Posts Tagged ‘independent music’

logo playlistJuly might have been much quieter than usual, but it was not a dull month in any way. The soundtrack of the month included the release of a very promising debut single by Virgin Vampires who are warming us up for their first album that sounds as if it will be following a darkwave path. The new offering by Peace De Resistance was refreshing with its combination of socially perceptive lyrics and a glam rock attitude. The new album by The March Violets is a classic gothic rock album that should be heard on the dancefloor of any dark alternative club.

Finally the new psych-rock release by Black Market Karma is inspired by the characteristics of analogue recording equipment with the aim of making the album “…feel like a collection of discarded and worse for wear instruments came to life, refurbished themselves and started to play. The sound is an attempt to give form to the often formless feeling that is nostalgia. With songs attempting to crystallise a feeling known as ‘fernweh’. A kind of longing for a place and time you’ve never experienced, be it in this world or another.” as Stanley Belton explained.

 

We think that this short and sweet playlist will be a great accompaniment to a very warm evening during the hours of the sunset and we hope that you enjoy it as much as we did while preparing it!


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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums May 2024

Posted: 3rd July 2024 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistHere we are at the end of the Spring that never came with a monthly soundtrack that probably has the most debut album entries for a long time. There are two entries that need a special mention and they are the new releases by Chameleons and Barry Adamson. Both have been keeping us wondering about a next release and here they are. Chameleons with the EP ‘Where Are You?’ -teaser of an upcoming full-length album and Barry Adamson, faithful to his soul/rock existential blues offered us ‘CUT TO BLACK’ an album that fits very well within the rest of his discography.


Another special mention is due to one of our all-time favourite bands from Italy, no other than Ataraxia who kept us very good company with a nature-inspired, ceremonial, ethereal album entitle ‘Centaurea’. We particularly liked the psych rock releases of this month, both the new single by Julie’s Haircut and the new album by The Janitors which, at times, is reminiscent of the hazy  and grunge atmosphere of the music of The Stooges.

As always, we were delighted to listen to the new album by PIG, as his addictive sensual take on industrial music is always managing to make us realise that we really don’t have enough of this type of rejuvenating energy. Six years after ‘The Heretics’ Rotting Christ have come back with ‘PRO XRISTOU’, another album with big sound and big ideas, faithful to the band’s black metal character and favourite themes.

The debut albums of this month’s soundtrack prove that we are now living at a time when the quality of releases that come to us from new bands, is incredibly high. ‘YOBS’ by YOBS, ‘L’Enfant Terrible’ by L’Enfant Terrible, ‘Weaponize Tomorrow’ by MISSILES, ‘Discerning Spirits’ by A Sinister Light, all add a powerful note and reveal a fresh take on punk, coldwave and post-punk respectively.

We would like to end with a mention of the album ‘Heksescapes’ by Edward Ka Spel, an all-time favourite musician whose sonic spells accompany us like a protective spirit and the release of LEDFOOT, that hits our rock note and made us put ‘Thunder And Rain’ on our portable device so that we could listen to it on repeat.

Until next month, we hope you enjoy this as much as we did while preparing it.

 

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Monthly playlist- Favourite albums March 2024

Posted: 21st April 2024 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums February 2024

Posted: 30th March 2024 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistA month whose soundtrack includes new albums by and also the trees, PET NEEDS and Whispering Sons is not one to pass by!

We might have had terrible cold, dark days here in London last month but great music kept us good company. With a few exceptions, most releases in February, explored existential themes as highlighted through their lyrics.

PET NEEDS have come back with yet another powerful, socially perceptive punk album that encompasses within its lyrics, everyday life scenes and thoughts of a reality consumed by existential fear. A similar path is followed by the lyrics of Whispering Sons, albeit one that has a stronger theatrical element. During February, we were delighted to listen to the debut post-punk/darkwave album by TORCH, a new band from Aarhus. and also the trees, offered us yet another beautiful album, an elegy to known and unknown sides of a city. Finally, a special mention is due, to Vera Sola , whose dark folk album ‘Peacemaker’ draws inspiration from her personal experiences and presents them using poetic, melancholic vignettes.

