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new music mondays

New Music Mondays: Bumper Two Week Edition!

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After last week off due to being at The Long Road, we return this week with a massive two week edition of New Music Mondays! With so many awesome albums out in that span, let’s check them all out!

Deftones: Private Music

So, I’ve made little secret to it over the years that, outside of a couple of tracks, I don’t ‘get’ Deftones. I’m going to preface this by saying that this is better than Ohms. I remember reviewing that at my old place and hating it. However, that isn’t saying much. It’s weird too, as I like a lot of the elements on their own. The guitar tone is incredible and some of the riffs are great. The drumming is solid. There are even times I don’t mind Chino’s breathy, whining vocals. But put it all together, and it just feels so incredibly dull to me. Very little stands out from not only each other, but the rest of Deftones’ discography. It makes it feel monotonous, and for me it’s only really good for ambient music in the background. So, I thought it would be easier for me to list the parts I liked than keep being negative: the Soft Play-esque ‘locked club’ was alright. The riff from ‘infinite source’ was good. ‘Milk of the Madonna’ is the most Deftonesy track I’ve ever heard and was probably the best song on the album… and that’s it.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine. There are a lot of people who will surely love this. I just don’t quite get how they’re this massive, arena-filling band when they put out the same boring thing over and over. If you like this, awesome, but it sadly isn’t for me, no matter how hard I try to get into it. I can’t give it any more than 5/10; completely average and unremarkable.

Russel Dickerson: Famous Back Home

We’ve already checked out this album! Check out our full review of it here.

Bryan Adams: Roll with the Punches

The Canadian arena rock legend continues to be one of the most underrated studio performers in the world this late in his career. This is a 35-minute masterclass of 80s sleaze-drenched, arena-filling rock that honestly holds up against any of his younger peers. Heck, I’d argue album opener ‘Rolling with the Punches’ stands up there among his extensive greatest hits catalogue. Then you have songs like the blusey ‘A Little More Understanding’ and ‘How’s That Workin’ for Ya” that are also big highlights. However, the album is pretty damn short and packed full of highlights. We enjoyed his last release, but this somehow feels like it’s on another level again. He has no right still putting out music this good when he’s going on 70, but I’m so glad he is because I loved this and am such a big fan of his entire catalogue. If you are at all a fan of the guy, I cannot recommend this enough! A very solid 8.5/10 from us!

Dinosaur Pile-up: I’ve Felt Better

The return album of the British alt-rockers has been a long time coming. Matt Bigland struggled extensively over the last few years with a chronic illness (which he explained in length on their socials), so not only is this him returning to the music landscape after that, but a lot of it details his feelings surrounding it over the last few years. A lot has changed for him and the band, but one thing is for certain: DINOSAUR PILE-UP ARE BACK. Heck, we checked out and reacted to their debut single, so knew it back then, but the whole album is a true testament to not only their talent, but resilience. The title track is a great punk track. ‘My Way’ is back to the bands classic sound in the best way. ‘Big Dogs’ is silly heaviness in the best ways. ‘Quasimodo Melonheart’ is a ridiculous love song, and definitely the name of my next dog.

There are so many highlights, but there really isn’t a bad song on the album! The 40 minutes went by in a flash every time I’ve spun it, and it somehow keeps growing on me. It somehow feels both nostalgic, but completely fresh, like only Dinosaur Pile-Up can do. It’s the perfect area of a heavier, punkier Foo Fighters, but with some hip-hop influence thrown in for good measure. If you’re a fan of the band, or any of that sounds good to you, I cannot recommend this album enough! I’m so glad they’re back, and it’s an easy 9/10 from us! 

Helloween: Giants & Monsters

Album 17 from the German power metal legends is just as awesome as one would expect. It’s that early power metal sound that is rather removed from its modern counterpart, sounding somewhere between Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and H.E.A.T.. Still, they have plenty of similar contemporaries now, and have stayed on the same great trajectory as bands like Accept and Hammerfall. This is a fantastic album, and goes to show why they are regarded as one of the best in their scene. From the opener to ‘We Can be Gods’ to ‘This is Tokyo’, there is so much awesomeness on this release! However, there really isn’t a bad track on it. It’s 10 tracks and almost an hour in length, but a must listen to for any metalhead out there. The band are insanely talented and the sheer fact that they’ve got such a killer discography that keeps growing in size and quality speaks for itself. In a time where power metal is arguably stronger than ever, Helloween have still set themselves apart here and put out something different and great! 8/10

Three Days Grace: Alienation

The first studio release from the TDGX2 era is somehow still exactly what you’d expect from the band, thirty years into their album-releasing careers. Somehow Adam and Matt’s vocals, while just about distinguishable, are so similar that it doesn’t really feel like the two singers thing was needed at all. So, while it’s a novel idea for an alt/dad rock band to have two leads like they’re a European power metal band, it doesn’t make a whole lot of difference to their sound. They could have put this out with either Adam or Matt and it would have been the exact same. Tracks like ‘Mayday’ and ‘Deathwish’ are still good songs, and up there alongside some of the bands more recent hits, but as someone who’s not a huge fan of them as is, it’s nothing that’s made me want to listen to them any more than I already do. I remember checking out their last album with just Matt and, honestly, they’re about on the same level. It’s another solid but slightly forgettable 7/10

Old Dominion: Barbara

When I first checked this album out on the way to Long Road, I have to say I wasn’t hugely into it. I think it may be because I loved their last release a lot. And, while this one isn’t a huge step away, there are certainly differences. It feels a little more mature in terms of writing; it feels less trying to get a radio hit and more chilled-out and old-school/Americana based. Having said that, there are still some amazingly catchy choruses, even if they don’t feel as big. But there are also slower, more introspective tracks like ‘Man or the Song’ (my favourite lyrics on the album) that I feel we didn’t get as much of on their last record. So, while I don’t think it’s quite as good as Memory Lane, it has grown on me a lot on a second and third listen. From the opener to ‘Talk Country’ to ‘Sip in the Right Direction’, there are plenty of massive highlights on here. None of the tracks are bad though, the album is just different and needed a little adjusting. Matthew Ramsey’s vocals sound better than ever, and the instrumentation throughout is great! I’d recommend it to any fan of the band or country in general, as it’s still a solid release. It may grow on me more still, but for now it gets a solid 8/10

We Came as Romans: ALL IS BEAUTIFUL… BECAUSE WE’RE DOOMED

The seventh album from the US metalcore titans is a pretty damn solid modern release. It’s very Bad Omens or BMTH and honestly… meh. I completely get that I am in the minority here, the band has so many massive fans, but from the basic dropped riffing, heavy synth-focus and weird screams, it’s just not my thing. Tracks like ‘lake of fire’, ‘Red Smoke’ and ‘no rest for the dreamer’ are pretty good and definite highlights. However, it just feels a tad… bland? Why would I listen to this when I could be listening to something a bit more interesting like Architects or Electric Callboy or (pre-controversy) I Prevail? Everything on this album has been done before and arguably better by other bands. And that isn’t inherently an issue, as I said at the start it’s still a solid modern metalcore album. It’s just not for me, and not one that I’d hurry to listen back to. I’m just trying to justify the score so I don’t get too many angry WCAR fans in the comments… 7/10

Nova Twins: Parasites & Butterflies

The third album from the alt rock duo dropped this last Friday. It’s no secret I’m not really a fan of the girls’ work. So who knows, maybe I’m in a good mood this weekend… but I actually quite liked this! The opener was meh but ‘Piranha’ is a fantastic alt rock track, packed with catchy hooks and heavy riffing. It sets up a run of mostly pretty enjoyable songs for the next half an hour. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all great, but stuff like ‘Soprano’, ‘Sandman’ and ‘Hide & Seek’ are all pretty damn good tracks! I’m not sure if I need to go back and revisit their previous releases or if this is actually a marked jump in quality, but either way I wouldn’t be opposed to listening to a good half of this again, and a fair bit of it made it onto our playlist. It’s still not fully my sort of thing, but I certainly get the hype around the band a little more now. If the album was a little more consisted for me, it would get higher, but for now a solid 7/10. It may grow on me with more listens, too!

