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My favourite tracks of the year

It’s that time once again, the time we music lovers put on the record the songs that hit us deepest, moved us the most and got us most excited. So, without further ado, here is my rundown of those album tracks, ep’s and singles that affected ne the most for this year. Mahogany – A Scaffold Surely one of this year’s most delightful and unexpected aural surprises came in the shape of a new…

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My albums of 2024

Well, here we are yet again at the close of the year, the time where music fans think about the albums that defined their year, that struck them deepest, and made the biggest impact on their listening over the last twelve months. So, with that in mind, here are the choices I have made… 1. Whitelands – Night-Bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day From the first moment I heard Whitelands, I lknew that I…

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We are 'climbing walls' with anocean

anocean hail from Baltimore and comprise former members of noted shoegaze luminaries Thrushes and Mittenfields. They are a band that has emerged to become quite the force around Baltimore and DC, as their tuneful dynamic brings a hazy, melodic sweetness that is even more apparent in a live setting, where they sure ignite the fireworks. Made up of Anna Conner on vocals and guitar, Kyle Franta also…

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Float on air with Calliere

Calliere are back with more pristine sonic bliss to warm our hearts and caress our souls After the release of the album “Freefall Into Heaven” last year, and ‘Fade‘ earlier this year, Calliere release another sumptuous collection of dreamy, gauzy, hazy shimmer of sonic bliss. There seems to be a pattern developing here, for not only are their albums lush, sparkly shimmers of beautiful noise,…

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A new album arrives from Meyverlin

Thierry Haliniak returns in his side project guise with a second album, entitled Therefore. Thierry Haliniak is a member of the indie jangle pop band My Raining Stars, who’s 89 Memories album I reviewed a year or two ago. He has a side project alongside that entitled Meyverlin. They released the album Daily Events in 2021, an album that looked at the world through the prism of the 80’s and into…

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The new album from Philip Parfitt brings us a Dark Light

Philip Parfitt returns with a new album of dream-rock, laid back folk, entitled ‘Dark Light’. There is a distinct sense of serenity about the opening track ‘I Know I Shouldn’t, But Voices‘, a vibe so laidback, it is vertical. This however, is a ruse, a trap to lure you in to it’s mesmerising beauty, almost like hypnotism, and before you know it, five minutes has flown by. BUt don’t worry,…

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Mahogany are building something new with their imminent single 'A Scaffold'.

It has been quite some time since we had new music from Mahogany. Indeed their last release came way back in 2013, the sublime futurist orchestral dreampop of ‘Phase Break’. So, it comes as a splendid surprise to hear they have a new single imminent, in the form of @A Scaffold‘, due for release on Friday the 3rd May. For Mahogany it is not enough for them to simply release songs with a formal…

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Self doubt is at the heart of the new single from Philippines band KRNA

KRNA re a dreampop band from the Philippines who are something of a fan favourite amongst music fans in the country. Indeed, their previous single ‘Dream Again‘ was given high praise in yearend rundowns by CNN Philippines Life and Billboard Philippines. The album these tracks are derived from, Kireina, is due to drop sometime in the midpoint of this year. This song, entitled ‘I’m Wrong‘, delves…

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The Voices return with On y va

From their emergence out of Cardiff, Wales, in 2003, The Voices have quietly gone about their business, releasing fine records along the way. Chief amongst them was the album ‘Death Of A Lover’s Song’, which arrived in 2009, with a reissue on vinyl in 2020. Prior to that album’s re-release, they issued the album ‘We Just Want To Be Ourselves‘, with it being described as their penultimate album.…

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Keeley shines on her debut appearance in Birmingham

Keeley left us ‘Floating Above Everything Else’ after an exhilarating set at the Sunflower Lounge on Sunday evening. Coming just a couple of weeks after the exceptional NewDad show at the O2 Institute, I was at the Sunflower Lounge in Birmingham to see another Irish performer, as Keeley Moss, who performs under her first name, took to the stage for her debut gig in the city. Support came from…

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NewDad bring the Madra to the Institute

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Waterflower blossomed at the Centrala in Birmingham

A lady with something important to declare about the environment is here to spread her message far and wide Waterflower is a Latvia based artist who performs a blend of art-pop, with hyperpop overtones and digital hardcore, who’s core message surrounds the environment and how we treat it. Exploring the farther terrains of the avant-garde and the endless possibilities contained there, as they go…

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My favourite tracks of the year

Here is my selection for the tracks of the year, a fine selection from a fine year of music. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did… In another year of awesome music it was again a difficult decision to choose a single track for the number one spot, until the track which made it to the top spot arrived, and just blew me away… The Churchhill Garden –…

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Nax are back with new album Dejando todo atras

merch community The south American shoegaze scene bursts forth… Anyone familiar with the south American shoegaze scene will know of the Argentine band Nax, of whom Nicolas Castello is the main protagonist. He writes, mixes, produces maters and plays all instruments, such are his unbridled talents. Here he presents his second album under the name Nax, entitled ‘Dejandro todo atras‘, and what a…

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Albums of the year 2023

It’s that time of year again, where we music lovers get down our favourites of the year’s releases. As ever, it was a very difficult task, due to the sheer number of excellent albums that were released. So, without further ado, here are my selections for this year.. Emma Anderson – Pearlies A lady who requires no introduction released what was perhaps one of the year’s most unexpected albums.…

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93 Million Miles From The Sun have Buried Dreams to reawaken...

What bothers you and why? As we enter the last throes of the year, where goodwill to all is the abiding feeling, it is a delight to have new music from those fine purveyors of noisy, scorching shoegaze 93 Million Miles From The Sun. Aptly kicking things off with the title track ‘Buried Dreams‘, surging in like water erupting from a burst dam, a torrent of noise blistering the ears before the…

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We're on a 'Freefall Into Heaven' with Callière

A project that began way back in 1984 by Andrew Rose and revived in 2021. Andrew is familiar with many people as the man behind the mixing desk at his Pristine Audio studio, where he masters the albums from a whole host of bands, across the shoegaze spectrum. Since 2022, Callière have released a number of singles, including ‘Moonrising‘, ‘Barcelona‘ and most recent release ‘Hollow‘. Thus,…