The Everglows - Let It Out

Hello amigos. It's been another long while, hasn't it? Whilst I know the blog has taken something of a backseat over recent months, it doesn't mean I haven't missed it, or been thinking of ways to start up again. Life's just got in the way for all the wrong reasons and it's been a long slog of a winter.

Happily, I'm back for a one off posting and it's good to be featuring an absolute favourite of mine - The Everglows, who, as many of you know are a band I've featured a lot on these pages and admire greatly. You can read alllllll my previous mentions of them here, and treat yourselves to some of their back catalogue.

You can Twitterise the band here:

twitter.com/theeverglows

You can have a look at their Soundcloud here:

soundcloud.com/theeverglows

You can find their Bandcamp page here:

https://theeverglows.bandcamp.com/

They're back with a brand new single called "Let It Out" and it's an absolute corker of a number to get you in the mood for the lighter nights and hopefully better weather that's around the corner. Have yourself a little listen to it: https://soundcloud.com/theeverglows/let-it-out.

It's got a brilliantly catchy hook to it (something these guys are really good at) and a rocky,earthy guitar sound which makes the track rollock on at a fair old pace. Slightly reminiscent of Riverboat Song in feel and time signature, the rhythm of the guitar flows in the same way. It's the sort of pattern I love in music, repetitive, deeply catchy and all-too-easy to get stuck in your head after just one listen.

This, as all the band's other tracks are, is really worth a listen - and I implore you to go and revisit the guy's back catalogue for a treasure trove of brilliantly memorable psychedelia.

Make "Let It Out" an essential part of your Spring playlist - I know I will! The band will be releasing an album (I believe) in the not too distant future - if this is the standard they're setting, it bodes really well for the future...

Mutes - Inertia

Hello again, gentle blog readers. It's been another while, hasn't it? There's been an awful lot of awful going on Chez TheGeneral and time has somewhat slipped away in a haze of something unmentionable (clue: life has been a breadless shit sandwich)

Nearly a month has passed without so much as a murmur, but I'm back again (briefly) to bring you glad tidings of great joy about a brand new EP from a wonderful act I've featured on here more than once.

If you're a regular visitor to this page (HI MUM I CAN SEE YOU!) you'll recognise the amazing Mutes who I've written about a fair bit. That's because I love them so. And I want you to as well.

James from the group is just about to release his 3rd solo EP called "Inertia", and the band's 4th in total. It comes out on 23rd February.

First of all, the necessaries:

The band's Twitter:

twitter.com/mutesmutesmutes

The band's Facebook

facebook.com/mutesuk

The band's Bandcamp

mutesuk.bandcamp.com/

I've been lucky enough to get a preview of "Inertia" this week and it's every bit as brilliant as I hoped it would be. It's a perfect mix of guitars, synths and shoegazy-breathiness.

Lead track from the EP is called "Less Existence" and if you go to their bandcamp page (linky above), you can stream and pre-order this track, like, now, dudes. I love the harmonies in it and the gentle repetition - it's got such a breezy depth to it and a feeling of space. The synths in it are just dinkily perfect and offer a great catchy hook.

The other main highlight on the EP for me, is "Soft Spots", which is simply beautiful - with its haunting guitar pick, and again, some dreamy, ethereal harmonies. This is real memory music, it's something to treasure and revel in. Every time you listen, you'll hear something new - and the EP bears repeated visits to get to the heart of it.

In total there are 6 tracks on this collection and every one offers something slightly different to the one before. Put 23rd February in your diaries and get this beauty downloaded - it's essential Spring listening!

Shamu - Dive

Hello. A blog post from me these days is rarer than a bacon roll at a barmitzvah, but I'm once again just poking my head above the musical parapet to bring you glad tidings of great joy and a wonderful new single from two of my favourite chaps ever.

Last year when north east boy wonders TUSK split, I was more than a little bit sad, and I did wonder if we'd ever hear from the guys again, but I was absolutely made up to hear that Jonathan and Sam from the band had gone on to form a new duo called Shamu.

