On a pair of albums released in 2022 and 2023, The Gypsy Moths served up a very melodic brand of rock pop, with a strong leaning towards influences from jangly 60s sounds and late 70s power pop. Their 2025 EP release ‘Five By Five From Four’ finds the band sticking firmly to what they know, but with a couple of huge choruses found en route and some very natural melodies playing to a very retro crowd, it becomes obvious that taking a familiar path is a wise move.
Monthly Archives: July 2025
Watch: Sleazy Money share new video for ‘It Ain’t EZ’
In a world filled with great music and with new rock bands appearing on the scene weekly, chances are, you’ve not heard of Sleazy Money…yet. The British rock band have been making inroads into a career on a run of hard rock singles beginning with 2024’s ‘Problem Since Day 1’, a track which very much laid down the Sleazy Money blueprint with a barrage of tough riffs borrowing the energy of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with the all round sleaziness of the US glam scene from 1987. In just four minutes, it was immediately clear that the marriage between Connor Palmer’s tough vocals and Joe Florence’s incendiary guitar riffs provided a solid union, and with the presence of a really tight rhythm section, the band were capable of whipping up some seriously old school melodic metal thrills.
RAVINE – Chaos And Catastrophes
Labelled “extremely brutal” by Eyehategod guitarist/Down drummer Jimmy Bower, Ravine pull no punches when it comes to delivering a heavy riff. The Oregon band’s brand of sludge/doom and hardcore mightn’t reach the insane levels of heaviness set by Byzanthian Neckbeard or Dopethrone, but the best moments on their 2025 release ‘Chaos and Catastrophes’ are on a par with many a great and muddy sounding, riff wielding act.
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #113
Welcome back to the Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the more interesting individual tracks that have been submitted over the previous few weeks. This time out, we’ve got a brilliant bluesy number, a track from a singer songwriter who nails a 90s sound perfectly, a couple of poppy numbers and more besides. As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy.
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HAPPY LITTLE CLOUDS – Embers
Unless you happen to be Guided By Voices, it’s rare that albums come together quickly, but some take a fair bit longer than others. It’s fair to say that this album from Happy Little Clouds had a gestation period that was a little longer than most. Its lead single appeared on Bandcamp almost a year and a half ahead of the full length release, and other tracks have been slowly drip fed to an audience over time. In terms of promotion and with everyone streaming, this actually turned out to be a good move: at the point where people might’ve started to forget about this Boston based trio, they’d pop up with another tune, and receive another round of positive online press.
Befitting of something born from a slow creative process, ‘Embers’ is bigger than a mere collection of tracks. There are lyrical themes of questioning, of introspection, and an underlying aspect of emotional growth and change. This makes the material more sophisticated than some of its very 90s, often feel good arrangements might suggest on a surface level.