Today’s Track: Pizzagirl – “Car Freshener Aftershave”

July 19, 2021 — Leave a comment

Love a bit of 80’s soft-Rock or 00’s Psych-Pop? You’ll want a Pizza this! New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Softcore Mourn’ (LP) (Released on July 16th, 2021) (via Heist Or Hit Records)

A good afternoon to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for a brief respite away from the scorching heat for your daily track on the blog, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Monday’s music comes from Liverpool’s Liam Brown, who has recorded his material under different names over the years, but his current and most notable solo project is Pizzagirl. He goes all-in on that theme as well, recording his brand of Indie Pop and R&B-infused Psych-Rock from his bedroom, which he calls his “Beatzzeria”. His influences include The Orielles, Grimes, David Byrne, Ariel Pink, and he loves a bit of Kelly Clarkson too. The follow-up to 2019’s ‘First Timer’, his second album ‘Softcore Mourn’ was released over the past weekend via Manchester’s Heist Or Hit independent label. It finds him venting out his own lovelorn frustrations of 21st century dating and pulling in some elements of Vaporwave. Check out the lead single, ‘Car Freshener Aftershave’, below.

After being away from Liverpool’s scene for a short break, Liam Brown had this to say about the new album: “Over the last year or so I’ve been screaming, sighing, crying and lying at my computer, which has manifested itself into my aptly titled second album Softcore Mourn”, adding, “The first single ‘Car Freshener Aftershave’ is a cold reminder to the internet that I still exist and I still haven’t figured that out yet. I’d say this is a break-up song” to his press release notes. Likened to LCD Soundsystem and The Postal Service by Gaby Mawson of Clunkmag.com, the new tune goes for a hint of nostalgia with 90’s dial-up tones and Prog-Synth sounds that appear directly lifted from the 80’s by complementing the retro, teen-hood aesthetic of the self-referential lyrics. The Chiptune-leaning vocals contort themselves around different layers of instrumentation that are continuously adjoined to the soundscape, as the percussive finger clicks and fizzy Lo-Fi synths emerge in the cutting edge of the fray at elusive key changes. Quirky lyrics, like “Where are the cameras? I must be punk’d” call back to outdated popular culture, and lines like “Well, if you’re gonna cry, then at least make it snappy/Cause once in a while, well, I kind of feel happy” add subtle sentimentality to the mix with a vocalist who feels socially pessimistic leading us on the charge. The chorus, led by “The California motel vomit/It’s like a Jackson Pollock” and “The California motel vomit/It wasn’t me, I promise”, emphasizes the quirky sense of his own self’s inertia. The ambient electronica bulk of the track feels like it’s been lifted from a falsely futuristic 80’s infomercial. Constructively, I think the production space gets a little too busy at some points, and I would have liked for his voice to come out more naturally at times. There’s more here to enjoy than not, though, with a fun edge of Prog-Synth and hyperactive visuals that make his breaking point seem believable, and there is clearly a welcome personality to this track. A stuffed, but delicious, Crust.

Pictured: Liam Brown (aka Pizzagirl) in a ‘Softcore Mourn’ PR shoot (2021) (Photo by HeistOrHit.com)

That’s all for today, but please feel free to join me again tomorrow for another slice of action. BBC Radio 6 Music are a huge fan of my next artist, who makes his debut appearance on the site tomorrow. The London-via-NYC songwriter and producer previously found his footing in the Future-Soul duo Voices Of Black, and he’s set to support Yard Act later this year ahead of the release of his new album – due in August.

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New Album Release Friday: Garbage – “No Gods, No Masters”

June 11, 2021 — Leave a comment

‘Taking Out The Trash’ now has a completely different meaning. Time for a new post!

Pictured: Cover Art for “No Gods, No Masters” (LP) (Released on June 11, 2021) (via Infectious Music)

Good Morning to you! It’s Jacob Braybrooke here, just like usual, with the lingo for your daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It’s Friday – and this week’s notable new releases include the debut album from Cleopatrick (Canada’s answer to Royal Blood), the 18th LP release in nine years from the endearingly proactive cult Aussie Prog-Rock ensemble King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, a ‘joint’ collaborative album from US rapper KennyHoopla and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, the latest long-player from the Post-Hardcore legends AFI and the new Minnesota musician Rachel Lime is taking things to an intergalactic level on ‘A.U.’, her debut LP offering. June 11th also marks the release date for ‘No Gods, No Masters’, the extensive seventh LP from 90’s Post-Punk pioneers Garbage. Formed out of the ashes of the bands Spooner and Fire Town, Shirley Manson’s band comfortably filled the void which a declining Grunge genre and a murky phase for Metal left for them, becoming highly significant for a female-fronted punk rock outfit of the time, and they have since sold over 17 million albums globally. The follow-up to 2016’s ‘Strange Little Birds’, Garbage’s new album has been pitched by Manson as “a critique of the rise of capitalist short-sightedness, racism, sexism and misogyny across the world”. Let’s sample the titular single below.

