New Album Release Friday: Squid – “Paddling”

May 7, 2021 — Leave a comment

The latest to have Inked a deal with Britain’s most experimental label. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Bright Green Field” (LP) (Released on May 7th, 2021) (via Warp Records)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for you to read your daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! The never-ending cycle of ‘New Release Friday’ has arrived once again, with this week’s calendar being filled with the first posthumous release from the late MF Doom, who has collaborated with Czarface once more before his tragic passing early in the year. Student Radio indie darling Alfie Templeman and YouTuber Dodie also vie for attention, along with Copenhagen Punk progressors Iceage, and a new 1980’s Hard Rock-inspired fifteenth go-around from the notably inconsistent Weezer also hitting store shelves. Squid marks the first entry of the new summer Blockbuster season, however, a Brighton-bred Prog-Rock band with more undefinable genre qualities than you can shake a Vinyl at. Since releasing their debut EP on Dan Carey’s Speedy Wunderground and later signing to Warp Records, the home of groundbreaking UK experimenters like Aphex Twin and Boards Of Canada of top-tier status, Squid have generated a ton of buzz on the internet and with the music press. I personally haven’t been on that particular bandwagon because I often find it harder to connect with artists who have generated this level of acclaim, but I’ve heard the odd single here and there to decent impressions. I saw them in ‘On The Road’, a 2020 documentary about Independent Venue Week, where the lads proudly talked about beating a dustbin lid with an Asparagus. Their debut full-length album, ‘Bright Green Field’ arrives today, and it sees the band turn to Dan Carey for production work once again. Let’s watch them perform their latest sampler, ‘Paddling’, at SXSW below.

Producer Dan Carey has helped affiliated acts like Black Country New Road, Fontaines DC and Sinead O’Brien to succeed in recent times, and Squid’s ringleader, Ollie Judge, told Exclaim! in an interview that Bright Green Field’s tracks “Illustrate the places, events and architecture that exist within the album”. While earlier singles were quirky and driven by characters, tracks like ‘Paddling’ aim for a darker variation of moods, deepening the emotional depth of Squid’s pre-established sound. ‘Paddling’ is more concerned about the theme of Place, with the lyrics being about the reactions of feeling thrust into the adult world, as adolescent friends suddenly turn their focus to employability. A low-key opening gradually builds to a more instructive mood, as Judge recites lines like “Patient and in control/Dig holes like a mole” and “There are people inside, And they’re changing in shape and size” as he laments his companions never wanting to ‘just have fun’ anymore, built on a drum machine instrumental and accompanied by the call-and-response vocals and the well-executed key changes. Propulsive bass guitar beats and evolving bitterness in the vocals add new layers to the gradually evolving soundscape of confused moods. A suitable helping of “Don’t push me in” unfolds a less playful and more settled 00’s Post-Punk or Indie Guitar band sound, but the song’s structure remains wildly unconventional, as a 6-minute duration of building instrumentals and abstract tempo increases adds a more melodic thrust to the finale. It certainly isn’t a project with commercial accessibility near the top of the listed priorities, and the new album is said to have featured very experimental recording techniques like using a swinging microphone in a room of guitar amps. This all contributes well to the underlying mood of confusion, where it clearly feels like a ‘Lost Boy’ is behind the steering wheel. It refrains from feeling self-indulgent or too exhausting though, because the production clearly calls back to DIY roots in it’s very inception instead of seeming pretentious, and so Warp Records is a great fit for them because of it’s creative freedom and well-regarded academic status. Overall, releases like ‘Paddling’ are re-inforcing Squid as a memorable and distinctive act to follow. A breed of invention that can be rare to come across in this day and age.

Pictured: Ollie Judge (Lead Vocals/Drums), Louis Borlase (Lead Guitar/Bass Guitar), Arthur Leadbetter (Keyboard), Laurie Nankviel (Brass) & Anton Pearson (Backing Vocals) (2020) (Photo by Xenia Owens)

That’s all for now – Thank you for reading and reaching the end of my daily rambles. I’ve already got plans for tomorrow, as we take an in-depth look at the return of one of my low-key favourite young artists, who previously made the best single I’ve ever heard that is primarily about wearing wigs. This French-born Belgian-Carribean musician has toured with Neneh Cherry, and contributed vocals to the soundtrack of the 2016 film ‘Belgica’ that was scored by her close friend, Soulwax. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: The Union Underground – “Turn Me On Mr. Deadman”

May 2, 2021 — Leave a comment

From Death Valley, weighing in at 309 pounds, it’s The Undertaker! It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Cover Art for “…An Education In Rebellion) (Released on July 18, 2000) (via Columbia Records)

