Following a handful of singles and EP’s, Australia’s R.M.F.C. finally released a full length album at the end of 2023. Although ‘Club Hits’ didn’t feature as much raw sounding material as ‘Television’ (a highlight from 2018’s ‘Hive’), its collection of short and sharp workouts made for great listening.
Tag Archives: retro
Real Gone Presents: A Boston Round-Up, August 2025
Back in June 2025, when sifting through a mountain of materials for our popular Singles Bar column, we found we had a huge amount of submissions featuring bands from Boston. It sort of seemed natural to make a feature of these on their own, since that part of the US seems to be thriving when it comes to underground acts. The feature was a massive success – far bigger than we could’ve hoped for – so it seemed only right to use that as a template again, when the time felt right and there was enough new material to make it viable. This second trip to the Boston ’burbs features a couple of familiar faces, but hopefully there’ll be music and bands here that are brand new to you too. As always, we hope you find something to enjoy!
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CANDY RIOT – Mirrors (A Covers EP)
Candy Riot may well have formed in the 2020s and become a mainstay of the Texas club scene since 2022, but the band’s collective heart and head appears to be living somewhere in the wilds of 1984. Their ‘Nico Loretto’ album from 2024 is absolutely loaded with superb retro pop, and its best songs blend the new wave aesthetic of the skinny tie brigade from the early years of US MTV with synth sounds pulled straight off early Depeche Mode albums, Ultravox’s ‘Vienna’ and Soft Cell’s brilliant – and eternally grubby – ‘Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’. A combination of really bright sounding arrangements and great, harmonious pop vocals result in the kind of listen that feels nostalgic, even when the material is unfamiliar.
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #117
Every visit to the Real Gone Singles Bar uncovers new treats, but as we start to pull towards the end of a UK summer, this selection shares a couple of really special tracks. A new offering from a UK born/Dubai based soul singer could be one of the best things you’ll hear before the autumnal weather sets in; a couple of legends provide the basis for a near perfect reggae banger, and an underground electronica musician really stretches out on his current single. We’ve also got a piece of fairly traditional sounding country, a loving tribute to a classic grunge sound, and a huge alternative rock tune from a band making their debut. As always, we hope you find something to enjoy.
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DUCK & COVER – EP
In 2022, US band Duck & Cover released the ‘Attention Economy’ EP, a short listen that hit hard and fast with a world of trashy riffs that blended a love of garage rock with The Replacements, and even added a tinge of 80s glam to a few of the vocals. The tracks have since appeared on streaming services as three digital singles, but whether heard together or apart, the material retains its appeal. 2024’s two track ‘Trash Fest’ showed off a little more melody around the edges – particularly noticeable in the vocal approach taken on the massively hooky ‘Girl From Nowhere’ – but the band’s love of a wonderfully retro sound held firm.