Another month, another singles round up, and a bumper selection it is too, 61 songs in this month’s list, This month’s selection comes from a range of bands and singers from newer talent such as Dancer, Soapbox and recent BBC Introducing Scottish Act of the Year Bottle Rockets through to established legends such as Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon, as well as home grown legends Arab Strap and the continued welcome return of James King and the Lonewolves ahead of their new album The Mortality Arcade.
The Top 25
Single of the Month
Soapbox – Fascist Bob
Several reasons for this being single of the month for March, first and foremost it’s a fucking great song cementing Soapbox as one of the best of the current crop of Scottish bands displaying a punk attitude in the true spirit of the first wave of punk, kicking against the pricks and railing against the right wing. But also the fact that its a huge FUCK OFF to the lame-ass (to use an American phrase) proud boys (fuck giving them capitalisation, I don’t recognise their pathetic “cause”), who seem to have got the wrong end of the stick with Soapbox, ironically displaying a public show of support for the band just before they launched this single, a blatant attack on what they and their pathetic ilk stand for. I’m proud. Proud to be a liberal lefty woke snowflake, and a supporter of Soapbox. Fuck the Fash.
Soapbox play a headline gig in King Tuts in April with Junk Pups and Demo in support.
Our punk band has new fans — but they’re all far-right extremists (thetimes.co.uk)
Scorpio Leisure – Apology
I’ve already reviewed the Apology EP (link here), but I’m not going to apologise for slipping Apology into March singles of the month too. One of the best new bands of the last few years, their next gig is on 13th April as part of the LNFG weekender.
James King and the Lonewolves – Whipping Boy
One of the most welcome returns of 2024 continues with the second single from their new forthcoming album The Mortality Arcade. Whipping Boy has James King and the Lonewolves on top form once again, straddling post-punk, Southern Blues & Postcard era jangle pop the tune has an infectious rhythm, the icing on the cake of course is that familiar gloriously dark honeyed brogue belting out the defiant chorus, be in no doubt, King is nobodies Whipping Boy. Magnificent.
Holiday Ghosts – Big Congratulations
Big Congratulations, which was the last single to be released prior to the release of Holiday Ghosts latest album Coat of Arms, has, as its name suggests an uplifting celebratory feel to it, the energetic jangly riffs coming across like a melange of early REM and The Flatmates.
Arab Strap – Alltonceness & Strawberry Moon
A double whammy from Falkirk’s dynamic duo, it is always a pleasure to hear Aidan Moffat’s familiar laconic drawl and deeply personal lyrics delivered with uniquely sombre and dry acerbic wit and sarcasm. When you add Malcolm Middleton’s darkly compelling musical arrangements, specifically a fuzzy bass driven rhythm on Strawberry Moon, which also owes a debt to Whiney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody, you have a pairing made in heaven… or hell, with a video featuring Moffat as a priest and Middleton as a werewolf… you need to see it to!
The Revolt – Fla Boi
One of the most addictively hook laden upbeat earworms in this months round up, Fla Boi from Cork’s The Revolt is a chaotic high energy punk romp that is nigh on impossible not to love.
Port Sulphur – Fast Boys and Factory Girls
As well as Fla Boi being an earworm and a song oft-repeated through my headphones, Fast Boys and Factory Girls from Douglas McIntyre’s Port Sulphur, featuring vocals from Subway Sect’s Vic Godard, is another single I can’t seem to get enough of, as the end of the music fades out, one listen is never enough and the replay button is pressed once again.
Shannon and the Clams – Bean Fields & Real or Magic
Two songs from Shannon and the Clams new album The Moon is in the Wrong Place and songs from two ends of the spectrum, Bean Fields is a bouncy and celebratory uplifting romp while Real or Magic, is a touchingly beautiful doo-wop tinged ballad, made all the more poignant by the tragic events leading up to the writing of the songs for this album.
English Teacher – R&B
One of the alternative indie scene’s rising stars, English Teacher, play Glasgow on the 18th of May touring their debut album, This Could Be Texas. This single, which musically to me channels the spirit of Courtney Barnett, is a comment on the racism experienced by singer Lily Fontaine by people making assumptions about the type of music she makes based on the colour of her skin.
Arrows Meet – Be All End All
Not content with making a recent return to the live stage with f.o. machete (supporting The Hedrons), incidentally the new f.o. machete single Confetti Crown will feature in next months round up, Natasha Normaly joins forces with Nanobots Jim Brady to release this blissed out electro disco funk dancefloor smash “you were into Bauhaus and I was into… Metallica, and we danced all night…” get on your feet people and dance your asses off.
Bottle Rockets – Winter Baby
Not long after releasing this single, the band won BBC Introducing Scottish Band of the Year, hopefully leading on to bigger things. Their single Backburn was one of my most played earworms of last year so its not surprising that their sound caught the imagination of the judges. Winter Baby is the latest, and possibly best to date, in their line of powerfully intense alt-rock, heavy on the riffs and with Kenzi’s passionately impactful and moody vocals, “I’ve been cold since the womb”, that soar into the ether in the epic chorus.
Cocktail Slippers – I Still Dream You
Norway’s The Cocktail Slippers continue to impress with this single, released on International Women’s Day, a spirited soaraway seventies inspired bombastic rock anthem that will have you captivated from the off.
Emma Smith – Silhouette
My inbox is constantly rammed with new music, from death metal to indie rock, punk to acoustic folk, quite often I only need to read the first line of a badly written impersonal press release to delete the email without listening. But then in amongst the dross, you get a more personal email from the singer/band themselves that intrigues you and you give the song (or songs) a listen. And when you do listen to said song, it strikes a chord with you and has you searching for more. Such is the mesmeric draw of this beautiful folk ballad from Emma Smith.
Walt Disco – You Make Me Feel So Dumb
Fresh from their support tour with 80’s synth legends OMD, it’s guaranteed Walt Disco will have garnered leagues of new fans with their uniquely beguiling alt-pop, with latest single You Make Me Feel So Dumb continuing to pave their ascendency to superstardom, jangly funk guitar riffs, dancey beats, empathetic piano and wistful saxophone all blend perfectly with Jocelyn’s personal lyrics about social anxiety and reading the room and societal “norms” having me yearning for the new album The Warping, and more live dates…
Former Champ – Hold On
Forget the “former”, this tune is champion, to coin a Yorkshire phrase, as the indie “supergroup” release yet another emphatically sparkling guitar driven indie-pop gem.
Teenage Waitress – Magic
Magic just about sums up the latest single from Teenage Waitress aka Daniel Ash, who continues to prove has an enduring knack for telling a story in his lyrics and pairing them with a catchy hook laden melody, two and a half minutes of pure pop genius.
Girls in Synthesis – Lights Out
The dramatic mood music at the starts of Lights Out soundtracks a tale of sleepless nights and the anxiety that ensues, your mind taking you to places you don’t want to go and the panic that builds “heart beating out the cage”, then as the song reaches its mid-point a melee of noise takes over, before the instrumentation speeds to its conclusion as the negative thoughts merge into overwhelming dread “piecing together my hopeless endeavours.”
Homework – Dummy Run
If you were to create a Venn diagram of American alt-rock bands like Dinosaur Jr, Glasgow West Coast USA inspired indie like Teenage Fanclub, and slacker rock a la Kiwi Jr et all, you’d find Homework somewhere at the centre, ensuring they don’t stagnate, mixing genres and keeping their sound fresh by rotating vocalists. Michael takes the lead on Dummy Run this laid back guitar driven groove from their recent three track Easy Money EP.
Broken Chanter – The Rain Doesn’t Only Fall on You
No idea where Mr MacGregor may have got the inspiration for the title of this single from glorious new album Chorus of Doubt, but from the first few listen it had me enraptured and I’m already in love with the whole of the new album. Set to be on constant rotation for some time to come.
Xan Tyler – Joyce and Joanne
Simultaneously majestic and understated, Joyce and Joanne is simply sublime, a gorgeous love song which has the sound of a balmy summer’s day, muted trumpet and flute adding sumptuous layers to the mix. Xan has an album launch gig for Holding Up Half the Sky in the Panopticon in Glasgow on 4th of May.
Eater – Eclipse
Eater recently played a phenomenal gig in Glasgow’s Broadcast. The band is now made up of the inimitable Andy Blade with Jo Jo and the Teeth (an awesome band in their own right), this single Eclipse doesn’t try to reproduce the 70’s punk sound of Eater, but instead takes Eater and Andy’s distinctive vocal as the template and surrounding his voice with an epic rock sound creating a darkly atmospheric song overflowing with sass and attitude.
The Baby Seals – ID’d at Aldi
Trapped Animal records have introduced me to a load of phenomenal music from Jemma Freeman and the Cosmic Something through to this anarchic trio. Their latest chaotic romp (their album is fittingly called Chaos) is, funnily enough, a comic tale of getting “ID’s in Aldi” with a suitably haywire video to go with it.
Los Dedos – El Salado
You cannae beat a bit of surf rock, so when the email came through with the link to the new Los Dedos single, I almost knew it would be included before I listened. Hardly surprising but one listen was enough to tick the box…
The Lovely Eggs – Memory Man
What’s not to love about The Lovely Eggs and their eccentric left field lo-fi-psych-punk? The swirling effects laden driving rhythm paired with Holly’s hypnotic vocal bodes well for new album, Eggsistentialism.
