Soft Hearted Scientists – The Slow Cyclone

Cardiff's psych-collective release their ambitious 6^th album. A wide-reaching 24 track song cycle.

There's no other band quite like Soft Hearted Scientists. The Cardiff-based mavericks' 6^th album is ample proof of that, and may be their strongest yet. Over an ambitious song-cycle of 24 tracks, Soft Hearted Scientists take you to places other bands don't, yet still manage to buy you an ice cream and get you home in time for tea.

There's a lot to immerse yourself in with this disc. At almost an hour long, it's divided into four sections, each containing full length songs as well as short musical snippets and jingles. There's a vast musical scope across the whole shebang, their trademark nursery rhyme melodies rub shoulders with eerie soundscape pieces, folksy interludes and moments of baroque elegance. It's as if Meic Stevens has made an album with Syd Barrett, and got the BBC Radiophonic Workshop to produce.

At times the album come across as a soundtrack to an as yet unmade movie. Quite what that movie's plot-line would be is anyone's guess. It would have to involve hermit crabs, flying horses and moments of tripped-out japery. A film worthy of a kickstarter project if ever there was one!

For all the Brit-psych whimsy the album also contains some deeper lyrical themes which are occasionally at odds with the music and melodies that contain them. This spoonful-of-sugar/bitter-pill approach makes for a listening experience that's both gently unsettling (in a good way), and genuinely surprising.

“We may be the last flowers in the garden” they sing on Cobra Clouds. Let's hope not, but if so these are plants we should love and nurture. Take up thy watering-can and walk.

The band play Sheffield Lantern Theatre on Saturday 8^th November.

Click here for more on Soft Hearted Scientists.

Simones – Majic Ship (7”)

Cult US guitarist makes his first appearance on 7” vinyl.

Al Simones is the cult American guitarist whose four private-pressing LPs have emerged on his own Purple Phrogg imprint over the last 20 odd years gathering him a small but dedicated fanbase. This stand alone 7” featuring two of the artist's favourite back catalogue tracks marks his debut on 7” vinyl.

The A-side, Majic Ship, shifts from full-on acid-rock through lilting acoustic interludes and back again. It has a vocal melody catchy enough for the milkman to whistle, yet still manages to be a guitar player's wet dream. The guitar solo is extraordinary, does everything you hope it will and more. With a guitar sound Hendrix would be pushed to match, the extraordinary guitar solo does everything you hope it will and more besides.

Despite a whole raft of effects - panning, phasing, sustain and distortion, it's the playing, pyrotechnics and imagination involved that makes the track so special. Factor in the equally enthralling flipside, Seize The Moment, and it's obvious that Al Simones could well be the best and most psychedelic guitarist you've never heard of. Headspin Records re-released his four albums in a box-set in 2012 which is well worth tracking down, but this 7” makes an amazing taster and entry point.

Click here for more on Fruits De Mer Records.

Various – 7 And 7 Is (Box-set of 7 x 7” singles)

Fruits De Mer do it again! Boxed set of 7 x 7” singles featuring current bands covering their favourites US '60s psych tracks.

The concept of tribute LPs has over the years has given us tracks which add insight and new slants on classic songs, (along with the occasional misguided stinker). Fortunately this boxed set of 7” singles from Fruits De Mer Records gets it right with the bands themselves choosing which acts and songs they cover.

There's a definite labour of Love (no pun intended) vibe about the whole thing; coloured vinyl, limited to 700 copies, housed in a card box, with an insert fold-out poster. It's certainly ticked all the boxes on the packaging front but more importantly the music has a freshness that highlights both the enduring quality of the original songs as well as the talent of the bands that are re-interpreting them.

The Bevis Frond kick things off with Clear Light's Night Sounds and Sand, with Nick Saloman's guitar solos as gloriously free and unhinged as ever. The Higher State choose 13^th Floor Elevators for their versions of Wait For My Love and You Don't Know, both tracks bolstered a palpable sense of joy in covering them.

A stand-out pairing is The Chemistry Set covering Love. Tackling any song from Forever Changes is a brave step for any band but the version of A House Is Not A Motel reason enough to shell out for this box-set, with its blistering duelling guitar section. Sendelica sound like a cross between Grace Slick and The Isley Brothers on their version of The United States Of America's Hard Coming Love. A good thing surely!

King Penguin opt for The Byrds with a sumptuous, string laden version of She Don't Care About Time and a version of 5D (Fifth Dimension) that adds some sitar and tabla to the chime and vocal harmony that the track is best known for.

