If you have enjoyed an Underbelly gig (I certainly have) you'll no doubt be really pleased to learn of their diversification into becoming a label too

Tomorrow night (Friday September 25^th) sees the official launch at the LTB Showrooms with Diffuse showcasing their own debut ("Slide"/"Tackle") with support from the already legendary HomeBread popping back up from their new base in London to play a special acoustic set: many people would consider their presence along sufficient reason to attend) plus George Dillon with songs from his forthcoming album.

Tickets via: https://www.skiddle.com/whats-on/Coventry/LTB-At-The-Priory-Visitor-Centre/Underbelly-presents-Diffuse-Single-Launch--George-Dillon/42630549

So who are Diffuse? Well, if you enjoyed our ‘Hot Music Live Presents Volume Thirteen' compilation, you may remember the track "Headstone" by Vertigo Flowers. Sadly that band is no longer together, but Matt (bass) has joined Jed (vocals & guitar) and Elliot (drums) in this new group.

Recorded at Hedgeside Studios and mixed by Elliot Kelly, the two songs are more evidence of what might be the signs of a broader revival of shoegaze, given the totally impossible to miss revitalisation of the genre right here on our own doorstep by What About Eric? It certainly would be good if this scene was given a general breath of new life & even better if Coventry & Warwickshire could claim some sort of part in it.

Of course the area has spawned at least one new genre in the past but that dwindled quickly for various reasons, not least that while many jumped onto the bandwagon, few were anywhere near as good as the pioneers. What is needed for sustaining a scene is diversity within the style allied to original talent. Copyists don't endure.

I think we may have something with Diffuse. Having a singer with a different gender to that of What About Eric? creates immediate differences and Diffuse's musical approach is admirably distinct.

The first point most may ponder on is whether the two songs should be taken as a linked pair given their titles (answer: I don't know) so potentially there may be conceptual depths to unpack, which is half the delight of new music.

"Slide" is an admirably woozy track while its partner offers a contrasting snap, so we're thankfully not talking a band whose songs sound the same. The mystery one hopes for in shoegaze is present through elliptic vocals and dense arrangements/production but in "Tackle" especially we find traces of baggy dance trance… which adds to its charm.

I hope you enjoy both the gig and the single: we can look forwards to more from Diffuse & the Underbelly label I would like to think. Let's wish them luck.

Ahead of their forthcoming new album, Man Made Moon will be releasing another taster track (after "The Boy Who Fell To Earth") as a single: "I Am Ruben" will be yours on 2^nd October

Another song which belies their reputation as space obsessives, it nevertheless has a strong resonance to its immediate predecessor as it deals, in its own way, with the existential experiences of falls from grace rather than literal re-entries from above the atmosphere (though I enjoyed the short sample which does belong to their tradition). This time the message is that "hitting rock bottom can sometimes be the ultimate liberation". It's Man Made Moon picturing life in terms of a roller coaster trip (and since my all time favourite morale booster song happens to be "Roller Coaster By the Sea" by The Modern Lovers, I can readily buy into that one). There probably is also a nod of the head to Bob "when you got nothing, you got nothing to lose" Dylan.

It's tempting to place these two songs within the wider context of the whole new album (and in fact you quite reasonably will expect me to do so) but that's something we need to leave until my review of the whole LP. Don't worry: there's not too long to wait. In the meantime, on the evidence of this pair, it's also tempting to suggest that Man Made Moon have developed a particular interest in introspection with added doses of self deprecation. However, their work of previous years has had depth of this nature, so it's no novelty for them: possibly it's a road they find rewarding to travel along in their writing & want to continue to do so.

This sounds like Leonard Cohen territory doesn't it but just as it's wildly inaccurate to class all his very adult themed songs as correspondingly gloomy in tone (though public perception does too often tend in that direction), so too do Man Made Moon frequently marry perky tunes to profound lyrics. You are going to be able to distinguish "I Am Ruben" from the works of Jacques Brel even if they do share some preoccupations.

As I say, it fits within the more jaunty end of the band's musical spectrum (though not quite to the lengths perhaps of "McNulty's Bar", their most extreme example) rather than their regular ethereal style, and is such seems destined for being a live highlight: especially outdoors.

