WHITE MOTH BLACK BUTTERFLY – The Cost Of Dreaming
A multi-national effort encompassing the UK, the USA and India, the group follow up on their hot 2017 release Atone with an album that surpasses it and proves to be an even better result.
Drawing you in with a stellar intro, they waste no time digging into the juicy material, boosted by a production that enforces what is without a doubt the most vast and awe-inspiring scale I’ve heard from a record all year; no exaggeration, it’s insanely breath-taking.
The multiple vocal performances are on strong form, the guitar work is slick, the rhythms tight, the merged keys and synths sensational, and the choruses often reach epic proportions. From start to finish, The Cost Of Dreaming is a vivid, masterfully crafted musical journey guaranteed to blow your senses sky high.
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The fast rising Irishman delivers once heck of a debut EP that matches up to the hype surrounding him as of late.
Niall has a proud and hearty voice, and you can’t help but admire the awfully nice writing and the genuine personal nature of the lyrics which really hit you in the right spot.
He brings us melodies that range from pleasantly calm, to more upbeat and exhilarating, and great work on the likes of the guitar, violin and the piano, all livened up by an altogether spotless production.
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The Brighton punk rock chums are beginning to garner a lot of attention as of late with their recently released album, and deservedly so in my books, helping to solidify them as one of the best of the genre within the English underground.
The vocals are quite legit and fired up, assisting the listener in getting equally stimulated in conjunction with the blinding distorted riffs and the rhythms which, when at full throttle, are such a blast.
Most are topped by these banging choruses chocked with great hooking lyrics seeping into your mind, and for that matter, the writing in general is pretty engaging.
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The long-time friends and underground music faces from Massachusetts give us a slick post punk record where their experience in the field is very much on display.
There’s a spry excitement to the tunes which particularly comes from the rocking guitar work and strong drumming. The vocals have a great deal of moxie to them, and the choruses are unforgettable, lodged with banging hooks galore.
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MISPLACED – Fell In Love With A Lie
The Scottish pop punk lads have had a fair surge in popularity lately, and their latest EP shows that they’ve really stepped up their games since day one.
There’s a real serious oomph to the harmonies, with Kyle going all in with a flared up zest like his life depended on it, helping to put on show the great lyrics.
The melodies are dead energetic, packed with wild, hardened riffs, ringing bass tones and clobbering drum fills, and combined they make up some bloody blazing and catchy numbers, except for Storyboard, which in its case is a pleasant, thought-spilling acoustic tune, and Fates & Fairytales which has a neat electronic pulp.
An impressive effort from the group emanating with wallops of potential and proving that they might just be ready to take it to the next level.
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The Wellington outfit present an utterly dazzling EP that is without a doubt one of the finest releases I’ve come across from out of New Zealand.
All but one of the tracks are fronted by Alba Rose and her sensationally alluring voice, then in her absence on It’s Just So is Coralie Martin, who has this wonderfully celestial presence to her.
The fancy synth/electronic work is a consistent plus and the beats are more often than not enjoyable, and there are surreal guitar chords often mixed in that expand upon the outlandish and dreamy atmosphere.
The more melodic numbers have a nice spring to them as well as fabulous choruses, especially Raptor which is downright addictive and endlessly taps at you to get up and boogie along.
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LAURA MacFARLANE – Aqua Orange Silver Green
The new EP from the young Airdrie singer-songwriter is relatively simple in nature but really nice and welcoming in tone. The songs contain heartening lyrics, pleasant vocals and occasionally the odd infectious hook, such as with the utterly catchy chorus of Silver which refuses to get unstuck from your head no matter how hard you try.
This is the perfect record to stick on if you are in a bit of a negative slump and need to put a smile on your face, it’s clear as day a skill that Laura is well versed at, and honestly, the more kind of content like this out there, the merrier.
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The Athens guitarist brings us a series of cracking performances involving remarkable and diverse riff displays across all the tracks, most notably during the variety of melodic portions that are pretty freaking catchy and buzz-inducing.
But it’s not just all about the guitar, there’s also an array of other instruments on hand here helping to forge the great rhythm sections, such as the solid basslines and drum beats, a rare appearance of decent stretches of piano keys and glockenspiels, and especially the bright and sublime synths.
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SMALL MUSIC SCENE 