Pendulum: Inertia

The electro-rock masters are back with somehow their first studio album in 15 years. We’ve had a couple of EPs to fill the gaps, but it’s nice to finally have a nearly hour-long release to sink our teeth into! If you know the band you know exactly what to expect, and they don’t at all deviate from that. It’s both a good thing and a bad thing, I’d say. The tracks without guests are your standard drum-and-bass Pendulum affair; not bad but would be far better live than on track. Having said that, the heavier ‘Save the Cat’ is pretty sick. The real greatness comes from them working with guests, as it arguably always has. From Wargasm to Scarlxrd to Bullet for my Valentine, their collabs are all pretty awesome. However, the latter reminded me that I’d heard it before, and when I did some research it did put a slight sour taste in my mouth. Half of this album is their previous two EPs. It’s a long album so isn’t a huge issue, but does feel slightly unnecessary. Especially when said tracks are some of the best on the release. On top of that, we’ve had four new singles pre-release, so actually out of 16 tracks, we’ve only gotten four new ones. I know that in this tiny attention span day and age, singles are sadly king, but I find it hard to get hyped about listening to a new album when I’ve heard a lot of it before.

As I said, it isn’t a bad release, and fans of the band will most likely love it. But at this point I’d have happily taken another EP with some of the decent new songs, over an album that just mushes everything from their reunion together. It’s not bad and well worth a listen, but as someone who much prefers this style live to on track, it doesn’t do a great deal for me. 6/10

Feurzchwanz: Knightclub

Another album we’ve already reviewed in full, aren’t you lucky?! Read it here.

Margo Price: Hard Headed Woman

An album I’ve been pretty hyped for since I heard of its release due to how much I loved her 2023 output, the outlaw country/Americana once again knocks it out of the park here! It’s 40-minutes of amazing neo-traditional country music, written and delivered perfectly by Margo. From the opening couple of tracks to things like ‘Losing Streak’, ‘Wild at Heart’ and ‘Kissing You Goodbye’ there is so much awesome, high energy and tempo country-Americana. Also, her duet with Tyler Childers is amazing, their voices and styles meshing perfectly together! From all of that, it does make it sound like there is a bit of a lull in the middle, which isn’t untrue. There’s a couple of slower ones together which, while are both excellent songs, do grind the album’s pace to a halt when paired together. Still, it barely affected my enjoyment of the album at all; it’s an enjoyable listen throughout! If you are at all into Margo’s music or just country in general, I cannot recommend this release enough! She’s one of the most criminally overlooked artists in the genre, and I’m so glad she’s back with more awesome new music! 8.5/10

Walker Hayes: 17 Problems

Four years on from his massive breakout hit ‘Fancy Like’, I’m still not sure if Walker is an industry plant or not. Firstly, did bro country not die out with Florida Georgia Line? And plus, what makes the pretty cringy lyrics even worse is that the guy is going on 50 now, but still writing/singing like a teenager. What’s worse is that there is actually probably all the elements of a great country-pop album in here, just hidden under all the rubbish. There are flashes of Old Dominion at times, which y’all know I love already, but the pop and vague hip-hop elements ruined all of that. There is clearly a big market for this kind of country still, but it’s not even particularly well-done bro country. Like if it was new FGL I may have fucked with it, but this really was a struggle to listen through, especially for 17 tracks. The opener was probably the best track on it, and that was kinda just passable for me. If you like it more power to you, but I can’t give it any more than 4/10. In hindsight, me giving his last album 7/10 was rather generous, but it’s at least less cringy than this!

Hot Mulligan: The Sound a Body Makes When it’s Still

This is a real mixed bag for me. I remember checking them out in the lead-up to Slam Dunk this year and enjoying them, so was at least a little hyped for this album. However, yeah, it’s kinda just there at times. It combines some of my least favourite elements of the genres it draws from; Midwest emo, punk and indie. Heck, there are some awesome math rock guitar licks… in 4/4. However, having said that, as an album as a whole I found myself having a good time listening, even if at times I was surprised by that fact. It starts a little rocky, but tracks like ‘Island in the Sun’ (not that one (woop woop)), ‘Monica Lawinskibidi’, ‘Cream of Wheat of Feet Naw Cream of (feat.)’, ‘Carbon Monoxide Hotel’ and the beautiful, bittersweet ‘Slumdog Scungillionare’ all big personal highlights. I also love that at least bands like this are carrying on the trend of absolutely wild, nonsense and hilarious song titles.

Despite my complaints, the more I listen the more I enjoy this album. It’s not completely my bag, and it is a touch long at 16 tracks. However, I had a good time listening to most of this once I settled into it. It’s certainly not bad, and the band are clearly talented. I probably wouldn’t spin this often aside a random track every so often, but if I was in the mood I’d probably still chuck this on and just get lost in it. It may grow on me even more, but for now it gets a pretty decent 7.5/10

Wolf Alice: The Clearing

The alt/indie rock Brits have become a force to be reckoned with in the scene in the decade that they’ve been releasing music, and this album really demonstrates their size and the reason they are at that point. It’s a massive, sweeping, ambitious release that honestly tops their previous ones with relative ease. This is coming from a guy that didn’t really consider himself a fan of the band either, so the fact that they’ve impressed me this much shows the quality of this release. It just feels BIG, from the production to the quirky writing to the impeccable use of the instrumentation. And Ellie Rowsell’s vocals here… DAMN. Talk about an underrated vocalist! She may be what has drawn me into this album the most, honestly. As I said, everything about it is technically great, but Ellie’s vocal range, power and delivery, coupled with a star power that shines bright through the music, had me hooked. From the absolutely incredible opener to the folky ‘Passenger Seat’ to the heavier ‘White Horses’, there’s plenty to love here!

Is it perfect? Not for me personally. However, they’re another band that I very much ‘get’ now, and had a good time sitting back and appreciating everything this had to offer. It’s another album that does have a significant lull in the middle, but I think it’s less egregious with a band like this that are a little more both chilled-out and experimental. I’d definitely recommend this album, and will definitely be spinning the tracks I’ve named previous, if not the whole album, a good few times over the coming weeks and months. A very solid 7.5/10 from us, and clearly I need to give the bands back catalogue another try!

Part 2 ->

Reviews

Ain’t in it For my Health: Does Zach Top Top His Debut?

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The rise of Zach Top has been nothing short of incredible. Touted as the ‘next big thing in country’ by just about every big source, the anticipation and pressure on this sophomore album couldn’t be much higher. His debut album was just last year and was massive, already netting him 8.5 million monthlys on Spotify alone. So, when we got sent this through, I just had to see what it was like, even if we did sadly miss Cold Beer & Country Music. So, without further ado, let’s dive in!

Opener ‘Guitar’ sets the tone perfectly; being an upbeat boot-stomper. It also feels so very old-school in the best possible way, immediately giving off a modernised Brooks & Dunn vibe. The guitaring is great, and Zach’s vocals fit it perfectly, a real traditional twang to them! The chorus is at the same sort of level as the rest of the track yet still felt not only distinct, but catchy and easy to sing along to. The lyrics, while pretty standard country fair, are written very well and are incredibly believably delivered. We even get an awesome, very fitting duel guitar solo tucked away in the middle. Yeah, this whole song is amazing. It’s probably exactly what a lot of the general publics go-to sound is when they think of country, but I mean that in the best way possible! The perfect way to open, and an easy early highlight!

The great vibes continue through ‘Good Times and Tan Lines’, this time it including some fantastic fiddle for good measure! It also gives off some Buffett for sure, but that may be because of the topic. It’s another excellent chorus too, one that’s going to be stuck in my head for days to come! And another incredible guitar solo bridges the gap between said choruses perfectly. It’s a simple arrangement and a short track, but another damn good one!

‘When You See Me’ slows things down a lot, giving off more of a Willie or Williams feel to it. It’s honestly incredible that someone so young has such a tight grasp of the traditional country sound! The chorus is yet again excellent, with the harmonies in it being flawless. It suddenly gives off a lot of Midland vibes too, which I can’t complain about at all! It’s a smooth, beautifully chilled-out song and another that it’s impossible not to love!

Much like with ‘Good Times…’, ‘Splitsville’ continues a similar vibe to the previous track. However, I have to say I somehow enjoy the chorus even more than the other slower track; it’s catchy as anything and incredibly well written. In fact, it’s fantastically written throughout, and is another massive personal highlight, and a track that easily makes it onto our playlist!

