ALBUMS AND DEMOS | APRIL
ALUN GAFFEY ***
Llyfrau Hanes (Côsh)
The second solo album from Alun Gaffey, ex-guitarist of Aberystwyth’s Race Horses, is a funky affair. With a mixture of smooth vocals, jazzy beats, poppy tunes and rocky rhythms, Llyfrau Hanes has a bit of an identity crisis. As a non-Welsh speaker, I can only wish I knew what he was singing about (save for occasional snippets of English-language vocals): languages you don’t speak can function almost as another instrument on record, one which can blend in or jar. LN
THE COSMIC ARRAY ****
Goldilocks (SWND)
This Welsh country/psych band’s ‘artistic statement’ opens with a melodic instrumental but what follows are songs which are more downbeat. Vocals only occasionally rise above their even tone, but when they do the album is all the more enjoyable for it. Blah, Blah, Blah and There In A Heartbeat are catchy little numbers, while Creatures and We Just Want To Let You Know have a strong 60s vibe. This is definitely worth a second chance. LN
DREAM NAILS ****
Dream Nails (Alcopop!)
These self-described ‘punk witches’, known for millennial anthems with lyrics such as “Nobody cares if your dick’s on fire,” and “Cookies for you – you’re not a rapist,” have moved towards a more radio-friendly indie sound. The raucous punk energy is still there, however, and the lyrics, while hardly profound, will resonate with young women who have a spirit for protest and queer feminist rhetoric. Catch them live, though, to experience them at their riotous best. IT
ENTER SHIKARI *****
Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible (So)
Fusing the electronic, the alternative and mature composition, this may be Enter Shikari’s most realised album. The King and The Great Unknown create an abrasive sense of tension while The Dreamers Hotel and Crossing The Rubicon entice with glorious melodies and irresistible hooks. From the classic rock vibes of Modern Living… to the beautiful orchestral on Elegy For Extinction, experiments are sprinkled throughout. It may be a controversial one for long term fans; open your mind though, and everything is possible. AS
ES *****
Less Of Everything (Upset The Rhythm)
Brutal and direct, Es’ debut album is a gothy synth-punk triumph. It ticks every box. Maria Cecilia Tedemalm’s vocals are stark and detached like Kim Gordon’s, spouting absurdist lyrics that still kick. Katy Cotterell’s bass explodes like shrapnel, forcing the melody under your skin. Flora Watters’ synth is set to ice blast, covering the album with a gothic sheen. Tamsin M. Leach’s drums are relentless. Less Of Everything is short, sharp, and stripped, minimalist yet raging. It’s good. Es are good. SE
HARKIN ****
Harkin (Hand Mirror)
Little wonder Katie Harkin’s debut solo LP has been a long time coming. Since she was first talking about it, in 2015, the multi-instrumentalist has aided and abetted the efforts of everyone from Wild Beasts and Courtney Barnett to Waxahatchee and childhood heroes Sleater-Kinney. Harkin’s indie rock – sparkling and sweet, with a complex lingering aftertaste – bears sonic similarities to the latter two, but, as the line “I’m not living my life for you” on closer Charm And Tedium implies, this is a bold declaration of independence. BW
JACKIE LYNN ****
Jacqueline (Drag City)
One of those albums which, by virtue of coming from a quote-unquote experimental musician, will probably be consumed near-exclusively by people whose tastes lean that way, while being inviting and accessible enough to appeal to a wide audience. Jackie Lynn is a character devised by Hayley Mohr, who also records cosmic droney stuff as Circuit Des Yeux, and who on Jacqueline has turned that character into a truck driver who burns up the American highways to a soundtrack of glittering synthpop and countrified new wave. NG
KATATONIA ****
City Burials (Peaceville)
A mixture of indieish vocals, progressive rock lyrics and classic rock guitars, the 11th album from Sweden’s Katatonia is the best of all worlds, and far removed from their death metal roots. Jonas Renkse sings of kings and queens, hearts and thunder – his gentle voice is at its best when it blends and soars with the music on tracks such as Lacquer, the single, and Behind The Blood. Not so much a concept album but an interesting collection of moments. LN
THE LOVELY EGGS *****
I Am Moron (Egg)
