Midlands band get Single of the Week with ‘Come on Out‘
Ahead of their debut EP which is set to be released on Spetember 7th, The Americas have released the first teaser to get us excited. However the teaser was that good it manged to get Single of the Week.
‘Come On Out’ has a really laid back-slack vibe with the guitars plodding at their own pace, creating a sound similar to The Strokes at times. With vocals similar to Dylan’s in some respects, the track really has an american twang and feel to it, which doesn’t come off as it’s being put-on, it’s quite clear the band have a genuine love for that style of music, and they carry it so well.
The song stretches over 5 minutes, and it’s one you could easily hear being played over a BBQ while having a few beers in the sun.
That’s it for this week, you think you have a Single of the Week get in touch over twitter by messaging @WFMBlog or email: wordsformusicblog@gmail.com
JAWS Frontman Connor releases a Song for the Summer
With Summer not too far in the distance now we’re getting ready for those songs that will accompany us on those long nights. JAWS frontman Connor is one step ahead of you with him releasing his latest track ‘Petals’ which is tailor made for that summer sun.
The song has a shoegaze soul which comes out in every aspect, from the distant vocals to the dreamy hooks. Listen down below and see what you make of his latest solo work!
Brighton’s Suzi Island provides us with Single of the Week!
It’s Sunday which means it’s Single of the Week day!
Heard a lot of good music this past week, but it’s Brighton band Suzi Island who really found a way into my ears and stayed there. The song has a very laid back vibe to it, with some really endearing acoustic guitar. The vocals are heavily charismatic, as the vocals scream “Show me the way”. The track is extremely well put together as everything is crystal clear and really emphasizes those vocals. Important to note as well that the track was produced by former Vaccines member Pete Robertson, which quite a cool fact.
I hope this means more to come from Suzi Island, because this track has some great qualities.
With their gig at The Sunflower Lounge coming up in April, I managed to steal some time off Peaness member Jess to answer some questions!
First of all, last year was a very eventful year for you guys with you playing a ton of shows and supporting some amazing bands like The Big Moon & The Cribs. Which shows really stood out for you last year and why?
Hi! Thanks for getting in touch. Jess here!
Yep 2017 was pretty amazing for us and we had lots of amazing gigs, it’s difficult to narrow them down (and to recall them all!) but the shows with The Cribs were definitely a great way to end the year. We also had a couple headline shows in Manchester, the biggest being in the Soup Kitchen (which reached max capacity!) and to have so many people come and support us, especially away from home, was very special. Festival season was great last year as well, we played 2000 Trees, Truck, HANDMADE and main stage at Indietracks. To play big gigs like that really made us believe we’re actually an alright band! I need to discuss with you about supporting The Cribs! I’m a huge fan of theirs, and when I found out you were supporting I was super excited. How did it come about? Am I right in thinking it was a last minute thing?
They literally messaged us on Twitter. Like “hey we’re the cribs wanna play some shows with us on tour? Peace”. Rach saw the message first and started freaking out in our little group chat like “GUYZ HAVE YOU SEEN TWITTER OMGOMGOMFG”. How could we refuse?
I also saw a picture of Gary Jarman wearing some very fetching Peaness gear, which was really cool to see. Did you get a chance to speak to the lads? Did they offer any advice going forward as band?
They were all super lovely and we were really glad they were so nice! You know when you meet “famous people” and sometimes you can be left disappointed because turns out they’re a dick, well absolutely none of that happened with the Jarmans. We got to hang out and eat their rider snacks, chat about bands and life being in bands, and being in a three piece band. Gary made sure he bought the tshirt as well which was a nice touch. They’re in our hearts forever.
This year has started off quite quickly for you as well, for example you supported the incredibly talented Indoor Pets for two shows, and it looks like you had a blast. What was it like supporting them? It must be so cool supporting bands that you enjoy and get on with.
Also another set of lovely people. We’re big fans of theirs and had been listening to them for ages, so to get to play a couple shows with them and hang out was awesome. I think we’re all life long friends now – at least I hope cos Jamie is an internet star and I want to be friends with an internet star.
I’m super excited that I’m getting to see you at The Sunflower Lounge in April! It’s also a headline show for you, which is even better. You’ve play the Sunflower Lounge before, what do you make of it, and are you looking forward to play there again?
We’re looking forward to returning to Birmingham, yes! Rach was born and raised in Dudley so it’s always special stopping at home towns. The sunflower lounge is quite pokey and intimate, so should be a nice atmosphere. Make sure to say hello!
