Sunday 31 March 2013

Wildlife - ...On The Heart

Album review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


It's been a while since we've had a big alt-rock album from North America. And by that we mean an album full of grand and ambitious songs that you can feel the blood, sweat and tears pouring from. An album that it's clear the band have put every last ounce of energy they could muster into. Arcade Fire have managed it on a stadium sized level, The Gaslight Anthem have taken the baton from Bruce Springsteen and held it like a beacon for the modern generation, a generation that finds rock music increasingly pushed to the sidelines. Toronto's Wildlife are staking a claim to be considered in the same bracket as such rock royalty. Time will tell whether this album is strong enough to do so, but it's aiming high.

This is driving rock 'n' roll music that's swollen with passion and pride and wears its heart on its sleeve. Wildlife deserve to be taken seriously, because they not only have the tunes, they don't compromise anything. There's no attempt here to write a chart hit or follow formulas to ensure radio play. Instead they take the songs they have and pour their heart and soul into them. You want anthemic? You won't get much more huge sounding than 'One For The Body', 'Born To Ruin' or 'Guillotine' without entering the world of garish mainstream rock. Yet there's much more to Wildlife than chest-beating powerpop. Humanity as a whole is made up of a number of emotions, an album that concentrates on just one wouldn't be so real; it wouldn't show the multiple aspects of life.

"You wanna break my heart in ten" is 'Don't Fear''s cry of desperation and it's every bit as real as when they sing "when two hearts race, they both win" on 'Two Hearts Race', a tale of salvation that closes the album. 'Dangerous Times' is perhaps as close as they come to a pop-crossover but again those vocals mean every intense line they scream. Much will depend on how widespread the coverage of '...On The Heart' is, but they should be considered to have stepped up a level here. If you're looking around the world of alternative music for genuine inspiration and a band to put your faith in amidst the sea of posing scenesters and bandwagon-jumpers, then the second offering from Wildlife could be just what you've been waiting for.




Wildlife's website

Stream or buy the album





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The Winter Tyres - Tired Of Winter EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Have this trio of Belgians hit upon the perfect EP to encapsulate what we're all thinking in one handy six-song package? A bit like how 'Umbrella' by Rihanna stayed at number one for most of the wettest summer we'd had for years a while ago? We think they have it in a nutshell, and we also think they have possible psychic abilities for releasing a record with that name and that cover at the start of April. Take that, Met Office! In truth the songs themselves don't particularly focus on the weather, they're not British (although some songs were written by Brian from The Bordellos) so they probably don't feel the need to mention all thing meteorological at every given moment. No, The Winter Tyres instead sing lo-fi, acoustic indie tunes with a nod to 60s pop.

There's no real big lead-track here, all half a dozen are pretty much on a par with each other. It's the melodies that lead the parade, and with such a simplistic arrangement they need to be strong. This is particularly noticeable on 'Stuck On A Memory Of You', the twinkling 'Setting Sun' and the equally twinkling 'The Boy Next Door'. 'Sparking Eyes' relies on raising the tempo to keep a decent amount of vitality flowing. You'll be hard pushed to find a song as sweet and sad at the same time as 'Impossible'. 'Tired Of Winter' isn't en EP that will blow your mind, but then it's not trying to. The aim here is for pure, simple pop songs that are good enough to be presented without airbrushing or make-up, and that's something that's achieved with flying colours.



The Winter Tyres' website

Stream or buy the EP





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MyLyricalMind - Drop Me A Line

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


People like to have categories and dividing lines between different kinds of music, when in reality the scope of what's out there would be better represented by a massive smudge as all the genres intertwine and cross over each other. When does hard-rock become metal for example? Yeah, genres are rubbish but we still use them. When does alt-folk become dreampop for example? Well, we'd say right about here, on this single from MyLyricalMind, the solo project of 22-year-old Mancunian Matt Wood.

He has a few tracks available and an EP called 'A Quiet Hurricane' from which this song is taken. He describes himself as an acoustic artist and the spine of this song is an acoustic guitar. But add some strings, layered production and generally add flesh to the bones and you arrive at what we'd describe as dream-folk. 'Drop Me A Line' is a very good song for starters, and when you add Wood's voice which is distinctive and highly likable, and produce it in such a way as this, then a good song becomes even better. Top marks for not being another dull acoustic busker like half the stuff that finds its way to our inbox.



MyLyricalMind's website

Buy the single

Catch him live:

MyLyricalMind @ Nancy Bordellos - Newcastle
Sunday, April 14, 2013 at 8:00pm
MyLyricalMind @ Chambers - Tynemouth
Monday, April 15, 2013 at 8:00pm
MyLyricalMind @ The Constitution (Camden) - London
Friday, April 19, 2013 at 10:00pm
MyLyricalMind @ Headlander Festival
Saturday, June 22, 2013 Stockport RUFC
MyLyricalMind @ Music in the mill 2013
Saturday, July 20, 2013, New Mills





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Black Manila - Shake That Thing

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


These guys are already beginning to make a bit of a splash and they're still in the process of writing their debut album. The first few singles have already led to a European tour and a rapidly growing fanbase. Black Manila released their first single in 2011, so they've had a couple of years to perfect their garage-punk sound, a sound that recalls the rougher garage bands of the 1960s. You can hear traces of The Iguanas and even The Monks, as well as the proto-punk of Johnathan Richman.

It curious that their name begins with the word "Black", because as far as current groups go, this trio share much in common with The Black Lips. Maybe they could be considered a UK equivalent, as new single 'Shake That Thing' is strong enough to stand up to most tracks that their US counterparts have released. It's definitely an addictive little number. With so many dates booked it would suggest a confidence in their live ability, so we'd recommend catching them if you can, and we're already anticipating that album. One of the best and shabbiest new garage bands we've heard for a while.



Black manila's website

'Shake That Thing' is available on 7" on April 1st from RIP Records

Catch them live:

3rd April, Maddame Moustache, Brussels (Belgium)
4th April, Ecuyes, Caen (France)
5th April, Pub Murrayfield, Bourges (France)
6th April, Cafe Pompiere, Bordeaux (France)
7th April, Ibu Hots, Vitoria (Spain)
8th April, TBA
9th April, Le Stakhanov, Nantes (France)
10th April, Au Singe En Hiver, Le Mans (France)
11th April, Howlin Banana, Paris (France)
12th April, L'Emporium Galorium, Rouen (France)
13th April, Belvadere, Namur (Begium)
15th April, White Trash, Berlin (Germany)
16th April, Prinz Willy, Kiel (Germany)
17th April, Lilla Hotellbaren, Stockholm (Sweden)
18th April, Drone, Copenhagen (Denmark)
19th April, Radar, Aarhus (Denmark)





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Esther Maria - Arms Above

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Maybe the punk and hardcore explosion currently happening in Denmark needs an antidote, and maybe that antidote is Esther Maria. Following a debut EP in 2009, she and her band hit the studio with producer Mark Kramer to work on an album. Should the name not be familiar to you, if we were to say that Kramer has in the past worked on records with Low, Daniel Johnston and Galaxie 500, then you should get a few pointers as to the sonic realm they entered into. Ensuing album, 'The Abyss' is now available, and lifted from it the the gorgeous 'Arms Above'.

If you were to take just a touch of the fuzz away from Galaxie 500 then you can imagine the results sounding very similar. This is a spacious and expansive track; unhurried, with each note and each word given the time it needs and the guitar backed by the gentlest of drones which brings an edge to the song, enough to save it from ever considering settling into mediocrity. This is cosy and slightly ethereal dreampop that gives a nod to Mazzy Star, as well as the aforementioned Low. Thanks to Esther Maria, anyone wanting a break from the abrasive sounds of Iceage and their like will have a wonderfully gentle option that avoids the middle of the road, instead parking itself at the opposite end of the alternative music spectrum.



Esther Maria's website

Stream the album in full

Buy the album





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Theatre Royal - Three Ships EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Medway's Theatre Royal released one of the great unsung albums of 2012 in 'At The End Of A River, The Sea...', and they now present us with the first release on their own Medlar Records label, on strictly limited edition CD and download. There is a connection to last year's LP here, the lead track is a full-band rerecording of 'Three Ships', now called 'Three Ships (disappear here)', and had this version have been made in time for the album it would have made a great record even better. Akin to an English Waterboys at their most majestic, this track typifies the strengths of the band and gives us every reason to expect more good things in the future.

There are a few clues as to what may be ahead in three brand new tracks. 'Learning How To Be Idle' is slightly pared-down by comparison, relying on little more than an acoustic guitar doing battle with an electric, although there's no denying it's a fine song. The band were lucky enough to be able to demo a new tune at the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis, and the resulting 'Orchard Song' is currently an acoustic number, yet it would be ripe for a full-band reworking like with the title-track. '(Just Like) A Sunny Day In June' is all hands on deck again and works well. With an acoustic version of stand-alone single 'Katherine's Sleeping' in addition to these, 'Three Ships' becomes a worthwhile purchase for both fans and newcomers, showing the band in various different guises. May they keep on sailing further.





Theatre Royal's website

Stream or buy the EP

Catch them live:

April 19th - XFM John Kennedy Presents... @ The Tooting Tram & Social
April 26th - The Beacon Court, Gillingham
May 5th - Maidstone Fringe Festival
May 19th - The Royal Function Rooms, Rochester supporting SWEET BABOO





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Saturday 30 March 2013

COLOUR OF BONE - Low Mode

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Last summer we ran an 'Artist To Check Out' feature on COLOUR OF BONE, the only problem being that we had few details besides both George Martin and Dr. Dre being influences, and a solitary (but very good) song in 'Sympathiser'. Several months on and we can tell you little else about who they are (we're now pretty sure the project is a "they"), only that they will be releasing their debut single on May 1st as a download or limited edition CD from their website. They've also made a typically mysterious animated video to go with it.

Let's cut to the song. 'Low Mode' begins as though it'll be a crunching electro-metal track, when really it's a crunching electro-rock track. Not much difference? Well maybe, but the important thing is that they're not focusing on a heavy sound, they're focusing on the song and it just happens to be that in order to drill the message home they need a little brute force on occasion. It's an abrasive one, that's for sure, a bit like The Big Pink when they were good and had bite to their songs. Hopefully these guys/girls can repeat some of that band's success.





COLOUR OF BONE's website





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The Choo Choo Trains - I Choo Choo Chose You! EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Well with a band and EP name like that you're already expecting fey, cutsie indiepop, aren't you? Sure enough, that's what's duly delivered. The Choo Choo Trains are an all-girl trio from London and we're guessing the EP title is taken from The Simpsons. If "indiepop" or "twee" are words you're sick of, then they have their own handy description of their music: "girl-guide shoegaze". Yeah that's a good name, but bugger it, this is indiepop through and through (sorry). It's high-calibre stuff though, if you can imagine a less orchestrated Camera Obscura then you're halfway there. The vocals on 'Save Me' certainly have a hint of the Tracyanne Campbells about them.

The songs here are a touch more skeletal and those usual bedfellows of 60s girl-pop and 80s DIY indie are married together in adorable fashion. There's a gentle buzz to 'The Most Beautiful Boy' which is pleasantly warming; these are fragile but pretty songs that only the cold-hearted could hate. For extra glitter see the wistful 'Futile' and for extra retro chord-changes see the lovely instrumental 'Breezy Iz' which introduces a touch of surf guitar towards the end. Finishing this set is the piano-led 'No. 38 To Your Heart', a sweet love song that barely manages to hold itself together, which is just how it should be. These are all borrowed sounds but they combine brilliantly and this EP is a delight.



The Choo Choo Trains' website

Stream or buy the EP





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iamforest - Driven Out EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Following a recent free download, Vancouver artist iamforest brings us a new name-your-price EP. We described his track 'Stuctures' as possibly being where chillwave goes next, and again on these three songs he gives the whole chilled, ambient thing a good slap around the face to wake it up and stop it from being so damn lazy and predictable. This probably isn't where chillwave goes next, it'll probably keep on as it is until the world loses interest. The 'Driven Out' EP is electronic dreampop, and it sounds all the better for it, keeping that summery sound but giving it more balls.

The title-track is still ambient for sure, but those lush textures sound more vibrant thanks to great swooshes of synth and a stronger beat. As its name implies, 'Goliath' is more of a monster, making use of an even bigger beat and a prominent bassline; it's getting close to becoming shoegaze but has too much of Balearic vibe going on for that, meaning its closer in spirit to chillout music of old, only hauled into the present. Finally 'Versions' bleeps its way into being, twinkling like the sun shining off the ocean. If you're still feeling the chill of winter then 'Driven Out' makes a good tonic for that.



iamforest's website

Stream or buy the EP





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FVNERALS - The Hours

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


I wonder if Brighton's FVNERALS are annoyed with being compared to/mixed up with Scottish band Chvrches yet? Both have employed the same tactic to avoid getting lost in a swap of unsuitable matches when looking up their name on a search engine, and a funeral usually takes place in a church. Stylistically they're quite far apart though, you can hear some lively and upbeat electro-pop from the Glasgow duo here if you want to compare. These slow, dark, spooky songs on this new release from FVNERALS definitely have the feel of a dirge to them, but that needn't be a bad thing.

Lead track here, 'The Hours', is a slow, twanging plod with vocals that almost feel detached and are smothered so much by the sound that they almost become another instrument rather than a series of words, much is indecipherable. In terms of setting an atmosphere though, this is hard to beat. Whether it's the atmosphere you're after will be down to personal preference, but they do it well. 'The Woods' is twice as long and nearly twice as slow, really pushing that feeling of stark desolation. Here the lyrics, again muffled, act as a mild pick-me-up for the song and lighten the load somewhat, yet these guys remain a little unsettling.


FVNERALS - The Hours from FVNERALS on Vimeo.

FVNERALS' website

Download the single for free





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EXCLUSIVE: Free track from Jack Hayter + Q&A

Article by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Former Hefner and Dollboy man Jack Hayter reaches the end of his 12-singles (24 songs) subscription series 'The Sisters Of St. Anthony' this weekend. We're lucky enough to be able to offer you an exclusive alternate version of final track 'Quotes' as well as getting Jack to answer a few of our questions about the series, his possible link to a 1963 murder case his surprising love of hip-hop and, um, a question at the end that he just made up himself.

Stream the set here, the exclusive free track is at the bottom:
 

Hi Jack, so you've just reached the end of a 12 part series of singles. Where did the idea to do this come from when the songs could have been released as a more conventional album?

I live in perpetual guilt about not being able to pay back the kind people who have helped me get stuff released in the past. Releasing a digital subscription service meant that at least poor long-suffering Jamie Halliday at Audio Antihero wasn't going to be out of pocket too much… so, to some extent it's about the money. I'm not sure this collection of songs works as an album anyway. I'd need to listen to them all back to back and I haven’t made time to do that yet. The series wasn't designed to be listened to in one sitting. I suppose what I want is for you to see something like an old plane, or the decayed parts of Margate, or a derelict speedway track... or you might be walking through the remains of Villiers St. behind Charing Cross and remember a crazy night at Heaven; and perhaps think “Oh didn't that bloke Whatsisname write a song about that?” - a sort of flawed psychogeography of a few places I suppose.


Did you have all 12 songs written and recorded when you launched the series or were you just hoping writer's block didn't get in the way? 

Out of the 24 tracks including the subscription-only bonuses, about half are completely new songs and half are songs which existed and/or which got reworked. For me writers block is permanently in the way. Things went right down to the wire on a couple of occasions.


There are a few guests in the series, notably your old bandmate Darren Hayman, did you ever consider doing this as a band or was it always going to be solo?

And Anthony Harding, Ollie Cherer of Dollboy, Woodcraft Folk and Suzanne Rhatigan! I should have had more guests playing... but so often the songs were incomplete until a few hours before the release deadline so it wouldn't have worked out. A band would have been nice but the people I like playing with best live quite a long way from me nowadays. I hope the next project will have more people on it because it won't be constrained by a timetable so much. With the 'Sisters of St. Anthony' series I often wasn't sure what sounds would fit anyway. I am bad at visualising a finished recording and a bit timid about asking those I admire to help out.


There are a few Biblical/church references (weddings, bells, nuns & Saints, Jezebel) are you a religious man or were there other reasons for these references?

I didn't notice this until quite late on in the series and it has worried me a bit. Have I subconsciously been shambling awkwardly towards some sort of Theism?  Really though, I was far more worried that it could be seen as lazy lyric writing. Was I filling awkward gaps in songs with Christian imagery when I got stuck for words? The tales are about real people, often in tough situations and many of them hold things together by recourse to some sort of faith... and I understand why they do that and I respect it. I’m just looking down the list of the songs right now and there are not that many which mention religion directly… 'Sweet JD' because John Donne started out as rock and roll animal and finished up a priest! The title track 'Sisters of St. Anthony' mentions a church specifically as a geographical marker in Liverpool’s Scottie Rd. But it's a fair cop. 'Quotes' and 'The Lab Technician and the Sexton' are explicitly about faith and the journey people make towards and away from it as a result of circumstance. In my day job I do quite frequently work with priests, nuns, saints… and probably a fair few Jezebels too! Perhaps they’re twisting me with their sweet gentle ways despite my protestations. I have a faith too but mine is in the collective goodness of humanity and its actions rather than in God. Even so this bunch of songs would be odd without references to belief. I bet you’d have a bloody tough job marketing it to the religious though!


Now that you've reached the end, is there anything you would have changed?

Easy...my voice! Its really rather poor and some of the songs have OK tunes if only I could pitch them accurately.


What's your favourite track in the set and why?

I like 'Charlotte Badger' because I wanted to tell a story that as far as I know has never been made into a song. Charlotte and Kitty Hagerty were convicts who along with their boyfriends, escaped from Australia in 1806 by stealing a ship called the Venus and became the first European women to set foot in New Zealand. They were brave strong women and yet all that remained of them in song was two lines at the start of the most grossly sexist rugby song. There is also some evidence that they faked their deaths by persuading the Maoris to tell the authorities they'd eaten them, and some of the crew managed to get to South America.  Why hasn't this been made into a Hollywood blockbuster! I like this song because of the way it got written… you overhear drunk rugby fans singing on the train, get curious, Google the 'Good Ship Venus', go to the various antipodean history sites and a story with an agenda comes out.


Where next for you musically? You've been in a few bands; are there likely to be any reformations as those or will you continue solo?

I will carry on on my own mostly with occasional help from friends. I can’t ask people to give up too much time for me and not be recompensed; even if it’s just travel and beer money. I simply don’t sell enough music to warrant it. So you will see others playing with me live... but they're usually my relatives! I do love playing with a band but that has to be a movable feast at the moment. As far as recorded stuff goes, I am working on some music which tracks a short story which links my accident prone career as motorcycle despatch rider and an unsolved murder in 1963. I want to make a sort of mixed media which can be read and listened to simultaneously... It probably sounds like a rubbish idea, but I’m going to have a go and release the bits that work It will have a photomontage strand as well.... like le Jetee. That should keep me busy.


We're predominantly a new music site. Are there any current new bands or musicians that you'd put in a similar category to yourself, or do you have any new bands we should be looking out for?

When I first started doing this about 10 years ago it all seemed a bit odd... folkish songs about messed up lives, sung badly and recorded in a kitchen with odd electronic noises and stylophones. Only the brilliant Absolutely Kosher label was interested at the time, perhaps because they had some sort of track record with the Mountain Goats stuff. Now there are loads of us doing it but I don't really know what to call this type of music. It gets tagged under a multitude of genres. I love what the other acts on Audio-Antihero do, I love Ollie Cherer of Dollboy’s recent forays into songwriting. There’s a bloke called Tomas Barfod who is interesting in a Bon Iver sort of way, Lorine Chia... she’s primarily an R'n'B singer but I love the wonky electronic arrangements, Withered Hand. Darren Hayman... anything he does is good. All these people are better at doing what I try to do than I am myself. Cheap electronic sounds mixed with real instruments and field recordings used to tell a story or paint a picture of a real place or time... I like people who try to do that even when it doesn't work. When it works at its best you get... I don’t know...Wu-Tang Clan I suppose...’cos that's exactly what they did.. .they were the inventors of 'Alt-folk' ...ugh what a term!


How long will it be before we get the inevitable Hefner reformation for a one-off show at All Tomorrow's Parties? ;)

Haha I just Googled “indie band reform” and found About.com's  alternative music's top 10 list of bands who will never reform... and Hefner are at number 4... just below Galaxie 500 and just above Husker Du. So we’re in fine company and the message is getting through! We all have our own things going on. Quite honestly I can’t see it happening, even though we get on with each other and work together from time to time. We were a good band with some great songs and lovely supporters, many of whom became friends. Like all bands we represent fond moments in time for some people. I don’t think we could re-deliver those moments, even though I understand the desire and nostalgia for them. All the good stuff got released and is available... loads and loads of it. Anyway we'd probably screw it up and reveal to the world what a shambles we were live... a glorious shambles sometimes, but plenty of times we were merely shambolic. I wouldn't put any faith in a one off show being any good.


Talking of festivals, let's do the tough question. Fantasy festival time. You're headlining and you can pick five acts, past or present, to also appear on the bill. Who do you go for?

I probably won’t watch any of them because I’ll be busy hanging out by the backstage pool in Speedos... actually I probably won’t play either but don't tell the punters just yet. I don’t know...
Shirley Collins and the Albion Band
Wu-tang clan circa '93.
Beastie Boys
30 lbs of Bone and Benjamin Shaw backed by an orchestra put together by Harry Partch
The Slits with Spike Jones (the guy who did the Bugs Bunny soundtracks..not the film director with a zee).
You’re asking me this question because you're running a festival next year and you want me to headline and choose the other acts... it's a winner.. .we'll be rich. My bank account details are...


You have just been elected president for life of a small country with large oil and diamond deposits and fertile soil. The population are immortal, good natured with no known belief system. How would you corrupt them?

This has gone quite far enough!




Jack Hayter's website

Stream or buy the album





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Five For Free #169

Candy Says - Melt Into The Sun


This fine piece of alt-pop is the debut single from Candy Says, a band we know little about, but they've been playing live across the UK recently and despite the Italian website address, they appear to be from Oxford. I guess all will become clear in time. For now, you get to enjoy the excellent 'Melt Into The Sun' for the price of your choosing, including free, and they encourage you to share!


Candy Says' website

Buy the single





The OrangeTree EP - The Gift 


Yes, that is the actual band name. The OrangeTree EP are a psychedelic pop duo from London and 'The Gift' is being offered as an introductory free download. To us it sounds like Out Of My Hair if they did more acid and actually were from the 60s instead of just wanting to be. However you describe it, it's a woozy and dreamy track that certainly tickles our fancy.



The OrangeTree EP's website





Antimatter People - Only Ark


So it looks like this lot have dropped the "Yehan Jehan and" part of their name since we last featured them back in September and are now settling simply for Antimatter People. The sound is still slightly psychedelic though, but new track 'Only Ark' is more soulful and more modern than what we heard before. In fact we wouldn't be surprised if this lot start getting a lot more recognition soon.



Antimatter People's website





The Fiery Piano - More Like A Tiger, Less Like A Dove


There's an avalanche of terrific indie and pop music bombarding us from Sweden at the moment, and we love it. This is the first time we've heard The Fiery Piano but their new single 'More Like A Tiger, Less Like A Dove' is splendid. Again it's the perfect balance of melody, production and guitars, added to a simply great tune. They make this kind of thing seem easy.



Download 'More Like A Tiger, Less Like A Dove' for free by heading here

The Fiery Piano's website

Stream or buy the album





SWW - Close To The Equator


You're probably wondering, so we'll tell you. SWW stands for Sarah Williams White, who on this track has teamed up with producer Timmy Rickard to come up with a modern psychedelic soul number that spans the genres as well as anyone right now. 'Close To The Equator' should appeal to fans of indie, urban and more. Are we looking at a star on the rise here?


SWW's website





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Friday 29 March 2013

D. Vassalotti - L'ange Rouge

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


He's been a busy man of late has D. Vassalotti. Not only is he the guitarist in Merchandise who release their debut album next week (on which they got to work with Sonic Boom), plus the millions of live dates they've got lined-up for the rest of the year, but he's also made a solo record. The five-track 'Live In Infinity' has been released by Night People on cassette (you can find that here if you scroll down) and download, and by the sounds of it he's taking this opportunity to be a little more experimental.

'L'ange Rouge' is an unusual track. The first half is little more than a processed beat that sounds like the preset from one of the crap keyboards you had at school, with some reverb-heavy vocals over the top. It's interesting more than impressive. That all changes though, as from behind the only occasionally decipherable vocals a gentle melody begins to swell up, seemingly from nowhere, and is joined by fuzzy guitar. The sounds all merge together into a quite pleasant musical concoction that's still totally left-field, but sudenly makes a whole lot of sense.



D.Vassalotti's website

Buy the EP





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Fear Of Men - Seer

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


We've known about Brighton's Fear Of Men for a year or two now, picking up on early single 'Mosaic', but in the US word has, naturally, taken a little longer to spread. Last month, Kanine Records released the album 'Early Fragments' which compiles the bands early singles and EPs, along with 'Doldrums' and 'Seer' (which as far as we know are new tracks). To accompany the release they've also made this unusual video which appears to be a mixture of Pagan ritual, industrial wasteland and beekeeping. "You make no sense at all" they sing. Quite.

The song, of course, is stunningly pretty and a little more downbeat than some of their tracks, entering into the world of dreampop with incredible skill. The vocals are lovely and the haze of the video is mirrored in the song. With the alternative world still, rightly, going mad for this kind of thing at the moment, Fear Of Men have every chance of becoming a word-of-mouth success. The album is available in the UK too, and we believe a debut album proper is planned for later in the year. It should be worth getting excited about.





Fear Of Men's website

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Mayors Of Miyazaki - Human Resources

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Math-punk anyone? We weren't aware that the world of math-rock had spread its wings to different genres, especially not with this kind of intensity. It sounds like you'd have to be pretty on the ball to be able to play this live, making it through a show must involve blisters, sweat and possibly blood, but it will give you body a good sonic pummelling and you'd probably need a few days to let the buzzing and vibrating calm down. Mayors Of Miyasaki are from London and this is their debut track, produced by Harvey Birrell (Fugazi) and will be on their debut album 'Holy Cop' which due out in June.

They don't even make it the the one-and-a-half minute mark here, although if you played it at 33 instead of 45 it would probably still make perfect sense at a slower speed, such is the vigour with which they attack this song. It's a total beast that sounds a bit like the soundtrack to your worst nightmare and has come along to devour the rest of the music scene like some advanced mutant rock band from another planet. If the album follows suit then it could make an impact the size of a meteor crater. Be afraid. be very afraid.



Mayors Of Miyazaki's website





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The Almighty Rhombus - The Almighty Rhombus EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


The Almighty Rhombus cut straight to the chase by informing us that where they're from they're considered a supergroup, having all been members of other bands of note from that area in the past. They also point out that that area is Sudbury, Ontario, and that outside Sudbury they're virtually unknown. We (me in particular, Sudbury is a comparative metropolis!) have no qualms about them being considered by some to be heroes of their local scene, and maybe their reach will begin to spread a little further. They have a decent EP in this eponymous effort, and it's better than most local heroes we hear from.

Yeah they're a guitar band who sound a bit like a bunch of other guitar bands (mainly US indie bands of the late 90s) but the tunes are good and the production is too. Organ and guitars do battle on the powerpop opener 'She Didn't Want Me' and they continue in a similar vein for much of the rest, without getting too repetitive. The melodies may be simple but they're effective, therefore ensuring that one of the fundamental aspects of their genre is catered for. 'Ocean Floor' and 'Honest Liar' being good examples. The buzzy 'Even Though' is a definite highlight, all one-and-a-half minutes of it. We think Sudbury can consider itself proud and the local council should be getting the Canadian equivalent of blue plaques ready.




The Almighty Rhombus' website

Stream or download the EP for free until the end of March





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Saturday Looks Good To Me - Invisible Friend

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Do you like your indie-type music to be poppy and more sparkly than a whole forest of Christmas trees? We should have drawn out one of those charts here. If "No" --> bugger off then. If "yes" --> you'll flipping live this! Michigan band Saturday Looks Good To Me will be releasing their new album 'One Kiss Ends It All' through Polyvinyl Records at the end of May and are streaming new track 'Invisible Friend' to give us a clue as to what direction they're headed in this time. They have been known to chop and change in the past, but we find them in breezy form here.

The guitars shimmer and the piano chimes, and then the tambourines rattle and the melody bounces around the walls like it's full of a mixture of helium and Red Bull. Yeah you could possibly use the word twee if you wanted, I think we're all getting fed up with that being used in a disparaging way by now. This is twee and poppy and sugary and summery and full of all those cliches, but these terms only become cliches because they're used so much, and they're only used so much because so many people are covering music that fits this description. And the reason for that is because so much of it is as good as this. That all makes sense, yeah? Grand.



Saturday Looks Good To Me's website

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Harper Simon - Division Street

Album review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


If you first became aware of the work of Harper Simon with his eponymous 2010 debut album, then you've missed a large part of his career as a session musician and guest player for artists including Yoko One and Carl Perkins. A newbie he was not, and the impressive cast for that record (which included members of the original Nashville A-Team and other legendary guests) was not just down to having a famous father in Paul. He'd earned the respect himself after many years as a noted and accomplished talent. His second album 'Division Street' has toned down the roster of famous friends yet still includes contributions from members of The Strokes, The Attractions and Wilco.

Having such a famous dad is always going to be something of an albatross around your neck, especially when there is a natural vocal similarity, and you would think the influence is always bound to creep in. What's interesting is the way in which it does so. If we look at Simon & Garfunkel we can clearly see their influence on more modern indie and alternative rock bands. You can hear their harmonies in Teenage Fanclub, The Lemonheads famously covered 'Mrs. Robinson', and it's groups such as this that Harper appears to be channeling here. This is very much an alt-rock album but the sound is updated, it's no 90s throwback. Another close reference is The Flaming Lips' recent return to writing songs instead of constructing sonic experiments. The overriding impression though, is that Harper Simon is his own man making his own music, and this album is a big step up from his first solo outing.

Pick your favourite US alt-rock band and you'll find that Simon can compete with the best of them. 'Veterans Parade' is similar to Grandaddy at their finest, singles 'Bonnie Brae' and ''99' are gorgeous indie numbers, full of melody. The title-track and 'Leaves Of Golden Brown' are incredibly well-crafted and deserve full attention. Turn these songs up loud and listen, don't play them as background music. He roughs things up on the distortion-loaded 'Dixie Cleopatra' and the ace, punky 'Nothing Gets Through'. That lyrical knack runs in the family and can be heard throughout 'Division Street'. Yes there will always be the shadow of a legend hanging over this man's head, (you can hear that in 'Just Like St. Teresa') but his old man will do well to produce an album as invigorating and ear-tinglingly good as this again.







Harper Simon's website

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Thursday 28 March 2013

Half Hour Hotel - Run From Sirens/Another Life

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Poor old British indie-rock. It's had a bad name for a while now thanks to the post-Oasis infiltration of lad bands that continued well into the 00s, and then Viva Brother came along to try and revive it, only to metaphorically piss on its rotting corpse. Yet somehow The Stereophonics managed to have a top 10 album this year, and they were one of the worst of the lot. Brighton's Half Hour Hotel are unashamedly in this category, the difference being they shun the bravado and big coats in favour of breathing life into the genre using good songs.

Their new double A-side single contains two good songs, but due to market conditions it will probably barely register, and that's a bit of a shame. 'Run From Sirens' is a big tune, it sounds like they're aiming for it to be heard in bigger venues than the Dog & Duck down the road. It's indie, it's rock, it's got a strong male vocal and a massive chorus with lots of guitars; an instant turn off for some, although it needn't be in this case. Second track 'Another Life' is more likely to find favour with the indie masses, it's a slow-building epic that deserves more acknowledgment than it will likely get. But should the musical cycle turn back to these kind of guitar tunes then Half Hour Hotel will be ready and waiting.





Half Hour Hotel's website

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Eyes On Film - Waking Up Dead

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


OK, with all this gloomy post-punk/goth/new-wave going around at the moment there has to be a new scene set to break through at some point. Can any of these bands crack the charts and open the door? Right now it seems unlikely, but there are so many people on the same wavelength that it almost feels like the pressure is building, ready to explode like a volcano and have us all digging out old records by Sisters Of Mercy, Echo & The Bunnymen and Joy Division. London's Eyes On Film seem as likely as anyone to get the movement up to the next level. Their debut EP went down well, and they have a brand new single lined up for a May 6th release.

'Waking Up Dead' is going against the grain of current popular music, but it's not alone. The handy thing about Eyes On Film is that although you could never call them mainstream, their sound is big and bold and possibly built for wider appeal than many other shadowy bands lurking in the same circles. The production team have worked on big records before, so that certainly helps but doesn't scrub all the dirt off to make the song overly sanitised. It's easy to see how the more adventurous areas of the press and radio could jump on this one, then it's up to the people to vote by buying it.





Eyes On Film's website





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Dandan - Satan EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Stockholm indie/pop band Dandan are misleading us slightly by calling this new EP 'Satan'. You'd be within your rights to expect something dark, possibly even that they were a metal band (metal bands still love that kind of imagery, come on guys, it's 2013, not 1980). There is a mild punky edge to opening track 'Swimmers' but it doesn't last. Arguably the finest song on the EP is a prime piece of jangly guitar-pop called 'Men Of Drugs And Oscar Wilde', which is injected with plenty of that Nordic melody and catchy hooks, it's very retro, but unlike that cliched metal imagery it doesn't feel out of date, it's still fresh and appealing.

You wonder if we're about to enter the realms of gloom and fear on the title-track, and to be honest the lyrics to sound like those of despair, or at least uncertainty, but there are as many mentions of Heaven as Satan and the song is walls-of-guitar indie that slowly builds until we have a mini-epic on our hands without even realising it. Dandan stealthily spring it upon us in an unsuspecting way, the sly bunch. Finally 'Hanna' is nostalgic and harmony-driven indiepop in the tradition of many of their fellow countrymen. And before we know it we have yet another decent Swedish bands on our hands. Maybe the devil does have the best tunes after all.





Dandan's website

Stream or download the EP





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Band To Check Out: The Milk Race

Article by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Remember a few days ago when we mentioned that there seemed to be a "disproportionately large" number of bands with the word "milk" in their name doing the rounds at the moment? Well then, as if by magic, we hear about Cardiff's The Milk Race, the latest to accidentally jump on this bandwagon (or bandfloat?). They're made up of former members of Mo*Ho*Bish*O*Pi, The Martini Henry Rifles and The IK+ (we can only remember the first two of those sorry guys!). They've already picked up the support of Welsh radio and press and released a debut EP, now it's time to tackle the audiences a bit further afield.

They're in a good position to do so, as much like a couple of those other lactic-related bands, The Milk Race are intent on creating an uproar and aiming for the dead centre-point between modern punk and grunge revivalists, a scene that's still just bubbling under, waiting to take on the mainstream. We haven't heard the band who will make that transition just yet, but when the flood gates open you can expect this lot to be leading the charge for the more alternative side of the pack; we can't see them compromising their sound to pander to radio or label pressure, and that can only be a good thing.





The Milk Race's website

Buy the EP





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The Phoenix Foundation - The Captain

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Synth-pop is continuing to rule the roost in the alternative music world in its many forms. From noise-pop, brain-pummelling instrument-wrecking terrorists to floaty and gentle alt-pop like this new single from The Phoenix Foundation, it's surely the widest ranging genre going. The New Zealanders are in the very capable hands of Memphis Industries in the UK and will release a new album, 'Fandango', at the end of April. For now though, we get to enjoy the lazy, sunshine-pop of new single 'The Captain'.

This is more high-calibre pop that should be gobbling up the charts but isn't because the rest of the world is wrong and we're right. One day they'll realise and this track will be on heavy rotation on radio stations around the world for the whole of the summer, which will be hot sunshine every single day. We might be dreaming, but this is a dreamy track so I think we have every right to retreat to our bubble now and then before the harsh reality that Mumford & Sons are headlining Glastonbury hits us again.



The Phoenix Foundation's website

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This Vision - Hungry Heart

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Where would we be without Sweden having a wealth of amazing bands combining indie and pop music? I dread to think, but we'd be worse off. With albums to come from Sad Day For Puppets and Sambassadeur this year things are already looking rosy, plus the recent return of The Mary Onettes and Shout Out Louds won't have gone unnoticed. But it's not the same few bands, there are loads waiting to be discovered. This is the first track we've heard by The Vision, a synth-pop duo who've been around since 2009, and their new single is pretty special.

Strong on melody throughout (they must sell the stuff in supermarkets over there or something), 'Hungry Heart' is an indiepop song of impeccable quality. It occupies the space between The Mary Onettes and The Sound Of Arrows, a place we didn't know existed until now, but we're sure glad it does. There may be an element of guilty pleasure about this song, it's not cutting edge, it's not innovative, it's just amazingly instant pop perfection. They should sell this single with about a dozen tracks on it, all of this song. That way we wouldn't need to skip back each time we get to the end. Poptastic.



This Vision's website

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Wednesday 27 March 2013

Don't Get Stuck With The Triangle!



Article by Alice Rees


Music has been a part of human culture since the first time a caveman hit another caveman on the head with a stick and noticed the noise that it made. In fact, while researching this article I thought it would be impressive to include a figure of just how many bands/musicians there are in the world. The most accurate answer Google was able to provide me with amounts to "there are as many bands as a piece of string is long". There’s always some famous band or another splitting up, only to have an emotional reunion the next week. The same goes for smaller, less famous bands, and even the totally unknown bands which play in their parents' basement and get stage-fright when the cat slinks into the room.

The scope and range of benefits of music to humans is both vast and well documented: at least some of you are bound to have heard of the slightly incongruous 'Mozart Effect'. However when you look beyond listening to music and deeper into creating it, the advantages increase to another level entirely. There are numerous studies out there which show clear links between learning, early development, scholastic performance and playing an instrument; it also relieves stress and promotes personal discipline. Playing an instrument is also hugely rewarding, socially. I'm sure everyone knew some kid in school who could play the guitar/piano/whatever and have fellow students and teachers eating out of their hand.

I could go on, but I think you get the point - playing an instrument is almost always beneficial. It's no wonder that 82% of people who don’t play an instrument wish that they could. If you didn't have access to music education as a child, it's unlikely you'll play anything as an adult  -75% of people who play an instrument started learning before they were eleven. The question I present to you is; why? What’s stopping you from taking lessons in the evening, or over the weekend? If you’re still in school or university, you could even schedule music lessons in between lectures, or during lunch breaks. No matter where you are in the UK, there’s someone nearby who can help you learn whatever instrument you choose. Want to play the oboe in Oxford, or the clarinet in Clitheroe? What about the harp in Hampshire?

Thanks to the invention of a little thing called the internet (you might have heard of it), finding a music teacher and arranging lessons could not be easier. There's a website out there, which is free to use (though they do offer a few 'premium' services for a small fee) and is 100% dedicated to helping people connect to music teachers across the UK. MusicTeachers.co.uk “aims to support musicians in every aspect of education and performance”. With roots stretching as far back as 1999, the site has an impressively large database of music teachers, loads of links to other websites relevant to musicians, and a whole pile of free music resources for both teachers and learners, ranging from simple rhythm flashcards for toddlers, all the way up to musicology resources for post-graduates, and loads of resources for teachers.

The team behind MusicTeachers.co.uk is really committed to music in Britain. They are in partnership with the Musician’s Union, they support the Musician’s Benevolent Fund (50p from every paid transaction goes directly to them), and have created the extremely useful video series, 'The Art of Teaching', which aims to teach musicians how to teach music, and incorporates the most modern, up-to-date pedagogy.

If you’re one of the lucky ones who already plays an instrument, why not inspire minds, and start teaching others how to play? You can sign up with MusicTeachers.co.uk for free, in less time than it takes to put an ad in the Yellow Pages, and wait for the students to come to you.

If you’re part of that 82% who wish they could play an instrument – don’t wish, do.







