Little Avis - Silver Tongue

Little Avis’ third single, ‘Silver Tongue’ was released this week. Following on from their raucous Graham Coxon inspired single ‘Ghalib’, the Manchester outfit have put out ‘Silver Tongue’.

It has the wayward indie pop of Young Knives with immediacy and hook laden Shame and The Buzzcocks. Raising the bar above just another punk single here though are the vocals from Lee Hunter. His found an exquisite post-punk sweet spot between Edywn Collins and David Byrne.

At times, there is a Richard Hawley sense of romanticism about the protagonist. It cuts through the wry post-punk delivery and provides an everyman humbleness to the single. This kind of universal truth is sure to carry them to the hearts and minds of the UK’s alternative community sooner rather than later.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Pinky Pinky - Turkey Dinner

LA’s Pinky Pinky, a three piece consisting of Anastasia Sanchez (vocalist/drummer, 20), Isabelle Fields (guitar, 19) and Eva Chambers (bass, 19) have combined a teenage sense of adventure with wise experimental heads on their eclectic debut album ‘Turkey Dinner’.

Former single ‘My Friend Sean’ and ‘It Didn’t Hurt’, are formulated around droll sardonic slacker rock and feel like their base camp. It’s full of the idealism and melodic nous of Pavement and Graham Coxon.

Rather than stay in this comfort zone, they’ve honed record collections and taken well measure chances. On ‘Floorboards’, there’s a sense that Kate Bush has joined The Slits to make a Beach Boys record. Whereas, ‘Sticking Around’ combines a Bush-esque vocal with slick vibes of The Modern Lovers. There is a punk spirit lurking behind the slide guitars on ‘Apple Cheeks’. A sure fire sign that nothing is off the table in the studio.

This approach falls flat on ‘Mystery Sedan’ and ‘Mr. Sunday’. However, temper this with their Johnny Marr attempting the Shrang-La’s style on ‘Lady Dancer’ and ‘Do Me Dirty’, and you’ll be vehemently overlooking those songs.

After a while, it becomes apparent, these aren’t chances, its hard graft and talent combining to deliver their vision. What is missing though, are truly great choruses. That hook, that’s so undeniable, every teenager can beat their parent into submission that their generation is better. It doesn’t feel that far away mind you.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Cleargreen – People

Manchester’s Cleargreen are back with their new single ‘People’ today. Already a force in their home city, they have been stealing the show on This Feeling stages on the festival circuit too.

Previous single ‘Gone’, whilst freeing, probably had too many hallmarks of the DMA’s to be their breakthrough moment. On ‘People’, they’ve taken a monumental leap to establish their identity.

It’s a conscientious examination of the public mindset in 2019, shining a light on the contradictions of humanity. By proxy, it highlights the echo chamber mentality of both left and right and how, but with heart and amiable sincerity at its core. How apt on the day that Putin labelled Liberalism “obsolete”.

The LA’s-esque riff is given The Verve pop majesty circa Urban Hymns sheen. Equally beefy and emotive, Haworth and Staley’s guitars combine the aforementioned style with a Teenage Fanclub sense of adventure. Rock ‘n’ roll escapism is back, and with a chorus of “Going away where there is no tomorrow / Go to the place where I don’t feel hollow” it’s here to stay.

The colossus that is Liam Gallagher is rolling back into town at present and, we look forward to it. However, we urge everyone to pay attention to the new class. Cleargreen, Gazelle, Stanleys, and The Raintree County have lit the touchpaper for a new rebellion.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Raintree County – Feel Alive

In 1995, there was no need for Oasis to follow 1994’s ‘Definitely Maybe’ with more of the same. The world was ready for Noel Gallagher and Owen Morris to stretch their their sound to the edge of oblivion on ‘What’s The Story (Morning Glory)’. However, The Raintree County’s new single ‘Feel Alive’, has created an alternate reality where that Manchester via Liverpool sound was followed up on.

Full of escapism and hopeful swagger, the Leeds five piece have delivered a slice of the North West. With the charm of ‘Digsy’s Donner’ and the expansiveness of ‘Slide Away’ and ‘Columbia’, they have tapped into that Burnage groove to take the mind elsewhere.

This isn’t just a rehash of the past though. Nor is it just a tribute to Oasis. There are nuggets psyche reminiscent of Mick Head’s Shack and the drunkard triumphalism of Tribes fuelling this anthem for the present day.