Even though his current single , "Sometimes Sunshine" is still experiencing an upward popular & critical trajectory, the indefatigable Duke Keats is hitting us with its follow-up "You Win You Lose" on Friday. Which is pretty much what we tends to do, so prolific is his talent.

Another taster for his ‘POP SONGS' project, this really lush concoction might just as easily be considered a late night soul cut and neatly demonstrates his stunning capacity for creating complex, layered songs, entirely on his own, which however sound relaxed & effortless. How does he achieve this? He probably doesn't know himself and it's arguably better not to try to unpick the threads of genius. In fact he actually has implanted a warning against overthinking in this very song.

He also feels it's a good track to soundtrack driving at night: in which case he must be an extremely chilled driver. Would that there were more who drove to this groove. I'd certainly imagine it works well in the privacy of one's home.

Despite the sound and its R&B glide, though you could probably get down with a close friend to the vibe, in fact the story is much more fraught and closer to failure in love than success. It concerns a failure of nerve leading to lifelong regret, though in classic Duke Keats style embrace of visual media, he expresses it as "all of a sudden you constantly see their face everywhere on the TV screen and you long for them". Now many of us can probably identify to some extent with the failure to take that step of articulation  and declaration of attraction but not many would later see the object of their desire on the telly. However that's the world of Duke Keats for you.

It's a classy world too. Sophisticated music conveying thoughtful ideas. I'm no fan of the aristocracy generally but this Duke is truly noble.

It seems very odd that in 2026 I'd still be considering the effects of lockdown, but talking recently to Rosetta Fire's Jimmy Lapworth about their forthcoming single "Bulletproof"  (out on 25^th September), I realised that complex events impact differently upon different artists.

To me, the band were one of the significant ones on the local scene before the pandemic and subsequent to that, I felt it was best just to support existing artists as they re-emerged at their own pace and not risk adding pressure by hassling any about what they might be up to. Some of course sadly don't seem to be making music any more.

However Rosetta Fire began picking up the pieces when the time was right for the members (and there has been one lineup tweak) and that's the story of why they appeared at the ‘Hot Music Live Presents' fundraiser for The Tin this July. The time was ripe.

I don't know about you, but I really felt I detected a particular verve in their performance that evening & a zest for playing again. Obviously not everyone there will have seen them prior to 2020 and understandably took them as they found them that night: which was in itself impressive. However talking to Jimmy (and to other members on that evening), I think I'm correct: they are firing on all cylinders and I'd say any attempt to make up for lost time is paying off in them raising their game still higher than before.

And I believe you can hear this in the single also. I've always felt that the common thread in Rosetta Fire songs was that they were all very emotionally charged (and when your lead singer has a voice as soulful as that of Ant Gliddon then you can really make the most of this): and the band would be the first to point out that in many cases the emotions evoked are powerful yet not especially benevolent.

Which in fact is the case here.

The track actually snarls straight into life with choppy, angsty guitar which they describe as verging on the punky and this serves to amplify a lyric which deals with the problem of benevolently intended actions backfiring: aiming to help but instead "creating a monster".

This spirals rapidly into a position wherein the protagonist becomes "mistrustful of human relationships" and you can sense the intense vulnerability which ensues. It positively oozes out of one's speakers.

What with attention grabbing, spiky music in alliance with high intensity performance & edgy themes, this is the band back with a mighty bang. Of course being spiky & edgy only really works if those aspects are anchored by a sympathetic & solid rhythm section, so credit to bassist Emily Knight and new drummer Kev Stanley (though he's hardly new to these pages in other contexts).

In a way, that's probably all you need to know to (hopefully) convince you to engage with the single & to go & see them play (they are playing tomorrow, Saturday September 19^th, at HMV Banbury at noon so you haven't long to wait). But nevertheless, there are other indicators of their very positive state of mind at the moment. One is that they decided to make the recording sessions for "Bulletproof" as memorable for themselves as possible: and they greatly enjoyed working with Matt Terry at his Vada Recording Studios near Alcester with their beautiful grounds. (https://www.vadarecordingstudios.com/)

Look out too for the visuals they've been working on with Luke Spate (https://www.theartofbrotherhood.com/)  and MediaByRonny (https://linktr.ee/MediaByRonny) :the video for the single was shot at The Tin.

