The Test Drive: T.E. Yates – Silver Coins and White Feathers
Most musicians boast of exploding onto their local scene in a glittering blaze of media hype and spontaneous applause. The unassuming, unusual and enigmatic T.E. Yates however, snuck in through an open window.
His name...
The Test Drive: The Peace Life – Jupiter Beach
The Peace Life are a married couple from Minneapolis, Minnesota who have already established their unique brand of euphoric Folk music through the independent release of two albums and a single. Their latest album...
The Test Drive: Karl Walsh & The Happy Future – Birds
The Happy Future was formed in Manchester in 2015 by Karl Walsh who was originally signed to Factory Records by Tony Wilson. Walsh, also a founder member of acoustic trio To Hell With Burgundy,...
The Test Drive: Buffalos Bay – Living Under The Reef
Formed in 2015, Buffalos Bay are a 5 piece Psych Pop/Rock band from Belfast, Northern Ireland. Heavily inspired by the 1960s, they are influenced by artists such as The Beatles, The Kinks and early...
The Test Drive: Maker – Girl Quit Your Crying
Maker are quickly becoming a colossal force to be reckoned with. While I'm still listening to their previous outing, "Move Your Feet", they go and drop "Girl Quit Your Crying" on me! And after...
The Test Drive: The Black Watch – The Gospel According To John
The Black Watch's new album "The Gospel According To John" is a testament to the underexposed. This is a brilliant album. Taking the post modern of old and mixing it with an originality unheralded...
The Test Drive: Joe Symes & The Loving Kind – Acoustic Variations Volume 2
Joe Symes & The Loving Kind continue the magic ride of musicality with the awaited sequel to "Acoustic Variations" titled "Acoustic Variations Volume 2". This is less of a continuation as it is an...
The Test Drive: San Eco – San Eco
San Eco combine the unique approach of two musicians, one with a footing in innovative electronica, the other in bombastic indie pop. Five years in the making, their debut album ‘San Eco’ finds them...
The Test Drive: Various Artists – Manchester With Love
After the atrocities at the Manchester Arena last month, the people of the city did what they do best, pulled together and showed the world their amazing spirit.
Nothing can change what happened on that...
The Test Drive: The Veldt – The Shocking Fuzz of Your Electric Fur
Today, June 2, Schoolkids Records have released The Veldt’s wonderfully titled ‘The Shocking Fuzz of Your Electric Fur’ Mixtape EP worldwide. The band is also presenting a new video for ‘One Day Out of Life’...
The Test Drive: The Harringtons – Change Is Gonna Come
Forming in 2014 at the age of 16, The Harringtons are a fresh faced, feel-good Rock n' Roll trio from Sheffield, Jack, Brad and Jordan have a fresh outlook on music, taking influence from...
The Test Drive: Bentley Jones – Unravelling
Bentley Jones definitely kicks it up a notch with his new album, "Unravelling". While his musicianship and songwriting chops were already state-of-the-art when we first reviewed him for "The Rebellion" in 2015, the maturity...
The Test Drive: Kovax – If There Was Ever Any Doubt
Chuck full O' Riffs and laced with guitar heavy hooks, Kovax' new EP "If There Was Ever Any Doubt" is a how to at constructing chunky power rock. Each track has it's own identity,...
The Test Drive: Iguana Lovers – Surfing Caos
Iguana Lovers are a shoegaze/psych/indie band from Argentina who were formed in 1990 in Buenos Aires by founding members Ariel Soriano (guitars and vocals), Ivan Mirabal (guitars) and Javier Accossatto (bass). The line up...
The Test Drive: Micah Gaugh – Stars Are A Harem
Maintaining originality within a diverse and influential genre of music, such as jazz, is a hard enough accomplishment within itself. To actually make a mark in that genre on top of staying original is a...
The Test Drive: Rum Thief – Time to Make a Move
Rum Thief is solo artist Jot Green with support from his band members Kieran Whitehouse on lead guitar, Gary Long on bass and Chris Hobbs on drums. Based in Chorlton, Manchester, the project began...
The Test Drive: Hightown Pirates – Dry and High
Introducing Hightown Pirates with their debut album Dry and High with stunning artwork by Pete Doherty.
Hightown Pirates is the band formed by Simon Mason. His friendship with Mick Head (Shack) sowed the seed, conceived...
The Test Drive: Florence Joelle – One Step Forward
Sassy, sensual and effortlessly cool, Joelle has created a musical subgenre all of her own. Its a Franco-Anglo polychromatic, potpourri of latin and classic jazz, vintage and contemporary blues, gypsy folk, 50's R&B rock...
The Test Drive: Lunar Twin – Night Tides
Electronica with soul. Shoegaze with vision. These are a few phrases that come to mind when I listen to "Night Tides", the new album from Lunar Twin. Originality usually comes at a price, and...
The Test Drive: Anilore – Lull
Hailing from New York, Andy Cheng, Andrew Malenda and Michael Worsa met in the 90's and formed Anilore.
In 2006, the band released a remastered version of Still Awake, drawing on their influences from post...
The Test Drive: Kristin Hersh – Wyatt at the Coyote Palace (Disc One)
Shedding the constraints of electric (mostly) and going acoustic for her latest set of expressions, Kristin Hersh re-invents herself immaculately with her double-disc titled "Wyatt at the Coyote Palace". To be honest, I am...
The Test Drive: Elevant – Normal Life
Elevant are the thunderous genre absorbers heading the Loner Noise label.Since their formation in 2014 they've fused a host of disparate influences into a sound that can be dark and atmospheric, heavy and crushing...
The Test Drive: Orations – Wych Elm
Orations have released, what I would consider, a true album. I say true because every song, to me, gets to the very core of what music is all about. Imaginary and emotional exploration. The...
The Test Drive: Phil Odgers – Roll To The Left
Best known as one half of the legendary joint vocal strike force of The Men They Couldn’t Hang, Phil Odgers strikes out on his own once more with 'Roll To The Left', his latest...
The Test Drive: The G-O-D – Grafters OV Denton
The G-O-D, Simon Wolstencroft's current band, has released their new EP titled "Grafters OV Denton", a three track modern Merseybeat that's just as original as it is bound to it's roots. And those roots are deep....