Two singles in, The Raintree County are nailing down their own sound via the greats. Definitely ones to watch!

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Scott Lavene - Broke

Hailing from Essex, Scott Lavene has released his sometimes weird, sometimes wonderful, sometimes neither debut album ‘Broke’ via Funnel Music.

An album of many clashing styles, can work if there is clarity in the challenging moments. ‘Broke’ is awash of multiple styles, when it lands, echoes of Dury, Costello and Barrett come to the surface. When the quality dips though, it falls face down.

‘Apples & Pears’ killer chorus is immersed in the sardonic world of Sultans of Ping and the colours of Syd Barrett. Meanwhile, ‘Super Clean’, comfortably the albums finest work, hits a Tame Impala via the cuteness of Supertramp groove that is undeniable. However, on ‘Moonbeams’, everything feels forced. Nothing about Lavene’s vision is contrived, it’s just not always sonically landing.

There is however, a purity to Lavene’s work, always emanating from a heartfelt and honest place. It’s what will keep you coming back for more. Album opener ‘My Stereo’, is arguably the sweetest pop record you’ll hear this year. The Beans on Toast meets Ian Dury vocals collide with ‘Hour of the Bewilderbeast’ Badly Drawn Boy to conjure images of teenagers discovering music in their bedrooms.

‘Broke’, described by Levine as ‘the deadbeat manifesto’, takes a wayward stroll through his hometown of Essex.  It has a Baxter Dury sense of adventure without fully living up to his standards. The quality ‘Methylated Blue’ and ‘Some Place New’, whilst full of integrity, lose the wild glow and become more like a watercolour challenge.

This is not an album which will convince the masses, nor for that matter, will it convince the alternative world on first listen. It’s a gradual process of realisation that Lavene is, to coin Richey Edwards’ self-harm “4 Real”. When he nails his distinctive view on the world, it’s a joy to behold. This is tempered by moments of dips in quality but, never enough to deter you from rooting for Lavene.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Come At The King – Where’s That Smile, Boy?

With every release, Come At The King grow that much more menacing. Their latest offing, ‘Where’s That Smile, Boy?’ is no different.

The London trio have combined the energy of their debut ‘Minesweeper’ and the grooves of ‘Shudder’ to hit a gloriously filthy note! Early Black Keys and BRMC circa ‘Spectre of the Feast’ guitars combine with dank and dangerous basslines.

Lyrically, this is the most mature of their work to date. Garage rock isn’t often associated with quintessentially British characters. Here though, they’ve connected their dangerous sonic to a the machinations of small town men with big time delusions of grandeur. To quote the legendary Members “this is the sound of the suburbs”.

Come At The King’s rise is growing rapidly, be sure to catch them live at our 8th birthday party Friday 2nd August. Tickets available here >>> https://newcrossinn.com/tickets/events/travellers-tunes-8th-birthday

MOSES – Findings

For the best part of 2018, London’s MOSES were churning out anthemic but punk led singles. Earlier this year, changed tack with ‘I Think You Worry To Much’ to provide a shimmering pop song. Their latest single ‘Findings’, again leans towards the alternative pop world.  

With the whimsical aspects of Coldplay and Snow Patrol in the 00s pomp at play, MOSES have delivered a slow building number in that vein. This is no indie rehash though. There something so beautifully fragile about MOSES and frontman Victor in particular. As leadership implodes and institutions crumble, MOSES (among others) continue to deliver great pop art and somehow, they do it with kindness.

*Image courtesy of Ana Ban Ana

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Courteeners: Heaton Park, Manchetser

“I miss the city I love but I've been having an affair
With L.A and New York, Dundee
And Doncaster if I may dare
Of course I do, of course I do
But I was meant for this place, and I was meant for you”

Four days on from The Courteeners hometown triumph at Heaton Park, the slightest thought of ‘Are You In Love With A Notion’ is still delivering some serious goosebumps. This wasn’t just a gig, this was, in the words of Liam Fray “a party”.

The Courteeners have been here before in 2015 but, this past Saturday was more than double the size at fifty thousand people and. Every street, bus, train and tram was alive with anticipation in Manchester Saturday lunchtime. It was impossible to deny, even by this hardened cynical view of outdoor gigs. From note one from Goth pop outfit Pale Waves, it’s clear, Manchester isn’t to suffer the same fate as the string of gigs too quiet in London.

