Twin Sister – London – 25 November 2010
Latching hold of our ears earlier in the year with their double EP release Colour Your Life/Vampires With Dreaming Kids, Long Island’s Twin Sister had secured a place on our date card long before their they announced their first UK tour. Sneaking across the pond in October, we’d caught the band supporting rising stars, The Morning Benders at the Music Box in Los Angeles (apologies boys, I owe you one live review) and were suitably impressed. Jaded beyond jaded as the years drag on and the revolving floorshow of new bands yawn in our faces with old ideas, it was refreshing to witness a band breathe colour and life into their music.
Tracey Thorn – Love and Its Opposite
Former Everything But The Girl frontwoman aptly wrestles with life after 40. "...not all fun and games, but a pleasure regardless".
The Gun Club – Miami / Death Party / The Las Vegas Story
Load the chamber and light a candle for Jeffrey Lee Pierce, it's rockabilly blues-a-go-go with The Gun Club.
Who The Hell Are… The Capitalist Youth?
Consider The Capitalist Youth, a trio of former high school classmates who play “acoustic indie rock combining a living room full of misfit instruments with lyrically driven songs about summer camp, existential crises and gubernatorial indiscretions”. They don’t write and play the kind of music that will leave listeners dumbstruck over their redefinition of a genre, but they’re able to adeptly inject something into their music that only a handful of others have done well: humanity, with a laid back sense of humor, and without any of the awkward pauses that come from other bands who get lucky on a song or two and can’t maintain things the rest of the way.
Suckers – Wild Smile
Brooklyn's Suckers channel a little ADHD indie rock throughout their debut album, defying hype and maintaining interest.
The Heavy – The House That Dirt Built
UK retro-funk n' soul act The Heavy roll out the grooves and ask the question "How you like me now?". Our answer awaits.
Sleeper – Smart / The It Girl
Putting on our Britpop goggles yet again, Sleeper's debut album Smart and its follow-up The It Girl get the reissue treatment.
M.Ward – Hold Time
As Conor Oberst once proclaimed, "M. Ward for President". As far-fetched as it sounds, Oberst may have a point.
Bob Mould – Silver Age
Merge, 2012 Alterna-rock statesman hot from bringing a little 90's Sugar to the 10's masses returns with shit-hot album. If that's all the convincing you need, you might as well stop reading now
Mental As Anything – Essential As Anything / Tents Up
Both mental and essential, Sydney's pop legends Mental as Anything return with a career-encompassing collection and a brand new studio album.
Kele – The Boxer
The (Bloc) Party is over. Now, it's a dance party and there's nobody here, except Kele and a few diehard Bloc Party fans looking bored.
Love of Diagrams – Nowhere Forever
Our love for Love of Diagrams knows no bounds especially for the Melbourne noise merchants freshly minted third album.
The Loves – …Love You
The final bow from London’s The Loves balances its buoyant pop against a knowing end and comes up smelling of roses.
Who The Hell Are… The Rassle?
When it comes to the mythical it-factor, New York's The Rassle by their own admission are “just rock and roll”. They understand that thousands of people have been there, done that. They're here to enjoy whatever the moment is right now, and it feels pretty damn great. Listen to The Rassle's first single, “Wild Ones” and you'll hear what they're talking about. It's a sound that's been done before. A little synthy, a little danceable. But by the time that kick drum chorus comes bellowing forward, it doesn't matter. You're bobbing your head like this is the first time you've heard indie rock before. It's fantastic.
Various Artists – Brand NEU!
Just say NEU! to drugs. Or NEU! to Oasis. A hit and miss compilation of acts influenced by this seminal German outfit.
Who The Hell Are… The Volcano Diary?
Sometimes a mood, feeling or memory can be condensed into a single album or song. It can be due to overexposure to that certain piece of music at the time of a memory being made, like, let's say, Christmas, or it can be the result of new music that already sounds familiar hitting on certain emotional chords, no pun intended. And new music that feels old, strange tunes that feel like a lifelong pal, is not necessarily an indictment of inherent quality, but it is certainly a step in the right direction. So goes with The Volcano Diary, a very new band that feels like they've been making music for decades.