Elsewhere The Gathering Grey make the most of studio trickery and effects for their versions of Moby Grape's I Am Not Willing and Sitting By The Window. Echoed drums and backwards guitar just two examples of the sonic touchstones they employ.

Black Tempest and The Seventh Ring Of Saturn share the final 7”, covering Spirit and The Grateful Dead respectively. Black Tempest's version of Nature's Way owes as much to Robyn Hitchcock and Neil Young as it does to Spirit, while Cream Puff War sees TSROS make fine use of a wah wah pedal and guitar histrionics. A mighty triumph from Fruits De Mer Records once again.

Limited to 700 copies.

Click here for more on Fruits De Mer Records.

Paul Collins - Feel The Noise

The heart of rock 'n' roll is still beating! The power pop guru returns with a celebration of the simple things in life.

Girls, guitars and rock 'n' roll – a simple enough recipe for happiness that's endured through the decades ever since Chuck, Buddy, Jerry Lee, Elvis and Little Richard laid down the template. Music may have mutated over the intervening years but those roots are as strong as ever. Paul Collins' latest long-player is an unashamed celebration of all these rock 'n' roll touchstones; the pleasure of beat music, new love, and cranking up the volume of your favourite slabs of vinyl. As a founding member of The Nerves Collins' reputation as one of power pop's key movers is assured. It's further cemented by this latest platter. Recorded by legendary Detroit producer Jim Diamond (who also plays guitar, bass and provides backing vocals and percussion), it's a punchy, melodic affair with a strong transatlantic thread, part British invasion, part US garage.

With A Girl Like You is not the Troggs' song of the same name but does tip its hat to British shores with its distinct Merseybeat flavour, whereas Baby I'm I'm Love With You resurrects and punks-up the sound of Buddy Holly & The Crickets. Detroit's musical heritage gets a look in with a cover of The Four Tops' Reach Out I'll Be There, its soulful longing supplemented with guitar band urgency. Album closer Walk Away further underlines this soul/guitar crossover, taking doo-wop as its basis. It would make an emotive track for a teen-movie credit roll should any Hollywood producers be reading this. Paul Collins will be on tour in the States later this month and throughout October. Get along to a gig and Feel The Noise! If you can't make a gig get this record instead. It won't disappoint.

Click here for more on Paul Collins.

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Paz Antiguana – Hot Latin Soul from Paris!

New band alert! Paris' Paz Antiguana release 45s that merge soul, latin and tropicalia!

As summer fades away and autumn's browns and reds start to colour the leaves, there's still a dose of sunshine to be had through the mystical portal of music. A new band to me are Paz Antiguana from Paris, whose music could variously be described as latin, boogaloo, Afro-Cuban, soul or Tropicalia. But hey let's not get hung up on labels, this is music that makes you feel good, much like lazy days with the sun's hot rays on your face. And you can dance to it too!

The band have released two 7” singles so far in very limited quantities. A handful of these are still available from the band's Bandcamp page (link below). This is the sort of music that makes you want to invite all your pals over for a neighbourhood party with good food, chilled drinks and above all dancing! Just the thing to keep any winter blues at bay! My advise is get in quick for those singles before you have to pay double over on Discogs!

Click here for Paz Antiguana on Facebook.

Cyanna Mercury – Ode To The Absent Father

Athens based Cyanna Mercury fly the flag for Greek psych-rock on their debut single.

Previously Greece's main contribution to psychedelia has been the band Aphrodite's Child, though this 2 track digital single from new psych-blues band Cyanna Mercury shows that the country is still capable of producing fine mind-bending sounds.

Dirty Things is a fine lusty excursion into Hammond heavy blues rock, but it's on the lead track Ode To The Absent Father, where the band gets to show more of what they're capable of. A dramatic primal scream of childhood anxiety complete with exploratory guitar breaks and effects laden vocals. It's an epically big sound, and bodes well for the promise of a full length debut LP next spring.

Fusing the best of British and American blues-rock with a more eastern looking approach to scales and dynamics, this is an ambitious approach and a notch above your average retro retread. French fans will get a taste of the band when a TV show called Mezzo Voce will air a studio-filmed live performance this October.

Click here for Cyanna Mercury's website.

Pint Size Hero - Like A Hurricane

South coast rockers second album gives proves UK rock is alive and well.

Just when you think British indie music is dead in the water due to fey indentikit bands (usually with a London postcode) along come Pint Size Hero with an album that promises a bright future for UK rock. Though rock has almost become a dirty word on these shores in the last few years with American bands such as Foo Fighters and QOTSA carrying its torch, perhaps now the time is right for British bands to reclaim some ground.

