When punk shook Britain’s music scene in ‘76, it came as a revelation. The DIY spirit of the Buzzcocks’ ‘Spiral Scratch’ EP suggested that anyone could be in a band; you didn’t need to have to have years worth of musical training. Music could also be about capturing an energy and a spirit. Punk’s first wave was relatively short-lived. By 1978, guitar driven bands were mixing the less flashy elements of punk with bigger melodies, resulting in the mod influenced sounds of The Jam and the broader power pop of Elvis Costello & The Attractions. Some were even taking punk’s pure drive and creating what would now be considered goth, and bands like Ultravox! and Wire – arguably the greatest bands to be tagged with the term “post punk” – added strange and angular artiness, shaping the sounds of a generation.
FORTUNE TELLER – Premonitions EP
In the build up to this debut EP release from Fortune Teller, it already seemed as if Wales had become a relatively fertile place for new and underground rock bands. In the last weeks of 2023, stoner rockers Goat Major released an excellent three track EP and The Black Vultures burst onto the rock scene with a muscular take on a classic rock sound, and in the first weeks of 2024, Sister Envy introduced themselves with a slow burning indie-psych single. In addition, Worldcub were gearing up to release their second album, and Jessica Ball – sometime of Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard (MWWB) – announced the launch of her new band, Eye. Each of these acts were stylistically different, yet helped to build a feeling that somewhere to the north west of Bristol, there was definitely something in the water that was fuelling a burst of new creativity.
DISORIENTATION – Survival Mode EP
In some ways, this second EP from Disorientation sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before. Scratch the surface, of course, and you’ll find bits and pieces of familiar noise, but nothing presented by this avant-garde metal duo ever takes a predictable route. This is doom and black metal, but never as you’ve experienced it before. It’s almost industrial, but never entirely so. There are also elements of avant-garde jazz prog and chamber vocals appearing, somewhat unexpectedly, alongside the heavier moments.
Watch: The Veldt live on KEXP
When people think of alternative bands, they’d probably name about fifty before The Veldt came to mind. Even within the microcosm of shoegaze and dreampop, the US band have never seemed to get their full due. They’ve never seemed to gain the same kind of love heaped upon them that Ride, critics’ darlings My Bloody Valentine, and even Slowdive have managed. Yet, those who’ve understood their unique take on shoegaze and indie sounds absolutely love them. The band are the very definition of “cult”.
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #44
Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the individual mp3s that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. This time around, we bring you some hazy sounding neo-psychedelia, an interesting take on a post punk/goth sound, a great singer songwriter, a melodic rock banger, a slice of Latin jazz, and more besides. As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy!
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