A hefty serving of essential Lancastrian punk-pop with an electric side serving. Coming back full of attitude, and no lack of sarcastic and funny sneering (Anthea Turner, look out!), Holly Ross and David Blackwell have been essential listening for a long time and now have an added dimension courtesy of producer Dave Fridmann. Lead-off release This Decision is a perfect example, and sports an excellent video from Cardiff’s Casey Raymond. Always fresh, never rotten, ideas not poached from elsewhere but personally laid. Benedict. JE
MARIBOU STATE ***
Fabric Presents (Fabric)
There’s a certain comfort in the knowledge that venerable London club Fabric is still chucking out mix albums: rebooted in 2019 as Fabric Presents, Maribou State is their 205th. And it’s the classic DJ mix journey, starting all sultry and slow before getting harder and faster towards the end (much like making love to a beautiful woman). We take in dusty disco and house shufflers, going global in the mid-section with Kiki Gyan’s Ghanian funk and the German 80s electro of Supersempffts. Rinse and repeat. SE
100% Yes (Decca)
Boot And Spleen ignites Melt Yourself Down’s third album with the lines “Speak in English I hear them say / Getting ready to get out of school”, a colonial-era Indian cousin to Madness’ Baggy Trousers. Vocalist Kush Gaya intones like a cyberman about social media fixations on Every Single Day over a curdling acid coda; Crocodile, with its growling synths, breakbeats and Pete Wareham’s insistent sax is like Chemical Brothers at their most vital. The title track is a six-minute tripnotic quest, but in between there are unsuccessful forays into triphop and UK garage. CS
MILK TEETH ****
Milk Teeth (Sony)
Very pleased to see the new self-titled record from Stroud trio Milk Teeth appear in my inbox this month, as the punk trio have been causing quite a stink in the scene over the last year or so, and it’s easy to see why. There’s a strong early Nirvana/Steve Albini feel, with pounding drums, bass-heavy riffs and distorted guitars, while singer Becky Blomfield channels the likes of Keli Mayo or even Louise Post with her powerful vocal style. It’s the 90s, but for now. CA
THE NECKS ****
Three (Northern Spy)
It’s the magic number for this Aussie avant-jazz trio, going for over 30 years. They mark the occasion with this triptych of expansive, instrumental post-rock, each part lasting around 20 minutes. Bloom zooms along like a Ferrari through an endless tunnel, its multi-rhythmic patterns overlaid with slower piano chords. Lovelock plunges into a transcendental state of grief, while Further provides a slinking, groove-laden finale, with washes of piano, bass, organ and clattering percussion. This is one to disappear into completely. SP
Deleted Scenes (Castle Face)
Last time I checked in on these arch Oaklanders and their dazzling teeth (I assume), they were pushing a crisply smooth, so-chirpy-it’s-cynical sound equal parts powerpop, prog and yacht rock. Deleted Scenes, their second album, still sounds forged in the fire of the early to mid-70s – the licence-to-print-money biz boom bit, not the warring grimness of the outside world – but is even more set on pop purism, with Mellotrons, layered harmonies and ELO homages galore. Nine-minute closer The End And The Beginning is your classic “take us freshfaced popkids more seriously please!” gambit. NG
THE ORB ****
Abolition Of The Royal Familia (Cooking Vinyl)
The Orb’s anti-establishment stance shows no sign of diminishing, with their 17th album partly inspired by the damage caused by the royal family’s historical endorsement of the East India Company’s opium trade. Abolition Of The Royal Familia kicks off with a couple of awesome Brit-funk style bangers that set the ball rolling nicely for the album to slip into Blade Runner meets Augustus Pablo territory, with many dub-injected Brixton bassbin slayers and ambient Orb gems to be heard here. DN
PEARL JAM *****
Gigaton (Republic)
We start off hearing that classic Pearl Jam sound, with Who Ever Said and Superblood Wolfmoon proving danceable, guitar-led and anthemic. Soon, their experimental side sets in with Alright and Retrograde making use of electronics, acoustics and unconventional grooves. Eddie Vedder and co. are on top form, performing with a sense of dynamism and precision. Soundwise, this is a different kind of album from one of rock’s most notable acts; however, after a five-year absence, the reinvention feels brave and invigorating. AS
PORRIDGE RADIO *****
Every Bad (Secretly Canadian)
