Listening To This Week 3 August

Wow! Where do I start with this? Normally, the LTTW Playlist starts as the last one ends, compiled throughout the week as the time allows with all the other stuff that goes on with IDHAS. With me not being around for most of the week, it was approached from cold over the weekend.

The maximum 30 songs are here. All new and as usual, the mixture of what the place is about with returning heroes, Blog debutants and new singles from artists who have already been here. There has also been a lot of personal memories revived. 

Artists are here that I collected both well before the internet days and certainly before my own writing time. The fact that the artists have new songs out is amazing. The likes of Bleu, Roger Manning Jr, The Cleaners From Venus and Teenage Fanclub. 

Indeed, the Bleu song is about Ducky Carlisle and The Major Labels. Incidentally, I Don't Hear A Single is a Major Labels song and one of the three reasons for the Blog title. I've also not forgotten about the reason the Playlist is here and this could be the best ever LTTW affair from start to finish.

I don't usually include instrumentals and have certainly never opened the playlist with one, but The Sinclairs opener is wonderful. There is also the usual aim of closing with something different and exceptional, Ozconcious certainly provide that.

The song order is not about song preference, but how the playlist flows.  All embeds open in new windows to aid scrolling. Links to the artists will also appear on I Don't Hear A Single Social Media sites over the next 24 hours. This will help you to discover more about those who appear here. 

The Sinclairs - And Garnish With A Fresh Tarantula

Attic Salt - Dolly Zoom

Jamie Turner - Paint A Good Picture

British Birds - Lie Down With The Dogs, Stand Up With The Fleas

Roger Joseph Manning Jr - Modern Dance (The After School Specials)

Feaster - Surprise

Joe Shade - Tearing It Down

Teenage Fanclub - Day In The Sun

Cheekface - Rent Is Down

Invisible Rays - Landline

Bleu - Start A Band

Peter Cat - Innocent Driver

The Cleaners From Venus - Spring Wings In

Milk St. - Just So https://milkst.bandcamp.com/track/just-so

Ultra Lights - Wild On The Outside

Joel Cosumano - Buying Time

Railcard - Two Steps At A Time

Hard To Miss - Truth

The Hollywood Stars - Hey! LA!

WOLVESofJUNE - TNT

Jeff Graham - Leaving Chicago

st. davis - In The Know

Jack Grisham And The Life Undone - Pain Goes Around

Warren James - Miss Green Tea

Tom Coward - Send Closure

That Old Quiet Lighthouse - Hands Up

Kavus Torabi - Water Into Wine

The Loved Ones - Down That Road

Red Bird - Domino

Red Bird · Domino

Ozconcious - Gaze

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Back To The Music

 

Sorry for the tumbleweed this week. An unexpected Back injury has meant not being able to sit down for too long and certainly not in front of a Mac. The restriction has also made it difficult to collate submissions and I'll be trying to catch up with those tomorrow. It is probably the longest time that I've been away from here for ages and a rare week in that music listening has largely been on the back burner.

This has also meant that Monday's Listening To This Week Playlist has to be started from scratch tomorrow and so a lot of the day will be preparing that and it is looking top notch. Returning heroes, IDHAS debuts and some really great songs for you to listen to.

The likelihood is that I will attempt to get the Playlist out tomorrow night and tag it Monday. There are quite a few Reviews to do and get up. Fortunately, although we do have a fair bit of forward Review dates, as always, most release a bit later in August.

This means the catch up can continue in earnest and the easiest way to do this seems to be adding an extra 31 Reviews In 31 Days. They will start from Monday evening with a couple a day through the first few days and then one a day rigidly.

The amazing thing is that with almost a week's absence, Blog visits have been incredibly high. Listeners have been catching up with the month and before, listening to previous LTTW Playlists and most pleasing, visiting the archive looking back at the last 10 years. 

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Apologies

 Apologies for the Review delays. Don has done his back in and he is not being a good patient. 

Listening To This Week Playlist 27 July

As we unbelievably approach August, here is the final LTTW Playlist of July. 26 songs, everyone a winner. As usual, what you might expect with a few surprises. The song order is not about song preference, but how the playlist flows.  

All embeds open in new windows to aid scrolling. Links to the artists will also appear on I Don't Hear A Single Social Media sites over the next 24 hours. This will help you to discover more about those who appear here. 

The Mellons - Lady Apple Tree

Mrs Magician - Sanctuary

The Goods - Summers Almost Gone

The Heavenly Bodes - Spitting The Pips Out

Strange Pink - Sculcoates

Homework - Made

The Private Eye - Mary Couldn't Carry

The Lazy Eyes - Always In The Back Of My Mind

United States Of Existence - Less Is More

The Green Pajamas - All The Assassins

A.N.J.A. - Men Will Die Tonight

The Morning Line - Anhedonia

Finn Wolfhard - Common Side Effects

Mo Troper - The Best Seat In The House

Huxton Creepers - Opposites Attract

J. Killen - Oak Tree

Unknown Vagabond - Warm Tide (left blank)

Delta Delay - Soft Asphalt

Ryan Hamilton - Over Again

District 8 - I'm Trying Here

Greg Williams - Through My Hands

The Jimmy C - Pacific Ocean Blue

Adult Magic - Drift & Dive

Jonny Couch - Where The Sidewalk Ends

Michael Slawter With Julian Volpe - Renee's Lucky Day

Badzy - Say That You Will

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Mrs Magician - Spiritual Hangover

 

Mrs Magician's previous two albums were before IDHAS hit the internet. 2012's Strange Heaven is an all time classic and was followed by the equally interesting Bermuda was released in 2016, a few months before we began.

Jason Turnbloom is joined by Andrew Montaya and Mark Riviera of The Sess (incidentally, The Sess's 2008 album, Agendumb is a great album too), Ian Fowles of The Aquabats and John Reis and their experience really really shows.

Spiritual Hangover is no ordinary revival, it is an absolute gem. There are hints of the past, but largely this is a great Power Pop affair. A slightly noisier version of the genre that is more common with the new breed. Sprinklings of Organ enhance the feel.

There are diversions. One & Only Girl has a 90s College Rock feel, Depression Song is built on a Power Pop Riff, but sounds darker and the guitar solo is almost Goth. Pill is close to UK New Wave and The World Doesn't Need Your Jive has more than a touch of UK Glam Rock vibe.

But essentially, this is Power Pop joy. Killer Riffs, massive choruses and songs that you just want to sing along to. As well as the surprise of the return after a decade, I had no right to expect an album as superb is this. I embed my current favourite three songs, but truth be known, I'd happily embed all 11. 

You can listen to and buy the album here. The album is also available on Vinyl at all good Record Shops. It is a potential album of the year.

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The Mellons - In Color

 

The glorious second album from Salt Lake City quartet The Mellons is ready to delight your lugholes. Very 60s, a summer feeling in which the band raid the instrument cupboard to offer up stunning California Pop of the highest order.

As well as the killer arrangements, Beach Boy type harmonies sit from everywhere. Catchy as catchy can be, the arrangements are slightly Baroque at times, but everything centres around the killer hormones. Song that you can singalong to and will.

Upside Down as a tint of Prime Time The Move. Radiant Radish may be short, but with its Psych Pop, almost Toytown feel, it completely overwhelms you. Central Park City Square Flower Days mixes surf with a Circus style Music Hall arrangement to great effect.

Lady Apple Tree even steps into XTC territory, With A Girl Like You is great 70s Pop Rock and Say Goodbye is McCartney Piano Pop and oj that Mellotron! I Told Ya All Time Jangles wonderfully with overtones of Merseybeat mixed with slight Prog. Upside Down is really trippy.

There are also short interludes / Ads that add to the overall joy of a really accomplished album. This may be Retro in style, but there are so many ideas that are enforced by the splendid production. In Color is an essential listen.

You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on Vinyl and as a download.

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Listening To This Week Playlist 20 July

The maximum 30 songs this week. A concentration on what we are known for with plenty of Guitar Pop, but also, as always, some fine diversions. The song order is not about song preference, but how the playlist flows.  

All embeds open in new windows to aid scrolling. Links to the artists will also appear on I Don't Hear A Single Social Media sites over the next 24 hours. This will help you to discover more about those who appear here. 

Modern History - Comfort Of Pain

Desoto Reds - Aftermath

Hurry - The Dumbest Person You've Ever Seen

The Allwells - Who I Am

Purple Cassette - Waiting On Nothing

Plastic Bubble - Recontextualize

Professor And The Madman - Tolerant World

Oddysseys - Cerbie

Sona Bliss - You Don't

Subterranean Street Society - Indispensable Love

Mythical Motors - The Queen Of Fleeting Moments

Remo Drive - Live In Pain

He's Dead Jim - Flame On

Maureens - Great Smile

The Melmacs - These Days

Golden Richards - I Want To Be Like Jeff Goldblum

The Friends - I Know You're Dead (But The Drapes Are Pretty)

Cult Figures - Walking Disaster

Historically Close Friends - Man Of YourDreams

Brennan Gilmore - Wolf And Sheep

Fast Boyfriends - Minefield

Band Of Jays - IDK

Band of Jays · IDK

Holy Coves - Travelling

The Roland High Life - The Edge Of Memory

Basin Lot - Came Here On My Own

Basin Lot · Came Here On My Own

David Woodard - Carrying Everything

Nicamus - Duck Tales

oh michael - If I Was Cool And British

Tom Barrett - Get By

Bannas - Fuzzy Days

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