LUNAR TWIN – Night Tides EP

Lunar Twin’s third release puts their previous recordings in the shade. A downtempo work, ‘Night Tides’ is an absolute beauty. Released via the Moon Sounds Records (home to Bloodhounds On My Trail and the excellent Foreign Resort), it represents a huge step forward for the US electronica duo. It’s six numbers encompass a whole world of electronic and atmospheric moods, but both the scope of the arrangements and a superb production sound go a long way to making everything sound like the work of a full band.

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KARMA CLUB – Smile, It’s Good For You EP

They’ve been likened to The Cure, Foals and Bombay Bicycle Club. Their sound has more than a hint of The Killers in places and their debut EP features some great basslines which sometimes harken back to the UK post-punk scene. In these respects, from the outside looking in, Bath’s Karma Club might seem like the sum of various influences, but what they do with those influences sometimes results in a breezy and summery listen. Although their music doesn’t always reach too high in the originality stakes, this band’s musical talent and enthusiasm often gives the four tracks from their debut EP a decent send off.

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TOM BAKER AND THE SNAKES – Lookout Tower

Somewhere near the end of 2015, Tom Baker (of Boston band Dirty Truckers) rallied round the troops and formed a side project, Tom Baker and The Snakes. A filthy and sloppy three guitar assault, The Snakes featured another face from the Truckers and the guitarist from Watts (albeit switching to drums!), alongside members of Gymnasium and Family Township. The resultant ‘4 Stars‘ EP flaunted a love of the Stones and The Replacments throughout and band’s shamelessly gritty sound represented the musical equivalent of diesel and dirt.

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Nine Inch Nails to headline FYF Festival

Nine Inch Nails haven’t been seen on the live circuit since 2014.  Following the release of the digital EP ‘Not The Actual Events’ in December 2016, frontman Trent Reznor promised the band would make a full live return in the new year.

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STRANGE MAJIK – Soul Crisis EP

At the beginning of the second quarter of 2016, David Pattillo (aka Strange Majik) released ‘Raised On Rock ‘n’ Roll’, an exploration of rock and blues styles that celebrated a love of music. It was arguably the best album released that year.

As he then set about busying himself with other extra curricular projects, it seemed fair to think there wouldn’t be any more new music from Mr. Majik for a time. …And then, in March 2017, he dropped a new EP without any real prior warning. Why the need to follow up such a great work so quickly? Simply put, the awful political climate in the US inspired Pattillo to make his thoughts public. In his own words: “We got a soul crisis. USA 2017. A white power machine in the white house and a protector seems nowhere in sight. Don’t let the demagogue get you down. Get out and represent your people, show your love, and keep the faith.”

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