Born from Brighton’s DIY scene, Porridge Radio almost immediately became a staple in the local gig circuit. Since their 2016 debut, Dana Margolin has ripped her vocals out from beneath the once-murky instrumentation, unlocking anguished and dusky qualities that adds diversity to the trio’s somewhat monochromatic sound. Spiky riffs and empowering lyrics remain, but they’ve been massaged into something that seems set to be gobbled up by music publications, festival organisers and indie enthusiasts alike. AP
RUSTIN MAN ****
Clockdust (Domino)
Thankfully, there has not been another 17-year wait for a new album by Paul Webb, aka Rustin Man. Clockdust is released just two years after the contemporary beauty Drift Code; in fact, the two albums were made in tandem, and this one is a cinematic, sparse-sounding record that evokes both Kurt Weill and Brian Eno’s soundscapes. Clockdust is a must-have for anyone that started the journey with Drift Code and doesn’t want it to end. DN
SOUL ASYLUM ***
Hurry Up And Wait (Blue Élan)
Business as usual for the Minneapolis boys whose breakout hit Runaway Train, all those years ago, is still a good indication of style and standard. There is some real energy behind the upbeat offerings, like the shoutalong Got It Pretty Good, and it would be churlish to deny their gift for writing a good melody. But the lyrics are just too mundane to be taken seriously with the worst hook lines, see I’ve Done A Lot Of Silly Things, being repeated ad nauseum. JPD
SUNWATCHERS *****
Oh Yeah? (Trouble In Mind)
This New York band, now on their fourth album, still show few signs of being more than a marginal, basement-jamming concern, but then they do funnel radical left politics into a soup of free jazz, Turkish psych and tranced-out post-hardcore. Nevertheless, Sunwatchers remain a fully essential hairball of transcendental energy on Oh Yeah?, its six songs concluding with the side-long The Earthsized Thumb and reminding me of prime times spent with the similarly small-concern Stinking Lizaveta and The USAisamonster in the mid-00s. NG
TĒTĒMA ***
Necroscape (Ipecac)
There are four musicians on the second album by Tētēma, but the project is jointly helmed by Australian electroacoustic composer Anthony Pateras and Mike Patton, fusionist of high and low culture in Faith No More and multiple other projects. Going on the description, Pateras’ production chiefly drives the sound – strange, mutating synth worlds with avant-classical and heavy rock flourishes – but Patton’s vocals tend to overwhelm the subtleties, so your views on those will largely inform your views on this. NG
DEMOS
FOXXGLOVE
This debut release by Foxxglove – Cardiff-based solo artist Ffion Murray – reminds me of Karou, who I reviewed in this section a few months back. Or rather, of what I said about her: likely a studied effort to tap into that ‘grownup music that the kids like’ consciousness (Eilish, Del Rey etc), but a well-crafted one. City is about moving to a city and getting your act together, a textbook #relatable subject, and develops from moody, navelgazing verses to elated choruses with electronic strings. NG
THE WOODSMAN
This trio have already been sampling the pleasures of multiple formats, with releases on tape and (ooh la la) lathe, but latest five-song CD Castle Of Unrest is my introduction to The Woodsman, a trio whose roots are in the early-00s Valleys youth club pop-punk scene. This, appropriately, is a bit darker, more mature you might say: crunchy, glowering noiserock with industrial metal and post-hardcore elements, in the vein of Therapy? or, to use a reference I daresay The Woodsman are the right age and location to understand, Cardiff’s erstwhile Nameless. NG
HAARP
The leaden pall continues through these two debut songs by Haarp, a Cardiff duo who’ve clocked up a few bands past and present but have rarely seemed eager to soundtrack a party. Built around doomsday-clock drum machine, chilly, echoing basslines and submerged vocals, not certain who of Matt Short and Danny Parsons is playing what, but the latter’s good if shortlived project Night Thoughts was along similar grounds: coldwave of the post-Joy Division, 80s, often Belgian kind but neat in any decade. NG
words CHRIS ANDREWS, JOHN-PAUL DAVIES, SAM EASTERBROOK, JUSTIN EVANS, NOEL GARDNER, LYNDA NASH, DAVID NOBAKHT, ALEX PAYNE, SAM PRYCE, CHRIS SEAL, ALEX SWIFT, IZZY THOMAS, BEN WOOLHEAD
Es photo MAX WARREN