Paired with a music video directed by Scott Stuckey, Manson penned ‘No Gods, No Masters’ as her reaction to the Chilean protests against inequality and corruption when she took a trip to Santiago recently, and she was shocked at the sights of graffiti that had been painted over museums and monuments, until one of her guides checked her, asking her why she was more suprised by the damage being made to statues and the environment more than actual people, saying “That was like a slap in the face” in her press release. Built on Synth-infused guitar riffs and electric-soaked drum sequences, Manson chants refrains like “The future is mine, Just the same/No master or gods to obey” and “Nothing lasts and no one stays/The same forever, so accept the change” above the warmly melodic and Pop-oriented backdrop. Lyrics like “Save your prayers for yourself/’Cause they don’t work and they don’t help” touch on religious conflict, and further lyrics like “You want what’s mine/I want what’s yours” call out to those affected by gun violence. The finale, a final repeat of the chorus, comes after a slower bridge that takes us back to the 1990’s Alternative Rock scene, as Manson croons ” You want what’s mine/I want what’s yours” as the instrumentation crawls to a halt, with acidic Synth riffs and a heavy reverb effect. It feels very catchy and hook-led overall, despite touching on a wide variety of topical issues that carry weight, with a moody vocal performance that feels sub-cultural and an energetic guitar delivery which feels buoyant. It’s also very polished, with the rhythms and the candid vocals being mixed smoothly. Impressively, an underlying sense of warmth permeates throughout the track because it feels familiar and nostalgic to hear the group making a similar kind of music to their peak popularity, but the messages that lie underneath this ‘gentle hug from an old friend’ are moving and spoken carefully. I did think it was a little forgettable. However, I could certainly see it gaining airplay somewhere like BBC Radio 2 since it’s fairly light-hearted and recognizably Garbage overall. A visceral and cutting, but accessible and immediate, piece of nostalgic Punk.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Version 2.0” (Released on May 11th, 1998) (via Mushroom Records/Almo)

If you think that someone’s watching you, then you might not want to check out my earlier blog post about Garbage’s ‘I Think I’m Paranoid’ from last year. If you’re a fan of Manson’s misadventures, however, simply be my guest. Catch up on that here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/09/18/todays-track-garbage-i-think-im-paranoid-1998/

Pictured: Cover Art for “I Think I’m Paranoid” (Single) (Released on July 6, 1998) (via Almo Sounds)

That’s all for now – today’s ‘Garbage’ has been collected, after all. ‘Scuzz Sundays’ returns in two days time, as always, but, before we get to that point, I’ve got some more brand new music to share amongst you tomorrow. It marks the big return of a cult London band known for compiling archived clips from old public information films along with their guitars, synths, banjo’s and drums – and even including a vibraslap – to create their wildly inventive music. The band also took part in a special performance for BBC Proms to mark the celebration of Neil Armstrong’s moon landings last year. 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: Fear Factory – “Cars – Remix”

May 30, 2021 — Leave a comment

A momentary flash in the Metal pan for the old Lightning McQueen. It’s Scuzz Sunday!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Obsolete” (LP) (Released on July 28, 1998) (via Roadrunner Records)

Good Morning to you – it’s Jacob Braybrooke here, and it’s time for your weekly Scuzz Sundays throwback – the time of the week where we mix it up with a re-evaluation of a Pop-Punk anthem from the late-1990’s up to the mid-2000’s. The LA-based US Heavy Metal band with no original members left in it’s line-up, apart from guitarist Dino Cazares, the million-selling band Fear Factory were highly influential on the global Metal scene in the mid-to-late 1990’s for the Groove Metal and the Industrial Metal sub-genres. Of course, their line-up woes haven’t really stopped them, despite a legal dispute between the original members and the current members over it’s legitimacy in a battle – with two albums still being released after the case was opened. ‘Cars’ was originally performed by Gary Numan in 1979, and Fear Factory would perform a cover of ‘Cars’ as an encore for their live tours. Then-frontman, Burton C. Bell, eventually got in touch with Numan’s management after word spread, who flew Numan out to the Vancouver studio for a three-day span to record a Spoken Word piece for the introduction of ‘Obsolete’, the associated album that ‘Cars – Remix’ was conceived for, in 1998. In this rendition, Numan performs a duet with Bell on the track. It was crucial in catapulting Fear Factory to attention in the mainstream eye, and it led to ‘Obsolete’ becoming Fear Factory’s highest-selling album, with over 750,000 units shifted, as of 2001. It also landed a place at #16 on the Mainstream Rock chart in the US. Let’s revisit the Stanley Kubrick-esque Sci-Fi music video down below.

