Song reviews

“Still Holding On” is a fine example of the pop punk style and The Dollyrots easily demonstrate their grasp of the core concepts of this raucous retro sound. I don’t know if they still have shopping malls but this song should be booming from the speakers in all of them

Mona Mur is a musical legend and it is therefore no surprise that she can take oppressive retro beats and nihilistic lyrics and turn them into something that could make the shadows dance. I wear black because that is what she decrees. Worship her.

Maybe Nashville will take over the world? Sometimes it looks that way with the plethora of country ladies ready to pull a blue collar bunny out of the cowboy hat. “10 Bucks” is the hook that Katelyn Lehner uses to do just that.

Another excellent name. This time the moniker is Miss Tammy Darling and she also does not disappoint with her song “Electric Love” neatly crossing the line between neo and northern soul. Old and new at the same time and she also takes it right to the bridge.

Let’s face it, Virgin Mary Disco is a great name for a band and their song “Automation” also does not disappoint with its initial, retro eighties, vibe transforming into something altogether rockier and lyrically bleaker than you might expect. Very promising.

The are times when the old ways are best and “Rubber Hits The Road” proves just that with SUSU pulling out some powerful blues rock moves and joining them with strong female vocals. Yeah, play this one loud. Then play it loud again.

Nicely polished and confidently performed, “Aztec Jewel” seems a safe choice for airplay with nothing that Murdo Mitchell does with his song likely to offend even the ears of the musically savvy. The soundtrack to any aspirational advert.

Metal bands don’t generally do melodies these days but Shadow Smile do and, even with the inclusion of all the stereotypical growls and steroid fuelled guitars, their song “Hellhound Heart” sounds like it could live on an acoustic guitar if it had to.

Sung in a most polite and controlled manner, “Sweetest Addictions” gives We Ghosts the opportunity to show that they have more than a bit of class. There’s not much to the lyrics but the laidback and contemplative vibe will convince many.

Ben Hemming is a class act. Of that there is no doubt and “The Devil’s Dance” provides more than enough evidence of his talent with the steady path that he steers between rock and Americana giving the song a wide appeal. Maturity has its benefits.

Piano led and elegantly contrived, “Mourning Sun” by Mike Brunacini tickles your ears with a combination of poetic literacy and showtune sensibilities. A song that does indeed sound like it would belong in a musical.

There is concentrated goodness to be found in “Slow Decay” with reverb aplenty, cascading guitars, sweeping synths and wistfully ethereal female vocals combining in the mist to thus make Rose Haze more than just another shoegaze favourite.