Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the more interesting individual tracks that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. This time around, we welcome back a cult Canadian act and an equally cult Boston based singer-songwriter. We also share a couple of metal oriented tracks pitching at very different influences, and applaud the most inventive single to date from a genre-bending Italian band. Between those, you’ll find other tracks from the underground and, as always, we hope you’ll find something new to enjoy…

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Following his ‘Nowhere But Here’ EP, Boston’s Adam Sherman returns with ‘Everyday Dangers’, an anthem to the modern age. Against a rootsy, pop rock riff that carries an echo of ‘Wildflowers’ era Tom Petty, the performer warns against a world where “everything’s falling” and “we have to choose a side” – something very pointedly aimed at a collapsing US at the time of release – before telling everyone he’s “so tired of living in doubt”. It’s not a subtle lyric, but a necessary one. However, for those not into messages, the music holds firm throughout. Sherman’s retro tones share something that’s both classic sounding and wholly uplifting, and peppering his obvious Petty-isms with a lead guitar that shares a hint of Lindsey Buckingham, he creates the kind of track that should connect with a fairly broad audience.

Presenting an acoustic guitar line augmented by mournful violin, the heart of Falling Into View’s ‘Things…’ may seem simple, but it’s a number that aims to really pull at the heartstrings. Straddling the worlds of adult pop, country and folk, the number wastes no time in setting a great melody in place, and its lyric exploring loss, regret and other potential misgivings will certainly resonate on some level with almost everyone. The first part of the number really encourages the listener to focus on Alyssa Wint’s flawless vocal, but bringing in the bass and drums at a later stage builds upon a great atmosphere without drawing too much away from the overriding sadness. With influences from Alison Krauss and Emmylou Harris, this is a single that somehow feels deeply rooted in the audience’s subconscious, despite having a more contemporary feel. A wonderful track.

Italian band Messiness have already released some interesting singles in 2025, but in terms of sheer invention, none have come close to matching ‘Eternity Unbound’. The opening riffs latch onto a blend of indie and funk; then, as the melody grows, the band introduce a vocal that sounds more attuned to a world of psych and alt-pop. Once they’ve figured the audience have got a handle on that, everything falls away to reveal an odd carny inspired interlude, before tackling a broader melody with a strong Arabic influence. After a much catchier refrain arrives, sounding like a tribute to Robyn Hitchcock, the band truly pull the metaphorical rug from under their audience with a jazz-prog interlude that sounds a lot like Caravan or Hatfield and The North in a full-on wig-out. The chorus returns just in time to ensure everything feels a little more coherent, but ‘Eternity Unbound’ is very much a track where Messiness have thrown all of their best ideas into a blender to see what emerges. It shouldn’t work as well as it does, but it’s genuinely great.

With its blend of metal, blues and stoner tones, the opening riff of STRUCK/DOWN’s ‘Leach’ makes an instant impression. The band’s ability to deliver this with a huge amount of swagger only cements any early feelings that those influences drive a great tune. Moving into the verse, things take on slightly more of a classic groove metal approach once Linden Twyman starts to sing. An absolutely huge tone taps into a very 90s inspired brand of metal, but his volume and confidence is such that the track sounds like so much more than a chunky, retro workout. As things progress, the band’s sheer commitment to sharing great metal never diminishes: the main riff really thunders against the strong vocal; the drums punch through with an immense weight, and by the time the band reaches the track’s middle eight where echoes of classic Pantera meet with even more of a southern groove, this performance more than shows off a powerhouse metal band at work.

Sharing neo gothic melodies via bright synths, contrasted with deep drones and a slow vocal, the opening verse of ‘2B Or Not 2B’ by Daphne Guinness definitely aims to put the “art” into art pop. Even when a few dance-oriented beats creep in to give the track a more commercial edge, Daphne’s lower vocal registers continue to keep things a little more interesting than your average dance-pop/synth based affair, and after switching to a French vocal midway, any feelings that this single might be rather grand will be more than validated. Naturally, this menagerie of sound often feels geared more towards creating a mood than delivering an indelible hook, but in terms of bringing something that would have been a smash in the hands of Grace Jones and Trevor Horn into the twenty first century, this single is really impressive.

Following a brilliantly crashy, Placebo-esque intro, ‘Puncture Wounds’ by Lonely Little Kitsch continues to share a great melody. Scaling back the guitars to allow a stong bassline and sultry vocal to cut through, everything starts to sound like a hard-edged Roxette, before the two moods fuse together seamlessly to create an upbeat arrangement where Kristin Goetz’s strong vocals glide over a wealth of punchy drums and a wall of guitars. The louder elements of this number capture the Canadian band in full flight; although this single shares some of the band’s toughest sounds to date, it is topped by a great sing-along hook that brings just enough balance to keep everything user-friendly. Deliberately or otherwise, this sounds like the love letter to the late 90s you didn’t know you needed.

Stabbing piano, busy rhythms, a pumping bassline: these three features form the core of ‘Hold On’ by Michel Bellens, grabbing the listener from the very beginning, and rarely letting up until the last notes fade. In terms of adult pop, it’s all rather busy, but the uplifting nature of the music is a perfect fit against a soaring soul-pop influenced vocal. In an age where tech people are now fobbing off listeners with AI generated music, it might be too easy to be cynical and feel that this is perhaps “too polished” or even too perfect for the style, but this is genuine, and comes with such a great melody and and optimistic sentiment, it’s almost impossible not to like it.

Last up, here’s another single driven by some massive riffs. At the heart of Fail The Enemy’s ‘Paper Dreams’ you’ll find massive guitar parts that contrast shrill lines with a crushing groove which, when heard together, creates the finest in modern melodic metal. The heaviest moments blend an almost grungy groove with a sledgehammer of a riff that draws from artier post rock, and from that, the band builds an almost cinematic arrangement that’s very smart. Between the heavier moments, a hugely emotive lead vocal soars between programmed beats and echoing guitar lines to share something that feels very alternative. It’s all cool, but it’s the number’s climax that sells a truly great arrangement when a choir of female vocals join the heaviness to lend everything a much grander feel. With traces of influence from “middle period” Bring Me The Horizon and wall of sound vocals that call back to 30 Seconds To Mars (but shared in a far more interesting way), this is a heavy but atmospheric number that presents the very best in modern alternative rock/metal.

November 2025