As many of you will know I like pop, or to put it more precisely I like good pop. That’s pop where the band or artist has taken time to craft, and lavish care and attention on the song. And this is what Mantis State have done with ‘Lost Without A Trace’.

It’s kinda funky rocky pop with what I, not having youth on my side, might describe as a distinctive 80s’ sound. It’s in those stabbing synths and keyboards, those high vocal harmonies. It drifts in a wonderful way between the sound of Yes on 90215, a big AOR pop hit and something else which I can’t quite put my finger on. I say drifts but that’s unfair, that makes it sound as though the band have just randomly put this together, and they clearly haven’t. These different sounds are built into a series of builds in sound and tempo.

There’s great vocals – there’s a soulful lead vocal and those lovely harmonies, there’s some great synth/keyboard playing. It’s put together wonderfully.

What this all adds up to is music that you can dance to, it’s not dance music, it’s a great pop song that you can dance to. This thing has a beat to die for. The way it changes continuously is fabulous, those keyboard riffs are infectious.

This is a great pop track, a song that leaves you with a huge grin on your face, and aching feet from dancing. Who could ask for more.

This is the fourth release from Cold Culprits (yep, four releases in not that long a period of time, boy does Andy have some sort of work ethic), and Cold Culprits have established something of a feel. The four releases sound different but they feel the same – they all have some sort of nod to music from the late 70s and early 80s – I like that, I really like that.

For this release Andy’s in let it all hang out mode, it’s raucous and raw. Guitars crash, keyboards roar. Production-wise this track is pure diy, there’s a roughness around the edges that is way way exciting. It sounds live, Andy said that he was thinking gigging as he put this together and that comes through. It has something of a punk thing – that’s original punk – going on. And this really comes through with the vocals which have an almost visible sneer.

Of the four releases this has become a firm favourite, it’s the rawness, the driving throw yourself around the room beat, the out-there-ness of the sound. Knowing that this was put together instrument by instrument it’s hard not to be somewhat amazed, how does he make this sound like a band playing live?

This, people, is a riot, a riot that I’m telling you to play right now, really really really loud, wall shaking loud.

The info

Cold Culprits, aka Andy Watson, is a Yorkshire-based, one-man collective who writes, plays, hits, sings and arranges everything himself. Sweet Apathy follows in hot pursuit of his last single, Setting Suns, and marks a return to basics for the York based singer-songwriter. As he explains: “Sweet Apathy began with me laying back on the sofa and bashing a bunch of chords on my Telecaster custom. Usually I’ll start writing the words first and then flesh it all out on an acoustic guitar, but I just fancied hitting the electric and thinking about gigging.”

The result is an unapologetic anthem to killing time, with dive-bombing guitar riffs, marauding vocals and a relentless drum beat. It’s a grittier, grungier offering than previous Cold Culprits material.

Andy cites influences such as The Clash, Germs and The Vaselines, and Cold Culprits’ latest track owes a lot to the raucous, unabashed do-it-yourself spirit that typified early punk. Sweet Apathy was recorded in Andy’s front room with a bunch of guitars, a bass, keyboards and a drum kit. As Andy explains: “To get the vocal sounding right, I opened my wardrobe, draped a sheet over the doors and sang into my clothes as a makeshift vocal booth.”

And now for something a little different, Wandering Monster are a jazz-rock band. Now before you stop reading what I am going to try to do is to persuade you that you should give this a try if it’s a genre that’s new to you. Obviously if you’re a fan of this then read on.

What this isn’t is the jazz-rock of old – the sort of stuff I listened to way back in the day. Nor is it anything like the Hedvig Mollestad Trio, a jazz-rock band I adore. It’s more jazz than rock, the piece is written to evoke mood, reflect situations and places. Being purely instrumental, that’s done in structure and sounds, the way the instruments are played, the sounds they make and the interaction of the band as a whole.