The psychedelic side of this month’s soundtrack is represented by the incredibly powerful album by Thee Alcoholics, whose cover is evidently inspired by pop art and some of its guitar riffs bring to mind those of Black Sabbath.

We hope you like this playlist as much as we enjoyed making it!

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For some reason, we have always thought that reviewing a personal album, like this one, would never do it justice. We overcame these hesitations, and this had everything to do with the album’s particular atmosphere created by the music.

Nick Carlisle coverWe have been trying to think of another album we have come across that had so much light amidst so much darkness…nothing comes to mind and, with every new listening session, we are getting more and more reassured about this. But let’s take things from the beginning.

Bloody Saturnalia‘ comes after the release of a haunting soundtrack to celebrate 100 years from the release of the movie ‘Hӓxan’. It is an album inspired by and dedicated to Nick Carlisle’s father, who sadly passed away on New Year’s Eve 2023. The title of this album and the subjects of its lyrics also relate to the book ‘Defying Hitler: A Memoir by Sebastian Haffner’ whose theme, the rise of Nazism in Germany, is a timely one as we see the rise of populism around the world today. Kenneth Clarke’s documentary series ‘Civilisation’ also fed into the themes of various songs on this album (e.g. ‘Another Level Down‘, ‘Life in A Major Key, ‘Bloody Saturnalia‘).

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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums October 2023

Posted: 20th November 2023 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistWe listened to 70 independent/underground releases during October 2023, and we were stunned by the debut singles/EP/albums during this month. 26 of these 70 releases form this monthly playlist and let us admit that there have been a few disappointing releases that did not make it despite our biased convictions that they would.

There are some big highlights here and I am not just referring to the customary October release by Nox Arcana who once again gave us a haunting gothic sonata to get us through Spooktober! Oliver Marson, whose intriguing stage presence we enjoyed recently at the 100 Club, released a very memorable, new wave, synthwave album entitled ‘Why Did I Choose This?‘. The overall sound of this album brings to mind equally the Psychedelic Furs and Japan and the melodies are addictive beyond belief. The lyrics also share some Bukowski qualities and are quite poetic and pop at the same time.

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Logo interviewThe dark alternative music scene has had a myriad of new bands emerge during the last decade but very few have stuck around. Even fewer have consistently released interesting and genre-bending music. Bestial Mouths started in 2009 and hit our radar a few years later after the release of ‘Hissing Veil’. 14 years later, they are one of the most visually and sonically interesting bands to follow, not only because they defy any categorisation but because the quality of their releases is quite remarkable every single time.

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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums August 2023

Posted: 4th October 2023 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistAugust is traditionally a calmer month when it comes to music releases but this one had some significant highlights which are hard to bypass. The return of PiL 8 years after the release of their previous studio album ‘What The World Needs Now’ with a punk gem that brings in some subtle Belgian coldwave elements too. ‘End Of World‘ is the bone-cracking title of the band’s latest offering ahead of the celebration of their 45th anniversary with a gig at O2 Forum Kentish Town.


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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums June 2023

Posted: 17th July 2023 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistHeavy guitars, grinding synths, industrial textures, and captivating post-apopalyptic folk were the order of this month. Our favourite albums and music releases seemed to respond to some sort of ominous call. Maybe it’s Johny Brown ‘s poetic farewell to an imaginary Babylon or even the title of King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s self-released album, but in any case we feel that there is something sinister in the air, something close to what this band describes through heavy psych rock music as a petrodragonic apocalypse.


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Monthly playlist-Favourite albums April 2023

Posted: 15th May 2023 by blaue-rosen in Music News,press releases
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logo playlistApril was the month with the biggest number of releases so far in 2023. The 66 releases we listened to during this month covered everything from dream pop to existential symphonic metal, and for that reason it represents almost all the moods that we went through the last month. Our favourite albums of the month reflect this incredible mix of music that talented people created for us from around the world.


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