Showing posts with label The Darlingtons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Darlingtons. Show all posts

Saturday, 31 May 2014

Ralph's Top 10 Blogged Band Chart - 31.5.14

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                                                    OK bands you know the score.....

the more hits your blog gets by the fans..... 

the higher you go.....

So Tweet it, Facebook it.....

and generally expose yourself.....






Now Mr Snuggles and me have been sitting with our heads down counting the hits on each bands blog to see who's got which place.  

So here it is.....

The Top Ten Blogged Band Chart .....










No 1..... Thumpers 



Ralph normally concentrates on unsigned UK Indie however when he heard London Alt Pop Duo Thumpers (Marcus Pepperell on vocal, guitar, keyboards and John Hamson Jr. on vocal, bass, drums) are going to be playing just round the corner from the kennel at Central Library, St Helens in May it was time to take a look and a listen. They announced the release of their debut album 'Galore' on Sub Pop records and it's been receiving no small amount of critical acclaim and heavy airplay (yes Ralph's given them a spin on Radio KC) including on Radio 1's Huw Stephens show.






No 2.....Book Group



It's been a hectic time in the kennel for new tunes and it was with great interest that news of the new EP by Book Group (due for release may 17th) appeared in the inbox. Ralph took a look last year when they released the 








No 3... The Backhanders




Embedded image permalink

It's always nice when a hard copy of someones latest release drops through the letterbox, as is the case when; courtesy of the enigmatic Mr Peeps, the niftily designed CD just out by The Backhanders in the style of a vinyl 7" single arrived and its look fits in with the two tracks contained within.









No 4....The Actions



Normally Ralph only blogs unsigned UK Indie, but now and again some mainstream goodness drops in the kennel that peaks his interest and when 'Indefensible', the new EP by London based Alt/Rockers The Actions arrived it was time for some rule bending (Their first album 'Real' was licensed to Nikita Music, a Brazilian record label and released in Latin America).







No 5..... United Fruit





The four piece Alt Rockers United Fruit, who formed in 2009 describe their style as - 'fusing noisy, fast-paced, discordant, post-punk with catchy melodies and crunching riffs'.






No 6.....Cormac O'Caoimh


cormacocaoimhIt's second time round for Ralph having a listen to Irish singer/songwriter Cormac O'Caoimh. A year ago he'd released his second solo album since leaving The Citadels called 'A New Season For Love' and this time round it's 'The Moon Looses It's Memory' and he's bringing us 14 tracks of love and regret, hopes and dreams, cars and girls, (OK, OK,  I've run out of descriptive song titles).






No 7.....KynchinLay


The new KynchinLay EP (launch night May 9th) has just dropped into the kennel, giving Ralph the chance to have a listen in advance. The Liverpool trio have been working hard to provide a bigger sound and with this excellently produced EP ('Dogfathers' and 'Leave Me Alone' were mixed at Motor Museum)








No 8.....The Phantoms 




The Phantoms are Colin Simpson on Vocals and Rhythm Guitar, Colin McKillop on Lead Guitar, Peter Stewart on Bass and Backing Vocals with Brad Young on Drums. They began with local gigs in their home town of Broxburn, and have since branched out into Edinburgh and Glasgow, landing gigs at venues such as Cab Vol, The Electric Circus, The Liquid Rooms, Maggie Mays, Sneaky Petes and Pivo Pivo, getting them noticed on the way by Jim Gellatly et al








No 9....Wullae Wright




Wullae Wright is capturing the same raw intensity of vocals that an early Robert Plant did.  Not only that his almost psychadelic guitar on the track also has the same haunting tones found on early Zep tracks.  An old rock soul in a young body.









No 10.....The Darlingtons


THE DARLINGTONS - Rotations
Now it's no secret that Ralph's a fan of Sheffield band The Darlingtons so it's with no small amount of glee that I heard they've just released their second single as an autonomous unit and it's another gem. 'Rotations' bursts into guitar driven loveliness as they bring us more of their well conceived, lyrically strong, Indie music.












Saturday, 5 April 2014

Ralph's Top 10 Blogged Band Chart - 5.4.14

Visit Michael Lindley's profile on Pinterest.

Ralph's Pinterest
                                                OK bands you know the score.....

the more hits your blog gets by the fans..... 

the higher you go.....

So Tweet it, Facebook it.....

and generally expose yourself.....






Now Mr Snuggles and me have been sitting with our heads down counting the hits on each bands blog to see who's got which place.  