This is very much the case with ‘Metropolis’. Written by Sam Quintana while he was in New York, the track feels like that city. He explains, “I’d been listening a lot to the likes of Herbie Hancock’s ‘Mwandishi’, Joe Henderson’s ‘The Elements’ and the Wayne Krantz trio, so was keen to experiment more with collective improvisation and interplay, improvised tempo changes and minimal harmony. In this track, these ideas result in an immediate improvised section over a bass ostinato and a blistering solo from Calvin Travers on guitar.”

Before I go on. I ought to tell you that I often see pictures – specifically films – when I listen to instrumental music. I often place songs with vocals into the soundtrack of a film in my head. This isn’t how the band told me to interpret it, it’s how I see it.

There’s the kind of sound at the start of it that sounds like the theme tune to a New York based TV show, at least to me. There are periods of calm that evoked for me the idea of over the city camera shot, the guitar staccato as you might see skyscrapers passing under you. But we swoop down, we start to hear and see the bustle of the city, car horns sound, it’s faster, the guitar is more distorted. Horns tell us that this is a cool place, the place to be. And yes, there’s a jazz structure, there’s returning to a phrase. There’s obviously the use of improvisation.

What I love about this piece – it’s nearly 8 minutes long – is that you can listen to it again and again, and there’s always something new – the sound of the horns at a particular point, the way the drumming changes throughout the track.

I haven’t mentioned the playing on this track as yet, and that’s an omission I must correct. The playing is amazing, jaw-dropping good. Each individual player is a solo artist in their own right but this band can mesh beautifully. The interplay of the instruments can leave you speechless, and there’s more of those the more you listen.

Hearing this release has left me disappointed that I’d never come across them before, I’ve been missing out on something incredible.

Please do give this a try. You may need to listen to the track a few times before you get it, but it’s worth it.

This is an incredibly impressive release, it’s insanely good.

Stream/Download: https://orcd.co/rkgjmyz

The info

This release follows the 2019 release of their eponymous debut album In a striking development to their previous work, the enigmatic quintet adopt a grittier sound with a harder edge, while retaining the dexterous technical ability, broad sonic palettes and improvisational flair that gained their debut album widespread acclaim.

‘Division’ – a track I’ve had access to and again was hugely impressed by – will be released as the other track in a Double A side release with ‘Metropolis’ on 25th September.

Wandering Monster launched a successful ACE funded tour in 2019, as well as performing at institutions such as Manchester’s Band On The Wall and London’s Ronnie Scotts. They have also snared some influential support slots for Oz Noy, Seamus Blake, Trio HLK and Mammal Hands.

Wandering Monster are:

Sam Quintana- Double Bass/Compositions
Ben Powling- Tenor Saxophone
Calvin Travers- Guitar
Aleks Podraza- Piano/keys
Tom Higham- Drums

https://www.facebook.com/wanderingmonsteruk/

We got the request to review this somewhat late in the day but one listen – in fact less than one listen, it took about a minute – was all it took, I just had to review it.

This is Megan Isobelle’s debut release, and it’s just a joy. Sometimes all I need is some really fantastic pop, and ‘Dungarees’ is that, it’s that in spades. It’s pop but it’s fabulous and rich. This is no pop snack, this is a full on main course.

The sound is Nu-Soul-y or Neo-Soul-y depending on your choice of genre description but you know what I mean. It has that jazzy edge – there’s some downright gloriously creamy guitar, horns that compel. It does that Nu-Soul drop-out and build thing but it’s smoothly done. It has a groove to die for. And Megan’s vocals are outrageously good.

But it’s kinda quirky, and I love that. There are some really strange sounds in there amongst all those jazzy sounds. The playing on this is beyond fault people.

The production and arrangement is great. This is a track that benefits from playing on a good system, it has a big sound, and those horns really benefit from being played loud on a good system.

But there’s more to this than the great music – the song is about confusing feelings for a friend and life is a young teenager, exploring sexuality and friendships. Simply put this song has great words, words you’ll find yourself singing along to, it’s so damn earwormy and catchy.