You also announced a few festivals that you will be playing this year including Distortion, Sabotage and Handmade Festival! Which one are you looking forward to playing the most and why?
HANDMADE cos Indoor Pets are on the same day ❤ We’ve got a couple more to announce soon too.
Maybe it’s me being impatient, but are you guys looking to release any music by the end of year, I really enjoyed your debut EP ‘Are You Sure?’ last year but i’m craving more music!
Not telling.
On the subject of ‘Are You Sure?’ now it’s been out there for some time now, and you’ve had some time to reflect on the release, are you happy with how it’s been received? And what would you do differently for your next EP?
I think it’s done us well! We never really thought our band would come close to the level we’re at now, so we weren’t thinking about it too much at the time. For future releases however I think we’re going to take our time a bit more.
I know this is a bit out of left field. But last year was a great year for music, were there any particular albums that really stood out to you, and perhaps even any that influenced you?
It was a great year, off the top of my head a couple of my personal favourites were Andy Shauf – The Party, Alvvays – Antisocialite, and Phoenix – Ti’ Amo. But I think the state of the word influenced us more with our writing.
And in asking that, are there any albums that you’re particularly looking forward to this year?
New Courtney Barnett record, fo’ sure.
With us being 3 months into 2018, what will make this year a successful year for Peaness? What would you like to accomplish by the end of the year?
Write some banging new tunes.
Thanks so much for taking the time out Jess to answer these questions! You can buy tickets to all of Peaness’ upcoming shows in the links below, they’re all over the place so there should be one near you!
It’s Sunday which can only mean one thing here at WFM, it’s Single of the Week. Today we have The Half Light taking the honours with their new track ‘8th May’.
The song has a very funky rhythm embedded into it, which starts right from the intro with a salsa-vibe beat. The song is very clean cut with the vocals being clear and poignant, as frontman James Rogers asks you to pretend it’s the “8th of May”. The way the vocals are delivered slightly give off this Morrissey vibe as they step up in tone towards the end of the word.
Musically the song is very consistent as they provide a perfect bed for the vocals to be enhanced, giving it a very classy feel. The song clocks in under two and a half minutes, which leaves you wanting that bit more from them, giving you all the more reason to check out their next release.
Hope you enjoyed this week’s single, check back next week to see what we have to offer!
Words by Alex Wise @AJWise
If you think you have a Single of the Week on your hands please get in touch!
With their UK tour starting in April, No Hot Ashes have got to be planning for. I got to catch up with the Stockport quartet ahead of these shows to see how the lads are getting on!
First of all you guys have been going for quite some time now after forming in back in 2012. After being in a band for that long I guess it can become quite tiresome. But you guys still sound so fresh and motivated to play shows. Do you guys still feel that you have the hunger for it? And what things have you learnt after being together for so long?
We’ve been a group for a long time now, although up until 2014 we weren’t really taking things seriously so we kind of disregard those years before. When you are doing something you love you don’t really get tired of it to be honest. The thing we hate most is probably rehearsals (unless we are writing new material). We still very much have the hunger for making this band work and we still feel like it’s the tip of the iceberg at the moment, we haven’t even got started yet.
You played a lot of shows last year, and looking through the photos it looks like they were all mental! Are there any shows that stick out to you as special, and why?
We did! The hometown shows in Manchester are deffo up there as some of our proudest moments. YNOT Festival is also up there. We headlined the Jack Rocks/This Feeling Tent on the Thursday night and packed out the tent. It was an incredible feeling. Then everyone got flooded out. Great festival though, we love it every year.
You guys released ‘Skint Kids Disco’ back in January. Loved the track so much it made our WFM 2018 Playlist! Also I think the video is great. Are you happy with the release? It seems like a slightly different direction for you guys, yet it still has that chaos I associate with your music.
Thank you! We did, and it has been very well received. Perhaps sonically it feels like the direction has changed, mainly we think this because we had much more time in the studio with Gavin & Joe (Magic Garden Studio) this time to record the EP and this gave us a lot more room for experimentation with new instruments and sounds. Writing wise we haven’t really changed the way we do things at all. Our main aim is to write music to make people dance and so far the songs from the EP have made people do just that. With each release we like to keep things fresh and we have always tried to not write the same songs as we have done before.
Your music has a very unique edge to it, for instance I could pick your songs out of a line up, they’re very distinctive. What sort of influences went into your sound, are there any albums that particularly inspired you over these past few years?