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Witch Hunt - Crawl

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


This Leeds-based duo may only be on their second single but they've already mastered the whole whipping up an atmosphere thing like true pros. Admittedly having a singer whose voice is captivating enough to hold your attention alone gives them a huge advantage, but still, they opt for the risky tactic of restraint on this new  track. Where many bands may be tempted to throw a lot more at this; strings, drums, brass, more guitar, Witch Hunt stick to the simplicity of voice and spooky guitar line augmented by little more than some backing vocals.

I guess you could say this song might be what would happen if Anna Calvi and The xx were locked in a studio together and told to come up with something for a particularly ominous cinematic scene. Everything here is cleverly considered, from the lyrics to just the right amount of production. This is potent stuff, but we can't resist imagining them going hell for leather with a more grandly arranged track and seeing just how powerful they could be. I guess we wait for an album and find out what they've got in store.



Witch Hunt's website

Pre-order the single

Catch them live:

28/03 - Velvet Bar, Wakefield (Long Division Festival warm up event)
01/04 - Oporto, Leeds (Video premier/launch)
03/05 - Liverpool Sound City
04/05 - Live At Leeds
05/05 - Fibbers, York w/Battle Lines
02/06 - Communion London, Notting Hill Arts Centre
08/06 - Long Division Festival, Wakefield





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Christopher - Lovely Girl/Sweet La-Di-Da, Ta Ta

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


San Francisco was the home to a lot of psychedelic pop back when the first wave hit in the 1960s, and Christopher obviously wants this tradition to continue. You weren't expecting anything else from a cover like that, were you? As you may have gathered from the track names, his take on this is somewhat twee and leans more to the pop side of things than the psychedelic side, but there's a definite borrowing from the past. There's little in the way of distortion of walls of sound like you may expect from much psych revivalists, this is a quite stripped-back record in fact.

The simple melodies and brass that make up 'Lovely Girl' are more 'Penny Lane' than 'Strawberry Fields Forever' and the song is definitely made for summer. B-side 'Sweet La-Di-Da, Ta Ta' has the most fey title we've heard for a while and mixes jazzy drum brushes with twinkling pop that's quite minimal although full of melody. Both songs are nice enough listens, but it would be great to see Christopher venturing further into the murky world of psych-pop and seeing what warped gems he can recover from down there.


Christopher's website

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The Travelling Band - Hands Up EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


It's a busy time for The Travelling Band who've marked their return with a month-long tour and also dropped in to record some session tracks for Marc Riley. They've also put out this free download EP 'Hands Up', the lead track from which is shortly to be released as a single, and then the whole lot is set to be followed by a new album later in the year. This is great news for their fans of course, and we'll say it's great news for music in general. You might be sick to death of the term "folk-rock" but these guys are a cut above and really should be described as alt-rock or indie with a slight penchant for the odd folky inflection here and there.

Both 'Hands Up' and 'Making Eyes' are full on band assaults and must sound pretty mighty when performed live, either would make grand single material but it's the former they're running with. There is just a touch more folk about 'Took My Soul' but it's not especially traditional. If you listened to the debut album by The Coral and were told that their elder brothers were in a band too, you could easily imagine they'd sound something like this. Wrapping things up is a live version of 'On The Rails', all eleven minutes of which their fans will have been enjoying at various venues across the UK. There's more news to come, so keep an eye on their site for details.




The Travelling Band's website

Stream or download the EP





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Wonky Doll and the Echo - Pleasant Thoughts

Album review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


If you knew no better, you could listen to the opening bars of 'The Cut', the first track on this album, and easily be persuaded you were hearing the new Interpol single. That all changes when the vocal hits and for the most part Wonky Doll and the Echo wouldn't be quite so easily confused with the New York band, although it's clear they share influences and could easily fit into the same category. These guys are from Athens, Greece and their debut album 'Pleasant Thoughts' is a faithful but very good replication of the post-punk, new-wave and goth that was ruling the alternative world three decades ago.

The songs sound like original artifacts too: 'Treasure' could be a forgotten single from that time period; they've done little to update the sound, but if that's what they're aiming for then why should they? A handful of the bigger sounding tracks here could well have charted reasonably highly; the booming 'Physical' has all the grandeur necessary; 'Obsession' is Echo & The Bunnymen by way of The Cult; the lighter title-track takes in some retro electronica, and this continues with the kraut-influenced 'Something Is Wrong With You'. 'The Right Direction' is something of a shot in the arm, taking them back to the sounds that began the album before they experiment a little more again with 'When You Sleep'.

It's an incredibly strong set of tunes without a duff track to be found. The snappy 'From Town To Town' has the darkness of goth but the vitality to stop it becoming gloomy. Many bands are aiming for a similar target with their records at the moment, and many of them do a reasonable job. Wonky Doll and the Echo have done better than a reasonable job by that simple old trick of having a full set of good songs; an area where some groups fall flat. Granted this is a debut record and it's only nine tracks, but there's more enjoyment to be found here than on the last Interpol album. Now we wait and see if they can repeat the trick.




Wonky Doll and the Echo's website

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Ajimal - This Human Joy

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


Some music is just good regardless of personal taste and it's quite possible that this new single from Ajimal may fall into that category. The idea was for Newcastle musician Fran O'Hanlon to collaborate with different musicians and piece together an album. This became a partial concept mini-album involving over 50 guests and is set to be released this summer. It's difficult to know yet whether the style will vary a lot, but after hearing first offering 'This Human Joy' we're kind of hoping for more of the same, as this is an intricate, subtle and quite beautiful track.

The vocals alone catch your attention, in a similar way to those of someone like Antony Hegarty, and the music is a mixture of baroque, classical, pop and more. Built on a bed of piano, the orchestration and arrangements here are stunningly pretty, the perfect foil to that voice. As a song it's an interesting piece too, seeming to just unravel rather than follow a particular path. It feels very spontaneous although it's easy to believe that hours could have been spent getting things just right. However much work was put in, this still feels effortless and really quite majestic.



Ajimal's website

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