Little Indie Roundtable - March 13 2018

Each week Little Indie takes three guest reviewers and six new tracks, and after giving them a spin through the headphones, they then give their opinion on each.

This week's panel: Teri Hamilton, editor/owner of US-based online music site The Girls At The Rock Show; Cory Devine, drummer with Manchester alt-pop band Dantevilles; Little Indie contributor Richard Cobb.


BLOSSOMS - I CAN'T STAND IT

Premiered by Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1, this is the first track to be released from the Stockport band’s James Skelly-produced second album, ‘Cool Like You’, which is due to arrive on April 27. Exhibiting more of a slick synth-led sound than their previous work, merging catchy melodies and deep bass in a 90s indie-pop setting.

Teri Hamilton: Glossy indie pop-rock that is fun and danceable. Would play well here on US radio stations. 4/5

Cory Devine: Bass on point, as is ever the case with this band. Not my usual cup of tea but can appreciate it for a solid catchy pop song 4/5

Richard Cobb: Blossoms get a lot of unfair stick from folk that claim they don’t have any substance, but this is a great pop song. The synth lines and bass are the magic ingredients here. One of their best songs so far. 5/5

Total score: 13/15




SPIELBERGS - WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE

Urgent, emotive guitar-rock from the Oslo trio - Mads Baklien, Stian Brennskag, Christian Løvhaug. The lead cut from their debut EP 'Distant Star', released April 27, is a driving onslaught of drums and fierce guitar riffs.

TH: Has the feeling and fury of early 70s punk from NYC, but should have ended two minutes sooner than it actually did. 2/5

CD: Bit noisy for me; repetitive. 1/5

RC: Typical song structure is thrown out the window here as the song sounds like it starts half-way through. I like the gunshot drums and the energy of the track, but I’m not sure I’d listen to it again as my ears were knackered after the first listen. 3.5/5

Total score: 6.5/15




BUDDIE - VIVACIOUS CRUSH

New single from Philadelphia-based four-piece. Gritty, fuzz-filled grunge-pop with a guitar-led force.

TH: The guitar work is what makes this song. I felt like the vocals were a bit flat, but I certainly tapped my foot along with the instrumentation. 2/5

CD: Cool tune. Good length for a single. This is a definite grower. 3/5

RC: I’m a bit grunged out at the minute. I probably would have liked this when I was 13 and skateboarding though. 2/5

Total score: 7/15




LAYOVER - SLUMBER

Taken from Birmingham-based emo punks' EP ‘Your Laughter Never Leaves’ out via Fox Records on May 4. Vocalist Luke Rainsford says of the track: “It’s the track that we believe has the strongest message and one we feel a lot of different people can relate to across a wide range of situations.”

TH: The acoustic guitar at the beginning fools you. The song has all the angst of emo and voice of pop punk, but
comes off a bit more relaxed. Really cool song. 4/5

CD: Not really a sound or genre I'm in to personally, so it's 2/5

RC: This veered off in an unexpected direction. Nice to see bands not sticking to the one genre, and for that they deserve credit. It’s not my cuppa, though a lot will justifiably like this. 2.5/5

Total score: 8.5/15




PROJECTOR - BREAK YOUR OWN HEART

Brighton’s post-punk/grunge-pop three-piece release this three minutes-plus number on March 16 on limited edition cassette and digital via Roadkill Records. Lush dual vocals from guitarist Edward Ensbury and bassist Lucy Sheehan, juxtaposed against blistering aggression, pulsating bass and melodic harmony.

TH: Grungy 90s sound. Rich layered instruments. Great guitar solos. Hard not to enjoy the rawness in Sheehan's
vocals. 4/5

CD: Really good sound, solid tune. Great guitar tones and driving bass and drums. 4/5

RC: Not sure if it would be lazy to compare this to Wolf Alice or not. Anyway, it sounds a bit like Wolf Alice. Like it, strong vocals and the band work well together. 4/5

Total score: 12/15




LA BÊTE BLOOMS - TAKE ARMS

Released March 6 via The Adult Teeth Recording Company, the Hull post-punk five-piece issue a rallying cry to the world, delivered in typically emboldened style, with fizzing synths and off-kilter guitars.

TH: Totally hooked on this. Fuzzy reverb, pounding drums, angry screaming vocals - this is my type of music. The only downfall I heard was the female backing in the chorus - didn't think it was needed. 4/5

CD: A sound I can see being successful with an indie audience. 3/5

RC: The intricacies are the selling point here. The psychotic guitar line was great and I liked the part about half way through where it sounded like a UFO abduction was imminent. Not sure how I felt about the song as a whole, but experimentally its a good listen. 3.5/5

Total score: 10.5/15