NSFW-sexy alt-rock single, Miss Mean Marcella

Posted on 22 April 2023
https://spotify.link/U7M6eTs5Oyb

Sexy enough to be NSFW, Tin Zelkova’s latest debauchedly dark alt-rock single, Miss Mean Marcella, is another radio-ready slice of organically originated rock. It is quite the departure from the soulful sonics we last heard from the three-piece when our ears were candied with the standout single, Soul Shaker, from their debut eponymous LP.

But we were far from disappointed to be drenched in the slick swagger of Miss Mean Marcella, which paints a scintillating picture of the kind of femme fatale that would leave anyone weak at the knees. If the tale of the maleficent mistress doesn’t leave your libido hot under the collar, you might want to check if it still has vital signs. With the guitar lines as loaded as Velvet Revolver’s and the vocals clawing you into the narrative with every honeyed note, Miss Mean Marcella definitively deserves to be a chart-topper.

Miss Mean Marcella was officially released on April 8. Catch it on Spotify and YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast