So much of our music taste as we grow older is build upon the foundations laid by the music of our youth. Though we may still occasionally sample things that are new and outside our comfort zone, for the most part we don’t tend to stray too far from what we already know and love. ‘Bee Stings’, the latest single from LA band Marni, feels like the mean average of every song I obsessed over as a teenager. The first taster of the band’s new EP due later this year, its slacker rock vibes adorned with a sprinkling of impassioned emo are a textbook example of a musical vision being fully and exquisitely realised. The way its brooding shoegaze soundscapes give way to the ferocious roar of garage rock distortion, like a crocodile lunging out of the eddying murk of a river’s edge. In another life this beauty would have had pride of place in every last angsty teenage playlist I ever made. Better late than never I suppose.
Author: James Fenney
Spotlight!: Kelcey Ayer
There is no greater gift and honour than being a part of welcoming new life into the world, and there’s no more profound duty and responsibility than helping to nurture that new life. A moment like that is a clear before and after dividing line in the time you spend on this Earth. It’s a perspective shift; no longer the main character in your own story, but a vital supporting role for a new star. It’s a pact that you pledge your heart and soul to, sacrificing your own time, energy and wellbeing for a greater cause. In a way it’s a new start, a new life of its own. You and your child facing this strange scary world together, learning and growing in tandem. This journey into fatherhood has been a reinvention in more ways than one for Kelcey Ayer, formerly of Local Natives and Jaws of Love. Capturing all the joy, stress and uncertainty that comes with becoming a parent, penning songs under his own name for the first time, for his new solo EP – the aptly named No Sleep. Continue reading
Album Review: Durry – This Movie Sucks
Album Review: Bonfire Tide – Talk Of Being Saved
Album Review: Black Country, New Road – Forever Howlong
Album Review: Divorce – Drive to Goldenhammer
Album Review: Press Club – To All The Ones That I Love
Spotlight!: EEVAH
The hardest challenges we face in life are those which catch us off-guard. Moments of profound loss and grief, instances of dizzying panic and confusion. The greatest of these will all arrive without warning, without any opportunity to prepare or brace yourself for the painful road ahead. Often left too dazed and dumbstruck to really react, all we can do is feel it. All of it. I Didn’t See It Coming, the new EP from Halifax trio EEVAH, lives and breathes in the aftermath of the unexpected, and instils every bit of that feeling into its bittersweet melodies. Nicole Hope Smith’s vocals capturing both that numb, hollow emptiness, and the soft quiver of a voice barely holding back a raging tempest. All while Richard McNamara’s hazy dream pop guitar swirls and billows like an ink blot in water, and Fay Clayton’s steady drum beats pulse like blood pumping through your ears. Continue reading
Top Tracks: Nadia Kadek – Feeling It All
Adults seem so infallible when you’re a kid; our formative years spent looking up at grown-ups who seem to have all the answers. Your own parents feel especially smart, especially strong, carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders, always knowing what’s best. You tell yourself one day you’ll have it all figured out, just like them. ‘Feeling It All’, the stunning debut single from singer/songwriter Nadia Kadek, reckons with how the naïve, idealistic childhood view of adulthood stacks against the reality of growing up. This wonderfully expressive folk number deals with trying to live up to this impossibly high standard you’ve set; acknowledging that no one has their life together the way they thought they would, that a part of you will always look for the the adult in the room for answers. Moreover it touches on how we begin to realise our parental paragons aren’t as perfect as we imagined. They too struggle, make mistakes, do wrong by us, and ultimately fade and pass before we’re ready. The track’s light and airy arrangement leaves ample room for the expressiveness of Nadia’s tender vocals to truly shine. True to its name you can truly feel it all – the frustration and confusion, a sense of loss, of forgiveness and understanding – wrapped up in this beautiful moment of introspection.
Live Review: Bruce Springsteen, Co-op Live Manchester, 20th May 2025
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve stepped into a big arena to see a proper certified legend. There’s a unique buzz that comes from seeing an iconic, beloved, household name in the flesh. It’s the kind of experience that will have you bragging “I’ve actually seen them live!“, whenever the opportunity presents itself, for the rest of your days. It’s a rush that I’ve been craving of late, and I’ll be damned if Bruce Springsteen doesn’t fit the bill perfectly. My appreciation for his work has grown slowly but steadily over the years, as I’ve begun to grasp how foundational his influence is for so many acts I adore, but delving into his prolific back catalogue will only get you so far. For decades now, Bruce and the E Street Band have set the standard for live shows with their marathon 3 hour sets, and finally experiencing that first-hand felt like undertaking some rock and roll rite of passage. I had no clue where that journey would take me, no clue of the scale of the buzz around these shows, all I knew for certain was that I’d sure be getting my money’s worth. Continue reading
