BLACK INITIALS – EP

black initials epRamsgate is a seaside town in east Kent, once famous for the docks, its hovercraft trips and a town horse. It still boasts an impressive harbour, but often gets overlooked in favour of Margate – its arguably more famous brother – situated just along the coast. Ramsgate also home to alt-rock two-piece Black Initials, a band whom bring a mixture of garage based sounds on their debut EP.   Continue reading

DARK HORSE – Shot Down EP

dark horse shot down epThe names Matt Knee and Rosie Doonan might not be at the forefront of your mind, but prior to the launch of Dark Horse, both musicians had been fixtures on the music scene in the north of England. Matt had been drummer with Wakefield post-punkers Last Gang, while Rosie – among other things – had found herself with a much higher profile gig as part of Peter Gabriel’s orchestral shows in 2012.

Within Dark Horse, Doonan’s slightly trill vocal style is a good match for the retro pop sound and for some people, this may well prove to be the EP’s main attraction. However, as good a performer as she is, it’s the music that really counts here…and ‘Shot Down’ offers three songs that are an instant mood lifter. The band knows all about making that important first impression, too, making no apologies for front-loading what is arguably their best track.

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THE MOONSHINERS – EP

16265162_705722059610694_9173415247525155349_nArmed with a love of Rocket From The Crypt and (the) Misfits, Peterborough punk ‘n’ rollers The Moonshiners are set to slap you in the jaw with a potent, riff-heavy sound on their untitled 2017 EP . Their self-financed release serves up half an album’s worth of raw and dirty noise and couples the best riffs with a few top-notch hooks, which results in an unmissable listen for fans of the style.

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MADDIE RABIN – Autumn Bound EP

maddie rabin epA near empty room, a cello, a banjo and some animal bones. This first impression of Maddie Rabin’s world isn’t the most friendly; it doesn’t conjure the thoughts of small town life that would so often come with an Americana themed release. Such images suggest a far away place where glances are cast furtively from the corners of suspicious eyes, wary of strangers, looking to discover long buried secrets. Despite this, it doesn’t push the curious away, but rather more challenges them to dig further; to seek out why such imagery has been seen as the best fit for this singer songwriter’s musical vignettes. In many ways, unusual though it may be, this unusual photograph is very well suited to Rabin’s often minimalist approach

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SUN HOLLOW SUN – Before We Ever Met EP

a2342150807_10Sun Hollow Sun’s first release – 2013’s ‘No History’ EP – presented four enjoyable pieces of semi-acoustic roots music. With clean guitar work and easy harmonies, a touch of jazziness to the lead vocal and a set of well written songs, they not only set upon a timeless style but also showed they had the chops to take on more established acts. Three years on, the ‘Before We Ever Met’ doesn’t really meddle with that formula but, if anything, does an even smarter job.

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