Good Evening to you! It’s been a deadline-filled weekend for me, but I have only just found the time for your weekly weekend throwback to the Scuzz TV days of old, as we take an in-depth look back at one of the old Pop-Punk staples from the late-1990’s through to the mid-00’s. The combination between Pop-Punk and Pro Wrestling has occasionally been a rather bizzare one, and nowhere has this been more exemplified than by the short-lived San Antonio Nu-Metal project The Union Underground, whose band members left an indelible mark on the promotional ties between the Pro Wrestling world and the mainstream music world, despite only actually releasing one album on a major label. A second LP has been teased by the Texas outfit since 2018, but we’re still waiting. If you’re familiar with the WWE product in the mid-2000’s, ‘Turn Me On Mr Deadman” will be instantly recognizable to you, since it was used as the theme tune for Raw between early 2002 and late 2006. It also did decent business commercially, landing a #11 spot on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the US. The associated album, ‘An Education In Rebellion’ explored personal teenhood topics for the band’s members, and followed an entirely self-produced debut EP that sold them more than 5,000 copies. Prepare for nostalgia with “Turn Me On Mr. Deadman” below.

“I’d bet my bottom dollar this band will be around 10 years from now” were the famous last words about The Union Underground that then-Columbia A&R executive John Weakland used to describe Columbia’s acquisition of the group, hot on the tails of a first album which stayed on the American album charts somehow for four months. What happened? Well, the sister label that technically owned them, Portrait, an imprint of Columbia folded, and so each of the band’s members decided to go their seperate ways and pursue different projects, each to varying degrees of success. This leaves ‘Turn Me On Mr. Deadman’ to be the most glaring example of what they had to offer, at this point, with aggressive lyrics vaguely about rebellion living in a spirit of youthful angst and Power-Pop driven bass riffs to boot. Vocals like “Penetrate all the simple minds, They adore what a bore, how they stand in line” and “What;s my drug of choice/It’s okay, when they pay, they say I got the voice” float over the top of a push-and-pull lead guitar hook and the chorus explodes with viscerality and tension, with plenty of F-bombs for good measure. There’s shades of classic Metal bands like Megadeth and Judas Priest thrown in there, as a clear Pop influence drives the violent melodies and the most definitely loud vocals forwards with little regard for holding back. It remains unclear what exactly the lyrics are expressing, however, and the rhythms seem to be lacking in much variation. There’s some fun to be had here, but if you’re looking for innovative forays into unexplored territory here, it certainly isn’t the record you’re after. I thought the band had a surprisingly nice chemistry together though, and the producers certainly know how to create some effective build-up’s for the big riffs. It was quite catchy, overall. However, the “middle finger” sentiments of the lyrics feel half-baked, the rhythms feel too recycled and too often, and there’s just almost zero substance for me to latch onto. Pay up, Mr. Weakland – You made a bet…

Pictured: Bryan Scott (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), Patrick Kennison (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), John Moyer (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Josh Memelo (Drums) (2002) (Photo via Discogs.com)

That’s all I’ve got time for, and, besides, the four episodes of my two documentaries that I’ve got left to do are sadly not going to produce themselves. I’ll be sure to dedicate an hour or so from my hectic schedule to provide you some introductions to a new artist tomorrow, however, who mixes Drum ‘N’ Bass with Neo-Soul, and comes by way of Leeds and Manchester. Her latest EP has just been released on HIJINXX – which is also the name of the DIY youth street art side project that she operates. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Chubby and The Gang – “All Along The Uxbridge Road”

March 13, 2021 — Leave a comment

13 Tracks – crammed into a measly 28 minutes at a pummeling pace. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Speed KIlls” (Released on October 8th, 2020) (via Partisan Records)

Good Morning to you – My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time again for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! The above tagline wouldn’t be the worst option for a campaign advertising ‘Speed Kills’ – the latest album from the UK Post-Hardcore rock band Chubby and The Gang, which did it’s rounds last autumn. Something of a super-group of the more successful early-2010’s British ‘Pub Rock’ bands, with a 5-piece collective made up of musicians from groups like Arms Race, Vile Spirit and Gutter Knife, ‘Speed Kills’ was the debut album offering from the group, which was originally released in 2019 by Static Shock Records. However, the group signed with Partisan Records (Known for acts like Laura Marling, Fontaines DC and Pottery) last year, who decided to digitally remaster and formally reissue the debut LP for a vinyl re-issue back in late November. Produced by Jonah Falco, the concept of the much talked-about record plays out like a pummeling pub crawl traversing through London’s capital thoroughfares, with influences dating back to the 50’s. Join me after the speed bump “All Along The Uxbridge Road” below.

The music from Chubby and The Gang is known to often make use of samples from dated children’s animated TV programmes like The Jimmy Rogers Show, which helps the collaborative project to mix up a fun concoction of Melodic Metalcore, Post-Hardcore, Blues and Doo-Wop that give the high tempo frequencies and their use of hooks an upbeat coat of polish, which gives their back catalog it’s heightened, animated style of qualities. ‘All Along The Uxbridge Road’ was the lead single from an album which subtly deals with the themes of trade unionism, police brutality and pride of the lower working class. That much is true in the case of ‘All Along The Uxbridge Road’, which doesn’t exactly boast a deep substance and a social conscience. However, it does show a precise sense of time and place in it’s broad strokes. Led by rhythmically charged guitar hooks and unrelentingly quick drum time signatures, the track channels a sense of fun, and dare I say, ‘brattiness’ in it’s power-pop influences and the channeling of it’s late-70’s aesthetics. The lyrics are basically inaudible with the chugging guitar lines making it tricky to keep up with, but there are splashes of blues Harp instrumentation and some swift vocals that, for me, take the mementos of the essence of early Motorhead or mid-00’s System Of A Down in their stride. It is a flawed experience, for me, however – my main concern being that this project may be a little bit of a ‘one-trick pony’ in the sense that the lyrics lack a more expansive character. Similarly to this, the several key changes and lack of moments in reflection render things lacking in variation a little for me. Although perhaps paced too quickly for it’s own good, the track manages to get some of it’s deeper themes across pretty nicely, as the fluidity sells the chaos of the current moment nicely. Overall, although it feels a bit lacking in substance, it’s hard to fault the uniqueness of the sound, and the playful character that the band brings. Anti-Pop and yet ‘anti-Cop’.

Pictured: Charlie “Chubby Charles” Manning-Walker (Lead Vocals/Harmonica), Ethan Stahl (Rhythm Guitar), Tom “Razor” Hardwick (Bass Guitar), Maegan Brooks (Bass Guitar/Occasional Backing Vocals) and Joe McMahon (Drums/Percussion) in a promotional shoot for “Speed Kills” (2020) (Photo via PR)

That’s all I’ve got for you today! I’ve got a train to catch – so, See Ya! Scuzz Sundays is back tomorrow, however, with an in-depth look back at a classic from the ‘Emo’ era of the late-90’s breaking into the mid-00’s. It has been quite a while since we really had a ‘big name’ on the feature, and I’ve been saving this one for quite some time. It comes from a guy who used to genuinely freak me out as a kid. Although controversial, he was still a staple of the era, winning four Grammy Awards and heading an Art exhibition at at Kunsthalle gallery in Vienna with film director David Lynch, in the process. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Saliva – “Click Click Boom”

March 7, 2021 — Leave a comment

When we finish the daily jobs – we’ll round them off with a BOOM! It’s Scuzz Sunday…

Pictured: Wayne Swinny (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Paul Crosby (Drums/Percussion), Bobby Amaru (Lead Vocals/Keyboard) and Brad Stewart (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) (2016) (Photo via PR)

Who doesn’t love a good use of Onomatopoeia? Hello, I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for our weekly throwback to the relics of Pop-Punk and Emo-style releases that you may vaguely remember from around the late-1990’s until the mid-2000’s, as we bring these Frankenstein’s monsters back to life and we find out if they can walk the walk to modern standards. Saliva were a Memphis-based US Hard Rock band who are still technically active, although they’ve had several different line-up’s over the years and they haven’t released anything new since 2018. Most famously known for tracks like “Always”, “Ladies and Gentlemen” – and, perhaps most notably, “Click Click Boom” – Saliva have had a few hits troubling the US Mainstream Rock Songs chart and the Alternative Airplay charts before. Saliva released their self-titled debut album through Mark Yoshida’s Rockingchair Records back in 1998, before signing with major label Atlantic Records, who heavily promoted their follow-up records, “Every Six Seconds”, which was released in 2001, and eventually went on to receive a Platinum certification via the RIAA, despite some lukewarm reviews. “Click Click Boom” was also the theme track for then-WWF (WWE)’s No Mercy 2001 PPV. Let’s stream it below.

Although “Click Click Boom” didn’t make much of an impact on the commercial charts, you may recognise the tune because it has somehow been ingrained into popular culture because it’s been featured in so many different film, TV and video game productions. The long list includes ‘Talladega Knights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby’ (2006), ‘The Fast and The Furious’ (2001), ‘UFC 2009 Undisputed’ (2009) and ‘Project Gotham Racing’ (2001), among other entertainment titles. It was also put on the 2001 Clear Channel memorandum, but no lyric edits were actually made. Encyclopedic knowledge aside, “Click Click Boom” is more-or-less still the Nu Metal-by-numbers track you may remember, with vocalist Wayne Swinny singing about his band causing commercial dominance globally. Lines like “I’m on the radio station, Touring the nation, Leaving the scene in devastation” and “I’m coming down with a new style, and you know it’s buck wild” making these meanings abundantly clear, recited over a Rap-Metal delivery. A heavy set of guitar chords boost the instrumentation forwards, with a propelling bass guitar melody and a loud set of drum notes conjuring up a Pop-oriented hook, followed by a slightly lighter bridge of similarly, but slowed, chugging guitar patterns. Themes of childhood are also touched on, with lines like “Just a kid with a pad and a pen, and a big imagination” which is ironic because the track doesn’t have anything that expressive to say, and so it feels rather contradictory. Lyrical gripes aside, the line of “Make it, break it, take it, Until i’m overrated” was enough to elicit a slight chuckle from me. Overall, the track feels like a watered-down Rage Against The Machine, with a croaking vocal delivery somewhat downplaying the otherwise decent delivery. However, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t entertained by it. While this track is pretty crap by all means, I think it has some charm in the fame-lusting themes that isn’t really heard in today’s Nu-Metal standards, and I could picture the track being good fun when it’s performed to a live crowd and a throbbing mosh-pit. So, in conclusion, although the track isn’t amazing by any stretch of the mind, I think it’s fine for what it is if you don’t take it so seriously.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Every Six Seconds” (LP) (Released in July, 2001) (via Island Records)

