UNDERGROUND// Colour Me Wednesday

Politically charged pop punk from West London that IS suitable for vegans

"I'd change the world/ one person at a time" sings Jennifer Doveton on Shut, the opening track from the band's debut album I Thought It Was Morning.

More than just lyrics, they serve as a mission statement for Colour Me Wednesday (completed by Harriet Doveton and Carmela Pietrangelo), a band who describe themselves as feminist, left-wing vegans.

Their songs tackle everything from all-powerful carnivores- (I'm Not Coming To Your) BBQ- to right-wing boyfriends- Purge Your Inner Tory- through the medium of 3 minute slices of upbeat pop punk.

Citing Kate Nash and Best Coast as influences it's easy to see why the West Londoners are making waves both here and across the pond, having toured the East Coast of America in support of their most recent album, a split with Washington DC's Spoonboy, before returning to our shores to support fellow Riot Grrrls Kate's Party. 

It won't be long before they've converted the whole world, one person at a time. 

REVIEW// Julia Holter/ Have You In My Wilderness

Julia Holter's 4th album is a world to get lost in, just don't wander to far...

On Have You In My Wilderness Julia Holter invites us to share her private universe, in which she explores themes of love, trust, power and relationships using her own brand of avant-garde pop and almost poetic lyricism. It is perhaps no coincidence then, that on the album's cover Holter mirrors an early image of punk-poet Patti Smith.

The opening harpsichord twangs of Feel You give way to Holter's haunting voice as she recalls "the memory of your piano"  over a bouncy bassline that adds melody to the melancholy. 

Holter's voice is the album's focal point, "Do you know the proper way to ask for a cigarette?" she questions on the cinematic How Long, over a sprawling string section. Yet even the orchestral bombast fails to dominate her charming tales.

Betsy On The Roof is the highlight though, Holter's voice is captivating as she coos "Oh oh she said", underpinned by a stirring piano line that accentuates the fragility of her voice, as we realise that Holter's world is an intimate one.

At times Holter gets lost in her own wilderness. Songs like Night Song and Vasquez wander without ever finding a way, too immersive against the left-field pop of Sea Calls Me Home.

It might be an album of two halves, but Have You In My Wilderness is wholly immersive, something to get lost in, and there isn't anywhere in the universe where we'd rather be.

REVIEW// Sexwitch/ S/T

Bat For Lashes embraces her dark side on demonic new album

Demonic, hypnotising, enchanting and ultimately weird. These are just some of the words that come to mind when listening to Sexwitch, the brain child of Bat For Lashes' Natasha Khan and Toy. 

Taking traditional 20th century folk songs originating from Iran, Morocco and Thailand and frying them in acid, Sexwitch is a far cry away from the accessible synth-pop of 2012's The Haunted Man. 

Opener Ha Howa Ha Howa's otherworldly crys of 'He addicted me and I addicted him' is a demonic call-to-arms, almost as if Khan is enticing Lucifer himself to this Satanic party.

Heleyos' twitching bass and abrasive guitars is a psychedelic, acid-rock  wig out reminiscent of Savages corrosive post-punk.

On the epic, 8 minute bombast of Kassidat El Hakka Khan chants "When I die I'm going back to what I was- nothing" as though she's some kind of ritual-inciting voodoo witch doctor as tribal drums clatter beneath an eerie guitar riff. 

Sexwitch is no Laura. Fans of Khan's piano-led ballads will find no solace in the album's psych-folk, as her in ethereal croon is replaced by a haunting howl it makes for a unsettling, almost primal listen that is, ultimately weird.  

REVIEW// Battles/ La Di Da Di

Battles return with a batshit album of sonic experimentalism 

Thought there was no such thing as the nutty professors or mad scientists that childhood cartoons lead you to believe? Well, you thought wrong. They do exist, but not as lab coat doting geeks, instead they play guitars in a band called Battles.

Their third experiment La Di Da Di is a caustic concoction of math-rock, electronica and pop that's entirely instrumental.

Opener The Yabba is the calm before the storm, luring you in all swirling synths punctuated by staccato beats before breaking into some serious guitar riffs and drum kicks, as though Royal Blood just gatecrashed Aphex Twin's party.

FF Bada recalls Foals at their most sonic, or 65 Days Of Static on acid.

Whilst Dot Com sounds as though the nerds have been left in charge of the music at a 90's rave.

La Di Da Di is a mad mix of influences that could easily be a product of a reaction gone wrong in Walter White's meth lab, combusting and exploding  in equal measures at every charged drum beat, it is as bonkers as the nutty professors at it's helm.

Juneau 'Into The Mouth Of The Wolf' Track By Track

Last week Derbyshire duo Juneau released their debut EP Into The Mouth Of The Wolf. It was recorded over an intense 6 hour period at DCAS Studios in Chesterfield by Martyn Stonehouse, who also provides additional bass on Under The Weather and Spit It Out, and guitar and drums on Spirits, to beef out the band's minimalist sound.

Here, vocalist Layla Remeikis reveals the inspiration behind each of the tracks...

Charlie"The song Charlie is an enigmatic mixture of sadness and curiosity, based around the infamous Facebook game 'The Charlie Challenge', in which participants call upon a malicious demon to answer their mundane, insignificant questions. The false illusion of this omniscient apparition (and the anger that it sparked in me!) ultimately lead to the creation of the lyrics to Charlie."

Under The Weather"This song is simply about running away- both literally and figuratively. Taken at face value, the singer is leaving home (not that the inspiration for this is related to my own personal life at all!) to seek a better life elsewhere, but the process of 'escaping' is about thoughts too- Under The Weather is equally about finding the ability to move on and 'embrace it'." 

Spit It Out"Spit It Out is basically a stream of consciousness from the perspective of a vulnerable female in today's society, and how she perceives the world and the decisions she must make (particularly regarding relationships). This situation is, however, relatable for anyone, as Spit It Out emphasises the way that we always want what we can't have, and things sometimes don't work out the way we plan."

Claw It Back"The inspiration for Claw It Back came from an interview in a magazine with Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy, who was addressing the decline in importance of rock music in today's culture. He suggested that we can not hopelessly cling to the past, and that musical genres must evolve and change if they are to remain popular. The lyrics to Claw It Back ponder the effects of this change in terms of both the music industry and life itself."

 

Games"Put simply, Games is about two people who don't get along. The inspiration for this is undeniably based on real people, but it's universal. We 'play the game' by staying true to ourselves in the defiant face of conflict, and these lyrics highlight the significance of self-confidence and assertiveness."

Spirits"Spirits begun life as a poem and ended as a song, influenced by the themes of intoxication and alcoholism. Poetically and melodically, it explores the journey of adolescence in relation to the expectations and consequences of alcohol, and the image of 'teenage martyrdom'. Like Spit It Out, Spirits emphasises the helplessness of humanity and the way that we can be blinded by our own selfish desires."