The Routes – No Good

For my money the most vital and punchy sounding pop music still sounds like it was made in a garage in the sixties, that template and energy are a design classic. There is a reason why fresh young bands are still making that sound today whilst Freddie & The Dreamers or Herman’s Hermits soundalikes are nowhere to be found. Stylistically the idea of ‘popular’ music has evolved into something different, it is only in my head unfortunately that records like this are troubling the ‘top ten’ but who really cares about that stuff nowadays anyway? The Routes are Japanese renegades based a long way south of Tokyo in the mountains of Oita who actually first formed twenty years ago as The Facials, so maybe my use of the word ‘young’ is stretching it a little. Their journey may have been a bit off/on in those years, with some inevitable line-up changes along the way, but their recently released ‘Lead Lined Clouds’ album on Soundflat Records demonstrates that none of the raw power that first ignited them into action has been lost, quite the opposite in fact, this is pure primitive pop excellence…

Josienne Clarke – Anyone But Me

Josienne Clarke’s musical journey has seen a massive gear change after busting out of an acclaimed folk duo set-up which appears to have collapsed for her both creatively and personally. The way she is fighting back from that deserves attention as her solo music of recent times feels so honest and committed. Part of that regeneration is on display with latest album ‘Onliness’, released on Corduroy Punk Records, as Josienne revisits songs from throughout her back pages offering them up for reinterpretation and some spectacular relighting. That is especially true of this song; the accompanying video is a black and white, tense and vintage style delight. I love the humour buried in the details, just look at the headlines on the back of the newspaper relating to football and cricket. As a fan of both I probably shouldn’t find such a blatant dig at my two favourite sports so funny, but when an artist is expressing themselves as eloquently as Josienne Clarke today, then you just sit back and give them the floor…

BAILEN – Call It Like It Is

Here are a band of siblings out of New York with a genuinely infectious tune built around a simple clubby bass and drum groove, brought to life by a gritty lead vocal married to a melody that leaves its insistent imprint in your head. BAILEN are Julia Bailen on vocals and guitar, David Bailen on vocals and drums and Daniel Bailen on vocals and bass. They describe ‘Call It like It Is’ from the new album ‘Tired Hearts’ as “an anthem for anyone who refuses to be taken advantage of. It unmasks the ugly truth behind shiny veneers.” Sometimes simplicity exposes a lack of ideas, other times it is a strength when a song is so good it blossoms on the core elements alone, ‘Call It Like It Is’ is definitely the latter…

The Nude Party – Cherry Red Boots

This North Carolina sextet are releasing their third album, ‘Rides On’, on New West Records and the great news is that none of the rollicking good-time Americana vibes they are noted for have fallen away. If anything they are even more loaded with the good stuff today. Listening to The Nude Party for the first time in 2018 was a joyous experience as it felt like I should be marking every single song as an album highlight. The same thing happened with ‘Rides On’, their secret seems to be that in addition to bottling satisfying echoes of The Rolling Stones and The Byrds, they overload us with fantastic new songs just as they are overwhelming us with denim in this new video. The songwriting is where so many bands with reference points to the past fall short, but The Nude Party are shining bright today with good reason…

Gramercy Arms – Yesterday’s Girl

This is a stripped back acoustic performance from Gramercy Arms of a song featuring as the opening track on the collective’s new third album ‘Deleted Scenes’, released on the Magic Door Record Label. The bittersweet sound of Big Star is unmistakable on this duet between Dave Derby and Renee Lo Bue, which should come as no surprise as the modus operandi of Gramercy Arms is all about the hazy sunset sounds of America’s greatest sunshine pop mixed with gorgeous, happy/sad acoustic melancholy. The project leaves plenty of space for collaboration too, in fact this song was a co-write with Lloyd Cole, so with an abundance of influences and influencers thrown into the melting pot, the Gramercy Arms project remains a subtle little indiepop delight smoking out of the cracks in the US music scene…

Lakecia Benjamin – New Mornings

The New York alto saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin is working a look with more than a casual nod to the futuristic cutting edge worn by Miles Davis at the onset of the 1970s in this live performance clip. With her band she plays one of the stand out pieces from new album ‘Phoenix’, released on Whirlwind Recordings, a stunning follow up to 2020’s ‘Pursuance: The Coltranes’ and a very welcome return after a serious 2021 car accident left her with a broken jaw, broken ribs, a perforated ear drum, concussion and presumably multiple concerns for her music career. Not only that but the Covid pandemic left a devastatingly tragic toll on Lakecia’s family. But as the album title suggests, it was music fuelling her momentum on the road to recovery as, in tandem with a striking visual presentation, she continues to make some of the most vital sounding Jazz on the scene today which ‘Phoenix’ testifies so stylishly…