When the job is done, don’t forget to add a BOOM at the end, Just for good measure. I’ll leave you to enjoy the rest of your Sunday in peace for now, but please feel free to join me again tomorrow as I begin to curate another week’s worth of recommended music listening picks for you. We’re celebrating International Women’s Day with an archive track, released in 2014 to critical acclaim and commercial success, from an influential US songwriter and producer who was included twice in NPR’s list of the “200 Greatest Songs by 21st Century Women” in 2019, and she contributed backing vocals for Swans on their 2014 record, “To Be Kind”. Did you also know that she once dated supermodel and actress Cara Delevinge from 2014 to 2016 too? If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Ela Minus – “They Told Us It Was Hard, But They Were Wrong”

February 9, 2021 — Leave a comment

A fresh discovery – ready for you to give either a Plus or a ‘Minus’. Time for a new post.

Pictured: Ela Minus at Moogfest in Durham, North Carolina (2019) (Photo via Novationmusic.com)

Good Morning to you – my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up on the blog for your daily track because, as I’m constantly reminding you, it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Ela Minus is a name that previously eluded me for a while, as I had sifted through sparklers of her material through some support on BBC Radio 6Music and through some bits-and-pieces sent to me by my cohorts from the Student Music Network over the past few months, but it was when I saw her fantastic live performance for KEXP’s Live At Home series that my ears finally paid her the notice she deserved. Currently based in Brooklyn – but born and raised in Bogotá, Columbia – this Techno wizard fell in love with the drums when she attended the Berklee College Of Music when she was 18. Her debut album, “Acts Of Rebellion” was released in late October by Domino Recordings – the same label where you will find more familiar names like Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand, Hot Chip and Anna Calvi. The 10-track LP received positive reviews, and she cements herself as an effective One-Woman orchestra with a love for exploring Witch-House, Techno, Art Rock and Dream Pop. She also uses the slogan of “Bright Music For Dark Times” to describe her own style, and it is ironic because her music sounds generally pretty moody despite the twinkling keyboards. “They Told Us It Was Hard, But They Were Wrong” is my favourite track of her’s. Check it out below.

Her real name is Gabriela Jimino – and in an ideal world, she would have supported Caribou on tour and then played a euphoric live set at the gigantic Coachella festival last summer, but we all know how that plan turned out. Nonetheless, she summed up her music in an interview with WODJ Magazine, by saying that her overall message of her work is that “I want to give people an alternative. An alternative to everything, another path, another way forward” within her textures. She is as much of a hardware tinkerer as an educated composer, and each of Minus’ mantras feel precisely reflected in the above track. Set off by slowly bubbling sequences that lead into stroking Synth blips, Minus’ voice flows into the chilling grooves created by the Staccato synths and the sonar-like pulse of the airy, gently breathing chord progression. It never quite feels like club music by the direct opening, but the pacing of the sequences gradually intensify and the Drums work in tandem with a provocative Keyboard riff to create a more cooling atmosphere to the darker tones in the towering synth beat. The vocals, meanwhile, create a moodier variation of tones where refrains like “We always know in the first minute or so/If something’s worth staying for” and “If you have to go to the bottom of a hole, To find what’s wrong, just let it go” feel as though they are mildly provoking a resistance. The sequences are broken up by a slower bridge, where Minus’ half-spoken and half-sung voice adds further intrigue. It takes a little while for a big beat to drop, but when it does, it’s paired with an oddly motivational set of lyrics, and the crescendo of the built synths release the tension with a more rhythmic undertone, where looping sonics and meandering keys riff on the more hopeful ambience. What I really love about this track is that there’s a real spirit of DIY Post Punk hidden in the execution though it bears no resemblance to the shouting and guitars of that genre. It really gradually becomes about freedom and independence, and defiance against the corporate. I love to picture this being played at some artsy elaborate French fashion show of modern art, but it also sounds like it could be directly taken from a high-budget Spy flick or a John Wick-like action sequence. It draws on the cinematc, while keeping the underground roots of the ideas intact, sounding like Billie Eilish goes Kraftwerk in the provoctive textures. The underlying theme of her music is an idea that resistance grows from everyday practices, and this feels harsh yet inspired. This is phenomenal and she’s going to do remarkable things.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Acts Of Rebellion” (LP) (Released on October 23, 2020) (via Domino Records)

