Tag: garage rock

New Audio by William Ruben Helms

Over the past couple of months, I’ve written about the up-and-coming, Halifax, UK-based indie rock trio The Orielles. Comprised of 21-year Sidonie B. Hand-Halford (drums), her 18-year old sister Esmé Dee Hand-Halford (bass, vocals) and their 17-year-old best friend Henry Carlyle Wade (guitar, vocals), the trio have quickly developed a reputation as being one of Northern England’s “most exciting local bands of recent years,” and one of their hometown’s best-kept musical secrets — and interestingly enough, the trio can trace their origins to when the Hand-Halford sisters met Wade at a house party and bonded over a shared love of Stateside-based 90s alt rock and indie rock.

With a growing reputation and profile preceding them, Heavenly Recordings head Jeff Barrett caught the band opening for their new labelmates The Parrots in late 2016 and immediately signed them to the label. And this year looks to be a hug year for the British upstarts as they just recently finished their first UK/EU tour, and their epic, 8 plus minute track “Sugar Taste Like Salt,” which draws from psych rock, New Wave and post-punk with lyrics that reference Quentin Tarantino’s Deathproof captured both the attention of the blogosphere and this site as it reminded me quite a bit of The Mallard‘s Finding Meaning in Deference, complete with the self-assuredness and confidence of a bunch of seasoned pros.

The Halifax, UK-based trio’s latest single “I Only Bought It For The Bottle” continues in a similar vein as its predecessor as it finds the band pairing ironically delivered vocals with a psych rock and indie rock-leaning arrangement featuring swirling and shimmering guitar chords played through effects pedals, a persistent and propulsive rhythm section consisting of a boom-bap-like drumming and a tight bass line to hold it all together. Interestingly enough, lyrically speaking, the song reveals a hilarious yet astute sense of cultural and critical observation that belies their relative youth. As the band’s Esmé Dee Hand-Halford explained in press notes “The track is loosely based upon [the] Nicolas Winding Refn film The Neon Demon as it talks about the idea of how beauty has become a currency and that we no longer desire substance, yet seek things based on appearance and face value. The microcosm of this idea comes through the lyrics, which explain a story of how the subject bought a bottle because it looked really nice and tasty, but it actually tasted like shit.” Certainly, in an age where the crude, ostentatious, ignorant know-nothings have the power of over millions of lives and yet repeatedly remind everyone of their idiocy, greed and selfishness, the song is absolutely fitting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site off and on over the past two or three years or so, you may have come across a post or two featuring the Gothenburg, Sweden-based punk quartet LaDIDa, an act that over its time together had received attention both across Scandinavia and the European Union for their Dadist and manic take on punk rock, which frequently would include the use of singing saws, melodica and stylophone paired with the prototypical punk rock arrangement of guitar, bass, drums and vocals. Along with that, several blogs have compared the band’s frontperson Britta Persson to Yeah Yeah Yeahs‘ Karen O., and that shouldn’t be surprising as Perssson’s vocals manage to evoke a similar bratty and snotty in-your-face/don’t give a fuck attitude, an aware and confident sensuality and a feral urgency within a turn of a phrase.

After the release of “You Got It,” the band’s most straightforward, garage rock-leaning song, a song that reminded me quite a bit of the arena friendly sound of The Kills, The Black Keys and others, the quartet has decided to go on a hiatus. And as LaDIDa’s Rat Westlake explained in an email to me “Me and Bea [Britta Persson] often found ourselves sitting in my little studio room with ideas and no other band members around, so we started getting stuff down using our silvery computer pal to sort of the rhythm section (with a little help from me). It turned out pretty good! So we decided to kick off a duo — if we do not count the aforementioned little silvery chum. Et voila . . . The Cherokee Death Cats.” Persson’s and Westlake’s debut single as duo, “Read my lips” is a churning, scuzzy, propulsive, lo-fi leaning bit of garage rock reminiscent of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Raveonettes, The Cummies and others that subtly nods at New Wave and post punk, complete with a rousingly anthemic hook.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Formed in 1964 by five American GIs station in Gelnhausen, Germany — Gary Burger, Larry Clark, Eddie Shaw, Dave Day and Roger Johnston — as The Torquays, before a name change to The Monks, the garage rock/avant garde rock quintet had quickly become bored of the already cemented, traditional rock format, and as a result, they were inspired to create what was considered a highly experimental sound and aesthetic comprised of hypnotic and driving rhythms, which minimalized the role of melody, innovative sound manipulation, copious feedback, shrill vocals and guitarist David Day’s frequent use of the six string banjo. They were also well known for their shocking appearance as they would frequently dress up like Catholic monks, complete with black habits, cinctures tied around their waists and their hair worn in partial tonsures.  And although they horrified and baffled audiences of their day, in the 50 years since their last known release, the members of the American-born, German-based quintet are now largely considered pioneers both of the avant garde movement and of punk rock, as their socially charged material — material, which had the band voicing objections to the Vietnam War and criticizing what they viewed as the increasing dehumanization of modern society and modern life.

