Last week’s winner was the Devin Townsend Project, followed by Colour Of Noise in second place and Glenn Hughes in third. So who will triumph this time? Remember every vote counts, so cast yours at the end of the page. Enjoy!
A Thousand Horses – Travelin’ Man
One of our favourite examples of new ‘Southernality’ (the name of the album from which this humdinger is taken, appropriately enough), A Thousand Horses deal in super-sweet Nashville-fried rock’n’roll. Travelin’ Man is an absolute treat live, and hasn’t lost it’s charm here.
Deap Vally – Little Baby Beauty Queen
One mum’s beauty queen ambitions for her (man-sized) child take a macabre turn in this stylish, dark new video from the LA duo. Guitarist/vocalist Lindsey Troy’s line “You could be the one to live your mother’s dream” acquires an ominous quality as the colourfully shot story unfurls; flanked by their deliciously hooky, fuzzy garage-n’-blues rock.
Jeff Healey – I Can’t Get My Hands On You (live)
A Jeff Healey masterclass in tasty, charismatic blues fretwork, taken from Holding On: A Heal My Soul Companion, which comes out in December – complimenting the release of hitherto ‘lost’ album Heal My Soul in March. If you’re not already familiar with the blind axeman’s work, this is a good way in.
Tempt – The Ballad Of Dwight Fry (cover)
It wouldn’t be almost-Halloween without a nod to Alice Cooper. Accordingly, we’re delighted to present Tempt and their excellent cover of Coop’s brooding singalong The Ballad Of Dwight Fry. Pleasingly it’s not a total copycat rendition. Yes the young New Yorkers still sound fabulously retro, but they’ve made the song their own with a heartfelt, acoustically rooted interpretation.
The Zipheads – Last Man On Earth
Rockabilly and punk. Elvis and Mad Max. Not the most obvious bedfellows (indeed, on first glance it probably reads like a horrible match) but they work surprisingly harmoniously in the hands of St Albans rockers The Zipheads. Last Man On Earth is a catchy, fast n’ furious knees-up, served well by some steam-punky production values. We like.
Goldray – Soulchild
This new single from these guys comes out today – launched at London’s Borderline on November 8 – so listen in and embrace the propulsive psychedelia herein. Spearheaded by guitarist Kenwyn House (better known for Place Your Hands and the like with 90s Britpoppers Reef), Goldray might have a big freaky-deaky hippie side but they know how to rock as well.
The Cavemen – I’m A Mess
It’s shot in a garbage-filled alley with a mop for a microphone, just about everyone has a leather jacket, and somebody wearing a T-shirt saying ‘I Hate Art’ gets his head sawn off. The perfect backdrop, in other words, for these New Zealanders and their raw charge of punk rock’n’roll. Rough n’ ready, in a good (and bloody) way.
The Shrives – Madnight
After being tipped off by his son, Green Day frontman Billie Joel Armstrong whisked this British group over to his California studio to cut their debut album. He even played bass on parts of the record. Madnight is their new single – a tightly driven blend of rock’n’roll and ska, with spiky punk edges. Not without its Green Day parallels, then, but still very much their own thing.