There’s enough rave-reviewing from me for today! Yet, we’re shifting away from the relatively new releases to the comparatively vintage offerings tomorrow as the “Way Back Wednesdays” series once again takes the floor. In tomorrow’s new entry to the growing library of the feature, we’re going to take a detour back in to 1999 for an in-depth listen back to what is presumed to be the first-ever recording put out by one of Warp Records’ highly prolific electronic dance music producers – Who used to previously self-release his own material for his very own independent label which he famously named “Mute Recordings”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Korn – “Freak On A Leash”

January 31, 2021 — Leave a comment

All I have got to say to you is: Da-boom-na-da-noom-na-na-me-na. It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Follow The Leader” (LP) (Released on August 18th, 1998) (via Epic Records)

Good Morning to you – my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for another entry into our weekly Scuzz Sundays feature on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! The last seven days have really flown by, and it’s already time for us to revisit a classic from the Emo-Rock and Pop-Punk genres from the late-90’s to the mid 00’s to see how they hold up, named in honor of the long-lost Scuzz TV channel. Korn’s “Freak On A Leash” was released over 20 years ago, and the track had got to #24 in the UK Singles Chart. Released from the California-bred Nu Metal band Korn, this was the lead single from their third studio LP, “Follow The Leader”, which has been certified as 5X Platinum by the RIAA of the US. Although the album was their first not to be produced by Ross Robinson, with that mantle being taken up by the duo of Steve Thompson and Toby Wright instead, it peaked at the #1 spot on four charts, and it sold over 14 million units worldwide, thus remaining to be Korn’s most commercially-oriented album. In fact, this single is most notable for it’s music video in particular, where the lines between computer animation and live performance were blurred. The video itself garnered wins and nominations for both the Grammy Awards and the MTV Video Music Awards, and it’s twinned to the ‘Family Values Tour’ of the LP. Let’s mosh to “Freak On A Leash” below.

One fact that you might not know about Korn’s “Freak On A Leash” is that Korn once included an instrumental section of the track which they used to call the “noisy guitar break”, but this interlude had been edited out by Korn, as per their fans request of removal, yet it had still managed to hit #6 on the Billboard Alternative Songs Chart and #10 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart in the US. With a simple “Boom-na-da-noom-na-na-ne-ma”, a crossover hit was born. Don’t get them wrong, “Freak On A Leash” is still a distorted and aggressive track, as dissonant guitar breaks mesh with rapid drum beats to craft the heavy, angry tone. The lyrics are opened by a grunge-driven Synth line and a delayed pedal effect to the bass guitar, as “Something takes a part of me” and “Every time I start to believe/Something’s raped and taken from me” are crooned in a low pitched delivery by vocalist Jonathan Davies. The harsh distortion of his voice, later on, leads to a more anthemic guitar riff and a line of static noise, which is submerged under heavy reverb effects. The structure is quite well-narrated, with the distortion effects signaling for stadium-sized rock instrumentation, and the lighter verses implying a more internalized quality. The iconic refrain is screeched by Williamson, and it is met by an unusual mix of scatting and psychedelia. The breakdown has a more darker and melodic feel to it, and the chorus is your typical state of Nu-Metal affairs, as the high guitar notes in the build-up lead to an explosive lead guitar hook that pays off nicely. The vocals are pretty nonsensical and the experimentation is daft, but the backing track is creative and the unusual vocal breakdown is still memorable – whether that is for better or worse. To conclude, although the track is undeniably dated, you could get a lot worse. The vocals break the immersion for me a little too much for me, but the instrumentation is well-paced. Silly – but it is heavy, it’s crazy, and it’s a bit catchy. Boom-na-da-noom-na-na-ne-ma!

Pictured: Jonathan Davis (Lead Vocals/Bagpipes/Programming), James Schaffer (Lead Guitar), Reginald Arvizu (Bass Guitar), Brian Welch (Rhythm Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Ray Luzier (Drums) (2015) (Photo Credit: Theo Wargo/Getty Images)

That’s all I have got for your Alternative Metal wrap-up for this week! Scuzz Sundays will be back at the usual time again next week. Before we get to that point – we need to ring in the new month. Join me again tomorrow as we turn to a familiar face – who we have previously covered on the blog – to review a piece of his work from his latest EP, which was released back in September via Friends Of Jagjaguwar. This electronic producer has been played on 168 episodes of programmes on NTS Radio, where he used to host a weekly radio show. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s – “Y-Control”

January 24, 2021 — Leave a comment

Are we still giving this a yeah yeah yeah – or will it be a no no no?… It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Fever To Tell” (Released on April 19th, 2003) (via Interscope Records)

Another week, another Scuzz Sunday! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and we’ve reached the end of the week, and that means it’s time to pay tribute to the late-great Scuzz TV channel with an in-depth listen back to one of the genre-defining Emo-Rock or Goth-Rock relics from between the late-1990’s and the mid-2000’s, to see how they sustain their weight in our more modern times. Formed in New York City in 2000, The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s have maintained a decent popularity with alternative music fans since the years of their peak heyday. Taking their name from the slang language of modern New York City, the Garage-Punk revivalist trio – led by Karen O – have earned nominations for the Grammy Award of Best Alternative Music Album for each of their three subsequent albums. “Y-Control” was the final single to be released from 2003’s “Fever To Tell”, their debut LP, which was produced by Dave Sitek (TV On The Radio, Little Dragon, Celebration) and mixed by Alan Moulder. I remember the group being popular enough to take the stage of BBC’s Top Of The Pops when that still existed, and “Fever To Tell” has sold over one million units worldwide. “Y-Control” was also used for the soundtrack for the video game – “Dirt 2”. Let’s ‘Dial D for Devotion’ below.

The title of “Y-Control” refers to the emotional control of a female, referring to the Y male chromosone, but it could also be read as a reference to “P-Control”, an abbreviation for the name of the track “Pussy Control”, by Prince. That explains why the music video was controversial for it’s disturbing imagery, and it received rather muted MTV airplay at the time, due to these haunting pictures of children carrying the corpse of a dog. The single was still highly acclaimed by critics, and Pitchfork listed the track as the 213th best song of the decade regardless. The most glaring sound of the track is the bass guitar chords, which are absolutely drenched in the heavy feedback and high reverberation effects. Karen O opens with: “Oh so, all my loving goes, Under the fog, and I will leave them all, Well I’m just a poor little baby, Cause, well, I believe them all” with a downtempo and gritty pitch, while a juxtaposition can be spotted between the squelching, high-pitched New-Wave synths and the discordant, heavy guitar instrumentation. The bridge of “I wish I could buy back, The woman you stole” precedes the bombastic echoes of the static noises. The lyrics are vague, especially in the chorus, where Karen O chants: “Why-control, Why-control/You walk, walk, walk, walk, my winners” above the fast-paced, frenetic element of the drum riffs that evoke an ‘Indie floor-filler’ style to counteract the somber vocal delivery. In the process, the aggressive qualities of Karen O’s vocals are taut, methodical and controlled. It somewhat echoes the chilling sentimentality of The Pixies, with grammatically incorrect sentences and gargled syncopation, in the lead guitar performance, adding to the ‘broken’ and ‘disturbed’ sub-meaning of the track. All in all, I don’t think the abrasive lead guitar work and the distorted synth instrumentation are going to be within the wheelhouse of every listener, but I don’t think that commercial accessibility is at the top of the band’s list of priorities. We are left with a sad, earnest track instead that cleverly echoes the work of past Garage-Rock bands and early Indie Punk bands to a clever degree, while distorting these elements to bring a fresh twist to the formats – I’m still giving this a ‘Yeah, Yeah, Yeah’.

Pictured: Karen O (Vocals/Piano/Songwriter/Producer), Nick Zinner (Lead Guitar/Keyboard/Rhythm Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Brian Chase (Drums/Percussion) (2003) (Photo Credit: Max Knies)

There’s all the murder she wrote today! Of course, I’m not willing to let you down tomorrow. Check back in with me again then – where we’re going to be going for a similar style of distorted guitar riffs and emotionally driven, harsh songwriting – albeit from an emerging, hot-off-the-press act. This single comes from an indie trio from Worthing who like describe their own sound as “mosh-pit worthy noise for the paranoid age”, and their single, “So What”, was featured on the soundtrack for the recent Ubisoft open-world video game “Watch Dogs Legion”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Ndidi O – “Hands High”

January 4, 2021 — Leave a comment

Raise your Hands Up High in the air – Get ready for this anthem! Time for a new post!

Pictured: Ndidi Onukwulu in a rare photoshoot (in 2014) (Photo via MontechristoMagazine.com)

New Year’s is all over. Nevertheless, my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get writing up about your daily track on the blog, and it’s back to the daily task for another year, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! January 4th is a tricky day to pick something for, and so we’re dipping into the archives instead with a track that I discovered, not long ago, through the KCRW “Today’s Top Tune” podcast of free daily music downloads. Here, we have “Hands High” – a 2018 single by the Canadian-born Desert Blues/Alternative Folk singer-songwriter Ndidi Onukwulu, who is currently basing the powerful voice of her’s around the British Columbia, at the moment. “Hands High” was the lead single from her sixth album, “These Days”, which she self-released in March of 2018. A two-time Juno Award nominee, Ndidi O co-produced the LP record with Mischa Chillik, a fellow Canadian multi-instrumentalist, who she also records music with as a Trip-Hop duo, under the name of BOGA. Without further ado, let’s listen to “Hands High” below.