As The Monks, the American-born, German-based quintet released a handful of singles during 1966-1967 — most notably “Complication,” which coincided with the release of their only full-length album Black Monk Time. Though the material released during that period achieved limited commercial success or attention, over the past few years, the band has become a cult-favorite act, thanks to a newfound interest in Black Monk Time by collectors and music obsessives looking for art rock and psych rock of the 60s and 70s, and appearances on several compilation albums, including Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968 — and along with that bands like The Dead Kennedys and The Beastie Boys have publicly cited The Monks as an influence on them.

With the release of 1999’s Five Upstarts Americans, a collection of rarities, B-sides and demo’d tracks from the Black Monk Time sessions, the members of the band reunited for a reunion show and a series of sporadic tours throughout the 2000s. For the better part of five decades, it was assumed that The Monks quietly split up after a handful of releases; however in a strange bit of a serendipity, the folks at Third Man Records were sent a treasure trove of unreleased and barely released, original photos of the band, newspaper clippings, business cards, letterhead, contracts, postcards and analog tapes, which contained unreleased material recorded sometime in early 1967, sometime around the time of the recording sessions of their final single “Love Can Tame the Wild”/”He Went Down to the Sea,” and after hours in the Top Ten Club, just before the band’s breakup.

From what the folks at Third Man Records could determine, the Hamburg Recordings 1967 EP, the EP’s first single “I’m Watching You” would have most likely been recorded on February 28, 1967 during the same sessions in which they recorded their final single — and while sounding completely of it era, nodding at the blue-eyed soul of The Righteous Brothers, the mod rock of The Who and The Kinks, as well as The Beach Boys and The Doors, the song possesses a swooning urgency that feels wild and unhinged, evoking the thoughts of someone who’s madly, desperate in love; but just under the surface, there’s an obsessive menace, as though the narrator may stalking his object of affection.

 

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Currently comprised of founding members Beau Croxton (guitar, vocals) and Mike Groehler (production), along with Willie Mosto (guitar), Paul Truitt (keys/guitar), Forrest Hackenbrock (bass), and James Esposito (drums) — and a live horn section featuring Carter Yasutake, who’s played in the backing bands of David Byrne and St. Vincent and Charles Bradley; Jason Disu, who’s played in the backing bands of David Byrne and St. Vincent, and LCD Soundystem; and Noah Drielblatt, who’s played with Blitz the Ambassador, the members of the Brooklyn-based indie rock/garage rock/blues act Damn Jackals have received a bit of attention locally for a sound that draws from 70s Bowie, T. Rex, Johnny Thunders, The Stooges and Television — while to my ears nodding at The Black Keys, as you’ll hear on “Freezing Blues,” the latest single off the band’s soon-to-be released debut EP, That’s It.

And much like the classic rock and bluesy influences behind their sound, Damn Jackals’ latest barn burning single, as the band’s Beau Croxton explains is about “the type of cold, loneliness that reduces the heart to burning carnage and leaves the subject so crippled with emptiness and anger that he is rendered utterly unrecognizable.” And as a result, the song possesses an anthemic, arena rock-friendly hook that manages to express a boozy bitterness.

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Perhaps best known as a member of the internationally renowned, Brooklyn based indie rock trio and JOVM mainstays A Place to Bury Strangers, the New Zealand-born, Brooklyn-based bassist Dion Lunadon has had a lengthy music career that traces its origins back to when he was a member of New Zealand-based band, The D4. During a short break in APTBS’ touring schedule, Lunadon had a sudden rush of inspiration that resulted in what he has described as a neurotic impulse to write and record a bunch of songs right there and then — and the end result was his solo debut EP, Com/Broke, an effort, which reportedly drew from the bands that inspired him in his youth, including  Toy Love, The Gun Club, Gestalt and Supercar.

Lunadon’s highly-anticipated, self-titled, full-length debut is slated for a June 9, 2017 through Agitated Records. And if you had been frequenting this site over the past few months, you may recall that I wrote about the album’s first single “Fire,” a primal and furiously roaring single that draws psych rock and garage rock, revealing that while its creator is approaching middle age, he’s refusing to go quietly into that good night.  The album’s second and latest single “Howl,” continues in a similar vein, meshing punk rock, psych rock and garage punk with a feral howl reminiscent of The Stooges — i.e. “1969” “No Fun” and “I Wanna Be Your Dog” — complete with a forceful, Neanderthal stomp. Certainly in a day and age in which most contemporary music is somewhat safe and packaged for convenient consumption, Lunadon’s solo work is a powerful reminder that rock should be dangerous, rebellious, loud, primal; it should inspire your most base, animal instincts — to howl, stomp, fight, fuck and repeat.

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Initially formed in San Francisco, CA and now Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock quartet Jet Trash — currently comprised of Paul Kemp (vocals, rhythm guitar), Keith Shughrou (lead guitar), Marshall Fassino (bass, vocals) and their newest member Eric Peters (drums) — have a developed a reputation for crafting gritty, garage rock-inspired rock. And if you had been frequenting this site for the past couple of years, you may recall that I wrote about the blistering “Baby C’mon,” and the New Wave-leaning “Photography Is Over” off  2015’s self-titled EP.

Now, it’s been a while since I’ve personally heard about them; but as it turns out after touring to support their self-titled EP, the band relocated to Los Angeles and went through a lineup change before writing and recording their Alex Newport-produced follow-up Shake at Elliot Smith’s old studio, New Monkey Studio. Slated for a May 12, 2017 release, the EP’s first single, EP title track “Shake” is simply put, no frills, old fashioned, balls to the wall, power chord-based rock that nods at The Hives — i.e., “Hate to Say I Told You So” — as it possesses a feral, snarling explosiveness.

 

 

 

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Bluesy Sounds and Visuals for Winstons Barn-burning “Enough”

Comprised of Lou Nutting (guitar, harmonica, vocals) and Ben Brock Wilkes (drums, vocals), the up-and-coming Virginia-born, Brooklyn-based duo Winstons can actually trace their origins to when the duo met while working at Williamsburg hotspot Baby’s All Right. With the release of two EPs Turpentine and Black Dust back in 2015, the Brooklyn-based duo received attention for a soulful, garage, blues rock that owes an equal debt to The Black Keys, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins complete with a visceral and forceful earnestness — and for making a decided point of recording live to tape, with no touch-ups, no overdubs, no retakes; first thought, best thought.

Earlier this year, I wrote about “Without You,” off their “Without You”/”Enough” 7 inch, a single bluesy single that possessed a forceful immediacy and heartache and an anthemic, arena rock sized hook. And building upon the buzz that “Without You” has received, the duo released the B side single “Enough” a single which will further cement their burgeoning reputation for crafting raw, urgent, blues-leaning garage rock with arena-friendly, anthemic hooks — and while drawing from The Black Keys, the mid-tempo barnburner manages to nod at The Band and The Animals.

Directed by Buried Muse, the recently released music video for the single follows in a similar vein as the visuals for “Without Out,” as the video follows the duo jamming on the roof and performing inside Williamsburg’s Baby’s All Right, broodingly smoking cigarettes out of their window, thinking about the past, and heading to a local bar, where they encounter their dopplegangers — with a natural sense of suspicion. In some way, it captures the rock ‘n’ roll life, suggesting that it’s far more cooler than living an actual life, complete with banality, routine and utter boredom.

Uncategorized by William Ruben Helms

New Video: ATPBS’ Bassist Releases a Noisily Psychedelic Visuals for New Solo Single “Fire”

Although he may be best known as a member of renowned Brooklyn-based trio and JOVM mainstays A Place to Bury Strangers, the New Zealand-born, Brooklyn-based bassist Dion Lunadon can trace the origins of his music career to when he cut his teeth in his homeland as a member of The D4. During a short break in touring with APTBS, Lunadon had a sudden rush of inspiration that resulted in what he has described as a neurotic implies to write and record a bunch of songs right there and then — and the result was his solo debut EP, Com/Broke, an effort which drew from the bands that inspired him in his youth, including Toy Love and The Gun Club, as well as New Zealand unknowns such as Gestalt and Supercar while defying what may typically expected of someone who’s approaching middle age.

