No Frills Reviews

Billy Nomates The Test

Tor Maries aka Billy Nomates has snuck out some low profile releases over the past couple of years, including demos under the moniker of Tor and a recent soundtrack album. But she announces her ‘proper’ follow-up to 2023’s excellent CACTI LP with this gem of a lead single, which showcases what she does so well. It doesn’t mark a huge departure from the minimalist electro-infused post-punk of her first two albums, but subtly fleshes out the sound. Gentle piano lines sit alongside retro-futurist synths to do some heavy melancholic lifting as she expertly navigates between claustrophobia and pure catharsis.

Brown Horse Radio Free Bolinas

The Norwich alt-country six-piece offer up the final preview of their upcoming second album with a track quite unlike anything they’ve released yet. The title is an ultra-obscure Star Wars reference. Sci-fi isn’t exactly the usual domain for rootsy rockers, so it’s fitting that this sounds like a clash of worlds. Earthy imagery seems to mask brooding dystopian visions lurking beneath the surface as they forego a chorus for a crazed squall of pedal-steel fuzz. An instrument typically symbolic of the traditional becomes transformed into an otherworldly warning call.

Jolie Laide Holly

Having first come together after a chance meeting at the legendary Steve Albini’s studio, Jolie Laide is formed of acclaimed singer-songwriter, Nina Nastasia, and members of Calgary band, Florida BC. Holly has the snappy yet slightly uneasy feel of a Lee Hazelwood duet, with jaunty call-and-response interplay underpinned by a contrast of gothic country psychedelia.

Kae Tempest Statue In The Square

Kae Tempest returns with the most hard-edged hip-hop sound that they’ve had in years. With intricate, escalating flows and an anthemic chorus, Statue In The Square powerfully tackles the rise in anti-trans hate. Tempest refuses to succumb to persecution, instead turning it into triumph; a celebratory reminder that they stand on the right side of history.

Matt Berninger Bonnet Of Pins

The King of Sad Dads is back ahead of a second solo album. Much as I love them, The National and their adjacent projects haven’t really inspired too much enthusiasm in recent years, but the frontman remains a master of melancholic beauty. His trademark vivid storytelling has never really went away, but the bubbling undercurrent that charged The National’s best work has eluded him for a while. With just a hint of early New Order, that spark seems to have re-ignited as Bonnet Of Pins builds to a glorious explosion of controlled chaos. His most exciting release in 15 years.

The Null Club Frameshift (feat. E L U C I D)

The Null Club is a new project from Alan Duggan Borges of Dublin’s Gilla Band. For the latest release from his debut EP, the guitarist drafts in Armand Hammer rapper, E L U C I D. Frameshift wouldn’t be out of place on the bleakly urgent, REVELATOR – the Queens’ veterans latest LP. The track builds with a punishing, pulsating industrial clatter for 3 minutes in anticipation of the emcee’s arrival. Only for him to almost literally cut through the noise when he eventually appears; leaving him sounding like a lone preacher prophesising into the void.

Perennial Perennial ‘65 / All Day And All Of The Night

Perennial ‘65 sounds like it could have been ripped straight from the tracklist of last year’s excellent Art History LP. The New England trio continue with their supercharged take on British Invasion era garage rock influences on the title track for an upcoming between-albums EP. An irresistible frenzy of Chad Jewett’s buzzsaw riffs and Chelsey Hahn’s electric organ, which alternates between piercing flashes to perky flourishes. They’ve also offered up an overt tribute to those influences with a cover of The Kinks’ proto-punk classic, All Day And All Of The Night. Taking on one of the greatest songs of all time is probably ill-advised, but Perennial manage to emerge unscathed as they excel in making the kind of riotous noise that makes the song so great.

Tay Jordan Dopeboy

Tay Jordan is a name on the rise in UK rap, standing out from the scene as he transports 90s West Coast rap to the streets of South East London. The smooth bounce of that West Coast sound is drenched in a lo-fi haze, elevating this beyond an exercise in nostalgia and providing a dreamy backdrop for his gritty yet utterly laid-back rhymes. One to watch.