This is an incredibly impressive debut, Megan Isobelle is one to watch.

The info

Megan Isobelle is an 18-year-old Singer and Producer from Hertfordshire but now studying at LCoM. Her feel-good, lively and soulful music is the epitome of ‘foot-tapworthy’. Known for her truthful and groovy approach to soul/jazz-pop, Megan’s music is completely organic and features many influential stories from her time as a teen.

After being classically trained from a young age, Megan built on her music skills and her versatility within music. Originally only playing flute and saxophone, Megan discovered her love for singing in 2017 and joined an indie band in her hometown.

She also went on to learn production as part of her music career, which then developed into becoming a Music Production student at Leeds College Of Music in September 2019.

Whilst producing on other artists tracks and co-running LCoM’s own Acapella Choir, Megan started to write and produce her own music, with her writing influences being artists like Lily Allen and Lawrence as well as less known artists such as Melt and Busty and the Bass.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meganisobellemusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meganisobelle_music/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/meganisobelle

I, like many other people, adore The Harriets. They make songs that are musically full of joy and have great words, words that can make you smile, make you reflect and muse on life in general. So what we have here is their debut album, yep a whole album of The Harriets’ music. Some of this will be familiar from their gigs if you’ve seen them recently (I say recently but of course I mean pre-lockdown). But – and it’s a fairly large ‘but’ but I can’t imagine that there are that many of you who haven’t heard at least one song by the band – if you’ve not seen and become totally enamored with the band and their music this is your chance to hear what the band do.

Album opener ‘Cafe Disco’ was released as the lead single from the album, It’s a wonderful thing, here’s how I summed it up in my review:

‘People, this is wonderful. It’s wonderful because it has a tune that’s so damn earwormy, because it makes you want to dance all of your troubles and worries away, and because it leaves you with a huge smile on your face, a spring in your step, and a chorus in your head that you just have to sing again and again. This is 3 ½ minutes of utter joy. It’s summer in a song.’

It’s a great start to the album.

We take a step down in tempo for ‘Trip To The Moon’. This is a wistful song that has something of, and this may be yet again my rather strange mind, of an early Bowie feel to it. It has the sweetest tune, it’s a song of love. And yet it has, even though I know the track, an unexpectedly wonderful out-there guitar solo.

‘Darlin’’ has something of a 60s’ feel. It has these vocals that are somewhat 60s’ pop in a rather corny way. I don’t mean the track is corny, the song is a bouncy thing that has you bopping. Lyrics that make you beam. Piano that makes you smile and horns (or at least horn like sounds)

Hmmm, given the present situation ‘Have Fun In Your Workplace’ may seem a rather strange name for a track, but let’s leave the present situation aside. It’s a country-ish thing. To my mind it’s kinda loaded with irony, it’s deadpan. But it also features some rather out-there guitar, a lot of rather wonderful out-there and subtle guitar. It’s a bit of a grower, it took me a while to really get this.

‘Rules For Travelling’ is one of those immediate Harriets’ songs. It grabs you, gets everything tapping. And features some rather fab piano. As does ‘Johnny’. I may have misinterpreted the lyrics somewhat – and this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve done that – but this seems to be about somebody who’s gone (and I’m going out on a limb here but I’d take that as far as died). It’s really a tribute and reflects on how people are feeling now that Johnny’s gone. It is one of those Harriets’ epic songs musically. It shifts from wistful to big to huge, and back again. This is a song that it’s really worth listening to, the words are great.

We shift to something lighter with ‘Come Home’. It has a yearning feel, as befits a song pleading for a loved one to come home. It has lovely horn sounds, great vocals and harmonies.

‘Fall Out Of Grace’ is rockier. My helpful friend said ‘it sounded a bit like The Harriets do Springteen’. That’s if Springteen had done angelic choirboy type vocals. This will make sense if you listen to the words, honest.

