Cast - Love Is The Call

Cast return this Friday with their seventh studio album ‘Love is the Call’. It’s their first in seven years and sees them hook up with legendary producer Youth at Space Mountain Studios in Spain.

*image and artwork courtesy of Fear PR.

Last time out on ‘Kick Up The Dust’, there were offshoots of peak Cast, but overall, it loitered outside of this realm and became an album for only the truly loyal fans. This time though, frontman John Power and their manager, Alan McGee, have both been very buoyant about Cast delivering something special.

Pre-order the album here.

In the main, they’re not wrong. ‘Love is the Call’ feels like a debut album yearning to be set free onto the world to make its mark. ‘Forever and Day’ chugs with the optimism of a wiser mindset which knows the pitfalls to avoid. As Power sings, “some things in life are destined to change / and for the first time in forever you have a smile on your face”, the feeling of the band’s anxieties and creative fears melting away are tangible. Power’s melody is as pure as anything he’s ever written. It’s juxtaposed with a reassuring vocal sternness, like a father figure nudging young souls back to the light.

‘Time Is Like A River’ and ‘Tomorrow Calls My Name’ both stoke the band’s early creative fires, but now, Power’s lyrics look back with an experience and knowingness of when to fight and when to let go. The former meanders toward the ‘Forever Changes’ brass as the protagonist learns to let go of the past. ‘Tomorrow Calls My Name’ finds a sweet spot between vintage Cast, Shack, and Love on this tale of trepidation and redemption. The Bunnymen-esque acoustic guitars create a tense apprehension. Still, the melodic uplift in the chorus and Tyson’s sumptuous guitars provide a redemptive blueprint for even the most tarnished souls. Power’s vocal switches from defiant to hymnal as guitars rain down an emotional heft that surpasses ‘Walkaway’.

Throughout the album, two things become abundantly clear. Power’s songwriting has rediscovered the magic touch, and accompanying it is his desire to impart love and wisdom to the world. A well-lived life, not shared, is criminal, and Power is certainly not guilty. His pop sensibilities have also hit career peak with ‘Faraway’. It's more instant than a sun-drenched Coral ditty. The slight gravel tinge to his voice dissipates into choral euphoria as he attempts to lead us back to collectivism and kindness.

Restoration is key to this album. Cast have restored faith in humanity and their ability as a serious exponent of great music. Their faith in hope and love has, in turn, delivered, at worst, the best album since their debut. Where ‘All Change’ captured a moment of optimism and change in 1996, ‘Love is the Call’ seek to counter the fractured world with a reminder that things can, should, and will be ok again. It’s an arm around the shoulder of the discontented, a hand up off the floor to the disenfranchised but chiefly, great guitar music.

Shambolics - Dreams , Schemes, and Young Teams

Pre-order the album here.

Friday 16th, February will see the release of Fife’s Shambolics’ debut album ‘Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams via Scruff of the Neck Records. The album was produced by Chris Marshall (Gerry Cinnamon).

*banner image courtesy of Fear PR. Credit Liam Maxwell.

It’s been six years since they announced themselves as serious players with their debut single ‘When She Goes Home’. At that point, Blossoms and The Lathums were in serious ascension and, for many, despite their fine melodies, lacked an edge that these bleak times deserved. It is then notable that it, along with fan favourites ‘Sandra Speed’, ‘Chasing A Disaster’, and ‘Love Collides’, do not appear on the album.

Bold? Yes. Reckless? No.

In ‘Attention’, ‘Losing Your Mind’, and ‘Daily Dosage’, they have a new arsenal of melodic weapons to unleash.  ‘Attention’ is relentless and grand, perhaps capturing their live sound for the first time on record. Flourishes of The View combine with Fleetwood Mac and Big Star to conjure a dream-like state to rejoice in. ‘Losing Your Mind’ gracefully strides out into moonlit skies with angelic guitars before ascending to a ‘Rumours’-esque classic. The co-frontmen Darren Forbes and Lewis McDonald transcend music here with an ethereal rock ‘n’ roll vocal that will echo into eternity if any justice is left in this industry. ‘Daily Dosage’ leans into the melodic ache of ‘Well I Wonder’ and the sweeping majesty of ‘There Is Light That Never Goes Out’ as they guide The Smiths to a sunnier disposition.

While the standard remains melodically, the characterisation and intensity significantly outweigh the early years. This newfound substance spills over sonically on ‘If You Want It’ and ‘Fight In Side’, their heaviest sound to date. The substance levels and creativity spread their wings on ‘Tambourine Tam’ and ‘Universal Credit’. The former is armed with a Jamie T-esque riff, and The Libertines’ ramshackle beauty cuts through the album's archetypal harmonies. ‘Universal Credit’, is a joyously sardonic take on being on the doll whilst in a band. The humour of their interviews has now filtered into their writing and created a Sick Boy and Renton-style rant to guitar hooks worthy of The Rakes and The View.

