Tender Trap – Dansette Dansette
It's summertime twee pop hour and who better to soundtrack but ex-Heavenly and Talullah Gosh popsters back with their third album.
Sunset Rubdown – Dragonslayer
Despite all the record's anomalisms, it's really gorgeous at its core, and there are more than enough enticing musical phrases to drive the listener back to wrestling with its eccentricities.
The Raveonettes – London – 7 September 2009
Pretty in black and pretty and back, The Raveonettes rolled into London this week to play a one-off gig showcasing their forthcoming album In and Out of Control. It wasn't all rape, guns, suicide and stealing cars, but it was near enough.
The Dandy Warhols – This Machine
Beat The World, 2012 At this stage in their career, The Dandy Warhols stand as an infinitely renewable resource. With the major label shackles thrown and now releasing their own
The Gaslight Anthem – American Slang
More emotional missives from angry, intense, young American men. What steady diet do they feed you on?
Villagers – Becoming a Jackal
We're now entering a phase of the year where great albums are in abundance and Villagers' debut is no exception.
The Strokes – Angles
Thumbs down for the skinny ties and tight jeans brigade on their fourth go-round. Surely it can't be worse than First Impressions Of Earth?
Girls – Australian Interview (Static, 2009)
You've probably seen the x-rated video clip for "Lust for Life". The 'penis as microphone' image is something you really don't recall seeing in pop videos these days, either then or now (and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong). As vague and internet-search challenging as calling your band Girls is, Christopher Owens and Chet "JR" White are both neither, and are, so to speak.
Who The Hell Are… The Fierce & The Dead?
With their debut album If It Carries On Like This We're Moving to Morecombe, London post-rock quartet The Fierce & The Dead left an indelible impression at Webcuts HQ. It was an album that defied categorisation and challenged perceptions of the post-rock genre, not only from the exceptionally long-winded and unselfconscious title, but in the way it fused elements of post-rock with hardcore, ambient soundscapes and jazz/funk experimentation. It was as if The Fierce & The Dead wanted to sound like all bands, and none, which intrigued us enough to want to find out more.
Deerhunter – Rainwater Cassette Exchange
Hot on the heels of Microcastle comes this warmly welcomed five track EP from Webcuts' band de jour.
HTRK – Marry Me Tonight
New No Wave or Narco-Electro? Whatever the case, Marry Me Tonight is well worth making an engagement with...
The Church – Sydney – 6 December 2012
The Church Factory Theatre, Sydney 6th December 2012 The most remarkable thing about The Church, and there are many remarkable things about this enduring Australia band, is how better they get with
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Australian Interview (Static, 2010)
A firm favourite last year with those of a pop persuasion was the debut album of Brooklyn four-piece, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. An example of youthful exuberance and melodic indulgences, The Pains (is it ok to call them that?) were as easy to swallow as a chocolate sundae with all the toppings -- and just as addictive and in no way fattening. Recently on tour in Australia, we spoke with guitarist Kip Berman.
The Darling Buds – London – 22 September 2010
You’d be forgiven for having a sense of déjà vu here. Is it 1989? Did The Primitives and The Darling Buds really both play London within a week of each other? Having been absent from the live scene for most of the '90s and all of the past decade, for both bands to surface at the same time is unthinkable. Unthinkable, but pretty damn cool. It brings back memories of a time when the music magazines invented a scene called ‘Blonde’, where bands were lumped together purely based on the colour of the lead singers hair. Which by their way of thinking meant you were either a Blonde, a Goth or in Fairground Attraction.
HTRK – Work (Work, Work)
Work (Work, Work) is the sound of HTRK collecting themselves after tragedy and loss. A difficult time creates a difficult 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.