Lunadon’s highly-anticipated and still untitled full-length debut is forthcoming and the album’s first single “Fire” reveals a man, who refuses to start the process of going quietly into the night, but instead maintains the primal, furious roar that many heard on Com/Broke while subtly drawing from psych and garage rock as soaring organs are paired with enormous power chords with blistering peals of feedback, a forceful and propulsive bass line, thundering drumming and Lunadon’s shouting and howling throughout the song. Interestingly, the song manages evoke a tense, anxious paranoia — the anxious, creeping paranoia that many of us likely feel during this weird political climate.

Directed by Ryan Ohm at Weird Life Films, the recently released video is a slickly edited, purposely schlocky, psychedelic collage of cult-favorite 70s and early 80s horror films, TV commercials, soap operas and post-punk and No Wave acts and other random, period specific ephemera.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Currently comprised of Julia Kugel (vocals and guitar), Meredith Franco (bass), and Stephanie Luke (drums), the Atlanta, GA-based trio and JOVM mainstay The Coathangers in over a decade together have released five full-length albums in which each album found the band refining their sound and songwriting approach, balancing a brash, raw and seemingly spontaneously simplicity and urgency with a razor sharp wit and irony. And with the band’s last two full length efforts, Suck My Shirt and Nosebleed Weekend, the band was at their most streamlined and direct, giving the material off both of those albums a primal urgency — but with the sort of anthemic hooks that you can envision a room full of sweaty concertgoers lustily yelling along in a tiny, dark club.

Parasite, the band’s latest EP is slated for a June 30, 2017 release through Suicide Squeeze Records and the album’s material has the Atlanta-based trio balancing the unbridled and furious expressionism of their debut and the increasingly nuanced, pop-leaning sensibility of their last two albums. As the band’s Julia Kugel explains in press notes  “During the making of our last album, I didn’t want to scream anymore, I just wanted to sing and focus on melody. When we came to this recording, I just wanted to scream and curse.” And in some way, it shouldn’t be surprising that the EP’s material is partially inspired by both the bandmembers’ personal lives and the current political climate, rife with kleptocracy, hypocrisy, blatant sexism, racism and gratuitous cruelty while managing to be akin to a journey through them band’s existence and development.

 

“Captain’s Dead,” the first single off the EP manages to sound as though it could have been a B-side to any of the singles off Nosebleed Weekend while drawing from 90s grunge rock as the song structurally consists of alternating quiet and loud, anthemic hooks, and a surfer rock-inspired bridge, a propulsive rhythm section and a sneering punk rock air — but paired with twisting and buzzing organ chords. And much like the  band’s previously released material, the new single possesses an underlying mischievous feel underneath the scuzzy, give no fucks swagger.

The renowned garage rock trio will be embarking on a lengthy US and EU tour throughout the Spring and it’ll include two NYC area dates — April 20, 2017 at Sunnyvale and April 21, 2017 at Baby’s All Right. Check out the rest of the tour dates below.

TOUR DATES:
03.09.17 – Visalia, CA @ The Cellar Door
03.10.17 – San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar
03.11.17 – Oakland, CA @ Starline Social Club
03.12.17 – Santa Rosa, CA @ Arlene Francis Center
03.13.17 – Reno, NV @ The Holland Project
03.16.17 – Eugene, OR @ The Boreal
03.17.17 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
03.18.17 – Vancouver, BC @ Fortune Sound Club
03.19.17 – Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
03.21.17 – Spokane, WA @ The Observatory
03.23.17 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest
03.24.17 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Diabolical Records
03.25.17 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Bunkhouse Saloon

04.15.17 – Durham, NC @ Pinhook
04.16.17 – Richmond, VA @ The Camel
04.18.17 – Washington, DC @ DC9
04.19.17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ortliebs
04.20.17 – Brooklyn, NY @ Sunnyvale
04.21.17 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
04.22.17 – Boston, MA @ Do617 Pop-Up Record Shop @ Brighton Music Hall
04.24.17 – Montreal, QC @ L’ Esco
04.25.17 – Toronto, ON @ Silver Dollar
04.26.17 – Buffalo, NY @ Tralf Music Hall
04.27.17 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Roboto
04.28.17 – Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery
04.29.17 – Charlotte, NC @ Reverb Fest 5