Songs like ‘Between the Ditches’, ‘Livin’ a Lie’, ‘I Know a Place’ and ‘She Makes’ are all slower, old-school tracks, again very much like Hank Williams Jr or Waylon Jennings or Don McLean. None are bad by any stretch, in fact ‘Livin’’ may be one of my favourite tracks on the album. However, all have a pretty similar feel and, with this being a pretty long album, I didn’t want to drone on and repeat myself over and over and make for an uninteresting read. If this sort of slower side of country is your style, I cannot recommend checking them out enough!

‘Flip Flop’ once again gives that beachy Buffett feeling in the best way possible. Also, the lyrics are absolutely fantastic, immediately reminding me of Blake Shelton. It’s a breakup/heartbreak song, but is so lighthearted and silly that it’s incredibly fun to listen to! It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s a masterfully written track that somehow bridges the gap between old-school and modern perfectly. And yes, it is yet another huge highlight!

‘Tightrope’ is another bouncy, faster neo-traditional track, much like ‘Like I Want You’ and the closer. Again, all are excellent, with ‘Honky Tonk Till it Hurts’ being one of my favourite tracks on the album. But, like the slower songs, there’s a lot of music on this thing and it’s easier to clump up similar songs. All are right up my street in terms of country music, and I’d recommend them to absolutely anyone!

Single ‘South of Sanity’ is a real epic affair. It almost feels like Zach’s answer to ‘Country Boy Can Survive’, the piano and guitar working so well together, and all building towards an amazing, bigger, arena-filling chorus! The lyrics throughout the track are also the best on the album, so full of emotion in the words and delivery. It’s another traditional sounding song, but is so well put together that I’m sure almost every country fan out there will agree that this is an amazing song!

‘Country Boy Blues’ is surprisingly the most modern-sounding track, in this writers humble opinion. It reminds me a little of the likes of Randall King, which certainly isn’t a bad thing! It’s another great song that feels like a combination of a lot of the rest of the album, all of it rolled into this one three minute track. The same could kinda be said for ‘Lovin’ the Wrong Things’, even if it is again on the slower end. Both are excellent tracks that are so easy to listen to, this whole thing barely feeling like it really even has album tracks on it, wild given its length!

Overall: This is an awesome album! Right off the bat it won’t be everyone’s bag; it’s very traditional in sound and nature. However, if you are into the older style of country music, I cannot recommend checking this out enough! The modern pop sound is stripped away, as really is much of the semblance of southern rock, it’s just straight-up, working man country, and it’s awesome! It’s a damn fun listen packed full of awesome vocals, solos and writing, and went by in a flash. I’m eager for him to play over here so I can see him live, as a big country band playing a lot of this would be phenomenal.

The Score: 8.5/10

Features, Reviews

The Long Road 2025: The Big Bad Review – Day 3!

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The final day of the festival opened as equally chilled as the others with The Wranglers and Steady Habits. The former was somehow about our only trip over to the Showground of the weekend, but were a fantastic acoustic duo that could easily make it onto the Front Porch or beyond in a year or two. The latter was on said Front Porch stage, and gave similar vibes to Ferrari in that kinda acoustic indie-Americana thang. However, they brought a full band, which was great for so early on in the day on a smaller stage. They made some great music, whether it was more stripped-back, slower acoustics numbers or full-band rock tracks. Arguably, they’d have done even better with a better slot! Another band that I’d checked out a bit of beforehand but have come away loving and can’t wait for the new album!

Evan Bartels absolutely blew me away on the Interstate stage. I loved his EP when I checked it out so knew I had to head to one of his sets on the Sunday, but wasn’t expecting it to be quite that good! For one man and one guitar, the sheer sound and emotion he portrayed was insane. The man sings like he’s had 200 years of hard life experiences, and is one of the best storytellers I’ve ever seen live. Even as he just spoke between songs, and during our interview (stay tuned soon), I got lost in his words; he’s a captivating man. His set went by in a flash and he played to a pretty packed out tent, everyone being locked onto him throughout. He’s another one that got a tear or two out of me, just like the other Evan. From his incredible vocals to insane lyrics and the guitar that fits it perfectly, it was honestly phenomenal. If anyone reading this is at all into old-school, true country music, you have to check him out immediately. Another massive weekend highlight.

Our good friends These Wicked Rivers tore the roof off of Buddy’s, next. Heavy for the festival, for sure, but playing to a pretty packed out crowd non the less, Rivers owned their time on the stage. Whether it was heavier numbers like ‘Testify’ or ‘Shine On’ or more ballad-tracks like ‘When the War is Won’, the crowd ate up everything the band lay down. I’ve loved them for years, so seeing them on a bit more of an out-of-the-box stage like this and killing it is really amazing to see. The band played their asses off for the whole set, with John’s vocals sounding as great as ever and the rest of the band putting on a fantastic show. Hopefully this is the start of something awesome for the band in the country sphere, as it will help two worlds that we cover quite a lot get closer!

Alyssa Bonagura was on Buddy’s after, continuing on the Snakefarm takeover of the stage. It was another slightly heavier British artist, but slightly more on the country-pop end of things. She was another excellent set, somehow sounding exactly like she does on track live, which is an incredible feat in this sort of music. She’s another artist that could have done with a bigger platform, but also perfectly fit for the smaller, packed out crowd at Buddy’s. We’ve spent a lot of time there this year and it’s quickly becoming one of my favourite stages; from the setting to the sound to the general setup, it’s all awesome. Alyssa will surely follow Kezia in becoming a massive name in the UK country scene sooner rather than later!

Erin Kinsey blew the metaphorical roof off the place on the joint at the Rhinstone stage. Flying in pretty last minute by the sounds of things, you wouldn’t have told she was in Germany earlier that day, as she sounded fantastic and had all the energy in the world. And plus, she was HEAVY, dude. And even if this wasn’t coming from a guy who’s big into rock and metal, I’d say in a good way! It helped that the stage was perfectly loud on the Sunday, but yeah, the guitars were distorted, the bass thumping and her drummer was smacking the shit out of his skins. It really set her apart from the other women around her in the scene who she could be compared to. She goes rockier on her latest album, but I wasn’t expecting it to translate this well live! ‘Matchmaker’ was a personal highlight of mine, but the set was jam packed full of awesome tracks that the crowd ate up! Hopefully she’s over here more regularly as I’d love to see her again, hopefully at her own show, soon!

I went into The White Buffalo not quite knowing what to expect, outside of a more slower, Americana-style thing similar to Uncle Lucius. What I got was not that, but was even better! There were certainly tracks like that, but there band also got dark and heavy in the best ways. It almost boarded on the heavier end of grunge, which was sick! And, on top of that, the band were full of energy, and put on one hell of a show considering it was just them and their instruments. I love how heavy the Sunday ended up, almost feeling more like a Southern rock festival than anything else, and Buffalo were definitely a highlight in amongst that. They’re another band that I would LOVE to see again, and need to ASAP.

Kim Churchill rocked the hell out of his solo performance on the Front Porch stage. Up against some steep competition on other stages, the Aussie native still drew a pretty great crowd for what again felt like a closer, more intimate gig. His voice was amazing, and the sheer amount of other stuff he had going on at the same time really filled out the sound (I’m a sucker for a harmonica). I’d be curious to see if he plays with a full band back home, and how that would sound, but for now the acoustic solo stuff was awesome, and a fitting change of pace for us on a pretty high energy day!

It was at this point that, as we got a drink, we quickly headed to check out a bit of the dog show. Watching them all getting distracted by toys instead of running to their owners was very cute!

The UK country legend Kezia Gill played to a packed out Buddy’s, completing her mission to play every stage at the festival (well, aside from the Hitching Post now). The stage was, of course, packed out, as she was definitely ‘too big’ for the setting. However, it made it even more rowdy, and almost everyone knew so much of what she was playing, and loving every minute. We were no different. Somehow this is the first time we’ve had the chance to see Kezia and it’s very easy to see why she has such a fantastic reputation: she was really great live! Rattling through some of her biggest and best songs to an adoring crowd that have watched her grow alongside the scene over the last few years. She’s a fantastic front woman and her voice more than hold up live. If I had any complaint at all, and it’s a super minor one, is that she’s very straight-forward in terms of her sound, and on a day where everything is a little out there and different, it felt almost safe. Still, that’s hardly Kezia’s fault, and she still put on a blinder of a set.