Back in February, we held our first seated version of a fundraiser for The Tin (starring Izzie Derry, Sophie Hadlum, Brass Hip Flask and Croissant) and so well did it go that we have planned another one.

This time, on Sunday November 15th, Nyotaa, Pandora, Daydreams and Robert James Grey have generously offered their talents to help The Tin and the community work carried out by this charitable organisation which does so much for grassroots and emerging musicians.

It will be on a Sunday (unlike earlier events in this series) and starts a little earlier so please do note the new details.Also, given the nature of the gig, there will be limited ticket availability so please secure yours early via this link:

https://events.humantix.com/hot-music-live-nyotaa-pandora-daydreams-robert-james-grey

"Simple, sincere and authentic" Folking.com

"Each song is a nugget in a seam of precious stuff, hand hewn and lovingly put together" AmericanaUK

When acclaimed finger-style guitarist and songwriter Amit was diagnosed with a degenerative nerve condition in 2018, the prognosis was devastating: just two more years of playing guitar before his hands would no longer cooperate. For a musician whose artistry was deeply rooted in the strings beneath his fingertips, it felt like an ending. But Wrong Kind of One is proof that some stories don't end the way they're expected to.

We are delighted to announce the latest HMLP fundraiser for The Tin on Sunday 18th October: lineups don't get much more cutting edge, original nor zeitgeist capturing than YNES, Ace Ambrose, lovsüm and Her Alien Flower.

Please note that we've switched the day of the week & tweaked the start time relative to earlier events in this series.

Are you as excited as we are?

Tickets are available via this link:

https://events.humantix.com/hot-music-live-ynes-ace-ambrose-lovsum-her-alien-flower

Isn't evolution a wonderful thing? I've shared multiple reviews of dogmarket (and their "mousebites" appears on ‘Hot Music Live Presents Volume Sixteen‘): each time describing them as the solo project of Thom Lea.

However anyone who was at the Hot Music Live Presents fundraiser for The Tin in July probably spotted two people on stage when they played and now with the release of the single "La Metropole" (out tomorrow) the band bio also cites "trumpet-keyboard wizard" Nico Moss (who was the other person you'd have seen) as part of dogmarket.

If last release "His Body, A Screen" brought them closer to a danceable pop sensibility, then you'll probably not be surprised to hear that the new one (to my ears at least) continues in this more accessible vein (in relation to the harsher and more obscurist earlier tracks).

That isn't to suggest any selling out of artistic integrity: Thom uses the word "anxiety" as the main aim of what they are trying to get across: they are just using something which comes across as decadent Weimar cabaret approach to put the points across. The neuroses are articulated in a suffocating Germanic arrangement which if anything evokes the feeling of brave if doomed artists making their statement with the dread of the knock on the door from the Gestapo ever in their mind.

If you are sceptical of that reading, think of intervening creativity like the likes of Mark 1 Human League exploring dark themes while trying to get to grips with first generation synthesisers and using Kraftwerk as a guide. Tellingly, Thom speaks also of creating with "a broken laptop, dodgy second-hand guitar and one synthesiser": you can still be lo-fi with hi-tech. It's a state of mind which generates interesting material.

The actual worry explored here is "internet misanthropy's marriage to climate anxiety" though I feel "La Metropole's" air of paranoia could convey any form of anxiety especially when the writer feels disempowered and "frustrated": they speak of "an impotent frustration channeled into a song that ultimately changes nothing."

And I think that's crucial to understand the song: the sort of empowerment song which identifies a problem and encourages the listener to contemplate joining forces to face it down has a certain buoyant feel. This certainly doesn't: the darker, more cynical tone is arguably more interesting and will hopefully appeal to those who aren't seeking feelgood panaceas. It's possible that I'm suggesting a potential audience within the Goth community.

Anyway I liked it & value it.  

There is also a great video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqWHmJZ3pb0) which has so much extra detail & captions which add to the sense of confusion and alienation. And yet these attributes sit on a bed of a stately authoritative arrangement creating the sense of tension inherent in the whole piece.

 dogmarket simply progress each outing.

THE WANTED 2.0 EMBARK UPON THE ‘(WE'RE) GLAD YOU CAME' TOUR ACROSS THE UK THIS OCTOBER

TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE

Get ready for… The Wanted 2.0. 