Good things come to those who wait and today sees the release of their debut single "Dive". Before we go any further, here are all the necessaries:

Bandcamp:

shamu.bandcamp.com/

Spotify

spotify.com/track/0gd0BUsSs3QmCR02pVyKew

iTunes

itun.es/gb/MW33_?i=1071611171

Deezer

deezer.com/album/12089324

Facebook

facebook.com/shamuisaband/

Twitter

twitter.com/shamuband

And here you can see the video for the song:

It's a brilliant, brilliant first release and showcases some fantastic, dubby beats, crystal clear mathy guitars (I LOVE MATH ROCK IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW) and a superb, slightly off kilter vocal. 

The trend at the moment seems to be melding electronica with more rocky based guitar sounds, and sometimes this results in an end product that doesn't quite work and can't quite make its mind up what it is. None of that here. There's a real attempt to fuse the two genres successfully which, for my money, works really beautifully. 

It kind of goes without saying I'm really looking forward to seeing how Shamu progress as an act - Jon and Sam have been really missed and this is such a welcome return. 

Go listen, watch and buy. At once. 

Nick Webb - The Downs

For the second blog of the day, I'm really pleased to be featuring a new artist who I have had the pleasure of featuring before, but not as you might recognise.

If you're a regular reader of the blog, you'll know way back at the end of 2013 I featured a wonderful group called Emperor the Stag. If you need a quick refresh, you can read my posts on them here

Fantasy to Bleak was a superb album and one that I listened to a lot during the months after its release.

A week or two back I was contacted by Nick Webb from the band who asked me if I'd consider giving his new track a bit of a play - I was more than happy to, and that is what I am featuring today.

First things first, here's a link to it:

nickwebb.bandcamp.com/track/the-downs

It's very very worth a listen. This feels quite a way removed from Emperor the Stag and their music. Nick's managed to put together a track here that is gently wistful and dreamy, with a richly understated vocal. Again, if you're a regular reader of these pages and you remember me reviewing a band called By Toutatis - Nick's music has a similar feel - read my posts on them here. The Downs has that kind of edge to it, with more of a guitar based sound. Again, just like my last post, this is the perfect antidote to Christmas music, but something that is eminently worth listening to right now and into the new year too. It's a nice, mellow sound, one to chill out to and forget the world.

I'd love it if you made this part of your December playlist and gave Nick your support - this is a brilliant song and I hope we hear more from him in the months to come.

The Everglows - Feet Walking

Good afternoon. Yes, it has been another month since thegeneral last graced your presence, and for that I am once again, truly sorry. Life really is what happens when you're making other plans. However, I am back for the first of two lightning strike entries (ooh er missus) today, which I hope you'll really love as much as I do.

Now then, up first are a band that I've championed for a long time on these pages and it really feels fitting I should be making a comeback by writing about them. It's a hearty welcome back to my lovely friends The Everglows and their excellent new track "Feet Walking".

Firstly, if you'd like to take a look at my previous posts on them, you can read on here. There are quite a few, but I make no apologies for that, as these guys are really worth writing about (and listening to).

So, here are the links to the places you can listen to and purchase their new single from:

theeverglows.bandcamp.com/

and

soundcloud.com/theeverglows/feet-walking

I highly recommend that you do.

Released in time for Christmas, this is just what I needed to hear at this stage in the year. It's actually really fresh, jingly and upbeat - the guitars are fantastic and as always, it's got that brilliantly 60s psychedelic vocal, slightly off kilter and uber cool. I kept thinking about the Happy Mondays when singer Andy Smith yelled "Hallelujah" half way through...nothing wrong with that, at all.

All the tracks these guys release seem to be instantly memorable - you only need one listen to get them stuck in your head -  to my mind that's one of the hallmarks of great music. This one is no exception. Utterly brilliant in it's composition and recording.

If you're jaded with festive music already and want something with a fresher edge to take you into the new year, I highly recommend making this single one that you purchase in the coming days. I love these chaps a lot - and I am really looking forward to hearing more from them in 2016. You should too.