“There was a chance that it could introduce me to a new generation of people who didn’t know my history” said the super-cult UK Synth-Pop spearhead Gary Numan, who originally felt apprehensive about working with Fear Factory at the time, because he perceived it as dated music. It proved to be a fruitful collaboration, with Numan telling the press: “And that can be useful, because my music’s got a lot heavier and darker anyway”, in the same interview. He also said the band were “brilliant, really easy to work with. They didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone” after recording the reworking of ‘Cars’ with them. It served to bring both parties to audiences that were wider than their fan followings, as the uncharacteristically bright Synth-led rendition contrasts with the metal progressives reputation for fast-moving and grinding Metal music. However, you could argue that the heavy use of the synthesizer and the other harsh, electronic blueprints correspond with the qualities of the band’s Industrial roots. The electronics are powerful, with the familiarity of the original track giving room for the more chant-led vocals to breathe. “Here in my car, I feel safest of all, I can lock all my doors” and “Here in my car, When the image breaks down, Will you visit me, please” are delivered melodically, as propulsive guitar riffs and lengthy, sustained Synth chords keep the psychedelic atmosphere rolling along. The rest feels simple, with light Dance music elements that keep the Heavy metal roots from getting too aggressive, and it still sounds predominantly like an 80’s Pop record, when you come to really think of it. Some Industrial-like riffing comes into play, and the drums have a slightly increased edge to them, but most of the original framework of Numan’s retro production remain intact. Overall, I quite enjoyed my time with this. The tempo is nice and the sound never feels overly produced at any one time. However, I did feel the band were playing it safe to a point. Their cover, although involving Numan, doesn’t really stray too far from the formula of Numan’s original, and so it didn’t do anything to suprise me. For the most part, however, the fusion of the electronic Synth-Pop original and the slight edge to the Metal-infused elements are definitely worth a spin. It’s also funny to think that re-workings like this are coming back into fashion too, with the recent Paul McCartney reimagining and Moby’s ‘Reprise’ album allowing artists to put a twist on their original work. It’s holding up fairly well in the present day, for that reason, too. Overall, it’s not brilliant, but it was a fun switch-off cover that should still appeal to a sizeable pool of listeners.

Pictured: Burton C. Bell (Lead Vocals/Keyboard), Dino Cazares (Guitars/Backing Vocals), Tony Campos (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Mike Heller (Drums/Percussion) (2015) (Photo by Stephanie Cabral)

That’s all for now! Tomorrow is Bank Holiday Monday, and so I’m going to take you back to 2005 with a rarity that fits neither ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ or ‘Scuzz Sundays’ in it’s theme – and so it should make for a refreshing change to my regular output. This single comes from Miles Tackett’s Funk collective project who covered The Mohawks ‘Champ’ in 2005 for the video game soundtrack of ‘Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland’ for the Gamecube, PS2, Nintendo DS and the original Xbox. 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: Lucy Dacus – “Thumbs”

April 12, 2021 — 1 Comment

Anyone up for a game of Heads Down, Thumbs Up? I didn’t think so. New post time!

Pictured: Lucy Dacus in 2016 (Photo by Shelley Hiam/TheAustinChronicle.com)

Good Afternoon to you – My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s now time for me, yet again, to get typing up here for your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Well, I survived the two-night binge watch and if there’s any other sleepyheads out there on this Monday, I’ve got a chilled out and stripped back track to share with you, although it’s none the less more haunting and intimate for that. ‘Thumbs’ is the latest that we’ve heard from the Virginia-born indie folk singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus, who was a founding member of the Boygenius trio with Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker, but she has released two of her own solo albums. ‘Thumbs’ is a track which has been a fan-favourite ever since she started performing it in 2018, and she’s finally released a studio edit of the piece via her Twitter account – along with a teaser for a new solo LP, which she’s been hyping up to her fans by randomly gifting a selection of 100 VHS tapes of this track to them. In Willy Wonka fashion, you could say that it’s the golden ticket of American indie rock music in 2021. She says the track was written about an experience that her friend at college went through in a meeting with their estranged father, and it follows 2018’s well-received ‘Historian’ album. Let’s check it out below.

The downplayed instrumentals and the subdued sound may take you by surprise, but each line of the recent single seems to be deeply responsible for bringing out a visceral emotional reaction for Dacus, who tells us that she wrote it in roughly 15 minutes during a car ride to a restaurant, saying: “Like most songs I write, I wasn’t expecting it. It made me feel weird, almost sick” in her new press release for the promotional tune. When you listen to the synth undertones below the ethereal lyrics, the story of a strange family reunion comes through very clearly as the sparse backing beats and the somber, not sullied vocals are very much left, right, front and center of the mix. Lyrics like “You hung up the phone, And I asked you what was wrong, your Dad has come to town” and “So we meet him at the bar, you were holding my hand hard” set up the angry moods of the scene. Instrumentally, flickering keyboard sounds and subtle minimalism make up the melody. Although it seems our narrator wants to form a closer bond with the father figure, there’s always something weird and “off” about the encounter, a sense of an awkward past getting the better of the situation. Lyrics like “He ordered Rum and Coke, I can’t have either anymore” and “Do you get the checks I send you on my birthday?” sell this internalized struggle as much, with the raw melancholy of “I would kill him, quick and easy” particularly raising eyebrows. It’s not all doom and gloom though, with lyrics like “I love your eyes, and he has them, but you have his” and “When we leave, You feel him watching, So we walk a mile in the wrong direction” talking about biology and blood bonds. “I don’t know how you keep smiling” also comments on the act of fake happiness and “putting on a smile”, while the finale of “You two are connected by a pure coincidence” and “You don’t owe him s**t even if he said you did” closing the door on this reconnecting. The narrative becomes real through the devastating details, and the impressively written track went well beyond my expectations. Dacus’ has a gift in this anecdotal style of storytelling, where the small specifies are more important in conveying the story than a clear-cut pop structure. A rough listen – but beautiful stuff.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Thumbs” (Single) (Released on March 9th, 2021) (via Matador Records)

That’s all for today – After two weekends of festive-themed posts based on Easter and WrestleMania 37, it’s time to go back to the comfort of our usual routine this week. I’ve got some more material for you tomorrow, that comes courtesy of a modern icon in contemporary Classical music. This German composer and record producer is based in Berlin, and he is known for uniquely combining classical and electronic music, with an elaborate set up kit that includes a Rhodes Piano, an upright Piano, a Grand Piano, a Roland Juno-60, drum machines and a Moog Taurus synthesizer, working closely with Olafur Arnalds over the 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/

Way Back Wednesdays: New Order – “Fine Time/Don’t Do It”

March 24, 2021 — Leave a comment

Just over 20 years later – Is there still ‘Truth Faith’ in this track to soar? New post time!

Pictured: Bernard Summer (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Synths), Phil Cunningham (Lead Guitar/Electronic Percussion), Gillian Gilbert (Keyboard/Programming), Tom Chapman (Bass Guitar) and Stephen Morris (Drums/Splicing/Percussion) (2021) (Photo taken from PR/Factmag.com)

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, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! It’s Way Back Wednesday – where we revisit one of the important sounds of the past that has influenced the exciting, fresh sounds of the present. New Order are cool – and it’s about ‘Fine Time’ that we featured some of their material on the blog. Although this track probably isn’t given the same mainstream airplay as ‘True Faith’, ‘Blue Monday’ or ‘World In Motion’, it still reached #11 in the UK Singles Chart. Although I probably wouldn’t consider New Order to be one of my top favourite artists upon my initial instincts – I have consistently enjoyed the music that Bernard Summer and his co-horts have put out over the years, and since a bulkload of that music was from before my time, I think that has something to say about their funky musicianship and crossover appeal. ‘Fine Time’ was officially released in 1988 as the A-side of a 12″ Vinyl release, which included the B-side of ‘Don’t Do It’. Written and recorded partially while the band were on tour in Ibiza, the lyrics were modeled after a witty incident where drummer Stephen Morris’s car was towed, and he had nearly forgotten to pay the fine for the penalty. It was another modest hit for the band in the UK, but it also found success within the Top 10 chart in Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, along with finding commercial success in the US, where it landed a spot on three of Billboard’s genre charts. The track was later included as a single from the band’s fifth studio album, ‘Technique’, a year later. Let’s cast our minds back with the official music video below.

“My car had been towed away and I had to remind myself to go and pay the fine”, Summer said to his press team on the track back in the day, “I just wrote ‘Fine Time’ on this piece of paper, to remind myself to go get it and, I thought that’s a good title” was the statement that he used to explain how, at times, the human eye is the most responsible component for creativity. The critics were also big fans of the single, with Aaron Febre of Niner Times writing that it’s off-kilter sound had “refurbished the band and gave them a fresh start, and Ned Raggett of AllMusic writing that it “not only had paid attention to the acid-house/Ibiza explosion but used it for its own ends, capturing the frenetic energy that the musical eruption on British shores had unleashed with strength and style” in his review. It certainly has a vibrancy and a sense of experimentation which gives it a distinctive edge, especially for a group who were off the back of their commercial peak at the time, with the low-pitched voice samples and the hyper-energetic synthesizer sequences going for an outgoing vibe. The keyboard sections also feel wonky and not conventionally structured, with an overall Disco influence that feels subverted by the explorations of Neo-Psychedelia. The vocals contemplate the moral universe of the dancefloor, and by extension, party life. Lyrics like “You’re much too young, to be a part of me” and “You’ve got class, but most of all, You’ve got love technique” feel enigmatic, but witty due to their drunk-sounding effects. We get to a bridge were “The past doesn’t matter” is repeated by a robotic sound effect that evokes the Industrial Motorik of Kraftwerk or Visage, but the instrumentation feels less flat and the lyrics feel more daft. Overall, it is a likeable anthem because it sounds like something I would feature on my “That Was A Hit” segment of my radio show, in the sense that it feels like a hit that was unusual for being that. This clearly breaks away from the typical Pop format with the seemingly unrelated vocal hooks and the musical non-sequiturs making for a strange mixture. It felt like a bold creative direction for the group to take, however, because they were determined to re-invent with the use of a crazy, silly ode to the Ibiza Club and Acid House dance music explosion and, for all of these risks, it succeeds in paying them off.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Technique” (LP) (Released on January 30, 1989) (via Factory Records)

Well, it really has been a pleasure to stop and muse as always… but it’s about “fine time” that I got on with a few other jobs on today’s list now. I’ll be ready to go back at it again tomorrow, however, with an in-depth look at a collaborative single that seems to have gone down as a hit for the BBC Radio 6Music listener’s group on Facebook, coming from a lesser-known US indie Post-Rock band from Illinois who based their debut album on the frontman’s early experience of living among a Cult. 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/

New Album Release Friday: William Doyle – “And Everything Changed (But I Feel Fine)”

March 19, 2021 — Leave a comment

Sometimes it’s like an hourglass with no sand in it. It’s a waist of time. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Great Spans Of Muddy Time” (Released on March 19, 2021) (via XL Recordings)

Top ‘O’ The Morning to you – I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up right here for your daily track on the blog, because, just like always, it is routinely my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It’s time for us to grab a sample of one of this week’s new album releases. The new crop includes the new offering from Americana mega-star Lana Del Rey, the fourth album from Oscar-nominated South African singer-songwriter Alice Phoebe Lou, the debut album from the hotly tipped indie rock band Middle Kids, and there’s a debut EP from the emotive Dream-Rock band Bleach Lab. Since William Doyle – formerly known as East India Youth – was listed at the top of Deep Cuts’ Best Albums Of The 2010’s list for 2019’s ‘Your Wilderness Revisited’, which got some ecstatic reviews, I felt that his new album would be a great choice for us this week. Despite only being 30, Doyle seems something of a perfectionist, with ambient and instrumental side-projects, and a stint as the lead vocalist of Doyle and The Fourtfathers, to his name. He’s got plenty of experience, and so there is solid potential for ‘Great Spans Of Muddy Time’ – which arrives today via Tough Love Records – to shine this year. It’s been a rocky road to release, since he dealt with a hard-drive failure, leaving Doyle with only cassette recordings of each track on the record. This left a direct impact on the sonic direction and audio quality of the new record, which is named after a quote that he took from the memoirs of the BBC presenter Monty Don. He describes it to the press as a theme of Englishman-gone-mad, scrambling around the UK’s verdant rural pastures looking to make some sense. Let’s stream ‘And Everything Changed (But I Feel Alright)’ below.

Even just the front cover of the album’s artwork is a looker. I feel that this creates a contrast of vibrancy that juxtaposes with the mundanity of the lyrics exploring the standstill of the life cycle in ‘And Everything Changed (But I Feel Alright)’, which Doyle has told the press that “Like other favorite songs of mine, this arrived when I least expected it, almost fully formed. It’s partly a reaction to the complexity and excess of my last album. I wanted to get back into the craft of writing individual songs rather than being concerned with overarching concepts.” in his notes. Starting with a folk-led, acoustic guitar backing – Doyle deconstructs his Art-Rock roots to their very core. The analog synth work creates a washing wave of ambience, before Doyle softly sings lines like “As time rolled in from the East, The love stopped it’s happening” and “As though it had been agreed, Like wind blowing off the leaves” as distorted bass guitar chords and vocal harmonies pop in for a brief moment. The next section is pretty striking, as off-kilter guitar solo’s and a reverb effect on his voice adds some changes and shifts to the instrumentation and the tone of the package itself. Most notably, I think there’s something about the track which feels right for the time that we’re living in right now. With the synth work feeling analog-based and expansive, and the darker shades of the sonic production in the final section of the track, it is an effective reflection of the restrictions that we’ve been living under – for what feels like forever – currently. It ultimately brings a lack of excitement to our day-to-day lives, and Doyle seems to depict this accurately as he comments on the blurred lines between habit and instinct. The instrumentation, such as the loosely packed synths towards the end, and the meticulous guitar patterns that split up during the chorus, and the basic lines like “I’m always dimming the light switch” also make a point of the necessity in our believing in intuition, while persevering in the most difficult of situations. It feels like perhaps the most obvious choice for a single from the new long-player, due to it’s accessibility – with relatable lyrics and fairly stripped-down production – but it feels articulate and it still makes some noteworthy commentary on how the pandemic has stripped us down to our basic instincts. Overall, the effort put into this can really be heard because I think it succeeds very well. More moving than it seems at first glance.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Your Wilderness Revisited” (Released on November 1, 2019) (via XL Recordings)

That’s all I’ve got time for today! Scuzz Sundays returns in two days time, and so you’ve got that weekly entry to look forwards to. In the meantime, however, I’ve got some new music to share with you tomorrow – which features the mainstream-friendly names of KT Tunstall and Peaches as featured vocalists. The main artists, however, are a US Garage-Rock duo based in Los Angeles who have opened for Blondie and Garbage in their ‘Rage and Rapture’ tour of 2017. They also released a collaborative album with The Flaming Lips two years later. 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/

New Album Release Friday: Jane Weaver – “The Revolution Of Super Visions”

March 5, 2021 — Leave a comment

If could have any Super Power in the world – I would abolish Covid-19. New Post time!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Flock” (LP) (Released on March 5th, 2021) (via Fire Records)

Good Morning to you – I am Jacob Braybrooke, and as you may have guessed, it’s time again for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, since it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Quickly, we’ve reached the end point for another week in Lockdown, but rest assured, there are always new things to do from Friday. Last week was a jam-packed point for new album releases, and so this week feels quite a bit lighter. There’s a new LP from cult Scottish Prog Rock duo Arab Strap, Norweigan Alt-Pop producer AURORA, and the most mainstream-targeted release comes from the reigning Kings Of Leon, as well as a new single to announce the upcoming new album from iconic female Alt-Rock singer St. Vincent. It’s slim pickings for me this week, but the one artist that I probably have the most familiarity with is Jane Weaver. Even that familiarity is not a large deal, but I remember enjoying the shape-shifting Synth-Folk sounds of her previous LP, “Modern Kosmology”, in 2017. Her ninth main album release, “Flock”, arrives today via Fire Records, with live touring dates all over the country to follow later in the year. The new record is also available on an olive-green vinyl and poster from Rough Trade, and a Crean-coloured Vinyl from Indie Store. Although you might not know her by name, Jane Weaver has been around for a long time. She was a former member of Brit-Pop band Kill Laura, who used to manage New Order in the 1990’s. She was also part of the Folktronica project Misty Dixon, and Weaver also fronts her own ambient chillwave side-project, Fenella. Let’s sample “The Revolution of Super Visions” below.

“The revolution accidentally happens because so many people visualize the same ideals and something supernatural occurs” is what the Liverpool-based singer-songwriter and electronic producer said of the lead single taken from her newly arrived album in a press release, continuing “Everyone is exhausted by social media, inequality and the toxic masculinity of the world leaders contributing to a dying planet” in her written analysis of the track’s core themes. Starting off with a simple “You look good” and a basic “Do you look at yourself and find nothing?” over the top of a strutting, 80’s-inspired Disco synth riff and a fairly acidic, yet mellow synth line. For me, there’s a real Bowie-ism found within this sound, with a lighter update of Glam-Pop than Goldfrapp gave us on “Black Cherry” in 2003. The vocals rely on long, shimmering harmonies as verse lines like “I wasn’t ready to say, but I danced to your beat for sixteen hours/I’m camouflaged at the scene” and “See you gaze in the haze, the line of fire” have a long and high-pitched tone, being recited over the top of a strutting bassline that fits the current vogue for retooled disco. Weaver, however, refuses to shy away from the themes of materialism and consumerist addictions that I can interpret in her lyrics, with subtle vocals like “You try to dress to impress, This occasion for me, it’s time to hide” landing a more significant impact on a more intent listen. Songwriting aside, the instrumentation matches the cosmic-themed visuals and the 80’s Synth-Pop aesthetics with a host of bold layers, as distinct psychedelic synthesizers and processed, discordant acoustics production give the track a rather progressive feel, instead of necessarily relying on the creation of a punchy hook. In the end, though, my imagination isn’t too hard-pressed to imagine Gwen Stefani or Jessie Ware performing the track as it’s centerpiece. However, it’s the well-timed fusion of Prog-Pop and Prince-inspired mid-90’s Synth-Funk that makes the melodies memorable to me. It’s a solid case of Weaver bending the rules of Pop to her benefits.

Pictured: Jane Weaver outdoors in Manchester for Silent Radio (in 2017) (Photo by Joseph Curran)

Thank you for taking up the time to check out my new post! What are the new music, film or TV releases that you’re going to be purchasing, downloading or streaming over the weekend? Let me know in the comments below. Don’t forget to join me again, in the meantime, tomorrow – where we’re going to take a look at some recently-released music from one of my childhood staples of the Scuzz era. Perhaps their most recognisable track, “Make Me Wanna Die”, was previously used as a featured track on the movie soundtrack of 2010 Hollywood comic book film “Kick-Ass”, which starred Chloe Grace Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. 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: Clipping – “Say The Name”

March 4, 2021 — Leave a comment

…and whatever you do – Don’t fall asleep! It is time for a frightening new blog post…

Pictured: Cover Art for “Visions Of Bodies Being Burned” (Released on Oct 23rd, 2020) (via Sub-Pop)

Good Afternoon to you – my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, since it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! In retrospect, I think this track may have been a more suitable fit for Halloween. Never mind, though, because it’s a fairly grey, cloudy and grizzly day outside here in Cambridgeshire and so this might prove to be some good “Mood Music” for you, if you’re finding yourself to be in a similar frame of mind today. Clipping are an Experimental Hip-Hop group consisting of rapper Daveed Diggs, and the two producers Jonathan Snipes & William Hutson. They relish in the samples of scary Slasher flicks of old, with a ‘Rapcore’ sound that evokes a cinematic scope and a dark variation of tones that wouldn’t feel out of place in a vintage Wes Craven or John Carpenter Horror soundtrack. It goes without saying the results are pretty disturbing and intriguing, with the band describing their latest album, “Visions Of Bodies Being Burned” as a movie-like sequel to their 2019 release, “There Existed In An Addiction To Blood”. Released back in October, their latest album lifted it’s name from a Scarface line from the Geto Boys’ ancient 1991 single, “Mind Playing Tricks On Me”, and “Say The Name” turns this quote into a hook, and builds a dark fantasy influenced by ‘Candyman’ to it. Let’s get spooked with the results below.

The recent album, “Visions Of Being Burned” was acclaimed by critics when it was released on October 23rd via the ever-reliable Sub-Pop records label – with the record also featuring collaborations with musicians like rap duo Cam & China, the EVP research artist Michael Esposito, the Improvisational Jazz creator Jeff Parker, and a handful of others. As a matter of fact, the closing track “Secret Piece”, is a Spoken Word performance of a text-based “event score” that Yoko Ono wrote back 1953. It really is music for fine artists, and created by serious performers where commercial accessibility seemingly isn’t near the top of their list of priorities. I like that it sounds different to many of the other Alt Hip-Hop groups that have come before though, with stereotypical Jazz-Funk sensibilities being replaced by throbbing basslines and strobing synth melodies. This alternative production is clear on “Say The Name”, where visions of “The hook gon’ be the coldest pimp slap/Coat rack for man skin/Let it air dry” and “Swiss cheesed a brother, already half dead/Brain leaking out a hole in his forehead” are conjured up. These striking and graphic images are evoked by the Industrial clatter of the hip-hop samples, with rustic drum patterns that are integrated with a strong viscerality. The chorus is relatively simplistic in comparison, with “Candlesticks in the dark, Visions of bodies being burned” being repeated above the top of a Synth-heavy outro, matched by the gory sentiments and slightly demonic aesthetics being used throughout the verses. Vibrant, clattering drum machine loops are woven into the fabric of the mature, adult-oriented content with a sense of mystery and a lack of warmth. The concept works well because it feels very unique, although there’s fairly little substance in here for me. Overall, to me, it’s a strong success, however, and although I’d probably need to be in a certain frame of mind to enjoy it fully, it has a decent sense of originality and a well-inspired backstory for me to sink my teeth into, with the 80’s-ish gothic Horror aesthetics being pulled off nicely.

Pictured: Daveed Diggs (Rapper/Lyricist), William Hutson (Producer/Keyboard/Samples) and Jonathan Snipes (Multi-Instrumentalist/Producer) (in 2016) (Photo by Katie Falkenberg/The Los Angeles Times)

With that – You can stop hiding your face under the cushion of your sofa now. Can you believe that it’s nearly already time for the weekend again? Join me for an in-depth look at one of this week’s new album releases tomorrow, as we sample one of the new cuts taken from the ninth main addition to the discography of a prolific female singer-songwriter. This Liverpool-based artist owns the record label Bird, and you may know her as a former member of the Brit-Pop girl group Kill Laura, and previously a member of the Folktronica project Misty Dixon 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: Maximo Park – “All Of Me”

February 27, 2021 — Leave a comment

It ain’t gonna be no Walk In The Park for this established Geordie trio. New post time!

Pictured: Paul Smith (Lead Vocals/Keyboard/Producer/Rhythm Guitar), Duncan Lloyd (Lead Guitar/Bass Guitar/Occasional Backing Vocals) & Tom English (Drums/Percussion) (2020) (Photo via readdork.com)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time, like always, for me to get writing up for your daily track on the blog, since it’s routinely my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Now consisting of lead vocalist Paul Smith, guitar wizard Duncan Lloyd and drummer Tom English, Maximo Park are an established Alternative Rock trio from Newcastle who a few may dismiss as part of the “indie landfill” of the 00’s along with bands like The Kooks and The Futureheads. It’s impressive that, unlike some bands of the 00’s heyday, they are still going, however, and it’s important to remind ourselves that Paul & Pals have had a few hits, they have two certified Gold-selling albums to their name and their debut LP was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2005. This weekend, they’re back with their seventh album, “Nature Always Wins”, which was co-produced by Ben Allen (Deerhunter, Gnarls Barkley), and it was distributed by Prolifica Inc. I took a listen to it last night in bed as I liked the singles, and I was really suprised by how much I enjoyed it. While the musical blueprint of the group remains the same, the songwriting is very socially conscious, and the package has more synths, with some great experiments with 80’s stylings, although it is predominantly still a Pop record. I think my favourite tracks on there were the sprawling Future Islands-like “Meeting Up”, the Pulp-inspired “Feelings I’m Supposed To Feel” and the child-like “Versions Of You”. The new single is “All Of Me”, and we’ll give a shot below. Check out the Bruce Lee-esque video below.

Filmed in a Hall-Of-Mirrors setting inspired by the filmography of Arthur Russell and Bruce Lee, frontman Paul Smith conceives the band’s latest track as “a love song about the power of song itself, buoyed by the uplifting music in the chorus”, elaborating further on the themes saying, “It’s also about domesticality and family life being valid subject matter for a pop song”, in a recent interview with the press. The track starts off with a slick 80’s synth rhythm from the offset, and a quickly paced drum beat gives a hyper-melodic feel, before we’re left with a simple guitar line throughout the verses with a more acoustic sound, with Smith giving haste to catchy lyrics like “Change happens incrementally, Though the embers of ambition burn” and “I’ve been collecting perspectives, there’s so much that I want to share” before the swirling guitars dramatically build to the return of the driving 80’s-ish Synth riff. The chorus is immediate, with Smith making the themes clear on lines like “If I can’t include you, If art is apart, Well then I disagree” that have a personal quality to them, while the Killers-like synth line really drives the instrumentation forwards. I also noticed quick observations on society, with lines like “I turn the radio on, To find someone who tells me what I need to hear” and “Construct a personality, Though your instinct has a role to learn” feeling reflective of the world we’re living in today, and the music we’re usually being exposed to by the media. The chorus of “This song is where you belong/This is all of me” glistens over the top of the memorable synth hook nicely, with a glistening use of electronic instrumentation. This is a more radio-oriented track than some of the other cuts found on the new record, but I think there’s plenty to enjoy here. For starters, I really feel that Paul Smith is an excellent frontman for the band. His words feel clever and poignant, and I love how he writes about his child on the album with an honest heart, never feeling too inspired by a particular commercial aspiration. This track also reflects another great thing about the new work, where none of the two songs sound quite the same, but the synths on “All Of Me” are vibrant and feel inspired, reminding me a little of Visage and Erasure from the 80’s. I’m not quite sure who’s listening to them in 2021, and I think that’s a shame. I’d argue that Maximo Park are a super underrated band now. I think this is a successful evolution for the band, a very pleasant surprise and I think it’s exceptional, reminding me of my good affection for Gaz Coombes. Who knew they were so good?

Pictured: Cover Art for “Nature Always Wins” (LP) (Released on February 26th, 2021) (via Prolifica Inc.)

If you thought that one was right up your street, I was also quite impressed by what I heard from Maximo Park when they released an earlier single, “Baby, Sleep”, back in November. Check out what I said back then: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/11/30/todays-track-maximo-park-baby-sleep/

Pictured: Maximo Park at The Roundhouse, London (2015) (Photo via DIYMag.com/Carolina Faruolo)

That’s all for today – I know it’s your Saturday as well, so I’ll let you go and keep enjoying it now. Join me once again for “Scuzz Sundays” tomorrow, where we cast our minds back to the Pop-Punk and Emo crowd releases from the late-90’s up to the mid-00’s.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/

New Album Release Friday: Django Django – “Glowing In The Dark”

February 12, 2021 — Leave a comment

…and I’ve got a name proposal for the follow-up – Django Unchained! New post time.

Pictured: David McLean (Acoustic Drum Kit/Producer), Vincent Jeff (Lead Singer/Rhythm Guitar), Jimmy Dixon (Bass Guitar) and Tommy Grace (Synthesizers/Drum Machine) (in 2013) (Photo by Sonic)

Good Afternoon – and I wish a happy half-term to any teachers reading this! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up on the blog for your daily dosage of recommended music listening, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Of course, it’s Friday – and we traditionally have another crop of new releases to sift through. This week feels a little quieter than the last few instances. I’m suddenly looking forward to hearing Claud’s debut full-length release after discovering them basically just days ago, there’s also a return LP from mid-00’s childhood favourites The Pretty Reckless, there’s daytime-friendly Country from Florida Georgia Line, and Pale Waves are adding to the ‘Indie’ genre. As I went down the obvious route last week with a peak at the new album from Dave Grohl’s group of megastars, I felt that a more leftfield and not so familiar choice would suit us nicely this week. “Glowing In The Dark” is the fourth studio LP to come from Django Django, an Art-Rock quartet who formed together in London after the four producers met each other through their studies at the Edinburgh College Of Art in 2009. Their material has previously been handpicked for video game soundtracks including Grand Theft Auto V and FIFA 13, and the band’s self-titled debut album was nominated for the Mercury Prize following it’s release in 2012. Signed to the Because Music label, Django Django have made waves in the Dance Music scene through collaborations with Hot Chip and Roisin Murphy. Their new album, “Glowing In The Dark”, is rooted in the themes of escaping from despair, from constraints, from small-town life, from dreams, and just living on Earth. Let’s give the title track a stab below.

One of the band’s co-founders – lead vocalist Vincent Jeff – has billed the new record as “a creative rebirth for the band of sorts” and the track listing includes a collaboration with Charlotte Gainsbourg. In addition to this, the 4-piece Alternative Rock band have enlisted the help of New York-based graphic designer Braulio Amadio, who created the animations for the technicolor-themed music video that you’ve just watched. So far, the new album is a critical win, and their plethora of electronic sounds manage to sound just as vibrant as the colours of Amadio’s visual work. “Glowing In The Dark”, the title track, matches the lively images nicely. Most notably, it goes back to the electronic 90’s sounds of bands like OMD and New Order, with a half-spoken and half-sung series of vocals ascending above a slick, polished bassline and a propulsive set of drum loops that control the push-and-pull tempo of the sonic Synths. A harmonic backing vocal and a UK Garage-inflicted bass beat seem to propel the electronic beats forward at an emerging, and then retreating, pattern. The lyrics touch on a need to find escapism, and a search for adventure in life. Vincent Jeff delivers the refrains of “Give me a remedy, a hand, a guide, and now we see” and “My senses taken leave, I need a space to breathe” with a catchy rhythm, and the accompanying Synth loops seem clean and clear. A simple “Now we’re glowing in the dark” leads the repeating chorus, as a punchy set of two-step drum beats put the pedal to the medal, and gradually layered electronic keyboard riffs punctually enter the fray, shuffling the mixing and adding a glitched quality to the sound that makes Jeff’s vocals stutter, and add a quirky set of wonky production to the soundscape. Overall, I really enjoyed this. It’s the first time that I’ve properly taken note of Django Django’s work, and I’m walking away impressed. This would have been a solid fit for music festivals, with a euphoric sound that crosses a range of genres with a decent amount of depth, and on the whole, it shows the band to be a solid class of tinkerers.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Glowing In The Dark” (LP) (Released on Feb 12th, 2021) (via Because Music)

That’s all for now – Take care of yourself, and get digging through that backlog of yours. Scuzz Sundays is our next weekly feature, and a new addition to that library is set to arrive at the usual time. Before then, why not reconvene with me tomorrow? I’ll be taking a deep dive into the most recent album release to come from a well-established Synthpop group from Australia. The band are probably best known for their third album that came out in 2011 – which ultimately earned the awards for “Best Dance Release” and “Artisan Award for Best Cover Art” at the ARIA Music Awards of the same year. 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/