So here it is.....

The Top Ten Blogged Band Chart .....











No 1.....Hector Bizerk



It's just over a year since Ralph did a fascinating Q & A with Louie of Hector Bizerk and a lot's happened in the interim including Audrey being nominated in Hit Like A Girl, winning Best Hip Hop in the Scottish Alternative Music Awards and jetting off to debut in New York!






No 2.....Fatherson




Third of the Scottish bands featured this week (Tijuana Bibles on Monday and Laykiller Caterpillar on Tuesday - do pay attention) is the increasingly impressive Fatherson. With the long awaited, much vaunted album about to be released (7th April) they're embarking on a UK album release tour and only this morning have released a video for one of the new tracks - 'I Like Not Knowing'. The good news for me is I've had a listen to the album on the QT and I can assure you the hype is not without merit - the bad news for you is, the wait 'til April 7th!







No 3.....Moscow



Stoke band Moscow return with their second release, the Pack Animals EP. Following on from 2013’s well-received Hell Fire EP, Pack Animals maintains the same gritty, post-punk direction but this time mixing it with a heavier, raucous edge and with lead track 'Pack Animals' weighs in as a heavier version of Killing Joke.








No 4..... Tijuana Bibles 



Ralph's always got his ear to the ground for new music as that's the best place to find some down and dirty tunes so finding Glasgow band Tijuana Bibles on Twitter was a result as they fit the bill nicely. Having played their track 'Wild River' on the Radio KC Indie Show recently I'm pleased to be able to announce the release of 'Toledo' this month and it ticks the aforementioned down and dirty boxes nicely as its thumping bass and grinding guitar batters in to a raucous vocal. 










No 5.....Silver Coast 





Ralph's attention's been draw 'Up North' with Inverness band Silver Coast releasing a new single 'Believe' on March 3rd. Formed at the end of 2012 and gigging relentlessly ever since (including supports with Fatherson and King Charles) they've amassed a large and faithful following locally. 















Photo by r@ymond.biz

Formed in 2013 from various Scottish bands, Ladykiller Caterpillar have just released an eponymous EP which should see them take their place at the forefront of the burgeoning Scottish Indie scene. Jacob and Neil (bass and guitar) played in several bands together, mainly in Edinburgh. Jani (guitar) from Troon is also veteran of the Edinburgh scene with Raymond (drums) having started in Dundee then playing in many well known venues.








No 7.... The Sons






Ralph's played Derby band The Sons single 'Death Love Money' on his Radio KC Indie Show a couple of times so it's about time he took a listen to the recently released album 'Heading Into Land' funded by fans and friends. It's a well crafted slice of alt-folk which leans on a variety of musical styles.






No 8.....The Darlingtons


THE DARLINGTONS - Rotations
Now it's no secret that Ralph's a fan of Sheffield band The Darlingtons so it's with no small amount of glee that I heard they've just released their second single as an autonomous unit and it's another gem. 'Rotations' bursts into guitar driven loveliness as they bring us more of their well conceived, lyrically strong, Indie music.













28.03.14


Following the release of their single 'Svengali Says' in December of last year, Duke and The Darlings have now put together an EP of Alt-Pop songs for our delectation and launched it in the hallowed halls of the Blackjack Brewery, Manchester.








No 10....Ian Roland




IAN ROLAND - Never Be Lost

It's no secret that despite his penchent for Indie rock music, Ralph's fond of a bit of Alt-Folk too. So when the new EP 'Helicopter' by Ian Roland dropped into the inbox it was on with the headphones and press play.  Ian is a singer/songwriter from Brighton who has a talent for writing contemporary folk songs that cast your mind back to the musical stylings of an early James Taylor or Gordon Lightfoot.












Thursday, 3 April 2014

The Darlingtons - Rotations


THE DARLINGTONS - Rotations

Now it's no secret that Ralph's a fan of Sheffield band The Darlingtons so it's with no small amount of glee that I heard they've just released their second single as an autonomous unit and it's another gem. 'Rotations' bursts into guitar driven loveliness as they bring us more of their well conceived, lyrically strong, Indie music.

