Anthony Gaser – Read The Signs
If ever there was a cure for narcolepsy, then surely it would be the opener to Anthony Gaser’s EP Read The Signs. Powered forth by an insanely catchy beat ‘Wanna Be Sure’ is undoubtedly the coolest song you’ve ever heard. Imagine a bassline that has been soaked in honey, a guitar riff that’s been in a cocktail mixer (shaken, but not stirred), drums that knock on your cranium like an eagerly anticipated guest and vocals that have been ripened in the Californian sun. Times that by ten, and you’ll have something approaching ‘Wanna Be Sure’; it’s the musical equivalent of dancing barefoot on warm sand, and the kind of track you never want to end. Each of these four tracks have a sun-kissed vibe, and feel as if the rays have been directly transferred to disc. Recalling the best of the Beach Boys’ Brothers Records years, ‘Waiting It Out’ (and the whole EP) bathes the listener in glorious sonics, whilst simultaneously topping up our vitamin D.
Track List: 1. Wanna Be Sure 2. Elevation 3. Right Out Of Love 4. Waiting It Out
- Read The Signs is available here.
Dallas McLaughlin – I Didn’t Start The Fire (And Other Lies)
Recorded at the legendary Whistle Stop Bar in San Diego, California, Dallas McLaughlin is the type of self-depreciating comedian who (by his own admission) “tells stories to drunks in bars”. That might be, but never have tales about radio, miming and celebrity been told with such deadpan vivaciousness. In fact, it is Dallas’ bemused nonchalance that makes his stand up so enticing. It is his rabid music and comedy fandom that makes his comedy so appealing; he has a deep background knowledge which gives him an air of authority that makes him seem likes he knows what he’s talking about (even if he doesn’t). So if you want some of the best stories about SeaWorld, Steve Martin and Paul Simon, it is all here in I Didn’t Start The Fire (And Other Lies).
Track List: 1. Intro (featuring JEDx) 2. Radio, Radio! 3. The Jerk 4. Mime Time 5. (Failed) Local Celebrity! 6. The Jerk (JEDx Remix)
- I Didn’t Start The Fire is available here.
Brendan Regan – Swivel
With a sound that seems to echo from a distant era and delivered in his soothing brogue, Brendan Regan has delivered in Swivel an album that examines the very duplicity of human nature. It’s the type of record which reaches deep into our psyche to resonate on a primordial level. This isn’t (thankfully) the type of album that dazzles us with bells and whistles, rather it lulls and soothes us with soaring guitars and persuasive percussion. In our current age of division and fragmentation we need records like Swivel now more than ever, and despite its low-key nature, cuts such as ‘Have No Reserve’ and ‘Little Flame’ speak volumes. The crystalline vocals of Tekla Waterfield on ‘Overpromises’ provides a nice foil to Brendan’s oak-aged rasp, and the two work in perfect harmony. The viola on ‘Have You Seen Wings?’ adds a forlorn, whimsical air, and that’s indicative of the whole album, Swivel isn’t the type of record you put on at a wild party, rather it is an album made for ruminative meditation, and in that respect, it scores top marks.
Track List: 1. Trigger Town 2. Have No reserve 3. Little Flame 4. Overpromises 5. Have You Seen Wings? 6. Sit Right Down 7. Opus Girl 8. People I won’t Leave Behind
- Swivel is available here.