“These Days” was an album which encompassed the genres of Neo-Soul, Blues, Americana, Desert Rock ‘N’ Roll and Electronic Jazz, and it saw Ndidi O explore the roots of her early Blues/Soul roots, a sound she harvested through open mic nights in the NYC scene, and the Blues and Folk scene of Toronto, throughout her years as a member of other side-projects before embarking on her solo career. According to Ndidi O, “Hands High is an ode to humanity”, and she elaborated on this by adding: “We live in such precarious, ugly times and this song was my response” to the press notes for the track. A style that feels reminiscent of The Kills and Gwen Stefani, Ndidi O repeats: “These Days” over the top of a thunderous, Power-Pop bass guitar riff. She extends her sense of vocal harmony for the bridge, as she croons: “So, take me up baby/Take me up, high/As high as I’m burning” to the sound of duelling backing vocals and a repeating three-chord guitar sequence. She goes for a big sweep in the main chorus, when Ndidi layers: “Hands High/Shake and Roll, and let’s all move together” above the huge, shimmering electric guitar work, adding a sense of power and heft to a set of lyrics dealing with ideologies of togetherness and unity, and connoting themes of shared experiences nurturing the soul. It never feels hugely political, but her striking vocals and her Blues influences goes a long way into the territory of a rally cry, and a call for action, with change being achievable through a shared vision. The lyrics are a little generic here, but I think that they manage to solve their purpose reasonably well. Much of this is garnered through the strength of Ndidi’s vocals, which function as a vehicle for the rhythm guitar lines and the Desert-Folk instrumentation to continue bouncing from. While there’s nothing outstandingly innovative in play, her voice provides a nice, shining beacon, to encourage fellowship.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “These Days” (Released on March 16, 2018) (via Self-Released)

That’s all for today… Please come and join me again tomorrow, where we’ll be taking an in-depth look at some new music from a sample-delia duo based a little closer to home for me. The single comes from a Nottingham-based Chillout/Electronica music duo who are known for the quirky sense of humor baked into their sampling work, and have just released a brand new full-length album, which marks their first major release in the long time of 11 years. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Sum 41 vs. Tenacious D – “Things I Want”

December 27, 2020 — Leave a comment

Like the Justice League – here is another collaboration for the ages! It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Deryck Whibley (Lead Vocals/Multi-Instrumentalist), Dave Baksh (Lead Guitar), Jason McCaslin (Bass Guitar/Occasional Backing Vocals), Tom Thacker (Keyboard/Rhythm Guitar) and Frank Zummo (Drums/Synths/Percussion) (in Oct. 2016) (Photo Credit: Jonathan Weiner/Rolling Stone)

The New Mutants. The Young Avengers. Take up your pick as we get obscurer and obscurer – but Tenacious D vs. Sum 41 are shaping up to be the superhero team for trashy Emo-Punk. I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it is time for a festive edition of Scuzz Sundays, the weekly feature where we get in touch with one of the ghosts of Pop-Punk Christmas past, to see whether the sounds from the late-90’s until the mid-00’s can hold up to quality and value today – in 2020! “Things I Want” is a rare find for either fanbase of the Rap-Rock heavyweights Sum 41 or the Hollywood-famous Alt-Metal duo Tenacious D, because it’s tricky to find on any album these days. It was once shared on MySpace (Remember that? No… neither do I…) by both groups back in the 00’s, but it was originally included on “Kevin & Bean Present: Swallow My Eggnogg”, a Def Jam Records compilation of festive-themed Skate-Punk singles and other Hard Rock/Pop-Grunge rarities. The true release date of this LP is pretty unclear to me – as I have three sources of research saying different years to me. However, the most reliable of these sources is Discogs.com, which lists the CD package as a 2001 release. Thankfully, the rare single has been lifted and restored by some lucky users on the video sharing platforms YouTube and DailyMotion. According to the Fandom wiki of Tenacious D, Epic Records once produced a few not-for-public-sales release promos for this track, before it was recorded in 1999. Let’s hear the results of it below.

When you come to think of it – it’s odd that “Things I Want” was doomed to be published on an obscure festive Pop-Punk compilation album, since both parties of Tenacious D and Sum 41 had gained fame and star power within the genre at the time, and they would have had the pushing power of A&R and label representatives to score a quick hit with the novelty of the track, but perhaps it was more of a passion project than an interest in easy commerce which drove the project forward for the two tribes. In whatever case, “Things I Want” still saw the light of day. It is quite surprising, given the circumstances – if not totally unexpected – “Things I Want” does still sound much like you would expect a Sum 41 and Tenacious D collaboration to sound like. Teenage humor and brash guitar lines mix with the quirky Jack Black vocals and the festive intro to create an alternative to your bog-standard Christmas music fare, one which sounds more rooted in classic Metal from Black’s part and the quick, shredding bass guitar lines are produced by Sum 41’s line-up. Lines like: “I wanna see-through jump suit that fits me tight/I want all of the Beatles copyrights” and “I wanna chop Florida off the map/I want Pamela Anderson’s speedo top” bring the Emo-Rock subculture to the forefront, with Black declaring: “There’s a lot of cool s**t I want” over the top of soaring electric guitar solos and melodic, quick Drum time signatures. The lyrics don’t go beyond the basic humorous list of items shtick a great deal, but the fast-paced guitar chords and the generally fast instrumentation keeps the flowing pace going. Overall, I didn’t expect to like this much – just because it was dumped onto a random compilation LP that I had not heard of prior to this, but it certainly exceeded my predictions for it. While I think the jokes ware thinner a little towards the end and it’s not the most Chrismassy festive track out there, it’s still some good fun and it doesn’t take itself very seriously at all – and that’s for it’s own benefits. The instrumentation is also quite entertaining, and that frantic pacing takes a bit of skill. It’s pretty decent, although it’s all about the giving and not the receiving.

