Track Of The Day: Belako – ‘Tie Me Up’

Having previously blown me away with their immersive live show supporting Queens Of The Stone Age in Finsbury Park last year, Basque Country band Belako have now announced their new album, set for release in May.

Taken from the album, new single ‘Tie Me Up’ is filled with gritty, swooning vocals and immense swirling hooks, resulting in a super catchy alt-rock anthem. With shades of early noughties indie, it showcases the poignant raw power and majestic musicality that this Spanish band are capable of creating. 

Of their upcoming new album, Plastic Drama, the band explain:

“‘Plastic Drama’ searches for the real meaning of things in a world that translates everything into assembly lines, manufacturing and the exploitation of living beings,” say the band. “It’s about the harsh reality our generation is facing and the only good use of new technology, which is the ability to spread the word and call for action. The title of the album has another message, as it also reminds us the first world issues we’ve come so keen to complain about. We can only hope for a more responsible human legacy”.

Plastic Drama is set for release in May, and you can catch Belako live at The Great Escape on 13th and 14th May.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

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Track Of The Day: Grizzly Coast – ‘Forever’

A thoughtful, anti-romance anthem for those struggling to end an unhealthy relationship; Grizzly Coast has shared her latest single, ‘Forever’. Full of luscious guitars and dreamy vocals, the Toronto-based songwriter has crafted a sad, but ultimately uplifting listen.

“We’re doomed, but I want you in my room” sings Grizzly Coast (aka Alannah Kavanagh), revealing both a strength and a vulnerability that underscores the majority of her songwriting. From ‘Half Light Boy’ to ‘High-Functioning’, Grizzly Coast’s hyper-awareness of herself and her subjects – relationships, self autonomy, and struggling with OCD – give her songs a poignant, intensely relatable quality.

If you’ve ever felt lonely, but lethargic at the same time when it comes to a past relationship, Grizzly Coast’s ‘Forever’ is a must listen. Click play below, and follow Grizzly Coast on Facebook & Spotify for more updates.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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ALBUM: Post Louis – ‘Descender’

From the office to the tour bus, Stephanie Davin has spent every spare moment of her time writing what would become Descender, the debut album from Post Louis. Alongside her responsibilities as lead singer and one fifth of this experimental art-rock band, Davin worked endless hours in the corporate world; eventually breaking away from the machine to push the boundaries of her creative expression in a remote cottage in Wales.

Accompanied by songwriter/co-founder Robbie Stern, and without the distractions of working life, Davin would craft the foundations that would become Descender. When their material was presented to the rest of the band, each song structure would be meticulously deconstructed and reconstructed within the walls of the Sjømannskirken in Rotherhithe, becoming a kaleidoscope of angular guitar riffs, scuzzy pop melodies, and breezy soundscapes.

Opening track ‘Fishwife’ begins with Davin asking “How do you stop an overflow?” The uncertainty felt in the midst of a “bad patch” cresendoes into a cacaphony of surf guitar, pulsating basslines, and thunderous drum beats. “The angler man is sinking and the walls are rusting through and through and my love is green as the sea is blue because all I had I gave to you”

‘Stress Fracture’ features tenor saxophone, courtesy of Alex Hitchcock, tumbling over the backing vocals of guitarist Andy Stern – paralleling Davin’s emotional songwriting and off-kilter lead vocals –, whilst ‘Little Jack’ studies the pain caused by loneliness (and the wolves loneliness can create when mixed with sexual desire – “She says you’re gonna be a wolf some day”).

Don’t let the breezy intro to ‘Janaskie Pt I’ fool you… Adam Turner-Heffer’s punk rock basslines are as infectious as Mattis Moviken’s meticulous drum strikes, resulting in a thrashing big instrumental tidal wave that had me reaching for rewind. Its companion piece ‘Janaskie Pt II’, and the instrumental track ‘Labyrinthitis’, lead into the title track ‘Descender’; reflecting on the exhaustion of working long laborious hours and the effect this can have on your life – “I’m working now from evening till dawn / Sun rises up and then you are gone…”