When Liam and co walked on stage, something special happened for two hours. It wasn’t rock stars playing to their adoring fans. This was a personal affair, almost as if it an unsigned band had convinced all their mates to come alone for support.

The atmosphere The Courteeners generate is, for all wankers in the industry wondering what their appeal is (aside good tunes), their usp. Heaton park became the greatest playground of all time. The flares, the mud, the drizzle, the endless Union jack waterproofs from Primark, the mud (the endless mud), the overflowing urinals, laughing at people stacking it, and the dedicated follower of fashion in his brand new white trainers. THE MUD!

It’s been fourteen years since The Courteeners begun and, during the two new songs, showed no signs of slowing down. ‘Better Man’ had such an infectious chorus it was being sung back by the end.

Whether people came to hear ‘The Smiths Disco’ or reaffirm their love of ‘St. Jude’, this was not only a gig for the ages, it was a triumphant for the underdog. Memories of Frank Turner’s underground insurgency at Wembley Arena in 2012 came flooding back. Seven years on from that night, the industry is still throwing money at homogenised dullards. For any kid attendance wanting to form a band, stick your head above the parapet and be yourselves. You will be adored!  

We never post clips from peoples phones but, this was too much fun to ignore despite the iffy sound:

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Richard Hawley - Further

Sheffield icon Richard Hawley is back with his eighth studio album ‘Further’. His previous offering ‘Hoillow Meadow’, laid bare many personal anxieties for the world to see. This time out, Hawley consciously decided to make something more positive and more direct. Will the charm dissipate? Will it be contrived?

Hawley’s attempt to be positive, attempt a heavier sound at times but, lack the raw excitement of youthful rock n roll can. ‘Alone’, whilst pleasant, has a tired ‘Easy Money’ (Johnny Marr) feel to it. ‘Galley Girl’, nods to Robert Plant & Alison Krauss’ classic Rich Woman’ but again fails ignite the devil. However, on album opener ‘Off My Mind’ slides into a dirty rock n roll groove to endlessly admire. ‘Time Is’, finds a sweet spot with its psyche riffs and exhilarating harmonica on this reflective look at the passing of time. It has a honesty that befits Hawley’s emotive soul far better.

Hawley’s poetic soul is where the album thrives. Sheffield’s Blake is at his best when wandering the streets of his mind alone. ‘Is There A Pill?’, musically, combines the romanticism of ‘Coles Corner’ and the dangerous guitars of ‘Standing At The Sky’s Edge’. Lyrically, it’s a message of love to himself and the family of a friend who was lost tragically to suicide. It’s a remarkable feat to deliver the lines ‘Is there a pill / To untwist my heart / And help me sever feeling shame at being apart?’ with such warmth.

Hawley’s ability to sprinkle stardust over his ballads keeps coming on ‘Not Lonely’ and ‘Midnight Train’. The former being a hopeful ode to his children. Yearning to see them enjoy the benefits his generation did. Amid the Tory leadership race where liars and Islamophobes battle NHS dismantlers and Austerity masturbators, the poignancy is somewhat elevated. Meanwhile, ‘Midnight Train’ sparkles like The Byrds’ ‘Ballad of the Easy Rider’ in a British spring time.

Not everything lands on ‘Further’ but, few can match the beauty of the highs Hawley can still summon in his early 50s. When he enters into his reflective and poetic groove, it’s impossible not to fall in love with him all over again.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Velvet Hands - Don't Be Nice To Me

With a huge Liam Gallagher support slot in the bag, Cornwall’s The Velvet Hands return with their new single ‘Don’t Be Nice To Me’.

2018’s debut album ‘Party’s Over’ got people talking excitedly about the four piece but, such was the Strokes influence, question marks loomed over future successes. Could they break free from their heroes shackles being the main one.

‘Don’t Be Nice To Me’ is a big stride away from their NYC idols. It’s a short sharp upper cut to their peers and the drivel in the charts. With the warmth of Palma Violets and the angst of Shame, they have found their sweet spot.

This free flowing piece of rock rebellion is going to cause some serious beer spillages on indie dancefloors this summer!