It may be time for the yanks to hand back their crowns however. Brighton based trio Pint Size Hero have just released their second album Like A Hurricane, a record that gives weight to such hopes. The band have cherry-picked the best bits of contemporary indie rock; the bombast and swagger of Kasabian, the intelligence and nouse of the Arctic Monkeys along with the Jack White's visceral bite and attack, putting this patchwork together into something of their own.

The roots of their sound go right back to the late '60s blues rock scene, through the '70s with Led Zeppelin, right up to today's mainly American fuzz rockers. Often with these bands the sonic attack comes at the expense of good songs and tunes but that's not something we need to worry about here - all the bruising riffs and solos are matched with melodies and choruses big enough to fire up any decent size arena.

The band are not afraid to show their softer side with late album track “Discover” providing a well sequenced break to the full on rock. The largely acoustic tune shows the band have as much a knack for a canny tune as they do for mangling riffs from a fuzzed-up Les Paul. Similarly album closer “Spin The Wheel” is the acoustic calm after the electric storm.

It's the rockier tracks however that make up the bulk of the album and give it its overall flavour. With plenty of pedal-to-the-metal driving rock, and intuitive ensemble playing. Check out the heavy but soulful groove on “No Love In The Fire” or the anthemic chorus of lead-single “Hunger”. Any justice and the trio may soon need to upgrade from pint size to stadium size.

Click here for Pint Size Hero's website

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The Suburban Homes - The Suburban Homes EP

It's 2014 and there's still plenty of pricks to kick against. Dissatisfaction, anger, and ennui provide the inspiration for The Suburban Homes' debut EP.

Home to garage rock wunderkid Paul Messis, Market Square Records branch out of the garage into punkier, spikier territory with this debut release from The Suburban Homes. It's a 7” single infused with the spirit of first wave punk, when punk rock was all about having something to say and a reason to say it, when punk was a true rebellion and not commodity or nostalgia cash cow.

Refreshingly lo-fi, the three track EP favours substance over style. Over the self-titled lead track's three chord clatter conformity comes in for a kicking; Shopping, work, weekend drink binges and the opiate of TV and social networks are all in firing line. Apple can release as many new products as they like but modern life will always be rubbish according to the Suburban Homes.

Pseudo-intellectuals provide a similar target on the appropriately titled Pseudo-Intellectuals. It's not all negativity though, on D.I.Y the band sing the praises of the DIY ethic. An admirable stance and an admirable EP, and more in tune with what makes good punk rock than Green Day or Blink 182 will ever be.

Limited edition (300) black vinyl 7” with photocopied sleeve and inserts.

Click here for more on Market Square Records. 

The Wands - Debut Album, Video and Tour Dates!

Danish psych duo The Wands are set to release their debut album, The Dawn, on November 3rd - Available on CD / Digital / 12” Coloured vinyl. We kid ye not! As a taster for the album and upcoming tour dates the pair have released a video for lead single "Sound Of The Machine"

The duo, comprised of childhood friends Christian Skibdal and Mads Gräs, the pair share an especially old-school mind-set when it comes to the mix, honest production, and recording to tape with analogue kit – all of which is reflected visually in this VHS-quality video. Sound of The Machine resuscitates 60’s style Psych-rock and injects a characteristically playful Wands streak, in a track about sticking the finger to the man; “there's an island of misplaced toys / it's a sea of sweet delight / on the planet of misfit boys / they jump at the chance of a good fight”, they sing.

The Wands’ next European tour kicks off in November, and includes the following UK dates.

November UK live dates:
07.11.14 The Lexington, London, UK
09.11.14 The Art School, Glasgow, UK
10.11.14 Jamcafe, Nottingham, UK
11.11.14 The Stag And Hounds, Bristol, UK
12.11.14 The Roadhouse, Manchester, UK
13.11.14 The Magnet, Liverpool, UK
15.11.14 Club Psychedelia at Lennon's, Southampton, UK

http://www.thewands.eu
https://www.facebook.com/thewands

Spindrift on tour! Return of the Spaghetti-Western Rockers!

SPINDRIFT are back in Europe to present their movie "Ghost Of The West" and play live.

The film was shot during the "Ghost Town Tour" of 2012 over a span of 4 weeks where they performed in nothing but Ghost Towns, National Parks, vast deserts, Historical Places, and generally strange and forgotten locales to nobody but the film crew (Directed by Burke Roberts with Cinematographers J.T. Gurzi and Rich Ragsdale). The Soundtrack was released via Tee Pee Records in Oct. 2013 (BEFORE the films release in usual Spindrift style a la "The Legend of God's Gun").

