Song reviews

Girls. Guitars. Reverb. That’s about all you need to make my ears happy. Big smiles therefore for Desert Sharks as they crank it up and make some noise with their song “Sorceress”. I am now officially under their spell.

It is somewhat ironic for blues revivalists like ElectroBluesSociety to revive an Amy Whitehouse song yet they have chosen to do just that with “Back To Black” and guest vocalist Karin Roerdink uses her voice to keep the song on the straight and narrow.

Yes. It seems like there will always a place for some good time rock ‘n’ roll revivalism with Glasgow’s Awkward Family Portraits greasing back their quiff and taking their song “Ring Ring Angus” on an energetic time travelling trip back to the fifties.

Should you ever wonder what makes a pop song in the days immediately preceding Armageddon then look no further than “Listen Up” by Tawny K. The computer is carrying the freight yet there is still the mark of humanity to be found in the lyrics.

Although the band, like me, are clearly far too young to have first-hand knowledge of the psych pop influences that liberally season “Rip It Off”, it is nonetheless obvious that taking the listener on a guitar powered trip comes easily to Parsnip. I’m a believer.

“Talking To Yourself” plays out like a pop song from a time when such things were the norm and Dante Matas does his best to fill the obligatory three minutes with enough in the way of hook and melody to take your attention into tomorrow.

Pulling the stick back on seventies retro rock moves allows “Treat Ya Better” to gain some altitude and duly gives The Criticals the chance to fly their song on to the bridge in order to impress both the youth of today and their gran.

Guitars turned up to the max? Yes! Sleazy streetwise attitude present and correct? Oh yes! God bless Keys for making “I Only Want You For Your Rock and Roll” into the kind of song that actively encourages delinquent behaviour. Play loud.

Minor key melancholy sets the mood for “The Wolf” and Freja Frances weaves enough metaphorical ambiguity into her words to make her song seem deeper than even the shadows in her heart. Worth a second or even third play.

OK, so Weston Rd dig up all the best moves from rock history to power their song “Take You Down” but it is undeniable that they do so with notable style. Powerhouse lead vocals from Joe Blanks polish the song off nicely.

Winning this weeks’ award for best song title, Go Go Ponies kick it up with some flair and duly turn their song “Sharknado Circle Pit” into a punk meets hard rock hybrid destined to damage the walls anywhere that they might play.

Melodic metal gets some Scandinavian style with Sublime Eyes doing their Norwegian best to turn their song “Med Tiden Gror” into the kind of anthem that destroys stadiums. With the volume turned, you might well believe that this song will do just that.