The poetic lyrics of ‘Like Bad Dreams’ are followed by ‘Ghostwriter’ – an anomaly on Descender – which sees Andy take over lead from Davin with the opening line, “How did you stop that overflow?” However, it is ‘Winter Pollen’ that hits me hardest in the gut. When Davin was constructing this particular song, the Me Too movement was beginning to open many eyes to a world most of us were ignorant of. This bravery was followed by anger, exhaustion, but ultimately empowerment. ‘Winter Pollen’ reflects the urgency of this movement with a heavy guitar sound that provides the backdrop for Davin’s frustration. “I make music with my brothers and I love them so / But it’s hard not to be angry, hating all the time / When Brock Turner spends three months in prison for his crime / When somebody spikes my mother’s drink at our first show…”

Both ‘Angular Man’ and ‘December’ close the album; each track incorporating contrasting instrumentation. As Davin sings the final line of the album – “In my darkest hour I fear I’m not strong” – the underlying theme of the Descender becomes more apparent. A reflective and poignant collection on the exhaustion that comes with living. 

 

Descender is out now.

Ken Wynne
@Ken_Wynne

Photo Credit: Maya Sacks

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EP: New Pagans – ‘Glacial Erratic’

Filled with urgent, considered, intensely catchy songs that challenge the norms surrounding relationships, history, and gender; New Pagans‘ debut EP Glacial Erratic is a powerful blend of alternative sounds. The Belfast band take the best elements of post-punk, grunge, and indie rock and transform them in to abrasive, yet melodic noise.

Formed of Claire Miskimmin, Cahir O’Doherty, Conor McAuley, and Lyndsey McDougall, the band have cut their teeth playing in different outfits over the years (Girls Names, Rupture Dogs, Fighting With Wire, Jetplane Landing). Together under the New Pagans moniker, they sound louder and more confident, creating a sonic space to explore issues of frustration, defiance, and resolution.

“The demand for perfection is disturbing” sings vocalist Lyndsey on opening track ‘It’s Darker’, with it’s relentless riffs and commanding percussion. The track is based on a real life confrontation Lyndsey had at a party with an aggressive male musician. The song will strike a chord with any woman who has had to defend her right to have her own opinion, and the subsequent anger that comes with feeling humiliated and devalued for it. “Everyone’s looking and I’m upset” she reveals in a moment of raw honesty, working through the unsettling feeling of being challenged in an environment that’s supposed to be fun.

‘Charlie Has The Face Of a Saint’ is informed by conversations overheard on a Belfast bus. Throwaway phrases like “I’m doing my part”, or “You’re easy to have when you’re down on your knees” float above the loud/quiet verse/chorus structure, acting like a stream-of-consciousness narrative. These conflicting voices don’t provide answers, they simply exist in the ether. The spiralling ‘I Could Die’ follows, with its manic riffs and urgent vocals, before the powerful ‘Bloody Soil’ breaks through. It feels like the soundtrack to an uprising, with its intense riffs and chant-able chorus.

‘Admire’ is a humble, shimmering ode to the perseverance that’s needed to keep a long-term relationship going. Proof that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side (even if you’ve daydreamed about it), New Pagans’ treatment of love and its many faults is far more romantic than any Valentine’s card or bouquet. “Let’s preserve our old ways / lets’s preserve them always” Lyndsey sings, as the song builds to a cathartic cacophony of shoegaze noise, removing all sense of doubt about why you chose to stay faithful. It’s a beautifully relatable listen.

Closing track ‘Lily Yeats’ is a tribute to the sister of artists William Butler and Jack Butler Yeats. It smolders with quiet fury, acting as an aural confidence boost to the woman it’s named after, and to all the future Lily Yeats who need help stepping out from their brother’s shadows. “My daughter needs to know that she can do the same” sings Lyndsey, over erratic riffs and pummelling beats, before dual male/female vocals arrive later in the track, driving home the message that it’s everyone’s responsibility to amplify the sound of women’s stories.

New Pagans’ ability to tap into uneasy topics and turn them into empowering, memorable tracks is what makes Glacial Erratic such a an enjoyable and poignant listen. Their confident delivery, genre-blending sounds, and relatable lyrics are well worth your listening time.

New Pagans EP Glacial Erratic is released on 6th March.
Follow the band on Facebook and Spotify for more updates.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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