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Dangers of Love - Dangers of Love

Deptford’s Dangers of Love have released their eponymous EP recently after a wave of great singles. Can they keep the ball rolling?

Please note, when naming a song after your band name, make it a heady booze fuelled Tribes-esque anthem. There is more swagger in ‘Dangers of Love’ than Bez on a Friday night!

‘Why Would You Run’, whilst maintaining a youth fuelled “fuck you” spirit, ups the ante by evoking a The Jam at their most carefree through the warped punk-jangle of Asylums.

Throughout, there is a reckless abandon that can only emerge from the exuberance of youth. Long boozy summers and a sense of hope forever at its core, this EP is about the here and now. It will not be curtailed by the shit state of public affairs.

Dangers of Love are a stark reminder that the current generation are finding a way to live, screw and make art as they see fit, ignore them at your peril!

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Twang: The Borderline, London

Two years on from the release of their b-sides album ‘Subscription’, Birmingham’s The Twang were back in London for intimate warm up gig at the Borderline.

Road testing new songs for a seasoned band is never an enviable task. Many of the crowd are either unaware or not interested. So, top open with for newbies was always a bold choice. However, through sheer punk rock commitment to the cause, they win over the room with ease.

A punk fire burned through ‘Time Waits’ and ‘Dream’, the latter expertly spliced with the psyche-funk of ‘Fools Gold’. Their latest single ‘Everytime’ is a marked change in direction with its disco influences. It oozed sexuality and attitude via slick basslines and a sumptuous chorus.

From this point onwards, it’s the classics all the way! The swagger of the Mondays and the grit of The Enemy permeates the everyman ‘Took The Fun’ and ‘Back Where We Started’. When they hit this groove, it’s one of the purest sights in music. Few bands can cause outbreaks of freaky dancing on this scale. When you take step back, and consider the Ken Loach realism and Shane Meadows romanticism of the characters they are portraying, this is as pure as live music can be.

This gig was postponed after drummer Ash tragically lost his Uncle John. If everyone had the love of this send-off, the world would be a sincerely better place. RIP uncle John, you were loved at the Borderline.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Submotile - Ghosts Fade on Skylines

Dublin duo (Michael Farren & Daniela Angione) Submotile released their debut album ‘Ghosts Fade on Skylines’ this past April via the Midsummer Madness label.

Albums recorded at home can often lead to an autumnal sonic. Not here though, their heavier side dominates proceedings. ‘Eastern Sky Sundown’ in classic noise rock style will keep on revealing new layers but, its headline grab has to be the rip roaring drumming. ‘Amped and Faded’ again has that blast you away mentality. It may not fully deliver with its blend of Sonic Youth and MBV, but you cannot deny its venom.

Despite this heavier side, there nuggets of ethereal pop music from alternate realities. ‘Tarmonto’, takes the pop stomping licks of Johnny Marr, angelic Phil Spector girl group vocals and shoegaze styles. This will set festival season alight.

On ‘3am Reveries’ however, they have gem glistening in the sea bed. Its beauty is so pure it should come with a warning. It can be all things to all people. It’s the sound of best friends losing their shit in a big top tent at 3am. Equally, for anyone who’s life is falling apart or a relationship hanging on by a thread, this will rip it to pieces.

Fans of shoegaze, noise-rock, drone-rock and so on will inevitably dig this album. It probably won’t make the upper echelons of their record collection though. Nevertheless, it’s attempt to re-introduce pop hooks into the fold has to be admired in divisive Brexit times. It begins to blur people’s hard lines force them back together.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Raintree County – Happy People

‘Happy People’ is the debut single from Leeds five piece The Raintree County. Having garnered attention from BBC Introducing West Yorkshire and the Y Not Festival, we decided to delve in.

Immediately, The Real People’s classics ‘Window Pane’ and ‘I Can’t Wait’ spring to mind. The choppy psyche guitars and front man Jimmy Sweeney’’s vocals have channelled their inner scouser to good effect.

It’s the distinction of their sound that is striking for a debut single. Ben Arnold’s beefy guitars funnel the vastness of Black Keys through the indie-psyche of The Real People and The LA’s. Bands are so often slow to realise less is more, they’ve already nailed that. A bright future beckons.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Supercaan - Supercaan

“Bands are putting out more songs than they’ve played gigs and that’s never worked in the music industry. You play gigs and become brilliant and then you release some music.” 