Blast From The Past - Josef K

Today you're actually getting two blog posts for the price of one. Which, I think you'll agree, is better than a kick up the arse with an open toed sandal. 

I realised that I hadn't done a Blast From The Past post in a long while and of late I've had the pleasure of sort of re-discovering and thoroughly enjoying a brilliant Scottish post-punk band called Josef K.

Reason I say 'sort of' rediscovering is that I'd known about them for a long time, but never really taken the time to listen to them properly - and now I have I could kick myself for missing out on them for so long. 

So, who were they?

Well, they were formed in 1979 - and their work featured ostensibly on the DIY label Postcard records, run by the mercurial Alan Horne.

The band consisted of Paul Haig, Malcolm Ross, David Weddell and Ronnie Torrance and although they were only together for three short years, (79 thru 82), releasing one complete album in that time, they've greatly influenced many acts since.

To whet thy whistles, here is the track that got me into them - it's called 'Sorry For Laughing'

https://youtu.be/-VzcWv8qKQw

Isn't that just a big slice of fuckawesome?

I love the sound they make, the lo-fi feel and the interesting juxtaposition between what you hear and what you see. If you took that track in isolation and just listened to it, you'd think they were some moribund bunch of disaffected youths. Then you see them, and their appearance showed a lot more sprightly humour than you'd think. 

If you like their label mates Orange Juice (fronted by the sublime Edwyn Collins) then you'll like Josef K. They're sort of the serious older brother, that you find all dark and mysterious - then discover he's a right laugh underneath the cardigan and glasses. 

If you liked the previous track, have a listen to 'It's Kinda Funny'

http://youtu.be/XL5C7KVA0jA

This corking track was (I think) written about late Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis. It has that Divisionesque feel to it anyway, the bass at the beginning and the darkness of the vocal particularly reminiscent of him.

That's only two tracks. If you've liked what you've heard, I really recommend buying this anthology - which will introduce you to them some more:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Entomology-Josef-K/dp/B000I2IRLY

I've had this on a loop all week and can't stop playing it. Totally amazing.

The one album they released 'The Only Fun In Town' is there alongside a lot of shelved recordings - which are all so worth listening to.

OK, so just another short post, but I'd love it if at least one of my readers discovered Josef K and gave them a chance. I'd loved a lot of the Postcard Records stuff for a long time and regret leaving it so long to listen to, and fall in love with these guys. Brilliant stuff.

Apollo Junction - Born For Now

It's been a long time, dear reader (s). Well over a month. Tempus, as they say, doth verily fugit. I mentioned that I might not be blogging as much and that has sadly come true. I'm hoping I might be back more in the new year, but for now posts will still be sporadic. 

However, I am back today for a few short moments to let you know that one of my favourite acts from earlier in the year Leeds/London based Apollo Junction are back with a brand new song - and I really felt you all ought to know about it. 

First of all, here's my post on them from earlier in the year: here

And as always, I'd like to share with you all the necessaries before we begin.

Here's their twitter feed:

twitter.com/ApolloJunction

Here's their Facebookz:

facebook.com/ApolloJunction

Here's their website:

apollojunction.com/

And if ye clicketh the linky above, you'll be lucky enough to listen to/watch the new self made video for their new track 'Born For Now' - they're quite fit, you know :D

I wanted to give this a feature as it is a PERFECT slice of electro-indie pop and listening to it has really given an otherwise exceptionally dreary afternoon a lift. It's got a brilliant vibe to it - a real anthemic feel, that gives you a buzz, and believe me, I really need one right now.

I really rate these guys a lot - and it seems I'm not the only one, BBC Radio 2's Janice Long has played this ruddy brilliant track 6 times, and not just because the needle was stuck on the gramaphone either!

You'll be able to preorder from iTunes here: itunes.apple.com/us/album/born-for-now-single/ and I highly suggest you do.

If your Autumn playlist has got decidedly dull and grey - then get this. You will not regret it!