REVIEW// Nots/ We Are Nots

Abrasive post-punk from unrelenting Memphis quartet 

A year after it's US release Nots' debut album finally arrives in UK shores on a wave of Riot Grrrl momentum. A coincidence considering that this distinctly Riot Grrrl band don't care for trends, band-wagons or whatever anyone else is doing. 

It's an attitude that's reflected in their album, and We Are Nots certainly isn't short of attitude, especially of the angsty-teenager kind. 

Following the fool-proof post-punk formula of a repeated one-word refrain over abrasive power chords (Insect Eyes, Reactor) Nots cling on to convention like a dog on the arm of a postman and don't let up, resulting in an unrelenting sonic noise that veers on the edge on violent.

Natalie Hoffmann's venomous bark is reminiscent of Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, backed by a barrage of squalling guitars, plummeting drums and glitchy synths the likes of Black Mold and White Noise sound as though they were written in a fit of GCSE-fuelled rage.

It's a blueprint that could easily become tiresome, yet the Memphis quartet don't seem to tire of things that piss them off, the last track frothing with just as much frenzied frustration as the first. 

Nots might not care for what you're doing but you should certainly care about them. 

REVIEW// Buried Muse

Self-described as purveyors of 'tasteful music' Buried Muse are champions of all things chill. Scouring the underground for it's cream of the slacker crop their You Tube channel is a goldmine which makes Captured Track's rooster look like slight procrastinators in comparison.

Here's our pick of the bunch...

Acid Ghost// OverthinkingWhatever Acid Ghost are overthinking it certainly isn't this song, it's bouncy riffs and buoyant drum beat sounding positively effortless against vocalist Ace Barcelon's lazy laments of "I need her/ But she's already leaving me". 

Mini Dresses// Bracelets
Mini Dresses' sound is just as glamorous as their name suggests. From the swirling guitars to the ethereal vocals, they shimmer like the diamonds that adorn them. 

Lost Film// Ok, LostHailing from Northampton, MA Lost Film have perfected the woozy guitar-pop formula. Part indie jangle, part grunge-flecked scuzz, Lost, Ok is an infectious underground anthem in waiting.

Max Gardener// I Need An AnchorSlacker king Mac DeMarco has competition in the form of 18 year old Max Gardener. The California prodigy's brand of blissed-out bedroom pop is fast becoming hot topic outside of his four walls, ensuring it won't be long before he takes the crown.

ALBUMS OF 2015

12 months, countless albums and endless deliberating, but only 10 of this year's releases can earn the title of Album Of The Year.
After much consideration and a few last minute entries it's finally here- our Albums Of 2015

Pinkshinyultrablast// Everything Else Matters

Despite being born out of a post-Ride/ post-MBV universe the Russian quintet seem surprisingly free from the shackles imposed by their shoegazing forefathers.

Building on layers of feedback-drenched guitars with shimmering synths and dreamy vocals they create a sound that's less gazing down at your shoes and more staring up at the stratosphere. 

Jessica Pratt// On Your Own Love Again

Recorded over 2 years at home in LA and San Francisco, there's a certain nostalgic charm to the 27 year old's ethereal folk that's reminiscent of Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell, tape hiss included.  

Steve Reich// Music For 18 Musicians: Ensemble Signal

Ensemble Signal is a minimalist masterpiece compromising of 14 similar-sounding tracks that seep seamlessly into one another.

Built around crescendos and decrescendos, often of single notes, the instruments rise and set like the sun, the sound of a city waking up.

Diat// Positive Energy

Despite their debut album being entitled Positive Energy Diat are not a happy bunch, yet the Berlin-based band manage to turn their depression into a raucous post-punk racket that's impossible to not compare to Joy Division. 

Ought// Sun Coming Down

On their 2014 debut Montreal punks Ought marked themselves out as ones to watch, and it's the anxiety to live up to this billing which fuels the angsty alt-rock of it's follow up, whilst still maintaining comparisons to their post-punk counterparts The Fall. 