The controversial James Bay closed out the main show on the Sunday. The amount of arguments I’ve seen that he doesn’t fit the festival, that he isn’t country so he shouldn’t be there… I think he proved a lot of the haters wrong on Sunday night. Despite being sick, he still put on an utterly fantastic show, rattling through so many of his incredible hits and doing so in style. Despite not playing my favourite song of his (‘Give me the Reason’), he still hit so many amazing songs, from his hits ‘Let It Go’ and ‘Hold Back the River’ to deeper cuts like ‘Scars’ and ‘Wanderlust’. And we got an absolutely incredible extended version of ‘Best Fake Smile’, complete with an amazing extended blues solo that really blew me away, and clearly James and the band were having a blast playing it. He’s such a professional, putting on a flawless show and coming across as such a genuine, likeable guy in the process. It was an incredible headline set fitting of the festival, and if it wasn’t for the fact that Drake was also present, he would have been headliner of the year. Anyone who’s still on the fence, I cannot recommend enough seeing him live, he puts on a fantastic show and you’d definitely be won over!

Alana Springsteen was the aftershow party artist of the Sunday, and closed out the whole weekend pretty fantastically. We caught her a couple of years ago and, much like FTF, it feels like she’s grown even more as a performer in the time since she’s been away. She put on a great, all too short set of some of her best hits, and performed them all perfectly, also sounding so close to her track stuff! I hated that I missed her full set earlier on, but at least I managed to check her out here. She brought just enough energy to the proceedings this late on, getting everyone who was exhausted still dancing and partying and singing along and having fun to close out a truly fantastic evening. That’s how it’s done!

And there we have it folks, three excellent days of country, roots, blues and Americana music. It really is one of the best festivals around currently, is family friendly and still has plenty of energy and room to grow. Again, a huge thanks and congrats to Baylen the whole team for putting on such an excellent weekend. Until next year!

<- Day 2

Features, Reviews

The Long Road 2025: The Big Bad Review – Day 2!

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Our second day started off with us stumbling vaguely hungoverly over to the Front Porch to catch rising star Halle Kearns. For just one woman and her guitar she sounded awesome, bringing a fantastic 2000s country-pop vibe to a festival that had clearly craved that sound until now. She had a pretty packed out crowd for so early in the day, and they definitely got more and more into it throughout. Her music is fantastic, as is her lyric-writing, and the duet she sung with her husband was beautiful! Sadly we missed her the day after living it up on the main stage, but it was nice to see her in this more stripped-back, chilled-out setting, and it fit her rather perfectly. I was a fan of a couple of her songs heading in, and she’s definitely made me want to dive into her catalogue more now I’m home!

P.S. I also got a ‘media comped’ Moonshine cocktail from the wonderful O’Donnell. Massive shoutout, they make some amazing drinks and I cannot praise them enough! May have played a little hackysack too with our drinks…

WE ARE WELLS FERRARI. Now that the formalities are out of the way, we got an ‘electric’ set from the pair on the Porch following Halle. And by that, they meant one of them would have an electric guitar, instead of both being on acoustics. A minor change but one that did shift their sound somewhat, making for an interesting second listen. And they were just as good as they were the night before; a pretty big compliment I’d say give that I enjoyed them both sober and not! A pretty similar set but still a lot of fun, and another duo I’d love bring a whole band back over here if they get the chance next time.

Griffin Brothers were up next on the Interstate. They were pretty good, and we went in almost completely blind. The set was fairly heavy on covers, which were great, but I loved their original stuff just as much! It was sadly a bit of a flying visit around interviews, so I’d love to check them out again at some point when I can pay more attention, but I’ll certainly be checking them out on track coming out of this!

Our first trip to Rhinestone of the day came curtesy of the overnight Irish sensation Gareth. We’d already had the pleasure of seeing him earlier this year, supporting Kip Moore, so were eager to see him again! He was great yet again, though I do feel he was maybe a touch nervous. Heck, how couldn’t you be, especially as a newer artist! He still sounded excellent, but I do think his set in Birmingham was just a smidge better. Still, his songs are amazing, they were performed great and it all really packed a punch on a stage that really nailed the sound for a lot of the weekend. He’s going to be a massive name in business sooner rather than later, that’s clear to see and hear, and it’s awesome to get to see him right at the start of that journey.

I wanted to quickly take some time out to once again praise some incredible artists we saw a song or two of in passing on the Front Porch. David Unlayao was one of the artists I was gutted to miss a full set of, & Rissi Palmer is someone I’m so shocked I’ve somehow never seen before in all my years heading to TLR. Both were great and far better live than I expected them to be! Rissi is a legend in the festival world at this point, and her ‘Southern Soul’ styling was amazing and something I am already desperate to see more of! Meanwhile, David’s pop-country vibe translated surprisingly well to the smaller stage, though the full All-Stars band backing him may have helped there! Both are awesome artists that are well worth checking out, and I have to see them both properly soon!

Next up was maybe my most anticipated set of the weekend, Evan Honer. To say he knocked it out of the park may be an understatement. He had me laughing, crying and covered in goosebumps for a good majority of the set! Right from the bittersweet opener of ‘Nowhere Fast’ I knew I was in for something special, and then he just kept going with incredible song after incredible song! ‘Mr Myers’ would have made me cry anyway, but inviting the powerful voice of Charles Wesley Godwin on to help out for the first time live utterly destroyed me. Following that up with ‘Take me as I Come’ was a one-two gut punch in the best way. Then to close out on ‘Foolin’ Ourselves’ and ‘idk shit about cars’ whipped the crowd into a deserved frenzy. I wasn’t entirely sure how he would end up going down at this sort of festival, but the tent was packed and they hung on every single word he sung. Oh, I almost forgot about him two stepping with We Are Wells Ferrari, another fun stand-out moment on a set packed full of them. A good time but also an emotional one, and easily one of the best sets of the weekend for me. I NEED to see Evan again immediately!

Larry Fleet was up next on the Rhinestone, his chilled-out, good-guy energy making for a perfect relaxed atmosphere. I have to say he’s not something I’d listen to massively often on track, but live he was amazing to sit back and listen to and enjoy with a drink! His voice is absolutely amazing and translates perfectly into a live setting. And oh my god, how have I gotten this far without talking about Crazy Legs?! What a guy, best live performer I’ve ever seen, I’mma have to take lessons and stretch before gigs now! Another awesome set arguably at the best time for it!

Charles Wesley Godwin played to an absolutely packed out Interstate tent that hung on his every note. He arguably could have been put on the main stage, but something about the darker, roofed setting just worked perfectly for him! It was another set that I just got lost in; stood in the middle of a packed out crowd just swaying and singing along to the music. Honestly, it was all awesome too, it’s hard to pick out any specific song that was between than the rest. He’s back out here soon I believe with Evan Bartels (more overleaf) and I may have to get a ticket! He’s amazing live and I’d recommend anyone even slightly curious to go!

Midland closed out the main show in typically old-school style. Bringing the smoky vegas vibes as much as the dive bar saloon ones, it was a pretty perfect way to round out the Saturday with a little bit of everything. The harmonies once again were spot on, as expected. The playing throughout was exception, from the main three to the others. From recent stuff like ‘Barely Blue’ to classics like ‘Drinking Problem’ and even their awesome cover of classic ‘Boot Scooting Boogie’, it was all SO GOOD. The band are consummate professionals, putting on a fantastic show that highlighted every member of the band perfectly, and was a lot of fun to watch. Heck, when a crowd member took a fall towards the end of the set, they even paused the show until the paramedics got them out, a fantastic, admirable move, and they all seemed genuinely concerned. That’s what the festival is all about, care and humanity, and the band encapsulated that perfectly. Yet another awesome set, and the perfect way to headline this festival!

