Browsing Tag

The Doors

Tom Rogers resurrected psych blues in his single, Rise Again

Posted on 16 August 2023

From the first nostalgic note in the debut single, Rise Again, from Tom Rogers, you will bask and revel in the Beatles and the Doors reminiscences and find something brand-new in Rogers’ reggae, blues, folk and psych amalgam.

While the groove-pocketed rhythms take a firm grip of your rhythmic pulses, the kaleidoscopic tones abstract you from the 21st century as the visceral with bluesy soul vocals light a fire under the vintage production.

With Pawala Ariyathilaka on lead guitar, Will Fraser on Drums, Dan Wakeling on bass, and Steve Burholt on keys, Tom Rogers and his backing band delivered a superlative slice of psychedelic blues rock reverence that will allow you to slip back in time and across the Atlantic. They didn’t reinvent the wheel with Rise Again, which carries a flood of second-coming redemption, but the way they gave you a ticket back to the 70s era of blues rock via a route never taken is something to celebrate. If you’ve got the Black Keys and The Black Rebel Motorcycle Club on your radar, you have room for Tom Rogers on your playlists.

Rise Again was officially released on August 4th; stream it on Spotify.

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

James Gale sings the ‘Summer Blues’ in his resonantly seductive debut EP, Medicine

Posted on 1 March 2022

If James Gale’s debut 2021 EP, Medicine, passed you by, you missed a sweetly psychotropic slice of alt-rock that more than has what it takes to unite fans of Nick Cave, Nirvana, Elliott Smith and the Beatles.

The standout single, Summer Blues, which has now racked up over 14k streams on Spotify, is an indulgent cocktail of psych, blues, indie, and grunge. The dark narrative is delectably handled by the Bruges, Belgium-hailing singer-songwriter and artist. The way the accordant momentum picks up under Gale’s taunting vocals that question if you’re afraid to lose control before bluesily winding the soundscape back down into kaleidoscopically choral grooves is nothing short of arrestive.

We seriously hope that there’s a sophomore release in the pipeline.

Summer Blues is available to stream along with James Gale’s debut EP via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ayrton Jimenez introduces us to Downton BA in his debut single.

Posted on 10 September 2021

Up and coming Singer-songwriter Ayrton Jimenez has released his debut single, Downtown BA; if the Doors used Spanish guitars and there was more sugar-coating to Jim Morrison’s vocals, their singles would run in the same psych-pop vein as this sultrily paced acoustic pop earworm.

Debut singles aren’t often as promising as this sweet, sensual and tonally rich single; we’re already eager to hear what Ayrton Jimenez has in store for his sophomore release. His authenticity is only matched by his accessibility. Given the chance, his radio-ready sound will become A-list material.

Downton BA will be available to stream on all major platforms from September 10th; check it out for yourselves on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bob Ballard invites you to enjoy your lockdown-induced mania in ‘Locked Up’.

Posted on 22 July 2021
Bob Ballard

You can laugh, or you can cry, and we have been doing plenty of the latter during our mania-inducing isolation during lockdown (don’t lie), it’s always refreshing to get a fresh perspective, such as the one in Bob Ballard’s light-hearted lockdown track, Locked Up.

The dusty desert rock hit carries some staunchly rock n roll hallmarks; to amplify Ballard’s playful, freshly ambivalent attitude, jazzy psychedelic tones weave their way into the mix.

In essence, Locked Up proves just how well the devil-may-care attitude would have served us if we’d adopted it from the start. After all of the anxiety, we’re still breathing; we can still enjoy sardonically ingenious tracks such as Locked Up that take some of the sting out of our dystopic existence.

Get a serotonin hit from Locked Up for yourselves by heading over to Bob Ballard’s official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Take an Avant-Garde Psych Rock Trip with Chase Hagerman’s single, ‘Scarlet, Crimson, Purple and Blue’

Posted on 19 June 2021

‘The Rainbow Opus’ is the ground-breaking debut album from the up and coming, classically trained psych-rock artist and producer Chase Hagerman. Through each single, the Californian artist brings kaleidoscopic colour, yet, ‘Scarlet Crimson, Purple, and Blue’ is irrefutably the best introduction to Hagerman’s eccentric post-punk-tinged style.

