Every week we scour the known Rock Universe for the best new Rock unknown to mankind, and this week we’re particularly thrilled with the results. We’ve got Texan psych, Anglo-Finnish miserabilism, Aussie boogie, Austro-soviet gypsy ska, and something from Russia we can’t even begin to comprehend, although it’s unexpectedly Brit-rockish.
Music’s giant melting pot has a whole load of new ingredients, and we hope you enjoy the meal.
Grave Pleasures - Crying Wolves The Goth revival starts here, pt 246. Actually, the Anglo-Finnish miserabilists formerly known as Beastmilk make a much more convincing fist of recreating the crepuscular sounds of the 80s than most on their first single since changing their name. Cue dank atmospherics, funereal guitars and the sort of cemetery croon that makes Glenn Danzig sound like Miley Cyrus. Release the bats!
Sweat Lodge - Bed Of Ashes Sweat Lodge come roaring out of Texas with a truckload of psychedelic riffs and a new album, Talismana, that rocks so hard cracks are beginning to appear in the walls of the Classic Rock penthouse. Bed Of Ashes was filmed at The Grand Social Club and Billiards Hall, which TripAdvisor currently ranks as the 400th best tourist attraction in Austin… out of 403. Sounds like our kind of place.
Dobin - Spurred What kind of crossroads do you hit in your life when you swap gynaecology for rock and roll? Don’t ask us, but do ask Russian-born Dobin, who channels Screaming Trees and The Verve in this grimy, zero-fucks-given sleazy anthem. The video is almost a tripped-out The Full Monty too; if anyone can decipher the symbolism, do direct a postcard with your theory on it into the sea.
Blitzen Trapper - Lonesome Angel Possibly named after a snare set for one of Santa’s pets, Blitzen Trapper are from the hipster capital of the universe, Oregon’s very own Portland, but their sound is as traditional as blacksmithery and bread making. Lonesome Angel is part roots, part country, part Dylan, and all good. If you like the taste of Hiss Golden Messenger, be sure to snack on this delicious treat. Ooh, and it’s a free download.
Datura4 - Out With The Tide Dom Mariani was the frontman of Aussie garage-pop legends The Stems - whose At First Sight, Violets Are Blue album is a bona-fide classic - so we’re always going to pay attention when he shows up with a gang of psychedelic rockers in tow. Out With The Tide is a thundering chunk of Antipodean boogie-sleaze, and rocks like a pair of possums on a see-saw.
This Oceanic Feeling - Radio If you’re a fan of 90125-era Yes (i.e. big, glistening pop sporting an equally glistening prog hat), do give Radio a listen. It’s a hugely expansive slice of meticulously crafted hoo-ha, and is as smooth and as delightful as an arena filled with buttercream.
Bobaflex - Mama (Don’t Take My Drugs Away) The final scene of this video finds singer singer Shaun McCoy dancing round an empty room in his underpants waving a handgun, so we can can only assume that the song is decidedly anti-drugs, despite its apparently pro-drugs title. Either way, we’re drawn in by M(DTMDA)’s uber-greasy riff and singalong chorus. It could be the sobriety anthem of the summer.
Russkaja - El Pueblo Unido El Pueblo Unido is so complicated, culturally speaking, that we’ve had to write some special software just so we can pigeonhole it. The results tell us that the song marks the precise point where Fiddler On The Roof meets Rancid meets Tex-Mex meets Eurovision gypsy punk, and it sounds like a whole caravan full of fun-time party pleasure.
