Margraves Part 1

Posted on by edwardlayland

The legendary DJ John Peel had a policy of listening to (and often playing on air) every demo tape he was given by a band – he loved it but also admitted that the sheer quantity drove him mad. As I am a million years away from being the most influential disc jockey in the industry, my task is somewhat easier, yet given my lack of time I have some idea of what he must have felt. At the time of writing I have little more than a handful of followers on Twitter, yet since I opened my account I’ve had bands following me and sending me their work. Here I will attempt to provide a space to showcase some of what I receive and although I cannot promise full reviews, actually I can’t even promise empty reviews, but I will endeavour to put bands out there in some way so that people can make up their own minds; obviously the more excited I am about them, the more  likely I am to go on about them – fair enough?

So, here’s the first crop of what I call ‘Margraves’ – a sideways tribute to John Peel (A.K.A Margrave of the Marshes) – featuring five newish bands, via Twitter, in order of discovery:
The Mantells – britpoppy Arctics influenced, nice clean sound – good vocal.

Lux Lisbon – slick slices of indie tinged atmospheric pop with good strong songs and a well refined sound.

We’re no Heroes – eighties groove with an upbeat sound, very likeable.

Charlywood – infectious English fronted guitar band from Austria with an air of Libertines meets Billy Bragg about them.

False Advertising – slightly mechanical indie fuzzers with some poppy hooks

Five British Rock Bands that Could Use a Break.

Posted on by edwardlayland

In my capacity as a contributing writer for www.alreadyheard.com, an alternative rock website in the UK, I’ve been lucky enough to review some really interesting stuff, as well as some pathetically indulgent musically limited shit. Among the non-shit are a whole bunch of upcoming British bands suffering at the hard end of the music business, where lack of money and/or record company support means that a DIY philosophy is prerequisite. Not only are these bands writing their own songs, but they are often using crowdfunding (pledgemusic), producing themselves and in some cases doing their own marketing and booking their own gigs, which is all very admirable but is obviously not a sustainable model. Without significant record sales, top drawer live opportunities or some real financial backing from a record label, bands like these are living on borrowed time and their talents will be confined to an eternity on the pub circuit. Ok, I’m the first to admit that none of these guys are the finished article and the artistic direction of their videos leaves more than a little to be desired, but each one them has talent and all have potential to develop given the right support. Check them out below – with links 🙂

Romans – upbeat hard rock; very succinctly summed up on the “About” of their facebook page – “We like riffs”.

https://m.facebook.com/romansonline?refsrc=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fromansonline

Blind Wives – indie rock crossover with a punky edge recently released their second EP showing off mature song writing skills.


http://blindwives.bandcamp.com/

An Elegy – midlands metalcore band with an immense heaviness and interesting song structures born of hard studio time.

https://anelegy.bandcamp.com/

Quiet Lions – Brighton based melodic rock band creating expansive sound scapes.


http://www.quietlions.com/

Of Allies – these guys are ready – hard edged alternative rock with strong songs and plenty of appeal.

http://ofallies.com/ (free download available)

All the bands featured here, which is just the tip of the iceberg of the underground/independent scene, are available for streaming on Deezer (and probably Spotify but I couldn’t be arsed to troll their user unfriendly interface to see), where I also have an ever growing playlist of upcoming bands from around the world:
http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1328065347

The Maccabees – Marks to Prove It

Posted on by edwardlayland

b0ffeb97d813799ac7300b9768c33196-98You know those retro Nikes, the ones that hark back to the seventies but actually look fresh and have a certain cool about them? Well, I see the Maccabees as their musical equivalent; there are some old school influences bubbling away under the surface yet there is something fresh and confident about them that sets them apart from their contemporaries. I was a big fan of the expansive sound scapes of 2012’s Mercury nominated ‘Given to the Wild’, so I was anxious to hear the follow up, and thankfully, I’m not disappointed.
On ‘Marks to Prove It’ the Maccabees have upped their game, following an extensive US tour with Mumford and Sons and some trials and tribulations in the studio, and have produced a somewhat introspective mature sounding album, reflecting harsh urban landscapes and themes of love, friendship and the challenges of growing older.
Title track, ‘Marks to Prove It’ is a hectic opener with a crunchy guitar sound in a clear cut nod to their Indie kid days, but there is much more depth to the sound and you can hear their development. They actually experiment to great effect throughout; no two songs sound alike and Orlando Weeks varies his vocal delivery to offer another new dimension, as on the atmospheric ‘Kamakura’ and the multi-faceted ‘Spit it Out’ with its tender piano intro and high tempo rocky climax. ‘Silence’ starts out similarly tenderly and is frankly a rather beautiful song – “understand that it never ends / she’s waiting round every corner every bend” – to which ‘River Song’ is quite a brooding contrast of histrionic saxophone.

I love the emotional urgency of Orlando’s voice and it’s evident in the moody bass rich ‘Slow Sun’ and the intense ‘WWI Portraits’; possibly the most accomplished track of the album. As the record progresses so does the sound, with ‘Pioneering Systems’ and ‘Dawn Chorus’ showing the band’s maturity; the latter being especially interesting with melodic guitar lines, thoughtful vocal and even some horns to give it another dimension, not to forget the female backing vocal which helps bring the album to a meandering hypnotic close.
The one track which I find lacking credibility is the second single, ‘Something Like Happiness; it’s kinda jaunty and actually sounds like something the Mumfords might write rather than a Maccabees song – disappointing.
Nevertheless, ‘Marks to Prove It’ showcases a well developed band offering up their most accomplished release to date; I like the fact that they have progressed steadily throughout their career and have put making great music ahead of achieving instant commercial success. For me they embody the philosophy of do what you love and the success will come. Lovely record, listen as a whole.

9/10