Fraser Munro.

The words “Power Pop” don’t usually drag me in; I tend to think of it as the AOR equivalent of punk but this my friends is different. “Just Another Regular Summer”  is stripped down dirty pop, played with the attitude and honesty of a man living every chord and every word. Think Tom Petty playing Revolver or perhaps Johnny Thunders jamming with latter-day Monkees and that’ll only get you half way there…

Matt Julian, formerly of the rather splendid Breakdowns, is serious about his pop. Hardly a day goes by and when he’s not posting a picture of his latest record store find. This boy is serious about the 7” single. All this research has now paid off as he’s only gone and crafted a perfect pop album. A record that most bands could dream of making and he’s done it pretty much all on his tod.

Side 1 just whizzes by from Thunders-esque opener “All I want”, through to the song everybody will wish they the had written, the title track “ Just Another Regular Summer”, complete with a little Alarm-like harmonica (please don’t hate me for that one !!??!). So far, there’s nothing not to like and everything to love.

Just when you think you’ve hit the high point, “That’ll Be The Day The Earth Stood Still (Drink The Pain Away)” kicks off side 2. I had to stop there and play it again. Matt Julian take a bow you talented bastard! “Lonely Girl” is pure pop and closer “Reunion In The Rain” insists you flip the plastic over to live the last 35 minutes of your life again.

“Just Another Regular Summer” is released on October 19^th via Canada’s  Gods Candy Records, but get in there quick because if you want the record there are only 50 White, 100 Solid Pink and a 100 on good old Black.

Facebook

Gods Candy Records

Leigh Fuge.

I still remember the first time I caught the Quireboys live, in Swansea’s Sin City, it was a dark, cold and (Most likely) damp December evening in 2008. I had been trying to catch the band live for a few years and low and behold, they arrive in my hometown poised and ready to rock.

They were deep in the touring cycle for 2008’s Homewreckers and Heartbreakers. I had been a fan of the band for a few years before this album’s release but hearing the Quireboys release an album of stripped back, bluesy rock with mandolins and acoustic guitars was surely something to tread carefully around. Upon first listen back in 2008 I was enamored. Here we sit, 10 years later and the band is celebrating 10 years of homewrecking and heartbreaking, and rightly so.

The band has decided to celebrate with a re-released version of the album with 5 additional live tracks. I was unable to attend the 10^th Anniversary concert in September so I’ll make up for that by enjoying the re-released album.

The opening bluesy licks of “I Love This Dirty Town” still get me excited. The drums kick in and it’s party time. This is vintage Quireboys are their juke joint swinging best. Spike’s voice is timeless, is it even possible for the man to sound bad? The song was written about his beloved Newcastle, but I think most of us have our own dirty town that we love.

Track two leads to an immediate change of vibe, the mandolin has been broken out and it’s time for a heartfelt singalong titled “Mona Lisa Smiled”, this song finds its way into the bands live setlists tour after tour and deservingly so, the hook still stands strong after 10 years. Sure, it might be a departure for a band known for keeping the swagger of the blues alive, but they pull it off.

“Louder” was always a favourite of mine, blistering slide guitar licks, driving drums and a chorus asking if you want it louder. That’s a recipe for rock and roll success.

Four tracks in and we take another sit down for a slower track, “Hello”. While the tempo might drop, the band still keep the licks coming. The tempo doesn’t stay down too long though, the next track “Blackwater” takes us firmly back into that swampy blues stomp that we can’t get enough of. I challenge anyone to listen to this track without nodding their head.

Next up, we have a trio of downtempo songs, kicking off with “Fear Within the Lie”. The swirly, mellotron-esque keys instantly remind me of Zeppelin’s “No Quarter” coupled with that Quireboys backbeat swagger. Spike’s voice sounding particularly vulnerable and fragile here, gripping the listen and making you hang on his every word. He means everything he’s singing and you can feel it. “One For The Road” is a piano and acoustic led ode to the good times, which retains the stripped back vibe of this section of the album it creates a sense of fun, the sentiment being the older we get, things get harder but there’s always time to have one for the road.  The trio of downtempo tracks is rounded off by the tenderly sung “Late Nite Saturday Call”, there are plenty of meanings someone could apply to a song like this. Spike and the boys have kept the subject matter deeply personal, yet open to interpretation. One of the reasons why I believe that after four decades, their songs are still powerful and poignant.

“Hall of Shame” shifts the gears back up and we’re off to a slide guitar fuelled, bluesy smasher. This is a song that I’ve always wished the band would drop into a live show, and perhaps they have, but all the times I’ve seen them live this song has not made the cut. For me, this was always one of the highlights of the album. It has all the elements that I expect from a band like The Quireboys, all the things that evoke the energy I felt when I first heard the band in 2005.

