Tracks Of The Week, 12.11.14

Due to release their new EP next month, Brooklyn-based trio GHXST have just shared a tasty appetiser for what’s to come. With influences such as Sonic Youth and Jesus and Mary Chain, GHXST’s sound harks band to the rock of the ‘90s with a unique, electro-infused, beguiling edge.

New single, ‘Galaxia’, oozes industrial electro vibes alongside more traditional bluesy undertones. With eerie, droning guitars and other worldly echolalic vocals, this is a track filled with originality and dark allure.

‘Galaxia’ is out now, with the Nowhere EP to follow next month.

 

 

Having heard Bell Gardens for the first time on – yes, you guessed it – Lauren Laverne’s 6music show, I was instantly drawn into the band’s enchanting, mystical melodies.  Having just released their second album, this LA ensemble deal in cinematic, heart-wrenching creations. Co founded by Brian McBride (Stars Of The Lid), Bell Gardens released their debut EP back in 2010, with a full album following in 2012. Now, Slow Dawns For Lost Conclusions looks set to raise the bar for the band.

Exuding Kenneth James Gibbons’ exquisite Leonard Cohen-esque vocals and an array of twinkling piano melodies, latest single ‘Silent Prayer’ does indeed have a hymnal quality to it, coupled with a folky Americana vibe and psychedelic twang. Whatever genre you want to pigeonhole it into, however, one thing’s for sure: ‘Silent Prayer’ is a thing of majestic beauty that will leave you praying for more.

Slow Dawns For Lost Conclusions is out now.

 

 

Leeds-based Hookworms have this month returned to our airwaves in lieu of their new album, The Hum. Having previously dealt in punk-infused riffs and angst-laden outbursts, with their new material they have taken a step into the world of psychedelia.

This move is particularly apparent on latest single, ‘On Leaving’. As distorted, tension-building riffs simmer under the surface of trippy, psych-rock melodies, one can’t help but be reminded of bands such as The Horrors or, kings of psych, Toy. However, fuse this together with Hookworm’s complex instrumentation and gentle harmonies, and what you have is something innovative and original. In fact, it’s pretty much impossible not to get lost inside ‘On Leaving’s crazy, multi-faceted, haze.

 

 

And now for something completely different… Reminiscent of something that might have been concocted by New Zealand comedy duo, Flight Of The Conchords, with hints of the likes of CSS, ‘In Our Band’ is the latest wonderful offering to come from Camden band, Kentish Fire.

Telling the tale of a group of musicians forced to make ends meet by playing covers, ‘In Our Band’ is a somewhat eccentric, parody-filled, offering of synth-pop goodness. Complete with syncopated beats, electro-rock riffs, pop culture references a plenty and a crazy video to match, this song will have you dancing along with its incessant buoyant energy in no time.

 

 

 

Photo Credit: Sara Forrest Photography

 

Mari Lane

@marimindles

Mari Lane

Mari Lane

Editor, London. Likes: Kathleen Hanna, 6Music, live music in the sunshine. Dislikes: Sexism, pineapples, the misuse of apostrophes.