Indie - The Ginger Quiff

November Singles – Pt 5 – Horsegirl, Upturned Boats, Dead Pony, Ron Briskin, Sunturns, Tombstones in Their Eyes…

December 2, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

Part 5 and some more belters here…

A taster for album number two from Horsegirl, an early Christmas treat from Sunturns, plus songs from Upturned Boats, Tombstones in Their Eyes, Ron Briskin and Dead Pony.

Horsegirl – 2468

Ahead of the release of their second album Phonetics On and On comes the single 2468, an uncomplicated laidback and sprawling folky slacker rock tune.

Horsegirl

Upturned Boats – Car Park Sadness

The first of two tunes in the November Round Up for Upturned Boats with this heart-rending ballad Car Park Sadness, an atmospheric slow burn of an intro unveiling an affecting vocal that will appeal to fans of King Creosote and wojtek the bear.… Read the rest

November Singles – Pt 4 – Jody & the Jerms, Lambrini Girls, Joshua Idehen, Dancer, two blinks, i love you, Essential Logic, Sade…

December 2, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

Another eclectic mix for Part 4 of Novembers singles featuring the unmistakable vocal of Sade on a very personal song alongside Essential Logic, Jody and the Jerms, Lambrini Girls, the genus single from Joshua Idehen, two blinks, I love you and yet another release from the hard working Dancer.

Jody and the Jerms – Winter Heart

A swathe of strings from Erica Nockalls on the driving rhythm of Winter Hearts adds another layer to the bands sound creating a song which is both upbeat and vivacious and highly emotive.

Jody and the Jerms

Lambrini Girls – Love

From their forthcoming album Who Let the Dogs Out, Love is a song of two parts one part a seething riot of scathing railing against toxic relationships and one part fun of regret and sorrow as a direct result of being involved in said toxic relationships.… Read the rest

November Singles – Pt 3 – Throwing Muses, Nouvelle Vague, David Delinquent and the IOUs, Sister Madds, Jewel Scheme, F.O. Machete, Scorpio Leisure…

December 1, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

Part three of November’s round up sees the return of Throwing Muses with their first single since 2020, Nouvelle Vague with a festive cover with the rest of part three made up of home grown talent including David Delinquent and the IOUs, Jewel Scheme, F.O.Machete, the band I may have seen live most in 2024, Sister MADDs, and GQ favourites Scorpio Leisure.

Throwing Muses – Drugstore Drastic

Kristin Hersh and co. make a welcome return with the understated Drugstore Drastic their first new music since 2020’s Sun Racket album and precedes a tour in Spring 2025 including a date in The Garage in Glasgow on May 20th.… Read the rest

November Singles – Pt 2 – San Jose, Hurtsfall, Vigilanti, Peter Johnstone, Fistymuffs, Ditz, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs…

December 1, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

The second instalment of singles/tracks from November features some home grown talent in the shape of San Jose, Vigilanti, Peter Johnstone and Fistymuffs alongside songs from Hurstfall, Ditz and Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs coming from further afield.

San Jose – Dirty Linen

This sprawling epic song is one of my highlights for November, perhaps the year, it feels like a musical movement rather than just a song due to the several parts that make up the track, which musically sits somewhere between the thoughtful musings of Trampolene and the rakish charm of louche rockers Fat White Family.… Read the rest

November Singles – Part 1 – Guest Directors, Blueboy, Peter Murphy/Boy George, Keeley, Broken Chanter…

November 25, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

A new approach to Singles Round Ups for The Ginger Quiff… a small batch approach, a few songs at a tie making up the months playlist… then I’ll select my pick of the bunch at the end of the month. That’s the idea….anyway we’ll see how it goes.

The first five for November belong to Guest Directors from Seattle, the second single from 90s indie popsters Blueboy on the Precious Recordings of London label, the meeting of music legends Peter Murphy and Boy George, the latest single offering from the indefatigable Keeley and a musicale warning of global warming from Broken Chanter.… Read the rest

Singles, Singles, Singles…. August to October 2024 (Part 1)

November 21, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

I’m admitting defeat, I can’t keep up the pace with what I’d really like to do with The Ginger Quiff. The Singles Round-Ups are an onerous task… what with adding all the links and videos and the like.

I’m going to have to re-think my approach, after all the reason I want to feature so many singles is because I like them… not because I feel I have to. But I do need to make the process more manageable, and to get the joy back into it, and not have that “oh fuck, I’ve still got another 30 songs to write about” feeling that I currently experience.… Read the rest

Scottish Music Collective Halloween Bash with Sister Madds

November 1, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

All Hallows Eve in Glasgow and the streets were filled with orange jumpsuited convicts, pirates and zombies… so no change there then from any other night… Who can really tell anyway? The post apocalyptic wasteland that is Sauchiehall Street these days looks like the Zombie apocalypse has already come to pass. Anyway, having fought my way through the hordes of the undead I made it to Scottish Music Collective’s sold out Halloween spooktacular in Nice n Sleazy, a fearsome four band bill headlined by the unstoppable force that is Sister Madds.

Before the headline act we were treated to a smorgasbord of diverse bands in the shape of Naked Actress, Vigilanti and Sean Choon & the Prawn Monsoon.… Read the rest

Keeley – Beautiful Mysterious – Interview/Album Review

October 23, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

All photographs courtesy of Chris Hogge (@chrishoggephotography) • Instagram photos and videos

There is no artist I’ve come across in recent years quite like Keeley, her dedication and persistence to her cause is both remarkable and unwavering. When I say her cause, I don’t just mean the creation of her perfect and complex dream-pop/shoegaze masterpieces, it must be said that Keeley is no ordinary recording artist. Her raison d’etre, and what makes her tick, is the pursuit of justice for German backpacker Inga Maria Hauser who was cruelly murdered on a backpacking trip as she made her way to Ireland from Scotland.… Read the rest

Bodega – Brand on the Run tour, Glasgow

October 22, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

All photographs courtesy of Chris Hogge (@chrishoggephotography) • Instagram photos and videos

It feels that there has always been an affinity between Scotland, particularly Glasgow, and New York. It seems that the spirit of the cities live within each other. Perhaps it’s because we look alike, with Glasgow often substituting for the Big Apple in Hollywood blockbusters and then there is New York hosting a Tartan Week, perhaps it’s because both cities have a strong musical heritage spawning some of the worlds best bands and having some of the most iconic music venues, past and present. Or maybe it’s just because each cities people know how party and have a good time.… Read the rest

The Soul of The Fabulous Courettes album cover

The Courettes – The Soul of The Courettes – album review

October 1, 2024 By neilho27@sky.com

Over the years, the husband and wife duo that make up The Courettes have deservedly built a formidable, and “fabulous” reputation for being one of the hardest working touring bands on the circuit, barely taking a break over the last few years to catch their breath as they tour relentlessly around the world. Somehow within this punishing schedule they have managed to fit in the recording of this glorious new record.

The globetrotting dynamic duo have never been backward about wearing their influences on their sleeves, quite literally, with their glamourous monochromatic sense of style matching the remarkable era of music that has played such an important part in influencing their sound and image.… Read the rest