There’s an eclectic range of influence throughout the band. Sounds cliché but it’s just the truth. We have never tried to sound like anyone else but if we had to explain the style it’s kind of a melting pot of Indie, Disco, Funk, Hip-hop Rock. Sugar coated into pop songs. We find ourselves constantly going back to very old albums for influence as opposed to new albums. There is so much music that we just haven’t listened to yet. Albums in more recent years that have influenced us include the likes of Loyle Carner, Wu-Tang Clan, King Krule and Tom Misch.
You also have your debut EP coming out this year, which I cannot wait for. How long have you guys spent creating the EP?, and will all the songs share a similar vibe to the title track?
We are incredibly excited by the whole EP release campaign. It had been a long time since we had released any new music so it was amazing to see the fans reaction once we began releasing new music last December. We began writing the songs from the EP probably around Jan/Feb 2017 and finished them up around September 2017. Each songs on the EP is unique, they all have their own identity. We wanted to write a proper mix of songs and not have any duplicates.
With it being your debut EP it’s a really important release. Are you happy with the overall result of the EP, and what was the recording process like?
Deffo, everything has gone down well so far and there is still more new music to come with the full release on 30th March 2018. As mentioned, the recording process spanned over the whole of 2017 and we got to spend a lot more time in the studio crafting the songs and really concentrating on the small details. We had a lot of fun and were all incredibly pleased with the results.
So the UK tour is coming up in April and it starts in London at Nambucca on 14th April! It’s such a great venue for bands, have you played there before and if so do you enjoy playing there and why?
It does and we are really excited to be getting busy on the live show side of things, March & April are going to be really busy months for us. We played the Nambucca last December and loved it. Great stage and venue we had a really lively gig.
You also have four other dates spreading across Liverpool, Birmingham, Nottingham and Leicester. Where are you looking forward to playing the most and why?
We are excited for them all! We get a huge buzz from playing new cities and meeting new people so being able to spread our wings further round the UK is an exciting prospect.
Also you guys will be playing Kendal Calling and Liverpool Sound City this year, which is a big deal as The Libertines, Peace and Catfish and the Bottlemen will be there. Are you looking forward to playing those? And who are you looking forward to see the most?
We cannot wait to play both, the last time we played Kendal Calling was in 2015. It was our first major UK festival and we had a really fun weekend. Liverpool Sound City we have never played before but they always smash the line-up. We are big fans of Peace so will be good to see them as they have been fairly quiet the past year or so.
Finally with us being 2 months into the year now, what would make this a successful year for you guys? What things do you want to accomplish before the year is out?
The start of 2018 has been a weird one. Although we have been pretty quiet on the live shows it has been mad busy behind the scenes with releases and organising/selling out our biggest show to date at Manchester Academy 2 (950 Capacity). Hopefully before the end of 2018 we’ll of released even more music and also played a number of major UK festivals. We recently signed up to work with International Booking Agents “13 Artists” so we are very privileged to be working with and we hope it will be a very exciting relationship.
Thanks for taking the time out to answer guys, all the best!
Make sure you get tickets if they’re coming a town near you, it will be an eventful night of live music!
Alright guys, thanks for taking the time out to complete this interview. I understand what a busy bunch of lads you have been lately, so it’s a much appreciated you doing this!
First off lets start with your brand new track ‘Hear You Call’, you wasted no time really to get this track released so early in the year. Was that always the plan for this track? I’ll be honest, it’s great to hear bands start the year off early.
We really wanted to hit the ground running this year. We’ve had Hear You Call recorded for what seems like forever and definitely wanted to get it out earlier, but now just feels like the right time now to start the year off with new music and now we have the music video polished off.
The song has a really large anthemic sound to it, which is what I also get from your earlier releases in 2017 with ‘Everything’ and ‘Firelight’. Where do you draw your influences from as a band, also which albums really inspired your sound?
I think we all draw from different individual influences which is what creates our sound. One of our main drives is creating songs with an immersive atmosphere.
Bands like Grouplove, Catfish & the Bottlemen, Young the Giant and Amber Run contribute to our influences, among many others. Grouplove’s Big Mess is a great album, inspiring some of our riffs and hooks. YTG’s Mind Over Matter probably influenced our song textures, inspired us to be more creative with instrumentation, effects & harmonies.
How do you find it going in to the studio to record? Because it can be quite a tiring process when you can’t seem to get the sound you want. Also where do you record your tracks, is it several studios or do you have one go to studio?
