22-20’s what happened? You could have been big and I mean massive big, you had huge songs you had an amazing debut album which had just as good b-sides and you decided you didn’t want to play blues infused music anymore and quit, mental! Anyway this cut from their debut is one of the heavier songs and a corker of a single, but it’s on b-side ‘Cut You Down’ that the band truly shine with a stomping blues infused rocker that leaves you gawping at the sheer talent of it all.
Third single this year from one of the best new bands I've heard in quite some time, don't get me wrong, there's some amazing bands out at the moment, but there's something special about Hyena that tells me they're going to get much bigger. Having caught them live at this years Camden Rocks festival, they laid waste to the tiny Stillery early in the day and were the best band of the day in my opinion and i also saw Dolomite Minor and The St. Pierre Snake Invasion that day! At that point i'd already heard the excellent debut single 'Mental Home' and it's follow up 'Come Down To Hilo' both crammed full of energy and melody not mixed this good since the great 90's days of Sub Pop and Amphetamine Reptile. However Hyena don't tread old ground like some grunge copyists I've been hearing lately, they sound like an undiscovered gem from that era that you've just come across and can't believe your luck. Latest single 'Forget My Name' takes what they've done so far and ramps it up a few more notches further, even louder more immediate riffs, massive melodies, huge chorus... it's got the lot. As usual link below to soundcloud page, discover the next big thing and tell 'em happydays sent you.
Yeah Amy Winehouse did a cover of it and everyone loved it, The Zutons owned it and did a way better version IMO anyway. So what you get here is a complete classic that hasn’t been Mark Ronson’d or raped of all originality and talent as I like to call it and an even bigger catchier flipside in the bouncy as hell ‘Get Up and Dance’ which shows when The Zutons were on form there was no touching them.
I saw a recent news item in the NME that claimed that Alex James from Blur had announced that independent music was dead and his cheese business was the way to go, who knows if it was actually true i have a feeling they lie a lot over there, why am i bringing this up? Good question, time to introduce another stupendous new independent band Vulgarians, who join the ranks of many more amazing bands emerging these days such as The Wytches, Eagulls, The Fat White Family, Post War Glamour Girls, Hyena and many many more. Bands of this ilk are proving that there's still hope out there, cutting their teeth on previous demo's 'Autocratic' and 'Naturally Nothing', they now unleash their official debut 'Wet Juice' showing that we can expect great things from these Hull based noise rockers, the link to download for free is below, yes all for the princely sum of fuck all. Like a hybrid of Nirvana jamming with early-mid The Horrors shot through with a strong post-punk leaning, this gives me hope for the future, Alex James, smell my cheese!
Jesus Christ this band should have been huge! The same energy and recklessness that you found from AC/DC in their early days, with a brilliant use of female side vocals added to the mix. ‘Mouthful Of Love’ comes at you literally like a juggernaut of sweaty rock n’ roll and leaves you collapsed on the floor drenched in your own sweat and spent alone it would be enough. But we have more to come in the just as thrilling yet more melodious ‘Over And Over’ it makes it a crime that you can get the first album by this band in pound shops, fucking shocking!
Anyone who knows me or reads this blog knows that I’m a huge Ginger Wildheart fan and that no list will be done without featuring him somewhere, this list is no exception. Debut single proper after the Mondo-Akimbo A-Go-Go EP and Don’t Be Happy… Just Worry EP, ‘Greetings From Shitsville’ is an anthem and a half, massive riffs, huge melodies and chorus, filthy mouthed it ticks all the boxes as does b-side ‘And The Bullshit Goes On’ which deserves a much bigger audience as it could easily been the a-side. Any band wanting to know how to write the perfect balance of Power-pop and Heavy Rock needs to check out this and the album it came from, pure genius!
Insanely good video and song from Heck aka the artist formally known as Baby Godzilla, who were one of this sites bands of the week eons ago, just shows you how on the ball Happy Days really is, anyway this is the forthcoming single due October 30th from an album that will hopefully appear at some point. Excellent stuff!
Another great debut single proper from an even better debut album, The View’s early records shone with a ramshackle charm and youthful abandon that they don’t seem to have been able to replicate on future releases. ‘Wasted Little DJ’s’ could have been much bigger if wasn’t overshadowed by future single ‘Same Jeans’ which is a shame because ‘Wasted…’ is the better of the two and deserved a lot more credit. On the flipside we have the chaotic ‘Posh Boys’ showing how true it is, you’ll never hear posh boys play with this kind of passion.
Yet another massively underrated band and another great debut and again on the best UK label in the 90’s Fierce Panda, if they released your first record you were generally destined to go onto better things. Ultrasound did get some good press before splitting but not as much as they deserved. ‘Same Band’ is an big indie anthem but ‘Floodlit World’ is the best song here and my favourite of theirs altogether, soaring melodies and great male/female entwined vocals.
There was a time when Travis did indeed rock, in fact their debut album was chock full of bouncy indie rock anthems, then they went all dull. Not only were their singles huge and catchy like this one but the early b-sides in some cases were actually better, ‘Blue On A Black Weekend’ sounds like something you’d find on their duller boring albums but it’s actually another perfect slice of pop-rock like it’s a-side.
The first record I picked up from Leeds own Sunshine Underground and still my favourite, TSU are one of those bands that everyone I took to see them live ended up loving them and this single shows exactly why, both cuts are available on their first album and both showcase the soaring vocals and infectious beats that made their first album a must own. Not many people will have heard this record but its head and shoulders above all the other indie/dance bands that were around at the time.