Over 15 years since they founded one of the country's most successful pop boybands, Max George and Siva Kaneswaran are heading back out on the road as The Wanted 2.0. This October, they'll be travelling across the UK treating audiences to the band's biggest 2010s hits, including the chart-topping "Glad You Came", the euphoric "Chasing The Sun", and the string-led "All Time Low" amongst other fan favourites from their backcatalogue.

Kicking things off at Komedia in Bath on 1st October, the tour includes stops at Club Academy in Manchester, Concorde 2 in Brighton, Foundry in Sheffield and more. The duo will also make a stop in the capital, to headline London's iconic cinema-turned-venue Scala on the 6th October. 

They'll be joined on the road by special guest Liv Harland in Bath and Oxford, while Essex-born contemporary blues/pop singer-songwriter Reigns will take on the support slot on the remaining dates. Manchester audiences will be treated to performances from both Harland and Reigns. The ‘(We're) Glad You Came Tour)' will come to a close at Digital in Newcastle on 22nd October. Full listings can be found below.  

*****

Get ready for… The Wanted 2.0. The next chapter in the history of one of Britain's biggest ever pop bands, who are ready to take to the stage with their explosive energy and chart-topping anthems. Founding members Max George and Siva Kaneswaran now carry the torch as ‘The Wanted 2.0' — the definitive place to hear all the global smash hits by this powerhouse UK band. 

With over 20 million record sales worldwide, The Wanted notched up 10 UK Top Ten singles and 2 UK Number 1 singles. The band still boast almost 7 million monthly listeners on Spotify and have a huge worldwide following. The catalogue contains pop masterpieces that defined an era, including the Number 1 Singles "All Time Low" and "Glad You Came", alongside fan-favourites like "Chasing The Sun", "Walks Like Rihanna", and the electrifying "Warzone".

Live Dates

• Thu 01 Oct - Bath, Komedia
• Fri 02 Oct - Oxford, O2 Academy
• Tue 06 Oct - London, Scala
• Thu 08 Oct - Brighton, Concorde 2
• Fri 09 Oct - Southampton, EngineRooms
• Thu 15 Oct - Sheffield, Foundry
• Fri 16 Oct - Manchester, Club Academy
• Sat 17 Oct - Coventry, Kasbah
• Thu 22 Oct - Newcastle, Digital  

Tickets available here.
 

For more information: Website | Instagram | Tiktok | YouTube

Fans of Coventry band General will be pleased to hear of the first digital release of their ‘DC EDM Mixes 2009' EP today on Mains Spike (it originally came out in 2009 (you probably could have guessed that) as a limited edition promo CD

It's quartet of tracks ("Dorothy", "Kamikaze", "Evil Ocean" and "Gone by Light of Day") which have been re mixed by their guitarist, Dave Claridge and remastered by Xris Chan.

I'm glad that they have told me that because they must be the most radical remixes I've ever heard: left to myself I'd have supposed them to be entirely different recordings to the versions of tracks you may be familiar with: and I might even have been persuaded that they were completely distinct songs altogether.

Given that General are known for their take on stoner rock, reimaginings "consisting of electronic beats & synths blended with guitars & vocals" is not quite the first option which would necessarily spring to mind if the songs were to be explored in a new manner: that it's in fact one of the actual band rather than covers by admirers working in a separate genre just adds to the surprise.

Of course I do tend to say that strong songs are capable of interpretation in various ways but these have been taken on quite a journey.

I'm not going to compare them: they are so radically different that I can appreciate the value in both approaches.

One searingly obvious outcome of what Dave has done is to elongate and so the tracks are explored at greater length which must have been as enjoyable & rewarding in the remixing process as in the listening.

Both approaches are in their own way pretty extreme and it's possible that the exercise included an element of finding common ground between the outsider aspects of the stoner and the techno communities. To that end, I imagine the songs were selected in 2009 from among their body of work to focus on ones which came across just as effectively each way.

I also assume that General would like to test the boundaries of expectations of their audience and offer them the chance to consider viewing songs they already liked via the filter of another subculture: and again that's something I can applaud.

For their fourth (and I understand final) single from their album 'Sad Moon, Sleepy Heads' , Ieere have opted for "Talismans". Since vocalist Claire Glasbey cites it as one of her favourites (though there must be plenty of competition for that accolade given the standards of the album) that must have played a part in the decision. However, more intriguingly, she states that it "really resonates with my current life" too.