05.12.17 – UK Manchester @ Night & Day
05.13.17 – UK Brighton @ The Joker
05.15.17 – UK Bristol @ The Exchange
05.16.17 – UK Oxford @ The Bullingdon
05.17.17 – UK London @ Oslo
05.18.17 – UK Hastings @ The Printworks
05.19.17 – UK Leicester @ The Cookie
05.20.17 – UK Leeds @ Gold Sounds at Brudenell Social
05.21.17 – UK Sheffield@ The Harley
05.23.17 – UK Ramsgate @ Music Hall
05.24.17 – BE Gent @ PSYCH OVER 9000
05.25.17 – NL Eindhoven @ Stroomhuisje
05.26.17 – NL Rotterdam @ Girls Go Boom Night @ Roodkapje
05.27.17 – NL Amsterdam @ Pacific Park
05.28.17 – NL Utrecht @ dB’s
05.30.17 – DE Hamburg @ Molotow
05.31.17 – DE Berlin @ Cassiopeia

06.01.17 – DE Munich @ Orangehouse
06.02.17 – DE Cologne @ MTC
06.03.17 – FR Paris @ Le Batofar
06.04.17 – IT Ravenna @ Beaches Brew Festival
06.08.17 – FR Clermont @ Ferrand Le Barraka
06.09.17 – FR Nimes @ This is not a Love Song
06.10.17 – FI Helsinki @ Sideways Festival

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

If you’ve been frequenting this site over the past several years, you’ve probably been made familiar with John Dwyer, the co-founder of renowned indie rock label, Castle Face Records and the creative mastermind behind the equally renowned, JOVM mainstay act Thee Oh Sees — and throughout that time, Dwyer has maintained a reputation for being insanely prolific. Last year saw the release of two Thee Oh Sees albums — their contribution to Castle Face’s continuing live series, Live in San Francisco and a studio album, Weird Exit, both of which were supported with an intense and busy touring schedule. Somehow, Dwyer had managed to find time to write and record new material for his synth-based, solo, noise rock project Damaged Bug, a project that Thee Oh Sees frontman has publicly described as a welcome respite from the scuzzy, power chord-based garage rock and psych rock he’s long been known for.

Bunker Funk, Dwyer’s soon-to-be released Damaged Bug album will reportedly continue where the preceding effort Cold Hot Plumbs left off, while expanding upon the project’s sound. Earlier this year, I wrote about “Bog Dash,” a single featuring sputtering and noisy squalls of squiggling synths, propulsive, tribal-lke drumming and explosive blasts of guitar paired with Dwyer’s imitable falsetto singing lyrics about traveling across spacetime paired with a funky bass line. The album’s latest single “Unmanned Scanner” pairs menacingly buzzing synths with a T. Rex-inspired boogie shuffle and Dwyer sing-speaking the song’s lyrics with a somewhat ironic detachment while continuing the project’s reputation of sounding like it came from a  completely different dimension.

 

 

New Audio by William Ruben Helms

Although he may be best known as a member of renowned Brooklyn-based trio and JOVM mainstays A Place to Bury Strangers, the New Zealand-born, Brooklyn-based bassist Dion Lunadon can trace the origins of his music career to when he cut his teeth in his homeland as a member of The D4. During a short break in touring with APTBS, Lunadon had a sudden rush of inspiration that resulted in what he has described as a neurotic implies to write and record a bunch of songs right there and then — and the result was his solo debut EP, Com/Broke, an effort which drew from the bands that inspired him in his youth, including Toy Love and The Gun Club, as well as New Zealand unknowns such as Gestalt and Supercar while defying what may typically expected of someone who’s approaching middle age.

Lunadon’s highly-anticipated and still untitled full-length debut is forthcoming and the album’s first single “Fire” reveals a man, who refuses to start the process of going quietly into the night, but instead maintains the primal, furious roar that many heard on Com/Broke while subtly drawing from psych and garage rock as soaring organs are paired with enormous power chords with blistering peals of feedback, a forceful and propulsive bass line, thundering drumming and Lunadon’s shouting and howling throughout the song. Interestingly, the song manages evoke a tense, anxious paranoia  — the anxious, creeping paranoia that many of us likely feel during this weird political climate.

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Playfully Ironic Visuals for Winstons’ “Without You”

Comprised of Lou Nutting (guitar, harmonica, and vocals) and Ben Brock Wilkes (drums, vocals), the up-and-coming Virginia-born, Brooklyn-based indie rock duo Winstons can trace their origins to when the duo met while working at Williamsburg hotspot and music venue, Baby’s All Right. And with the release of 2015’s Turpentine EP and Black Dust, the duo quickly received attention for a soulful, garage-based blues rock that sonically speaking seems to owe a debt to The Black Keys, and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, complete with a visceral and forceful earnestness — and for making a decided point in recording live to tape, with no touch-ups, no overdubs and no-retakes; in other words recording with the old adage, first thought, best thought. “Without You,” the A side of their “Without You”/”Enough” 7 inch will further cement the duo’s growing reputation for blues and garage rock that possesses an unmistakable immediacy — while in this particular song, a visceral
Directed by Buried Muse, the recently released video for “Without You” cuts between footage of the duo performing at Baby’s, hanging around and singing the song and running around all over Brooklyn — to suddenly encounter their dopplegangers looking back at them.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Lou Nutting (guitar, harmonica, vocals) and Ben Brock Wilkes (drums, vocals), the up-and-coming Virginia-born, Brooklyn-based duo Winstons can actually trace their origins to when the duo met while working at Williamsburg hotspot Baby’s All Right. With the release of two EPs Turpentine and Black Dust back in 2015, the Brooklyn-based duo received attention for a soulful, garage, blues rock that owes an equal debt to The Black Keys, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins complete with a visceral and forceful earnestness — and for making a decided point of recording live to tape, with no touch-ups, no overdubs, no retakes; first thought, best thought.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about “Without You,” off their “Without You”/”Enough” 7 inch, a single bluesy single that possessed a forceful immediacy and heartache and an anthemic, arena rock sized hook. And building upon the buzz that “Without You” has received, the duo released the B side single “Enough” a single which will further cement their burgeoning reputation for crafting raw, urgent, blues-leaning garage rock with arena-friendly, anthemic hooks — and while drawing from The Black Keys, the mid-tempo barnburner manages to nod at The Band and The Animals.

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal and Darkly Psychedelic Visuals for Thee Oh Sees’ “Gelatinous Cube”

If you’ve been frequenting this site over its nearly 7 year history, you’d likely be familiar with JOVM mainstays Thee Oh Sees. Led by Castle Face Records co-founder, and the band’s founder and creative mastermind, John Dwyer, the Bay Area-based garage rock/psych rock band has a long-held reputation for being incredibly prolific and last year further cemented that, as the band released two more albums — a live album, Live in San Francisco recorded over three nights at The Chapel and the second album, Weird Exit being the first entry of a planned series of albums.

One of the first singles off both Live in San Francisco and Weird Exit was “Gelatinous Cube,” a single that in prototypical Thee Oh Sees fashion managed to be a towering, buzzing barnburner of a song, complete with layers of scorching guitar pyrotechnics, a throbbing and propulsive rhythm section, Dywer’s growling falsetto and a primal, guttural fury — all while possessing an unusual song structure and an almost surf rock-like hook that reminded me a bit of The Blind Shake.

The recently released animated video features some disturbing and wildly psychedelic imagery that for most of the song’s length could very well be a warning n the evil’s of exploitative capitalism until the video’s protagonist becomes one with the song’s gelatinous cube — and by then, the video becomes even more surreal than the first few minutes.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Lou Nutting (guitar, harmonica, vocals) and Ben Brock Wilkes (drums, vocals), the up-and-coming Virginia-born, Brooklyn-based duo Winstons can actually trace their origins to when the duo met while working at Williamsburg hotspot Baby’s All Right. With the release of two EPs Turpentine and Black Dust back in 2015, the Brooklyn-based duo received attention for a soulful, garage, blues rock that owes an equal debt to The Black Keys, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and , complete with a visceral and forceful earnestness, and for making a point of recording live to tape with no touch-ups, no overdubs, no retakes; first thought, best thought. And as you’ll hear on the duo’s latest single “Without You,” off their forthcoming “Without You”/”Enough” 7 inch, the result is a song that possesses a forceful immediacy and heartache.