An artist that we fell in love with our very first year there, Everette finally returned, this time as a solo(ish) artist. Closing out the day with an hour-long afterparty full of awesome songs and good times, he was another that finished things off perfectly. He and his new guitarist (on loan from Larry Fleet) sounded awesome together. Weather it was old favourites like ‘Dang the Whiskey’, ‘Woo Hoo Hoo’ and even ‘Kings of the Dairy Queen Parking Lot’(!) or newer stuff like ‘High and Lonesome’ and ‘Fright Train’, there was so much to love! Then there were the moments he brung touring partner Larry Fleet on himself, first to do a song they’d written together and then later as the whole band to sing ‘Free Fallin’’ with the crowd. The whole thing was just awesome! Brent’s voice is like butter and he’s an amazing frontman and songwriter, so this was the perfect way to close things for the Saturday!

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new music mondays

New Music Mondays: Rise Against, Chevelle and More!

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Another pretty big week of great rock, country and metal releases for us to check out. Let’s dive right in!

Rise Against: Ricochet

Between being one of my favourite bands of my youth, and one of the first reviews we did here at Overtone with their last album, it’s safe to say anticipation was pretty high on my end for this release. Especially when I saw them at Download earlier this year and they still sounded as great and as pissed off as ever. So, when I say that not only was a little disappointed by this, but it actively didn’t make me feel anything, know it sadly comes from a genuine place. Like, is it bad? No. But it is hardly up there with their previous albums. And a lot of that can actually be put on the shoulders of the production. The mix and effect on Tim’s vocals are horrible, and the main reason for the sour taste left in my mouth from this album. It feels like an MJK ‘my voice is another instrument’ type idea as it’s so far back in the mix, but it really just makes it hard to hear and focus on the lyrics properly, a real highlight of their music, usually. Honestly, it makes it sound like a demo, not a final recording, making the album feel rushed despite there being a four year gap between releases. Songs like ‘I Want it All’, ‘Us Against the World’ and ‘State of Emergency’ are all still good, but don’t quite hold a candle to a lot of their back catalogue.

I’d love to hear them live to see if I ‘get’ it a little more. I’m hoping that after a few more listens the style will grow on me, as it’s clearly a conscious decision to go in this direction. It gives off slight Genesis vibes, but that isn’t what I really want from my punk. It’s worth checking out, but for those who are fans of the band already, brace yourselves, it’s different. As I said, not bad, but certainly not up there with their previous release or their best. I don’t want this to be fully negative though, as it’s still a solid 7.5/10! There are plenty of elements of classic Rise Against in here, just wrapped up in a weird-ass bow.

Chevelle: Bright as Blasphemy

YES. It’s no secret that I’ve been impatiently waiting for this album, and now that it’s finally here it is everything I wanted it to be. It very much fondles my eardrums in all the best ways. I absolutely loved NIRATIAS and this feels like the perfect follow-up to that album. This would normally be the point in the review where I talk about which tracks are highlights, but this whole 40-minutes is fucking incredible and one big highlight of rock in of itself. From the awesome opener to the incredible, proggy two-part ‘Cowards’, followed up by a slower, Tooly reflective song, only to slap you in the face with all the riffs in ‘Wolves’… and that’s just the first half of the album! The final half of the album is just as spectacular, with ‘Blood Out in the Fields’ being so simple yet effective, giving me goosebumps. I could gush about this album all day, but it really needs to be heard to fully appreciate it, so stop reading this and check it out immediately! They’re like a more alt, consistent Tool and I love every second of it. Their last album, as fantastic as it was, grew on me a little after that first listen, but I don’t even need that with this. A very easy 10/10. They are maybe the most underrated band on the face of the planet, and it’ll certainly end up very high on our top albums list come December!

Jordan Davis: Learn the Hard Way

We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read the full review here.

Black Honey: Soak

The fourth album from the British indie rockers is a solid release in their genre. While it’s not wholly my sort of thing, I completely get the appeal, and it’s incredibly unique and well written. I remember checking out their sophomore album way back in the day and enjoying it, but missed their last one. Despite that, it’s easy to hear their progression to here, and this is a clearly good addition to their growing discography. Tracks like ‘Dead’, the dark, gothic ‘Carroll Avenue’ and ‘To the Grave’ are all big highlights, but the whole album is good and had a great flow, the nearly 40-minutes going by in a flash. It gives off big Mother Mother vibes, and y’all know how much I love that band. If you’re into chilled out, fun indie rock, this is definitely the album for you, and I enjoyed it more than I expected to! It’s a solid 7/10, and this won’t be the last time I listen to some of these tracks!

Heartkiller: Üdv A Világomban

The much anticipated debut album from the Hungarian melodeath band finally dropped this last Friday, and it’s pretty good! It’s packed full of technical riffing and drumming, heavy screams and some massive, melodic clean choruses. I have no idea what they’re singing about, but they’re passionate in their delivery, too! Tracks like ‘Életre Ítélve’, ‘F.e.a.r.’ and the title track are all personal highlights, but there isn’t a bad track on here! I completely get the thrash comparisons too, as it feels as much like Testament as it does In Flames, which is awesome. Honestly, there isn’t a great deal to say about the album, other than if you like melodic death metal, thrash or a more European metal sound, this is well worth checking out! A solid 7.5/10 from us!

Cass McCombs: Interior Live Oak

The psychedelic folk singer-songwriter is back with his 13th studio album. I remember checking out his previous album last year but sadly ran out of time to review it, so it’s nice to have a quieter week to sit and really jam with this. It’s an incredibly chilled-out release, very much fitting that relaxed Americana-folk mould, but certainly doing it in his own way. It’s again not fully my sort of thing, but I fully see the appeal of this. I had it on in the background while I cooked and it was great! As such, I don’t really have any tracks that stand out over others; it was all a similar sort of vibe and energy. However, as a whole it’s a great release and experience to listen to, and I’d recommend to anyone into the more chilled side of music! There is no denying his talent, as some of his riffs, arrangements and lyrics are incredible. It did get a little samey for me, especially at the insane 75-minute runtime, but I still enjoyed it and know a lot will love it. 6.5/10

Baest: Colossal

This things combines hard/classic rock and stoner/doom riffing with straight up death metal, to pretty fantastic results! And while I certainly wouldn’t say it ‘took some getting into’, by the time ‘In Loathe and Love’ came on I was hooked and jammed the whole rest of the thing in one sitting, loving every track. The band are so hugely talented; the instrumentation being phenomenal throughout while the screams are somehow both brutal and catchy in equal measure. Heck, whether it was Simon Olsen’s vocals or the generally not-depressing guitar and drum work, it made the screams feel less heavy at times, definitely lending itself towards an almost death’n’roll sound on occasion. It’s another album that’s impossible to pick highlights from as every song is as good as the last. It’s insane to me that it’s taken me four albums to finally hear about them to check them out, but they have a huge new fan in me! If you are at all into the heavy side of metal, check this out ASAP. I’m already desperate to see it live, too! An incredibly easy 9/10 from us!

Luke Marzec: Something Good Out of Nothing

Another debut album, this time from the Devon-based jazz/blues/soul rising star. It’s easy to see why he’s a fast-rising star too, as this is an incredible release. The opener is an amazing track, and it’s easy to see why it’s blown up as a single, as well as setting the tone for the album well. Then you have the (old-school) Randy Neuman-esque ‘Red Boletes’, the fantastically jazz-pop ‘Broken Promises’ and ‘Enough of Single Measures” that are all also awesome. However, if you’re into this sort of thing, you’ll enjoy the whole album! It reminds me of a less rocky Cardinal Black, and I love that this kind of sound is taking off in the UK again! His voice is incredible and his songwriting is amazing, blending together so many styles effortlessly and doing so while still making it relatively accessible. If you are at all curious, give this a spin, you won’t be disappointed! A very solid 7.5/10

Reviews

Scotty McCreary, Spin Class and More: EPs Galore!

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Another week and a handful of awesome EPs for us to check out, from country to metal! Let’s dive in!

Scotty McCreary: Scooter & Friends

The modern country legend follows up his 2024 album with this awesome little collection. Five great country tracks, three of which featuring amazing guest features, and it’s hard not to have a good time listening! The opener with Hootie & The Blowfish is an amazing song that combines both acts sounds perfectly, and Darius’ vocals are always incredible. ‘Swim Up Bar’, despite the Gulf of America reference, is Buffet-like goodness. And the closer is your typical 2000s country fun. All three are massive personal highlights, but the other two tracks are far from bad, too. Both Charlie Wilson and Lee Brice do a great job on their tracks, both bringing such different energies. Heck, the fact that all five songs sound pretty different is a fantastic testament to Scotty’s talents in writing and performing. It doesn’t quite live up to Rise & Fall, but it was never trying to. It’s just a fun 17-minutes of music made with his friends. Definitely worth checking out if you’re a country fan, and is a solid 8/10!

