Outsideleft Week in Music: Grey Hair Thinkin'

Who would have thought that we'd get Heavenly back? We can just be glad that it happened. Against all the odds, Heavenly are back with a new single, 'Portland Town', with the excellent news that a new Heavenly album will be coming along in 2026. This is classic Heavenly, Amelia and Cathy's gorgeous intertwining vocals over surprisingly thrashy guitar, 60s keyboards and an irresistable bouncy beat. One of the premier twee/indiepop bands of their era, Heavenly always had more depth than they were credited for, which you can see here in how Amelia's world-weary lyrics play off Cathy's sweet harmonies. 

Like a catchy riff ? This might just be for you, experienced guitarist / singer / songwriter Glynn Hayward has been pumping out hook lines and memorable tunes for some time... And this latest release is no different, the guitar sounds great, nice and tight chord arrangements, vocal sits up front with cool melodies. The guitar licks drop in and out throughout the track adding colour and width to the mix, and set things up nicely for a nice hooky chorus, with the female backing vocals complimenting the production. It is sort of repetitive but done in such away that you don't even notice... Quite a skill but executed well. 90s vibes all over...but hey...thats cool right! I like it anyway...

Håvard Volden is a Norwegian musician who has collaborated extensively with Jenny Hval. 'Small Lives' is the first single off his forthcoming new album, which drops in July and is also called Small Lives. The single is a beautiful instrumental, demonstrating Volden's delicate and melodic approach to guitar playing. At times recalling the Durutti Column's Vini Reilly, Volden simarly builds beautiful abstract pieces out of interlocking melodic motifs, buffeted by the jazz-like virtuousity of his backing band. Beautiful yet with a real organic roughness at its heart.  

The lead and title track from the model/actor/singer Syd Taylor's debut LP... I am a bit flummoxed... Syd's voice swoops and soars and Syd knows shoes are significant—that is in no way meant to demean a super summery pop hit since all pop stars do. Slabs of twangy guitar tambo wall of sound stuff says to me in pop, this deserves to be a global smash since Syd I think, may be a cultural phenom in a world I am no longer from. I watched three or four times and am none the wiser. 

Manchester's most underrated band Chameleons return with a wonderful new single. 'Saviours Are A Dangerous Thing', the closing track off new album Arctic Moon, is classic Chameleons. Chiming guitars shimmer over muscular drums and bass, over which lead singer Vox (previously known as Mark Burgess) plaintively declaims the dangers of humanity's obsession with messiah-type figures. Recalls the bands most iconic tracks like 'Second Skin' whilst sounding fresh as a daisy. It's a marvellous song that reminds us of everything that makes Chameleons special, and makes me super excited for the new album.

Scuzzy lo-fi grunge, from established indie vocalist Zach James, the band has supported acts like M J Lenderman in the past. The song's measured, Weezer like pace makes a pop virtue of the saw tooth guitars, and a lyrics about being on the joke vs getting the joke. Cool to listen to in your 90s room and your fly outfits.

I traverse singer-songwriter circles and John Prine is one of those like Johnny Cash or Emmylou Harris or Townes Van Zandt - names once (and frequently) uttered that change the frequency in the room to one more sympathetic to said singer-songwriter. who is no John Prine, etc. Nothing against any of the three, they are great, but waves of tacit reverence make me seasick. So I was all, c'mon, King Hannah! You are better than that. To my delight, this soft little number (literally had to crank the volume to hear it) is all Linda Ronstadt "Blue Bayou" vibe which wipes the map with all of them.

The only surviving live recording of Marc Almond's side project from 1983, Marc and The Mambas, is getting the reissue treatment by Cold Spring, with 'My Former Self' released as a taster track.  Alan Rider muses on the whole kaboodle here.

From the LP LaserBun Disco Party. This Jackdaw with Crowbar offshoot are coming to the Outsideleft Night Out on July 5th.  Clanka is the epitome of easy going disco showing. All supremely bouncy and fun and so what is not to love? Like Candy Floss and Ice Cream and Strawberries and all of the very very sweet things all at once does it always have to mean there's a very dark undercurrent going on here... Or is there? The LP we'll get to next week. You can't have too much of a sweet thing.

'Birdwatcher' from last year was just so great. Immensely, quietly doing the business.  What Are You So Afraid Of? continues along the same introspective path. It's mainly acoustic guitar, tinkling piano here and hint of strings there and Kaleah's perfectly pitched voice. It is to live for. Are you going to listen, or, What Are You So Afraid Of? Ha!

Patrick Watson, I feel, may be more sentient than most musicians we hear from. And there's a need for sentience, of course. As much as there is for dumbass rocknroll. But beyond that this beautiful recording is perhaps best captured in words that are Patrick's own “This is something I never could’ve written when I was younger. When I originally wrote this track, I was with my partner Heather in the woods and she was talking about rewriting Peter and the Wolf. When you’re in the forest at night and it's cloudy and the dark hits the tree line, it just goes pitch black. So I wrote the music thinking about that—not really a wolf, but that pitch-blackness. And then I went to New Orleans with Heather O’Neill and in the middle of the night, I took a walk outside, and New Orleans is just filled with ghosts at night— it's a really magical place. I was all by myself and then this car came slowly down the street. It was this really classy car and there was this crazy low-end just purring from far away and kind of rolling towards me. In the low end it was shaking all the houses and all the windows, the way it moved was so graceful and slow, it was quite wonderful. There was just something about when I was staring at that car that reminded me of when I was staring into the forest at night. I was staring at the same ghost in a lot of ways—it felt like I was in a dream as it was coming towards me. And I thought, ‘I'm going to write this song as if the car is the wolf and I'm Peter.”

From the LP, 'Formidable' out on 4AD in September, this first single is lovely and languid. Of course since I have my pulse on the finger of the rock music shenanigans business I had been perplexed by new press photos showing only three members of Big Thief these days. And it appears that has been the way of it since the band and bassist parted ways last July amid speculation that their interpersonal differences hinged upon perhaps differing viewpoints over Gaza. The bass person lives in Tel Aviv and has maybe been outspoken in support of Israel's actions? This all could  be true. But there are many many reasons to get rid of almost any band member at any time. Ask Mark E Smith. Incomprehensible, serviceable Big Thief.

Cate Le Bon returns with new single 'Heaven Is No Feeling', ahead of her seventh album Michelangelo Dying. It's a smart and luscious slice of avant-pop that reminds us just how talented an artist Le Bon is. The song's ethereal dreampop atmosphere is anchored by wonky Talking Heads-esque synths, hovering saxophone trails and echoing keyboards. Le Bon gives a remarkable performance, somewhere between sheer bliss and waking up from a nightmare. Marvellous stuff, this is pop that will crawl under your skin and make you itch. 

The lead single from 24 Hr Sports - the highly anticipated new album from El Michels Affair is “Anticipate" feat. Clairo and it is as people used to say a corker. I am uncertain what that precisely means but maybe it has a context here.

Belay that order to self-destruct this timeline, for this lit fuse of a song indicates Michael Beach has another brilliant ROCK ALBUM on the horizon. And should it come time to pull the trigger on this universe, I'd like Michael Beach and MJ Lenderman to do a battle of the bands on Mt. Ararat or something. Maybe the Lord will restore Matthew Sweet to playing shape so they may make the chord that pleaseth Him.

Foarn are a UK 4 Piece outfit hitting us hard with Pop Punk style tracks, this new release 'Lights' has a really nice production vibe, guitars, riffs, synths, vocal melodies, all mixed to really push the Punk Pop groove, the instrumentation works really well, using the full width of the stereo field to add ambience and colour. The intro and verse are cool... But the chorus is where it starts to happen, nice and full, stacked guitars, backing vocals, catchy melody and driving bass line, all the right ingredients to engage the listener but not over the top, the drop has a U2 vibe to me, but works out great, then onto the outro chorus again... This is a high energy track throughout. Sounds good.  

Where this very scratchy, home-produced set of songs works is in its world creation, a clear vision from the Spanish born Eterna - Guillem Peeters. There's a darkness behind which the melodic but distorted and craggy guitar and synth floats. It's all pretty much on the same level and the EP lacks dynamics, but as a mood piece you may find it fits a grey half-hour. The music fits the image, scurrying scuttling Ants search for food and shelter, like we all do. 

Janique James' EP is called, 'The Press Conference for My First Grey Hair' and 'Company Branded Phlegm' is a track from it. Trapped in a  shit job? I think Janique might have something to share with you about that. And so in a city that overwhelmingly cherishes conformity, a huge and hugely singular voice arrives. I know there are great ones. David Benjamin Blower, Brandon from Dad Bod, stunningly adept lyricists, I know they are out there. There's a touch of the show tunes about Janique's delivery at times though, a little Rufus Wainwright maybe. Live — and Janique appeared with David Lance Callahan last night at the Rock'n'Roll Brewery, what an understated thrill this entertainment is. Janique is witty and engaging which only adds to the kitchen sink drama.  In this city, at this moment in time, Janique James is doing something quite unique, courageous and wholly significant. Distressingly, who else is?

Wow! Wow! Wow! What an immesenly great racket this is!

After emergency surgery to correct sudden blindness, Glaswegian multi-instrumentalist Andy Isacsson (who works under the names Luminous and Heretic Savant) became visually impaired and developed a rare neurological condition which left him with long periods of being unable to stand, talk, move, or process sensory information - leaving him severely disabled.  That didn't stop him producing the impressive 'Precarious Karma' album a year ago, and this EP was produced and performed entirely from bed during illness flare-ups, hence the title.  Whist you might imagine that would result in maudlin and sub standard fare, this is nothing of the sort.  Complex and inventive, experimental, but with a swing, Isacsson elevates himself from his situation, overcoming huge challenges to produce a quirky and compelling EP here.

The late W. Cullen Hart of Olivia Tremor Control and Andrew Rieger of Elf Power (Remember them? Elephant 6? The bands that were all also in Neutral Milk Hotel? Doesn't matter.) crossed streams to birth a throbbing alien of an EP some quarter century ago and it is now leaving the dusty womb. It's understated and delightful, infused with enough whimsy but not too much. 