V/A// Cease & Desist: DIY! (Classics From The Post Punk Era 1978-1982)

Compiling cult classics from 1978-82 Cease & Desist is a masterclass in doing it yourself.

From Break The Ice At Parties jazz-funk mash up, to the electro-pop of Private Plane, it's this year's most ingenious and entertaining release that will make assembling an IKEA flatpack look like fun.

Protmartyr// The Agent Intellect

2014's second album Under The Colour Of Official Right cropped up on many of last year's end of year polls, and the Detroit punks look set to do the same with this year's third effort.

Boasting angular post-punk, underpinning frontman Joe Casey's Mark E Smith-esque drawl it's as bleak and abrasive as we've come to expect.

Four Tet// Morning/ Evening

Kieran Hebden's eighth album is an album of journeys. From the literal journey of making chappatis with his grandma to making music in an East London club, to the metaphorical journey that transports the listener from the earth to it's celestial peak, told through the producer's brand of expansive and atmospheric synths.

Institute// Catharsis

 

If albums were named after how they made you feel then Austin punks Institute wouldn't be far wrong with Catharsis. It's frenzied guitars and tub-thumping drums providing the listener with pure punk release.

Jim O' Rourke// Simple Songs

Simple Songs is Jim O' Rourke's first pop album since 2001, yet it's clear he's not lost his knack for a melody whilst he's been away. A melting pot of classic pop elements and more hooks than a butchers kitchen, all backed by the Chicago producers trademark dark humour and wit. 

Many of the albums on this list are available from The Music Exchange, show your support for your local record store and buy independently 

UNDERGROUND// Afterwards

Meet the Italian indie stalwarts giving the genre a makeover 

 

Don't judge a book by it's cover. These words have never been more true than with Italian quartet Afterwards. Whilst they cite Foals, Peace and Sundra Karma as their influences they have more in common with anthemic rockers than scratchy indie upstarts. 

Compromising of guitarist and vocalist Frederico Dal Bianco and Lorenzo Basellato, bassist Carlo Turatello, and drummer Michele, their recent second EP Rage takes the kind of sound you'd expect from the likes of Two Door Cinema Club and soaks in it sonic noise.

Abigayle lures you in with it's fidegty Foals-esque guitars, before giving way to a barrage of beefy riffs, as frontman Dal Bianco laments "Tonight there's no one/ tonight I am nothing." 

Gloom is equally as pessimistic, "Do you prefer to die alone/ pulling the trigger on your own" it questions, suggesting there's a darker side to their seemingly sunny indie.

Rage isn't all doom and gloom though, Something New recalls the reverb-drenched slacker of Jaws, whilst The Unattainable deals in buoyant, upbeat riffs that explode into the chorus' arena-baiting  "woahs", ensuring it draws to a cathartic close. 

If you thought you had indie all worked out you're in for a surprise.  

REVIEW// Coates/ Vol 1 EP

On his debut EP Oliver Coates makes a bid for the Britpop big time

There's something of a Britpop revival happening at the moment, thanks in part to Blur's reunion and the endlessly turning Oasis rumour mill. But, it's not the genre's old dogs you should be concerned about, there's a new kid on the Britpop block demanding your attention- Coates.

Better known as Oliver Coates, the West London troubadour's debut EP, Vol 1 is a upbeat, bouncy slice of Britpop without the ladishness, lairiness and Liam Gallagher.

The Jamie T-esque storytelling of opener Gin And Tonic tells of the cider-fuelled nights on the tiles with a girl that "Leaves every night in tow with a fat lad with lots of dough". Recalling Treay's own charming tales of late-night debauchery. 

It's evident that lyrics are Coates' strong point, whether he's channelling Frank Turner's honesty, backed by rollicking guitars and trumpets on Throw Me Down or Billy Bragg's politically charged songwriting on Talk Of The Town, which tackles vacuous celebrity culture. He might be influenced by Oasis but Vol 1 is no Digsey's Dinner. 

Instead it offers a refreshingly modern take on the genre that's sure to put Coates at the forefront of the Britpop revival.