Story Of Hair - The Ho! Ho! Ho! Stamp EP

Once upon a time in a land not so far far away, a fluorescent pink pig wished by moonlight what it would be like to visit the great Radio City. Perhaps one of the great kings of Radio City could give him a greater purpose in life than the quite ornamental one he was used to. His wish... Piggy Pig wanted to hear a wee noise.

OK. Time to pull out some hair... The Ho! Ho! Ho! Stamp EP was released last December 13th in Radio City. Arriving through the Frequency-Ireland postbox this week, and having gone through enough cold turkey for another year, it is time to catch up on what was perhaps the finest local release last festive season. A first run through the EP checks a nod to Sonic Youth's Goo, Nirvana's Insecticide, Blood Red Shoes, Pavement, Fugazi. It is a sound which has collectively been described before as alternative noise pop art rock, and indie-punk close to its best. Without Sound, the lead track on the EP and the single début which preceded the release is an infectious triumph of simplicity in motion - I never learned how to shout, but I knew how to scream, without sound. Five tracks follow which alternate between female and male lead vocals, abrasive melodies, instantly lovable hooks, screams, shouts, squallered tunes and a true sense of the simmering sensibilities of get up and go which makes music come alive. Piggy Pig should be rather happy with the pedestal he now appears on.

Choice tracks, which can be streamed from their space on the web, are Udder and Without Sound, though many will give more credit over to that familiar punktastic live favourite of Shoes On Fire as the real go-getter of the EP. 9/10.

Related Links:

http://www.storyofhair.com/

http://www.myspace.com/storyofhair

The Gandhis - Zaza

The Gandhis release their début single Zaza as a download on 8th Feb with a launch night in Radio City on the same day. A band whom allegedly don't subscribe to trends or images, one finds this wanton untrendy illusion quite an appetiser for a band who are sure to draw attention in the coming year.

And so it's time for some peaceful civil disobedience... Innovation is always the key to making a mark, and their quirky jazz-infused liltfull rock leaves one with the impression that they can and will do just that. Independent music inspired by all from The Beatles to The Buzzcocks, their music is quite instantly catchy in melody, yet is voyeuristic in delivery, with instrumentation as diverse as to include the banjo, the trumpet and the ukulele to fill out their sound. This is music which is right up entertainment street for one looking for, well, let's put it as a turn for the better. Zaza can be found out on their myspace page and website along with Guy Like Me, a promo demo which has already earned them significant airplay, a track which is quite a different kettle of soup, with the euphoria of The Beta Band on quite an overwhelming ration of deleriously happy peace burdened shrooms. 8/10.

Related Links:

http://www.thegandhismusic.com

http://www.myspace.com/thegandhis

The Screams - Mood Swings & Roundabouts

And so it seems, the return of the band formerly known as The Ant Hill Mob may not be on the cards after chaos leered to overrule a stint at The Voodoo Lounge last month. While the ship of The Screams looks to sink before leaving the harbour, through mood swings and roundabouts, the music survives to tell tale of the Dublin based five-piece who flirted with a comeback after a 15 years hiatus.

The Stranglers through to The Jam, a touch of The Specials, and even some Floyd thrown in for good measure, The Screams echo inspiration from many icons of the 70s. Things Can Only Get Better echoes of an urban underclass boredom with some quite memorable lines, while a track simply titled Don't jilts to an inane delight with a quirky vocal and keys which would fit snugly onto the b-side of a Floyd release circa Wish You Were Here. Demons move in with feedback and propulsion to steal your dead leg away, while Life On Earth has shades of life down at the tube stations at midnight lived out in a living room wanting for more than the end of that last beer can. Although emergence of The Screams now seems ever more distant, these tracks and more are currently downloadable from their space on the web, where one can take a measure or two of what was missed out on. The Screams have a lot of material here to be buoyant about. 7/10.

Related Links:

http://www.thescreams.com/

http://www.myspace.com/thescreamsdublin

Sons Of Now - Dirty Money

It's simple straight forward no bullshit rock n'roll, and as it should be. Those familiar with the rock scene from Ireland over the past few years will know the Sons Of Now. Dirty Money is the latest offering, which can be tasted in all its angst and raw energy on their space as recorded live in Dublin recently.