The Stolen Moans – Dada Catapult
A juggernaut of colossal noise which skelps along at a fair pace blending crunching grungey guitars with a hyper sing-a-long chorus, The Stolen Moans have released one of their best singles to date.
wojtek the bear – fireworks out of focus
shaking hands with the NME is perhaps their most accomplished work to date, violins, brass, jangly guitars and a pounding beat combine with Tam’s sensitive vocal to create a song which feels like the equivalent of a warm hug.
The Rest of the Best
Dancer – Bluetooth Hell
Another cut from their majestic album 10 Songs I Hate About You and released ahead of their support slot with Dry Cleaning, Dancer continue to demonstrate their astute talent for writing hook laden exuberant indie/alt-pop/fuzzy guitar bangers with a song whose title makes me smile alluding to one of modern societies first world problems.
Billy Reeves – 2Much 2Do 2Day
Next up is Billy Reeves founder of theaudience with his latest single from new album, Steve, released in April on LNFG (Billy is also playing as part of the weekender alongside Scorpio Leisure, wojtek and the bear, Xan Tyler et al), 2Much 2Do 2Day is a heartachingly beautiful ballad, a lamentation on the exhausting nature of personal conflict.
Bob Vylan – Makes Me Violent
From the third album, Humble as the Sun out on 5th April, Bob Vylan, like Soapbox earlier in this round up, continue to release politically charged singles. railing against the government and their lack of affinity with those who don’t have pockets lined with gold, and the rage that rises as a result. A tongue in cheek jibe at those who perpetrate against us what they decry from others And a sly dig at those on the right who would say if you don’t like it just leave, “I’d rather stay and give them hell” sings Bob in defiance.
Eels – Time & Goldy
I mean, if I called Billy Reeves new single a heartachingly beautiful ballad, where do I go with Mr E? “There isn’t much time now…” he sings in his own inimitable style on the first of these two singles from upcoming EELS TIME! album, Time is melancholic and reflective an emotional rollercoaster, both a celebration of life and a a comment on the inevitability of death.
Alien Airforce – Good Luck World (I Think You’re Going to Need it)
If you yearn for the buzzsaw anarchy of the short-lived chaotic fuzz punk of Daisy Chainsaw (cue me listening to Love Your Money on repeat for hours…) and the only royalty you celebrated was Queenadreena then you’ll welcome the first single from the solo outing of guitarist Crispin Gray in the form of Alien Airforce, an album recorded with his wife Sofia Martins Gray (Starsha Lee). Good Luck World comes replete with Gray’s distinctive trademark formidable distorted guitar riffs aplenty and the single bodes well for the album Give Pigeons the Right of Way coming in May.
Kim Gordon – Psychedelic Orgasm
The legendary Kim Gordon’s latest solo single is a clattering agglomeration of experimental dissonant electro noise, bolstered by crunching guitars, and Gordon’s familiar laconic vocal.
Sohodolls – What Kinda Love
What Kinda Love owes a debt of gratitude to Alison Goldfrapp in all its bombastic glory powerfully pulsating electronic drumbeat pop, with a smattering thunderous guitar riffs a la Muse (without the irritating frontman).
Paraorchestra – The Killing Moon (with Brett Anderson) & Holes (with Brett Anderson ft Nadine Shah)
Two songs from the forthcoming Paraorchestra (“reinventing the orchestra for the 21st Century”) album, Death Song Book, both featuring the vocal talents of one of the best live frontmen currently treading the boards. Paraorchestra describe themselves as an “ensemble of disabled and non-disabled professional musicians” who “challenge ideas of what an orchestra can and should be.” Their version of Killing Moon, “the best song ever written” (courtesy of Ian McCulloch) is stunning, and with the addition of the wonderful Nadine Shah on their cover of Mercury Rev’s Holes, this album could be one of the highlights of 2024.
Don’t Thank Me, Spank Me – Hey Woman
With a melody reminsicent of Coffee and TV, Hey Woman is an anti-materialism anthem with a “you can’t take it with you” message, a two fingered salute to women who flaunt their wealth, the have’s rubbing their prosperity in the face if the have nots, as a reminder that we all end up in a hole on the ground after the great equaliser of death.
Chastity Belt – Chemtrails & Laugh
Another double dose of atmospheric guitar driven fuzzy post punk tunes, this time from Seattle’s Chastity Belt from their new, somewhat tongue in cheek titled but heartfelt, Live, Laugh, Love.
Pearling – Swirly Circus Girl
Pearling plays her debut headline show in Glasgow’s Room 2 on the 18th of April, Swirly Circus Girl is probably my favourite of her diaphanous electro dream pop singles so far.
