This batch of tracks are a bit rockier than my usual tastes, but with such an arresting array of post punk and 2014 blues floating around, my ear is drawn to where the big tunes are. With Lily Allen’s Sheezus leaving me unconvinced and Lykke Li’s I Never Learn failing to live up to the exalted Wounded Rhymes, this week I’m abandoning pop and electronica to find the pick of the latest rock crop. Expect fuzzy guitars, incomprehensible vocals and licks to drive you wild…
First up is the hardest working man in rock: Jack White, back with his second solo album Lazaretto, out on the 9th or 10th of June. The title track is suitably thumping, however I enjoy this instrumental with accompanying dancing goo.
Next up is Leeds post punk band Eagulls with the fuzzy, intriguing punk of “Nerve Endings”. Their self titled album is out now.
Vacant Lots are a two piece from Vermont, USA. This single is ambiguous and somehow retro. Served with a suitably psychedelic video, it’s enough to convince me keep an eye on them.
Brighton duo Royal Blood continue a pulsating vibe that is harking back to the late 80s, early 90s with “Come On Over”.
Bombay Bicycle Club offer up vibrant and dancey summery pop.
The Black Keys further cement their position as masters of stately modern blues with confident eighth album, Turn Blue, out now. Full of their trademark playful, sure-footed blues rock, it opens with virtuosity in the flamboyantly haunting “Weight of Love”. Fans, myself included, will not be disappointed.
This 2011 cover of the Slim Harpo’s “I’m a King Bee” was brought to my attention recently by an advert. Despite the less than authentic credentials, it remains sultry and moody rock fit for any connoisseur, with a Black Keys referencing sound.
With the voice of a dirty, wounded angel, Ray Lamontagne gears us up for summer with a Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) produced single “Supernova” ahead of the forthcoming album of the same name. A lightweight track for weighty voice. Added to the evidence of Lana Del Ray’s “West Coast”, it seems Auerbach is better at producing his own voice than others. Considering he creates such strong tunes with his day band, his productions display distinctly ephemeral ones.
And last but not least – representing for the ladies – is kickass rockabilly minx Imelda May with her third album Tribal, out now. I can’t wait until the full album comes on YouTube.
It seems gurning Alex Turner may have had a point about a rock resurrection in his shambolic acceptance speech at the Brits this year. Expect a summer full of guitars.
INCH 