Since releasing their free download album ‘Not For Everyone’ back in January 2017, The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco have been suspiciously quiet.
Over the past year, they’ve been working on new material and a new album is now expected before the end of 2018.
Portuguese hardcore band Don’t Disturb My Circles released their debut EP in 2009. The EP didn’t receive a lot of overseas press, but nevertheless the band continued to work hard promoting their work on their home turf. By 2015, they’d had shared stages with thrash legends Sepultura and Obituary, Cancer Bats and Dillinger Escape Plan, a band with whom their 2018 EP shares a few parallels.
Strange Majik’s 2016 album ‘Raised On Rock ‘n’ Roll’ played like the ultimate good time record. Its combination of rock, blues and soul vibes sounded like the aftermath of years spent absorbing all the great records of the seventies. It was the kind of record that would’ve been impossible to follow straight away, so David Pattillo and his band took a sidestep. Two EPs released in 2017 fused the Majik sound with something moodier and the results presented the world with some politically charged lyrics – only fitting considering the state of the US at the time they were written.
Based between London and Norwich, Millie Manders and The Shutup are a cross genre punk/rock/ska band who’s main aim is to hit their audience with big riffs and a bigger attitude. They’re one of those bands that seemingly never stops touring but, naturally, the hard yards put in on stage have made them tighter and tougher with the passing of time. Their 2018 EP ‘Shut Up’ showcases a variety of styles and moods from within the band’s musical canon, but still sounds remarkably coherent. This has much to do with Millie’s big voice – she has a definite presence, even on record – but it’s also down to some great brass; whether delving into straight ska or sounds of a more crossover variety, the horns sound huge throughout.
Sweden’s City Maze are a rock band featuring members who’ve had prior links with Melody Fields and Blisterhead. Their 2018 EP ‘Lifestyle’ features four songs that sit somewhere between radio friendly 90s styled rock and the gently alternative. There’s nothing edgy or challenging about their sound, but given Sweden’s track record for great music, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to expect, say, something relatively enjoyable. What actually transpires is a lumpen Weezer-obsessed trudge through four songs that don’t deserve being heard more than twice.