Spin Class: Dinner at Derek’s

The heavy, stonery/grungy indie rock band’s second EP is fantastic, and definitely a step up from their already awesome debut. It gives me vibes of everything from Wolfmother to Black Sabbath to QOTSA to Nirvana to Soundgarden to Royal Blood, and plenty in between! The riffing is heavy, the drumming is awesome and the melodies from the vocals and guitars are catchy throughout. All four songs sound unique and different from each other while at the same time feeling like they all come from the same band and fit together on the release perfectly. It also feels like something pretty damn fresh and different; there aren’t many bands out there doing this sort of sound currently! And all four tracks (with the title one being a short interlude) are incredible in their own ways, making it almost impossible to pick out highlights. The band are insanely talented musicians and songwriters, and have crafted something truly special. No matter what style of music you are into, check this out, you will certainly find something to fall in love with. 9.5/10, I need more of this pumping into my veins immediately!

P.S. is the vocalist the reincarnation of Chris Cornell? DAMN DUDE, what a voice and singer!

In/Virtigo: PREVAIL

The sophomore EP from the Calgary natives comes a solid half-decade after their debut release, and the band very much return with a vengeance! This is an AWESOME sleaze-filled hard rockin’ release, and is four incredible songs all as good as the last! From the bouncing, swaggering riffs to the arena-filling vocals and melodies, it’s incredibly well crafted, written and produced. It’s like a modernised version of Skid Row and Buckcherry, and is eerily comparable to early Santa Cruz in the best way possible. How this band aren’t massive already is beyond me, but the release of this EP will surely catapult them up a few levels! It’s another release packed to the brim with awesome songs, and if you’re into any of the bands or genres I’ve named already, I cannot recommend you checking this out enough! I feel like it would be incredible live too, so hopefully they can make it out to these shores at some point soon. For now, I’ll settle for this release, that is a very easy 9/10 from us!

Brett Eldredge: Kiss Me in the Moonlight

A short release this time, with just three tracks and sub-10 minutes. However, this is a fantastic EP! It was also completely different to his last, and not at all what I was expecting. While a country artist, this had a lot of Latin influence and sound to it, feeling pretty unique and original, and also not something we normally check out here so it really blew me away. From the flamenco guitaring to the horns and Latin beats, the opening track is amazing and feels like it’ll be stuck in my head for days to come. The other two songs are a bit slower but still have the same sort of feel to them, and the addition of the brilliant Pedro Capó on ‘St. Tropez’ adds even more awesomeness to the song. As I said, it’s not something we usually cover here, but I had a blast listening to this, and have done so multiple times just today. If you are at all curious check this out, you won’t be disappointed! 8.5/10

Alfa Pentatonik: Gamma II

We sadly missed the part I of this back in March, however, checking them both out together now was awesome, and definitely the right way to consume them. Don’t get me wrong, though, this EP definitely stands on its own as a solid release, too. It’s heavy electronic stuff, think Prodigy or Pendulum, but then with deathcore screams and growls over the top. And we still get some awesome riffing and guitar soloing too, it being an incredible, creative blend of genres. There also isn’t a bad track on this thing, it being an incredibly solid 20+ minutes of heaviness and catchy melodies. I cannot rave enough about how cool of a sound this is, and I’ll certainly be listening to it plenty moving forward. It gets a very easy 8.5/10 from us!

Reviews

Endless Horizon: Florence Sommerville Knocks it Out of the Park with her Debut!

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The amazing Florence Sommerville is set to release her debut album this coming Friday. The UK country star has been making waves with her singles, so anticipation is at an all time high already. Without further ado, let’s dive right in and check this out!

The album starts in perfectly chilled-out fashion with ‘(I’ll Be Your) Best Broken Heart’. It gives off a more relaxed, Americana/folk side of country music akin to the likes of Julian Taylor or Lanie Gardner or Taylor Rae. However, it also builds up perfectly into a bigger, catchy chorus just begging to be played to huge festival crowds. The harmonies are incredible and I feel like it’s going to be stuck in my head for days to come. We also get some amazing duelling guitar soloing coming out of the choruses, something that I wasn’t expecting but massively appreciate, showing off the talented blues playing of the band. It honestly gives me Santana vibes in the best ways. It’s a really great way to open the album and set the pace, and is a very easy highlight!

‘Fearless’, though not a Tay Tay cover, is somehow even more country, amazing for a Brit. The strings add a lot to it, but her vocals are also awesome, reminding me a lot of people like Paula Cole and Brandi Carlisle, but also simultaneously Alanis Morissette. Speaking of the former, it’s very much in that vein of early 2000s chilled country that I always seem to associate with shows like Gilmore Girls and Dawsons Creek. It’s a less massive chorus, keeping the more Americana/bluegrass feel, but is no less awesome and catchy. It’s a simple but amazing song written and performed beautifully.

Nearly our song, ‘Overton’, is another slower, chilled-out and stripped-back country banger. It shares a lot of similarities with the previous track but that’s far from an issue, as they’re both so good! I love that it slowly builds throughout too, more and more awesome elements coming in each new parts, and so much amazing soloing. This time I got more Knopfler vibes. It’s honestly a beautiful song, and one that I enjoyed a hell of a lot. Florence’s vocals are insanely impressive!

Single ‘Broken Pieces’ picks up the pace a little again, adding a bit of swing and swagger and attitude to the proceedings. It feels like something that should be played at a smoky jazz club, and doesn’t feel like a far-cry from the likes of Amy Winehouse or Lady Rose. It’s another infectiously catchy chorus too, the rest of the track building to it perfectly. It was a damn good choice for a single! It’s yet another massive album highlight, that’s for sure!

Following one single with another, ‘California’ slows things back down to an almost ballad-pace. It fits in perfectly with the rest of the album, especially ‘Fearless’ and ‘Overton’. However, it does still build into a slightly bigger chorus, and makes for a great relaxed single. And it’s once again catchy as another, and a track that I actually really want to see live, as it gave me enough goosebumps on track! Florence is knocking it out of the park with this release, so far!

The likes of ‘Out Where the Love Grows’, ‘Silly Little Things’ and ‘Forget the Water’ are all pretty similar slower, chilled-out vibes. They are all slightly different, like the latter just being Florence with a guitar and her powerful vocals, but all have a similar feel and emotional impact to them. The same could honestly be said for ‘Molasses’ and ‘Cut and Run’. They’re both two more incredible songs, with the latter honestly being one of my favourite tracks on the album; its chorus and the harmonies are INCREDIBLE… *chefs kiss*. But all share pretty similar DNA, and I don’t want to keep repeating myself and gushing over it like a fangirl, it doesn’t make for very good reading! Still, you should check out all of these tracks immediately!

‘Love Me Then’ and ‘Boots in the rain’ take a bit more of the country route. They’re still chilled tracks, but definitely have more of a traditional country feel, kinda like Brandi again. The latter again is amazing, almost giving Dolly vibes with the old-school country nature of the song. Two more awesome original tracks to round things out perfectly!

On top of all of these already awesome tracks, we get a whopping four amazing bonus acoustic songs. From the beautiful, powerful ‘Whiskey in the Morning’ to the interesting, amazing Guns n’ Roses cover to the two great tracks tucked between them, they’re more excellent additions. They fit rather seamlessly into the rest of the album, too. Incredible given they are another change of pace. It really highlights how amazing Florence’s vocals are; her range being insanely impressive and the perfect mix of soft and powerful. I would highly recommend getting or checking out this version, as these tracks are more than worth it!

Overall: This is an incredible debut album! It’s an amazing release anyway, but for a first full-length release from Florence, it is something truly special. It’s chilled-out throughout, but so powerful and beautiful in equal measure, and every song is as good as the last! She’s entering a scene at its biggest in the UK currently, and will surely leave a big mark with this release. I can see huge things in her near future and already can’t wait to hear where she goes from here. However, for now, I cannot recommend this album enough to anyone even slightly into country, folk or Americana!

The Score: 9/10

new music mondays

New Music Mondays: Wet Leg, Brent Cobb and More!