Composed by Dominic Hanway and Simon Monaghan, this track features guest flautist Chloe Mullet over a mesh of six and twelves string guitars played by Dom: and that's really it in terms of instruments. The rest is Claire & Simon singing. I have to say that a very clear marker of "class" in music for me is when an artist has plenty of instruments etc at their disposal (as is evidenced across the album as a whole) yet opts for relative simplicity to suit the song. Even the flute plays a discreet and supporting role.

The reason presumably includes a decision to give emphasis to the lyrics (and if you are just joining the Ieere party, like the rest of the album, they originate from Goethe) and without prying into precisely when Claire relates to them, "In a tangle/Can you see?/ Can you untangle me?/Tell me the words/I should be saying/Show me the way/That I should be taking" do seem the sort of sentiments with which we can all relate and have that powerful & yet simple quality which most reflects universal experience and naturally marks out the greatest writers.

As well as the gorgeousness of the overall effect (like Goethe, Ieere prove that keeping it straight and basic can increase the potency), I wonder whether Claire considers it her best vocal to date? I really rated her singing on earlier single "The Earth Spirit" which was a bluesier and sultry approach (which I really enjoyed): whether her performance here is even better (I'm sure you will form your own opinions on the matter) or not, it certainly shows a different side to how she can interpret lyrics: more vulnerability perhaps. When someone writes such words which strip away all their emotional defences & leave them bare to the world, then whoever sings them has to aim for something similar. Quite apart from the technical aspects of the singing, that's quite an ask.

"Talismans" is arguably the most intimate & psychologically profound of Ieere's interpretations of Goethe (and given the author I'm quite prepared for you all to come up with plausible alternatives) and that may be yet another factor in why it's coming out now and not earlier. They have offered us the "fun" side of an author whose popular image is something very different & here they rise admirably to the challenge of setting something  much closer to the spirit of introspection I certainly associated with him. If nothing else, they've cured me of the ignorant assumption that ‘Goethe=morbidity'. This is a charmingly presented plea for emotional care & mutual aid. Our society could do well to take heed.

Incidentally, if you're wondering why the cover art is by Turner, it's because the piece is  'Light and Colour (Goethe's Theory)'... his own expression of what he understood the poet to be saying.

After their triple whammy of singles in late 2024 ("McNultys Bar", "Brass Knuckles" and "Tell Me When I'm Dead") Man Made Moon are back on September 4^th with their latest, namely "The Boy Who Fell To Earth".

Despite the successful exploration of non-space related themes, the band have come back to the one which not only defined their name & early work, but which crops up regularly in their body of work. Which of course strengthens their brand but is also clearly evidence too of where their hearts are (I should mention however that it's not an obsession: I have heard other new songs & they are far from all set in space).

The title may well, as it did me, suggest some sort of Bowie inspiration to you but if it's in there, it's buried quite deep. The music certainly is more in keeping with what they tend to do rather than his and feeling is more humane than dystopian nor alienated.

In fact the song reveals itself to be more of a clever play on their reputation (well done Man Made Moon): you may expect Thomas Jerome Newton crash landing but as we all know, we can fall to earth through regret and guilt without having to begin our descent from outside the atmosphere nor do it in a spacecraft.

The band do the ethereal well but this is one of the ones they do which can be tagged as "jaunty", a mood which plays nicely against any sense of remorsefulness.

In fact I'm trying to think of another track by the band which makes quite the same balance between guitars (which in this instance drive the tune along well) and keyboards which take centre stage in terms of the detailed elements of the arrangement. To be fair, unlike many bands where some particular asset in the lineup tends to ensure that it's more prominent in order to play to strengths, Man Made Moon have always been a democratic ensemble in terms of arrangements: this however might be the epitome of their achieving this.

The band seem to oscillate between playing outdoors & in confined spaces so their various songs probably work to their best in one extreme or another, but "The Boy Who Fell To Earth" seems set fair to work its charms in most live settings. And for those who listen beyond the obvious opportunity to have a little dance, there are the usual quality of thoughtful, grown up lyrics to leave an impression on the mind as well as the feet.

And listen out for more Man Made Moon music in the weeks to come….