Album Review: ABCD by Melanie

During the great summer lockdown of 2020 I found myself with a lot of time to search through Bandcamp discovery checking out new bands. An absolute favourite of mine was New Zealand’s jangly indie pop punk band Melanie. I absolutely loved their debut album, 42 Losers, it even found a place into my top ten of the year. In 2021, they released 42 Losers on vinyl and I would hazard a guess that I am the only person in the UK who owns it (thanks largely to the band very kindly helping me out with shipping costs). On January 26th of this year, Melanie release a brand new four track EP titled ABCD. I was very keen to see how the band follows up 42 Losers.

ABCD kicks off with All Talk, No Trousers. I’m always a sucker for a quiet introduction that leads into a big explosion and that’s exactly what Melanie do here. What is extra enjoyable about this intro though is the urgency that James Dentice sings with. This urgent tempo remains throughout the song and keeps you hooked. The song is about not living up to the standards you set yourself and the feelings that that brings. Next up is the EP’s lead single, Brains. If you haven’t checked out the excellent video for this song then you can do so here. On my first listen of the song it was obvious why Melanie picked this song for the first single. The track starts loudly, really grabbing you, before James’ vocals come in and offer a more melodic path for the song to travel down. James’ vocals do a magnificent job in telling a story and taking you along for the ride. It’s about the struggle of not fitting in and feeling as if you are being held down by oppressive people. As the song continues, the emotion and anguish becomes stronger, really adding to the turmoil that the character is going through.

The penultimate track is titled Cold Feet. The emotion is turned up to eleven to start the song, grabbing the listener’s attention in a different way. There’s a lot more crunch to the song than on the previous two tracks with Joe Gasparich’s drumming really standing out, powering the song forward. James demonstrates that he is equally adept in the shouting style of singing as well the more melodic side. There is a guitar solo midway through the song that is either played by James or the band’s other guitarist, Robin Davey Rusk, that shreds as well as any technical skate punk band does. A Wilhelm Scream would be very pleased with it. ABCD is completed with Delivery Boy, the only track on the EP to go over three minutes (and two for that matter). There’s so much going on in this song. It starts with James doing his best Kristopher Roe impression before the whole band come in with a plodding beat and some big gang vocals. Then, without warning, the tempo is upped and we get to the main portion of the track. I’d say this is the most uptempo of the four tracks on ABCD and also one of the catchiest. It won’t be long until it gets stuck in your head, that’s for certain. As the track begins to wind down, the tempo comes down slightly and we are treated to a grand finale outro that is just epic. A very fitting way to finish the song and the entire EP.

If ABCD doesn’t place very highly in my favourite EPs of 2022 then it’s been the best year for new music ever. I seriously encourage every single one of you reading this review to go and check out Melanie. One, because they’re a seriously good band who deserve your attention and, two, so they can gain a massive UK fanbase so that they can come tour over here and I can finally see them. Thanks.

Follow Melanie’s Bandcamp here, ready for when ABCD is released.

Like Melanie on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Album Review: How To Live Life by Superfriends (by Omar Ramlugon)

Brighton’s Superfriends have been understatedly purveying their charming brand of poignant jangle rock for a good few years now, starting with 2018’s single ‘Iowa’ followed by 2019’s self-titled EP – a sweet and melodic set of songs enriched by flourishes of synth alongside guitarist/singer Harry Atkinson’s sprightly chord progressions. They’ve slowly but surely defined out a sound that touches on some familiar names while adding their own personalities and elements to the mix. With all this in mind, I would say that it is in no way a disservice to say that ‘How To Live Life’ is their best work yet.

 

The song opens with clean, springy guitar chording reminiscent of R.E.M’s Peter Buck, a guitarist often imitated but rarely in such a smile-inducing fashion as it is here. Then the rest of the song burbles into life with a warmth and energy, the rhythm section’s tightness and delightful contrapuntal bassline only serving to further complement the guitar’s chord progression. Atkinson’s friendly tenor is pushed slightly up in the mix and gives an element of intimacy and sadness to it all amongst the ostensibly playful instrumentation.

His lyrics draw you in with an almost conversational style before breaking your heart, and knowing that this song was conceived in the wake of his grandfather’s passing only heightens the emotional impact. Atkinson intones ‘I will try to do right by you’ in the choruses with an almost hitch in his voice that makes you want to give him a hug. But then, after an already great slice of jangle rock for the first four or so minutes, the song breaks into a slow, rolling outro, driving the material into new territory and serving as a more hopeful, rising-to-ones-feet moment with a refrain of ‘We will remember you’ overlaid with defiant shouts of the same line, almost shouting in the face of grief and emotional turmoil, to encourage the listener to keep going and try again in the face of life’s many battles.

This is an outstanding piece of work. Let’s all hope an album isn’t too far behind.

How To Live Life is out on Sunday 19th December. Pre-save it now here.

Like Superfriends on Facebook and check out their previous releases on Bandcamp.

Album Review: Congrats, For Now by Got Trash?

Got Trash? are a four piece band from Denton, Texas. The band, who describe themselves as “whatever The Mountain Goats are, but angstier”, only started in 2019 but have somehow found the time to release a demo and two EPs. The second EP, which I am about to review, is titled Congrats, For Now and was released in August. I was lucky enough to discover it on a Bandcamp Discovery binge and had to share it with all of you.

Congrats, For Now begins with Seven Harder Steps To Realize My Body Is A Sin Puppet. On my first listen I was really impressed with the energy in the song. A big part of this was due to the use of gang vocals throughout the song. The song begins with a building guitar part and rolling drum beat that gets you amped up for the vocals. From then on the band continues to build the song up. There’s an air of intensity as the song progresses that really makes the song captivating. The track’s highlight comes in its ending when the two vocalists perform a call and response section that ensures the song finishes in a big way. The second track is titled Interlude 69 which is a mostly instrumental track. It was an interesting decision to include this style of song on a three track EP and I’m glad they did. I also found it equal parts annoying and hilarious that this was the only song on Congrats, For Now that the band provided lyrics for on Bandcamp. It’s such a mesmerising song that it’s hard not to be swept away with it. The guitars in particular are great, with their jangly, upbeat nature giving a lot of life to the song. Last up is Irish Goodbye At Terminal Velocity. This song showcases the more pop side of Got Trash? as well as showcasing elements of indie, emo and perhaps even jazz. The song is a very sad one about missing a friend who has sadly died and not having had the opportunity to say goodbye. The lyric “if an angel earned its wings then why did I lose a friend?” is completely heartbreaking and shows what strong lyricists Got Trash? are.

This is a great, but far too short, EP from Got Trash?. This is obviously a foursome with a great amount of potential and I’m already yearning for more from the band. Got Trash? are a band you need to check out now.

Stream and download Congrats, For Now on Bandcamp here.

Like Got Trash? on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Album Review: Sprawling by Happy Accidents (by Robyn Pierce)

At the end of May, Happy Accidents gave everyone a welcome surprise when they released their third full-length album entitled Sprawling. The pop-indie band has been slimmed down to two members (Phoebe Cross and Rich Mandell) since 2018’s Everything But The Here And Now, but thankfully they don’t seem to have lost any steam. I’ve really enjoyed both of the band’s previous albums and their set at MPF in 2018 was one of my favourites from the weekend, so I was super excited for some new music from them (particularly at this moment in time, when new music feels like a liferaft in the storm that is 2020).

The album opens up with the delicate guitar picking and meditative vocals of ‘Whole’. The added keyboard and fuzz give the song a dreamy and other-worldly feeling, and I absolutely love the vocal overlays and harmonies. Next come the two singles that the band released ahead of the full album, ‘Secrets’ and ‘Grow’. These are definitely two of the best songs on the album and, together with ‘Whole’, make for a very strong beginning.‘Secrets’ is a little faster and more poppy, with dry vocals in the verses setting up for a full and catchy chorus. This song seems to build on ‘Whole’, both in how the vocals are beautifully combined and arranged, and in the theme of completely taking on all of the different aspects of a friend or partner; accepting a person with all of their secrets and flaws, the whole package, in good times and bad. ‘Grow’ is slower again, but is propelled by a playful guitar riff and offers some thoughtful lyrics about planting seeds of change and having the courage to grow.