Here is what the band has to say about the upcoming events -

"We have a NEW FILM coming out that was inspired by our love of The West and touring Ghost Towns: SPINDRIFT: GHOST OF THE WEST! The SOUNDTRACK is already available on Tee Pee Records. Screenings everywhere this 2014 along with many a various live show where we perform the Soundtrack so ya'll can pick up the LP Soundtrack while your at it!
This is for the fans. We will not make the film available anywhere else. Only for those who make it to the shows or screenings first come first served!"

Upcoming dates -
02.09.14 Copenhagen (den) Loppen with Film screening
03.09.14 Stockholm (swe) Stampen
04.09.14 Oslo (nor) Oslo Psych Fest
05.09.14 Aalborg (den) 1000 Fryd
06.09.14 Offenbach (ger) Sky High Festival
07.09.14 Freiburg (ger) Slow Club
08.09.14 Chambery (fra) Le Brinc Du Zinc
09.09.14 Clermont Ferrand (fra) Raymond Bar
10.09.14 Barcelona (spa) Teatro El Latino de Barcelona
12.09.14 Santiago De Campostela (spa) Wos Inc Festival
13.09.14 Lisbon (por) Reverence Valada Festival
14.09.14 Cascais (por) Club Stairway
15.09.14 Vila Real (por) Club De Vila Real
16.09.14 San Sebastian (spa) Le Bukowski
17.09.14 Tolouse (fra) Dynamo
18.09.14 Paris (fra) Le Batofar
19.09.14 Angers (fra) Leviation Festival
20.09.14 Tillburg (hol) Incubate Festival
21.09.14 Haarlem (hol) Patronaat
22.09.14 Vevey (swi) Studio 603
23.09.14 Marseille (fra) La Machine à Coudre
25.09.14 London (uk) The Shacklewell Arms
26.09.14 Liverpool (uk) Liverpool Psych Fest
27.09.14 Edinburgh (uk) Bongo Club with Film Screening
28.09.14 Glasgow (uk) Audio Club
01.10.14 Lille (fra) El Diablo
02.10.14 Geleen (hol) Volt
03.10.14 Berlin (ger) Bang Bang Club with Film Screening
04.10.14 Aarhus (den) Aarhus Psych Fest
11.10.14 a very special screening and live performance of SPINDRIFT: GHOST OF THE WEST will be held and presented by KIRPATRICK THOMAS at AWFF2014 (ALMERIAN WESTERN FILM FESTIVAL) held in Tabernas, Almeria SPAIN in the Mini-Hollywood Theater!

SMASH Fashion - Big Cat Love

Easy tiger! Chunky upbeat glam-rock from LA.

As a Hull City fan I don't need much encouragement to show some big cat love. Though let's not mention the Tigers' poor first foray in the Europa league! (Oh I just did!) Anyhow I'm sure fellow Hull City fan Mick Ronson would have approved of Big Cat Love, the debut LP from Los Angeles glam-choppers Smash Fahion. It's an album that takes inspiration from that first wave of early '70s glam rock acts. There are shades of Ronson-era Bowie, early Queen, The Sweet, Mott The Hoople and a whole raft of lesser known junk shop glam bands.

There's a fair bit of this stuff around at the moment with Italian retro-glammers such as Giuda and Fab Waltz ploughing a similar furrow. Then there's Bath-based funsters Ulysses with their toungue-in-cheek take on mid 1970s pop-rock. Perhaps it's a legacy of the gap left by the demise of The Darkness's early promise, or maybe it's a result of musicians of a certain age reaching back to their formative musical influences. Whatever the reasons it certainly makes for great fun listening.

For all the '70s Brit-glam influences there's a distinctly transatlantic hue to the album,

not too surprising given that over time the band has been made up of ex-members of US bands Rock City Angels (Johnny Depp's old band no less), The Dils, along with Brit Nigel Mogg (ex-Quireboys and nephew of UFO's Phil Mogg) and Repo, drummer from Finnish band Smack. Unlike first wave glam-rock, the hand claps and stomps are kept to a minimum, replaced with a modern LA-rock sheen.

Like all the best glam there are enough moments of lyrical silliness, plenty good riffs and OTT guitar solos to keep the party going. Along with the glitter and and glam there's a healthy dose of power pop, LA sleaze-rock and even traces of hair-metal. Definitely one for the party animals out there.

Click here for more on SMASH Fashion.