Starting with a cutting and angular intro that wouldn’t be out of place on a Legendary Pink Dots single, the entrancing feat of psych-rock smoothly shifts into a sonic smorgasbord of avant-garde psych-pop, post-punk, 70s electronica. By mixing light accordant tones with harsh fuzzy synth notes, immersing yourself in Scarlet, Crimson, Purple, and Blue is as close as you will get to falling into a rabbit hole aurally.

The Rainbow Opus is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Find the optimism in existentialism with Bill E Daly’s latest single, ‘All We Have’.

Posted on 11 March 2021

‘All We Have’ is the fourth single to be released by Irish singer-songwriter Bill E Daly, an artist in the habit of shifting perspectives with the lyricism cased in their constantly in-flux sound. The only constant is the assurance that you’ll be drawn in by introspection that dares you to embrace the dark while seeing the light.

By channelling the Doors and Cash into All We Have, it boasts the perfect contrast between tonal accordance and swampy lyrics. The dark folk imagery takes your psyche to a macabre school while Southern bluesy soul reaches out with a touch of compassion.

With their next single ready for official release on April 22nd, it will be more than worth making room on your radar for the singer-songwriter – especially given their tendency to pull optimism out of existentialism.

All We Have is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mark Millar sings the psych-tinged blues in the standout single from their sophomore album ‘Killer’

Posted on 7 March 2021

After honing-in on their craft in popular UK touring bands, Mark Millar finally made their debut in 2019 with the solo album ‘On the Journey’. Inspiration has been flowing ever since, leading to the release of their sophomore album, ‘Take Me to the River’, featuring the stunning spin on psych-tinged blues rock ‘Killer’.

Lofty blues guitars perfectly complement the 70s style rock vocals which bring a Jim Morrison kick to the soundscape which allows Mark Millar to humbly show his lifetime of experience perfecting blues bends.

You can practically hear vultures circling above the deserty full-bodied semi-orchestral instrumental arrangement which allows classical strings to pull off the intricate soulful progressions which will serenade you as much as the vocals.

You can check out Mark Millar’s album Take Me to the River via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Tazers’ ‘Dream Machine’ – trippy, fuzzed up retro rock from South Africa

Posted on 21 December 2020

If Kasabian, the Strokes, Jet, or The Vines had come from South Africa and taken a little more acid, they’d probably have sounded pretty much like The Tazers on ‘Dream Machine’; a fuzzed-up, retro garage-rock psychedelia with a ton of drum fills, vocal harmonies, and mosh pit-fuel.

There’s some trippy, reverb-and-phaser-soaked slowed breakdown sections, some proper heavy riffing, a ton of paradiddles and flams, a little dash of the Arctic Monkeys’ ‘Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured’, and maybe some smatterings of proper 70’s Hawkwind or Deep Purple in the mix too. Nonchalant vocals, that repeating distorted guitar riff, and a wash of hi-hat tambourine across the track, giving ‘Dream Machine’ a sleazy, groovy old-school rock feel from the South African three-piece – make no mistake, this is proper rock’n’roll.

Check out ‘Dream Machine’ – and the accompanying video – via the Tazers’ Facebook page.

Review by Alex Holmes

Taste the Grit of Modernity in KEEF’s Chorally-Entrancing Psych-Laden Alt-Indie Earworm ‘In This Town’

Posted on 8 November 2020
KEEF

Northwest purveyors of Alt-Indie Psych Rock KEEF released their sanity-saving earworm ‘In This Town’ on November 13th, 60’s Psych tones are teased, but there’s no escaping the present in this damningly danceable depiction of the 21st century.

Sticky-sweet kaleidoscopic accordance introduces despondent vocals which allow you to taste the grit of modernity whilst savouring the roguish foreboding derision which only Northern artists can serve up with such finesse and sincerity.

The playful venom which is spat towards people who obnoxiously make the world a bleaker place was the catharsis fix I never knew I needed.

In This Town affirms the necessity of music which permits a collective sense of consolation by feeding our frustrations back at us with the assurance that you’re not alone in your nihilism. While I’m gutted I can’t listen to it live and embrace the psychotropic effects of the eccentrically nuanced instrumentals in a sweaty euphoric crowd, I’m overwhelmingly gratified that I got a dopamine hit from this scathingly choral hit all the same.

In This Town will be available to stream on all major platforms from November 13th via this link.

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Review by Amelia Vandergast