The Darlingtons describe the track as - “a high energy, punchy, dynamic song full of fuzzy guitars and captivating vocals”








The Darlingtons have gigged relentlessly around the UK supporting the likes of Catfish and the Bottlemen and King Charles, this summer the band will be making their debut appearances at both The Great Escape and Dot to Dot festivals as well as returning to Tramlines Festival...don't miss a chance to catch them live!
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Courtesy of trust a fox photography
The Darlingtons have also been long-listed on Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent competition for 2014. For me, they're a headline band in waiting, and with strong material like 'Rotations' and of course Ralph's personal favourite 'Bats' in their armoury it wont be long before they're mounting an assault on the main stages of the major festivals.











UPCOMING GIGS





Friday, 1 November 2013

Ralph's Top 10 Blogged Band Chart - 1.11.13


OK bands you know the score.....

the more hits your blog gets by the fans..... 

the higher you go.....

So Tweet it, Facebook it.....

and generally expose yourself.....






Now Mr Snuggles and me have been sitting with our heads down counting the hits on each bands blog to see who's got which place.  

So here it is.....

The Top Ten Blogged Band Chart .....








No 1..... Under A Banner


Ralph previously looked at Wolverhampton Alt Folk/Rock band Under A Banner back in May when they released a single 'Some Stories' to aid the soldiers charity Help For Heroes.  Since then the band have been working hard to produce their ¿Acoustic? EP and the result is a heartfelt collection of well crafted songs. 










Have Mercy Las Vegas were the third and final of Ralph's trio of lively and energetic folk/rock bands reviewed back in November of last year. They're causing a bit of a stir on the Glasgow music scene with their unique sound, which although largely folk and blues based, is hard to pin down exactly as they appeal to a wider audience with every gig.








I recently attended a gig in Liverpool's Leaf Tearooms to take in local bands Lumin Bells and Red Sails which included an appearance by This Morning Call.  Main interest on the night was Lumin Bells but after their set probably a third of the audience left.  To their loss as it happens as This Morning Call produced a set that was as eclectic as it was mesmerising.










No 4.....Plum


Betsy Thunder cover art
Building on the impetus of her SAMA Best Electronic Award earlier this year Plum (aka Shona Maguire) has released a new EP 'Betsy Thunder'.  Just after releasing the EP she played a gig in The Pleasance, Edinburgh supporting Conquering Animal Sound so in order to introduce Ralph's former man in Scotland, Malcolm Parry as a fully fledged blogger (Scottish Sounds) in his own right, here's his review of the EP and gig...








No 5.....Kidsmoke




Kidsmoke are Lance Williams, James Stickels, Tomas Hassall and Chris Trow and despite being long time friends they've only formed as a unit in early 2013.  That being said they've come up with a solid, eminently listenable debut EP.  The lead track 'Higher' kicks off with an almost psychedelic/60's California vocal.









No 6..... The Darlingtons

THE DARLINGTONS - Don't Give Me Hope

Ralph makes no secret of his love of The Darlingtons track 'Bats' (closely followed by 'Watch Yourself'), both of which have featured regularly on his Radio KC Sunday Indie Show.  So it's no surprise his tail was wagging with news of their debut self-released single 'Don't Give Me Hope', due out November 25th 2013 along with an almost countrywide autumn tour.








No 7..... Red Sails 




If you're looking for well crafted, melodic tunes in a Steely Dan sylee then you've come to the right place because Ralph's been listening to Red Sails from Liverpool and it's time you did too!  Their tracks sound simple but are actually complex well written musical gems that soar, taking you on highs and lows with their lyrics and melodies.







No 8..... Graham Marshall




I was sent a You Tube video a few weeks ago that not only made me laugh but also renewed my faith in seeking out unsigned indie music.  It was self-made by Graham Marshall who three years ago tried to make a living in music but had to do the unthinkable – go back to a 'real job' as a truck driver for ASDA. Almost giving up hope of a musical career he now boasts a trophy awarded by the panel of the Barcelona International Film Festival and a newly released EP.





No 9..... The Gravity Drive


Since Ralph playlisted the forthcoming single 'Circles' by The Gravity Drive back on the 20th October for his Indie Show with Radio KC he's had numerous requests for more info, so being a Jack Russell and inquisitive by nature, dug deeper. 

The Gravity Drive are husband and wife duo Elijah and Ava Wolf who release their music on their own label, the aptly named Elijah Wolf Music. 









No 10.....The Low Countries

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Ralph's an equal opportunities Jack Russel and having just covered Scottish Indie folk/blues band Have Mercy Las Vegas decided to stick with the genre in order to bring you news of the latest (and apparently final) album release by The Low Countries.