The title track ditches the guitar for some keys and has a cool syncopated rhythm. I like the straightforward, almost one-note delivery of the vocals that works with the beat to give the song a steady momentum (also, there’s a lovely easter egg for the band’s first album You Might Be Right). ‘If I Do’ slows things down with a song about confronting a difficult situation and moving on, while ‘Sparkling’ brings in a slightly more poppy (dare I say effervescent) sound again. Something in the moody reflective nature of ‘Sparkling’ reminds me of Straylight Run, but it’s more jaded-adult than emotional-highschooler.

Following this are ‘Inside’ and ‘Outside’. The first juxtaposes a fun and upbeat melody with the dark and blunt confession of feeling “dead inside”, while the second is a slower poppy tune about not wanting to face the outside world. Together, these two songs seem to reflect upon the difficulties of depression and anxiety, and the different ways in which they can be so debilitating. Initially I enjoyed the front half of the album, but I’ve really come to like these two songs in particular. ‘Inside’ is comically honest, while ‘Outside’ builds beautifully at the end, and both have a strong melody to carry them. ‘Back in My Life’ is a fun bop that brings back some guitar fuzz, and ‘Comet’ closes the album with some more dreamy guitar picking.

Coming into their third album, Happy Accidents have veered away from more raucous bursts of energy into a more carefully measured indie sound. Although the album is slightly subdued compared to previous releases, these songs are thoughtfully and beautifully composed. Sprawling feels personal, mixing unfiltered honesty with swirling sounds and playful melodies. This is probably helped by the fact that Cross and Mandell produced the album themselves, and there is no one else interposing between the music and the listener. I’ve come to enjoy Sprawling more and more as I go back for repeat listens. It’s definitely worth checking out, particularly if you’re looking for something a little calmer and more reflective that’s still fun and catchy.

Stream and download Sprawling on Bandcamp here.

Like Happy Accidents on Facebook here.

This review was written by Robyn Pierce.

Album Review: Dear Life by My Altamont

My Altamont is the project of New Jersey/Philadelphia based musician Chris Tull, formerly of bands such as Erotic Novels, Jantones and Hellstroms. Influenced by the likes of The Ramones, Superchunk and Jawbreaker, in November My Altamont released a brand new EP titled Dear Life. I came across it thanks to Bandcamp discovery and I'm always keen to feature new bands on CPRW so here's my review.

The opening track on Dear Life is named Love And Affection. Instantly I can hear The Ramones influence on My Altamont. The buzzing guitars and simple but driving drums and the Joey Ramone-esque vocals really grabbed my attention. The song is about how your actions and behaviour, even if you don't mean it, can have big effect on your relationship. I thought a really nice touch was to include a female backing vocal (provided by Sandra Bullet) on the song. It helps the track play out like it's a conversation between the two of them. Gravity's Staircase is a slower song that's also really sad. It's about the life of an astronaut and how when you're in space everything is fine but being back on Earth you suffer heavily with depression. It's really interesting song topic that I've, unsurprisingly, not really heard before. My Altamont does a wonderful job of painting this picture that really allows you to imagine what's going on.

The third song on the EP is titled My Whole Life. Picking the pace back up, the song is a bit retrospective as My Altamont looks back at things they've done in their life and comes to the conclusion that they've been wasting their life. Despite the general glum feel to the song, it actually sounds quite upbeat and is packed with hooks and will get stuck in your head pretty quickly. The penultimate song is named The Greatest Day. That title is pretty misleading as it's another really sad song. On this track, My Altamont talks about being in a car accident, being hurt and believing that it's the best thing for everyone. Sad, sad stuff. My Altamont just broke my heart on the track, one of the saddest I've heard in some time. The tempo is again picked up for the final song, Sad Summer. Obviously, from that title, it's fairly obvious what it's about. On the track, My Altamont looks at what it's like when you're struggling with depression, not being able to get out, or even up out of bed during the summer whilst everyone else is out having a lovely time. I do prefer My Altamont when they are playing this more uptempo style, probably because I'm a massive Ramones fan. The big chorus at the end of the track is the perfect way to finish this fantastic EP.

Stream and download Dear Life here: https://myaltamont.bandcamp.com/

Like My Altamont here: https://www.facebook.com/MyAltamont/

This review was written by Colin Clark.