This visit to the Singles Bar shares a whole wealth of inspiring sounds. Within the eight picks, you’ll find an unexpected tribute to easy listening from a familiar name, some contemporary French pop, something with a country rock influence from Australia, and a new twist on an old classic. You’ll also discover a couple of superb underground rock tunes that represent the heart of Real Gone’s regular coverage. As always, we hope you’ll find something new to enjoy…
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On their 2021 LP ‘Let There Be Light’, alternative rock band Sun Atoms shared some great music. That record’s quieter and more downbeat moments blended elements of goth pop with a very retro guitar twang, often falling somewhere between the classic, introspective songwriting of Leonard Cohen and the more contemporary moods of Tindersticks. When approaching busier sounds, the material mixed light electronica with spoken word passages. With other moments utilising muted trumpets and very retro sounding backing vocals, the album created a pleasingly varied listening experience.
During the first decade of what was to become a very long career, Status Quo barely put a foot wrong. Between the release of 1968’s ‘Picturesque Matchstickable Messages’ and 1972’s ‘Piledriver’, the band slowly transitioned from being an “of their time” psych act, into a rock band experimenting with garage and blues based sounds, eventually hitting upon the heads down, no nonsense boogie rock sound that would become their forte. Between 1973’s ‘Hello’ and 1977’s ‘Rockin’ All Over The World’, that sound would see the Quo shifting millions of albums and eventually becoming known the world over. The following decade saw line-up changes and a concession to 80s sounds diluting the band’s power – and, ultimately the quality of their output – but fans were still guaranteed some enjoyable (sometimes even excellent) tunes along the way.
It’s that time of year again! …And it seems to come around faster every year.
On their debut EP, US funk/rock band Sugar Bones prove the old theory that quality will always trump quantity. In a little under twenty minutes, these guys whip up an impressive musical party: with three slabs of tight funk, a strong soul inspired jam, and a massive rocker with some serious 70s boots, there’s something here for most listeners who love things with a retro sound.