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An interesting week of new music this time, covering everything from crazy heavy to traditional-styled folk, and plenty in between! Join us in checking it all out!

Wet Leg: moisturiser

One of the biggest up-and-coming bands in the world returned with their sophomore album this last Friday. We didn’t end up checking out their debut for whatever reason, but I’ve seen someone describe the band as ‘music for people who hate music’ and I honestly think that’s a pretty perfect. It’s for Glastonbury, trust-fund girlies to feel edgy for listening to a ‘rock’ band. From the pretty terrible lyrics to the bored, effort-lacking vocal delivery to the paint by numbers indie-punk riffing, it’s honestly all pretty grating. It’s low-effort music through and through and feels like it’s trying to be far too arty than it actually is.

However, having said all of that, I didn’t actually have a bad time listening to some of this. I don’t know if they triggered some sort of Velvet Underground childhood nostalgia for me or what, but tracks like the opening three and ‘pond song’ I found myself at worst not-hating and at best kinda-enjoying. I don’t think I see the appeal from the intended or usual angle, but I at least got something out of some of the tracks, which is better than expected. The rest of it did kinda suck, though!

If you like the band and style and this album, more power to you. Some of this is okay background music to me, but I shan’t be rushing to revisit it a lot any time soon. I still don’t fully get the appeal or the drastic rise to where they are, but I respect the hustle a lot. Still, I can’t give it any more than a 4.5/10

P.S. those nails on the front cover creeped me out. Did not like that.

Brent Cobb & The Fixin’s: Ain’t Rocked in a While

I barely know how to describe how this sounds, other than awesome. It reminds me a lot of TC3’s Tabasco and Sweet Tea, and has elements of everything from Elvie Shane to Luke Dick to the Steeldrivers. Like it’s still rooted in country, but is a lot more light-blues-rock, focusing on the riffs and having a generally fun, bouncy feel to it throughout. It just makes for an easy, chilled out, and incredibly enjoyable listen. Songs like the title one, ‘Even if it’s Broke’ and ‘Take Yer Meds’ are personal highlights, but there really isn’t a bad song on the album. I’ve listened through this full thing at least three times this weekend and it has always gone by in a flash. It’s certainly not going to be for everyone, but if you like some light rock infused with country, Southern and blues vibes, I feel like you’ll love this as much as I did! A very solid 8.5/10 from us!

Born of Osiris: Through Shadows

This slab of angry , proggy djentcore is fucking awesome. It’s nearly 50-minutes of technical, brutal heaviness that doesn’t let up at all for its entire runtime, and I love it for that. Don’t get me wrong, there are catchy, melodic moments and some clean vocals scattered throughout, but part of me was a little worried the band would have gone the Bad Omens way of incorporating the heaviness with large swaths of synth pop. There was still synth and electro stuff, but it was more to add beat and compliment the awesome, heavy instrumentation around it. And said instrumentation was phenomenal, everyone in the band being technically brilliant and working their asses off throughout. It’s like a more djent-infused Bleed From Within, which is an awesome sentence in of itself! From the opener to the more ‘ballad-like’ ‘Through Shadows’ to ‘In Desolation’ to the Spenser Chamberlain-featuring ‘Activated’ (y’all know how I feel about sax) are all awesome and big personal highlights. However, there isn’t a bad track on the album by any stretch. Even the legitimately and typically-for-the-genre slower, proggy track to close is awesome, feeling and sounding EPIC and drawing the album together perfectly. I can’t recommend this enough to any heavy fans out there, and it gets a very easy 9/10 from us!

Amy Macdonald: Is This What You’ve Been Waiting For?

The legendary Scottish folk-rock singer returned with her first album in half a decade last Friday. I have to say that while I am a bit of a fan of her, she’s very much been a name that has escaped me for the most part, me only hearing the bigger hits. I love them and have always meant to check out more, so I’m excited to finally be checking out a full release from her!

Firstly, the electronic drums and elements were an interesting touch, clearly fitting with the albums 80s throwback theming. I think for the most part they paid off, adding to Amy’s typically grandiose folk styling and somehow modernising it while also adding a nostalgic feel. It also makes everything sound massive. Songs like ‘Can You Hear Me?’, ‘The Hope’ and ‘Forward’ are all fantastic, but there isn’t a bad song on the album, honestly. It felt a little bit of a slow-starter at first for me, but on a second attempt it’s a really easy, chilled out listen, and a lot of fun to whack on and get lost in, or dance around to while cooking. While I wouldn’t say any one song measures up to her biggest hits, as an album as a whole it’s incredibly solid, and a must for a fans of her music or style. I’ll definitely be spinning it more this summer, and it gets an easy 8/10!

Ward XVI: Id3ntity

We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read our review of it here.

Gregory Page: One Hell of a Memory

The seventh album from English-American singer-songwriter feels like it pulls together his entire career up until now. Packed full of guests that he’s worked closely with in the past in Jason Mraz and Cindy Wasserman, as well as being packed full of amazing tracks, it almost feels like the culmination of his journey in music until this point. It mixes Americana and country with more English folk music perfectly and feels pretty unique, honestly. From the opener to the old-school folk ‘A Place in the Choir’ to the closer, there is a lot to love on here. Gregory and Jason’s vocals work so well together, creating some amazing harmonies throughout. Honestly, parts of it felt kinda Lord of the Rings-y, and I can’t help but love it. It won’t be for everyone but well worth checking out if you’re curious. An easy 7.5/10.

Stygian Fair: The Hidden Realm

The fifth album from the Swedish NWOBHM revival band follows pretty perfectly on from Aradia. It feels like all generations of Iron Maiden blended into one solid sound, and it’s pretty awesome! And the band are all hugely talented, this thing packed full of awesome riffs, catchy melodies and some amazing soloing. Personal highlights include ‘Abide Your Master’, ‘Peel the Layers Off’ and ‘Meteor’. It’s honestly insane to me that this band aren’t far bigger by now, especially a few albums in. They’re amazing songwriters, the production is great and it all has a real epic feel to it. If you are into this sort of heavy metal/AOR type style, I’d definitely recommend checking out the band if you haven’t already! It’s 47-minutes of mid-tempo, epic, heavy awesomeness, and gets a solid 7.5/10 from me!

Tanner Usrey: These Days

Tanner’s sophomore album is an awesome boot stompin’, rockin’ country release. Whether it’s the mor higher energy and tempo songs or the slower ballad-like tracks, it’s all amazing. Honestly, the slower stuff reminds me a lot of Wyatt Flores, which I LOVE. From ‘If you Call Me Again’ to ‘Smoke in the Air’ to the blusier ‘Bad Love’ to the almost War & Treaty-like ‘With You’, there is so much to love on this thing. Tanner’s vocals are absolutely phenomenal throughout the release, and some of his lyrics are bittersweet and excellently written; horribly relatable. It’s easy to hear why he’s becoming a big name in the scene already, and I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to hear of him before. He fits so perfectly into the current country music scene, and firmly establishes himself as a major player in the future with this album. I really loved this and I’d be shocked if it doesn’t end up high on our list of albums of the year come December. However, for now, I can’t give it any less than 9/10!

Mosara: Rumour of a Funeral

The fourth album from the Phoenix-based doom band is exactly what you’d expect from a band of their style. Sludgy, stomping, evil riffing, solid drumming and interesting, perfectly-fitting vocals is the aim of the game here, and the band bring it all in spades. And I also absolutely love the fact that it’s an album of only four tracks, but spread across nearly 40 minutes; perfect for doom. The band are clearly talented players and songwriters, and it immediately makes me want to hear it live! However, that may have been a little down to the mix, as it was sadly so very hard to hear the vocals sometimes. Still, that’s almost part of it with the genre, right? And it’s still a damn enjoyable album even with that. If you like doom, you’ll definitely like this release. It got a touch long in the teeth for me by the end, but with my tiny attention span I don’t think I’m quite the bands target audience. Still, it’s a damn good album, and gets a solid 7/10 from us!