Pictured: Jack Black & Kyle Gass of Tenacious D (in 2018) (Photo by Ricardo DeAratanha/LA Times)

Thank you for checking out my latest Festive post! I have got more tricks from up my sleeve of my Christmas jumper tomorrow – where we’re going to be taking an in-depth look at a festive track that was released brand new for this year. It comes from a popular English singer-songwriter and theater performer who has released eight studio albums to date, and she has been commonly known as one of Britain’s greatest soul singers. She’s recently celebrated 25 years of her career in music. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Twisted Sister – “Heavy Metal Christmas”

December 13, 2020 — Leave a comment

A season as warped as the ever-shifting shape of a Twister ice lolly. It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Cover Art for “A Twisted Christmas” (LP) (Released on October 17th. 2006) (via Razor & Tie)

Season’s Greetings – or, should I say, in this case, Season’s Beatings – to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for a Festive edition of our weekly Scuzz Sundays feature, where we take a look back at the Pop-Punk and the Emo-Rock classics from Christmas Past, released between the late-1990’s and the mid-2000’s, to see if they can hold up to quality and value in the modern times! Twisted Sister were a US Heavy Metal band who really challenged the gender politics of their era, which saw rise to numerous acts like Judas Priest and AC/DC in gaining some mainstream attention, by often wearing elaborate make-up and gender-blurring costumes that infused a sheen of Glam-Rock into their music, which really set them apart from their contemporaries. It goes without saying that 2006’s “A Twisted Christmas” was the weirdest full-length album in their discography. However, it also proved to be the famous group’s last album, too. Talk about neatly tying a ribbon on top of a lengthy career like a tightly wrapped present, right? The album, distributed by Razor & Tie Entertainment, is a mixture of Metal-themed reworkings of classic Christmas carols and Christmas-themed versions of the band’s classic material. “Heavy Metal Christmas”, the track in question on the blog today, is the 5-piece’s own Metal-themed version of “The Twelve Days Of Christmas”, with obviously modified lyrics. Let’s watch the music video below.

The band produced the full-length album release themselves, and they filmed the studio performance above for GameTap, and the LP record became something of a viral hit, with the band’s metal-themed version of “O Come All Ye Faithful” becoming arguably one of their more well-known releases since the 1990’s. Meanwhile, “Heavy Metal Christmas”, the track in question, looks at the traditional children’s carol through a different set of guitar riffs, and a different polish of make-up, for that measure. Replacing “Partridge In A Pear Tree” with a “Tattoo Of Ozzy”, the track continually builds up it’s vocal layers with a gradual showering of goofy heavy gifts and self-ironic jokes related to the stereotypes of Glam metal and vintage Metal stereotypes, which play out in the same rhythmic fashion as the well-known carol. “Spandex Pants” and “Leather Jackets” are included in the equation, along with “Cans Of Hairspray” and “Silver Crosses” later on. Of course, the instrumentation is quite different to the old Carol – with a loud set of powerful Drum beats, scattered Guitar licks and brief bass guitar replacing the more Choral sound of the original version. The tune of the ancient carol remains however, and it gradually adds new layers of instrumental guitar riffs and joyous backing vocals while the track runs along a fairly lengthy five minute duration. The self-referential lyrics come across as fun and catchy, even if the joke gets a little tired towards the end. There is mostly enough to keep things fresh though, and the actual gifts used in the lyrics don’t feel too forced on, or majorly obvious. Overall, this is Christmas – through a different amp.

Pictured: Dee Snider (Lead Vocals), Eddie “Fingers” Ojeda (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Jay Jay French (Rhythm Guitar), Mark Mendoza (Bass Guitar) and AJ Pero (Drums) (in 2006) (via NorthJersey.com)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post! More Christmas-themed music comes tomorrow in the form of a late-90’s track that was later re-worked in the late-00’s by a classic British pop duo who currently hold the distinction of being the most commercially successful duo in the history of British music. At the BRIT Awards in 2009, in London, they were given the honour of the “Lifetime Achievement Award”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/