During the first half of 2025, The Rockerati made their mark on the rock underground with the help of two excellent singles. The first, ‘Analogue Again’ set a great pub rock sound in place; loaded with solid riffs and a melodic edge that called back to the likes of Rockpile, it showed how the Brighton based act valued great influences more than they valued the notion of perceived “coolness”. That school of thought went into overdrive when the band dropped a bunch of Quo-esque riffs into the great ‘Big Dog’; with a bigger sound in place, the track demonstrated how tough The Rockerati could sound with an increase of both power and volume, and how solid playing will often trump originality.
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CLEAN LINES – Nuisance EP
Clean Lines isn’t necessarily the best known name in punky circles, but the band have put in some hard yards on the live circuit in the US. They’ve shared stages with Me First & The Gimme Gimmes and The Kids, and have creative links with Geraldine Fibbers and Circle Jerks. They caught the attention of The Briefs’ vocalist Steve E. Nix, who eventually joined their musical ranks.
Real Gone Presents: A Boston Round-Up, June 2025
Over the previous couple of months, the submissions for the popular Real Gone Singles Bar have been more than plentiful. It’s actually got to the point where we’re getting so much good stuff, it’s been almost impossible to keep on top of it all. When compiling a recent column, it came to our attention that we’d had a huge amount of submissions from Boston based bands. Since we were massive fans of albums produced by Paul Q. Kolderie & Sean Slade at Fort Apache back in the 90s and, in more recent times, our site has received regular support from a few Boston based bands, PR companies, labels – including the sadly missed Red On Red Records – it seemed to make sense to take some of these great tracks and highlight them in a feature of their own. The Singles Bar will continue as normal, of course…but this bunch of tracks, shared as a selection in its own right, features some great material. Please join us in giving a hearty shout out to a great city with a thriving music scene… As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy!
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MAX RAEL – Slightly Less Than Human / When The Only Winning Move Is Not To Play
Max Rael’s debut single ‘Brighter Future’ pushed the alternative envelope by applying spoken word passages to bleak sounding synth backdrops, creating an almost dystopian musical landscape. The number’s darker side was effectively offset by the History of Guns man offering listeners a positive lyric, where he suggested we can look to the past and learn from mistakes to forge a brighter future. Issued at a time when the world seemed incredibly negative with seemingly little escape from a political turmoil, Rael’s optimism – no matter how obtusely applied – offered fans of less mainstream music a small beacon of hope.
ECCE SHNAK – Backroom Sessions EP
The release of Ecce Shnak’s single ‘Jeremy, Utilitarian Sadboy’ in October 2024 marked a triumphant return for the most cult of art rock bands. Their first new recording in five years, the track shared something almost uncategorisable. Jumping from frenetic beats and rock riffs into post punk sounds, and eventually descending into a choir of voices sharing a warped carny melody, it packed more into three minutes than some bands manage over the course of entire albums. Their subsequent EP ‘Shadows Grow Fangs’ (released in February ’25) proved to be equally as inventive, sharing a half dozen numbers that seemed as keen to bemuse as entertain.