Every visit to the Real Gone Singles Bar promises some interesting musical treats, but this time around, we’ve featured what we believe are a couple of the year’s best tracks. We’ve got adult pop from a singer songwriter who’s previously worked with Paul Weller, some fine Americana, the return of one of the UK’s best alternative rock acts, a slice of melodic jazz funk, and more besides. Heading into the last quarter of 2025, the new music continues to be of a superb standard! As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy…
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Built from a very strong rhythm, Amelia Coburn’s current single ‘Something Wild’ has a tough edge, but that’s contrasted by some really great melodies. Against a drum part that hits from the outset, playing like a distant echo of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Big Love’, Amelia’s light vocal drifts as if channelling old dream pop tracks, and cool orchestration fleshes out the arrangement with a grand tone that shows off a huge recording budget. Although first listens suggest this is about mood, time spent with the track will uncover a brilliant, hook laden slice of adult pop; the kind of recording that deserves to earn a place among the year’s best tracks.
Gearing up to release a new album (‘Cook’, set to hit the shelves in December) US funk band Lettuce have shared a brand new track ‘Breathe’. The six minute jam takes in some great sounds. Opening gently, a slow groove leans more into an acid jazz sound than pure funk when an echoing guitar calls out above a dub friendly bass groove and a few keys set an otherworldly atmosphere in place. The arrival of some really tight brass adds more of a soul inflection, but brings the track’s biggest musical hook, before muted rhythms and a very 90s groove bring something a little funkier to the fore. Again, though, there’s not a pure funk aesthetic: some flawlessly played jazz guitar owes more to Grant Green than Parliament, but the way the way Lettuce blend each of this instrumental’s elements in a seamless way creates the ultimate evening listen.
Billing themselves as a band who “drag garage rock kicking and screaming to a new low”, Irish act Peer Pleasure create a curious noise on ‘Rooms’. The pointed riffs and almost funky rhythms don’t owe much to the genre’s usual touchstones, sounding rather more complex. Then, there’s a weird, drawling vocal that has elements that sound as if they’ll slip into the spoken word at any moment. Again, it’s a far cry from the raucous howls from The Hives or The Dead Exs. Strain your ears, and you might just hear a trace of Jon Spencer, though, and this becomes a little more obvious when the chorus hits upon an array of distorted riffs that definitely come closer to the expected noise. Just in case things are in danger of becoming too predictable however, the track flips everything to bow out with a selection of unexpectedly mechanical beats and an angry sneer that’s a bit more arty. For genre fans, this will supply a curious listen, whilst leaving everyone else a little bemused. It’s likely the band would be happy with that.
On the brilliant ‘Lust’, Hard To Explain shared some impressive heavy riffs, teetering on the edges of metalcore but with a superb goth-esque undertone. The chorus of the brilliantly arranged ‘Hell To Pay’ delivers a similar heaviness on a simple and direct hook, but the track’s verses bring something very different into play. Taking a more stripped back approach, the verse places keys against a glitchy, programmed rhythm, drawing more from alternative dance influences and light industrial fare. It results in something that catches the ear almost immediately. No matter where the music goes, Aisling Faulkner’s vocal really impresses; throughout this number, she can be heard in full cry, providing a strong reminder of why this Northern Irish band is heading for bigger things.
Really making a name for themselves over the previous couple of years, Venus Grrrls sound stronger than ever on ‘Ivy Tree’. The number boasts some fantastically dense sounding guitar work during its mid section in keeping with the band’s live performances, but the track also shares some very accessible melodies. The verse blends their signature alt-rock sound with a wave of 80s goth – a sound that’s very sympathetic to GK’s lead vocal – creating something that’s a touch more accessible than their previous single ‘Eighteen Crows’ without diluting too much of their now familiar sound. Factor in a huge chorus, a really solid drum part and massive, echoing harmonies and this becomes one of the band’s best tracks to date. Their future is looking very bright.
Ahead of a new album, Charlie Nieland has returned with a new single, ‘Shame’. A highlight of his ‘The Ocean Understands’ EP, and set to be a highlight of the full length ‘Stories From The Borderline’ (due for release on October 24th), this number takes a rockier turn when Charlie takes the guts of a college rock rhythm and a huge jangle, setting something very 80s in place, and contrasts it with a near spoken, very 70s vocal. There are moments where that voice is clearly inspired by ‘Transformer’ era Lou Reed, and others where broader melodies hint at a love for the decade’s post-glam/proto punk. It’s great from the off, but by the time louder guitars creep in to create a superb climax, the track ends up somewhere very different than expected. The louder elements of the tnumber are definitely early Roxy/’Warm Jets’ era Eno derived, but that only adds to the coolness here.
Cat Lion’s previous single ‘Cause Memories, They Last’ was a near perfect country ballad. For the follow up, ‘Stop!’ she shares something more upbeat, but the many of the hallmarks that made ‘Memories’ so impressive are still present. Against a stomping rhythm, country toned guitars layr down a choppy rhythm intercut with strong, rootsy fills, beneath which an old style organ adds plenty of colour without feeling intrusive. The featured guitar solo adds even more of a country rock flair, 90s style, leading an impressive band, but naturally, it’s Cat who’s the star here. Throught the breezy number, she latches onto a confident vocal coloured with a country twang, absolutely selling a jubilant chorus. There’s a lot of country music out there that sounds very similar – particularly from the late 90s – but Cat Lion’s classic style continues to give fans plenty to enjoy in 2025.
At the beginning of 2026, The Paper Kites will release their seventh album ‘If You Go There, I Hope You Find It’. Their early promotion cycle has yielded the release of an absolutely brilliant single, ‘When The Lavender Blooms’, and this follow up, ‘Every Town’, is every bit as strong. A little more downbeat, the core of the number straddles folk and country, creating a sound that’s never a million miles away from The Jayhawks, Wilco or The Delines. Crying steel guitars lurk in the distance, while absolutely gorgeous harmony vocals work a superb chorus melody, and a mournful verse makes a great feature of a classic Americana fueled lead vocal. Although it isn’t as upbeat as ‘Lavender’, It’s the kind of number that reinforces any feelings that this band are something special, and this track feels like something you’ve always known. The Paper Kites plough the 70s and the 90s for the finest rootsy inspirations, and their smooth sounds create something equally timeless here; it’s the kind of track that fans will absolutely love and inspire newer listeners to go digging through an impressive back catalogue.
September 2025