Exciting South Wales alt-rockers, YAKI DAH, continue their swift climb with the release of their ultra-magnetic new single and video, You, Me, and Lee, out now.
The band were only formed in 2022, the irrepressible quartet have already made a prominent mark on Wales’s vibrant alt-rock scene. Their boundless commitment has also propelled the band to play shows throughout the country, with a recent standout performance taking place in the heart of Camden, London. Many are now labelling YAKI DAH as a must-see act, and upon seeing the band live, it’s easy to see why. Their live show is a full-blown attack of the senses that leaves audiences craving more of their electrifying sound.
YAKI DAH are now poised to go further as they set loose their much anticipated new single, You, Me and Lee. This engrossing track showcases the band’s signature intensity and captivating songwriting, serving as a testament to their undeniable talent and artistic growth. Loaded with You, Me and Lee, YAKI DAH will thrust themselves into the limelight and cement their position as one of the most exciting breakthrough acts on the alternative rock scene. YAKI DAH are on a trajectory towards greatness, and their journey has only just begun.
It may well be 13 years since Flyscreen last played Newport (rock city) but it’s got to be nearly three decades since I last saw the band live, and back then, not only was I sharing a transit van with the boys in the band playing shows up and down the UK, but their line up also featured one Fraser Munro. Yup that’s the same chap you probably now know best (well if you’re reading this anyway) for co/fronting and playing bass in maximum velocity garage punk rockers Deathtraps.
Although tonight he’s no longer doing that.
No, he’s not left the band, it just that Veej, Matty and Fraser have gone and acquired themselves a bass player – step forward Namaan. Which means that Munro has gained two strings and is now co/fronting and playing guitar, with the resulting racket they now create sounding like it could level not just tall buildings. but whole cities, Newport being the first…. of many, I hope.
So, for the second time in a week I’m witnessing the Le Pub sound system dealing out some critical noise levels, with the needles well and truly in the err… red for ‘Red Eyes & Black Kisses’ and to some here tonight, perhaps witnessing the band for the first time, this must have come as something of a sonic shock to the system, as it was for those of us who have seen them many times, with the early inclusion of ‘Hell Of A Girl’ from Matty and Veej’s old band The Sick Livers. I thought this tune might have been just a one-off set list inclusion for their recent blast at Slugfest (where they were still a trio and also played a rollicking cover of Judas Priest’s ‘Breaking The Law’), but no, here it is loud and proud, for a whole new generation of gig goers to lose their shit to. Tidy darts!
Elsewhere the band’s sub thirty-minute aural rip ride flew by in the blink of an eye with the likes of ‘She Said’ and ‘Rip Em Off’, from their exceptional last record ‘Appetite For Prescription’, giving us all bloody noses, whilst the ever present oldie ‘Fuck The Cool Kids’ once again helped shatter the venue’s swear jar in just under three minutes flat.
It’s fast, its furious and its totally fucked-up rock ‘n’ roll, what more could you want on a Saturday night?
I always find it kind of irritating when a venue suddenly fills up for a headliner, but then Flyscreen are a what you might call a “more commercial” sounding musical proposition than the band that has just blown the bloody doors off Le Pub’s live room. It’s most probably why they were snapped up by MCA during the mid ‘90s and why they still have enough of a diehard following in da Port to sell out tonight’s gig, well in advance of showtime. It also doesn’t hurt their popularity one bit that their song ‘Carl Zeiss Jena’ (which was also a top three hit in Germany pop pickers) is also an anthem dedicated to this very city’s football team, and when it’s played here tonight mid-set you can almost taste the passion in the room. But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself here, because there’s much more to Flyscreen than just that one song, as opener ‘You Sons Of Bitches Shut-up’ quickly proves. Taken from the band’s 2005 album, ‘Only Dirty People Wash’, an album of ten songs I’d somehow totally missed at the time of release, this tune just like ‘Popsong Singalong’ the minor hit single from the album, which also (ouch!!!) pops up mid-set, are both post-New Seattle beauties of the highest order.
There’s of course always going to be the slightest whiff of nineties nostalgia in the air when most of your back catalogue was written in that decade, but when you have songs as strong as ‘Chopperquad’, ‘Ugly Freak Of Nature’ (not the version where singer/bassist Paul suddenly sang the words to ‘Homo’ over it), the always amazing ‘Biffbamaboomalamababe’ and ‘Snowbunny’ in your set list…who cares? That’s because, even whilst Tony, the band’s powerhouse drummer, is normally residing in San Francisco these days, the quartet (completed by guitarists Dave and Marc) have somehow managed to shoehorn recording an all-new record, into the time he’s briefly been back in the UK for tonight’s gig, and after hearing the first fruits of this session ‘I Love Everybody’ tonight, it sounds like it’s going to be an absolute banger.
Flyscreen’s forty odd minute set here tonight once again illustrated to everyone present just why they really should have been up there with the likes of Manic Street Preachers and Feeder in the popularity stakes. But that’s the UK music industry for you eh folks. It’s a shit business…
Young Francis Hi-Fi plays Bubblegum Punk – Two-minute songs about girls, getting high, and hanging out we here at RPM HQ fully endorse that, and by the sounds of it it’s a wham bang thank you mam experience. Full-throttle lo-fi garage fuzz thrashing away at every opportunity is definitely something we can get behind. Some of these songs have been around for a while in demo form but they’ve been given an adrenaline shot and a rough house fucking up to toughen them up thanks to some fine additions to the cause from the Rough Gutts, Rotten Foxes gang.
As one song smashes into the next with little variation in the pace or the lyrical content its small fractions of separation and when done by professionals such as Young Francis Hi-Fi that’s a plus point and songs like ‘Short Hair Girl’ hit the lyrical genius spot that sends the pleasure endorphins flying around the body and brain. Great lyrics like Having short hair means you use less shampoo show that a genius is at work here it’s not a simple pleasure. With a sound somewhere between the Hip Priests covering Toilet Boys while reading a secret stash of Bunty magazine. You only need to look at the artwork on the jacket. It should come with a health warning and impressionable teens should approach with caution, these gents could ruin a teenager’s mind with this Rock n’ Roll they peddle, but they do look like fine specimens of what a rock n roll gang should look like in 2023.
They claim to have something to say so we’re all ears. We might have seen it all before but it’s been a long time coming and besides we are total suckers when it sounds this good. ‘Don’t Break My Heart’ is a thrashing banger and sets the tone for the best display of this genre in a long while in the shape of the banger that is ‘Jenny Jenny’ What a whopper of a tune it is.
When you read the band’s mantra and lifestyle philosophy goes something like living by the beach and loving the sunshine, and bubblegum and falling in love. They also love punk, denim, and getting fucked up. Growing up wanting to be in a gang, like all their favourite bands you can’t help but want to get involved. They dress in the Hi-Fi uniform, but we’re all different. Young Francis is the leader of the pack, Jimi is the sun who shines on us all, Danny Joe has a heart of gold and Bobby binds us together.
You can sing along to the trashy ‘Do You Like Good Music’. Of Course, we do which is why we’re head over heels for The Young Generation. The breakdown is delightful as is the tambourine and handclaps fucking with some Hanoi Rocks melodies and singalongs – bloody great stuff.
The smash-and-grab riff-a-rama of ‘Dance If You Wanna’ is electric and a real statement of intent. It’s pop music that’s getting nasty with some nasty punk rockers and the floor tom rattle is brilliant old-school glam snotty punk.
13 songs in 27 minutes tell you these cats aren’t mucking about here, they’re drinking fast, playing fast, and moving fast. Get involved before it’s too late and they’ve gone up in flames either on a one-way ticket to hell in a scandalous tale of rock n roll infamy or straight to the top.
‘Girls Like You’ is the best song I’ve heard in a while and if you dont like it then I’m afraid we can’t be friends and I’m gonna et everyone know you don’t have any good taste in music. I love they have a bad attitude its part of what makes them so attractive as a propersition – well that and the rock n roll and deliberate double denim. Settle down ladies and gents there’s plenty of them to go around and they have the finest soundtrack for making out but be careful, ‘Gimme A Kiss’ is a racey ditty that could cause injury if not danced to properly thrusting can put your hip out or cause irreparable damage but the soundtrack will make it fine. To bring this barnstormer to a close they fire off ‘101’ and promptly fuck off as quickly as they came. Wear denim, fascial hair, high tops, and a shit-kicking grin it’s all you need – oh, and a copy of this record. Now be gone and turn it up high as fuck, it’s worth it because you are worth it, Young Francis Hi-Fi should be your new squeeze because their album is the dog’s bollocks and packed full of essential tunes.
‘THE BALLAD OF DARREN’ THE ONLY FULL ALBUM PERFORMANCE
LIVE FROM LONDON’S ICONIC EVENTIM APOLLO, HAMMERSMITH WITH AN EXCLUSIVE GLOBAL LIVESTREAM
– THURSDAY 25 JULY 2023 – 9 – 10PM BST
LIVESTREAM TICKETS ON SALE NOW HERE (PHYSICAL TICKETS ON SALE 18 JULY)
NEW ALBUM: ‘THE BALLAD OF DARREN’ – OUT 21 JULY 2023, VIA PARLOPHONE
After an epic weekend which saw blur perform to over 150,000 fans across two truly unforgettable Wembley Stadium shows, the band today announced a very special global performance of their highly-anticipated new album ‘The Ballad of Darren’- live streamed via Driift from London’s Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith on Thursday 25th July 2023 at 9pm BST. Tickets and information here.
The one hour show – titled ‘blur present The Ballad of Darren’ – is the first andonly time the band will play the complete album live from start to finish. The performance will allow fans around the world to experience the new record – together, live – with this intimate one-off event, streamed live from London.
Eight years since their chart-topping album The Magic Whip (2015), blur burst out of the traps in May with an already legendary performance at the tiny Colchester Arts Centre in Essex; the announcement of a brand new album; and the release of‘The Narcissist’, racking up over 12m global streams – and counting – with a song which THE GUARDIAN (4/5 stars) describes as sounding like “…Blur have never been away”. Last week, they dropped follow up ‘St. Charles Square’, a track with “… a sense of gleeful invention that recalls their early days… a terrific piece of music.” (CLASH), driving a fever of excitement amongst fans ahead of the release of The Ballad of Darren in less than two weeks, on 21st July on Parlophone.
Produced by Driift, the fully-live one-hour performance of The Ballad of Darren will be streamed worldwide at 9.00pm London-time (BST), before being rebroadcast three more times to allow fans around the world to watch at time more convenient for their timezone. Following that, the show will also be available to watch On Demand for another 2 days, timings as follows:
Live: Tuesday 25 July 9.00pm BST
Rebroadcast #1: Tuesday 25 July 8.00pm EDT
Rebroadcast #2: Tuesday 25 July 8.00pm PDT
Rebroadcast #3: Wednesday 26 July 8.00pm AEST
On Demand: Wednesday 26 July at 1.00pm BST – Friday 28 July at 1.00pm BST
Physical tickets will go on sale on Tuesday 18th July – 10am BST for fans who have pre-ordered the album. To receive your access code for the ticket sale, pre-order The Ballad of Darren from blur’s official Eurpean store here.
Tickets are priced as follows: Hammersmith Apollo show £25 + booking fees; Livestream £13.50. Tickets and information here.
The Hip Priests announce UK Tour in support of new album ‘Roden House Blues’.
Continuing what has been another very busy year and hot on the heels of their recent storming shows supporting Zeke, the band have just announced a string of UK headline dates in Sept/Oct. Returning to venues they’ve previously played on tours with Supersuckers and Dwarves, as well as hitting some new towns they’ve never visited, they’ll be preaching their sermon of nihilistic Rock N’ Roll on the following dates –
Weds 27th Sept – The Parish, Huddersfield Thurs 28th Sept – Trillians, Newcastle Fri 29th Sept – Bannermans, Edinburgh Sat 30th Sept – The Waterloo, Blackpool Fri 6th Oct – The Black Heart, London Sat 7th Oct – The Hope And Ruin, Brighton Sun 8th Oct – Tough Love Records, Hastings (Lunchtime Show)
Sun 8th Oct – Lady Luck, Canterbury
In addition, they have also been asked to support Wolfsbane at their Nottingham and London shows at the end of the year.
Following these shows the band will begin work on their next album, meaning that this will be the last chance to catch them live in the UK for some time. So grab your tickets as soon as possible from venue websites or check links on Facebook events.
‘I Inside the Old Year Dying’ is PJ Harvey’s tenth album, and her first in seven years. Throughout her career, she has always ensured that each phase of her progress has taken her somewhere new, but her latest music is audacious and original even by her own standards. Full of a sense of a cyclical return to new beginnings, it combines its creative daring with a sense of being open and inviting, inthe most fascinating way. The new songs, Harvey says, offer “a resting space, a solace, a comfort, a balm-which feels timely for the times we’re in.”
And that intro from the press release is as good a place to start as any, I started listening to Polly Jean back in the time of 5OFT Queenie coming out, stocking Dry when I first opened my own record shop, have moved with her through virtually every stage of her career and watched and listened as every LP has unravelled each with their own personality each echoing a time in Polly Jean’s life making a statement from a snaphot, but always moving forward, the music itself constantly changing and adapting and very much as with people like Bowie and Nick Cave fans will be drawn to a specific era, a genre and sometimes not move forward with the artist happy in the now, unwilling to Embrace change, not something that can be levelled at artists such as Polly Jean.
So what does the LP give us again drawing on Polly Jeans words from the press release
” In the album’s liminal world, scattered with biblical imagery and references to Shakespeare, all these distinctions dissolve. “I’m somewhere where I’ve not been before,” Harvey says. “What’s above,what’s below, what’s old, what’s new, what’s night, what’s day? It’s all the same, really–and you can enter it and get lost. And that’s what I wanted to do with the record, with the songs, with the sound, with everything”.
Opening up with “Prayer at the gate” your instantly drawn into that world of Aural soundscapes faved by Warren Ellis and the Producer flood’s work really draws you in, this is a very different PJ Harvey, the voice an instrument in the whole rather than a lead. Next up “Autum leaves” has quite a Soulful almost funk feel in the backdrop, but the vocals push the song forward in a very different way almost sitting outside the music dipping into and weaving through the Sound. “Lonesome tonight” again has a very different feel a song that stops you dead and you just have to listen, the story unfolding takes me to a parallel with the Orianthi Poem written in old Cornish, this is probably my fave on the LP, it twists and turns and is I think one of the strongest PJ Vocal performances I’ve heard.
“Seen and I “ hints at past sounds but again the vocals move in a very different direction, the John Parish influence I think coming to the fore. “The Nether edge” weaves a very different soundscape almost industrial in its reverb and repetition, but again the vocals sit outside moving in and out, The acoustic guitar that introduces “I inside the old year dying” drifts away as that industrial soundscape takes over, the music changing and adapting to the story being told. “All Souls” enters almost hesitantly the piano and vocals overtaken as the distortion and reverb comes in. At this point you realise how strong the Vocals are throughout this LP I would definitely say this is one Of PJ’s strongest ever vocal performances,
Moving through the rest of the LP “A child’s question July” “I inside the old I dying” with its stop start animation led video, “August” with its initial Piano led soundscape, flows seamlessly into “a Child’s question July”which has an almost mystical feel weaving a fairytail picture, “A noiseless noise” finishes things up with again one of my faves of the LP tearing you back with power and intensity to earlier PJ Harvey works.
This is a powerful LP but in a number of ways, it holds your attention and is very definitely one to listen to all the way through, for someone new to PJ Harvey I’m not sure that it’ll set things up for you to explore the artists earlier work this Isn’t ‘Stories from the City’, ‘Is this Desire’, ‘Dry’ or ‘Pure’, its also a long way from ‘The Hope Six Demolition Project’ and ‘Let England shake’, but if you sit and listen you can pick up pieces from them all just re-interpreted. It might not hit you first listen, but stick with it I think it’ll creep on to my LP of the year list come December!!
NEW ALBUM: ‘NOTHING LASTS FOREVER’ OUT 22 SEPTEMBER VIA THEIR OWN LABEL PEMA
+ UK LIVE DATES
Earlier this year Teenage Fanclub announced news of their new album ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’, due out 22nd September via their own label PeMa.
Having previously shared the lead track “Foreign Land”, today they release their new single and album highlight, “Tired Of Being Alone”.
Commenting on the track Raymond McGinley says: “Towards the end of our session in Rockfield Studios making the album I woke up in the middle of the night. There was a guitar next to the bed. I picked it up and this song came out. The words for the chorus were there already. I recorded a rough version on my phone and then went back to sleep. We recorded the song later that day. As a band we like to trust our instincts and let things happen. As with Norman’s song ‘Foreign Land’ this song only exists because we decided to go to the studio and make a record. If we’d waited for the stars to align first before recording we’d still be waiting now.”
The first sound you hear on ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’ is a sustained feedback note that hangs in the air with the grace of a dragonfly before an acoustic riff spirals out of it, soaring upwards. It’s blissful and sun-soaked, like a late summer haze blurring out all the details on the horizon. When voices join the music, they arrive perfectly locked together, honed in on a single melody. “It’s time to move along / and leave the past behind me…” The message is simple. Don’t look back, only forward.
One of the recurring themes on ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’ is light, as a both a metaphor for hope and as an ultimate destination further down the road. Although the band’s songwriters Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley found themselves touching on similar themes, it was pure coincidence.
Raymond: “We never talk about what we’re going to do before we start making a record. We don’t plan much other than the nuts and bolts of where we’re going to record and when. That thing about light was completely accidental; we didn’t realise that until we’d finished half the songs. The record feels reflective, and I think the more we do this thing, the more we become comfortable with going to that place of melancholy, feeling and expressing those feelings.”
Norman: “These songs are definitely personal. You’re getting older, you’re going into the cupboard getting the black suit out more often. Thoughts of mortality and the idea of the light must have been playing on our minds a lot. The songs on the last record were influenced by the breakup of my marriage. It was cathartic to write those songs. These new songs are reflective of how I’m feeling now, coming out of that period. They’re fairly optimistic, there’s an acceptance of a situation and all of the experience that comes with that acceptance. When we write, it’s a reflection of our lives, which are pretty ordinary. We’re not extraordinary people, and normal people get older. There’s a lot to write about in the mundane. I love reading Raymond Carver. Very often there’s not a lot that happens in those stories, but they speak to lived experience.”
While the vocals and the finishing touches on ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’ were recorded at Raymond’s place in Glasgow, the music was recorded in an intense ten-day period in the bucolic Welsh countryside at Rockfield Studios, near Monmouth in late August. You can hear the effect of that environment on the record – it’s full of soft breeze, wide skies, beauty and space.
Raymond: “We like to get something out of where we go, and you can definitely hear a stamp of Rockfield on the record. We recorded our album Howdy there in the late ’90s. Prior to that I’d been a bit reluctant to go as everyone seemed to record there, especially if you were signed to Creation, but I thought I’d go and have a look at the place. When I went down there, I loved the fact that there’s no memorabilia about anyone who’s ever been in the studio. The only visual musical reference is a picture of Joe Meek on their office wall. Anyway, over twenty years after our first visit we decided to go back. When you’re there, it feels like your place. We’re really rubbish at trying to find words to describe how our music sounds, but maybe because we recorded in Rockfield in late summer, there’s something pastoral about the record.”
The band that recorded ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’– Blake, McGinley along with Francis Macdonald on drums, Dave McGowan on bass and Euros Childs on keyboards – arrived at the residential studio without a fixed plan. Their confidence and ease with working together meant the record came together incredibly quickly.
Raymond: “When we got offered ten days in Rockfield, we weren’t ready in our minds but then we just thought, ‘Fuck it’ and went for it. If you’re sitting around waiting for the stars to align, you can end up never doing anything. We turned up and worked our way through ideas, and came up with some while we were there. The song Foreign Land was born in the studio. If we hadn’t gone there at that point through happenstance, that song wouldn’t exist. We like to let things happen. As people, we find a deadline inspiring. We like to put ourselves on the spot and see what happens. We usually get away with it. This record is the cliche of the blank canvas, which thankfully we managed to fill.”
Norman“We’ve all been playing together for such a long time. In the past, whoever had written the song would have been the director. ‘This is how I’m hearing the drums, if you could play the bass like this…’ We don’t do that now. Raymond or myself would just bring in the idea and people would listen and play what works with it. We’d play for a couple of hours and that would be the arrangement. There’s a trust that comes from knowing each other such a long time, a kind of telepathy. Everyone knows where they fit in the puzzle.”
One of the most striking lyrics on the record is on the closing track “I Will Love You“. A gorgeous seven minute almost Kosmiche acoustic daydream drone, it looks to a point beyond the fury and polarisation of our modern discourse, to a time when “the bigots are gone/after they apologise/for all the harm that they’ve done”.
Raymond “In many ways, us-and-them-ism has taken over the world. “I Will Love You” is looking for positivity but it’s being totally fatalistic at the same time. This shit will exist forever, what are you going to do about it. I came up with the line “I will love you/until the flags are put down/and the exceptionalists are buried under the ground” while I was playing the guitar. I started wondering what that was all about and where it might go. It’s looking for positives within a fatalistic, negative view of human nature.”
Looking for positives while faced with the grim realities of the 21st century feels very Teenage Fanclub – a band who’ve been a force for good for over three decades and who can effortlessly turn melancholy into glorious, chiming harmony.
TEENAGE FANCLUB UK TOUR 2023 03 November – Belfast – Queen’s University – Mandela Hall 05 November – Glasgow – Tramway Theatre 06 November – Aberdeen – Tivoli Theatre 07 November – Edinburgh – Assembly Rooms 08 November – Leeds – Brudenell 09 November – Gateshead – Sage Hall 2 11 November – Manchester – RNCM Theatre 12 November – Sheffield – Leadmill 13 November – Bath – Komedia 14 November – Birmingham – Town Hall 17 November – London – EartH 18 November – London – EartH
This year I have have been getting back into Arena gigs, but only if it’s something I think will be special or good fun. I have seen most bands I want to see live and although I never been a massive Kiss fan, but being a fan of rock, they seem to be one I should really make the effort to see.
Only having really heard the big hitters, as a band Kiss have never really done much for me, but have a couple of friends that are big fans and with Newport’s finest Skindred supporting, being the Rock/Metal fan I am I thought I should make the effort before it’s too late, and seeing as this is their final, final, final Tour I should grasp my (supposed) last opportunity and judge them where it matters; live in the flesh.
I got Into the Arena just as Skindred were entering the vast stage and they jump straight into new track ‘Set Fazers’, taken from their forthcoming album ‘SMILE’. From that it was into the classic track ‘Rat Race’. They then play tracks from all parts of their back catalogue, With my particular favourite being ‘Kill The Power’.. Their final track in the forty five minutes set was the brilliant ‘Warning’ and a chance for that Newport helicopter to get going in the O2… Skindred really did get the audience pumped and ready for Kiss and left everyone with a SMILE on their face. In Benji they really do have one of the best frontman in the UK and someone who can win anyone over no matter whos crowd it is.
Now I won’t pretend I know too much about the Kiss catalogue and will put aside the social media rumours of miming and backing tracks and give an honest untarnished opinion. What can I say? From the moment the announcement came of the iconic opening and then into ‘Detroit Rock City’, ‘Shout it Out’ into ‘Deuce’…Hang on, I know all these songs after all and with the stage show and flash pots n fire – this is amazing… They played ‘Psycho Circus’, which for some strange reason I do know and love that song but never thought I’d see it live…. Guitar solos, bass solo, Drum solo, these were all boxes ticked and done exceptionally well.
Everyone was up from the off and even being in seated area no one was sat down through the whole show. It really was a spectacle and smiles all around it was a show where it was hit after hit after hit and Finishing with ‘God Gave Rock and Roll to You’ the whole show was a full on blur of Rock, Pyro, confetti, rehearsed posing, blood and tongue waggling. All the clichés were there and some.
There’s a reason bands like Kiss are where they are and this is it, fun, fun, and fun. I have seen the likes of Rammstein at the same arena and this Kiss stage show blew them out of the water. A night of pure joy from the opening song of ‘Set Fazers’ from Skindred right through to the closing of ‘God Gave Rock and Roll to You’ that was entertainment of the highest standard.
Over 30 years ago here in Texas, three brothers started a band that would make a sizable impact here in this state but was never able to make the leap to wider audiences despite record deals with TVT and Sony. Vallejo was the name of the band, and they fused alternative rock with Latin rhythms. I first heard the band just over 20 years ago when they were transitioning from Sony to their own record label when I saw them live in Austin. I was blown away by what I heard and immediately became a fan. The band continued to self-release albums every few years or so but have been seemingly put on long-term hiatus over the past few years with the band members remaining in music but doing different projects. A.J. Vallejo (vocals) put Brodie Lane together who released their debut full-length ‘Hot Dirt’ back in 2020, which partially connected with me. I felt like the band was trying to find their footing, and I have found live versions of those songs much more compelling. Following a few non-album singles, the band has just released their excellent and varied follow-up album ‘Pain is Gold.’ I have been playing this album consistently since it dropped, and my favorites from it keep changing with each listen. While it is not strictly a concept album, it is an album that follows a guy through some life and relationship trials and tribulations.
A brief spoken word intro leads into the title track that has a swirling guitar riff and a strong hook. Vallejo’s vocals (also guitar) are immediately recognizable with a song that I think most of us can relate to when we are hurting. I remember Henry Rollins once saying something to the effect of ‘when life gives you lemons, squeeze them and embrace the pain.’ That sentiment seems to be in alignment here where we are channeling into the pain and knowing that we have to experience it to be able to cherish life when the pain subsides. The driving rhythm pounds the message home. ‘My Heart’ should be a single with a midtempo beat matched with a catchy vocal hook and lyrics that spill from Vallejo’s heart. Brodie Lane is completed with Ray Kainz (guitar), Alex Geismar (drums), and Joe Fladger (bass) who each bring their own special ingredients to the band with Kainz’ and Vallejo’s guitar work standing out in the second half of this song.
Next song ‘Lover’ has grown on me since my first listen where the band delivers a straightforward rock song with a catchy chorus that I can see being a singalong song at future shows. The band delivers some nice background vocals at the end of the song as well. One of my early favorites was ‘Hard Livin’ which reminds me a bit of Brother Cane. Geismar and Fladger provide a great rhythm template where the guitar notes have plenty of space to rise to the surface. The bluesy solo takes the song to another level, and the lyrics include a nice throwback to the title track with our main character on the album dealing with the loss of his mother. The band has released a video for ‘Yeah’ which rides a hard bluesy beat and some excellent slide guitar. It might not have been my choice for the first video from the album, but it is extremely catchy. Lyrically, this is another one where we are trying to move past the things that suck and find something better.
One of my current favorites, ‘Damn You’ finds the band settling into an awesome groove and showcasing Vallejo’s vocal skills. The clean production and mix serve the album very well and allows the music to have a rich mix of dynamics when the guitar solo hits, it jumps out of the mix perfectly. The band brings the tempo down for the ballad ‘Til the Right One Comes Along’ where the band channel into a bit more of a Red Dirt sound and could find the band maximizing some crossover success. The acoustic guitar intro to ‘Amnesia’ leads into a southern bluesy rock song that hits all the right notes.
The band open ‘You Don’t Love Me Like That Anymore’ like it might be another ballad but turn it into a great rocker after the first verse. This would be another one that I think would make an excellent single and stand out on the radio. The guitar notes in the chorus work perfectly. If you are a fan of Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers or Cody Canada’s work, this should definitely appeal to you. One of my other current favorites follows in ‘The Door.’ Some excellent keys start the song with the feel of a classic 70’s slow burning rock song. There is not a wasted moment over the song’s four minutes with every element in the band showcased from the rhythm work to the guitars (with former member Bruce Castleberry on this one) to the vocals. This is sublime from start to finish with the pace and urgency building to a fiery climax. ‘Let Me Go’ is another southern rocking anthem with a solid hook but perhaps currently suffers on the album in that it follows ‘The Door.’ I think this will be one of the slow burners for me that will eventually get a lot more plays.
If you are keeping track of the number of songs, you have likely figured out this is not a short album. At 15 songs, it runs the risk of musical overkill, especially these days when some people spend less time with albums and focus on specific songs. The band erase any worries with the musical variety and depth on the 15 songs offered here which leads us to another potential crossover song, ‘You’re Welcome.’ Lyrically, our main character ends a relationship with the message that one day she will thank him as she will find someone better. This should be played a lot on the radio here in Texas with a similar feel to Cross Canadian Ragweed or a touch of Blackberry Smoke. The band then channel the blues with ‘When I’m Gone’ which rises from the swamp into a hard rocker with more excellent slide guitar. This will hopefully be a live staple as the band tap into an amazing groove, and I can see this leading into an extended jam where the song goes from three and a half minutes to more than double its length.
The band stay with the blues for ‘The Bottle’ which also features Guy Forsyth. As opposed to the previous song, this stays acoustic and deliberate in its pace. The intensity builds as the story unfolds, but the tempo remains the same on this eight minute epic. Close your eyes and you can feel the magic as you sit out on the porch with the wind blowing and the storm clouds approaching at sunset. I will not reveal what happens in the story here, but the lyrical pay off is extremely well done. Final song ‘Love is On the Way’ opens with a spoken word like the opener did, giving way to an acoustic guitar. This would have been a nice closer to the movie ‘Almost Famous.’ I don’t think this one could have been placed anywhere else on the album as it leads to the perfect close on the album with Vallejo’s vocals showcasing range, heart, soul, and passion. The band slowly rise into the mix right near the end for the final send off of the album. We end with a message of hope through all the darkness.
While this likely won’t appeal to all RPM readers, I know a lot of you like a wide variety of rock music so wanted to introduce you to Brodie Lane. I have revisited the debut a couple times since this one dropped, but it still doesn’t grab me as much. This album though takes us on a musical journey where we feel and experience the songs throughout the album. These guys have poured their souls into this album, and we are the lucky recipients.
Sydney Northern Beaches’ very own hard-biting rockers C.O.F.F.I.N are announcing their fifth full-length studio album today entitled ‘Australia Stops’, the highly anticipated follow-up to their monumental ‘Children In Finland Fighting In Norway’ album from 2020. Due for release this coming September 15th via Bad Vibrations in Europe, the new album comes off the back of the band’s tour with Amyl and the Sniffers in 2022, and their recent UK tour dates in May.
‘Australia Stops’ was recorded in January 2023 at The Pet Food Factory studio with producer Jason Whalley (Frenzal Rhomb) behind the desk. A record that showcases a collection of diverse and gripping new works that highlight the band’s evolution into more melodious, 1970’s Australiana and boogie rock and roll.
Frenzied, high-voltage guitars, thumping rhythms, flowing melody and clever, captivating lyrics exhibit an undeniable progression in composition and songwriting, while still unmistakably the C.O.F.F.I.N that fans world-wide have come to worship over their 18-year lifespan.
Following the release of previous single ‘Cut You Off’, C.O.F.F.I.N return today with a second chomp on ‘Australia Stops’ in new single ‘Give Me A Bite’. It’s the album’s opening track and comes out of the traps all guns blazing, tapping into their love of Detroit rock n’ roll and proto-punk.
“Throughout a chunk of the Covid lockdowns I was still working full time on construction sites and in the art department of film sets,” explains vocalist and drummer Ben Portnoy. “For weeks my Friday routine was to come home and blast this bootlegged Stooges LP from France. It was recommended and sold to me by Ray Ahn of the Hard-Ons who works at Utopia Records. It’s made up of piecemeal demos and blown-out jams by the band, all of which are bursting with amplified energy. I was really missing jamming with my friends and showing up to our sweaty storage unit/jam space in Brookvale with new inspiration from the week’s listening. Trying to resolve this, I got on the video chat with Aaron one Friday night and we did our best to nut something out that had a sense of that sound we love so much.
“What’s it saying?” continues Ben. “Well, you can only get for so long without giving …without giving me a bite.”
For those who are no strangers to the Australian highways, ‘Australia Stops’ may be best recognised as words donned on the back of truck mud flaps. To C.O.F.F.I.N, ‘Australia Stops’ are words that became a polysemous idea and observation on Australian society, culture, art, politics and progression. “When the city burns up you get out, when the flint hits shot you get down”, lyrics roared by Ben, a look into ‘idle-Australia’, our government action (or lack thereof) to social issues and the overarching notion of fear of change in this country.
While the theme ‘Australia Stops’ poses political questions and ideals, it also synchronously shines light on the eminence of community, the healthy beating heart of art and music, the beautiful landscapes and divergent nature surroundings held dear within Australia. With this, ‘Australia Stops’ is neither a fully positive or negative elucidation of this country. It is a celebration of the things we are lucky to have, while always trying to encourage and inspire those around us to try and do better.
‘Australia Stops’ will be released on Friday September 15th by Damaged Record Co (Clowns, Private Function, VOIID) in Australia, Goner Records (Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Jay Reatard, Ty Segall) in North America and Bad Vibrations (Los Bitchos, Crows, Baby Cool) in Europe.
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