Danno Simpson: The Kill Joy

Debut album time now. The darker, red-dirt country star follows up on his string of EPs excellently with this release. It’s not unlike Tanner up above, but also gives off vibes of Pinegrove and even a touch of Counting crows in the more upbeat moments. And of course, the comparisons to Stephen Wilson Jr are obvious, too. I love it! Danno is a fantastic songwriter and his instrumentation, lyricism and melodies shine bright constantly across this 36 minutes. It’s packed full of emotion and gave me goosebumps on multiple occasions listening through. It went by in a flash and honestly, there isn’t a bad track on this whole album. I had to stop myself from adding nearly this whole album to our playlist, it’s that good. My only slight complaint is that the weakest track on the album is the opener, but even then it isn’t really a bad song! If you are a fan of any of the artists I’ve mentioned previously, or just a darker, depressing folk-Americana sound in general, I honestly can’t recommend this enough. Even with Danno having some EPs out prior, it is still one hell of a debut full-length. It’s yet another incredibly easy 9/10 from us!

new music mondays

New Music Mondays: Dropkick Murphys, Warkings and More!

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A pretty quiet week for new music, but what we did get is all awesome! Let’s check it all out!

Dropkick Murphys: For the People

Firstly, I’ll stand with you, Dropkicks! Ken for President!

But no, in all seriousness, this was exactly the sort of album the world needs right now. And, with it being an incredibly quiet week for new releases, it almost feels like a sign for everyone to listen to it! Whether it’s punkier stuff like the opener, ‘The Big Man’ or ‘Kids Games’ or more Celtic-folk stuff like ‘Chesterfields and Aftershave’ and the closer, there is so much awesome stuff on here. We also got a FANTASTIC reappearance of legend Al Barr on ‘The Vultures Circle High’. After two other albums, it was nice to hear him back, even just for a singular track. Having reviewed Ohemah Rising on this site a couple of years ago, as well as being pretty familiar with their couple before that (as well as their big ones), I have to say this might be my favourite release from them since SIGNED and SEALED. It feels the most confident and sure of itself; the most classic Dropkicks album yet still feeling modernised. There isn’t a bad song on the album and it’s consistently interesting and fun through its 43-minute runtime. If you’re a fan of the band, the Celtic style or just punk in general, I cannot recommend this enough! I’ll definitely be listening to it plenty over the next few months, and it could end up pretty high on our list of albums of the year, come December! 8.5/10

Warkings: Armageddon

We’ve already checked out the awesome album! Read our full review of it here.

Jesse Welles: Pilgram

The third album from one of the hardest working folk/country rock artists around just this year dropped last Friday. It marks his 18th across the 13 years he’s been actively releasing stuff, a hugely impressive feat. What makes it even more impressive is that the quality is still there; this is a great release! From tracks like ‘Change is in the Air’ to ‘Forever, Whatever’ to ‘GTFOH’, there are so many powerful, impactful and unique tracks that are definitely highlights! Then you have his tracks with guests; both Sierra Ferrell and Billy Strings do awesome and add so much to the already awesome songs they are part of. I discovered him earlier this year through TikTok, reminding me a lot of a big favourite of mine, Beans on Toast, and I have to say that the first full album I’ve managed to check out has impressed me massively. His lyric writing is incredible, as is his vocal style, and the simplicity of the tracks only make them more impactful! The folky style isn’t for everyone, but I cannot recommend this release enough to anyone. I loved it and will certainly be listening to a lot of it plenty again. Another 8.5/10 from us!

Rimmar: Raises

The debut album from the Italian visionary guitarist Marco Rinaldi is a solid first release! Not only written and arranged by the guy, but also produced by him too, it’s a testament to the sheer talent of the man. And the quality of the album, an epic concept centred around rebirth and transcendence, combining classic and prog metal with synthwave and electronic elements, is damn high! It feels like the perfect blend of Iron Maiden and Queensryche, but modernised at the same time, and really takes you on a journey from the first note until the last. Songs like ‘Mighty Messenger’, the stomping ‘Planet Mars’ and the more industrial ‘Vortex’ (feat. Fabio Lione) are all personal highlights. However, the whole album is pretty great, and fits together perfectly as a whole concept. If you are at all curious it’s well worth checking out, it’s a fantastic album and yet another amazing debut release! Marco is a very talented guy and has put together something special here. I can’t wait to hear where he goes from here, but for now this album gets a solid 8/10 from us!

We as a Company: First Summer

The Italian stoner/doom/indie rock band made the executive decision to not have this release, or any of their stuff, on Spotify, which given the current climate is admirable. And so, while none of it will end up on our playlist, it is still a damn solid release. It’s like if stoner/doom met Oasis or Enuff Z’Nuff or even Pinegrove, and I’m kinda all here for it! Songs like the opener, the heavy ‘Tears Away’ and the beautiful closer are all personal highlights. However, the whole album has a great flow and arrangement to it, making for an incredible easy full listen. It’s not going to be for everyone, but I found it a fascinating combination of styles and will almost definitely be revisiting this at least once or twice again soon. I’d probably recommend it to an indie fan more than the rest, but if you are at all curious, do yourselves a favour and give this a listen! A solid 7.5/10!

Wytch Hazel: V: Lamentations

The medieval-inspired NWOBHM revival band put out, surprisingly, their fifth album this last week. Honestly, it’s damn good! And while yes, it has elements of early Priest or Maiden, it shares more DNA and sound with the likes of UFO or Uriah Heep. Heck, with the folky elements involved from the old-school theming, it even has riffs and elements that resemble Fleetwood Mac or even Jethro Tull. It makes for a really interesting, unique combination, and an incredibly easy listen. The band are amazing songwriters, the huge choruses in particular being fantastic. Songs like ‘Run the Race’, ‘Elements’ and the epic ‘Elixir’ into ‘Woven’ are all personal highlights, but there isn’t a bad song on the thing! I can’t believe it’s taken me five albums to finally hear this band, but they certainly have a big new fan in me! 45-minutes went by in a flash, and I’ve already listened to it multiple times this weekend. A very easy 8.5/10 from us!

Features, Reviews

The Heavy Souls, Eddie & The Wolves and Penumbra Rock Real Time Live!

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It has been a while since we were last at this awesome Chesterfield venue! So, the fact that we were able to return to see three incredible young rock bands is honestly awesome! And the gig was nearly sold out too, which is impressive for originals bands in a more cover/tribute-based venue. Let’s see how it all was, shall we?

First up were the local lads, Penumbra. The band were a little more indie than the rest on the lineup, but they are a fantastic live band and brought plenty of their friends and fans along for the show! And the band are born showmen too, performing fantastically even though they don’t seem to have been going too long! Plus, it’s pretty heavy for indie rock, a side of the genre that I have always loved! They tore the place down for a solid half an hour set and definitely gained some new fans in the process, including myself! I can’t wait to hear more studio stuff from the band and see where they go from here, as they are already gathering a great following!

Next up were, of course, the best band in the world. You know the spiel by now. Yes, I’m in the band, but there was no way I wasn’t reviewing this awesome gig. And, I’d like to think that we did a good job! People were enjoying it; the crowd still being pretty packed out, and it sounded great from up on stage! A massive thank you to Ben and the rest of the Souls lot for having us on the show, it was a great night and we all had a blast, even though we were melting in the heat! Thank you to everyone who came out early to check us out, and who came up to us to compliment the show afterwards, it was a good night!

After a brief, only somewhat stressful changeover, the headliners took to the stage. The band are consummate professionals, having their full back line and a big banner and coming on to ‘Country Roads’, making them feel like a big deal right from the offset. Then, they came on and played a stormer of a set for a full 90-minutes, and that feeling continued throughout! Playing so much awesome stuff for their incredible debut album, as well as a couple of fantastic covers, it was certainly a set to remember! Everyone sounded incredible throughout and had such a suave stage presence about them that was magnetic to watch. Heck, we even got a MEGA drum solo from Charlie, easily a highlight of a set packed full of them! It’s very easy to see why the band have been quickly on the up and up over the last couple of years; from shows like this to their studio stuff, it’s all awesome. They are gonna be a massive name in the scene sooner rather than later, mark my words!

And there we have it folks, an awesome night in a great venue in a city that is rather underrated when it comes to live music. All three bands were awesome and put on one hell of a show to the packed, nearly sold-out crowd at Real Time Live. If you ever get the chance to see any of the three bands live, I cannot recommend them enough, and you should definitely check them out on track too! All the bands have plenty of shows and festivals over the summer, so get down to at least one of them, you won’t be disappointed!