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Also including cowboyy, Personal Trainer and Fatberg. |
| Little Grandad by Xander Lewis | Words: Hazel Blacher, Elvis Thirlwell and A. L. Noonan |
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Little Grandad – ‘Sleepwalking / Unmasked’ |
Unless you’ve been living under a rock – or whatever newfangled mineral-like substance the kids are living under these days – the speedy rise of newcomers Little Grandad will come as no surprise to anyone aboard the fast-paced music industry carousel in London. Following a markedly short but thoroughly intense stint on the grassroots live circuit, with a well-received Steve Lamacq 6 Music live session thrown in for good measure, the winsome quintet have baked up their very first creation and announced their signing to Communion Music in tandem. Drawing on the sunset sensitivities of Americana, new double single ‘Sleepwalking / Unmasked’ is a tender slice of indie rock, buoyed by vocalist brothers Harry and Jack Lower’s heartfelt harmonies, which drift in the same vein as the clean-cut indie-pop sweethearts that shaped many of our formative music experiences. (Hazel Blacher) |
With a pimp-my-ride-style cover art of big bass speakers in the back of a hatchback, and hip-hop midi-string samples greeting you as you press play, the new single from London quartet RIP Magic is a headrush of style, edge and disorientation. It’s hard to quantify, but you just feel cool listening to ‘Screwdark’. I guess there must be something between the Y2K references, the overwhelming sense of a hyper-technological modernity, and the dedication to those timeless partners in crime: nasty bass and dirty groove. Marking their signing to Section1 – the LA based sister label to Partisan Records – the new single arrives swiftly after the James Murphy-produced ‘5words’, and amidst an EU arena tour opening for Tame Impala (they’re in the UK this week), it’s quite obvious that RIP Magic’s terrific reign of clout and cool will not be stopping anytime soon. (Elvis Thirlwell) |
Boards of Canada – ‘Introit / Prophecy At 1420 MHz’ |
It’s not every day that an inconspicuous 3 minute ambient online teaser sends a swathe of perennial IDM heads spiralling into an acute state of gleeful, fervent anticipation. Only an act as pioneering as Boards of Canada could wield that sort of power – a duo famously shrouded in an air of mystery ever since their seminal debut album ‘Music Has the Right to Children’ landed in 1998 – and the release of their newest double single “Introit / Prophecy At 1420 MHz” is a thrilling reintroduction for patient fans all over the world. Serving as the first official teaser from their upcoming new album ‘Inferno’ – their first commercially released non-remix work in 13 years – their latest singles embrace the thick, sludgy downtempo mystique that they craft best, airy and suspended yet cut with a menacing, razor-edged unease. Engineered to be immortalised on dusty vinyl shelves, hi-fi speakers blasting as listeners melt deeper and deeper into the armchair, ‘Inferno’ is due for release on the 29th May via Warp Records. (Hazel Blacher) |
While inhabiting its own niche, on a wider scale math-rock can get a bit of a bad rap. Complicated rhythms, oblique textures, and an endless salvo of notes can make the genre somewhat difficult to approach. This couldn’t be further from the truth when listening to ‘chewing’, the latest single from south coast trio cowboyy. Bubbling and technicolour, cowboyy’s latest outing springs upward with chipper guitar tapping and snapping backbeats, alongside dense post-hardcore thrashing. Leaning more into the ornate and prettier style of Japanese math-rock, specifically the ebullient sheen of Shimokita-kei groups like tricot or wowaka, a keen pop sensibility is maintained throughout the sonic maelstrom. With melodies as sweet as to precipitate cavities, on ‘chewing’, cowboyy are both mind-bogglingly intricate and invitingly honeyed at the same time. A fresh and stimulating new turn for math-rock. (A. L. Noonan) |
Personal Trainer – ‘Punch Drunk Love’ |
An ever revolving line-up with some of Amsterdam’s finest musicians, rotating around the leadership of frontman Willem Smit (former members now play with Parker Fans, Real Farmer and The Tubs, to name a handful), Personal Trainer have steadily established themselves as remarkably consistent and much loved indie rock force over the past 8 years. Announcing this week their third studio album, ‘Human Assholes’ – due for release on 4th September via Bella Union – new single ‘Punch Drunk Love’ inhabits the softer side of their repertoire. Carrying all the PR hallmarks of awkward lyrics about mundane realities (”I rode my bike up to the library to see if she was there”) and a deep love of guitar music (especially pavement), ‘Punch Drunk Love’ adds in more intricate layers, with delicate orchestral panache sparkling throughout. It’s lovely. (Elvis Thirlwell) |
Fatberg – ‘A Boy Like Ian’
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With noise rock leaning more into dance-music-inspired territory in recent years, some of the genre’s roots have somewhat faded from memory. Artists like Les Rallizes Dénudés and later Big Black and Sonic Youth took traditional rock forms and blurred the outlines to create something warped and overtly wild. On their latest single ‘A Boy Like Ian’, South London’s Fatberg carry the torch of these noise rock progenitors. Lurching from bluesy and funk-inspired verses, ‘A Boy Like Ian’ is at first groovy and loose, inviting you in with a tease of grit before unleashing the power and violence contained in the unit’s shadow. From here, Fatberg are bludgeoning and fierce, seeping into the murk of their guitars and synth work through sludge metal breakdowns and bone-crushing weight. A group seemingly forged through blood and distortion, Fatberg are the sonic equivalent of a knife through your letterbox. (A. L. Noonan) |
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