Gallus ‘Cool To Drive’
Two years on from their debut album ‘We Don’t Like The People We’ve Become’, Gallus are back with a new EP – and it finds them sharper, tighter and punchier than ever before. Produced by Dead Pony’s Blair Crichton, ‘Cool To Drive’ features five songs that can barely be contained – they explode with scuzzy punk energy and biting hooks from the very get-go, bringing their punk, alt-rock and post-punk influences to the fore with more groove and gusto. From the eccentric opening title track, inspired by Richard Hillman of Coronation Street no less, the band set a fast and furious pace and it never lets up. The writing feels sharper, the melodies feel catchier and it’s bursting with a freeing, infectious spirit.
On the title track they detail the deteriorating mental stability of fictional narrator against brazen guitar work and pummelling drums, while the Hives-esque ‘Depressed Beyond Tablets’ deals with the realisation that life’s more profound problems can’t be masked by temporary fixes or pills – with more than a hint of sardonic wit. ‘Perfect Health’ and ‘Just Desserts’ are huge – boasting massive, arena-sized choruses with plenty of groove and snarl thrown into the potent mix – before the shout-along ‘It Bit’ closes in fiery, frenetic fashion. ‘Cool To Drive’ is perhaps the finest example of them capturing the essence of their renowned live shows – and it’s all the better for it. Brimming with spirit and personality, it’s a triumphant return from the Glasgow punks. Catch them at Oran Mor next Friday on 18th April.
Katie Gregson MacLeod ‘Mosh Pit’
Katie Gregson-MacLeod has shared details of a new EP titled ‘Love Me Too Well, I’ll Retire Early’. A project that sees her return to her roots, she say: “It’s a project that celebrates smallness, as that was how I could best understand love and music at the time.” The news has been accompanied by new single ‘Mosh Pit’ – a beautifully stripped back track that finds comfort in the simple, everyday moments of a relationship. She says: “I began writing ‘Mosh Pit’ after a Tigercub gig in Islington. Love doesn’t necessarily lend itself to the grand statements and emotional admissions that heartache evokes for me. I could write albums just taking a stab at articulating the feeling of being in this relationship in some great emotional terms, but really all I need to understand it for myself is picturing ‘my dress on your washing line’”.
Vertige ‘Blue’
Introducing Vertige, an exciting new band to emerge from Glasgow’s fertile music scene. With a few gigs under their belt already, the four-piece have shared their debut single ‘Blue’ – a hypnotic, alluring introduction that showcases heaps of potential. Produced by Ryan Caldwell and Ciaran Devlin, the creative heads of Fauves, the track channels the spacey, atmospheric sounds of King Krule and Cocteau Twins – opening with bright, dreamy melodies that form the backdrop to the frontman’s ruminative lyrics and self-reflection. As uncertainty takes hold of the narrator, the track becomes increasingly fervent – with the band saying “Blue is about everything being wrong in a moment where everything should be right, and the effects that lead to an uncanny feeling.” It’s a carefully crafted, quietly addictive introduction that indicates a bright future ahead.
Man/Woman/Chainsaw ‘Adam & Steve’
Described by many os one of the most exciting bands in London right now, Man/Woman/Chainsaw have shared a new single “Adam & Steve”, as part of a special one-off with So Young Records. Recorded by Geordie Greep producer Seth Evans and Margo Broom at RAK Studios and featuring verses shared between dual vocalists Billy Ward and Vera Leppänen, the song is their most immediate and melodic yet, full of a longing for what might be lost. They said:“We wrote Adam & Steve last year and it’s our own bittersweet take on the heart-on-sleeve love song. It comes from a place of wanting to find a little fairy tale escapism in modern romance.”
For Nina ‘Hounds’
Dublin’s For Nina are fast becoming one of Ireland’s most exciting emerging bands – and their new single “Hounds“ might be their strongest statement yet. Building on a year of rapid momentum – including a packed-out debut show at Whelan’s and a sold-out headline at Dublin’s Workman’s Club – “Hounds” finds the three-piece stepping confidently into their next chapter. Pairing driving guitars with blistering drums and a chorus dripping in youthful uncertainty, the track channels the raw chaos of navigating your twenties.
Full of grit and heart, they said of the track: “The track came out of nothing really. We were just jamming out over the main riff and then everything seemed to click and within half-an-hour we had the song. We wrote the chorus in a way that hopefully highlights the uncertain chaos of being ‘twenty-something. We were in a tricky place with our college course at the time and the feelings manifested themselves within the song. At least those feelings led to something good!”
See the full playlist here:
