The best things in life are worth fighting for, even if it occasionally means clashing with those we care about. Even with those we hold closest to our hearts, the ones we love and our dearest friends and family, you’re likely to fall out every once in a while. The mark of a strong relationship isn’t making out that everything is perfect, but through confronting problems and ultimately emerging stronger on the other side. That said, sometimes we can find ourselves chasing an “other side” that simply isn’t there. You can end up fighting tooth and nail with someone to keep them in your life, only to be blinded to the fact that the fight is all you know. ‘Unwinnable War’ is the realisation that they’re not worth the energy. Belwood favourite Sophie Morgan has really outdone herself with this latest single. Her vocals carry the same distinctive warmth and elegance as ever, and yet somehow every sublime lyric seems to roll off her tongue with more clarity and meaning than ever before. The soft and sparse arrangement swaying back and forth, punctuated with a brief mournful howl of guitar. The bittersweet melodies that tug at your heartstrings and linger in your thoughts. There’s no fight when it comes to loving this song, it welcomes you with open arms. This stunning single is a poignant reminder that sometimes the bravest course you can take isn’t to keep fighting, but to admit that it’s time to walk away.
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Album Review: Lunatic Soul – Through Shaded Woods
Top Tracks: Old Sea Brigade – How It Works
The music industry isn’t all it’s cracked up to be; beneath all the glitz and glamour there are some toxic folk around. More specifically, there have always been the petty few who get their kicks through gatekeeping. Eager to lord whatever meagre power they posses over new acts and dangle the promise of success over them. Things are getting better, but as in all things change for the better makes slow progress, and there are still those who cling to the old ways and insist “that’s just how it works”. Drawing from his own experiences within the industry, and having been on the receiving end of those exact same words, Nashville based singer/songwriter Ben Cramer reflects on the struggle for change with the latest single under his Old Sea Brigade moniker. Being told ‘How It Works’ doesn’t just apply to music though, it’s something we hear about all the many broken parts of society that hold people back. The hazy Americana arrangement and enthralling earworm melodies make this the ideal song to sit back and reflect on the slow march of progress around you. ‘How It Works’ is a song of real substance, and the accompanying video, of a wonderfully cinematic Western shootout in the Mojave Desert, compliments it with an extra dash of style to boot.
Top Tracks: Lawson Hull – College Town
I’m fairly sure there’s a longing to escape ingrained within all of us. There comes a time in your youth where there’s nothing you desire more than to get away from the dead end town you grew up in and make your own way in the world. Meet new people, see the city lights, live out your dreams. The dismay of feeling trapped is one thing, but it’s nothing compared to the feeling of breaking free, spreading your wings at last, only to then come crashing back down to the same old dead end town. With ‘College Town’, Australian singer/songwriter Lawson Hull perfectly captures the sense of quiet defeat that comes with being stuck in a familiar cage. Taken from his debut EP Dreaming is Easy, the sadness and regret of his latest single really hits home with lines like “I shouldn’t be out here in the prime of my life”. Underneath it all however, there’s a warmth and familiarity to ‘College Town’ that feels like coming home. The way the track interweaves the sadness, the yearning for something greater, with the warm glow of nostalgia and an unspoken sense of acceptance, serves as a poignant reminder that sometimes it’s better the devil you know.
Album Review: Bartees Strange – Live Forever
Album Review: Black Foxxes – Black Foxxes
Album Review: Keaton Henson – Monument
Top Tracks: Megan Nash – Artifact
We have a remarkable ability to attach great meaning to otherwise unremarkable things. What would be a wholly insignificant trinket to one person could be a priceless heirloom to another. Even little scraps of paper could have years of memories attached to them. It’s quite magical in a way. How a picture or note that would be meaningless to most can become a portal to another time in the right hands; allowing a torrent of memories, and the emotions attached to them, to come flooding back. Canadian artist Megan Nash offers an exquisite exploration of this phenomenon with her new single ‘Artifact’. The track begins adrift in a dreamy wistful atmosphere, reminiscing on a past relationship and recalling how it felt to be in love. This alone would make ‘Artifact’ a sublime exercise in songwriting, but Megan takes things a step further. As growing tension and menace builds in the arrangement, the track turns to reflect on how things turned sour and fell apart, swimming with both the passion of the past and the pain of the present. It delves into how we can take the moments frozen in time contained with objects and look upon them with fresh perspectives once we’re a little older and wiser.
Album Review: The Last Dinosaur – Wholeness
Top Tracks: Heavyman – Loose Lips
Picture if you will the world of music as a busy bar scene. There are many songs which are like the friendly bar staff who greet everyone with a smile. Some songs are like the quiet wallflower in the corner; easily overlooked at first, but after spending a bit of time with them they can become a friend for life. And some are more like grizzled strangers with an unapproachable air who are very much an acquired taste. Then you have tracks like ‘Loose Lips’ – our leather-jacketed, effortlessly cool leading man that commands everyone’s attention as soon as they walk in the door. This new single from London based alt rock outfit Heavyman is simply dripping with charisma. Between the heavy stomp of drums, the suave snaking bass lines, and the slick addictive riffs, it ticks all the right boxes with an assured flourish. It’s the textbook example of a “walk down the street feeling like a badass” kind of song. Beneath the bravado however there’s also some real depth to this debonair rocker. With lyrics dealing with the current torrent of fake news, and the kind of people who lap it up and let truth fall by the wayside, ‘Loose Lips’ has plenty of substance to go with its abundance of style.
Belwood Music 