Forbes and McDonald’s vision of working-class life is no better exemplified than in ‘Everything You Should've Done’ and ‘Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams’. It is a tale of what might have been versus a clarion call to chase your dreams. ‘Everything You Should've Done’, sonically euphoric, which is the notion it’s protagonist is trying to generate with drugs as they tragically run away from real life. The title track, however, is gritty, feel-good British cinema parading as an instant pop classic. Recklessly defiant and oozing confidence will make the oldest of souls feel like a teenager again! Together, the songs light up the working-class struggle for the first time in a generation. The former, downtrodden with no sense of a future, it's easy to check out of society with misguided dissipation as our hearts cry out for heroes on TV screens. What ‘Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams’ does so well is to lay bare the struggle and hope. Forbes and McDonald’s sense of Albion isn’t going to come by just wishing. It will be a long, hard road, but, such is their ebullience, you believe they will get there.

As debut albums go, it's not quite in the pantheon of all-time classics, but there are moments when it is. At worst, it's banging on that door to be allowed in.  Above all else, it’s refreshing to hear working-class life soundtracked by great melody again.

The Velvet Hands - Sucker Punch

“If it’s us versus them then we’ll be winning …you’ll never be alone”

London via Cornwall four-piece The Velvet Hands return after five years to release their second album ‘Sucker Punch’ (JamX / Blood Records). It follows the exhilarating Ramones and Strokes-inspired debut ‘Party’s Over’ in 2018. The album was produced and mixed by John Logan at Par Studios (Cornwall) and mastered by the legendary John Cornfield (The Stone Roses/Supergrass).

‘Party’s Over’ was a buoyant expression of youth. Their enthusiasm for life laid bare in short, fiery garage-psyche rock anthems to soundtrack a new generation coming of age. ‘Sucker Punch’, although sonically linked to the debut, becomes the antithesis of this lyrically at points. ‘Holiday In My Head’ witnesses the late teen zest for life descend into the forlorn 20s, sick of being skint:

“If I had money left to burn / But sparks just won’t fly / When you’re billed for every penny, you earn”

Credit: Harvey Williams-Fairley

The fog of life without a future swell to unprecedented levels in the verses as they play The Ramones sound in ferocious Stooges style. The intensity is several levels above anything their debut offered, exemplified by the explosive Nick Valensi meets Russell Lissack solo. It encapsulates the pressure and stress of bills mounting, work not paying, and life becoming too much with such vehement brilliance.

‘Telephone Love’ takes the band to darker pastures of overindulgent all-nighters of booze and drugs. The party is over, but the protagonists remain, caning it. A snapshot of a generation sold down the river in every industry. Now they’re left praying the next line will make them feel alive enough to carry on:

“Bloodshot eyes and bleeding gums,
Welcome to the house of fun
And now you’re talking insane,
Telephone love runs through your veins
And I don’t know just how you found me, I don’t know Just how you found me

And now, and now it’s dawn
Riding from the dusk before
We could waste the night
You know you help me feel alive”

Despite the intoxication, The Velvet Hands find their way out and offer hope in the closing stages. With punk’s DIY spirit in their veins, they demand this be their time in the sun (“But You ain’t ever seen me next in line, / It’s my time, it’s my time, it’s my time”). Impatient and angry, the band are set to piss off the middle classes dominating the airwaves, and the world will be a better place for it.

The violence and desolation continue on the title track, ‘Sucker Punch’ but there is a more thoughtful musicality to the band not seen before, which spreads its wings elsewhere on the album. The title track initiates with jagged 00s guitars reminiscent of Bloc Party, Dogs, and early Razolright whilst the vocals roar like Johnny Rotten. Despite the uncompromising snarling of the verses, they lead into melodic Vaccines-esque chorus for fans to buy into joyously. Not finished there, they serve up a breakdown akin to an out-of-body experience. The message of getting up of the canvas and keep fighting becomes less naive and one of “now or never” and “don’t give up”. They emerge on the other side with confidence and solidarity, which is utterly undeniable on this remaining 00s guitar scene.

Artwork courtesy of Sonic PR

‘Devil’s Tale’ continues the band’s musical expansion with a sumptuous Doors via a Doves opening. Bugged out, the band takes their time, allowing this stoner trip to floating towards its solo climax. The guitars, inevitable, they’re coming, we all know it, and yet, the excitement, hysteria, and fever they create are no less mesmerising. ’40 Up and 40 Down’ sees the influx of Gang of Four, Franz Ferdinand, and XTC’s angular post-punk disco riffs flood the senses and, if any justice exists, will become an indie club floor filler for years.

‘Sucker Punch’ may have taken five years but in every conceivable way, it was worth the wait. Perfectly capturing the landscape that normal folk, especially creatives, face today. Skint, downtrodden, and overtaken by those who can afford it or the artistically redundant. Despite the odds against them and cultural pressures pushing them toward a boring mainstream landscape, the band have funnelled their joyous punk debut into something more studied and grander this time out.  It’s only a matter of time before the rest of the world realises their quality.

Charlie Clark - Late Night Drinking

Scotland’s Charlie Clark released his debut solo album ‘Late Night Drinking’ on the 25th of November this year via No Big Deal Music. It was produced by Jason Shaw (Cambodian Space Project) and mastered by Ride frontman Mark Gardener.

Image and artwork courtesy of Sonic PR.

‘Late Night Drinking’ is a journey of self-reflection detailing Clark’s years with drugs, rock ‘n’ roll, and grief. Back in 2021, Clark kicked off the long redemptive road with the stunning pop-psyche single ‘Don’t Have Cow Man’. Brutally honest, Clark wraps up his remorse of drug abuse in the splendour of Cosmic Rough Riders' 00s classic 'Enjoy The Melodic Sunshine' album and the pop prowess of The Wannadies. Before this record. Clark had reinvented himself as a promoter in LA but due to the terminal illness of his father, he returned home to Stornoway. There’s a determination to be sober so that his father worries no longer. The frailty of the vocal lifts this song to remarkable status. The lack of confidence and anguish at whether he can succeed is so powerful you can smell it. This single is a rare breed; its hook is unadulterated pop music. Sonically vibrant, it spreads joy and colour across all that listen but, beneath the surface lies darkness and guilt threatening to spill over.

The title track ‘Late Night Drinking’ travels further back into Clark’s timeline on this tale of his destructive drinking. Exquisitely exposing the naivety of his former self (“I was thinking, I could stay / late night drinking/ it’s better this way”) on opening himself up to destructive patterns. Through the jangle of The Byrds and Snow Patrol’s spritely sense of exploration, Clark conveys the hope of alcohol’s allure and the inevitable melancholy when it fails to live up to expectations.

On ‘Blink Of An Eye’, Clark digs into the minutiae of relationships as he pours over past failings and rues things unsaid and left undone. His angelic vocal advocates less ‘High Fidelity’ nihilism but the inner workings of a fractured mind attempting not to repeat the past. In doing so, Clark freezes you in bliss and confusion.  Despite his specific narrative, there’s a universality to his songwriting which is timeless. The guitars gently explode into a Daniel Wylie rumble encapsulating the human brain’s ability to reel you into sleepless nights of agitation.

In the summer of 2020, Clark’s father sadly passed away. ‘A Bridge To Your Idol’ was written prior to the event but knowing it would come sooner rather than later. The poignant testimony utilises the wistful Celtic folk of King Creosote Clark and eloquently describes the helplessness of watching your hero fade. For most, allowing memories to flood the senses cause us to look away mournfully as it’s all too much take. What Clark has done is nothing short of heroic. Facing down all his demons, he has penned an ode to the man that gave him everything.  The isolated soundscapes and hushed vocals, conjure the distance grief births and should be required listening to all in this mental state to heal the pain.  

In many ways, ‘Late Night Drinking’ is the antidote to youthful rock ‘n’ roll. Teenage years are well spent dreaming of escape. Great records are built on the foundation of sex, drugs, and getting out of your hometown. Clark’s journey is coming full circle returning home and dealing with the excesses of escape. Captured by his own mind, often unable to rid himself of regret, he has had to find a new source of escapism. ‘I Don’t Mind If You’re Right’ details Clark’s quest to go beyond what he is and find new pastures new. A meditative tale of his newfound love of Kundalini Yoga is soundtracked by the Ride’s euphoric shoegaze and a great nod to Tim Burgess’ deeper vocal delivery. It’s on ‘Acid Rain’ where solace and contentment with who he shines brightest. Clark simmers down MBV’s emotive fog and taps into pop elements of Andy Bell’s classic debut ‘The View From Halfway Down’ as he cross-examines his past and present. Only this time, the pain of the past is being washed away and a gentler kind of hope emerges as a result.

A tumultuous cleanse of the soul that rewards creator and listener alike. Clark has built upon The National’s ability to embed melody into troublesome discourse by adding psychedelic pop to certain tracks. It’s a stunning debut from the Astrid bandmate, a piece of art in its purest form.

The album is available to purchase from his Bandcamp page.