THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #18

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. This time around, we bring you a vast array of great tunes, ranging from indie, to especially noisy post punk, to electronica; there’s some brilliant Americana, and even an unexpected collaboration. This collection of tunes really captures the variety we aim for within this regular feature so, as always, we hope there’ll be something to entertain everyone. The quest to bring you great new and recent music is still ongoing – if you have anything you think would be a great fit for a Singles Bar feature sometime in the future, please get in touch!

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RONNIE ROMERO – Too Many Lies, Too Many Masters

Throughout 2022, Ronnie Romero continued his very prolific streak of releasing new material. The year brought four new albums: another studio recording with the brilliant Sunstorm, an album with The Ferrymen, a solo disc featuring some well chosen cover tunes and, not least of all, a titanic piece of metal reuniting the hard working singer with his band Lords of Black. With just two albums released in 2023, it was a quiet year by Romero’s usual standards, but you still have to ask: at what point does having a ridiculous work ethic start to look like a man on a musical treadmill at the behest of his record company?

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MPF (Manchester Punk Festival) returns for 2024 – First bands announced

Over the years, MPF (Manchester Punk Festival) has been a brilliant showcase for hundreds of up and coming bands. Alongside a few name headliners, the event has been the best place to see alternative and punk artists in small venues as they make their mark on the DIY scene.

Previous years have seen sets from Propagandhi, Light Year, Wonk Unit, Chaser, Pizzatramp and countless others. The legendary Discharge had been confirmed to appear at the 2020 event, but the world had other ideas.

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VARIOUS ARTISTS – Socks On Records And Friends Volume 3

Ever since its launch as a not for profit label in 2021, Socks On Records has always conveyed a sense of community spirit. Members of Das Kapitans may well have been the instigators of Socks On and their band is the label’s most prolific act, but everyone who encounters the label becomes a member of their extended family. There’s no one-upmanship; no hierarchy – just a gathering of friends on a mission to make and share good music, DIY style.

This release really extends the Socks On ethos of sharing music in an altruistic way. It brings together over thirty tracks from various names who might not be familiar, and all monies earned from downloads will be donated to CPSL MIND, a mental health charity in Peterborough.

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IMPELLITTERI – Impellitteri EP

When Yngwie Malmsteen left Alcatrazz in 1984, the heavy metal titans found themselves in the position of having to find a new guitarist capable of filling some incredibly huge boots. Just as importantly, if reports are to be believed, they were looking for someone much less likely to punch vocalist Graham Bonnet in the face. A few hopefuls auditioned for the difficult role, one of which was a massively talented young man from Connecticut.

His name was Chris Impellitteri. Graham was rather keen to give Chris the job, but as history has shown, he was outvoted in favour of the now legendary Steve Vai. Impellitteri, in turn, formed his own eponymously named band, and with huge input from vocalist and songwriter Rob Rock, self-released a debut EP in 1987.

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