It shouldn’t matter that Maybee is the daughter of Chad Smith, or that she was on American Idol, and if we’re honest - it doesn’t matter - because she’s making music in her own right, which neither loses or gains any appeal for knowing those little snippets. Her debut EP Orange Drive is like finding a rare gem whilst you’re out skimming stones. A collection of songs dealing with themes of connection, loss, and self-discovery, against a backdrop of alternative rock and rambunctious synth-pop.

To anyone weened on western pop and 4-4 rock standards the phrase "improvised jazz" might be a touch offputting. It shouldn't be. Any seasoned musician should be able to extemporise on a theme and to react and respond spontaineously to what the musicians alongside are doing. Mixing it up like that is how new sounds and new directions appear. Did I say seasoned ?  Billy Hart (drums) cut his first disc in 1961, Dave Liebman (sax, woodwinds) in 1970 - both played on Miles Davis' ground breaking jazz fusion experiment 'On The Corner', and with dozens of other top names. Adam Rudolph (percussion and electronics) is a comparative youngster having started recording only in 1992. To save you the effort that's a combined 150 years recording experience, plenty enough to embark on an evening of free improvisation, which is how the nine tracks that make up 'Beingness' came to be recorded. The result? Spacey, trancey, ethereal, thought provoking. At some points challenging, at others refreshingly chill, but never less than interesting.

This contemporary classical chamber music leans farther into the rich underswell of ambient music, and is all the more appreciable for it. There is a fullness and warmth in these compositions with a sense of almost, inevitable melancholia introduced by the cello that is hard to resist. Ideal for early mornings before the rest of the world wakes up.

Oh this is a wildly delicate opener from Theatre Royal. All strung out in moments. Fabulous street soul for sure. From their new LP A Change of Weather. They do soul like those Scottish kids on the old Postcard records. Mixed in with plenty of grit. The entire LP is an undeniably great one. 

The Leaking Machines have put out the first record on Adrian Goldberg's Jenny's Feather Factory... It's an exciting one as John Robinson attests, right here

Van der Graaf Generator's classic 1976 album 'World Record' gets another re- issue for 2025. Paul Mortimer goes back a long, long way with VdGG (as we lazy journalists call them).  He re-visits his past here. 

Ogglypoogly got an advanced listen to the new Pulp LP last weekend. More wasn't released until today. Find out More about the new Pulp music with Ogglypoogly, right over here →

Their original singles back then were produced by Billy Childish and after 30 years of downtime, their recent LP, The Violet Hour, from 2024, is a new form of splendour really.

Recently covered by Thailand's Soft Pine, Shintaro Sakamoto's Foolish Situation (2016) is an ode to dumb joy—a call for fun, like beach shorts in defiance of mainland suits: 'Manuke da ne sore kiiteru kimi to boku. Manuke da ne tanoshii yoru sa suki da yo.' (It’s silly for us to listen to this; silly, but it’s fun—I like it.) Here comes the balmy summer!

Headbanging robots playing Heavy Metal.  There is a poetry here, of sorts.  The two scariest things about this are that these all look like Terminators (especially the drummer, 'Stickboy' who has been doing this since 2007), and that this video is from 2017, so pre-dates developments in AI.  Imagine what they could do now.  Imagine what they could do in another couple of years!  We used to take solace in the fact that, although AI can compose and record music with ease, it can't perform on stage like a human can.  Think again. Compressorhead are a robot 'punk' (Heavy Metal really) band constructed by Berlin based Robocross Machines headed by English inventor Frank Barnes.  Ok, these are programmed rather than thinking for themselves, but its only a matter of time....

Birmingham quartet Inareko take the smoothest, grooviest slabs of reggae, filter it with hints of dub and draw on the melody of what's considered reggae's pivotal decade (70s - John Masouri) to concoct the warmest of vibes. And they're coming to the Outsideleft Night Out on June 14th.  Don't miss them.

Prefect for the older person most likely or anyone with conditions that require a pattern of medication. The Nightingales 'The Awful Truth' Pill Box. Made from the same durable plastics legendary cultural critic Roland Barthes once described as magical (and more). It'll look great on your nightstand, impressing your overnight guests. It's a slow-release sarcophagus for your drugs of choice. Or maybe you have no choice about it. Either way, it's from the Nightingales and you just know it is gonna help. Non-NHS approved, small fee applies, available here

How wonderful is this, to get an intimate view of Surprise Chef at work. Tag Dag is from the new LP Superb performed at the College of Knowledge, Coburg, Australia. Wow!

They're appearing at the Outsideleft Night Out on June 14th, straight after the Bearwood Shuffle in the Park. Dad Bod. There's nothing quite like it.

I can't disagree with I Can I Can't's description of themselves as refined yet anarchic, brutal and tender, insolent and withdrawn. Their 2023 collection pulls us every which way, with ideas rising and falling into maelstroms conjured by the Spillage Fete committee. Hobbyist is a clean-shaven beauty—lightly Teutonic—but Favours In and (Let's) Work Backwards are more likely to resonate with the drudging masses. Wish we had more of this glorious sludge.