Annie-Dog – The Pressures of the Heart & Double Cherry
The first two singles from Dublin based Smashing Pumpkins inspired Annie-Dog, two slices of perfectly formed beats driven alt-pop.
Gina Volpe – Drink Me
Lunachicks founding member Gina Volpe’s single from her debut solo album Delete the World, is an ode to turning to our vices in times of need or pressure. Drink Me sashays in with bullish verve and attitude mixing crunching guitars with a dancey vibe.
Pete Astor – Chinese Cadillac
Effectively making two appearances in this round up, with Ged Babey covering One for the Ghosts, Pete Astor released his re-recorded version of The Weather Prophets Chinese Cadillac from newly launched album or rerecorded songs from his back catalogue, Tall Stories & New Religions, marking 40 years of recording music from his days with The Loft through to more recent solo releases.
Ged Babey and Interesting Wallpaper – One For the Ghost
A 60th birthday present to himself, this slice of what some might call self-indulgence from LTW writer Ged Babey has probably surprised a lot of people by actually being able to sing, and creating this rather charming and touching cover of Pete Astor’s One for the Ghost with Interesting Wallpaper, receiving praise direct from the legendary Weather Prophets frontman himself.
Ged Babey and Interesting Wallpaper
The Petal Falls – Give a Little Love
One of a couple of tunes that give off a bombastic 80’s vibe in this round up, Give a Little Love by The Petal Falls falling on the bluesy classic rock side of things.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Wild God
I’d lost a bit of interest in the music of Nick Cave over recent years, the man himself probably being a contributing factor. Wild God (the title track of new album due in August) is probably one of his best singles in a long time, drawing me back into the fold again.
Diesel Park West – Bump in the Night
John Butler sounds as if he is channelling Bob Dylan in the latest song from their latest album Presley Trap. I’m delighted the band are still recording and despite loving Let it Melt and Not Quite the American Dream have released probably my favourite album of their career since the classic Shakespeare Alabama
Lucky Number You – Hands on the Horizon
If The Petal Falls fell on the classic bluesy rock side of the 80s, Lucky Number You capture more of melodic 80s pop rock bracket, an uplifting blend of jangly guitars and saxophone, like if The 1975 had some tunes and were influenced by Haircut 100, if that makes any sense at all….
Mdou Moctar – Imouhar
There is an urgency to this song, the second single from their debut album Funeral for Justice which came out in February, that matches the message in the lyrics. an impassioned plea to the Tuareg people to preserve their Tamasheq language. Moctar is one of the few people in the Tuareg community who can write in the language. “People here are just using French, they’re starting to forget their own language” says Mdou.
Maximo Park – Favourite Things
Newcastle’s Maximo Park always have a vigour and vivacity to their songs that hooks me in from first listen. Favourite Things is no different, blending their zestful melodies with Paul Smith’s talent for a meaningful lyrics to create another instant earworm.
Three Out of Four – Masochist
Masochist is the latest single from grunge punks Three Out of Four who hail from the Scottish Borders, the band bring their powerful melodic rock to Glasgow on the 17th of April in Nice n Sleazy.
Jim Bob – Bernadette (Hasn’t Found Anyone Yet)
Unfortunately for Bernadette she hasn’t found anyone yet, but fortunately for us, the legendary Carter USM frontman has released a video for the song from last year’s Thanks for Reaching Out album…
Jenny Don’t and the Spurs – Pain in My Heart
While the world swoons over Beyonce’s conversion to the currently fashionable country music genre (read a more considered take on the album here) I’ll stick with songs like this classic country and western style single from Jenney Don’t and the Spurs.
Bored at My Grandma’s House – How Do You See the World
How Do You See the World? from Amber Strawbridge aka Bored at My Grandma’s House is a delightfully hypnotic and alluring dream pop song with a hint of fuzzy shoegaze guitar and serves as an introduction to her latest 3 track EP of the same name.
The Cliffords – Feels Like a Man
Another band hailing from Cork, The Cliffords latest single Feels Like a Man is an emotive slow burn of a single, a delicately understated arrangement topped with a n affecting vocal, both of which build as one to a powerful and stirring zenith.
Fright Years – Blue
Single number 6 from Edinburgh’s Fright Years has an anthemic driving rhythm with a vital energy and uplifting vibe despite the theme of the song being about the end of a relationship…
Mrs Frighthouse – White Plaster Roses
How about a bit of darkly sinister avant-garde experimental-noise electro-metal with an almost operatic vocal vibe from Mrs Frighthouse to finish? Why not.
Try Before You Buy…
The usual evil Spotify playlist – listen to find your favourites then go see them live if you can and buy their music and merchandise.