Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore the various individual mp3s that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. We’ve gathered together another strong selection this time around, ranging from solid sounding electronica, to a drum loop oriented take on dream pop, to a brilliant piece of retro rock, and more besides. We hope, as always, you’ll find something new to enjoy!
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At the time of this single’s release, it really doesn’t feel that long since Fred Abong released his ‘Fear Pageant’ album. That makes sense, as it’s only been eight months since the world last heard new music from the former Throwing Muses and Belly man.
Ahead of a new album (‘Blindness’, scheduled for release on May 9th), Fred has shared a new track, ‘Heaven’, and the full video can be seen below.
As 2023 began to fade, US doom/stoner metal band The Holy Nothing arrived with a genuine force. Their debut EP, ‘Vol 1: A Profound and Nameless Fear’ brought plenty of heaviness, but the band often worked their riffs in a more inventive way than a lot of other doom-centric acts.
Even on the EP’s most predictable cut, ‘Unending Death’, their gift for delivering a weighty sound was more than clear.
When it comes to prog metal, there are few bands as consistent as Vanden Plas. Like many of their peers, the band are able to deliver the expected heaviness and complexity, but marking them out from others on the scene, these German musicians often display a strong sense of melody. That doesn’t necessarily make their work entirely accessible or commercial – prog metal is always a marginal subgenre on that front – but an on form VP feels so much more streamlined than most. Even when approaching massive concept works like ‘Chronicles of The Immortals’ or the excellent ‘Ghost Xperiment’, their decision to split these epic works into separate volumes made their bombastic traits far more digestible. The likes of the ego driven Dream Theater would’ve likely released each one as a double CD and added more material to create one of their preferred full three hour borefests each time.
Sahaji first came to relative prominence due to a music competition staged by Yamaha, but these recordings are set to take the Japanese brothers to the next level. The three tracks that make up the very enjoyable ‘Future In The Sky’ EP draw from some classic influences; with hints of a 60s love colliding with a huge debt to the bigger players from the Britpop scene, the material comes with a hugely nostalgic bent, but the arrangements sometimes play for something much grander than an easy throwback. Working with renowned producer engineer Nick Brine – a man whose previous credits include working with The Stone Roses, Ash and Teenage Fanclub – has certainly helped create a great sound on this first UK release.