The Heavy – The House That Dirt Built (Counter)
With a Ronseal title like The House That Dirt Built, the listener would expect some serious scuzz, some dusty, taut rock ‘n’ roll, an erring on the side of well-greased punk. We get that, with bells on, we get that. But we also get a confusing amount [...]
Ape School – S/T (Counter)
A chance discovery like the one Michael Johnson made prior to recording this album (his first under the Ape School title) can shape a recording and give it focus, or it can restrict it. Happily, Johnson’s discovery was a beautiful old Moog (apparently the fourth ever made by Mr. Moog himself), [...]
Pop Levi – Police $ign (Counter)
Oh, I get it, dollar signs look like an ‘S’. Right. Childish by name, one supposes, childish by nature. Indeed, Pop Levi’s Police $ign begins with some rhythmic spitting and soon cavorts into primary-aged dullard rock histrionics. The monster that is the elusive riff, as a concept, can be seen [...]
The Heavy – Oh No! Not You Again! (Counter)
PM is a place that constantly bemoans the laziness of continual reliance on ‘the blues’ as a valid influence. This is a thorny area, because this most sacred of generic cows has a seeming immunity to any kind of attacks on its valorisation. Not for one moment [...]
Spokes – People Like People Like You (Counter)
Strangely for an unashamed post-rock collection of hammer ‘n’ tongers, Spokes are at their best when they’re nimble. With most exponents of the genre, it’s the slow builds to zeniths that make people fall for them (though there’s a strong argument that suggests that there’s little left that [...]