Described before as having the devil-possessed poise of The White Strips, the Sons Of Now push out Dirty Money with a driving riff and a sneer from the gutter at the exposed to which The Cramps would have been proud of, baring all the that was infectious about punk inspired rock. A taster from the promise of a SHOTGUN EP, it is accompanied with Sell Your Soul and Into The Sun, also available from their space on the web, the former with a rabid propulsion that makes it the choice track of those on offer. And so that common theme seems to be an undercut at those exposed for a false profit on the soul, the material makes for a rousing punk inspired backlash, and one demanding our full attention at that. 7/10.

Related Links:

http://www.myspace.com/sonsofnow

http://bandwagon.ie/bands/Sons+of+Now

http://www.bebo.com/RebelShotgun

Floyd Soul & The Wolf - Welcome To The Woods Again

If you go down to the woods today... Taking influence from The Rolling Stones, Crazy Horse and Kings of Leon, Waterford rock outfit Floyd Soul & The Wolf start the new year preparing for their first single release. Prior to this, echoes of roots rock could be heard in some of the earlier material on their début, the 2006 Welcome To The Woods EP, particularly with Talk On The Rocks, a loose rumbling number all the way from the honkey tonk blues rock counties. In other tracks, Stonewalkin' and to a lesser extent I Am The Room, we catch shadows of a music life raised to and indulging in the sounds of Exile on Main Street.


Having brush-ins with garage/blues rock, filled with harmony and energy, and shoved through to some country-rock narcosis, its hardly surprising to hear that they've a producer coming over from Nashville to work with them on their single, to point them in the right direction, so to speak, before taking it back to Nashville for mixing and mastering. The omens are good. Given that their debut EP is a thoroughly enjoyable listen, one can wait in anticipation of another fine release.

Related Links:

http://www.myspace.com/floydsoul

http://www.electric-circus.net/video/floyd-soul-the-wolf

http://www.floydsoulthewolf.bebo.com/

CANE 141 - Lost At Sea, Found At Moonpool

Alternative is perhaps the first word that comes to mind when one thinks of CANE 141. Although the works and concepts of Mike Smalle aka CANE 141 have most often been far off the radar of the music scene, CANE 141 has amassed a lot of respect in the alternative music press, and even more so in the sphere of the concept art community. Lost At Sea is of course the soundtrack CD of CANE 141 which found its way to the GraceSpace Gallery in Brooklyn NYC last year. As part of an audio/visual collaboration first exhibited in Galway at a festival in 2006, it applies the musical voyages of CANE 141 to the visual works of Roison Coyle, combining the beauty and struggle of the sea with the individual's response to it. It swathes somewhere between ethereal grey skies and a morning sea mist. Hmmmm.



Lush, ambient, obscure, CANE 141 electronica provides the mind an indulgence well worth the voyage through indirection. Lost At Sea washes perpetually under the narrative words of the commander, the musical journey taking you off course ensuring that the mind may be submissive to the minimalist subtleties of the album. Compared occasionally to ambient works such as those of Fennesz and Biosphere, the album has been described as beautiful and intriguing, and among the best records of its type last year. As an artist who has collaborated in the past with such musical luminaries as Mark Eitzel (American Music Club) Sean O'Hagan (The High Llamas/Microdisney/Stereolab) and Cristian Vogel of Super_Collider fame, this is hardly surprising. Some of the CANE 141 material can be experienced from the CANE 141 space, including the exceptional '1 to 10 and back again' from the highly acclaimed Moonpool 2005 album. As always, music to loose oneself in. 10.

Related Links:

http://www.myspace.com/cane141

http://www.cane141.com/

Oh My God!... (It Might Be Him)

Delivering a kooky psychedelic pop-rock shaped by the influence of the best from the 60s and 70s, from The Velvet Underground through to The Magic Mushrooms, soon to emerge all-girl band from Cork, OMGIMBH, are showing early promise.

Sir Lurkalot and Green For Go key in with all the right ingredients for spontaneity, frustration, euphoria, and spirited garage-pop psychedelia, and all of what pop-rock music should be about at its core. A band currently gigging the Cork area and writing new material in whatever spare time they have, both Sir Lurkalot and Green For Go are downloadable from their fledgling myspace on the net - and is a highly recommended visit for those keen to get in early on the act. 8/10.

Related Links:

http://www.myspace.com/ohmygoditmightbehim

http://www.omgimbh.bebo.com/