New Music: Holly Macve - Heartbreak Blues

Judging by the occasional comment I get on the blog I know that a few of my regular readers really dislike it, no I’d go further and say really HATE it, when I post songs by artists performing country music. As yet that level of hate hasn’t motivated anyone to start an online petition requesting the government to debate its possible removal from the blog, but still, the hate is real. So for those of you who get angry about such things, please take this as A COUNTRY MUSIC WARNING.

For the rest of you, here’s the latest from Holly Macve, taken from her album Golden Eagle released March 3rd. With all the right country twangs and slides, this dejected beauty has all the trademarks of something emanating from the southern states of the USA, even if the reality is that Holly is from the UK. Grab a slice of her Heartbreak Blues, which topically mentions building walls, although I suspect they’re very different from the one that Trump wants to make.

Holly Macve - Heartbreak Blues

New Music: Introducing : Diving Station

Diving Station are Anna, Sean, George and Barnabas from Manchester and those of you with a good ear and memory might just remember Anna from a past lost battle and an old blog post on Breaking More Waves. She has the sort of voice that is just immediately endearing; an enchanting thing that delicately magnetises, binding together the concoction of harp and sprawling guitars that make up the Diving Station sound.

Across six tracks on their debut EP, they lovingly create the sort of music that is likely to find favour with those who like to take the map, toss it out of the window and let the songs go on their own journey. At worst this can conjure up images of yawnsomely boring improvised jam sessions, but thankfully there’s still plenty of structure in the songs. 

They’re very old fashioned sounding; elements of their music wouldn’t be out of place on a 1970’s prog rock or folk record, but they also reference Radiohead and Bon Iver, so there’s a sense of modern contemporary experimental thought there as well; although there’s no nod towards electronic music – this is all very organic sounding. In fact, Diving Station have a near back to nature quality about them, with opening instrumental title track Alice featuring the gentle burbling of a stream alongside the harp picking. 

From the EP, I’m streaming Plastic People, a song that goes from tiny beautiful beginnings to something that dares to wig out a little and then some more. Can someone get this band to play a gig on the south coast please? I want to see this live.

You can buy their EP by clicking here.

Diving Station - Plastic People

New Music: Skott - Glitter & Gloss

The general consensus amongst people who like pop music, and even some that don’t, is that it’s lost its sense of adventure and that streaming, algorithms, songwriters and producers working to a safe formula are partly to blame. Thankfully there are songs like Skott’s Glitter & Gloss to remind you that there are people out there still trying a bit. 

The first six seconds of this tune are brilliant. It sounds like a weird distressed electronic elephant. Thankfully the sound doesn’t just occur in the first six seconds, it occurs at least seven times more, with the later ones being super extended versions.

Then there are children singing on the record. Slightly creepy sounding kids that sound as if they’ve been watching too much American Horror Story in the shadows and listening to the Let’s Eat Grandma album (now there’s an adventurous pop record).  

It is, all in all, a very good; the sort of song I hope Lorde returns with (imagine a Lorde and Skott duet – that would be worth seeing). It’s why I tipped her as One to Watch for 2017 (here) and to prove a point, I’ll be following my own advice and doing exactly that, for the second time, when she plays in London in March.

Skott - Glitter & Gloss

New Music: Night Games - Replicant

As someone who has a day job that is involved in the design and construction of buildings, I’ve always been fascinated by how the architecture of a music venue affects a gig – from the sound to the band’s performance to the audience reaction. So, when I read that electronic pop duo Night Games are due to play a show in the unusual venue of the gothic St Pancras Clock Tower in London next week I immediately booked a ticket. The fact that the band have now released a string of excellent and seemingly always improving electronic pop singles is a bonus.

The latest, Replicant is produced by Bryan Wilson (no, not that Brian Wilson – that really would be something) and sounds like the band have swallowed chill pill a tiny bit early on a Friday night when they are still out raving. Yes, it’s basically an understated banger. Is that even possible? It evidently is.

Tickets for Night Games clock tower gig on 2nd February are available from Dice (click here).

Night Games - Replicant