(Simon Williams (Fierce Panda Records) Speaking to UK Music Week)

Based in London and Birmingham, three piece Supercaan feel like a return to the type of bands Simon is referring to. Their self-titled debut album is the result of four years of weekends working on demos, rehearsing and gigs. The results are varying in quality but the ideas and their identity are fully formed.

Greg Milner’s vocals draw instant comparison to The National’s Matt Berninger. Whilst a clear factor, in truth, it only becomes imitation when the mood drops on the opening of ‘Drag Me To Sea’ and the ‘High Violet’ inspired ‘Cold Opener’.

Away from the The National, their intricate psychedelia begins to forge a niche alongside the Ohio giants. Former singles ‘The Bull’ and ‘The Great North Eastern’ are prime examples. The hazy psychedelia of the former lends itself to the industrial euphoria of Editors and the motorik of Toy.

Meanwhile, ‘The Great North Eastern’, adopts British Sea Power’s more reflective mood and the choppy ‘Munich’ era of Editors. So many bands seek escape through their sound, here, they narratively speaking, deal with the opposite. The claustrophobic nature of this tale collides with sun drenched pop instincts to provide one of the year’s best singles.

Driving them further away (albeit slowly) from The National is a love of New Order. ‘Mosquito’ with the gothic and electronic pop world of Depeche Mode, but with repetitive hook approach reminiscent of ‘The Village’. Whilst ‘Hang On For Winter’, combines Sumner’s aching guitars and sun kissed sequencing with pop hook bassline from The Vaccines repertoire.  

With so many iconic bands flowing through their influences, Supercaan were always going to have deliver something great to escape them. Alas, they haven’t, but, as Game of Thrones has proved, it’s not always the final outcome that matters. They’ve taken a brave swing at the greats and made their journey worth following with this debut.  

*Image courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/gregmilnerphotography/

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Cosmics - Drained

The Birmingham three piece have returned with their new single ‘Drained’. This is taken from the 6 EP they are releasing in June.

The immediacy of the record is undeniable. Singer Erin Grace co-opts a Shrang-la’s vocal for the verse before effortlessly sliding into a furious punk rock delivery in the chorus.

Conor Boyle’s guitars possess the rapid fire angst of Oasis’ ‘Bring It Down’. There are nuggets of Noel’s glam rock riffs from ‘Hindu Times’ and ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol’ giving this record a depth and warmth few can match.

Their upcoming show at Old Blue Last (June 13th) is sure to be a sold out affair on this showing.

*Image courtesy of Danny Boyle

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The Claim - The New Industrial Ballads

“And now a song of hope / Despite despairing hearts”

The Claim are to release their first album since 1988’s ‘Boomy Tella’ via Turntable Friend Records on May 24th. Release date-wise, it’s perfection. Nothing is more British than a bank holiday, as the band they heavily influenced once sang:

“Bank holiday comes six times a year
Days of enjoyment to which everyone cheers”

Recorded at Jim Riley’s Ranscombe Studios in Rochester, they look set to reignite the Medway sound. At the heart of the original Medway boom were great pop instincts, nothing has changed.

Lead single ‘Johnny’ is the perfect link to this past. The urgency of Jam permeating their spiralling pop guitars. Meanwhile, Dave Read’s vocal hook on ‘When The Morning Comes’ chorus demonstrates pop music can emerge from even downbeat affairs. ‘Smoke and Screens’ and ‘The Haunted Pub’ is a display of pop music transcending to art. A flurry of polemic and social comment wrapped up in working class British life collides with sun-kissed production and sprightly guitar hooks. Whereas, the sparkling Grandaddy production and Bluetones' pop sheen of 'Just Too Far' is the album’s cherry on the cake. The Smiths methodology burns bright.

In 2015, Sam Duckworth (aka Get Cape Wear Cape Fly) released an EP and album under the moniker ‘Recreations’. It tapped into a feeling of alternative and lost souls along the estuary in Essex. The Claim, a five-minute hop across the Thames, has struck a similar chord. Opener ‘Johnny Kidd’s Right Hand Man’, drifts down the estuary ignored and downtrodden but never losing hope. The mod-cum-blues on ‘Estuary Greens and Blues’ recalls Blur’s ‘End of Century’ and ‘To The End’ as it drifts out to sea. So blissful is album closer 'Under Canvas', that all those sneering looks for wearing DM's or having to tolerate Farage lovers drift away into insignificance.