I am a sucker for a pretty guitar intro and “Take a Look At Yourself” delivers just that. There’s a definite 60s vibe to this with a touch of American West Coast smoothness. A heartfelt, mid-tempo tribute to getting it wrong and living as two people, perhaps something many of us have been guilty of over the years.

It would be rude to not go out with a bang, “Josephine” picks the energy back up for the final bow. The band is firing on all cylinders now, as Spike said rightfully in 2001 “This IS Rock and Roll”. High octane, head nodding, foot stomping rock and roll at that. When I first got turned onto bands that originated in the 80s, one of the early songs that turned me onto this was “Cathouse” by Faster Pussycat. When I hear “Josephine”, it reminds of me of that exact feeling of hearing that fast-paced, 12 bar blues attack. Half my life later, hearing that kind of music still gets me ready to rock. Clocking in at less than 3 minutes, the band deliver the goods and cut to the chase. What a way to end an album.

To commemorate the 10^th anniversary, we are also treated to 5 live tracks spanning the bands career, “Too Much of a Good Thing”, “Homewreckers and Heartbreakers” (Which is interestingly not on this album, it was on 2013s “Beautiful Curse”), “Mona Lisa Smiled”, “Mother Mary” and “I Love This Dirty Town”. These tracks showcase how electric the band sound live. I particularly loved the live take on Mona Lisa, with some added punch to the guitars. If you have not seen this band live, I urge you to do so. These live tracks will give you a taste, but you really need to get to a show and let your ears give you the fix that you need.

10 years of Homewreckers and Heartbreakers done and dusted. I can’t wait to see what they have in store for 20.

Buy Here

Gerald Stansbury.

Shanda & the Howlers released a killer debut album (‘Trouble’) last year that ended up in my top 20 albums of the year. This new album snuck out on me at the beginning of the summer and finds the band steering clear of the sophomore slump by playing to their strengths. Shanda’s vocals were immediately identifiable on the debut and seem to be a little higher in the mix on this one as the band plays a 60’s style Stax influenced rhythm and blues style that packs some attitude.

Luke Metz bass gets the album started and brings ‘Hold On’ to life. Shanda immediately reminds us that she is a star waiting to be discovered by the mainstream. The call and response vocals on the chorus sound amazing, and the quick rhythm gets us moving from the first moments of the album. ‘Baby, You’re the One’ carries the momentum forward with another up-tempo beat combined with a strong hook. Shanda again asserts her identity on ‘Good Morning Heartache’ with its retro rockabilly feel compelling me to move.

‘Crying Over Nothing’ shines with its gentle horn touches adding some low-end texture to the methodical beat. Shanda has plenty of room here to be the focal point with each word she sings. The band’s ups the tempo with the fun ‘Wait and See’ that should see the dancefloor become a whirl of activity. The whole band is on fire with the rhythm section keeping the beat moving underneath the guitar hooks and awesome horn play. Sandra largely sings in a higher tone here guaranteed to make the hairs on your arm raise, and this sounds like a massive hit from back in the day. ‘Hand in Hand’ slides in on a slow pulsating groove. Trevor Johnson’s guitar solo takes the spotlight as everything fades away as he slowly takes the song to another level. ‘The Girl’s No Good’ makes for a rocking blues good time with a beat that would be at home on some early George Thorogood albums. Shanda has an awesome throaty low tone that commands a performance.

Keeping the toes tapping and the hips shaking, ‘Scurry Like a Rat’ sizzles out of the speakers with moments where every instrument hits the mix hard at one time and sounds like pure magic. This song swings hard on the beat. I really have to say that the sax work by Micah Lapping-Carr is incredible throughout this album. The title track introduces harmonica and acoustic guitars to a gritty vocal by Shanda. I think the best compliment I can really give this album is it makes me want to hear the whole album in a live setting in some dive bar with condensation sliding down the wood walls. ‘Blue-Eyed Trouble’ has been a grower on the album with a groove that builds onto its frame as the song goes. Johnson shines on the guitar here again, especially as the song reaches its final stretch. Finale ‘Close Your Eyes’ has an initial guitar lick that immediately made me think of ‘May This Be Love’ by Jimi Hendrix but immediately moves into more of Temple of the Dog’s ‘All Night Thing’ kind of musical vibe. It doesn’t quite hit the pinnacle that ‘You’re Gonna Cry’ hit on their debut, but it does close this album in style.

Shanda & the Howlers are two for two in releasing high-quality albums that take musical inspiration from the past and make it feel fresh, vital, fun, and powerful. Shanda will see her star rise in the years to come with her awesome vocals, especially with the dynamic, excellent musicians who make this a complete band and not a one lady show. Don’t let this album slide under your radar as you owe it to yourself to enter the world of Shanda & the Howlers.

‘Hurt For Me’ is available now

Facebook