It can be a draining process getting everything tracked in one day definitely, but we love it. The studio is our favourite place to be. The excitement when we see a track coming together compares to nothing else, we’re all like kids at Christmas. Sometimes we can go in with one idea for a track and it come out completely different for the better. We always record with Sugar House studios, the guys there are magicians of production and we really value their input as we work through the recording process.
Also I found out you guys will be playing Live at Leeds this year which must be a big thing for you lads as it’s giving you the chance to play alongside bands like Peace and Circa Waves! How did this come about? And who are you looking forward to play alongside?
Yeah, we’re pretty buzzing about that one to be honest! We’ve played smaller festivals before but this is our first bigger festival with a lineup that’s absolutely insane too.
As well as the headliners, we’re looking forward to seeing Blaenavon, High Tyde, Sunset Sons, BLOXX, Cassia, Ten Tonnes & our pal Martha Phillips from The Elephant Trees. We recently played with Sea Girls too who are also on the lineup, class band.
Yorkshire is a great place for music, my favourite band of all time The Cribs are from round that area as well as some others. Do you have any particular favourite bands to come out of Yorkshire?
Yorkshire is wonderful. There’s the obvious choice of Arctic Monkeys but they just can’t be denied, can they? One of our favourite upcoming bands Marsicans are from Leeds I think.
Yorkshire is also home to so many great venues, one of course being the Brudenell, which other venues really stick out for you guys up there, any that you particularly love playing?
Yeah Yorkshire definitely has some lovely venues scattered about. The Picturedrome in Holmfirth is probably the biggest we’ve played and it’s amazing. We also love The Wardrobe in Leeds, West Street Live in Sheffield and The Parish in our hometown of sunny Huddersfield.
I also know that the Yorkshire music scene is doing well at the moment, which acts do you think will be looking to perhaps break out this year, and who would you suggest to keep our eye on?
Well, Marsicans for one, recently playing Maida Vale and releasing tune after tune. Huddersfield pals Mahatma Raindrop and Leeds band Peace Frog are definitely worth a look at.
With 2018 in full swing, and being in a band it doesn’t offer a lot of opportunities to stop and look back as you’ve got to be constantly moving forward. What are you looking to accomplish this year, and what would make it a successful one?
This year we want to focus on reaching new people and new places so we can carry on getting our music out there. We’ll hopefully have the chance to tour up and down the country a lot more. We’ve got another track recorded ready to be released later in the year to finalise into our debut EP, and were working on new songs that we’re really excited about and can’t wait to start implementing into our live set.
Thanks for taking part in the interview guys, I know 2018 will be another good year for you lads! Hopefully will get to see you live at some point!
This weeks Single of the Week comes from Garage Rockers I Feel Fine with their new track ‘Everyday Safari’ released on UK Record Label Failure By Design.
The song is full of pent up anger and aggression and it comes across in every element of the track. You’re immediately drawn to the energy that I Feel Fine produce, and they make you stay with them every step of the way. More impressively the track is so well produced, with the drums having that extra thud to them, blending with the guitars well. Also love how the vocals switch up from screaming/shouting to a calm voice adding extra depth to it, drawing subtle similarities to early Biffy Clyro.
Overall the song is very short and simple, but it’s the lyrics which give it that context and are well worth reading so you can understand the track.
Realist, learn to commit. I’m carpet to the floor, but I’m happy. The numbest fish with headspace. Me without my worst of habits ain’t me at all.
Nobody’s gonna’ lift a finger now. Beyond here; just adore what others quit
You flex to break my handling. If you break my head will you change the course I’m on?
I’ve paid no mind to get home. Or find my way out back to the old house.
Hope you enjoyed this weeks single, if you think you have a Single of the Week on your hand please get in touch!
After a long time waiting, The Orillelles have finally released their debut album Silver Dollar Moment. Making a name for themselves over the years, the band has slowly built up a lot of anticipation about this record, with the the releases of ‘Let Your Dogtooth Grow’ and ‘I Only Bought it For The Bottle’, settling the bar fairly high.
The album manages to live up to its expectation as the band stick to their garage rock sound throughout. However, garage rock could be too much of a restrictive term when talking about this album. It gently comes to life with the opening track ‘Mango’ which sets the table for the rest of the album, as you get a serious Orielles kick within the first few moments.
Throughout the album it seems the band drift in and out of consciousness, because some tracks are simply too dreamy. Prime example here being ‘Liminal Spaces’ and ‘The Sounds of Liminal Spaces’, both of which are soothing tracks. It’s also hard not to admire the creativity with these songs following each other, and the second serving as a playground where ‘Liminal Spaces’ was created.
It’s impressive to hear how well coordinated this album is, they using quite complex sounds and elements, blending them all together so well. The Orielles seem to have etched their own little genre, which can only be describes a Lo-Fi Disco Garage. The name of the genre is a working progress. Songs like ‘Sunflower Seeds’ and ‘I Only Bought it For The Bottle’ manages to bring out the dancing bug in you, but when combined with a very raw production, it manages to keep an authentic and grounded sound.
‘48 Percent’ is a wall of sound completed filled out with guitars, harmonies and reverb. This track subtly suggests summer to you, it just has that sort of vibe attached to it. ‘Borrachero Tree’ is a hazy number referencing to the famous tree that can create a powder making people act like zombies, and it’s a perfect representation of that.The guitar hooks throughout this record are something special, it seems to be a natural muscle that they flex out for every song, which is expertly shown on ‘Snaps’.
The album finishes off with ‘Blue Suitcase (Disco Wrist)’ which was the final song released ahead of the album, and it serves well as a closer. The band surely wanted to leave you aching for more, and this track fits that mould. The dancy hook along with the throwback bells, they found the perfect remedy. The song could even be argued as slightly psychedelic with the whirling guitars. Nonetheless, your left in a hurricane after the record.
Although the album was a long time coming, it needs to be appreciated that The Orielles had the patience and foresight to not rush a release like this.The debut album will often be a bands most important, and with them taking their time it’s culminated with them developing a very high quality album the represents the band so well. Can easily see these songs going down well at live shows. So now the wait is over and the pressure is off, all the guys have to do enjoy the performing this amazing songs.
Table Scraps are a band that have been on the cusp of something big for quite some time. Since their early releases ‘Bug’ and ‘Electricity’ , which led them to their debut album More Time For Strangers. This was a rather successful release, gaining some great reviews from The Line of Best Fit and Louder Than War, as it had a raw edge to it which was combined with a very loud and abrasive approach. However as good as that album was, it sometimes takes several good releases to earn a great reputation, which is what Autonomy will do.
The album sees the band play to their strengths and once again return to those animalistic hooks along with those mind-thumping drum parts. The album opens up with the leading single from the album ‘Sick of Me’ which has these really straight guitars combined with these Strokes-like Lo-Fi vocals, as they sound extremely muffled which add to the texture of the song. The solo on the track is also noteworthy, even though it does only last for a short time it’s still great hearing it.
It continues with this tone throughout the album, as these fast paced tracks just seem to roll by while causing a riot along the way. The evil sounding hook on the following song ‘Always Right’ sounds so sinister, it’s perfect. ‘I’m a Failure’ has certain anthemic feel to it, as you could easily hear a crowd shouting the line “I’m a Failure” straight back at the band at a live performance.
There’s definitely a punk streak running through this album as a lot of the songs come under the 3 minute line, with ‘Lyin’ Thru Yer Teeth’ and ‘Frankenstein’ falling under the 2 minute mark. However this factor doesn’t harm the overall product in the slightest, as ‘Lyin’ Thru Yer Teeth’ is one of the highlights of the album, purely because of the punky hookline that could easily cause a riot.
The vocal work is something that is consistant throughout the entire record, as it sounds like they’re trapped and isoloted-only adding to the haunting essence that band carry off so well.
‘Treat Me Like Shit’ is another standout performer on the album, as once again the sound of the guitar along with the hook mesh so well together with the vocals-achieving that trademark Table Scraps sound. You also have this cool element in the background which sounds like a satellite going out of control adding depth to the track.
The record finishes off with ‘Do It All Over Again’ which could be seen as a message to go ahead and play the record from the very start. Even though it’s not the heaviest track on the album, it’s increasingly catchy with a lo-fi tinge. Table Scraps manage to walk across several genres witout it sounding contrived, it seems they’ve unearthed this original sound that’s exclusive to them and it’s very natural. Yes there are bands that sound somewhat similar, however combined with the vocals it gives them a completly different energy.
This album is another convincing argument to why Table Scraps are so damn good, to do it over two albums is impressive and should be recognised. The band firmly have a unique sound and know the lengths that they can go to with it, which will be interesting to see where else they can take it. Their music is so in your face and carefree, it’s not hard to understand why their gigs can be so hectic. It’s another great outing for Table Scraps, one that will definitely gain them even more well deserved recognition. Onwards and Upwards!
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After a long time waiting, 
Words For Music - New Music Reviews 