The album closes with ‘The Boy You Knew’. An almost folky ballad with the sweetest feel. It’s basically voices and acoustic guitar and it’s beautiful.

There’s not one song on this that you’re going to feel ‘hey, that’s a bit of a space filler’, all of the songs show a particular side of what The Harriets do – be it 60s’ style pop, songs that make you smile and laugh out loud, songs that make you (or at least me) want to be a teenager again, and songs that surprise with the depth of emotion.

I’ve not mentioned the playing as it’s fabulous across the whole of the album. I especially loved the guitar and keyboards, the way they work together. They’re able to mix it up vocally as well but you’re always going to love the harmonies and the way they weave their voices across each other.

But it’s the songwriting that’s the standout here, The Harriets know how to put a great song together. The band’s songs are an example of words and music in perfect harmony. And the words of these songs are words that deserve you really listening to them.

Existing fans may miss songs in the style of say ‘Harry’ or ‘Television’ but the band, with the addition of keyboards, have matured musically, they’ve been able to add a richness to the sound that really adds something, and have made them able to do things that are more complex whilst retaining that immediate feel.

These are songs, and an album, that you can go back to time and time again. There’s always going to be something new – a sound you hadn’t noticed before, a line you hadn’t fully got before.

There’s a song there for everybody, whatever you feel you need. I adore this. This is a joy.

The info

The band say ‘Hopefuls was recorded between January 2019 and March 2020, at home. Its songs are about love, escape, nostalgia and the places of our lives’.

The album was mastered by Pete Maher (Lana Del Rey, Nick Cave, Pixies).

It’s available on limited edition blue vinyl, packaged in a high quality sleeve and signed from: https://www.theharrietsband.com/music-and-merch

This release from Brodie Milner tackles a big issue – rape culture and its perpetrators. Lyrically it uses as it’s inspiration classical and Shakespearean sources. Given that my education in the Classics and Shakespeare was, let’s say, some time ago; this sent me towards Google to do some research. This may have given me some helpful background but to be honest this isn’t really needed, the meaning of the words is explicit. And while it condemns the perpetrators it celebrates those women who are empowered to speak out against them.

This is obviously a serious and dark subject and musically the song feels appropriately dark and serious, this is no lightweight song musically. The release press release describes it as having dark indie influences but personally I feel this rather under does it. Yes, you can hear something of an indie thing in there, but for me it also has something that reminds me of singer/songwriters such as Damien Rice and David Gray in its intensity and energy.

This isn’t a song for background listening, it’s a song that compels you to closer listening and attention.

This is a compelling song that takes an interesting and effective approach to an important subject. It feels wrong to say that I enjoyed it, but I did, musically it’s great. I enjoyed it but it made me think. And thinking is what any art should make you do. It has an effect that goes beyond the experience of the song.

The info

Brodie has this to say about the song:

‘When I was reading those original texts, I was astounded by how relevant the stories were. The myth of Philomela had so much symbolic resonance – from the representation of silence through the loss of her tongue, to her gaining empowerment with the help of her sister, Procne.

‘It translated seamlessly to rape culture and the #metoo movement. When the first allegations surrounding Harvey Weinstein’s abuse began to surface, I was immediately inspired to write about it.

‘But because of how important the topic is, it was vital that the lyrics to Philomela approached the subject sensitively. It was imperative that I did not attempt to speak on behalf of women’s experiences, but instead stand beside them to oppose the men who perpetrate sexual violence.

‘Once I’d got the lyrics right, the aggression, energy, and dark melodies of the song just fell into place.’
Written and Performed by Brodie Milner
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Piano, Synth, Vocals, Backing Vocals by Brodie Milner
Bass Guitar, Percussion, and programming by Daniel Spooner

Produced by Daniel Spooner
Recorded at The Rabbit Hole
Mixed at Tyrannosaur Paddock

Album Artwork by Brodie Milner
Artwork Photography by Stewart Baxter
Sculptures by Christina Howarth