Jessica & The Fletchers – Marble Fountain b/w Crystal Tears (Ltd. 7”)

Barcelona Indie-Pop outfit return with limited edition 7”!

Listening to Jessica & The Fletchers' latest 7” re-awakened something of my fading youth. Too young for punk or post-punk, and jaded by the time Brit-pop took over the charts, my own year zero was back in 1986. Or C86 if you prefer. A time when the likes of Talulah Gosh, The Shop Assistants and The Bodines were putting out great records, doing grass roots gigs and getting recognition in the weeklies. It was an all-too brief flowering but regained important ground from '80s perfectionists and pony-tailed professionals. More importantly it gave females an equal footing in making music, something which hadn't really happened since the very early days of punk (a move sadly hi-jacked by punk's second wave and the onset of Oi).

Jessica & The Fletchers describe themselves as a noise-pop quartet and that's pretty much on the mark; bittersweet lyrics are sweetly sung and backed up by fuzzy guitars. One part flowers, one part razorblades. With a sound that's deliberately amateurish, in the purest and best sense of the word, the lyrics are winsome with themes of young and innocent love, somehow apart from the modern world but also very much needed. The songs are short, with no needless solos, and all about the melody. Perfect fayre to be pressed onto their natural home of 7” plastic.

For fans of Sarah Records, Talulah Gosh, Jesus & Mary Chain and fans of spirited and catchy pure-pop in general. Limited to 300 copies, this 7” comes housed in a Risograph fold-over sleeve with a hand-numbered postcard fetauring the lyrics to both songs.

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Ulysses – Law And Order

More tales from brave Ulysses! Bath pop-rockers return with their 3rd LP!

Imagine an album that's made by a quartet of natural born piss-takers, high on humour and melody, performed with killer musicianship, with a smidgen of global hi-jinx and deviant sex. Ladies and gents check out Law And Order by Bath quartet Ulysses. It's been three long years since the band's last LP, the feelgood rock-pop opus Kill You Again. OK so that's not a Stone Roses length wait but given the quality of their tunes it's difficult not to feel a little impatient. Law And Order does not disappoint, if anything it's their strongest album yet.

Ulysses take their cue from early '70s guitar bands, with songs that rock, are adorned with fantastically over the top guitar solos, but haven't forsaken the '60s principle of strong melodies. Think Thin Lizzy with a jokebook, or Badfinger on happy pills. The Badfinger comparison gains weight from the melodic nod on 'Crazy Horses Ride The Snake', some would say a downright steal from 'Come And Get It'. Whether stolen or borrowed you have to admire their cheek.They're at their best straddling the fine line between pastiche and piss-take. Like that kid who always sat at the back in class, being serious is not their bag man. But boy can they play!

While glam-rock may be the presiding musical influence, the band's aesthetic is equally informed by cheap spy novels, Jeff Lynne's fashion sense and quite possibly British sex comedies starring Peter Askwith. It all points to Ulysses as the sort of band that deserves its own cartoon or comic. The Bath Street Kids anyone? Full marks too for the great fonts and album artwork. Top banana and album of the summer hands down! Check out the documentary below to see what the band are about.

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Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou - New single for UNICEF!

Good friends of ours Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou are releasing a new single with all proceeds from the download going to UNICEF to support their work in Syria. 'A Better Day' is taken from the Ethan Johns produced album Expatriot. Check out the video above and donate via the download link below.

All proceeds from the single are going to the UNICEF Children of Syria Appeal. Download for £1(or more if you'd like) and donate to support UNICEF's tireless work to save and improve the lives of innocent children in the most difficult and unfair of circumstances.

**DOWNLOAD AND DONATE HERE -https://tmandhl.bandcamp.com/track/a-better-day **

Visit http://www.unicef.org and http://www.childrenofsyria.info to see how your money is being put to crucial use.

Expatriot was co-released on 2/10/15 by Ethan Johns' Three Crows Records, and TM&HL's Anglophone Recording Company.

Trevor Moss and Hannah-Lou have also recorded a session for Bob Harris' Radio 2 show, due to air on July 3^rd. They'll also be appearing live at The Bedford, London as part of the Balham Literary Festival. Full details on the duo's website.

www.trevormossandhannahlou.com