Cathal Coughlan
Song of Co-Aklan
Dimple Records
Do yourself a favour and get this in your ears. more… “Cathal Coughlan”
Album reviews
Minerva Wakes
Mirrored Moon
Traffic Cone
(Wikipedia extract)
“Minerva /mɪˈnɜːrvə is the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy.” more… “Minerva Wakes”
Babybird
An Introduction To...
Bandcamp
Babybird’s output is exhausting – 78 releases on Bandcamp at the last count, and counting… more… “Babybird”
Mogwai
As The Love Continues
Rock Action
Twenty-five years since the release of their debut single ‘Tuner’/‘Lower’, Glasgow’s Mogwai present their tenth album. more… “Mogwai”
Arab Strap
As Days Get Dark
Rock Action
Where do we start with this one… probably the most anticipated comeback album of many recent years… more… “Arab Strap”
Blanck Mass
In Ferneaux
Sacred Bones
A new release from Benjamin John Power (aka Blanck Mass), formerly one half of Fuck Buttons) more… “Blanck Mass”
Randolph’s Leap
Spirit Level
Fika Recordings
No matter how good the solo shows and the solo recordings are I’ve always felt that Randolph’s Leap songs are heard to best effect in the context of the full eight-piece band. more… “Randolph’s Leap”
Adam Stafford
Diamonds of a Horse Famine
Song, by Toad
This is the latest release by the multi-talented son of Falkirk Adam Stafford (ok, it is from October last year and these are even older songs anyway, but…).
It is worth pointing out that this is on the Song, by Toad section of Bandcamp, only the lead single ’30 Years of Bad Road’ comes up on Adam’s own Bandcamp section. This track was released earlier in 2020 and was reviewed at the time.
There are nine tracks here, and as previously stated they date from a few years ago, lyrics discovered by Adam and refashioned during lockdown into rehashed versions of old songs.
It is not an easy listen, for example the first track ‘Thirty Years of Hard Road’ is a meditation on underachievement (or that is how he sees it) – self-doubt with guitar twangs…
Other themes are addiction, mental illness, beautifully arranged with guitar loops and other sound effects accompanying Adam’s always attractive vocals. This is deeply personal music but while the arrangements are lo-fi, they always work
Other tracks like ‘What Kind of Man’ include some lyrics which could even outdo Falkirk’s other chief purveyor of sexual explicitness (you know who you are Aidan!).
Stafford continues to be a singular artist who is well worth checking out.
Celeste
Not Your Muse
Polydor
It’s easy to be cynical. It’s not necessarily the right way to listening pleasure, though. more… “Celeste”
STEWXRT
Finding My Way
self-released
STEWXRT is a young guy from Oban and this album was released late last year more… “STEWXRT”