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Porcelain Raft // Strange Weekend // Out Now // Secretly Canadian

Leonard D'Crus — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 09:08:33 +0000

It is often easy to loose track, quite literally, when listening to a record fuelled with drifting echoes and sweeping vocals but Porcelain Raft’s latest record manages to capture the elements of both its compiled genres, being electronic and pop, and fuse it together nicely without straying too far into either. If ever you’ve listened to previous material or caught a glimpse of any of the musi... Read more..

TOWNS // Gone Are The Days // 20.02.12 // Cartoon Records

Hayley Fox — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 09:00:57 +0000

Gone may the days of 90’s Britpop, but somehow, West Country boys, ‘Towns’ are bringing a hefty essence of the genre back. There’s been a gaping space in the music field for a while now, missing that throwback. Sure we’ve had the revival of the Gallagher siblings in their new ventures, but ‘Towns’ are unmarked and fresh with no cuts or scrapes from previous bands and bust ups. Just what we need for 2012. Read more..

Frank Turner // The Second Three Years // Out Now // Xtra Mile

Georgina — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:08:31 +0000

This album, made up of B-sides, covers and previously unreleased songs, is the second compilation from Frank (the first-as the quick ones will have guessed-was titled “the first three years”), and although these types of B-Side albums are often something you expect from bands far bigger than the punk-folk singer from Winchester, the devout fans (and he definitely has a huge, committed and adoring fan base) will be more than happy with this collection ,which luckily is not just second rate songs that weren’t good enough to make the actual albums. Turner has alw... Read more..

Enter Shikari // A Flash Flood of Colour // Out Now // Ambush Reality

Peter Gilbert — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:08:27 +0000

We’ve had a couple of reviews on Never Enough Notes recently covering the St. Albans quartet Enter Shikari, most of them concluding that the new singles ‘Arguing with Thermometers’ and ‘Ghandi Mate, Ghandi’ were not like their first album offering Take to the Skies. They were right, and maybe if you prefer their first album, this latest offering may disappoint. Personally, I find these singles, as well as the rest of the new album A Flash Flood of Colour, so much better than Take to the Skies. This isn’t a ‘Common Dreads’ mark two either. This is a un... Read more..

Nada Surf // The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy // Out Now // City Slang

Melody Johns — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 10:00:22 +0000

Nada Surf have been making music for 20 years now, and are back with their sixth studio album and third with label City Slang. “The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy” hits the shelves on 23rd January, after a long four year break. The band’s name, according to lead singer Matthew Caws, is “actually referring to something much more existential, it's just surfing on nothing. Being lost in your head or in your imagination but you know, whenever I listen to music I always find myself off somewhere. Somewhere in space. You know, in mental space and it's a reference to that.” This pret... Read more..

Lisa Hannigan // Single – What’ll I do // Hoop Records/PIAS // 26.03.2012

Kirsty Band — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:30:06 +0000

Personal bias at large, as Lisa Hannigan gets set to release her second single on March 26th from lyrically rich and emotionally enthralling album 'Passenger'. 'What'll I do' is a bright, infectious and colourful component to the album which continues to highlight the growing change in Lisa's writing and delivery of her music. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvwJMa5b1Qg[/youtube] Reminiscing someone who clearly makes the world a little better, it's the sort of track I'd find myself toe-tapping to as I walk down the street (inesrt comedy moment). Whilst still delivering on the a... Read more..

LIVE // Reel Big Fish // Out Now // Nottingham Rock City

Peter Gilbert — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:39:05 +0000

Reel Big Fish were one of my first loves in terms of music. The live album was one of my favourite albums that I could probably sing every lyric to every song, and after not listening to them in a long time, I had forgotten how good the Californian band really were. Saturday was a wonderful reminder. Kicking off with 'E... Read more..

Matthew Dear // Headcage // Out Now // Ghostly

Jazzmynne Dixon — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:00:55 +0000

After the success of his fourth album, 2010’s Black City, Dear isn’t taking a rest and re-cooperating. Instead, he’s releasing this EP, touring, and preparing his fifth full-length, Beams, due out sometime this year. ‘In the Middle (I Met You There)’ marks Dear’s f... Read more..

Swedish House Mafia vs Knife Party // Antidote // Out Now // EMI UK

AlexW42 — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:36:14 +0000

On the cusp between radio-friendly electro pop and the less-mainstream, more explicit side of electronic music lies Knife Party - a new collaboration between experienced artists Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen of Pendulum. Read more..

Phenomenal Handclap Band // Form and Control // 13.02.12 // Tummy Touch

Stef Mo — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:16:49 +0000

New York collective Phenomenal Handclap Band return with their sophomore album, and it's a curious beast. You know when they travel to the future in the Bill and Ted films, and it's basically the 1980s except it's the future? That's pretty much what this album is. Except with the 1970s. And no Keanu Reeves, which is a shame. It's all disco grooves, funk guitar, layer cake production and vocal arrangements that sound like a computer has been fed a load of ABBA, Blondie and Scissor Sisters and programmed to compose something. Read more..

M.I.A // New Single ‘Bad Girls’ // 31.01.12

James Lavender — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:17:50 +0000

Exciting news comes from M.I.A. as she releases a new single via Pitchfolk. ‘Bad Girls’ is a taster for what to expect from her fourth studio album coming out in the summer. It is a reworking of one of her songs from the Vicki Leekz mixtape, which was released in late 2010.... Read more..

LIVE // M83 // 20.01.12 // Leeds University Union

Kasia Bargielowski-Foster — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:25:11 +0000

I did an assignment for Uni not long ago on how the digitalisation of music has ultimately made it more than difficult for bands to be noticed in the 21st century. Obviously a very debatable topic, but so much music seems to be left in the background these days it’s easy for a group to fall through the cracks. M83 h... Read more..

Introducing // Saturday Sun // Seagull EP

Alice Sutherland-Hawes — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:25:44 +0000

It’s a New Year and time for some new bands. First on my list is Saturday Sun, the first signing to the brand new Lazy Butterfly Records. A duo from the south west peninsular Purbeck, Saturday Sun have created some stunning music for the past two years helped by Alex Hedley’s brilliant and powerful vocals and the melodies put with them by Bill Merrick’s guitar. Read more..

Tribes // Baby // Out Now // Island Records

Josh Germain — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:52:03 +0000

Guitar music is dead....or so the papers say. As we move into 2012 every music publication is waiting for the next big guitar band, the next Libertines or Arctic Monkeys, a band that can change the landscape of music, a real 'game changer' and Tribes have been atop many peoples list including my own. But are Tribes really the saviour of the British guitar band? Read more..

RM Hubbert // Thirteen Lost & Found // 30.01.12 // Chemikal Underground Records

Leonard D'Crus — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:57:41 +0000

It is not often that you come across a record that speaks to you more than it does require listening upon first play. This particular record seems to offer more to the listener than just a collection of songs for roughly 40 minutes. It almost paints a story of emotions throughout and all seems to fit toget... Read more..