The Claim, despite obviously being a band of brothers, have, in Dave Read a vocalist that perhaps only Morrissey and Michael Head can rival. Unique in sound, he has the ability to find a melodic hook in unexpected places. 'Light Bending', as the guitars saunter like British Sea Power circa 'Open Season', finds a choppy Dr Feelgood vibe. Whereas, 'Mrs Jones', Read delivers his most emotive vocal on a loving character-driven tale.

The subtlety of The Claim’s polemic gently caressing the infectious melodies is truly remarkable. Blink and you’ll miss the band’s appeal to be nicer to immigrants on ‘Journey’. Couple this with the righteousness of ‘I will stand and fight / for what I know is right’ and Read’s gut-wrenching alienation on the line ‘where do I fit in…………where do I belong’, you have one of the social comments of the year. On ‘Hercules’, the nuance turns to anti-austerity polemic (“boarded up shops / Run down housing / There’s your big society”) but remains forever pop friendly. This is how to mix pop and politics without an embarrassment of excuses.

It’s been 30 years since their debut ‘Boomy Tella’. Countless fans will have pondered what might have been having they got a bigger break back then. We defy them not to see this 30 years wait as positive now. Integrity in tack, The Claim have delivered a pop music masterpiece.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

The White Tips - Patience

Former Travellers Tunes party performers The White Tips are back with their new single ‘Patience’.

The Aylesbury outfit have laid bare their love of Nirvana for all to see on this new offering. The moment Andy Shaw’s bass drops, memories of ‘Lithium’ will come flooding back.

As soon as the record starts, there is an inevitably about it, a solo is coming (say this in Ned Stark’s voice!). It’s a nice nod to the destruction of ‘Breed’ and the pop instincts of ‘Drain You’ but, with all Nirvana enthusiasts, the unavoidable difference class is apparent. Cobain really was another level to most.

That said, there is something here, a spark to keep you coming back. With airplay and festivals behind them, an upturn in confidence may well make this journey more intriguing.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Paula Wolfe – Georgia Blue

London and Norfolk based artist (and producer) Paula Wolfe has returned with her new single ‘Georgia Blue’.

In 2019, with European elections approaching, couldn’t be released at more apt time. With an undercurrent of hostility permanently in the air, human emotions and progress are sliding out of view.

Wolfe’s tale of a cross dressing train driver, with crisp warming vocals and swooning production is a stark reminder to be less selfish. It’s written with great characterisation and a strong sense of Englishness, it’ll recall the eloquence of Ray Davies and Paul Weller in their pomp.

Despite the prevailing beauty on show, there is a solemnness to the protagonist’s journey that should spark memories of ‘Saturday Night Sunday Morning’ or Pulp’s ‘Common People’. A sense of ordinary people living extraordinary lives burns bright.

This is ‘That’s Entertainment’ for the woke generation and boy does society need art like this to bring different generations together once again.

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here:

Tallies: The Social, London

Toronto based four piece Tallies played their debut UK gig at The Social last week. With Ride legend Andy Bell dj-ing, it was a great way for them to make their mark.

Despite being in their infancy, there was a striking level of polish to their set. The level between the album and their live performance was minimal and, in front woman Sarah Cogan, they have an icon in the making. Her Harriet Wheeler-esque vocals carried a soaking wet London to far sunnier climates.

Lead guitarist Dylan Frankland took his turn to sparkle on the sumptuous ‘Midnight’ and the driving shoegaze of ‘Trains and Snow’. Despite their moments in the spotlight, there was no ego on stage just pure gang mentality.

So much of their set is littered with pop hooks, be it vocally or on the guitar. By the end, it felt inevitable a big break through is coming this summer for Tallies. The shimmering guitars on ‘Beat The Heart’ or the pop perfect ‘Mother’ were so delicious, binge eating beckons.

When you consider the success of Australia’s DMA’s in the UK with their re-imagining of late 80s and early 90s British music, this might well be a rare small gig for Tallies in the UK.  

*Image courtesy of Sonic Cathedral

Friday 2nd August marks our 8th birthday. Come down to the New Cross Inn for a night of great live music. Tickets available here: