Today’s Track: Lip Filler – ‘Followup’

July 5, 2024 — Leave a comment

You may be hooked as quickly as you can say “Dermatologic Surgery”. New post time!

Pictured: George Tucker (Co-Lead Vocals, Keyboard), Verity Hughes (Guitar, Backing Vocals), Jude Scholefield (Guitar, Percussion), Theodore Pasmore (Bass Guitar) and Nate Wicks (Drums) (2023) (Photo taken by PR)

The summer days are upon us! I’m Jacob Braybrooke and it was previously my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day before adulthood got in my way, so now I post more sporadically about special sounds. Lip Filler are an exciting, emerging indie rock band from London who weave elements of Electronic music and Post-Punk together like a Bunsen burner and a cylindrical tub of Helium in your school’s chemistry class. The West London-based 5-piece started their project with humble beginnings, having resided in a flat above a chicken shop in Shepherds Bush where their synergy and influences began to boil as hard as an egg in a saucepan. This has led to the evolving reputation of the band as a caustic capital force in London’s live scene to be created and, most importantly, they have now been able to buy a pet tortoise for their flat because why wouldn’t you? They have received some airplay from BBC Radio 6 Music since, along with just finishing up their first UK headline tour run. Having already supported the likes of Pit Pony, Gene Pool, XVOTO, Alfie Templeman and Picture Parlour and worked with producer St Francis Hotel (Little Simz, Michael Kiwanuka, Greentea Peng) on their debut single, Lip Filler are focusing their attention on tapping into a vast pool of creative collaborators and tidily transitioning to studio production practices to maintain their arresting momentum. ‘Witchescrew’ is their second EP – out now via Chess Club Records – and ‘Followup’ is the remarkable lead single, despite what its title may imply. Let’s give it a spin below!

Diving deep into their psyche, Lip Filler says, “Time is a precious thing; when we are told to wait for something sometimes we feel as though we’re not making any progress. We push ourselves to ensure we’re occupying our time efficently”, as they expose their emotional vulnerabilities in a press release regarding ‘Followup’, adding, “Taking this to the extreme would mean avoiding sleep altogether, or sleepwalking. I think that’s how this song began to adopt more paranormal themes”, says vocalist George Tucker. Absolute sense is made by Tucker’s comments on time management and relative frustrations because patience shines strongly as a key theme of their shape-shifting song. We start with a glossy yet melodic lead guitar riff that sounds akin to a shiny 90’s Alternative Rock crossover hit by a band like Placebo or The Smashing Pumpkins, as the blatant lyric of “I’m so sad” begins to reverberate throughout the disillusioned tone of the track. At this point, you may expect an Emo track to unfold alike the ‘Scuzz Sundays’ feature that we used to own in this blog’s heyday, but a change of direction takes course and the angularity grow sharper. Lyrics like “Motion sickness in your sleep/I’ve been underneath the tyres” are given a rhythmic scheme akin to a Rap-Metal track, while the guitars grow more bitter in substance and the Grunge mentality runs thicker. “You turned oh shit/I get my creature on”, delivered with a static effect, proves to be an imaginative detour that suggests a larger mental health issue at play due to its contorted nature. The band continue to dynamically cut together their influences of Pop-Punk, Nu-Metal and Shoegaze with a cut-and-paste collage effect as stop-start electronic instrumentals with a distorted tone and up-tempo vocal loops continue to add a psychedelic haze to the mix. Overall, while the volume on ‘Followup’ can be high at times, the technical musicianship finds its place to shine as the band continue to subvert expectations throughout the explorational track and stitch together a vibrant library of late 90’s and early 00’s rock sounds at a towering level of creativity. Less so of “I’m so sad” and more like “I’m so excited” about the future in store for this daring, experimental crew.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘witchescrew’ (EP) (Released on May 24th, 2024) (via Chess Club Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you for joining me for a few minutes on One Track At A Time today and if you’re always on the look-out for more new music suggestions beyond the mainstream, please follow me on my other channels that you can seek out below.

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Today’s Track: Modern Silent Cinema – ‘A Life Of Constant Abberation’

June 7, 2024 — Leave a comment

Wish to fill your life with good music rather than constant abberation? New post time!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Anemic Music’ (LP) (Available to buy & stream on July 5th, 2024) (Self-released)

Warm greetings to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, a Cambridgeshire-based music lover and radio presenter, and I’m very grateful that you decided to join me for another post on One Track At A Time as we broaden our horizons when it comes to active music discovery. It was previously my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day before adulthood got in the way, so now I post sporadically about something special. I’ve got music to share from Modern Silent Cinema today, which is the moniker of Brooklyn-based independent musician Cullen Gallagher. His music encompasses elements of Lo-Fi, Instrumental Rock and Post-Rock developed by a variety of Electro-Acoustic instrumentation and Experimental guitar melodies. This year, he is celebrating a whole two decades of activity with a frequent string of six releases that evoke the history and impact of his alias. Half of these releases are comprised of fresh material while the other half of his issues are compilations of unreleased archival content. Three of these have been released including January’s ‘Passages X-XXI’ (a collection of relaxing solo piano recordings), March’s ‘The Cinema Detective’ (A dystopic sci-fi meets film theory detective study inspired by an essay from Baltimore-based clever clogs Matt Berry) and May’s ‘The Cabinet Of Modern Silent Cinema’, a rich album boasting a 13-track voyage through tracks that went astray over the years only to be revitalised by guitar duets with his brother, unearthed demo tapes and micro-cassette sketches. The next release to drop is July’s ‘Anemic Music’ – out on July 5th – which collates more tracks that are finally seeing the light of day. Give the opener ‘A Life Of Constant Abberation’ a whirl below.

All of these albums have been mastered by Caleb Mulkerin (of Big Blood notability) and Gallagher, under the instrumental guise of Modern Silent Cinema, has recently received airtime on radio stations like WRUW FM91.1 (Cleveland, Ohio) and WFMU (Jersey City, New Jersey) who have all showcased the Bad Channels Records label founder’s innate ability to play a strong diversity of instruments including the piano, lap steel, trombone, trumpet and the drums. “Sometimes there is a feeling this is a lost Fahey or Basho recording, low-fi and a wanderer of tempos and styles“, compliments Lost In A Sea Of Sound about his work. It’s not tricky to see how the comparison has been made since, on the above track, ‘A Life Of Constant Abberation‘, he playfully navigates a consistent set of instrumentation with an edged Rock ‘N’ Roll influence polished with warped Americana vibes and shaded Folk mastery. He creates a vague narrative with elements of rock opera through curved genre constructs modified by instrumental sounds alone. ‘A Life Of Constant Abberation‘ begins with a pure, 7-note guitar riff that is unphased by delay effects or auto-tuned procession with a rumbling sound that feels weighty. The volume is not overly loud, but the evident echo mixed with the simplicity of the guitar skills makes for a dramatic combo, a journey that suggests turmoil and difficulty with no spoken lyrics. The drums are equally steady but robust, this punchy combo being a second verse addition to the thumping guitar melodies. Together, the recoiling drums and the harsh lead guitar hook build up an expansive level of tension heading into the rich chorus that makes it easier for the listeners to fill in the gaps with their own stories that are open to interpretation as the strained moods continue to develop. The settled, yet uneasy groove changes when we reach a fever pitch – an agitated crescendo forms as Gallagher doubles down on the drums and puts some extra activeness on the harsh guitar melodies. However, it all gradually fades into a more calming combination of level-headed Drums marked by some lenient shredding on the bass in the later stages of the song. This dynamism between the heavy push and the retracting pull keeps things interesting, whereby it’s clear that stress is overwhelming our narrator at one point before he starts to see a more serene state of mind further afield. To conclude, ‘A Life Of Constant Abberation’ is not quite as sombre as you may be led to believe in the opening because, as the world often does, the circumstances change around our narrator and a light sense of tranqulity is up ahead with production beautifully built to enhance yet not contradict.

Pictured: Cullen Gallagher who has been inspired by film scores for two decades (Photo via Bandcamp.com)

That’s all I’ve got for now! I want to say a huge thank you for giving me your time and attention today and thank you for giving me hope rather than constant abberation for doing so. Join me in the subsequent weeks on One Track At A Time for more new posts about the music that’s getting my creative soul flowing including tunes by bold, emerging artists like Julia-Sophie, Bad With Phones, Ebbb, Lip Filler and some others.

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Today’s Track: Hinds (feat. Beck) – ‘Boom Boom Back’

May 15, 2024 — Leave a comment

After a few weeks away from you – I’m making a BIG boom back. Time for a new post!

Pictured: Carlotta Cosials (Vocals/Guitar) & Ana García Perrote (Vocals/Guitar) (2024) (Photo by Daria Vazquez)

Get your headphones ready! Feel the crunching beats with me, Jacob Braybrooke, as I return to One Track At A Time once again to bring another recommendation into the life of yours as a fellow music lover. It used to be my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day before peak adulthood got right in my way! ‘Boom Boom Back’ ushers in a new era for the Madrid-based indie rock duo Hinds, who have experienced a tumultous time of troubles in the time leading up to their current comeback. Hinds have been around since 2011, originally as a 4-piece of ferocious female creatives, but they now exist as a dynamic duo comprised of original members Ana García Perrote and Carlotta Cosials who share the lead vocal and guitar duties amongst themselves. They have supported The Libertines, The Vaccines and Black Lips on tour in addition to designing their own clothing line in 2017 with Urban Outfitters that was sold alongside an exclusive limited edition 7-inch of their single ‘Holograma’ with 50% of the proceeds going towards an Austin-based not-for-profit organisation – Attendance Records – that provides students at public schools a platform to produce their own music, websites and magazines. Besides the recent single ‘Coffee’, it has been since the pandemic of 2020 that we’ve heard much from Hinds following ‘The Prettiest Curse’ LP being issued that year. A blow has been dealt because they have lost a drummer, a bassist and a management company. However, Perrote and Cosials are carrying the baton of Hinds as a duo, having spent the past decade touring across the globe and sharing their unique fusion of Garage Rock-infused pop with Psychedelic elements with the world. They’ve also gained a friend in Beck, who they met at a film screening in LA by chance. Their fourth studio album – ‘Viva Hinds’ – is now set to release on September 6th on Lucky Number Records. UK tour dates in Brighton’s Prince Albert and London’s The Lower Third are taking place at the end of this month. Check out the raucous new track ‘Boom Boom Back’ below.

Recorded in rural France with Pete Robertson (Beabadoobee, Orla Gartland, Chloe Moriondo) as their producer, Hinds are breaking new ground in light of vowing to continue their passionate Lo-Fi oriented explorations in substance as a pair instead of a quartet by including their first tracks to be entirely sung in Spanish on their new record, which also boasts a collaboration with Fontaines D.C. frontman Grian Chatten. The playful energy of the music video is matched by the rhythmic aggression of the melodies on ‘Boom Boom Back’, an infectious intro to the upbeat and beautifully braggadocious slab of 80’s-inspired Rock ‘N’ Roll that I can’t wait to hear on the rest of ‘Viva Hinds’ in September. Nonchalant ambience of the girls laughing is followed by a thumping drum riff and a swirling guitar riff, filling the air with stadium-sized rock sounds as we build up to the catchy chorus of “Do you want to fall in love in a bar tonight?/Do you wanna fall in love with a broken heart?” backed by gritty, non auto-tuned vocals sung above crisp, crunchy chords. It’s not very romantic at all, as Hinds settle for sexual pleasure instead and carry their quirky personalities into the rest of the track. Beck hops on for his own verse at one time, joined by lyrics like “Faking laughs, melted ice, throwing dollars and dice/Do you want to step aside a hologram of your life” that showcase his penchant for obscure hooks and mesh tidily with the rebellious attitude of Hinds, who fill the empty space with Spanish vocals and chatty ambience reminiscent of an irresponsible adult’s dream of a youthful teen party at various points yet the alternative rock spirit of the chorus packs a punch and keeps the tone balanced well. The result is a delighfully charming, wonderfully catchy and affectionately 90’s tune that is sure to generate excitement for the long-awaited new album. It feels like the perfect summer anthem, with Hinds delivering an accessible yet specific vocal performance and it’s nice to hear Beck getting to do what he does best after a string of more conventional pop-oriented releases. I don’t need to be in a bar to fall in love with ‘Boom Boom Back’ since hearing it at home offers many thrills.

Pictured: Signed Vinyl Bundle for ‘VIVA Hinds’ (Available to buy from September 6th, 2024) (via Lucky Number)

That’s all for now! Thank you for joining me for another musical musing today and I want to say a huge thank you for your support at this time where my posts are more sporadic. I will be back soon with another heartfelt recommendation of a new track, this time coming from a North Carolina-based Electronic producer who adds a unique touch of IDM and Glitch Hop to his House music explorations. He has produced tracks for Azaelia Banks and he’s performed a live set at the Sydney Opera House. You may also know him for releasing music under the names of Tstewart and Syndrome. He’s also 1/2 of the experimental duo Dream Continuum alongside Jim Coles aka OM Unit.

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Today’s Track: Bolis Pupul – ‘Kowloon’

April 12, 2024 — Leave a comment

A fish not out of water, but thriving in their natural habitat for once. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Letter To Yu’ (LP) (Released on March 8th, 2024) (via DEEWEE)

Good Afternoon to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke and it used to be my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day before my adulthood got right in the way! Attempting to pinpoint the ancestry of today’s artist, Bolis Pupul, may provide enough for a full blog post on its own. Born in Belgium and raised in Ghent by a Belgian cartoonist father and a mother who was born in Hong Kong but lived in China, Pupul lived in a household that kept shlves full of vinyl records. After falling in love with Beck’s weird and wonderful 90’s LP’s such as ‘Mellow Gold’ and ‘Odelay’, he cut his teeth in a Synth-Pop project with his sister and brother-in-law that nurtured his love for eight-track Foxtex recorders and the Japanese Shibuya-key star Cornelius during the late 2000’s and early 2010’s. Fast forward to 2024 and Bolis is best known for releasing the critically-beloved ‘Topical Dancer’ LP which was a joint venture with Charlotte Adigery. As a solo artist, he is now signed to Soulwax’s label Deewee that is also the home of artists like James Righton, Marie Davidson and EMS Synthi 100 who are known for exploring futuristic 70’s Funk-driven Pop sounds. The long road to releasing his first solo full-length ‘Letter To Yu’ was full of pot holes and diversions though, like using a rail replacement bus service to travel from Littleport to Liverpool. The main cause of heartbreak was the loss of his mother, who died in a car accident during June 2008 at age 49. She was a huge inspiration for the LP, which is centered around a trip that Pupul took to Hong Kong in 2008. He visited the street where she was born and he wrote her a letter which became “the coat rack on which the entire record was hung“, as Pupul notes. Sample his sound with ‘Kowloon’ below.

The sounds of frogs, the voice of a doctor that Pupul visited and the sounds of a train platform are all recordings of Pupul’s adventure to Hong Kong that all crop up throughout the 11 tracks and the near 46-minute duration of the aromatic album that paints a picture of the Kowloon urban district that Pupul visited with an intimate touch. In fact, the seventh track on the final product is named after Mau Tau Wei Road in which the maternity clinic that his mother was actually born within. Having read all of this information on Pupul without my description of the sound, you would probably expect ‘Kowloon’ to sound like a spiritual jazz record with steady drones and a larger prioritisation on rhythm instead of melody. However, the element of suprise arrives at full throttle as the East-Asian take on the Kraftwerkian Alt-Pop of the 80’s quckly begins to reveal itself. Nostalgia and celebration are steeped in equal measure on ‘Kowloon’ which begins and ends with a stabbing, highly compressed key sound but he fills the space of sound with a gradually sauntering drum melody that swiftly evolves into a charming dance track akin to a late-90’s French House workout. The technicolour and futuristic aesthetic never dismisses the slow, hypnotic start to the track but embraces the repetition instead by incorporating East Asian touches to the European Motorik sound. There’s a characteristic that is incredibly inviting about finding release on the dancefloor given the very heavy events that set the album’s narrative in motion as well as the sense of ever-present joy that Pupul provokes so enthusiastically. His personality, soul and sense of fun is communicated through the playful composition of the track and the ambience of the vocals that almost sound intelligible, but retain the effect of being in a room with others and not being able to make out the words which happens often in life. It gives this track a sense of place, making us feel like a part of Kowloon as we listen to his martial stomp of a Synth-driven track. Overall, this is a wonderful ode to the widely believed notion that an album should provide a snapshot of the artists’ life. It feels intimate enough to retain some mystique for Pupul personally, but it feels inviting enough to give us a glimpse of his life story. A tour-de-force of euphoria, ancestry and – most importantly – cheer.

Pictured: Bolis Pupul recording a live set for Indie Rock Hit Parade w/Charlotte Adigery (2022) (Photo by WXPN)

That’s all for today! Thank you for joining me on my journey as I find my place in the music industry after a few years of hiatus due to personal issues and please join me again next week as I spotlight another example of the fantastic music which 2024 has provided since beginning 15 weeks ago. I look forward to writing to you again shortly.

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